Sutliff – Kasimir

First and foremost, what does the term “Kasimir” refer to?

According to the Sutliff description, Kasimir was the name given to a vast amount of Polish kings and military leaders as a sign of their power and authority. This was a term of great honor and elevated the status of the recipient above all others.

Out of curiosity, I decided to do some simple research. What I came across was an Austro-Hungarian Painter named Luigi Kasimir. In short, Luigi K. was the man responsible for creating the technique of color etching.  This allowed artists to manufacture their paintings and create exact duplicates of their originals so that their art might be dispersed through the world.  In many ways, Luigi is responsible for us being able to appreciate the same piece of art all across the world.

The title Kasimir and Luigi Kasimir shed light on the characteristics of this tremendous English.

Kasimir is able to provide power when smoked while retaining its artistically complex blend of tobaccos that bring joy to the palate and allow people of all types to appreciate and taste tobacco.

First Impression

Immediately upon opening the tin I was taken aback at the presence of the Latakia! Based just on the tin note alone, I believed this was going to be a tobacco that overwhelmed me and gave me a very high nicotine buzz.

I have always been a stickler for moisture content in my tobacco. I am very picky. Kasimir had a perfect moisture level. I was not able to feel  any moisture in the tobacco, yet it did not burn hot. That told me I was going to be pleased with the smoke.

Along with the obvious Latakia, there are precise amounts of Orientals, Virginias, and cubed Burley.

Once again, when I realized that Orientals were the second leading tobacco present, I believed this was going to be an incredibly full smoke.

There is a good chance that many readers of this blog will not know what cubed burley is; so allow me to attempt to attempt to explain it: cubed burley is just burley.  What is unique is the shape.  The burley is pressed into a cake where it is then cut three ways, forming small cubes. These cubes are about .5cm x .5cm x .5cm.  This allows the burley to have a strong cooling presence while not taking up a large mass of the blend.

Smoke

The course cut tobacco and perfect moisture level of this blend make it a real pleasure to pack and light (though there were some larger than average stems in my tin).

Kasimir also has a very heavy coating, which, in this case, did not interfere with the flavor.

The flavor profile of the Kasimir is very simple: the taste of Latakia tobacco, spiced up by the Orientals, but softened by the cubed burley. I really noticed the fact that there were no added flavors and that I was allowed to just smoke tobacco.

When I opened the tin, the tin note made me think this blend was going to slap me across the face.  That was not the case.  This is a smoke that is considerate of the sensitive palate. With Kasimir you will be able to get the real, unadulterated taste of Latakia tobacco without the overwhelming and overpowering flavor.

Room Note

This blend, while not overpowering, definitely had the potential to leave a bad and unwanted room note.

However, thanks to the solid casing on the tobacco, the note stayed under control.

But the casing could only do so much. There was still an overwhelming aroma of an old smoke shop. Don’t get me wrong I love the smell of a good smoke shop! But I do not really want that to be the aroma of my home. I just had a hard time finding a place or situation where the Kasimir room note was enjoyable.

Pairing

When I was outlining this blog I was sitting on the patio and was once again smoking meat.

I had a revelation and knew that the perfect pairing for the Kasimir was a sweet and smokey barbecue sauce. But to be even more specific, the slow smoked ribs I was cooking. They became the best pairing dish to accompany this tobacco.

The sweet and juicy meat cut straight through my smoked ridden palate and became incredibly intense. When the sweet flavor receded, the smokey element seemed to complement and parallel the Kasimir.  I was incredibly pleased with my last minute discovery.

Strength

As I mentioned above, I expected this blend to be incredibly strong.

The strength of the aroma fooled me.

Kasimir is a solid medium blend.

Overall Score

This all being said, there are some things I was not overly excited to experience:

While the flavor profile was simple and pure, I felt that it lacked depth and diversity. The room not was unpleasant. And finally, I knew this was not my favorite tobacco because I had to force myself to continue smoking the blend instead of switching to another.

I give Kasimir a 5 out of 10.

I recognize Kasimir for what it is: a really complex blend that has a simply straight flavor. I appreciate this about the blend. This blend is perfect for people who want to taste Latakia, but do not want to be overwhelmed.

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Tobacco provided by Sutliff Tobacco Company for the purpose of an honest review.

Images provided by Sutliff, Pipe Smokers Forum, and M Kid.

 

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