BCA

[Vrbas]

BCA is a pure, black cavendish aromatic (B.C.A) from the popular Lane Limited. The moisture level is quite wet right out of the pouch so for those of you who don't like moist tobacco, drying is imperative. I personally will smoke this straight out of the tin, as wet as it comes but I'll probably dry it out a few times just to see if there's a difference. Tin aroma, to me, is that off a mix of coffee and syrup. That might not sound appealing to you at all but that's all I can say it relates to, if even the slightest bit. Regardless, it has a delightful smell and i'm sure you could come up w/ your own opinion if you were to get your hands on some. Filling was very simple and easy, again a little bit wet and the slightest bit sticky if you don't dry it out. I usually char this boy twice as I smoke it quite wet and need that bed of ash as insulation and to make myself feel better. Once lit for good, will stay lit if paid attention to. It has a very full, sweet, and almost dark taste to it in my opinion. As with many blends i review, i can't exactly pin point the "taste like ____" statement, all I know is that it is good. It somewhat represents the coffee/syrup taste that I smell, but if you don't like either of those don't let my false attributions scare you off, you really need to try it for yourself. It's wet and will leave dottle, especially if huffed and puffed, so take your time (this is a heavy aromatic IMO). Haven't seen any hint of bite.

Something to note: When I was starting off as a pipe smoker, I really couldn't distinguish between all the different blends as far as their taste goes. For all I knew at the time, Evening Stroll (aromatic) tasted like Stonehaven (Virginian) --- though of course it might not have been that extreme but you get my point. Plainly put, they all tasted the same to me if not for the SLIGHTEST bit of differences that weren't worth distinguishing. BCA stood out to me for some reason. It HAS a taste (still trying to figure out what exactly it is). So do yourself a favor and go pick some of this stuff up as it is inexpensive and, as of right now, the most enjoyable aromatic i've smoked.

[tzilt]

Nice review. And I know exactly what you mean about tobaccos all tasting the same. Its only relatively recently that I started being able to really distinguish flavors. Reading some of the reviews on tobaccoreviews.com I can tell that I still have a very crude palette when it comes to tasting tobacco though.

One question: When you say syrup, do you mean like maple syrup?

[NCRadioMan]

We use bca for alot of custom blends at the shop. BCA actually has a touch of vanilla flavoring in it.

[Vrbas]

Originally Posted by tzilt

One question: When you say syrup, do you mean like maple syrup?

Yeah, a molasses flavor/hint to it. As pointed out by my father and now that he mentioned it, helped me come to the same conclusion (i just couldn't quite figure it out 'till he mentioned it).

[Hydrated]

In my opinion, BCA is one of the best underrated tobaccos out there. Period.

It's one of those tobaccos that is so common that experienced smokers shun it because it's plentiful and CHEAP. But more importantly, it's cheap and good. Yeah... it's not a complex smoke. But every smoke doesn't have to be a life changing earthquake of goodness. Sometimes a simple tasty vanilla laced tobacco is good too.

Plus:
It burns easily. It tastes good (if you like aromatics). Man.... BCA gives you mouthfuls of creamy smoke that you could almost cut with a butter knife. And it refuses to bite.

And it costs what? Like 89 cents for a ten pound bag?

I think that before you're allowed to buy your first briar pipe, you ought to be required to earn your pipe license by smoking up two ounces of BCA through a simple cob pipe. Then people would realize that a good smoke doesn't have to cost a fortune.

[Vrbas]

^^^ Bullseye.

I stated in another thread, Lane just doesn't make that good of tobaccos in general (TO ME at least). But then I came across BCA because a local shop said it was their top seller and it just looked freakin' legit as a jet black scruff of leaf. That was a few years ago and I don't really remember anything about it because I really didn't smoke at all, just tried it. Then I came back to it and was like "Holy smokes! This stuff is great!"

You're right, it produces so much smoke and I can smoke it sopping wet (exaggeration) right out of the bag and it stays lit extremely well. It snap, crackles, and pops like Rice Crispies but it's so much fun to smoke. Though the only thing I have as far as complaints go for this blend is the dottle it leaves. But hey, it's completely worth it.

[Hydrated]

Originally Posted by Vrbas

... I came back to it and was like "Holy smokes! This stuff is great!"

I've heard that if you offer him an ounce of BCA... Vrbas will run down Main Street in his boxers screaming "Go DAWGS!"

Not that I'd spread rumors. It's just what I've heard...

[bigkev77]

I first bought this to blend with PA just to try something different and it was pretty good. I figured it would be a goopy mess so I never tried it on it's own. Once I did I was in love with it. It can smoke a little wet and I don't store it in an airtight container so I won't have to spend the time drying. Best aromatic out there for me. I now smoke about 2oz a week. No searching for the flavor like 1Q. Full molasses/vanilla taste and giant clouds of croud pleasing smoke. Nice review Vrbas! Great tobacco!

[bigkev77]

Originally Posted by bigkev77

I first bought this to blend with PA just to try something different and it was pretty good. I figured it would be a goopy mess so I never tried it on it's own. Once I did I was in love with it. It can smoke a little wet and I don't store it in an airtight container so I won't have to spend the time drying. Best aromatic out there for me. I now smoke about 2oz a week. No searching for the flavor like 1Q. Full molasses/vanilla taste and giant clouds of croud pleasing smoke. Nice review Vrbas! Great tobacco!

Update: Tired of this one after a couple of months. The more I smoked it the more chemical taste I began to pick up on. I still enjoy it from time to time though. My aromatic fix now comes from H&H Classic Burley Kake.

[dj1340]

Originally Posted by bigkev77

Update: Tired of this one after a couple of months. The more I smoked it the more chemical taste I began to pick up on. I still enjoy it from time to time though. My aromatic fix now comes from H&H Classic Burley Kake.

I'm with you on that! A very pleasant smoke. the Anni kake is good as well