State Express London Mixture

State Express London Mixture is a latakia blend developed in the mid-1960s by the London-based Ardath Tobacco Company, prepared mainly with the American market in mind. Records indicate it launched around 1967, first sold in 2-ounce tins and, after 1972-73, in 50-gram rectangular tins. The tin lid carried a stylized map of Anatolia and its surroundings along with the names of raw material sources such as Samsun, Izmir, Xanthi, Kavala, and Syrian latakia. Production ended between the late 1980s and early 1990s, and the American trademark registration lapsed in 1992. The composition is roughly one-third bright Virginia, one-quarter oriental (Samsun, Izmir, Xanthi, Kavala), and the remainder Syrian latakia; the cut is ribbon. The smoke opens with a dry, black-tea-reminiscent start, settling onto Virginia's dark-fruit sweetness and the orientals' spice. Rather than building a dominant wall of smoke, the Syrian latakia here stays a background layer of wood smoke; in this respect the blend differs from Cyprus-latakia-forward English mixtures. Nicotine is medium.