As the blend is all burley, can I expect a generic burley taste, more or less; or does the nicotine whallop come from some exotic burleys, with atypical taste(s).

Five Brothers is no MB London Blend. It tastes like a dry GH Dark Flake to me. And it packs a whallop!

Buddy

NO, it is a most unique blend in it's own right. It has a casing that is unlike any other burley. I does pack a huge "n" hit and it is a dry riff cut that burns fast. It also makes a great mixer.

I suspect FB may get its extra nic-kick similarly to GH Dark Birdseye: that it includes leaf ribs that up the ante. As for flavor, it definitely has a dark-fired edge to it, and the flavor is much simpler and coarser than CH or PA.

It does burn fast unless judiciously sipped.

I'm thinking of doing an experiment to form it into a kind of pseudo-rope or plug to change the burn characteristics. If I get around to it, I'll report back on the results.

FB in a rope would really intrige me, please let me know if you do this and how it comes out. I smoke a lot of it and am a fan.

I've smoked 3 or 4 ODA bowls packed tightly of 5 Bros, and they were enjoyable, if not that flavorful. 5 Bros reminds me of RYO tobacco, but it probably is used to spike lesser nicotine leaf; I can't imagine there are folks with leather lungs who could inhale this very potent leaf straight.

I did a mixture of 4:1/Cumberland:5 Bros, and although the kick was present, I missed the fuller taste of straight Cumberland; however I am going to try this mixture again.

Here's how I tame ol' Five Brothers or Gator Burley, as we call it. After trial and error I take a pouch of FB, mix it with 6 oz. Carter Hall, put it in a ziplock and press it in my vice grip for 1 week, jar it for about a month or longer and fire up a bowl! Now, the nic-bomb is still there, but it's a lot more subtle than FB straight and the CH adds a nuttier flavor. Pair it with some good ol' Bourbon and you'll be smiling the rest of the day.

5Bros has the very distinct aroma and taste of fire-cured burley, a slight cigar tone much like a good Connecticut wrapper. While I prefer to mix it with what little ERRd I have on hand, generally 1:1 by weight not volume, I find it best smoked straight in either a cob or in a clay. I have smoked 5Bros in the average KW bowl which is also pleasant. Nothing for me greater than a grp3 bowl. I seem to be losing the N tolerance wars, as I age. Actually, 3 or more succesive bowls of 5Bros will slow me down considerably. For a comparison, the 20YO fire-cured burley C&D uses in some its blends and in GLP's Robusto bears a close, though more sophisticated, taste to 5Bros. Kendall KY string cut also bears a close resemblance, though I prefer 5Bros.

BURLEY WITH A WHALLOP? Oxymoron, hahahha.