American Spirit cigarettes are known for their natural, additive-free tobacco blend. The yellow pack specifically contains American Spirit’s mellowest blend, featuring a light and smooth flavor profile. In this article, we’ll take a close look at the characteristics and flavor notes of the yellow American Spirits.
An Overview of American Spirit Cigarettes
American Spirit cigarettes are manufactured by Santa Fe Natural Tobacco Company, which is a subsidiary of Reynolds American. They first hit the market in 1982 and were unique at the time for containing 100% additive-free, natural tobacco. While most cigarette brands contain a processed blend of tobaccos and chemical additives, American Spirit offers an alternative made with organic tobacco grown without pesticides.
American Spirit comes in several different colored packs, each containing a different blend and flavor profile. The varieties include:
- Yellow – Smooth and mellow
- Orange – Rich and full-bodied
- Green – Bold and menthol
- Black – Full-flavored and robust
- Blue – Mild and sweet
- Red – Medium-bodied and original blend
The yellow American Spirits are part of the brand’s “mellow” line, marketed as having a lighter taste than the other options. Now let’s explore specifically what gives the yellows their smooth character.
Flavor Profile of Yellow American Spirits
There are a few key reasons why yellow American Spirits have their distinctive mellow and mild taste:
- Virginia tobacco – The blend contains a high amount of flue-cured Virginia tobacco, which is known for being sweet and smooth.
- Burley tobacco – Some nutty and earthy burley tobacco helps balance out the sweetness.
- Flue curing process – This air-curing method preserves more sugars and creates a mellower smoke.
- No additives – With no chemical additives, the natural tobacco flavors come through.
- Light blend style – Yellows contain a higher ratio of flue-cured tobacco for a lighter body.
Here is a more in-depth look at each aspect of the yellow American Spirit’s flavor profile:
Virginia Tobacco
A major component of the yellow blend is flue-cured Virginia tobacco. Virginia tobacco originates from the Southeastern United States and is prized for its naturally sweet taste. The warm growing conditions allow the leaves to develop high levels of natural sugars. Flue curing, which dries the leaves with indirect heated air, further concentrates the sugars and creates a smooth, mellow flavor.
Burley Tobacco
For an extra flavor dimension, the yellow blend includes some amount of nutty, earthy burley tobacco. Burley is grown throughout the Central U.S. and has lower natural sugar content. It provides a bit of balance to the sweetness of the Virginia tobacco, while adding body and a hint of spice.
Flue Curing Process
As mentioned, flue curing is key to achieving the mellow character of the yellow American Spirits. Compared to sun-curing or fire-curing, flue curing uses lower heat over a longer period. This preserves more of the natural sugars in the tobacco, which translates into sweeter smoke. The sustained indirect air drying also avoids the harshness of direct fire curing.
No Chemical Additives
Most major cigarette companies use various chemical additives and flavorings to enhance the taste. Common additives include sugars, licorice, and cocoa to boost sweetness and fullness. On the other hand, American Spirit cigarettes contain simply 100% tobacco with no artificial flavors. This allows the natural tobacco taste to come through cleanly in the yellow blend.
Light Blend Style
Lastly, the lightness of the yellow American Spirits comes down to the blend style. Compared to other options like the bold black pack, yellows contain a higher percentage of sweet Virginia tobacco. They have less burley tobacco to make the flavor lighter and more smooth. The blend maximizes the mellow characteristics of flue-cured Virginia.
Other Characteristics of Yellow Pack
In addition to the mellow and smooth flavor, yellow American Spirits are known for a few other characteristics:
- Mild strength – The light blend makes them lower in nicotine than other styles.
- Subtle aroma – The tobacco smell is milder compared to bold varieties.
- Slow, even burn – Contains less chemicals for clean, slow combustion.
- No harshness – The smooth finish avoids throat burn and irritation.
Smokers describe the yellow American Spirits as easygoing and pleasant. They offer enough tobacco flavor and body for enjoyment, without being overpowering.
How Mellowness Compares to Other Styles
It’s useful to see how the mellow yellow style stacks up against American Spirit’s other options:
| Pack Color | Strength | Flavor |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow | Mild | Smooth and mellow |
| Orange | Medium | Rich and full |
| Green | Medium-strong | Menthol, bold |
| Black | Full | Robust, full-flavor |
| Blue | Mild | Sweet and light |
| Red | Medium | Balanced, original blend |
As you can see, the yellow and blue American Spirits represent the two lighter options, while orange, black and green are bolder. Red contains the brand’s signature balanced blend.
Conclusion
In conclusion, yellow American Spirit cigarettes have a one-of-a-kind mellow and smooth flavor profile. Contributing factors include the high amount of sweet Virginia tobacco, complementing notes of burley, the flue curing process, additive-free tobacco, and the light blend style. Yellow American Spirits offer a pleasant, mild smoking experience in keeping with the brand’s natural, organic approach to tobacco.
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