Sobranie

For other uses, see Sobranie (disambiguation).

Sobranie Cocktail cigarettes

The Sobranie (Russian: Собрание, "Gathering", "Collection", "Assembly") cigarette brand is one of the oldest tobacco brands in the world. Sobranie of London was established in 1879 by the Redstone family, when cigarettes had just become fashionable in Europe. Several generations of the Redstone family blended this tobacco from a secret formula.The original cigarettes were handmade in the Russian tradition. Sobranie was the supplier of royal courts of Great Britain, Spain, Romania, and Greece. In the early 1980's, the trademarks for Sobranie were sold to Gallaher Group, one of the English conglomerates, which continues to produce it, albeit with a modified formula, at various places in Europe. Gallaher was subsequently purchased by Japan Tobacco.

Premium varieties include the evening-out styles Sobranie Cocktail and Sobranie Black Russian, which are produced in Ukraine and as of 2005 in Russia itself. Sobranie produces several styles geared specifically for ladies, some slimmer than standard cigarettes and others brightly colored.

• Cocktails are five separate bright pastel shades with a gold foil filter, and are the same ring gauge as standard cigarettes, unlike Nat Sherman's Fantasias, which are slimmer and use deeper, primary colors.
• Black Russians are black with a gold foil non filter end. While both Cocktail and Black Russian variants are emblazoned with the Russian imperial eagle and use blends suited to Russian tastes, this is a different blend than Cocktails.

Sobranie is one of the most expensive cigarette brands in Russia, and is considered to be a brand comparable to Dunhill cigarettes.^{[citation needed]}

Varieties

Sobranie Black Russian cigarettes

• Sobranie Classic cigarettes (Tar - 14 mg; Nicotine - 1 mg)
• Sobranie Classic Lights (Tar - 10 mg; Nicotine - 0.8 mg)
• Sobranie Black Russians (Tar - 9 mg; Nicotine - 0.8 mg)
• Sobranie White Russians (Tar - 8 mg; Nicotine - 0.8 mg)
• Sobranie Cocktails (Tar - 7 mg; Nicotine - 0.7 mg)
• Sobranie Blues (Tar - 5 mg; Nicotine - 0.5 mg)
• Sobranie Mints (Tar - 5 mg; Nicotine - 0.5 mg)
• Sobranie Pinks (Tar - 5 mg; Nicotine - 0.5 mg)
• Sobranie Whites (Tar - 1 mg; Nicotine - 0.1 mg)
• Sobranie Yellow (citrus menthol) (Tar - 5 mg; Nicotine - 0.5 mg; Carbon Monoxide 5 mg) – sold in China with English and Chinese text on packet, displaying a health warning on the lower region of the packet. The front warning is in Chinese; the reverse is in English. This variety has a yellow stub and distinctive lemon aroma and notes "China Duty Not Paid", suggesting it is sold in Chinese airports.^{[citation needed]}

In popular culture

Anne Rice's title character from Belinda smokes Sobranies and other exotic cigarettes throughout the book of the same name.

In the 1999 Janet Fitch novel White Oleander, Sobranie cigarettes were a characterizing feature of foster mother and Russian immigrant, Rena Grushenka.

In the 2009 movie An Education, Carey Mulligan's character (Jenny Mellor) is shown sharing a package of Sobranies with her classmates.

In "Tintin in Land of Black Gold", Emir Ben Kalish Ezab curses Abdullah for switching his Sobranies with exploding cigarettes.

In David Stone's espioniage thriller The Echelon Vendetta, the main character Micah Dalton takes to smoking Sobranie Cocktails after finding them on his dead friend.

See also

• Fashion brands
• Smoking culture