Djarum
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Djarum is a popular brand of kreteks (cigarettes with clove) manufactured in Indonesia and owned by the PT Djarum company. The clove ingredient provides eugenol to the mouth, throat, and lungs. It acts as a local anesthetic and produces a tingling sensation. Some claim eugenol also produces a mild euphoric "high", though hard evidence on this effect is inconclusive.
Djarum is the third-largest kretek manufacturer behind Gudang Garam and Sampoerna in Indonesia. Djarum has also been successful in some countries outside Indonesia. In particular, the company has opened a factory in Brazil, where there is significant demand for kreteks. It also has 70% of the US kretek market.
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[edit] Black
The most popular subbrand of Djarum cigarettes (internationally at least), Djarum Black, is sold in black packaging. Each cigarette is rolled in black paper. They are sold in flat, skinny packs of twenty cigarettes, rows of ten across and two deep (as are nearly all other internationally sold Djarum products). The package bears an embossed Djarum gramaphone stylus logo, and a stylized red "A" in the word "Black". Blacks are a medium potency cigarette, comparable with "Medium" flavor cigarettes of many other common brands like Marlboro, though their tastes are dissimilar, attributable to the Asian "Srintil" versus American tobacco and the addition of cloves. By weight, cloves make up about 40% of the cigarette, the remaining 60% being tobacco. The filter of Blacks are coated in a spiced "sauce", flavored with spices native to the region; mainly the taste is of clove, cardamom, and cinnamon; the "sauce" is also rather sweet. Blacks are packed much tighter than most American brands of cigarettes, and tend to be hard to draw from for the first few drags. They also have a tendency to go out if not drawn from regularly, an effect that is exaggerated if the user packs the cigarettes prior to use. An additional effect of tight packing is the propensity for Blacks to burn 1/4-1/3 longer than more common brands, though this is of course dependent on the individual smoker as well.
Djarum Blacks can be purchased online and shipped directly from Indonesia, cased in packs of 12 or 16 as opposed to the traditional European standard of 20 cigarettes per pack. These Blacks are manufactured in Indonesia with a fatter, looser wrapping and milder taste than the more popular 20 cigarette International packs, which are manufactured outside of Indonesia, sold throughout America and West Europe.
[edit] Special
Sold in white and maroon packs, Djarum Special or "Reds", so called in the US for the cigarette's distinctive maroon paper, is another kretek brand produced by Djarum. They are equivalent to medium strength filtered cigarettes with the obvious exception of containing cloves. They differ greatly from Blacks, being much sweeter and containing less clove. Additionally, Specials tend to be lighter and produce smoke that is not nearly as thick as Blacks. The flavouring sauce put on the filter portion of the cigarettes is notably sweeter, but lacks some of the complexity of flavor in Djarum's other brands. It is overall a much more traditional cigarette, the flavor of tobacco outshines the taste of cloves and flavoring sauce.
[edit] Super
Another unique brand of kreteks is distributed under the name of "Djarum Super" within the western market that differs significantly from the Djarum Special. It's the best selling Djarum cigarettes brand in Indonesia. Sold in black and red packages with embossed yellow text, the imported version of Djarum Super are rolled in what appears to be standard white cigarette paper, however it retains the flavouring sauce used in other brands. The filter is slightly longer and its design is characterized by a cloudy pastel yellow and grey. These kreteks contain significantly less tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide (levels comparable to regular cigarettes) than the other commercially popular Djarum brands in the west.
[edit] Bali Hai
Bali Hai is one of Djarum's international brands, and are not marketed in Indonesia. They have a slight hint of fruit, and are made from natural Indonesian spices and tobacco for a warm and exotic taste. They are also much lighter than other Djarum brands such as Black or Splash. Djarum states that they were created for those who love nature and adventure.
[edit] Djarum 76
The 76 is one of Djarum's main brands. It is a traditional unfiltered kretek, first launched in 1976 (hence the name). Its main market rival is the unfiltered Sampoerna Hijau.
[edit] Djarum Coklat
Djarum Coklat is the oldest Djarum's main brand. It is a traditional unfiltered kretek, first launched in 1967. This brand can only be found in West Java (Jakarta). Coklat means brown as in color (it does not mean Chocolate). This name came from the Coklat's packaging.
[edit] Others
Djarum also offers a variety of other cigarettes: unfiltered premium-priced Original, Menthol, Lights varieties, and a flavored line of cigarettes in Cherry and Vanilla. Djarum also markets the less available brands, such as Djarum Splash, all of which are kreteks. All of these brands are not marketed in Indonesia.
