Taroko Shop is a Taiwan-based online stationery shop. They specialize in Tomoe River paper products and also Traveler’s Notebook accessories. Taroko Shop’s Tomoe River notebooks are well-known in the fountain pen community especially since they have been around since 2014.

One of Taroko Shop’s current offerings is the Enigma A5 Tomoe River Notebook – a great notebook overall but this review will focus specifically on the B Grade stock of the Enigma Notebook.

Read: Tomoe River Notebooks to try in 2020

What is B Grade?

Due to process variations, some of the Engima A5 notebooks are classified as B grades due to various cosmetic issues, such as dented covers or corners, spine glue alignments, etc. None of these issues affect the writing performance nor the strong binding of these notebooks.

Taroko Shop

The B Grade Enigma that I received only had minor defects and a few cosmetic issues. None of the so-called defects have any effect on the overall writing experience. The first thing that I noticed was that the cover creases easily when it’s being opened. There were also a few pages that were glued together at the edges but you can easily split them apart without damaging the pages.

Notebook Specifications

• Standard A5 14.8cm x 21cm (approximately 5.83in x 8.27in). Thickness 1.8cm.
• 384-pages
• White Tomoe River paper
• 68gsm
• 5mm dot grid

Quick Look

The Enigma Notebook comes with a black cardboard protective sleeve. The sleeve comes in handy when you intend to carry the softcover notebook around in your bag. It’s lightweight but keep in mind that this sleeve is susceptible to damage.

The first and last page of the notebook is a thick cardstock that adds a layer of protection for the thin Tomoe River papers. These are also the only pages that are not Tomoe River paper.

The Enigma starts off with a page of Tomoe River paper with a template for you to fill out with your name and contact information. It also includes an extra label to mark when you have started and finished the notebook.

The notebook has rounded edges and has a 5mm dot grid ruling. The dots on the Enigma are small and light compared to the ones of the Rhodia and the Leuchtturm. The dots can be a bit too light and sometimes aren’t too visible when you look at it from afar.

“Sewn bound journal reinforced with glue at the spine” – this method of binding makes it easier for the notebook to lay flat on any page.

Paper Quality

Tomoe River paper is well-known for its high quality and fountain pen friendliness. However, there are some who prefer other fountain pen friendly paper over the Tomoe River – not because of terrible quality but the ink usually takes longer to dry.

The Taroko Enigma uses the 68 gsm variant of the Tomoe River paper. Neither variant is superior than the other. The 68 gsm is obviously thicker and therefore will have less show-through compared to the 52gsm. One thing that I have noticed with the 68 gsm is that the Sharpie didn’t bleed through the next page.

Currently Inked: For Fountain Pen Geeks

One of the things that fountain pen lovers enjoy about the hobby is the wide selection of inks. We love trying new inks – even more so with the availability of ink samples!

Taroko’s Enigma notebook has a dedicated spot for ink sampling and documentation! At the back of the notebook, you will find 8 pages for ink testing with a template for documenting or tracking your inks. Here, you can write down details of your ink sampling – the swab, the name of the ink, the pen you used, and the nib size. No need to create a separate collection page just for your currently inked pens!

Great for Bullet Journaling (amongst other things)

Taroko Design advertises this as a great Bullet Journal notebook. It is – for the most part, especially for Bullet Journalists who use fountain pens.

It has a dedicated Index

One of the key aspects of the Bullet Journal Method is the Index, which is basically a table of contents. The Enigma has 4 pages dedicated for the Index page, which is more than enough for at most a year of planning in your Bullet Journal. The Index pages are also made out of Tomoe River paper so you don’t need to worry about using fountain pens in the index as well.

Note: The Enigma does not have numbered pages.

Dot grid ruling

Dot grid notebooks are extremely popular among Bullet Journal Method practitioners. Aside from the fact that the creator of the BuJo used dot grid journals, dot grids are truly excellent for customization.

The Enigma has 5mm dot grid ruling with thin and light gray dots.

Dynamic annual calendar

Some B Grade Enigma notebooks are sold because they were editions from the previous year, which you will find at the back of the notebook. While there are 2-year calendars printed, Taroko Shop also included a blank monthly/yearly overview page for you to fill out. There are no dates written on this page except the week number (per month).

This page can be used for future logging or maybe writing down important events and memories each month.

B Grade or nah?

The B Grade version is priced at $22 while the standard version is $30. The only thing that sets them apart is the annual calendar (from the previous year), minor cosmetic imperfections, and possibly some dents. The binding is intact and the paper quality is still the same.

If you just want to get your hands on a reliable Tomoe River paper, you might as well just go for the B Grade stocks. While the price isn’t far off from the brand new stock, you will still be saving a few bucks. The B Grade stocks won’t last for long too, as the blank Bb Grade Enigmas are already sold out! If you aren’t too particular with how it looks, then you should opt to get the B Grade Enigma notebooks while stocks are still available.