Friday, March 27, 2009

G.L. Pease -- Barbary Coast


Brand: G.L. Pease
Blend: Barbary Coast
Style: Burley/Aromatic
Pipe Used: Cob
Price: $8.75/2oz.

Appearance: 9
Taste: 10
Room Note: 7
Value: 9
Overall: 9

I've owned this tin of G.L. Pease Barbary Coast for almost six months but had been reluctant to open it since this blend gets a lot of mixed reviews and even those who love it tend to comment on how difficult it is to smoke. Today I decided to put my fears aside and pulled the tab on that tin. What greeted me was a slightly moist dark, cube-cut Burley mixed with some ribbon-cut Red Virginias. The rich aroma of brandy and dates was delightful as well.

Since I was expecting trouble I decided to try this blend out in one of my trusty old cobs. Taking the advice of the many brave souls who came before me, I gravity fed the pipe with no tamping, skipped the charring light, and set about getting this thing a burnin'.

The soft flame of my Xikar Pipeline just wasn't up to the task so I switched to my Zippo with a single flame butane insert and tried to get some combustion. Even with that heat of the sun lighter it was still difficult to get the tobacco going. Boy am I glad I went with a cob on this as I don't want to think about what all that flame-throwing would have done to a briar pipe.

Once I got the Barbary Coast burning I was greeted with the rich, nutty taste of a fine Burley mingled with the sweetness of the Virginia leaf. The advertised Perique was noticeable in a tip of the tongue tingle which added a bit of zest to the blend. This is first and foremost a Burley blend with the other components adding some nice ancillary taste.

While the brandy is very noticeable in the tin aroma and room note I only caught glancing hints of it on the occasional exhale. It does, however, act to take the edge off the otherwise harsh Burley room note.

As expected, this was a very high maintenance tobacco. If I set the pipe down for even a moment it went out and required some serious puffing and torching to get going again. This of course led to a hot smoke and a hot cob but, oddly enough, no tongue bite. It also provided for a very dry smoke.

So then why should one bother with Barbary Coast if it's so difficult to smoke? In a word, bliss. Every now and then you're lucky enough to come across a tobacco blend that really puts you in the pipe smoking zone. For me, G.L. Pease's Barbary Coast does the trick. I found it to be a sublime, transcendent smoke that takes the best characteristics of Burley, straight Virginia, and even aromatic blends and marries them into a deceptively simple smoke that kept me fully interested and with a grin on my face from beginning to end.

I flat out love the taste of this tobacco and even if I never find a way to make it smoke easily I'm more than willing to put up with its idiosyncrasies in order to enjoy all that it has to offer. But until such a time as I can tame this beast, Barbary Coast will remain a cob-only blend.

Thursday, March 19, 2009

A Perfect Afternoon

I'm usually a one-a-day pipe guy but with the start of the NCAA Tournament today I found myself watching the TV and the live feed on the computer simultaneously and enjoying pipe after pipe after pipe. Butternut Burley flowed into Full Virginia Flake followed by Squadron Leader and topped off with a relaxing bowl of Westminster. What bliss! Plus, my Michigan Wolverines won their first round game which is realistically all I was hoping for.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Peterson -- Sherlock Holmes


Brand: Peterson
Blend: Sherlock Holmes
Style: Virginia/Oriental
Pipe Used: Trypis Rusticated Dublin
Price: Gift

Appearance: 7
Taste: 7
Room Note: 7
Value: 7
Overall: 7

Since it's St. Patrick's Day I decided to get my Irish on with some appropriate pipe tobacco. I settled on Peterson's Sherlock Holmes which is billed as being made from an Irish recipe dating back to 1880 and is produced by the venerable Dublin company.

The marketing blurb for this blend says that it's a straight Virginia but the tin itself states that it includes some Burley as well. The tobacco is drawn from a variety of orange and red Virginias and includes some Mysore and Brazilian leaf.

Upon opening the tin I was greeted with a blond colored ribbon-cut tobacco of uniform size and the aroma was that of fresh-cut hay and a dash of citrus and lavender. The tobacco was also bone dry.

I loaded up my Trypis Rusticated Dublin (as close to an Irish pipe as I own) and proceeded with my charring light. The tobacco lit right up and started giving off a lot of smoke which is indicative of a very dry blend.

The initial flavor was typical of a light Virginia with that classic hay-like sweetness. Slowly sipping on the pipe kept thing firmly planted in that Virginia realm and I soon found myself becoming rather bored with the blend.

But after I started smoking a bit harder some more complex flavors became apparent. The citrus and lavender that I smelled out of tin started to emerge and the blend took on a taste very reminiscent of Earl Grey tea with its bergamot undertones. Unfortunately the harder smoking also led to some unpleasant tongue bite.

The room aroma was fairly mild for the most part but any furious puffing soon resulted in a harsh edge to the smoke that was off-putting.

The pipe stayed lit from beginning to end but the bowl did get a bit hot and the tobacco burned out rather quickly. This pipe typically makes for a 45 minute smoke but in this case I was down to the ashes in 20 minutes.

I still don't know how to classify this blend. For the most part it's a straight Virginia and I never noticed any of the advertised Burley but the bergamot and lavender aroma and taste put me in mind of a classic Oriental leaf. There don't seem to be any added toppings that would otherwise be responsible for that flavor profile.

Peterson's Sherlock Holmes is seemingly two tobaccos in one. Slow sippers will be greeted with a mild-mannered Virgina while fast puffers will be rewarded with a fine Oriental-style blend. Unfortunately the smoking technique needed to access the full flavor also leads to a hot pipe, some serious biting, and a fast and furious smoke. Whereas most tobaccos require a bit of drying before smoking this one seems to require a bit of hydrating if you happen upon a tin as dry as mine.

Friday, March 6, 2009

John Middleton -- Prince Albert


Brand: John Middleton
Blend: Prince Albert
Style: Burley
Pipe Used: Dominique Signature (Jeantet) Dublin
Price: $2.50/1.5oz.

Appearance: 7
Taste: 7
Room Note: 8
Value: 10
Overall: 8

"Do you have Prince Albert in a can?"
"Yes."
"Then you better let him out!"
(Hilarious squeals of laughter)

I knew of this classic crank telephone call well before I ever tried the tobacco. Heck, I probably even made a few such calls myself during my misspent youth.

Prince Albert is truly one of the classic American pipe tobaccos -- what are now referred to as drugstore or codger blends. It's been around since 1907 and is still going strong some hundred-plus years later.

This is the one and only tobacco that my grandfather smoked and just the faintest whiff of its sweet aroma is enough to send me right down memory lane. For this very reason I long put off trying Prince Albert because I didn't want to alter those memories in any way.

But a few weeks ago I was placing an order and on a whim I threw in a pouch (sadly not a can) of the Prince. It was time to finally break down and give this classic a try.

Advertised as a crimp cut, Prince Albert is a light to medium brown ribbon cut Burley tobacco blend. Right out of the pouch it's dry enough to smoke immediately and gives off a pleasant nutty aroma.

I loaded up an estate Dominique Signature 1/8 bent Dublin (manufactured by Jeantet of France) with the tobacco. I'm trying to break in this pipe after a thorough cleaning and supposedly these classic Burley blends are just the ticket for that task.

The tobacco lit up easily and stayed lit for a good long time requiring a relight only when I left the pipe unattended for five minutes or so. This is definitely a fire and forget it tobacco.

The flavor was about what one would expect from a classic Burley blend -- nutty, mild, and unobtrusive. For an all day smoke this type of consistent, unchallenging flavor is perfect. If it was good enough for granddad then I guess it's good enough for me.

While Prince Albert is billed as a straight Burley blend and there are no heavy casings in evidence there does seem to be a little something in there with added sweetness. It could just be a particular tobacco that they use but I certainly taste and smell something above and beyond any Burley I know.

As for the aroma, Prince Albert gives off that classic pipe smell that's likely to elicit favorable responses from those around you who grew up with pipe smoking grandfathers like I did. If puffed too fast and furiously the smoke can get a little too dense and begin to smell like a foul cigarette but you wouldn't want to abuse your pipes like that anyways.

I tried hard to make this stuff bite but it just refused to lash out and remained mellow from beginning to end. This is one well behaved tobacco.

Prince Albert has long been one of the top pipe tobaccos in this country and with good reason. It's an easy burning, fine tasting, good smelling, and inexpensive blend. I suppose that explains how it's lasted unchanged for over a hundred years.

I enjoy exploring the wide world of tobacco too much to ever chain myself to one exclusive blend but the Prince has found a place in my rotation. This almost unbelievably easy smoke is perfect for when you want to concentrate more on the task at hand than on your pipe. Its mellow flavor also makes it a perfect blend for mixing with other tobacco.

Anyone who enjoys a relaxing smoke should give Prince Albert a fair shake. Just because it's been around forever and can be purchased over the counter at your local drugstore doesn't mean that it hasn't rightfully earned its place in the pantheon of great pipe tobaccos.

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Ashton -- Guilty Pleasure


Brand: Ashton
Blend: Guilty Pleasure
Style: Aromatic
Pipe Used: Savinelli Natural
Price: Gift

Appearance: 8
Taste: 5
Room Note: 9
Value: 8
Overall: 7

I received a tin of Ashton Guilty Pleasure when I bought a couple of pipes recently and figured that I should give the stuff a try. Upon opening the tin you see a typical ribbon-cut Cavendish which in my case was also bone dry. The tin aroma is very sweet and cloying which didn't bode well for the taste of the tobacco.

I loaded up my Savinelli Natural #313 and gave it a quick charring light. The first few puffs were very harsh probably due to the dry nature of the tobacco. Usually I'm good to go after that but this stuff just refused to stay lit and required relighting after every few puffs. Since the tobacco was so dry there was no goop or gurgle to deal with.

The taste was fairly mild when smoked slowly but any quick puffing resulted in tongue bite and a harsh cigarette sort of flavor. There were some nice hints of berries and the blend wasn't nearly as sweet as the tin aroma led me to fear. But the tobacco never really progressed from there and remained a mild, barely interesting smoke.

The room aroma was excellent however and I would easily rate it among my favorites in that category. While the berry flavors were quite mild the aroma was jam-packed with the smell of a fresh baked blackberry pie. I only wish it tasted half as good as it smelled.

Ashton Guilty Pleasure is a nice smelling but thoroughly bland tobacco and there are much better aromatics out there to put up with this very high maintenance blend.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Xikar Pipeline



I've long been intrigued by the classic Corona Old Boy pipe lighters but wasn't quite ready to plunk down that much cash when I stumbled on the knock-off Xikar Pipeline at Lil' Brown Smoke Shack for only $34. At that price I figured it was worth taking a shot to see if I even like this style of lighter.

I've used Xikar cigar lighters and cutters in the past and have been pleased with their quality so I was pretty certain that the Pipeline wouldn't disappoint. The lighter doesn't come with a case but when you register on the Xikar website they send you a free leather slipcase.

As you can see in the pictures the Pipeline is styled pretty much the same as the Old Boy and also includes a hide-away pipe tamper. The shiny surface is a real fingerprint magnet but it cleans up easily enough.

To try it out I filled the lighter with some triple-filtered butane. It took a few flicks of the flint to light it the first time out but since then it usually lights on the first strike. The flame level is fully adjustable and the directional flame makes it easy to reach the bottom of the pipe bowl without singeing the sides.

I like the classic look of the Pipeline as it has a real Art Deco vibe and the act of lighting it up is pretty classy. It doesn't do well in a breeze and even the slightest exhalation while lighting can snuff it out so this is definitely an indoor only lighter.

The Xikar Pipeline is a fine pipe lighter but I can't see it becoming my one and only lighting solution due to the few shortcomings inherent in a candle style flame. But it sure does look nice and at the price I paid I'm more than happy with my purchase.