If you had to choose 5 GL Pease blends...

Brothers of Briar

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Now, if anyone has any suggestions on how to sneak this into the budget without the wife finding out... :p
 
GL Pease is batting in the .800's for me or better. I've tried many, but not all. With the exception of Fillmore, which I found too overpowering, and Robusto, which I found to be a plain cigar blend and mostly uninspiring, all of Pease's blends kick serious ass. Carefully constructed by a man with an extremely sensitive palate.

Here are five of his blends that are to my liking. Call it an "Idiots guide to GL Pease". Keep in mind, the more age, the better with his blends, too.

Samarra, my favorite, is a perfectly blended, lemony bright Balkan that has enough ooomph to keep a man's palate warm and electrified. The complexities in it are as good as it gets for a pipe blend. I love it and I think it's his best blend, for my tastes. With five years or more, the harshness wears off and it becomes smooth and magical.

Picadilly: my guess is that its his version of Early Morning Pipe with a bit more strength. It's still light but is also, like EMP, laden with orientals that make it a dancing taste that goes on and on. It is good in the morning with coffee.

Blackpoint: I've read this was his attempt to emulate the Balkan Sobraine 759 as it would be if it was a fresh tin. It's great. The problem is that with five to ten years of age, it's better. Unbelieveable, actually. It is smooth as a baby's bottom and still full as all get out. If you like the fuller blends (Balkans), this is for you.

Embarcadero: Seems like one either loves it or hates it. It is a nice virginia/izmir blend that falls on the milder side of the Pease spectrum. There is a pandora's box of twists and turns that has to be experienced and can't be described completely in words. You "get it" or you don't. Simple. Maybe it's not for you. I like it.

Haddo's Delight: this is one for the more adventurous palate. I like it. With youth, it is strong in perique and I personally can't get into it. But again, after five years it unlocks in potential. Then the perique bring the sour notes and the strength, the cavendish brings a unique flavor that is borderline aromatic but has no additional flavors and virginias bring the sweetness. It is 100% different than anything else. Nothing compares.

My suggestion would be to scour the Pipestud.com gallery for a Pease tin. Any with five years or more is going to be worth the effort. I just don't like the younger stuff near as much. Hope this helps.
 
Unlike most of the consensus here I am not a fan of GLP blends. But there are two that I enjoy smoking, Barbary Coast and Sextant.
I do however really appreciate his knowledge and marketing expertise.
 
This thread caused me to look over the GLP line and made me realize that I have not tried any of his latest half dozen or so blends. Never tried JKP or anything he made after that.

That just ain't right :evil:  Maybe it's time for a little TAD after all.
 
1,Haddo's
2,Triple Play
3,Key Largo
4,JKP
5,Cairo

Honorable mention, Many!
 
Notice how many times Embarcadero is showing up 8) 

And Union Square :heart:  

:face:
 
Yeah, US is pretty much a given at this point. I NEED to try 'Barc again because I don't think it got a fair shot.

I've decided what probably makes more sense is to go through and try the 2oz tins of pretty much all the lineup, starting with the "staples" like Haddo's and JKP. This of course could take quite a while given my pace of smoking a tin, but, it'll at least give me a better sense of what I'll like. Unfortunately, everyone says it's best to try Pease with age on it, so maybe not the perfectest sample of each if I got a fresh tin. Right now, I only have a 2oz aged tin of Odyssey and Caravan, though I could open Montgomery and jar the rest.

I took a look at pipestud and it seems like he's on vacation til next week, though I did find other things I'd love to try. :twisted: 

In the meantime, I'm wondering if anyone would like to help me assemble a "best of" small sampler? I'll post it over @ the trading post, perhaps.
 
Seems that I won a bid on some aged Haddo's tins, so that takes car of that. Only 19 more blends to go.
 
Tried 'Barc again last night in my Savinelli billiard (I guess, technically it's probably a Liverpool?) and had the "AHA" moment. I will be purchasing at least one 8oz tin for sure. :cheers:

I also loaded a bowl of Cumberland to start for DGT in my Moretti magnum Rhodesian and first light was "WOW". I haven't had many of those moments yet that I recall, but almost didn't want to wait to smoke it! Really looking forward to finishing it up! :cheers: :cheers: :cheers:

I look forward to cracking open the Haddo's too. I got one tin from '06, the rest from '07. Maybe that's a good candidate for one of my recent Savinelli wins on ebay?
 
I have been smoking latakia and 759 since 68. then it went under. Abingdon is my #1 blend and have 4 lbs. on hand. I like Blue Mountain - McClellenad's and have 2 lbs of odyssey - but initally it wa a great blend but too light for me re: latakia - I am still trying it out. so - abingdon #1 and Odyssey#1 - and that may be across all blenders too! Greg makes some incredibel stuff and they all taste great in all of my beautiful pipes! Briar and Meerschaum!
 
mejoshee":mc2vliqa said:
Tried 'Barc again last night in my Savinelli billiard (I guess, technically it's probably a Liverpool?) and had the "AHA" moment. I will be purchasing at least one 8oz tin for sure. :cheers:

I also loaded a bowl of Cumberland to start for DGT in my Moretti magnum Rhodesian and first light was "WOW". I haven't had many of those moments yet that I recall, but almost didn't want to wait to smoke it! Really looking forward to finishing it up! :cheers: :cheers: :cheers:

I look forward to cracking open the Haddo's too. I got one tin from '06, the rest from '07. Maybe that's a good candidate for one of my recent Savinelli wins on ebay?
Click to expand...
Age does wonders for both Cumberland and Haddo's. Looks like the ones you got are well into the zone.


:king: 


Cheers,

RR
 
Well. There's MY top 5, then the top 5 I'd recommend based on your criteria...
I'd say you'd LOVE Triple Play, JackKnife Plug. Also Ashbury and Piccadilly.

If you like Westminster but would want to go a little lighter in weight, I'd say you MUST try Meridian. Both being oriental-forward Lat mixes. But, perhaps even better is Chelsea Morning. CM is balance itself. It has all they leaves, and none steal the show. Harmonious.

That said, the VA lover who wants to have Latakia should go...Lombard, Piccadilly, Abingdon, Lagonda. Those lay on the lat without getting much oriental in the mix. I think a LOT of people think they don't like Latakia when they really don't like oriental-forward Latakia mixes. Sorry..I'm getting off topic...

For the oriental/lat fan, the GLP top 5
JackKnife Plug
Sextant
Chelsea Morning
Meridian
Quiet Nights

For the Va/per person who likes lat
Triple Play
Piccadilly
Navigator
Key largo
Lagonda

For the high-Lat end litmus test, I always recommend Westminster vs Abingdon. They're both big Lat players, but Westy is an oriental feast and Abingdon isn't.


I
 
Too darn expensive here in the UK (over $25 for just 2oz, pfffft, forget that) but if money weren't a concern then.........

Jack Knife Plug
Triple Play
Fillmore
Cumberland

ummmmmm, and some more Jack Knife Plug
 
1. None
2. None
3. None
4. None
5. None
 
These are the only ones I've tried and I like all of them:
Haddo's
Cairo
Fillmore
Embarcadero
JKP
 
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