G. L. Pease Temple Bar

(3.41)
Rich, ripe red and sweet golden Virginia tobaccos are generously spiced with fine, fragrant Orientals and enhanced with a delicate touch of perique for a bit of added depth and complexity. The leaf is carefully layered and pressed for a fortnight into large cakes, which are then cut into bars and tinned, ready to be sliced and rubbed out as desired for your ultimate smoking pleasure.
Notes: Released 7/12/2016.

Details

Brand G. L. Pease
Series Old London Series
Blended By Gregory Pease
Manufactured By Cornell & Diehl
Blend Type Oriental
Contents Oriental/Turkish, Perique, Virginia
Flavoring
Cut Plug
Packaging 2 ounce tin
Country United States
Production Currently available

Profile

Strength
Medium
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild -> Overwhelming
Flavoring
None Detected
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
None Detected -> Extra Strong
Room Note
Pleasant to Tolerable
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Unnoticeable -> Overwhelming
Taste
Medium
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild (Flat) -> Overwhelming

Average Rating

3.41 / 4
16

13

3

0

Reviews

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Displaying 1 - 10 of 32 Reviews
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jul 11, 2016 Medium None Detected Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
The earthy, woody, bready, tangy, ripe dark fruit sweet red Virginia also has a touch of vinegar, floralness, sugar and spice, and takes a lead over the other components, though not by much. The grassy, tart and tangy citrusy gold Virginia is in a supporting role. They have a light fermented taste, too. The Orientals offer smoke, wood, earth, herbs, floralness, a little sweetness with a hint of sour and spice as they comprise an important part of the mixture. The raisiny, plumy, peppery perique is a very minor player, not always obvious to your taste buds, but you’ll occasionally sense its presence to one extent or another. The nic-hit is close to being medium. The strength is medium, and taste of the blend is just past medium. Won’t bite even when pushed, and has no dull, harsh or weak spots. The plug is mildly moist thick and a bit dense, but is easy to break apart to suit your packing preference. Because the plug is made of whole leaf, expect some veins in the tobacco as you prepare it. Moderately complex, and well balanced with body and depth, you notice most every aspect of the tobaccos in every puff. Burns a little slow, cool, clean and smooth with a mostly consistent flavor from start to finish. Easily burns to ash with fewer relights than expected, though it needs more than an average number. Has a very pleasant, lingering woody sweet and sour after taste, and leaves little moisture in the bowl. The lightly lingering room note is pleasant. Not quite an all day smoke, but it certainly repeatable.

-JimInks
44 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 23, 2017 Medium None Detected Medium Very Pleasant
Straight forward tangy Virginia of the fermented bright variety combines with the Latakia and soft petal Orientals to provide a rather heady smoke. There's strength in them thar leaves, boys! I absolutely loved this blend. There are others similar, but the way Pease can take Bright and special process the leaf for ripeness is superior... as is Temple Bar.
21 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jul 29, 2016 Medium None Detected Medium to Full Tolerable
I just couldn't wait to try the latest GL Pease duo. After a week of impatient monitoring of package tracking that was showing no progress, I was totally stoked to find it in the mailbox on return from work today. Immediately opened the can, cut off 3 good slices to dry, rubbed it out and loaded a big ole cob. So here goes first impressions.

In the can, my first thought was this smells a great deal like Triple Play. Not surprising, considering the VA and perique ingredients. It's earthy and boggy, a tad sour, but there's another aroma here I can only describe as similar to fermented fruit or red wine. On first light, I'm not taken aback by noteworthy flavor. The VAs are deep, tangy and sweet, and right up front. I can hardly detect the perique, I think because it's only a seasoning that adds depth to the VA. It's prominent enough to notice, for sure, apparent in the muted spiciness and nasal pinch. The orientals are heartily flavorful and available, and really, this is why I came to Temple Bar. Generous sour note that waxes and wanes throughout. It's in the second quarter to third that the depth of this plug shows itself, and it just keeps getting deeper and more flavorful as the bowl progresses. Tempo has to be moderated somewhat...I found myself pushing it pretty hard a couple times (the eagerness of new discovery), and it can get a little harsh/foul. Back off a minute and it will correct itself.

It's really a unique blend, especially to find in plug form. I'm a sucker for old-fashioned, unflavored plugs. The absence of latakia allows the aromatic spice of these orientals to shine. There's no shortage of flavor or taste evolution, and I think smoking it in the deep bore General cob does it justice in that department. More experimentation will ensue. Right now I give it a grounded 3-3.5 stars. As I play with and learn this one more, it's possible I may upgrade to 4. I'd wager this will be incredible after a year in the cellar. No disappointment here, just another fantastic Pease blend you need to try.
Pipe Used: MM General
Age When Smoked: Tin dated 6/7/16
21 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jan 12, 2018 Medium to Strong None Detected Medium to Full Tolerable to Strong
Mostly bar with a tiny bit of loose leaf, and a massive tin nose of orientals. Smells like a combo of day old socks, tree leaves and old books. One thing I learned from some of the other GLP plugs is that you have to cut them just so to get the most from them. Not this one. It didn't matter how I cut it, or even IF I cut it or just broke off pieces and loaded, this one smoked the same.

I've made a lot of references to the quality freefall of C&D-sourced tobaccos in the past and I don't intend to dwell on it here except to say that this one is thankfully free of that, as was Blairgowrie to a degree. Granted, the VA's could be sweeter here but what I enjoy here is the marriage of the huge sour note and the spice. None of the constituent tobaccos really leads the proceedings except on occasion. One of the things I love about Greg Pease's blending expertise is his ability create artistically innovative blends that no one else seems to be able to do (Russ Ouelette's vision runs in a different direction and Ernie Quint's traditionally inventive is different still). Even the Pease blends that miss the mark for my tastebuds seem to be purposeful. I normally don't like a lot of sour flavor but Temple Bar connected with me very well. It had tang, pepper, spice, a hint of sweet and that gargantuan sour. 3.5 stars but not quite 4 yet. I'm going to buy some more.
18 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jul 28, 2016 Medium Extremely Mild Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
My first tin of Temple Bar contained a nice sized piece of cake (2X2 by 1 inch tall) with a small amount of shake. It was modestly moist, but not overly so. There isn’t any mention of any topping, but both my wife (a pipe smoker too) and I detect some sort of spirits added to this blend. Maybe it has something to do with fermentation, but the level of sweetness in the smoke leads me to think otherwise. It is easy to break apart with a knife and TB contains large pieces of leaf. I mainly smoked this tin by cutting a bunch of small pieces with some rubbed out on top. A lighter pack seemed to offer the best results. As I mentioned, TB is pretty sweet in a very good way. It is somewhat complex and the flavor is pretty deep although I would put it just a notch above medium. The Virginias are well done and for me I taste a little more red than bright. True to the description, the Perique has been lightly added and it adds a little fruit and pepper to the smoke. The Orientals are in a supporting role and like other reviews, there is a bit of “wood” flavor to them. TB offers up a consistent sweetness throughout the smoke. Temple Bar doesn’t bite, nor does it burn warm. When it comes to Virginia or VaPer blends, I tend to smoke them mainly well aged. It will be hard to keep my hands off of this one for a while as I expect this to age really well. Three and a half stars, soon to be four.
14 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Sep 19, 2016 Medium None Detected Medium Tolerable
Temple Bar presents as a square plug of medium to light browns. Tin note features fresh cut hay, oats, very mild herb and just a touch of more pungent Perique in the background. The tin note is largely barn yard feed of various descriptions - so much so that it reminds me of the feed room in my barn - delicious Virginia aromas. And I wished for a moment I selected a pipe typically paired with Virginias as opposed to the wider bowled Oriental smoker I chose instead - more on that later. The charring light brings grass, parchment and some cardboard notes with a touch of salted nuts.

Progressing into the true light and first third of the bowl, a more assertive spiciness emerges, featuring black and white pepper, with a backdrop of that initial parchment and some basswood reminiscent of a good burley. The flavor profiles are very consistent through mid-bowl, the smoke is cool and dry and the condimental Perique here is harmonious rather than discordant - no small task for any blender. The finish is crisp, smokey, dry, and very slightly ashy, with somewhat more assertive wood and nut notes overtaking the peppery spice.

Overall this reminds me of a spicier and less sweet version of Oak Alley and it wouldn't surprise me if these blends are related in concept and perhaps even in the early stages of production. However, Temple Bar is the more assertive and stronger blend.

Tasted blind, I would swear there is burley here. But who am I to question the blender's description? Regardless, a very enjoyable blend. In reference to my note on pipe choice above, I found that smoking this in a Dublin brought out the Virginias in the first third, with a touch of sweetness and tang, whereas a shallower and wider bowl accentuated the Orientals. Either way this was a spicier blend that Oak Alley, with smokey and woody Orientals and a burleyesque backdrop of parchment, cardboard, salt and nuts. Produces copious amounts of grey smoke that may be off-putting to non-smokers.

Edit: this blend seems to really come alive in a tall, narrow bowl. It's also great in a quality MM cob.
12 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Sep 09, 2016 Medium None Detected Medium Tolerable
Here's another beautiful looking plug from Pease. The tin note is wonderful and sweet. I found a quick 15 minute dry time was enough for this one. After lighting there is a blast of earth and spice. It settles into a very smooth medium-bodied smoke. The red and bright Virginia are well-bonded and neither one dominates with equal parts earth and hay. The Izmir is slightly muted but when it shines it's great, spicy and sour. The Perique has a very very subtle role with mostly spice and pepper.

Compared to Regents Flake this is much earthier, less sweet, and a little more in need of age. This is recommended now, and ought to be stellar after a year or two.
9 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Oct 21, 2016 Medium Very Mild Medium Pleasant
Greg Pease’s new Temple Bar is not much of a plug, but it’s a hellova smoke. I wish I knew the age of the tin I purchased, but for once it did not have a manufacture date sticker on the bottom. I suppose it was young. In the freshly opened tin, I smell apricot over peaches, over golden cake, grassy, fermented, flue (and air?) cured VAs, over plummy, slightly earthy, forest floor type moss, along with faint fermented dates and Middle Eastern spices; all very “exotic”, yet somehow comforting to me. Add to this a hint of orange liqueur. My first thought was to prepare and smoke this tobacco in a way that would best preserve the tin note, if that were possible. The “plug” here is a rather loose amalgamation of stacked leaves of the constituent tobaccos, mostly light orange to orange/gold, nothing dark. I sliced and re-sliced it against the grain, producing chunky “broken flakes” or “ribbons” that I first rubbed out, then I re-blended the resultant rough chunks. I tried this rough mixture right from the tin and more or less dry, guided by results. For now, I’ve settled on fairly dry tobacco tamped into a pipe that’s not been used for stronger blends, especially not darker varietals or blends, including dark burley, cigar leaf, Latikia, or aros. A VA pipe works fine for Temple Bar, but not so well for VA after that. Based on results in this case, I will be dedicating a pipe to this blend.

Dried even a little, Temple Bar lights and smokes down great for me with regular poking and light tamping. The constituent tobaccos are well proportioned to my taste, with the lovely tin note present throughout the bowl, in the tastes and aromas, alike. The snork is sublime, and more so as it’s smoked down. The complex Orientals make a substantial contribution from the match, on, simultaneously playing the main theme, harmony and counterpoint, while the rich, smooth, sweet and grassy VAs play a tasty continuo that rises as the smoke progresses. For me, the complexity here stays in perspective for a medium-bodied smoke. “Tone” is mostly “mid-band”, with not much in the way of high or low “notes”. Medium to delicate side streams and ephemeral puffs always add, never distract or detract. It’s almost as though the well-melded dash of plummy Perique tempers the Orientals. At any rate, the outcome is grand. Strength rises slowly and steadily to medium. Tastes are just over medium. I like the room note. Aftertaste is a tapering off of the best of the smoke, and it lingers longer than most Turkish blends.

Temple Bar is as delicious and interesting a pipe tobacco as I have ever smoked, at least when it’s relatively fresh, and it has supplanted Embarcadero on my Favorites List. I recommend it to those who believe they would enjoy a fermented mix of these varietals, though the Perique is truly condimental here, important, but not in and of itself. Congrats again, Greg, four stars with a flourish.
Pipe Used: group 4 briars
PurchasedFrom: 4Noggins
Age When Smoked: not marked this time; fresh from tin and jarred
6 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Aug 05, 2016 Medium Medium Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
Thanks, Greg. Thank you very much I was just happy as a kookaburra by the billabong then here he comes out with 2 new tobaccos that might interest me. I just can't resist. So I pull out this plug and it is a good one. I grab my cleaver and cutting board and reduce it to small pieces that will fit into my pipe. Now am not usually a big Oriental guy, but I smoked 3 bowls the first day. It is a repeater because it is so complex. It worked great in each pipe I tried and yet was unique in each. It is the most complex tobacco in my larder. I really like it. I have not tried it in a big bowl, yet. I smoke it every day now. Update, I like it better every day. Can't wait to try the Regent's, but this one may get an upgrade on its score soon.
Pipe Used: Castello, Charatan Lumberman, Willmer Zulu
PurchasedFrom: smokingpipes.com
Age When Smoked: 1 week
6 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jul 20, 2016 Medium None Detected Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
This is a pretty nice smoke. Virginia forward supported by the Orientals and just a wiff of Perique. It's sweet and fruity with an underlying mildly sour, woody spiciness. Has a nice depth to it. You have to push it fairly hard to get it to misbehave. Smoked it cubed and rubbed and got the better burn with the rubbed. A pleasant and enjoyable blend. Rock solid 3 stars.

Medium in body and taste. No added flavorings.
Pipe Used: Chacom cutty, MM Little Devil Acorn
PurchasedFrom: smokingpipes.com
Age When Smoked: fresh
6 people found this review helpful.
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