Esoterica Tobacciana Pembroke

Altogether I am not entirely convinced that this Esoterica offering is actually just Margate with a topping. Okay, the topping is there but it's strange to think that a mixture like Margate could be softened this much by a simple additive. I do often wonder if a bit more Virginia has been snuck in for added sweetness. Nonetheless, the shag cut commonality is there and as far as color goes, the two mixtures do look practically identical. Moreover, when smoked Pembroke does have Margate's unique alluring evergreen fragrance & incense-like quality.

In contrast, Margate is bolder tasting and speaks with more bravado, where Pembroke is sweeter, more delicate, and more soft- spoken throughout the bowl. Pembroke comes fairly moist yet still burns steady with minimal relights. It stays cool although it does get a bit warmer than Margate. With the addition of the topping, moisture problems do arise around the mid-bowl point but I typically only have to run a pipe cleaner down the stem one time per bowl and the problem is circumvented. Alternatively you could also choose to dry this tobacco a bit, but I prefer not to.

While smoother, sweeter and softer than Margate, Pembroke still has a delightful upfront spiciness, as well as the wonderful pungent aroma inherent to Germain's Latakia leaf. The cognac flavoring is palpable but mostly on exhale. It does add a round fruity sweetness that helps to create a smooth, silken pipe smoke. Nasal exhales are pure pleasure while smoky flavors pop and scintillate on the palate. Like Margate, Pembroke is a beautiful tobacco for pipers seeking a compound olfactory experience. And if you enjoy Orientals and Latakia but like a sweeter overall tone, this is one example of how good it can get.

The cognac topping, along with very mild anise moderately sublimates the tobaccos as it cohesively melds with them. The Cyprian Latakia is smokey, earthy, musty, incense-like and woody sweet, and obvious in every puff, and is a leading component. The woody, earthy, lightly floral, herbal, dry buttery sweet and sour Orientals are just above the condiment level. The base of the blend is the grassy, lightly earthy and woody Virginias, which has a dulled citrus, dark fruit sweetness, chiefly due to the toppings. The strength and taste levels are medium. The nic-hit is just past the center of mild to medium. Won't bite or get harsh. It's a shag cut and needs to be sipped, even if it's moist. It'll also ghost a pipe rather quickly, so you might consider using a meer, or dedicating a briar to it. Burns cool and clean at a moderate pace unless dried a little; otherwise it's a slow experience. The flavor are consistently sweet and a little savory from top to bottom. Leaves a little moisture in the bowl, and requires a few relights. Has a pleasant, lightly lingering after taste and room note. More for an aromatic smoker wanting to branch out, but it's not a light weight smoke. Two and a half stars.

-JimInks

This is supposed to be Margate with a fine French cognac added. Well, it does indeed! I immediately detected the subtle and unique Cognac addition, but still received the very full flavor of the Latakia/fine rich Virginias that I always get with Margate. If you've never had a French cognac before, after sampling Pembroke, you can bet your keester that you'll want to go hunt down a jug or two!

I was lucky enough to find some of this at my local tobacconist and knew I had to pick some up as soon as it caught my eye. The first thing I noticed is that this tobacco is very, very moist so you really need to take the time to dry this out properly. That being said, it is well worth the effort! The cut of this tobacco is perfection and makes packing a breeze. I was pleasantly surprised with how well the cognac topping of this blend works with the fine englishes. After first light, you are immediately greeted by the cognac and it stays strong and flavorful for quite some time. Then, it becomes a bit more subtle and you get to really appreciate the latakia and orientals in the blend. About halfway through the bowl, I was getting a lot of moisture from the blend (because I was too excited to fully dry out the tobacco) but after some minor fidgeting, I got the bowl to stay lit until the end. This is definitely one of the finest tobaccos I have smoked and I'm surely looking forward to trying more Esoterica blends in the future. I could imagine smoking this right by the fire after a long day, with my feet kicked up, with some smooth jazz playing in the background. Despite the moisture this blend left in my bowl, it is one of my favorites for sure and I can happily put up with the little extra work this tobacco requires considering how fantastic it is. Pembroke, like a glass of cognac, is quite a treat and I would not hesitate to buy some if you are fortunate enough to come across it!

The cognac hides some of the nuances of the wonderful Virginias in Margate. It's those Virginias that made Margate a favorite of mine. If I force myself to forget about that and judge this by it's own merits though, I find this to be a very nice smoke. In fact, I'll forgive Pembroke for not being Margate and say that there's plenty of room in this world for both.

The very smooth smoky Lat leads with the buttery Orientals hot on their trail. The Virginias give a nice sweetness and a modest amount of fruit. The cognac adds a little more sweetness and a fruitiness of it's own. I can't recognize it as white grapes, but it is fruity and delicious. This is a very pleasant smoke.

Medium in body and taste. Flavoring is mild. Might be stronger if I didn't dry mine well before smoking. I'll have to try it straight from the jar some day. Burns very well.

This tobacco has confused me no end. Thie first time I used an old meerschaum, packed lightly and found it, as most reviewers did, like Margate with a light lacing of brand. A little to mild for me, but nice nevertheless. I suspected the meer had stolen a bit of the flavor and my next try was with an old Dunhill #5 briar and boy was I surprised.

The brandy leaped into the foreground - overwhelmingly sweet, even a bit biting. I was well into the halfway of the pipe before I could even taste the latakias. And at the finish I was even slightly woozy.

It did burn smoothly to a fine ash, but a little hot. But I think it needs airing out before it goes into a flavor concentrating pipe like that Dunhill. For reference, it came out of a 2 year old bag so I have plenty to experiment with. I'll update this review when I get it tamed and a bit predictable.

I usually don't like anything but tobacco in my tobacco. Pembroke is the only exception I make. The rich, sweet, fruity taste of the cognac somehow seems to belong with the other flavors. You can taste the cognac, but it doesn't overwhelm the latakia, orientals and virginias. It just adds one more layer of flavor to this well balanced English blend.

When I purchased this blend I was a little reluctant to even try it. The idea of adding Cognac to an already fabulous english blend just didn't sit well with me. Nevertheless, after reading several wonderful reviews I decided to give it a go. The Cognac adds a subtle sweetness to the blend that at times I find pleasant, and at other times just plain gets in the way. I find myself using several pipe cleaners during the smoke due to the wet smoke that pembroke provides. It burns down to a light grey ash and leaves a slight presence in the pipe. I should have trusted my instincts on this one and just purchased Margate, which should have been left alone, it's a fabulous blend. I would however recommend this to an aromatic smoker who is trying to cross over into the english realm of tobaccos.

I quite like this better than I do the Margate. It actually says in the notes that Pembroke is “A luxury English blend (Margate) is married with fine French cognac.” So, apparently -- according to the notes -- Pembroke actually IS Margate with the addition of “fine French cognac” (Hennessy? Courvoisier? They don’t say). But I – like Ehrling – prefer this much more than I do the Margate, as it is a lovelier version of the Margate with the additional flavoring. I also suspect that DrumsAndBeer is on to something when he queries whether Pembroke is “just Margate with a topping.” There is a certain je ne sais quoi to Pembroke that cannot be explained away by the topping alone. In reviewing Margate, I made the comment that "a wee more Virginia would have perhaps improved the overall experience" -- and I do indeed detect more of that Virginia sweet in the Pembroke than I do in Margate. More to the point, as I sit here eyeballing both the Margate and Pembroke through a jar, the Pembroke is decidedly more tan with black than the black with tan one sees in Margate. (Peculiar that McClelland's Frog Morton’s Cellar would be the only of the Frog line to be labelled an aromatic due to a whiskey topping that I could not/cannot detect, yet Pembroke is listed as an English blend, and not an aromatic, in spite of the cognac). No matter. Pembroke is a particularly distinctive offering from Germain’s Esoterica line – as luxuriously grand a blend as one would expect any fine cognac to be. 4-stars.

This fine ribbon cut tobacco is what you get when you top Esoterica's dark Latakia-based Margate blend with French Cognac, which sort of makes it a crossover.

The tin note is deliciously sweet and peaty from the Virginias and Latakia with a flowery, alcoholic aroma from the Orientals and the Cognac flavoring. In a new tin or pouch the Pembroke tends to be on the moist side with the tobacco strands clinging together. Packing and smoking might be easier, once it has dried a little, but I find the taste superior when its fresh.

Upon lighting the taste comes pretty close to the tin aroma: a distinct sweetness that mixes perfectly with the tangy smokiness of the Latakia, the flowery Orientals and some almost dark chocolate-like flavor. This is a satisfying, full bodied smoke that is quite mild on your tongue. It burns evenly and slowly, but tends to require a re-light when the tobacco is still moist, leaving some greying ash.

The pronounced room note is rich and sweetish with hints of incense.