Robert McConnell Glen Piper

Glen Piper is something of an unusual tobacco, though in the best possible sense of the word. It is generally referred to as an aromatic, which I think is accurate, though in the context of most aromatics on the market today the term might be a bit misleading, leaving smokers who really fancy those other blends scratching their heads or shrugging their shoulders, while simultaneously putting off people who turn their noses up at anything of the sort. While the largest portion of my personal rotation consists of English blends, Virginias, VaPers and some Burleys, I've been smoking a fair bit of this lately and I think it deserves a little more press than it gets, so I'd like to share my impressions of it with you in the hopes that you not miss out on something you might enjoy.

First off, I have to say that I am disppointed that McConnell (or should I say K&K) has chosen to change the label from the traditional pastoral scene to a generic-looking lime green label with the name in a rather plain font. I assume that as with many European tinned tobaccos, they've modified the design to allow for the obnoxiously specious “Smoking Kills” warning that it seems by law must occupy at least half of the label. I think it detracts from the value of the brand somehow, robbing it of the history that we pipe smokers value. I have similar misgivings about Planta's changes to the James J. Fox labels. It's a minor complaint, though, so long as the blends retain their high quality, which is something I think Kohlhase & Kopp are dedicated to, if not so much to preserving the graphic art.

Once you take off the lid, however, you are greeted with the site of a beautifully colorful, ready-rubbed tobacco that might put one in the mind of an English mixture if it weren't for the rich, sweet aroma of fermented fruit that foreshadows the unique delights to be soon savored in the pipe. The skillful blending of Virgina, Cavendish, Honeydew and Perique, along with their subsequent pressing and flavoring, really do carry this experience through to the tongue, unlike many aromatics whose sweet aroma seems to be only of benefit to bystanders, with a flavor that may still be pleasant but different to the smoker.

From the tin, the tobacco benefits from perhaps fifteen minutes of air time before packing, though it seems it would lose something if allowed to dry too much, so you might want to load your pipe before it gets to the point where it doesn't stick together at all. I am not of the impression that much if any PG is added to this blend to retain moisture, which is unusual for an aromatic, and it will dry quickly in the open and faster than you'd think in it's rectagular tin. I'd recommend jarring this almost immediately if you don't think you'll burn through it in a week or less. The upside is that there is no sign of PG's funkiness in the taste or goop in the heel of your pipe. Packing is a no-brainer given the near-perfect cut, and I've had no trouble lighting and maintaining a good burn even with a little extra moisture.

To me, the aforementioned flavor of fermented fruit is the mainstay of this tobacco, but the rich Virginia base is there in spades as well, which not only makes this aromatic smoke more like a traditional flake or mixture, it adds a real depth to the flavor that is often lacking in Burley- or Black-Cavendish-based aros, where the flavor seems to sit on top and easily goes flat or even sours toward the end of a bowl. In my experience, the fruit flavor holds firm throughout, though the Virginia comes on just a little stronger in the end. Overall, the component tobaccos are well-balanced to do their job together, rather than taking individual bows, and give a consistent mild to medium flavor. It can nip a little if overpuffed, but it's not as finicky as you might expect. Nicotine may well leave you wanting if you require a healthy dose.

Personally, I'd highly recommend this tobacco. It's a unique smoke, in my experience, something to be enjoyed after dinner, perhaps, like a good dessert, or anytime you'd like a nice change of pace, a mild yet flavorful smoke, or a tobacco that others in the room could appreciate without having to compromise too much. I get a sense of history from this blend, as though more aromatics were once made in a similar fashion before the advent of heavy artificial flavorings and the humectants necessary to keep them from evaporating away, although I've learned since I originally wrote this review that Glen Piper was introduced around 1974, well into the era of modern aromatics. If you do try it, come to it with an open mind, as I think false expectations may lead to a less than satisfactory impression of it. It may not be on the top of everyone's list of favorite tobaccos, but I do think it has something for everybody to enjoy, at least occasionally. My overall rating: four stars / highly recommended as an aromatic, three stars / recommended among all styles.

It may be worth devoting a pipe to if you like it, as I could see it distorting the taste of a subtle Virginia flake smoked from the same appliance while Glen Piper itself has a somewhat delicate flavor that could be destroyed by a Latakia or heavy aromatic ghost.

Robert McConnell - Glen Piper.

A broken flake that's just on the cusp of being a ribbon. None of it needs a further rubbing. The unlit aroma from it's heavenly, sweet, a little fruity, and alcoholic; like Christmas pudding! The pieces are all dark and medium brown.

Glen' lights easily, burns even and steady, without necessitating much maintenance. Although, it has a propensity to burn too warm; bite-free, but warm. So that's the mechanical traits dealt with, on to the flavour: delicious. The toppings, as implied by the unlit aroma, give a taste reminiscent of Christmas pudding: sweet, fruity, rummy, and rich. The black Cavendish and Virginia form quite a common 'aromatic' tobacco flavour. There seems to be some equivocation as to whether or not Perique's been included, but I can notice a delicate wisp, next to a touch of Kentucky; these two fill out the smoke. In all, though, Glen Piper seems to be more about the casings than the tobaccos.

Nicotine: mild to medium. Room-note: nice.

If it weren't for the mechanics I'd slap four stars on this. Alas, it could behave better! Three stars:

Somewhat recommended.

Ready-rubbed cut (ribbony but not quite ribbons) mottled but mostly darker mixture with a horribly disconcerting tin aroma of a fruit basket. Mostly darker fruits but also some apricot. Perhaps some type of liquor scent as well. No evidence of chocolate or perique in the tin bouquet. I've smelled this aroma in various pipeshop "house blends" that turned into flavor disasters but this is a Robert McConnell creation so I soldiered on.

At tin moisture, this was overly fruity tasting but still pretty decent, with the fruit playing well with the tobacco flavors. As I get much more flavor from drier Virginias, I dried this to various levels and got the best results when it was very dry. At that point, the Cavendish receded in potency and the natural Virginia sweetness and crispness became dominant. Interestingly the chocolate flavor was more in evidence when dried. I can't say I ever tasted perique, even during the snorking process - no nose or throat tickle - and the persistence of the fruity Cavendish hid perique's dark fruit and pepper quite nicely. But its inclusion makes sense, as K&K has added it to several blends that didn't originally have it in order to restore the flavor to the state in which McConnell devised it. And again, I'm not as sensitive to perique in small doses as I am latakia, so it's inclusion is not as obvious as the latakia is in Presbyterian or the lack of latakia in something like Provost. As to what is obviously here, even when dried the fruit flavor is a bit over the top for me. It's smokable and I actually enjoyed it, but smoking too much of this would wear me out, the same way eating too much chocolate cake would. This is good as an occasional smoke, as it's not a nicotine powerhouse, it holds a light well and it's got that "special flavor". Worth a try to Virginia lovers looking for some aromatic pleasure or for aromatic smokers who might like to taste tobacco instead of just flavorings.

Oh this is nasty.

Very nasty.

That's one helluva damnation Mr RH I hear you cry.

This tobacco has a nasty aftertaste that creeps up on you when you aren't looking. There's a chemical in this tobacco that I swear has been obtained from old WW2 MOD stockpiles bought up by somebody called Robert McConnell just to get even with the English for Culloden.

It's the sort of aftertaste you associate with those godawful sugar free drinks that only women and children seem to enjoy.

Oh yeah, the tobacco looks innocuous enough, hiding its evil secret in a somewhat floral (albeit chemically enhanced) alcoholic scent.

It's a little swine to keep alight and just as vile in any type of pipe. I couldn't finish a bowl of this poison, I was glad when it went out.

Surprisingly, the was no complaint from the anti-tobacco faction in this house. Indeed I have claimed in the past to have had no sense of room note but this stuff seems to cling to the walls, the carpets and the curtains like dentist gas that nearly killed me in as a kid back in 1965.

This is the first tobacco since I started several years ago to make me cough. This is the sort of stuff to drive me back to cigarettes.

I'm ditching what's left of this tobacco into the darkest depths of the bin. If Samuel Gawiths had leftovers after making Celtic Talisman it would taste like this.

You didn't like it then Mr RH ?

Bl

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Haha.

The reason the perique cannot be tasted is the fact there is no Perique in this blend. There is enough cased cavendish though to call this a light aromatic.

Plen Piper burns cool enough, but lacks depth and is too light on the nicotine to keep this piper satisfied.

This could easily be an all day smoke for those who enjoy aromatic blends. I think Virginia lovers will feel cheated regarding true tobacco flavor. But, if light and sweet sounds good, this may be the tobacco for you.

This is my kind of aromatic pipe tobacco – a blend where the natural flavours of the tobacco are given a priority over the added flavours, which act to sweeten the blend.

The charring light offers an almost toasty taste and aroma, but after relighting one is met with a grassy, citrusy flavour which could be compared with that of Mac Baren’s Mixture: Scottish Blend. A little further down the bowl, a creamy sweetness develops; this sweetness I attribute to the Virginias, but the topping certainly acts to fortify this. I would not describe the added flavours as chocolate or rum, they are more like stewed fruit and there is perhaps a hint of whisky. What sets this blend aside from other good quality aromatics is the presence of Perique and Kentucky leaf. The Perique is subtle but can be enjoyed when retrohaling through the nose, whereas the Kentucky appears to take a back seat, providing a slight richness.

The nicotine is noticeable but of a medium level.

I believe that Glen Piper’s status as an aromatic could put off certain smokers who would potentially get a lot of enjoyment from this blend. The aromatic toppings are incredibly discreet, and I would liken them to sugar-water splashed onto the tobacco once blended. It offers a naturally sweet smoke and makes for a welcome break when one tires of the smoke of Latakia and Oriental tobaccos.

Glen Piper is an easy to like, gentle aromatic blend. I get some slight grassy and citrus-y hints, presumably from the Virginia, but the blend is far more characterized by the Cavendish and the flavouring.

Those two components create a lovely flavour akin to chocolate pudding, with some hints of alcohol. Even more lovely is that they've managed this without the blend becoming overly sweet!

As you puff along and approach the second half of the bowl, you might find that things become a bit more spicy, which would be the Kentucky and (Apparently) Perique coming into play.

It burns cleanly and doesn't get too hot (Though if you DO smoke it too hot, i've found that this one will bite). In terms of moisture out of the tin, it comes just about ready to smoke, perhaps ever-so-slightly on the moist side of things.

Bit of a shame about the tin art, which was replaced by a solid green colour on the tin due to the obligatory "Smoking doesn't please politicians"-sticker, but then, i'm reviewing the tobacco, not the packaging.

Overall, i quite like this blend. Definitely one of the nicer Aromatics i've smoked.

Ordered a tin from my dealer in Germany, very different from the one in the picture above: it seems like the McConnell brand has shifted to a more generic presentation. My disappointment towards the tin decoration was heavily compensated by the configuration of what was inside. This mixture has an impressive cut, some pieces still as large as the size of the original flake; beautiful color and texture if you gently feel the tobacco in the hand. The smell is also quite unique and puzzling.

I enjoy smoking the tobacco in its original cut although I recommend opening the tin for a little while and let some air go through those broken pieces before filling the pipe as it will save your taste buds from a little bit of the sourness or discomfort in the tongue – which, I believe, is almost inevitable in the first few puffs out of each bowl filled with this particular blend.

This has been mentioned as a starter's smoke - not so true as far as I can see. The aromas build slowly in the mouth and in a fashion more discretely than most newcomers would want to accept and I no doubt read a few comments on it that attest my claim. The chocolate flavoring makes the smoke velvety while there is definitely the taste of spirits as the bowl progresses. This blend is also just in the right proportion of perique for my taste: although I can clearly understand how the taste of liquor in conjunction with this particular tobacco in the blend might come as slightly nauseating to some. The whole flavour is finished with vague hints of fruit.

For full enjoyment, this tobacco begs for slow puffing, as slow as possible which not only makes it the more delicious – making its mild aroma come to life – but also a long lasting experience added that the peculiar cut takes a long time to burn. Smoke it indoors and nowhere else.

(http://thedailypuffer.tumblr.com/)

GP is exactly what the label describes: a (very) light aromatic, in the English way (but not in the Lakeland?s soapy fashion). As Tantric wrote: polite and discreet ? with nice room aroma. Frankly, I don?t detect dried fruits or figs. I taste a winey and flowery (think to Sauvignon blanc) mild smoke, not much ?substantial? (in the sense of big volume) and slightly peppery, but nothing to do with Perique. Black Cavendish has the main role, counterbalanced by the the herbal bright Va?s. While smoking my mind runs to both Black and Gold? and Scottish Blend, seems they do share the same Black Cavendish. Leaves a pleasantly sweet watered mouth, and doesn?t ?wax? the palate nor bites unless you run. It?s quite moist in the tin ? like all the RmC?s (say it better: K&K), that?s it again: excess water paid for tobacco - but better not smoking it dried out.I have left a pipeful drying a couple of hour, that was a wrong choice, it?s going to bite me, and develops an unpleasant bitter note. (Somewhat) Recommended as a change of pace. That?s why I?m reviewing GP upon ending the first tin, instead of the second, as I usually do. I'm not running to buy a second one.

I tried this as I was told McConnells are good quality and I saw alot of good reviews here for GP. It is good, very good, I am still looking for the right pipe for this one. Fruity flavours, plums and port, a good desert baccy with a glass of vintage port as long as you haven't eaten too much...it is rich in taste and flavour. It does burn well for a aromatic and does still have a 'natural taste' to it with earthy tones. Recommend if you like dark dried fruits but dislike, cherry or blackcurrent aromatics. It is wet in tin but dries quickly...not much bite also.

Edit: Down to 3 stars, finished two tins off, it is a great baccy just misses that special extra something, buy a tin you won't be disappointed, it is a top quality aromatic. I could see this one aging well for an aromatic, praise indeed.