Additional Note: In the area of room note I recently received a comment from a friend. When I first lit the pipe he was generally pleased and commented that he liked it. About 30 minutes later he asked me what had happened, for what he was enjoying had changed and he now felt it was much more of a cigar/cigarette realm of room note. Just additional information for you to keep in mind.

The GOOD: Upon opening the tin, the aroma of the tobacco is quite pleasing. A slight hint of that "ketchupy" note associated with MacBaren's blends, but very slight. I believe that note is common with all fine, unadulterated Virginias. The appearance of the tobacco is nothing like the photo above. The first thing you'll say when you first see the tobacco in the tin and pinch it between your fingers is "Whoa! There are some big honkin' pieces of leaf in there." It looks like they broke off pieces of leaf hanging in the barn to dry, and crammed them in the tin.

A reviewer below suggested using a small-bowled pipe. No way. This stuff is just too big. And it is beautiful. Mostly large, light golden blond pieces with some darker golden browns. It seems to be overly dry, but that is an illusion. It packs very nicely into a larger diameter bowl, and lights and smokes better than any tobacco I have tried. (But I do recommend only loading your bowl no more than one-third full, and not attempt to smoke a whole bowl, as I will explain below.) The first few puffs are pleasurable, and the flavor stays consistent to the end - no bite - although about halfway through it gets spicier and starts tasting and smelling more and more like a cigar rather than a pipe.

The BAD: After the first few initial puffs, you realize that this stuff starts tasting like a cheap, robust strength cigar. But the stuff burns so well, and bite-free, you keep smoking it. Towards the end, you notice things getting stronger, and then it hits you unexpectedly - WHAM! A powerful nicotene kick. Queasiness. Nausea. Luckily, I had not eaten for a few hours, otherwise I'd have puked for sure. Whatever you do, don't smoke this stuff indoors.

If you smoke in your car, make sure the windows are rolled down. The second-hand smoke only adds to the queasiness and nicotene intoxication. And, your clothes, your hair, your hands, and your pipe will smell strongly of a nasty cigar ashtray, which will just make you get the dry heaves when you smell them until the effects of the N poisoning start to wear off over a couple of hours. I wished I had taken the advice of the reviewer below and used a small pipe, or just loaded mine no more than a third full.

So, try this unique and interesting blend if you must. But you've been warned.

This is a virginia mixture which is difficult to place in a category. There is perique in it and it's as noticeable as the oriental tobaccos. It seems also to have a slight flavoring.

It's wonderful! It is artful blending and very unique and delicious. I am smoking my way through an 8 ounce tin that had 2 years age when opened. It doesn't need aging, though.

This is a master blend, and if you can dry your tobacco successfully this will not scorch your tongue.

A while back I picked up some Oriental blending leaf (Turkish Smyrna) to isolate its taste profile. I mixed it in with blends on hand, did a bit of my own blending (I'm no Alfred Dunhill), and smoked it straight (better than expected). I still had problems, so I went in search of a showcase Oriental blend to show me the way.

I chose Cairo specifically because it lacked Latakia, which tastes so full that it tends to outshine anything else in a blend. After some experimentation, to tell you the truth, I'm still baffled. Maybe my palate is shot from all the English and this leather tongue can't pick up on the subtleties. Who knows?

Despite the failure of my mission, I'll say that Cairo is an excellent blend. On first opening, the tin will yield the unmistakable scent of a topping. I'm assuming this is some kind of liquor, but being a bit naive of the variety, I can't be more specific (the translation to combustion is restrained, however). Cairo is a blond beauty, full of brightly colored leaves. You can see a few flecks of Perique, but the leaf is used sparingly. One might think a mild smoke would be in hand, but this is a mistake. Cairo is rich and full. The first time I smoked this, I put it in a large sized Meerschaum and nearly overdosed on nicotine. That is rare for someone who craves heavy blends.

I value novelty in my tobacco, as I tend to tire easily of monotony, and this mixture is certainly unique. I can't pin another blend that tastes anything like this. I haven't yet decided how Cairo will fit into my long term rotation, but these 2 ounces will be a pleasure to explore.

My fixation with Orientals will continue until I'm satisfied with my knowledge of the leaf. Scouring tobacco reviews, I think I'll try Embarcadero next. I'm interested to see what Greg considers a super variety of Izmir, and its implementation in flake form.

Four of Five.

I have been a friend of English and Oriental blends. My favorite of all time was Balkan Sobranie. I figured Cairo would be one I would like, but it goes beyond my expectations. I thought I would really miss the latakia and perique. But I don't and this is really good stuff. I still suspect I have some delicious surprises waiting for me when I get to his oriental blends, but I'm enjoying this one for what it is while I work on this tin.

Everytime I open the tin, the aroma reaches out and touches me. From the aroma, I suspect there is some very mild flavoring in it but I can't put my finger on it and I can't taste it at all. When I first light the pipe, the sweetness of the Virginias is pronounced. As the smoke proceeds, the savoriness of the Orientals becomes more and more noticeable. This is a great blend that I know I will return to even when I have found a replacement for my Balkan Sobranie.

Since returning to pipe smoking, I've found that my taste for oriental mixtures has waned and my taste for Balkan and English blends has dominated. However, I found this to be a nice change of pace.

For those who have shied away from Virgina blends because of experiences with the "hot ketchup" flavor some find objectionable in other popular Virginia blends, this is a pleasant surprise. The orientals tame the Virginias and the Perique comes as a nice balance to foil the bite of a straight Virginia.

The room note was an equally interesting surprise. I left the room and re-entered several minutes later to find that there was a lingering aroma of caramel and toasted pecans. Odd, but certainly pleasant.

As this was an older tin, subjected to rather rough treatment, I'd have to sample a newer tin of it to determine if the qualities of the tobacco were negatively impacted. Nonetheless, I'd keep a tin of this on hand when I don't know what else to smoke.

The tin smells of citrus, spices, and tobacco. The virginias and orientals dominate the aroma, and the perique is barely noticable. The tobacco is packaged slightly drier than I prefer, but it requires no preparation for smoking.

The smoke is both sweet and tangy, with the perique building as the bowl progresses. As one reviewer put it, this blend will tickle your nose just as a strong ginger ale will. While I'm not sure I willenjoy it as much in the einter as I do during this hot summer days, I will definately continue to smoke it. A solid three star tobacco.

Coming a bit on the dry side, Cairo requires little in the way of preparation and packs and takes to the match with little complaint. A refreshing Virginia-Oriental flavored with a touch of Perique, in the bowl it offers bright Virginia notes which mingle with flavors reminiscent of citrus and Chinese mustard. Possessing a subdued sweetness, the tang of the Orientals and the sourness of the Perique grows stronger as the bowl progresses. Mild in body, it has a short, dry finish best likened to the delightful snap of a crisp ginger ale which tickles the nose as it refreshes the palate. Not an overly complex affair, it is nevertheless an excellent example of how nicely Virginias and Orientals can be brought together in a way which accentuates the unique qualities of both in pursuit of something which all can enjoy.

A wonderful hot weather blend, Cairo pays due homage to the bustling and vibrant city after which it is named, and will no doubt amuse devotees of Virginia leaf and lovers of Orientals alike. The sample on which this review is based is quite young, having had about a year's rest in the tin prior to opening, and as such the reviewer wonders what time might do the blend, in particular in regards to its brightness? While its exuberance may well not persist with Nile-like regularity over the long haul, I chance to believe that something nice will nonetheless emerge when a few dusty tins squirreled away happen to be chanced upon, Howard Cater like, years down the road.

It is very simillar to montgomery just with a little perique in place of the fired kentucky.

However the nicotine is ultra potent. Cairo will kick you in the back of the knees. Like drinking a whole pot of coffee if you ask me.

I will smoke the tin up but might not order again as I prefer balkans and straight va's. This does not make it bad at all. Jut not what I call my favorite pease blend.

I really don't like perique but it is tollerable in this and present in a minimal quantity, in the smoking- the tin has its putrid odor sadly. I can look past the tin aroma. Perique almost gags me I hate its foul smell. Funny how we are different as I know many love its smell.

This is more of an occasional blend for me. If you like va and a strong oriental presence and don't like latakia at all you will enjoy this. However I find myself saying where's the latakia? So it goes. I reccomend montgomery over this. It is more smokable to me.

A well blended tobacco, just not my thing.

Aroma & Taste: A dulled version of the tin aroma, reduced to about 1/5. I got scorched with tongue bite. My tongue was sore the next day. A lightly packed pipe seems to be the conditions that bring out a decided cigar quality, an aroma a few others have observed.

In a large bowl, tightly packed, a time or two I did get flavor approaching the tin aroma and a lessened amount of tongue bite.

Room Note: Like the aroma; not unpleasant, tolerable.

Nicotine: Strong

Overall: The tin aroma is enough alone to suggest to me why some have described Cairo as an aromatic. A major disappoint; like aromatics, Cairo has a nice tin aroma which is not matched by the aroma or flavor of the smoke, being greatly diminished. The tongue bite was overwhelming. Someone reviewed "...that the flavor never quite lives up to the rich...tin aroma." Maybe one or two stars.

I won't be buying this one again I'm afraid

Edit: Since I have run out of my other blends for the time being I have returned to this can which sat in the back of my tobacco shelf for the last 6-8 months. I must add a star to this blend, after smoking many bowls the sweetness of this blend has grown on me.

This is still not my favorite blend from GL Pease, but I think it is better than my first review implied.

3 stars

The tin aroma is delicious. It's that fruity, winey, fermented odor, almost exotic, that again I take to be the offspring of the blissful marriage of Perique and Oriental. In the words of a cigarette smoking friend who wished to smell the strange leaf in my jar: "Wow." Despite this tin aroma, the taste of the burning leaf can stray close to cigarette-ish if smoked too hot or inattentively in an inauspicious pipe. But in a good pipe dedicated to Virginias/VaPers, smoked slowly and with presence of mind, it is quite good - slightly sweet and spicy, per the billing. It seems to me, though, that the flavor never quite lives up to the rich piquant pungency suggested by the tin aroma - it sort of hovers around it, hints at it, and every now and then gives you a sip of ginger beer. Which is still pretty good. But, my tin was pretty much new. I bet if I had the patience to age a tin a few years it would be dynamite.

Speaking of dynamite, my love for Perique exceeds my tolerance for its nicotine content (but I'm working on that). It seems to me that Cairo's Perique is felt more than tasted. The first time I smoked Cairo was in the aforementioned Radice billiard, which is the largest bowl I have, and it just about shoved me down the porch stairs and kicked me in the ribs. But in a smaller to middling pipe it is just right. My Savinelli loves it, but my Radice still laughs at me when I take out the jar.

Recommended if you like Va/Pers, Oriental leaf, and ginger beer. Recommended for the tin aroma alone.

This tin had 20 months age and I expected a little more from it. I have not given up on it and have another four tin in the cellar.

I rate it at 2.75 stars at this point.