Ashton - Old London Pebblecut pipe tobacco reviews

Review

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Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
< PREVIOUS Showing reviews 21 through 28 of 28 reviews of this tobacco
Beer	09/01/2004	Medium	None detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong
My second venture into Virginia flake territory, after the wonderful Marlin Flake by Rattray. Much of what I said in the review of MF applies here, too, so you might want to take a look there before reading this. What are the differences? First of all, the can aroma has a much more fermented smell. More pungent, with a dominant dried plum flavor and almost-vinegary overtones. Probably it's the presence of Perique. In comparison to MF, it unrubs even better, and smokes just as well. It is a bit less "rounded" and sweet/grassy in taste, and while sometimes it shows a higher spiciness, some other times it feels a bit "empty" and watery. While the first half bowl of Pebblecut is very stimulating to the palate, with citrus note and an everchanging taste, the second half degrades a bit. While Marlin Flake can be relighted at will, this Ashton blend seems to lose something. And even without relighting, the last 1/3 of the bowl has a rather plain and sometimes even slightly unpleasant taste. Personal impressions, no doubt: both MF and Pebblecut are great Virginia flakes which resemble each other in look, taste and burning characteristics, and the preference towards one or the other is just a matter of taste. A serious Va smoker should definitely try both. The presence of Perique in Ashton's tobacco is quite discreet and tolerable even to those who usually don't love this kind of leaf. This one is less famous than Rattray's blend, but it might just click for you. Note of warning: the European packaging of this blend is in a 100g parchment colored tin. The american version is in a 50g tin with a completely different look. This review was written following my notes based upon the European version: several months later, I also tried the US version: the look in the tin is completely different (it's broken flake, not a whole one), the smell is even more vinegary and fruity (of course, being made by McClelland) and the taste slightly differs, suggesting more than a hint of the Orientals. It almost tastes like a much fuller and slightly sweeter version of GLPease Cairo. I like both versions, but probably I prefer a little the European one.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
JB	04/14/2004	Mild to Medium	None detected	Medium	Very Pleasant
You either like the Virginia tang that this blend delivers, or you don't. I love it myself. I read one of the reviews saying that this blend is cased with vinegar. That, of course, isn't true, but there is a vinegar-like quality to the tin aroma. This is one beautiful pressed tobacco, and once you get it broken up sufficient to provide a good pack, you are in for a real taste treat. It is McClelland's to the core. You can tell that careful blending goes into this mixture and it consistently satisfying. I highly recommend this blend and it ages wonderfully.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Montague	02/29/2004	Medium	None detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
Blended by the McClelland Tobacco Company, Ashton?s Old London Pebblecut tobacco blend is an interestingly tangy Virginia based flake. The tin aroma shouts of a pleasing sweetened Vinegar smell. Although this particular aroma diminishes in pungency over time, it does remain a distinctive characteristic of this blend. Red mottled Carolina leaf, Macedonia, Virginia broad leaf, and Perique tobaccos combine to form this blend. Pebblecut is of a deep mahogany red striated slightly with bands of yellow. Pebblecut appears in a longer, slightly broken flake with a thicker cut. This tobacco rubs out relatively easily especially after it has dried out a bit. Loading a pipe of this tobacco blend is fairly simple. Pebblecut arrives slightly moist but no real drying is necessary for a satisfying smoke. Pebblecut also lights easily for a flake tobacco and has a trend of burning evenly. A match or two is usually needed to finish the smoke completely. The burn leaves the sides of the pipe bowl clean and no real gurgling was noticed during the smoke. The room note tends to be somewhat sharp and overall decent. The taste of this blend tends to be tangy, sweet, and with a slightly spicy background. This spiciness is no doubt due to the Perique though this added Perique only plays a subtle background role, never asserting itself throughout the smoke. The smoke remains medium hot but subsides about half way through until eventually cooling considerably. Also, as the smoke progresses, the entire taste becomes smoother with perhaps a slight loss in the tartness of the blend. A somewhat wispy yet smooth and continuous smoke is rendered by the blend. Pebblecut is a very interesting Virginia flake variant. The full tartness of the pouch aroma may at first seem overpowering but with a bit of familiarity it becomes a very interesting a favorable characteristic of this tobacco blend. Tangy, sweet, slightly spicy, and recommended.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Dwise	05/07/2003	Medium	None detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong
This is definitely a McClelland blend; it bears all the hallmarks of their Virginia flakes (thick cut, tart tin odor) yet proves to be an interesting variant, due to the presence of the Carolinas and Orientals. While the classic McC sharp smokiness is present from the first puff, it is matched by a very noticeable sourness, round and full and pungent, and a sweetness almost like ripe figs. This little flake carries a big load of flavor that remains complex and interesting to the bottom of the bowl. It also seems to carry less threat of tongue bite than your average McClelland, probably due to the VAs being "cut" by the other tobaccos. Good stuff.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
fourshephards	10/10/2002	Medium to Strong	None detected	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable
I picked up a small tin of this a few weeks ago because I thought that it might be a good tobacco to use for "breaking in" new or pipes that I have reconditioned. What I found upon opening the tin was a broken flake with a range of colors - from light tans flecks to deep mahogany stripes. The tin aroma had that sweet and acidic brown sugar and vinegar that says "blended by McClelland" all over it. That, IMHO, speaks WELL and good things of this. I chose not to rub it out much at all. I like to leave high VA content broken flake without much rubbing out as it seems to help them smoke cooler. The tobacco was not overly moist and proved easy to light with my trusty little Colibri butane lighter. At first light, the pungent smoke filled my nostrils with that kind of sweetness that to me is similar to what you get when you bite into a ripe Jersey Tomato. Not that it tastes like tomato, it does not, it just has that same satisfying effect on your taste buds. Pebble Cut then settles down to a nice even burn that provides a smoke that is hard to describe, it is so delicious. No harshness. Just a nice clean burning, sweet smoke that gets richer as it burns. The perique lends a presence but does not assert itself at all but, instead, lingers in the background adding a bit of spice - just enough to keep it interesting. The orientals (READ - NO LATAKIA) enrich the aroma and seem to attenuate the sharpness that one can get with perique blends. There is no dottle left at the end of your smoke. All that is left is a fluffy white ash and a nice spice scent left in your bowl. The small tin I bought was dated 10/98. I quickly ran back to the store and bought two 100gr tins and noted that the dates were 1995 on both. I can hardly wait to open them but I am cellaring them for now. I don't care what Gretchen thinks about this one. I give it 5 x 5. No reservations.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Tantric	09/09/2002	Medium	None detected	Medium	Tolerable
I should start by saying that I have tried both, the McClelland version and one blended in Europe (it did not specify in which country it was blended in, but the parchment like label, very much like the ones in Rattray?s tins, said it to be blended by William Taylor). They are completely different. Whilst the McClelland rendering has virtually no distinctive trait other than that BBQ-Vinegar casing that, IMO, ruins the delicate diversity of tobacco flavours, the EU one is a subtle mixture of aromas and flavours producing a very singular smoke. I cannot say I completely enjoyed it. Perhaps the absence of Latakias made it different to what my palate was seeking, but it did have a very different taste from any other tobacco I have tried. Woodsy, slightly bitter and piquant, Old London Pebble Cut seems like a crossover blend: not entirely a Virginian, not entirely an Oriental tobacco. The tobacco presentation in the European version is very similar to that of Marlin flake: a long single flake-like strand of dark and mid brown tobacco coiled inside the tin. Breaking it up and filling it into the bowl were not a problem. Lighting was also easy (something which did not happen with the McClelland version, albeit it comes in a broken flake form). The initial flavour was that of Virginia and Perique, the latter being perhaps a little overwhelming. By mid bowl both predominant flavours had subsided, and a strange, slightly sweet and salty savour emerged, but it never really made a stand. I then sensed a mixture of indeterminate under tastes, dark and mushy, as if the whole thing had tangled up. By the end of the bowl the blend had shunned the best of both taste spheres, leaving a rather dry aftertaste, as if one had chewed on a piece of tree bark, and it was burning a little hot. The room aroma was quite strong and indefinable. I think it is a good tobacco, medium to strong, and would recommend it to any one who would like to try a strange, and slightly strong, variety of Virginia Perique.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Stogie	09/08/2002	Medium	None detected	Very Full	Pleasant to Tolerable
Outstanding! This blend is a mainstay in my VA/Perique rotation. Such a unique yet consistent taste and burn. I love McClelland flakes, so I knew I would probably enjoy this before I even lit up. Two tins later, I was right! Aroma: Typical McC's smell. Maybe even more pungent if you can believe it. On par with McC's VA. No. 24 or St. James Woods Visual: Partially broken flakes consisting of reddish brown with streaks of dark gold. Texture: I find most McClelland flakes to be just a tad moist as was the case here. Pack/Pipe: In general, I fully rub this tobacco out. It seems to behave a little better for me than just loading it as is. I smoked this in my entire range of VA flakes pipes, but mainly in two medium Nording Freehands, Dunhill Redbark Pot, Ashton xx Pebbleshell Pot and Ashton xx Pebblegrain Apple. A light hand in packing seemed to help this burn well. More moisture = more tang. Light/Burn: Usually took three matches to get this going. But then only one or two more to get to bottom. Usually end up with a tiny charred puck of tobacco at end. This tobacco burns slow! 1st 3rd: Immediately get a wallop of Tangy VA and a unique flavor I can't quite put my finger on. But I like it! Semi-sweet in a lemonade sort of way. Burns warm, not hot. 2nd 3rd: Still plenty of tang, however, a lesser type of sweetness and a cooler flavor now come to the front. Often needed a relight mid bowl. Final 3rd: Tang is still there, however, it is now smoking a bit sweeter and cooler than at any other point in the bowl. One more match to finish Notes: This tobacco is the one that got me hooked on VA/Perique flakes. nuff said! Stogie rating of: 9 Magnifecent Montecristos
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
NEWMAN	08/23/2002	Mild	None detected	Mild	Pleasant
Don't know the significance of the name of this one since it is a slightly broken but nicely prepared flake. From the opening of the tin and the vinegary aroma to the last puff, this is typical McClelland work. Please see my comments on their 2015. I didn't sense the added influence of the orientals in the Ashton blend. Although an enjoyable smoke that receives my top rating, unless you collect tins, save your $$ and buy McClelland in bulk.
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