It would have been stellar, less harsh than 965, with great flavor, but it doesn't burn well. I've tried various pipes and packing methods, but it just doesn't want to stay lit. You can chalk that up to user inexperience or a bad batch I don't know. But I'm going to stay away from this for a while.

Now, having said that, I was monkeying around with some Pease Embarcadero, which I really like a ton, but thought to myself that a little latakia mixed into it might be a good experiment. So I did about half and half Odyssey/Embarcadero. I lit it up and let me tell you, it was transcendent. I don't know what else to say, I think I just smoked the best pipe of tobacco I've ever had, and I've been smoking pipes for a while.

update 09/27/08: just smoked a tin of Samarra...Odyssey now a 3 star blend.

This is tobacco turned into an art form.

***BE SURE YOUR BUTANE LIGHTER IS FULL BEFORE ATTEMPTING TO TRY TO LIGHT THIS STUFF!!**

I tried this blend based on GL Pease? website and all the ?hoopla? about this blend/brand and thought I would give it a try. I was very disappointed when I opened the tin as it smelled like an old musty gym sock. Putting that thought aside, I packed my pipe and lit up, and lit up, and lit up again! DOES THIS STUFF NEED LIGHTER FLUID OR WHAT!? It didn?t feel overly moist but, THIS STUFF JUST WON?T BURN! I live in New Mexico where the humidity is 2% so I put a pack of this on a paper towel to air out?all day! Repacked my pipe several times, tried a meerschaum, several other pipes, and STILL no luck keeping this stuff lit.

I held off putting in my review for this thinking that maybe it will age and get better but?NOPE. Perhaps the tobacco is too green? I don?t know but when I was able to get a drag in, it was nothing too spectacular. I know you may be thinking that I am not a Latakia smoker but actually enjoy a good Latakia/Oriental/English blend.....that stays lit. I searched the best price for this blend on the internet and thought it was quite pricy compared to other latakia/oriental blends (hence one of the reasons I am not rating this higher). I think this blend got high reviews based on the name ?GL Pease?. But I think I got ripped off. If this is what Odyssey is all about?..I?ll pass. I know I'm beating the ?hard to burn? issue but if you can't burn it, how can you enjoy smoking it?

I had to read the other reviews on here to see if maybe I just got a bad batch but sure enough, there are more than one reviews indicating the same experience. Upon reading Country Gentleman?s comment, he described it exactly like I would.

All other GLP English blends taste better to me, with Charing Cross representing the top achievement and opposite of Odyssey, tastewise.

I purchased five pounds of Odyssey, but it was tragically destroyed by fire. One bowl at a time. I've been smoking a pipe since 1972. A huge blend. A huge pleasure.

And yes, I do find it difficult to keep lit. I need to puff on the pipe often just to keep this lit, however, it doesn't bite me at all. I can usually finish 2/3 of the pipe at which point it goes out and relighting it becomes tiresome. That's fine for me since I smoke most blends that way. It is a very nice blend and I will always have a few tins availabe. I smoke this occasionally and enjoy it very much. Just like I did with the old 759 which, for me, was too rich for an everyday smoke.

Updated:

All the character I mentioned in the above review make this a great blend, but I am downgrading this review because I got tired of fighting to keep this tobacco lit. The burn quality of this tobacco is, in my experience, very poor.

With all due respect to fellow reviewers?.I can?t find myself to rate this tobacco higher. I just can?t get a good burn out of it and didn?t find the taste that spectacular. I will update my review after giving it a few more months of aging. We?ll see?.

We as Pipers are privileged indeed to be able to enjoy what we do and this site really makes things a bit easier when one wants to try new blends.

I would like to thank all the reviewers and everyone else that keeps this going.

Mo,South Africa

If you want pure luxury, stick a few tins away for about 5 years. Just finished a bowl out of a 6yr old tin. Unbelievably rich and creamy. Hard to imagine that it can be so bold and smooth at the same time. This blend is truly a classic.

I have noted a tendency in some walks of life, that when someone reaches the pinnacle of accomplishment or popularity, as G.L. Pease certainly has, some "experts" feel the need to take the person down a peg. To suggest that Odyssey is a one-star blend is ridiculous when one considers some of the genuine garbage that is available for review.

The taste and quality of Odyssey is extremely good, and it´s mineral, earthy taste is unsurpassable, but I agree, however, with gorealestate that it is VERY DIFFICULT to keep lit. At first I thought it was due to a personal lack of skill, so I took it to a Pipe Club meeting where there were many expert smokers, even contest winning ones, and even they had great difficulties with Odyssey.

This was such an annoying drawback that I stopped smoking it after managing to finish the second tin. Nevertheless, if you are very patient and don´t have problems with wasting whole bottles of butane gas, you have to try this mixture.

Odyssey is less herbish campfire and more musty leather. Smoke this one in a car or closed room, then come back later and it will smell like a wet dog. That shouldn't stop you from smoking it though. You still love that old dog of yours even if he did get left out in the rain right?

I am very intrested to see how this smokes as it ages.

I don't know if this is an all day smoke for the latakia fans but for me when I'm in the mood for this I really enjoy it.

I'm not sure Odyssey deserves it's top billing. Try it, but don't be too surprised. Read other reviews and I think you'll find my experience is not unique.