I cracked it on my 20th birthday and shared with my pipe friends. The first few bowls smoked too hot, but I kept changing pipes and found a good packing technique.

My three favorite pipes to smoke this with are: s Peterson System 303; a Stanwell Bishop freehand; and a small Wilkes apple turned from Algerian briar sometime in the 50s. The common theme here is a small bowl - even the Stanwell is probably only a small group 4, and the other two are group 3.

Then, proceed to mash as much tobacco as you can into the bowl, about like it is in the tin. If packed with a light hand, this stuff burns in about ten minutes, cinging the tounge the whole time. But packed tightly, the tobacco seems to burn much more slowly, letting out the flavors within.

And while this contains a hint of perique, the main attraction here is a Virginia taste that can only be described as midwestern. It tastes to me like being on a prairie in September.

This is a beautiful summertime tobacco. I can't see it working well in the winter, and it isn't an all day smoke. But for sitting in the grass on a summer afternoon, nothing beats Stratford.

aj

Perique produces nice flavor from top to the bottom, and Virginia tastes sweety at the beginning, then mild and peaceful. I found it's not like other tobacco I tried, it can be smoked till the real bottom of the bowl, to finish all, while the taste did not change too much. That's why I did NOT realize it's finished until it turned off.

I'll come back with my experience later, when I try more into details. Enjoy your Straford!

The smoke reminds me of why we all started smoking a pipe. A halcyon joy to smoke. It has a clean tobacco taste with no gloppy flavors added. It is pure tobacco that is blended so well.

It lights quite easily and burns with delight. In fact it burns too well. Use a large bowl this rascal escapes to the gods too quickly.

The Virginia and perique combination is exquisite, but watch it. On an empty tummy this has enough zip to give you the hiccups.

Aroma: The first impression is grassy, sort of like a really fine grade of hay that you would feed to a horse you really liked. This tells me that lemon Va. is a major component. There is also a slight tang from the Perique, but none of the acetic acid smell of a McClellend blend. Doesn?t have the heavy, sweet aroma of a matured red, so I anticipate a light, but pleasant smoke. Possibly this is the ?Breakfast Virginia? counterpart to Piccadilly.

Packing: Like all of the GLP blends, this packs easily into any size bowl from group 3 through 5. Experience with this series tells me to pack just a hair tighter than usual, but only a red hair.

Lighting: The blend takes flame readily, but not too quickly. The cut is just right for lighting.

Initial flavor: This is a Breakfast Virginia indeed, the flavor is light and bright on the tongue, with grassy overtones. There is a bit of Perique tingle, not excessive. Shows promise of some complexity. Needs to be puffed slowly. Don?t pack too loosely. Has excellent DGT qualities.

Mid-bowl: This is definitely a light blend, but not bland. There is some interplay of the different Virginias, and the Perique fades in and out as you proceed slowly. Puffed too quickly, this can become monochromatic in taste (read boring), and can get hot. In other words, don?t push her too fast, or she?ll slap your face. Go slow, and she?ll give you everything you want.

Finish: Nothing really changes at the end of the bowl. It finishes dry and cool, leaves a fluufy, light ash behind. You may be ready for another soon, or for something heavier.

Summary: For me this is an eye-opener. For others, it may be a great all-day smoke. Definitely a winner, and I will buy a bag or two to cellar, as well as a few cans to dip into. Another winner in the Classic Series.

I love Virginia-Perique blends, but this one just doesn't do it for me.

However, I'm glad that some of the earlier reviewers do enjoy it and vive la difference!

As suspected Stratford improves incredibly with age. Fuller body, sweeter and spicier flavors. ------

Interesting Blend.
I concur with the impression of many that it seems to be "Haddo's Light". It has the fruitiness and nuttiness of that blend - the hallmark taste of dried plum and spice - but not nearly so potent.

I'm just warming up to Perique based blends so this may be subject to revision later:

Initial Impressions: Light colored. My tin was very new and the tobacco within was packed to the brim. Typical Pease ribbons that needed a bit of mixing up. I've taken out a sample for the next week or so and resealed the rest to give it a bit of age. I think maturity will do this blend some good.

Nice tobacco flavors through out - especially the sweetness and spice. Similar to Redwood though not as zesty as that. The flavor is fairly full and there is a predominant cigar/cigarette like odor and taste. This element is the only thing that causes me to not give it 4 stars. And this is a subjective taste issue. Otherwise I think I'll enjoy this tobacco when I want the fullness of the leaves - but not the overwhelming kick in the $%# from something like Haddo.

A well crafted blend of lighter tones. Very good burning quality - stays lit and not too fast. Not as complex as other Pease offerings - but also still very young.

The note in the tin is really mild, almost neutral. But you can detect a bit of the grassy Va aroma if you pay attention.

Lighting Stratford is easy, and it is low-maintenance from there. Nice steady burn rate, a bit faster than I really expected. There was never a hint of biting.

The Perique in this mixture is mild, to say the least. It could almost be a straight Virginia.

What really surprised me was the flavor. From the faintness of the tin note, I didn?t expect much. The flavor wasn?t full, but it was very pleasant. Stratford is a pretty straightforward tobacco. It doesn?t possess the complexity that Greg Pease is so well known for, but the overall quality is what you would expect.

The last third of the bowl does seem to have a bit more of a smoky quality and a hint of bitter-sweetness to the taste if you let it go out and re-light. If you just smoke straight to the bottom without a re-light (something that is very easy to do with Stratford), the sweet-grassy flavor will make a gradual increase without any real deviation.

Considering that this is a fast-burning, light Va mixture, I expected it to be poised to bite every second of the way. Much to my delight, it was nothing of the sort. Never a gurgle, burned down to a powdery ash.

If I smoked straight Va?s with any regularity, I think the hint of Perique here would be a welcome (subtle) change. I smoke heavy English blends, but I think I might just keep Stratford in mind for those hot, humid summer days when I want something light and refreshing. For that reason I feel that I can only give this one a 3-star rating. The Va/Perique fans will no doubt give it a solid 4-star rating.

It had a thin, burning taste that always left me with something like tounge bite, but not quite. It had what I might describe as an ashy taste. One other reviewer mentioned cigarette like, I concurr. Perhaps this blend can be rehabilitated by time. The tin will go on the shelf until then.

This stuff is just too light and flavorless for me. I found the flavor too thin with a cigarette note to it. But I gravitate towards dark stoved virginias and strong burley blends. I feel that GL Peases best blends are Barbary Coast, Haddos Delight and Renaissance.

One positive for this and all Greg's blends they're packed to the brim giving the customer a healthy portion.