Update: Starting to enjoy the Va tang as a break from full latakia blends. Changed the recommendation to a 3 star if put into the context of a Va/Perique blend

Upon lighting this blend up I was greeted with very, very mild Virginias. I didn?t taste any Perique in there yet but since I have experienced this before with other blends I wasn?t too worried about it. This blend burns very cleanly and doesn?t require any relights.

Okay, getting near the middle of the bowl and I am still waiting for any kind of appearance from the Perique. I get subtle whiffs of it as I?m smoking but nothing that ever tastes like it in my draw. Now I had read some of the reviews on tobaccoreviews.com and knew ahead of time that this blend was pretty light on the Perique but I certainly wasn?t expecting this.

Down at the bottom of the bowl now and there has been the vague appearance of Perique right near the end of the smoke.

Overall, I didn?t like the blend as a VaPer blend. As a Virginia it was pretty good. It was very mild and never presented a problem either to my tongue or to the burn of the blend. This blend would probably serve as a good bridge for a straight Virginia smoker to start down the VaPer road but I think that anyone who is a VaPer smoker will find this blend way too plain.

Packing & Lighting: Some of the tobacco is long and stringy. Took several matches to get this stuff to stay lit, and then a lot of frantic puffing to keep it that way, partly due to the way it was packed. In another pipe, it behaved better. When smoked outdoors on a cool day, it produced the usual moisture in the stem.

Taste & Aroma: Rather unremarkable, stale, particularly compared to other Fog City Selections. No bite.

Smoked in another briar a week later, it is vaguely pungent woodsy.

Nicotine: mild to medium. The Perique does not contribute much.

Room Note: Somewhat sharp, smoky, tolerable.

Overall: Maybe I got a bad batch. A few flecks looked molded. The perique presence seemed to be perceptible only after the tin had been opened for a few days. Compared to other FCS blends, 2 stars.

The grain and toast character of gold leaf plays well of the richness of the orange and red varieties. The perique is pronounced, yet not overbearing. There is a nutty richness to the favor that builds throughout the bowl.

Telegraph Hill is rich and flavorsome. It is elegant and refined, and will undoubtedly gain dignity with age. This seemed best in narrow to medium gauge chambers.

Unfortunately, Telegraph Hill is not among those. Clearly, it has everything going for it as far as quality, burning characteristics and so on. I just don't find it all that flavorful. But it might be just my taste in which case, add a star or even two if you like Vaper's.

On the other hand, Mr. Pease has produced what might be the best Vaper anywhere. My suggesstion...Try Fillmore first. You may very well have no need to even try another.

Recommended with reservation.

I received a small sample of this tabac in an order from my online tobacconist. I filled up my Prince of Whales with half of the contents of the sample package. The aroma from the package was heavenly in and of itself. The light up was very easy and flavorful with a strong fresh hit of fine Virginia leaf and a good jolt of nicotine as well. Sip after sip the flavor and aroma just kept building, just the right amount of Perique really sends the taste sensation of this blend to cloud nine. This one really holds a fresh and flavorful smoke from start to finish. A brilliant combination of sweet and nutty with a slight amount of pepper at the finish.

I savored this bowl from start to finish. My eyes immediately gazed at the remainder of the tobacco in the sample bag. Enough for the car ride to the tobacco shop I thought to myself. I purchased three more tins, one to smoke and two to cellar. I will update this review when I have sampled the contents of one of the aged tins. Six or so months I think if I can keep my hands off it!

It's a nice fine ribbon cut, mostly orange and red shades with some small amounts of lemon and dark brown.

The aroma is just another medium Virginia with a trace of Perique.

When first lit, it doesn't pack the flavor of Cumberland, nor does it have the light grassy delicate taste of Stratford. It does have a good mouth feel, but the flavors seem muted. The can I opened was about one year old. Since it was introduced in 2005, nobody knows how well it will age, but this one just didn't bloom for me the way other GLP blends do. It smokes well all the way down the bowl, and leaves a clean ash in a dry pipe, but that's it.

aj

Old:

The tobaccos used by Greg are high quality and Telegraph Hill is no exception. However, Telegraph Hill did not quite do it for for me. This is rather odd since I enjoy many of the C&D offerings, especially Briar Fox and Bayou Morning. Telegraph Hill is not Bayou Morning, nor does it attempt to be. However, there are similarities. Anyway, the perique is far too weak for my liking and there is a dry ashy taste about mid-bowl. However, there is a short lived creaminess which is nice. Adding some blending perique helps Telegraph Hill, but I still find it a little boring.

A cigarette is to be smoked. A cigar is to be enjoyed. A pipe is to be savored.

I rate this tobacco 9.89 out of 10.

If the Virginia leaf thrown into this blend was more refined and the flavor more intense, I might have given Telegraph Hill two stars. This one isn't even middlin' as far as I'm concerned.

After about 20 pipefuls, I can conclude this is a world class blend that is going to age very well. There is a certain verdant sharpness compared to other VaPer caked blends, but this is more than acceptable and satisfying for my incresingly robust taste preferences. Interestingly I smoked this a medium German Radford 1/4 bent with a filter and was pleasantly surprised by the mellowness imparted without losing the spirit and progressive flavour of the blend. I know that American smokers don't use the 9mm filters much, but if you have a filtered briar around, give it a shot. I'd be interested in the thoughts of others...

--- update 2010-11-26 Having opened a 5 year old tin out of necessity (puffed up- evidence of internal fermentation), I have now tasted the effect of aging. This batch from '05 was obviously packed a little too moist, so the microbes were gracefully aging this tobacco. Very nice, rich, spicy, peppery and uniform taste with the VA having aged and mellowed. Nicotine is there to satisfy. Nice stewed fruit flavour in the zone and happy to be smoking this tin.

Upon first light I also found the taste to be very mild to the point of almost bland but after just a few more puffs the flavor began to build and became a very enjoyable smoke. First I tasted the sweetness of the Virginia tobaccos and as the smoke progressed then I noticed the underlying sourness of the perique, which only enhanced the enjoyment of the experience.

This was a very enjoyable tobacco with nice complexity that smoked very cool all the way to the bottom. I am eager to find out how this tobacco ages.

After 5 minutes of "warming up", this tobacco turned out a real beauty. The great thing of this blend is its continuous evolution of flavour, which becomes very rich and ever changing (usually in better) until the end of the bowl.

For several reasons the blend reminds me of Montgomery, with its great Virginia base: delicate, but flavorful. Of course here there isn't that "coffee and milk" impression, but rather a delicate sourness, at times almost metallis. Some hay, some fruity acidity and sweetness, some slight and pleasant grassiness.

The Perique content is quite moderate (I don't like it in big percentages), but its presence is clearly felt taste-wise. The result is a supremely smooth blend.

Give this tobacco some time to evolve in the bowl, and you will be rewarded by a very nice smoking experience.

Another winning Virginia+condiments from Greg Pease: I had always preferred his Latakia blends, but it seems he has started a successful streak (at least for my taste) with this Fog City Selection.