G. L. Pease - Fog City Selection: Laurel Heights pipe tobacco reviews

Review

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Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
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daidunno	11/06/2007	Medium to Strong	None detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
I don't think that I can add to what others have said, so I will just say that I enjoyed this blend. I wish that for this, as well as some other blends, that there was a way to give it partial stars, as I think that this is a bit better than just recommended, but I cannot quite give it four stars. Update on 5 November 2007: After smoking this once in a while, but lately more often than not, I have to update to 4 stars. It is great when you're in the mood for it. It's equally good in small through large bowled pipes, but gets very intensely flavored, and strong nicotine-wise, in larger bowls halfway down or so, even more so than many blends. Great in any sized bowl, depending on your preference or mood.
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billb3	10/19/2007	Medium	None detected	Medium	Very Pleasant
Not too much to add really. See the most favourable reviews. For a while I thought Pease didn't know his way around a virginia. this series proves me wrong. Nice easy burning, easy packing ribbon cut. Great tobacco. Rich, sweet, complex. The latakia supports the virginia and adds a bit of depth and cmplexity. This is GGGGGGGGreat.
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wosbald	10/12/2007	Medium	None detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
The tin aroma of the wide-cut ribbon is of nutty and sweet red virginias, behind which slight amounts of latakia is noticeable. Though cut for wide gauge chambers, this performed best when chopped to varying degrees in order to pair with the narrower chambers for which this blend seems suited. The red virginia, while lacking aggression, is subtle and deep with tones of toasted crusts and baked sugars . The wafting of latakia lends adds stolidity and presence. Unassuming, yet elegant, this is a charming and nuanced blend. Aging is highly recommended. This was best in narrow to medium gauge chambers.
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tacoeatingzebra	04/25/2007	Mild to Medium	None detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant
Just finished my first can of Laurel Heights. I've been smoking it from a Don Carlos two note bent bulldog. In fact, I broke this pipe in with LH. On another online pipe forum, I saw someone joking that GL Pease should give free tins to anyone who detects the flavor hints that he indicates on the tin, well, recently upon having a big fat bowl of this stuff, I TASTED THE HINT OF GRAPEFRUIT! I was so excited that I told my wife and naturally, she looked at me funny. This is a rich, yet simple blend. It is a little plainer than the English/Balkans I generally favor. Perhaps my tastes are skewed for this reason, because though I can see tiny flecks of latakia here and there-- I mean it's like the dash of tabasco I always add to my famed spaghetti sauce-- I can sense its presence more than I can taste or smell it. It's simply there to wake up the flavors. Kudos to GLP for once again blending a wonderful pipe tobacco.
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Talonr1701	01/03/2007	Mild to Medium	None detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant
The blend is very much true to the tin description. It really has become one of my favorite Virginia smokes. From Char light to finish, you get a mélange of tastes from malt to citrus, with nary a nip or touch of bitter. Not a sweet blend, it?s a wonderful testimate that Greg Pease knows his Virginias as well as his Perique. Mild to med in Strength, I?ve had it in a small Bulldog to a large Meer and it behaves no matter what you throw it in. Over all a great companionable smoke. Can?t go wrong. P.S. "If" there is Latakia in this, It's in the same proportion I like vermuth in my Martini's....Just walk the vodka glass by the Vermuth bottle, and hand it over.... Cheers!
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tonyg	11/10/2006	Medium	None detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
GL Pease is arguably the best blender today. I now have seven of his blends in my rotation and at least one of his tins open at all times. Having said that, I must concur with Mainspring's assessment of this quality blend.
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Ben Rich	10/09/2006	Mild	None detected	Full	Very Pleasant
This is my "reading" smokes - what I like to smoke while sitting back and reading one of Patrick O'Brian's Jack Aubry and Stephen Maturin sea novels. LH packs very easy and tamps down with a springiness to it before lighting. Obviously quality tabacco - wondeful fresh smell while still in the tin. On lighting, the initial taste for me is slightly bitter and slightly "woody". Perhaps the woody taste is GL Pease's term for "peat"; nevetheless, it is very satisfying. As the smoke developes, the bitterness (which is somewhat akin to bitter beer hops) disappears and the smooth natural virginia flavors kick in. This is an excellent tobacco and I believe it would be ideal for breaking in a new pipe. It doesn't burn too hot, it remains lit without constant puffing, burns perfectly evenly throughout and finishes with a fine whitish ash - and its flavor is fantastic. I have several tins stockpiled and will order more. I highly recommend this tobacco.
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SparkleMotion	09/15/2006	Medium	None detected	Medium	Pleasant
This is a dangerous tobacco- it has to be smoked very very slowly or it can easily become harsh. In a large pipe smoked slowly its quite good.
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mainspring	07/27/2006	Medium to Strong	None detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable
As much as I have tried to enjoy Laurel Heights, I just don't seem to be able to. It isn't the quality of the tobacco because it is obviously top shelf. My taste buds are to blame. To me it is a harsh and hot smoke. The moisture in the tin seems to be just right. From the charring light to the last shred in the bowl, it just doesn't give me any enjoyment. Maybe some aging will change my rating.
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Wetheel	07/15/2006	Mild to Medium	None detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable
Laurel Heights made me feel like a rich man. Not every pipeful, and not all the way through the tin, but in two or three smokes it just pushed the right buttons. The strong top note in the aroma is almost floral, the smoke feels and tastes good in the mouth, and the support in the middle is (not a word I like to use) perfect. The bottom notes are well in the background. This is simply a brilliant blend. Two things I'll do differently next time: look for a discount, and don't scrabble around in the jar to get the last bits. The Latakia crumbles more than the Virginias, and at the bottom of the container the balance of the blend comes unstuck. But hey, a rich man can afford to throw out a teaspoonful of tobacco.
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ajaj	06/24/2006	Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable
All of the tobaccos used by Greg and Craig are of the highest quality, and my two star recommendation should not reflect that fact. I have been "cursed" with an uncanny ability to shudder when latakia is even mentioned in a room, let alone smoked. When I attempted to smoke LH, all I could detect is latakia. Understand, the amount of latakia is minimal, almost microscopic, but its not a tobacco for me. The foundation of red and other virginias is wonderful, and I feel that this blend will receive the highest accolades. aj
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Subdude	06/13/2006	Medium to Strong	None detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
Unlike most reviewers, I find GLP's blends to be a little bitey on the tongue. This could be due to my smoking habits, and I have learned to "sip" his blends carefully to avoid bite. This is not the case with Laurel Heights. I made my charring light gingerly, hoping to avoid that initial sting, but it never came. Instead, I got a moutful of creamy, sweet smoke. The beginning of the bowl had some nose tingle that pleasantly offset the sweetness. Mid bowl became slightly nutty, but never bitter. The ending was very mild and dry, and left me wanting another bowl immediately. There was no dottle at all. It smoked down to a fine gray ash. All that said, this is a terrible, terrible smoke. Don't buy any...at least not until I've stocked up;)
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csimser	06/07/2006	Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Tolerable
I seem to be the lone dissenting voice, however, I can not recommend this blend. I was eagerly looking forward to its release, as I enjoy the Telegraph Hill blend in this series, and other GLP blends, very much. However, I find Laurel Heights to be one dimensional - a flat tasting, somewhat acrid blend that lacks the wonderful complexity of other GLP blends. The "hint" of latakia mentioned on the GLP website and in other reviews gave me the sense I was smoking a Virginia blend in an estate pipe I had purchsed from someone who smoked nothing but English blends. It certainly did not add to the experience, and this experience needed some addition. My advice to the Virginia smoker is to avoid Laurel Heights and choose from a number of other blends in the GLP line which are truly superlative.
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topdogue	06/07/2006	Mild to Medium	None detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant
The whole Fog City collection is dificult to classify. The overall concept is variations of Virginia mixtures, but in a robbon-cut form. The temptation is to compare them to flakes, which would be a mistake. They are almost a genre unto themselves. It is interesting to read how the tiny smidgeon of Latakia in this mixtre has the attention of so many pipe smokers. To all who want to try this mixture I recommend letting it sit in the tin for at least a month and two months is better. C&D who blends glp mixtures is a small operation and do not have room to cellar tobaccos, hence when you get it, the tobaccos are still getting to know each other. The mixtures from overseas have been sitting around in their tins smoothing out for some time before whe apply the match to them. I let my Laural Heights sit for a month and then smoked it. I smoke a wide variety of diferent mixtures and didn't detect the Latakia. This is a very "round" VA mixture with medium complexity, but the sterling quality i like is the richness and creaminess of the smoke. Not a knock you over richness, but that subtle richness that is slightly sweet with no pepperiness (sometimes called spiciness) that allows me to smoke it all day without tongue fatigue. I will be bying more for the cellar as Virginias just get better and better with age. I suspect our friend with the one star rating smoked his LH when it was just made. In a perfect world, all tobaccos would be aged like single malt scotch (BTW, Macallan is primo with LH), but alas, we must do the aging ourselves. This mixture is highly recommended for VA lovers as an all-day smoke and as an alternative to heavier flakes.
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Beer	06/05/2006	Medium to Strong	None detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable
Aaaah, finally I can give my review, too! It took me a bit longer than usual, but finally I managed open to smoke almost a whole tin of the new GLPease offering! The content of the tin is similar in cut and moisture to the latest Fog City offerings, maybe a little more stringy and broadly cut. The color is an orangish tan, vaguely similar to Cairo and very even. The dark latakia bits are very few and far in between, and on the nose I don't detect their presence. Packing is regular as usual, no... a little better. It doesn't clog airholes like other blends in the Fog City selection did! Taste-wise, I think it's the boldest so far in the collection. It's not as sweet as I would expect from a red virginia blend (but maybe I am used to McClelland's red virginias, which are extra sweet), and at times it can be even a bit bitterish. But not "bad bitterness", more like the woody bitterness you can find in a cigar. Of course it's fruity, tart, with cinnamon notes and even an impression of "toastiness" which I can't explain. It sure is a tasty blend, while the last ones were good but at times too subtle and delicate. I taste resemblances of Tribute and Cairo, while of course there is no Perique: the same rich and slightly "dirt" taste (meaning that it's not "fake" and artificially "polished"), very natural and genuine. The biggest complaint I have is that it's a tiny bit stronger than I prefer, and at the end of a medium bowl I have a slight nicotine overload (not much, but noticeable). But this is a common thing with many Classic Series non-latakia Pease blends... while funnily the other ones in the Fog City selection are very light. I still prefer other red virginias (especially some McClellands in flake form... when will Greg make a flake?) and in the Fog City selection of course the spectacular Montgomery is still a notch ahead, but this one is robust, good and "different". I already have some more tins away for aging...
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sasha	05/16/2006	Medium	None detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
Top quality leaf, as usual for a Pease tobacco, but I have found it a little lacking in taste: probably it's my fault, so I might come back on this in the future, but I just haven't tasted the deepness and the flavour development so many other reviewers have written about. Oh, and no latakia flavour at all apart from some hints of presence, usually towards the bottom of the bowl... Ok...tomorrow I'll give up cigarettes and reset my palate...:-)
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mrmcmc	05/14/2006	Medium	None detected	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable
The Bordeaux Of Tobacco Blends. Like a Chateau Latour, or a Chateau Margaux, or an Opus One, the Creme De La Creme. This is the one. Complex, distictly layered tastes among intertwining flavors!! Full bodied, unique, elegant, naturally aromatic, and Did I Say Flavorful!!!! Dare I say the tobacco to end all tobaccos? With no offense meant to anyone! Further, this tobacco smells so good in the tin you may not want to smoke it, but when you do, you will swear you died and went to tobacco heaven. This is flavorful top to bottom, and fairly explodes upon the palate the way a fine red wine will, deep and dense, broad and full, luxurious and rich. With just enough sweetness from the Virginias to make this blend really sing. A true symphony of flavors. And like a fine red wine, this is a blend to be savored, to be enjoyed leisurely, as you would not want to rush this. You absolutely would not want to miss out on the interplay and intertwining of the amazingly delicious flavors and aromas headed your way. And by way of an extra bonus, the nicotine level is quite manageable. Just enough to let you know it is there, but no more. As previously noted here, I too can only imagine the effect that aging would have on this blend. Mr. Pease, Kudos To You, you have really done it this time. But alas, how do you top this? Highly recommended! In fact, this is so highly recommended that it is off the charts. 100 out of 10!!!! Happy smoking!!!
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Ian Weeks	05/02/2006	Mild to Medium	None detected	Medium	Pleasant
It is a rare occasion that I review a blend after only a few weeks, or even a few months of smoking it. Notice my past reviews and you will find that it is my habit to smoke a blend for on average six months to a year, or even more before having anything to put to letters about it. Laurel Heights was an easy exception. Red VA?s are my favorite among the spectrum, and so LH was very easy for me to enjoy. The leaf quality is as usual for a GLP blend ?bar none.? The ribbon cut is none too dry or too moist direct from a freshly opened tin. The aroma is a combination of fresh VA, and I would be remiss if I did not add that I detect something different. My olfactory senses do not place it as being Cyprian Latakia, and though that is exactly what it is I do believe that the marriage of the tiny amount of Cyprian Latakia has had the affect of the VA?s lovingly imparting their own fine influence upon the fragrant bouquet of the Latakia, not unlike how Latakia- when applied with a heavy hand can influence other components in a blend. How does the bowl develop one might ask? From first light to tamp and relight it is quite clear that this is a quality blend, there is no hot acrid flavor that I get from some blends during the char light- a testament to the quality leaf. Once things get going there is of course the sweetness of the VA?s releasing their sugars into the vapor trail and through my nostrils, but by far the most fascinating aspect to me of LH is that the unusual and wonderful aroma (barely detectable as Latakia, indeed I wouldn?t have known were I not told) has transformed by combustion into something else. Like a fleet of French Horns in the distance drawing nearer- louder. The VA?s have not only blossomed, they shout forth ?I am here! I am sweet!? Remarkably, the character of this blend has done what no other blend that I have sampled has ever done. It has made VA?s taste better. I find this to be a feat of extraordinary skill and talent delivered to us by Mr. Gregory Pease, a blend worthy of the gods, made by a man, to be enjoyed by all.
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Ranger	04/17/2006	Medium to Strong	None detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
I've never given 2 stars to a Pease blend, but this is it. The tobacco looks and smells great. The burn is nearly perfect, I've never had more one match bowls on any blend before. I found the strength somewhat strong but the fullness in the mouth somewhat mild. Not a very rich, satisfying smoke for me. I kept trying it and expecting a different experience, but it was consistent throughout the tin, and that's good if you like this blend. Some obviously love this tobacco, but I can't seem to be satisfied enough.
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Stan	04/06/2006	Medium	None detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant
[Stan once again, lost to us for a while, after bouts with a genie chasing him for one of Pease's Fog City blends, an afterlift experience with another of the Fog City's, and, of course, Katrina (hopefully not a name ever for a blend)]: Stan: Ahhhh. I'm on my second tin. This new Fog City is pure delight. Mostly red ribbon virginia, with a little brown and bright, and a schrapnel of latakia for background. It rivals the best of the reds. Red Ribbon, red cake, Scottish Ribbon, Wingfield, Scottish Cake, etc., and will probably soon out distance them. It has enough of the natural tartness of a true red ribbon without being real sweet, robustness near Owner's Choice (precursor of red Ribbon), and coolness of Royal Yacht. Best yet is is a very good packer and burner. Dry as the day is long. Oh, what's that sound? It looks like an orb or saucer. Oh my God! Klato: Descending from the disc a little green creature emerges. Earthling, "Take me to your...." Hmmmm (antenna twiching). What's that aroma my scensors detect? Stan: Laurel Heights, Master Pease's newest incantation of pipe weed. Sweet. Cool. Shy of stout but plenty of body. Mesmerizing in delights of scent, taste, and texture! Klato: "Take me to your blender!" Stan: Never. Give me Laurel Heights or give me death. (Puffing at the visitors delicate antenna.) Klato: You earthlings are too aggressive. I will return to my planet. This Laurel heights weapon is too advanced for us. My antenna are twisted. It makes you too strong. One day we must discover its secret. Stan: Wow! Earth is saved thanks to Laurel Heights. Go get some before the Martians return to steal it all. Greg and Craig, watch the skies. Watch the skies. Next time it won't be a warehouse fire. It'll be a ray gun from Mars. Obviously, highly recommended to all virginia lovers but not to aliens. A little aging will bring out the reds more -- our little secret from the Martians. Printed with blessings from Wells.
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