On par with all Pease's blends as far as quality and flavor. The smell was fruity reminding me of Haddo's some (Pease wrote somewhere that this smell is the aging of the tobacco). Cairo tastes light at first but then it goes to work on you. It's soft like angel food cake, sweet and has a sneaky nic kick. It gains in flavor quick, spreading its wings into a medium Va/Or/Per that is nice in the AM. The next thing you know your eyes are wide open. I think this is very good and the more I smoke it the more I appreciate it. Like Picadilly, which I also smoked recently, Cairo is not fully realized until you're about out and wondering how fast you can get another tin. One man in a pipe forum called Cairo "subtle". I like that description so much I'm stealing it. Very subtle, very good for a light virginia/oriental/perique blend.

This is one of those moments you remember, possibly even a holy grail moment, the smell, the sight of the blonde sprigs with flecks of... green? ...Really? This stuff was fresh! Lighting it the fragrance of the smoke was absolutely mind numbing. I went back to the store the next day and bought every tin they had and it was my daily smoke for a year... loved this stuff. I was one of those people that thought Greg had cut a deal with the devil... it was that good.

Financial hard times befell me and had to give up the luxuries in life for a while and expensive tins of tobacco were one of the first casualties to go.

Fast forward a year and I was back in the store for more Cairo. But this time it was different. It was much darker in color and not as fresh in the aroma department which was also apparent when smoked. Much more stout, almost harsh and nasty on the tongue, what the hell happened?

I don't know if it was my change in taste from smoking cheap tobacco and cigarettes or if it was the natural aging process of the blend itself but I was no longer smitten. I tried multiple times to rekindle that first experience but Cairo had morphed into something I no longer liked. The last of the most recent tin was reduced to a pile of dust after sitting so long untouched and finally ended up at the bottom of the round file this morning.

I appreciate it as something that defined my taste in tobacco in my early days of smoking. It still has desirable qualities and I'm not sayin it's a bad tobacco, just no longer something I lust for as I did when it was new.

If you like Vapers I still recommend you give it a try as most like it just fine with some age on it.

I've been smoking Cairo since it first came on the market. (I'm just getting around to submitting a few reviews.) I do not smoke Cairo everyday, but I do smoke several bowls of it during the course of the week. And I enjoy it everytime I smoke it.

More of a fine ribbon cut than is usual with Pease, and I have to thank him for that. I find that alot of the tobacco blends are in too rough a cut or too thick a ribbon to produce the best burn. I like to smoke slowly, and a finer ribbon seems to give me more flavor and a more even burn. Dunhill seems to get this.

The color of the tobacco had darkened somewhat from the more caramel fresh appearance. It was more of a mahogany. The tin scent was a bit more rich and developed with the perique being a bit more tame in the nose than before. There is very little perique in this one, but a fresh tin will present one with a tad more of it's aggresiveness.

The packing is easy. The char light was a presentation of oriental spice and a hint of the virginia grassiness. After the true light, the blend starts to develope quickly in the bowl. As the orientals start to settle in the virginia and perique components marry. The sturdy background they provide are matched well to the orientals chosen here. The strength is on the light side of medium and the body is a full medium. Flavor is medium to full.

At midbowl, after smoking slowly, you get hints of sweet India spices in caramel, with a yeasty, grassy high note. Very little fruitiness from the perique although dark, low notes are apparent. The strength has not picked up at all...still a light medium.

The blend smoked beautifully from top to bottom. No moisture issues and no bite noted. My only complaint is the strength. It would be a much more relaxing smoke if it had a bit more nicotine. As it is, I will not be adding any for long term storage as it just doesn't satisfy me as much as I would like.

For lighter blend smokers that have a slower cadence, I would recommend this without hesitation. Cheers!

Upon opening the tin I was met with a wonderful aroma that makes me think of grapefruit and raisins. I recognized this as the influence of the Oriental and Perique tobaccos, but there is still some sort of casing in there. This blend has a wonderful range of light to medium colors, and the cut resembles thick cigarette tobacco. A wonderful tobacco, but the trick to smoking it is to find the right pipe, right pairing, and right time of day.

It took me a few smokes, but this Sunday morning I hit gold. Early morning, with a cup of plain black coffee, in a briar pipe I picked up at an estate shop. (A simple pot shaped pipe with a deep walnut finish. It says "Seal's," and I suspect that it is a private label pipe made by Kaywoodie).

The sweet Virginia tobacco takes center stage, and the Oriental and Perique is applied just the way I like - as condiments. Whatever casing they used is also present and it serves to further shade this wonderful blend, which has a nice mellow quality. Care must be used when puffing away, however, because anything other than a moderate sip caused this blend to bite me just a bit.

My normal morning blends are Stokkebye's Natural and Peterson's Sherlock Holmes, both of which I think are mild and sweet. This blend has a bit more spine to it, and is not as sweet. The room note is not as pleasant as the Natural or Sherlock Holmes, but it is still nice. All-in-all, Cairo will make a very nice addition to my morning rotation when I'm in the mood for something just a bit more stout to go with my morning cup of java.

First it is a very subtle, carefully blended tobacco that slowly unfolds as it is sipped and enjoyed. The tin aroma is a tad orange-like but I agree with a reviewer who detected a contact cement under tone (not at all unpleasant and I conjecture if it may be the orientals). I discovered that it's best to pack the pipe and let Cairo get used to the bowl for an an hour or so. Then the tobacco rewards your patience. The Virginia is sweet and spicy with the orientals delivering a genuinely tasty backbeat of flavor. The perique is in perfect, understated proportion.

I ordered Union Square and Haddos Delight with my Cairo. If they are as complex and delicious as Cairo, I tip my briar to Mr. Pease for being a true craftsman of the blender's art !

Appearance: The typical Pease-esque "ribbon" with the very occasional chunk of dark stuff...the "whisper of Perique"??? I pack it quite firmly or the draw is far too light. For some reason I found myself constantly relighting (in all three pipes), probably because I'm attempting to keep a slow sipping-style smolder going.

Aroma: The strangest tin aroma I've ever experienced. Think contact cement. But in a good way . No, I'm not a glue sniffer, but this blend has an extremely unique aroma that must be coming from the "exotic oriental leaf." Somewhat reminiscent of an unripe mango, it also hints of an extremely overripe apple, one that has started to ferment. I think it might be a topping, but it actually smells really good! The room note is delicious with a toastiness that is quite close to the actual flavors, which is not that common, at least in my experience. I'm sure that interesting aroma will subside after the tin has been open for a couple weeks.

Pipe 1: Self-made Freehand Pipe 2: Meer Billiard Pipe 3: Sav Bulldog

Flavor: I normally think of Greg Pease as specializing in austere vapers and rich English blends. Cairo is unique in his lineup and showcases Greg's mad blending skills.

This is the toughest Pease blend yet for me to describe. The flavors are subtle, layered beneath and woven through the straight-ahead Virginia tobacco tastes. This is definitely a sipping tobacco. There are some similarities to the McClelland line of Grand Orientals, although I can't remember specifically which one as I've had several of them. I am typically not a fan of blends that are in-your-face oriental blends, but this one is an exception. It's unique, no doubt, and I like it a lot.

There is a flavor there that is simply unique and I can't really come up with an accurate descriptor. Maybe that fermenting apple I mentioned. It doesn't really come across to me as citrus like Pease describes it - more like the rich sweet fruits like plums, apples or figs. It has just the right amount of sweetness but I wouldn't call it a "sweet" tobacco.

There is an aftertaste of dried grass, the three-foot-high kind I used to chew on when I was a kid walking through the woods on a warm autumn day. It has a very clean finish, which means it does not leave a strong tobacco odor or taste in my mouth. If you're into oriental mixtures, I can see where this could be an all day smoke for you. Definitely the most interesting blend I have reviewed in the Pllgrimage, and one I'm looking forward to getting to know much better. Excellent!

Cairo and I didn't start out so well. When I first smoked it in late 2008, I found it rough and harsh and "cigarette-ish". Whether the last 1.5 years in the cellar smoothed it out or my own self smoothed out is not readily known. But when I reopened the tin and took a big snootful, I thought it smelled like an OTC tobacco. No sweat there, as I enjoy several OTC's. However, this blend has one thing most OTC's do not have in my opinion, and that is depth. Many OTC's have good flavor but don't progress beyond the flavor at the match. This one does. It develops layer upon layer of complexity as the various VA's and orientals play with one another. The perique is there, but just slightly... just to add a layer of depth without making its taste known too much.

Interestingly, the tin description of this one is very accurate. It's a good tasting tobacco and one that I'll return to on occasion. More than that, it's an exciting blend. GLP blends are hit or miss for me when it comes to my own personal enjoyment but I always get the feeling that the final product is exactly what Mr Pease had in mind when he envisioned it originally. I think of GLP blends as good art. Whether I get it or not doesn't diminish it's artistic merit. Cairo is truly amazing stuff. As with most GLP blends, it still has some secrets but it's worth the time to discover them.

Additional Note: In the area of room note I recently received a comment from a friend. When I first lit the pipe he was generally pleased and commented that he liked it. About 30 minutes later he asked me what had happened, for what he was enjoying had changed and he now felt it was much more of a cigar/cigarette realm of room note. Just additional information for you to keep in mind.

The GOOD: Upon opening the tin, the aroma of the tobacco is quite pleasing. A slight hint of that "ketchupy" note associated with MacBaren's blends, but very slight. I believe that note is common with all fine, unadulterated Virginias. The appearance of the tobacco is nothing like the photo above. The first thing you'll say when you first see the tobacco in the tin and pinch it between your fingers is "Whoa! There are some big honkin' pieces of leaf in there." It looks like they broke off pieces of leaf hanging in the barn to dry, and crammed them in the tin.

A reviewer below suggested using a small-bowled pipe. No way. This stuff is just too big. And it is beautiful. Mostly large, light golden blond pieces with some darker golden browns. It seems to be overly dry, but that is an illusion. It packs very nicely into a larger diameter bowl, and lights and smokes better than any tobacco I have tried. (But I do recommend only loading your bowl no more than one-third full, and not attempt to smoke a whole bowl, as I will explain below.) The first few puffs are pleasurable, and the flavor stays consistent to the end - no bite - although about halfway through it gets spicier and starts tasting and smelling more and more like a cigar rather than a pipe.

The BAD: After the first few initial puffs, you realize that this stuff starts tasting like a cheap, robust strength cigar. But the stuff burns so well, and bite-free, you keep smoking it. Towards the end, you notice things getting stronger, and then it hits you unexpectedly - WHAM! A powerful nicotene kick. Queasiness. Nausea. Luckily, I had not eaten for a few hours, otherwise I'd have puked for sure. Whatever you do, don't smoke this stuff indoors.

If you smoke in your car, make sure the windows are rolled down. The second-hand smoke only adds to the queasiness and nicotene intoxication. And, your clothes, your hair, your hands, and your pipe will smell strongly of a nasty cigar ashtray, which will just make you get the dry heaves when you smell them until the effects of the N poisoning start to wear off over a couple of hours. I wished I had taken the advice of the reviewer below and used a small pipe, or just loaded mine no more than a third full.

So, try this unique and interesting blend if you must. But you've been warned.

This is a virginia mixture which is difficult to place in a category. There is perique in it and it's as noticeable as the oriental tobaccos. It seems also to have a slight flavoring.

It's wonderful! It is artful blending and very unique and delicious. I am smoking my way through an 8 ounce tin that had 2 years age when opened. It doesn't need aging, though.

This is a master blend, and if you can dry your tobacco successfully this will not scorch your tongue.