G. L. Pease The Virginia Cream

The Virginia Cream is an excellent cased tobacco with a lovely vanilla and Bourbon tin aroma that is not overly pronounced when being smoked. Mostly golden leaf with some brown and black ribbons, it packs easily and takes wonderfully to the match. This second tin, despite being almost too dry, as where the first one was just right, still proved a pleasant smoking experience. Rather low in the nicotine department it still provides a minimum to not make me crave another pipeful shortly after. I believe anyone seeking a high quality aromatic, or interested in discovering one, should acquire a tin, or two of The Virginia Cream, which puts back some nobility on the genre.

A pleasant smoke. The natural tobacco flavors are the main attraction with the Virginias dominating those. I get the Reds and Golds roughly equally. The Perique shows in the background with the Kentucky and Black Cav barely noted. Has a nice sweetness and a mild spice. Although the topping is mild, I think it's my favorite part of this blend. A really nice vanilla flavoring with just a touch of bourbon. Makes for a great tasting and creamy smoke.

Medium in body and taste. Flavoring is mild. Burns very well.

One of the consistent themes you will come across when reading other reviews of this blend is it's paradoxical combination of leaf and topping. Although there may never be a consensus on what this blend is or isn't. Do you want to call it an aromatic? Ok. Does that then lump it in with goopey PG laden aromatics? I don't know, I don't know if I care. For me this is a full flavored Virginia/Perique with a touch of bourbon/vanilla. The cream soda association (where the name is derived) is apt.

Mechanics: the first 2oz tin was perfect regarding moisture, but the 8oz tin (kinda regret getting a half pound of this stuff) was on the dry side. Comes as a sort of chopped ribbon (cube?) cut. It produces full, thick clouds of smoke.

The Smoke: Lots of virginia sweetness with a touch of perique. The bourbon vanilla topping shows itself mostly in the room note but can be found wistfully over top the perique spiced sweet virginias. The wee bit of dark fired adds a nice depth that holds the bourbon vanilla topping in place.

I recommend The Virginia Cream for pretty much any smoker that is Va/Per curious. It will be a steady part of my rotation this summer.

This blend received some serious praise and hype following its release for good reason. The tin note is wonderful. Definitely bourbon and vanilla. The tobacco beneath the topping still shines. The black cavendish is always apparent, the Perique is detectable but it is conservatively applied. The Kentucky provides a nice nutty flavor and some strength. The Virginia is more earthy than grassy or hay like. Now, how intrusive is the topping? I can't say that it's ever completely gone or unnoticeable. But it serves to enhance the flavor from the tobacco rather than make up for a bland blend and doesn't leave a goopy residue in the pipe. I will not say, however, that it is the only aromatic of its kind. There are others like C&D Golden Days of Yore, Mac Baren Modern Virginia, Mac Baren Navy Flake, and more. While not the only of its kind it is towards the top of the list.

I purchased several tins of this blend - one to try now and two to age as I do with most blends that pique my interest. I always keep an Aromatic in the rotation. When the taste buds are hammered by Englishes or VaPers, an aromatic is refreshing. They are also crowd pleasers.

The tin aroma is very light. Slightly vanilla and slightly fruit. Appearance is a rougher cut Virginia with some unspun pieces here and there, no stems to be found. Definitely quality leaf. Packs and lights with no fuss. I smoke this in a Porsche design 9mm I like with a balsa filter. This pipe was previously used for light Virginias like Gold Rush and Dans blend.

Initially, after lighting I feel I am greeted with a flavor I've had before. It is definitely present in another aro. MacBaren Cube. The closest analog I can describe is Juicy Fruit gum. As the bowl progresses, this fades slightly and you definitely know you are smoking a solid sweet Virginia with good mouth feel. At this point I find there's a creamy element periodically discerned in the nasal passages. Additionally, I do frequently get something akin to a caramel bourbon bouquet in the side-stream smoke I'm able to smell. Again, I find these flavors subtly weave in and out rather than hit you head on. Keeping your puffs light and even will deliver the best results - like most tobaccos.

All in all this is a good tobacco. It doesn't break any new ground or redefine aromatics, but demonstrate how judicious use of flavoring can accentuate a good blend. This flavoring is lighter than MacBaren aros., and the blend is more forgiving, with great burning qualities.

This is one I'm gonna keep around for when I have the sweet tooth. Curious to see how it ages as well. Recommended.

A very enjoyable blend.

I opened a tin labeled 10-1-15 in early January 2016. I was greeted with an intriguing aroma - a mix of a pleasant spirit and a candy-like sweetness. I couldn't quite place it beyond an honest "yum". The bright Virginias were nicely cut in longish ribbons, adorned with small chunks of Cavendish. The tobacco was evidently moist, but not goopy.

Being an unskilled aromatic smoker, I let some tobacco dry for an hour and decided to lightly pack a Peterson 106 bowl. Gravity fill, tiny pinch for the top.

A root beer float came to mind when first exploring the copious, generous smoke this blend produces. Then I tried to zero in on the liquor - is it rum? Bourbon? Perhaps even brandy? And is that just vanilla or is there a hint of spice hidden somewhere?

All these perplexed thoughts were indicative of a complex, engaging, and memorable smoke ; one I intend to revisit soon.

If Navigator is for the "men", The Virginia Cream is for the "boys". That said, the Kentucky portion in TVC s much less prominent as compared to Navigator. Any vanilla flavouring is hardly noticeable, and the "bourbon" is probably from the same cask which serves other GLP blends as well... e.g. in Navigator, Sixpence, Haddo's... sometimes called rum... whatsoever... Same as Navigator, I have the feeling to smoke two tobaccos in parallel... possibly a matter of age, since the components yet haven't had the chance to "marry". Somewhat disappointing is the Virginia constituent, as I think that Cornell&Diehl have better leaf on stock, than what Greg used here for making TVC. In conclusion I might give TVC one more chance after one year of aging, hence, 2.7 stars for the time being.

The tin has a wonderful aroma of bourbon whisky, which to my surprise I can actually taste when I smoke it! This is unusual for me since most aromatics simply taste like hot air to my pallet. A nice mild blend interesting enough to be enjoyable as an all day smoke!

Virginia Cream is the type of aromatic that one might expect from the mind of Greg Pease in that the topping, while stronger smelling in the tin, doesn’t get in the way of the tobacco flavor. Comprised mainly of lighter tobaccos, the burn is clean and I didn’t notice much, if any ghost in my pipe. In the interest of full disclosure, I am not a huge fan of C&D Virginia tobaccos and Virginia is the dominate flavor along with vanilla and a hint of bourbon. Given the fact that there is some added spirits, I would expect this to be one of the few aromatics to continue to improve with age as the sweetness of the Virginia's and spirits meld over the years. As others have pointed out, there is a “soda” quality to this blend and it should appeal to smokers of both aromatics and non-aromatics alike. I have squirreled away a couple of tins to see what a couple of years does for this blend. I expect it will be great.