G. L. Pease Caravan

I got this in a trade with a friend who didn't like it.

This has to be the closest an American mixture has come, in my opinion, to the quality of a JF Germain blend. So much so that I frankly am reconsidering ordering Germain from overseas (which I was considering doing shortly).

The cut is a fine ribbon, like Germain. It's a great Oriental-forward medium Latakia mixture.

Perhaps the Burley is contributing something by way of the nutty floral quality, in cooperation with the Oriental. Reminiscent of Squadron Leader, too.

Easily my new favorite. But of course you have to enjoy medium English blends. This is not a "bomb" or an extreme anything, except a very high-quality balanced medium English.

Congratulations, really.

Definitions abound for different blend types. GLP calls this a Balkan, and the ample use of Oriental leaf here makes that a reasonable call. For mine, the generous presence of white Burley in this blend puts it into American English territory.

This is a short, wide ribbon cut that comes with optimal dryness straight from the tin. It packs and burns a treat. Both visually and on the nose it is obvious that Latakia is a condimental player in this mixture.

The Orientals lead the way. They are spicy, sour and musty. This is underpinned by a restrained sweetness that I assume comes from the various Virginias that have been added. The Burley gives this tobacco significant heft, which fills the gap left by the relative spareness of Latakia.

This is an interesting tobacco. It certainly showcases the Oriental leaf in a way that justifies GLP's intention. It is however stronger than I prefer for an English or similar type mixture. I have no doubt this fills a gap for lovers of stronger tobaccos who prefer the Latakia turned down as well. On that basis I would honestly give this a 'somewhat recommended' rating, but that seems churlish when this is a very well constructed tobacco that fills a very specific niche. So three stars.

Caravan is a well-balanced, easy smoking blend that may or may not fit preconceived notions about "Balkans". For openers, the tin note immediately declares aged Burly over Oriental, with soft and mild Latakia, and civilized VA in the background. Let's suppose for a minute that the cocoa smell comes from the Burly.

The moist ribbons from a year-old tin loaded, lit and burned well with one poke and subsequent tapping. The Burly (and the cocoa) came up for a feeling like hot chocolate for the first third of the bowl, making for a warm, fuzzy experience that does not say "Balkan" to me, but it does please and comfort me, and likely any bystanders, as well, almost aromatic in this way.

For the rest of the pipe, the Orientals and Virginias team up and take over, with the VA contributing sugar and some sharpness (not much), and the Lat remaining present but definitely in a supporting role. Although the smoke and the taste are rich for the whole smoke, it never gets hot or heavy handed. The aftertaste is a very nice balance of all components, and it lingers pleasantly.

I find Caravan to be a thoroughly satisfying smoke. Though it only rates a 3 on my "Balkan" scale, I have to give it a 3.7 on its own merit and a 4 in terms of a recommendation.

Appearance: Typical GLP cut, short ribbons of varying widths. Colors range from orange through black.

Aroma: Heavy English aroma, Virginia dominated by Oriental and Latakia.

Packing: Packs easily into medium and large bowls. Probably will pack into a small bowl, but I prefer this type of blend in a larger pipe.

Lighting: Lights readily and without problem. Initial flavor: Very big hit from the Latakia and Oriental. The flavor is very smoky and spicy with a trace of leathery bitterness; Virginias just starting to appear in the mix.

Mid-bowl: The Virginias are coming on with some authority here. There is some definite sweetness coming through the Oriental/Latakia combo. A nice balance, one I might categorize as much English as Balkan. Smooth and cool unless puffed aggressively, no gurgle.

Finish: Burns down to a nice clean ash, with little increase in strength

Summary: A very well behaved medium to full blend, excellent for later in the day or evening. Not an eye opener for me, but a blend for relaxation time.

Okay, this is good stuff. I mean really good. It's like the heroin of pipe tobacco it's so good. I bought a can that had already been on the store shelf a year, and I really had expected it to be good. But this stuff had me doing the Homer Simpson drool. "Hmmm, goooood. Arghaga (drooling noises)."

I won't say what pipe I used to smoke it, as that would make me sound like a pretentious %^*(#. The Latakia came through real strong right off the bat. I like that. And immediately noticable once I got the pipe going was the sweet and spicy of the Virginias and Orientals. I grew up in rural eastern Kansas, where the fall brought with it the sweet and spicy smell of leaves burning and dry hay being put out for cattle; smells so full you could taste them. This smoke brought all those rustic flavors back. The really weird thing is that I could easily single out every flavor, each being very distinct without overpowering the others. And, this stuff lit easy, and smoked cool all the way to the bottom of the bowl.

In the future, I may find tobacco blends that are as good. But, this one just takes me back to so many happy memories with its taste and aroma. I do believe it is a keeper.

So this is a balkan? I have faith Greg knows his definitions, so I'm resetting mine to include this. Otherwise, I'd have classified this as an English blend. If you have never tried a balkan, this is a good starting point; it is mild, semi-sweet and not at all harsh after only 8 months in the tin. This reminds me of Dunhill's EMP of long ago. The orientals are wonderful; I believe they are also found in Cairo. Is there a tobacco that smells better burning than oriental? I think not.

Caravan has chosen a medium-bowled Pete as its venue, somewhat loosely packed (the cut is perfect for this). Puff slowly... very slowly, not to avoid bite, but the flavors and aromas are enhanced. Clean and steady burning without drying or fiddling.

Yeah. After a couple unfortunate run-ins with harsh green Pease balkans, I really like this.

Until I tried Charing Cross, this was my very favorite GLP blend. The tin aroma is luscious, and oriental leaf abounds. This is one of the only love-at-first-puff tobaccos I have ever tried.

I have always enjoyed latakia blends accompanied by a hefty helping of orientals. Here the spicy, mildly sweet orientals dominate, with the latakia and virginias providing ground support.

Acridity, the great bugaboo of so many English/Balkan blends, is a relatively minor issue, as Caravan stays smooth all the way down. I've smoked this at all hours of the day, finding it light and pleasant enough for morning, and rich and satisfying enough for evening. Mr. Pease has given us some memorable English blends, and this one ranks near the top, my preference for Charing Cross notwithstanding.

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Addendum: My most recent tins of Caravan (last twelve months, or so) seem to lack the heft of the inaugural blend. Having been assured by no less an authority than Mr. Pease himself that the blends are identical, and with the added caveat that Caravan, of all his blends, takes the longest to come around, I set aside some cans for future sampling. So far, a years's wait has not restored its former glory, and it still seems suspiciously similar to Blackpoint, although I would not exactly consider that to be a pejorative. Guess I'll have to try again next year. Poor me!

I wrote the following review after purchasing my first tin of this tobacco. I now realize that the tobacco in the tin marked "Caravan" was not in fact Caravan and that it had been mislabled. I believe what I was smoking was in fact the Cumberland blend, but I am not positive.

I purchased this tobacco both on the strength of its ratings here on these pages, and because it is blended here in the sunny East Bay area, and I like to support local businesses. I find the packaging attractive and novel and have no problem with the shape of the cans, which remind me of the containers of snuff that were popular in Minnesota when I lived there and were on display at seemingly every grocer and drugstore.

Upon pulling back the foil ringtop(!) I'm greeted with lovely hues of yellow red and dark brown. The can aroma calls to mind trips to rural cider mills in my native Western NY State, although I'm not sure why, there is a leafy, very sweet, almost apple like aroma to it. There is no indication of Latakia whatsoever in this particular can, which I find mystifying considering the previous reviews. Perhaps the blend varies somewhat from can to can? I can identify russet and lemon virginias and not much else, although this is probably because I am not adept at tobacco identification on sight.

The tobacco packs nicely into my $29 straight Amadeus billiard, slightly long strands tamp right down.

The charring light produces nice puffs of white smoke, sweet and with many of the same notes as the can aroma, but with a bracing spiciness. Nicotine content seems on the medium to stout side. I am very happy at this point sitting in my thrift store chair listening to children play in the playground across the street.

Halfway through this pipe a bracing bitter note creeps into the smoke, its a pleasant bitter though, like maybe the impossible to find Moxie soda, bitter and sweet. The nicotine content is mellow and relaxing. There is a little gurgle here and I have to run a cleaner through the pipe to soak it up.

Towards the bottom of the pipe it starts to smoke a little hot, producing the only unpleasant moment of this pipe, a brief ammonia taste that disappears quickly. I can taste just a hint of latakia, but no smoky smell like English blends. It smokes down to grey ash.

All in all, this is a subtle experience indeed, I'll return to this one again and again, especially in midday smokes.

First and foremost, not to make any points mind you,but I would like to congradulate Mr. Pease on a well blended mixture. This is the second GLP blend that I have tried, the first, well, while good, was mostly a Virginia blend, and they, Virginia's, have their place. Not to compare this to other Balkan blend's, which we all do, I have been mostly an English advocate. This blend was ordered from a, no plugs, internet web merchant. Anticipation started to consume me, while in wait, based on Mr. Pease's reputation as a purveyor of fine tobaccos. Unfortunatly, there was no fan fair when the expected package arrived, nothing but a box, with a few tins snugly confined in a bed of styrofoam peanuts. That is when it happened. Temptation abound, I thrusted myself into my favorite chair and proceeded to open the tin that had beckoned me with it's call for release, from the prison which it had been placed. The thumb ring was pulled, and, all of my attentions were placed upon the contents. This being done, my olfactory membranes immersed themselves into the current conundrum. Contemplation of a respite was quickly thwarted by the urge to touch, which I did, while I started to remove the contents from their former contraints. The tobacco inside had the most bright yellow Virginia strands intertwined with the dark ominpresent Cyprian Latakia, and a cornucopia of Oriental variants. Two of my senses had been awakened, was there time for a third? These seemingly, intrinsic tobacco's had but one test, and that was fire. Tobacco was placed in the bowl of sandblasted Loewe Falkland, in the preferred method, and a match was stuck and placed on the filled bowl. Initial reflection was of the Orientals, followed by Latakia, and susequently, the Virginian contingent. Bellowing clouds of professed taste engulfed my room with the aroma of old ideals, now gone. This I thought, is an interestingly tasteful tobacco, one which may have a percentage of the order of brier brothers wanting to make a proclamation, to bestowe upon this blend the title of Burgher of Balkan blends! Palate stimulation had been reserved for finer English blend's but that too had passed, and with the arrival of this blend I had to capitulate. Caravan will engulf the senses, stimulate the palate, invigorate the soul. Smooth, creamy, smokey, in that leather chair vision, this tobacco burns well, not wet, not dry, but just right. The discovery of a small amount of dottle did surprise me, though, so I placed the blame on the pipe, for not being in harmony with the tobacco, and the matter was closed. In conclusion, my experience with this tobacco may be unique in that I have been waiting for a Balkan blend to arrive, and this one seems to be in the front of the group. Three cheers, once again to Greg Pease for an outstanding tobacco. We can only hope this will be around for a good while! Update 11/02 this tobacco while great in it's processing just hasn't done it for me. I have switched to Rennaissance primarily because of the air cured leaf in Caravan, while still a great tobacco blend, the log term result for me hasn't been memorable.