G. L. Pease Caravan

The look of this upon cracking the tin (dated Aug 2011) belies its C&D production, with what appears to be shards of tobacco in a quasi-ribbon cut. Tin aroma as delectable as any latakia blend I've ever snooted. Latakia upfront and as the sniff continues, an underlying oriental mustiness.

The taste follows suit - latakia up front followed by darker oriental flavors. Sometimes the oriental takes center stage. I realize that there must be some sort of foundation with this blend but I can't discern the virginias. I would have guessed a light burley base, but I'd be wrong! I enjoy the smoky complexity, but a little more sweetness would be very welcome. Just as I was about to guiltily pronounce myself a hopeless GLP fanboy, along comes Caravan (or, along comes me, as this one has been out awhile!) and makes me yearn for my favorites. There's nothing wrong with this one in particular; in fact, it's quite good. Perhaps my expectations are more at fault here, but I just don't taste what this one brings to the party. If this were a later GLP offering, I'd wonder if Mr Pease had run out of magic. It's good but it just doesn't seem... Peasian, somehow. But it's probably me. Granted, I could more easily recommended a dozen other Pease latakia blends, but give this one a try if you enjoy a killer room note and a plethora of middle-eastern leaf.

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.

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.

Tin: Date stamp on bottom: 011609(JAN 16, 2009). Mostly coarse cut, with short ribbons, and some stems. There is a light smoky Latakia aroma and a ripe smell from the Virgnias. Feels a little dry.

Taste & Aroma: Smooth, a generous hand has been used in adding the orientals and Latakia. Orientals provice a fragrant incense, with Latakia adding a barely perceptible smoky background. This is one where the GLP internet description is rather apt.

Room Note: Nice, smooth, and easy fragrance.

Overall: The cut is a bit stemmy, and the orientals are a little sour and wear on my tongue. 3 stars just barely.

Caravan is Greg Pease's attempt at a full, Balkan-style of tobacco. It's delightful in appearance; cut ribbons of golds and browns with black mottling the overall appearance. The moisture level is, as with most Pease blends, just about ideal. The tin/pouch aroma of the blend is deceptive; at times it seems monochromatic, but the more you smeel it the more layering and richness detected. The charring light comes through as complex, with the latakia riding highest. Early into the bowl the taste is leathery smoky with a gentle sweetness over a nice, nuttiness. There are spicy overtones which are very pleasant, and a kind of almost lemony bite. Mid-bowl the lemony bite remains on top of a smooth, smoky and pleasant, full taste. The Orientals assert themselves well, adding a wonderfully musty, leathery tang. The sweetness of the Virginias perfectly compensate for the other flavors, making the smoke at this point seem a bit nuttier, though less spicy. The overall effect at this point is slightly gentler than earlier or later in the bowl. Deeper into the bowl the spicy overtones return again. The smoke now has wonderful body, and is both full and complex. The Virginia sweetness takes a back seat to the hickory-esque flavor of the latakia and the strong, spicy mustiness of the Orientals. Caravan is, as a Balkan blend, a real success. Deep and complex, layered and mysterious. Smokers who prefer Balkans to English or Scottish blends will find it to be a real pleaser, a blend they can't get enough of. English smokers will also take to the blend though, with its delightful use of quality latakia. Though not a good beginning blend for those used to Virginias, Virginia smokers looking for a fuller, more complex smoke should also be quite pleased. Caravan is another testament to the blending skills of Greg Pease.

After a number of disappointing experiences with Pease blends, (due to a personal chemistry problem, not a blend dislike!), I have discovered a blend that not only can I tolerate, but one that makes my taste buds leap for joy.

Visual: An overall greenish tint to the tobacco gave me some concern at pre-light. A dull mixture of tobaccos of every color and an excessive amount of "dust" in the blend.

Texture: A bit dry to the touch, but plenty springy. This is a good sign in my opinion.

Pack/Pipe: Gravity fed with a medium firm tamp three times to keep the burn from getting out of control. Although I tend to prefer small to medium size pipes, this blend seemed to shine when I used taller/higher capacity bowls. I kept returning to a Ferndown Bark chimney, an Israeli Alpha Galaxy full bent and a Dunhill Redbark pot.

Lighting/Burn: One match to char, and often that was all that was needed. This stuff lights like fatwood! Very seldom did I need another match to get to the bottom. Burned quickly, but not as fast as I expected considering the moisture content and the large quantity of tobacco dust in the blend.

1st 3rd: That great Latakia aroma and a no kidding around tongue spanking (the good kind!) are what I get from the first few puffs. Burns through this first third quickly and leaves a pile of white/gray fluffy ash. The kind you just love to have for that first tamp.

2nd 3rd: More of the same. Nice Latakia taste, a bit nutty and good quantities of smoke. This level burns through relatively quickly as well. Sometimes I needed a pipe cleaner here to wick away a bit of moisture. More great ash.

Final 3rd: Occasionally I picked up a mineral taste and a bit of saltiness here. It may have been my smoking tempo to blame. Usually smoked to the bottom leaving just a few charred flakes and plenty of grainy gray ash.

Notes: I like this tobacco for its excellent taste, good burn quality, and the fact that I no longer have to explain my dislike of Pease blends. I have a number of tins of every Pease blend stocked away. I am looking forward to some of the other English blends that I have not yet tried.

Stogie rating of: 8 Pristine Punch

The 100-gram tin had a date of "April 1, 2014." Alas, my fears of seam depressurization paid off - the tobacco in the tin dried out somehow and I had to moisten it for about a week. Fortunately, as of about 2015, Cornell & Diehl no longer uses such cans in production, switching to smaller 57-gram packages. Tobacco can also be found in 227-gram (or 8-ounce) tins. Getting ahead of myself, I will say that I should have gotten a bigger tin.

Appearance: a blend of tobaccos quite finely cut in all shades of brown. The bright virginia has darkened over the years, becoming the color of pine sawdust, and the dark tobacco has become a shade of milk chocolate. There is quite a lot of fine dark brown leaf in the mix, and the almost black latakia takes up quite a bit of space.

Flavor: the open tin gave off the familiar, though somewhat weathered smell of "ketchup," and so I transferred the contents to a glass jar. After a slight moistening, light but persistent and quite obvious notes of latakia (tar, peat, suede and a bit of smoke) emerged from the jar, heavily diluted with a complex set of spices, the components of which I recognized coriander and allspice. There is also a subtle acidity, a slight aroma of musk, woody notes and a faint earthy tinge, woven quite appropriately into the canvas of oriental and latakia. On the background of this richness of scents, bright Virginia herbs and wildflowers are barely noticeable, while the sweetish note of dark Virginia supports the entire bouquet rather than acting as an independent player. The overall bouquet of the blend is quite dense, it is very difficult to decompose it into its components.

Taste: tart, initially a little pungent, a set of spices, of which a slight spice stands out, combined with notes of latakia (a smoky, woody, slight creamy taste) form the basis. Virginia adds a slight sweetness of dark fruits and a pinch of fresh wheat bread. It is worth noting that the spices are stronger in bents, while in straight pipes the taste of the blend is smoother. The overall slight spiciness in the flavor is quite unlike that "bite" of tobacco when a forgetful smoker overheats the blend - it does not advances if you take a longer puff. While smoking, the spice becomes less noticeable, giving way to calmer components like coriander and cardamom. The woody note also becomes more pronounced toward the middle of the pipe, but the rest of the Latakia notes remain in the background. Towards the end of the pipe, the tobacco becomes a little more fruity sweetness, but still rich in spicy flavor and with a distinct woody note. Sometimes I also felt a slight anise flavor in the blend. The strength of the tobacco is below average, the nicotine hit is not threatening to the owner of even a very large pipe. The tobacco burns very smoothly and coolly, burning into a light gray ash and leaving almost no moisture in the pipe. The aftertaste has an understated sweet and woody note.

The tobacco smoke is light and unstable, but there is a slight peaty note, along with the smell of smoldering wood.

What is the result? First of all, I am forced to agree that the author's exceptional accuracy in description of the blend. Everything written completely corresponded to my feelings during the tasting. This, oddly enough, upset me somewhat: "Why write a review if it has already been written by the author?" On the other hand, I describe my own feelings, and if they coincide with what was expected from reading the abstract, it's a clear success for the author of the blend. In my opinion, Caravan is clearly worth making a stock of it. The small amount of burley doesn't bother me personally.

Tin date: 6/10/2001

Yet another wonderful blend in the high altitude of the Pease mountain range. He must be an artist because only he can create that many layers of beauty in so many different ways. Each blend is an individual work of art, even though some I don't really go wild over some as much as others. Maybe I just don't understand them yet. Pick a mood, a nice pipe and GL Pease has got a tobacco for you.

This old, aged tin of Caravan is easy to enjoy. Orientals are the star in the taste department but the body is what stands out. There is something in here in body and strength-wise (like Haddo's) that gives it that full kick that you don't get with standard Oriental forward blends. I might have found something I enjoy as much as Samarra! Caravan is fuller than I envisioned. I wouldn't want this full of a bowl before lunch. It's got full Oriental tang, some sweet notes, body and strength too, so because of that I can't think of a blend to compare it to. I like different. Very, very nice. A solid offering, again.

If there is such a thing as a Balkan, I imagine this is it. This has all the characteristics of other Pease English blends, but the smokey Latakia really stays in the background. The oriental leaves play the lead role here. I couldn't begin to name the exact tobaccos, which just might be the magic of this blend.

Someone referred to the aroma of Caravan as a "lumberjack monk", which I think is brilliant. And accurate. This stuff is woodsy and complicated and exotic.

But what really makes it a favorite of mine is that it is restrained. One wonders continuously about just where the flavors in this come from. And those flavors change drastically throughout the smoke. It's been in my rotation now for many months. A strange gem.