G. L. Pease Charing Cross
(3.29)
Charing Cross is a traditional Balkan style blend of fine Virginia leaf, richly seasoned with smoky Cyprian latakia, and spiced with the exquisite and exotic tobaccos of the Orient. This is the one for latakia lovers. Hints of roasted cocoa beans, orange zest, green pepper and campfires. This is the big one - fuller than Blackpoint, and a little less sweet.
Notes: Charing Cross was released in March, 2003.
Details
| Brand | G. L. Pease |
| Series | Classic Collection |
| Blended By | Gregory Pease |
| Manufactured By | Cornell & Diehl |
| Blend Type | Balkan |
| Contents | Latakia, Oriental/Turkish, Virginia |
| Flavoring | |
| Cut | Ribbon |
| Packaging | 2 ounce tin, 8 ounce tin |
| Country | United States |
| Production | Currently available |
Profile
Strength
Medium
Extremely Mild -> Overwhelming
Flavoring
None Detected
None Detected -> Extra Strong
Room Note
Tolerable
Unnoticeable -> Overwhelming
Taste
Medium to Full
Extremely Mild (Flat) -> Overwhelming
Average Rating
|
3.29 / 4
|
Reviews
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Displaying 31 - 40 of 111 Reviews
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 16, 2020 | Medium | None Detected | Medium | Strong |
There is little doubt Mr. Pease is one of the most talented blender of our times. If Mr. Pease released a blend tomorrow titled "Dog Turd" I would quickly buy a tin to smoke and a couple to cellar. There is not a dud in his stable of expertly crafted blends.
I love this blend. I don't consider myself a huge English/Balkan smoker. I do smoke them, and I do enjoy them, I just seem to lean more heavily on the Vaper side of things. This however is a fantastic blend. It is rich and full, but so balanced. The latakia is warm and round, not sharp. the rest of the blend is a perfect pedestal for the latakia. There are Virginias in there, but for the most part, they play a background role, almost unnoticeable.
There is one interesting thing I cannot figure out about this blend though. People seem to feel that this is a humongous latakia bomb. Even the description on the tin makes it sound like the tin should have the name "enola gay" written somewhere on the side due to the cargo it holds. I don't get that. It is robust and full, but I wouldn't consider it a behemoth of a smoke. I find others like pirate cake or ten russians to be much more potent.
My guilty pleasure? A bowl full of charring cross and an iced tea with lemon. It sounds weird, but trust me. It works so well.
Here is the hard and fast rule when it comes to pipe smoking. If the tin has G.L Pease on it, buy it. No questions asked. This blend is definitely included. What a treat.
I love this blend. I don't consider myself a huge English/Balkan smoker. I do smoke them, and I do enjoy them, I just seem to lean more heavily on the Vaper side of things. This however is a fantastic blend. It is rich and full, but so balanced. The latakia is warm and round, not sharp. the rest of the blend is a perfect pedestal for the latakia. There are Virginias in there, but for the most part, they play a background role, almost unnoticeable.
There is one interesting thing I cannot figure out about this blend though. People seem to feel that this is a humongous latakia bomb. Even the description on the tin makes it sound like the tin should have the name "enola gay" written somewhere on the side due to the cargo it holds. I don't get that. It is robust and full, but I wouldn't consider it a behemoth of a smoke. I find others like pirate cake or ten russians to be much more potent.
My guilty pleasure? A bowl full of charring cross and an iced tea with lemon. It sounds weird, but trust me. It works so well.
Here is the hard and fast rule when it comes to pipe smoking. If the tin has G.L Pease on it, buy it. No questions asked. This blend is definitely included. What a treat.
Age When Smoked:
12 Years
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Aug 18, 2015 | Medium | Medium | Mild to Medium | Pleasant |
Perfect! Simple but complete, an English blend with a french touch. After an afternoon light meal. Fine black chocolate, leather, orientals tobacco with very fine latakia,very delicate , cool. You can feel the richness and the Mozart music of the 17s. A friend, high quality tobacco.
Pipe Used:
Savinelli Capri
PurchasedFrom:
smokingpipes
Age When Smoked:
10 years
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Jun 09, 2014 | Medium to Strong | None Detected | Medium to Full | Pleasant to Tolerable |
This is one of my all time favorite blends. Always satisfying with it's rich, sharp and clear flavors, but some roundness. There is nothing thin about the flavor. It's balanced but with highs and lows. You could say it's a Lat bomb but on a different day, a different pipe you could say it's oriental forward. It seems to make a statement on all flavors; sour, bitter, savory, with pops of sweetness (a trick of Mr. Pease is the little birds eye shaped snips of Virginia flake-Union Square?) and on re-lights some hint of salt and a great oriental spiciness. I happen to like or love a lot of G.L.P. blends -Quiet Nights, Abingdon, Gas Light and Key Largo (once I figured out how to make it stop biting) in the love category and might go for a month before I get around to this blend (I like a large rotation), but every time I light up a bowl of this I wonder why I waited so long.
Pipe Used:
Savinelli 620/ 320 Mark Tinsky pot
PurchasedFrom:
smokingpipes.com
Age When Smoked:
new
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| May 01, 2014 | Medium | None Detected | Medium | Pleasant to Tolerable |
Balkan style tobacco, not sweet. A medium-bodied smoke with an almost barbecue flavor, hints of citrus and pepper and frankincense. The bacon of pipe tobacco.
Pipe Used:
Neerup
PurchasedFrom:
Crescent City Cigar
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Mar 07, 2013 | Medium to Strong | None Detected | Medium to Full | Tolerable |
If a Balkan tobacco is one with dominating orientals and a little Latakia, then this is the mixture you should try. Very, very complex aroma - delicate. You never know what taste is coming next. A toasty, rich smoke. A woodsy, barnyard smell out of the tin. Ribbon cut but there are some larger flakes in the mix. More of a rough chop. Was a bit hard to get a good light going but after that it was fine. Moisture seemed right. Reminded me of a rich French desert as opposed to a heavy main course. Another excellent Pease blend. Very nice and highly recommended.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Jan 11, 2013 | Mild to Medium | None Detected | Full | Tolerable to Strong |
Another from Pease which I cannot recommend.
This one bites like a weasel, not really sure why possibly the cut and it's a tad dry. Certainly no orange zest and cocoa beans, nor green peppers (sounds like a bizarre pizza), campfire well of course Latakia which I really like and enjoy.
However, the way Pease seems to work with Latakia is not to my liking in most of his blends . . . I'll stick with Russ Ouellette I get along with his blends far better.
This one bites like a weasel, not really sure why possibly the cut and it's a tad dry. Certainly no orange zest and cocoa beans, nor green peppers (sounds like a bizarre pizza), campfire well of course Latakia which I really like and enjoy.
However, the way Pease seems to work with Latakia is not to my liking in most of his blends . . . I'll stick with Russ Ouellette I get along with his blends far better.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Feb 19, 2012 | Mild to Medium | Extremely Mild | Medium | Tolerable |
updated 2016-01-27 I've had a tin of H&H Mag Opus and GLP's Charing Cross down in the cellar for about three years and just tried them back to back. I believe these are similar Balkans , but I do like Charing Cross better. CC is smoother and I like the broken flake cut better. I believe it is the Perique in the "Mag O" that takes away from the smoothness.
Update 4/1/13- I really can't believe the turnaround in this tobacco with about a year and a half cellar time. I still don't get all the references to citrus but I also don't get the "green Peppers" , thank God!
(Original)My tin was tried about 3 months ago , cellared away, and just retried. Again this appears to be another Balkan blend by GLP in the same style as Odyssey and Black Point. I somewhat agree with reviewer ,"Zulujerk 10/16/2010", in that this is "muted and hard to classify. For me, I find it a disappointment in comparison to the other blends, Odyssey & BP. I tried to search for the cocoa and orange but couldn't find them , I unfortunately, did find the Green Pepper. Green pepper!!! , are you kidding, it really doesn't bring anything more than if I found them in my Jello ! I also find this blend somewhat harsh and spicy , with not much sweetness and a bitter aftertaste (green pepper?). As with many GLP blends, ageing does seem to change the blend, so If things change, I will update. Right now, I won't buy again and will stick with O & BP without the Green peppers.
Update 4/1/13- I really can't believe the turnaround in this tobacco with about a year and a half cellar time. I still don't get all the references to citrus but I also don't get the "green Peppers" , thank God!
(Original)My tin was tried about 3 months ago , cellared away, and just retried. Again this appears to be another Balkan blend by GLP in the same style as Odyssey and Black Point. I somewhat agree with reviewer ,"Zulujerk 10/16/2010", in that this is "muted and hard to classify. For me, I find it a disappointment in comparison to the other blends, Odyssey & BP. I tried to search for the cocoa and orange but couldn't find them , I unfortunately, did find the Green Pepper. Green pepper!!! , are you kidding, it really doesn't bring anything more than if I found them in my Jello ! I also find this blend somewhat harsh and spicy , with not much sweetness and a bitter aftertaste (green pepper?). As with many GLP blends, ageing does seem to change the blend, so If things change, I will update. Right now, I won't buy again and will stick with O & BP without the Green peppers.
Pipe Used:
Cob/ Maple
Age When Smoked:
new /3 years
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 21, 2011 | Medium | Extremely Mild | Medium to Full | Tolerable |
oh my. There is no tobacco like Charing Cross. This is the tobacco equivalent of overturning an old rotten log on a walk in the woods. Dark, fertile soil, rotting wood, wet leaves, squirming things and scrabbling beetles. I told my wife that and she said it sounded as bad as it smelled.
It's not. It's wonderful.
This is a Balkan with a plenty of Latakia, but the Orientals lead the way throughout. There are sour and tangy notes, but this is not a sour and tangy blend. There is that edge of bitterness that isn't really bitter, perhaps astringent is a better description. This blend is varying shades of darkness. What a great autumn mixture. This tobacco is all dying light and long shadows.
This is not a tobacco you will think is brilliant the first bowl. Your initial impressions will hold up, but your comprehension will improve. This is perhaps the most complex blend I've ever smoked. It doesn't give me that big, obvious, consistent sourness I love, but there is so much else here that that is ok. It's more than ok. Thank you Greg. If for Westminster and Charing Cross only, you have my sincere gratitude.
It's not. It's wonderful.
This is a Balkan with a plenty of Latakia, but the Orientals lead the way throughout. There are sour and tangy notes, but this is not a sour and tangy blend. There is that edge of bitterness that isn't really bitter, perhaps astringent is a better description. This blend is varying shades of darkness. What a great autumn mixture. This tobacco is all dying light and long shadows.
This is not a tobacco you will think is brilliant the first bowl. Your initial impressions will hold up, but your comprehension will improve. This is perhaps the most complex blend I've ever smoked. It doesn't give me that big, obvious, consistent sourness I love, but there is so much else here that that is ok. It's more than ok. Thank you Greg. If for Westminster and Charing Cross only, you have my sincere gratitude.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Nov 17, 2011 | Medium to Strong | None Detected | Medium to Full | Pleasant |
Ok, here is a "Classic Collection" tobacco I can really get behind. I think the oriental-forward character of this blend was more enjoyable to my palate than Abingdon or Blackpoint, which featured Latakia. The lat in this blend was subdued and played well with the other components. Also, I swear this had more nicotene in it than the other Classic blends. So I found it more satisfying. Strangely, this tobacco SEEMED very dry in the tin, but it smoked slightly wet. No clue why.
As a side note, this was an epiphany for me. I think it showed me how sweet orientals can be. This may explain why Embarcadero was so sweet. Anyway, I for one never knew that before. So this tobacco was an education as much as an enjoyment. And it means I disagree with the description above: I found this sweeter than Blackpoint.
Definitely shot into my top five lat blends.
As a side note, this was an epiphany for me. I think it showed me how sweet orientals can be. This may explain why Embarcadero was so sweet. Anyway, I for one never knew that before. So this tobacco was an education as much as an enjoyment. And it means I disagree with the description above: I found this sweeter than Blackpoint.
Definitely shot into my top five lat blends.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Apr 13, 2011 | Medium | None Detected | Mild to Medium | Strong |
Small cut, almost dusty leaf.
Tongue biting, unrefined tobacco.
Tongue biting, unrefined tobacco.
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