G. L. Pease Montgomery

I had a tin of this at the same time I was smoking a tin of 2003 Christmas Cheer. CC was much better so I lost interest in Montgomery half way through the tin. I remember liking it some but obviously not enough to smoke the whole tin. To be fair, I might oughta give it a shot again sometime.

This has been the only G. L. Pease blend that has been a truly dissapointment. Acquire this tin on one of my virginias phases, hoping to find a rich and tasty experience. What I got was an insipid smoke.

Upon opening the tin you will find a fluffy light brown blend. It has very mono-tone tobacco ribons. The smell on the tin is delicous: bread, hay and a hit of dried ruits (date?). That was probably the best part of this tobacco.

The smoking experience was flat all along. Tried different bowl sizes, but got the same results. I was even more wet than I expected. I beg to differ: this tobacco has no "subtle complexity". Just plain subtleness.

It bites,it bit me in the tin but I puff too profound. If your lucky to get a chunk of Kentucky in your bowl you will note the subtle complexity talked about as the main bulk of tobacco is mild. Update: I don't know why this was thrashing my tongue in the first few bowls but the bite has gone since I have been smoking this exclusivly for a few days. It's lite but has nice soft dark earthy tones with a wheat,yeast taste. I love ol' monty now. I've said it once before and shall say it again. Masterpiece?

This is a path less taken blend to my taste. It is spicy and has citrus like high notes to it. Is a bit raw tasting but in an ok way.

Like smoking spices with bright flavors, nothing dark or touching the low end of the spectrum here. If you are like me and like a spicy smoke but hate perique, you might be into this. Very simillar to cairo just minus the perique. This reminds me of a clove cigarette towards mid bowl.

Not my favorite but a nice change of pace on occasion. Good enough to reccomend, just not for everyone. That is a major point, this has an acquired taste so I reccomend trying a small tin or sample.

Nicotine is not too strong for a Va.

The tin aroma of the long-cut, wide ribbon is of hay and wheat. Though cut for wide gauge chambers, this performed best when chopped to varying degrees in order to pair with the narrower chambers for which this blend seems suited.

The flavor is deceptively subtle. Unaffected light virginias form the base, with a touch of reds for added presence. The dark burley adds creaminess to the bottom end without intruding too much rich bitterness.

One of the best GLP blends, this is civil, well-mannered, and understated. Aging is highly advised. This seemed best in narrow to medium gauge chambers.

Since Haddo's Delight has a haiku, I thought that it would be fitting to write a tongue- in-cheek one for Montgomery:

"Montgomery, hail!

Enigmatic wafting plumes.

I pause now, breathless."

A Tale of Two Smokes . . . (or maybe three) . . .

I was very encouraged by this smoke when I opened the tin. I had been looking for a Virginia blend that was not in the flake format (which I dislike). This smelled good, and the first bowl was good -- very close to what I was looking for. Not as strong a Virginia taste as, say, Gawith's Full Virginia Flake, but pleasant nonetheless.

About three days later I went to pack my second bowl of this blend. In between the time I packed the first bowl and the time I packed the second bowl, the tobacco had dried out to a crisp! Think leaves on your yard in the fall. At this point, the smoke was harsh and the taste very bitter. Hot too.

I went to my tobacconist and he suggested I mix a house blend with it to add moisture and flavor. So I blended one part of a black vanilla cavendish to three parts of the Montgomery. After 24 hours, the Pease blend was less crispy, and the addition of a little flavored tobacco made for a good smoke -- much more depth than originally. However, there is still a slight bitter aftertaste deriving from the Montgomery.

I would not buy this blend again. Maybe there is another non-flake Virginia out there, but don't buy this one unless it's deeply discounted or you are really desperate.

Smoking this conjures up images of a homeless person, packing his bowl under the illusion that he is living it up with an expensive tobacco. The corncob pipe he smokes gets hot and smells of popcorn as he puffs this crackly product. But, the tobacco soothes his mind and helps him forget about the cold night soon approaching.

Update: This blend has grown on me alot during the past several months. There's a hint of fruitiness hovering about a solid virginia/burley base which is very nice. Solid blend. I love smoking Montgomery firts thing in the morning with a cup of coffee.

All quality leaf, but there was something rather bland about the smoke...and boring. The high notes are missing as indicated in the last review and this was a surprise given the first three words of the description.

I had bought seven tins of this when it first came out in March. I put them in the cellar to age as I was working my way through a few open tins at the time and didn't want to open yet another one. The other day I figured I would open one and give it a try. When I cracked the tin the aroma was wonderful! Slightly sweet Virginia smell and what I considered to be a "rasiny" smell as well. I loaded up a bowl and knew right away that I was going to love this stuff! I don't know what the ancient archive super secret is but it works!! The dark fired Kentucky seems to give this blend a bit of extra body. This could very well be an all day smoke. Great job yet again Greg! Cant wait to try the rest in this series!!

Despite being a huge fan of GL Pease, I must admit I wasn't sure how I'd like his first predominantly VA based blend. Particularly since VA tobacco - without lots of burley or perique - tends to be among my least preferred smokes.

I actually expected to find this a bit understated for my tastes - much as I found Stratford.

Wrong.

This is an extremely sweet and full tasting VA flake. The burley adds a dimension of nuttiness and depth to the sweet and light VA. Like most of Greg's smokes this is far from a mow the lawn or studiously read tobacco. It has several different layers of flavor that must be paid attention to, to be fully appreciated. I did note that if you are hasty with it, like most VA blends, it will give you a tiny nip despite the cooling effect of the burley.

If you are avoiding burley blends due to their reputation as bitter, antiquated or downright second rate - don't let this stop you from trying Montgomery. The added leaf far from hinders the delightful character of this rich tobacco.