G. L. Pease Fillmore

Well, Fillmore is again one of the US blends bought 7 years ago.

The similarity to the Bayou Morning Flake is undisputable to me. Fillmore is a bit more refined, and a wee bit sweeter and milder. But the whole structure is the same: red virginia and perique (the good quality one).

I've appreciated the quality of the smoke, which is cool and unbitey, with a correct N level. But it was far from making me sing of miracles. The flavour I'm looking for in a VaPer is not in this one. That's my concern, no reason to give it less than three stars.

Another Pease blend with considerable bite (pH out of whack).

The Good: burns well and packs well.

The Bad: insipid flavour, bland, and tends to shut-down as it combusts.

The Ugly: pH out of whack.

The Better-Half: rarely does my beloved commented on the post combustion room note and I especially enjoy the heaviest of Latakia/Oriental blends. The comments were alluding to excrement from sheep and the like. Dare I say somewhat accurate, not a pleasant room-note and the briar afterwards is quite infused a stubborn nasty ghost.

There are far better blends in this genre, Samuel Gawith St. James flake comes to mind.

I received about a three-bowl sample of this one from a forum buddy and I was very impressed. I normally don't review a tobacco after three bowls, but I so thoroughly enjoyed each bowl, that I felt it adequate to hang three stars on it at this time.

To start with, I echo all below that this has a lot of perique, so if you don't like a lot of perique, then pass this one by. If you are not sure how much Perique you like, then this is a nice one to test your limits with. If you find it too strong just cut it down with some Virginia. I had a little left and combined it with some OGS and it was better than the OGS was straight, to my tastes anyway.

I think that this is the most perique I have encountered in a Va/Per blend, so I clearly am in the camp that loves this leaf. The tobacco smokes great. Nice, cool and did not require many relights. The nicotine is ample as can be expected with a high perique content. It is a really satisfying smoke. I had all three bowls in my Altinok Talon Churchwarden and the combination was great.

Update 03/12/08: My initial tin was fresh. I am smoking a tin from the Fall of 2006, so with about 18 months of age. This is aging in a way that is even finer than my already high-expectations anticipated. This is so deep, smooth, cigar-like and creamy as to be beyond belief. However, I must change the Room Note rating to Very Strong. The residual smell in my vehicle after smoking Fillmore is reminiscient of burning horse hair. I am also notching up the strength rating, as this is more potent than I remember initially. Easily in my top five blends of all time.

Update 06/07: Had to edit my disparaging remarks about Escudo in comparison to Fillmore once I realized that my first Escudo tin was rancid. Both Escudo and Fillmore are my top VAPER flake choices above all my other flake favorites (e.g. Three Nuns, St. James Woods, 633, LGF). Escudo is the sweeter of the two, Fillmore the more earthy.

Initial review from 10/06:

This is a review after smoking a tin dated 10/04/06. Fillmore is truly one of the most enjoyable, luxurious and wonderful blends I could have hoped to find.

Mostly medium and dark colors dominate this broken flake pipe tobacco. The slices are mottled, with specks and strands here and there of medium-light browns & tans. The flake thickness is an improvement over Bayou Morning Flake or McClelland's typically chunky offerings, despite the tin description of "thick-sliced." Perhaps I am simply reacting to Fillmore being more pliable than either BMF or McC's. I didn't get out the calipers.

The tin aroma is earthy, giving off the impression of fermented leaf akin to that of McClelland's matured Virginias, but not nearly so pronounced. This fermented aroma vacated once the tin was opened a few days, as did some unnecessary moisture. Fillmore has such gustatory appeal, I am tempted to chew it.

I did hit the ?jackpot? for stems, finding five (really, near twigs), the shortest being 1? and the longest over 1.5?.

I had the most satisfaction with lightly, uniformly rubbed-out pieces, gently pushed into group 4 up to ODA capacity pipes. The flavor increased substantially over smaller bowls or keeping the pieces whole. Burning characteristics also improved, though I will kept trying whole pieces as I do with other flake tobaccos. Not close to a one vesta light, once lit, Fillmore is a fairly easy smoke. There is enough flavor that gentle puffing helps keeps Fillmore cool, abounding in thick, smoky clouds.

This is a blend practically absent of high notes, like one gets with blends containing unstoved bright or lemon Virginias. There is but an apparition of sweetness haunting somewhat meaty, earthy tastes with leather, juniper berry, butterscotch, honey, dried stone fruit, musty and menthol under-flavors.

Now, as to the perique. Yes, this is masterful use of this blending condiment. Fillmore neither treads lightly nor douses with the mysterious leaf. This is as much perique as can be used without my feeling pepper-sprayed. Still, perique is more here than a seasoning. Fillmore may indeed have more perique in quantity than Haddo?s, Bayou Morning Flake or Escudo, but not in effect, and this is what matters most.

Fillmore is complex (I expect a bit more complexity with aging), and astoundingly rich. It is already nearly all pleasure. That said, my prediction is that age probably will do its magic with Fillmore and bring out extra sweetness and more migration of flavor.

I had a "love affair by letter" with this tobacco: after reading its ingredients, I bought two large tins. Then I read the reviews, had a thought - and in the next purchase I ordered three more, having picked out the leftovers in the store. But I postponed exploring it until the summer, as I almost don't smoke Virginia-perique blends during the cold season.

The 227-gram tin had a production date of "January 20, 2016," so the tobacco has matured in it for more than six years and over the years has turned into an almost mono-colored broken flake the color of bitter chocolate. It splits easily into individual fibers, but you can take a pinch of it and fill the pipe as you would a whole flake. The tobacco is a little moist, despite the years spent in the tin. Somebody might want to dry it out.

Flavor: dominated by very dense and bright notes of prunes and figs, overlaid with the aroma of freshly baked bread, supported by a faint scent of stale hay. There is also a slight saltiness, as from the brine of the olives. I do not know if you can tell by the smell the presence of such a small amount of latakia - at least I was not able to.

Taste: in the basis - dense, sweet, but not harsh notes of figs and muffin bread, offset by a soft spice and mild overtones inherent in the perique. The tobacco is exceptionally smooth on the palate, initially adds a little spice, but in the middle there is only a slight tanginess that underlines the main notes. In bents, this spiciness is more tangible than in straight-shaped pipes. Towards the end of the pipe, the woody notes come in and the overall bouquet becomes a little drier. I never felt the latakia notes: 0.5% of the blend is too small a value for me. However, perhaps that's the reason why the tobacco has a good density of flavor. The tobacco smokes extremely slowly and cool, doesn't fade - three grams of the blend can easily be smoked for a couple of hours, doing your thing. Due to the duration of smoking it seems that its strength is lower than the advertised average, but this impression is deceptive - the tobacco is filling well, and the rapid smoking and a very large pipe can "treat" the pipe smoker with a noticeable nicotine hit. I smoked tobacco both broken and whole - the strength is the same, but, of course, in the second case it smokes even slower. The tobacco burns into a light gray dusty ash, with quite a bit of moisture released in the bents, and straight pipes smoke much drier. The aftertaste is sweet and slightly astringent, similar to the taste of prunes.

The lightly diffusing smoke has a sweetly woody aroma.

What's the bottom line? First of all, I didn't go wrong with the choice: the quality of the blend is very high, and the taste, in my opinion, is what you need from a good vape. I like my blends a little bit sweeter, but this is an attempt to find some flaws in a great tobacco. Unlike the previously released Stratford, the Fillmore is slightly stronger, much more vibrant, and tastes more nicely. I haven't tried the blend in fresh form, but if it comes on sale I'll definitely buy more.

A broken flake that exudes its aroma from a distance when the vinegar and spicy tin is uncovered. The "possible" added of Latakia makes it a different va / per. It burns very well and at a rate that leans to the slow side. The intensity of the flavor is medium and the nicotinic strength as well. Latakia is very slightly noticeable, especially in the retronasal exhalation, giving it that dark note. My throat has been scratched a little at times, similar to what sometimes happens with some blends containing burley, although in theory Fillmore does not include this ingredient. I usually smoke it at night, replacing my usual English blends, although it is an all-day tobacco.

I would recommend trying it because it is a different va / per, although in my point of view it may deviate a bit from that category, as it is nothing like any other virginia and perique mixture that I have tried.

2021/06/09: Reviewing this mixture again with an aged tin I give it a star, since it works very well in all aspects and three stars I do not think it is what it deserves. What I'm wondering now is if I should put it on my favorites list. Call me fickle if you want...

This tobacco is, in my opinion, a very delicate tobacco and therefore, although it is not difficult to smoke and enjoy, it is on deed extremely easy to spoil the smoke without the possibility of recomposing it, causing a very bad experience and causing an erroneous opinion about this fantastic tobacco.

In cold:

Smelling it in a can, it immediately gives off smells of fermented citrus, to my sense of smell, recalls the smell of "tepache" (Mexican beberage made from fermented pineapple peel), tamarind, wet wood, these are smells that I normally perceive in red Virginias and that fermented smell that It causes a certain itching in the nostrils that I identify in Perique.

First fire:

The first ignition can be strong and for some somewhat unpleasant since to ignite it you have to take good puffs with a medium to fast rhythm, this particular mixture I prefer to ignite with wooden matches since I have noticed that with a lighter, the first Bitterness is more aggressive when gas is used.

Immediately after lighting, the rhythm of the smoke must be lowered until a slow rhythm is reached, that is when the smoke begins to be enjoyed, in this way, the tobacco begins to release the sweetness of the virgin, to my palate it is a sweetness similar to burnt sugar, this flavor is preserved if we keep the rhythm of the smoke slow, in this way it also makes the perique feel pleasant, fresh, refreshing on the nose and in the mouth, giving a sensation similar to the freshness of mint (I mean the refreshing sensation, not the mint flavor), if you increase the rhythm of the smoke, it becomes bitter and the perique begins to be very aggressive in the nostrils doing both the smoking and the aftertaste a very unpleasant experience. When the smoke begins to cause humidity, the ember begins to pay and that is when we instinctively increase the rhythm of the smoke, in this case I recommend continuing with the slow smoke until the pipe goes out, once this happens, the best thing is let the pipe rest for about 5 or 10 min.

Second fire:

Once the pipe has rested, we will light it again trying not to put the flame into the bowl, instead, leave the flame above the bowl and allow the tobacco to heat up with each puff until it is lighted again, with this we will avoid the bitterness produced by the ignition, once the pipe is re-lighted, lower the rhythm again to slow to recover the sweetness of the virginia and the freshness and itchiness of the perique.

This mixture offers a dense, creamy, white and very fresh smoke on the nose. The delicate balance between sweetness and freshness are a pleasure in the mouth and nose, but you must be careful with the rhythm, since if you rush it, the tongue and palate will pay dearly for the price.

For me, this is one of the best and most complex Vaper blends I've ever smoked.

Disclaimer: I really dislike latakia.

From the moment I opened the tin I knew what was afoot. Someone had tossed a few healthy pinches of latakia into my va-per. Upon inspection my fears were confirmed. Several rather chunky bits of this black oily leaf....... After a sigh of disappointment, and a few hours dry time I packed up a pipe and the next morning I stepped outside for my morning ritual of a cup of my favorite dark roast and a smoke.

Latakia right out of the gate. Not overwhelming, but it's there hand in hand with the Virginia. After cursing under my breath and a sip of coffee to clear my palate. I give it a second light..... more of that oily leaf....I bear through about half the bowl... enjoying a moment or 2. At about mid-bowl I was over it. So I went and packed a bowl of Bayou morning flake to counter balance the taste and had to start my morning all over again.

I can see this being a winter vaper for some. I might even tolerate it on a colder night. But for my morning smoke, and even my rotation. Not going to happen. If you are like myself, someone who cant stand latakia, try some of Pease's other blends. Six Pence, Navigator, Telegraph Hill, Union Square, these blends I high recommend to any Virginia lover and hater of the dark oily leaf. As for the rest of you who don't mind it, give this blend a try. It does put a twist on the flavor profile that I can see why some would love. Top quality blend for a Top Notch blending house, just not my flavor. Hope you enjoy your tin more than I think Im going to. I will update maybe in a year when I've forgotten about this first experience and give it another try.... Errr on second thought... Anybody got some six pence for trade?

This is a great blend of red VA’s and a hefty dose of Perique. It does have a smokey quality that some have said is a bit of Latakia, though i’m not sure about that, and it does dissipate with age. This blend was a bit too strong in nicotine for me at first, and still is despite a year in a jar, unfortunately. It’s definitely on the savory/peppery side without much sweetness, and feels on the strong end of medium to me.