G. L. Pease Embarcadero

Prep: Moisture is perfect. Flakes are rubbed out

Dark fruit from the red Virginia complemented well by the Turkish spice, which also delivers a nuttiness. I do taste a cigar note occasionally as well. Nic is med, not an all day smoke. Very well balanced. Pure Virginia blends simply arent for me but the combo of the Red V along with the Turkish still gives the simplicity yet with extra depth. I do prefer a bit more sweetness (think Bijou, which is a V/O as well) than this offers but as usual, a well put together blend by Pease. Not an all-day smoke. 7/10

Tin note is quite intense. All natural tobacco tanginess with a sweet and sour note like orange or Bergamot rind. It comes in broken flakes neatly packaged where one can pick a few slices and either rub out more or squeeze directly into the bowl depending on taste. It could use a few minutes of drying time but can be smoked directly as well without producing excessive moisture.

In either case it lights easily and from the start you are greeted by a smooth, flavorful and naturally aromatic smoke. Red Virginia forms the base and it is tangy but also sweet. The Izmir leaf adds a distinct sourness and spicy notes. To my experience Izmir is one of the smoothest and sweetest Oriental varieties quite congruent with Virginia but it still lends the characteristic Oriental flavor to Embarcadero without being overwhelming. Overall Embarcadero is a rather dry tasting mixture with lots of pure all natural tobacco flavor with enough body and a satisfying medium strength. It burns well to a white ash but might become a little acrid towards the end - a small complaint to an otherwise excellent blend.

There aren’t many Va/Or blends on the market, or not as many as I would have wished. Most contain some Perique or another leaf while I seem to enjoy pure Va/Or mixtures more, especially as a first smoke of the day. Living in Greece I am fortunate enough to have plain Oriental varieties ready at hand so I can make my own blends with Virginias, but Embarcadero is to me a very interesting find as it combines top quality Virginias with excellent Izmir in an artful combination.

Comparing Embarcadero with the late McClelland’s Grand Oriental series, I have to note that, much as I enjoy the latter, Embarcadero produces a purer tobacco experience since the Virginias in the Grand Oriental’s have undergone the McClellands treatment which adds a significant component to the tobaccos natural flavor.

I found this tobacco difficult to stay with. Initial smoke seemed like it would be uniquely different. But, as I continued onward the wheels fell off this one and I didn't even finish the bowl. Tried it again several weeks later in a different pipe with the same result. This tobacco is truly a unique experience. Unfortunately, it did not jive with my palate. I've tried about sixty or so tobaccos of all varieties thus far and unfortunately this is the only one to be tossed and not finished. You may find it to your liking. It just wasn't a fit for me.

I realy think Mr. Pease should tone down on the number of blends he makes . Surely this one was made just to have another blend down his long list I guess .This is run of the mill period .The tobacco is of good quality and it's not a bad blend , but why bother ... maybe so someone can come up with a flowery discription like the one listed for this blend .I'm getting a little burnt on all the hoorah about these " artisian " blenders when in fact they havent done anything better than whats been done except the flowery discriptions are more flowery. Anyway , it's a boring blend and if your wanting to get excited about a blend .. look elsewhere . Nothing exciting here

Embarcadero's tin note is nice - that of quality Orientals, sour and very mildly floral. There's also a slightly fruity sweetness as well. The cut is a broken flake, which I usually rub out into finer bits, but I left this one mostly as-is. Moisture level is perfect, maybe even slightly dry.

Lighting up and the first few puffs: pleasant Oriental flavors. Fragrant, a bit floral, and tangy/spicy... in fact, the tang made me worry it might be a bitey blend, but it turns out it isn't. Smokes cool with very little bite. There's a good amount of Virginia sweetness too, which matches really well with the quality Izmir's sourness. It gets surprisingly complex. However, there are times, especially during the second half of the bowl, when it can get a little harsh... maybe a little *too* spicy or peppery. I'm guessing this blend would really benefit from a few years in the cellar to smooth things out.

Bottom line: Embarcadero is a really nice sweet and sour Oriental-forward blend. Pleasant and enjoyable, solid 3 stars. But I bet that even just 1-2 years of aging would bump it up to 4 stars. I'll update this review when I try it.

Presentation: All labels in the Fog City Selection look the same. A gold stripe across the bottom, a white background, with a gray sketching of the streets of San Francisco.

Cut: Comes in a small flake or maybe broken flake, moisture is just right and it rubs out like a dream.

Tin note: Moderate fruity sweetness with maybe a little bread.

Tasting notes: Smoky, toasty, earthy, with a slight tangy sweetness on light up. Once it gets going, it's delicious. Full of these deep and dark flavors up front of earth, smoke, figs, and spice with nice undertones of bread, grassy and fruity sweetness, a tangy zing, with a spicy, woody finish. Sometimes I taste leather, mostly on retrohales.

Mechanics: N/A -- A well behaved blend.

Extra Remarks: This is an awesome blend. No super unique flavors, but how they present themselves is very well done. This is booming with flavor and throws all the flavors at you at once, throughout the bowl. If you are a person who does not like when blends are too sweet or rich, assuming you have no other qualms with the leaves in here, I think you will like this one very much. The way the Virginias present themselves is gentle but still very present. I'd say this blend is mostly earthy and smoky but how the Virginias subtly shine through is the highlight of the blend for me. Overall an excellent blend, 4 stars.

DrumsAndBeer’s review of this incredibly enjoyable blend is uncommonly spot-on and satisfying, just like this baccy. My recommendation is to just try it. If you have an “open” palate and are looking for something new and enjoyable then this will not disappoint.

I was expecting a rather mild (flavored) and "thin" (bodied) Virginia/Turkish blend, but Embarcadero is much more, it's a superb blend for me! It's rich body, delicately tasty nuances that shine, when you really take your time and mind for this tobacco, and lovely broken flake appearance make it an outstandingly good blend of this sort!

The Virginias lend surprisingly much of a body to the blend, maybe it's also the Izmir helping with it? I don't know, but what I know is I love the earthy, floral, and pleasantly nutty, sometimes even smoky, and always slightly sour flavor profile it offers! It has so much depth and nuances to it.. it's a joy to explore them or just puff along enjoying this artful piece as a whole

The Virginias aren't overly sweet and offer a rich earthiness as well as a hay-ish quality. The Izmir is sublime with its very unique aroma. Somewhat floral, maybe a bit like Jasemine Tea? But it also has this pleasantly sharp, dry and ethereal side it, which makes it most interesting on the palate. I'm strugglin' to find words for its beauty!

The proclaimed notes of nuts and roasted coffee are indeed to be found, yet they're very subtle and mainly around when the bowl is puffed with a most leisureful cadence. I do belive they sport from a expectionally mild flavoring, as well as from the wonderful Izmir leaf which is said to be a bit nutty as well. Those notes are delicious and you'll find yourself hunting for them! 😉

**Here's Mr. Pease's very own word on his creation:** http://www.glpease.com/BriarAndLeaf/?p=40

Here in April, 2018, grieving the loss of McClelland I decided to revisit the Fog City Selection of G. L. Pease which I initially experimented with about 18 months ago in the Fall of 2016. My first reintroduction was with Union Square, a straight Virginia blend from the Fog City Selection that I had not tried before. Tonight I finally smoked a big bowl full of Embarcadero. I will of course return to Union Square as I have 2 tins of it. But I have to say, on my initial re-visit, Embarcadero is stellar. DrumsAndBeer's review is very accurate. It's everything and more that's described on the tin label. Clean & slow burning, sweet yet with a depth and thick richness of flavor that expands to even greater enjoyment as one progresses through the bowl. Goodbye, McClelland, hello G.L. Pease!