G. L. Pease Embarcadero

One tin down, many more to come. In due respect to Mr. Webber who reviewed it below, his remarks are simply mystifying. I must agree that the initial notes of Embarcadero when you crack the tin, are not quite as luscious as I thought they'd be. Not to worry, though. I don't sniff pipe tobacco, I smoke it. I've smoked this in many different VA pipes - Eltangs, a Former, an S. Bang, a Chonowitsch, two Ruthenbergs, an Ashton Prince, even a 1964 Sixten Ivarsson that I rarely use. I've smoked this in numerous sized pipes, from a size 2 through 6. I'm impressed that this blend seems to perform about as well regardless of pipe size. Unlike many of Greg's blends, this one doesn't unfold in layers of complexity, to me. It's still complex in its own way, but it's puff by puff rather than in varying layers. I agree that it needs a good drying, at least a full hour; but even the first bowl - which was from a tin that had come in on the first shipment of it that very morning - was ready to enjoy after about an hour of drying.

I break this up some, and pack it rather gently. A bit of kindling on top is all that's needed, and I rarely needed to relight. And never did I scorch my tongue despite the moisture content, which I had honestly expected.

All in all, a very, very good blend that most likely will gain a lot from aging. The Virginias are simply wonderful, smooth and of obvious quality. They have almost a caramel character. And the Turkish Izmir...! Man, what a deft touch was utilized in determining the proper blend of them. No latakia here, which intrigued me. All the way through, I kept waiting for some of the glorious weed to kick in and make its presence known. It's like smoking a grand English blend after all of the latakia was removed!

Another round-tripper for Greg, imho. Like Westminster and Fillmore, it's exceptional now, and will only be better with a year or two of age to mellow it a bit and marry the tobaccos. I bought 5 tins, and will be getting more. A superb, smooth and extremely flavorful blend, this. My 4-star rating is really a 3-1/2 for now. The 4 stars represents what it will be in a year or even less. I have enough experience with Greg's blendings that I'm confident that by '08 or '09, Embarcadero will easily get an average 4-star rating. Yep...it is that good.

Finishing up my 1st tin of Embarcadero I can safely say I believe this to be a winner. The same Red Va`s in broken flake form that as seen in Fillmore are used with the addition of Turkish leaf. On take-off it starts slow but, the Va`s kick in and give it some punch. Once airborne, the Va`s seem to control with the Turkish trying to become a player but, with little success. This makes it somewhat unstable thru out the flight but, time spent together these tabaks will be as one and will IMHO be a real treat. Found fully rubbed out and dried thoroughly worked best for me. Enjoy the flight!!

I found this blend remarkably smooth - almost creamy - which surprised me given the blend's spicy top notes and lingering ginger and white peppercorn flavors.

I fired this up right from the tin with no time whatsoever for drying. The feel of the broken flake presentation led me to believe that I might have to re-light periodically through the bowl, but I had no trouble smoking through the bowl to a fine white ash.

This is quite a complex tobacco. It presents dimensions of flavor that I'm not really accustomed to. The Virginias present a base of sweetness upon which the Izmir leaf just dances. This is a magical experience. I can taste the caramels in the Virginias as the sugars heat and burn.

The flavors change pretty dramatically based on smoking rhythm. I found the best flavor with a slightly faster sip than I use with Marlin Flake or Old Gowrie. I like the peppery hit that the smoke presents.

I loaded my pipe with a simple fold of two flakes with a portion of a third rubbed out for kindling. I packed quite loose keeping the moisture content of the flake in mind.

The pipe I used is a 4-knuckle bamboo Todd Johnson peewit with a large group 4 or group 5 capacity, due to depth.

Altogether one of my best first-bowl experiences with a new tobacco.

Kudos to G.L. Pease for another superb blend.

Very natural taste with sweet Virginia leading at the beginning and spicy orientals rising up little by little. As the description says there’s something that reminds to a brut, maybe a trento doc.

The red Virginias are predominately earthy with a bit of tang for the majority of the bowl. The Izmir is floral, with hints of spice and an occasional sour note. The last third of the bowl is always the best, as the tanginess of the reds comes to the forefront in a special way.

The tin I smoked was only a year old but all things point to this one aging wonderfully. As a result, I would say this one is definitely cellar worthy.

I like almost all of Pease's blends. Embarcadero is a medium strength virginia and Oriental leaf blend. Its not really unlike Regent's Flake. And might be compared with Gawith's Sam's Flake or McClellands Pebblecut. But this one is perhaps not as complex as the others I just listed. it certainly has its fans, though. I like oriental non latakia blends. I love Pebblecut in fact, and McC's #24, but this one just felt a bit 'meh' to me. There is nothing wrong, just not enough that is right. I prefer Pebblecut for instance because (after a bit of drying out) the taste is genuinely complex....an overused word in these reviews. But it is exactly that. Embarcadero is very nice and the main thrust is Virginia. The form is broken flake....as many of Pease's blends are, and C&Ds blends. The form is exactly like Exhausted Rooster for example. Maybe I wanted more of Izmer or whatever exactly the oriental leaf is, but maybe thats not it, either. I dont know. This is subjective this pipe smoking thing....and this blend has a huge fan base. I know it sells better than other Pease Virginia blends, so maybe its just me. I liked it, the taste is subtle with Virginia in front. The nic hit is approaching medium...maybe reaching it actually. The room note is OK. Smoke it in a smaller bowl as it does tend to get a wee bit monotonous toward the end. Good... maybe very good...tasty.... but perhaps not great.

Tangy and slightly winey with some lighter VAs that tone down the C&D red VAs a bit. Very similar in profile to Red Carpet by C&D except it lacks the perique that I find brings Red Carpet to a slightly more sublime level. That said, this is an amazingly good and complex blend. Not as complex as Cairo but I find it more delicious. I never get tired of it.

Revised 1/1/2017- Sitting over in my stash of "misfit tobaccos", I decided to retry this blend from my original open tin (2 years old). It was bone dry ( I mouth breathed on it a few times for packing ) and I couldn't remember why I didn't like this ? Upon lighting , I immediately remembered the blend , but this time I felt like there was more to this than just "spicy heat". Reading the tin I realized I was dealing with just a Virginia and Izmir blend. There was no burley or Latakia to tame this. However, I don't know if it was a my new "Mental outlook", tin age, or drying, but this blend was improved. I was now getting a very Sweet and Sour smoke, without the heat, almost like I was dealing with a VaPer. I think I finally realized what Greg was trying to accomplish. The only other blend that I remember smoking with Izmir is C&d's "Sunday Picnic" and it has a similar flavor profile and had similar spicy heat.

Embarcadero, comes ready to smoke,is a full 2ozs. and will satisfy those "N" cravings ( I'm very surprised at so many "Medium" ratings). Just don't expect to fire away on this one, as it could get harsh and blister your tongue. I do recommend letting this rest for 6 months (1 star fresh /3star aged

Embarka is a pretty good broken flake, smokes slow, easy to pack and pretty darn tasty. Full Bodied in my thinking, not for the weak of heart, I wish they had left out the izmir leaf, not a great fan of that, or lightened up on the perique. But it is a tasty smoke. Recommended for vaper fans.