G. L. Pease Maltese Falcon

Overly dried tobacco. The tin aroma was delicious but the smoking experience, very disappointing.

This mixture was such a disappointment!

The tin aroma promised an enjoyable experience. But the tobacco was very dry and the smoke would become tasteless within the first 5 minutes.

All the tins I had were as such.

I wonder, does GL Pease have quality control issues due to the high demand of their products?

The tin I opened revealed a nice Latakia and VA aroma but it overly dry: the leaf was breaking down under my fingers.

The result was a tasteless experience. Tobacco was in my pipe but it tasted like air.

Maltese Falcon is "Stylish, dark and alluringly bland".

Update 04/11/10

I must have received a different type of tobacco than the great majority of the reviewers for this tobacco...Curious!

Original review 03/21/10

This mixture was a total disappointment.

The tin aroma was very spicy, smoky with a background of sweetnes. The leaf, of medium cut and lenght, was overly dry, almost breaking up when squeezed.

Despite having a terrific taste at first, it became simply tasteless before reaching the first third of the bowl.

After trying 4 more times and opening a new tin, the result was the same.

I threw away the other 3 tins and will never rebuy.

i ordered this tobacco because it was named after my favorite black and white movie. appon opening the tin i found it to smell rateher nice for an english blend so i loaded a bowl. my first experiance with this blend was a bad one as soon as i started puffing my toung felt like it was covered in bee stings. figuring it was just because it was really moist i let it sit out to dry for two weeks. after trying it again without change i decided to put it away for good. it does taste good but the bonfire strength toungbite repells any further tasting of this blend

Gentlemen,

Tobacco preferences are NOT objective, they are purely subjective. Because they are subject to our tastebuds and other factors, ultimately one can either enjoy, or find a blend unpleasant. There are some gray zones, but not too many in between these two poles.

Also, I think it should not take a full tin before making up your mind. Within 3 to 4 pipefuls, someone is able to decide if he likes, or not, a blend. Pipe tobacco is an enjoyable experience. If a tobacco provides an unjoyable experience, why persevere throughout a tin?

Some people in this review seem to be defensive when "confronted" to the reality of someone expressing an unfavorable verdict.

As for myself, I loved Haddo's Delight, somehow enjoyed Fillmore and do not enjoy Maltese Falcon at all. MF is way too dry and tastes simply bland. Very, extremely pleasant sweet, smoky and spicy taste upon lighting up, but it quickly changes to flat. Nada. Nothing. F...all. Will the taste magically reappear if I smoke a whole tin? Let me be skeptical.

Not recommended. I would agree with Briarpatch that there is a quality control issue here. And I will not rebuy in the hope of getting a good tin the next time. Every single tin SHOULD be impeccable, especially from someone pretending to manufacture artisanal tobaccos.

This one isnt for me.Taste more like a cheap,stale cigar.

Preface: I have been smoking Dunhill Standard Mixture Medium for near-on 30 years, believing that it has no equal anywhere on earth. But it is gone now, and so I begin a quest for my Holy Grail: A substitute to replace the standard on which all English tobaccos are based.

Maltese Falcon will not be a contender. Above all else, the tobacco came out of the tin way too dry, which results in a quick, hot, harsh smoke, and deprives one of the smoky intricacies of the various tobaccos, particularly the Latakia, and the meditative qualities that come with a slow burning rich smoke. If I wanted dry tobacco flavor, a cigarette would do as well. It seems I am not alone in pointing out the dryness, but on the other hand, quite a few posters claimed it to be moist. So.. we might have a Quality Control issue. Little flavor, intrigue, or complexity noted. Not recommended.

Update 03/23/2009

For the sake of clarity, I had to add the verb "taste" in my review. I thought it was implicit I was referring to the taste of the tobacco upon lighting up. It looks like I was misundertood by one of my distinguished fellow reviewers. I apologize for any confusion created.

This tobacco was a first class disappointment. So many different tobaccos but extremely BLAND in taste. I felt like I was smoking air.

Not recommended, save your money!

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Original review 03/14/2009

The best part with Maltese Falcon is when you light up and TASTE all these different ranges of sweetness at once. Very interesting! I think there might be a very light toppping that was added. But unfortunately, it's the only interesting part. After a couple minutes, that pleasure is gone. Pity!

Upon opening the tin, I was under the impression that I was in presence of some Balkan Sasieni, thus a Balkan blend rather than an English blend. It smelled exactly the same, the sweet aroma combined with the spiceness/woodness of the Latakia.

The tobacco is on the dark side and composed of a semi shag cut blended with some partially rubbeb out flakes.

Only problem is the tin I opened displayed a very dry tobacco. There was no minimal moisture so I had to put back in the Coleman cooler. After 2 weeks or so, it had a bit of moisture to make it half decent for smoking.

As I was saying, the best part is upon lighting up. Afterward, the tobacco goes on to become more and more bland, TASTE WISE. Which is very surprising for such a combination of tobaccos.

This is my third shot at a GL Pease tobacco. I tried Haddo's Delight, which was NO delight and then I tried Fillmore which did not fill me. It will definitively be my last shot. After 3 strikes, you're out.

I believe that GL Pease products are just not worth the money. All things considered, I will stick with Balkan Sasieni which is just short of 4$ cheaper than MF for a 50 g tin, and gives me a lot more smoking pleasure.

I will not rebuy and will very probably not even finish this tin. I believe GL Pease is way overated for the quality they provide. As for the second tin I bought, I will donate it to someone less fortunate than I am.