Seattle Pipe Club Plum Pudding

An outstanding blend! Spectacular tin note promising all kinds of goodness inside. And this blend delivers.

All English smokers owe it to themselves to taste this. And non-English smokers will more than likely appreciate it just as much. A lot going on here, with the nice added touch of Perique harmoniously blended in and a bit of sweetness from the Cavendish.

While a lover of Perique, I often find myself struggling with Perique-infused English blends. The combination of Latakia and Perique seems a very difficult one to pull off, with the two distinct flavors battling each other rather than creating something new and better than each in its own. The challenge to the blender: How to combine the Virginas, Latakia, Orientals, Perique, and sometimes Cavendish and/or burley in a manner that creates harmony rather than discordance among the constituate tobaccos?

Many blenders try, some succeed. Yet I often find myself, ironically, preferring the non-Perique version. Good examples are Pipeworks & Wilke No.5 vs No.13 (with Perique). I enjoy both, but find myself preferring the non-Perique version. Similarly, Frog Morton on the Bayou - a good blend. But I find myself going back to the original Frog more often and getting my Perique fix from traditional VaPers.

Plum Pudding, however, is an English blend with Perique that doesn't just get it right -- it's a masterpiece. Harmony, balance, thick creamy smoke, just the right amount of sweetness and deeper, earthy flavors. Slow, cool burn. The slowest burning, coolest blend I have ever smoked. Don't miss this one. My only complaint would be a relatively thin mouthfeel compared to other top-notch blends of this genre. But an enthusiastic four stars nonetheless.

Edit Oct 2016: after years of consideration, I will submit this blend as my second favorite tin note of all, behind only Wilke's High Hat and among a field of fierce contenders for the Tin Note Crown.

This one lives up to its reputation in my book. I received a fairly fresh tin a few months ago and finally got around to opening it. Not normally a back to back Latakia smoker, I did down a couple of bowls of this in a hurry. The Perique is far in the background, the orientals smooth out any roughness and what I really found to be a terrific addition was the cavendish that gave Plum Pudding a full body.

When I first saw the name Plum Pudding, I was sure it was an aromatic. Strangest name for an English blend I've come across. It smokes evenly, burns well and does indeed leave a bit of a Latakia breath hanging around the mouth.

This is a superb full flavored blend that satisfies on all levels. Like C&D Pirate Kake and the Captain Earle blends, there's something gratifying about working with a firmly pressed Latakia mixture. In the realm of krumble kakes, Plum Pudding is about as densely pressed as they come. You have to really dig in and get your fingers dirty to properly prepare this for smoking. The tactile nature of the process is quite satisfying and the various crumbled bits and pieces created by the effort rewards the meticulous with an incredibly complex smoke, one that takes many twists and turns along the way and everything about it is absolutely beautiful.

From charring light to finish this blend is delicious. It starts off creamy, spicy and fragrant. It begins firing on all cylinders about a fourth of the way down the bowl. At this point it's smooth, rich, bold and flavorful, tangy, smoky, sweet and spicy. By mid bowl to end, the perique really comes into focus. The piquancy is quite a treat. Zesty and full, the smoke nips at the tongue in the most delightful way, heightening the experience of this remarkably flavorful & cool smoking-mixture. Frankly, Plum Pudding is a thrilling & luscious olfactory overload.

The only downside with this tobacco is that it can be a bit challenging to keep lit. I found that rubbing it out thoroughly, allowing it to dry for a spell and gravity filling it, while being sure to tamp lightly along the way really helped. Altogether it’s not a big deal. Plum Pudding is so good that it’s worth the effort. A must try for Latakia lovers.

Seattle Pipe Club - Plum Pudding.

At first, I didn't care whether or not 'Plum Pudding' indicated this was an aromatic, I just loved the name! So, because of my fairly vacuous reason for being endeared to it, I requested trading some with Gentleman Zombie. As accommodating as ever, he sent me a two ounce tin recently. I wanted to wait until I'd burned the Mississippi River he sent me before cracking this one open, and decided today would be the day; well, I blooming love it!

The first thing I find agreeable about the S.P.C. krumble kakes I've had, is unlike a lot of others, the tin contains a decent amount of tobacco that's smokeable straight away, it doesn't ALL need to be crumbled. This tin was also of a good moistness, so I filled and lit, asap!

I find the smoke very satisfying, that's satisfying without having many flavours that jump out; I'd expected a Lat-Bomb but that couldn't be farther from the truth. The Latakia offers only a semblance of piquancy; it seems to me, a mild Balkan taste. In that respect, it's similar to Mississippi River.

For a Balkan, I find it a bit bizarre the way I get actual sweetness from the Cavendish. The word Balkan normally conjures up thoughts of wood, smoke, and an occasional bitterness: instead, I get woodiness, smokiness, and a nice sweetness, with nothing harsh, nor bitter.

Nicotine: mild to medium. Room-note: nice.

This is one of the best blends I've filled with: satisfying, very cool burning, thick smoke, and the ultimate in luxury.

Franck, thank you so much buddy!

Highly recommended.

Well this stuff is right up my alley, just like a Peaty Scotch. I prefer to leave it a bit chunky not fully rubbing it out, gravity pack with a very gentle tamp. A bit more time to get it combusting fully and well worth it in my view. I really like pressed and flaked blends for their long smouldering burns, this one goes for a long time and never hot at least for me. The moisture content is perfect.

It's not a huge Latakia bomb and actually quite gentle on the palate with a nice full/round creaminess for me that's the pudding part. The Perique is there and melds-in just right.

This one does change a fair bit down through the bowl and for the better, deeper and more savoury, showing balance all the way down and does not stumble at all. Slowing down even more it really sings, combusting to a powder white ash with nothing left at all. Something extra is a gentle topping not sure what it is, kind of reminds me of black Cardamon, ever so slight and works well.

If you enjoy Boswell's Northwoods or Compton's York or their No. 10 you'll like this one too . . . a most comforting blend on a snowy evening.

ORIGINAL REVIEW 10-19-2015

I received a sample of this at the past Chicago Show and wasn't expecting much after being disappointed by Mississippi River. I did, however enjoy Deception Pass and was telling the guys from Seattle Pipe club this and they insisted I tried Plum Pudding.

Well, was I wrong. I not only liked this blend, I loved it. So it is a cake that is heavy in Latakia, but it is extremely well balanced and smooth. Smoky and exotic are words that come to mind. I actually think I can add another name of lat blends that I prefer over Penzance. The sample I had was a decent size, I think I got around 10 bowls out of it. Normally, I would not put four stars on something like this, but all 10 bowls were incredible.

This screams four stars to me, so I will leave it at that and will change if necessary after getting through a tin. This could be a while for me as I am just trying to clear out samples and open tins right now in an attempt to make my cellar more manageable.

This one is a winner. I highly recommend all lat lovers try this one out.

UPDATE 7/1/2019

I just wanted to return to this one after finishing a tin I purchased shortly after the above review. I was spot on in giving this one four stars. It really is a special blend with the seemingly perfect amount of each component as the flavors often shift between good and great.

As a bonus, this one will also leave you nice and sated as it does give a good bit of nicotine, particularly for what is essentially a lat blend. So it shall stay at 4 stars and I look forward to smoking the remaining tins in the cellar.

Leaf: A crumble cake of Cavendish, Virginia, Latakia, Perique and Oriental. Mottled dark browns with a good bit of dark Latakia scattered throughout.

Tin Aroma: Slightly sweet with a hint of dried fruit, which disappears behind a glorious nose full of smokey campfire goodness from the latakia. There is a very slight spiciness that may be the perique, or the 'little something extra' the label hints at.

Taste: The taste greatly mirrors the smell, an underlying sweetness, an almost dried dark fruit flavor, followed by a rich, creamy, smokey campfirey latakia hit, which really shines but doesn't overpower the other components. Towards the end I got a nice hint of the orientals hiding in there, with a little more sweetness coming out on the exhale. It is a very smooth and rich smoke, which only improves as you get further down the bowl. Very easy smoking and approachable, but still sufficiently complex, this could easily be an all day smoke for me, although the Nicotine can sneak up on you with a decent kick after a long bowl if you aren't careful.

Smokability: Rubbed out and dried a little, it packed well, lit easily and only required one relight. It burns slowly, and stays cool and dry. It is very friendly and won't bite unless you really tease it. My bowls burn down to a fine white ash, this stuff is very easy to clean up after.

Summary: This is a great blend, the tin note is very appetising, and fortunately everything you pick up with the nose reaches the mouth without anything being lost. The slow burning nature makes for nice long smokes, which only get better the longer they go on. Everything you look for in an English/Balkan is here, yet the flavor and experience remain unique for Plum Pudding. It is definitely it's own blend which is a great thing, well worth a try if you can get your hands on it. Full flavoured, rich, creamy and velvet smooth

A delicious tobacco that I struggle to describe, perhaps because its attraction to me is its chameleon-like behavior within the same bowl and between bowls as well. If I tell myself that I'm smoking a nice oriental-forward blend, I am. If I say that it's a light latakia-forward English with some oriental thrown in, it is. And if I want it to be a rich unflavored cavendish/virginia with a dash of latakia, it presents itself as such. The composition is very nice -- great moisture level on arrival, nice kake chunks that easily break up into small flakes for easy loading and smoking, but not powder as is often the case with kakes. Lights well, volumes of smoke, VERY mellow on the mouth but rich and round in taste. An absolute winner, and a great bulk buy when available as it has kept its integrity in a full 24 ounce mason-type container for a year or so now. I'd have to stretch and lie to find anything meaningfully negative about this tobacco.

Ok folks,, forget Penzance, Plum Pudding is everything that Penzance is (or was) and so much better. In My opinion, the several types of tobacco in this blend are not meant to be "detected" individually, they marry together to create an incense-like sum greater than the parts. If you wish to search for individual notes of oriental, VA, Perique, latakia etc. please do so but I think that misses the point. The unique way these components work together and compliment each other creates a pipe tobacco that becomes like it's own new variety of taste and aroma.

Simply put, this will go down as one of the greatest English blends of ALL TIME, It is instant Zen without the years of soul-searching 🙂

Also, I must add that in reference to Penzance, G. F. Germain/Esoterica Tobaccos has demoted itself to irrelevance and insignificance by keeping a stranglehold on the the market for its products and not keeping production level with demand.

Essentially, Esoterica blends are a fiction, they don't exist anymore, no one has any for sale and I suggest they remove them from their websites - they all say the same thing,,, "Out of Stock"..... 🙁

Customers (like me) feel gouged and abused for our loyal fandom. Thus I suggest all you lovers of Penzance, never buy it again. Buy Plum Pudding instead and send the message you are tired of being gouged and abused by Esoterica's lack of concern for its customers.

Thank you to the folks at Seattle Pipe Club, you care about your customers and have created a modern classic masterpiece that will be hailed and praised and enjoyed for years to come...

Cheers All,,,,,, Glorfindel