Seattle Pipe Club Seattle Evening

“sunset casts long shadows over the ferry boats of Puget Sound. A cup of good coffee and a fine pipe make this unhurried scene a memory”

The above description must be about a different Seattle Pipe Club Blend because that’s not where it transports me. Sitting outside on a late afternoon in May, I light a bowl of Seattle Evening and it takes me back to winter evenings in a semi-desolate area of Washington State coastline. There were several small resort type bars in Moclips and Pacific Beach, Wa. where back in 1974 one could sit was a cup of coffee, shot of Drambuie and a pipe and prop your feet up before the fire. Or, if the weather wasn’t too wet, windy and cold outside, then it would be a small fire on the beach with a group of friends and bottles of wine stuck in the sand. That is where Seattle Evening takes me when I smoke it.

I find the tin note to be rich with a sweet smokiness that hints at vanilla caramel and fruit. Or maybe, there is just a hint of well-worn leather and chocolate that comes from the tobacco in the tin. For some reason, I keep asking myself, “Where I have smelled this before?” It’s like a nagging half memory that won’t go away. It’s a pleasant memory though and I can imagine just sitting with an open tin and taking a deep inhale of the aroma time and time again and be satisfied without ever packing a bowl. But I pack a MM Shire Cobbit and set the match to it. It lights easy and only requires a second match to produce a cloud of sweet smoke with just a hint of grass and spice mixed with a good campfire.

The smokiness of the Latakia is what reminds me of the smokiness of those warm fires mixed with the salty tang of a Pacific breeze. The Virginias are there but I find the grassy notes to be well tamed by the Latakia and whatever Orientals are used. There are Orientals in there, but I couldn’t tell you what kind if I had to. This bowl lasted a little more than an hour which attests to how slow the tobacco burns and left nothing but ash. It was cool and smooth and I felt no trace of a bite but a little spiciness in the retro-hale or snork.

To me it has mild strength, mild to medium tasting and a tolerable room note. Was it a great English blend packed with flavor nuances and strength? Not on the first 5 bowls I smoked. But it was a good smoke in my opinion it could be smoked all day while hiking, camping, fishing or doing yard work.

Kudos to Seattle Pipe Club and to McLelland for the (hopefully infectious) spirit of sharing in evidence with this new line of tobacco.

Seattle Evening is the first of the batch I've dipped into and it's a thoroughly enjoyable example of a mild English which is lifted by the high quality of the sweet Virginias. It's a pretty subtle smoke and it probably won't win any immediate fans from those who need a WOW factor at first light. Like most Virginia-dominated blends, the pleasure grows as the ash thickens and the sweetness of the leaf develops. The blend has excellent balance, packs great and smokes cool.

Ultimately, however, I find that this has all the qualities of a good middle manager in an age of corporate belt-tightening--fine, nice to have on hand, unnecessary, deserving of a nice letter of reference.

First off i need to admit to liking sweet light english blends but this one misses on the sweet . More toasty from the Virginia. A decent blend . My tin was fairly moist but it still had dry taste to it which i assume is the latakia . I couldn’t detect the orientals much . On a side note this tin had the most stems i have ever seen in a 8oz tin of tobacco ! Not a biggie to pick them out though . I guess i will stick to the rattrays 7 reserve . Sorry Joe .

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>update 7/28/19.

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>I think the first couple of time I smoked it it was in the heat of the day down here in the south .It is really a early morning or evening smoke as the name is correct .It seems much better to smoke at night . Still a little heavy on latakia for my taste but good quality . Bumping it up to 3 stars . I should smoke a least 2 or 3 ounces of weed until I do a review in future .

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My first review of 2021. As I smoke my last bowl of Seattle Evening, I can close my eyes and almost see the mighty, looming mass of the Mountain in the distance as the red dot blinks in the twilight atop the Space Needle. I digress. My favorite blends have latakia and Seattle Evening is no exception. Puffing away, I am impressed with how smooth it is. This could be an all day smoke. Very nice subtle presence of latakia I rate this as a medium strength latakia blend. The latakia is present throughout but not overpowering. The Orientals definitely add a little spiciness to the flavor that is hard to pin down. And the virginas underneath provide the nice smooth straight tobacco flavor. An excellent blend that I could smoke anytime and will certainly buy again. I bought and started smoking this can of SE in April of 2020 during the pandemic so it was a fresh tin for sure. Smooth, smooth, smooth!!! Enjoy!!!

Seattle Pipe Club - Seattle Evening.

A coarse ribbon with quite an even amount of each leaf. The aroma implies a healthy proportion of Latakia, and the moisture makes it ready to smoke straight away.

The acetous, pungent, Latakia forms the leading flavour; smoky, and odiferous. Although a few rows behind, the Virginia and Orientals still offer enough flavour. The red Va gives an expected ripe fruitiness, and the Orientals lend a butyraceous, silky, creaminess; but, as a bowl burns the Orientals take on more of a floral character. The burn raises no issues: mid-speed, cool, and gives a bite free smoke. The aftertaste isn't always worth a mention, IMO, but I can't deny I noted the aftertaste from this: rank!

Nicotine: easily medium. Room-note: not nice.

Seattle Evening? Although I note a few 'low' points, it still deserves three stars:

Recommended.

A very light English with a firm va base. NOTHING over whelming just good tobacco. 2 1/2 stars. There is nutty flavor and plum flavor. Good crossover for Va/Per smokers

The sweet hay of the Virginias lead with support from the sour wood of the Orientals. At first, the smoky Lat brings up the rear, but becomes more influential as the bowl progresses. There is a touch of added vanilla flavor. It's nothing super special in this very crowded genre, but it is a solid and enjoyable smoke. 3 stars.

Mild to medium in body. Medium in taste. Flavoring is very mild. Burns very well.

I was fortunate enough to get a sample of this one from the fine folks representing SPC at this past year's Chicago Pipe Show and I enjoyed it. This is a pretty standard type of latakia blend with Virginia, Latakia and orientals and would probably fall under the label Balkan as, at least to my tastes, this is an oriental forward blend.

I found this to be among one of the better tasting blends of this type and that is likely due to the way the chosen orientals appeal to my tastes. I am not a fan of the super sour orientals or those that have an odd sweetness to me ala Yenidge. The oriental component in this one was a little sour and a little nutty.

I found the latakia to be light, but there enough to smooth it out some. It was just an easy to smoke lat blend and could probably be enjoyed all day.

My sample of this was not very big, maybe five bowls. I enjoyed them all, but wasn't really blown away. I am leaving this one at three stars and will likely revisit upon ordering more.

I guess I'll have to give this on a try after reading the reviews. 🙂