G. L. Pease Union Square

I bought this a couple of weeks ago and tried a bowl right away. It didn't knock me out, but I know how these things go, so I put it away for a bit. I used Pipestud blender technique and got a nice pack. This is an excellent VA smoke and a good change of pace from FVF if you are so inclined. The sweetness can be coaxed out with slow sipping and the burn should be fine if you dry it out a bit. You can also take nice full puffs for a good nic blast, though the subtleties will be somewhat compromised. There is no bite to speak of. Another great GLP offering and worthy of stashing.

Update: Just finishing my first tin of this stuff and have plenty more on order. Make no mistake, the nicotine hit from this tobacco is a wallop, but the flavor is bright and enticing. Excellent smoke, and a new favorite.

i fell in love with this blend after my first bowl, now just about finished with my first tin i can give this a fair review.

instant classic, thats what this blend is. this to me is one of the more complex pipe tobacco's i've ever tried, it starts out slightly earthy and citrusy. after about 10minutes it begins to taste more like toast with jam, very sweet at times, very creamy and spicy at others. there's so much going on it's hard to pin point every flavor. i didn't think it was possible for a plain ol VA to be so damn good.

Upon opening Union Square, I found a wonderful aroma of dark fruit and citrus compliment. The flakes are broken, and a tad moist so dry time was needed. First light brought the citrus, sweet hay note from the bright Virginias, and over time the darker fruit from red Virginia.

It can get a little hot if my puffing got away from me, and at times toward the end was a little harsh, but overall this is a fine union of different Virginias, and should cellar very well. Highly recommended.

I could not disagree more with our venerable top reviewers. U Sq is anything but a sweet Virginia. It IS a full tobacco tasting blend that is without nuance and taste. I have had many bowls and keep wanting to see why people like it — good number of reviews and very acceptable overall rating.

Sometimes people won’t say something unless they have something positive to say. Others want to be liked.

I prefer Virginia No 1 (MacBaren) or Royal Yacht (Peterson). These are delicious.

U Sq is not.

So I put this in my "Carbonara" category. Something simple yet sublime when done well and Mr Pease really has achieved that here. The smell out of the tin is excellent like cut grass left out for a couple of days. More of a broken flake it packs and lights easily with a perfect slightly oily moisture level. A solid mix of earthy, sweet, citrus and bready flavours keep the smoke interesting through out the experience with plenty to draw out. IMHO a superior blend to FVF due to its mechanics and flavour profile with non of the BITE. Similar to G&H Bright CR Flake in flavour profile and composition.

A great Virginia with the signature of GL Pease. The tobacco flake breaks easily and packs well, it burns slowly and pretty cool with zero chance of bite. Not sure if some folks prefer some drying time, I generally smoke it directly from the jar without letting it sit in the air as its moisture seems to be perfect for direct smoke. Some folks describe predominantly the woodiness and earthiness of the blend with notes of grassiness; I found the grassiness nevertheless to be relatively pronounced from opening the jar to the bottom of the smoked bowl. Mildly sweet and lightly fruity, Union Square represents a top-class straight relatively strong Virginia, one of the finest blends on earth.

I'm smoking Union Square in parallel with other straight Virginias: Samuel Gawith's Full Virginia Flake, Gawith's Bright CR flake, Peterson's Flake, Mac Baren's HH Pure Virginia, Dan Tobacco's Veermaster and Amphora Virginia. Union Square is a broken flake -more on the ready rubbed side, actually- light in color, apparently on the dry side, even though in my experience, some drying time improves the smoking experience a lot. The flavour is the one typical of blond virginias, with hay and aromatic herbs on the forefront, together with a mild acetic note. After rubbing and some drying time, the acetic note disappears and the natural blond Virginia flavour comes out, with its citrus, hay, figs and honey notes. In comparison to the other Virginias in my rotation, this one is similar to Peterson's Flake but more intense and aromatic; no dark, figgy, chocolatey notes here, nor any of the toasted, burnt notes of Amphora Virginia and HH Pure virginia. Very sweet and citrusy from the beginning to the end, this tobacco is smooth and absolutely gentle to the tongue, provided it's been well-dried: every time I tried to smoke it out of the tin with no drying time, I got a fastidious tongue bite and an overheated pipe. In addition, the flavour was toned down. On the contrary, when dried, it is very aromatic, burns relatively easily with very few or no relights and is gentle to the tongue.

Tin note of stewed Rasins, spice, and hay. Tobacco broken flakes are not too moist, no drying needed. The yellowish-brown flakes have a little dark brown and tan leaf. It rubs out fairly easy. Burns slow with a few extra relights. The strength is medium to strong and nic is medium. No flavoring detected. Taste is medium and consistent, with notes of strong spiced bread, wood, mild earth, mild sweet grass, mild floral, very mild tart lemon, very mild orange bitter and a mild peppery retro. Virginia is leading, supporting and providing backup. Room note is pleasant to tolerable, and aftertaste is good.

For a smoke that is pure VA, I am surprised by some of the reviews. It seems to get a bad rap for not having the sweetness or flavor of blends like Carolina red flake, but that’s what I enjoy about this smoke, it’s pure, smooth, slightly bitter, no BS, just a great everyday VA, this will definitely be a blend I will be coming back to often when I want that pure VA tobacco taste and smoke. It may not be a every tobacco enthusiasts dream but the blend brings to the table exactly what it promises and nothing more.