G. L. Pease Union Square

I'm a big Virginia fan. I have smoke a few 8oz. tins of this offering and I must say: Union Square is one of the best Virginias I've smoked, probably THE best to this date. When opening the tin one is welcome by sweet VA richness with fresh hay and citrus undertones. A nice broken flake indeed. Packs and lights easily. In the 1/3 of the bowl it's a bit tangy and citrusy with the VA sweetness and hay in the background. In the 2/3 of the bowl the citrusy notes are much in the background with a mouthful of rich VA sweetness. This blend continues to evolve in the last third to become even more delightfully sweet with more earthy richness. Like all VA's, one must sip it slowly to taste all the goodness of that masterfully blended Virginia. This is my go to smoke any time of day, I can't be without Union Square. Thank you G.L. Pease! I give it 4 stars.

One of my all-time favorite light straight VAs. 2oz tins didn't last very long so I graduated to 8oz tins. Yep, it's pricier than a lot of other VAs out there but I think it's worth it. Don't compare this to SG's FVF or McC's Blackwoods, or any Danish flake. It's a totally different animal. Broken flake of light and red VAs with apparently no(?)topping/casing (I believe it). A great light tin note of hay, buttered pancakes, a little malt and a bit of citrus. Basically. makes you want to eat it out of the can. Needs a little air and dry time 'cause it's deceptively rather dry-appearing upon opening. Not conducive to fold and stuff. Flakes are packed on their their side and I have yet to retrieve a foldable flake out of a tin. So I rub it out. Initial smoke is very citrusy but then it builds to an earthy sweetness that is incredible to me. And every now and then a bitter-sweet note of citrus rind in the background. Absolutely the closest I've had a tobacco smoke in comparison to its tin note ! Perhaps not the most complex tobacco on the planet, but then not a whole lot of ingredients in here either. Just some really nicely treated straight Virginia tobacco. No perique, no burley, no nothing. I'm not foresaking any of of my other VA favorites. I have several. Just another addition to a nice variety! If you think you like virginias, or think you might like 'em, give it a spin.

I've been wanting to try this for a long while now and started off with a 2 oz tin. The tin aroma had a very pleasant sweetness to it - no discernible top note, just a pleasant Virginia sweetness. The tobacco was in flake form and neatly stacked about in the small tin.

My sample was just the right moisture level for packing and smoking. It took to the match readily and required one or two relights along the way (more due to the fact that I had to put it down from time to time as I was doing some work at home). The overall Virginia character, for me, was reminiscent of Mac Baren's Virginia No. 1 which I enjoy very much. This offering, however, did not smoke hot like Mac's at all, nor was there even a tingling to the tongue. It was one of the most pleasant tasting Virginia smokes I have ever had. So much so that I won't be as concerned at the moment over the lack of availability of FVF or BBF from Samuel Gawith as it blows those two out of the water. Union Square has a nice nicotine presence for those who are interested in such things, and not over the top. I rated the flavoring as mild. There may not have been anything added as such, but this Virginia was pleasantly sweet and not bland by any means. There was some moisture present even after sufficient drying. The room note was exquisite, subtly sweet and not in any way cigarette-like or ashy. Returning to the room for DGT can be addicting! Smoked like a charm in a Weber sandblast (looks and smokes like a Dunhill) medium poker.

If you favor straight Virginias, this is, in my opinion, much more enjoyable than FVF or BBF, different than Dunhill Flake, but good in its own way.

UPDATE 1-17-12: As tasty as it was originally, the flavor and sweetness really comes to the fore after several months aging. There was some minimal harshness when smoked fresh, but now greatly subdued. Not a 4 star yet for me nor a regular in rotation, but when the muse strikes, it makes for a good smoke.

UPDATE 2-28-13: Going on 2yrs 1mo of aging what's left of my 8oz tin - about 3 ounces - this is the ticket for pure VA flavor and enjoyment. Simply stellar and up to the vaulted realm of 4 stars!

This is a three star, not a four star for me right now, but my tin is young, I love the idea of an almost purely natural Virginia, and I can tell that with age it will earn that fourth star. The elements are all there: Virginia sweetness that is understated at first yet grows as the bowl progresses, balance, purity; perhaps too much purity at this age, but I'm sure a few years will corrupt it nicely. There really are no overtones or adjuncts to the young Virginia flavor at this point. Even so, it is a fine smoke. I will return to this review when it has sat in the jar for a while. I think this is a great one to cellar, so as regards the review below mine, anyone wishing to chuck their can, contact me first!

4-6-11 A year along in the jar. I seem to detect an improvement. Nice, natural Virginia smoke.

This is a wonderful tobacco. Perhaps the everyday smoke that I have been searching for since I deemed Briar fox to be a bit too much for me on a daily basis. First reactions upon opening the tin were very thin flakes, light and almost "tissuey". Lovely pure tobacco scent. Two flakes stuffed into my Castello bulldog and off to the races I went. A dry wheat taste to begin with that lingered well into the bowl. I concur with the "toastiness" expressed by other reviewers. Never became harsh as FVF can. I don't have the tongue for the subtleties but when you can smoke a Virginia tobacco and not get bit, you know that Pease outdid himself.

This concoction doesn't have the bass of Cornell & Diehl-Opening Night, but mind you guys, don't let the lightness of its body fool you, the nicotine gets into your bloodstream before you know it, and after a bowl I waddled out of the room, good stuff!

The tin note backs up the claim about Union Square being a blend of unadulterated virginias. In the tin, it offers a very pure, understated, fermented hay, grass and honeysuckle aroma. The sweetness is embedded deep into the smell. First light and the first 1/4 of the bowl tells an entirely different story, though, as it is pretty flavorful from the get-go. Probably the most surprising element of the flavor profile is the oh-so-welcome virginia sweet spice. It's a taste that I am absolutely in love with, and one that I regularly look for in every bowl of virginia flake, from any blender, I smoke. In Union Square, it maybe the only constant that accompanies tens of other variable nuances that come in and fade out during the smoke. And the best part is, it stays with you throughout the entire bowl. My Savinelli Tundra 673 Smooth loves almost all virginia flakes (it is the very pipe I first fell in love with the Dunhill Flake) but that pipe + this blend is almost guaranteed virginia nirvana! Another surprising aspect of the experience is the coolness of the smoke. My 673 Tundra is a smooth finish, and smooth finish pipes usually get hotter than rusticated ones, regardless of your technique. Not with this blend. It never gets any hotter than that pleasant warmness that is a part of pipe smoking enjoyment. Tongue bite is so absent that you might even forget being bit in the past! Preparing this tobacco is also very straightforward. It comes pretty moist, mind you, but I've found out that drying it out is completely unnecessary, as is rubbing it out; simply take 3-4 stripes of flakes (this is a broken flake, so the strips are pretty thin and crumbly) and fold and stuff, snug but not tight. Even despite the moisture level that might intimidate even the experienced virginia flake smoker, it lights up and stays lit very very easily. Cadence is not critical but retrohaling is: the more you retrohale, the more flavorful Union Square becomes, and it starts rewarding you with mild but obvious flavors of vanilla-iy chewing gums of the past (not the sugar-free, overly sweet stuff we have nowadays.) It burns very slowly, and even in a pipe as small-bowled as the Savinelli 673, it takes about 1.5 hours to turn into pure ash. The finish does not get bitter as it usually does with even the best virginia flakes. My tin was pretty fresh, and I can't imagine what some aging can do for this stuff (although I am seriously intending to hoard some and find out!) No, it is not for the newbies, and nor it is a way to ease into virginias for the smokers of aromatic cavendish blends; but it is pure virginia nirvana for the experienced smoker.

Comes in broken flakes of fairly bright colour. Tin note is intense and quite familiar from other tobaccos (C&D’s Opening Night for example). I find it very citrucy, it reminds me of the bitterness of blood oranges with notes of hay and a little honey. Quite sweet. I guess some kind of topping is applied which however is very congruent with the natural tobacco smell. I could be mistaken though and this could possibly be the natural fermented tobacco taste.

Moisture is perfect. With just a few minutes of drying the tobacco is ready for use. From the first draw it’s obvious this is a top Virginia. Cannot be very complex nor full on taste, yet this is the real thing. Actually, this is for me one of the best bright/red Virginias on the market. The taste is natural, with the sweetness and hay-like aromas of Virginia. Moreover, it’s not bitey, at least for me, and does not get hot. This is a tobacco I would always like to have available. Room note is of natural tobacco, not pleasing to non-smokers but heavenly for smokers. The tin note is the same though more intense than C&D’s Opening Night. Otherwise these two tobaccos if not exactly the same are for me interchangeable.

This review is from a first edition 2009 tin that has been aging for the last 10 years. The tin was swollen up like a balloon. At this point, this is probably the best straight up Virginia flake I’ve ever smoked. The tin note is very sweet and tangy with raisin bready overtone and with slightly earthy and musty undertone.

Even after 10 years I needed to dry out for about 30 minutes. I packed up my Peterson 69 and lit her up…..Yummmmy. From the charring light to the bottom of the of the bowl, pure smooth and consistent sweet Virginia flavor with no one component taking the center stage. A true work of art. A very well blended blend with all the flavors coming together one truly harmonious and delicious smoke. No bite to be found no matter how hard you try. Pleasant room note and after taste too. A WINNER!!!!!