Esoterica Tobacciana Margate

Very similar to 965 as I remember. Stays lit, burns evenly and smokes dry, leaves a clean gray ash. The flavor gets richer at the 1/2 way point with a nice finish. Great tobacco! As I have said on other reviews this is aged between 7-8 yrs. My next tins will not have that issue now that I'm back to my pipes!:) :Update the bulk version is a little moist and needs some dry time. However that said, this is still a great tobacco that I know now ages well. A great smoke that everyone should try at some point.

First off I would like to say hello to my fellow puffers, for this is my first review on your wonderful forum. After spending six months or so lurking, and using these recommendations in my tobacco purchases, I have chosen to add my two cents into the mix. Thank you all for the words of wisdom.

I consider myself to be a novice pipe smoker whom has dabbled in the hobby for quite some time, but just in the last couple of years really took the time to learn about the different types of tobacco available to us. I began with the drug store tobaccos, and then moved into the boutique aromatics. I quickly grew tired of that avenue, and found myself asking my tobacconist for something a little more mature and grown up. Thus I have entered the world of English and VA/Per. I still have a place in my heart for a well crafted aromatic, but rarely does one find its way into my bowl.

With that said, when I first entered the wide world of English mixtures, I was greeted with a 2oz sample of Dunhill's 965. It was love at first puff. From there I found myself indulging in tin after tin of Early Morning Pipe. Now those are the two which I hold the standard of English tobaccos.

When I read the review a few months ago that this was a 965 replacement, I had to try it. For most of you know, EMP and 965 are all but extinct.

I bought an eight ounce bulk sample, and a few weeks later I was opening the vacuum sealed bag. The aroma was terrific. I could not detect any type of casing. I got a whole lot of latikia in the forefront with a subtle VA sweetness.

I loaded up a medium sized bowl Peterson system pipe, and set out to the front porch. Upon first light, I was greeted with a very pleasant earthy note. Not too much sweetness in the beginning of this bowl. As I progressed through this mixture, I was very surprised. For one thing, I had never received a bulk English that I ever enjoyed. Also anything in the past that had been compared to 965 was an utter let down.

I continued to smoke this, and as it progressed to he bottom of the bowl I noticed a little bit of an ashy flavour. This may have been purely the fault of smoking a bit too quickly.

I really enjoyed this blend, and I would classify it as a light to medium English. I could not really compare it to 965, nor should it be compared to any Dunhill blend in my opinion. Both are great tobaccos for their own reasons, but I feel they are completely different blends.

I am rating this as a well balanced English, and a pretty high quality mixture. This has found a place in my rotation usually on the weekends in the early evening.

Being a homebrewer and a beer judge, I often times pair tobacco with beer. This goes very well with a light IPA, or hoppy American Pale Ale.

Greg Pease for President. Greg Pease wins Nobel prize. Pease to release 37 new latakia blends, world waits with baited breath. Man sacrifices children to Greg Pease. Greg Pease elected Pope.

Now, certainly, GLP is one of the preeminent purveyors of English blends, and his status is well deserved. The hyperbole bandied about his blends is as legendary as the blends themselves, but he is by no means the only game in town.

Margate is a magnificent blend in its own right, and the equal of several of the GLPs. It is subtle and complex, not unlike Renaissance, and more interesting than either London Mixture or 965, which have been round forever. Versus the GLP offerings, it has a head start of several years, and an aged tin of Margate is charming. If nothing else, it's just the ticket to tide one over while the Samarra, Raven's Wing, Charing Cross, et al matures.

Awesome . I just love this stuff . heavy , rich , fragrant , full bodied , opulent . Latakia lovers will enjoy this one for sure .

Tin Aroma: dark and musky, obviously a goodly portion of Latakia in here. However, the Latakia is not overpowering. I enjoy the aroma of this blend quite a bit. It is a comforting smell, one I associate with good smokes and good friends, but Your Mileage May Vary, or course.
Physical Characteristics: Overall, this is a bit lighter in color than I usually expect an english type blend to be. A ribbon cut, with mostly light brown pieces, and the rest a dark brown. Clumps easily, and can be hard to 'trickle' into a pipe. Each tin of this that I get seems to have a higher percentage of 'shake' or 'dust' in the bottom than other blends, but that is merely an observation, not a complaint. A bit moist for my tastes right out of the tin, but a couple of days with the tin opened fixes it right up. Produces fluffy off-white ash.
First Light: Charring light is easy as pie, thought DGT doesn't really seem to add much to this blend. The initial puffs have a vaguely confectionary flavor to them that is very pleasant, and makes me wonder if anything is used as a top dressing in this blend. This flavor dissipates pretty quickly, and the real 'english' magic takes over. I have taken to using two charring lights with this blend, due to it's moisture content. I char the top, let it sit for a few minutes, then do another charring light, let it go out and then light it for real.
Notes: Morning smoking is best for me and this blend. I relish the Sundays when I get to take a tin of Margate, a couple of pipes, and a huge mug of steaming coffee out on the porch and watch the dew dry on the grass. Very heavy coffees will wash out some of the better notes of this blend, but something light, like a guatamalan is just about perfect here. This is one of the few blends that I do regularly smoke all day, and with the exception of a couple of pipes dedicated to Virgina blends, it has been through every pipe in my collection. Tall, straight bowls tend to work best with Margate, though I have no complaints about any bowl shape/size I have smoked it in. I can easily smoke 6-8 bowls of this in a day with only the faintest hint of tongue discomfort, and that only if I get distracted and puff too hard. The room note is fairly heavy, but this is the blend that has elicited the most 'my grandfather used to smoke a pipe' comments of anything I have smoked. I for one thouroughly enjoy the aroma of it, and have been known to smoke a bowl in the office with the door closes just so I can leave the room for a bit and come back to that wonderful aroma.

Margate is a wonderful full flavored English blend. The tin aroma is quite tempting, and the dark shades of leaf mottled with a reddish/brownish character look as luxurious as they taste. Upon first light the sweetness of the Virginias really stand out. Soon after the blend begins to meld together quite nicely but despite the heavy dose of Latakia, the Virginias never get overwhelmed as they often do in some English blends. This blend is very well balanced and is certainly among my favorites of it's type -it burns quite cool and dry down to a beautiful whitish/grey ash. It's sister blend, Pembroke (Margate w/cognac topping) is even more luxurious and I tend to reach for that prior to Margate. Both are top notch tobaccos and highly recommended.

Tin note is sweet and musky Latakia. I was fortunate to receive a aged sample from a friend. 11 years of age makes this quite smooth. A mild English with some sweetness. Burns very even. It has a sweet topping of some sort that has stayed in the tobacco flavor. Personally I find the room note pleasant. For a mild English its very complex . The Latakia is second to the Orientals the Orientals add some mild spice (not the cooking type) along with the Turkish . The Virginias gives it fullness. Outstanding blend if you can find it at a reasonable price.

This tin is 23 years old. I taste truffles and sweet balsamic vinegar. There is gentle smokiness here and an unusual incense. Very earthy in a delicate sense but persistently so. Somewhat buttery with a very light pinch of salt. The WOW factor is here!

Wow! Practically Perfect in every way (Just like Mary Poppins)

This is the baccy I've been searching for since I started smoking a pipe way back in the early 1970s when I lived on t'other side of T'Pond. I used to smoke TBSOSM when I lived in Abingdon, and TBSOSM along with their 759 mixture were my favourites! Margate was recommended this afternoon by a good friend, and my goodness was he right on the money, or what?