Tobaccos Esoterica Tobacciana - Pembroke

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3046)	2014-01-01		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

The cognac topping, along with very mild anise moderately sublimates the tobaccos as it cohesively melds with them. The Cyprian Latakia is smokey, earthy, musty, incense-like and woody sweet, and obvious in every puff, and is a leading component. The woody, earthy, lightly floral, herbal, dry buttery sweet and sour Orientals are just above the condiment level. The base of the blend is the grassy, lightly earthy and woody Virginias, which has a dulled citrus, dark fruit sweetness, chiefly due to the toppings. The strength and taste levels are medium. The nic-hit is just past the center of mild to medium. Won't bite or get harsh. It's a shag cut and needs to be sipped, even if it's moist. It'll also ghost a pipe rather quickly, so you might consider using a meer, or dedicating a briar to it. Burns cool and clean at a moderate pace unless dried a little; otherwise it's a slow experience. The flavor are consistently sweet and a little savory from top to bottom. Leaves a little moisture in the bowl, and requires a few relights. Has a pleasant, lightly lingering after taste and room note. More for an aromatic smoker wanting to branch out, but it's not a light weight smoke. Two and a half stars.

-JimInks

24 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	DrumsAndBeer (217)	2013-10-14		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Altogether I am not entirely convinced that this Esoterica offering is actually just Margate with a topping. Okay, the topping is there but it's strange to think that a mixture like Margate could be softened this much by a simple additive. I do often wonder if a bit more Virginia has been snuck in for added sweetness. Nonetheless, the shag cut commonality is there and as far as color goes, the two mixtures do look practically identical. Moreover, when smoked Pembroke does have Margate's unique alluring evergreen fragrance & incense-like quality.

In contrast, Margate is bolder tasting and speaks with more bravado, where Pembroke is sweeter, more delicate, and more soft- spoken throughout the bowl. Pembroke comes fairly moist yet still burns steady with minimal relights. It stays cool although it does get a bit warmer than Margate. With the addition of the topping, moisture problems do arise around the mid-bowl point but I typically only have to run a pipe cleaner down the stem one time per bowl and the problem is circumvented. Alternatively you could also choose to dry this tobacco a bit, but I prefer not to.

While smoother, sweeter and softer than Margate, Pembroke still has a delightful upfront spiciness, as well as the wonderful pungent aroma inherent to Germain's Latakia leaf. The cognac flavoring is palpable but mostly on exhale. It does add a round fruity sweetness that helps to create a smooth, silken pipe smoke. Nasal exhales are pure pleasure while smoky flavors pop and scintillate on the palate. Like Margate, Pembroke is a beautiful tobacco for pipers seeking a compound olfactory experience. And if you enjoy Orientals and Latakia but like a sweeter overall tone, this is one example of how good it can get.

24 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipestud (1829)	2002-04-21		Medium	Very Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant

This is supposed to be Margate with a fine French cognac added. Well, it does indeed! I immediately detected the subtle and unique Cognac addition, but still received the very full flavor of the Latakia/fine rich Virginias that I always get with Margate. If you've never had a French cognac before, after sampling Pembroke, you can bet your keester that you'll want to go hunt down a jug or two!

17 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	sjdugi (22)	2015-11-22		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

I was lucky enough to find some of this at my local tobacconist and knew I had to pick some up as soon as it caught my eye. The first thing I noticed is that this tobacco is very, very moist so you really need to take the time to dry this out properly. That being said, it is well worth the effort! The cut of this tobacco is perfection and makes packing a breeze. I was pleasantly surprised with how well the cognac topping of this blend works with the fine englishes. After first light, you are immediately greeted by the cognac and it stays strong and flavorful for quite some time. Then, it becomes a bit more subtle and you get to really appreciate the latakia and orientals in the blend. About halfway through the bowl, I was getting a lot of moisture from the blend (because I was too excited to fully dry out the tobacco) but after some minor fidgeting, I got the bowl to stay lit until the end. This is definitely one of the finest tobaccos I have smoked and I'm surely looking forward to trying more Esoterica blends in the future. I could imagine smoking this right by the fire after a long day, with my feet kicked up, with some smooth jazz playing in the background. Despite the moisture this blend left in my bowl, it is one of my favorites for sure and I can happily put up with the little extra work this tobacco requires considering how fantastic it is. Pembroke, like a glass of cognac, is quite a treat and I would not hesitate to buy some if you are fortunate enough to come across it!

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Jon's Pipe Shop

11 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gentleman Zombie (729)	2017-03-19		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

The cognac hides some of the nuances of the wonderful Virginias in Margate. It's those Virginias that made Margate a favorite of mine. If I force myself to forget about that and judge this by it's own merits though, I find this to be a very nice smoke. In fact, I'll forgive Pembroke for not being Margate and say that there's plenty of room in this world for both.

The very smooth smoky Lat leads with the buttery Orientals hot on their trail. The Virginias give a nice sweetness and a modest amount of fruit. The cognac adds a little more sweetness and a fruitiness of it's own. I can't recognize it as white grapes, but it is fruity and delicious. This is a very pleasant smoke.

Medium in body and taste. Flavoring is mild. Might be stronger if I didn't dry mine well before smoking. I'll have to try it straight from the jar some day. Burns very well.

Pipe Used: MM Little Devil Cutty, Little Devil Acorn, Marcus

Age When Smoked: 1 year

Purchased From: kingsmokingpipesandcigars.com

10 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Marc Ruby (3)	2015-11-28		Strong	Medium to Strong	Medium to Full	Unnoticeable

This tobacco has confused me no end. Thie first time I used an old meerschaum, packed lightly and found it, as most reviewers did, like Margate with a light lacing of brand. A little to mild for me, but nice nevertheless. I suspected the meer had stolen a bit of the flavor and my next try was with an old Dunhill #5 briar and boy was I surprised.

The brandy leaped into the foreground - overwhelmingly sweet, even a bit biting. I was well into the halfway of the pipe before I could even taste the latakias. And at the finish I was even slightly woozy.

It did burn smoothly to a fine ash, but a little hot. But I think it needs airing out before it goes into a flavor concentrating pipe like that Dunhill. For reference, it came out of a 2 year old bag so I have plenty to experiment with. I'll update this review when I get it tamed and a bit predictable.

Pipe Used: Dunhill billiard and a large meer

Age When Smoked: 2 years

Purchased From: Ebay

8 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2009-04-30		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

I usually don't like anything but tobacco in my tobacco. Pembroke is the only exception I make. The rich, sweet, fruity taste of the cognac somehow seems to belong with the other flavors. You can taste the cognac, but it doesn't overwhelm the latakia, orientals and virginias. It just adds one more layer of flavor to this well balanced English blend.

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JClark (26)	2002-09-13		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

When I purchased this blend I was a little reluctant to even try it. The idea of adding Cognac to an already fabulous english blend just didn't sit well with me. Nevertheless, after reading several wonderful reviews I decided to give it a go. The Cognac adds a subtle sweetness to the blend that at times I find pleasant, and at other times just plain gets in the way. I find myself using several pipe cleaners during the smoke due to the wet smoke that pembroke provides. It burns down to a light grey ash and leaves a slight presence in the pipe. I should have trusted my instincts on this one and just purchased Margate, which should have been left alone, it's a fabulous blend. I would however recommend this to an aromatic smoker who is trying to cross over into the english realm of tobaccos.

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	nkulk8r (90)	2019-02-04		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

I quite like this better than I do the Margate. It actually says in the notes that Pembroke is “A luxury English blend (Margate) is married with fine French cognac.” So, apparently -- according to the notes -- Pembroke actually IS Margate with the addition of “fine French cognac” (Hennessy? Courvoisier? They don’t say). But I – like Ehrling – prefer this much more than I do the Margate, as it is a lovelier version of the Margate with the additional flavoring. I also suspect that DrumsAndBeer is on to something when he queries whether Pembroke is “just Margate with a topping.” There is a certain je ne sais quoi to Pembroke that cannot be explained away by the topping alone. In reviewing Margate, I made the comment that "a wee more Virginia would have perhaps improved the overall experience" -- and I do indeed detect more of that Virginia sweet in the Pembroke than I do in Margate. More to the point, as I sit here eyeballing both the Margate and Pembroke through a jar, the Pembroke is decidedly more tan with black than the black with tan one sees in Margate. (Peculiar that McClelland's Frog Morton’s Cellar would be the only of the Frog line to be labelled an aromatic due to a whiskey topping that I could not/cannot detect, yet Pembroke is listed as an English blend, and not an aromatic, in spite of the cognac). No matter. Pembroke is a particularly distinctive offering from Germain’s Esoterica line – as luxuriously grand a blend as one would expect any fine cognac to be. 4-stars.

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Mission Pipe Shop, San Jose, CA

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	NobbyR (79)	2015-03-18		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Tolerable

This fine ribbon cut tobacco is what you get when you top Esoterica's dark Latakia-based Margate blend with French Cognac, which sort of makes it a crossover.

The tin note is deliciously sweet and peaty from the Virginias and Latakia with a flowery, alcoholic aroma from the Orientals and the Cognac flavoring. In a new tin or pouch the Pembroke tends to be on the moist side with the tobacco strands clinging together. Packing and smoking might be easier, once it has dried a little, but I find the taste superior when its fresh.

Upon lighting the taste comes pretty close to the tin aroma: a distinct sweetness that mixes perfectly with the tangy smokiness of the Latakia, the flowery Orientals and some almost dark chocolate-like flavor. This is a satisfying, full bodied smoke that is quite mild on your tongue. It burns evenly and slowly, but tends to require a re-light when the tobacco is still moist, leaving some greying ash.

The pronounced room note is rich and sweetish with hints of incense.

Pipe Used: Chientain's Balance

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: www.cupojoes.com

Similar Blends: Esoterica Margate.

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2003-08-25		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

I have tried many blend topped with various types of liquors...Rum, Whiskey, Bourbon, etc. To me they seemed like aromatic tobaccos using bar fodder rather than fruit smelling chemicals. But here I find quite a difference. Esoterica marries Margate ( a nicely complex english blend in its own right ) with French Cogniac. And while I only drink Cogniac on rare, special occasions ( and enjoy the effect of it as well as the aroma ) I don't particularly care for the taste. However, in this instance, the Cogniac appears to enhance the natural flavors of the Virginias and Latakia to the extent of turning a typical ( albeit tastey )English blend into a very refreshing smoke. While the liquor flavor is quite pronounced, it enhances rather than overwhelms the flavors of the components. And as the smoker tastes the Virginias and Latakia whafting in and out, so too does the taste of the liquor change, thus enhancing the complexity. My supply has been ageing for a bit over 5 years and I unfortunately don't know if the excellent flavor, the almost creamy feel of the smoke and the somewhat pleasing aroma of this blend can be attributed to the quality of the base tobaccos or the graceful ageing of the Cogniac. I can but partake of its pleasures and leave the conclusions to reviewers more knowledgeable than myself. A fair trade-off in my opinion!!!

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2001-04-09		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is, without a doubt, the best of the Esoterica tobaccos I have yet tried. While not as full and dark as some of my favorite English blends, this is still satisfying and smooth enough to be an all-day smoke; I actually prefer it to Margate, the uncased version. In the bag, the aroma is subtle, a bit sweet with a musty note; I can also smell Latakia. The tobacco is dark, with dark browns and black making up the majority of the blend, contrasted by a few lighter strands. The cut is medium to long, and it is on the dry side. It packs fairly well and lights easily, needing an average number of relights. In the first third, the main flavor I immediately taste is Latakia: a nice, rich, leathery taste. The other flavors are also making themselves known, primarily as a sweet, mellow note that softens the impact of the Latakia. I assume that this is the casing, though I couldn't tell you what it is specifically (Cognac). No one flavor is overwhelming, though Latakia is the most obvious at this point. In the second 1/3, the Latakia/English taste has merged with the sweetness of the casing. When in the mouth, the Latakia is dominant and supported by the casing; when blown out through the nose, the casing is strongest. A nice combination! The tobacco, apart from the casing, is very high quality and semi-complex, the overall sensation being that of a fairly rich, full smoke. There is thus far no moisture or tongue bite from this tobacco. In the final part of the bowl, the sweetness becomes more intense, varying in bursts of strength, at times almost reaching the level of the Latakia taste. The English flavor is still very obvious, however, and the casing (for me) doesn't detract from the excellent tobacco itself. It smokes clean, good, and moisture free right to the bottom; I was sorry to see the bowl end. Overall, this is one of the best English blends I've tried, even apart from the casing added. With the casing, there is a skillful merger of flavors and balance that makes this a pleasure to smoke. While not as full and dark as some English blends, this is nevertheless a very satisfying smoke for any time of day. This has moved into one of the top five or six blends for me, and I will most certainly be buying one or more tins of this in the near future.

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Benjamin Meyer (25)	2021-01-14		Medium	Medium	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

This review is based on a generous sample given by one of my beloved internet friends. It’s unclear how old the tobacco is, but I know it’s at least 2 years old.

This came out of the mylar as a shag cut of medium length. The color is just a little contrasted, but really not that much, all spanning in the medium range, with some clearly black pieces standing out. The smell is firmly that of a Latakia laden English mixture: the classic triad of Virginias, Orientals, and Latakia. It doesn’t take much looking to find there is something extra, something sweet and fruity, maybe boozy. If I hadn’t read online that this had Cognac added as a topping, I’m not sure I would have guessed it. While I cannot speak for the moisture content out of a tin or bag, my sample was quite dry and absolutely ready to smoke.

Packing is easy as can be and the lighting almost does itself. Straight off, I’m charmed by the exceptional mechanics of the blend. No headaches, just an easily accessible pleasure.

The first sips give me a rich Latakia blend. A mouthfeel of deep and dark velvet. Plenty of clouds of white smoke could make one too enthusiastic but it is in the slow sips, as always, that this blend really starts to shine.

Quickly, the topping appears, quite subtle, but noticeable with little permittable doubt. There is much debate online as to the pertinence of it. Personally, I find it very pleasing. Although I am not a true aromatic smoker, I don’t mind those aromatically enhanced blends at all. To me, this is exactly that. The topping, while present, never takes a leading role and never hides the richness of the other components. It adds a layer of complexity, not really as a top note but rather nicely intertwined with its host tobaccos.

As I move deeper in the bowl, while still present, the Cognac and Latakia take a step back. There is a sweetness and sourness that become more apparent. I attribute these caracters to the matured Virginias and exotic Orientals, and this duo takes me to a place most pleasing. The Latakia is still there in the background, so obvious I don’t even pay attention to it anymore. The topping is there but leaves more room for the others. And in that harmony, my mind goes in The Zone and I have trouble concentrating.

This blend is like a key to The Zone. Like the brother and sister in Cocteau’s “Les enfants terribles”, I find solace in an apparent empty stare that internally takes me to a place of weightlessness. Isn’t this what we seek when smoking a pipe? An hour extracted from the turmoil of life? This is one of my keys.

There have been days I have had multiple bowls of this. I have never experienced any tongue fatigue or bite. The mechanics really are a treat to the lazy smoker.

The quality of the blend makes me wonder what it would be like having a pile of this in the cellar. Firstly, this is nearly impossible because of its limited availability, even more so for a French man. Secondly, I am not sure how the precious topping would hold up in time. After about two years and some airing out, I can confidently say it is grand. What about in ten years? I’m not so sure. Lastly, the sought-after aging and melding of the component tobaccos, I suspect, might not give so good results. Indeed, everything here has already been left alone for long enough to get the desired must and sweetness. After some point, aging has diminishing returns. This blend might be at its peak right now, and I love it as it is.

Pipe Used: Mainly a meerschaum billiard spigot, 9mm filter

Age When Smoked: 2 year sample

Purchased From: Sample from a friend

Similar Blends: Smokers' Haven - Cognac Mixture.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	HabaneroHardy (401)	2019-08-03		Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Esoterica tobacco always seems out of stock and for the most part I do not even look for it but the other Sunday, my local tobacconist had some of Pembroke for sale so I bought a tin. I have had Margate many years ago and recall it being very good. This is Margate with Cognac. I opened my 2 oz tin and was welcomed with a rich, deep, sweet almost liquor smell. This has a nice shag cut which I like and I commenced to load my bowl. This is also pretty moist out of the tin. For what ever reason I do not dry out my tobacco, probably because I do not think it makes that much difference. It probably does but that is just how I roll. This is a top-grade smoke with quite a varied flavorful profile with the liquor topping being faint in the background which I consider a plus. I find it interesting that this is labeled an English with the liquor but I guess with all of the other ingredients the label ‘English’ foots the bill. If you can find some at a reasonable price, I would buy it.

Pipe Used: Briar

Age When Smoked: New

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SteelCowboy (685)	2011-05-20		Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Pembroke, the little brother of Smoker's Haven Cognac Mixture, is a solid choice for those that like some spirits added to their tobacco. There seems to be less cognac in Pembroke than Smoker's Haven's Cognac Mixture, but lovers of that blend (also made by Germain) will find enjoyment with Pembroke. The thin ribbon cut has somewhat of a stranger tin aroma to Cognac, and the tobacco isn't as dominated by the spirits as it is with its big brother blend. Pembroke arrives too moist to smoke so some dry time is needed. The high quality Virginia's should really add to the sweetness of this blend over time. If you enjoy a solid English blend with some added spirits, then Pembroke is a good choice. Recommended.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tomcat (221)	2021-11-09		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

Esoterica Pembroke- i seem to be coming around to English aromatic blends lately so i popped another one . It says Margate w/ fine French Congac . I noticed when i opened it it wasn’t as black as Margate . I think this has more Virginias as it is much sweeter . I know it has the topping but still . No complaints though . It tastes very much like Margate but the Incense room note is a little muted . The Orientals are savory , slightly sour and buttery . My tin is 3 yrs old and the topping is still tasty and sweet but doesn’t seem boozy at all Very enjoyable late night smoke for me . It is smooth as silk really . Soft and creamy . Well done blend , I like the congac much more than the ASTB fruity top note . It still has the backbone of a med- full English blend . 4

Age When Smoked: 3 yrs tin

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	natibo (169)	2014-09-23		Mild	Medium to Strong	Mild	Tolerable

I really wanted to like this tobacco. First of all, it has one of the best tin aromas. Second, I love cross-overs. I often blend strong burley tobacco into aromatics and make my own cross-overs.

This tobacco just had a awful taste. On top of that, it burned hot and did not pack well. It's probably that cognac just does not make a good addition to tobacco.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SeoulSister (37)	2014-04-08		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

My first thought of Pembroke was that the strong tin scent of Cognac was more than I expected. Once lit, the flavor of the Cognac was there, but not overwhelming compared to the way it smelled. It married nicely with the smokiness of the Latakia. There is a sweetness from the Cognac and the Virginias that was very nice. There is also a slight sourness that I think comes from the Orientals. For me, the Latakia is the most dominate flavor. There is somewhat of a harshness toward the end of each bowl that I don’t care for. I think that there are lots of pipe smokers that could like this blend, but for me, it isn’t a blend for my rotation.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2010-02-22		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Man oh man. I love cognac, I love english tobacco, I love Pembroke.

Smelling like it does right out of the tin, I personally was reminded of a strong cheese or alcohol. I personally lean towards bleu cheese when talking about this blend, as that is the kind of decadence that I'm trying alluding to.

Right out of the tin, it comes a bit wet. Whether you dry it or not doesn't really matter, it is a fantastic smoke either way. If you leave it wet, it tends to be a bit hard to light, but once lit it effortlessly stays lit. If you choose to dry it out, you will be rewarded with a very pleasant smoke as well. Either way, it is a tasty dry smoke. I prefer it a bit moist, as the flavor really shines through.

Although the description classifies this one as a broken flake, it really is a fine ribbon. Despite this, it burns slowly and evenly.

The cognac casing isn't overpowering at all, but rather accents the latakia and virginia, which in turn complement each other well. At the beginning, the cognac is right at the forefront, then takes the backseat to the tobacco. If smoked in a large-bowl pipe, the lucky smoker may have the cognac come back to greet him towards the end of his bowl. Needless to say, there is a lot of flavor development going on here.

I never had to relight this one because it went out, I only re-lit once for some thicker smoke, but that really wasn't necessary. I smoked this blend first in my big calabash, but I'm slowly sampling it in other pipes. If you really want to treat yourself, try this one in a large-bowl pipe.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2005-01-17		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

I have both a new tin and a 5 year old tin and I've found agin it changes it though not for the better or worse, just different. Aging mellows out the blend a bit but I enjoy the new batch version just as much as I enjoy the aged version.

Tin Opening - Opening the tin reveals a mottled string cut blend, that over time has merged the colors slightly. With the 5 year old tin, the familiar Pembroke aroma is still there though mellowed.

Packing - Packs well in all pipes I?ve tried it in.

Lighting - Two matches and a tamp.

First Impression - The first few puffs release a pleasing English/cognac aroma and the taste is complex without being confusing. It?s rich without being heavy and full without being overwhelming.

Mid Bowl - Down through the bowl, the flavor remains and though its complexity fades, for me into something comfortable. Each puff makes me want the next for the simple pleasure of this blend. I find no tendency to smoke wet or hot. At five years, it?s mellower then a new batch. It is neither better nor worse, just different.

Finish-Finishes stronger with the cognac having been burned away though the quality of the blend shows through, keeping you going for the pure tobacco taste of the blend. It smokes very cleanly with a grey ash.

Over all-My favorite English blend. It is Margate plus and unlike most blends with a topping, this topping actually enhances and improves the blend rather then masking it or detracting from it. I don't know what Cognac they use to top it but I wouldn't be surprized if it was specifically developed for this blend rather than for drinking. I am normally not a fan of liquor top tobacco but this one hits the mark better then anything else I've ever tried. A true pleasure!

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Beer (345)	2004-10-19		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

Evidently my tin was aged, as the tobacco had several sugar crystals and the paper was stained brown: good!

The cognac casing can be felt, but it is not intrusive: its presence simply adds a "darker" and sweeter tone, both to the tin aroma and the taste. Actually, the empty bowl after smoking this has a faint alcoholic smell...

The taste is dark, deep, musty: similar to Margate, of course, but darkly sweet and richer. The overall effect is a bit cloying in its dark sweetness, although it is not a very full tobacco.

As usual with this brand the moisture level is excessive, resulting in a wet and difficult smoke and in the formation of rust inside the tin after a few days you open it. Bad!

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	tslots (8)	2004-05-15		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Some shy away from blends topped with spirits, but I find it makes a wonderful combination in many cases ... and this is one of my favorites. This blend really shines when allowed to age for a couple of years. The Cognac just seems to marry all the different tobaccos together, the result being something much better than the sum of the parts.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JoeySpinz (3)	2021-06-21		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

The Cognac/Brandy topping is obvious and present in the tin note and during the smoke. However, the topping is not overpowering and you can still taste the rich and flavorful tobacco that is consistant in the Esoterica blends. I would consider the flavor profile somewhere between english and english aromatic. Right in the middle. The reason I say that is because I really enjoy the room note and aroma after the smoke more than other english or balkan blends.

Its a stringy shag cut. I prefer shag cut and fine ribbon in my english blends. I like the way it packs in the bowl and makes for a nice even draw. I always allow a little extra dry time for all the esoterica blends. I tend to like my english blends on the drier side. I believe to achieve the full flavor of the blend, it must burn to a light grey ash top to bottom. With Pembroke(Same goes for Margate), if its too moist... it will become re-light city as you get down to the bottom and it makes for an unpleasant smoke and experience.

As you start to smoke you will notice the latakia right off the bat. Its there but its not overpowering and the Cognac topping goes along with it hand in hand and sweetens the latakia flavor throughout the bowl. I wouldnt necessarily say it is just a cognac topping. It seems like it's cognac mixed with fruit or licorice. If there is anise, it is very little. You deffinetly taste the alcohol and fruit. Almost like a flavored brandy more than just cognac. The virginias and sweet, flavorfull, and are of high quality with no rough edges. The orientals are sweet,tangy and adds alot of character to the blend in a supporting role. It has that classic english taste yet sweetened perfectly by the topping and very smooth. I would say the nic-hit is about medium. My pallete is not the most sophisticated but this blend tastes damn good! This tobbaco really shines on the bottom half of the bowl and the flavor really starts to mend together well and really makes for an enjoyable smoke.

Another thing i like about this blend is that you don't get that campfire aftertaste as bad as you do with other latakia blends. Its more of a floral, fruity, light smokey aftertaste. I really believe that guys that don't enjoy latakia blends would probably like this if they tried it. It is way more than just Margate topped with cognac, this is very well thought out blend by Germain. I can smoke this blend anytime of day. I like smoking this in the car on my way upstate for fishing , and I love the aroma it leaves in the car when i get back in after a long day on the water.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Joshu88 (3)	2019-06-14		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Just opened an 8 ounce golden pouch of this stuff. Margate with cognac? I am not so convinced. The tin note has familiarities closer to And So To Bed if you ask me. The anise/clove type topping I get on ASTB is very much present in this blend. Margate boats a little more smokey, leathery latakia nose than Pembroke does. This is sweet, mildly smokey, and very liquorish with the cognac. Tobacco arrived moister than an oyster. Intoxicatingly boozy, the first bowl smoked slow, and I got a little excited and started puffin away and she bit me a little. However I don’t blame the tobacco, it was clearly user error.

I set the cob down and came back 20 minutes later and sparked back up...BOOM!!! Pembroke took off! Smoke, leather, anise, clove, incense, spice, cinnamon, even an almond extract type caramel flavor started partying on my pallet. Second bowl was in a bings fav. I let it aerate for 12 minutes and then packed up. Expecting to take my time, I sat under a big leaf maple tree and launched the smoke. Truly delicious, so many flavors without being convoluted. Each one dancing in concert with the other. Bowl smoked down to a fine grey ash and easily tapped out of my pipe. A great great smoke.

Pembroke will be a special treat tobacco for me. I was lucky to get a half pound, and I am hoping to enjoy it on occasion over the next few clicks. It is in the vein of Frog Morton’s Cellar as in a superb English with unique delicious toppings. However it is most definitely different than FMC. A crossover English/aromatic for sure. I could smoke this all day, but I my waters would run dry far too quickly before the next drop.

Pipe Used: Boswell freehand, cob, Bing’s Favorite

Age When Smoked: Me? 37, tobacco? maybe a year?

Purchased From: Tobaccopipes.com

Similar Blends: And So To Bed, Margate, field & stream.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	toddsmith7378 (41)	2018-12-10		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

Yes, I can taste Margate in here, but here's what is different and why you might choose one or the other.

My previous review of Margate described what I liked so much about that mixture. I could taste all the constituent tobaccos melded perfectly. Since I tend to favor more turkish forward or "Balkan" type English blends, I was surprised to find that if all English's were as perfectly mixed as Margate, I might think differently. In other words I could definitely taste the Turkish as part of that flavor, even though it didn't dominate it. It played beautifully as a part of the flavor, but isn't what is tasted predominantly.

Now, Pembroke. I can't taste any nuance here. All of that is muted down. This tastes a bit subdued.....muted. So, it's softer and without nuance. I can't really taste any turkish hints, or spiciness, that's all gone. That perfect flavor where I can hear all the notes is like someone put a filter or something on it.

It's not bad, but tastes more like what I'd expect from an English, but it's all muted. There's an even greater degree of smoothness here as a result. I really think the smell of the tobacco in the tin is enhanced by the cognac, but what that flavor actually does to the smoking of the tobacco besides mute the tobacco, I can't really sense.

I've blended some mixture's myself and doused them in whiskey's or rum's and had this effect happen as well. It can speed up the tobacco's melding together, but it does kind of cause a muting of the individual tastes. I think it does make the tobacco smell better in the tin, and that's about all I get.

If you want to be cool and tell people you are smoking a cognac soaked blend or something, I can definitely see that as being the pomp of appeal, but I think it actually takes more away from the flavor of Margate, than it adds anything favorable to it.

Age When Smoked: New

Similar Blends: Margate.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Rustedrailsmokes (293)	2018-08-12		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

2021-06-18 (Update)

Pembroke was my first review on Smoking Pipes. When I got my first bag in 2018, I jarred some up and managed to forget about it in the bottom of the jar cellar tote. I was reorganizing recently and pulled it out, now with 3 years of age on it.

The topping is still very noticeable in the jar and in the smoke. It adds a really nice sweetness on top of the smokiness of the tobaccos under it. The shag cut burns well in my Radiators with their tall bowls and also in my Canadians It's easy to pack and once going smolders really nicely without any bite.

In the 2021 world of pipe tobaccos.. Pembroke is one of the few Esoterica blends which tends to be at least semi-available during drops. I recommend that you try a tin if you get a chance.

------ Original 2018 review ----

Pembroke was my entry into the mysterious world of Esoterica. When i got back into pipe smoking, found all the pipe smokers on Instagram and Facebook everyone was talking about Esoterica. I was surprised when I visited my local B&M and they actually had a few tins on the shelf. I picked up a tin of Margate and also Pembroke.

I discovered English tobaccos through a great if heavy latakia based house blend. When I tried my first bowl of Pembroke I really enjoyed it.

The cognac finish gives the blend a wonderful compliment to the smokiness of the typical English. This has become a favorite in my rotation and I've stocked up on it whenever I get a chance to find a bag.

The shag cut packs really easily and burns very well in a variety of pipes. It always burns well and leaves just a grey ash in the end of the bowl.

Pipe Used: Radiator Pipes, Canadians

Age When Smoked: 3 years

Purchased From: Smitty's Cigar & Tobacco

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Dr.James (39)	2018-04-12		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant

Although the base is said to be Margate, even if so, the choice cogńac addition is enough to elevate Pembroke to its own class. The base of earthy Virginias are reminiscent of dried hay with a slight citrus background, smokey Cyprian Latikia is woodsy with a peat note, the Orientals are resinous and oily carrying a spicy cedar-like fragrance. The cogńac topping enhances certain aspects of the tobaccos although it does sublimate them to a degree adding a nutty sweet fragrance. Mild in nicotine, burns to an off white ash rarely needing relight. Slighty aromatic, Pembroke leaves a pleasantly lingering finish.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ELROD (6)	2016-10-02		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

I agree with "tslots" in pointing out that this blend really shines when allowed to age for a couple of years. I tried it right after buying an 8 oz. bag and was not impressed. My reaction was, where is the beef? But, as many reviewers have remarked, pipe tobacco is a chameleon and tends to get better with age. I resealed the bag with staples and put it away for 3 years. Today I reopened it and what a difference! I smoked two ample and delightful bowls. The tobacco was quite dry and burned great. It did remind me of Margate, maybe a little softer and more delicate but very similar. This time I only resealed the bag with a paper clip as I will no doubt return to it soon. This type of blend is right in my comfort zone. I like the shaggy cut, the exotic oriental character without too much latakia, and the low nicotine content.

Pipe Used: DEKO bent sitter

Age When Smoked: About two years

Purchased From: Cupojoes

Similar Blends: Margate.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Ian K (30)	2016-05-29		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

Wonderful straight out of the bag, smooth, tasty smoke that keeps lit perfectly, easy to pack shag cut, no bite or bitterness, pleasant room note and great retro hale. No real dominatnts on the whole, a real all day smoke. The topping coming through as a perfect partner. My first esoterica tobacco...now a waiting game to see when their other blends come into stock. Definately a buy again

Having sat in the jar now for a couple of years age has not been kind to this blend, the flavour now comes across as being rather bitter cavendish, further advice is to smoke it fresh before the casing flashes off and due to that reason I’ve had to downgrade my rating.

Pipe Used: Royal Danske Apple

Age When Smoked: Fresh / 2 years jarred

Purchased From: Smoking pipes

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SiChange (45)	2015-09-19		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

A remarkably smooth and creamy smoke. All tobaccos perfectly married. Pembroke is unlike any American or Danish crossover that I have tried in taste and mouth feel. Unlike a few reviewers I could not make it bite despite the shag cut. Agree with observations of review of DrumsAndBeer. I keep it as a delightful change of pace.

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: Lil Brown

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Adrian B. (29)	2015-04-27		Mild to Medium	Medium to Strong	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

People tend to rave about Esoterica blends, but they often are hard to come by. I found a tin of Pembroke at a local B&M and grabbed it up.

Apparently this is Esoterica's Margate blend, only with a Cognac topping. I do like tobacco with a touch of booze on it, be it rum, whiskey, whatever. But with this blend I think the topping is too much for my taste. The latakia comes through when smoking easily, but the topping overpowers anything else. Because of that I'd move this blend out of the "English" category and firmly into the "Aromatic" column.

It's not bad stuff really; the tobacco is high quality and it packs easily and burns well. If you enjoy aromatics you'd probably like this. If you're looking for a different kind of English, this might be worth trying too. I liked it okay and put it on my "might try again" list. 2.0 stars.

Pipe Used: Cobs mostly

Age When Smoked: Tin fresh

Purchased From: Watch City Cigar Co.

Similar Blends: A snifter of Courvoisier.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	CTS (138)	2014-01-02		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Light yet complex overall flavor profile. Light to medium in strength and taste. Cognac flavor complements the base tobaccos well. Lit and burned well. A marked contrast, for example, to Mac B's HH Syrian, which offers offers a smoother, stronger and tastier blend of somewhat similar tobacco components. Solid 2 stars.

Pipe Used: Karl Erik Semi-Churchwarden, MM

Age When Smoked: undated; bought 2 months ago

Purchased From: The Briary, Homewood, AL

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Arkie (129)	2010-12-20		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

I'll admit at the outset I do not have a sophisticated palate. I'm not a big fan of English blends (anticipating having to dodge incoming flak as I type those words) because latakia generally overwhelms all the other flavors. Aromatic blends have great room note but they usually taste as though a wad of cheap incense has been crammed into a pipe. I like cavendish if the casing isn't overpowering. I've been searching for somethng like Pembroke for decades. The cognac topping is subtle. The blend is balanced such that not any one type of tobacco in the blend is dominant. It is a bit moist right out of the tin as some have said but (no offense intended) I can't understand the uproar. If a tobacco is too wet, fluff it and let it set for a while. If it is too dry, throw it into a jar and toss a humidifying ceramic plug or even a moistened piece of chalk in with it.

This might be a good blend for someone wanting to transition from aros to English blends. It is an excellent English blend that is very subtly enhanced by the cognac. I recommend this blend as a late night treat along with a tumbler of excellent bourbon or snifter of brandy. It's one of my favorites. Great stuff!!

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Hiram Briar 23 (12)	2010-09-16		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

puff puff yum puff puff yummy repeat.

for those obsessed like me about penzance and the like this is a reasonable substitute while they're out of stock!

the cognac casing is not noticeable immediately, but be patient and relax and it folds into the palette nicely. It tastes a little like margate mixed with penzance with a top flavor of cognac(ish)

a little mottled flake mixed with broken ribbons packs a little haphazard but a womans tamp is all you need and then top it off with another pinch and give it a mans tamp and light.

i expected a false light with this one but one light is all it took.

i got nice creamy smoke. a little light feeling in the mouth but the way it filled the room proved nice and thick. this one passes the smoke ring test. not the thickest smoke but still pleasant.

nice aroma and flavor for the latakia lover.

i tend to smoke good tobacco like a fish gasping for water on a boat deck, and thats how i went after this blend from start to finish.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Susanna Hoffs (74)	2010-09-03		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

I haven't got a bloody clue about this one.. Seriously!

Initially it tasted to me like a ribbon cut version of Penzance. Orientals definately present, I'd say over the Latakia. The flavouring is there, but done subtly. I just don't know. What it DOES lack is a creaminess which I have also failed to discover in other Esoterica blends.

Presbyterian mixture is creamy, and this isn't. I like PM more if I'm honest but this is a decent enough tobacco to give it a whirl. As someone has previously commented, if this is the 'Slutty' sister to Margate (which I've not tried to date), then I can only say that Margate must be a pretty unexciting date.

I was expecting a hair cascading, full on bright red lipstick, sultry goddess. What I actually got was a tightly pony tailed, thinned lipped, civil servant worker who'd donned a bit of 'lippy' for the day.

Damn you Esoterica with your catchy arty labelling. Blatant Terry Pratchett plagiarism if ever there was!!!!!!!!

6/10 overall rating from me.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2009-04-04		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

I know people either love this stuff or hate it. Many years ago this was my main smoke. I took to blending it with Margate for a while too(marries great). I decided to get away from any topping at all for a long time, and smoked Balkans mostly. I just cracked a tin after many years of not smoking this fine tobacco. It's very luxurious in the tin, and smokes beautifully most of the way down the bowl. One thing I like about this blend is the room note. I don't get any hassle whatsoever, and my golfing buddies use to crave the aroma. I'm glad to rekindle this old friendship. It's best to have dedicated pipes for this stuff though. It does leave its presence known.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Glorfindel (86)	2008-02-07		Medium	Strong	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Also, I must add that 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 keep 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.

I was able to sample Pembroke for free thanks to a generous friend of mine. 2 bowls was all I could manage. So lets begin.

The sample was aged and a tad dry having an almost ideal moisture content. It burned well and evenly with no relights after the first 2 matches, that's a plus anytime.

However, that's about all the plus points I can force upon this mix - simply put, I did not like it at all.

The orientals dominated (for what little tobacco taste that got by the casing), with rare glimpses of latakia taste after purposeful searching on my part. The casing was strong with a taste I found sickening, not pleasant for me. The closest description I can come up with for this is an artificial cherry taste that gave me a rich, sickening/sour effect. eeek!

Cognac it was not - in my opinion.

Maybe the awful casing was dissolved in Cognac as a delivery solvent? I'd buy that at least.

I enjoy and appreciate blends across the pipe tobacco spectrum from cased aromatics to latakia heavy blends to VA flakes, to English/Balkans - and thus I tried to find some redeeming qualities that suited my palate - I just couldn't do it.

Sorry Esoterica and Pembroke fans, not for me.

Not recommended.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Sasquatch (90)	2007-02-25		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Well, I just love this stuff. Not a huge fan of boozey tobacco in general, I don't mind the occassional navy cav with rum. This however, is such a lovely marriage of a premium English with a delicate cognac, that it's in a class all by itself. Not going to be for everyone, and it certainly taints pipes.

Not quite as heavy in flavour as I was expecting - this could be a summer smoke for me.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipepundit (168)	2007-01-16		Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Though I have been smoking Penzance and Margate with a great deal of pleasure for years, I had not got down to trying Pembroke until recently.

It does come a bit more moist than usual for English mixtures and some drying out helps, but is not essential. The tin aroma is awesome: rich, opulent, luxurious. The cognac is skilfully married to the base tobaccos.

In the pipe, the promise of the tin aroma is not belied. The taste is rich, almost incredibly rich. In more than forty years of pipe smoking I have never come across a mixture so full in taste and aroma. That having been said, Pembroke for me is party food - enjoyable on occasion, but a daily diet would probably lead to high levels of cholestrol.

If alcohol has to be put into tobacco at all, this is the way to do it. Whether or not you like Pembroke in the end, it is absolutely worth trying once.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2005-09-17		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Notes: This needs to dry out a bit before you smoke it to allow it to burn well and optimize the flavors. It also benefits quite a bit from aging, and gets much better with a few months in the tin. I have smoked a few ounces of various vintages of this and have found it best in a Dunhill Group 3-4 briar.

Appearance: A thin-cut golden and brown to black ribbon, fully rubbed out. It comes quite wet in the tin, almost sticky, and benefits enormously from allowing it to dry out substantially. Without this, you will likely not fully appreciate the flavor.

Aroma: Fruitcake, frankincense, stewed plums and autumn fruit. French cognac, honey, Brie.

Taste: Can nip the tongue a bit if one is not careful. After allowing it to dry out to a proper moisture level, it burns quite well to a fine grey-white ash, leaving no dottle at all. Plum pudding, Christmas cake, myrrh, frankincense, cognac, honey, raisins, stewed fruits, citron. Very soft, very subtle flavors. Rather subdued and very quiet on the palate, demanding attention to obtain full enjoyment.

Comparisons: Similar to Esoterica's Margate, but with added complexity and sharper cognac notes, which make it a markedly different blend. Much darker (but not heavier) in overall complexion than, say, Dunhill My Mixture No. 965.

Bottom Line: For those who enjoy tobacco blends imbued with spirits, a must-try. Those seeking a mild, subdued English blend with the added complexity of cognac will be pleased.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2005-01-24		Medium	Mild	Full	Strong

Pembroke is such a luxurious tasty tobacco! Before writing this review, I had occasion to smoke a tin of unaged Pembroke, followed by a tin with 4.5 years of aging. The new tin was very good, the aged wonderful. The sharper edges had softened, and the latakia had mellowed to a supple smoothness. I love the way Pembroke produces clouds of chewy, smoke-ring-ready smoke. On the other hand, you will not win much goodwill smoking this in the presence of, shall we say, certain significant others who barely tolerate your smoking habit! BTW, I like the cognac topping, which is never obtrusive, just a hint of elegance underlying the full English taste. About the only thing I could say against Pembroke is that it has a certain drying effect upon the mouth and palate. If you are a latakia lover with a place to smoke this far away from the wife and kiddies, you will not go wrong with this blend.

mythdoc

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2001-03-11		Mild	Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Pouch Aroma: This reminds me of mixture 'A', but with a mild, sweet top-dressing, less grassiness and what smells like a nice quantity of Perique.

Appearance: This is quite similar to 'A', but upon closer inspection I can see more stringy cuts and a slightly higher proportion of lighter tobaccos (Perique and Burley, I think).

Packing and Lighting: This also packs quite easily - this in a Savinelli Punto Oro Canadian. Upon lightup, this gives off a very sharp flavor for a few puffs - it stung my nose just a little - which settles into a tangy sweet flavor. There is a casing of some kind - rum, perhaps? (Nope - Cognac!)

Exposition: This is a medium-full tobacco with a decent smoke volume and a rich room aroma. The flavoring in it tends to mask the tobacco flavor a bit, but it's still early in the bowl. I like the sharp spiciness, and the smoke from the bowl promises wonderful tobacco flavor to come if the flavoring ever goes away. I must apologize, for 'crossover' English blends (Latakia and flavorings) just don't do it for me.

The Story: While this is a fuller, heavier smoke I don't seem to be getting as much natural tobacco flavor as I would like. It seems a bit one-dimensional to me - it's tasty but not complex. I also had more trouble keeping this lit as compared to selection 'A', and it seems a tiny bit wetter in the pipe.

As the bowl burns on down, the casing fades just a touch and is joined by some nice but rather bland tobacco flavors. I think there is a hint of Burley in here as it does funny things to my throat, but I could be wrong. Between that and the incipient tongue-bite, I'm not favoring this tobacco much anymore. It's not enough to make me dump it, but I wouldn't smoke this if I had anything better. All IMHO, of course.

Denoument: Between the frequent relights, biting, sourness in my throat and the casing, I find myself quite happy that I used a very small-bowled pipe for this. It's only the thick smoke that is saving my morning as I can blow dense rings that float forever before dissipating. The Perique sharpness stays through the whole bowl, making my nose tingle everytime I blow smoke out.

It does burn down to a nice, fluffy grey ash and leaves a pleasant smell in my pipe.

Pros: Nice thick smoke, dense flavor and a pleasant room aroma are the hallmarks of this mixture. If you like tobaccos that are cased without being candied, this is a good one. The tobacco is of good quality, seems to completely lack PG, and is so well-balanced that no single element of /the tobacco itself/ really stands out.

Cons: If I seem to be nattering about the casing, it's only because I have been smoking natural tobacco for so long that I just don't care for anything else unless the base tobacco can hold its own (ie St. Bruno Flake). The lack of an easy burn and my battle with bite also marred the experience. Overall, I've had worse - but also lots that were better. Perhaps a different pipe is called for - something wide and shallow rather than tall and narrow like this Savinelli Canadian.

Note: I tried a second bowl of this in my other Punto Oro - a shape #316 with a wide, flattened bowl. The sharpness was less evident, the burn was better and the casing less concentrated. I still can't REALLY get into this, but it definately works better in this type of pipe for me.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ScullyDoogan (12)	2020-01-18		Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Ho hum. Whereas Margate is distinctive and an instant personal fav, Pembroke is just ok. Yes, tin note is Cognac and leather, and yes, it made me want to scare up a drink of good cognac, but in smoking Pembroke is unremarkable. Yes, it’s smooth, but lots of tobaccos are smooth. “Subtle?” -maybe, but for all the hype and expense, I say “underwhelming” instead.

Pipe Used: 1942 Dunhill Bulldog

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Similar Blends: Margate.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	HauntedMyst (22)	2019-11-08		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

By now you've read that this is Margate with a cognac topping. While I don't normally like alcohol flavored blends, this one is other worldly. It takes Margate, a great blend and steps it up a notch in flavor and complexity. Depending on my mood, either Penzance or Pembroke are my favorite tobaccos. Where as Penzance is a punch you in the mouth with Latakia and Oriental wonderfulness, Pembroke is smoother and more elegant while still being rich in flavor. The familiar Esoterica casing is here and I love it. This is an all day tobacco for me and one I couldn't recommend higher.

Pipe Used: Upshall Billiard

Age When Smoked: New and Aged

Purchased From: Up Down Cigar

Similar Blends: Smoker's Haven Cognac Mixture.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gerry P (39)	2019-09-04		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

I was a little underwhelmed with Margate, with all the Esoterica hype. It's good, don't get me wrong, but for me it fell a little short of being a 4 star blend. The cognac adds a nice flavor/aroma dimension that nudges it to 4 stars. "They" say this is Margate with cognac added, which seems believable. The cognac makes Pembroke unique compared to other English blends I've enjoyed. I think it's about as much an aromatic as Bagpiper's Dream, another excellent blend that's flavored with cognac.

Pipe Used: MM Carolina Gent, among others.

Age When Smoked: Packaged some time in 2018

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	San_Diego_Sam (3)	2019-06-06		Mild to Medium	Medium	Full	Pleasant

I can't add much to many of the reviews posted here, but I need to convey a new experience I just had with Pembroke. I've been smoking Esoterica tobaccos (Pembroke being my favorite) for about 15 years, but I just tried something new. I recently purchased a Rattray's Meerschaum pipe fitted for a 9 mm filter. I've never smoked a filtered pipe before. I made the purchase after viewing the Bremen Pipe Smoker videos on Youtube. I'll keep this short and cut to the headline. Pembroke, smoked through a carbon filtered Meerschaum pipe (active carbon filter from Futeng) is completely sublime. I highly recommend it.

Pipe Used: Rattray Meerschaum

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Ebay

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pryhosm (248)	2018-02-19		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Pembroke is another amazing blend from the traditional master blenders at Germain. It annoys me that as I read through some of my old reviews that I sound like I am fawning over this particular blender, there are many great tobacco blenders like: Pease, Oulette, SPC and others that make the big names. However there is something about the time tested methods at Germain that, at least to me, set them apart. Pembroke is in a category by itself to me, maybe because it is unique in the fact that there is flavored and unflavored version of this blend, not too many blends like that, at least that I am aware of. Margate is the non aromatic version of Pembroke and is a first class blend in its own right. Pembroke is a cased/topped version of Margate that actually improves the tobacco flavor and smoking experience. Most aromatics kill the tobacco flavors in my experience. They rarely enhance the tobacco's and I think it is even rarer that you would take an exquisite blend of top grade leaves and add a flavoring to them. In this case it was a gamble worth taking. Pembroke is a blend of top grade Virginias, Orientals and Latakia with Cognac added. The blend has been described by most as a Virginia forward blend but one in which the base of Virginias to me show case the high grade Orientals. No two palates are the same I guess. In Margate I find the smoking experience Oriental forward and quite delicious. In Pembroke I do think the casing/topping bring out the Virginia's a bit more than the other leaves, However the Orientals are still a co-star in this blend. The Virginias are sweet and earthy, vegetal with grassy and musty hay notes. There is also a toasty breadiness to them that is harmonizes well with the cognac. The cognac comes across as vanilla and dark fruit, probably why it works so well with the VA's. The Orientals is still a spcy star in this blend: woody and dry with spices that compliment both the VA's and the topping. The malty character that come with all balkanesque blends is here and it is bolder and sweeter due to the cognac, this is where this blend hits a sweet spot for me (pun intended). The latakia is masterfully applied as a condiment but is bold enough to be noticed in every puff. It adds a distance sweetness and smokiness to the blend that further accentuates the malty character. This blend comes pretty wet and needs adequate dry time to smoke well. With 30-45 minutes of dry time you will be paid back in spades. Burns well, does not bite (another amazing characteristic of Germain blends) and will burn to a grey ash with little dottle.

Pipe Used: Briars and Cobs

Age When Smoked: Fresh tin and 1 year+

Purchased From: B&M

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	King Weed (228)	2015-03-04		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

This is a blend I started smoking when it first came out and I put several tins away for the future (we didn't think of "aging" as an issue back then). Although not my favorite, I did enjoy smoking it and discovered early on that it worked well when added to a heavier English blend. It was dark, soft, English and smoked rather smoothly with a mild flavoring that I enjoyed. Over the next several years I opened, smoked and blended with it. I must have stopped using it when it got down to one remaining tin. Recently, I found that tin in my stash and decided to open it. Alas, I waited too long; the cognac flavoring had weakened over the years, as I distinctly remember it being stronger. However, the tobacco itself had survived well and was fully aged and encrusted with sugar crystals - a joy to smoke. OK straight out of the tin, I find it magnificent in English blending and that's the way in which it is going to be used. I would have rated it three stars back then in the nineties and give it the same rating now.

Pipe Used: Bonaquisti apple billiard - 2010 NASPC pipe

Age When Smoked: at least twenty years old

Purchased From: Barclay Pipe and Tobacco

Similar Blends: Smoker's Haven Cognac Mixture.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Grumpynuts (9)	2014-11-22		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

I found this in bulk at a B&M here in Omaha. I knew nothing about it ahead of just now lighting it up and reading the reviews (in that order). I wouldn't have known there was congac in it if I hadn't read it. Nice English blend, not an everyday smoke, not my "go to" smoke, but it will do.

Pipe Used: Ardro Urano

Age When Smoked: Of me or the tobacco?

Purchased From: B & M in Omaha, NE

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	beano (7)	2014-06-21		Mild	Strong	Full	Tolerable

I love esoterica, I don't love latakia, but I figured I would give this a try because esoterica makes some the higest quality tobies around. Well, this stuff reminds me of southern comfort. That might be good for you, but not for me. I smoked the whole tin but only to get rid of it.

Pipe Used: cobs

Age When Smoked: fresh

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Stutter818 (51)	2014-06-09		Medium	Very Mild	Mild	Tolerable to Strong

Sweet cognac notes, orientals in the forefront, slightly spicy. Not much to say - it's an ok blend. Nothing spectacular jumps out. Burned easily with just a few minutes of drying. Fine white ash.

Pipe Used: Missouri meerschaum eaton cob

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Strauss tobacconist

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2013-11-17		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is a really good light English with a fantastic topping of cognac not an everyday smoke even if it was available but great change of pace tobacco

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	bence (34)	2012-11-21		Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Nice english with that delicious cognac flavor. Not an every day baccy for me, but sometimes good to smoke a bowl of it. Mostly prefer to light it up late afternoon or evening. (non filtered pipe recommended to get a lot more flavor...in my opinion)

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2012-08-25		Medium to Strong	Very Mild	Medium to Full	Strong

I liked this one a little better than Margate. Even though the Cognac wore off quickly the tobacco just seemed more interesting to me than Margate was. I don't know if this was due to age or what. Though I liked it better than Margate, it was still somewhat boring to me. I give this 2 1/2 stars out of four.

Soli Deo gloria!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pip (80)	2012-07-16		Strong	Strong	Full	Tolerable to Strong

A ribbon cut version of Penzance with a cognac topping. Classic latakia in all regards. I found to be a bit strong though.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Fofo (81)	2012-05-03		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant

The score I give this blend depends on how I choose to review it; as a cross over or as an English. Let me clarify, before going any further, that I enjoy English, aromatics, and cross over blends.

Someone recommended this blend as a cross over and, as that, it fails miserably. To me a cross over blend has a good presence of both the English flavor and the aromatic flavor, a good example that comes to mind is Samuel Gawith Chocolate flake. Pembroke has no aromatic flavor; the brandy is not even noticeable. As a cross over, it gets an F.

Judged as an English blend it's pretty good, but for the price there is much, MUCH better out there. Not much complexity and a bit on the mild side, bur really not bad. I'd say it gets a B- to a B.

The cut is also a pain in the butt to pack. Comes in very long and thin strings that tangle up and take some time to pack. I've had a much easier time preparing a plug or a rope than this.

Try it if you like English blends, don't waste your time with it if you want a cross over.

2 star rating to be generous.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	elelion (25)	2011-12-11		Very Strong	Medium to Strong	Full	Tolerable

I chose this blend over Margate because it says "French Cognac" in its description. However, as a fan for French cognac, I am a little disappointed. The alcohol is not as noticable as Stonehaven, or as Cross-eyed Cricket.

It is a ribbon cut and is with balanced moisture upon opening the tin, nice tobacco anyway. I have already fed my meerschaum with one 2oz tin and a 8oz bag, but the characteristic did not change over the 2 years. I would rate this blend as a 2-star blend since there are much better alternatives out there.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Darth Vader (110)	2011-09-22		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

It's ok but not really my cup of tea. Well made and i'm sure some will love it. The smell of the French plonk is very nice but doesnt smoke as nicely.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Mr. Big (321)	2011-08-06		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

This just doesn't work for me with the "Cognac" topping. It gives the mixture a sour/bitter taste, little to no sweetness. The Cognac acts like McC's Ketchup/Vinegar, only not as pleasant. The tobacco is similar to Margate in cut and flavor but with a heavier Latikia and less Oriental component, I don't believe it is straight Margate. No bite, burns easy, just an "off"taste. It will take me a long time to finish this tin, but I will finish it. I'll take Margate over this anyday.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tee-dub (48)	2011-06-16		Medium	Mild	Medium	Tolerable

Well, this sounded more appealing in theory than it actually is. I didn't know what to expect, and I was underwhelmed. But it's actually not bad.

The tobacco has that fermented, musty taste and aroma common among Esoterica blends. The Cognac is added lightly and, while detectable, I had to look for it. The Cognac lends an agreeable sweetness if lightly sipped at a lesurely cadence. If puffed vigorously, it disappears.

Three stars for the effort, but I won't buy it again.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	babysinister (55)	2011-03-18		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Tolerable

This mixture is basically Margate well blended with cognac, so it needs some airing out before smoking. Mine needed that even though it came from a 2005 tin and had been jarred for a good long while. Smokes smooth and full-bodied as long as you don't overpuff, then it tends to get harsh and pick up some hot/bitter accents. Smoke it slow and relaxedly and it's enjoyable. It fills easily and does not require much tending to keep lit and flowing.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2011-02-06		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Very Pleasant

I bought this tin from my local tobacconist and was not sure what to expect. It said that it had a topping of cognac, and I thought: "why not?" I popped the tin open and was dazzled. It smelled superb with its blueberry scent wafting through my nostrils. This is Margate with some cognac help. Anyway, it has the same body and basic temperament as Margate, but that wonderful wild, blueberry taste is present. That is what must happen when one takes a white grape booze and laces it to Latakia. It's fabulous. Smoke this stuff until you have a permanent blue afro.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Fountainhead (17)	2011-02-01		Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant

This is a very full-bodied blend. It has a very warm toasty-velvet sort of taste and aroma to match; the cognac is very well married and is the overall tone of the blend. Some other spicy oriental flavors come through as well. Very highly recommended.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Wellpipe (66)	2011-01-29		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This blend is a nice solid medium strength / medium complexity English with just a little something 'extra' from the cognac, which seems to be in just the right proportion - not overpowering, but delightfully present and lending a dry sweetness to the taste and the room note. Mine came out of the tin just a wee bit moist - easily solved with a few minutes spread out to air before packing. In a large Wellington it burned almost completely to a fine gray ash and required exactly two matches for the whole adventure.

If this were a car I would call it a 'classy ride'. A keeper for sure.

Update 6/23/2011: Still a decent blend, but going a little flat on me with time. Dropping to 3 stars.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Kilmarnock Piper (251)	2010-07-18		Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

I'm having this in a churchwarden right now (no, this is not my first bowl!) with a beverage that complements the tobacco beautifully, and even seems to be a pretty good analogy to this blend. This tobacco is a well-known English blend, doused in cognac. My potable accompaniment is Earl Grey tea, with rose petals added. Hey, it was cheap! So that is not a perfect analogy, but just as the familiar Earl Grey scent is changed or even overtaken by roses, the cognac treatment in this tobacco for me tends to overtake the Latakia. I am also smoking a twelve year old tin, so what I get is a very sweet aged cognac taste that is very nice. Not much body or depth, just the same mellow but unusual flavor throughout the bowl. That's really all I can say. I waited a while to write this review for "new depths of expression" to make themselves known, but it is no go. No problem, this blend's one dimension is a pleasant one. Remember, this is an old tin. That cognac has been sinking in and aging for 12 years. (I don't know how old it was when they poured it on the tobacco, but they probably wouldn't waste Hennessy Paradis!)

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2010-06-20		Strong	Mild to Medium	Full	Tolerable

Too strong for my liking. Don't get me wrong, I love the original Margate, but I find that even Margate alone is too strong. I've had to add more latakia to cool it done some (namely, Syrian Full Balkan from McClelland; that did the trick!)...it turned out to be a great blend.

Pembroke has all the complexity I look for in an English blend but the depth is too much towards the middle of the bowl. The nicotine tends to overwhelm. My tongue feels like it stops feeling altogether; not pleasing. Tin aroma is lovely. Pembroke also smokes well. I decided to blend Perique to my 2 ounces of Pembroke which adds a dimension that, interesting enough, has cooled it down a bit. It's easier to handle in small doses...

I'll stick to Penzance & And so to Bed the superiors from Esoterica.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2009-11-30		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

A year or so ago a gentleman at the tobacco shop turned me on to a sample of this. I liked it pretty well at the time but didn't buy a tin at the time. Well I finally got around to buying some and forgot about it in the cabinet. Late this summer I found it and have been enjoying it very much. I do not know what cognac taste like but the Pembroke like others have mentioned is much like Margate only sweeter. Normally I am not a huge fan of sweet tobaccos but this one I like very much. It is not overpowering and you still have a fine tobacco taste unlike some which leave you thinking you just ate too much candy. I will keep some of this around for sure.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Sinister Topiary (84)	2009-06-10		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Very Pleasant

This is essentially like its elegant twin sister Margate, but tarted up with cognac to seduce you with its intoxicating flavor. You suspect it's wrong to despoil such a dignified blend with the casing, but it is so deftly applied that it adds something special and unique to the flavor that complements it rather than overpowers. This is Margate with its hair down and corset on, a classy, alluring aromatic you can take out any time without fear of embarrassment.

This little number really puts out and leaves you satisfied without making you feel dirty or like you're cheating on your beloved english/balkans.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2009-02-24		Medium to Strong	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Pembroke in the can smells like a nice Merlot Wine. It has a terrificly strong smell which almost makes it seem un-smokable. Quite the contrary this tobacco is excellent. The smell from the can comes out in the room note. It smokes well indoors and out. However I most enjoy it in the evening just after sundown. I like to smoke this one while out for a walk given that passers by seem to approve of the smell.

I would keep some of this on hand most of the time. Either this or Margate or Tilbury. I am excited about trying Penzance since it is highly recommended. As for staying lit no problem here, it is a slow burning tobacco to take your time on. Rushing it seems to cause me hiccups and quite a bit of tongue bite. Smoking to fast tends to cause problems with pipe juice.

Slow and steady. My personal note rating was about 9.4 I can't say it is a perfect 10 but worth having around.

I have also done a video review of this tobacco. view it at

http://www.myspace.com/elemental_pipes

or at

http://www.youtube.com

just search esoterica tobacciana Pembroke

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	tabaco (112)	2008-12-23		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Full	Pleasant

I like trying new things either to find something special or to reaffirm my existing favourites. It is very well balanced and fairly complex, I really enjoyed this one a lot. This has one of the best tin aromas that my schnoz has ever encountered.

I am a confirmed Latakia nut, and I do not care for aromatics all that much. That being said, this tobacco is very mild on the aromatic side, if at all and leans strongly towards the English, with the Latakia gently combusting in the background. Very good for folks who want to stroll along with Latakia for awhile without completely going off the deep end.

The sister blend Margate is no slouch either. In my opinion Pembroke is a tad deeper and more dynamic. If you really want to get the party going I would invite over Penzance. Peaceable puffing.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2008-07-20		Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

The description says this tobacco is cased with French cognoc. This may be true, however I don't recognise the casing as cognac (but more important is that I like it, whatever it may be). This stuff is great imo. Especially on a hot summer night, together with a sweet drink. But careful sipping is needed! (there is a tendency to burn hot).

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2008-07-10		Medium	Mild	Full	Tolerable

It has to be a little dried so that you can smoke it pleasantly and to improve its flavors. This is also due to aging. A thin gold, brown and black ribbon. Aroma: fruity flavor of prunes and autumn fruit, French cognac and honey compose a very good tobacco, which in my opinion is very heavy. After the necessary drying it burns leaving a white ash without muddying at all. Very soft and fine taste. The more experienced say I should have smoked Margate first.

General observation: I was disappointed because I expected it to be much better.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2008-04-01		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

This is the first tobacco I have reviewed on this site that I had to give a one star rating. Keep in mind I have not tried Margate yet.

It smells foul in the tin - a sour smell that does NOT remind me of cognac at all (a spirit which I like BTW). The taste is equally gross - think sour latakia. I would rather spend my money on a pack of premium cigarettes (like Nat Shermans) than Pembroke. Heck, there are drugstore aromatics that I think taste better than this blend. Now I know why this was "on sale" at the B&M tobacconists I purchased it at - YUCK!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2008-01-20		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

An interesting blend, Pembroke marries a great English blend with cognac; the result is surprisingly quite impressive. Allowed to dry (as Pembroke is simply too moist straight from the tin for my tastes), the latakia is barely noticeable yet is nevertheless complemented by the slight tang of the cognac.

Margate is a better blend overall (and Penzance is my favourite of Esoterica's offerings), but there are times that seem to call for Pembroke.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2007-02-20		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

If you a smoker of non-aromatic English blends, you most likely won't like this. If you are an aromatic smoker, you still may not like this! It's somewhere in the middle and definately an acquired taste. I have tried it new from a tin and purchased some in bulk - cellared and aged nicely. It mellows nicely with 5+ years of age and I prefer it this way.

It was a little moist in the tin and needed some drying out. I found this blend to be tempermental, it smoked differently in different pipes and can certainly bite. Be careful not to smoke it too moist. I use a high intensity light for a few minutes to dry out wet blends and flakes.

I thouroughly enjoy the cognac and although it's strong, not too strong on the nicotine ~ no jitters. For me it's comparable to Stonehaven in the nicotine strength, yet stronger than most aromatics I normally smoke.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2006-10-15		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

This is another fine blend from Esoterica, one I enjoy occasionally. Pembroke is a pleasant English style (aromatic) blend, as others have stated this is Margate with Cognac; same cut same mixture. The Cognac is not overpowering but only adds some extra sweetness, depth of flavor and a room note which my wife finds pleasant. A worthy smoke: 8 stars out of 10.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2006-06-10		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Pembroke, along with Margate are 2 tobaccos that I have in both bulk and tinned as they`re both in my rotation for early evening smokes though, can be puffed all day if one chooses. This works well for me when dry and does DGT very well! It is 1 tobak that can take you above the clouds as the cognac-taste will settle down once in cruise. Always an extremely dry smoke and provides a nice ride for the trip! Grey ash at the bottom lets you know your journey has ended much too quickly! This tobacco will always be in my hanger!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Fife&Drum (34)	2006-05-27		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Full	Pleasant

I've been smoking this a long time and decided to enter this review. Yup, Esoterica has another great one for me! Yes, as the description says, Margate w/ Cognac. The Cognac adds a slight perfume/sweet taste and scent that is relaxing for me. I can easily drift off into pleasant thoughts with this one. It's great with a cup of coffee that's been brewed over a fire. Ribbon cut and packs, lights and smokes the same as Margate. That is, a dark and rich English blend. The moisture may be too much for some, and drying just a bit would improve burn. But, either way I dig it. Straight away it burns fine for me. I love smoking this sitting around a campfire. Great stuff when you want just an added bit of flavor and aroma to that great weed called Margate. Four stars.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2006-01-29		Medium	Very Strong	Medium to Full	Strong

I prefer my Cognac in a glass, thank you very much.

Nothing I can really say about this one. Not my cup of tea.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2006-01-27		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

January 2006. This is pretty good stuff!And I like it,but I definitely would not smoke it all the time,as we can't get it in Australia anyway. The flavour's were great for a change,as I prefer V-perique,Straight-V's,and latalika blend's. After airing out a portion of this tobacco on paper for 20 min's,I filled my Peterson bent & it only required 2 to 3 light's to get going with a few tamp's along the way to bowl's end. This blend is very tasty & most pleasant all the way through,leaving a nice clean grey ash at the bootom of the bowl. I'm not a fast puffer,& did not suffer any tongue bite at all. Recommended,to those who enjoy a splash of alcohol in their baccy.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2005-09-10		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Let me preface this review by saying that I've yet to try Margate, which is supposed to be the untopped/cased version of this blend.

The cognac casing is in the forefront but isn't overpowering; seems to mix well with and even amplify the latakia in the blend. I only smoke aromatics a couple of times each week, and this is one of the three I've been keeping stocked. The musty orientals, the cremey latakia, and the light cognac do play well together and never seem to run with scissors towards the tongue.

Drying out a bit will help decrease the typical aromatic gurggle and need for relighting. I usually take a bowl's worth out of the tin to dry for about 30 minutes before packing the pipe, usually a 4/5 billiard. And often this only needs a single relight during the smoke, mostly out of neglect on my part.

I have yet to try an Esoterica blend that I didn't care for. Like everything they do, Pembroke is good material, handled well, reaching for something unique.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2005-02-19		Strong	Medium	Very Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

some tobaccos seem to take a while to make an impression, and so it was with this one. i had very high expectations, because of all the good reviews i had read about it. after the first pipeful, i had to admit i was very let down. it seemed overly moist, was hard to light and required constant re-lighting, and seemed to have a bite to it. i left the can open, fluffed up the tobacco, and let it set for an afternoon. with each pipeful after that, things seemed to get better. the burn definitely improved, and i started appreciating the suttle and very different flavor, probably coming from the cognac topping over the latakia. this tobacco seems to have a pretty high nicotine content, which i enjoy also. i like to have a bowl of this after smoking a strong latakia blend, like old ironsides. they seem to compliment each other. the cognac flavor dominates the first half of the bowl, then the latakia seems to take over. kind of like an appetizer before the main course. i would recommend anyone who enjoys english blends give this one a try. just don't rush to judgement after the first pipeful. 3 stars.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2005-02-05		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

I love the Esoterica series and most Germain and sons blends,but this one is not really as good as I have been told.The blend is a heavy English with cognac, which in theory ,should be outstanding, but alas, it falls a little short.This is a high quality tobacco that yields a good pleasurable smoke but I will stick with "And So To Bed". The blend is good. The aroma is nice.I will offer you the counsel that if you do not like Anise, do not try this.The other Esoterica offerings combine the Anise with the tobacco and they yield pure pleasure.Pembroke has the cognac and anise quarreling with each other. I would try it ,but there are others that are better.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2005-02-03		Medium to Strong	Strong	Very Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Great tin, elegant calligraphy and mostly stunning reviews. Unfortunately, this tobacco does nothing for me. It?s characteristically Esoterica/Germain with its sour, briny, licorice/anise tin aroma. And So to Bed is a milder, tangier version of Pembroke. It?s a stringy ribbon cut of stoved tobaccos with latakia and laced with cognac. This is Margate drunk on brandy. Though I love cognac, I?m discovering that that venerable spirit is best left to breathe in a snifter. It may go well with a good smoke, but they should remain good friends in separate dwellings and never marry or move in together. Whatever Latakia is in this mixture is completely overpowered by the booze, and it?s a distraction, not a compliment. If you?re going to smoke this stuff be sure to devote a single pipe to it, because it will permeate the bowl with that distinctive Esoterica casing. This is a quality tobacco for those who might appreciate this style, but it?s just not my particular taste. At least I am pleased to have a pipe smoking buddy eager to take it off my hands so that the tin didn?t go completely to waste. Overrated!

One and a half of five stars

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2004-06-20		Medium to Strong	Medium	Full	Tolerable to Strong

As I have never gotten to like Latakia, I do not usually gravitate toward traditional English-type blends except those attenuated by the addition of some type of topping in the form of rum or, in the case of Pembroke, cognac. I prefer high quality aromatics, VA flakes, burley & Perique blends, etc. However, the reviews from Wm. Serad on down are almost universal in their praise of the Esoterica Tobacciana line of blends and, in particular, Margate. Pembroke is described as Margate with the addition of cognac. I haven't tried Margate, so I approached Pembroke uninfluenced by any prior experience with either Esoterica Tobacciana in general or Margate in particular. I smoked several bowls of Pembroke one night in a recently acquired 50 year old estate Kaywoodie that I had "opened up" by Jim Benjamin down in San Diego, CA (see Rick Newcombe's articles about proper air flow for pipes collected in his book, "In Search of Pipe Dreams"). Sufficient air circulation is absolutely critical, especially when smoking moist dense blends. A hot, wet, bitter, and generally unpleasant smoking experience is frequently the result in the absence of adequate air flow, which most pipes lack. Anyway, as to Pembroke, it has a Latakia-spicy, fermented aroma in the tin. Upon ignition, the flavor is also spicy with a tangy semi-sweet undertaste. The cognac is evident and, to to my way of thinking, nicely circumscribes the Latakia element. The flavor and aroma are rich, thick, and nicely rounded, with the edges softened by the cognac. I think this a great after-dinner or late night blend. It burns well for me and resolves to a fluffy mottled ash. I give Pembroke a grade of B+.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2004-05-01		Medium	Medium	Medium	Tolerable

Upon opening the tin, I was hit with a very strong vinegar smell, from the cognac. The tobac also presents very wet. I tried a bowl, and the cognac was just too strong overpowering any tobacco taste. I left the tin open for a couple of days, then came back to it. The first day that the tin was open, the aroma/vinegar permeated the room, and I found this unpleasant, thinking that I would never enjoy this tobac. Upon the second day of air drying the tin, I was now presented with something much more tolerable. This is a very fine smoke, once dried, and the cognac offers its own smooth flavor upon the Margate blend. I find that it mutes the orientals that were so tasty in Margate, but causes its own unique addition, which I find quite nice. I enjoy this taste from time to time, perhaps late afternoon, before dinner. Just make sure you air dry the tin for a couple of days before use.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2003-06-22		Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Tolerable

This is a very interesting smoke in that it is the most mutable tobacco I've smoked. In the first third of a bowl, the cognac and Latakia team up to produce a powerful smoky, almost soapy taste. By the middle of the bowl the taste becomes much more rounded and the sweet taste of Virginias plays a much greater role. By the end of the bowl you'll swear you're smoking a Virginia blend in a pipe that's been used for smoking English blends. Now to me each of these flavor phases (with the exception of the soapiness) is very attractive. I love following the flavor changes as I smoke a bowl down. Highly recommended.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2003-02-08		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

I frequently smoke this in a Sansieni 4-dot apple which I feel controls the right balance of aroma and strength. I find myself rotating this mixture with "And so to Bed", but I prefer this one a little more, probably because I will often drink a brandy while smoking.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2002-12-30		Medium to Strong	Strong	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Pembroke is supposed to be Margate with a cognac casing. Margate is in my rotation, so I gave this a try. There are few English tobaccos available with a liquor casing, Pease's Mephisto is the only other that comes to mind.

Pembroke comes almost wet, far too damp to smoke well. The aroma is dominated by the casing. After letting it dry out some, I gave it a try. My impressions are that this is a very good tobacco, but that the cognac is just too much. I have had good success by mixing this down about 50% with some other English mixtures I had open. I did not have an open tin of Margate to mix this with, but I'll bet that mixed 50/50 or even less with Margate, that this would be a very good change of pace.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2002-10-31		Medium to Strong	Medium to Strong	Full	Unnoticeable

Pembroke is one of the more unusual smokes I've tried. I smoked my first bowl right from the tin "as is". It was hard to light and resulted in a fairly bad gurgle. Using the advice of previous reviewers, I fluffed the blend and left off the lid for a few days. The result was near perfect. The tobacco lit quite well and burned to completion with no relights or gurgle. The first half of the bowl has light smoke with a strong cognac flavor. I pick up on a certain musty flavor as well. The tobacco really comes into its own in the second half. The smoke volume increases. The full tobacco flavor starts to stand out. The blends finish is fairly strong. This blend is different, not the same song different verse. I plan to keep a tin around for something different. May try Margate (uncased version) in the future. UPDATE: I have downgraded my original opinion of this smoke to make room for a much better version by GL Pease. If you like this smoke, you'll love Barbary Coast.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2002-01-17		Medium	Very Mild	Full	Pleasant

It's a good smoke , but in my mind the congnac only detracts from an already stellar tobacco . I'd rather buy Margate , just MHO.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2002-01-17		Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Like other Esoterica blends I have tried, it's tough to get this blend just dry enough to smoke well without ruining the flavor. Sometimes it smokes well with a good taste, other times it smokes hot with a thin flavor. It always smokes on the sweet side, always has a good room aroma, and always smokes clean to a fine black ash. With the world full of outstanding tobacco blends, I got tired of messing with this one, and didn't restock my supply once it ran out.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2001-03-28		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

Pembroke is one of my favorite tobaccos when I am in the mood for an English, but with a twist. This is margate topped with Cognac (please see review for Margate). The main difference is that the cognac adds substantially to the aroma (both tina nd room) and the nuance it adds to the flavor while smoking is rather interesting. It doesn't dominate the blend, rather enhances the already wonderful interaction between the Virginias and latakia (primarily). Pembroke seems to be a bit moist out of the tin,so I recommend letting it air dry slightly before packing. This will help it smoke better. It burns cool, but can smoke wet. Slow puffing, as always, is recommended. A wonderful smoking experience.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2001-02-25		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

This is probably the one that will have Esoterica fans at the door with pitchforks and torches, but I simply don't like the burn of this blend. Its flavor is very nice, but it wants to burn hot and wet for me, and despite various different levels of humidification and the smoothest smoking techniques I can muddle forth, it remains a tongue-blistering experience. It's on the sweet side, presumably from the rum(?) flavoring added, and perhaps this is the cause of my smoking problems. I smoke it every so often for a change of pace, but don't plan on replacing it once my current supply runs out.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	FilipPruncu (89)	2023-03-20		Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Alright, so this is the third Esoterica blend that I smoke, after Penzance and Margate. What can I say? They are, indeed, great blends. Penzance was good, but didn’t blow me away. Margate on the other hand, did. It’s in my top favorites. Now, how about Pembroke? Lets see!

First things first, I have to talk about the tin note. I received my tin vacuum sealed, but it was also sealed with some tape over the edges for better seal. Even if it was sealed, when I took off the tape I was struck by an intense smell. Can you imagine? A smell so strong that it goes through a vacuum seal? And it was vacuum sealed, because it hissed when I opened the tin. And when I opened it completely, the smell was really strong. Tin notes are fermented, peaty, smoke and a bit of dark fruit. After it sat in the jar, it also developed some leather notes. It does smell a bit of cognac, but I would compare this smell more with Lagavulin 16. If you ever had the chance to smell and taste Lagavulin, you’ll know what I’m talking about. Does it smell of cognac? Maybe, but it’s more towards an islay scotch. It’s a strong, heavy smell.

The tobacco came quite moist, and the carton inside was just like in the other Esoterica blends. Colored from the juices of the tobacco. This seems to be specific to Esoterica blends. The cut is a perfect shag. It’s mostly dark, but has a good balance of brown and gold leaves. Super easy to pack up the pipe, but careful not to push it too much. Being cut so thin and being moist, you’ll have the impression it’s not tamped enough.

Now lets get to the serious part... the smoking experience. Due to the cut, the lighting won’t be a problem. From the first puffs you get peat, smokiness, vinegar and a bit of molasses sweetness. Few more puffs and you get some pomegranate and fig. Creamy, smooth smoke full of flavor. You will taste every tobacco in the blend, even if the latakia is in front, the oriental will also be detected and so will be the virginia, with some grassy and hay notes, not the sweet notes necessarily. But how about the topping? I’d say it’s mild. It’s so nicely done that it doesn’t overpower the blend. It actually BLENDS in the blend if that makes any sense. It’s perfectly balanced. Just a hint of alcohol, indeed somewhere between some cognac (or rather Armagnac, or a brandy or even Vinars) and Islay scotch with lots of peaty notes. You can definitely taste the oak barrel, and also a bit of fruity notes from an alcoholic beverage such as the ones presented above. But like I said, I detect more pomegranate and fig rather than grapes. So yeah, there’s the topping, mild and well balanced in such a way that it doesn’t cover the taste of the tobacco, it rather complements it. Hats off to the one that found this balance! Now lets smoke some more! Puff puff.... And came to half of the bowl. What’s here? Oh, we have some nice wood notes! Oak, yes, definitely, but not only. I can taste cedar as well. There’s still a vinegar taste, a musty taste, lots of peat and something that reminds me of anise and fennel, even some blueberries. Still has the alcoholic taste of brandy or islay scotch. There’s so much in there! Puff puff... oh, my! When did I get to the bottom of the bowl? I was enjoying this so much. I’ll probably smoke another bowl a bit later, but for now, what can I say about the end of the bowl? Well, you’ll get some spice. Some cloves, I guess, because it’s not a peppery spice. And starts to taste a bit like black tea. Am I the only one who gets this taste? If you ever tasted Keemun black tea, you’ll probably understand what I’m saying here. But anyway. There’s a lot that this blend has to offer if you sit and sip it slowly, searching for all the flavors it delivers.

And the last thing I want to mention is that this has a very nice lingering after taste. I appreciate that in a blend.

Burns perfect, it doesn’t need more then two or three relights, delivers a cool and thick smoke. The room note is intense. Medium strength, mild topping, medium to full taste, tolerable room note (I love the room note, but it’s strong and a wife might not appreciate this in the house).

As for the idea that this is Margate with a topping.... well, not in my opinion. I found that Margate was a smooth, incense-like smoke, while this one is more peaty. Margate was more complex than this one, delivering many notes and flavors, while this one is not as complex (yet not dull either). DrumsAndBeer was saying Margate is bolder and this is sweeter. See? Experiences differ. It is true that this is somehow sweeter, maybe because of the topping too, and I also agree with him that these blends are a treat for olfactory experience.

P.S.: I smoked this in bulldogs, prince, billiards... but I happen to enjoy it most in a 320KS Savinelli. I’m not a big fan of the 320KS, but this one seems to be a perfect match, with the large bowl. Just my opinion.

P.P.S.: As I was saying, this is the third Esoterica blend that I smoke. I enjoyed Margate the most, this one being in the second place and Penzance in the third place. Now I’m looking forward to get my hands on “And So To Bed”.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Noah (8)	2023-02-05		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

This blend reminds me of Lord Morgan. It's a milder version but it's a sister for sure. Well this is $50.00 for a bag. Hard to find and not worth $300.00.

Pipe Used: Cob

Age When Smoked: 2022

Purchased From: The Briary

Similar Blends: Lord Morgan and Frog Morton Cellar.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Rmsva (16)	2022-10-30		Mild	Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

This blend is absolutely delightful. I’ve been hitting the English blends hard so I thought I’d revisit Pembroke. It has a slight brine that is immediately contracted with the sweet cognac topping. Latakia has a lead role but it’s the brine-y/sweet notes that really make this unique and delicious. I will be buying a full bag next chance I get.

Pipe Used: Georg Jensen Admiral

Age When Smoked: 1 year (+/-) a couple months

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Travelingman542 (3)	2021-01-14		Mild	Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

A very light blend that makes for a pleasant smoke. The cognac topping is the star in this blend and makes for a delicate sweet smoke. Cyprian Latakia is there ever so slightly to leave the smoker with a smoky finish. Very perfume like roomnote with almost an incense like effect, which is probably a result of the orientals. Will certainly be adding this to my normal rotation

Pipe Used: Dr Grabow adjustomatic

Age When Smoked: 1 year old

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	CubanPiper (13)	2015-07-24		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This stuff is really good. I smelled and tasted the cognac at first, but it goes away after a few weeks. After a couple of weeks, it's just a mild english. It burns well, it packs well, and it smokes well. Just to clarify, this tobacco does not have virginias, its sweetness comes from somewhere else. Even I liked it, I personally like Margate better, maybe if you are interested in english blends, this one could be your gateway. To finish, even if I liked it, I won't order any more.

Pipe Used: Many

Age When Smoked: new

Similar Blends: Margate.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2013-05-02		Medium	Medium to Strong	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

Ever notice how some blends sing out when the rain is falling? I live in northern California, in the wooded hills. It doesn't get too cold here but it does rain, and when it rains this is a wonderful blend to sit with out under the eaves while listening to the rain tapping a tattoo on the metal roof and watch those drops drip from the trees. The smoke is creamier then. It just is. An earthy flavor is there with that slight brandy topnote. (They say it's cognac but to me it hints at Spanish brandy.) Pembroke, in the rain, in a bulldog. You, under the eaves, in a turtleneck. Three stars. But when the sun is out this is a two star blend, and no bulldog or turtleneck will change it for me. The creaminess is gone and the topnote lapses to a slightly harse finish. Save it for a rainy day.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2011-04-25		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild	Tolerable

To me this is like a aromatic english blend that fails on both ends. Don't get much smoke from it and it is hard to pack and leaves dottle in bottom of bowl. Don't like the ribbon cut. Might get better with age and drying out. I doubt it though.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2006-01-22		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is one of my best, after drying it out a bit, this tobacco is made for drinking, coffee, wine and of course a good french cognac... Very high quality...

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