Esoterica Tobacciana Pembroke

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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!)

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.

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.