Leavitt & Peirce Cake Box

I was lucky enough to receive this a sample of this tabac from my good friend.

Its old, its Ivy league, its awesome...

I would characterize the aroma in the bag as sweet and nutty. The cut is somewhere between ribbon and coarse cut. It consists of, what looks like black cavendish, a brown leaf (I'm thinking a burley of some kind), and some bright leaf. It has a very OTC smell/feel to it.

It packs very well, I didn't need to dry it out at all, it takes to flame pretty easy. First half of the bowl is creamy, bread-like, and has some walnut-type flavor. Its a slightly sweet tabac, the only initial flavor I get off the cavendish is a very very subtle vanilla. There is also a grassy/hay flavor that really stands out. Near mid-bowl the vanilla amps up, a caramel flavor kinda sits in the background as well. Its much more sweeter mid to end of the smoke. At the end of the bowl though, it kinda turns flat and the flavors mute, sometimes ending with an ashy taste. The ashy taste was not a constant feature of this blend though. I smoked it in various pipes with different means of packing. I would say the ashy flavor predominantly happens when the tabac is packed lightly. However, I still noticed that the flavors of the tabac did always become much more muted and the blend turns flat before the end.

The sweetness from the cavendish is the only thing that lets the smoker know its aro. I've been stuck on Va/Per lately and this was an easy transition. I think the cavendish acts more as a smoothing agent than anything else. The vanilla/caramel flavors just act to compliment the other flavors in the blend. The grassy/nutty flavors are definitely the main profiles here. It's not acrid nor is it harsh at any point, I think the cavendish is to thank for that.

It burns down to a fine mid-grey ash, some dottle. I noticed a bite, it was not MacBite or anything, but it was here and there. This is definitely an all day blend. It smokes so easy, and the aforementioned bite is rather tame. I did find that this does burn a little hotter than I would have liked. I think this is why the flavors get muted toward the end.

The aroma is pleasant and sweet. I wouldn't say its stunning or really unique in any particular way. Kinda like a less sweet Captain Black Gold.

I can see why this blend has been around for so long, its so very easy to smoke all day. It is a very forgiving and mild blend. It has a multitude of subtle flavors that can be analyzed and dissected, but it is also a simple blend that pretty much everyone could enjoy. Its main faults are the bite and the heat, but I think that could have been my error. I found myself smoking this rather quickly, because I just really liked it. It was definitely an all day smoke for me. Its not a blend that will totally change the way you think about pipe smoking or anything like that, but it is a solid, simple and fun blend. All in all, I highly recommend.