G. L. Pease Navigator

Summary: a Virginia flake with a richer, broader taste owing to the presence of Dark Fired Burley somewhat muted by a rum topping.

Opening the tin, one smells the salty olive scent that rum forms when interacting with tobacco. "Navigator" comes as a loose flake in the American style and not the boardlike UK flake form. The darker Virginia flavors predominate, with an underlying sweetness from the lighter Virginias, combining with the dark fired Burley to form a molasses or maple syrup type of flavor. The rum seems to take the edge off the dark fired leaf but burns off quickly, and once the blend caramelizes after the first fifth of a bowl, the simple but satisfying flavor of a Virginia-Burley blend comes through. It smokes easily and delivers sweetness without the "breakfast cereal" effect of more ragged Virginia blends, and with moderate nicotine, would make a comfortable all-day smoke.

Might be my favorite Pease blend. And I love several of them (Haddo's, Union Square et al). But this one is just exceptional. Now, its basically a strong Virginias with a touch of Kentucky. Added to this is a splash of Rum. It reminds me, philosophically if you like, to some of the Gawith-Hoggarth flakes and cut plugs. it is a strong nicotine blend...same as, say, Bosun Cut Plug but not quite up to Dark Birds Eye or irish flake by peterson. But it IS pretty potent. The flavor is rich and powerful. The rum works in this better than any blend I can think of featuring a rum or brandy addition. Its perfect. I like Blockade Runner by C&D, but this is better (BR has a more noticeable rum taste). No offense to the guys at cornell and diehl (who make this anyway), but Pease really found something with this blend IMHO. Its an old school smoke, not an all day smoke but an every night smoke for sure. I love it. The rum makes one salivate and the spicy fire cured leaf and rich virginias (a lot of red in here Id guess) create a really entrancing smoke. Also one of the coolest smokes you'll find anywhere.

I like this blend a lot! Flakes do not stay together enough for a fold and stuff method. But, it is nice and strong and I'm a nicotine lover. I like rum, but maybe a different rum would help? I would try aging this.

This smoke was simply a pleasure. I broke and loaded and just sipped. Low maintenance is the best thing. Just the right amount of flavor and strength. My wife and I rode 25 miles in the car - she never said anything!

This is a review of a three-year old tin.

Navigator tastes like what a "navy flake" should taste like - Virginia and burley topped with some rum. However, the "burley" here is Dark Fired Kentucky and the rum is extremely subtle. So, it tastes more "correct" than what the ingredients suggest. No complaints, I love navy tobacco.

I get hay, spice, apricot/peach, a bit of perfume and vegetation. The spice and drop of perfume probably comes from the Kentucky but I would've believed that there are small amounts of Turkish leaves if I was told so. The rum is far in the background and only adds a tiny bit of boozy notes to round things out. However, it's not nearly as strong as in other G.L. Pease alcohol additions, such as Sixpence. The apricot/peach can be attributed either to the rum or to the Virginia's fruitiness. The spice is fairly muted and mostly comes out in the retro-hale.

I enjoyed it the most once it's sufficiently dried. It brings out the flavors the most and prevents extra relights and messing around. It's easy to rub out, pack, and smoke. The flavor doesn't change much during the smoke, but it does get stronger as you go. Smokes slow and cool. No tongue bite. Can be smoked any time of the day. However, best enjoyed when doing nothing else and sipping slowly to get all the flavors.

No harsh tones, extremely well balanced. This is ultimately a Virginia blend with some rounding up of Kentucky and rum, rather than an equal level sweet, spice, alcohol. Navigator is a little more complex than that and requires you to dig in for those hidden notes if you wish to.

Medium-full in body, medium strength.

I like G.L. Pease blends, but many of them don't sit super well with me, especially those containing high levels of Perique. Navigator, however, was excellent. If you love Virginias such as Capstan, but want a bit more of supplemental volume, body, and/or strength, try this one. Highly recommended.

The deeper I go into my pipe smoking journey, the more I’ve come to appreciate dark fired leaf as a condiment and less as main player. My introduction to it was Old Dark Fired, which is a very bold tobacco with a lot of rough edges that has a pretty big nic hit. I don’t necessarily like it by itself because of this, but I’ve found I really enjoy it as an addition to a blend to deepen and enhance flavors.

Navigator is a perfect example of what I’m talking about. You’ve got a deep, rich, bold tobacco but there’s a bit more nuance and fewer rough edges. It’s oily and flavorful and still packs a punch but won’t knock you down the way a straight Dark Fired tobacco might. The rum really helps pull everything together into a cohesive experience while also sublimating things just a tad.

I’ve smoked a lot of rum and navy flakes and it’s a favorite of mine, and this is just another expression of that style. Some are pure Virginia and some have additions like Latakia or perique, so there’s a lot of wiggle room for play and experimentation when it comes to this category. If you’re looking to see what lies on the bolder end of this type of tobacco blend then this is a good one to try. If you’re looking for something more typical I might suggest C&D - Blockade Runner or it’s sister blend that has Latakia, Black Frigate.

Очень интересный табак. Нарезан флейк "соломкой", как спички. Удобно забивать. Курится легко, сгорает полностью.

Вкус.. вкус с нотками очень жёсткого табака, но при этом очень пряный и яркий, сильно пьянит.

Однозначно понравится всем, кто любит крепкий, но вкусный табак.