G. L. Pease Gaslight

This starts with a flavorful blast of Latakia, then fades into a burley forward smoke ( I realize that Burley is not listed, but it sure tastes that way to me). There is some sweetness that continues throughout the bowl, however, my tongue, just doesn't get along with the burley or the burley like properties. I find this blend boring but not of low quality. I think it reminds me of "Jackknife Plug" with an addition of Latakia. Overall , a somewhat old fashioned smoke.

I realize that my review will be greeted with much negativity, but I hope someone will explain what I'm doing wrong while smoking this blend.

These little bars are dark in the tin. I wanted to eat them. Also kudos for the cool tin art. Probably my favorite since the Scandal.

This slices pretty easily and crumbles even easier. I chose to do mostly 3/16 slices and rub them out well. As long as I was smoking this size in a broader bowl, it seemed to burn well. I'll probably try thinner slices next tin I crack a tin, which may burn better in bowls of all sizes. A light hand seems to work well here, as in don't pack it down at all. A gravity feed with a little tapping on the side of the pipe for settling seems to do just fine.

The nose is musty and earthy, and at lightup there is a great deal of woody smokiness, but as things progress, it seems to me that the spicier notes start to come out. This is not a latakia bomb, though there is a good deal of latakia here. It's got good balance between smoke and spice. Rumor has it that there is a minuscule percentage of perique in here, too. Pease seems to like to slip a condiment tobacco into blends, as he does with latakia in Laurel Heights and Fillmore. In all cases, I suspect it's more of a notice it if it weren't there sort of thing. Or perhaps it contributes to the somewhat elevated nicotine level, at least compared to others in this style.

It's interesting how latakia can take on a sweetness if it's surrounded by sweeter tobaccos, and a drier, probably more complex character if surrounded by lots of orientals.

That really gets at the crux of it: I'm smoking Quiet Nights now just after finishing a tin of Gaslight, and Quiet Night feels like it has more latakia, but also feels less full, somehow. It's stretched out over a broader frequency band, if you will. Gaslight seems sort of concentrated in the lower parts of the ensemble, with some little bits of spiciness reaching higher up from time to time. It's very oriental-forward, in a way that makes me think of a darker shade of Penzance, though it's been a while since I smoked that.

It burns very, very slowly, so plan ahead if you want to smoke a big bowl of it. In a group 6 size pipe, I smoked for over 2 hours. Group 3 sized pipes were pushing an hour.

And, for what it's worth, the 'stache note is great.

I cut it in 1mm thick square slices and the rubbed those out and gravity-fed my pipe.

Everything about this blend screams Latakia and, of course, has all the flavours of it.

Smoking this in a little devil anse was Latakia non-stop, all the way. Switching over to a virgin savinelli trevi 320 with it's 1" diameter chamber brought in a multitude of sequential flavours: latakia all the way, then some floral notes added in, then some spicy notes added in, then Latakia all the way, and so on... Latakia was always the base. It's not a harsh latakia, but a smooth, creamy-ish one.

The retro-hale consistently has floral and spice notes.

The nicotine level is medium to strong FOR ME (been smoking cigars and pipe tobacco for 7 months now) and it put me to sleep, so it will be a little strong for a newb.

This is not a regular smoke for me as I prefer a meaty latakia blend as opposed to an earthy latakia blend, which is what Gaslight is.

Summary: Gaslight is a unique, smooth, semi-complex, EARTHY English blend that is reminiscent of my cigar smoking days.

Gaslight is a newly offered Balkan style plug form tobacco, that is created by means of 200 year old time proven, traditional means resulting in a unique, superior product, which, if smoldered slowly, one may experience the fine complexities of cool, rich incense like flavors that are melded together in a refined, smooth, superior product. This tobacco improves all the way down the bowl. The pressed plug, formed with the addition of heat and steam and pressure, does some wonderful things to the leaf. It first homogenizes the plug, imparts smoothness(converts any remaining starches into natural sugars) and the essential natural oils of the leaf intermingle and marry (speeding up the aging process) and finally the pressure and steam takes out the harshness of component leaves to form a plug with a reduced nicotine delivery. This should age very well in your tobacco cellar. Well Done, Mr. Greg Pease! Please send your comments to [email protected]

I really wanted to love this tobacco. The scent upon opening the tin was fantastic. Quite natural, with no flavoring to get in the way. Upon lighting, the first few minutes were outstanding. So far, so good. But, in the end, this tobacco really came on too strong (even for me, who usually likes a good, strong blend). There is just something in this blend that really bothered my stomach. I've had this happen before with Jackknife Plug. I'm sure it's just me and many, many smokers will find this a great blend.

A wonderful, balanced English tobacco. Tin aroma and full taste reminds me of burley enough that it seems like theres a tiny bit present (but I'm probably wrong) -- tin aroma is deep and bready, almost with latakia in the background, hint of chocolate to my nose. But this smokes amazing and deep, rewarding, a very different English smoke from many others I know. Most have their differences, but this tastes quite different from anything fairly "typical". Perhaps it's the perfect balance of the latakia, red virginia and orientals… but something sets this blend apart a bit in my experience. Having smoked only something like 10 bowls, it has already become probably one of my top 5 smokes. And, as with all gl pease that I have tried, the quality of the tobacco and lack of chemical casings is obvious. An excellent, full bodied but smooth mixture, worth your try if you enjoy English. One note is beware of tamping or packing too much/tight. This blend really can use some dry time, and even with a light packing, tamping just a little too hard while smoking can make it pack down too tight.

This blend is unique, from a lot of prespectives. Starting with name itself, Gaslight. Such an interesting name for a tobacco, quite flamboyant as well, I might add. It has a simple, serene tin design, and a note by good ole G.L. saying that inside lies a mystery. And he isn't exactly wrong. When you pop up the tin, you'll find three covers to the tobacco, one with literature and two clean, and underneath is two crude brownie looking kakes, with a strong, dominant and almost commanding Latakia aroma. It is nearly at perfect moisture, but to really enjoy, 10-15 minutes of drying time is not bad. Just enough to make yourself a drink or so. The kake crumbles easily and packs well and tight (if you want). And once first lit, it is a journey to behold. Nothing like I have tried. It speaks Latakia forward and foremost. No doubt about it, and yet it isn't the incense, woody, sweet or creamy Latakia in other blends, but more powerful, explicit smoky Latakia. My first taste impression was camp fire. Or a meat smoking station. Strong, pungent, however in the most delightful way. take a few puffs, or more than a few and another taste hits. This time it is of black coffee seeds, the charred ones beyond dark roast.. That rich, welcoming aroma at a barista station in an old coffeeshop. And now the feeling of a camp fire is absolutely complete. It keeps a smooth, even burn and a unified, strong flavour profile throughout the bowl. Not a dull moment and not a spiky one. definitely one of the most intriguing and interesting blends I have had. I am not sure it'll make my rotation. But I certainly enjoy it and will savor every puff of it. It has generous amount of nicotine. Wouldn't call it high, but you feel the nicotine when you start the bowl. But of course your mileage may vary on that point. My recommendation is definitely try this at least once. And then see if you'll be drawn to the light, the gaslight

GL Pease gaslight simply put is an awesome blend. The tin note of this tobacco is a woodsy almost lighter fluid type smell. Now the tobacco is pressed in to two 1oz kakes. The tobacco straight from the tin is a bit on the moist side so I would highly recommend drying this out for a couple of hours. Ok now for the good stuff the tobacco was very easy to light and stayed lit pretty much until ash for me. The smoke of this blend really left me with a creaminess and was very enjoyable. The latakia is not very straight forward in this blend though but you know it is there. I think the orientals do a nice job of keeping the latakia at bay. The virgnias are most likely in my opinion responsible for providing that nice creamy smoke in this blend. Overall just another great blend with full flavor. GL pease does a nice job on their blends. So for all that look elsewhere for blends that meet the ranks of esoterica blends look no further then GL pease. I think GL pease blends may be better then Germaines and esoterica. So with gaslight its the girl next door that I am putting a ring on great stuff will be buying a lot more for the cellar.

At last I can try this GLPease blend! Greg is my favourite blender, and I seriously think that Caravan, Odyssey, Blackpoint, Abingdon, Maltese Falcon, Lagonda and especially Westminster are absolute masterpieces and at the absolute top as far as Latakia mixtures are concerned.

This one differs... if only for the presentation. Two square blocks, compact but still easy to slice or crumble. Yes, I tried it both sliced against the grain (as suggested) or crumbled.

This is a really powerful tobacco, don't approach it if you don't like Latakia or can't tolerate strength. It probably is the strongest Latakia blend after Nightcap in my experience (though much more tolerable than the clumsy and heavy handed Nightcap of recent years).

Packing is easy, just don't press it too much. It takes fire like a beauty, and smokes regularly from start to finish. Flavour-wise it is very constant and low-maintenance, thanks to its regular combustion and cool smoking qualities.

Big on Latakia, but soooo much different from other GLPease blends. This one tastes much more like some Cornell & Diehl's crumble cakes, and it reminds me a bit of Bill Bailey's Balkan Blend too (but luckily with more elegance). Why is that so? Because of a yeasty/nutty/earthy/cigar-like quality. No Burley or Kentucky are listed among the ingredients... and yet, I would swear there is at least a hint of them... or maybe it's just the processing?

Anyway, it is a very sturdy smoking experience from start to finish. Sturdy in mouthfeel, sturdy in nicotine. Do I like it? Sure I do... but I also feel it's a bit too much for my taste. My benchmarks are Caravan and Westminster, where the Oriental fragrance and subtlety are not drowned by the intensity. Here all "goes to 11", and at times it may be a but too intense. Maybe it will become gentler with time, but on rather fresh tin the Latakia and the earthy notes are overpowering, covering the Orientals and the Virginia sweetness. Still very fun and enjoyable (at least until the nicotine hits, so this might be recommended on a small bowl only), but not the best Greg has ever done. Don't misunderstand me: it's one of his greatest achievements, and he managed to do something different from all of his other blends, a really unique tobacco. But to love it you really have to crave for strong experiences. Me, I still prefer something a little less intense, although I will certainly keep some Gaslight around for occasional enjoyment: it's a great blend, but simply I can't see myself smoking 4 tins of this per months as I do with Greg's other Latakia offerings... just 1 per month will do!

2020 Update: I have opened a 6 years old tin, and it smells heavenly, with that unmistakeable sweet/fermented fruit/almost rotten note that is so typical of finely aged Latakia mixtures with a solid Virginia base. Smoking-wise, all these years have reduced the brutal attack and brought much more finesse. It still tends to be a bit overpowering (and nicotine heavy), and very bold: thick, creamy smoke, heavy Latakia, now it's a fist in a velvet glove. I still prefer Caravan, Odyssey, Abingdon and Westminster, but the age did a lot of good to this blend.