Tobaccos Mac Baren - Plumcake

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3047)	2013-10-08		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

A tasteful mixture with several flavors going on in the smoke. There's just enough Cyprian Latakia to add a slight smoky, woody, earthy note. The earthy, woody burley is lightly sweet without much of the nutty, molasses flavor often found in the leaf. It's as much toasted as anything else. The Virginias are mild, grassy, woody, lightly tart and tangy citrusy, and tangy dark fruit sweet, and are complimented by a touch of brown sugar from the black cavendish. There's some honey and toast from the Virginia cavendish in a support role. The sweet, lightly spicy rum topping mildly tones down the tobaccos. The nic-hit is mild. The strength is in the center of mid to medium, while the taste is medium. Some people claim this tingles your tongue, but I think that's a matter of individual body chemistry and/or poor smoking habits, e.g., puffing like a freight train. But, even with that, I do recommend a sipping pace for this blend as it does burn a little warm. Burns at a moderate pace with a clean, very consistent, mildly rich, complex taste. Requires few relights, and leaves little moisture in the bowl. Has a short lived, pleasant after taste and room note. Can be an all day smoke.

-JimInks

88 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Big Nick (74)	2009-01-06		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Plumcake is a real pain in the @$$, more specifically, a pain on the tongue. I'm really disappointed because I love the way it smells, I love the way it looks and I really love the taste, but its a Pitbull. It bites and it doesn't let go. As soon as the great flavors develop one more good puff and you're torched and I mean torched hard. The trick is to puff gently through the whole bowl, but I can't do that. The flavor is so good that inevitably I will hit it too hard and burn a hole through my tongue. With Plumcake patience is the master, and I don't have enough of it. Maybe one day when I'm old and tired I can master this stuff because really, it does smell and taste great. As for now I just don't have the patience and discipline required to enjoy Plumcake.

By all means, if you can drive 25mph in a 25mph zone, then Plumcake is for you. If you can drive 55mph on the freeway (stay out of the left lane), then Plumcake is for you. If you enjoy watching paint dry, Plumcake is right up your alley. But that's not me.

Original review above 1/6/09

Update 9/13/09, After reading a review from dk-piper stating that he always uses a charcoal active filter and thus has never suffered from Plumcakes notorious and crippling tongue bite, I gave it a try. Well, dk-piper is absolutely correct ! I just smoked a bowlful of Plumcake and for the first time ever I suffered NO tongue bite and was able to finish the bowl. Ah ya, it was sweet smokey and tasty. The draft was a little restricted and the strength was considerably milder due to the 9mm charcoal filter, but finally I can now enjoy the flavor of Plumcake !

Upgrade from 2 stars to 3 1/2, Thanks to dk-piper and Tobaccoreviews.com

58 people found this review helpful.

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

This is a famous blend. It is very unusual and powerful on the tongue and palate. A slow burning rate brings the best out in this tobacco. A fast burn is not so good.

New pipe smokers should look elsewhere until they are out of diapers. Veterans with leather tongues can smoke this stuff all day, I guess. As for me, a 30-year pipe smoker who has had this blend many times over the years, I'll smoke it in the evenings on occasion just for a change of pace.

Finally, despite the name, this blend does smell and taste like tobacco. And yes, it has an unusual plum flavoring that is subtle enough to keep the true pipe man satisfied.

55 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	matthieuduquette (12)	2014-01-27		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant

Plumcake is a unique latakia mixture that bridges the gaps between aromatic, english, and balkan mixtures very successfully and is best enjoyed slowly. The room note is a delight not often found in latakia mixtures.

In the tin. Plumcake has a wonderful bouquet that reminds me of a whiff of quality scotch. The latakia smokiness and bright rum spice notes play so well together that they are nearly inextricable as to where one ends and the other takes over.

In the pipe. This blend is great when sipped. Yet as many have mentioned. Will be harsh if you prefer to not take your time. There is no real trace of the rum casing while smoking. Though I feel it does give you the slightest sweetness on the back of your throat The latakia is mild but ever present. It is more in the category of a balkan style mixture in my opinion but the smokehouse note of the latakia is much more present than the usual balkan.

The basics for a good blend are all here. Perfect moisture level right out of the tin. Smokes cool and dry. Packs and lights easily with few to no relights. Only thing again. As with most balkanesque mixtures. Sip it slowly or it will not only be far less pleasing as far as taste but will also bite you ferociously. You want to stretch a bowl out for well over an hour. The ember should be small and constantly shifted and every draw should be as if on the verge of going out. Slow and steady here ladies and gents.

The room note is the key to this blend. It has the trademark richness and boldness of a latakia mixture but there is a definite top note here that is very sucrose-sweet. This is yet another experience you will miss if you smoke fast. This would perhaps be the most "tolerable" room note I've come across in a latakia mixture when it comes to non-smokers being present... If smoked slowly!

Plumcake is a blend that will really make you learn to appreciate sipping your pipe. Yet for most beginning and intermediate smokers the true complexity will likely be left unnoticed because of this very reason. As they do tend to be guzzlers.

Pipe Used: Rusticated strawberry bent basket pipe

Age When Smoked: 1-3 months

Purchased From: Sutliff Tobacco Company

Similar Blends: Dunhill Early Morning Pipe, McClelland Frog Morton Cellar, Peterson Irish Oak.

43 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	RoyOdhner (7)	2015-06-17		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Like anything else, when it comes to pipe smoking you have to decide what you really want out of the whole proposition. An experience akin to nekked bungy jumping? A sublime moment of Pipe Zen? Refinement and sophistication? Just a relaxing and pleasant bowl of tobacco? MacB Plumcake is going to give you the last of those options, and it will offer you nothing more than a pleasant smoke... and that's cool with me.

I've been smoking Plumcake for years - ever since 1989, when I discovered a tin of it in a small pipe shop in Abu Dhabi... not too far from the International Seaman's Club. (Or was that Dubai - I can never keep those two Emirites straight in my head). Back in those days we could smoke inside the skin of the ship, and the room note was a winner with my fellow squids. I've yet to meet a person who doesn't like the room note. The blend itself is rather unremarkable: Virginia, Burly, Latakia, MacB Cavenidsh, and a conservative sprinkling of rum to enhance a sorta plum-like topping.

I've smoked it in a bunch of pipes, and the only thing I can say is that it does better in a pipe with a large bowl - it allows the blend to open-up and reveal it's full magnificence. And its magnificence is in it's balance, because the different types of tobacco used in this blend compliment one another quite nicely and it becomes hard to discern one leaf over the other. The Virginia and Burley just blend into one another, and the Cavendish and Latakia go weaving in and out for the duration of the smoke. The rum and plum-like toppings enhance rather than drown-out the base tobaccos. Thus, you get a wonderful harmonizing of the different qualities you would expect from those individual leaves and toppings.

Pack it a bit looser than you might otherwise think it should be packed, gently char it, then gently light it, then gently sip on it. Do not cram it in there, do not take a blow torch to it, and do not puff on it like a freight train. Just gently sip on it. Snork it. Let the smoke roll around over your tongue just a bit. Take a big puff now and then. Puff slowly, and don't strain yourself in-order-to find any nuance. There isn't any. This blend's strength is to be found in its basic goodness, which will come to you on its own.

It's a basic smoke. On old-timer's smoke. A codger's smoke, conservative and satisfying. Is it a Codger Latakia blend along the lines of Walnut or Revelation, but with less Latakia? A Vabur with a pinch of Latakia? An aromatic that hasn't ruined the base tobacco with a ton of goopy flavorings? A light Balkan, Scottish, or English blend? Yes. Yes it is. It's in its own class, and if you're overly loyal to one genre or another you might not like it because it transcends traditional labels and gives you a blend that covers just about every base short of a Lakeland blend.

In the end, it's just a pipe tobacco. Nothing fancy or exotic, yet not really boring either. Slightly smokey, yet slightly sweet. A bit of nuttiness and toast-like flavor. Just a pleasant smoke with a nice room note - and if you're like me and that is all you generally want from a bowl of tobacco then Plumcake might just do the trick.

Pipe Used: A bunch of different ones over the years

Age When Smoked: Fresh to well-aged

Purchased From: Various Sources

Similar Blends: Nothing else that I can think of..

40 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tantric (321)	2005-03-21		Medium to Strong	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

A rather strong tobacco for a Mac Baren, Plumcake seems to be a crossover between the traditional Mixture and a navy flake, to a great extent due to its Jamaican rum topping. In any case, it is an example of the apparently endless Virginia-Burley-Cavendish variations common to many Mac Baren blends. This one also has some Latakia, which I have yet to identify amongst the rum and the dark fired Cavendish.

Personally, I find that the predominant flavour in Plumcake comes from the Burley, a tobacco that tends to absorb and enhance any added savouring agent. The Virginias are there all right, but again, they tend to be subdued by the stronger Cavendish leaf (probably made from Virginias as well, but with a bitter-sweet edge).

In my experience, this blend benefits from overnight airing, as it comes rather moist in the tin. A nice mixture of ribbon cut brown and reddish leaf, with some black strands, it should be packed rather loosely. You might find it slightly difficult to get it going, and should leave some time between the initial charring light and the smoking proper. Due to the high sugar contents (not only from the Virginias and the Cavendished leaf, but from the rum also), this blend can burn pretty hot, so it should be to your tongue's advantage if you take things slowly.

Plumcake's flavour is not one I particularly like, although there is enough tobacco taste to make it an enjoyable, if intermittent, smoking experience. The sweetness of the blend is present throughout the bowl, and there is also a hidden spiciness, an almost piquant peppery undertone (could it be the Syrian Latakia?), that mingles nicely with the natural taste of the tobacco.

If smoked properly, this blend can last a long time and it leaves a nice and rich natural sweetness in the palate; not being an aromatic proper, this aftertaste does not linger on, and the pipe can be easily cleaned, leaving virtually no trace of the rum and sugar. I hear this is a very popular Mac Baren, and rightly so. But withtin this vein, I much prefer Navy Mixture (oddly enough with no added rum). 03/05

22 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	fr_tom (393)	2013-09-19		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I am not the kind of guy who is likely to pick up a tin of something named "Plumcake" on a whim. I was complaining to my tobacconist about the bulk selection he had and he suggested Old Dark Fired which I liked a lot. The next time I went back, I asked him what he smoked, and he said he went through spells. Right now he was in a Plumcake spell. I picked up a tin.

The tin smells of fruit - figs maybe, and it reminds me a little of the pouch smell of And So To Bed.

I was pleasantly surprised by this blend. It is sweet and spicy with just enough latakia to barely notice. I got a lot of flavor and is a satisfying smoke that is a little different for me. There may have been a whiff of that rum in the flavor from time to time, but it was not a theme. I did not have issues with tongue bite, and it smoked well right out of the tin. The tin was a year old from the date on the back when I opened it. I will buy this again, just for a change of pace. I won't open another tin as soon as this one is gone. Solid 3 on the recommendation scale...

20 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	cajomu (80)	2014-03-23		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Mac Baren's Plumcake is one of my favorite tobaccos. As someone who smokes mostly VaPers but who also likes Latakia, I appreciate the combination of sweetness and smokiness that Plumcake delivers. While not a big fan of Burleys, in Plumcake its nuttiness is a perfect accompaniment to the other tobaccos. And, for me, that's what makes Plumcake unique, it delivers the best of all three types of tobacco in goodly measure and proportion. While supposedly flavored with rum, I don't detect it (truth be told, I've never tasted rum in any tobacco that claims to have it).

At the beginning of the bowl, the Virginias predominate and Plumcake can be quite sweet. As you progress through the bowl, the Latakia and finally the burleys come to the fore. However, the best qualities of all three are present at all times. The flavor also becomes increasing fruity so that the last few puffs are the best.

Be warned that Plumcake can bite if you puff too hard, but the main reason to smoke it slowly is to enjoy the variety and richness of the experience.

Plumcake contains just about the right moisture level as delivered (I dry mine out a little), is easy to pack and light and is relatively inexpensive if purchased in bulk.

Pipe Used: Various briars

Age When Smoked: Recently purchased

Purchased From: JR Cigar

16 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	StevieB (2081)	2016-02-13		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

Mac Baren - Plumcake.

Quite coarse ribbons, mostly medium brown, with a notable, but not strong, aromatic aroma. My moisture's good.

Once lit, which is easy, the flavour matches the tin-note: the rum lends a definite molasses sweetness, but doesn't monopolize the smoke; it gives a mild sweetness, yet hardly any alcoholic piquancy. The tobaccos feel quite calm, the Lat' doesn't hog the profile but adds just a touch of smokiness. The others work quite well together, playing fair, without any seeming too overt. It burns well enough, but sadly bites me.

Nicotine: below medium. Room-note: pretty nice.

Plumcake? Not the best, not the worst. Ergo, three stars:

Recommended.

Recommended.

Pipe Used: Erik Nording Hunting Pipe

Age When Smoked: 6 months

Purchased From: Spainish tobaconist

13 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Jdor (15)	2014-05-02		Medium	Mild	Medium	Tolerable

I loved this blend. It was my door to the english side of the force hehe. When I opened the tin I smelled the spicy orientals with a hidden aroma (i would say raisins or rhum, not sure cause it's very subtle). It tastes great and the latakia gives a nice finishing touch. It's an all day smoker, and burns cool. I had to re-light only once, which was nice too.

13 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	HabaneroHardy (403)	2018-02-28		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Unnoticeable

I bought a 100-gram tin so many years ago I cannot remember. It has to be well over ten years old and I opened it maybe three or four years ago. So old the paper inside the tin was yellow and the California Nazi tobacco warning was a sticker that was placed on the tin by the tobacconist. I googled the internet to see if I could see an example and cannot find an image. Apparently, their tin designs change more often than not. This says plumcake, navy blend, regular. Maybe due to it airing out so long from the open tin it smelled very mild with the typical Mac Baren aromatic smell. The loose tobacco in the tin had hardened into a cake somewhat. It smoked very mild with surprisingly no tongue bite. It is good and reminds me of ‘The Solent Mixture’.

Pipe Used: Peterson 307

Age When Smoked: 10+

Similar Blends: The Solent Mixture.

11 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	rap (9)	2018-04-10		Mild	Extremely Mild	Mild	Pleasant

I would like to preface this review by saying that I am a relatively new pipe smoker. Started my pipe smoking hobby on Jan 1, 2017 so I have a little over a year under my belt. I enjoy English blends primarily but I also enjoy good aromatics as well. I am by no means an expert on pipe tobacco but I am an expert on what I like. I really like MacBaren Plumcake. I primarily look for a tobacco blend that is created with good quality tobaccos, that has good flavor, some interesting spices, and behaves well in the bowl. They can be strong and robust, like Dunhill Nightcap, or a little more mild, like My Mixture 965. These are two of my favorites. I also enjoy a good VaPer, like Elizabethan Mixture. Hopefully this gives a useful perspective on my taste in tobacco and will be helpful in gaining insight from my review.

With that out of the way, MacBaren Plumbcake is nothing short of amazing. I think this may become one of my favorite, go to blends. I read some of the reviews before I purchased my 3.5oz tin. (which is an excellent value, by the way) so I was cautious of potential tongue bite. I heeded the advice of many reviews and sipped on this blend very slowly. I was richly rewarded with an awesome and flavorful, but mellow and relaxing smoking experience. No tongue bite whatsoever. A smallish size bowl, packed on the easy side, lasted me over an hour.

This is supposed to be an aromatic blend but this is nothing like any aromatic blend I have ever tasted. Far better, with real tobacco taste and no artificial flavorings to get in the way. I really detected no rum, either in the tin or on the palate. Mostly spicy notes mixed with sweet and a little bit of smoke from the latakia, which, too, is not really evident in the tin note. By the way, carefully noting the blend composition, you will see that this is Syria Latakia, not Cyprian, as is in most blends. My understanding is that Syria Latakia is much more scarce and perhaps that's why there is only a dash in this blend. However, what is in there is just perfect and adds just the right amount of dimension to make this such an enjoyable smoke. There are no flavors that are overpowering or "forward" in this blend. Everything works together in great harmony and what you are left with is a smooth, mellow and perfectly balanced flavor.

Upon opening the tin, it smelled to me like sweet, stewed tomatoes with a little spice. Perhaps some dark fruit (plum or raisin) and a ripe grassy smell as well. Really one of the most pleasant tin notes of any blend I have tried so far. The tobacco was tightly packed and was slightly on the moist side but not overly moist. I smoked it right out of the tin and it smoked fairly well with just a little more that average number of relights. Perhaps some drying time would remedy that. It smoke all the way to the bottom of the bowl with a very consistent flavor and left no moisture in the bottom of the bowl.

As I mentioned earlier, I really can't see how this is considered an aromatic. However, if you are an aromatic smoker and would like to try to transition into some good non aromatics, this would be a sure bet. If you don't like this, you probably won't like English blends. Conversely, if you love English blends but are looking for something on the mild side to add to your rotation, I think you will love this blend as well. The only caution would be, smoke it slowly and sip it gently to avoid tongue bite. I did not experience tongue bite but I assume this can be a bit bitey since there are so many comments in this regard for Mac Baren blends in general.

MacBaren Plumcake is an gem of a tobacco blend and I certainly will be buying more of this. Enjoy

Pipe Used: T. Christiano Metamorfosi

Age When Smoked: 1 month

Purchased From: Pipes and Cigars

10 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	PuffPuffLive (32)	2018-02-22		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Outside the HH line, I typically haven't been a fan of Mac Baren tobaccos. Admittedly, I haven't given them a fair evaluation. I'm a purist at heart, and I like clean smooth categories to put my tobacco's in.

This is one of MacB's typical "chophouse" tobacco's. It is the veritable melting-pot of cuts (ribbon, flake, cube) and tobaccos (Virginia, Cavendish, burley, latakia). It's hard to put this blend in a traditional genre, as it has semi-aromatic qualities, combined with a somewhat English-style backbone.

The tin note is phenominal. There is a citrus and vinegar component that reminds me of another brand’s Virginia tobaccos (hint...it also begins with an M), as well as a sweet honey and rum component. There is a slightly smoky note, but it barely registers as the typical latakia peat-smoke aroma. The tobacco seems perfect in terms of moisture, but has that sticky feel of a heavily cased blend.

This is an easy blend to pack, light, and smoke. I have experienced the tongue bite that others have mentioned, but it can be avoided with a slow cadence. The Virginia and aromatic flavors come through in the smoke, but the latakia component stays fairly hidden. The smoke is nutty and thick, which tells me there is plenty of burley mixed in.

All-in-all, I kind of enjoy this tobacco. It's one of those blends you can stuff in your pipe when you are looking for a smoke, not an "experience."

Pipe Used: Various briars

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

10 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-07-09		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

UPDATE 4/30/13

Got an ounce from someone who implored me to try an aged version from 2001. While my original review is probably too harsh, the essence of it is correct. Typical Mac Baren rollcake filled with too subtle flavors and what is there is simply too bland to consider. The aroma is nice but the flavor is just too fleeting. Not worth the additional trouble I'm told these blends require to extract something resembling taste.

I also received some Roll Cake from the same year. Can't wait to try it... yeah... really excited about it... lol.

ORIGINAL REVIEW

All aroma, no flavor!

After reading some of the other reviews, I'm wondering if this blend was mismarked in the bag. I got no tongue bite from it at all - of course, I tend to smoke carefully. I got a great room note. I got little to no flavor from this. No spice, no sweetness, no "zing" - just a bunch of hot air. Bad batch?

Occasionally I started to taste something about to happen but as I anticipated some sort of flavor burst, it subsided back into nothingness. This reminds me of my last days as a cigarette smoker years ago - no flavor, just a nicotine hit. Dull, dull, boring, boring, bland, BLAND! Not worth it when there are so many fine blends out there.

9 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Ahmad Othman (51)	2016-09-20		Mild to Medium	Medium to Strong	Medium to Full	Pleasant

From the tin opening I had a sensation that this will be a special tobacco. The cut is beautiful with a mix of ribbons and broken flakes. Components are well noticed and distinguished and the tin aroma is amazing. It packs quite easily and lights like a charm. And with the first puff you get all the flavour at once. You're greeted by a distinctive plum flavour similar to that in Royal yacht, but with smokiness coming from Latakia. Then there is that taste that keeps teasing you and makes you ponder about it. If you're familiar with rum you will recongise it in about the middle if the bowl. But if not, you will have a beautiful complement to the plum without knowing what it is exactly. It burns evenly and well to the end. Requires very few relights over a large bowl 1.5hrs+ and leaves no dottle in the bowl.

Pipe Used: Peterson Derry B27

Age When Smoked: Around 3 years

Purchased From: Akiki cigars in Beirut

Similar Blends: Dunhill - Royal Yacht.

8 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	doc'spipe (242)	2009-07-31		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

First I would like to say that the current Plumcake is not the same as what I remember from the late 1970s. There was a much stronger, and very appealing, tin aroma that was one of the main attractions for me. This always translated into the smoke as well, but less so with the current fare. Although a good smoke, the present incarnation pales by comparison. According to Mac Baren, they have not changed the recipe, but something sure has changed.

Very similar to Scottish Mixture but a bit more stout in strength and flavor - and that wonderful tin aroma and roomnote that makes Plumcake stand out from other Mac Baren offerings makes it a winner (although not as good as from tins of old). I think the "plum" in the description is meant to represent the Latakia present in the blend. I tasted the Latakia upon lighting and it remained very much in the background while smoking, However, it presented itself in a very nice, musty-pipey sort of way. Not like the typical Latakia taste so common to English mixtures. This ever present subtlety acted as a very nice "tease" that leaves you excitedly waiting for more. As a result, the Latakia presence is so different, yet subtle, that I am sure it would not offend (a good thing as I am not a fan of Latakia). It is truly used as a condiment here and not as a key player. It mixed exceptionally well with the light honey casing that I detect. I honestly could not taste any presence of Rum, but I am sure it added to the overall flavor as well. The Cavendish is very spicy tasting and provides for a nice tingle while exhaling the smoke through your nose.

My experience with this tinned sample (stamped 2008) was a good one. Not too moist, loose cut, packed and lit without incident, and burned to a light gray ash requiring no re-lights. By way of comparison to other Mac Baren offerings, in spite of the changes I detect in the current manufacture of this tobacco blend, I think it still has one of the nicest of all their tin aromas. It can bite if smoked too quickly and is best enjoyed with easy puffing. Letting it air dry in the tin with the lid off for a day or two helps with the bite problem. However, you can smoke it right out of the tin and if you take your time, you will be rewarded with a very tasty smoke. I wouldn't recommend this to beginning pipe smokers, however. I remember when I first smoked this over 30 years ago, my inexperience in the art of pipe smoking resulted in a hot, bitey smoke. Why did I keep coming back to it over the years? The tin aroma for starters, and it smelled fantastic when others smoked it. I was determined to get it right. With patience and perseverance, I believe I have. For those new to Plumcake, if you practice at it, I believe you will come to enjoy it as much as I have. With gentle puffing, the flavor really develops as you smoke through a bowl. No gurgle or moisture accumulation. Just a fine, gray ash is all that is left. Perhaps not the same Plumcake of old, but still very good indeed.

I am grateful for Mac Barren products being so readily available. The portions are generous and you can't beat their price! Plumcake is a solid, tasty, and dependable smoke!

UPDATE 1-23-10: I like Plumcake best with some age on it. Others have said that it loses something when not smoked fresh. True, its weaker, and the (newer) tin aroma does dissipate quite a bit over time, but what I have experienced is that aging brings out that subtle Latakia mustiness I commented on previous. Try it and see for yourself.

8 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	DenizBeck (323)	2017-11-28		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

A pleasant smoke! Got granted a generous sample of this, as I wasn't sure if it had too much Latakia in it for me (I only like it in very low doses) but Plumcake definetly is one of those Latakia containing blends I like, as it's only a hint of it in here.

Tin note is somewhat fruity, mildly alcohol-ish/rum-ish with some pepperiness, and I also get some of Mac Barens Honey-aroma and just the slightest hint of Latakia.

First few puffs reveal the Latakias presence, but then it takes a seasoning backseat! The rather mild rum-flavouring gives some sour-sweet spiciness and flatters the smoky, woody and slightly buttery Latakia undertone. The tobaccos have some decent toastiness to them. I get not much of the Burleys taste-wise, but Virginias and Latakia create a pleasant smoke, that's suported by some toasty-sweet Cavendish. I don't get any plum, but a certain fruitiness is present. Best to sipped slow or it'll taste like hot air. Leaves a pleasant spicy-sweet aftertaste.

I'd consider this a "Semi-Aromatic", you'll easily notice the flavouring, but it's well done, not overpowered and has a synergetic interplay with the tobaccos, which are also easily detecable. Pleasant spice is in interplay with the sour-sweet notes. Great mixture, 3/4 stars so far, I'll dig more into it and may up-rate it as it's rather a 3,5 star blend!

Pipe Used: Clays, Cobs

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	MJG (17)	2015-05-18		Medium	Medium	Medium	Tolerable

Leaf: Ribbon cut, mostly a medium to light brown with some dark ribbons and tiny little dark clumps scattered throughout. Moisture wasn't too bad, you could smoke it straight out of the tin, but sometimes Mac Baren tends to bite my tongue like a starving Hyena, so I give it 20 minutes to dry out.

Tin Aroma: I was expecting big things given the tin description. I did pick up a bit of the rum which was nice, the latakia was practically undetectable, but the virgina was there smelling fresh and sweet, but not overly so. The nice tobacco scent of the burley was a welcome change from the heavier Lat blends I have been huffing lately. The spiciness lent by the cavendish was also very nice. It smells like it should.

Taste: The Latakia that was nearly missing in the tin aroma was there straight away, it was at the front at the first light, but very quickly moved aside and spent most of the remainder of the smoke lingering in the background. The sweetness of the cavendish and freshness of the VA's takes over from there, but it is well balanced out by a pleasant spiciness, and the bitterness (for lack of a better word) of the Rum. The rum flavoring sticks around for most of the bowl and is actually quite tasty, but it never overpowers the smoke, it is only a light flavoring in my book. The burley is lightly nutty and full and helps keep everything tied together. The overall smoke is very rich and creamy, although not terribly 'strong' in flavor, it is tasty and smooth though. Towards the last portion of the bowl the Latakia returns and comes toward the front again where it finishes on a smokey high note, well supported by the sweetness that still remains. The rum grows weaker towards this point but never disappears completely.

Smokeability: With a few minutes drying time it was great, it packed well, lit easily, and stayed lit very well with only a bit of tamping and one relight. It billows sweet smelling smoke and burns cool enough to enjoy, although I get the feeling it would bite if you really puffed away hard. It burns down to a fairly fine white ash, and didn't leave any goopiness on my bowl or stem. Excellent Smokeabilty.

Summary: Sweet, smokey, rich and smooth, with a pleasant rum hint throughout. This is a very nice tobacco but not a world beater in my book. I wouldn't hesitate to buy it again if I saw it in front of me, but it isn't knocking off any of my favourites. A solid performer with a good taste profile and nice manners, Give it a try if you are curious, if the tin description sounds nice you will enjoy it, as it lives up to it's claims. I wish it tasted more like plum cake though, the name itself confuses me a little haha.

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Perdurabo (26)	2014-12-25		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

UPDATE: 4-18-2015

Plumcake does Ghost a Briar. The rum topping doesn't do the haunting, it's the Plum topping that's the culprit. I've recently discovered that Plumcake is better in a cob.( What's not? Right) Turning my briar that was dedicated to Plumcake into a Lakeland dedicate briar has revealed the spook. Ennerdale, 1792, and Bobs Chocolate flake all smoke with a plum essence left from Plumcake. Strange how the Kings of ghosting are haunted by a lesser spirit of the briar. I have to knock this down 2 stars because the plum flavoring that I now detect makes me nauseated at times.

ORIGINAL REVIEW 4-12-2014 Mac Baren Plumcake is a blend that continues to wow me every time I smoke it. There is not much I can add to the already 4Star ratings that are on this site. Although I think that I must add some techniques to smoking this blend. The first 20 some odd bowls I smoked of Plum Cake left my mouth in some pain. I began to pack the bowl to tight, which was a huge mistake. (With any Blend) I also had not discovered the beauty of what airing out tobacco can do for a blend. With that, I think a smaller bowl is what Plum Cake really needs. Aging PlumCake a couple of months in a jar, will help bring out the natural tobacco flavors. So, RECAP, Age In a jar, for a few months, smoke in a smaller pipe( which I believe brings out the Latakia), Air Plumcake out for at least 45 minutes, and gravity fill your bowl in three stages. Plum cake will reward you with a Smoky-Spicy-Sweet complex smoke for an Aromatic. Believe me I almost tossed this stuff a few times. Oh yea, don't forget the cardinal Mac Baren rule, SIP this sucker. Relax and just SIP.

Pipe Used: Small Basket Dublin from Italy

Age When Smoked: 6 months

Purchased From: B&M

Similar Blends: Sutlif Court of St James.

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	UncleGar (110)	2014-05-07		Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant

This one took me by surprise. I've smoked many a MacBaren and found many just versions of the others. Smoked blindly, I'd never have guessed this to be of the same brand. Aromatic? not by my definition. I bought this for the rum topping, yet had to search for it. (I am exceedingly fond of Pease's Mephisto and Barbary Coast, Vermont Pipes Wilke Rumcake, among others.) I hesitate to classify it as an English, but it is more so than Dunhill's Royal Yacht, probably my closest comparison to it. Some have compared it to MacBarens Navy Flake, I disagree. I really like NF, but to me, that is a honey cased burley-forward smoke. McClelland's Navy Flake is closer in spirit.

I'm not a pedant to latakia percentage as others are; what little there is, is indeed Syrian and used successfully as a condiment. To my tastes, Plumcake's defining characteristics are Virginia foremost, followed by cavendish, then burley. Rum, present in the tin note, blends in the smoke perhaps too well. I wish it were more noticable. Plums? Meh. Yeah, maybe. Don't buy it thinking it's a fruit salad aromatic. (I have yet to eat a fig and refuse to use fig aroma as a descriptor.)

The fine ribbons reminded me of rolling tobacco and consideration must be given to the pipe bowl size and loading for successful smoking, something which many here have yet to learn. For this reason, I'd recommend this for experienced smokers only. I find larger bowls loaded moderately (easy to overpack or underpack) and easily puffed not only do not bite but give a very rich flavor.

The downside of larger bowls of Plumcake (to me) is the nicotine, a potential plus to others. Royal Yacht it is not, fortunately, but I still have to quit mid-bowl. For this reason, I cannot comment on the last fractions in terms of taste or dottle.

Pros: Cost- twice the product (100g) for about the same money. Aroma- I find it pleasant, as does the distaff, now a consideration. Some others have remarked that it has the classic "pipe smell" that we recall from decades ago with fond memories. Not a stinker, this. I like it: not burning tires, not vanilla mango coconut, not campfire nor cigarette, but classic "pipe". Taste- I find it rich enough so that bite-inducing heavy puffing is unnecessary.

Cons: Nicotine is on the high side. Feel free to consider this a plus. Technique is fussier than many to achieve a good smoke, true of many MacBarens. Ergo the bite complaints repeatedly documented below. At least it growls first. A dedicated pipe is strongly suggested because it does leave a mark. Smoke it while it is fresh and pliable. Some blends rehydrate just fine. This doesn't, although I've never tried to rehydrate with rum, in all fairness. Smoke it up soon after opening. I find that I want to anyway.

Not yet a 4 star, but a regular in rotation

Update 2/2015: Bumped to 4 stars. I found a pipe that makes this sing, a bent group 3- sized Ceasre blast. Also upgraded to a a favorite. Oddly, both the pipe and tin of this perfect smoke were located in my car, which means the tin had been open there since May of 2014, so scratch the comment on smoking it up once opened. A Michigan summer did not dry it out nor harm it. Go figure. And kudos to MacBaren round tins for sealing qualities.

Pipe Used: Larger bowled Peterson bent, dedicated

Age When Smoked: 2 years.

Purchased From: Liquor store surprisingly well stocked with cigars and pipe tobacco

Similar Blends: Dunhill Royal Yacht, McClelland Navy Cavendish.

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	BigNick (59)	2014-03-29		Medium to Strong	Medium to Strong	Very Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

What a blend! A mix of English and aromatic in the most simplistic of ways. Sweet and tangy plumb with a slight smoky kick...the smoke is amazing. There is one downside however; the clean up. It makes a mess out of a pipe. One will require a plethora of pipe cleaners after a smoke, it gets gooey quick. Apart from that the tobacco is wonderful.

Pipe Used: Millard, Butz Choquin bistro

Age When Smoked: 1month

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	CnS Pipes (40)	2018-06-21		Medium to Strong	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I could absolutely write out a bio dedicated to Mac Baren's Plumcake in the fact that the method of blending the tobaccos alone is in its very own topic all the way to the use of Syrian latakia and yes yes yes Mac Baren really uses 100% Syrian latakia please do not buy in to any rumors that say otherwise. This pipe tobacco blend is one of the most epic and finest mixtures they make and has earned above and beyond its place in the hall of fame when it comes to pipe tobaccos for many reasons, it taste the same today as it did when it first came out, I say "amazing" and very impressive as this stands completely alone and does not fall in the category of aromatic and does not fall in as English, Plumcake is a Danish creation that is classified by Mac Baren as Navy and the room note is like a sweet cigar that has hints of a campfire and candy like spice this stuff just blows my mind. Lets talk the nicotine level it's absolutely perfect, this blend is not mellow in it and is not to strong but it is there and this can put a knot in your throat of your not use to it so puff slowly. Plumcake does not bite and is very smooth and had depth and character to it, respect this pipe tobacco and smoke it like a gentleman and it will give you a smoke like know other. The natural taste of tobacco is there and the Virginia in this just shines so well, it has a awesome tang to it that I love so much, its bold and earthy delivering a smooth cool smoke that is rounded very well by the burley. In the background is the rum and the rum is there, its that sweet stuff on the back of your tounge, there is just enough Cavendish to bring this blend together and hold the sweetness in and allow the rum to work. The spice that comes through is what holds the weight in this and as you smoke down the bowl it continues to develop keeping this blend very interesting and always changing but stays consistent in the design of the blend. The high quality tobaccos all play in harmony and work to bring you a taste of what good old school pipe tobacco would of tasted like 100 years ago before you board a sailing ship from port. Because this contains Syrian latakia the campfire effect is not there but the Smokey effect with a light spice is there from the latakia because Syrian latakia is smoother and sweeter then its counter part and provides a very nice background in its own respect to high quality latakia. Plumcake was not designed to be a latakia bomb but as A1 is to a steak while being grilled on the BBQ, its just a beautiful thing and it all work together for a good smoke. One challenge with this blend is finding the perfect pipe for it and I have smoked this in so many pipes, I have found the perfect pipe and would highly recommend Missouri Meerschaum's Marcus corn cob this pipe will give you a great smoke with a perfect pack and good draw all the way down, it will allow you to taste Plumcake in all its greatness and stays cool, give it a go you will not be disappointed as if you have never smoked Plumcake go get a can what the heck are you waiting for? I highly recommend this Grade A pipe tobacco blend its everything a pipe tobacco should be and some. Plumcake is ready to smoke right out of the tin amd you will be greeted by a unique smell of a sweet tobacco with a hint of rum and latakia that will keep your nose in the tin for a short while because its that interesting. Sweet, Spicy, Tangy and Smokey with nothing but tobacco to taste its all that and more. Thanks for reading my review, I hope it encourages you to want to sample this fine blend, it is great for the well seasoned pipe smoker and for the beginner so as long as you respect it and smoke it slow amd after you have practiced for awhile with other blends so you don't miss the taste it has to offer, Plumcake is the Pandora's box of taste but I do encourage new pipe smokers to it, just realize its alittle on the strong side but dang its good wow!!! God bless all you fellow pipe smokers and God bless America, support your American tobacco farmers and make sure to stand for your rights to smoke tobacco freely without regulations and outrageous taxes trying to put tobacco out of business and FORCE smokers to quit. Bye for now and take care...

Pipe Used: Peterson CnS Pipes Corn Cob

Age When Smoked: 39

Purchased From: cigarinternational.com

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	PadrePipe (2)	2017-11-10		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

I am neither a newby nor a leather-tongued grizzly veteran. I got this hoping for a complex smoke, with some fruitiness. The tin note I found extremely strong. I smelled vinegar and something akin to rotted fruit. My wife, interestingly enough said it smelled milder to her than some of my other tobaccos. The tobacco itself is dominated by bright orange to yellow ribbons with the black cavendish sprinkled liberally about. It is easy to light and stays lit. I don't experience tongue-bite, but I do detect a lingering spicyness on my tongue and roof of my mouth. It reminds me a bit of a VaPer, with the Per being on the spicy side. It does have a fullness to the taste, but it isn't as complex as I expected. I'm going to hang onto it for when I feel like something spicy that isn't latakia or perique heavy.

Pipe Used: Ropp Rustic Bent Brandy

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2017-01-31		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

PLUMCAKE -- Not only for christmas.

Plum cake is a traditional English fruit cake with raisins and spices (clove, mace, nutmeg, cinnamon, sometimes ginger and others) as well as dark (spiced) rum, baked / cooked and ate around christmas time. And yes, there are no plums in it, because in the old times plum refered to raisins.

The taste of this plum cake gave name and maybe birth to the Mac Baren Plumcake tobacco.

And indeed, smoked carefully and slowly in a cautiously packed pipe (best without a filter), there is a wonderful deep sweet and spicy taste, well rounded with dark-chocolatey notes in the background. During the last third of the bowl there are also some musty and earthy undertones. There is a hint of a subtle peppery note as well, almost as if the blend would contain perique (but it does not -- sadly IMHO).

A very satisfying smoke, if you want something sweet and aromatic without relying on a modern black cavendish high aromatic chemical bomb.

And yes, there is no plum aroma in this tobacco. The aroma is indeed spices and (spiced) dark rum, merged masterfully into a melange of the aromas and the blend of the different tobaccos. All is combined perfectly together, no single ingredient is detectable of it's own (esp. not the Latakia), everything plays it's part in the orchestra to present a harmonious, full but not heavy composition -- "the whole being more than the sum of its parts" is true here.

German Government states that 10mg of "RUM JAMAICA VR 75% Vol" are used for 1000mg of tobacco. So, it is real rum (not some aroma out of the can) that merges with the tobacco juices to give Plumcake this great aroma.

And no, this is not an English Mixture, it is clearly a traditional Danish blend (a classical aromatic of the old times) at it's best.

A tobacco for the holiday season but also beyond. Like gingerbreads from Nuremberg (Germany) should be eaten all year long, this tobacce should be smoked with joy all year long. Of course, around christmas it is just a tat more fullfilling.

Pipe Used: Briars without filters, Falcon

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: local B&M

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	brashboy (84)	2016-03-17		Medium to Strong	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

Let's get the BITE discussion out of the way first. Reading reviews here, Plumcake would seem to be about a 3.0 to 3.3 blend... IF the flavoring did not give so many people tongue bite. Like a lot of Mac Baren blends, PC can bite. For some it will bite only if pushed, but it bites others no matter how they puff (although 9mm charcoal filters tame it easily). And a certain cohort don't find it bitey at all. This is a chemical sensitivity issue, neither more or less. I smoked a nearly 5-yr. old tin (thanks, Pipestud) and found it will bite a bit if pushed and also found that three bowls in a row, even smoking gently, yields tongue bite. I'm guessing a fresh tin would eat me up, but I don't intend to try one. This tin has been an occasional smoke for me, so the bite has not been an issue. For those who say PC does not age well, I disagree; the old tin I have is lovely and refined; I would smoke another if I had it. I also tried it in my Vauen pipe reserved for English blends with a charcoal filter, which eliminated any trace of bite, but it did not taste as rich or full, either.

So don't necessarily be put off by the bite horror stories here -- UNLESS you have found that Mac Baren blends bite you, in which case PC almost certainly will, also. What does MB use that bites so damn many people? Would someone ask this question of Per Jensen at the next pipe show? And if you are prone to chemical sensitivity and find that a lot of aromatics bite, then the odds also are not with you; better to buy an ounce of Plumcake and try it, or (better yet) ask for a free PC sample with your next tobacco order. I tried fresh PC decades ago and found it scalding, with the result that I have no idea how it t-a-s-t-e-d. Age definitely tames this beast.

I did not really taste or scent the plum flavor in this aged tin. I think the aging done done away with it. But I noticed the rum and like it. The tin note is a light and lively English and the room note is pleasant. Strength is medium to full, easily, and the taste is pretty full, with lots of depth. The description does not list any Turkish leaf, but it sure tastes like it. So I assume that the slightly sweet and sour taste that I love in this tin is the aged Virginia with a light silking of Latakia overlaid. It reminded a bit of Davidoff Royalty, though stronger and more rummy.

For the price ($13.50 for 100 g as I write), I'm giving Plumcake 4 stars. This blend has been around since the 1950s and has been a best seller here and in Europe since. Keep this in mind when you read someone trashing it. It's doing something right.

Pipe Used: Preben Holm

Age When Smoked: 5 years

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SmokeDawg (82)	2014-12-12		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

So I opened the tin.. No Plums?! No Cake?! what the?... Joking. However it's "Navy" and "Rum" I guess that third smell I can't put my finger on is "plum" . So '"Rum-Plumb" no wonder this is unique.

I figure I'm the last piper on the tobacco planet not to have tried this classic blend but incase I'm not heres what I found in this tin. I've been locking and loading it like a chain smoker the last couple of days so heres my review.

I will for-go the tin smells, light up, etc... and get to the bottom line.

ZERO tongue bite. Yes. I said ZERO. After all the tongue bite reviews from fellow pipers I expected something to bite me but NEVER did. I even stomped the gas pedal to test it when it would... NEVER DID. However It does leave a bit of a film in the mouth.

I can tell you two reasons for the PC tongue bite is: 1. All the yellow Virginias. Im surprised how much this blend has. It's mainly Va's with a small speckling of Cavendish and Latakia, which of the latter I hardly smelled or tasted. 2. The loose cut of the bacca.

I love the loose cut by the way. You can pinch and stuff this tasty rum-plum treat quickly. This blend reminds me of a loose cut MacBaren Navy flake. Picture an English blend that borders on a Va blend that is loose cut and has the fragrance and taste of Rum. Sounds good? It is. I highly recommend this blend as too date I cannot find any fault with it. It's an all day, all the time smoke for this leathered tongue Smoke Dawg! Smoke it up!

Pipe Used: Peterson XL305

Age When Smoked: Aug 2014

Purchased From: jr cigars

Similar Blends: If Peterson's Sherlock Holmes and MacBarens Navy Flake would have a love child.. There you go..

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	TallPuffO'Burley (633)	2014-06-30		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I am kind of still up in the air about this one even after smoking 100 grams of this over a year and a half's time. I used many different pipes and got many different results, but I found it to be the best in my Meers.

To start with, I thought the tin note on this was terrible. It kind of reminded me of Copenhagen snuff. At light up, I did get a bit of the plummy topping, but it was most apparent at the beginning. The latakia is no doubt there, but plays the perfect role as a condiment in this. I find that to be a good as I am not a big fan of Latakia with toppings. I think the burley presence was strong throughout the smoke and I really didn't detect the Virginia until about the halfway point, but then they chimed in with that light hay sweetness that I would expect.

It is a tough one to rate, but I think that I do recommend this and perhaps more heavily to the beginner looking to try Latakia. I am not sure a seasoned lat lover will like this as anything more than a change of pace smoke, but I did enjoy it and I also like to puff on my Odyssey and Penzance from time to time. One thing about this blend is that it is pretty unique and thus it is hard to really compare to other similar blends, so I am going with three stars.

Pipe Used: Meerschaum was best for me

Purchased From: local B & M

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Kraft1994 (54)	2014-02-10		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Overall I'd have to say that plum cake is the best Mac baren has to offer. Though that's not saying much this is actually a surprisingly pleasant smoke. Id hardly call it an English blend but the Latakia is noticeable. Its more of an attempt at Bell's Three Nuns which is my absolute favorite Va/Per blend. In Plum Cake the burley takes the forefront. All the Latakia adds is a touch of smokey spice which complements the plum/rum casing. However the casing bring with it the Mac baren tongue bite curse. I don't understand why they use Latakia and a casing to achieve a spice and plum flavor when they could just use perique. I guess Mac baren just feels all blends need to be cased to achieve the perfect level of tongue bite.... however it is an honest effort but it just falls short of success. To me Mac baren will always be just one step above OTC tobaccos. So if, God forbid, I ever run out of tobacco (very unlikely) and I'm a little strapped for cash, I'll swing down to my tobacconist and pick up a tin of this.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	dk-piper (25)	2009-08-24		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

I love it! Case closed. Lit up, it really tastes like a sweet rumcake. can't get enough. As mentioned before, very well balanced blend. Doesn't get boring till the end.

i recommend you to use a pipe with activated carbon-filter to avoid tongue bite! ...just a conclusion i came to, because i only use filter-pipes and i've never experienced any tongue-bite yet. DO IT!!!

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	FilipPruncu (89)	2020-12-18		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Short intro (skip if you’re not interested):

This is a classic. I know that it’s not the same tobacco as the one that was made with syrian latakia, and it definitely isn’t the one which I had the honor to smoke as my first pipe tobacco: an 80s sealed tin.

This is the tobacco that made me fall in love with pipe smoking, the first tobacco I’ve smoked and still one of my favorites. I received it back in 2017 as a gift from my godfather and I still remember the experience. Even though I was smoking from a cheap Angelo pipe (which I still smoke from and curiously, smokes great) and even thought it did bite a lot at first, this is the tobacco that actually taught me how to smoke gently, enjoying it.

This will be like revisiting a very old and very dear friend, and I’ve seen that the score is 2.9 here, which I think is too small for this classic blend. This is a blend which should have at least 3, or 3.1, but that’s just me and it’s a personal opinion.

Right now I’ll review two tins, one from June 2017 which I started smoking in 2018 (not the 80s tin!!) and then cellared it until October 2020 and one from September 2018 which I started smoking in October 2020.

The old tin (from June 2017)

I don’t remember the first tin note, when I opened it back in 2018, but the “jar note” (after opening it in October 2020) delivers a lot of dark fruit, stronger than the new tin. Very, very interesting smell, rum notes, plums, dark fruit, cider and fermented apples but no latakia, rather some dark fired kentucky.

Very good moisture. The cut is a short-medium ribbon. There are black leaves. It’s much darker in color than the new tin. It has a lot of brown leaves, very few dark gold leaves, and of course black leaves which should be the cavendish and the latakia.

And now, the taste.... ! It’s bready virginia with some hay. This one actually has plum taste and a little rum, just a little, and a lot of dark fruit. Very good and sweet and it doesn’t bite at all.

The latakia is not very noticeable in this one, I think the virginia and the black cavendish and the burley are more pronounced, even though you don’t feel the burley, it’s like a virginia with black cavendish, some topping and a little sweet latakia.

This is more like a virginia forward tobacco. Bready and sweet with a topping. I don’t know, it has some blueberry or some forest berries taste.

This one reminds me of Robert McConnell’s Scottish Flake but this wouldn’t be so peppery, this is smoother.

Comparing this with the new tin, the latter is more balanced. You can actually feel the latakia in that one, but I personally can’t feel the latakia here, but the casing is very good.

Pleasant room note. For the strength I’d say it’s mild to medium, and the flavoring is also mild to medium. And the taste I would say it’s medium.

This tastes like a classy, old school tobacco. It’s quality. It does taste like tobacco, and the topping/casing is good quality.

Burns quite bad. It goes off too much and you have to relight it too many times

Final conclusion. The virginia is in the front, sweet, bready, hay-like and with a topping that resembles some dark fruits, blueberry and maybe some Jamaican rum. It reminds me of Appleton 12. It also has some plum notes.

The new tin (from 2018)

Tin note: Some dark fruit, a bit of latakia. It’s weird that it doesn’t have a lot of tin note this one, though I remember Plumcake had quite a tin note.

So this not really a ribbon. It has some ribbons, but it’s more like a broken flake, which I’m totally surprised because I really don’t remember Plumcake being or ever having broken flake cut. But anyway, large cut along with quite long ribbons of tobacco.

The tobacco is dark. You can see black leaves which can be the latakia and black cavendish, some brown leaves which should be the burley, and some gold and dark gold leaves which should be the fully ripe virginia.

Moisture level is very good.

I let this one sit to dry for 5-10 minutes. Delicious! This is spicy and it might burn you on the tongue like mostly Mac Baren virginias will but you already taste rum. Yes, it has rum taste, rum casing there. This is spicy and sweet and smoky. So yeah, even if it says it has little latakia you can feel it. This is what I would call aromatic english or semi-aromatic because it still gives you the latakia taste.

Very very nice when retrohaling, it has some peppery, spicy and floral notes. It doesn’t bite once you get used to it and have a decent pace and learn draw better, but it will be troublesome for some beginners.

The virginia is definitely there with some hay notes, dark fruit notes, very nice blended, goes very well with the latakia.

The smoke is thick. It burns evenly and it burns great. It does get the pipe a bit hot so just sip this one slowly and enjoy it, even if it tastes so good that you just want to puff and puff and puff.

I must say this is not very different from the old tin, the differences from the 80s smoke which I had which was a gift as a first tobacco when I first started smoking. That one was very powerful in taste, in everything. It did bite a lot but I guess it was my fault as well because I was a beginner but this one is milder in strength and taste than the 80s tin but still very very pleasing.

I don’t know but this one is very much into dried fruit, a little honey taste, and just a little citrus. There’s latakia in there, there’s some rum. As you smoke, all these just combine, they come and go and they come again. It’s crazy, it’s amazing, I mean this is a favorite. I would smoke this every day. Maybe not an all day smoke, but every day I would smoke it.

It needs quite some relights, so that’s a minus. Doesn’t really have a taste of plums, more like blueberries and a very very pleasant room note.

I think this blend is unique in taste and in profile and in just about everything. It’s unique, and it’s legendary and it deserves a better rating in my opinion.

Since it is cased or topped with rum, we could compare this with navy rum. If other blends with rum flavor taste like a Captain Morgan rum, than Plumcake is a straight in your face navy rum, hard and spicy and sweet and like it was high in alcohol proof that would knock you up, it would be ‘for real sailors’.

I’m not sure about the strength, I would say mild to medium or even medium. Flavoring would be mild to medium or medium. The taste medium to full. The room note I would say pleasant, maybe even very pleasant.

As you keep smoking the citrus notes go down and gives you more sweetness.

Here is a tip: After you get past half of the bowl, let the tobacco stay in the pipe for about an hour and then light it up again. It will give you some very, very sweet notes, some latakia notes which are stronger than at first and it won’t bite. Enjoy!

An aromatic english with dark fruit and plum taste. The virginia is in the front, and there’s a little earthiness of the burley. The latakia is there as well.

It reminds me of a Jamaican rum. A very sweet rum, not a spicy navy rum.

What an excelent smoke! What a wonderful taste! Unique! And the smell is very very good, very pleasant. It’s a real gentleman’s tobacco.

Sometimes there’s a little honey taste as well. And there is some cider taste, like fermented apples.

Rum, plum, fermented apples, cider, honey, sweet virginia, decent burley, a good latakia.

Burns very well. Tends to get hot.

FAVORITE AND HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Age When Smoked: 3 years

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Rustedrailsmokes (293)	2018-08-13		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Plum Cake had been on my "to-try" list as I really enjoy Rum and have been working my through some Navy Flakes and Mixtures.

I received a small bag of Plum Cake in my TinSociety box as one of the "Aromatics". Like others have mentioned this is NOT one of the "over-the-top" aromatics (which I do enjoy from time to time).

my sample was quite dry by the time I tried it, so I'm not sure what the normal moisture level is from a new tin. I loaded up one of my Canadians and sipped based on the warnings of tongue bite.

I got the taste of a good English with some good smokiness from the Syrian Latakia complimented with a nice Rum topnote. I could see this joining Pembroke and Bagpipers Dream in my "Boozy" rotation easily.

It smoked without a relight and no trouble at all. No goop at the end. A winner

Pipe Used: Canadians

Age When Smoked: Unknown

Purchased From: TinSociety.com Box

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	L'Italiano (233)	2018-04-21		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Tolerable

Oh yes, this is a perfect Navy Blend, a navy mixture of the past. Here you can taste the Jamaica Rum that dominates, uncontested, the mixture. Latakia has really a bit part, but you can taste the smoky Syrian aroma in the background. Probably there is no more than 5% of Latakia. Virginia and Burley are perfectly mixed and dosed. Black Cavendish is produced mainly with Burley to which sugar and flavors are added, but it doesn’t rock the boat. Rum is clearly leading.

Little advice among the navy blends: if you prefer a sweet taste where you can savor Virginia and the sugary nuances prevail, then you have to choose Mac Baren Navy Flake; if you are looking for a harmonious taste with the right balance of elements, with the right dose of rum, where Latakia is always leading, then you have to choose Samuel Gawith Navy Flake; but if you like the real taste of rum, the navy blend of the past, then choose Mac Baren Plumcake. In my opinion this is the blend that most faithfully reflects the “navy blend” of the past. A noble navy mixture with a hint of Latakia. In my personal rating system (from 1 to 10) my score is more than 8 and three stars.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tom Bombadill (121)	2018-04-13		Medium	Medium	Medium	Very Pleasant

It took me a long time to smoke through this tin, and a long time to figure out what I wanted to say about it. My favorites are English/latakias which I like in the morning. Aromatics I like at night. Also, I enjoy a non-sweet-tobacco lovers aromatics (NSTLA). A NTSLA is an old school aro that doesn't have candy flavor. Plum Cake didn't fit into any of these categories. When I opened the tin, the latakia aroma really stood out but it was hard to describe the other pungent aromas. I'm not quite sure it was plum and I couldn't identify rum. Definitely not a candy-aromatic. Later I rememebred I've had great success with airing out MacBaren aromatics so I gave that a try. I put several bowls worth on a plate and let it sit out for several days. (I had no problems with tongue bite.) After that Plumcake became very enjoyable and I'd smoke it again. Other reviewers can better identify the tobacco tastes in the blend but for me Plumcake tasted most like a latakia/Oriental blend and not an aromatic at all. Definitely will smoke again. And no tongue bite after the air-out. Bought 08/04/14. Opened -7/01/16. Finished on Good Friday 03/30/18. Definitely NOT FOR THE NEW SMOKER!

Pipe Used: Peterson, Kaywoodie, Grabow

Age When Smoked: 2 years plus

Purchased From: Icannanotremember

Similar Blends: Hard to say.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SkySoldier (9)	2018-01-14		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Plumcake tastes a lot like an English blend with a helpful dose of rum. Like most Mac Baren blends it must be smoked with care or will give you tongue bite. In a cheap Meerschaum it burned my tongue pretty bad, in my more expensive IMP Meerschaum my tongue felt literally like I had not smoked the day before. As with most aromatic pipe tobaccos remember to smoke with a good cadence, pack it well, use a good pipe, and drying it a bit before smoking it doesn't hurt either. Overall this is a good blend and I recommend it.

Pipe Used: IMP Meerschaum

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: SmokingPipes.com

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	MrHooligan (2)	2017-10-22		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I have only been partaking in pipe tobaccos since January of this year so please bear that in mind as well as this is my first review here. After reading most of the over 200 reviews here i felt the need to try this for myself. The obvious seems to be covered above and by many whom have already reviewed this here so i will get straight to my impressions. Tin note is welcoming in the sense one wants to find out how it tastes. Packing and prelight was simple and straight forward. One can definitely taste the latakia but its not overwhelming by any means, more so enough you know its presence but not to over power the other tobaccos. What i found interesting is the cavendish that adds a sweetness to the whole experience. For someone who smokes Aromatics this would be an ideal transition to non Aromatic tobaccos and definitely opened the door for me to many other blends.The burleys, virginias, cavendish, and latakia all were present and none seemed to overpower the others which made for a delightful experience for me. As for the tongue bite issue many have spoke of i found a few things i thought to share to help limit it. First, cadence. Slow down. It helps a lot. Second, and this may be my tin being a little too moist, let it dry for 15 to 30 minutes prior to loading and lighting. Third, and finally, if the other two dont work, use a filter. I have smoked it with and without, prefer without, and the filter can curb a good bit of the dreaded bite. The filter does also take away a good bit of flavor for me hence i dont use them whilst smoking plumcake anymore. This is easily an all day smoke. At least for me. It also has an acceptable room note so you wont run anyone away.Definitely a must try for Aromatic smokers looking for something more or for anyone looking to try a latakia blend that is not latakia heavy. I like it and intend to keep some around as it hits quite a few marks for me right now. Cheers!

Pipe Used: Country Gentleman Mark Twain Patriot General Cobs

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Tobaccopipes.com

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	TigerSoul (5)	2016-08-03		Medium	Strong	Full	Pleasant

Plumcake remains one of my favorites of all-time. We would send tins of it to my dad's youngest brother when he was serving in the infantry in Vietnam, so it also holds a certain 'nostalgic' appeal for me. But it is one of the most layered tobaccos out there, possessing a considerable amount of flavor from start to finish, producing a pleasant room note and, yes, a bit of tongue bite (but then again, most tobaccos have at least a bit of tongue bite, let's be honest!). Open a tin of this and you won't be able to resist. Not an 'everyday' smoke, indeed, so sit back, relax and don't push it.

Pipe Used: Comoy's 337 (estate)

Age When Smoked: Fresh out of the tin

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

Similar Blends: Similar to nothing else I've ever tried!.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ringo (15)	2016-06-16		Mild	Mild	Mild	Pleasant

I love it and I did not expect that. The tobacco does not smell very nice in the tin, as it is a mix a fruit aroma with tobacco and latakia, that does not pair very well in my opinion. From the first light the latakia is dominant but this is is a very bright and light taste, that’s brings to mind olibanum scent, it is not the musty leather type latakia which can be found in Balcans and other types of latakia tobacco. After a few puffs the latakia moves in the background giving the feeling that you smoke Orientals, lets say. Then the fruit becomes more evident tasting like apricot or plum but this is not artificial it is very nice, in line with the tobaccl taste. After several puffs the fruit also moves in the background, while latakia can be barely traced. Then is the turn of Virginia for a few puffs before starting competing with burley which finally dominates to a large extend. The burley in terms of taste reminds me aged burley from Solani with that sweet nutty taste but lighter in nicotine kick. If you leave the pipe for a while to cool down then the first puffs again will have more latakia and it seems that as many times you relight the pipe you will experience the same cycle but at a lower intensity. This is a sweet smoke but not overwhelmingly sweet or aromatised it is difficult to say that this is an aromatic because it is very different from the rest. In any case this is an aromatic that you can taste the tobacco being able to say every moment hmm now I smoke sweet Virginia, now I smoke burley and so on. This is European style taking characteristics from Danish and Dutch aromatics I really like this tobacco, but in my experience please do not try it in small bowls since it tends to byte in small bowls and you will not be able to taste it. I smoke it with carbon filter, and I have not experienced serious byte, maybe a tiny one if pushed. It does not byte like cream vanilla or Scottish mixture if you know what I mean. Taste and smoking is very personal but I have to recommend that one, as a really good and special smoke, that I like it in the mornings, in the evenings in the nights, usually this is not the case for me with aromatic tobaccos.

Age When Smoked: 1 year

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	WmZiggy (81)	2015-11-15		Medium to Strong	Medium to Strong	Full	Pleasant

My bias first. MB uses the same base Cavendish in many of their blends giving a similar taste, but unique to MB, in those blends that have it. Plumcake has it and I like it. That said, MB then blends additional taste profiles using different condiment tobaccos, top dressings, and cuts. I like their rough cut or broken cakes, spun and flake blends. Plumcake is, as the name implies a broken cake. I also have found that MB tobaccos that have aged in the tin with the vacuum broken so they have dried some smoke and taste better. Another alternative, if the tin is new, is to pack your pipe and let it sit overnight. Plumcake handles easier if it is drier.

Now, as other reviewers have noted PC can bite the tongue, especially if wet from a new tin. Even dry, it needs to be sipped - puffed slowly. I think too it does better in a larger pipe. If sipped, it rewards with a wonderful sweet and sour taste. It is plummy to the taste with a spicy counter taste. The combination of the Rum, Virginia, Burley, and MB Cavendish pressed into a Navy cake (what the sailors of old did with their allotment of tobacco on long voyages) marries to create its unique taste profile. My tin is 5 years old and counting (ok, my larder is large enough so I can age blends w/o going on a diet) and in the tin you can smell the sweet and sour aroma. The blend is predominantly dark brown and red leaf with a salting of black tobacco, perhaps perique ( it could also be steamed or blackened Cavendish).

If you like VA/Per or Navy cakes, and you sip this, it will reward you and is worth the effort. Remember those old sailors were a tough breed who smoked their pipes with leather tongues often in the wind. They wanted a big taste experience and PC provides it. Perhaps not for the novice, but I find it a rewarding blend as a challenge to sip, go slow, and as a change of pace from other blends. I am giving this 3 Stars since it can be difficult and is a change of pace blend for me.

Pipe Used: Barling #5 or 6 Apple sandblast.

Age When Smoked: 5+ years

Purchased From: Iwan Ries

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	drs57 (2)	2014-12-07		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

I approached this blend with some trepidation as I don't find typical aromatics to be very enjoyable. They sometimes leave my mouth feeling coated and numb. However, Plumcake is a delightful smoke. The Latakia must be what causes the abundance of smoke which I enjoy. I do taste the burley and cavendish but they are in the background. The aroma from the tin is rummy/plummy but not strong. I did a side by side scent comparison with Esoterica's Margate and could really notice the Plum/Rum that way. In terms of moisture, it was just right for me. I can pack a bowl, light it once and smoke it to the end. I suppose I could get the legendary MacBaren tongue bite if I puffed like crazy but I just did my thing and it was fine. Anyhow, you should try this tobacco if you like English blends like I do.

Pipe Used: Tinsky Freehand

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: The Pipe Guys

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ven (16)	2014-07-01		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Very Pleasant

I have a beloved meer that had become rather finicky over the past six months. I don't know what the deal is - personality change, who knows. Pipes can be fickle, and this one decided that it simply did not like anything. I have tried several tobaccos. High end, low end...the pipe hates everything. Narrowing the problem down to a bitter taste, I decided to try something more fruity and went with the Mac B Plumcake. What a life saver!! The pipe took to this tobacco so instinctively that I swear this was what the previous owner must have been smoking. It's a lovely smoke and a good change of pace for me. My meer seemed like it was slipping into a familiar glove - it was really quite amazing to find a match that seemed so compatible. Needless to say, this will be in my constant rotation. As for this tongue-bite thing, I don't know. For me, it is just perfect - just enough to make me feel like a man, yet not too much. The reviews with issues about this befuddle me a bit, because for my palette it is in the Goldilocks zone. I found this tobacco to be incredibly heroic - it was heartbreaking to have my beloved pipe acting so strange, and Mac Baren Plumcake saved the day. It's a terrific smoke and it got my pipe all happy again. A +

Pipe Used: Laxey Manx Meerschaum

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Rain City Cigar, Seattle

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	FireintheBriar (9)	2014-01-29		Medium	Medium	Medium	Unnoticeable

English blend? Hmm, doesn't taste like any english blend I have ever smoked, that said I have only smoked a couple dozen so my inexperience may be telling on me. Wow, the tin aroma is magnificent, the best my olfactory system has encountered. The first whiff was pleasant, the next was even better as I was picturing three bottles of slivovitz lined up on a slot machine like I had won the grand prize, cartoon fireworks were going off in my mind and I could hear sirens. Plum brandy is my take, I would bet my least favorite pipe that they ran out of Jamaican rum and was casing this blend with slivovitz. The taste lived up to the tin aroma, very good. For the first time I was able to separate some of the flavors, I tasted spicy. The burn was consistent with only a few relights. I did get some pipe gurgle, but that may be due to the temperature being below zero during my walk. I'll study this temperature thought further. I like Plumcake and it may even go on my reorder list, I will let you know if I actually finish the 100 gram tin.

Purchased From: Smoking Pipes

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipe4ever (204)	2009-02-05		Medium	Mild	Mild	Very Pleasant

Plumcake is the finest of Mac Baren aromatic blends, the tin aroma is unique and mysterious, the flavor is Smokey, fruity and delightful, however, this is truly a very, very bitey smoke, at any minimum provocation it will literally destroy your tongue for 2 days

Just pay attention! smoke it very sloley, if you still can not, try Mac Baren The Solen Mixture, this is almost the same as Plumcake but without the bite.

Plumcake is one of my favorite tobaccos, I buy it in bulk and it improves nicely with age.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	OSR (78)	2006-01-02		Extremely Mild	Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant

Q: What's good for tongue bite?

A: A bowl of Mac Baren Plumcake!

And if latakia wasn't mentioned in the description above I'd have never guessed it was in this torcher.

This is one of those Mac B flame-thrower blends. Boy, it sounds good and even smells good in the tin. Even with the "plug/stop" method of taking a wad of tobacco out of the tin and jamming it into the bowl of a small pipe doesn't keep this from producing copious amounts of steam.

To each his own, I suppose. Variety makes the world go 'round.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Swiss-smoker (87)	2019-03-18		Medium	Medium to Strong	Medium	Pleasant

It is a mixed cut. On the homepage of the producer Mac Baren it says: ribbon cut Virginias, ready rubbed Burleys, some “Original Cavendish” (whatever they mean by calling it “original”), and a little Latakia.

The name of this mixture, PLUMCAKE, is misleading. There is neither plum nor cake aroma around. I call this a typical Danish Mixture, some may call it an Aromatic Mixture. It has been cased with “real Jamaica Rum”, as it says on Mac Baren’s homepage. Yes, on opening the tin, there is an ample gust of deep, dark booze. There is no strong spice or sweetness in this breeze as I would expect from Jamaica Rum (which is a variety denomination and does not refer to its origin). In second place my nose detects some pleasant hay, grass and yeast notes from the Virginias.

Excellent stuffing and lighting conditions, after donating a short drying time. I find, it tends to burn a little fast and hot, even when smoked at a moderate pace. So, take your time. It burns evenly and entirely into ash.

Now let’s describe the smoking experience: I am usually scared away by Aromatics and artificially flavoured tobaccos. The flavouring of “Plumcake” is very obvious, however, it has been done skilfully. Only when I smoke several bowls in a row, I find it obtrusive and nauseous. The added aroma is in the foreground, but, to be honest, I could not find out of what kind. Rum would not come into my mind.

I can clearly identify the Virginias. The Burleys are harder to identify, they rather add some body to this mixture. Cavendish provides some noticeable sweetness and mellows the blend. I cannot pick-up any Latakia. It is probably just in the background in order to donate some reserved amount of pleasant spice.

Age When Smoked: New, out of tin.

Purchased From: Local tobacconist.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Kurt (1)	2019-03-10		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

Macbaren Plumcake

One of my absolute favorite pipe tobaccos, smells like plum or what the description says. The tobacco i smoke most often and most of. No tounge bite very pleaseant smell or scent. Recomended

Pipe Used: Cheap swedish filter Bizon pipe

Age When Smoked: Ca 2 years

Purchased From: Tobacco store Stena Saga or stenaline

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Hakchuma Achukma (6)	2018-12-16		Mild	Mild	Mild	Tolerable

Plumbcake is disappointing. I've been smoking a pipe for 6 years and so I understand how to sip a pipe. This tobacco will bite your tongue no matter how you smoke it. The risk of tongue bite for the amount of nicotine lacking in this blend is certainly not worth the reward. If you haven't already burned your tongue off or turned your tongue into leather I would certainly stay away from this. I think most of the good reviews here are based off nostalgia than anything else.

Pipe Used: IMP Meerschaum, Elf Cobbit, Dagner Poker

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Talltree (31)	2018-11-25		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Yup, this tobacco has taste to spare. I like this as a morning smoke. Very pleasant and tasty. The ingredients make it sound like an American English, or a mild aromatic with a taste of rum. There's Latakia, and Virginia, and Burley. There is a vinegary ketchupy smell in the tin note. I love that smell. The tobacco itself is in the form of a rubbed out flake.

In the smoking, however, I get none of all this. It is mild, toasty, and the taste is a very pleasant creamy nose-tingling flavor, almost like liquor, but not so strong that it hides the tobacco flavor. It doesn't overstay its welcome. In fact, the slower I sip this the better it is further into the bowl. I just can't seem to identify what makes it unique. It's just a pleasant and reliable morning smoke and it's fast becoming a favorite.

Pipe Used: corn cob

Age When Smoked: right out of the can

Purchased From: pipes and cigars

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SmokingHawk (54)	2018-08-24		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

You are greeted with a very reddish ripe Virginia's and tin note is of rum only ribbon cut is coarse with some chunks but file bowl easily. Taste of rum is very consisted through out the bowl Latakia couldn't make its presence but can be felt in some time thick smoke. A very good Navy blend similar to MB's Navy flake famous for its rum taste. I often reach for it for a great outdoor expedience.

Pipe Used: Various Briars

Age When Smoked: 6 months

Purchased From: Tobaccopipes US

Similar Blends: Mac Baren - Navy Flake.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	J.R. Patton (106)	2017-12-07		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

I finally got off the fence and bought some PC, and I'm in no way disappointed. I was glad to see this one classified as an English rather than an aromatic. The topping is easily noticeable, but it's used so sparingly this couldn't possibly be an aromatic. Strangely, I don't really get the rum, but I definitely get the delicious, roundly fruity plum. This must be the most unique topped blend I have had since trying Stanwell Kir & Apple.

What I find most interesting is how well this particular flavoring works with the component tobacco, and also imparts a nice fruity flavor without any of that cloying sweetness. In fact, I find that what little sweetness is there is imparted mostly by the virginias. The burleys are not as noticeable but provide some alkaline body to the blend that staves off bitiness. And it does wanna bite when pushed hard. Sipped, however, smooth as mother's butter. The latakia is just barely there, lending it's usual smokey character that pairs superbly with the plum.

This stuff is a natural hit for me. And I wonder now why I waited so long to try? PC will join my Mac Baren HH flakes in permanent rotation. I can imagine this will be a refreshing summertime smoke. Nicely done again MB!

Pipe Used: MM Patriot

Age When Smoked: Fresh tin

Purchased From: pipesandcigars.com

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	BriarWoody (33)	2017-03-14		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

One of my favorites from MacBaren. I don't get any bite from this, or any of their blends for that matter, but if you're a girly man, maybe you should steer clear. If you enjoy light/medium English mixtures, or if you're an experienced English smoker who wants a change of pace, give this a go, especially with a dram.

It's lightly sweet, and the core tobaccos shine through, although the proportion of Latakia is condimental -- more of a tease, actually. It delivers a pleasant dose of nicotine, which is a bonus.

This is a great crossover blend with enough complexity to please the experienced piper. Lots of bright leaf in this.

The topping is what you find in most European blends to ensure consistency across tobacco batches, but perhaps a touch more forward leaning.

I am really enjoying MacBaren's blends in this stage of my tobacco journey. My only regret is not trying them sooner. Their HH products are fantastic, their American aromatics are top shelf, and their Danish blends are delicious. Don't heed the negative reviews. Try and judge for yourself, if you know how to smoke a pipe properly. If you're a noobie and can't handle it, try vaping instead. I can't imagine a pipe smoker who wouldn't like this.

Similar Blends: The Solent Mixture.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Jazzman999 (2)	2017-02-18		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

GREAT tin note. Some complex flavors throughout the smoke. A bit of bite if not taken slowly, as others have noted. But, worth the "effort". I use filtered pipes for this and several other MB tobaccos. Definitely one of the most satisfying blends I have tried. Kind of an "in-between" blend that has some Latakia, some Virginias, and a definite top-note of rum. A semi-aromatic for English or Balkan lovers, but also an English Blend for aromatic smokers.

A favorite, for sure. I keep this in my rotation. Never disappoints.

Pipe Used: Savinelli Trevi 311 KS and Roma 320 KS

Age When Smoked: Fresh to 3 months

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

Similar Blends: Mac Baren - Solent Mixture.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Blueplume (7)	2016-11-17		Strong	Medium	Medium to Full	Tolerable

This tobacco is a beast... I hereby declare it ' king of the biters', I will just make the caveat that I do not know how long the pouch had been languishing in the shop but it was fairly dry, and I do not feel inclined to buy any more of it. It numbs your tongue even with careful sipping and I was inclined to chuck it out after a few bowls. I tried the falcon which can usually make stronger blends behave but after the initial 5 minutes it was on the attack. In the end I resorted to the ' magic inch ' that I have which I reserve for harsher mixtures and it did keep the bite to a minimum and rendered it smokable, but I could discern no sudden burst of flavour or subtle nuances. Definitely not for beginners, it would stop your pipe smoking career in its tracks.

Pipe Used: falcon,meerschaum,various briars, magic inch

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	jpjour123 (2)	2016-05-06		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Smoking this after about 5 years tucked away in a sealed mason jar. I do not taste any sweetness or flavorings. The latakia comes through but not overpowering. I find it smokes cool and much better when smoked slowly, even to the end, and the room note is very pleasant as noted by others.

Pipe Used: Peterson straight

Age When Smoked: 58

Purchased From: forget

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Burney (13)	2016-03-02		Mild	Extremely Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant to Tolerable

There is not much to say about this, I will however say, I am not really impressed.

The taste is flat, flavour is non-existent, the room note is almost pleasant, what more can I say. I won't buy again.

Pipe Used: Many

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	coldmoon (24)	2015-08-04		Mild	Extremely Mild	Mild	Pleasant

Just finished a tin of Plumcake. This tobacco is an aromatic with a touch of Latakia added. Upon opening the tin I am greeted with the aroma which reminds me very much of blueberries. Various grades of brown leaf - from very light to black - in the tin. The cut is your standard ribbon cut with a few broken flakes present.

The tobacco is a bit too moist to smoke fresh out of the tin. I let it dry for half an hour before packing it in the pipe. Packing is very easy as one can expect from this style of cut. Lights easily and keeps going without too much relights.

There is a bit of sweetness from Virginias and Burleys and a little bit of smokiness in the taste which I guess is from Latakia. You have to smoke this blend very slowly, just taking slow sips, otherwise the taste is pretty harsh and you will burn your tongue. I tried smoking it with and without filter and in different pipes. The best smoking experience I get is when I'm smoking it in Peterson pipe with P-lip stem. The smoke is cooler, more flavorful and doesn't burn the tongue. The casing is very subtle, so it doesn't obstruct natural tobacco flavor.

Smokes down to nice grey ash. I would say that the room note is rather pleasant. Would not recommend this tobacco for a novice pipe smoker without experience. Not because it is too strong but because it must be smoked very carefully.

Pipe Used: Big Ben bent apple, Peterson Mycroft P-lip

Age When Smoked: 3 months

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Old German puffer (106)	2015-08-02		Medium to Strong	Medium to Strong	Full	Pleasant

Plum cake is a tobacco that I always return to. As the weather cools I begin my fall ritual for this awesome smoke. I like to take 5 tins from my stash and transfer them to jar. I leave them open until I can smell up the entire room. Then and only then I know it it ready. I close the jar up and in a week it becomes the perfect smoke. I pack lightly and give it room to breath. The first pinch is the hardest to resist packing. Once full it lights so easy. I smoke very slowly and enjoy the smell and taste. I would never speed the process here. Save fast puffing for the younger smokers. Lol.

Pipe Used: Dunhill, Peterson, Savinelli, Comoy

Age When Smoked: Tin - 2 years plus

Purchased From: WASH. DC

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Grovesy (32)	2015-05-28		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Plumcake was something I was scared to even try. The dreaded bite from this blend kept it hidden in my cellar until just a couple weeks ago. I finally summoned the courage to give it a shot, and was pleasantly surprised by the blend. Tin note, room note, taste, all amazing. Even my wife signed off on the room note. The bite is there however. Plumcake is a blend you must be ever mindful of or it can quickly bite you in the butt. My tongue has made it through a few bowls in great shape thanks to letting the tobacco dry out a bit and mindful puffing. Pairs with: Family Vacations, fishing trips, autumn mornings

Pipe Used: Various

Age When Smoked: 2 yrs

Similar Blends: McB Navy Flake.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Young Piper (304)	2015-03-23		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

I had written Per Jensen, Product Manager of Mac Baren regarding them creating a Plumcake flake and was delighted to receive an email from him!! If you would enjoy a Plumcake flake, I ask that you write a short email to Per requesting it. This is the email I received:

Thank you for the kind words and we will consider a flake version of Plumcake, however this will take time. The next new introduction will be in the HH line as well, but this time a complete other direction as with the HH Bold Kentucky. Once again thank you, and I will make sure to relay your Email to every one at MacBaren Tobacco. Happy smoke Per

3/01/15 - Why O Why does Mac Baren not produce a Plumcake Flake??? The public has stated they love this blend as it has been around for half a century and that it burns very hot, this combined with the fact the name includes the word "Cake" would lead one to believe that it would be extremely lucrative to produce a Plumcake Flake.

Plumcake smells like Redman chewing tobacco when you open a fresh tin. Just a delicious aroma reminding me of cookies and those candy spice drops that stick to your teeth, allspice and cinnamon, very Christmasy and comforting. A varied cut of ribbon and broken flake becons me to scoop up a handful and stuff into my largest pipe but anything but the most gentle pack of the pipe will ensure tongue bite like no one but Mac Baren can create. If you pack this blend lightly, sip and let smolder you can enjoy a sweet and lightly spicy blend that is really delicious. Plumcake really needs to be pressed into a flake, this will turn down the temperature and intensify the flavor, hopefully I will get to try a Plumcake flake in my lifetime... A bargain at $13 per 100gm tin and very high quality. If you are doing anything except putzing around the house use a filter so your tongue survives the blast furnace that a careless smoke will insure, I give Plumcake 3 stars for flavor, aroma and uniqueness but could potentially be a four star blend if made into a plug / flake.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Bluesmoke (75)	2014-11-30		Mild	Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant

I have tried at least a dozen of the classic line and a couple of the newer lines from this venerable blender. For me they are just slight variations on a light, singularly flavored burley with some slight additions/alterations here and there. This plumcake I found to be the most intriguing and it was my first McB blend. I'm not going to bore you or myself with repetitious reviews which will state essentially the same thing. This blender can be summed up, for my tastes, as producing vapid weed, cased too greatly with sugar, burns warmly/hot and lacks any appreciable depth. One plus is you do get a large tin's worth for a good price, comparably speaking. Apologies, but McB just does not work for me. TLCIWU

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	fmjiii (18)	2014-10-24		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Plumcake is not a typical aromatic at all.

This is one of my favorite MacBaren blends. When you open up the tin, you are hit with that smell of plum, rum and then the smell of some spicy latakia underneath. Very interesting smell. The plum and rum flavors don't overpower so much as compliment the virginia and burley combination. It's a completely different kind of tobacco than I've ever smoked, not quite aromatic, not quite an English blend.

The flavor when it is smoked its more latakia and less rum. The rum, to me, adds more to the room note and not to the overall taste. Mind you, there is a rum flavor. The first 1/3 to half of the bowl was like that, a good steady English. Slightly sweet Virginia and spicy Cavendish, however mellowed by the present Burley. The aromatic comes out about half way through the bowl.

Many people consider this an aromatic, but with the latakia, it taste more like an English with some rum added (which works well together) than an overly cased rum aromatic. Definitely worth trying if you love aromatics, rum, English or latakia.

Overall I'd have to say this is a great smoke for someone looking for a very light aromatic.

Pipe Used: Various briars

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	The Right Reverend (36)	2013-08-23		Medium	Mild	Mild	Tolerable

A bit disappointed by this. The tin note was, to my poor nose, of black olives. I know, weird. Cut kinda big, so it did not stuff well in my pipe. It lit okay and burned alright, a bit on the hot side. The problem was I was looking for an mild aromatic, you know with a name like plum cake... But found a mediocre Latakia blend. I could not taste any rum, nor much anything else. The room note was nothing to right home about, not disgusting, not pleasant. Did get a little Vitamin N kick. By the number of reviews it looks like quite a few like it, I think I will have to pass on recommending this, and pass on the rest of the tin to another.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2013-02-15		Mild	Medium	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant

I found this blend to be very hot burning, whether dry or wet, and it was quite tasteless, the aroma was vapid as well. A friend of mine said it smelled good, and as is due course, most aromatics smell nice, but taste badly. I cannot recommend this product.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JustOneforMe (28)	2012-04-26		Very Mild	Medium to Strong	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant

I have now smoked several Mac Baren offerings and will not review them any further since they are extremely not to my liking. If interested in my thoughts about their line of tobaccos then just see my review on Burley London, it pretty much sums up this vapid weed give or take a slight aromatic difference (vanilla, cherry etc...).

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	newsandtraffic (17)	2012-01-30		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Unnoticeable

As someone who had been & on & off again pipe smoker over the last several years. But have now taken it up full time & placed away my other vices. I had read the tin description on Plumcake for years. For some reason or another this blend really interested me. So, several months back I decided to order up a tin & giver a try. Not so fast! The interest ended upon the 1st smoke of this blend. Not sure exactly what I expected or didn't expect. This just wasn't it. Seen others write about tongue bite. That wasn't it for me. Or, not much of it anyway. Certainly not the room note I expected. I also asked my room note detector, my wife. Who said she couldn't stand that smell." I'll be the 1st to admit I'm an aro guy. If that is what this is or was supposed to be. It isn't. If it isn't I can certainly see why. I'm not exactly sure what it was or was not for me. So I'll just leave it there. Recommended? Nope, not by me.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2011-04-12		Medium	Medium to Strong	Medium to Full	Tolerable

I favor aromatics. I tried this on a recommendation given that it has a "light" addition of Latakia (which provides a very smokey, meat-roasted taste). I've tried other stronger Latakia blends before and found that this tobacco acts as a nice "introduction" to stronger, Latakia blends. I personally, didn't like it. There is an excellent, sweet and heady taste beneath the smokey, burned meat smell and I suspect it would have been a good smoke had the Latakia been omitted. I personally can't recommend this one.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-06-10		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Honestly, this is a tasty blend. However, is will burn your tongue to hell and destroy your taste buds for a day or so. What a shame! What is it about this blend that makes it so bitey? The rum casing? Young Virginas?

I REALLY want to love this blend, but the scorching that I get simply precludes me from any real enjoyment. If you somehow by chance don't get burned, then you must have a tongue made out of raw elephant skin.

In truth, I would have easily given Plumcake at least 3 stars. But I think Mac Baren should reconsider what it is exactly that causes such a tongue lashing. It really is disappointing, because this blend taste-wise stands the potential to be Nirvana.

And you know, with all of the complaints about most of the Mac Baren blends being tongue biters ( of which Mac Baren is famous for ), you would think that someone at said company would have corrected the problem.

Mac Baren are you listening?

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2008-12-29		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

This tobacco is a very pleasant surprise to me. I have tried several of Mac Baren?s offerings and I hadn?t previously found anything I particularly liked, with the exception of Dark Twist Roll Cake . I don?t typically smoke aromatics, though certain SG and G&H Lakeland scented varieties score high points with me. I smoke Haddo?s Delight by GL Pease, Luxury Twist Flake by Peter Stokkebye and Benjamin Hartwell?s Evening Stroll, Plumcake will add another to my line up.

Appearance: This blend has a beautiful presentation, being comprised predominately red and golden Virginias, and with darker spiced dark Cavendish. Nearly uniform in cut this tobacco is a fine ribbon variety

Tin aroma: This is a complex mixture of matured Virginias and spiced Cavendish and Rum. There are deep molasses tones a slight sour tang one expects in Virginias some slight spicy tones and a deeper fig-like aroma. There is a slightly nutty quality as well. I detect a sweetness and I?m often tempted to take a small bit and chew it, it smells that good!

This tobacco is nearly perfect in moisture straight out of the tin. Lighting is usually a one match affair, and generally stays lit throughout the entire bowl, unless I let the pipe go out. As expected, the initial flavor is very spicy and sweet though not overly so on either count. There are distinctly citrus notes of the Virginias and a deep harmonious flavor of well mannered Cavendish. The ?spice? quickly yields it?s dominance to a nice throaty Virginia/Cavendish with hints of dark Rum medley which continues to build throughout the bowl.

Mid Bowl: Approaching mid-bowl, the fullness tends to build and the flavors mix and match very nicely. While this blend is not very complex, it is however plenty interesting in character. There are subtle changes here and there as each component asserts dominance from time to time. The ?spice? is always ?just there? the Virginias and Cavendish engage in a friendly competition and the Rum just continues to drone on and on. While not particularly strong in nicotine, there is plenty of flavor and body to this mixture.

Home Stretch: As end of the bowl approaches, the strength of this mixture has built to a fine mélange of flavors and fullness. Though many other reviews mentioned tongue-bite, I have not experienced any. This is a very well behaved tobacco of fine quality. Knowing that it is mainly Virginias is all the information I need to know how to smoke it. I tend to ?sip it? slowly and thereby enjoy the deepening flavors without any trouble with heat or sourness that can result from over-puffing a Virginia mixture.

The ONLY drawback is that something about this blend tends to plaster my palate. I often reserve it for late in the evening; because I?m rarely able to ?cleanse my palate? enough to really taste anything else.

This tobacco blend has earned a place in my occasional rotation, mainly for holidays and when non-smokers are about.

Supplemental Notes: My personal recommendation is that several pipes be reserved for this mixture as the spice tends to ?color? the bowl rather rapidly and might not mix well with other mixtures. Rating for those interested in numbers *

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2008-12-12		Very Strong	Strong	Full	Strong

Plumcake has changed, and very much for the worst in my opinion. My ratings reflect the 'new' Plumcake, not the Plumcake I have smoked and loved for years. I think the earlier review comparing it to cough syrup was talking about a tin of it.

The 'old' Plumcake had a predominately light color in the tin, and the aroma was wonderful. Mildly sweet, mildly spicy, with a touch of vanilla (rum). The mixture did vary sometimes from tin to tin, sometimes it contained large flakes of darker tobacco, sometimes the cut was too fine. I put that down to the charm of a handmade product, and while the taste would also vary a bit, I always enjoyed it.

The 'new' Plumcake is a dark color, and the tin aroma has a very unpleasant, almost solvent aroma. There is a sort of chocolate/raisin quality to it. The taste reflects those dark aromas. Worst of all, it gives me headaches.

The 'new' Plumcake first surfaced early this year when I picked up a tin that offered a free tamper inside. I thought it was an odd tin, but others with that label were exactly the same. Then a new label giving the MacBaren web site address appeared, and they have the same problem. Now I'm finding even tins with the old label contain the 'new' Plumcake (although some seem to be a sort of a transition mixture.)

I can no longer smoke Plumcake, and am asking here if there are other tobaccos that are similar. I seem to have a very limited palette...don't like aromatics, don't like regular English, don't care for Latakia too often. Plumcake fit perfectly in between all of those. Is there another mixture out there that fits in that space?

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2008-12-09		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I'll start by saying that this blend is number 1 in my rotation. As a fan of mainly aromatics, this is a blend that can be enjoyed by English smokers as well. The flavor is always perfect, with a light fruit and smoky taste. The fruit is somewhat of a dried plum flavor, but it does not, and i repeat, DOES NOT overtake the remarkable flavor. I have read some posts on this site of horrible tongue bite with this one, but if you puff slowly and savor it, it will always deliver. I cant understand why anyone would want to rush this! This is quality, and perfect blending at its finest. It reminds me of every reason i started pipe smoking! Pick up a tin of this, if you enjoy a nice flavorful aromatic, but also enjoy a little spice and pepper, thats not to rough on the palate. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	smoking-rob (79)	2008-03-02		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I bought my first tin of Plumcake in 1976 and it then carried the suffix "aromatic" on the tin. I loved it a lot and, it was nice and sweet and a rather more coarse cut than nowadays. Then a few years later the suffix "aromatic" was replaced by "regular" and it just didn't taste the same, these tins having almost no flavour and the cut was very fine compared to the earlier version. A few years ago I had the opportunity to speak to MB chief blender Per and asked him about these two versions. He said that the formula was in fact unchanged and that the suffix "regular" was required for some markets by law.And that people had complained about the difference in taste which there couldn't be. Well, I assure you there was and for a while I bought all the "aromatic" tins I could find. He also told me that Plumcake has a 5% latakia content, the same in fact as MB's "Latakia Blend" ! Since the earliest incarnation of the "regular" version, what is offered today is a lot better than it was but I still dream about the taste of the Original Plumcake which then carried the description: Six tobacco's, each the finest of its kind is the formula that makes Mac Baren's Plumcake an extravagant blend.

As an afternote I would like to add that my review is more of an anecdote about Plumcake than a review proper. Let me just say that I agree with all the other positive reviews here.

2 March 2008: Last week I bought a sealed tin of Plumcake with the "aromatic" suffix! Must be at least 25 years old now. I daren't open it for fear it might spoil all the good memories...

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2003-12-08		Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

This is one of my staple tobaccos. It is easily packed, and bruns dry and cool. THis is a great tobacco for those wishing to depart from heavily cased blends. This is a Navy blend meaning that it does have a touch of rum in it. I think this helps quite a bit with the room note. It burns to a fine white ash, and is one of my favorites for a new pipe, as it helps build a quick but hard cake. This is a sweet tobacco, and does great with aging. I have had several tins for over a year, and the sweetness, and honey-like characteristics become even more noticeable after time. This is also a relatively easy blend to find in most tobacco shops. I highly recomend this to all.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	AtlanticPiper (13)	2022-12-18		Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I live by a working shipyard in New England, so I liked the tin description of this blend bringing "memories of the old days when sailors on their sailing ships stuffed a pipe with a good tobacco and enjoyed the smell of nicotine and salt water." For me, it brings to mind the image of a tarry sailor. It tastes like burnt plumb and tar, which, while not at all sweet, is a pleasant smoke. Especially when I am on a fishing trawler in Gloucester Harbour. Not a traditional aromatic by any means, but a good smoke for a day at sea.

Pipe Used: Vermont Freehand Billiard

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipefitter (51)	2022-10-10		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

I put this English bled on my go too list of tobaccos because 1. the available, 2. Overall quality of the tobacco and 3. the subtlety of the Latakia. It’s not a Latakia bomb , but it’s there as a condiment…..I’ve read many reviews that refer to MacBaren products as “MacBurn” and this is one of the coolest smoking tobaccos that I’ve smoked. It burns really well with few relights required, leaving no moisture in the bowl. Definitely an all day smoke for intermediate to seasoned smokers and I remember liking this as a beginner, so I think other beginners would agree. This is an unpretentious blend with no gimmicks. The rum topping is mild so as not to cause palate fatigue which I get from other aromatics that put overplayed doses of rum, vanilla, chocolate, bourbon or what have you in the mix. I like the taste of tobacco and that’s what ya get with Plum Cake….. I got hold of some Limited Edition, MacBaren Crumble Cake and sprinkled some on top of the Plum Cake and came up with a very good Balkan blend. This is a very good base to blend other tobacco with as the availability of some blends are very limited these days. One of the things I like about MacBaren products ( I don’t like all of their blends) is the amount of their different styles and MacBaren seems to be more readily available where I live. So, don’t shy away from a certain blender because of a few bad reviews .

Purchased From: Carolina Tobacco Emporium in Manchester Ct

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	willie b (37)	2022-08-28		Medium to Strong	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

an old standard blend. Being a former sailor, it has a place in my heart. this blend has been around a long time. First there is no plum in plum tobacco. there is some rum to give it that taste. a very good solid blend best enjoyed packed a little loose and sipped on. the tobaccos all marry well with each other given some time in the tin. I always have two tins on hand and let sit for a year before cracking open. might take a seasoned smoker to really enjoy this blend. hit it hard and it can hit back. this blend has been around and enjoyed around the world for a long time. a true classic worth trying. I may have 60 different tins and five different one pond jars to enjoy of various blend. i am partial to Balkan/English blends but have a variety cause variety is the spice of life. this one will always be close to me, both figurative and literally.

Age When Smoked: over a year

Purchased From: tobacco pipes and smoking pipes

Similar Blends: to me it's one of a kind. but search and there probably similar blends. has to have that rum though..

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	MM (12)	2022-07-06		Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Tolerable

I find this tobacco bewildering. It is not an aromatic and not a latakia mixture either. It is tasty, with layers of flavors developing throughout the bowl. I've smoked it occasionally over the years, oftentimes in summer cool evenings and during autumn. You need to go your way up the pipe smoking steep learning curve months or perhaps years to judge it fairly as it is actually a very good tobacco. Burns relatively slow to white ash and leaves a pleasant after taste on the palate.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gripsholm (43)	2022-02-13		Medium	Very Mild	Mild	Pleasant

MacBarren’s Plum Cake is a very mild plum flavor with just a whisper of Latakia. The plum flavor is so mild that I really only catch it on the retro-hale, and the whisper of Latakia makes it special. As a matter of fact it’s somewhat similar to Esoterica’s And So To Bed.

The plum is not as sweet or bold as say a vanilla or a cherry flavored tobacco. I would consider Plum Cake more of a contemplative tobacco rather than a dessert tobacco.

There’s not a lot of plum flavored tobaccos out there that I’m aware of. For me Esoterica's And So To Bed seems to be the only one that comes to mind with regard to a similar kind of flavor. If I were to compare Plum Cake with And So to Bed I would have to say that the tin note for Plum Cake is very pleasant whereas And So To Bed has a somewhat rancid tin note. In favor of And so To Bed, I would say the smoking experience is a tad bit smoother than Plum Cake. However, the differences are minimal and almost insignificant. The similarities out weigh the differences.

If you like And So To Bed, and you get a yen for it, I would say Plum Cake just might scratch that itch.

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Similar Blends: Esoterica And So To Bed, Smoker's Haven 20th Anniversary Blend.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	DeathMetal.org (231)	2021-10-27		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

Summary: a light English, this low-Latakia blend shows off its Virginia base with a rich earthy flavor.

Aleister Crowley used to soak his Latakia and Perique in rum because this takes away some of the extremes of powerful leaf. Mac Baren describes "Plumcake" as a "Navy Blend," and this holds true in its composition: comprised essentially of Virginias, cooled down by Burley and softened by Mac Baren's famous "natural Cavendish" which is steamed tobacco without added sugars, with some flavor from the rum-soaked Latakia providing more of an earthy, smoky undertone than the burning herbal incense effect of heavy doses. This produces an easy-burning, mild blend in which the Virginias can show off their natural flavor without burning too hot or biting, tamed by the Latakia and broadened by the Burley. You stick this stuff in the pipe, where it is damp enough to cling together and need no compression, then light it and you will have a very pleasant flavor not unlike toasted sourdought bread: a slight smokiness to the outside, then a sweet core, with a slightly sour and nutty grain flavor around it. It burns down completely and, at the heavier end of medium strength, can keep your interest as an experienced smoker without wearing you down over the course of the day. I am glad this comes in 100g tins but I don't think they'll last much longer than the usual 50g ones do.

Similar Blends: Planta - Presbyterian Mixture , Peterson - Early Morning Pipe, Villiger - Early Day (1888), Boswell Pipes & Tobacco - Northwoods, McClelland - Frog Morton (Craftsbury Series).

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JEM (24)	2021-09-14		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

This tobacco was easy to pack, light, and it stayed lit. It was easy to smoke all the way through and those in the room liked the aroma. The flavor was good, but as I'm not a fan of Latakia, I did not think this tobacco was as good as other rum flavored tobaccos. I do recommend this tobacco, however.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Michael D (34)	2020-07-02		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Just as the old bull told the young bull who was in a hurry, walk down the hill. You have to take the time too tame this shrew. Plumcake has a lot to offer, if you search it out. For me, the first bowl was rushed through an unfiltered pipe and I was met with the bite. Virginias dominated, Burley hidden and the Latakia was being washed away by some spicy added flavoring. It was terrible. I wrapped it up and pushed it to the back of the cellar.

A few weeks passed and I thought about Plumcake again. This time I came prepared. With a 9mm filtered pipe, I approached the Plumcake with the prowess of a cat stalking its prey. lifting the tin I let the aroma approach me before I approached closer. There it was.. The smells of fresh tobacco, layered with Virginias and Latakia rising to greet me. Carefully lifting the ribbon and other fresh cuts into the bowl, lighting and first tamp went well with the lightest sip I have ever attempted.. I nearly blushed. The Plumcake thanked me for my care with offering up some of the sweetest tasting leaves grown throughout the lands. The thought of not enough Latakia left my memory. There it was, hidden so softly behind the Virginia. I continued to draw ever so lightly to find yet another. The Jamaican Rum gave in and filled my taste buds. Oh the softness and pleasure was in full motion. All that was needed was time and patience with a gentle touch to realize what this blend could offer. I will always enjoy a bit of Plumcake when available.

Pipe Used: 9mm filtered

Age When Smoked: month

Purchased From: P&C

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Wally Frank Collector (46)	2020-06-06		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

I have heard a lot about this blend and when a friend gifted it to me I thought long and hard on what pipe to use. I ended up deciding upon using my GBD Compact that I bought as an estate pipe and whose owner told me it was excellent with Aros. My experience is it does do wonderfully with Aros so with that settled the experience was ready to begin.

Upon opening the Humidor I was met with a smoky aroma that was enhanced by a spicy Rum with a wonderful earthy, woody background. Upon removing I found the tobacco seemingly perfect for smoking and did not dry out on a paper towel .

Filling the bowl with the ribbon cut blend I packed it a bit looser than I normally do for I have read this likes to burn warmer and can bite. It burned medium and even and burned all the way to the bottom leaving a gray ash. The smoke, even though I sipped even more slowly than ever was billowy and tasty. This does burn on the warmer side and I could tell it would bite and bite hard if pushed. But, sipping slowly it was very, very nice.

Upon lighting the char I could tell I had to go slow and toned down my usual lighting technique and even at that after I lit after the char I only had on relight the rest of the way, about halfway down the bowl. Upon lighting I was met by a wonderful smoky flavor that was enhanced by a pleasant spicy rum overtone. In the background dancing was rich earthy, woody, mildly grassy with a tangy fruity taste. I did detect a light touch of brown sugar. The result was a pleasantly sweet, spicy, smoky rich taste that will definitely let you know if you smoke too fast or hard. This left a pleasant sweet and smoky aftertaste during and after the smoke.

This is a very nice smoke that has a lot going on flavor wise during the smoke and is very tasty and I found pleasing. However, if one is going to make this an all day smoke they had better have a tongue of asbestos for while I didnt get bit by sipping super slow, many do complain of it happening and the experience proved this to be like playing with nitro glyceren... gentle, slow or else you will pay. The flavors played well with each other and I enjoyed this blend. Definitely everyone should try this. However be careful on puffing to quick or too hard, the bellows breathing method really helps with this blend.

This would be a wonderful after dinner smoke, or out by a campfire or next to a fireplace in the evening. Will I smoke this again, yes. Will it be part of my regular rotation, probably not for I tend to shy away from biting tobaccos in my older years. I like to not have a burnt tongue and this blend, as wonderful as it is, is to me playing with fire. But, I like it and will smoke it on special occasions when I have time to go REALLY slow.... By the way the room not is very nice!

Rating 3.3 stars out of 4

Pipe Used: GBD Compact

Age When Smoked: new

Purchased From: Gift from friend

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Legion (27)	2019-08-05		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Generally speaking I'm not a fan of aromatics. Plumcake is more of a semi-aro IMO. My first smoke of Plumcake was back when I was around 15yo. [Why did I not stay with a pipe instead of picking up the dreaded cigarettes?] Opening my first tin after so many years, I was greeted with the familiar tin note that I absolutely love. I can't remember it biting though.

Everything about Plumcake from it's tin-note to it's flavour would make this an absolute favourite except for one thing; Plumcake bites. I'm pleased to read that this improves with aging but I'm just not that patient. Here in Australia tobacco is now $85 for 50 grams [thank goodness for O/S on-line tobacconists], so nothing goes to waste. Normally when I find that a blend bites, I simply mix with another blend, usually one that's Burley forward, which cures the issue.

But I enjoy the flavour of Plumcake so much, that I was determined to find a way to enjoy it. First I tried charcoal filters which helped some but I don't like how filters, even good Dr Perl charcoal filters, inhibit the draw.

Then I tried Plumcake in a new old stock 50's meerschaum lined Heibe Goldpoint Dublin, with a small-medium sized bowl. This made the world of difference where I can now enjoy one bowl a day WITHOUT any bite.

A slightly sweet and spicy blend, where all the flavours come together in harmony and where the natural tobacco flavours of the Virginia & Burley are not drowned by topping. Mild nicotine is a plus.

Were it not for the bite, I'd give Plumcake 4 stars. None-the-less, Plumcake is just so tasty that it was well worth finding what works to avoid the dreaded 'MacBaren bite'. So 3 stars it is.

Pipe Used: 50's meerschaum lined Heibe Dublin Goldpoint.

Age When Smoked: Fresh.

Purchased From: TobaccoPipes.com

Similar Blends: Plumcake is one of a kind from my experience..

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Jack Griffin (3)	2019-07-23		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Very Pleasant

Very nice tobacco. The tongue bite is somewhat overstated in the comments.. I personally did not notice much tongue bite, But that's me. The flavor is very soothing. The sweetness is noticeable but not in your face. The 3.5 oz tin is a sweet size. I Recommend this tobacco.

Pipe Used: Rubino

Purchased From: JM Boswells

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	sirchud68 (60)	2018-11-01		Medium	Medium to Strong	Medium	Tolerable

I’ve been sitting on a tin of this for about 2 years now while waiting for my tastes to change. I normally smoke Va/Pers 90% of the time but this year, once the weather started changing, I’ve had a hankering for my Englishes and Orientals and such. I haven’t really smoked anything other than Heavy virginia based blends for about 3 or 4 years now. All it took was a bowl of McClellands Blue Mountain (R.I.P.) and the memories of a whole nother side of great pipe tobacco was rekindled. I thought it time to pop this classic M.B. tobacco. Having been so long since I’ve smoked anything like this and just throwing out my first thoughts, this is what I have to say. The tin note reminded me of either Squadren Leader or Black Mallory. Having none of those other blends on hand, I can’t recall exactly which one, but those of you who have smoked them may know what I’m talking about. Kind of a dull, sweet, farmhouse ale smell. Some would say stinky. I would say quite appealing. I also detected somewhat of a smokey Scotch essence and suspect this would go well with a dram of Coal Ila 12. Really enjoying the bowl. I haven’t had any trouble with bite at all but do feel that, for my chemistry, I would acquire tongue fatigue if I tried this as an all day smoke. I will update this review as I work my way through the tin and get into taste notes. I just wanted to put down my initial thoughts as they came to me. As of now I would recommend this tobacco if it’s on hand, especially if this is your first foray into a “plum cake”

Pipe Used: Peterson’s Kapet

Age When Smoked: 2 years

Purchased From: Pipesandcigars.com

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	dixcreek (184)	2016-11-22		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

Sweet hay Virginia, Burley that delivers a bit of earth and just a smack of Latakia and of course that tasty Mac Cavendish. Blend this with a shot of rum and a bit of fruit and you get a solid smoke. Has to have something going as it has been around for more than 11 lustra. Has a knock of being a biting old salty dog and it can be if you go about your business with too much vigor. Puff and sip a slow steady pace and you will be rewarded. I found Plum Cake to pack, light and burn to my satisfaction and the smoke was consistent throughout the bowl. While this is not an everyday rotator for me I do enjoy it a couple times a month. I prefer a stronger blend as a regular smoke. A solid 3 for me.

Age When Smoked: New and well aged

Purchased From: Pipes and cigars

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	blindmansleeps (4)	2014-01-14		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Many have written about the bite from Plumcake, but I think there's an easy, non-filter way around it. MAKE SURE you're smoking this on the dry side, perhaps even a little dryer than you smoke any other blends. In my experience, drying out the tobacco quite a bit seems to eradicate the bite, and even enhances the flavors.

And, boy, those flavors are something else. Over the past few weeks, this has become one of my favorite blends. It's a very mellow flavor, quite relaxing. The best way I've been able to describe this taste is woodsy with a sweet tingle from the Rum. I love mushrooms--my wife and I probably eat a couple pounds a week--and this flavor reminds me of a Portobello mushroom smoked over a campfire (our version of a bonfire dinner). It's a wonderful tobacco, and I'll always have some on store. Always.

Just make sure you smoke it dry.

Purchased From: Shamrock Beverage and Tobacco Shop; Johnson City, TN

Similar Blends: Mac Baren's The Solent Mixture (though I find Plumcake more woodsy).

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	hiplainsdrifter (9)	2012-07-08		Medium to Strong	Mild	Full	Tolerable

This review is for a 30-year old tin of Plumcake that I recently cracked open. Pretty dark stuff after all that aging. Tin notes are reserved dried fruit on molasses and some spice. Looks like ribbon cut with some broken/lightly rubbed flake. Moisture was about right, maybe just a little dry. Smoked perfectly with one light after the char. Easy to keep lit. This responds well when you push it- of course most MacBaren blends are touchy and will bite you- maybe this stuff does too, but not when it is this aged. Flavor is very well rounded- nice robust tobacco taste- seems like as advertised Virginias are at the forefront, seems like some Burley can be picked out too. A bit of sweetness, but it tastes natural- I assume this has a topping but the flavor tastes more like natural tobacco sugars. I could definitely pick up on some fruit. No rum taste to speak of, although that may have transformed into the subtle spice. Very smooth with great smoke. Room note is ok- not going to impress anyone but it isn't stinky. Seems like I have little reason to own other tobaccos while I have this lying around. A great treat!

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	PeterD (91)	2012-06-03		Mild	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

My first experience with this tobacco was in the early 60's. I prefered matured virginia plugs/mixtures/flakes, but I liked this tobacco and kept it around for many years. In the late 80's I smoked it off and on for a few years,then put it aside again. Last year, I picked-up a tin and while the tobacco has changed in taste and texture from the earlier versions, the basic blend is still there.

I recently purchased a 1 lb. package of this which had a manufacture date of October 2010. So about two years to mellow a bit. Frankly, I like this tobacco...not highly refined or complex, and sometimes I like that. It behaves well in any pipe and burns fairly clean. The earlier versions were far more "sweet" to my taste and I didn't care for that at all. This most recent bag does not have that overly sweet taste to it. I taste a more natural tobacco taste, and enjoy the interplay of the four base tobaccos which is quite nice.

Enjoyed with coffe/tea or a wee dram of single malt...

...a pipe is to be savored...

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	BingCrosby (162)	2010-02-01		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

After reading all the negative reviews of various macbaren products, complete with various scare tactics like 'mac bite', 'flame thrower', and 'tongue scorcher' I was hesitant to try this despite positive recommendations from several reliable reviewers.. Finally, I gave in - and I am glad I did.. plumcake was a surprise, especially since I usually do not care for aromatics.. it is surprisingly, very natural tasting with a very nice addition of syrian latikia.. the rum is present and tasty.. virginia and cavendish supply a solid (though some might say monochromatic) core.. I did not find any tongue bite.. and I even puffed harder on occasion to see if I could see what people are referring to.. nope nothing there... so 4 stars for a nice change of pace blend for the experienced piper, or a nice introduction to something closer to an english blend for the beginner.. this blend trends delicately accross a few different genres and succeeds.. hey it has been around since 1957 for some reason! So while you are free to review based on personal taste.. I would just like ask reviewers to try to be a little more objective (and I do realize that it is impossible to be 100 percent objective).. A tobacco might bight you- but to give it 1 star might scare away people who may enjoy it.. review on flavor! if the smoking characteristics are not to your liking then maybe deduct 1 star.. but to slam a tobacco simply because you cannot either smoke it properly.. or your own personal chemistry does not happen to correspond well to it - is no the fault of the tobacco or the macbaren blending house.. feel free to express your peronal opinion - but keep others in mind.

update: although i still defend the tobacco and the blending house against some of the short nasty reviews it receives.. I have to deduct a star.. simply because this smoke is no longer very interesting to me.. it is good.. but to me not special enough to warant 4 stars.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	pencils (60)	2007-07-27		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Having a preference for aromatic blends, I really thought this would be an enjoyable briar hour. In a sense, it was - great smell from tin contents, easy packing... and... well... that was pretty much it. It was a bit like the British weather - fine in parts and miserable the rest.

Tongue - ow. Bowl - really hot. Taste - plummy, rummy, ashy, dusty... Last third of the bowl redeemed what was a pretty mixed experience. Only one relight was necessary about 3/4 of the way through. Was indeed reminiscent of Davidoff Scottish Mixture, and the latakia could be detected all the way through, if only in hints and shadows.

Conclusion? It was ok. Perhaps I need to persevere.

update

Ok, perhaps I was a little hasty. After a week with this and this alone, I would post a far more balanced review. Less bite, less heat, good taste. I was right about the needing to persevere. Enjoying it now.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	NEWMAN (305)	2006-12-27		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Although Navy Flake is still my favorite from MacBaren, I enjoyed this smoke. The tin and room aroma are sweet but the tobacco taste still comes thru and is not overpowered by the casing. It smokes dry from start to finish without the goop of some other aromatics. As with several other of their blends, packing technique and smoking pace impacts how hot it smokes and you must be careful. Although I wouldn't choose a steady diet of this, after meals, it's great.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2006-12-22		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Since I am unable to describe the tin aroma and appearance of this blend any better than those others who have submitted reviews, I shall limit my review to my impressions of its flavour and aroma.

I am impressed by both the taste and smell of this blend as it burns. It burns to a fine grey ash and does not cause any gurgle in my pipes. The odour of plums or of some unidentifiable berry wafts from the bowl, but it is by no means overwhelming or cloying. The quality tobaccos shine through the light topping.

Despite these accolades, be warned. This blend will set your tongue on fire if it is not smoked slowly and savoured like any other delicacy.

If you enjoy or are interested in aromatics, but tend to shy away from the goopy, sickly-sweet versions often found in bulk in tobacco shoppes everywhere, you will enjoy this one.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2005-01-26		Mild	Strong	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I am updating this review because I was both unfairly harsh the first time around and my tastes are changing.

Plumcake is not a typical aromatic at all. This is no American goopy blend. It is, however, a classic Danish blend with more fullness attributable to the smidgen of Latakia.

I really have a hard time describing this tobacco other than to say it has all of the attributes of a Danish aromatic (VA tang, a bit of casing, but quite natural) with a smokey quality.

If you enjoy Danish tobaccos, or are an open-minded English or VA smoker looking for a unique change of pace, give this a try.

ONE FINAL NOTE: As I sit here today, the City of San Franciso has banned smoking in outdoor (yes . . outdoor) city-owned public places. I do not live in San Francisco but let me say for shame! All of us who enjoy the very civilized hobby of pipe smoking should take note. We are under attack by those who purport to know better. Please support liberty and freedom wherever you find it. Tobacco today . . . who knows what tomorrow. I know this is a tobacco review site and should not be political, but I felt it appropriate to comment.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2004-07-07		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

July,2004

Upon moving into an 'extended care' facility a great distance north of my previous residence (Pt.Huron vrs. Rochester Hills) I decided time to broaden my 'bacca taste and have to admit I was drawn by the MacB testimonials about Plumbcake - so far, so good. The tin aroma was enticing, that which promised a rewarding smoke. The First Bowl, I kinda feel that one has ro smoke a couple of bowls of a particular weed, to make an objective appraisal of the blend, gave me the taste of Virginias and burleys, which I find mellow. I finished the bowl after a hiatus of supper and was pleasantly suprised at the spiceness of the Cavendish that is complimented by sweetness and Rum. Though moist and easy to pack, I was not having to re-light on Second Bowl as with the First, last night. I would recommend this aromatic for anyone not wishing to be overwhelmed!

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2004-01-23		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

It was time to try Plumcake. Hoped this was the grail of aromatics, but I must say that it forces me to keep looking.

When the tin is cracked open, the smell is fruity but not completely overpowering in a candy-like way. Seems to be mixed with another smell that I can't place that tempers it a bit. Was a bit damp but not too bad.

The tobacco lights very easily. I was impressed with the quality in terms of how well it stays lit and burns evenly/smoothly. While I've heard that MacBaren blends are known for harsh tongue bites, I didn't experience it that badly at all with this one.

The taste is sweet and tastes berry-ish. Can't really say it tastes like plums but definately has a fruit base. As the bowl burns down, the taste becomes more pronounced - added depth, let me say. It is pleasant.

The room note is a bit mild for what I like but it's still appealing to the non-pipe smoker. It is not as sweet as it smells unlit...

The quality of the tobacco is better than most aromatic blends. That leaves me feeling like I smoked something at the end of a bowl. Taste is there too. However I wish the room note was a bit more potent.

I will definately keep this in my arsenal but plan to keep looking for my perfect blend.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JaWiBr (563)	2023-05-03		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Tin note of sweet spices and tangy raisins. Tobacco is a ready rub of brown, tan and black. Moisture content is great. Burns moderate with a few relights. The strength is medium and nic is mild to medium. Flavoring is mild to medium, with notes of spiced rum. The rum is never more than a mild reminder but lasts to the end. Taste is medium and very consistent, with notes of mild spiced rum, peaty sour vegetation, zesty tart citrus, tangy dark fruit, floral, mild incense, acidic, spicy, wood, grass, sugar, savory, earthy, a molasses and spices background note, and a peppery retro. Burley is leading with Cavendish, Latakia and Virginia supporting. Room note is pleasant to tolerable, and aftertaste is great.

Pipe Used: Castello Old Antiquari SC 56F

Age When Smoked: 10 years 5 months

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tidepiper (2)	2023-02-19		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

To all that have not had an aged tin of Plumcake should try and find ASAP. Or continue to store this tobacco as long as possible. I come across an old shop and I found a 8 year old tin of Plumcake. I'm not really good at describing tobaccos as some of you but I've been smoking for thirty years and I know what good and what not so good. When I opened the tin it was KETCHUP and to tell you the truth it was really, almost to much KETCHUP. After lighting up I was astonished about how good these tobaccos come together with some age. All the tins I have will have to be aged before I smoke them. It's like night and day the difference in new Plumcake and aged Plumcake.

Pipe Used: Savinelli 320 ks

Age When Smoked: 8 years

Purchased From: Closing Shop

Similar Blends: None that I know of..

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Kilmarnock Piper (251)	2022-11-01		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

Note: Review is not of the current offering, but of an old, sealed (when I bought it) 7oz tin from the '70s to early '80s.

I got it in around 2012 on Ebay, from a guy who had inherited many old MacBaren tins, and I bought many of them. Many I gave away, sold, or traded, and I gave most of this 7oz tin away, because I got some tongue bite from it. Most of the old roll cakes and mixtures from that period were fine in that regard, though I did get bite from the old Symphony. Got a little bit left, and somehow missed reviewing it back then. Smoked some in the past few days, so here it is.

I can control the bite if I smoke it slowly. Wish I had kept more. This may have Syrian Latakia in it, though hard to tell, and MacBaren never used much Latakia anyway. Very nice taste of well-aged rum and tobacco, perhaps plum; it is plumlike at least. Quality all around, though I have never had this blend except from this very old tin.

Because it has such a wonderful taste (I love very well-aged MacBaren), I won't detract any stars just because it can bite me a bit, and either my additional decade of storing it in a jar or ten more years of pipe smoking have made this very little of a problem, as long as I go slow. I have gotten bite from newer MacBaren, but seldom from the old tins. Wonder how the 7oz tin of Symphony from back then would hit me now, if I hadn't given it away?

Pipe Used: Carey Magic Inch

Age When Smoked: c. 40-45 years

Purchased From: Ebay

Similar Blends: Other old musty MacBarens..

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	D.K. (58)	2021-02-12		Mild	Very Mild	Very Mild	Unnoticeable

Mehhh I don't know. First observation was the sack contained incredibly dry and coarse tobacco. Very long and coarse. Like you can only smoke this in large bowl pipes. LARGE bowl. Probably 90% of my pipes are smaller 15- 20 min smokes. This tobacco instantly plugged up a vintage Lark with a birds nest of wirey stiff tobacco. I suppose that's appropriate. 2nd observation, was pouch odor. Very....bland. Maybe sourish?...but a hint of smokiness. Definitely no rum that I've smelled. My wife said it smelled to her like a fresh out of wrapper "Band-Aid". So....at least it wasn't a used bandaid. 3rd observation, damn everybody was right. This bloody burns the tongue right off the bat. Being easy, prepping for it, I could still feel an acrid sizzle on my tongue. Like the old silver eveready 9v batteries with the black cat on them. Every thing you know about smoking slow, has to be relearned. Perhaps the dryness of it, coupled with coarseness/wireyness, makes it burn like dry broomstraw. Maybe the rum casing and Va then makes an acid concoction. I'm drawing straws here, literally through the pipe. All the above could be contended with, if the flavor was execptional. 4th observation, flavor. Mehhh. Very mild, hint of fruitiness, hint of smokiness, hint of my God I bought a 16oz bag of this. If you have samples of S.Value products on hand, take about 60% of their "Mellow" blend, 25% of their "Cherry", plus 15% of their "English" blend. Although the leaf is different, it WILL give you a 90% close MATCH to "Plumcake" flavor, but it will be more packable, and more likely NOT to burn you. 5th observation from the resident snoot, was "mehh". A shrug and whatever sort of "mehh". So it didn't get me ran out of the kitchen, but that's about it. Takeaway for me is a solid "its kinda alright I guess".

Pipe Used: freehand, large MM Cob

Age When Smoked: new

Purchased From: JR

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	thedoc333 (6)	2021-02-09		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Very Pleasant

tin - irregular ribbons, reminiscent of danish quality. it’s nice to see a little irregularity. very quick to pack which is nice. i didn’t dwell do much on the tin note. sweetness+ very subtle rum

I’m about halfway through the bowl in a fairly large pipe about .75 inches diameter 1.7 deep.

I am pleasantly surprised - not a ton of floral notes like a good english however I definitely notice a nice peatiness of the latakia. subtle. a steady sweetness throughout and when I place my tongue in the smokestream the jamaican rum becomes very pronounced. there is a pepperiness when the small sips are pushed which I like. I am heeding advice of sipping slowly however this is a lovely flavor that I am tempted to push. the burley seems to round the virginia very well. borders on nutty. everything kind of melds with another making me feel that this blend is a mastery of balance. I get a lot of fruit — and the juxtaposition with the latakia smokiness makes brings to mind what perhaps a soaked sherry barrel shaving may taste like if smokes. the room note is very pleasant, balanced.. dare I say delicious. although I have yet to smoke otc; this seems to me what a top shelf otc with some danish sensibility may be. balanced, has a nice history, unoffensive, a hint of nuance. a pleasant surprise welcome to my rotation. I can see myself smoking this in the morning or evening.

Pipe Used: mclary of ingalls volcano

Age When Smoked: ?

Purchased From: local cigar shop

Similar Blends: category of its own?.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Elsayyed (14)	2020-12-12		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Hello, this is my third tin all from 2013 . upon opening the tin you'll smell the lovely sweet tobacco and mild rum aroma, its ribbon cut with somehow equal portions of black, dark and light brown tobacco and comes smokable right from the tin but 10 minutes drying before packing is recommended. it packs easily and doesnt require much relights. its smokey, piney with a subtle rum taste that i enjoy, this tobacco smokes hot so take it easy and when it does so leave it to cool down or it will bite and sting the lips a little, its the same case with all alcohol aromatics ive tried.

update: this tobacco is growing on me. there is broken flakes in the tin i found that by stuffing them vertically in middle of the bowl and surrounding them with the ribbon cut and packing a little light gives me more constant taste. for my olfactory latakia is new and im loving it , this piney taste is a heaven specially when retrohaling, when frensh inhaling theres an added floral notes and nutiness with very slight sweetness . the overall taste is like having a beer and sniffing on a pine cone. :D its recommended for ppl who want to try latakia for the first time as for someone who smoke blends with higher rate of latakia he will not get the full spectrum of this blend.

its not an all day smoke for me, i smoke every couple days a bowl because i don't want my olfactory to go numb and stop catching my cherished latakia aroma. its one of my favorite tobacco that ill always have available for my aroma time therapy accompanied with a cup of tea or a bourbon glass.

1star for taste 1star for quality 1star for what it delivers for the price. 1 star when dried and packed well it will not bite at all.

Pipe Used: Chabôt bent billiard

Age When Smoked: dried for 30 minutes

Purchased From: locale store

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Doctor Max (29)	2020-02-15		Very Mild	Mild	Very Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

My impression of this tobacco is "not enough". Not enough Latakia, not enough sweetness, not enough rum, not enough flavour. As usual with MB, the tobacco is beautiful, clearly of the highest quality, cut in a light and dark brown ribbon cut. The tin note is a beautiful gingerbread with a strong note of rum and a definite smokiness from the Latakia; really reminds me of certain single malts. As has often been the case with MB, I found the tobacco way too moist when opening the tin, leading to mainly hot steam, no flavour and nigh impossible to keep lit, but after drying out to appropriate levels, it packs and lights beautifully. The smoke itself I find outright disappointing, quite bland really. The flavour is mostly a grassy dark Virginia but without much sweetness, just a hint of creamy Latakia without much smokiness, just a hint of rum... just a hint of flavour to be honest. Nicotine level is really quite low. If you like light and not too sweet Virginia blends with just a hint of Latakia, this one might be for you. I can see why some people like this as their all day smoke. To sum up, a somewhat restrained offering from MB in the Scottish tradition. Personally, I prefer more present blends.

Pipe Used: Corn cob

Age When Smoked: 0-1 years

Purchased From: Expendeduria Número 3, Calp, Spain

Similar Blends: Rattray - 7 Reserve.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Indianapolis (49)	2019-12-23		Very Mild	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Darn I wanted to like this.... I'm not a big aromatics guy, but the reviews seemed so positive, and I really hoped for a new good aro to add to my rotation.

But this isn't it. The tin note is chemically, and it tastes the same in the pipe. First draw on each bowl was still pleasant and made me optimistic, and then every bowl soured halfway through. I tried drying it, sipping it, briars, meerchaums, clays..... I just couldn't find the sweet spot with this one for an entire bowl. I give up. Maybe its someone else's cup of tea, it seemed to have some promise, but its not for this smoker....

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Viscfab (36)	2019-06-04		Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Plumcake is a very pleasant pipe tobacco. Upon tin cracking you will be greeted with ribbon cut of matured dark brown Virginias and a tad of Cyprian latakia. The moisture level is already good to pack and go right off the bat. Aromatically wise - for me, the dominance is of raisins smell... As I am not a rum connoisseur I can't really attest the bouquet of it on the mixture. It is rather hard to detect the typical campfire smell of latakias in the tin note. It packs well, lights well and goes well all the way down to the bottom of the bowl. best experienced with slow pace and breath smoking with a bit of retrohaling and french smoking techniques. The taste is middle of the road between a good Virginia blend and an English blend. It will get a tad spicier by the last 1/3 of the bowl, where the little amount of latakias added will play its part... The campfire notes however wil never show up, they are hidden and the latakias only add a bit os spiciness to the overall flavour. Overall, this is a very solid and proper pipe tobacco, no wonder why it is in the market for so long. I recommend it for those who are already into pipes for a bit of time. Novices will probably wont enjoy it as much.

Pipe Used: Vauen, Savinelli, Manelli, Brebbia, Stanwell

Age When Smoked: 5

Purchased From: Local tobacconist in Scandinavia

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2019-04-20		Mild to Medium	Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is an edited/revised review from my sample in 2009 under my old handle. I popped the lid and noticed that unmistakable aroma of Latakia & the heavy rum topping. I didn't notice the "good enough to eat" aroma that others have... just a flavored aromatic with a pleasant tin note and a smoky aroma that is not overwhelming. I sampled this blend in my large, Peterson 9S pipe and it was quite mild with a sweet taste. The Latakia was... feint, or not too pronounced, but noticeable. I felt, more than tasted the rum topping...must have been the 151 proof. In that respect, this stuff could have been called Rumcake as it bit me regardless of the manner in which it was finessed.

My first bowl sample wasn't goopy toward the end as others have attested & the tobacco burned down to a totally dry, grey ash... probably due to the feature of Peterson System pipes. On the second trial run, I discovered that drying this stuff out pretty good will tone it down and deminish tongue bite a little. Regardless of the review span this blend has received, it's one you'll have to try for yourself. It has received many reviews which piqued my curiosity. I personally consider it to be a very tasty, flavored blend & could rate it a three if not for the tongue bite & harshness. I'm relatively new with Latakia, so, bear with me.

Mac Baren has a problem they should address with this mixture. However, Plumcake has a really good taste & aroma but I never was able to cope with more than a few bowls due to the harshness & tongue bite. I suppose I could have been smoking it improperly for I see many had no problems with it. I tried it & failed but such is the way of tobacco blends & pipers having varying degrees of sensitivity with taste receptors & proclivity to tongue bite.

Pipe Used: Peterson Deluxe 9S

Age When Smoked: Fresh Tin

Purchased From: Pipes & Cigars

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2019-03-07		Medium	Medium	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is a flavored Latakia aromatic with a pleasant tin note and a smoky aroma. I sampled this blend in my large, Peterson 9S pipe and it was quite mild with a sweet taste. The Latakia was... feint, or not too pronounced, but noticeable. I felt, more than tasted the rum topping... must have been the 151 proof. In that respect, this stuff could have been called Rumcake as it bit me regardless of the manner in which it was finessed.

My first bowl sample wasn't goopy toward the end as others have attested & the tobacco burned down to a totally dry, grey ash... probably due to the feature of Peterson System pipes. On the second trial run, I discovered that drying this stuff out pretty good will tone it down and deminish tongue bite a little. Regardless of the review span this blend has received, it's one you'll have to try for yourself. It has received many reviews which piqued my curiosity.

I personally consider it to be a very tasty, flavored blend & could rate it higher if not for the tongue bite & harshness. However, Plumcake has a really good taste & aroma but I never was able to cope with more than a few bowls due to the harshness & tongue bite. I suppose I could have been smoking it improperly for I see many had no problems with it. I tried it & failed but such is the way of tobacco blends & pipers having varying degrees of sensitivity with taste receptors & proclivity to tongue bite.

Pipe Used: Peterson Deluxe 9S & 11S

Age When Smoked: Fresh Tin

Purchased From: Pipes & Cigars

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2019-01-05		Mild	Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Pleasant

This is an edited/revised review from my sample in 2009 under my old handle. I popped the lid and noticed that unmistakable aroma of Latakia & the heavy rum topping. I didn't notice the "good enough to eat" aroma that others have... just a flavored aromatic with a pleasant tin note and a smoky aroma that is not overwhelming. I sampled this blend in my large, Peterson 9S pipe and it was quite mild with a sweet taste. The Latakia was... feint, or not too pronounced, but noticeable. I felt, more than tasted the rum topping...must have been the 151 proof. In that respect, this stuff could have been called Rumcake as it bit me regardless of the manner in which it was finessed.

My first bowl sample wasn't goopy toward the end as others have attested & the tobacco burned down to a totally dry, grey ash... probably due to the feature of Peterson System pipes. On the second trial run, I discovered that drying this stuff out pretty good will tone it down and deminish tongue bite a little. Regardless of the review span this blend has received, it's one you'll have to try for yourself. It has received many reviews which piqued my curiosity. I personally consider it to be a very tasty, flavored blend & could rate it a three if not for the tongue bite & harshness. I'm relatively new with Latakia, so, bear with me.

Mac Baren has a problem they should address with this mixture. However, Plumcake has a really good taste & aroma but I never was able to cope with more than a few bowls due to the harshness & tongue bite. I suppose I could have been smoking it improperly for I see many had no problems with it. I tried it & failed but such is the way of tobacco blends & pipers having varying degrees of sensitivity with taste receptors & proclivity to tongue bite.

Pipe Used: Peterson Deluxe 9S

Age When Smoked: Fresh Tin

Purchased From: Pipes & Cigars

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Greekpipesmoker (201)	2018-12-21		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Cold winter days require something strong with full taste i though so i chose this blend.the discription and the reviews prepare you for something heavy and full of flavour.once the tin opens a natural rum smell comes out.a deeper smell provides some smokey notes,grass and nuts.the blend is consisted of broken flakes mixed with different cut method of tobaccos.the tin moisture is perfect.packs and lights ok with some relights needed through the process.while smoking the rum notes are strong from the beginning till the end subtlimating a little the tobacco flavours.virginias are mainly grassy and sweet.some citruses rare pop up.burleys are spicy and a little nutty.not the usual taste from burleus here.latakias are mainly smokey with a discreet presence.last of all the cavendish are toasty providing some vanilla notes.generally i found the flavours enjoyable and complex.burns fast and hot even if some flake parts are packed to perfect ash with a lot moisture left at the filter to perfect ash.nicotine level is medium and the aftertaste is the typical aftertaste of a strong rum.room note is nweither pleasant nor bad.no tongue bite present but if pushed hard some bitter notes may appear.not an all day smoke to me because i don't like tasting alcohol when i wake up.generally this is a decent blend worthy trying.

Age When Smoked: Fresh

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JustinCarcerated (99)	2017-08-03		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I am cultivating a better understanding of MacBaren tobys of late (review 99 in my journey)- oft maligned as harsh, under-performing blends by some. Had I smoked this 3 years ago I'd have dogged this myself.

But following the advice of Pipestud I learned Mac Barens' require discipline - gotta smoke em low and slow.. I also shelved this x 4 years b4 popping the lid-I appreciate that Halberg labels his blends with the full date; Mar 2013... why can't this be universal amongst manufacturers?!

3.5oz tin, don't know that this is available in a 50 gram tin. Tin note was a scrumptious rum scent, not overwhelming, but inviting. Visible dark Va broken flake sparsely imbedded within coarse shag, lovely Syrian and Cav scents.

Lights nicely but even after 1/2 tin requires frequent relights-influenced by my methodical slow cadence, A very nice aroma that translates in taste to a burley-forward blend with strong Cavendish suppot, intermittent sweetness from high quality Va.

I wouldn't call this a 'refined' blend, can get a bit harsh and hard on the tongue, but I imagine (or possibly romanticize) this to be very close to what sailors would have had access to more than 150 years ago. I visualize them lying in stacked cots, slowly unwinding with this blend while sharing cheap rum, swapping sea stories.

Just enough heft in the nicotine department to refresh without causing head rush or nausea, and a good steady medley of slight sweetness and flavors throughout. Burns right to ash, best [for me] in a smaller meer.

I judge blends now on how long they keep my interest as anything else, and I did not veer from this blend throughout the beefy 3.5 ounces.

Very much recommended - pay heed to Pipestud's advise on cadence, and it might turn out to be a dependable smoke for aro lovers and burley fans too.

Pipe Used: Mid height meer, long stem briar

Age When Smoked: 4 years..and some change

Purchased From: Pipes&Cigars

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	William H. Hardy (95)	2017-05-08		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

Maybe it's just me, but I get tongue bite from almost every MacBaren blend that I try. This one did not bite me nearly as badly as Virginia #1 did (Honey-flavored flames!), but it's still pretty bitey. The constituents of this blend sounded like they would definitely be in my wheelhouse with the burley, Virginia, Cavendish, and a little bit of Latakia. The topping is restrained and does not interfere with the tobacco, but adds a light sweetness to the blend. It smelled and tasted great, just too bitey. I've been smoking a pipe for nearly ten years now and I don't think it's my technique. I've tried every way to smoke this that I can think of; dried out, moist straight from the tin, very slowly, breath smoking, puffing with my mouth very slightly open... All to no avail.

Perhaps it's just my body chemistry. I've had success with some of the HH series and a few others that I have tried (from friends, though; I won't buy a Mac Baren product unless I try it first, at this point) and have not been bitten by them (ODF, BK, Navy Flake). I wonder if the topping were not present, would I still get bitten? My instinct says no. Plumcake is a really good, what I would call, "Scottish Blend." Light on the Latakia, with added burley and Cavendish. The topping, to me, was more rum than plum, but that didn't really influence anything about the smoke.

All in all, I did like this blend, but won't be buying anymore due to the unnecessary pain I receive when I smoke it. Plumcake is absolutely top-notch tobaccos that I would truly enjoy were it not for the torture. I will definitely give this blend respect for the leaf and the flavor of the blend. I really liked it, just not enough to burn myself again. I had visions of Paul Atreides placing his hand in the agony box...

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	crapgame1967 (61)	2017-01-16		Strong	Medium	Overwhelming	Strong

Here another episode of "Teaching Joe How to Smoke a Pipe" I get on the radio and call Joe over to try a new tobacco and when he arrives, he takes one look at the tin and punches me in the arm. "Mike what did I say about getting me to try that MAC CRAP! I said "Joe look it it is flavored with rum! I am sure you will love it!" We filled our pipes and I let Joe have the honors of lighting first,after we both lit our pipes Joe started licking his lips...walked over to me and again punched me in the arm..."Mike" he said "even rum doesn't make this taste good, my mouth is on fire again!" I hate to admit this but so was mine. Joe went in search of a non-filter camel and when he came back with one he remarked at least we will get another free lunch and jumped into his yard jockey truck and tried to get Paul, head of security and also smokes pipes on the radio . Paul came back a few minutes later and said he didn't have any extra cash but did offer a trade:my Plumcake for the few ounces of Lane 1-Q he bought the day before and after we shook hands everyone was happy! Now 13 years after my first time trying this tobacco I think with some experimenting with bowl sizes and finding the right pace to smoke this blend I would more than likely find this an enjoyable smoke...not something I would ever buy again but something I would not be offended if someone gave it to me as a gift. Overall I would say the first time I smoked this it would be 1 star for me and 3 stars for the experienced smoker willing to take the time to tame this tobacco. This one is on my revisit list!

Pipe Used: no name meer

Age When Smoked: 6 month old tin

Purchased From: some random tobacco shop I stopped at while trucking

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	HouDEANie (7)	2016-12-11		Mild	Very Mild	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

Best tobacco I have smoked so far. Opening the tin I was met with that smokey latakia aroma, smelled a bit of grass/hay coming through. Did not smell any rum though.

The taste was sweet, almost like a fruity sweetness but nothing over the top. None of the dreaded tongue bite experienced no matter how hard or quick I smoked.

It burns to a fine grey ash, cool burning and very tasty. An exceptional tobacco.

Highly recommended. This is in my daily rotation.

Pipe Used: Savinelli

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Local Tobacconist

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	jvnshr (23)	2016-07-27		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Smoking Mac Baren Plumcake is like eating a plumcake that has been prepared by your mother, then frozen and then microwaved to a degree to burn your tongue. Somewhat Recommended.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	vespa (18)	2015-08-22		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Well I must say that I'm glad that I've returned to MacB. After being disappointed with RCDT I had pretty much given up on the brand. A good friend of mine in Richmond who loves PC is responsible for me giving MacB another go. Thank you Iron Mike. This review is from a tin that has 3yrs of age on it so I can't vouch for anything younger. What I've learned (with help from my friend) that MacB is a Va forward brand. With this in mind and a little trepidation I gave PC a go. I'm about halfway through the tin and find it a very pleasant smoke. Everything works well together with no one player taking the lead. A lot has been said about this blend Pro & Con so I don't need to expell any further. Since I started smoking PC I've treated as if I'm smoking a Va dominant blend keeping this in mind I sipped. Which will serve you well and your mouth will thank you for it in the long run. As a reviewer said earlier I like to smoke PC in one of my Lat pipes, sounds strange but works quite well. I have noticed that the first bowls I smoked fresh from the tin were a little on the sweet side which isn't a bad thing. What I transferred from the tin to my pouch and has had some dry time that sweetness has disappeared some which I like. You just get a real nice relaxing smoke, so what's wrong with that? Not A Damn Thing in my book. PC is not an English nor an Aro either, I don't care one way or another I like it. Will I purchase again? A very resounding YES. It's time to put about 5 tins in the cellar.

Pipe Used: Peterson Dracula 999 Bulldog

Age When Smoked: 3 yrs

Purchased From: Old Virginia Tobacco Co

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	pipey duck (50)	2015-07-13		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant

oh what a wonder! Right now I smoke PLUMCAKE without any bite!!!! Just a pleasant ripe virginia and a little burley taste. The latakia is not detectable at all. The rumflavor is far in the background but works very well. A superior tobacco! I could sleep in the tin so soft appears the blend to me.The only little downside (to me) is the small nicotin content. A Very very pleasant smoke, at least with 20 myears of aging.

I have to upgrade to 4 stars. In this condition hard to beat! Real tobacotaste with virginia in the front and a little burley and flavourd cavendish in the second row. Sweet and round and highly recomended

Pipe Used: Sainelli punto oro (Prince Army)

Age When Smoked: ca.20 year

Purchased From: ebay

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2015-06-29		Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I never understand, why this is called a English. But i do like the tobacco, if you love lakatia, then this is not for you. There is abit of latakia in the taste, but very little.

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Cigar.de

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Cumarinophil (108)	2015-03-29		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Plumcake is presented in a fine ribbon cut with a few ready rubbed pieces, developing a nice rummy scent from the tin. Casing and Latakia mildly alter the smoking experience, but never manage to suppress the dominant Virginias. The blend is predominantly spicy in taste and at the same time fragrant and sweetish in the nose. All in all I find this blend somewhat restrained, but in a pleasant way. It burns rather quickly, but also clean and easy to control with a tamper at hand.

Plumcake has a little bit of everything, is nothing extraordinary, thus a good middle of the road or everyday smoke. Perfect for possible defectors form the land of aromatics and vice versa.

Pipe Used: Various

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Jose Ruiz (7)	2015-03-22		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

For todays review I'm reviewing Mac Baren's Plum Cake -Navy Blend . May you all have a great day. Keep on puffin. Blend: Virginia, Burley, Cavendish, Latakia Cut: Loose cut, small pieces of pressed tobacco Tin size:3.5 oz. Tin Notes: Rum topping, plum, Sweet, pungent. Taste: Mild to medium, cool smoke, slight natural sweetness. Strength: Medium to medium mild. Pipe Used: Savinelli 614 full bent Room notes: Slight sweetness from the rich Virginia leaf , nice smoky nuttiness from the Burley. Hint of creamy notes.

Notes: abit of nutty nuances, natural sweetness. Not chemically. Ready to go from the get go, Packs well, best to pack your bowl lightly and smoke slowly to help prevent tongue burn. During the smoke I had few relights after the true burn. Smoked consistent throughout the whole bowl. Pipe didn't get hot at all from puffing slow. Had enough taste to keep it interesting and still retained complexity to enjoy it during a long smoke. Over all a nice all day smoke. I recommend it for a good all day smoke and would keep it in my rotation.

The Wife's Review:

I didn't mind this one at first. It has a nice mellow smell from across the room. My only objection at all is that by the time my hubby was done the back of my throat felt slightly scratchy and itchy. It wasn't bad but he has had it on two separate occasions and I had the same response both times. So while the smell is mellow and slightly pleasing, my throat didn't agree. For that reason alone I am glad he doesn't smoke it every day.

Pipe Used: Savinelli 614 full bent

Age When Smoked: new

Purchased From: mac baren

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	pipedrum22 (15)	2015-03-05		Medium	Medium	Medium	Tolerable

Let me start by saying that I can see this blend being wonderful for many smokers, it's just not for me. The tin note is very fragrant with the rum and latakia being the two main scents that are noticeable, however the room note isn't exactly what one might call a "crowd pleaser." It lights and burns well, but it can bite if you are not careful. The blend is extremely complex with the cavendish, burley, virginia, latakia, and rum topping. The virginia, cavendish, and rum give the tobacco a sweet profile and it contrasts nicely with the smokiness of the latakia. I would recommend this blend to someone who is looking for a sweet and smokey blend.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ap (57)	2015-01-23		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Sweet and spicy smoke . A good Burley/Virginia combo with enough Latakia to keep things interesting!!! Cool and dry smoke with slow puffing!!! anothe great blend from Mac Baren

Pipe Used: MM Cobs

Age When Smoked: fresh tin

Purchased From: 4noggins

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Brendan (8)	2015-01-16		Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

Well i don't think this falls in the category of english, because it has latakia( contains maybe 5-10% latakia, from what i can tell).I would say that this is kinda aromatic.

but i really like the taste, i taste some fruity essence(not overpowering or ghosting, just to give it something something) and i find that the latakia accentuate the fruitiness with the after taste of virginia. Very very good blend, BUT you can easily get tongue bite if you don't sip it. i find that the taste becomes better throughout the smoke.

as i said the flavoring is somewhat nice and fruity, but not overpowering the overall blend.

Taste, mild-medium, because this blend can BITE you if you don't sip and than you won't taste as much. but if you do sip, you will taste the nice fruity essence with the latakia and virginia.

i smoke this in my latakia pipe, so that the lat ghosting better accentuate the fruity flavor.(no ghosting to the pipe from the fruitiness)

Pipe Used: Big Ben Barbados

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Vaperluvr60 (4)	2014-11-06		Medium	Medium	Medium	Very Pleasant

It's hard for me to quantify how much I love this blend.....if I were limited to one blend, this would be it...thankfully I'm not as I enjoy so many others but this one just does it for me. First I want to say that any who have bought this in the tin and found it objectionable should get some in bulk.....I buy it in the 1 lb bags and find it quite a bit different than in the tin. In the tin, it seems to me to be much like other Mac Baren blends in that there is a pressed element to it which to my estimation, holds too much moisture.....in the bag it is another animal. This blend has this delicious aroma...both in the pouch and in the room...a sweetness with a hint of Latakia but not so much as to be off putting.....just enough to give it an extra dimension beyond an aromatic and in bulk it is not pressed together but rather the opposite, a coarse loose shag of an affair that requires some care when packing so as not as to not get soft spots...the 3 level pack works best for me. I like it in a large bowl because the flavors seem to come out better for me plus that room note fills out the flavor as well. Cool, dry and flavorful....if in the tin, rub it out very well.....fluff it up as best you can and let it air dry for a bit before packing....firm but not tight.....a good charring light then go at it again.....a pipe is to be savored they say....this blend lends to that and then some! Oh.....and go slow....this blend burns well when done right and stays lit very well.....when done right.....as another here suggests....the ember should shift about, from here to there, funny.....I love to play with this stuff.....the complexity of flavors changes so much throughout the bowl....as I said...my favorite!

Pipe Used: Charatan's special and Big Ben Nairobi

Age When Smoked: varies....I've got a lot of this stuff!

Purchased From: pipesandcigars and elsewhere

Similar Blends: Iconic blend......been around since the late 50's.......none that I can think of...pretty much stands alone..

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Kristian (1)	2014-09-02		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

It's not my favorite tobacco at the moment (and that's just because I don't really smoke latakia anymore), but I've never loved a tobacco as much as I loved Plumcake. Naturally sweet- from the tobacco itself. Perfect room note- smells of what Tom Fords Tobacco Vanille would have been based on. The perfect touch of latakia- which was used more as a spice or condiment- not as a base component. The art of subtlety was mastered with this tobacco, nothing was overdone or underdone- not too much latakia, not too much topping, not too strong in flavor or nicotine. A++ If they made this tobacco without latakia, I'd buy it by the pound.

Pipe Used: Savinelli Trevi

Purchased From: Barclay Rex

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Coda (33)	2014-07-27		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild	Tolerable

Plumcake is a tobacco that "brings the thoughts back to old times." A mix of bright Virginias, Burley, "Mac Baren" Cavendish, and "just a touch" of Syrian Latakia, all blended with Jamaican Rum. Plumcake is nuanced, but not terribly complicated. Interesting and pleasant, this is not a blend that I would call a favorite. It's essentially an American English; a light Latakia blend with a topping of some sort. Not horrible at all, it's just not my cup of tea...

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	CTS (138)	2014-03-18		Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Recently purchased a tin stamped NOV 2011 on the bottom label. Blend required no drying time - seemed just right out of the tin. Aroma in tin is what I would expect slightly fermented, soured, sweet golden raisins to smell like. Not bad, just a bit different. Initial flavor was a bit like a dilute steamed condensate of what I smelled in the tin. Once settled in, particularly upon sipping, I pick up the burley, accompanied by dried figs with a touch of smokey molasses. Very complex, definitely a sipper to pick up the complexity of the blend. Smoked in a medium bowled Savinelli with balsa filter. I got no rum, per se, but definitely picked up a consistent background flavor. To me it is different than The Solent Mixture. 3+* for what it delivers.

Pipe Used: Savinelli w/Balsa 6mm

Age When Smoked: NOV 2011 stamped on label.

Purchased From: Smokes on Burdick, Kalamazoo, MI

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	cjone107 (18)	2014-02-10		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Not a bad blend, but not really my style. The other reviews saved me from some nasty tongue bite. Even puffing slowly got me pretty close to a burnt tongue. I love the taste of this when I can get at it. The latikias seem to overpower it for me. On good puffs, there's a wonderfully sweet rum taste, but I can't stand the inconsistency. The room note is pretty good for latakia, but it's clearly not an aromatic.

Pipe Used: Briar & Corn Cob

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Smoker's Choice - Bloomington, IL

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	codyp (65)	2014-02-10		Mild to Medium	Strong	Medium to Full	Tolerable

This blend was very surprising. Expecting more of an aromatic plum kind of blend I got a bit of a complex english.

The blend did burn pretty hot, and the taste wasn't too great.

The room note was actually pretty decent, and it did light easily. However it also burned pretty quick.

Because this type of blend is one of my favorites, and they kind of pulled it off, I'll give two. I also believe mac baren can make a good blend, but am still looking.

Pipe Used: Peterson System Bent

Purchased From: Local Shop

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Mville (9)	2014-02-06		Medium	Very Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

This blend has a very nice smell out of the tin, can't really explain what it's similar to. Kind of plum or raisins. Tast pretty mild and is very enjoyable. A little change from English and aromatic.

Pipe Used: MM country gentleman

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: P&C

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	LarsFiskaren (5)	2014-02-06		Medium to Strong	Medium	Medium	Tolerable

The pouch smell is interesting, dark and smokey, with something sweet like dates or figs and alcohol. Wasn't sure if I would like it. Took some getting used to, but I like it. It has to be smoked carefully and very slowly or else it will destroy your tongue. Smoking it with a filter also helps like previous reviews stated. Aging the tobacco also really helps to make it more mellow. Probably due to the latakia, the room note is not very pleasant. Pairs great with whisky. An interesting blend for true pirates. Arggh mateys!

Pipe Used: BigBen briar

Age When Smoked: 2 years

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Joeray (61)	2013-12-10		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

1st time I opened the tin I can smell a good fragrant, a little bit smell of plum fruit and a hint of a good rum. Easy to pack and burnt well. The strongest taste I think is va, with just a very little hint of latakiya not a strong one, but the whole taste is very sweet. Very pleasant to enjoy and smooth smoke. For those who like a smooth smoking definetely I will recommend this blend.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	bigterr (21)	2013-12-08		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

New update (2014/03/18) of original review below: I've finished my second piouch of this blend using only my filtered pipes (Ascorti rusticated billiard, Bjarne Squashed bulldog, Peterson billiard, Medico Varsity billiard) and I am upgrading my rating from 2 to 3.5 stars. Once you let this dry out sufficiently and gently draw its smoke slowly from the bowl you get a consistently delightful experience. This has become one of my infrequent (only because its rare I can devote an entire evening to such hedonistic activity) but truly enjoyable evening activities going very well with a cup or three of Lapsang Souchong while listening to mellow blues or soft soul music its almost enough to make you feel like you are floating away on a blissful carpet of smoke. Original Review (2013-12-08): I could not get either Virginia # 1 nor Symphony at my local tobacconist so I thought I would give this a try. Although I am not a regular smoker of aromatic's I risked this on the basis of its tobacco blend versus its Rum casing. Looked great and smelled intriguing in the pouch and seemed relatively dry. Using the Frank method I filled a GBD billiard bowl lovat and commenced to char the top. Then, with anticipation I fired up proper. Quite some time back when I took up the pipe again (with V # 1) I learned about the Mac bite so I proceeded with caution. I really could'nt have gone any slower as proven by the fact the pipe went out twice in the first 15 min. Despite my best efforts I was unable to avoid the lava like stream that was drawn across my poor tongue. I gave up after 20 minutes and left the pipe to cool. An hour later I gave it another go (this time in a corncob) to be faced with another volcanic eruption. A good coating of milk seemed to asuage my pain and I left the pipes abandoned for the remainder of the evening. So now its another day and my pipe beckons. NO! NO! I said. I came to tobacco reviews and proceeded to see just what I had parted with my money to get besides a blistered tongue. I was baffled by many of the 4 star reviews until I encountered one which said Plumkake needs to dry out somewhat and another which claimed that he uses a 9mm filter pipe and has never experienced tongue bite with this or any other blend. To the pipe drawers I went as I was sure I had a couple of pipes that met that criterion. Indeed I found my Bjarne squashed bulldog. Another couple of drawers later I found the box of filters. I put a new one in and then dumped sufficient plumcake on the table to fill it and went away for an hour. Okay I thought its dryer and I have the filter pipe so here goes. Did someone sneak into the room while I was away and switch the tobacco? It was delightful, smooth creamy smoke full of body (burley?) with ever so faint a touch from the Syrian latakia. 10 minutes later (with no relights needed) I was still enjoying this to an extent I would not have believed possible after my initial experience. The virginia's and the cavendish punctuated the smoke with sweet interludes all the way through the first 2/3 of the bowl when the Syrian seemed to assert itself ever so reluctantly. I'm going to have to try this in my 9mm filtered Peterson billiard next just to confirm the filter makes the difference. In light of the latter experience I will likely be smoking the remainder of this pouch and at that point I'll determine whether to buy again. So, thanks to two reviewers advice - dry it and use a filter pipe, I got to enjoy this offering. My advice is for you to follow their advice and if you do not have a filter pipe do not buy this.

Pipe Used: All filtered - Ascorti, Peterson, Bjarne, Medico,

Age When Smoked: new pouch

Purchased From: Baroca Tobbaco, London, ON, Canada

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2013-12-06		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild	Pleasant

This was my first encounter with plumcake and for me it was and still is a good one. As you pop the tin you can smell a nice sweet and slightly spicy rum note as well as a smoky English style tobacco smell. The pack on this blend is easy. Once lit however, you will need to have a good tamping routine/ timing so this blend is for a more seasoned pipe smoker. The room note is amazingly sweet and smoky and smells as it does from the tin. This blend burns very nicely down to a fine white ash. From start to finish this blend is a great smoke.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2013-10-11		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I just so happened to be enjoying a bowl of this fine tobacco when I created my profile, hence the alias. I am an English tobacco guy and normally don't stray too far from stuff like Mcclelland Brown Labels, Christmas Cheer, Rattray's and the like. However, the name of this tobacco sitting on the shelf at the shop caught my attention...and I figured I like plums, why not. I do not catch a whiff or taste of plums when smoking this, but man I certainly do enjoy everything else that comes through. For me, it does bring to mind of being on a wooden ship with pine pitch and tar and the smell of the ocean. The tobacco flavor is there and while I would label this as an aromatic compared to my normal smokes it is a very mild aromatic. The Latakia is just enough to enjoy and the burly is great. I'll always have a tin or two of this on hand.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	PhillyB (70)	2013-07-02		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Let me begin by saying that time is your friend with this blend. At first it bites too much and just comes over as harsh, but after a while of having the tin opened it mellows and becomes very pleasant. When I first smoked this it bit quite a lot but through that I got some very good flavors. So I decided to smoke it a few more time to give it the benefit of a doubt. Once I got up to maybe the third or fourth bowl it was VERY good! The two obvious flavors that it gives are spice from the Latakia and a sweetness from the Virginias. It tastes really very good but would not be an everyday smoke (I smoke irregularly anyway). A good treat smoke. My only problem is that the cut is a little too broad and requires constant tamping to keep lit, rectified by a much tighter than usual pack and a bigger bowled pipe.

Pipe Used: Turck's Select Lovat

Age When Smoked: 0 -1 years

Purchased From: Brown's Cigar Store

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Fife&Drum (34)	2013-04-29		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

The pouch aroma of this blend reminds me of Escotericas "And So To Bed" but without the anise component and less Latakia. This blend is well balanced with all its ingredients. I like the addition of the Mac Baren Original Cavendish. It helps support the Latakia's mild smokiness. Good sweet Virginias as well. My tin was a bit moist so I dried it a bit more before smoking. Definitely smooths this mixture out as well as reduces the little bit of bite/hotness. The rum casing makes this a pleasant smoke. Good.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2013-04-28		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Plumcake is a true classic. The blend works perfectly together.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Planet Scott (66)	2013-04-09		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild	Pleasant

Fairly well balanced smoke. Not too sweet with a slight English character. There are others I prefer, but this is a decent, solid smoke. Tongue bite is an issue for me. I puff as slow as possible, but I do not get the pleasure I seek. If not for the tongue bite, this would be a stellar blend.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Phonomet (44)	2013-01-17		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

The appearance and aroma of the tobacco is lovely and rich. The rum is present in the tin note, and when smoked it is present in a different way, adding spice and zing. The pinch of latakia is nice. Fruity and spicy with a decent strength for satisfaction. I finished the tin faster than I usually do.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Taraban (9)	2012-12-06		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Awful, never again! // I can smoke it, I won't buy it // = Quite good, worth trying // * Must-have, I'm happy

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	erthbound0 (10)	2012-11-30		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

UPDATE: After smoking this several more times I notice there is a lot of tongue bite. So much so that I have to bring it down to three stars. However, don't let that discourage you from trying this especially if your tongue can withstand a lot of punishment.

No matter what other reviews you read about this tobacco it is a MUST try.

I believe the people who gave it negative reviews were expecting something other than what this tobacco tries to be. If you love aromatics but also want to get a taste of great tobacco Plumcake accomplishes this wonderfully.

The Latakia is so well done that the only word to describe it is beautiful. It is a note hung high in the air, that wavers there for the entire bowl. It is not overpowering, but it is there and taste so well as the backbone to the bowl.

The smell is intoxicating. The Latakia adds a nice spice to the air and it doesn't offend others like heavier Latakia mixes.

If you are like me and want a classic pipe tobacco taste with a smell that won't send people running for the hills this is perfect. Great for the mornings. Definitely part of my rotation.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2012-11-20		Mild	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I packed about 2/3 of a bowl in an Pete System 307 on my way to campus this morning. From the get go I definitely picked up on a plum (or at least generic stone-fruit-y) sort of flavor. It was very nice, much more subtle than, say, Solani Festival. So long as there was just a hit of spice in the background it was good. If I ever got an exceptionally spicy puff I backed off for a bit, and as such kept this pretty cool from start to finish -- no tongue bite here! I certainly can't call this a particularly complex blend, but it was very enjoyable, and I'm already seriously considering making it my morning pipe tomorrow, too. I certainly think this is worth giving a try -- though as the MacB tins are large, maybe see if you can get a sample or two from a friend!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	kaywoodiecanuck (14)	2012-07-07		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

I bought a 50g pouch and was in heaven. As others have already noted, the note in the pouch was fruity and rich. New pouch, but did not need much dry time before lighting, burned well with very few relights. I liked it so much I bough a pound as a daily go to and the bulk was equally as good though I would not a tad damper than the small pouch. In bulk I gave it time in my tobacco jar, and once in a while (when rushed) I did not give it any time to air and it got a bit hot and a slight bite. The spice on the tongue and flavors that came and went kept me interested through a pound of the stuff. I would alternate though between it and some milder tobaccos. I loved the room note though a few folks did not enjoy it as much as I.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2012-06-16		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Very Pleasant

Several years ago in a search for tobaccos resembling Presbyterian or Cairo, my local tobacconist handed me a tin of MacBaren Plumcake. The memory of opening that tin is indelibly burned; I would have been satisfied if I never found a match to light it, just sniffing the tin and letting the fruity/figgy/rum aroma fill the car would have been enough. But I lit it, and I smoked it, I smoked it almost continuously for the rest of the day, man was it tasty.

To that point, I'd never smoked anything from MacBaren and I was about to learn there was a price to pay for my over indulgence that day… By the time I was ready to retire that evening, looking in the mirror I was shocked to find that the tip of my tongue was not a weepy, scab encrusted, open wounded stub with steam slowly drifting from it, I was bit... badly. I had been bitten before, easily traceable to bad technique on my part but I don't know if it was the curing process or the casing they use but some of Mac Baren's blends have a real knack for unprovoked tongue attacks. The lessons from that experience were acquiring the knowledge of properly packing a pipe and practicing the technique of a long cool smoke, barely keeping the ember alight.

Along with those lessons, the discovery of Peterson's "P Lip" and Savinelli Dry system pipes put blends like Plumcake happily and prominently in my rotation and is now my go to smoke, great with morning coffee or afternoon tea, providing a nice little buzz to accompany the caffeine. The aroma is what I judge every other Virginia by.

Best smoked slowly and contemplatively enjoying every nuance this tobacco has to offer.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2012-06-15		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

One of best blends of Mac Baren. Recommend it even for the beginners.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Dr.sadik (120)	2012-06-02		Medium to Strong	Medium to Strong	Full	Strong

although i wouldnt address this tobacco as an aromatic (i know it is cased) but the room note isnt friendly by all means. it can be translated into few people as the oriental scent sticks? regardless to that the tobacco have a superb flavor and perfect burning quality. very smooth tasting and and sweet notes to it. it behaves just fine in any given pipe regardless to the packing method and it has a considerable nic kick to it. very recommended for non aromatic lovers.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Mr. Big (321)	2012-04-19		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Let me first state that my review is based on a tin that is almost 10 years old . The blend is creamy, with just a touch of spice and no bite if sipped. Flavors from any toppings, this tin once had, are almost totally gone, so the resulting tobacco is somewhat bland but pleasant. I personally have many other styles of tobacco that I prefer, so I would not be a buyer again, however , this could appeal to many smokers.

Would agree with reviewer " Corncob1" , below

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2012-02-02		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

I have only smoked 2 bowls of this tobac. But I really enjoy it. Not too strong, but lots of taste. The description says a hint of Latakia, but I taste more than a hint. But not overpowering. I have smoked MacB's Club Blend, Vanilla loose and Plumcake. I like all 3. Not much tongue bite for me with the blends. This is kind of like a mild English to me. Nice flavoring. I smoked it in a large bowl straight pipe. A medico that I have smoked for years. Recommend.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	gunner525 (66)	2012-01-09		Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Gave this blend a try this morning. I had high hopes for it because of the fact it's been around for over 50yrs and has had pretty good reviews. However, I didn't like it nearly as much as I wanted to. The Syrian Latakia was pretty evident in the blend to me, and I just am not tempted by Lady Latakia. To me she's the Kim Kardashian of tobacco. Others may find her gorgeous, but she does absolutely nothing for me. Me I'm more of a Drew Barrymore, Sasha Alexander kind of guy. Give me a nice VA/Burley blend and I'm happy as can be. So if you're looking for a twist on Latakia or are interested in giving Lady Latakia a try pick up a tin.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Corncob3 (77)	2011-10-11		Medium	Medium to Strong	Medium to Full	Pleasant

I've seen a lot of mixed reviews regarding this blend. After the minor praise by some and a majority of disses by others, I finally decided to give Plumcake a try. It's one of those blend you have your eye on for a long time, but never get around to making that brave step, of giving it a light. Why did I wait so long? And I'm proud to say, it will be in my rotation from now on! It reminds me of Mac's Navy Flake. This has more spice(the Latakia used more of an accent than out front), the right pinch of sweetness and the rich character we all crave in our bowl. Not to mention Plumcake's delightful room note. As one reviewer pointed out, this is meant for sipping. And he's right. It's a blend you take your time with. Be sure not to pack this blend to tight. Give it a good two or three false lights, sit back and be prepared to be rewarded. One word of advise, be sure to give your pipe a good scrubbing with a bristle pipe cleaner before hand. This blend can clump up on you if you let your pipe build up for too long. As far as tin aroma goes, don't be put off by the pugnent fig-like smell after opening the tin. This will die down after a few days. Trust me, Orlik's Golden Slice and Honeydew Melon have a much stronger tin aroma. I give Plumcake 4 stars. If you like Mac's Navy Flake and want more richness and spice, this is a worthy companion.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Blue Bayou (60)	2011-09-01		Medium to Strong	Very Strong	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Tongue bite is the reason it didn't get 5 stars. This isn't the same Plumcake I smoked back in the '60's, which was dark and sticky. Too bad they messed with it. Strong rum-raisin overtones-- smells great in the tin. Too many starfish on the beach to buy it again.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Dr. G (15)	2011-08-23		Medium to Strong	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

As one of the few MacB blends available from my local tobacconist, I felt compelled to give it a try. The tin note was very interesting - the exact, almost petroleum-like bouquet of lapsang souchong tea with a hint of dark fruit. The appearance was very pleasing to the eye - golden ribbon with dark flecks of burley. In the pipe, the best combination turned out to be a small chamber briar with a light pack, frequent light tamping, and a gentle touch with the flame. Beyond this, it can heat up with a vengeance and if you expect a one light bowl and a low-maintenance smoke, this will be a disappointment. This is a sipping tobacco of the first order, and a gentle touch brings out nice spice and dried fruity notes with a slow crescendo of sweetness about half way through the bowl. The rum topping was taciturn in this blend. The latakia is present, yet understated and would be a nice introduction for the uninitiated to this strain. I have yet to try it in a corncob and hope that this might mellow it a bit for my customary, more rapid, cadence. Room note passes the acid test (my wife) with the toasty aroma of creme broulee. Not an all-day smoke by any stretch, but a nice addition to my once-in-a- while tier two rotation when contemplation and a gentle smoke is the order of the day. Recommended

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Capt (339)	2011-07-17		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

If you can handle the tongue bite, by all means test drive this blend. Good flavor, I just can't get past the charring light, it burns me that bad. I purchased my tin back in 3/06, and even with 5.5 years of proper storage, still burns my mouth.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2011-07-05		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Upon opening of the tin, the aroma was like fermented raisins mixed with hay. Definitely a very interesting scent. Almost a farm like smell. The tobacco itself is a golden hue and some darker colors which may be the cavendish. Its a bit moist in the tin but I had no problems lighting or keeping it lit. As for the dreaded "bite" I really sensed none. It does burn a bit hot so I don't suggest sucking it down, but this stuff definitely has some spice, which I believe some smokers may mistake for tongue bite. It has a wonderful sweetness that lingers on the palate well after the bowl is smoked, which pleased me. The room note was average. I enjoyed this tobacco very much and am looking forward to my next smoke.. a good afternoon/evening smoke which I highly recommend you try.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Papa Koala (12)	2011-06-13		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

Yes, this will do nicely. Rich, without being over bearing, aroma from the tin. I don't get the rum note but I do get plums or perhaps raisins. A nicely balanced taste whilst smoking it with a pleasant background of freshly baked fruit cake, most peculiar. Room note is good, not overpowering but you know that you are smoking tobacco and not an incense stick. My test of room note is coming back to a room in the morning and taking a big wiff. This tobacco passes the test for me. Very nice without that god awful stale cigarette smoke smell. Treat this with care and you will be as happy as a happy thing. Be gentle and don't puff on your pipe like your the Flying Scotsman going at full tilt. If you do, your tongue will feel like your licking shards of glass. Enjoy.This is Mrs Koala's favourite room note and so I get to stay in the gum tree to 'ponder'. This I have upgraded to 4 stars (highly recommended). Why? Because I really like this, period.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2011-05-29		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Edit 19 Oct 2011

Well I had originally bought 3 tins. For some reason, I kept the other two. A week ago, I decided to open one of them, which had reached 1 year old. Look at this: this is a totally different tobacco. Dominated by BUs, the spiced CA and the rum topping, it does not bite. This is a very good tobacco. The rum topping is there at first then progressively vanishes, leaving BU and VAs play together, with an occasional spiceness from the CA. So, here's my advice: wait a full year before you pop open the lid on Macbaren tobaccos. You will probably not be disappointed. recommended and yes, I wil rebuy.

_________________________________________ Original review____________________

I am having the hardest time with Macbaren since a good while. Besides LBB, Golden Extra, HH Syrian Latakia or HH Acadian Perique, I find them either bland in taste, or they bite.

I really enjoyed the rum topping in Plumcake, but there was really nothing distinctive to it and, after a bowl smoked rather carefully, my tongue was still irritated most of the next day.

I believe this tongue bite is created by the additives introduced in the tobacco for its good preservation.

Too bad: the combinaison of loose cut VAs/a bit of latakia with partially rubbed - out burley flake made for a promising combustion/ flavor combination...

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	RyeWhiskey (43)	2011-05-10		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

Plumcake, a very nice, relaxing smoke on the porch is how I like this one. The tin aroma is nice, a slight rum scent with some latakia and something else? It beckoned me to give it a go and I must say I really enjoyed it.

I didn't get any tongue bite, though I did get a bit left in the bottom that I had to scoop out. While smoking it, you can sense a faint aroma of rum and you do indeed get a 'smokey' wafting smoke that reminds you of the ship-like areas. That is the rum and the latakia mixing, I'd imagine. In the mid-part of the bowl it got a bit more sweet, and by the time I got to the end, I was already looking forward to the next smoke, all five times I've had this blend.

I am already planning on purchasing this tin again, to put away for use after I deplete this one. This was tried in briars and a corncob and the cob was an equally pleasant experience.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2011-04-23		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Hmmm- I'm not entirely sure about this one. Notes of sweet and spice and, like a previous reviewer, I detected the distinct aroma of tar treated docks-which was quite pleasent. This is not an everyday tobacco for me but something to be smoked every now and then.

soli Deo gloria

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tom Servo (58)	2011-03-29		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Opening the tin, the delicious aroma of baked fruit and dark sweet rum seems to jump out at you. The smell of the cooked fruit mixed with the rum spirit reminds me of the overripe fruit left behind in apple orchards after the harvest - as the fruit decays and ferments on the ground, it fills the air with a heady, fruity, beer-like aroma. Within this scent you can easily pick out the latakia. Faint grainy notes from the Virginia are there but are more deeply hidden in the sweetness of the dark rum casing.

In the pipe, the fruity rum flavor is dominant but not unpleasantly so. The Latakia is not lost in the sweetness of the casing. The whole affair held up by a framework of rum soaked Virginia and Burley. The latter adding a decent nicotine boot.

Like others have pointed out, this dog can bite. You can control the tongue barbeque by careful packing and puffing. Sort of a high maintenance smoke, so be diligent.

The flavors are nice, light to medium casing. Lightly cased aromatics are great for breaking up the routine of my tobacco rotation. This one won't be my first choice, but it's not bad at all.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2011-03-07		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I should begin by noting that this was the first non-aromatic blend I've ever tried. In fact, with a name like “Plumcake,” I was expecting a sweet, candy-coated aromatic. This blend is anything but sweet and candy-coated, but that's not a bad thing. The name is just a little misleading is all I'm saying.

Plumcake is a mixture of Virginia, Burley, Mac Baren Cavendish, and “a touch of Syrian Latakia.” The tin note was smoky, a little like Georgia barbecue (pork) or smoked meat, with little nutty undertones. It was different from what I expected, but not bad. In fact, it was quite intriguing, despite my aromatic tendencies.

At first light, I was getting flavors of tar (or was that rum?) and smoky flavors (perhaps the “touch” of Latakia). Actually, the tar was more like creosote, and it reminded me of an old wooden ocean pier I used to go to or even this big pirate ship that housed a seafood restaurant, where we used to go eat while on vacation in Florida. Either way, I was getting a definite seafaring aroma on some level. Perhaps this was the power of suggestion, since the tin label also reads “Navy Blend” under the “Plumcake.” Anyway, I smoked it slowly, so it was a cool smoke with very subtle bite. It was a relaxing smoke, with a medium strength and flavor. I tasted more tobacco than flavoring. If there was any flavoring, it was mild. I'm not sure what the esoteric “Mac Baren Cavendish” is, but it was subtle. Middle way through the bowl, I was still tasting the “tar,” but also picking up on roasted nuts, then a tiny hint of sweetness toward the end. All in all, it was a pretty tasty, satisfying smoke. It had a pleasant to tolerable room note. Out in the open air, it's fine, but it could possible become less tolerable in more confined spaces. My wife approved.

I should add that I was having some serious issues with moisture and gurgling. It seems like I was shaking out my pipe every minute or so. This is probably due to user error, I should admit: Since I'm a little new at tobacco storage, I made the mistake of putting the tobacco in a sealed glass jar with a fully loaded pouch moistener, so I should've expected a swampy smoke from the beginning. Or maybe I'm drooling down the stem. Who knows? In fact, I was unable to smoke it all the way to the bottom, much to my chagrin, as it was a tobacco bog down there. Perhaps, I will dry it out a little before my next smoke, and yes, there will be another smoke, as I highly recommend Mac Baren Plumcake Navy Blend, despite the aforementioned setbacks.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2011-02-27		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

I bought two ounces of this loose the other week, mainly based on the reviews on here. I have now smoked six or seven bowls of this so far and it puzzles me!

I get no hint of the casing, either in the pouch or when smoking, I don't know if this is because it was purchased as a loose. When smoking, it is tolerable but not as nice as some others I have tried. If anything it is a bit flat - I certainly wouldn't describe it as an aromatic, more like a "normal" tobacco. Occassionally one gets a hint of sweetness whilst smoking which I assume is the rum casing coming through. I have experienced no "bite" with it, though it does leave a taste of tobacco on the tounge for a good half hour after smoking, not unpleasant though. No problems with having to relight this, but again it is a pretty dry tobacco that I had so perhaps it would be a different story if I had got a pre packed one.

All in all then I'll enjoy the rest of my two ounces but I doubt I'll be buying this blend again

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	fireball (36)	2011-02-24		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

As another reviewer lower down I also bought a 100g tin of this at Madrid airport. They still have several left if you are passing through!

I actually like the tin note, rum is very present, but with a decent tobacco base. It was pretty moist at first but has since dried out a little after a few weeks. Like many here I was positively surprised by the good balance. It's a cased Va mix primarily, I don't detect the latakia other than it can't be classed as an aromatic because it actually tastes like tobacco, with a dependable Vitamin N presence, which presumably the latakia assists. The rum doesn't really come to the forefront whilst smoking, but it occasionally pops up and sweetens the deal nicely. Unlike the two other MacB mixes I have tried, bite is not normally an issue if you put time aside to smoke it rather than wandering around with it chuffing away in the corner of your mouth.

Overall a thoroughly pleasant smoke which I find myself loading into my dedicated 'aro' pipe almost every evening nowadays. I have some with me today to enjoy after lunch in fact.

Recommended.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2011-02-23		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Great smoke. At first, I could not detect any rum taste or smell but after a few bowls I actually smelled the rum in the exhale. Very relaxing smoke.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2011-02-09		Medium to Strong	Medium to Strong	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

If you tried Peterson's University Flake, this tastes exactly like it. A strong musty smoke with some very light berry taste. The tin smell does not smell good, this is not my opinion but my whole family. As we all know, the tin smell isn't the taste.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2010-12-28		Mild	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Plumcake...what can I say? I first tried this blend on the strength of the reviews found here. It took me a while to get a good handle on this tobacco. But after smoking it for almost a year I feel I can give it a go. Upon opening the pouch(thats all I can get here! my kingdom for a tin!!!!) the aroma is of a fruitty rum note and that instantly pleasing. Smokable right from the start and didnt requier tons of relights. I have fallen in love with the aroma this leaves in my car and the room note is well liked by most. I cant seem to get much of the latakia but this has a natural sweetness that seems to come out when I smoke it in my Watson so that is all it gets now. Must be the matured virginias and burley working their magic. Smoke it slow and in a big bowl or as I have discovered or in a clay and you wont get burned. I also dont detect a casing in the aro sence of the word but more of flavouring that lets the tobacco speak for itself.This is an every day smoke for me.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2010-12-27		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Tolerable

I've heard nothing but good things about Mac Baren's Plumcake and so I got 1 oz. from my tobacconist. It came out of the bulk stock from the 1 lb. container and it was as dry as a dog turd on a hot July day. I don't know if that had anything to do with what I experienced, but I'd not be surprised if it did. I didn't think that tobacco was supposed to "crunch", but "crunch" it did. Needless to say, my first bowl of this was horrible. It tasted like turpentine and almost made me give up on trying it further. I found out a method to rehydrate it and then had another go at it (if for no other reason than it was a venerable blend and I wanted to give it a fair hearing).

The second, rehydrated bowl of Plumcake was like a totally different animal. I'm not sure what my rehydration did to the Rum casing on this blend. I could still smell some rum, but it wasn't overpowering, yet it had more aroma than before I restored it.

The strength of the blend also stood out to me. It was not super strong, but much stronger than I was used to. The bite I experienced before (not tongue bite) was still there, yet this time it was not as noxious. It made my upper palate tingle so I am assuming this is the Latakia in this.

The room note was not as pleasant as a true aromatic, yet it was not overpowering. As I smoked this, it still seemed to have that harshness to it. It wasn't the same as my first bowl (which seemed I've compared to turpentine) but it was still there. I can't say that I enjoyed it. The blend seemed to be out of balance.

Perhaps this is a good blend if you enjoy very harsh tasting tobaccos, but I think for most folks, they'd do better to try better balanced blends. It's okay, but just not my cup 'o tea.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2010-12-24		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Not bad stuff. I dont like the tin aroma at all but thats the only thing i dont like about it. It packs wells, burns well, and smokes cool with no tounge bite (ive never had a problem with mac baren biting me). As for taste well i dont taste much rum in it and the latakia is kinda in the background but not much. The big players are the virginia , burley, and cavendish. The Flavor like i said dose not have much rum, but i do taste plums, figs, and rasins. All in all if you like mac baren aromatics like myself give it a try, its worth it..

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Arkie (129)	2010-12-16		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Tolerable

There is a hint of rum aroma as the tin is opened and there is an extremely subtle trace of rum while smoking it. It is a blend of several types of tobacco and the taste is very intricate during the course of a pipeful. No bite or goopy residue has been experienced. It is well behaved and the ash is a white powder. I would recommend smoking this blend when you are wanting a treat. It deserves your full attention while you are smoking it. I give it a solid 4 stars.

EDIT Well... it does bite the tongue a bit regardless of how slowly and carefully it is smoked so I need to take a star away from its rating. It has neen moved down on my list of favorites but it still tastes so good I will keep a tin in my cellar.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	pipe_organist (14)	2010-11-08		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Being a Mac B fan, I thought I'd give this unusual blend a try.

In the tin, it has a beautiful mottled appearance, and a fruity note.

I've used the same pipe each time I've tried it, and with the tin having been cracked for about 2 weeks, the pipe and the baccy have become fast friends. It's a rich smoke, with nice complexity of flavors. So far, this bowl is burning to a nice powdery ash.

It does have the "Mac-bite" that some folk complain about, but as with any Mac B blend, if you pack carefully, light carefully and sip slowly, this blend becomes a friend.

It's got a bit of a "vitamin N" kick to it, so I don't recommend it on an empty stomach.

The first few bowls fresh out of the tin didn't burn well, fought to stay lit and left a wad of un-smoked dottle that wreaked.

I'm happy, after some patience, to add this to my rotation, and would recommend it for folk who like unusual blends.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2010-11-02		Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable to Strong

This is a nice enough tobacco, a solid two stars, but not much more. There is supposed to be Latakia in this tobacco, but I couldn't taste it for anything. The navy flake portion is nice and the topping is slightly detectable, however, if you had a bowl of anything else before this you will probably miss it. Nice tobacco, decent experience. I would have liked it more if I hadn't paid so much for it.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	shudd3r2th1nk (3)	2010-10-03		Mild	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

been curing a bjarne elsinore with this tobacco for the past month or so, and let me inform you, this tobacco is truly delicious.

5 out of 4 stars for MacBaren Plumcake.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2010-08-26		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

what a complexity! this surely is a good mixture. out of the pouch, it is a little too moist, give it some airing time. smokes quite well, needs a few relights + attention because it can burn hot. but using the right puffing technique, this one will burn both cool and dry, with a little to no tonguebite. the VA is dominant, giving it a nice, creamy sweet note. the burley is very noticeable. maybe i'm not experienced enough, but i cant taste the latakia. the spicyness doesn't seem to come from it. in my oppinion, they shouldn't add a casing to this one! without the rum casing, this one would provide an even cooler, tongue friendlier smoke! therefor i only give 3 stars, it is an interesting blend worth trying but then again, its not an everyday smoke + the casing doesnt make so much sense to me.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2010-07-31		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Latakia is hard to detect in this sweet light tobacco. I bought it in Madrid Airport and tried it the same night I came back home.

When I opened the tin, I did not like the aroma of this tobacco, but when I smoked it I was more satisfied about it.

The taste is nicely flavoured, and sincerely I found it very sweet and fresh. The mixture of variuos kinds of tobacco requires that you smoke this item more than a time to enjoy fully all the tastes.

Surely I've clearly spot the gentle rum taste, and the sweet flavouring of this tobacco.

I think I will end my tin of Plumcake enjoing all the tastes that it can donate to the smokers.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2010-07-30		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This one here, Plumcake, has to be the most interesting tobacco I've tried yet. Beautiful to look at, with various colours and cuts, it had the most off-putting smell upon breaking the seal. I swore it was Copenhagen snuff stewed with Naptha and prunes. Yich! Luckily, a little air time diminished the smell, and obvious moisture.

The taste was better, thankfully. Probably the most in-your-face complexity I've experienced to date. Whereas VA's you get subtle nuances to consider 'complexity', Plumcake's is right there: the Perique-y like Cavendish (quite enjoyable, btw), sweet VA (along with the rum?), and the heavier Burley body all make their contributions known, and felt. While I couldn't isolate the Latakia, the smoky, down to earth feel I walked away with might come from it. Speaking of walking away, each bowl I smoked was bite free, whether moist or dried out, so don't let the dreaded 'MacBite' scare you.

As it stands, Plumcake would not make an ideal all dayer, IMO; however, as an occasional smoke, it is enjoyable. I have extra cellared, but I doubt I break down and open more too soon. Then again...

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2010-07-28		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I had read so much about this tobacco, and it seemed to me that it had a rabid following, so I had to try it. I was pleasantly surprised: this tobacco smokes well, and once I learned to pack it right- tighter than I usually do- and how to puff it -long, slow puffs instead of deep/short/strong ones- I found it burned well with no bite. I did have some relights, but its was fairly moist when I packed it.

Flavors are very mild and pleasant- and they change. Sure, there's a rum note, but the best thing for me was that the flavor profile changed subtly through the bowl. When smoked slowly, this became a cool, extremely subtle, mild, enjoyable smoke. I ended up smoking three (3!) (iii!) bowls in a row, which is unheard of, for me.

If you're looking for unadulterated tobacco flavor, this won't be your cup of tea. But if you're looking for a sweet, pleasantly flavored, pleasant smelling (room note) tobacco that will be satisfying, I can recommend this.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2010-07-25		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Plumcake is something else...

Stronger than most of the other blends, it combines some sort of casing with the taste of pure tobacco.

I recently bought it a tin. I can't wait to try it and share my impressions. I am convinced it will prove delicious.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Skando (203)	2010-07-25		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

This is the second 100gr tin I bought since Plumcake was reintroduced in Italy some years ago.

I wasn't able to end the first one a gave away to a friend. I clearly remember I found Plumcake far distant from the one I smoked in the end of the seventies. Not the same cut, not the same aroma, and nor the same body. The new one so mild and watery... and terribly bitey.

Now, some years after I decided to give it a new chance. Discovering Plumcake is not bad at all, it simply was a matter of aging. The association of the Original Cavendish and the small percentage of Syrian Latakia donates a special peaty quality to it, just a feather touch, over a VaB base. Rhum is also applied with light hand offering the tipical Navy flavour.

Unfortunately the meat is not there, and this meant to me to start playing with some additions.

Plumcake requires good smoking technique to catch all the subtle aromas, and is definately not an all day smoke per se (I mean unless it's blended with some bodier tobacco).

I will buy the remaining old tins.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	paulw (76)	2010-07-08		Medium	Medium	Medium	Tolerable

This is a tobacco that I wanted to love, the touch of latakia was there It was a smokey sweet smoke I'll try again!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2010-06-22		Medium to Strong	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

I find this tobacco a bit on the strong side. It has a fruty tin aroma, and has a fine room note, and taist. I recomend that you give it a try.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	gladi8tor96 (143)	2010-05-24		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Tolerable

Ready to pack out of the tin for me... lit well and stayed that way. Very sweet, earthly flavors, with little visits time and again from the Latakia...giving the smoke a sometimes spicy note, but very briefly. It was quite a pleasant experience to smoke something that smelled so aromatic (not like an aromatic tobacco....but the scent was just delicious) but also have the touch of flavors from an English drop in.

The tobacco from the tin does smell like plum cake for sure, but the flavors aren't as strong on the tongue. Does need sipping, but I didn't notice much of any tongue bite. Not much of a N-kick...

Great overall tobacco. It will be one in my cellar for sure... This has become one of my favorites. Perfect for a sunny walk with the dogs... Love the after-smell (tobacco, hay, salty leather, just hints of campfire)!!

2015 Update Strangely enough, the first few tins I smoked of this blend were like the above described experience. Recently I bought a new tin and the experience was completely different. Not sure if it was the tin or perhaps they are making it differently now. It was dark brown to black ribbons in the tin...not much of a smell from the tin. Smoked a bit bland.... sad...reducing it down to 3 stars.

Pipe Used: Bent Billard, Dublin, Egg, Acorn

Age When Smoked: New from store - 1-2 years

Purchased From: Pipesandcigars.com, Morgan Hill Wine & Cigar

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2010-05-16		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

I was wary of this tobacco. I am susceptible to tongue bite and avoid things that have a reputation to burn. I gave it a try though and have had great success and enjoyment with it. First, I am one of those people looking for a bit of nicotine from my tobacco so I tend to be a little impatient with my first bowl of the day so I don't smoke this first. I smoke this in the afternoon or evening but never directly from the tin. I have taken to pulling some out of the tin the day before and wrapping it in some paper towel and leaving it in my tobacco cabinet. It dries nicely but never crispy even with the long time period. Now that I've had success with this tasty tobacco, that some say burns, I am encouraged to try others with similar warnings and decide for myself.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2010-05-10		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

a quality tobacco with fine taste. it has a small amount of latakia but still, you can feel it along with nice sweet taste of virgina and burley. slow smoking requierd becouse of the tongue bite, but it is not souch an issue. you will need just a little bit of experience with plumcake... recommended...

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tee-dub (48)	2010-04-26		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

This is too mild for me, but nice enough. The aroma and taste of rum are subtle but quite evident, and nicely complement the sweetness of the tobaccos. Latakia is harder to detect. It smacks of figs or raisins, and has a pleasant mellow quality.

It is sweet, but not sugary. The rum topping makes the bowl want to overheat, and threatens to burn the tongue if one isn't careful.

Sweet and easy.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ELF (40)	2010-02-23		Very Mild	Mild	Full	Very Pleasant

This tobacco is almost IMPOSSIBLE to find here in Canada///The last 5yrs in Canada..Our Federal Government has put so many 'Hoops' for Tobacco importers to jump through...Bad Deal for us Pipe Lovers;and i'm truly not interested in smoke sail green,or.amphora brown 24/7.....Anyway,Back to the program....MacB's Plum Cake is Fantastic Out Of The Tin;Brutalty Sad out of a Pouch.P-C ages beautifully in the Tin due to the high quality Virginia Base of this mix.The blend is Macb's-Ready Rubbed...i pack my pipe as-is;unless i'm fill'g my Meer,i rub it out ultra fine..If you can get your hands on some tins(100gram{North America}/unless you have some friends living in the UK,you can get 50gram tins)...The closest replacement I've found is McCl's Navy Cavendish...Which I can still get(THANK GOODNESS)in Canada.*P-C smokes best in a small-medium size pipe. :-))

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2010-01-30		Medium to Strong	Medium	Full	Very Pleasant

This blend is my personal treat tobacco. I keep a couple tins on hand for those times I am feeling real proud of myself and think i need a treat! I have loved the flavor and texture of this cool smoking wonderful smelling blend since the early seventies. I recommend to to about any pipe smoker. The only caveat is take it slow and easy this is like good moonshine. Made for sipping! If you get in a hurry it will bite your tongue like a rabid weasel .

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	pipealicious (21)	2010-01-05		Medium	Medium	Full	Pleasant

Tin aroma is strong but difficult to describe. It has something to it of fresh wood shavings.The rum aroma is also present.

I find this tobacco difficult to pack as the cut is a mixture of broken flake and small/medium ribbon cut. Packed too loosely it will smoke wet and hot, too tight and it will clog the pipe and leave crusty dottle.

It always leaves some dottle in the pipe, no matter how I pack or smoke it.

The taste is dominated by the Burley component and I noticed I'm not much of a fan. It's overall a very high quality blend, but you must like it. I find that smoking it outdoors makes it more enjoyable. Nice for cold winter trips.

3/04/2010 UPDATE:

I noticed myself wanting to try another tin of this tobacco, despite my previous mixed feelings about this blend. The aroma and taste make this quite unique. After being halfway my second tin, I really start to appreciate this tobacco. I learnt to pack it lightly and smoke it slowly. The taste is full and delicious: a real treat. After smoking a pure Burley (Golden Blend by McB), I also learnt to appreciate a high quality Burley and I love it. I will always keep a Plumcake at hand from now on, it's delicious and special, but it takes some time to appreciate, remember that. Upgrade to 4 stars.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-11-27		Medium to Strong	Medium to Strong	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Plumcake has an awesome aroma to it in the tin! It smokes well, if packed right. Too loose earns you the dreaded curse of Mac Baren, too tight causes it to smoke very poorly. It seems to be a hot burner no matter what. Always do get somewhat of a cottonmouth after this one. Once this bad boy gets hot, put it down to cool or be cursed. Not one to fool with. Learn to dance with it and it's great. Kind of a tough Tango to learn though- and not too forgiving. Perhaps best smoked in a larger, thicker pipe. Taste wise the flavor comes through nicely, but again it depends largely upon how well the pipe was packed. I've had instances where I derived a lot of flavor, and others where there was very little. It seems to have a tight window to get the best taste out of it. I do recommend it though, but it requires some experimentation to get it right.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-11-27		Very Mild	Very Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant

I like it. Looks like typical McB ribbon with layers of colours and good density. Nice deep dried fruit and rum scent in the pouch. It burns fine right from the store, but after a couple of months the flavours come out in spades. I filled the bowl of my pipe with moderate pressure, tamped around the edges a little and lit it up. No problems. Latakia off the top - but just enough to play hide a seek with for the duration of the bowl. Has a spicey, woodsy aspect that remains for the entire bowl. With slow sipping there's a nice mild fuitiness, very slightly sweet. Near the end it does get more peppery as someone else observed - but still quite enjoyable. I get caught up in the exploration of layers and find myself at the end of the bowl - "finished already?" I haven't been disappointed by McBaren's yet - I recommend Plumcake.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Fly ticky (26)	2009-11-15		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable to Strong

I love the tin aroma ,The only thing is the tongue bite is unbearable.I still have tin that has not been opened.Maybe in ten yrs.or so I will try it again.It is not in my rotation and I don,t think it ever will be.It,s worth trying if you want to try new tobacco's .I know every ones taste is differant and maybe you will like it. Good Luck

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-11-08		Very Strong	Medium	Full	Pleasant

I put this as recommended for one reason and one reason only.

I usually like stronger blends, but for some reason this on my palate is plum yuck.

However, some people do really enjoy the blend. As the reviews state, and its hard to refute someones taste, the blend can be cool smoking and flavorful. I will however warn against smoking this blend on an empty stomach as you may turn green.

2-3 stars.

1 star for my tastes, but 4 for others, so the blend fits into the "if your interested, try it category"

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-11-03		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

Having smoked my way through the bulk tobaccos at my local store I decided to try this based on reviews here. I like it. It goes into the pipe easily, lights quickly, and stays lit. I find the taste changes as it smokes and 1/2 through it really tastes nice. It is now in my rotation and I look forward to it. Give it a try!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	k_pip_k (9)	2009-10-20		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I really like this blend. I really like the name too. After smoking this blend, and a plethora of other "Navy" blends and flakes, this is my gold standard.

I hold all other Navy blends to be as good as this one. I just have to be careful, and to go slow with this one. It won't bite, but it can have a pretty good Nic kick.

K

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-10-14		Mild	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I love the smell of this tobacco when I open the bag. Its not overly moist and is a little chunky, so I like to rub it out a bit. The flavor and aroma are gentle and sweet and I count this tobacco among the top five Mac Baren offerings. Its nice and easy and easily ties with Mac Baren's Scottish Mixture.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-09-26		Mild	Extra Strong	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Popped the lid and noticed that unmistakable aroma of Latakia & the heavy rum topping. I didn't notice the "good enough to eat" aroma that others have...just a flavored aromatic with a room note that is pleasant but not overwhelming. I sampled this blend in my large, Peterson 9S, homeboy pipe and it was quite mild with a sweet taste. The Latakia was...feint, or not too pronounced, but noticeable. I felt, more than tasted the rum topping...must have been the 151 variety. In that respect, this stuff could have been called Rumcake as it bit me regardless of the manner in which it was finessed.

My first bowl sample wasn't goopy toward the end as others have attested & the tobacco burned down to a totally dry, grey ash. On the second trial run, I discovered that drying this stuff out pretty good will tone it down and deminish tongue bite a little. Regardless of the review span this blend has received, it's one you'll have to try for yourself. It has received many reviews which piqued my curiosity. Curiosity killed the cat. I personally consider it to be a very tasty, flavored blend & could rate it a three if not for the napalm, flash crater in my tongue.

This stuff created enough steam to power the Queen Mary across the Channel. Is this quality leaf? If it is, why would Mac B opt to charge it with an explosive casing that can be detonated by a spark? Why not just a mild Irish Cream or something of that nature? Mac Baren has a problem they should address on this mix. However, they know there's one born every minute...but please don't "rub" it in. I might develop a complex. P-cake has a really good taste & aroma but burns like acetylene. Therefore, IMHO, Mac Baren's Plumcake merits at best, two **s!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-08-28		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Plumcake, along with Baby;s Bottom, Bengal Slices and numerous Dunhill Mixtures was my first exposure to pipe smoking over 40 years ago. I still keep an opened tin of Plumcake for smoking on occasion (daily to every other), and gladly so. It is not for the newbie or some proclaimed "seasoned fast puffers" by any means, but is a wonderful, flavorful, relaxing blend of superbly blended tobaccos if smoked slowly (isn't that what smoking a pipe is about?)-enjoyment!.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-08-24		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Fully agree with the previous review, this tobacco really needs a practice. But then it is rewarding experience. Excellent blend of high quality tobacco with very little latakia and so incredibly well balanced casing. Once practiced, the burning behaviour is great and the taste simply fabulous. This blend has been made over 50 years now and obviously proved its top quality. To me this is one of the best (if not the very best) blend from Mac Baren. Highly recommended!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-07-30		Medium	Mild	Medium	Tolerable

When I was not a fan of pure viriginias, this was on the top of my favorites. I've smoked tens of tins of 100 gr. The smell and smoke of this tobacco is like a true tobacco. For a few years I prefer to smoke this blend only in the evenings and especially in autumn and winter. It may be overhelming if you smoke it all the day. I would like to recommend a slow burn for the best results. A fast smoking can hurt! I had also opportunity to smoke aged tins. The burley and latakia flavors become bland, and yes, you feel the rum aroma better.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-07-25		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

First off, let mw say my pipes are all 9mm system pipes and I always use activated charcoal filters on my smokes. So, a tobacco must really be a pitbull to bite my tongue or to bur it anyway... The filter maintins almost all the nasty parts of the smoke trapped - say moisture, tar and nicotine levels and delivers a drier, more aromatic and pleasant smoke. So, albeit reading all biting reviews below, I cannot say the same... It never bit me. It is a very good tasty tobacco, with nice aroma and very rewarding. Not my fave MB blend, but not the least favorite as well.

update oct 3rd 2011:

Been a while since I last smoked this blend... Gave it a new try this weekend on a small sample I had on my stash and I felt the tobacco albeit good, now lacks more of the latakia contents for me... I guess I became a fuller English pipster... Not bad, but won ´t be getting it anymore, since HH Vintage Syrian is much more on my satisfaction realm for sure right now.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-07-19		Strong	Strong	Full	Pleasant

First impression: Wow!

When you open up the tin, you are hit with that smell of rum (real rum and not that phony extract rum smell) and then the smell of some spicy latakia underneath that. Very interesting smell. And two of my favourite flavours! What's not to like?

The flavour when it is smoked its more latakia and less rum, which I am find with. The rum, to me, adds more to the room note and not to the overall taste. Mind you, there is a rum flavour.

I know many people consider this an aromatic, but to me, with the latakia, it taste more like an English with some rum added (which works well together) than an overly cased rum aromatic. I guess this is a crossover?

Anyway, definitely worth trying if you love aromatics, rum, English or latakia. If you love all of them, as do I, you may find this one amazing!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Beer (345)	2009-07-16		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

Weird blend, with so many different opinions from the various users!

Compared to many other Mac Baren blends, I didn't like its cut: very stringy and thin ribbons, so it took me a while to find a correct packing method. Press it too much, and it will clog the airhole and form a "plug" which will become even tighter when expanding during the smoke. It's OK to form a sort of pressed sausage and then carefully inserting it into the bowl. Don't simply load the pipe with the "three pinches" method, or by gravity feeding and then pressing, because it will end up in disaster (hot and wet smoke). And, most important, don't press it too much.

Personally I don't find it too bitey, if you have a good technique. Actually, very little bitey: my tongue and gums are perfectly fine after smoking this. BUT it has rather high chances of scorching my palate, go figure...

What I find this blend rather lacking of, is flavor and flavor development. Bland, very bland. Pleasant and with never a bad flavor (it's very smooth, never bitter or harsh or acrid), but i want something more from a pipe tobacco. It has a very delicate sweetness, you can feel a pleasant hint of rum, and there's a very slight smokiness. Again, very rounded and refined. Some of the sweet smokiness and the rum clearly remind me of GLPease's beloved Mephisto... but the intensity is infinitely lower. Which is even more weird if you think that it actually has body and it doesn't feel like you are smoking air. Yes, it is even more delicate and subdued than other Mac Baren blends.

Overall it's not a bad tobacco, and I wouldn't mind smoking it again once in a while. What it has to offer is good... my problem is simply that I would like MORE of it.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Demetri (113)	2009-07-01		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

I have had a like-loathe relationship with Plumcake (a particular single tin of Plumcake, to be exact) for over twenty years. That is how long I have had my first and my last tin of this stuff. Every couple of years I will rehydrate this some, pack a bowl, and puff it casually, thinking, "Why don't I smoke this stuff more often? It's really pleasant". After this, I then put it back in my rotation only to shortly mess up and try to smoke it under my more normal conditions -giving it my more normal Pulls rather than puffs while driving to/from work, lunch break - and then be rewarded with an angry barracuda in my pipe as it bites my tongue off. Once aroused, the load is done, finished, over, beyond reprieve. I wondered if maybe the aged Jamaican rum was itself mixed with battery acid. I once had the exact same experience with a bunch of Hoyo de Monterrey maduro cigars - so strong (too much ligero?) that I could not put the tip of the cigar on my lips. Same story here with Plumcake - once stressed, the pipe mouthpiece is a lethal, venomous weapon. The cigar manufacturer eventually recalled all their cigars for reformulation. Unfortunately though Plumcake in ideal conditions, is tasty, mild and enjoyable. Just, not for me.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Wrangler (16)	2009-06-28		Mild	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Plumcake. I've heard so much about this blend I just had to try it. It cost me 5 dollars more for the tin than what I paid each for my tins of Margate and Penzance. This stuff is the wettest tobac (even after leaving out all night) I've ever smoked. Gurgles within minutes of lighting. I got about five or ten puffs out of the whole bowl that weren't a total disappointment. I can tell there is something there but I don't think it is worth the trouble and definitely not worth the cost. Carter Hall is far more satisfying.

OK now for an update. This tobacco requires your full attention. You must "learn" to smoke this tobacco. I've found that if you get it lit very well at first (lots of smoke don't try to enjoy it yet!) then let it cool for a few. After that take shallow puffs and don't get it hot at all or you'll pay the price. It still smokes rather wet but now I can enjoy Plumcake. Nice nutty, toasty flavor you can't get anywhere else in the world. I'll always have some around.

If it means anything to anyone, I just bought a pound of this stuff. It gets in your head and you can't get it out! 5/7/2010

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-06-01		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

A fine tobacco thats well balanced & behaves well, just not a home run for me like Navy Flake. Still give it a solid 3 stars.

Bad Good = Excellent * Exceptional

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Griswold (21)	2009-05-10		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Plumcake is an old standby from Mac Baren. It has been available for more than 50 years and I can see why.

It's neither an aromatic proper nor is it really unflavored, the topping is applied in a very skillful manner, accompanying the base tobaccos rather than overpowering them. It's sweet, but not overly so, it's spicy, but not so much as to draw unwanted attention from nonsmoking bystanders.

Provided the smoker has understood the 101 of pipesmoking (especially the parts about not packing too tightly and about not puffing too fast), Plumcake is a very good tobacco that can be smoked all day if one is so inclined.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-03-19		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I found this had a mild cigarish taste that I am not a real fan of. But it did have a mild oriental taste in the background. It is a mild blend and tastes of Virginians. Room note is little harsh compared to the aromatics I generally prefer.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-03-15		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild	Pleasant

This is a great aromatic blend. I sure do love navy blends. The touch of latakia gives this wonderful aromatic the perfect amount of "smokey" flavor. It might bite a little if smoked too fast... so don't smoke this one fast (This is a wonderful tobacco. Savor the moment). Five stars

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-03-11		Medium	Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I call this one MISTER Bitey. It will hurt you if you're not gentle, slow and very watchful. Good for learners cause it demands respect. It has mine.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-02-21		Very Mild	Very Mild	Mild	Very Pleasant

MIld, sweet and no overpowering complications from nicotine. I've grown beyond this genre of aromatics. Nothing here for me, moving along ....

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2009-02-01		Medium	Medium	Medium	Very Pleasant

I have smoked this for probably 20 years & the smell of this burning is what my kids associate with the smell of a pipe. I enjoy this very much however find that it is better left in a jar to dry out somewhat (I find it harsh & bitey right out of the can). It is also best only barely lit & puffed gently. If these happen then this is a delicious friendly smoke with plenty of flavour & good roomnote. Also good with a little blending latakia added to bring out the latakia supposedly there but not noticeably.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2008-11-04		Mild to Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

I stumbled on to Plum Cake in the early 60s and was absolutely overwhelmed by it's flavor and smoke ability. It was the first tobacco I bought in a "tin". I smoked nothing else for several years and then drifted away from tobacco altogether until the late 80s when my wife said, "Why don't you get out some of your pipes, you always enjoyed them so much and you used your packing time to figure out how you were going to answer my questions." Since I always seem to need time for those questions I bought a tin of Plum Cake and tried some of my thoroughly dried out pipes.(None of any value) Did not, repeat, did not enjoy the smoke at all. Closed the tin, (love Mac's twist lock lids) put it on the shelf and proceeded to learn about the wonderful world of leaf. A couple of years later I ran across that tin and tried it again. You guessed it....age this stuff and it's a wonderful smoke. Medium right down the line,mellow,smooth and cool. From my experience I suggest opening the tin, loosening the tobacco (maybe try a pipe or two) and then put it in your cellar for at least a year. I'm now buying some in those fancy plastic cylinders that Mac's got on the market but can't decide if it'll be OK to cellar it in the plastic or pack it in Mason Jars.

UPDATE: 10/30/08 I just reviewed SmokeKing David's comment on Plum Cake. It worried me because it seemed to be well thought out. Perhaps the consistency is not up to MAC'S standards. If that's the case, I've over-spent on that part of my cellar.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SmokeKing David (134)	2008-10-20		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

UPDATE: I broke my guarantee that I would not try this tobacco any more. I couldn't just leave this blend alone; no, I had to keep trying to make this work well for me. I don't know, maybe MacBaren is being more consistent or maybe it's just me, but in 2013 I was offered a sample from a fresh tin...and it was really good. The key for me was in drying it out a little bit and slowing down my puffing. I have since bought another tin and smoked about half of it, and enjoyed it quite a bit. I am raising my "rating" to 3 stars.

Original Review: When this blend is on....it's on! But that doesn't seem to happen very often.

This is an inconsistent tobacco; sometimes great, other times very hot with mucho bite. I can't seem to get this weed to be at its best on a regular basis.

Solent Mixture, also from Mac Baren, is also a rum-based blend with a tiny amount of Latakia...and Solent always performs like a champ. So I will try to finish my tim of Plumcake, but I make no guarantees on that score. I will guarantee that I won't buy Plumcake again.

Govern Yourself Accordingly!

SmokeKing David

Pipe Used: Savinelli Autograph, Dunhill Shell

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: JR Cigars - Southfield, Michigan

Similar Blends: MacBaren Solent.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2008-10-06		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I find Plumcake to be a nice relaxing smoke. I don't taste much rum flavoring, or any other flavor for that matter, just good tobacco flavor. I don't think I could smoke this every day, but it's nice change of pace from the more heavily cased tobaccos.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2008-09-17		Medium	Medium	Medium	Pleasant

When I smoked the first bowl of this tobacco, I was tempted to throw away the whole pouch. It smoked hot, wet and I had a hard time keping it lit. Plus, it bit... Luckily, dubinthedam wrote on youtube that Plumcake should dry a bit before being smoked. And, well, what can I say, he's right. It smokes cooler, not wet, and it stays lit. It will bite you, however, if you draw to hard. But, if smoked slowly, you'll get a nice, unusual aromatic, hovering somewhere between aromatic and more natural tobacco.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Sylvian (28)	2008-07-28		Mild	Medium	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

It was a strange relationship (but then again, rather usual kind of a strange relationship). I loved it at first, smoking Plumcake almost exclusively, but after a week or so it was a rare guest in my pipes. As it turned out with time (nothing suprising really), the pleasant taste of this baccy is at least 70% dependent on the flavoring. The 30% left after 6 months when the flavoring was almost gone were at least nothing special. Such is the sad destiny of aromatics.

Not much tongue bite with proper technique, but best within 1 month after opening - how about a "Smoke slowly, finish the tin quickly" slogan?

As for the taste, there are lots of much more interesting offerings, even in the Mac Baren range.

Will not buy anymore, but would recommend to try.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Dov of the Galilee (32)	2008-06-20		Medium to Strong	Medium	Medium to Full	Tolerable

My observations with this blend have only been with tins and not pouches. It is a delightful smoke but it does not go down with the other members of my family. I use to only smoke this when I was working alone in the gun towers at the prison.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Max1a (38)	2008-06-17		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

O.K. first let me say that Plumcake DOES NOT, I repeat, DOES NOT! age well. I had three tins, I smoked one of them in early fall of 2006 and cellared the other two. At that time I found this to be a very nice tobacco that was somewhat elegant in aroma and could be smoked in social situtions without offending non-smokers and offered a very nice smoke for the "pipester"

Christmas of 2007 came and I discovered that it had taken on the visage of a bland and tasteless concoction that did not resemble tobacco I put up more than a year earlier. Thinking I may have had a bad tin, I opened the other and found the same thing. I don't think it was the packaging and my cellaring methods are sound and proven. I think it was just the nature of the blend. It has been written (and said) that aromatics don't age well and this is the proof. While I do not technicaly consider Plumcake a true aromatic, it is evident that it gets a great deal of its character from its casing/topping. If you got any cellered, don't expect great things. Better to buy it and smoke it while it is young.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Backwoods Piper (70)	2008-05-26		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

I love Plumcake it is a wonderful smoke. The blend of VA's with a dash of Cavendish and a touch of Latakia make it an excellent all around smoking mixture. Very seldom have I not had positive reviews with regard to the room note.

This mixture burns nice, more often than not one light. The flavor is strong enough to keep me interested. I am an avid fan of English blends and seldom favor a Rum topped mixture Plumcake is a delightful exception. One word of caution take your time with this one aggressive smoking can lead to some tongue bite.

I recently opened a can that I left to age for a little over two years and yes my friends this one improves with age and becomes even more flavorful! Plumcake is the perfect ending to Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner and is sure to satisfy if smoked gently.

I give this blend a four star rating because it is a one of a kind for me. Enjoy!!!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Glorfindel (86)	2008-04-29		Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

This mix seems to have it all. Full tobacco strength good aromatic topping, not wet or hot smoking, no bite, and satisfying all the way 'round for me.

The VAs are creamy and light tasting and the smooth biteless burley adds enough body to make this work.

Latakia? Well if there is any I cannot detect it. Maybe it's there maybe it isn't and perhaps that's why this mix is such a success. Latakia can easily dominate a mix with its overpowering aroma and taste which would be a shame here.

I like latakia, but over a certain threshold causes all latakia blends to taste alike for me - boring, but thankfully that doesn't happen with Plum Cake.

This is an aromatic that I think any piper could love.

I notice it is the 4th most reviewed of all Mac Baren's offerings and I can see why.

4 stars.

I will be ordering more of this.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2008-04-27		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

I'm a fan of Mac Baren tobaccos and had read good things about this blend. However, I don't really like latakia so was wary about buying it. I'm glad I did though.

You can detect latakia in the pouch aroma and upon lighting up you get a whiff of latakia but then it disappears. It's a tangy, fruit rich smoke but not in the "juicy fruit" artificial sense. The latakia serves to add smokiness and depth to the fruit flavouring. It has a medium nicotine kick to it so I find it best as an after dinner smoke. I find myself reaching for this one quite often which has surprised me. I smoke it in a 9mm filter pipe so I don't get any bite.