Mac Baren Plumcake

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

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."

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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...