Mac Baren Plumcake

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.