Mac Baren Plumcake

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."

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

The blend that just didn’t know what it wanted to be. It’s high quality leaf no doubt. Tin note is amazing with that faint whisper of Latakia and sugary rum. You also smell raisin and spice from the Virginia. It’s really delicious combination in the jar. Smoke wise it’s a little lackluster. Not enough leathery Latakia for an English fan, too much for a Virginia smoker. Not enough rum for the sweet folks, but you can tell it’s there. Moisture is good but it can definitely bite like others have noted. It’s not a bad blend at all, I enjoyed it, I just can’t recommend it. YMMV