G. L. Pease Mephisto
(3.46)
The devil's Weed and the daemon Rum conspire in this dark, long stoved mixture of Red and Golden Virginias, a pinch of fine Turkish leaf, and generous portions of Cyprian and Syrian Latakias. Finished with just a drop of Dark Jamaican Rum, then steamed and toasted to bring all the flavors together. Doubly wicked and sinfully delicious, Mephisto will surely lead you into temptation!
Notes: From Gregory Pease website: "In November, 2004, a warehouse fire consumed our supply of the exquisite vintage Syrian Latakia that was used in Renaissance, Raven's Wing and Mephisto, as well as Bohemian Scandal. These blends have been discontinued indefinitely"
Details
| Brand | G. L. Pease |
| Series | Original Mixtures |
| Blended By | Gregory Pease |
| Manufactured By | Cornell & Diehl |
| Blend Type | English |
| Contents | Latakia, Oriental/Turkish, Virginia |
| Flavoring | Rum |
| Cut | Ribbon |
| Packaging | 2oz Tin |
| Country | United States |
| Production | No longer in production |
Profile
Strength
Medium
Extremely Mild -> Overwhelming
Flavoring
Mild
None Detected -> Extra Strong
Room Note
Tolerable
Unnoticeable -> Overwhelming
Taste
Medium
Extremely Mild (Flat) -> Overwhelming
Average Rating
|
3.46 / 4
|
Reviews
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Displaying 11 - 20 of 46 Reviews
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 18, 2004 | Medium to Strong | Mild | Full | Pleasant to Tolerable |
Appearance: Fairly fine cut, mostly dark leaf. There are some medium to light flashes to give it some visual interest, but the overall impression is quite dark and rich.
Aroma: There is a noticable aroma of Rum, underneath which can be detected substantial Latakia, and a stoved Virginia. The Orientals don?t contribute much to the aroma.
Packing:. Packs easily into any pipe from group 3 through group 6. Seems to need a light hand to avoid overpacking.. Similar to Raven?s Wing in this regard.
Lighting: Takes flame easily, but not overly fast. Usual charring light, tamp, relight to get started
Initial flavor: The Rum and Latakia are in your face at once, really out there at the start. They settle down shortly to reveal some nice layers of dark Virginia and Orientals.
Mid-bowl: The Va. component is rich, and combines nicely with the Rum to produce a slightly sweet Cavendish effect. The Latakia and Orientals provide layers of high and medium notes to harmonize with the Va. lows. This is always cool when enjoyed at a slow to medium puff rate, and delightful to the palate. Rich and tasty, and a dry smoker. Stays lit very well, down to the bottom of the bowl.
Finish: Burns slowly to the end, less Rum and a bit more Latakia flavor at the bottom. Always leaves a fluffy gray ash, sometimes needs to be dumped for the last relight. Got some positive comments about the aroma, surprising when you consider the amount of Latakia present.
Summary: I normally prefer booze in my glass, not in my pipe. However, this is the exception to my rule. A lovely blend, best enjoyed in the evening, when you can relax with it and savor the compexity.
Aroma: There is a noticable aroma of Rum, underneath which can be detected substantial Latakia, and a stoved Virginia. The Orientals don?t contribute much to the aroma.
Packing:. Packs easily into any pipe from group 3 through group 6. Seems to need a light hand to avoid overpacking.. Similar to Raven?s Wing in this regard.
Lighting: Takes flame easily, but not overly fast. Usual charring light, tamp, relight to get started
Initial flavor: The Rum and Latakia are in your face at once, really out there at the start. They settle down shortly to reveal some nice layers of dark Virginia and Orientals.
Mid-bowl: The Va. component is rich, and combines nicely with the Rum to produce a slightly sweet Cavendish effect. The Latakia and Orientals provide layers of high and medium notes to harmonize with the Va. lows. This is always cool when enjoyed at a slow to medium puff rate, and delightful to the palate. Rich and tasty, and a dry smoker. Stays lit very well, down to the bottom of the bowl.
Finish: Burns slowly to the end, less Rum and a bit more Latakia flavor at the bottom. Always leaves a fluffy gray ash, sometimes needs to be dumped for the last relight. Got some positive comments about the aroma, surprising when you consider the amount of Latakia present.
Summary: I normally prefer booze in my glass, not in my pipe. However, this is the exception to my rule. A lovely blend, best enjoyed in the evening, when you can relax with it and savor the compexity.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 07, 2003 | Medium | Extremely Mild | Medium | Pleasant to Tolerable |
I recently sampled a couple of bowls of this blend at my pipe club's "tobacco Bar." It was a huge hit with the group. Smoke very slowly and enjoy the depth of flavor. It was a little soggy when the tin was popped (perhaps that is why it nipped my tongue), and contained more stems than I care to have to pluck, but other than that, it packed decently and provided a simply wonderful smoke.
Mephisto was unusually sweet for a latakia laden blend. It also smoked dry considering how moist the leaf was before packing and smoking. I did indeed detect the discreet topping of rum, but only on occasion. The Virginia leaf also co-starred, and did an admirable job of keeping pace with the Latakia and other Turkish leaf which I could not begin to identify.
Mephisto was light enough on the palate to warrant an immediate second bowl. I do not think I would smoke this in the mornings, but following dinner, it is quite good.
Mephisto was unusually sweet for a latakia laden blend. It also smoked dry considering how moist the leaf was before packing and smoking. I did indeed detect the discreet topping of rum, but only on occasion. The Virginia leaf also co-starred, and did an admirable job of keeping pace with the Latakia and other Turkish leaf which I could not begin to identify.
Mephisto was light enough on the palate to warrant an immediate second bowl. I do not think I would smoke this in the mornings, but following dinner, it is quite good.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Feb 25, 2003 | Mild to Medium | Mild | Medium | Pleasant to Tolerable |
Mephisto is an excellent introduction to English blends for smokers of either quality aromatics or Virginia tobaccos. It offers the classic flavor of a mild Latakia blend while providing a hint of aromatic flavoring and a excellent balance with the sweetness of its Virginia base.
On opening, one sees a mixture of mostly darker tobaccos with light flecks of golden VA and greenish-gold Turkish tobacco. The dark brown stoved Virginia and blackish Latakia form the base of this wonderful blend.
The tin aroma is pleasant, with the sweet tang of mature, stoved Virginias mingling nicely with the delicate herbal smokiness of Syrian Latakia. The rum is detectable only as a hint of fruity molasses sweetness lingering in the background.
The tobacco can be a bit moist from a fresh tin, so you may desire to dry it out a bit. Once at the proper moisture, packing is a breeze and it smokes cool and dry. Greg's blends are admirable in their lack of tongue-bite even though they frequently use rather sugary Virginia leaf. The smoke is very flavorable and "aromatic" in the sense that it is pleasing to the nose in a classic pipe-tobacco way. The rum topping is barely noticable to me as anything other than a mellowing of the latakia aroma or a hint of molasses on the tongue.
An excellent mild-medium English, Mephisto is one of my favorite Pease blends along with Barbary Coast. Alas, as of this writing (late February, 2003) production has been halted due to the non-availability of Syrian Latakia in the US. Thus, this blend will be increasingly difficult to come by until Greg resumes making it.
On opening, one sees a mixture of mostly darker tobaccos with light flecks of golden VA and greenish-gold Turkish tobacco. The dark brown stoved Virginia and blackish Latakia form the base of this wonderful blend.
The tin aroma is pleasant, with the sweet tang of mature, stoved Virginias mingling nicely with the delicate herbal smokiness of Syrian Latakia. The rum is detectable only as a hint of fruity molasses sweetness lingering in the background.
The tobacco can be a bit moist from a fresh tin, so you may desire to dry it out a bit. Once at the proper moisture, packing is a breeze and it smokes cool and dry. Greg's blends are admirable in their lack of tongue-bite even though they frequently use rather sugary Virginia leaf. The smoke is very flavorable and "aromatic" in the sense that it is pleasing to the nose in a classic pipe-tobacco way. The rum topping is barely noticable to me as anything other than a mellowing of the latakia aroma or a hint of molasses on the tongue.
An excellent mild-medium English, Mephisto is one of my favorite Pease blends along with Barbary Coast. Alas, as of this writing (late February, 2003) production has been halted due to the non-availability of Syrian Latakia in the US. Thus, this blend will be increasingly difficult to come by until Greg resumes making it.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 21, 2020 | Medium | Mild to Medium | Medium to Full | Pleasant to Tolerable |
This will be quick, since it’s no longer made..... Mephisto was one of the first two English tobaccos that were gifted to me to wean me off aromatics; it was pure genius! (The other being Frog Morton) Of the two I hung on to the Frog simply because I really did not care at the time for the rum. This was one great blend, a mild English aromatic. ?? Talk about starting off on the right foot eh? Sadly, this and the Frog are gone due to the Syrian Latakia fire in the early days of this century. Much missed. Also: My first experience with a Pease blend, and I was not disappointed.
Pipe Used:
Comoys author
PurchasedFrom:
Jacks Tobacco
Age When Smoked:
Fresh (in 2002)
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| May 31, 2011 | Medium | Medium | Medium | Pleasant to Tolerable |
This one simply didn't ring my bell. GL Pease is my favorite blender, and I've been bowled over both by his use of latakias and perique. He does, however, seem to be quite hit-and-miss when it comes to aromatic-style blends. The component tobaccos are excellent, but the rum topping simply ruins it for me (and I have no inherent problem with aromatics, per se -- just their often poor execution). The burning characteristics are fair, and the nicotine level is reasonable. If it weren't for the toppings, I believe I would have enjoyed this a great deal more.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| May 27, 2011 | Medium | Medium to Strong | Full | Pleasant to Tolerable |
I was lucky enough to win a tin of this at a pipe rally some years back, and to this day it is the only rum cased tobacco I think worthy of putting a match to. Wonderful balance of tobacco taste and casing enhancement. Would like to see this one again on a pipe swap table!
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| May 30, 2007 | Medium | Mild | Medium | Tolerable |
Now this is an unusual tobacco. And I am favoring it more and more with every bowl. The Rum is right there on top of the smokey Latakia and the two marry well. I like it as a change of pace English and It is about as close to a cased tobacco that I am going to get. I will be seeking more of this out whenever I am lucky enough to come across it.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Aug 05, 2006 | Medium | Medium | Full | Tolerable |
Should i sing oh danny boy or the minstrelboy. I still pine for this long lost blend and am aging(weeping over) my last tin and wishing that i had not greedilly puffed so many of its ancesters. Really if they needed a fire exstinguish at the warehouse why didn't someone say so? alas the world goes on, and i like cyprian latakia very much. so i'll sit on this tin until i can smoke it with a clear consciance, and just enjoy the memories and smoke.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Oct 07, 2005 | Medium | Mild to Medium | Medium to Full | Tolerable |
Mephisto is the only GLP blend I can't, as hard as I may try, get into. The rum topping seems to disagree with the other components, perhaps the Latakia. There is a lingering sourness to the blend that detracts a bit from my overall enjoyment. Also, I find the sweetness to be a bit cloying in this blend. Like all of Greg's offerings, Mephisto a well made blend of exquisite subtlety, but it simply doesn't agree with my palate.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Apr 08, 2005 | Medium to Strong | Medium | Medium to Full | Tolerable |
Mephisto combines the qualities of a fine english blend (on the smoky side) with the pleasure associated with a nice aromatic.
The tin aroma is splendid: sweet tangy, barbecue, orange marmelade, clementines.
At the match, the first puff is the best. If by chance, you have just popped the tin open, then you will feel the sweetness and the rum and the latakia litteraly mixing in your pipe and coating your mouth. Few other blends can produce such sensations.
The only dissapointment is that -- as usual in virtually all the Pease blends -- the virginias burn hot. This is unpleasant. It is too bad that a blender of the reputation of Pease has to work with such raw virginias --or doesn't care enough to remedy the situation.
It is true that the older tins from a few years back don't burn as hot, I wonder: have we really reached the satge were we consumers have to "cellar" tobaccos for 4 to 5 years before smoking them. I would say that this is a little much to ask the consumer, to put it mildly!
Despite this nagging issue, and considering the quality level of available blends, I would have to say that this is of the best light aromatic english tobaccos today. Strangely, this blend is currently suffering its second shortage in four years due to a lack of Syrian Latakia, and according to the manufacturers (the good and unheralded folks at Cornell and Diehl), it will never be available again. Time will tell.
Update(s) from 2016 some 11 years later: (1) Mephisto no longer burns, the virginias have calmed, down: it is a smoother and more flavorful blend -- upgrade! (2) Still no Syrian....
The tin aroma is splendid: sweet tangy, barbecue, orange marmelade, clementines.
At the match, the first puff is the best. If by chance, you have just popped the tin open, then you will feel the sweetness and the rum and the latakia litteraly mixing in your pipe and coating your mouth. Few other blends can produce such sensations.
The only dissapointment is that -- as usual in virtually all the Pease blends -- the virginias burn hot. This is unpleasant. It is too bad that a blender of the reputation of Pease has to work with such raw virginias --or doesn't care enough to remedy the situation.
It is true that the older tins from a few years back don't burn as hot, I wonder: have we really reached the satge were we consumers have to "cellar" tobaccos for 4 to 5 years before smoking them. I would say that this is a little much to ask the consumer, to put it mildly!
Despite this nagging issue, and considering the quality level of available blends, I would have to say that this is of the best light aromatic english tobaccos today. Strangely, this blend is currently suffering its second shortage in four years due to a lack of Syrian Latakia, and according to the manufacturers (the good and unheralded folks at Cornell and Diehl), it will never be available again. Time will tell.
Update(s) from 2016 some 11 years later: (1) Mephisto no longer burns, the virginias have calmed, down: it is a smoother and more flavorful blend -- upgrade! (2) Still no Syrian....
Pipe Used:
Upshall
PurchasedFrom:
Smoking pipes dot com when the tins were grey and Sikes picked up the phone to take orders....
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