G. L. Pease Mephisto

While I do not smoke this everyday, when in the mood for something different, this is a great choice. Upon opening the tin, you are greeted by the rum aroma and after a few minutes the tobac odors come out as well. I do recommend you leave the tin open for 5-10 mins. before packing your pipe. This seems to mellow the rum aroma and allows for a cooler smoke. Upon lighting, the rum sings strongly but after a few mins. the blend settles into a tasty symphony with syrian latakia as the conductor. This quality leaf mixes well wth the rum. The blend smokes evenly to the bottom of the bowl with not much change toward the end, but you do have to slow your puffing because the rum seems to make it easier to get it hot. The only drawback for me to this blend is that it does not work for me in the morning, the rum makes my stomach a little queasy. But after a hearty lunch or dinner, this blend is perfect. The room note is well liked by my kids and my "sweetheart", so that is a plus. Greg has to be commended fo his committment to making quality blends, a hearty AMEN!!

This is a truly wonderful offering in the aromatic english category. The flavoring is never over the top and gives the blend a unique sweetnes. This is what I smoke when I want an english and have my wife right beside me. In fact I have received numerous compliments from people about how good my pipe smelled, something I have never encountered with an english blend. This blend is still a little too sweet for my normal tastes though, and did bite a little towards the end. I believe this may be caused by a lack of aging however, so others may find differently. All in all a tobacco I will keep on hand for whenever my sweet tooth is kicking in.

This tin is dated January, 2001. I have kept this tin open for over a year, and I have kept the moisture content at my optimum level. At this point, the mixture is primarily dark in appearance. The tin aroma is that of a good classic English Latakia-Oriental blend. I don't notice the rum component in either the tin aroma or in the taste. It is possible that most of it has evaporated. Regardless, this is a deep, rich, creamy, smooth, sweet, and very fulfilling smoke. There are moments of a cigar like flavor. This should be appreciated by any fan of this type of English blend. Mr. Pease, not too surprising, has created another winner. For me, there is no bite at all. It burns clean and dry leaving a white to very light gray ash. Highly recommended for Latakia fans.

I opened a tin of this after trying Blockade Runner from C and D. That blend does the rum thing to the max. This is a much subtler blend . At first I found it a little odd as its English base was quite complex but the rum seemed at odds with this. But as I worked my way through the tin it really started to grow on me.. Most of my all time favorites start this way and Mephisto could very easily fall into that catergory. Well worth a try.

I applaud Mr Pease for this creation. This is a very good English mixture that has been laced with demon rum. Frankly, I could have done with a hint of the rum rather than the overt statement made by the rum. I usually mix this down with some Renaissance to lessen the rum flavor. Overall, this is an excellent English and different from any other I'm aware of. I have about 6 cans of this in my cabinet.

Note to Mr Pease: Please change your cans. they are too difficult for load from because of the narrow width.

This is another of the GLP blends that I buy in quantity on a regular basis for the cellar . It's a wonderful all around smoke for me . I generally can't stand aromatic tobacco , but sometimes I want something just off center from the standard English latakia blend , and this fits the bill .

This is incredible. Everything about this tobacco is amazing. Right from the get go when you open the tin to the last puff on a bowl. There is nothing this tobacco is lacking (other than 10 more tins in my cellar).

The casing is light and give a wonderful room note (the wife likes it). The fullness of the smoke and the ease of smoking are great. No tonge bite and a wonderful flavour.

One of the best tobaccos I have ever tried!

The Dark Lord has created another wonderful blend, this time a English/aromatic hybrid of sorts. The tobacco has a very rich and distinct tin aroma, the rum is evident but not overwhelming. It is a beautiful mottle of varying shades of dark tobaccos with a small percentage of lighter tobacco which burns very nicely and relatively coolly (though it did begin to bite slightly toward the end... perhaps I smoked too fast).

The rum topping is sublime, it adds just enough to the mixture to raise the eyebrow (ok, raise it frequently) but it doens't detract from the Virginia, oriental and latakia leaf inherent in the foundation blend. In fact, it somehow enhances each of the leafy components. From first light there is a strange tangy sensation accompanying the smoky and sweet flavors fo the tobaccos. It's not tart, per se, but it adds a dimension not often found in english blends. The tanginess dissipates as the bowl progresses, and the strength increases. The individual flavors which are easily detected seem to meld together more towards the end of the bowl -though perhaps that is a result of the slight bite I got about the same time. I have only smoked two pipes of Mephisto and I really owe it to both the tobacco and to myself to live with it a little longer...perhaps this review is premature. Like most of Pease's blends it is more complex than reading the back label would idicate. If you are a fan of english blends but are looking for something a bit different, a bt left of center, then I highly recommend an evening with Mephisto.

Wow! Now THIS is what a semi-aromatic English blend should be! Only the second aromatic/English blend I've ever tried, this one has me eager to go search for more. Of course, that this blend is made by GL Pease, one of the best active blenders today, may have a lot to do with my enthusiasm. Opening the can, I'm struck by the strong aroma of Latakia, mixed with a stronger aroma of the casing used. The casing is supposed to be rum, and knowing that, I guess that's what I smell. I doubt I could have named it on my own, though. Regardless, the sweetish and "smoky" odors combine in an excellent synergy; already, I'm hoping this tastes as good as it smells! The tobacco itself appears to be mostly blackish, with flecks of lighter and medium browns present as well. It lights easily, but seems to take an above average number of relights as the bowl continues. For the first third of the bowl, I am very impressed. The Latakia is dominant, but not at all one-dimensional. The casing is a pleasant background note the merges with the excellent tobacco taste. As the second third of the bowl is reached, the flavor becomes even more complex, a dark and rich blend that is very enjoyable. I'm having no problems at all with bite or moisture. In the last third, the complexity and richness continue, though the casing's influence seems to decrease somewhat. There is a very little moisture is the bottom, nothing to worry about, and the bowl is excellent right down to the bottom. Overall, one of the best tobaccos I've ever tried. The casing merges with and supports the high-quality tobacco taste better then in any other blend I've come across. In fact, I'm not sure I'd even define this as "aromatic", since that term conjures up images of Captain Black to many. This is, quite simply, a very good Latakia blend, satisfying enough for the full English smoker and yet very accessible to the person used to lighter or aromatic blends. Highly recommended!