Charing Cross

[wadmacallit]

well i decided to open up Charing Cross by Pease. upon opening the tin, i got your typical musty wood/ leather smell of latakia, nice ribbon cut that packed nicely and right from the tin seemed to be just the right amount of moisture, and more on the moist side compared to most english tins.

after lighting and some slow deep puffs I first got the amazing flavors of the latakia, but it settled down and the virginias became the prominent flavor, with the latakia in the back but every now and again jumping back up to the surface. the oriental is subtle and a pleasant after taste. the virginias used in this blend are fantastic, and become more dominant as the bowl gets towards the end. it is earthy, buttery, a very pleasant smoke.

 

[rmbittner]

no one on this side of the pond crafts English and Balkan blends better than Greg Pease.

Amen.
Charing Cross is one of my favorite Pease Balkans. But I will say that my experience was a bit different from wadmacallit's. I found the orientals very forward in this blend, so much so that it took me a while to get used to it. For me, they came across as acrid and peppery, which was more than I was expecting at first. But I stuck with it to the point that it became something I truly love now.

 

[wadmacallit]

rmbittner, now a few bowls in, i do agree with you, the orientals are dominant, not sure where that first bowl went because the virginias were so prominent. Still as the bowl smokes down, those virginias do come out a little more. what a great blend though, i ordered 8 ounces of it tonight!!!

 

[ram74]

I just ordered a tin of this. I also have notice that tins taste different when first opened and they change after several days of being opened.

 

[mrgunnar177]

I haven't heard of charring cross???

 

[rmbittner]

mrgunnar:
Ahh, then you're missing out! I do think that a number of GLPease blends are getting forgotten/overlooked as new ones keep coming out. (But that's an issue with companies like McClelland as well; there's just so much.) But it's definitely worth checking out, as are Greg's other Balkans: Ashbury, Caravan, and Odyssey.

 

[doctorthoss]

A few months ago a smoker on another forum sent samples of Balkan Sobranie White from the early 1970s to us in order to conduct an experiment. He had been trying to find a contemporary blend that tastes like the classic BS, and in his opinion Charing Cross was the closest thing to a "match" for that legendary mixture on today's shelves. For the most part, we all concurred that Charing Cross is very, VERY close to Balkan Sobranie.

 

[doctorthoss]

A few months ago a smoker on another forum sent samples of Balkan Sobranie White from the early 1970s to us in order to conduct an experiment. He had been trying to find a contemporary blend that tastes like the classic BS, and in his opinion Charing Cross was the closest thing to a "match" for that legendary mixture on today's shelves. For the most part, we all concurred that Charing Cross is very, VERY close to Balkan Sobranie.

 

[ram74]

Interesting, so fresh Charing Cross is similar to aged Balken Sobranie. I think I read somewhere that Meridian was similar also.

 

[rmbittner]

Interesting, so fresh Charing Cross is similar to aged Balken Sobranie. I think I read somewhere that Meridian was similar also.

This is a popular game: Which tobacco tastes like Balkan Sobranie?
To my palate, neither Charing Cross nor Meridian, while very good blends, comes close. For me, the closest I've ever tasted is McClelland's Yenidje Highlander.

 

[wadmacallit]

I run a charter boat out of SC in which i just got home from the outer banks NC getting some work done. Well normally my wife meets me at the door with my infant daughter after a long stay away, but tonight she met me with a box and a smirk as if saying, "here is more dried up plants to take up space in the pantry."

I happily took the box and emptied the contents of my usuals, ten tins of IF, ten tins of DF, and to add to my rotation 8oz of Charing Cross. This tobacco is great, Im packing my third bowl for the evening right now.

 

[ram74]

I just smoked a bowl of this and I am struggling to like it. I love other Pease blends like Odyssey and Quiet Nights but this is really different. It is acrid, earthy, peppery and metallic almost but it also astringent and the astringency is odd for me. Mine came very dry, I am debating whether to try to humidify it a bit but I normally smoke my tobacco on the dry side. The dryness seems perfect for smoking and it burned OK but the flavors seem muted, thin and not rich. I smoked it in a pot shape that smokes other english blends beautifully. Maybe this will be an acquired taste for me and I just have to endure a couple more bowl to understand it.

 

[rmbittner]

ram74:
I happen to like the things about the blend that you're pointing out. . . but I will say that I found Charing Cross to be the most spicy/acrid Balkan in the Pease line-up. So I think you're tasting it well. Now it just becomes a question of whether or not it will grow on you.
Personally, I had serious doubts when I tried my first tin. Now I've got a couple of pounds in the cellar. . .

 

[fitzy]

I've yet to smoke any of Greg's Balkan or English blends only the VA's or Va/Per's.
How does Chelsea Morning fit into that group?
Also where would you guys recommend I start? I personally love H&H's Magnum Opus and Blackhouse blends and I am interested in trying Greg's blends.

 

[rmbittner]

Haven't tried Chelsea Morning, so I can't comment there.
As for where to start with the Pease Balkans, I'd recommend Caravan. For me, it's a medium-weight Balkan that features the most balance of the bunch. I think it's a great example of the style. (Odyssey is also very good, but it puts more emphasis on the latakia.) Ashbury is a lighter-weight, also well-balanced Balkan; Kensington may have a touch more heft, but it feels a tad more like a traditional English to me. Charing Cross, as you've probably gathered from this thread, is a bit more oriental-forward than the others in the line-up.
And just so you know where I'm coming from: To me, a great Balkan puts the focus on the interplay between orientals (whether sweet or acrid) and latakia. There's a unique kind of creaminess that develops when these two ingredients hit just the right balance together. Virginias should be way in the background. For me, that's the recipe for a great Balkan.
Bob

 

[doctorthoss]

Chelsea Morning is a very light English (meaning there is a relatively small amount of latakia, with most of the blend consisting of Vas, orientals and I believe a little perique). It's similar in concept to Dunhill's Early Morning Pipe. Greg's has a slew of medium to full latakia mixtures as well, including Abingdon, Odyssey, Maltese Falcon, Quiet Nights, and Westminster. All of them are superlative, IMO.

If you're new to latakia mixtures, I would definitely recommend Chelsea Morning as a great place to start.

 

[fitzy]

Thanks for the recommendations.