GL Pease WESTMINSTER

[mingc]

From an article in Karl Kruszeinicki's Great Moments in Science:


Traditionally, we humans have five senses - they're smell, hearing, vision, touch and taste. But only two of these senses are based on chemicals - smell and taste. Smell and taste let us sample the chemicals around us for information. But smell is different from all the other senses in a very special way. A smell from your distant past can unleash a flood of memories that are so intense and striking that they seem real - and we're getting close to understanding why.

This kind of memory, where an unexpected re-encounter with a scent from the distant past brings back a rush of memories, is called a "Proustian Memory". It's named after Marcel Proust, one of the greatest novelists of the 20th century. He describes this phenomenon in the opening chapter of his novel Swan's Way, the first novel in his mammoth seven-part work, Remembrance of Things Past.


Proustian? How about, "Tobaccoian?" This little tour-de-force of our limbic system deserves no less an honor, in my mind. Forget swans and keeping scientists entertained, it has been one of the pistons in the engine of pipe tobacco marketing for the last quarter century... smokers lamenting the passage of their Great House favorites, and small-batch blenders trying to replicate them. It has proved an impossible thing to do, however. Proof? Today, the prices paid for tins of tobacco that can trigger a Tobaccoian Memory are higher than ever, routinely ten to fifteen times that of an equivalent-sized tin of current manufacture.

The reason for the digression before even starting the review is because Greg Pease willingly set himself up to be measured by this ruler. He openly declared that his latest blend, Westminster, was intended from the outset to be something his customers had demanded he attempt since his earliest days: a Tobaccoian Memory inducer. A mixture whose ingredients and processes didn't matter, only the result. Something that when lit would transport them back to 1973, hanging out with friends in that long-gone favorite smokeshop. Or re-live the best moments of that road trip in 1966 when the question was asked, "Will you marry me?" and she answered, "Yes... of course!" and cried.

If you've ever wondered why some people are willing to pay so much for an old can of pipe tobacco, that's why. Memories.

The blend that Greg chose for his project was the original, Dunhill-blended London Mixture. Both because it was one of the most popular blends of its day, and so would be welcomed by a large number of today's smokers if successfully replicated; and because he loved it himself. He's not known as the "Dark Lord" for nothing. Full English blends are part of his DNA.

So. Did he do it? Was he successful? More on that later. First, a tour of the tobacco itself.

The tin aroma of full and medium-full English blends usually falls into one of three groups. The fruity/fermented undertone; the burnt/toasty undertone; and those with a dry-ish, "sour and musty in a good way" scent. Westminster falls into the last group. Unloaded into a quart canning jar and fluffed a bit so it could breathe, I enjoyed simply smelling it as one does a snifter of brandy or glass of fine wine. Even though there's little correspondence between tin aroma and flavor when burning for any tobacco, that never stopped me from enjoying it for its own sake when it's pleasant. For me it is a component of the complete smoking experience.

Westminster's moisture level is on the high side, especially for a Pease blend, but that's easily remedied and certainly preferable to the opposite. If I were Greg I'd be mildly concerned that a smoker who was new to pipes might fill his bowl without letting it dry a bit, though. Steam-induced tongue bite, taste dilution, and overly frequent re-lights might then be blamed on the tobacco itself, instead of its readiness for smoking. (UPDATE: This is no longer an issue. Greg informed me that the moisture level of the initial production batch was indeed too high, and adjusted it immediately.)

The first pipe I chose for this review was a fully broken in, large and tall bowled Dunhill XL billiard that is used only for English blends. The filling method was a combined Frank/Ehwa one, where pressure is always applied at near right angles to the tobacco chamber, and the tangle of palm-held tobacco "worked" in from the sides, as opposed to pushed straight down.

The charring light was easy, and the weed was off to a steady smolder with three matches and two tamps. My first thought was, "Oh my!" Think Old Ironsides depth of flavor at 60-70% strength, with the remainder of the spectrum occupied by layers of exotic flavors and dark Virginia richness. It was also much "rounder and softer" than such flavor intensity would imply. Other reviewers have called Westminster a medium English, but my 30 year-long love affair with the style said Full.

As is the way of pipes, once full operating temperature was reached the flavor rounded still more, and then stayed steady. Cruising altitude. I had no problems keeping it lit even in the large bowl, and as the tobacco level dropped to below half, kept waiting for, but never experienced "turning the sour edge corner" that is usually part of the English world. With a good tobacco, it is never strong enough to be objectionable, just interesting; and with the best tobaccos it is barely noticeable. Westminster didn't do it at all, however, reason unknown. The flavor remained sweet (in its English way) to the end of the bowl, though naturally it got stronger near the bottom. All ash was fine powder, and there were no clinging bits to the bowl walls. It was a very "clean" smoke. The entire process was repeated in another Dunhill two hours later, a Group 5 half bent this time, and nothing changed. Another wonderful smoke.

So. The $64,000 question. Did Westminster evoke the Golden Age of the great British blending houses, and induce the memory trick? The answer is YES, it did. Such a response cannot "lie," either. No amount of desire or will power can effect it. Everyone has many of these olfactory wonderlands buried away, whether the smell of your grandmother's perfume, or decaying weeds on a lake shore... and when triggered they have a mind of their own and take complete control. Off you go. For those who have smoked pipes long enough, the time machine awaits. For those who are younger and have no memories to trigger, you have something that's arguably better: Their initial creation.

Conclusion: This blend is Greg Pease's best English to date. He accepted the challenge of re-creating a beloved Golden Age flavor profile---Dunhill London Mixture circa 1960's/70's---and pulled it off. Smooth, round, huge flavor, full body, outstanding "flavor linger factor", no odd or "off" flavors, and the balanced combination of those things sufficient to trigger the memory trick. 10 out of 10. Naturally, the odds are that it will only improve with keeping, so what the smoking world will have then is maybe the best of the style that has ever been. This, in my opinion, is a remarkable achievement.

It would be foolish to recommend any full English to a new smoker or one who dislikes other examples of the style. The best Roquefort cheese is the world is still Roquefort cheese. But if you enjoy blends like Samuel Gawith's Commonwealth, Esoterica's Margate or Penzance, Butera's Latakia #1 or #2, or Pease's Odessey or Abingdon, you will like this one. I guarantee it. It is a masterpiece.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Follow-up 2-13-07: I was so thrilled by this blend that I have (big surprise) smoked it heavily since writing the original review. Several dozen bowls in over a dozen pipes. And each light-up is the same: supposedly a man can tell when he's truly in love with his wife by his unconscious response in the first instant he sees her. She takes his breath away, anew, each time. Westminster is the tobacco equivalent. Not only does the memory trick happen, but you realize what caused such a "life memory" to become fixed in your brain in the first place... the flavors are simply amazing; and the depth, richness, and "roundness" of the delivery are unique among today's English offerings. In short, as astounded and delighted as I was upon first reviewing this tobacco, my opinion of it has only gone UP after extensive smoking. Not just world class, this mixture, I believe it sets a new world standard.

Superb review, georged.

Where do you usually post your reviews? I'd like to read more.

 

[georged]

Superb review, georged.

Where do you usually post your reviews? I'd like to read more.

Nowhere, cuz I don't write 'em anymore.

Funny but true: Getting hired by P&T as a tobacco reviewer is what led directly to me losing interest in it.

As soon as the deal was made I asked Greg for a list of benchmark blends that would come in handy for comparison purposes when writing reviews. He sent me a list, around forty as I recall, and a couple ounces of of each was ordered. Figured I'd spend a month getting up to speed on things I'd never tasted before.

One of the tobaccos on the list was Dark Fired Kentucky, however, and my personal tobacco world changed completely. I truly didn't want to smoke anything else. Part of my brain regretted being obligated to P&T to do so.

I was rescued from out of left field, though, when P&T's top advertiser decided I was too independent-minded to be controlled by them with hints and memos, so had started screeching in Chuck and Dayton Matlock's ear about how unhappy they'd be if I stayed employed by the magazine.

So, the deal was un-done and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The advertiser got to continue twisting people's arms while smiling sweetly, Chuck and Dayton's cashflow was secure, and I got to smoke Dark Fired Kentucky 24/7.

Chuck also became a lifelong good friend in the years afterward, so I considered myself a double winner.

 

[BROBS]

Nowhere, cuz I don't write 'em anymore.

Funny but true: Getting hired by P&T as a tobacco reviewer is what led directly to me losing interest in it.

As soon as the deal was made I asked Greg for a list of benchmark blends that would come in handy for comparison purposes when writing reviews. He sent me a list, around forty as I recall, and a couple ounces of of each was ordered. Figured I'd spend a month getting up to speed on things I'd never tasted before.

One of the tobaccos on the list was Dark Fired Kentucky, however, and my personal tobacco world changed completely. I truly didn't want to smoke anything else. Part of my brain regretted being obligated to P&T to do so.

I was rescued from out of left field, though, when P&T's top advertiser decided I was too independent-minded to be controlled by them with hints and memos, so had started screeching in Chuck and Dayton Matlock's ear about how unhappy they'd be if I stayed employed by the magazine.

So, the deal was un-done and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The advertiser got to continue twisting people's arms while smiling sweetly, Chuck and Dayton's cashflow was secure, and I got to smoke Dark Fired Kentucky 24/7.

Chuck also became a lifelong good friend in the years afterward, so I considered myself a double winner.

So you’re telling me you’re no longer “LatakiaLover” ?!

 

[georged]

So you’re telling me you’re no longer “LatakiaLover” ?!

True

That handle started around 1990 when computer bulletin boards started showing up. Usenet, I think the network was called (pre-www). It stopped being an accurate name that fateful week in May, '07.

It still shows up from time to time, though. The pipemaker's forum, for example. That board started in '04 and is still chugging along.

About once a year I DO smoke a bowl of a good medium-strength English like Squadron Leader to see if my taste for Latakia has come back, but so far no bueno.

 

[mingc]

Nowhere, cuz I don't write 'em anymore.

Funny but true: Getting hired by P&T as a tobacco reviewer is what led directly to me losing interest in it.

As soon as the deal was made I asked Greg for a list of benchmark blends that would come in handy for comparison purposes when writing reviews. He sent me a list, around forty as I recall, and a couple ounces of of each was ordered. Figured I'd spend a month getting up to speed on things I'd never tasted before.

One of the tobaccos on the list was Dark Fired Kentucky, however, and my personal tobacco world changed completely. I truly didn't want to smoke anything else. Part of my brain regretted being obligated to P&T to do so.

I was rescued from out of left field, though, when P&T's top advertiser decided I was too independent-minded to be controlled by them with hints and memos, so had started screeching in Chuck and Dayton Matlock's ear about how unhappy they'd be if I stayed employed by the magazine.

So, the deal was un-done and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The advertiser got to continue twisting people's arms while smiling sweetly, Chuck and Dayton's cashflow was secure, and I got to smoke Dark Fired Kentucky 24/7.

Chuck also became a lifelong good friend in the years afterward, so I considered myself a double winner.

Umm, lemme guess . . . Stokkebye didn't want you around? That was a loss to the rest of us. The printed reviewers--Serad et al.--were inordinately influential in those days. The only dedicated professional taster these days seen to be jiminks and him only. Thank goodness for his yeoman's service. Otherwise, we'd be dependent on the internet mobs!

 

[hawky454]

Getting hired by P&T as a tobacco reviewer is what led directly to me losing interest in it.

What years were you writing reviews for them? I have every edition except possibly the last year before they went belly up. I like to go through past issues from time to time, I would love to go back and read some of your reviews (which I’m sure I’ve read, just didn’t know it was you), what is your last name if you don’t mind my asking?

ps, all you have to do to send a bat signal is use the @ symbol before the username.

@jiminks

 

[georged]

What years were you writing reviews for them?

I never had a tobacco review published. I was hired, the initial projects/articles were in the works, then the advertiser's anxiety entered the picture.

I'm sure it's the same in any industry. I never felt that Chuck or Dayton messed with me. It was a side of that advertiser they hadn't seen before, but couldn't realistically do anything about once it revealed itself. The 900 pound gorilla situation, pretty much.

 

[kola]

Huge GLP fan. Westminster is lovely stuff. Probably 70% of my smokes are Greg's blends.

 

[hawky454]

I never had a tobacco review published. I was hired, the initial projects/articles were in the works, then the advertiser's anxiety entered the picture.

I'm sure it's the same in any industry. I never felt that Chuck or Dayton messed with me. It was a side of that advertiser they hadn't seen before, but couldn't realistically do anything about once it revealed itself. The 900 pound gorilla situation, pretty much.

Well that is a shame, based off that interview I would have enjoyed reading much more. Yeah I’m sure Chuck had nothing to do with it... Chuck is a fine man, one of the funniest guys I’ve had the pleasure of meeting.

 

[guylesss]

Nowhere, cuz I don't write 'em anymore.

Hands down, the most brilliant tobacco review I've ever read. And the world's loss.

Anything involving taste/smell is an absolute fracking nightmare to write about competently, let alone well.
And although I've spent a lifetime reading (and even trying occasionally to write) about food and wine, the only writer that I think is brilliant is an Italo-Argentine biophysicist (educated in England, raised in France and Switzerland, and born in Beirut) named Luca Turin--who writes about perfume of all things (more often than not comparing in scathing terms recent reformulations of classics with the original). His writing is good enough (and sometimes wickedly funny in ways that must trigger heart attacks at luxury brand board meetings) that even if you have less than zero interest in fragrance, he's worth reading. And, for me, your essay in praise of Westminster holds it own even in Turin's august company.

 

[saltedplug]

Glad you had the patience to stick with it and give it a chance. It takes me at least two ounces of something before I decide whether or not I like it. But you can smoke a blend everyday for years and it will still throw you some surprises from time to time. Westminster is some good stuff, especially this time of year.

The rule before reviewing a tobacco used to be smoking 50g of it first. So 10+ smokes, which seems a minimum. Reviews are public and influence how pipe smokers will approach a blend and sales. Careful. Smoke
that tin first.