Tobaccos G. L. Pease - Key Largo (Heirloom Collection)

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3025)	2014-01-24		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

The tin description of this product is very accurate. It has an obvious cigar taste without it being a cigar, and yet, it doesn't overpower the other tobaccos. The Oriental is earthy, smoky, woody, floral, dry, herbal, vegetative, lightly spicy and sour as a second lead. The cigar leaf has abundant cocoa and coffee notes. It is also earthy, woody, smoky, mildly floral, very rich and creamy with a little vegetation as the lead component. The red Virginia is rather subdued here, but it does add a slight tangy dark fruitiness, earth and wood. The Cyprian Latakia provides a smoky, woodsy, earthy, sweet and cool amplification to the other ingredients in the background. The strength is in the center of medium to strong, while the taste level is a step or two past that center. Has a medium nic-hit. Won't bite or get harsh, though I do recommend a slow puffing cadence due to a few rough edges. Burns cool and clean at a relatively slow pace with a rather rich, consistent taste, and leaves virtually no moisture at the bottom of the bowl. Requires a few relights. Has a lingering after taste, and strong room note. I suggest smoking it in a wide bowl to experience the full range of its complexity. It's not an all day smoke.

-JimInks

53 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipestud (1829)	2009-04-24		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

I keep waiting for Greg Pease to release a dud... It has not happened and sure didn't with Key Largo. What a delightful variety of taste sensations!

Pease is, as most pipe hobbyists know, a master blender who takes pride and care in his work. Key Largo is a shining example; creamy, a bit on the dark side, an easy burner and cool on the tongue and palate.

If a heavy cigar taste is what you are searching for then you better keep searching. You detect it, but only faintly in the background from time to time.

I may have had better tobacco... I just can't remember when.

42 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Yak (2)	2009-02-01		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

With food, there are different kinds of Good. A chef can probably please the greatest number of people with pizza, cheeseburgers and fried chicken. The further out on limbs he starts to go with recepies, the more people he's likely to start losing.

It's the same if he's a blender with the chops to do it and do it well. Putting out creations that expand people's horizons is fraught with a degree of risk. It isn't even so much that many pipe folk wouldn't like them if they suspended their expectations and gave them enough time and attention to "get" them as that, since they don't key a familiar "Good" response, they tend to get written off from initial disappointment.

As it comes across on this end, Key Largo is even more full of subleties than its predecessor, Embarcadero. It takes longer to adjust to and zero in on, it's more sensitive to the pipe it's smoked in (and how rapidly), and it has an even wider range of flavors within its basic taste profile. It just doesn't whomp you upside the head with something familiar and obvious like "cheeseburger."

Key Largo is pleasently dry, the way Embarcadero is. It has a similar thread of sweetness running through it that smoking it too rapidly can (similarly) obscure. Above all, it has a dark quality to its taste that can be a really refreshing change of pace.

Just made, it reminded me of forest loam after a rain. As weeks went by and it found the pipes it likes, it started showing flashes of its constituents. It surprised me at first that I couldn't find the cigar wrapper element in it, nor could four other people I compared notes on it with (all of whom have much more refined palattes than mine). It's only been with the mellowing effect that several months in an occasionally opened jar seems to have on a tinned blend and repeated, careful attention that the cigar wrapper element has shown itself as a discernable element in it along with the sweetness of the Virginia and the Latakia spicing the outermost edges of it.

Smoked so slowly and gently that it's on the verge of going out, Key Largo has as subtle an interplay of flavors as anything the Dark Lord's put out.

Only six months into the journey with it, there's probably a lot left in Key Largo I haven't managed to get to come into focus yet. But there's more than enough even so to keep me coming back to it.

21 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	moniker (217)	2014-07-04		Medium to Strong	Very Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Key Largo is not at all gimmicky but it is subtle, elegant and satisfying, albeit it is also "tobacco forward", like most GLP blends. The "cigar" thing is so well done that it transcends my original "concerns", earning a spot in my rotation, and plenty of cellar space, too.

The tin I am just finishing is 3 years old, and the VAs smelled aged and fermented when the tin was popped. Persistent sniffing turned up rather loamy Orientals, and these, along with "enough" of the right Latakia, seem to meld with the cigar leaf to present the "cigar notes", such as they are, in the tin, and scent-wise and taste-wise when KL is smoked. It lights OK right out of the tin, but it wants some attention if it's to stay lit, whether it's smoked tin moist or bone dry. I prefer it dried some, but not dried out. FYI, if the "ribbons" are rubbed out too much, the air hole can get clogged. Generally, KL wants - and deserves, and rewards - one's attention. Like Greg says, it "develops throughout the bowl", and I have noted that it becomes smoother and richer in ways that are unique in my experience while also staying very well balanced as it is smoked down. Though KL smokes rather dry, yet it is rich and full enough to make for an exceptional, "creamy" mouth feel, especially down the bowl. IMO, this special mouth feel greatly enhances the rich, earthy tastes and scents the blend pours forth. The spices are, in fact, reminiscent of a good cigar. Another reviewer basically recommended smoking KL in a narrow stack, and I concur; get it focused, and "on top of itself". I aim to finally get a small stack (or 2), just for Key Largo. It's hard to describe KL's transformation from medium to full tastes, but it remains so smooth that this may go unnoticed - until one lights up a bowl something else. Strength is stronger than medium, but not really strong. I love the room note; but it does contain Turkish and cigar leaf... KL should certainly be smoked in still air, indoors, if possible. One debit: it ghosts my pipes. In fact, I like to rest a pipe used for KL for at least 2 days before using it for KL again. However, DGT works fine with KL; go figure... Aftertaste is a delicious, lingering "best-of", only sweeter.

The way GLP blends and develops the tobaccos in KL into a proprietary cigar is genius, also one-of-a-kind. Old Dark Fired is vaguely similar; but this takes nothing away from Key Largo. I find it interesting, delicious and satisfying. But it is "different", all right, and I am not sure who else would like it as well as I do. I suspect that few will hate it, and more will find it OK while missing the best of it. No matter your first impressions, however, I recommend that you persist. Give it some time; age it; let it rest and breathe; and be sure to smoke a few bowls very slowly and attentively, in still air. Four stars from me, FWIW.

Update: Just got into a jar I meant to save, smoked down a group 4-5 bowl in 15 minutes. My! Another one for my favorites list. I like it fine fresh from the tin, but just a few months of "rest" and some slow drying makes it softer and even creamer, not to mention blissfully delicious. Now it is reminiscent of the best of the old, mild "Tampa" cigars of my youth, and it compares favorably to HH Old Dark Fired at its best.

Update, 07-23-15: Didn't notice I'd blown through my "using" supply until it was gone, just got into a stashed tin dated 01-08-09. Oh, my! This is as good as anything I have smoked (in almost 50 years). Definitely jump on this if you get the chance, or age some yourself (if you can...).

Update, 12-07-18: Oh, well, plus ca change... A tin of recent manufacture is fairly insipid, with dominant (though still soft) "Latakia" that is more sprayed-on Liquid Smoke and "incense" than tobacco, with less from the Orientals and hardly anything from the cigar leaf. Not bad, really, just disappointing compared to the tins I've blown through up to now. If there is a lesson here I'm sure it's the same old "lesson" that I should hoard good tobacco when I find it, which pretty much goes against my general philosophy of life! Feh! Here's hoping rest will transform this batch, and may C&D restore Key Largo soon!

Pipe Used: various briars; taller, narrow bowls preferred

Age When Smoked: 3 yrs to 6 1/2 yrs +; older = better

Purchased From: Liberty Tobacco

Similar Blends: HH Old Dark Fired (sort of...); also compares/contrasts to Solani 660 Silver Flake and Gawith, Hoggarth's Brown Irish X. Old KL is in a league of its own..

12 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	quantumboy (130)	2010-02-27		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Tolerable

August 18, 2016 Update: smoking five year old Key Largo tonight and absolutely loving it! Wished I would have bought a dozen tins. I'm down to 2 now...

Tin Aroma: Very interesting and unique. It's got that sourish note of a freshly opened tin of Squadron Leader, along with an earthy, musty note that must come from the cigar leaf.

Appearance: A broken flake, still very much in flake form. Rubs out easily, and has perfect moisture out of the tin. Primarily medium-dark with flecks of brighter leaf here and there.

Flavor: This is an Academy Award nominee.

I am really enjoying this stuff! From the opening credits, there is a richness that hints of the best cigars I've tasted. To me, a great cigar is not just cigarish, it's also toasty, rich, complex and strong. Key Largo is like a rich, creamy cigar dressed with all the characteristics of your favorite pipe tobacco. Or is it a great pipe tobacco wrapped in the garb of a rich, creamy cigar? I'll have to talk to the wardrobe department about this…

As the actors take the stage, I notice the Oriental leaf first and foremost, astringent and sassy, but it's very smooth and not as tangy in my nose as those in the first four “full English” blends we've tasted. It certainly knows its place and does not hog the camera.

Next comes the Latakia, smoky and rich, adding that campfire character that will make this an incredible camping/fishing/outdoor smoke – next time I light the burn pile this will be my leaf of choice while tending the fire.

The Virginias balance the blend with a sweet richness that is foundational. The tin notes state that this blend uses Red Virginias. I'm not good at distinguishing the various types of Virginia leaf from one another in a blend, but I think the Reds add a little spice of their own, at least as compared to a rich, dark stoved Virginia.

The cigar leaf lurks to one side of the stage, never very strong, certainly never in the lead role, but also never fading into the background. It's always noticeable and is actually the star of the show. The cigar leaf gets the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. I would really like to try this blend with just a bit more cigar leaf, just to get a better handle on the specific cigar flavors.

“Spicy” and “rich” are good descriptors. There is the Oriental spice in my nose and my soft palate, and there is the cigar leaf that is not so much spicy as – well, earthy, just like in Pease's description. But this blend is also smooooooth. In my experience, smooth and spicy are often mutually exclusive, but Greg pulled it off here. The various types of tobacco play very well together, and although I listed them above in the order of appearance to my palate, yet it's sometimes difficult to distinguish where one leaf ends and another begins.

During the last third, the Oriental spice fades (but does not disappear), and the cigar leaf and Virginias vie for the lead role. To me, the mark of a great cigar is that it smokes flavorfully to the very last – in other words, a knuckle burner. Not many cigars do this for me, as I favor the richness and toastiness typical in the first half of a cigar. Key Largo is a knuckle burner.

My only regret is that I first tried this in one of my favorite English pipes and I'm now concerned about ghosting the pipe. I will be dedicating a pipe or two to Key Largo and Robusto. Obviously this blend is a great crossover for cigar smokers looking to get into pipes.

Like a movie that just flows beautifully, blurring the passage of time, this blend will help you while away your time with ease and panache. I have no idea what to expect from this stuff as it ages, but I'm confident enough in brilliant results to stash a stack of tins. One thing I know for certain – I'll be buying more!

10 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Beer (345)	2008-09-21		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable to Strong

Ooops, he did it again!

If there's one thing I can't smoke, it's cigars. Ok, I tolerate the occasional aged Toscano, but I really can't stand Cuban or Dominican ones. I truly don't care for that chocolatey, earthy, dull taste: I find it monodimensional and boring, not to mention heavy. Besides, most cigars are too strong in nicotine for me. I am famous for having stopped smoking a Partagas once after 5 minutes, because I truly disliked the flavour.

The same applies to cigar leaf pipe blends. So, I guess it's just my personal taste if I find Robusto exactly not my cup of tea, if I have never raved about Balkan Sobranie Virginian N. 10 (even 20 years old tins tasted boring to me!), and if the only one that I thought was actually OK is Banker's Mixture thanks to the low cigar content, the high Latakia and the good Virginia sweetness.

And yet, after a few disappointing and boring bowls with Key Largo (while I kept telling myself "told you so"), something changed and now I really like this new GLPease blend, which is starting to really grow on me.

Two big recommendations:

1) Smoke it slowly, as slowly as you can 2) Don't smoke it outdoors, as it's a subtle blend. No, it's not wimpy, but its main qualities lie in its subtleties

The cut in the tin is a VERY irregular broken flake, with pieces of very varied dimensions: from small, to impressively huge. It feels not moist, but very pliable, almost velvety at the touch. The tin aroma is moderately sweet with a touch of smokiness, and a great milk/coffee/cocoa powder creaminess.

And creamy is the right word to define the smoke, too. Never overwhelming, never harsh or with the bitter aftertaste that you can sometimes find in cigars. It's earthy, with damp autumnal leaves, but never too much. The sweetness is there, but very subdued and never dominant. Same for the Latakia smokiness and the Orientals grassiness. And the cigar leaf... well, it's at the same time tasty, juicy and never dominant. What makes this blend so special is how greatly balanced it is, how intricate the interplay between the various kinds of leaf goes on. And, most of all, the creaminess. Creamy, not thick. Smooth like velvet, again on unsugared milk and coffee with a sprinkle of cocoa on top. Tasty (IF YOU SMOKE SLOWLY!!!!!!!! Otherwise it tastes like hot air!) and yet delicate. It already feels very mature and well integrated even from a fresh tin, and I suspect it will become even better and creamier in time.

And the nicotine? Stronger than your average English Mixture, but still highly tolerable even for me in a group-4 sized bowl. By the way, I find Key Largo smokes better in a smallish pipes, and especialy in those which have a bowl bigger in depth than width (such as a lovat, or a classic billiard... and NOT a pot).

My congratulations, Greg: making me appreciate a cigar leaf blend is truly an achievement. It's IMHO much better than Robusto, with more finesse and much more balance. And I suspect the broken flake cut is much more suitable than a ribbon cut mixture for such a blend. Of course it won't become a regular in my rotation, but I'll gladly savour a bowl once in a while from now on.

8 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gentleman Zombie (729)	2013-10-28		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Nice blend. Came in 2nd place on my list of blends with cigar leaf. Habana Daydream was 1st. This is a good smoke. Recommend trying it.

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	StevieB (2076)	2016-08-29		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

G. L. Pease - Key Largo.

The tobacco looks about the same build as Cornell & Diehl's Burley Flake No.1: strips as opposed to chunks of broken flake. Although the blend's the same size/cut, it's a fair bit darker to look at. Moisture quantity's good, so I can smoke it directly from the fresh tin.

I don't usually enjoy cigar leaf blends, they normally taste too ashy to me, but Key Largo has a deeper flavour than most. The cigar leaf seems the heaviest flavour, but it's not the only taste: the Latakia fills the flavour out, it gives woodiness, and a slight smokiness. I find the Oriental a little lighter than the Latakia, it's not quite as abrasive. The Virginia contributes a fair bit of volume, but seeing as the flavour of this leaf is a lot mellower it doesn't give too much character to the blend. The burn from Key Largo couldn't be better: easily lit, burns splendid, doesn't require lots of re-lights, and leaves a perfect cigar-type ash.

The nicotine's above medium, it's not 'strong' but it's more than medium, and the room-note's good: although it creates a good aroma it only makes a small amount of smoke in the room.

This is about the best cigar blend I've had: full marks.

Highly recommended.

Pipe Used: Peterson Jekyll & Hyde #05

Age When Smoked: 7 months

Purchased From: Gauntleys Nottingham

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	RedGreenDevon (4)	2015-05-06		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Takes a charring light very easily, producing a pronounced Latakia flavour, a sweet and tangy coolness, slightly suggestive of menthol, but not at all artificial or saccharin.

On lighting Latakia presents but soon integrates with rich and sweet rum and raisin notes.

A steady slow burn which facilitates easy sipping.

It develops into a rich velvety full smoke which remains sweet. Brings to mind a good quality hot chocolate that hasn't needed more than a pinch of dark unrefined sugar.

The flavours don't suddenly move back and forth as you smoke. Whilst you don't forget that there is Latakia in here, the flavours are never competing for centre stage. A true ensemble piece.

The cigar leaf brings to mind those rare discoveries of a coffee bean of medium body, with subtle cocoa nuttiness, a soft maple or honey sweet supporting it

At no point does the blend become bitter, tart or sharp. I don't find any citrus fruit notes in here.

When I opened this tin I already had 3 other very good tobaccos open. I expected it to be an interesting change; a curiosity. Far from it! This was one of the rare finds that I instantly fell and remain in love with. Usually when I get to the end of a tin I am happy to try yet another new experience, and if I have enjoyed what I have finished I will look forward to re-visiting it. Key Largo is one of those tobaccos where I just want more. I can't imagine boring of this stuff. And since I opened the tin I have smoked it almost exclusively – first pipe of the day, walking the dog, sat quietly meditating as I finish the day.

Bottom line – rich, perfectly balanced, not a challenging smoke but engagingly sensory. This doesn't come with the drama of the bright Virginia blend.

I am not a cigar smoker, and wasn't really looking for a Cigar in a Bowl. This is not such a thing, fortunately, it is simply amazing and uite unique.

Pipe Used: Dunhill group 4 Prince, several others

Age When Smoked: 3 months

Purchased From: 4noggins.com

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	DoctorThoss (146)	2008-12-03		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Full	Tolerable to Strong

This is a beautifully prepared tobacco that burns very well with minimal bite. Flavor-wise, it comes across as basically a medium English blend with an elusive hint of spice that comes from the cigar leaf. The latakia isn't as powerful as the orientals or VA, which oddly enough don't provide the level of sweetness I'd normally expect from them. The cigar leaf is definitely noticeable, but I felt its presence more than I tasted it (if that makes any sense at all). Put another way, the texture of the smoke reminded me of what I normally encounter in a cigar, but the taste was that of a straightforward English mixture.

Key Largo is not complex, which is a big departure from most of the other latakia-based GLP blends I've tried. If you like the flavor (and I do) you'll enjoy it a great deal. If, however, you prefer the intricate layers of flavor that develop in some balkans or Vas, you might want to pass on this one. It does better (IMO) in small to medium sized bowls. It's got a respectable nicotine kick to it, but nothing too extreme for those of us who crave it.

Overall, I was favorably impressed but not blown away by this one. I'll definitely buy more, but I also don't have any plans to cellar more than a couple of tins of it. I think its most attractive characteristics are its smoothness and lack of bite compared to many other English mixtures, which means it could be an all-day blend for those who really like it.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2008-07-23		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

Usually I am underimpressed by blends that attempt to combine several different categories, and label-blurb that tells me what to think.

This new blend by Greg Pease, however, is a pleasant surprise. Flakes with jagged edges in a spectrum of medium brown hues, with a fragrance that is both earthy and spicy. Not too humid, crumbles easily into the bowl.

It smokes very well, and is clearly related to the English style of tobacco. Neither the Turkish nor the Latakia trumpet their arrival, but they are definitely there. The cigar leaf is a somewhat subdued presence that does not dominate but stays at the corner of awareness. This is a good smoke. It is not strong, but not a weakling either. There is a remarkable lack of bite, even at the end of the bowl.

It did not particularly remind me of the old Balkan Sobranie number ten, which also had cigar leaf. For some reason John Cotton came to mind. This type of tobacco has not often been available, having more frequently been lamentably absent. There are smokers who will soon cherish this above all other blends. I have purchased all tins at the tobacco store - it'll be a while before anybody else gets some.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	OhioTony76 (59)	2018-01-25		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Strong

If you like Billy Budd, this isn't it. This is a softer and creamier blend. The tin note is strong, but the body I would call a medium. The flavors of all the tobaccos really meld like a nice flake should. My flakes were broken and easy to break up and pack. The latakia is soft and pleasant and the cigar leaf and Virginia make for a very creamy smoke. Mild/med in the nicotine department. Very nice. One of my favorites. Improves with age also.

Similar Blends: Cornell & Diehl - Billy Budd , Cornell & Diehl - Habana Daydream.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2011-04-25		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Strong

The tin I smoked was dated sometime in 2009 (the date stamp was somewhat faded).

I have to disagree with some of the reviewers below. The cigar taste was, to me, in the forefront, along with the virginias. Next came the orientals, followed by the latakia. There is no burley mentioned on the tin, but assuming it is present, it melds so well with the cigar leaf that one cannot detect it as a discrete element.

This was a very satisfying blend. Nowhere near too strong, it may have been on the medium side of medium to full. The nicotene content was perfect in my view.

The earthy, sweet and smoky flavor was just bitter enough to be reminiscent of a nice cup of coffee. Sometimes a slight sharpness was present in the beginning of the smoke, but it smothed out by mid-bowl.

I found this to behave better when fully rubbed out, until it dried and mellowed sufficiently, and then I just stuffed it into my pipe. Even the dusty dregs in the bottom smoked wonderfully. Tongue bite was non-existent.

Perhaps my favorite Pease blend yet, and that's saying something. I will definitely revisit this one.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Amarelo (25)	2020-08-05		Strong	None Detected	Full	Tolerable to Strong

When I smoked my first KL bowl I was certain this was going to be among the best tobacco I ever had. I love the cigar leaf in here, and the oriental and latakia dashes are great.

When you lit it the most you get is virginia sweetness backed by the cigar leaf body. Sometimes overtly sweet which can be kinda annoying. By the Mid of the bowl the latakias and oriental become richer, perfectly balancing the sweetness of the beginning. A very good tobacco indeed but it gets me in the nerves when I sense only virginias and the cigar leaf. _________________________________________________________________________

But then, with just a few days of aging, the virginias get quiet and this becomes awesome. If I was Mr. Pease I woud just put a little bit more of latakia and orientals.

Similar Blends: G. L. Pease - Chelsea Morning (Old London Series).

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	BingCrosby (161)	2020-03-15		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

I really need to stop trying different Pease blends.. It could become an expensive cellar stocking experience.. Key Largo, in my opinion, deserves all the praise it gets.. it is a blend that doesn't taste much like a cigar at all yet somehow captures the feel of a cigar.. something about the mouthfeel and richness of flavor reminds me of a summer night with a really quality smooth yet full cigar.. it is so well blended in terms of the marriage of its components.. you can pick out the orientals, virginia, latakia, and cigar leaf but through most of the smoke it is just the combination the ensemble.. and it is as smooth and creamy as everyone claims.. I dont care for latakia dominated blends at all but this one has just the right amount.. it plays a condimental role and really adds something to it.. there is a nice but not overpowering sweetness in the Virginia and oriental component.. enough virginia, in fact, to make me want to see what a little age would do to the blend.. the cigar leaf is a very subtle earthy/spicy note but it really seems to contribute body more than anything else.. slight but pleasant musty notes are also present.. burns well.. has some strength but not at all overwhelming.. maybe nightcap level.. a wonderful and unique experience. ... just have to add something.. Most of pipes are relatively small, but key largo really likes my larger bowled pipes.. I have a bbb billiard that is about 2 inches tall and fairly wide that smokes it perfectly.. really picks up the transitions of this gorgeous blend.. this is one of my favorite tobaccos since discovering this..

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Kokinhenik (93)	2019-12-07		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Full	Strong

As its namesake hints at, Key Largo is truly lovely. It’s very much a cigar forward smoke, yet a masterful pipe blend, with the sweet Virginias and tart Orientals enriching the creamy cigar wrapper. I find it full bodied enough to settle my pipe cravings for days. On opening my first tin, I was met with a blast of air that rolled out smelling faintly of manure and strongly of fermented vegetation… that brought a smile to my face, the smell of an exceptional blend? After the initial waft, the tin note settled into a mild vinegary red Virginia (McClelland like) riding over a Cigar note. The Oriental and Latakia distant hazy and faint. The flakes were intact but delicate, with a goldilocks moisture content, easily rubbed out and very much ready to smoke. Key Largo tends to light up on the first match, produces voluminous smoke, but will easily go out if left to sit. It smokes a bit dry and pairs well with coffee, expresso, whiskeys and rum.

In the pipe, the cigar is the lead of the show. Creamy, velvety, woodsy, earthy, full bodied and plenty of nicotine. The Virginia, bready, yeasty and sweet, plays as the lead supporting actress, complementing the rich earthy, espresso note of cigar. The Oriental and Latakia work primarily in a small supporting role, rarely coming to the forefront but enhancing to the flavor profile of the leads. I find this blend to be an extremely satisfying digestif. Other blends like Nightcap and Billy Budd fall in that category as well, but where those blends can be unbridled and rough around the edges, Key Largo is well balanced, reminding me of the smooth steady cigar note in Habana Daydream but slightly more dark and a level heavier. I’ve added this to my cellar list and bucket list. I need to get myself down to the Florida Keys if for no other reason than to enjoy the luxury of a beach and bowl at sunset.

The room note and aftertaste are lingering and may dampen social interaction yet I'm absolutely positive there are many a bachelor who will be inclined to choose this absolutely superb pipe tobacco as an all-day smoke!

Pipe Used: Large Bjarne

Age When Smoked: Tinned on 7/27/18

Purchased From: 82nd Ave Tobacco & Pipe

Similar Blends: Robusto, Billy Budd, Habana Daydream.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Rob73 (77)	2016-10-30		Strong	None Detected	Full	Tolerable

A great mixture for all the cigar/Kentucky lovers. To me, it would be an excellent EM but cigar leaf is overwhelming, adding too much strength and covering the other components. 2,5/5 in my personal rating system.

Purchased From: Dubini, Chiasso (Switzerland)

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	TallPuffO'Burley (632)	2016-02-25		Strong	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

So sure was I that I would enjoy this blend that I bought an 8 ounce can of it before trying it. This was about three years ago. My earlier smokes were not too impressive. I think it is prudent to point out that I was still pretty green at pipe smoking myself at that time.

Remembering what I have heard several times of Pease blends I put it up to try again a year later. It still did not do much for me. Over the coming few years I would have a bowl here and there and send some samples out occasionally as well. But time and tastes do change; as does smoking cadence and performance. I guess I can't pinpoint the reason, but this did grow on me.

Now lest you get too excited, it is not in the 4 star field for me, but it has definitely climbed from two to three, and I can see where it would get four by several smokers. It is quality leaf and it has a unique taste; which is uncommon for a blend with a good quantity of latakia. If I did not have advanced knowledge that it contained cigar leaf, I think I would have guessed it contained a fair amount of DFK. There is a nuttiness that goes along with this blend and a boatload of nicotine. The Nicotine factor is certainly another thing that sets this apart from other latakia blends.

If you want a latakia blend rich in Nicotine, you are usually forced to find one with a good amount of perique such as nightcap. But it you don't like any of these blends, Key Largo offers a different option.

This blend is otherwise smoky and slightly sweet as one would expect, but it is the nuttiness and the strength that sets it apart for me. The nuttiness could be coming from the Orientals as some of them do have this effect on my taster, but I would suspect it is more likely from the cigar leaf as I don't really taste it otherwise. In other words, this does not taste like a cigar and I think that is a good thing.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Mr. Big (321)	2016-01-31		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Full	Tolerable

The first 1/4 bowl is very flavorful and you can easily distinguish the various tobaccos in the blend, especially the Oriental, which I think is Samson.

However, the base cigar notes soon take over and they make this a very "Muddy" smoke. If you were ever a Cigar smoker, you would fully understand when I say, " this blend begins to taste like a "relit" cigar". The blend looses all sweetness and by the last 1/3 of the bowl , likens the taste of an overheated cigar, not pleasent.. In comparing this blend to McC"s "Dominican Glory Maduro", The DGM is much creamier and sweeter, without cigar bitterness.

With all due respect to all the 4 star reviews, I think I agree most with reviewers : McKNooB (34) 2013-06-09 JustinCarcerated (69) 2013-05-01

Pipe Used: cob

Age When Smoked: open 1 week

Similar Blends: A relit dry cured De Nobili cigar.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Rhapsody Baccy (16)	2015-09-10		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

There are many loathed ‘cigar’ blends out there- where a bit of cigar leaf is shag-cut and added to the blend but no one pulls it off as successfully as G.L. Pease- the smoke is textured, exotic, with a bit of sweet earthy cocoa nibs.

The Cigar leaf itself does not come through but it laces throughout the smoke adding a background bass and dimension that makes Key Largo a real treat.

I should add-- this isn't a Jessica Rabbit smoke, all t-and-a out in the open from the beginning, this blend begs a little bit of time and patience to truly speak to you.

Also, i have noticed (Curious to see if anyone else has experienced this) it is quite temperamental to humidity, cadence, and pipe. Because of this it is a quiet reflective smoke needing care and attention as no doubt Greg intended.

RECCOMENDED: for the cigar lover purely out of novelty as the cigar leaf is barely noticeable but does add texture and depth. For those looking for something other than another version of an English-Oriental set against a bunch of Virginias.

Ubiquity is not in this blend's name.

(PS- this may benefit from some aging-- anyone has any experience with aging this stuff?)

= UPDATE=

When i wrote the review above, I was not completely sold on this blend, in-fact, it sat in my cellar for almost a year before i picked up again and now... well, it's a different story...

... I suppose a lot of it has to do with the fact that it's a "cigar-blend" and as a Miami-raised once-intensive Cigar smoker I came into Pease's Key Largo blend with all the wrong expectations.

AS many (many) have noted Cigar-leaf in Pipe Tobacco rarely translates into actual 'cigar' flavor. Having worked on custom cigar blends for a former employee I became very aware and sensitive to how different leaves and grades (in cigar production) added not only depht-of-flavor but a 'texture' as well.

Part of Caribbean leaf's adulation (read: Cuban, Dominican, and even the US Dollar-handicapped Puerto Rican Tobacco leaf) has more to do with the aplomb it gives a mix more so (or in addition to) just 'flavor' or strength... this is the 'creaminess' that many cigar-smokers-turned-pipe-smokers sometimes miss.

I know I did... in the first few years I kept yearning for some texture and naturally found myself cozying up to heavy Englishes and considered Nightcap an "all-day blend" (reaching the texture and girth of Padron Anniversario, the darker Avo's and Gloria Cubana Serie R)-- what I was missing was that certain "creamy" smoke that comes with a great and well-made cigar.

Enter Cigar-Leaf Pipe Tobacco blends which are as old as the modern art of blending itself- Alfred Dunhill having a popular "cuban" blend in his line-up of Pipe-Tobacco (it helped, of course, that he was also importing custom cigars from Cuba) and modernly Stogie and Peretti's Cuban Mixture a throwback to that style.

The mistake, IMHO, is to approach them as though they are a cigar-flavor delivery system (outside of a cigar): it's not. Instead what a Cigar-leaf blend delivers (and where its charm lies) is in it's texture.

Creamy and almost exotically lactic- Cigar leaf brings in a textural experience that even the heaviest Latakia bomb cannot. Peretti's Cuban Mixture is heavy with this 'texture' aspect and Dunhill's Durbar, I would venture may have a bit of sneaked-in Cigar leaf giving the blend it's oft-commented creaminess.

It's a lovely addition-- and especially wonderful this time of year...

This realization was my lightbulb moment with Key Largo.

I loaded a bent apple, lit it (takes more than a few), and sipped it slowly... what a beautiful blend! This is, in my opinion, a true marker of excellence and kudos @glpease for erring on the sublime rather than on strength (for the winos around here I'd liken it to great Burgundy (Grand Cru Chambertin) versus a heady California Zinfandel) - making a powerhouse is relatively easy, making something that requires contemplation, a deft hand in execution, and a contentious "mindlessness" when enjoying it, is the mark of an craftsman with an artists understanding of their craft.

Unfortunately, often times, the point is missed.

Not in Key Largo, not anymore-- at first, yes, I though "meh, what a waste" but after left open, let to breathe for a few weeks in a resealed tin, it's become one of my regular go-tos.

Pipe Used: MM Various + LA Rocca + Var. Savinelli

Age When Smoked: New tin

Purchased From: Pipes & Cigars

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2011-08-02		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Wow! I love this mixture. It sings cigar leaf from the moment the tin is opened. Key Largo leads with the cigar and latakia with the Virginia's serving as base notes. For a flake its easily rubbed out and smokes very well. GL Pease description on this page is spot on!

Smoke is creamy to almost a salty/beefy (latakia) flavor to it. Key Largo has little in the way of nicotine, which is fine by me, either that or I'm so used to smoking full flavored cigars I'm immune to the nicotine emanating from KL.

I use this as my summer time smoke but I can and will smoke KL around the calendar when I want a beefier tasting blend.

I've tried other cigar leaf blends (Billy Budd, 123 Mixture) and nothing comes close to touching KL, truly a cigar blend.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-01-28		Medium	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This one is right up my alley. I like medium English mixtures, but enjoy the little extra some blends bring. My everyday smoke is Samarra, where the perique supplies a dash of flavor; now I can add Key Largo. The cigar leaf here provides the same type of extra dimension and rescues what could be a rather so-so English from blandness.

This tin was purchased immediately after the release of Key Largo in July. I've only had two smokes from it so far, but feel confident enough of my impressions to make a review. The cigar leaf is not overwhelming by any means, but is present throughout the smoke. The virginias are in the forefront, especially in the first half of the bowl, with the orientals and latakia very low key. Overall, a slightly sweet, dry, and pleasant smoke.

I don't rub it out, being an outside smoker, and had no trouble keeping it lit. Smoked slowly, it left a gray ash and a clean bowl. Definitely a keeper, and one that I think will reward the patient user after cellaring.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2008-10-12		Strong	None Detected	Full	Tolerable to Strong

I thoroughly enjoy good blends with cigar leaf. Russ Oulette's Strike Force and Churchhill from Pipeworks and Wilke are excellent examples. Key Largo just doesn't cut it. The harsh, hot, raw, red Virginia dominates. It does develop somewhat, and as edges smooth you can detect a bit of cigar wrapper, and a bit of unique spice from the Orientals. But in all, this is disappointing. If any reader of this review is interested in trying good blends containing cigar, go with the above recommendations, and avoid Key Largo.

UPDATE: I wanted to revisit this as I struggle through 2 oz. I've decided I just can't waste any more precious smoking time on Key Largo. Not good for me at all.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JaWiBr (453)	2022-11-29		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Tin note of sweet smoky, spices, and tart fruit. Tobacco Broken Flakes are brown, light brown and black. Moisture seems a little high, recommend drying a bit. Rubs out nicely. Burns slow with a few extra relights. The strength is medium to strong and nic is medium. No flavoring detected. Taste is medium to full and consistent, with complex notes of very earthy, cigar, dry wood, leather, mildly smoky, floral, mild herbal spices, mild sour lemon, spicy, mild cocoa powder, mild sweet grass background note, and a peppery retro. Virginia is barely beating Cigar for to lead with Oriental and Latakia supporting. Room note is tolerable, and aftertaste is great.

Pipe Used: 2013 J.M. Boswell Poker

Age When Smoked: 5 years

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	musicman (131)	2022-07-25		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Tolerable

Another masterpiece from arguably one of the best tobacco blenders out there. Seriously, Mr. Pease just can't seem to miss.

A nice broken flake in the tin. Mostly medium to lighter tobaccos with some dark smattered about. It is hard for me to discern which is the cigar leaf in the blend, but it is there. This rubs out easy, packs easy, and burns very well. I even put it to the burn test. I have a Peterson St. Patricks day 2008 XL02 that can often time give me great consternation. I love the look of the pipe, but it does not always smoke cooperatively (we all have them). If I can get a good bowl out of this pipe, the tobacco burns like a dream.

Starts out easy with a medium latakia/oriental forward taste. Nicely balanced and very enjoyable. About mid bowl, the latakia takes a backseat for me and the red virginias start to shine through, eventually toward the bottom of the bowl the latakia becomes more evident once again, ending with a fuller spicier finish. This blend never really reaches full/strong for me.

This is a fantastic blend, but let me warn you about the cigar leaf. It will not jump right out at you. In fact, it took me multiple bowls to start to recognize its contribution. Don't be perplexed with the first couple smokes, or think you got a tin without it. It is there, it is just shy and has to get to know you before it comes out to play. The more you smoke this, the more identifiable it will be.

Highly recommended

Pipe Used: Peterson St. Patricks 2008 XL02

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Ranger (78)	2021-12-30		Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

This just knocked out my previous favorite cigar blend. The tin description is spot on. Perfect flakes ready to be broken and stuffed in a large pipe. A cigar aficionados dream blend. A perfect after dinner smoke.

Age When Smoked: New

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Stah (139)	2021-06-03		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

The 8 oz jar had a release date of January 14, 2016. So the tobacco had also been fermenting in the jar for about 5 years. Like most of this manufacturer's blends, it was factory sealed tightly in the jar. I opened it - inside were 4 packages of tobacco for smaller jars, stacked one on top of the other and wrapped in heavy paper. Very convenient - you don't have to over-pack the tobacco, and you can just take the package and put it in the smaller jar, and pack the rest hermetically until the next time. By the way, a little hint - the vinyl and rubber wristbands from those worn by zoomers are great as an airtight clamp.

The smell from the can left no doubt - I had a great cigar leaf based blend in front of me. It gave off a dense and complex aroma of walnut, wood smoke, dry earth, dark roasted coffee, allspice, and somewhere in the distance there was a slightly sour note with a slight milky undertone. Latakia didn't clog up the cigar leaf, but complemented it.

The tobacco turned out to be a well broken flake, I would even call it rubbed. The color was an even brown, with occasional slightly lighter flecks. The moisture content is moderate, you can't feel it on your fingers when kneading it.

I filled half of the pipe with cigar blends (wide bowl), just in case, and smoked it easily. The tobacco flavor is a great non-strength cigar: deep, dense. Earthiness, nuttiness, strong dark coffee, a little bit of cream, a little bit of pepper, a little bit bitter, and at the same time - in the background Virginia gives a slightly sweet fruit note, which disappears in the middle of smoking. Unlike the Robusto, there is much less latakia flavor and the cigar part is more pronounced. As I smoked, the tobacco became more and more like a cigar.

The tobacco is quite strong, stronger than the Robusto. The nicotine kick caught up with me about halfway through. While completing the resemblance to a cigar, the strength of the tobacco increases as you smoke. It burns quite slowly in the pipe, burns cool and burns into loose ash, leaving some moisture in the bowl.

The smoke from tobacco has the same persistent cigar note, but it is much less dense and light. In addition, orientals dilute it with a spice flavor, and the smell in the room is more pleasant to others if they are not used to the smell of a clean cigar. Despite this, if you smoke in a room, be prepared that if you do not air the room, the smell will remain for a long time.

Bottom line: an absolutely flawless blend for an afternoon pipe for me personally. I'm thrilled. My only regret is that I should have taken more. I guess I will.

Pipe Used: Peterson 150

Age When Smoked: 2016

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Voyaging (80)	2020-12-24		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

Based on tin date age of ~one year.

Tin note smelled like some dried fruit you get with red Virginia, some incense and smoke and woody notes. To me, there was no detectable cigar tobacco smell. The flakes were the standard Cornell and Diehl broken flakes, which I like. They're what I would call 'rustic'. It's kind fo moist, but smokeable. I've had the tin open for weeks and it's still not dry dry. It has been getting better and better (flavor-wise), the longer it has been open and the drier it gets.

The flavor of this blend is beautiful. You get bready notes, slight smokey notes, mechanic shop, sweet and spicy woody notes, a touch of dried fruit. Sometimes a beautifully aromatic sweet floral note develops that reminds me of Gaslight. I could go on a journey with tasting notes, but that's not always helpful. This is a pretty full-flavored blend, but there is an important balance that contributes to a truly wonderful experience. All of the taste sensations are engaged when smoking Key Largo.

Combustion was pretty good. No complaints about it. It's a broken flake, so there is some flexibility with pipe choice and packing method. You could smoke this in a fold and twist or rubbed out. It takes a few lights to get going, but any issues you may or may not have with combustion could be down to the moisture. To me, experimenting with packing methods and using different pipes is part of the fun in smoking this blend. You get different experiences.

Nicotine was noticeable but may jus shy of medium.

I highly recommend this blend to anyone that likes blends containing Latakia and Turkish, and the intrigue they bring to blends. If you like the standard Latakia blend components (Virginia, Turkish, Latakia) I think you will also enjoy this blend. I think if you like complex blends you can't go wrong here.

The only downside to this blend could maybe be if a person is really looking for that cigar flavor, or they're looking for a similar body to that of a cigar, they may be disappointed here. But, then again, I think a cigar smoker would be disappointed with any pipe tobacco blend. They're just different.

Pipe Used: bent apple,bent pot,lovat

Age When Smoked: ~one year

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	troyniss (38)	2020-10-29		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Presentation: Like most of Greg's broken flakes, Key Largo comes in at the consistency I expected. Nice dark browns and lighter browns and reds. A few streaks of oily black which I assume is the latakia or the cigar leaf. Two layers of broken, lightly packed flakes that easily are rubbed out. Came in at a lovely moisture level and a little on the dry side, but effortlessly was packed. Tin art is nothing to revel about, but it's what inside that counts. Tin date of 09/20.

Palette: Musty and fragrant. Opening the tin the orientals take the cake. A little herbal, somewhat tangy, woodsy and incense like. The cigar leaf is noticeable, and partly because this differs from most blends, it's easy to distinguish where the smell is. I found it easily in the bouquet. The red Va's are there and provide a delicate sweetness. Latakia lurks in the background. Upon light up, the orientals and Va's are the most apparent, while the cigar leaf is playing with Legos. The orientals are quite herbal and a dry wood. On the side of a chardonnay wine. The Va's are prominent. They deliver the sweetness that keeps the blend from being too bitter and provide a good solid base to compliment the orientals. The cigar leaf creeps in from time to time and is more noticeable on the retrohale and in the mouth feel. The retrohale initially starts with a blast of a Turkish coffee or good espresso bean, followed by a chocolate that is having an identity crisis of wanting to be labelled as milk or dark. Either way, it wafts the flavor over and over and is super creamy in the mouth feel as well. It contains some spice, but not like perique or the ever so popular peppercorn. More along the lines of a spiced or mulled wine. It's there but doesn't linger that long. The latakia is IMO, the best supporting player here. It really ties in all the flavors together and has just a bump of campfire smokiness you find in a good English blend, but in no way does it detract from the other components. It's purely there for a condiment. Kind of like how you get a curly fry in your regular fries from time to time. You don't expect it but it's always a welcome surprise. I don't find this blend to be heavy or bold, but it is certainly rich in flavor. I felt perfectly satiated.

Performance: What to say. It lights up super easy and partly because it was a little on the dry side. Requires a few relights throughout the bowl but I had quite a deep bowl. Smokes at the perfect pace and I detected no moisture on the bottom, which is always a testament to my pro smoking skills. /s. No bite whatsoever even when pushed. Didn't smoke hot, but I do recommend a slower cadence to really take in the flavors, but even with a more aggressive approach, it didn't make my experience any worse or less tasty. Nicotine for me was on the dot medium. I even smoked another half bowl after my first and didn't feel at all sick or nauseous. I could easily smoke 2 if I wanted to. Not an all day blend but certainly repeatable.

Conclusion: This is my first cigar blend and I think Pease knocked it out of the park grand slam World Series Game 7 walk off at home stadium. There are a lot of cigar blends out there that I was looking at, but after this, I don't really care. This blend just hit all the right spots for me in a type of blend that is few and far between. I seldom smoke cigars (maybe 5-6 a year) and while I do enjoy them, I don't ever find the time to want to smoke them more than that. Key Largo fills the need and keeps my wallet full. Why pay close to $10 for a stick when I can pay for the tin and have that cigar-like smoke every day for a fraction? I will definitely be adding some 8oz tins to my cellar. As most have said already, the tin description is 100% true.

Pipe Used: Peterson Aran X105

Age When Smoked: 1 Month

Purchased From: SP

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Davedmn (17)	2020-08-16		Medium	None Detected	Full	Tolerable

Jiminks has, as usual ,described in detail what can be tasted . I don't have his gift, sadly. Here is what I experienced.

On opening a tin note rather like a cross between à mild dunhill early morning pipe and a cigar humidor. Lovely! So Latakia, orientals perhaps, cigar, and a touch of something like marlin flake.

It's a sort of shredded flake. I rubbed it out and packed. It took the flame well. Initially it was harsh. But within a couple of puffs it was glorious. Rather like the best of a good cigar crossed with the best of a mild English blend. I cant put it down!

Try it.

Pipe Used: MM cob

Age When Smoked: Unknown. But suspect new

Purchased From: Smoking pipes.com

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	jw62 (8)	2020-03-07		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Strong

This is exquisite for the smoker. room note is cigar. tin note is virgina, latakia and cigar leaf and coffee. The tin description is true to every letter. This stuff is creamy smooth. It produces what it brags about. It is a fine cigar in a pipe for half the price in a single stick. G. L. Pease has a winner in this one!

Pipe Used: briar and cobs

Age When Smoked: 58

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

Similar Blends: nothing.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tucane (31)	2018-11-01		Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Keeping this short... I bought this to try a cigar leaf blend. Quickly I realized it's not my style of tobacco, as I prefer my blends with more flavour (english/semi-aro/etc). Leaf seems to be of high quality though. Smells a bit muddy from the tin.

This does have a good amount of nicotine and a nice creamy mouthfeel with earthy cigarrish kind of notes. Some faint latakia/oriental component there, but not enough for me. Being a natural tobacco blend with the above characters makes it a good morning smoke, mostly for getting in the nicotine in my case.

Recommended for people that like natural flavour with cigar notes or maybe for those crossing over from cigar to pipe, or the other way around.

Recommended.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	raybrown55 (45)	2018-06-03		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

I like virtually all types of pipe tobacco, but I don't like cigars, so I decided to try Key Largo, a blend with so many positive reviews, with the hope that it could help me to love a little more the cigar leaf. Well, Key Largo is surely made of high quality tobaccos (as always with Mr. Pease) masterfully blended, but I can't stand the cigar flavor which, without overwhelming other flavors, nevertheless shows itself very often. So my rate is two stars, somewhat reccomended, meaning that it is recommended if you love cigars, but if you are like me stay away…

UPDATE DECEMBER 2018 Having left the tobacco in his own tin for about six months, I decided to give it another try. Despite the fact that I hadn't jarred it, the tobacco was in perfect state and this time my impressions have been much more positive: the cigar leaf has melded in the overall taste and I can appreciate the creaminess that some reviewers had spoken about. In fact it seems to me that this blend needs some time after the tin is first openened. So I'm upgrading the rating to three stars

Age When Smoked: New (less than 1 year)

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	swb118 (3)	2018-01-26		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

A very nice creamy smoke. The cigar leaf really stands out to me, and the Va's Latakia etc are balanced to let the thickness of the cigar leaf stand out. Easy to pack, and never bit me even though I tend to puff hard with this blend.

Pipe Used: BBB 401 Bulldog

Age When Smoked: 8 year old tin

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	RoundTwo (38)	2017-11-20		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

A well balanced English blend with the addition of cigar leaf. The Latakia, Oriental, and Virginia are blended well enough for a fine English blend and the addition of Cigar leaf may technically disqualify this as a traditional English blend, however, the Cigar leaf adds a new dimension of flavor that any English lover should surely enjoy.

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Iwan Ries

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	twaksak (54)	2014-08-01		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

Opening the tin, the creamy earthy smell is very clear and satisfying, with a hint of lemon flavours. After awhile, the cigar notes also comes to the fore.

On first light, roasted coffee is evident with faint notes of leather. Definitely less Latakia / Oriental like the previous I've reviewed (Gas light, Westminster, Charing Cross), but enough to satisfy my Latakia / Oriental crave. Unlike many other Balkan / English blends, the sweetness in this blend is so subtle, you will be forgiven to think there is none. Just enough to balance the cigar leaf's bitterness.

As you go along minding your business while smoking Key Largo, the roasted cocoa beans comes through just to remind you of the subtle yet excellent balance of this blend. Midway through the blend, the roasted cocoa becomes a bit clearer but the earthy creamy textures as described stays with you - very nice! Another winner for my from Greg Pease!

Pipe Used: Bari wiking

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	fr_tom (393)	2014-03-07		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

I have had two friends send me generous samples of this. I am halfway through the second sample. I have really enjoyed this.

There is a tangy Virginia and some pleasant spicy orientals dancing with smoky latakia that comes and goes. The cigar leaf gives it body and an unusual quality even for a cigar blend. There is a whiff of slightly acidic, sharp black coffee that may be this cigar leaf. It is hard to describe, but it all works. It manages to be a medium-full flavor without being a powerhouse of any one thing. It is complex and not cluttered. The components work together really well.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	McKNooB (35)	2013-06-09		Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Thus far, I have not found the 'development' claimed by the packaging. Throughout the bowl, for me anyway, I can detect the cigar element and it seemed to get in the way of the VA and even the Latakia.

Somewhat creamy, yes. Earthy, yes. Somewhat. It just seems like the selections didn't combine to produce what GL claims. I could be wrong. But I've been through three quarters of the tin and I'm still waiting for it to round out.

Moist out of the tin, does require a good rubbing but rubs out well and is nice to work with. No gurgling and no bite and not too much moisture left over in the bowl at all.

I'll finish the tin but I won't be going back for more.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JustinCarcerated (99)	2013-05-01		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

Second blend in Heirloom I've sampled-Maltese Falcon rated a 4 star based off its subtle complexity (yeah I juxtaposed those two words, proving I ain't skeered) but this tobacco has no such character. I guess if I wanted to smoke a stogie, I'd pull an aged Padron or a Drew Estates No 9. It's my fault really-I didnt ntend to ever buy pipe baccy that tasted of cigar leaf. Too harsh. Quality leaf, broken flake with good English tin note, but the leaf-obviously not wrapper-dwarfs the other components to the point of bullishness. No pleasure derived here.

Mr. Pease has genius-I intend to indulge in many of his blends-Lord willing, but this blend is not for me. Second tin of tobacco i will have chucked this week, which is sad, as I haven't a budding money tree:)

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Fofo (81)	2011-12-19		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Full	Strong

This is the best cigar leaf blend I have smoked to date. While other cigar blends out there aren't bad, they fail to capture the true essence of a cigar, not so with Key Largo. Key Largo offers a mouth full of flavor, the cigar notes are easily detected and intermingles beautifully with the oriental leaf. Latakia is used as a condiment and makes its presence well known on and off; you taste it at various points throughout the bowl but not always.

The pleasantness of the room note moght be a subject of much debate. I like strong tobacco notes and I love the smell of cigar smoke, I say that because the room note is that of a very fragrant cigar, and while pleasant to me it may likely draw criticism from those around you.

My favorite thing about this blend is the bitter taste others have mentioned, it's like drinking a strong cup of black coffee. I don't mean to say this blend tastes like coffee, it does not, it's just a poor analogy because I don't have another one.

One thing I noticed is that the blend needs some dry time. I hardly ever leave tobacco to dry before smoking it, I normally find most tinned tobacco to be at the perfect smoking stage. While this blend is not extremely moist, leaving out to dry for about an hour or so helps the flavors come through a little better and aids the lighning process.

I would recommend this blend to those who like strong tobacco, but you might find it too strong if you are used to the lighter balkans or stoved virginias.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2011-06-21		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Full	Tolerable to Strong

Really enjoyed this tobacco - I'm not a big cigar fan, but this has just enough cigar leaf to give the blend a little bit of "bite" (that's good bite, not bad bite...). There is also a bitter taste, which (as a black coffee drinker) I enjoy. Smoked most of a tin during a vacation at the beach in Florida while it was hot, and it was very pleasant. Purchased two more tins as soon as I returned - one to smoke, and one for the shelf.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	zulujerk (146)	2011-03-19		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Full	Tolerable to Strong

Back when I began smoking a pipe I ordered Robusto, for the curiosity factor. I didn't have much experience with pipe tobacco, or cigars, for that matter. To me, it tasted like a straight English, and I admit to having a hard time understanding why blenders would add Latakia to a cigar mix. It seems that the Latakia would overpower the cigar leaf, which should be the showcase. But most cigar blends have Latakia, and I supposed the blenders had their reasons.

Revisiting the genre, I decided to sample Key Largo largely because it was a flake and thought I might have somehow missed the subtlety in those early years. Popping the tin of Key Largo yields a beautiful line of thick, dark slices, a scent deep with smokey notes, yet strangely sweet. The tobacco has a kind of silky-textured composition--soft, fragile flakes that fall apart as you pull them from the tin.

Since my earlier trial, I've smoked a few bundles of cigars in the mean while, and felt confident that I could place the leaf this time around. And yes, it comes through, loud and harmonious, but in no way competes with the Latakia, instead building on one another to create a different kind of English...perhaps this is the reason blenders have paired the two so frequently.

The addition of cigar leaf in Key Largo is much smoother than my own experimentation, which has always turned out very harsh smokes. Thinking I'd know better, my attempts would always begin by carefully lifting the wrapper from cuttings, and mix it in, sometimes with an English, but often with VaPers or Virginia/Oriental blends in such a way that the cigar leaf would stick out. I could never get the combinations to work, and began to suspect that the Latakia had a way of masking the leaf's harsher qualities, a conviction of which I'm now almost certain (this is why blenders dedicate their entire time to ridding the rest of us of our more ignorant inclinations).

Perhaps owing to the strength of the cigar leaf, Key Largo is rather strong, and smoking a No. 5 bowl will tend to muddle one's senses. Your experience may also play differently depending on one's mood and choices of previous blends smoked. A balanced English immediately before Key Largo may make the blend appear rough, accentuating the cigar leaf. This plays out with other blends as well, as Key Largo can be finicky with some combinations of smokes (try sipping the blend with an espresso--the two compliment one another beautifully).

In short, there is a rare skill in rendering a workable pipe tobacco blend with cigar leaf. It's a matter of finesse and subtlety that are difficult to quantify, as evidenced by the mass of failed attempts. As many have said, pipers shouldn't approach these mixes with the expectation of a cigar replacement, but rather, a reminder or glimpse of their allure. In my estimation, no other blend provides that experience better than Key Largo.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JohnnyMcPiperson (119)	2011-01-28		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This for me is a very interesting smoke, I am still working through a couple ounces of it, and I really enjoy it. I first tried this blend after having smoked through a tin of McClelland's Honeydew from the 221b series, and I found it to be an excellent follow up as for me I detected some similar flavors but with a bit more boldness. As a somewhat frequent cigar smoker, I found that the cigar leaf while definitely represented in this blend did not comprise the main entity nor did the latakia. For me this blend is very evenly balanced and delivers a wonderful interplay of flavors, I get a very peaty, mossy sort of taste out of it, and mostly pick up on the VA and burley that is present, while the Perique, Latakia and Cigar leaves for me take turns making appearances but only in hints and do not dominate the blend. This continues to be an intriguing blend to me and I recommend it over a book especially during the spring or early summer.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	p4p4 (59)	2010-09-07		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Strong

Like every Pease tobacco's, this is a high quality one. But, at the end..... it's unsmokable: raw, crude,inelegant, boorish. And Pease is a sort of illiterate blender. This cook uses quality and tastefull ingredients, but definitly he's inapt to assemble and amalgamate the ingredients. The result is......raw. Sorry Pease, you are discharged. You can smoke a Pease's blend a time a week.....and is very good. You smoke a Pease's blend two time a week.....and is goog. You smoke a Pease's blend a time in a day.....and is unpleasant. you smoke a Pease's blend all the day....and is nauseating. So.....if you are looking for an occasional good tobacco: try it. But if you are looking for a trusty partner....just flee from Pease!!!!

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	CPT/VSG (72)	2009-07-13		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

One reason I don't post a review until I have smoked at least 2 oz. of a tobacco is that first impressions can be misleading. My first impression of KL was that it was wonderful. And so was the next impression and so on through every bowl of the initial tin. Loving every bowl is a rarity for me.

The tin appearance is of dark tobaccos in a broken flake. The tin aroma is of a mild English without the Cyprian Latakia standing out. KL benefits from a little drying out of the tin as do most tinned blends.

It is easy to rub out into a bowl that will burn with amazing consistency and coolness. As it progresses down the bowl, you get a dry, white ash.

The initial impression upon lighting is of an English that is not too dependent upon Latakia, that leans toward the Orientals but...with a difference. The cigar leaf, which I do think is noticable, adds a spicy element that ties the whole together harmoniously. The spice increases down the bowl to a satisfying conclusion for the English lover.

My only criticism is that the room note may not be for all. My wife, who likes the smell of Latakia, turns a mild thumbs down on KL. That being said, I like KL so much, I smoke it in the house anyway.

I don't generally do cartwheels for every Greg Please blend, but this one "got me" from the beginning. I'm loading up on it as it can only get better with aging as the cigar leaf continues to develop.

A strong coffee is a terrific companion for KL--it seems to bring out the spice. (I even got suckered into buying two Key Largo coffee mugs to enhance the experience! That's how much I like it.) In all, highly recommended and congratulations to the Dark Lord on hitting a home run with Key Largo.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-04-24		Medium	Very Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

I love this blend. The tin description is in complete agreement with my taste buds. Key Largo is an excellent blend that never bites and delivers a consistent taste. Since stumbling on is blend several months ago it has become my morning blend, goes great with coffee.

Do not let the Cigar leaf keep you from trying this blend. As others have commented, the cigar leaf does not dominate the tobacco but adds a rich creamy base.

Update 2012-12-25: I still smoke this blend daily. Every morning I pack up my old beat up Brebbia, grab my coffee mug and off to work I go. Great blend that is consistent from tin to tin and never fails to satisfy.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-04-03		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant

A friend of mine from the east coast sent me an ounce of Key Largo and said "have you tried this?" When I first loaded my pipe I had no idea what to expect because I am a true English lover and nothing else is in my tobacco rotation but English. I have always hated cigars and avoid them like the plague/

THIS STUFF IS FANTASTIC!!!!!!!!!!! I can taste a hint of cigar leaf but only so far as to add a totally different feel. This was the alternative to the steady diet of english I was looking for. This will be an addition to the late evening smoke outside in the wild life viewing area this summer/ Creamy is the perfect word for describing this tobacco. PLEASE NOTE - THERE IS NO HINT OF TONGUE BITE IN THIS TOBACCO. I CAN ONLY ASSUME THE GENTLEMAN WHO SAID IT WAS SO BAD EITHER LOADED IT POORLY OR SMOKED IT TOO FAST.

THANKS MR PEASE FOR ANOTHER FANTASTIC SMOKE/

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Archdeacon Grantly (4)	2008-09-20		Medium	Medium to Strong	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

I received a generous sample of this from one of the Smokers Forum members (thanks, Bruce!). I had wanted to try it but GLP blends are not usually among my absolute favorites. I do like Charing Cross and Maltese Falcon very much, however.

Anyway, I didn't have high expectations, so I was very pleasantly surprised with my first bowl. I expected a stronger cigar flavor but that was not what I experienced. Frankly, if the tin didn't say something about cigar leaf I wouldn't have guessed it. It does have something extra and different than a typical English blend and this must be what I am tasting. The flavor was very rich and yet creamy and smooth. It goes very well with a cup of coffee.

If you are like me and like mostly English blends and were hesitant to try it, I would recommend giving it a shot. Definitely one I will now order.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	TheOtter (61)	2023-02-20		Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

If you are looking for a robusto cigar in a pipe bowl, this is the wrong blend for you. The cigar leaf is used sparingly and adds some richness to the outer edges of the smoke. The red Virginias come boldly forward with a spoonful of sweetness, the Orientals bring an exotic touch, with the latakia adding a little smokiness, then the cigar leaf comes last leaving your tastebuds satisfied and ready for the next puff. This is a well-rounded blend with distinct complexity.

4/4 unique, intriguing, and delightful

Age When Smoked: 10 months

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Exiled Michigander (26)	2023-02-18		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Full	Tolerable to Strong

I don't have the palate of the more refined pipers on this site, but I primarily get cigar leaf with just a wisp of latakia. It tastes very much like a cigar to me, and certainly leaves a cigar after taste. I wouldn't want to kiss anyone for at least a couple of days after smoking this! The tobacco is certainly of excellent quality, but as for me if I want the taste of a cigar I'd rather just smoke a cigar.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	LiterarySmoker (143)	2022-02-03		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

I like a good cigar, especially since it was the pathway that lead me to this hobby. I'm always interested to see how cigar leaf can be incorporated into a blend. I have tried the Warped lineup and while there were a few blends that stood out, a few did not. It was my friend, who introduced me to both cigars and pipes, who sent me this blend to try and I have to say it doesn't disappoint.

When I opened my tin for the first time I saw the nice compact, semi-broken flakes that are typical in the GLP lineup such as Quiet Nights. The flakes themselves are a light and dark mottled brown color. Soft to the touch. The smell is very inviting. It's sweet, raisiny, smokey, hay, and a very slight hint of barnyard. More or less it smells like a well rounded English to me. The flakes are a little wet, but not wet enough to make a gurgle in my pipe if smoked undried. They do pack very well, I tend to grab a pinch and stuff until my pipe is full, they don't need much rubbing out in my opinion. It takes a light really well.

Upon lighting I notice the Latakia which is delightfully smokey, woody and creamy but it isn't the main flavour. There is a deep earthiness which I think comes from the Cigar Leaf but its not full bodied as cigars often are. The Orientals are tasteable and add a little backdrop. The Virginia Leaf in this blend is bready and more of a support for everything else. The slower I smoke the more a floral character comes out.

The taste is a medium. Nothing in this is going to bowl you over, but it is a very relaxing, smooth smoke. The nicotine/ strength is also a medium. You won't feel any sort of light headed when smoking this blend. Burns relatively cool, and slowly. An ideal smoke for me in the cooler weather. I give this 4 stars. A repeatable smoke to be sure.

Pipe Used: Peterson Tyrone 106

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: B&M

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	WorkingClassChap (192)	2021-06-27		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Very Strong

Smoking now:

The tin art on this is fantastic. It reminds me of photos of my grandparents in Jamaica in the 50s and 60s. That’s what this blend feels like. Tropical sun and a fine mellow cigar. Smoke out of a vintage pipe for extra vibe. Tin note is a fermented Virginia and cedar spiced creamy cigar leaf. There’s a hint a latakia notes too. As with other cigar leaf blends the broken flake is dry and so soft it just crumbles apart and packs like a dream.

The taste is 50/50 cigar and pipe tobacco. Spicy cedar woody notes with some coco and creamy notes and a creamy body. Reminds me of a Connecticut cigar. Latakia is noticeable in the foreground and provides a nice undertone of smokey herbal flavor. The orientals also give a subtle and nice herbal floral note. The Virginias which besides the cigar leaf is the dominant taste does add some sweetness, spice, and fermented bread taste. Leaves a slight but very mellow cigar like aftertaste. Not like I just smoked a cigar aftertaste it’s much milder than that.

Compared to the GL Pease Robusto this is like smoking a fine mild/medium Connecticut shade vs a heavy Maduro.

I just freaking love this blend. Go to summer time smoke. Be warned this smells like a cigar so careful who you smoke it around. Nic strength seemed medium to strong for pipe tobacco but not too bad if you’re a veteran cigar smoker. No bite or mouth tingle even if pushed hard. Great on a summers morning with coffee, afternoon of grilling, or an evening with a drink. Could be repeated throughout the day but definitely not an all day smoke.

Bought an aged tin at my BnM to try next summer. Favorite cigar blend yet.

Age When Smoked: 1 year

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	pipey duck (49)	2021-05-09		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Unnoticeable

This one is a nice surpris. Often complained by me is the lack of strength in english blends. Not here. It is round in all aspects. Flavour wise the virginias meld perfectly with the cigar leaf and sitting first row. At least while the first third of the bowl. There are notes of fruits and blossom which I have not encountered yet. The orients and the latakia are noticeable but in a supporting way. They are very incense like,woody and not smoky. There is no sharpness as often found in heavy latakia blends. To me it is a delicious virginia blend with a very zesty twist. You do not have to be a cigar fan to like it.

Pipe Used: Parker 109

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: smoking pipes

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	LannarkGent (145)	2019-04-02		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

I spent a great deal of time trying to discern the specific cigar leaf used in the blend. While I suspect jalopa, I cannot be sure. The only reason I would spend that much time trying to discern this, is that I have found the marriage of the tobacco's ( Virginia, orientals,Cigar leaf, Cyprian latakia, etc) to be intriguing and delightful. I modified my cadence somewhat to pull out all of the flavors. This is an exquisite blend that is best smoked slowly to release all of the complexity and sophistication present. My tin is 6 months old. Given the quality of the virgina base and the added continental tobacco's, I would anticipate that this blend will age very well I have no delights with this blend and I routinely go down to nothing but ash. A very fine blend, I look forward with a marked anticipation to the impact of age on it. This is a highly recommended blend which I joyously give it four stars.

Pipe Used: Cayuga Billiard

Age When Smoked: 6 months

Purchased From: Indian River Tobacco Traders Grand Rapids MI

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	orka (66)	2018-03-06		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Sweet, earthy and deceptively mild tin note. As the weeks gone by it went from good, but ultimately unremarkable, to absolutely intoxicatingly good. Packing the pipe with it is a breeze, I usually just grab some of the broken flakes, fold and twirl between my fingers a few times and gently press it down into the pipe and I'm off for a few good hours on blissful clouds of smoke.

Char has a little nip, but nothing unmanageable and it quickly turns into a velvety smooth and full flavoured smoke. The latakias are very nicely balanced throughout and intermingles well with the VA's and the dash of orientals that spring forth every so often throughout the smoke.

Relights past mid bowl do sometimes have a slight tendency towards harshness, but nothing too detracting from the experience. Mid bowl is also where Key Largo really starts to shine and reveals a very nice and creamy mouthfeel.

The finish is sweet and mild, but not very long lasting. Something I don't mind. The smoke ends about how it started and I'm usually satisfied. It's however not particularly strong in nicotine and palatable enough to fill up another pipe with it and start all over again, or move on to something else. Room note is far less offensive than I first thought it would be. Quite the opposite, in fact, I like it quite a lot. Non smokers may of course not agree, but maybe they can learn to tolerate it since it at least doesn't have that unpleasant stale cigar butt smell.

Now, I've never been more than a very occasional cigar smoker, so I don't feel like I'm able to put my finger on where exactly the cigar leaf is and exactly what it does to this blend. But no matter, I'm sure it's there for a reason, and that's good enough for me.

I should perhaps also mention that I liked this one best after a bit of humidification, I found it a tad too dry as it was from the get go. Other than that, this is a great blend that I hope I am able to keep at hand for the foreseeable future.

Highly recommended.

Pipe Used: Peterson 999 (RoC)

Age When Smoked: About 1 year (tin date 1-19-17)

Purchased From: Cigarrummet

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	OkieSmokie (20)	2018-03-06		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I switched from primarily being a cigar smoker back to the pipe back in Summer 2016. When I came across this blend it intrigued me enough to give it a try. One of my go to stogies was the Drew Estate Tabak Especial which was a Kahlua infused cigar. This blend is reminiscent of those. NOTE: It is not the same thing so please don't buy it expecting to get a Tabak in a pipe bowl. But there are hints of coffee, cream and cigar leaf that the similarities are there. The cigar leaf is present and noticeable but doesn't overpower the rest of the flavors. The virginia brings a sweetness that plays well off the Oriental/Turkish blend and the Latakia adds just enough oomph that you know it's there. The smoke is smooth on the tongue with very little bit and there were very few relights. The cocoa, coffee, leather accents make it a great partner with a morning cup of coffee.

Pipe Used: Basket Billiard

Age When Smoked: 15 months

Purchased From: P&C

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	cargohold (14)	2016-06-14		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Full	Tolerable

I don't know how many of you have had the pleasure of trying the old Balkan Sobranie Virginian number 10 from the 1970's but Key Largo is about as close to that old beauty as I have come across. The old Havana leaf in the Balkan Sobranie seemed to be fuller and deeper and the Latakia not as pronounced but that may be the result of faulty memory on my part or simply because the old Havana was pretty special stuff. Anyway if you want to gain a whiff and taste of the golden age of English mixtures with a bit of cigar leaf from the 1970's this is pretty close. It is also excellent in its own right.

Pipe Used: Northern Briar bent bulldog

Age When Smoked: 6 months

Purchased From: cargo hold

Similar Blends: Balkan Sobranie Virginian number 10.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Mr.Woods (10)	2015-08-20		Medium	None Detected	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

I tried a bowl of this blend at my local tobacco-bar, and was blown away by the dark, sweetish chocolate/coffee nuttyness, accompanied by just the right amount of latakia and a hint of cigar flavor in the background.

An amazing blend! A shame that they where out of it... I will get some and post a better review as soon as they get the next shipment!

Pipe Used: Henrik Rydberg

Age When Smoked: Unknown

Purchased From: Mellgren's Fine Tobacco

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Wibblefishofdoom (139)	2013-12-13		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

i wasn't too sure whether to buy this as I was conflicted as to whether or not it was a ribbon or a broken flake. The site I bought it from said the former while here it is listed as the latter. I took the plunge anyway, hoping the listing here would be right. Thankfully, my faith was well rewarded.

Upon opening the drum, I was treated to a waft of something deep rich and of the earth. The tobacco itself reminded me of Sextant, those lightly pressed broken flakes look so delicate yet inviting, yet more light brown as opposed to Sextant's darker, almost black as they stared out at me. The flakes were dry and easy to rub out and pack, lighting was equally non-eventful, proving Mr Pease's moisture levels are right once again. The smoke itself is stunning, it really is something earthy and balanced, nicely changing. I'm not sure I can pick up the flavours described as such, though it's in that kind of league, dark, rich and sensuous. It is also an incredibly smooth smoke, no roughness or tonguebite.

I thoroughly enjoyed this blend even though I couldn't pin down the flavour. Perhaps it's physical likeness to Sextant might have helped, in fact it wouldn't surprise me if this is used as a base for it, or at least closely related in it's manufacture. This is almost the kind of tobacco I would expect to be handed around one of those dinner tables where folk pass round port and cigars after a good heavy dining session. I don't move in those circles which is probably just as well as I doubt like the company. That doesn't matter though, I'm a lot happier sitting here with this stuffed in my pipe.

Pipe Used: Straight Falcon with Algiers Bowl

Age When Smoked: 6 months

Purchased From: Gauntley's of Nottingham

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	BigSwede (89)	2013-06-05		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

Upgrading to 4 stars. A nice subtle blend. Got a tin of this after establishing Havana Daydream as my everyday smoke. It comes a little on the moist side as is usual and needs a tiny bit of drying. I've loaded up by simply stuffing in the tobacco or by carefully rubbing it out: a good rubbing seems to enhance the flavor and burn rate. Doesn't need a lot of relighting. From my own experience and in reviewing other smokers comments, "cigar blends" will virtually never taste like cigar: if thats what your expecting you'll be disappointed. I'm a regular cigar man and frankly don't necessarily want my pipe tabak to taste like that anyway, but the added leaf gives this blend a hint of something more mysterious. It plays in the backround with orientals and latakia, while the red VA carries the lead. It does however, as the label says, seem to develop as it burns and the finish shows more of the backround leaf toward the end. Overall a nice medium strength blend with some oomph. I plan on keeping a tin around for a once or twice a week smoke. Recommended for those who want to try something with some character that doesn't seem to have anything other than tobacco taste: no hint of artificial flavoring here!

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	puddlepirate (11)	2013-03-09		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant

Tried many of the so-called cigar blends. None of them really taste like a cigar to me. You have to enjoy them for what they are. I ordered a tin of this and his Robusto blend some months ago. I wanted to smoke half the tins before review. I had first tried it in my briar pipes, and didnt think it very special. I later tried them in my cob pipes and liked it better. I thought robusto was good, but i like key largo more. I would give it another star if it were availible in bulk.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	serif365 (21)	2012-09-13		Medium	Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

I have had several bowls of Key Largo over the last month and I really enjoy this smoke. The flavor is moderate on the Latakia and cigar leaf side and there is a hint of mocha throughout the bowl. The nicotine has a moderate kick and I particularly like to partake of this blend in a small meerschaum pipe. I've smoked a large bowl once and during the hour it took to contemplate my rear deck world the leaf almost overtook me. This is a great mixture and I highly recommend it.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	derlict311 (71)	2012-09-02		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

Smoking Key Largo puts me in a deep, contemplative mood, mainly trying to figure out how the mad scientist developed such a blend. Creamy? What makes it so creamy? How did he do this? And so on. I was mesmerized. I'll even compare KL to smoking a Romeo and Julieta cigar. I was in a state of bliss smoking it in the hot sun this Labor Day weekend and I even broke my own rule of reloading the same bowl over and over. Key Largo is near the top of the pile of cigar blends that I've tried (Storm Front being the best of blends with cigar leaf, although a different monster entirely).

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2011-08-14		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Just like Bogey & Bacall.

The flavors are married so well that I had a bit of trouble pulling them apart. Which is not to say I thought this blend was monochromatic, just well put together. Sometimes the virginia base was more noticeable, but mostly the latakia / oriental / cigar leaf combo was in charge. Beefy, creamy, salty, very slightly sweet. I rub the slices out fully and usually let the resultant pile dry for about an hour beforehand. Nicotine definitely develops down the bowl, especially in a medium-to-smaller bowl. The cigar leaf shows up more in the finish, which is a nice touch but I wish it were more prominent in the profile.

A good blend that I have enjoyed and will continue to. Three plus stars.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-05-07		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

I'm primarily a cigar smoker and my experiences with tobacco containing cigar leaf have always left me wondering why someone would smoke a cigar leaf blend instead of a cigar itself. Then I smoked some key largo. Wow! This blend isn't pretending to be a cigar, it's just adding another dimension to some great pipe tobaccos. Whether it is the pipe or cigars, I always like to find a somewhat sharp and pungent taste/aroma that makes me think of the sharpness in cheddar cheese. This tobacco has something like that, but it's deeper--like a blue cheese. The more I smoke it, the more I want it!

For no particular reason, I resisted Pease blends for a long time. That was dumb! This is a masterpiece that will give you a nice change of pace from your standard English or Balkan blends.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-03-15		Medium to Strong	Extremely Mild	Medium	Tolerable

This G.L. Pease blend was a surprise for me. The addition of cigar leaf added a bit of class to this blend and for my personal taste, the bitterness was not present. A smooth creamy smoke that was one of the coolest I have smoked in a while. A must try for those who are contemplating.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	MDP (39)	2010-02-26		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

I guess in some sense, all tobacco blends are achievements to the extent the contents were not collected from the barn floor. Usually, the connotation of 'achievement' is something worthwhile, something to be appreciated, admired or respected. Key Largo is an achievement in the latter sense.

I've smoked the short strokes of stogies in pipes before. The result typically tastes like smoking Milton Berle's dentures combined with George Burn's nail clippings. Perfect human repellant.

I have enjoyed McClelland's Dominican Glory Maduro for years- a superior product, as genteel as Julie Andrews in a novice habit. But what expectations for a cigar blend with Latakia and Turkish leaf? Blessed are those without expectations for they shall not be disappointed.

Key Largo is what it is advertised and certainly not disappointing. It's effects on me are like being greeted at the door with a pipe, slippers and robe, giving all the comforts of an English blend with just a little something earthy and manly.

The cigar leaf is effectual and yet transparent. The Latakia is soooo soft it will convince skeptics that Latakia really does belong in a pipe and not on a barn floor. Virginias and the remaining orientals are barefoot contessas: regal, supportive and mild. This did well in small and large pipes, less v. more moist, and kept tamped after being lit.

Time to open my tins of Robusto, 123, Bankers and order samples of P&W Churchill and Peretti's Cuban Mixture, maybe even Havana Daydream, Billy Budd and Strike Force. I'm onto a vein and reenforced again with reasons why I like this hobby.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-01-14		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Another win in my book for the Pease blends. It is just as the tin describes. This one is not nearly as bold as other GLP blends I've tried, with not nearly as many things going on in each puff. My favorite part about this blend is its secret weapon: the cigar leaf. Its flavor has an ebb and flow to it that really gets me hooked. All said, Key Largo is very sophisticated without being as loud as some of the other great blends from this company. Less is more here with the spotlight tracking the cigar leaf as best it can. Great at night to keep your mind off the cold, and great in the morning to supplement your caffeine intake with a helping of nicotine.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-10-22		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I departed from my "game plan" to smoke my way through all of Greg's blends in the order they were presented on his web site. I have been reading a lot about flake and broken flake blends and decided to give this one a try next. It is going to have a place in my rotation of tobaccos and may even become one of my regulars.

For the first bowl I smoked, I took a couple of flakes and folded them in half horizontally. Then I sort of rolled the result into a tube more or less the diameter of my pipe bowl. This worked but will take a lot more practice until I get used to it. I was concentrating so much on the mechanics of keeping it lit that I couldn't concentrate on the experience itself. For the next several bowls, I rubbed out a bunch on a sheet of paper and have been smoking it this way. This was much more satisfactory for me.

What can I say that hasn't already been said? This is definitely not an English blend, but it has all the charm of one. There is just enough Latakia in the blend to establish the mood, but the orientals and the cigar leaf give it the individual character that makes it stand out from the crowd. As my technique with flakes improves, I look for this blend to be a special treat but probably not my regular blend.

It is a lovely smoke.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JLong (36)	2009-08-24		Strong	Very Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Another excellent tobacco from Mr Pease. A perfect blend to start the morning off right with a cup of joe. I went through a tin before posting to let my palette adjust. This blend is creamy, spicy, and sweet. The nicotene blast is strong at first. But, after a few bowls, I became imune to it.

I load this straight out of the tin in a jumbo bowl Savinelli Baronet I have dedicated to this and Robusto. The large flakes in these tobaccos burn nice and even in this bowl for a nice long session of "sipping".

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Sinister Topiary (84)	2009-08-11		Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Tolerable to Strong

It's a quality leaf, but too young. The cigar leaf is distinctly noticeable and lends an intriguing spice to the flavor, but it doesn't dominate, which is good. You can taste all the nuances, it's tangy, smooth but not quite creamy, and feels good going out my nostrils; but though the elements that comprise the flavor are very nice, the whole is not greater than the parts. (Plus it's one of those blends that dries out my throat.)

There are definitely things I like about this blend. It's a nice english blend with cigar leaf added, perfect for the right palate, I suppose, but though it's nice it's not great. Only two stars for now -- I expect some aging will help make this really come alive.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-01-26		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Key Largo is a smooth and satisfying smoke. It does develop quite well and the ingredients are mixed very well. The cigar leaf seems to take the back seat to the smoke but I can tell it's there. The cigar and orientals go very well together while the latakia and virginia add a nice balance. The little added flavor from the cigar leaf is a welcome change to most of my smokes and is very nice.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2008-09-10		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I don't normally like cigar leaf in my pipe tobacco. I don't normally like anything in my pipe tobacco with the exception of pipe tobacco.

I like this.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2008-07-23		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

I hate giving tobaccos 1 star just on GP. That being said, I'll give this one 2 stars. Another over priced BUST from Pease- AGAIN! There is nothing special or intriguing about this blend at all. A medium English with some cigar leaf added. Actually reminds me of McClelland's Dominican Glory Maduro with some Latakia thrown in. It isn't bad, it just isn't great. The original Bankers Mixture or 123 are great cigar blends. I actually love Abingdon and Mephisto, but this just did not make the grade. 2 stars for effort.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	WoodcraftSmoker (21)	2023-02-25		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

I received a sample of this from a friend. Definitely a strong smokey flavor throughout from the Latakia. A lat bomb? No. Strong English? More like. The cigar wrapping adds the smoothness and cocoa qualities, which support the smokiness. I don’t get much from the orientals, but the red virginias do add some soft sweetness. Overall, a strong but easy going enjoyable smoke full of tobacco flavor, perhaps too full for some.

Pipe Used: Peterson Sherlock Holmes

Age When Smoked: Unknown-probably older

Purchased From: Unknown

Similar Blends: Wilke Sailor Jack.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	1979 (62)	2017-07-26		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Full	Tolerable to Strong

G. L. Pease - Key Largo.

Here is a rare example of a blend that I find to be almost on the verge of overwhelming.   To the palate and nose I mean.  To be fair I think I have one of them "personal chemistry" deals going on with this blend... the kind ya read about occasionally, this is the only blend I've experienced it with.

I find it to be full flavored indeed.  Latakia stands tall within the flavor profile (but not lat bomb) and it seems like a rather full flavored virginia as well.  The flavors are powerful, dark.  But I find these flavors... muddled I guess is the word.  The crispest flavor I pull outta there is this occasional, briny sort of note. This so called briny note doesn't seem to translate to the room note (that I can tell), but somehow I can smell this odd, salty briny scent lingering about my shoulders long after the bowl is gone.  Hmmm.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	ElMog (36)	2017-05-29		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Full	Tolerable to Strong

My first cigar leaf-based pipe tobacco, and my 1st from GL Pease. A very well behaved rubbed flake that comes at the right moisture. At first, the tin note is very cigar-ish, but with time it subdues. At first light, it is a bold, creamy, slightly spicy, but mostly robust smoke, with a noticeable presence from the cigar leaf. As you progress further down the bowl, it gains subtlety and complexity, the sweetness from the virginias adds a very interesting dimension, so does the latakia. What i like most about this blend is that it may at first seem quite brash and bitter, a heavy hitter, but then it reveals many other layers of taste, which make it complex, complete and very, very satisfying. Its a welcome surprise, since I've come to expect most baccys to start with clear, high notes and then fade into muted undertones, this one seems to do the opposite. If puffed hard, the cocoa/bitter notes come to the fore, if sipped, you are rewarded with delicate fruits and spice. In windy conditions, or if puffed too hard, it will become acrid and tasteless, but will never bite. The room note, though maybe less offensive than most cigars, still probably won't please non-smokers. Considering the quality of this blend, i'm now eager to try other offerings from Pease, espcially in the english/balkan genre for which he is most reputed.

Pipe Used: Peterson Kinsale and Cobs

Purchased From: 4noggins

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Ensor (1)	2015-08-23		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Key Largo is a great blend to smoke during the end of summer when the weather gets colder and you are transitioning from lighter summer blends into latakia blends in the winter. Pease's tin description is spot on in the sense that it is earthy and creamy with hints of cocoa and deep-roasted coffee. No debate there. The cigar flavor pokes it's head out randomly throughout the smoke. It does slightly burn the back of my throat, reminiscent of my experiences with Robusto and C & D's Habana Daydream. The latter, much more so, which I assume is the perique and cavendish. (And I love perique.) Though I enjoy both Robusto and Habana Daydream, I find Key Largo much smoother, this tin in particular, probably because of the age of the tin. I usually break it up a little before packing, but I might try stuffing the broken flake in the pipe to see how that goes. I usually prefer it in a medium to large sized bowl (rather than a small bowl) in order to let the flavor develop as it is smoked. Key Largo is very enjoyable with coffee in the morning or a brown ale later in the evening.

Pipe Used: Neerup bent brandy

Age When Smoked: 3 years of age

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

Similar Blends: Robusto, Banker's, Stogie, Habana Daydream..

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Darth Vader (110)	2011-10-18		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

A beautiful full bodied smoke. The cigar taste goes away quite quickly and all the elements come together in unison to provide a lovely bold flavour. Will buy more.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Capt (339)	2011-08-14		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

If you're gonna sample a cigar blend, this should probably be the one. Or, Purple Cow from C&D. Standard GLP English blend with what I believe is Connecticut shade? Cigar blend done right, but It's not anything over the top of what Greg has already done.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	cakeanddottle (105)	2011-07-10		Medium	None Detected	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

A very nice lat flake showcasing the added cigar leaf. Smokes cool and creamy and is very easy to get along with. Maybe a bit flat, but a nice change of pace smoke.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipe4ever (204)	2011-05-18		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

This is an English blend with cigar leaf added on in broken flake cut, the tin description provided by the blender is accurate, the aroma from the tin is marvelous, while smoking, the taste is bitter, rich and very dark, the cigar flavor is detected mainly in the tin aroma and in the after taste realm.

Try this blend If you enjoy a hint of cigar flavor in the background of your English blend, however, to get a true Maduro cigar taste in your pipe I would recommend you to try S.G 1792 flake.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-04-17		Medium to Strong	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable

I may upgrade to four stars, but for now, it's three. I found the start of the bowl to have a wonderful creaminess, with toasty flavors, in some ways similar to BBF but with more flavor and way way more creamy. Mid bowl the latakia started to take over and there was just a lot of flavor, heavy bodied smoke, still creamy, a bit of spice too. Frankly, I never got to the end of the bowl, the nicotine crept up on me, and I had to put it out. I'm a bit sensitive that way, and had smoked a bowl of Maltese Falcon right before, so it could have been either of those... but I also have a suspicion that the cigar leaf is amping up the nicotine. From my end, as someone who has smoked cigars for 15+ years, this blend has some of the attributes of a great cigar, but also many attributes of a great pipe blend. Nice cut too. A real masterwork. I must smoke more, and will.

UPDATE I tried letting it dry more, rubbing it out quite a bit, and smoking it earlier in the day. The result was a better burn with less perceived strength, but also less flavor. Still a three star smoke.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-04-07		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

I must admit to being a bit disappointed with Key Largo when I first opened the tin and smoked a couple bowls. It was hard to keep burning, and seemed almost flavorless for most of the bowl.

Now, I absolutely LOVE Robusto (another cigar blend by Pease) so I was expecting something similar to that blend, I suppose. What I learned was, this tobacco benefits greatly from some air time before lighting up. After airing out a portion of the tobacco for about an hour, the level of flavor was markedly increased and the tobacco stayed lit very well. The difference from moist to dry is "key" when smoking Key Largo!

The tobacco burns slowly and won't bite even the most aggressive puffer! The first half of the bowl is creamy and tasty, but not a mind-blowing experience. The second half of the bowl is where the real fun begins. Suddenly the smoke becomes deeply rich and earthy with just a tickle of sweetness. A lot like the midway point of a dark cigar, though NOT exactly like a cigar. My only complaint is that the flavor can be somewhat one-dimensional (like a cigar), which leaves me searching for just a little more complexity. Key Largo has body and some strength which will leave you satisfied.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-04-02		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Tolerable

Hello,

I have been smoking this for a while now and at first I didn't know what to think. I have been looking for a blend that tastes like a cigar. This I have not found yet, but over time this has turned out to be a good tobacco. Well blended, many flavors, and stays lit easily. I highly recommend smoking this slow and in a pipe with a big bowl. That was my initial mistake. Once I shifted up it made all the difference. It doens't taste like a cigar, but the aftertaste does. Room note is ok.

I would say give it a try. I will review it again in a couple of months to see if anything changes.

Enjoy! Z

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Fumatore (49)	2010-03-04		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

The more I smoke this tobacco the better I like it. The first part of the bowl seems a little bitter but once it settles down it is a rich, satisfying smoke. A medium English tobacco that has a great cigar cigar quality, which are among my favorite blends. This one has a creamy flavor and doesn't bite even when puffed hard, although pacing yields the best flavor. Try it for yourself because you may find a very nice after dinner smoke, as I do.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2010-02-22		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Tolerable

This one is easy. Key Largo lives up to its tin description in spades for me. I'm sure it will get even better with age.

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Big Nick (74)	2010-01-29		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is another one of those easy reviews. Read the tin description, it's spot on! This blend tastes great, it's rich and creamy, beautifully balanced with richly textured flavors, dark rich earthy flavors with a long lingering finish.

And that's why I will never buy another tin. That damn long lingering finish is impervious to food, brushing, mouthwash and time, just forget about it, it will be with you at least until the next day.

SOAP BOX TIME, Even though I will never buy another tin, I gave it a strong three+ stars, why, because it tastes good and it delivers! It delivers what the tin says it delivers, including that long finish that I didn't like. I point this out because I see many aromatics get one or two stars because the reviewer will buy a blend that claims to be aromatic, or mild & sweet, states it on the tin, and then, that same reviewer will give it one star and claim " I smoke Latakia blends, I don't like aromatics" or "This blend is mild and sweet, it's for little girls"

Well, we now know it's not for RETARDS !!! Why did you buy it !

I'm Sorry. All I'm trying to say(IMHO)is, judge an aromatic as an aromatic, judge a Balkan blend as a Balkan blend, an English as an English.

It's the Right thing to do!

P.S. Oh ya, I forgot the best one of all, no no really, someone wrote this, "I really liked this blend, it tasted great. But I could never give an aromatic more than two or three stars". What in the hell does that mean? Who are these people? There are all types of quality blends out there, and there are bad blends in every genre from english to aromatic. Judge them for what they are.

OK, I'm done. I'm sorry.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-12-02		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

I enjoy VA, VAPer. and English blends as well as cigars from the likes of Rocky Patel, Arturo Fuente, and Don Tomas. I was very excited about smoking this blend as the tobacco combination with cigar leaf sounded like a very rich smoking experience. I smoked this tobacco in a Lorenzo medium bent pipe and the tobacco was at an OK moisture level out of the tin. The tin aroma was very earthy, slightly fermented virginia with just a hint of latakia. This carried on exactly the same throughout the smoke with the occasional hint of cigar leaf if I exhaled the smoke through my nostrils(is that wrong to do?) The latakia comes out as more sweet than spicy and, along with the cigar leaf, is very subdued as the virginias and orientals dominate the blend with a pleasing spicy, earthy sweet interplay. Definitely has the complexity and noticeable nicotine content that is key for my enjoyment of most blends. The only complaint I have that causes me to reserve the fourth star is that no matter what time of day or what pipe I choose, this blend has an annoying licorice-like aftertaste about 2/3rds into the bowl. Wonder if anyone else noticed this or if its just my personal taste. Will try more Pease blends as this has been my first and I was very impressed with the quality of tobaccos used.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	The Persian Slipper (30)	2009-11-20		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

First review! G.L. Pease is generally a good English blend supplier. Key Largo (recomended to my by my tobaccanist) was an experiment that I enjoyed. When I had first tried this, I had not switched to English blends completely yet. The strength is pretty controled and the taste is wonderful. I would recomend, however, that you sip on this blend. The taste kicks too much when it is pushed. All in all, this blend would be recomended to any English blend lover to be put in a rotation. I would not recomend this as an all day tobacco, but that really depends on your own taste.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-08-16		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable

Predominantly dark thinly sliced and broken strips of pressed tobacco. The tin nose is rounded and earthy with the tale-tell aroma of Orientals and an underlying syrupy-nutty sweetness. Tinned rather moist, the thin slices are easily rubbed to taste and take well to a variety of pipes.

In the bowl, Key Largo burns like a dream, producing voluminous clouds of billowy smoke which are fresh and inviting. A friendly blend, it possesses nothing in the way of the rough edges one might expect given its component parts. In fact, everything falls into line so well here that, for this reviewer at least, it takes some effort to identify where the Virginias stop and the Oriental begins, where the cigar leaf sits as opposed to the Latakia, and so forth and so on. While the tin label touts its complexity, to this reviewer Key Largo is not an overly contemplative blend but rather simply a nice no fuss smoking tobacco that does its job dependably in a myriad of different situations.

Possessing a satisfying richness, the mouthfeel is creamy. Flavor notes fall in the middle range: coffee and cocoa, whole wheat toast and dark chocolate. A stout blend, it takes well to a variety of pipes and is absolutely bite free. The long finish is smoky and a bit nutty, with just a touch of sourness and spice, presumably from the Izmir leaf or cigar leaf, or both. Key Largo is a natural for summer weekends: gently packed into a favorite briar while lounging on the porch after mowing the lawn, or stuffed into an oversized cob clenched tight while tending to the barbeque pit in the back yard. As versatile as it is dependable, it gets the job done, plain and simple. I like this blend precisely because I do not have to think about it too much, remaining quite content to let it happily smolder away while concentrating on the task at hand.

Being a relatively new creation the tin on which the review is based is, obviously, something of a youngster (tinned in Nov. 2008, and opened in May 2009), and one wonders what might happen to it with age? We will see, for a small cache will certainly be making its way into this reviewer's cellar.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Xeneize (275)	2009-07-01		Medium to Strong	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Very nicely accomplished mixture. Similar blends are usually dominated by the cigar leaf strong presence, but this ones achieves a rarely found balance with Virginias and Orientals, with Latakia staying in the background, although being always noticeable.

I give it 3.5 stars, only because most of the times I end up with a rather bland 1/3 of the bowl.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-06-09		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

This is one of two Pease blends in particular that will age extremely well - the other being Union Square. There is no doubt that cellaring this for at about 5 years will bring it very close to being sublime.

To me, the cigar leaf is very noticable - and that is a good thing. Its presence adds a completely new dimension to Pease tobaccos. Apparently this is Mr. Pease's only foray into cigar leaf blends, and I must say, the result is quite interesting.

Key Largo smokes easily, stays fairly dry in the bowl, and requires only slight attention. There is simply nothing to offend. I do feel however that this blend is rather light and "whispy" which is not a negative at all. In fact, its light mouth feel and subtlety would make this a great after breakfast smoke. The smell in the tin is like heaven, and the broken flake is just fabulous. My goodness, you almost want to eat it with your grits and dunk it in your coffee ( yeah, I'm Southern ).

The latakia content is much too light, and I only wish Mr. Pease had added more of it. On the other hand, if the latakia were "ramped up" it would probably overpower the cocoa notes of the cigar leaf; which in retrospect is the star attraction as far as condiments go.

You may want to consider dedicating a pipe to this blend in order to realize the nuances of Key Largo. I would also suggest trying it first in a tester pipe or a corn cob, as I feel it may leave a slight ghost in your everday pipes.

If you are searching for a light blend, or a morning smoke that would replace Dunhill's Early Morning Pipe, then I would recommend this blend without reservation. A solid 3 stars.

Note

Early Morning Pipe and Key Largo have little in common and DO NOT have the same flavor profile. I only compare the two as a means of finding an "after breakfast" style smoke.

I hope that you have enjoyed my review.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-05-13		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Full	Pleasant

Ok... I'm sure you've all been wondering whether the heartburn issue was resolved by aging. I'm pleased to announce that it has; yesterday (23 January 2011) I opened a tin that was sealed 18 July 2008. I am currently smoking my second bowl of Key Largo from this tin; I am enjoying it thoroughly and have experienced absolutely no heartburn whatsoever... I have no doubt that most of you are happy, if not downright ecstatic, to learn this. If you're not, I at least I'm ecstatic that I had enough foresight to cellar a second tin of Key Largo, also dated 18 July 2008. And so the tin I am currently smoking had two years, six months and five days "age" on it when I opened it yesterday. If it is this good with two and a half years aging, I wonder how good it will be with five to seven years... probably phenomenal. Mr. Pease remains my favorite blender; every blend of his that I've smoked has been just about exactly as he describes.

//Original Review 05/13/2009// Well, I loved this tobacco... unfortunately it did not reciprocate. I thoroughly enjoyed the rich Red Virginia, the hint of latakia and the occasional subtle taste of cigar wrapper leaf. However, each time I smoked it I developed horrendous heartburn. Some blends do this to me and I've never been able to pin down that specific element that brings the heartburn on. I can and occasionally do enjoy cigars on their own; my favorite pipe blends are the heavier English / Balkan mixtures (I can smoke C & D's Pirate Kake all day) and I very much enjoy the various manifestations of Virginia/Perique as well as straight Virginias such as Sam Gawith's FVF or BBF. None of my favorite blends give me heartburn and I was very much looking forward to establishing a deep and abiding relationship with Key Largo. Indeed, my first bowl started out fantastic - I thought "Oh man, this is gonna be great!" After about five minutes the heartburn started... however I stubbornly finished the bowl (after chewing down several Tums). Next day the same story and the day after that, etc. and each time it seemed as if the heartburn began quicker and became more painful. So I gave the rest of the tin to a friend who is not experiencing any problems at all... he loves it, as well he should, for it is an excellent blend. I have three tins of Key Largo that I've cellared; Lord willing I'll open a tin once it's got a year on it and see if a bit of age has destroyed or at least diminished the heartburn element.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-04-01		Medium to Strong	Medium to Strong	Medium to Full	Strong

This blend is only for those that like cigars. It has the base foundation in a typical English Blend but with the addition of cigar leaf. I really didn't care for this blend as it had a very nasty aftertaste and mouth feel. Give me wicked tongue bite something terrible. The only reason I am keeping it, is that it was a gift, also...there are those times when I crave a cigar. I bet it would improve with some cellaring.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-03-27		Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

It's good - I just prefer PipeWorks & Wilke's Churchill

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-03-02		Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Great change of pace for the English blend smoker. The Virginias and the Latakia blend well together and then to keep it interesting... the cigar leaf kicks in and a new dimension comes through. Well worth a try and definitely part of my rotation.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2009-03-01		Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

What is there left to say after Yak and Beer's great reviews.

Bravo Mr. Pease, bravo!

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	jankoez (69)	2008-08-24		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

It is surprisingly dry tobacco, so it tastes so ? probably because of cigar leaf. Key Largo has intentions to be serious blend, without any surprises in flavouring, so it is good for evening pipe after fine dinner.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30125)	2008-08-02		Medium to Strong	Medium to Strong	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

I am not normally a Latakia smoker but I thought I would try peases blend because i enjoy what they do with virginas! The tobacco stays lit with no bite. I am normally a aromatic smoker or i smoke Virginias and wanted to give a english type smoke a try! I didn't like the flavor much when I lit it because it was smokey(tasted like firewood) So I added some Rumcake from pipeworks in it to add a rum sweet flavor and now this tobacco is great! So if you are a aromatic smoker add some of your favorite aromatics to it and smoke it you might like it! The smokey flavor is good now!

*as i continue smoking this blend I see I like it alot! The spiciness kicks in and the sweetness of the Virgina! I did not mix the blend with the Rumcake I only put it on top! My wife said it smelled like smores. After the rumcake burnt off i got the blend pure again and found that it only has a touch of Latakia, not bad at all!

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