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SPC Plum Pudding Special Reserve

H. Vachon

King of the Hobo Hut
Joined
Aug 30, 2019
Messages
4,134
First and foremost, a massive shout out to Frank (@streetrod) for kindly sending me a tin of this PPSR to sample and review. The community and generosity in this place continues to amaze me day after day!

This review is definitely not exclusive to, but slightly geared towards people who have already smoked SPC Plum Pudding. If you haven’t tried it, you should really pick some up and give it a try! You won’t be sorry.

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The tin note: When compared side by side to the regular production Plum Pudding, I find that where the regular PP has a smokey barbecue type aroma, the special reserve has a much more prominent dried fruit aroma (mostly fig and raisins). Of course there is still plenty of Latakia, but it doesn’t overtake the blend like it does the regular production.

I’m not very experienced with plug type tobacco but I’ve used the same method as I do with a flake. I don’t like to rub it out completely. Leaving the tobacco in small chunks gives me a longer and more even burn.

The plug is fairly moist. I typically cut only enough for a bowl and let it sit out for at least two hours, more if possible. Today I set this out for three hours and it still left quite a bit of moisture in the bowl. It can be a little tough to get it going but once’s it’s lit, I typically only have to relight once or twice at the most.

I had about five bowls of this before the review. It’s an excellent blend and I ordered another tin less than half way through my first bowl.

Today I decided to go with my trusty Peterson. This bowl smoked for around an hour and a quarter.

This is obviously still a lat forward blend, but the big difference I noticed right away is the special reserve has a much more pronounced slightly tart, dried fruit (plum, fig and raisin) than I ever got from the regular production. It’s not overpowering in any way, but it’s different than what I’m used to with PP. There also seems to be more Perique in this blend. It has a bit more spice and I’m guessing that’s where more of the fruit flavor is coming from.

The more I smoke this stuff, the more I like and the more flavors I can pick out. In my very limited experience, I would consider this to be a fairly complex blend. The smoke is silky smooth, creamy and very sweet. Not an aromatic type sweetness, but a very pleasant natural sweetness. It burns cool and it’s easy to retrohale, but I did get a bit of tingling in my nose from the Perique.

The description says some of the orientals were subbed out for a “special small leaf tobacco”. I haven’t found any information on what type of tobacco that might be. I don’t taste anything I would consider new, in this blend. It’s certainly a lot smoother and creamier than the regular production, but to me it seems like they just adjusted the amounts of each tobacco making up the blend. Either way, this stuff is absolutely worth buying. I would recommend this to anyone who loves English blends or anyone who is looking to get a feel for them.

Another huge shout out to Frank for being so kind as to send me a tin of this incredible leaf! Your generosity is very much appreciated!!
 
That brownie looks delicious sitting on that bamboo cutting board.
 
Good review. I'd tend to agree on this. The SR is more complex and subdued than the standard blend, making it very enjoyable.
 
I bought a tin last year and tried it right away and liked it. I think I'll light up a bowl soon and try it again. Pipe tobacco always seems to bet better with age, much like cigars. :)
 
I bought a tin last year and tried it right away and liked it. I think I'll light up a bowl soon and try it again. Pipe tobacco always seems to bet better with age, much like cigars. :)
For sure. I plan to tuck away my second tin for a few years before opening. Seems like USPS is determined to help me meet that goal because the arrival date is set for last Friday and it’s still ‘out for delivery’... lol
 
Hmmm, I've never heard Hayden @H. Vachon , Brad @Thoughts , or Chester @drunkfish3 mention the smoking a pipe or it just went past me. Is this something you guys do regularly or just once in awhile? I've never tried one myself.
 
Man-o-man, I wish I could get the pipe thing down pat! I went crazy a while back and got both PAD and TAD but struggled to get the nuances figured out. I could only get the pipe packed properly on a rare occasion and that made the mess, the prep, the attention, and the overall experience fade away for me.

I did like the Plum Pudding I tried. I think I still have tins of several SPC's.
 
Well shit, I did smoke one for a bit, but we moved to a different location, so I shipped my friend all my stuff to hold during the process. Still trying to get it back from him (he went through a divorce and has kids, so he's kinda busy). I need to hit him up again.
 
Man-o-man, I wish I could get the pipe thing down pat! I went crazy a while back and got both PAD and TAD but struggled to get the nuances figured out. I could only get the pipe packed properly on a rare occasion and that made the mess, the prep, the attention, and the overall experience fade away for me.

I did like the Plum Pudding I tried. I think I still have tins of several SPC's.

I'm fighting the same battle. I've heard the whole "practice makes perfect", but damn, it gets frustrating and makes the experience suck(pun intended!). We'll see. My tobacco is aging, if nothing else.

Floyd T
 
In my limited experience my cheapest pipe (cobb) performs the best and not being so caught up in relighting and just rationalizing it as a little break helps.
 
I gave it a good try... My problem is with such limited time to smoke, I much rather have a cigar,,,
 
Relights aren't bad in a pipe.
Just part of the process...

Don't even think about the pack. Shove some baccy in the chamber and go.
 
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