Welcome to another episode of Tasting Notes. Today I am continuing my journey through Cornell & Diehl's Summit series, inspired by national parks and landmarks specific to those national parks. This is the newest addition to the line: Silent Spire, inspired by Crater Lake's National Park.

Silent Spire is inspired by the ghost ship formation found in Crater Lake National Park, and fittingly for that nautical, ghost-ship theme, this one is a navy plug — just like the rest of the Summit series.

The recipe is simple on paper: a couple of different grades of dark Virginia, rum, and pressure. Like the rest of the Summit series, it's an absolutely gorgeous plug.

Cutting and Preparing the Plug

I found this one exceedingly easy to slice and prepare. My suggestion is to play around with it a little. The fun of the plug format, as I've mentioned in other reviews, is the control it gives you over the cut — how thin or thick you slice the flakes, or whether you want to cross-cut for a cube cut. It's up to you, and that's part of what makes it fun.

It's also a great format for aging, since the reduced surface area under pressure extends this blend's cellar life well into the future. But the most fun part, for me, is experimenting with the cut yourself. I got really nice thin cuts here, and when rubbed out, they came close to a fine ribbon, almost shag-like. That's been my preference with Silent Spire so far, but it's entirely personal — I'd suggest trying a range of different cuts to see what you like.

Boozy & Sweet Tin Note

Silent Spire's tin note is rich, boozy, and inviting — sweetness, warming spices, boozy molasses, maybe a touch of brown sugar. There are some piquant, tangy notes, almost vinegar-like, which I attribute to the darker flue-cured leaf and the pressure used here on top of the rum. It's a really typical, well-executed navy topping, and a lot of that tin note carries through into the smoke.

Preparation Tips

As with any plug, how you cut and prepare it changes the experience. I personally slice the flakes as thin as possible, then fully rub them out. When I do that, I find Silent Spire benefits from a little drying time — just a couple of minutes of aeration after breaking up the tobacco, not so much that you lose the navy or rum character. That small amount of drying helps it stay lit and take to the flame more easily.

Flavor and Smoking Experience

Once it's going, you get a rich, deep sweetness — dark molasses, brown sugar, tangy notes from the Virginias, and a malty character that reminds me of an amber or red ale. The boozy quality is present on the palate and especially on the retrohale, where the malty Virginia notes, tanginess, and warming spices really come through.

The plug format tends to push the flavor toward the darker end of the spectrum — lots of base notes, not much brightness or zest, and that's exactly the point with a navy blend. The flue-cured grades used here complement the rum topping and the plug format extremely well. I'd put it at medium, maybe medium-plus in strength, and definitely medium-plus in body.

As the bowl progresses, the base notes ease up a bit and some mid- and high-range flavor comes through — a darker citrus note, less zesty and more rich, like candied citrus peel or one of those chocolate-orange candies. The sweetness level is perfect, and the aftertaste is very clean, with a lingering perceived sweetness through the retrohale and aroma.

I'm smoking this in a little sandblasted Eltang Basic that's become one of my go-to Virginia pipes and my consistent choice throughout most of the Summit series so far.

Cellar Deep

Silent Spire might be my new favorite in the series. Right out of the tin, it has the richness, body, and boozy character I want. I've always been a fan of navy flakes and blends — flue-cured leaf and rum is one of the most classic combinations in pipe tobacco, and Silent Spire nails it, with a bit more depth and complexity than a one-note aromatic profile. The room note is lovely too; it is full of that caramelized-sugar sweetness.

As with the rest of the Summit series, I'd encourage you to experiment with the cut and your packing technique — that's half the fun, and this blend has a lot of versatility to offer across different pipe sizes and cutting methods.

Definitely lay some of this down for the future. In plug format, Silent Spire has long legs. As with the rest of the Summit series, I'd recommend cellaring some, since plugs age more slowly due to their reduced surface area — you might not see much change in the first five years, but beyond that, expect the sweetness to ramp up considerably and fruitier notes to emerge. Time is going to do beautiful things to this blend.