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Well Ladies and Gents, it's that time. Our betting windows are closing for the last time this season, our panel of judges have cast their final ballots, and as always, all bets are final.
We started this as a way to have some fun, share our favourite springtime blends with both each other and you all, and maybe find ourselves some new favourites along the way. I've picked up a few new blends through the exercise, and with any luck you've found yourself a new favourite as well.
The Grand Finale
We thought we'd do something a little different for the championship round. Instead of one person deciding the winner, we did a quick poll around the office, tallied the votes, and crowned the champ.
Alright, so let's just jump into it:
Samuel Gawith - Grousemoor vs G.L. Pease - Navigator
Andy - "The way Pease handles the dark-fired Kentucky is simply expert. Paired with the choice, pressed Virginias and subtle rum topping, the choice is a no-brainer, for me at least: Navigator."
Keith - "As much as I love Pease blends, for me the dark fired kentucky is just too much in the warmer months. Grousemoor on the other hand is light, sweet, and simple."
John - "Greg is the master blender. No competition."
Adam - "I went into this pretty sure that either Cut Virgina Plug or Navigator were going to be my final votes, but like the plucky sidekick, Grousemoor won me over in the end."
Chris - "I'm something of a purest when it comes to tobacco. I love a lot of Sam Gawith and Gawith Hoggarth's blends, but the lemongrass-like topping in Grousemoor is just a touch too prominent for my taste. Therefore, Navigator takes the cake for me."
Winner (and new champion): G.L. Pease - Navigator
Insert Heartfelt Congratulations Here
And that's it. Hopefully you backed the winner, if not, maybe you picked up a blend or two to smoke for the rest of the spring season.
If you have thoughts about our winner, righteous indignation to vent, or even some of your own spring blends to recommend, please, leave a comment below.
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Comments
This would have been my pick as well!
I just might pick up a tin or two of Navigator; it sounds delicious. Currently, my personal favorite blend is Peterson's Old Dublin.
This was a fantastic series of articles/tasting notes, and has allowed me to add a few new tins to my rotation as I've enjoyed tasting along with the authors above. However, I was wondering if we could indulge in a hypothetical situation: what would have been the outcome is Dunhill Flake and G. L. Pease Navigator were in the final (as my tasting notes predicted)?
Salvatore,
I'm glad we could help.
That's a tough one. In the end I think it would have been Navigator, though Dunhill Flake would have had my vote, if only for it's versatility during the yo-yoing temps of spring. What about you?
Adam.
Adam,
Thanks for the response.
At the moment I'm torn. Guess I'll have to purchase a bit more Navigator and give it another go. If I had to pick this moment, without sampling some more Navigator, I'd go with Dunhill Flake (mainly because it is good directly from the tin). While I LOVE all things G. L. Pease, I find that cellaring his tobaccos makes them better by bringing out their subtle nuances (and the genius of the specific blend at hand). Should this count against them? Not sure. However, with no Navigator in the house, I'll abstain from a final comment until I give them another go at it. At any rate, I'm looking forward to your future showdowns (is there a summer or fall bracket in the works?)!
Salvatore