Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. Cherry Cream Flake

The Virginia is much sublimated by the toppings, but a little grass/hay and earth still comes through. Strength wise, the Lakeland topping seems a little tamer than it is in other G&H blends, but the essence offers the expected flavor. I find it well compliments the richness of the cherry and cream, though you will notice the Lakeland a little more than the fruit. The nic-hit is just past mild. The strength and taste are medium. The flake is easy to rub out to your preference. Burns at an even rate, cool and creamy smooth with a consistent taste. No bite, no dull or harsh spots, and leaves almost no moisture in the bowl. Easily burns to ash. It’s almost an all day smoke, and perhaps is if you are used to stronger Lakeland topped products. It will ghost a briar. One of the easiest, comfortable of its kind to smoke. The after taste and room note are pleasant.

-JimInks

Cherry Cream Flake, new to America, smells of, well, cherries and cream and the typical GH Virginias in the bag. Interestingly, the longer I dried it out, the more noticeable the cherry scent became to the nose. I was really looking forward to the new Brown Flake Vanilla and bought just two ounces of this as an afterthought as I find most cherry flavored blends not to my liking, but this was a different cup of tea. In the pipe, the cherry cream flavor is right there at the forefront, but allows more room than Brown Flake Vanilla for the Virginias to play a noticeable role. The cream and the cherry flavor are pretty balanced and there is a slight, pleasant tartness (not bitter) to the cherry flavor. There is no bite even when pushed and no real complexity to it which was fine with me. As with BFV, this is not a typical American style aromatic and devoted smokers of cherry Cavendish blends should give this a try, but be prepared for something with more strength and less sweetness. Overall, a very good flake for lovers of GH aromatics!

Gawith Hoggarth - Cherry Cream Flake.

The moment the pouch is opened a brilliant waft of cherries greets the nose. This, straight away, makes me expect a sweet, fruity smoke; this is a correct assumption!

I always rub my flakes and because these are a touch moist they need a little airing first. Once they've dried a little it makes for a great smoke though. The cherry cream flavour comes across superb. This one's definitely more of a full bodied aromatic, it hasn't just been 'slightly embellished' with additives, the cherry cream is without a doubt the star of the show! This, I guess, would make it too false for a lot of smokers out there. Although there's a lot of cherry cream flavour, the smoke doesn't bite me; its a cool and comfortable experience. The nicotine's about medium in this one, I think it would probably suit most kinds of smoker. Room note? Not suprising: cherries!

The rating is very simple for Cherry Cream Flake... a great aromatic well worth four stars.

Highly recommended.

I see that it is a little over a year later than my original review... (1/04/17)

I am not normally an aromatic smoker, but on a recommendation I thought I'd order 4 oz to sample.

Nosing it before packing my pipe, Virginias predominate, but there is a slight hint of cherry & cream in the pouch.

Applying match leads to a pleasant smoke, with hints of cherry/cream in the room note and slightly on the finish, but the sweetness of the Virginias carry this blend.

For those who want to like aromatics, but find too many cloying blends in that genre, give this a try, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Additional notes 1/31/2018: I have since smoked up the original 4oz, and if it is any indication, I ordered up 8oz to keep on hand. I really enjoy the Virginias in this blend, and really notice the cherry and vanilla more in retro-hale than in the mouth, but they do dance on the palate ephemerally in the finish.

Very, very nice flake. As far as strength goes, I'd rank the flavors this way; Virginias and Lakeland floral about equal followed by cream and then cherry. Although the cherry is the mildest flavor it's still evident in every puff. I liked this best in a cob, but it may be the shape of the bowl more than anything else. The briar I used is a tall and narrow Dublin. The cob is a shorter, wider pot. It's possible that this just tastes better in a wider bowl.

Very much a medium blend in all categories. Burns very well when dried and rubbed. A lovely smoke all around.

The cherry and vanilla come through when you breath out, very little of the flavour sits on the tongue.

This smells wonderful, ghosts your pipe to buggery but the wife let’s me smoke this in the house when I’m reading a book so it must be doing something right.

The flakes are long, twice the length of the standard flake which is something to take into account if you are jarring any up.

I like this one - the flavour isn’t as synthetic as say a Kentucky Black Cherry but it still has some good body to it. The vanilla and the cherry marry up like a continental boiled sweet.

I’ve taken to putting a little plug at the bottom of a bowl and then pack whatever else I want to smoke on top - it gives a lovely finish to a smoke, like a nice dessert after a roast dinner.

Recommended if milder aromatics are your thing.

Long, 6 inch flakes is how it came to me in the bulk purchase. I was excited to try this. I enjoy Virginia flakes, and I enjoy natural cherry flavoring in a tobacco. Sweet, cloying need not apply. I was excited the first time I smoked it.

Pouch aroma/Appearance: As stated, it comes in 6 inch flakes. Medium to dark brown Virginia reeks of pure, natural tobacco. You REALLY have to inhale hard to smell the cherry. Its extremely light on the pouch aroma. Again, think natural cherry, not confectionary.

Packing/lighting/smoking: As most fresh G&H flakes, this one was shipped moist. Not wanting to waste much time, I immediately cut a flake in half, rubbed it out, and microwaved for 7 seconds. The initial lighting takes a little patience. Once this has a steady smolder, this is where the amazement begins.

To me, this Cream Cherry Flake tastes nothing like the flavoring of their Top Black Cherry. This flake delivers rich, pure tobacco taste of their Brown Flake, with a touch of sweetness. If I didn't know this was called Cream Cherry, I would've never guessed it had a cherry essence added. This isn't typical of American cherry aromatics gooped up with artificial syrup overtop black Cavendish. No sir. This is a very high quality Virginia with a slight creamy sweetness you will fall in love with. This blend also DGT's very well! There is a reason G&H has been in business as long as they have....

Picked up an ounce of this with other just in stock GHCo. products. It arrived fresh and was still quite moist, so I needed to (and you may also want to) give it some time to dry out. Smelling the sweet cherry all over my post flake rubbed fingers, got me pretty excited and so I said "to hell with any more drying!"

The cherry topping is soft and inviting (Cult's Blood Moon is on the other side of the teeter totter). Nothing artificial here. You get just as much sweetness from the Virginia as from the topping, making fans of all cloths drool. The Lakeland is not overly present, but there is a ripple of "soapy" Violets candy at work here. As with most flakes (especially still damp ones), the bowl smolders for a long time. The smoke itself is chompy, but pretty dialed back in terms of flavoring. The cherry lingers more in your saliva, which is good for those avoiding kids tobacco.

I appreciated the quality here, but for my money I found their Cherry & Vanilla blend much tastier. This one does have more meat and nicotine if that is what you are into.

Nicely presented, well made flake tobacco. Rubbed out well and burned evenly. I had never tried a lakeland tobacco and thought I would give it a try. The taste was not bad, but there are so many others that I like better, maybe it was the lakeland. I read some where that is tastes a little like your grandmother's perfume - a pretty accurate description! The room note didn't make the grade so this tobacco will be banished to outside smoking.

I'm not an aromatic fan at all. Sure, they smell delightful, but to me, they taste flat, and all aroma is lost to flame. This is my first example of a "Lakeland" blend. Flakes are meaty, uniform, and long. I rubbed a bit of a flake out... maybe a third of one... and set it out to dry... perhaps a little too long on my first sample... as the bowl and smoke got a little warm. This problem did not persist as i figured out my preferred moisture content.

Aroma in the bag is amazing. Sweet. Floral forward, but definitely cherry is in there. Upon lighting, to my tastebuds and nose, it is very floral. No soap at all, but definitely floral. The cherry lingers in a backing role, but is supportive and complementary of the floral aspects. The taste and aroma soften slightly towards the end of the bowl, but are clearly present and enjoyable to the end.

Not at all what I was expecting, but a pleasant surprise. I find myself really enjoying this. Not an everyday smoke, but certainly something I won't mind reaching for when seeking a change of pace.