I don't mean to get all hyperbolic on ya'll but this is simply the best damned thing I ever smoked. I have just bought several lbs to sock away.

Tin: Or in my case baggie as I bought in bulk. Mmmmmmmm. Nuff said.

Loading: Excellent A tad wet. I rub it out and dry for a few minutes, or longer if it's humid. No issues. Typical flake. Then air pocket in a avg. 3/4 X 1.5"+ bowl.

Light and Burning: Top notch. Char it. Light tamp. Fire it up and off you go. A few relights but I always have a few.

Taste: Flavor: Omagod. Wow this is some good stuff. Just a hint of Lakeland on the char. Then it's really good tobacco flavor with a nice rounding of sweetness. This ain't Hershey's folks so don't be concerned about the chocolate. In no way "aromatic". But it's not some sort of stiff lipped "English Blend" either. There's some latakia there but it only sings back up. You gotta try it to understand.

Bite: Not one bit of bite for me and I'm a little bite prone. Zero and I do mean zero.

Room Note: Must be OK the wife doesn't flee.

General Comments: If you haven't tried this invest 5 bucks and get an ounce in bulk. I think nearly any pipe smoker will find something to like here whether you're one of those cherry jubilee, whip cream mocha surprise types, a latakia reeking English Blender, a Virginia sipping "sophisticate" or even a good old codger burley drugstore cowboy.

Which one I prefer? Depends on the moment. Bob's when I'm in the mood for Lakelands, SG's when I'd rather have an "American English". They're both great tobaccos.

Granted, BCF does have a strange flavor profile, which some have described as confused or muddled. I can see why, though I think that the layering of flavors works to produce a really unique smoke. If you have zero tolerance for the Lakeland floral elements, then avoid this flake because the Lakeland notes are certainly there, particularly at the bowl's beginning. Words like "perfumy" and "soapy" overstate the case in my opinion. Once the bowl gets burning, the florals sweeten the smoke, but I don't think they dominate the experience.

In fact, I've found that I can choose to ignore them, if I like; and really, that's true of the other constituent tobaccos/flavors in this blend. Sweet Virginia is always undeniably present, but I find that I can taste a really remarkable range of flavors if I am mindful of the smoke--from the floral high notes to the mellow and smoky latakia bass notes. Or, I can just sit back and puff BCF contentedly, enjoying the harmony of these elements.

I think this a great tobacco for American aromatic smokers who want to transition into better quality tobaccos that still retain a sense of aromatic sweetness. Viriginia lovers will not be disappointed, given the forward presence of those flavors throughout the smoke. Even those preferential to the latakia English blends will find enough smokiness here to satisfy.

I got the strong impression that without the florals and the latakia, this would be a very strong offering from G&H. But then it wouldn't be Bob's Chocolate Flake, would it?

All in all, I found this to be a blend of high quality tobaccos blended to a somewhat tragic end. It's something I think most people should try, however, as there seems to be differing opinions - and strong ones on both sides.

UPDATE 4-20-10: How time and aging change things! I let this one sit in its tin since my original review and 1 star rating, and decided to re-try it. Well, there was still the presence of soap in the tin, but much less than previous. Lighting produced a much fainter soap presence than previous which stayed very much in the background and fading nearly to nil by bowl's end. I was actually able to taste and enjoy the tobacco flavor - a mix of good tobacco and chocolate. I couldn't, however, taste the Latakia which was not off-putting in the least. I knew it was there by the way Latakia always nips at my tongue in a very unique way for me. A very nice background sweetness and flavor was the final reward (like chocolate milk). I now can appreciate all of the 3-4 star reviews of this blend. I will re-visit from time to time, but if I ever get through my tin and order more, I'll need to open it and let some of that Lakeland presence dissipate off long before smoking.

I've been smoking Bob's Chocolate Flake for about 12 years. In the past I mostly smoked heavy Latakia English blends. However, I tried BCF because I wanted a blend that smelled pleasing to the non-smokers around me and still had a substantial tobacco flavor. For the last 4 years BCF has been my mainstay blend and I smoke it almost exclusively. However, my initial experience was with BCF was pretty inconsistent. Sometimes it seemed to be a terrific smoke and at other times it was just harsh and horrible. I think that I've experienced just about every positive and negative characteristic mentioned in previous reviews. However, over the years I learned how to prepare and smoke BCF in a way that works for me. I think there are 3 critical factors that bring the most out of BCF: Packing, Puffing, and Patience.

I've experimented with lots of methods for packing BCF. These include rubbing out the flake to varying degrees, chopping the flake into small squares, as well as folding and stuffing the whole flake into the bowl. However, there is yet another quick and easy method that really makes BCF sing. I take a whole flake and fold it long-ways 3 or 4 times on itself so that the flake is folded into a skinner and thicker strip that is the same length that you started with. Then I put one end of the folded strip into my pipe bowl and use my thumb and forefinger to measure the length slightly shorter than the depth of the bowl. I tear off the end of the strip at this measurement and lay that piece onto the remaining strip and tear off another section to the same length and repeat until I get to the end of the strip. I usually get about 3 of these smaller lengths out of a single 6-inch flake. Then I place the smaller strips together as a bundle into the bowl so that the smaller lengths are standing straight up next to each other in the bowl. You want a loose fit, so just remove 1 or 2 of the strips of flake if the bundle is too tight in the bowl. This allows you to experience the benefits of the flake (dense, full flavor) while allowing sufficient air flow in the bowl. It takes a lot of words to explain this method, but once you try it I think you will find it straightforward, quick and easy.

As far as puffing goes, you just want to avoid smoking too fast and getting the bowl too hot. Some blends are pretty forgiving when smoked hot, but not BCF. When BFC gets too hot it can change from a wonderful smoke to nasty and bitter tasting.

I mention patience for a couple of reasons. First, I have found that BCF mellows and changes remarkably with at least 6-months of aging. Frankly, fresh BCF right out of the box can be quite harsh. Since BCF is comprised mostly of Virginia tobacco, it ages wonderfully. I usually try to smoke BCF that has aged for at least a year. I have smoked 4-year aged BCF that was just fantastic. I buy BCF in the 500 gm bulk packages (about half the price of the tinned packaging) and simply place it in a glass, clamp-top jar with a rubber seal. I like the tall 2-liter size jars since the long 6-inch flakes can simply be stood on end, intact, in the jar. You can also use tall ring-top Ball jars. This preserves the integrity of the flakes so that you can use the packing method described above.

A final note regarding patience is that you will find that there will be a slight variance from batch to batch in the flavor, thickness of the flakes, strength, etc. However, the differences are small and, for me at least, serve to keep BCF an interesting blend to smoke.

Bob's Chocolate Flake is a blend that you should try at least once. If you've tried it in the past and found it disappointing, then I would encourage you let some age for a few months and give it another go using the packing technique described above - you might be pleasantly surprised.

I've been wanting to try some Lakeland flakes for some time, but knew from past experience that the straight VA's leave me wanting more. And I rarely have liked anything without at least some latakia, but still with summer coming on I didn't want a full tilt English. I love chocolate, so--

Beautiful flake presentation, a little moist. I let the tin sit, loosely covered, overnight, and was ready to go. Loosely packed a GBD Prehistoric XL bent with the fold and stuff method. A charring light, then away we went. Was immediately impressed with the amount of smoke, and the velvety mouthfeel - an important feature to me. Taste was only a little sweet, and very rich.

If it was only the chocolate I wanted I'd be disappointed. There's very little in the smoke, maybe a little more vanilla evident. But underneath that and the distinctive (and entirely pleasant, in this blend) Lakeland note there is a wonderful, rich, dark, and cool smoke. I can pick out the burley if I try, and the latakia, but that would be like isolating the trumpets playing in a full orchestra - the whole is so much better. This is definitely a keeper, and I can't wait to see what it'll be like after aging. Four out of four stars, and worth every penny.

07/27/09 UPDATE: I am revising some of my reviews. I have given out more 4 star ratings than anything else. That practice is probably not helping. So, I am reducing BCF to 3 stars, not because I like it less than I did before, but because I am limiting 4 stars to fewer than 25% of all my reviews. One day I may use the 4 star rating to designate my top five.

After a few more bowls, I am not recommending it unless someone wants to try something totally different. Also felt that the blend leaves a strong reminder in my pipes that I am masking with heavy latakia smokes. Not for me. Too much like smoking incense.

A very full round flavor. Hint of cocoa, with a great blend of tobacco. Fortunately I get only a faint hint of the Lakeland region in this 'baccy. Comes off with almost an incense quality. I've got nothing but compliments from passer byes. Not that I care that much.

Oh I'm such a caring individual. Just ask Cargosizedrumor, he'll vouch for me.

I'll buy this one again, it's one of my favorites. Though I am going to try Samuel Gawith's first.

In the pipe, however, that signature Lakeland soap comes out way too aggressively for my tastes. And instead of a happy kid with Cherry Blossom on his face, I'm a broken kid with a bar of soap in his mouth who just got caught saying f@#k. And worse, the kid realizes that his mother can still kick his ass.

None of this is designed to impugn the tobacco, which I think is first rate. Increasingly I think that the Lakeland scent is one of those geographical signatures like Islay peat or Burgundian rabbit poop that some love and some shy away from. Frankly, I admire the Lakeland products for their consistency and uniqueness.

I find, however, that a little of Bob's Chocolate Flake goes a long way. It is a superb blender (thus spake the heretic) with Virginia and Perique and I've found that I'm slowly whittling away at those pretty brown flakes by blending them with equal parts Hal O' the Wynd and McLelland Perique. It's like chocolate covered figs dipped in honey.

I call it "Bob and Henry's Chocklique Flake."

Then again, I am a bit of a goof.

Setting personal taste aside, I think it's a solid tobacco.

Update:

I'm not normally inclined to update reviews (or to change my old fuddy-duddy mind for that matter) but I have to confess that BCF has managed to grow on me to the point that I reach for it almost daily. Maybe I've just gotten used to the Lakeland scent, or maybe the scent has dissipated some from the open tin. Doesn't matter. I'm not changing the number of stars, but I did want to tell the moral of this story: give BCF a chance. You might not like it at first, but if you step back and give it some time, you might find that you find something worthwhile in it after all. Some tobaccos are like workplace romances.

It is what it says it is.

I find the bulk version of this to be a little less flavorful than the tinned version. A little flatter.

Comes in flake form with brown strands mixed with a few blonder strands with a sort of birds eye look. I find this to be an excellent Virginia based blend with a good portion of Burley to add body, with a tad of Latakia as the reenforcing element to the plain unsweetened Coco flavouring. There is a tad of Vanilla in here as well that I find unobtrusive yet adds a satisfying perfume to the flavor as well as the room note. Very pleasant indeed yet not aromatic. Yes this blend had a bit of the Gawith baby powder-like flavor and scent but I'd say the lowest amount than any of their other blends. To me it is only apparent when first lit, and fades into the backround during the smoke to where I don't detect it. The Virginias have a nice zing to them and at mid bowl the flavors get more concentrated as the strength increases a little. Sometimes this can smoke a little hot if pushed. Back off and go slow and all will be well. At first I smoked this strictly in pipes reserved for Virginia blends, but now I smoke it in my English blend pipes with no real flavor changes to worry about.

This is a zesty blend and great with a cup of joe. High quality Virginias. Great anytime but I like it best as a morning smoke or late at night reading. Excellent!

Like Best Brown #2, this came in flakes of a more consistent thickness and of a more crumbly feel than Sam Gawith flakes. I like BB2 better when it was first opened; the opposite is true with Bob's. The smoke was more "soapy" at first but got better later on.

As with SG Chocolate flake, which I will review soon, I noticed very little to no latakia or chocolate flavor here. Had this been a blind taste testing I would likely not have mentioned chocolate or latakia. It just seemed like a medium-strength, slightly Lakeland-scented virginia. Not bad...I enjoyed it but not enough to bring me back later. I preferred the Sam Gawith version.