Samuel Gawith - Full Virginia Flake pipe tobacco reviews

Review

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Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
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R3TRO	06/07/2012	Medium	None detected	Full	Pleasant
Wow, talk about a difficult tin to find! There are several well stocked tobacco shops in my area (L.A.) and I found one LAST tin and immediately took it to the front counter! Probably bought the last one in Los Angeles. Got a new pipe (Peterson Fermoy) and packed it. I just folded it several times, stuffed it in, and tampered the top. Took two matches to get it going and darn if it didn't burn to the bottom with only one more re-light. I have smoked this about five times now in the same pipe with the same packing and am ready to review it. First if it is very full flavored, as in Virginia full. Love it. No tongue bite. Beautiful clouds of smoke pour out. As long as you puff it somewhat aggressively, not too many re-lights needed. Decent nicotine hit, perfect for that morning wake up. Nice full smokey, tobacco flavor. I will probably put this away for 6mo because I'm afraid I will never find it again and want to go back to it. Love this baccy, very fun to pack and keep lit as it does demand attention, but the payoff is a damn good smoke! See you in six months...
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DrT999	04/30/2012	Medium	None detected	Very Full	Tolerable
What can be added to the 360+ reviews on this? If someone wants to know what 'full' or even 'very full' means in this site's 'taste' category, I recommend they try this flake. It's a bit more than one dimensional, but that flavor is full -- I doubt many can be neutral on it. Damp, as has been pointed out, slow burning, and full of basic if strong tobacco flavor.
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JCelsius	04/28/2012	Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
It comes damp, but after about an hour on the window sill, dried up quite nicely. The flavor is pleasant but not overwhelming and just really lets you enjoy the smoke. Not perfect, but damned if it isn't something special nonetheless.
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machinebacon	04/26/2012	Medium to Strong	None detected	Full	Tolerable
What a great Full Virginia! Took me half a year to get this baccy - it was indeed quite moist in the tin, so I had it dried out for an hour, then rubbed out a flake, packed it, and put the debris on top. Butz-Choquin billiard, straight medium-sized bowl. Easily lit, it unwrapped a huge package of natural sweetness, earthiness, volume and a decent dose of nicotine. Not as flat as Dunhill Flake, not as fresh as Orlik Golden Sliced, and not as harsh as Macbaren's VA No.1 It smokes like a dream, no signs of tongue-bite, and a comparably acceptable room note for a non-aromatic tobacco. Carries a bit of butter cookies sweetness, roasted sunflower seeds, but even when smoked like a locomotive it stays pleasantly cool. The second third is a dream, changing to a cigarish-nutty smoke towards the last third. I rate this a bit higher than other full VA flakes/mixtures, so: 5/5 stars, definitely.
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Hurrian	04/22/2012	Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

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Ted Bratton	04/18/2012	Medium to Strong	None detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong
This is a joint review of St. James and full virginia flakes as I find them very similar. These flakes are between a traditional sweet and dried prune-y flake like old gowrie and a pungent beef jerky-ish kendal/lakeland rope. Fans of many styles of tobacco will likely enjoy this, including orlik golden smokers, heavy latakia blend smokers, kendal/lakeland smokers, and cigar smokers. It has more complexity and nicotine and a thicker body than a typical va flake like old gowrie but not so much as to turn off many smokers who can not handle higher nicotine tobaccos like irish flake.
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maigret fan	04/17/2012	Very Strong	Medium	Medium	Pleasant
I bought the tin three months ago - opened it three weeks ago. Too damp as often with SG tins. I put it in a pouch to dry but not much progress. The problem with their flakes is you cannot do much with them when they are too damp and that if you wait they are like dust. Need to be smoked in the open air when the wind keep it burning otherwise I kept relighting the thing every minute. Otherwise that is strong, not as strong as their 1792. With all this the smell in the tin is fine but it is difficut to find much enjoyment when smoking it. Pure virginia but a little flat under the nicotine strength. Rather disappointing I would say.
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pattonpiper	04/17/2012	Mild to Medium	None detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable
Not highly recommended but if your up for a different bump try it. Upon opening the bacco it has a ketchup scent as some of you said, but to my nose i had the scent of the hay/earth scent Virginia's have moreso than ketchup. Yes it was damp and by far to wet for tin to pipe load. Rubbed out, it took about 10 hrs or so to dry to my textual liking. Its very cool smoking and has the flavor of a mild blend. Soft to the pallet in the top of the bowl, half way down it stands shortly depending on sipping techniques. Few sweet spots if you have a ghost or two sitting in your pipe. I prefer my english only style pipe. No need to hide the vitamin n. Its good in this mix. Not as upfront to me but deff there. I put aside two tins for later winter season when i know i wont find it. Some of you have become hoarders and well i do see that. I myself buy bulk of something i like but i know hoow much i would smoke in a given time. After smoking for ten years i have come to learn, sip and enjoy. Pleasent smokes and happy piping.
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SteveH	04/16/2012	Mild to Medium	None detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant
Smooth, creamy, butterscotchy, slightly spicy. Calming. Lovely stuff. One to relax with and savour. As other reviewers have said, it's rather damp straight out of the tin (some people say all SG tobaccos are, but I've only noticed it with this one). Therefore, you may want to air it for a few hours. That's why I'm withholding the fourth star, but damp or not, it's excellent.
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ynrozturk	04/15/2012	Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant
I had given pipe smoking a break for the past year, due to the fact that it's extremely hard to find a selection of good tobaccos where I live. That, and the fact that I refuse to smoke sub par tobacco led to my absence. The other day though, I saw a tobacco shop and said what the hell, I'll drop in - maybe they have something good. The shop keeper said he had Mac Baren, Amphora.. the usual. So I asked "Got anything in tins?" to which he pulled out a box filled to the brim with Sam Gawith tobaccos.. I couldn't believe it. He had more than 20 different blends! For Istanbul, that is a gold mine. So I stocked up on FVF (which I've heard so much about), 1792 and some others. Onto the tobacco. I am a fan of straight virginia blends. I was so eager to try FVF as every Sam Gawith blend I've tried, I've loved. Okay, maybe not Bracken Flake. It's very moist out of the tin so I let a few flakes air for an hour or two. Perfect. Loaded up and lit up - this tobacco deserves all the hype. It is what it is, an outstanding straight virginia blend with just the right about of sweetness and nicotine, with a very yummy earthy flavor. Burns cool, doesn't leave a mess, has a good room note. But above all, the taste! I am loving this. I would still prefer Orlik's Golden Sliced, but this is just phenomenal. Just different. Golden Sliced is a bit more "summer" wheras this would be "autumn" Overall, an excellent tobacco. I could smoke this all day if it were easy to find. Absolute bliss.
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salopst	04/06/2012	Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium	Pleasant
Felt damp in the tin, but the aroma was such that I just could not wait to try it in a nice narrow, but long bowled Peterson-- a perfectly shaped bowl from a flake I think. Despite the dampness it lit well after some effort with the initial 'toasting' and stayed reasonably well through to the very end. SOme reviews have put the nicotine level on this as medium, but would put it above that of, say Nightcap, Maybe it was the way I packed this flake for the first time, and the fact that I did not let it dry a little. I tend not to rub flakes too much, preferring a slower, cooler burn. Nutty. Mellow. Some plum (maybe) and that typical fresh silage/hay smell of virginias. No tongue bite, and it smoked to a wonder while ash all the way to the bottom of the bowl, leaving a buttery feel on my tongue afterwards. A definite "will buy again"!
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palm springs piper	04/05/2012	Medium	None detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable
A very good Virginia. Lightly tangy, full in flavor, but I don't see what all the fuss is about.
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Mark Devall	04/05/2012	Medium	Mild	Mild	Pleasant
Open the tin, smells of rich dark old fruit cake, comes out like some sort of flaky plasticine. I thought "this will never burn". But one tamping after the first char light and there's cloudes of creamy smoke. No bite, it tastes like butter on hot toast. Hate to say it but in England I have no trouble at all laying my hands on this or any of Sam Gawith's proper tobaccos; makes you remember what Christmas was like before you grew up. Go on have some!
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Grizzly1911	04/05/2012	Medium	None detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable
Thankful for this site otherwise I may have never tried this excellent tobacco. Straight forward no nonsense goodness. Can't wait to try some others as this has opened a whole new door for me. Being my first flake, I am hoping that when I get the hang of rubbing it out it will be even better (if that is possible). Hands down if you haven't tried this you need to. I will buy many more tins to keep at home so I will never run out.
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IanTimothy	03/30/2012	Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable
I use to love this tobacco, something is wrong with the quality control FVF is just not as consistent as it once was, and I know tastes change, but there is just something that takes the edge off this once top tobac! the second issue is with Sam's tins..they are useless and allow the tobacco to dry out far too quirky..I have had to put the contents in a air tight jar, so sorry to say it may be a while before I revisit this once great product, after many many tins it no longer has the edge, I write this review with great sadness
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Piper@thegates	03/13/2012	Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
There's a reason Sam Gawiths enjoy such a high reputation amongst pipe smokers and that is because no matter which blend you smoke, according to your taste preferance, you are guaranteed absolute top quality tobacco providing the smoker with the very highest value for money ratio anywhere on the market. And right up amongst their top blends is FVF. Full of pure Va taste and Brasilian smooth, FVF provides a great start to the day.Lets face it, there are many pure va's on the market no matter where you are and some such as Richmond Mixture are comparable to the best and much less expensive and easier to come by than FVF, the thing is though is that many of us build up loyalties over the years to our favourite blenders in the knowledge that we will be passing over our hard earned cash for what we have come to expect, consistent top quality tobacco which maintains high standards over many years. This is what you pay for when you invest in any of the Sam Gawith blends, taste is another matter, its ridiculous to review tobacco blends when you know for example that you dont like Latakia but go ahead and review Commonwealth for example and then award it one star and complain that you find the Latakia content too much. I base my reviews on the QUALITY of the product and its vfm. Therefore anything less than four stars would be an insult with FVF. FVF is as good a Va tobacco of the highest quality to be found anywhere. Four stars easily.
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Michael	02/16/2012	Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable
I recognize that we don't need another review of FVF, but I'm compelled to submit it anyway, just as the rest of you did, because it's that good. I typically don't like straight Virginia blends, because I usually find them too grassy, bland, finicky and in need of condiments, such as Latakia, Burley or Orientals, to really shine. FVF is a rare exception, along with McClelland's Blackwoods Flake, and both are among the best tobaccos I've ever smoked, in any genre. FVF meaty, full flavored, deep, smooth, buttery and fairly complex. It is amazing how Gawith can produce such smooth-smoking mixtures, and FVF is a standout in the Lakeland line. No floral essence here: just straight tobacco, pure, dark and simple, with enough nicotine to engender, as the tin says, "serenity." It's an absolute must try for any piper, the Holy Grail of Virginias -- if you can get ahold of it. And that, my friends, is the big "if." I agree with FunkyD: Stop hoarding this stuff!
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Lukasaurus	01/21/2012	Mild	None detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable
My first venture into Virginias, and indeed flakes. Not going to lie, I was intrigued by the hype this product seems to have generated on here. However, being an avid aromatics fan, I was slightly dissapointed. However this is less a flaw in the product and more a matter of my personal taste. There is no doubting that this is a fantastic product, the flakes are entising, dark in colour, with lashes of blonde. A fantastic tin note is to be enjoyed, although it is one I struggle to put into words having limited experience with Virginias. Think woody, sweet and slightly spicy. The flakes are slightly damp from the tin and need a touch of drying, but overdrying can prove disasterous as the latter 1/5 of the tin demonstrated! The product is not too bad to light, I reccomend rubbing fairly finely and drying for a short while. A very mild, mellow and slightly sweet taste eminates from the tobacco when lit, undeniably a pleasure to smoke and a virginia which would take some topping. I was also pleased to see that the flakes are produced in the lakelands, a stones throw from my native Yorkshire! Overall I cant deny that this is a fine tobacco, clearly the highest quality virginia is used and for a virginia fan I cant see a better match available!
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Cem	01/18/2012	Mild	Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Tolerable
There is something wrong with new FVF. Suppose Samuel Gawith has changed their fermentation method. Upon opening the tin vinegar/ketchup flavor is covering to room. Flakes are much more wet rather than previous years. Even if you can light up the tobacco after several attemps(if you are lucky) you are starting to taste vinegar/ketchup taste easily. After several minutes that taste is disappearing and it's like you are not smoking virginia. Supposely, tobacco hasn't completed it's fermentation process thus they put that idiotic flavour inside. I presume, due to lack of Samuel products in last year in the market, producers have changed their method for fermantation like mcclelland's style. After that, I couldn't taste the sweetness of virginia at all. Further more FVF is not from my favorite tobacco. I must express that, all last produced SG tobaccos have that vinegar/ketchup taste. This brand has lost it's place on my tobacco selection. Once they overcome those problems I can revise my review otherwise no chance. PS : I made this review upon finishing 4 tins of FVF withing 2 weeks.
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bearsy87	01/17/2012	Mild to Medium	None detected	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable
A very different smell upon opening the tin, looks almost like flakes of tree bark. Burnt well straight from the tin after some rubbing. On the whole this a great offering of from Sam Gawith but is lacking in complexity and flavour. this will definately be in my rotation but I can't give it that fourth star. I'll stick to Samuel Gawith's 1792 Flake, much tastier and suited more to my smoking enjoyment.
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