This blend strikes me as a VA/Per crossover blend as it has a lot of aromatic characteristics.

Did I like it? Yes. Did I love it? No. For me personally I'd prefer McClelland 2015... that's just more up my alley.

Enough has already been said by others about this blend. I think every Vaper lover should try it, and I think most people will prefer it to AJ's. It's smoother and seems more refined. It just doesn't excite my tastebuds as much.

Russ Oullette is very quietly making a claim to the Vaper crown. This blend is quite a statement.

As usual, I used the reviews on this site to research this tobacco. It was hitting all the right buttons with all the right reviewers. I quickly ordered 8 ounces to try, along with a pound or so of other tobaccos on my list.

At this point, I must give the people at pipesandcigars.com alot of credit. Their customer service is second to none. I would not do business with any other tobacco house if they carried all that I consume. Admittedly, that would be a monumental, and clearly impossible task. But, I encourage you to call and talk to them abou your next order if you have not already. Great people, can't say enough.

The kake arrived in the expected moist condition. I divided it into the 2 ounce portions that I always jar, and left 2 ounces out to try. I fully rubbed out the kake to dry to a smoking level.

If you didn't know better you would think that there was a topping on this tobacco. Of course, there isn't. This is the true range of natural aromas from several Va.'s treated in different ways. Absolutely fantastic!

After acheiving the humidity level I deire, I packed one of my favorite cobs and fired it up appropriately.

The first true light after char will provide a mix of roasting marshmallow sweetness and the dark mustiness of the perique. It is a youthful expression to be sure, but pleasant.

About 5 minutes into the bowl, the tobacco takes on its true character. Creamed coffee, yellow cake, and the ever so slight tang of some orange and red VA. in the blend. The perique is there, but exhibits the full on earthiness that you only get at the start. Fresh turned rich soil aroma is the flavor.

All starts to sing nicely together by mid bowl and the it just stays sublime to the end. The perique starts to shop more of its pepper and strength at the end of the bowl without turning too powerful to enjoy. The balancing act is just magnificent.

Smokes dry, if prepared properly, to the end of the bowl. Slow burning and prefers to be sipped to get all the nuance that is there in abundance. This is a very well done Vaper of a different stripe. Fillmore and Escudo are more of the savory and tangy vaper variety, this is in the sweet genre. But, never even close to cloying.

Please try it and see for yourself. This is one of the top vapers out there and in a class all it's own. There are some tobacco houses that have some catching up to do, because Home and Hearth has created what I think is the first new class of vaper in a long time worthy of near classic reputation from the start.

the first half of the bowl was sweet, chocolate/figgy-raisin, etc. really good. I enjoyed it. The second half of the bowl was more typical of perique to me, I got some pepper in addition to the va flavor. It was still somewhat muted though, and not offensive to the palate. Great Tobak, definitely my dessert island smoke

After reading all of the reviews for ANNIVERSARY KAKE (a Hearth & Home bulk tobacco blend that can be obtained through pipeandcigars.com), it was a blend I just had to try. My 1 pound order arrived yesterday in a zip-lock bag. It was a combination of solid kakes and the rest of the kakes crumbled (shakes). The aroma upon opening the bag was sweet and spicy with a mustiness present as well. I didn't detect any chocolate aroma from the bag per-se. I don't know if there really is any in the mix: the word "chocolate" being used more as a descriptive item along with "fig-like" to describe the pouch aroma by the blenders. I believe the "chocolate" description to be attributed to the Perique. In spite of this, there was a chocolate-like quality to the smoke that I found very appealing, and in no way cloying.

It was moist in the bag, but not overly so. I scooped out some crumbled, partly broken bits, and set it on a napkin while crumbling it some more. I didn't feel the need to dry it out and proceeded to load it into a 7 inch sandblast ALPHA Canadian that hasn't been smoked very much over the years (I have over 100 pipes) and was set aside just for this blend after placing my order.

I've been a pipe smoker for nearly 35 years and have tried virtually all different types of blends ranging from the smokiest of Latakia to the goopiest of aromatics. With ANNIVERSARY KAKE, the Virginia was very subdued as far as Virginias go - not a typical VA tasting blend in my opinion, and only mildly sweet. It was never hay-like or grassy. The Perique did present with its characteristic pepper-like taste. I am not a huge fan of Perique, but it was just right for me. It burned nicely; a fine, medium-gray ash was all that was left at the end.

I found that taking your time with this one was needed to bring out any of the Virginia flavor. This also brings out the chocolate note which is way better tasting than if chocolate had been added to the tobacco by the blenders (according to the blenders, no chocolate is added). A very skillfully blended tobacco that definitely gets better with aging, and very tasty in a narrow guage bowl.

This is an Aromatic with Virginia, Perique and CHOCOLATE, the Virginia is there but without any true flavor or personality. The taste is sweet, chocolaty, creamy and extremely spicy.

There is so many high grade, true Va/per with true Virginia flavor, to try before this one, Flake Medallions, Escudo, Solani 633 etc.

As long as I can buy the above mentioned Va/Per blends, I really don?t see why I should smoke this "Anniversary Kake".

For me, this is typically a nonsense blend, in fact, this is not really a VAPER, and not really an aromatic; this is just an experimental "Kitchen made" house blend surrounded with an unbelievable hype.

"Mouth-watering" is very correct with richness and enjoyment blended in to the core.

Buy some to smoke now and some to put up for aging, but buy plenty as you will go through it quickly.

But... don't even try it until you dry it!!

The caked tobacco looks and smells good enough to eat in the pouch and crumbles into the most easily ignited tobacco I've encountered; fears of constant relights are nil.

I?ve ordered a lot of things from pipesandcigars dot com, pipes, accessories, the narcissistic but informative Alfred Dunhill Pipe book, tins of Germains Special Latakia flake, esoteric blends in bulk (ok, just stonehaven and Penzance) yet I had never ordered a Hearth and Home blend until last week. I bought this beautiful Peder Jeppesen egg with a sort of curved Candadianish shank and still had a buck or two burning a hole in my pocket, so I opened a second window and checked Tobacco Review dot com for four star blends. What the hell, I what the helled, Anniversary Kake it is.

A few years back as a novice pipe smoker I tried every aromatic that sounded like pastry, moved, thankfully to Virginians, found Hal O the Wynd, fell in love, and then moved to Balkans and English blends where I firmly sat with a smug and superior cast to my mug. I?ve really wanted to like a VAPER, and I do keep some Virginians around for when I need a change of pace or when wimmenfolk start asking why I?m burning Old Sweat Socks in my pipe.

I was ready to blame all of y?all in Anniversary Kake disappointed me the way so many other VAPERS have. It?s like the perique is heavier than the VA?s and sinks to the bottom of the bowl in most VAPERS and you go from this friendly, mildly complex blend of gregarious smoke into the fiery bowl of black pepper. Anniversary Kake isn?t much different in that regard, except the Virginians are more than a little complex, friendly to the point of buying the next round and the perique is so well blended that nothing creeps up on you and shrieks boo in mid bowl.

I went in with all the skepticism of an atheist at the Vatican and Anniversary Kake has made a believer out of me, I might even dedicate this excellent new pipe to AK exclusively. I?m ready to order a pound for cellaring and one for smoking, even though I can?t imagine that age could make this much better than it already is. The first bowl I just rubbed out a chunk, let it dry for maybe fifteen minutes (which felt too much like foreplay and I got impatient). It took maybe two more matches than usual to make it to the bottom of the bowl of clean white ash with very little dottle and nothing wet.

I had ordered a mere four ounces, silly dawg, it came in a single cake, figs and raisin scent in the pouch, sticky and sweet, rubs out nice and easy. I think it was Mark Twain who said I didn?t have time for a short note so I wrote a long letter. Apologies all around. I desperately need to get Larry?s Blend now too. I am very impressed by the folks at pipesandcigars and their hearth and home blends.