Rattray - Marlin Flake pipe tobacco reviews

Review

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Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
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mo	03/03/2009	Medium to Strong	None detected	Medium	Tolerable
I have decided to re-write my reviews. Marlin Flake is underrated and its a shame. I do not know why because like Old Gowrie and my beloved HOTW this is right up there and i ALWAYS have a tin open. Like all Rattray blends, this comes with lots of moisture in the tin. It needs to be aired out to get the best of this delicious blend. Drying it out will also eliminate the tongue bite. A few months ago, i ordered around half a kilo of bulk HOTW and they sent me the wrong blend. Instead i got that amount of Marlin Flake, i did not complain because this stuff is just as good. This has a particular musty taste that HOTW and Old Gowire does not and that sets it apart from the other two. Some reviewers compare it to Sweet Potatoe Pie and i can see what they mean. What ever it is, this blend is delicious and it has the same VitN content as HOTW does. Like HOTW and Old Gowrie, once dried out, you get that mouth filling Virginia sweetness and great aftertaste that is just plain fantastic. Mo, South Africa
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Pipe4ever	01/14/2009	Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant
This is sweet Virginia Flake with sweet Cavendish, good quality tobacco with imbalanced sweetness, next to Old Gowrie but much sweeter and not as good as Hal O' the Wynd If I have to buy 3 tins of Virginia from Rattray, I would choose 3 tins of Hal O' the Wynd Marline Flake and Old Gowrie I really don?t care about.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Beer	12/13/2008	Medium to Strong	Extremely Mild	Very Full	Tolerable to Strong
Well, as a Latakia lover I never thought that I might like a sweet tobacco, so I tried this Virginia blend just out of sheer curiosity for how this kind of stuff would taste... Any time in the past when I decided this kind of experiments I always was sorely disappointed: any aromatic, no matter its quality, would find me bored. To me, smoke must have the taste of smoke, and I always returned to English blends. The problem was not in my dislike of sweet tobaccos, but in my choice of aromatics to find that sweetness: Marlin Flake taught me that a tobacco can be, at the same time, deliciously sweet, absolutely not cased, and completely satisfying to my taste buds. Upon opening the attractive parchment colored 100g can, I was shocked by its form: until then I had read of flake tobacco, but never seen it. The wide strips, soft to the touch and almost rubbery, give a pleasant sensation. The tin aroma is incredibly sweet: dried figs and raisins, strudel-cake. Wow! This stuff can almost be chewed (I tried!)... At my first bowl I was uncertain on how to pack this... I just shredded some bits from the flakes, and stuck them without much fuss in the largest pipe I own (a bent Savinelli, which I then found to be a brand of pipes which perfectly brings out the taste of Va Flakes). As a consequence, lighting was a bit of a hell: many bursts from the lighter, and some retamping. Ultimately, the tobacco took well to the flame: it never required relighting (following bowls required no more than one). The coarse cut of the unrubbed flakes provided me with one of the most satisfyingly slow smokes I have ever experienced. This is a tobacco that burns extremely slow and cool (it's hard to feel too much heat on the outside wall of the pipe!), but also very regularly. My first bowl was enjoyable, but not as much as later ones: I was overwhelmed by the titanic sweetness, which reminded me of Sauternes (a sweet and "sappy" French white wine) and honey! I almost got nauseated! Then I began to get used to it, and now I still rank it as a robust and very sweet Virginia, but perfectly tolerable... and immensely pleasurable. The subtle fruity (no casing here, just a wonderful natural fruitiness due to the sweetnes of Virginia) nuances are a delight, and the flavor stays consistent until the bottom of the bowl with grassy and fermented hints here and there... so much that I often find myself with ashes in my mouth without prior warning signals! Room note is sweet and grassy, but very perceivable and nasty to the nostrils of a non-smoker. Care must be taken not to smoke too fast, unless you want to completely destroy the flavour. Some significant wetness can occur during a smoke (also because a bowl of this lasts me over an hour), but a pipe cleaner inserted in the stem will bring out again its magnificent qualities. At the end of the smoke I usually find some noticeable wetness (a bit sticky and smelly) at the bottom of the bowl and in the shank. If you want it to burn a bit faster and smokier, you can unrub this tobacco fairly easy: I usually do so to smoke it in my smaller pipes. I guess I'll keep experimenting other matured Virginia flakes after this successful experience, and this one will always remain as a landmark against which I'll measure all similar products, such are its qualities. It's a tobacco that I would recommend to all aromatic fans who are willing to give it a try and pass to natural tobaccos, and to all Latakia lovers like me who want to have a pleasant surprise with something completely different! See also the almost equally good (but different) Ashton's Old London Pebble Cut for comparison. 2008 Edit: After almost seven years from this review, I am smoking a tin that I have been cellaring for 4 years, and had become puffy and swollen... Wow, this still is one of my top five Virginias! Ripe, sweet, nutty, rich, mouthwatering... With more experience on my hands, I have to say that it lights and burns perfectly (just crumble the flakes a little bit), and the moisture I had written about in my old review was just a matter of bad smoking technique and crappy pipe (yes, that Savinelli was not that great after all...). I really love this tobacco (enjoying it in a Ruby Bark Dunhill with a very open draw right now), and I just hope they haven't tampered too much with its recipe in recent years... I guess I'll have to buy a fresh tin to check it out...
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
mrmcmc	08/30/2008	Mild	None detected	Mild	Pleasant
Something in this blend has changed, and for the worse. I have smoked several 100 gram tins of this over the past few years. I have been smoking a tin now that has aged well over a year in the unopened tin. Each successive tin of this tobacco has been less and less exciting. This tobacco was delicious in its own dark way when Rattray's was producing this, but the new German concoction leaves much to be desired. I have smoked this fresh out of the tin, and after drying it out a bit, and I am not sure which is worse. This baccy is lacking in flavor and depth, and becomes astringent as you work your way down the bowl. I have smoked this in a Ser Jacopo, a Ferndown, a Caminetto, a Larsen, a Design Berlin, all to no avail. My present tin has just found its way into the backyard recycling bin! This tobacco has lost its way, its recipe has strayed far from the original, and I do not recommend this. There are many far better flakes available today, the majority of which are more reasonably priced than this one. Experiment elsewhere, and you will be more greatly rewarded.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Sylvian	08/04/2008	Medium to Strong	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable
Dark Virginia, Black Cavendish and a pinch of Perique - that's what the manufacturer says about the ingredients, and the result is very impressive. The tin aroma was really one of a kind, and like mentioned by some reviewers, Marlin Flake smells almost edible. Without any significant difference in nicotine content from Old Gowrie or Hal O'The Wynd, this delicious flake is richer and fuller in taste that OG. The added Cavendish gives it the heady note reminiscent of rich and sweet red wine. Four stars for the top quality, but one star away for too little tobacco in the tin. Doctor, is that the yellow color of the tin that makes me so greedy?
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BriarChef	07/16/2008	Medium	None detected	Medium	Pleasant
This review is based on the tinned version from 2000, and the bulk from 2004. It does benefit from aging, thorough air time and full rub out. Gold Standard Virginia Flake. For some reason the word "crusty" comes to mind...as in San Francisco sourdough bread with some unsalted butter and a drizzle of honey. As they say in wine circles: "Right Bodacious".
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Dubinthedam	04/13/2008	Strong	Mild to Medium	Full	Tolerable
I like the presentation in the tin, one giant flake, I love it's spiciness, needs some drying, it tastes as if there is some perique in the blend, but I don't think so. Dark, sweet, figs, rich, musty, spicey...with a nice gentle sourness there too...a great VA.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
tonyg	04/13/2008	Medium	Mild	Medium	Tolerable
What was at one time, I believe, a straight Virginia blend, now contains perique and cavendish. What was once a great tobacco is now just an ordinary good blend with too much competition in its class. Readers should take note that the ratings for this blend have gone down over the past several years. If you're looking for a great straight Virginia, try Full Virginia Flake. If you want a basic Vaper, try Luxury Bullseye Flake.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
loosewatches	02/14/2008	Medium	None detected	Full	Very Pleasant
Yet another update, my last, I promise. I'm not one to change my mind often. Wait a minute, maybe I am. Anyway, I don't like too many updates but, K&K just updated their website, and for what it's worth, I quote.... RATTRAY?S - BRITISH LINE MARLIN FLAKE Dieser dunkle Flake setzt sich zusammen aus Dark Virginia, tiefschwarzem Cavendish und einem Hauch Perique. The words in question need no translation but here's one anyway: This dark flake is made up of Dark Virginia, deep black Cavendish and a breath of Perique. I have a tin of Marlin Flake on order, just because I really don't remember tasting any Perique in there, and I know I never tasted vanilla. We'll see. I hope I don't come off snooty by posting this, as I have never once, in all my life, actually snooted. By the way, I enjoy Mo's reviews quite a bit, and in no way intend to offend. Anyone. Unless they want to be. (Offended, that is). Happy smoke. p.s. Don't even ask about Hal O' the Wynd. (Kentucky and perique, too. Actually, almost all the Rattray pure Virginias aren't). Another update,- regarding blend content. I did some research at one of my favorite German language tobacco sites, daft.de .There's a wealth of information on all things tobacco there. One thing you won't find there, I don't think, is this importer's descriptive. http://www.daft.de/downloads/oesterreichischer_tabak.pdf I add this only to try to be informative, I'm not endorsing anyone here... But there's that ingredient list again..VA/CAV/PER. aye aye aye. --Update-- I'm removing a star, because the cans I've bought recently were sharp (the tobacco inside, not the cans themselves) and bitey. It seems the K and K has indeed filled some of the old 'blended in Perth' cans with their concoction, and it just isn't the same. As for the stickers on the can stating the blend includes things unvirginia, go figure. . . Still leaving it 3 stars for what it was, and may someday again be.(insert weepy violin music) ----------------------------------- Earlier. . . . . I live in Austria, where this is both hard to find, and not the biggest seller. So, I've had both the 'blended for' and the 'blended by Charles Rattray at Perth' versions. I like them both equally and actually have found more variation from can to can as apposed to blender and country. That said, I have to say my tongue and nose have always been a little supicious about the ingredients of this blend. 'Straight virginia'? they ask. hmmm maybe some dark stoved to boot. Well, the last 100 gram can I bought had a little surprise on the bottom. A sticker, in German.. It listed this as Marlin Flake, a Virginia with both, get this-- Black Cav. and Perique. I laughed. Then I went back and bought another tin and there was the same sticker on the bottom, go figure. Anyway, I think this is best when mixed 50-50 with Black Mallory. Mix it one bowl at a time. I tried premixing about 50 grams and it turned into a bitter mess.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Quoll	02/14/2008	Very Mild	None detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant
I had high hopes of this. I have smoked Old Gowrie and enjoyed it, if finding it a little too mild for me. I was disappointed, to say the least. The tin presentation is very promising. Lovely rough flakes with that earthy hay/grass/peat note that Rattray's are so good at. A bit too moist, but a rough rub produces a good pack. Lighting was a little tricky but it burns well once it's going. But the smoking experience for me was completely lacking. Hot and sharp, no discernible flavour - certainly none of that mature Virginia I was expecting. Also low nicotine, though I understand this is supposed to be a bit stronger than OG. Not horrible, but lacking, bland and tasteless. The absence of taste, body and strength also had me tugging at it to get something out of it, leading to too much heat and bite. Not one I shall be buying again. One star.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Pipe-arazzo	12/11/2007	Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant
I smoked this years ago and remember really liking it, hence I bought another tin and put it away. I don't know exactly how old it was, since they don't date-stamp the tins. At least 2 1/2 years. I smoked a 100g tin of this over three and a half months, and got roughly 30 smokes out of it. Not a very good value money-wise but not horrible. At first, it was harsh. Too wet for sure and if I dried it out it seemed to lose all its flavor. So I "mellowed" it for a couple of months. It improved, but the dominant flavor was the vanilla cavendish. It burned and packed easily. Not enough perique to make much of a presence, nor to irritate my allergies very much. Good but not great. Mo--check out "loosewatches" review below, among others. I definitely tasted vanilla flavoring.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
TeeBee	11/10/2007	Medium	Very Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant
When first opening the tin I felt an urge to chew this stuff; sweet raisins. Very nice. Rather strong with a subtle sweetness
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
mparker	11/09/2007	Medium	None detected	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable
My tin is the tall soup can format, and dates to the late 80's or early 90's, I can't really remember now. I've been saving this last tin for years, and finally opened it in 2007 because the tin was beginning to bulge precariously and I didn't want it to risk losing the tobacco. Needless to say this is pretty well-aged stuff, with no bite whatsoever. Upon opening, the tobacco was at a perfect moisture level with no need to dry it out as some other reviewers have mentioned. The tobacco was almost completely black, with a light speckling of brownish bits hither and yon. The flavor is deep and rich, heavy with notes of chocolate, plum jam and molasses, with lighter notes of caramel and honey and a hint of gingery sourness (perique I suspect). I smoke this in a meerschaum which I find tends to lighten the flavor, and I suspect that if it's this dark and moody in a meer it's probably too much for a briar. I may snag another tin and only age it for a decade, and see how it turns out. It's great stuff, and easily my favorite virginia, and yes that includes my early 90's christmas cheers which have aged well but still can't compare to this marvel.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Ads	08/29/2007	Medium	None detected	Full	Pleasant

Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Xeneize	08/10/2007	Strong	None detected	Medium to Full	Strong
Little I can add to praise this blend. Like others have said, this is better off left out to dry for a while before consuming. If you do this, it's hard to find a more pleasant experience. MF delights me from the first to the last puff with an increasing strength that keeps my palate awake. To me, this is the main difference compared to Old Gowrie, which stays pretty much the same from top to bottom. Most people find HoTW stronger than Marlin Flake, but I only find it sharper. To me, the strength rank is: 1) MF; 2) HoTW; 3) OG.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Semois	07/02/2007	Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium	Tolerable
The tobacco is far too moist packed. You have to let it dry out before having it burn well. But if you do so, some of the aroma disappears and I am disappointed of what is left. When you try to smoke it before it has dried out, a rather "filthy" taste remains in mouth and nose. I thougt Marlin Flake would have been a tobacco a bit similar to Golden Sliced (Orlik) - a tobacco that remains a standard to me - since it's based on pure Virginia. But it lacks completely this purity. So.... not recommended.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
hagen	06/13/2007	Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable
06.13.2007. having now become better acquainted with the wonderful virginia tobaccos from sam gawith, these german/danish tobaccos pale in comparison. they almost appear like goopy aromatics. downgraded one star. 05.14.2007. not a bad dark semi-stoved virginia, just not that interesting. somewhat sweet in the german-danish sense. very malty. may work well as a beginners virginia. none of the rattray's virginia tobaccos have remained unchanged during the kohlhase & kopp period, it seems. and actually, for the most part they're made by orlik. the one that has changed the least must be hotw. roasting old gowrie saved that tobacco. i may try the same cure for marlin flake. at present, i find it rather sad to smoke, remembering the glory it was.
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
Flyboy	05/26/2007	Very Mild	Extremely Mild	Very Mild	Tolerable
A good quality tobak for what it is...straight VA`s. Seems I have to puff too hard to get any satisfaction and it can tend to bite when pushing the envelope. This tin is 2 yrs old....the remaining 2 should last for the next 10 yrs.
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puro66	05/16/2007	Mild to Medium	None detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant
I've been smoking pipes for over twenty years but alas never tasted the famed Rattrays when they were made in Perth. So my experience has only been in the post-Perth age. Marlin Flake was a fairly regular go to tobacco for me in the 1990's. I always enjoyed it in my rotation. Around 2000 I moved away from it, no particular reason, I just did. Last year I decided to revisit it and picked up a 50gr. tin. The first bowl left me feeling well it's ok but... By the second and third bowl I began to rediscover an old friend. Has it changed ever so slightly over the years, probably. But I'm now three tins later and happy with my renewed relationship. This blend has been heavily reviewed and some seem irritated that it has received so many accolades. Perhaps it gets high marks for some very simple reasons. It's a tasty virginia with no bite, easy to pack and always reliable. New and old pipe smokers alike can enjoy it!
Reviewed By:	Date:	Strength:	Flavoring:	Taste:	Room Note:	Recommendation:
drainpipe	04/16/2007	Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

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