Samuel Gawith Black XX Twist (Rope)

I had great expectations for this. Tin presentation was an oily, jet-black rope. Much tighter in its wrap than the Brown No. 4 Rope. The smell is similar to that of Brown No. 4, just sharper.

I used a cigar cutter to produce some slices, which I then rubbed out fully. The Black XX lights and burns well, but the predominate taste was pre-smoked Brown No. 4.

I gave this tobacco the "Might try it again, but will not keep it on hand" rating because I still have some left in my tin. I will come back to Black XX and use different approaches: smoking various quantities, leaving the slices intact, etc. Then I'll add to my review.

As it stands now, this is just not that great.

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UPDATE: 8/12/04

Ok, I gave this another try. I kept the slices on the thin side, left them whole, packed with no pressure, and topped off the much smaller bowl with fully rubbed out tobacco to develop some good embers. I just can't get past the dominant pre-smoked flavor. I downgraded this blend to the "Not my cup of tea" rating. Yuck.

I have not been able to stop smoking this since I got it! This is the real smoking experiance, from slicing the rope to the light dry ash it is heaven! Stong as an Ox no holds barred tobacco. I can only compare this to a great cigar in terms of flavor, it reminds me of some of the better Cubans I've sampled.. Smoke this in a small bowl!

Whew! I have tosay this is strong stuffZ! And I like it that way. Smmoth and spicy on the tongue with just a little bit of sweetness chiming in now and then. Very little bite either, even with my enthusiastic puffing. This is what I reach for when on days like today, coffee alone isn't cutting it.

If you've never tried it, give it a whirl. But be warned, this smoke isn't for the faint of heart.

Friends, this is pipe tobacco. Dark, strong and foreboding in the tin. Being my first "rope spun" experience, I loaded up a bowl in a pre-40's Comoy, after shaving generous slices from the coil with a pocketknife. I had chosen to smoke in the company of an old friend, for mortal and medical support. Soon the room was ensconced in a dark fog, which smelled alarmingly like a barn burning down. The leaf was very wet, needing many relights. In a short time I had settled into a slow even draw, which brought peppery puffs rushing onto my palate. There appears to be no casing of any kind, just raw tabac. A thoroughly different experience, to be entered into slowly(and sitting down). As one would guess from the chocolate color of the coil, there is nicotine aplenty. Newbies need not apply!

This comes in a rope of a smaller diameter than the brown rope, and it is black and oily on the outside, but once cut the inside appears a bit more chocolate colored. Not much of a scent unlighted. It is oiler than the brown rope. Quality tobacco, and it obviously is put together well. I cut it into 1/4 inch slices and break it up. Tough to light, but once lit stays lit well. Flavor on lighting is almost a sharp/sweet licorice taste with heavy tobacco underpinning. The nicotine content is high, and by the bottom of a mid-sized bowl I'm done smoking for a while. Rubbed out and mixed with a lighter and sweeter ribbon cut virginia (like Apertif) is a great smoke. Alone this is a bit too strong for anything but a small bowl. It does not seem to leave any significant taste in a pipe. Overall, an unusual and spicy taste. For anyone who is up to trying something "different" and very satisfying, I'd recommend trying it. 8 of 10. - Kelly

You either love it or you hate it. Looks like a dog turd in your tin. Packs a wallop of nicotine. Has a distinct cigarette tobacco flavour, that is uncomplicated and tastes somewhat 'meaty' like a steak. This is surprisingly smooth considering the high nicotine content. The smoke is almost creamy in character. This is something you smoke for the nic hit, not the flavour (although it is not lacking in that department either). Preparing this blend is a real novelty and joy. There are many ways to slice it, and the flavour has its subtle differences when rubbed vs cubed. The room note is strong but didn't linger too long.

3/4 when compared to War Horse Bar, which also has a slightly stronger nic hit and more complexity to its flavour. However, this blend is a better compliment to Scotch whisky.

This is a rope tobacco. Upon opening the tin, I was greeted with 8 ropes of some of the finest Virginia on the market. These ropes are extra thick. Very sturdy. Took some time to rub them out. Actually, a long time of vigorous rubbing due to the extra thickness. Once rubbed out, you can shoot the rope into the bowl and light up. Samuel Gawith outdid themselves with this one. Great tobacco. I just wish Cornell and Diehl would also make Tuggle Hall in an 8 rope tin instead of just their ribbon cut.

In moderation, I love this tobacco. Those first two words need special emphasis. Although it's not quite as strong as its lighter-complexioned brown rope cousins, a large pipe-full of this before at least a couple of meals have been fully digested will tend to make you ill, which is not an ideal state of affairs.

To me, black ropes have a taste which is pretty much incomparable to any other tobacco, even brown ropes. SG's black role also lacks any Lakeland flavouring from what I can tell, so it's also distinct from the flavoured versions of black rope that Gawith and Hoggart sell.

Flavour-wise, we're talking rich and smoky, a bit like a dark-fired Kentucky but sweeter (it is a VA after all). It might seem to strange to describe black rope as sweet but a dried-fruit type of sweetness is definitely there once you get past the initial notes of motor oil and burnt meat (to borrow terms from some of the less favourable reviews below).

Well, it may not be the best looking tobacco, but it is no doubt a good tobacco. Very difficult to prepare, needs to be dried after preparing it. Once you lit, there you go. It burns smooth leaving a lovely white ash. Be prepared for a continuous nicotine rush after ten minutes of smoking. Not bad, but may be somewhat overwhelming. I prefer this one over a long night or may be brown no.4, but in my opinion this one is a bit -just a bit- head of no.4