Samuel Gawith Commonwealth Mixture

wonderful latakia...great balance...good taste...i like non aromatics and aromatics so my collection of 105 blends is a mix bag of brands and mixes...this blend is excellent!!!! dont pass on this one

I like the sweet-savoury balance here, which is IMO slightly more tilted towards the sweet, i.e. towards the Virginias. This lacks Orientals, so it's not a conventional English blend in my book. If, like me, you're predominantly a VA smoker who craves Latakia every so often, you'll get the best of both worlds from CM. For me this is a rich, creamy smoke with an adequate amount of body and strength... after a heavy meal of red meat, you could do a lot worse than a glass of peaty Scotch, somewhere to put your feet up, and a nice big fat bowl of this tobacco.

(sorry for the long review, but I always try to be as specific as possible)

The first impressions and first smoke:

I don’t know how old this tin is, because the sticker with the code is not on my tin (and this is not the first time a Sam. Gaw. tin doesn’t have the sticker on. I guess it falls off if it’s not placed correctly, and that’s something Sam. Gaw should take into consideration, especially for the FvF, where age matters a lot. they should print it on the label or find a better solution imho).

I guess there’s a particular scent to Samuel Gawith English blends... I find this same scent in Perfection mostly, but to a little extent in Squadron Leader and now in Commonwealth Mixture too. I opened the tin and I was expecting to be hit be a very smoky latakia, but it’s not very smoky, it’s sweet and smoky. I took some tobacco out and diffused/scattered it to allow its smell to be released, but nothing changed much. So, not very strong in smell as one would expect from a heavy latakia blend.

The color is mostly black and dark virginia. The ribbons are of a medium to small size, unequal, but that doesn’t affect the packing at all. In fact, it packs up easily (like any other ribbon cut).

A bit on the dry side when I opened the tin, so I put it right in a hermetically sealed jar.

First light, one match. A sweet, smoky and creamy taste invaded my mouth from the first sips. First thing I noticed was the sweet and grassy virginia, followed by a bit of smokiness from the latakia.

Second light, second match. Same taste as with the first smokes, maybe a bit smokier. There’s a little spicy, peppery note in it, which is completed by a sweetness from the virginia (a very good virginia it seems!) and woody smokiness from the latakia. I’m surprised! Thinking of a blend that only has virginia and latakia, you’d expect this to be rather monotone and simple, giving a strong latakia taste, but it’s not so. It’s more complex than that, and it doesn’t bother me that much, I actually enjoy it (although I was expecting and wanted my mouth to be filled with a very smoky taste).

It burns very well, no need of relights.

Final impressions:

Well, I’m at my last 2-3 bowls, so I thought I should make a final review, so I’ll grab my Hilson 974 (bent bulldog) and pack it up.

First of, I want to say that this has become pretty much my daily smoke. While I did smoke some Presbyterian since I opened the tin of Commonwealth, 90% of the time I smoked Commonwealth. In the morning, during the day or at night. Perfect for any time of the day.

So, like I do with all my opened tins, I put my tobacco in hermetically sealed jars to keep the tobacco at the same humidity. Another reason is that the scent is being kept better in these jars. If I keep a tobacco in its original tin for more than a month, it will dry fast and loose its scent, especially at the type of tins that Sam. Gaw. has.

I opened the jar and took a deep breath, smelling the tobacco... like I said when I first opened the tin, I guess all these Samuel Gawith English Blends have a particular scent. It’s true. I’ve found it in Perfection, in Squadron Leader and now in Commonwealth. But this is not a bad thing, I actually enjoy it. You definitely detect the latakia smell in this one, but also virginia and that “Samuel Gawith scent”. This time, I find it more smoky but also sweet. Yeah, smoky and sweet tin note.

Took out the tobacco and, well, obviously the color didn’t change but... I wouldn’t call this a ribbon cut. It’s too small to be called a ribbon. I don’t know.. crimp cut? granulated cut? Doesn’t matter. Just not the typical long ribbon. Nevertheless, packs excelent!!!

First light/false light, one match. Latakia comes out proudly, not as sweet as it used to be at first, but smokier this time (which is a good thing for me). So, different from the first smokes I’ve had, when virginia first came out, this time it was a nice, smoky latakia.

Second light, second match. Again, smoky latakia comes first, and a bit of peppery spice (just a bit). Puff, puff, puff, tamp... ok, let’s see. Yeah, woody smokiness, a liiitlle virginia, not as sweet as it was at first and, curiously, not like I felt it most of the times. I thought that, for a Virginia/Latakia blend, this wasn’t smoky enough, it was sweeter than I expected, so I started questioning my latakia experience. I thought that after smoking too many latakia based blends, I got too used to the taste of latakia and didn’t seem as smoky as I detected in the past in other blends. I thought that for me, latakia just isn’t smoky enough anymore. Well, curiously, now it is. My taste buds going crazy? I don’t know. The thing is though, in order to get an even smokier experience, after I get to the middle of the bowl, it leave it alone for a few hours. Sometimes I leave it like that if I don’t have time to finish the bowl and get back to it the next day (some people don’t recommend that. why the hell not?! it’s great!). The experience is sublime, the taste is smokier and for me, better. Heavier in taste.

But now, lets continue.... halfway to the bowl, it became a bit sweeter, but still woody and smoky. Very nice combination of flavours, even though I prefer it smokier. The bowl got a bit warm, but the smoke is always cool, creamy, thick. And I can say again what I said at the first smokes: “Thinking of a blend that only has virginia and latakia, you’d expect this to be rather monotone and simple, giving a strong latakia taste, but it’s not so. It’s more complex than that, and it doesn’t bother me that much, I actually enjoy it (although I was expecting and wanted my mouth to be filled with a very smoky taste).”

This is a blend that I usually smoke almost to the bottom of the bowl, leaving no tobacco “alive”. I just enjoy it so much! It’s not a lat-bomb, it’s not even full bodied like Nightcap or Artisan’s Blend, but damn it’s good! For me, an all day smoke!

It burns very well, no need of relights. Leaves a very nice gray-white ash and very little dottle or moisture.

I would definitely recommend this to any latakia lover.

Pipes used: Savinelli Trevi 320 KS (author shape), Savinelli Tevere 315 KS (prince shape), Butz Choquin Castel 1009 (pot shape), Jean-Claude (prince shape), Hilson 974 (bent bulldog)

Like many other truly ingenious inventions, Commonwealth Mixture is amazingly simple. No fancy mixology, no weird combinations. Just take half top-notch Latakia and half very good Virginia, that's all. The result is a smoke so dense and oily it feels almost like a liquid that you rather drink than smoke. Were the tobaccos of a lower quality, that extra density might well become overwhelming and unpleasant. That's not the case here, however. Both Latakia and Virginia are stellar and make together a true smoking delight.

Commonwealth is in no way a highly nicotinized mixture, it's rather in the "Mild to Medium" range. That's why Samuel Gawith's warning of "Full Strength Mixture" on the tin looks quite an exaggeration. If they mean, though, not Nicotine strength but flavour fullness, then they are right: this weed is really full.

Highly Recommended.

A very enjoyable smoke straight out of the tin. I'm a fan of Latakia so this 50/50 suits me well, but certainly wont be for those who don't like Latakia.

Strong dominating Latakia hits as soon as I open the tin, smoky, earthy, and I get some almost oaky barrel notes, maybe even a hint of whisky, smells great. The first light is good and the flavor takes off from the aroma, the Virginia carrying the Latakia. It's a good cut, packs and burns well. I've heard some people complain of tongue bite the first few bowls, and they recommend some aging to combat this, but from my experience I don't find this a problem, for me it's a very enjoyable smoke straight from the tin. I could agree with others that some Perique could work with this, but it is a great smoke as is, could be really interesting with a bit of whisky stave in it, a la FM Cellar.

Overall I very much enjoy SG Commonwealth, and would recommend it to English and Latakia lovers as a must try.

My favourite Latakia now days.I'll smoke it as regular daily blend(around 5-6 bowls a day).Steamed Virginias keeps it intresting and the Cyprian Latakia gives the nice rich smokiness and strong aroma-as you would imagine a blend with 50% steamed Virginia and 50% Latakia would be dull but I haven't notice such a thing.There's people who'll say that it's one dimensional mixture but it is not.I just bought 3 more tins.No bite,cool smoke with fine Grey ash in the end as Gawith's blends usually has.

On the back of all that I have heard about the monochromatic nature of this tobacco, I expected it to be somewhat dull.

For what it's worth, I agree that it is monochromatic but neither dull nor monotonous. After every bowl I had the same feeling - "Hmm, that was pretty straightforward. No real highs or lows. Same at the start as at the finish".

I still managed to polish off 50g in less than a fortnight.

Tasty, latakia, relaxing. I liked it a lot.

UPDATE (2016-09-05): Smoking from a stash dated May 2010 (more than six years old). Some say high Latakia blends don't improve much with age, but this stuff is so smooth and tasty I had to give an update. I was jonesing for some big Latakia and i remembered "Hey, don't I have some Commonwealth in my cabinet?" Yup. A pound of it in jars plus a couple tins. Had to crack one open tonight, and so happy I did! It's probably been three or four years since I had it and it's better than I remembered! Strong flavor, a bit tangy on the retrohale, but still surprisingly complex for a blend with only two weeds in it!

ORIGINAL (2009-12-13): Your tastebuds will revolt. They will picket, they'll throw rocks, they'll beg for mercy.

"The Latakia? You can't handle the Latakia!"

If you think you know what a Latakia slap feels like, you ain't seen nothin' yet!

But perhaps I exaggerate. Or not. Your tongue will wonder what it did to make you treat it like this. Then it'll beg for more.

"Come on Baby, make it hurt so good!"

The label says "Full Strength Mixture." No, 'ya think???

Gotta tell you, I don't often write a tobacco review after only one bowl, but this one's a no-brainer. If you like Latakia, GET SOME OF THIS! (sorry, didn't mean to shout...)

Starts off smooth, ends up smooth. Starts off rich, ends up richer. Starts off creamy, ends with an explosion of flavor. Starts off full, ends up FULL. Don't confuse strong flavors with harshness. The quality of the Latakia is amazing, and of course building on a foundation of SG Virginias guarantees the building will stand strong. No way you're gonna forget there's a pipe in your maw.

Gotta order more...gotta order more...gotta order more...

After many recent Virginia-letdowns, i decided to opt for sampling something quite different during my last visit to my local tobacco specialist. A sweet, woody, and cool jar aroma led me to try this - and I have not regretted it!

The ribbons are rather long, but presented no difficulty in packing, lot and stays lit easily.

What struck me as rather peculiar about this smoke, is it delivers a thick, cool smoke, but no overwhelming flavours. It delivers a slightly warming spice and cool woodiness, but impressed immensely with its aftertaste! It lingers on the tongue, and is impeccable throughout its stay, with delicious, sweet woody spices and vanillin, cool liquorice, and a slight fruity sweetness. Most prevalent is its woodiness. Not the least sour or ashy (bonfire-ish) as some Latakia blends tend to be. Peculiar and remarkable - this blend is really delicious!