Samuel Gawith Grousemoor

In search of a different experience, I bought this tin. I got one.

Grousemoor is unlike anything I have ever put into a pipe - and I immediately declare myself shockingly impressed. The idea of lemongrass in a pipe should have me running for the hills with my tail between my legs, but hoping for a new aromatic tobacco to add to the stable, I have hit upon an absolute winner. I understand that not everyone likes Lakeland style tobaccos, and I would be the first to name myself in that number - I don't enjoy the odd, cloying, pipe-ghosting sicklyness that many identify. If you are similarly inclined, don't let this put you off! The tin note is lemony, floral, citrussy and with a whiff of that lakeland oddness in the background but to the match, I can't detect it.

This is one of the best aromatics I have ever had. It has a quality and taste profile that doesn't tire my palate and is a pleasure to smoke. It is really addictive as every time I tapped out the fine ash from one pipe, I immediately wanted to pick up another to continue this intriguing journey with this cool-burning, spring-summer tasting blend. There is something special and enduring about this longstanding blend that once tried, certainly can't be forgotten, and has the potential to reach greatness when I look back on the myriad bowls that I have smoked over the last thirty years. I know it is easy to exaggerate and to stray into hyperbole when you find something you like, but like or loathe, this is genuinely unique and should be experienced at least once in your pipe odyssey. It is fresh and lively - not sherbetty like Cube, or chemical-laden such as can be the case with heavily cased aromatic goop-monsters, but infused with a unique and light floral experience that can only be experienced and not described. Excellent quality tobacco.

I do give you a significant caveat - this is a blend that ghosts. Many, if not most warn of that, but I failed to listen, and I foolishly went ahead with smoking it in a much loved pipe that if ghosted, I would be really sad. My next bowl of latakia in the pipe carried none of the overtones that others have found, so I pressed ahead with more. Unfortunately, it ghosts. It REALLY ghosts. I now have an ex-Latakia pipe that is given over to Grousemoor. If I didn't love it, it would be a disaster.

Thankfully, I do. If you are less certain, get yourself a cob and dedicate it to this fine, fine blend. I doubt you will regret it.

I had read the reviews, who hasn't? I noted the love or hate people were giving it. Well on opening the can, overpowering smell of flora. But stunning brightly colored tobacco. Lovely packaging. First smoke, super strong flavoring, but creamy smoke. Second and consecutive smokes, super smooth and yummy. This is addictive, like others I am lusting after it and can taste it just by thinking of it. Often it calls my name and I cannot resist. Strangely tastes like a green tea Oral-B toothpaste that is available here in Hong Kong. Thats a good thing, if a slightly acquired taste. Will I buy more - YES, I am addicted. Its 200 years old for a reason. Unique and recommended.

What devilry is this? People actually enjoy smoking this absurd concotion? From wence did it come? Who, apart from the most insane scientist from the most unintelligebly absurd multiverses from rick & morty would think off making this hellish blend? People enjoy this? Do those people also enjoy eating pure soap? Perhaps they make little plates with their favourite soaps and eat them on crackers, like normal people do with cheese.

All off these comparisons off lakelands to soap was far more accurate than I could've possibly imagined. It even had the same bitter aftertaste. If there is great Virginia beneath this topping than there will never be any way for anyone to know.

Or so I thought.

This original impression thankfully did not persuade me to throw it away. I kept the tobacco in a jar. This is Samuel Gawith, my most trusted tobacco companion. They're the creators off the perfect English Blend, skiff mixture. The crestors off the only tolerable cherry blend I've ever smoked. 1792. Black XX. Their blends are not to be tossed.

Perhaps I could dilute it with other tobacco to make it smokeable, or make a potpurri out of it. The topping had an interesting citrusy aspect that I could see working as a bright VA enhancing flavour. The room note was mesmerizing.

I tried it again in a few weeks. God awful, I thought. I didn't dry it out properly. I was smoking bitter steam carrying soap flavour. Tobacco was completely subdued and impossible to discern.

Then is when I decided to dry it out - COMPLETELY. I left it out on plates for several days and put silica gel bags in the tobacco (they suck up moisture).

After 3 days I tried smoking this ridicolously dry tobacco. This was like, fall apart at the slightest touch dry. The pack was essentially a gravity pack as the slightest touch with the tamper would make the tobacco crumble. I expected the smoke to be harsher than the worlds worst cigarette. Any other expectation from tobacco this dry would be unreasonable. This was merely a test to see how much off the topping had remained.

To my great surprise, what revealed itself was the most wonderful bright VA I had ever had the pleasure off smoking. VA this dry should not be able to taste this rich, sweet and wonderful! Citrusy sweetness at the core off the flavour, mmm.... Sublime. And the topping... the distinctive lemongrass taste and aroma was there, but the soapy bitterness was gone. It was now a perfect condinement to the natural, tangy, citrus VA taste previously subdued.

I was now suddenly craving the taste off that lemongrass topping.

I immediately ordered a new tin. Tried it fresh. Almost as terrible as I remembered. I did the same drying out process, but a bit shorter and without silica gel.

It is now sublime, god-like. The topping perfectly accentuates the yummiest notes off the VA.

After it had been in it's jar with some 65% boveda baga to rehydrate, it was even better. But I still recommend this to be a dryer smoke than most, imo dry grousemoor improves the balance between the topping and natural tobacco flavour. If it is as moist as you'd usually want tobacco to be, the topping goes in a more soapy direction and the natural VA taste seems to get more subdued... My guess is that it has something to do with how steam from the moisture in the tobacco carries the flavours.

NOT recommended to smoke straight out off the tin. Either do what I did or dillute it with another bright VA. Although I doubt you will be able to find another bright VA as wonderful as this.

Had it arrived in the dried out state it would be an easy 4 stars.

On first opening the tin I got suckered in by the strong flavoring, started craving it, and quickly got burnt out by how strong and omni-present it is. Difficult to describe the flavoring itself- something in common with lemongrass, sure. Likely to inspire a love-hate reaction with most.

So, it sat on the shelf for a while, and the next time I smoked it, thanks to the poor seals on Sam Gawith tins once opened, it had dried out to bone-dry status, although it didn't become powdery.

OK, so once the flavoring has evaporated and the real tobacco flavor is exposed, Grousemoor is revealed to be superb! The tobacco itself is some of the best golden virginia I have smoked. Buttery and delicious. The flavoring is still there, but no longer overwhelming, so one can enjoy what it brings without getting kicked in the teeth by it.

Although I generally prefer to smoke SG tobaccos right from the tin (have learned the tricks to deal with high moisture content I suppose), this one is best smoked very dry. I get the feeling that back in the day when it was first created, it was likely smoked this way. Not man enough I guess to deal with the flavoring if not dried out completely, and besides, why miss out on the wonderful tobak flavor that it obscures?

Just a great smoke for springtime/early summer. Two stars at wet or normal moisture levels, four stars when bone-dry, so I will give it three as a compromise. Not something I smoke every day, but I love it. So nice to experience these traditional flavors on a base of the best.

This tobacco is the reason I try out new blends in a corn cob. The other reviewers who noted the overwelming perfumey taste weren't joking. This is the tobacco version of a wino drinking your grandmother's perfume to get a buzz.

In the pouch it smelled wonderful. Notes of tea and herbs, but once you load your pipe and put flame to tobacco, look out! My wife thought it smelled great, but couldn't smell the over powering perfume. Have you ever accidentaly walked by your wife with your mouth open right after she sprayed on perfumed? That would be preferable to smoking Grousemoor. What was even worse was for the next month, no matter how often I cleaned that pipe, every time I smoked anything in it all I could taste was cheap perfume.

If you care for you pipes at all please avoid Grousemoor.

First let me say right from the start; this is one superb smoke! Always intrigued by the love-it-or-hate-it reviews, I finally decided to try this but it was out of stock for months here in the USA. Fortunately it has resurfaced and I ordered 2 tins.

This is the most "blonde" colored tobacco I have ever seen, like sunshine in a tin. For some reason my first thought was that of a goddess from Greek mythology, ala Jason And The Argonauts! Perhaps it was the all ribbon cut that looked liked golden curls of hair. I was surprised at the subtlety of the tin note; primarily lemon and other, non-descript fruit essences. No Lakeland aroma or flowers to my nose (think Gawith-Hoggarth). Considering the freshness of the tobacco, it loaded and lit quite easily; maintaining the smoke throughout the bowl with a few relights. It smoked clean and dry to the heel with a light grey ash residue and no dottle. Can smoke a tad hot, but there was no tongue bite at all - even with fast puffing. It didn't burn too quickly either; for example as compared to Germain's ribbon cut Plumcake. I might add that the pre-draw light tasted of a superior manufacturer's production of a hard lemon candy sucker. The overall taste sensation was the same, but subtle, and mixed with a background of sweet honey/vanilla, also subtle. Overall almost biscuit like with a slight incense-like aftertaste similar to Germain's Plumcake. It was the creamiest of smokes I have ever had. There was plenty of tobacco flavor and a good mouth feel with this. I usually find straight Virginias too vapid with regard to mouth feel; I'm sure the casings have added to the experience for a fuller smoke.

In no way did this taste Lakeland in the traditional sense or like some of the previous reviewers' comments of perfume laden grannies underwear! Unless they changed the formulation, there was none of that to my sense of taste or smell.

This can serve as an everyday smoke and will do so for me, so I better had snag a few more tins. 5 stars.

First Impressions - on opening the tin, the floral topnote is almost overwhelming, and I thought I would not like this tobacco. A couple of pipes changed my mind. The name suggests Scotland, but this is NOT a Scottish blend, rather a unique "Lakeland" blend from the English Lake District. The tobacco is uniform, fine cut and quite damp (humidity 70%+). The taste is neutral rather than sweet, which means it hasn't been "over-Cavendished" if that's a word. The first few puffs confirmed the perfumy topnote, which apparently comes from lemongrass; there is an almost soapy quality which recalls Lemon Verbena more than the eastern lemongrass.

After a couple of lights, my pipe (Carey Magic Inch) burns smoothly to the bottom. After the first few puffs, the lemony topnote is no longer offensive, but delightful, and delightfully different. About half-way through, a butterscotch aroma becomes prominent. The last part of the pipe loses some of its aroma, but remains sweet and smooth.

There is very little tongue bite (much less than some Dutch Cavendishes); I am not sure of the nicotine content as I was taking nicotine lozenges at the time, but I suspect the lightness of the smoke conceals a moderate nicotine kick. This tobacco is gentle enough for an all-day smoke, although I suspect the flavour would pall after a while.

After 3 pipes I really like it. As I say, I would not want to smoke only this blend all day (I like variety in any case), but it is a very fine tobacco. It grows on me! After one pipe I would have given it only 3 stars - just another Cavendish; but after 3 pipes I think it has something unique to offer, which rates 4 stars in my book.

Equally good for the beginner and the experienced smoker, this is a great tobacco to contrast with your usual smoke. Four stars for a unique blend.

P.S. This blend is positively addictive! I have four other fine blends in my humidor, and I keep coming back to this one. You'll either love it or hate it.

PPS. I love this lemongrass topnote so much, I bought some lemongrass essential oil today to ad to my "shitmix" of Syrian & Virgina Bright until I get to my tobacconist Monday....

Never write a review after first impressions! Did usual S.G. ritual-open tin,fluff up, let stand 3 days lid off. Tried first pipe- hated it,burnt paper doused in perfume. Put aside 3 more days, lid off, at least it made a good air freshener. Tried again, now 6 days, lid off. Wow , what a difference. Golden Glow on steroids! Not being an Aro smoker, took me a while to come to terms with the floral taste,but soon became intrigued with the duel going on between the floral and the tobacco taste. Unlike other Aros there is a lovely earthy, malty Virginia taste under the floral and it fights to the top from mid pipe on.

(later)I should have remembered my advice to self : beware of bright yellow tobacco! This tends to burn my delicate tongue, it may not do it to you.

Further update: Due to above mentioned tongue bite, and not being able to tolerate the perfume, but still finding it an intriguing tobacco, I mixed 50g tin with Best Brown Flake- rubbed out. I started with 1 to 1 but have added 25% more FBBV. This is now amazing and been smoking it daily for months now, rotating with Skiff cut with the other 75% BBF to tame it a bit.(see Skiff review)

This stuff tastes just awful to me. The topping is way over the top. It just seemed to gag me every time and as if that wasn't enough, it left a ghost on my pallet that made everything I ate, drank or smoke less pleasurable. I gave it about six bowls before passing it on to a forum buddy who likes it.

It is for him and Sam Gawith I give this 2 stars. For me it is not recommendable.