Samuel Gawith Grousemoor

my first experience with a lakeland . I was surprised on opening the tin the aroma was quite strong but not as floral as others have noted. i had read the reviews of fellow pipesters and expected a tuna hot dog but instead found a cool burning easy tobacco but did not impress or dissapoint someone said a april smoke i agree clean and dry with white ash and liked it better toward the bottom of the bowl not my every day smoke but interesting and a nice change with a blend that has history and mystery

Tin: What immediately comes to mind is a nice, pleasant caramel popcorn scent, exactly like syrup, not perfumy at all. After a couple of days, maybe a very light floral scent is detectable, but nice and pleasant. Mostly light brown to dark blonde, long ribbon cut, tightly enmeshed and packed together, reminding me of Dunhill's Standard Mixture. It is dry to supple and packed in a plain white wax paper.

Packing & Lighting: Packed until it draws with a slight resistance. Not being moist, GM needs one match to burn down to a fine ash.

Taste & Aroma: Initially, harsh, burning as hot as a blast furnace, and bitey. Bottom is mild burnt popcorn. A fast-burning blend, a bowl doesn't last long. Latterly, towards the end of the tin, the tobacco had dried out and only then would I desribe it as scented, to the extent of likening it to light hair spray and could even understand the previously mentioned "urinal cake", but nowhere near the realm of Half and Half.

GM does produce moisture and does not leave the pipe particularly clean.

Nicotine: Medium, but the effects persist

Room Note: Mild burnt popcorn, tolerable

Overall: Although GM was sampled under very windy conditions, subsequent smoking indoors provided confirmation. At least initially, GM does not seem perfumy at all, having one of the most pleasant of all tin aromas; the taste, aroma, and room note have nothing to recommend. Virginia seed, grown in Zimbabwe, is supposed to be a Cadillac of tobacco varietals, like what Jamaica Blue Mountain is to Columbian coffee. In a way, I'm reminded of Orlik's Golden Sliced (red), which promotes a traditional angle and has a very soft floral scent. 2.5 stars, just somewhat recommended.

Concerning the use of chemical additives to blends made in Great Britain, reference "Dating English Tinned Tobacco"; and Meadowfoam Seed Oil(re: Briarabbit) is a natural product.

Lakeland Tour Stop 11

This is the first lakeland I really didn't like at all. I was hesitant to buy it because the description by the other reviewers didn't make me think this would appeal to me. But if you're going to tour the lakeland, it would be a mistake to skip a blend with such history. As to a certain debate about whether you should review a tobacco in a "genre" you don't like, I do like some aromatics or at least borderline ones (i.e., scented flakes, etc.), so the question would be whether this unique kind of aromatic constitutes its own genre. By reviewing it I assume not.

This is unique, no doubt about it. If I have ever called any other Lakeland "soapy," I take it back. This presents flavors and aromas of perfumed, flowery soap both in the tin and in the smoke which will make you forget the soapiness of anything else I've tried from SG or G&H (note: I haven't tried ennerdale). There is some very basic and very light natural tobacco flavor, mind you. It is toasty and grassy, much like some notes I noticed in Kendal Cream Mixture. That part is ok, but again very light and not really notable enough to bring me back even if it weren't for the unpleasantness of the casing.

Though others have not noted this problem, I found with this tobacco that the afteraffects were worse than any other lakeland I've tried, even the nicotene powerhouses. I'm not taking that into account in this review, but it will keep me personally away from this even more in the future.

I agree completely with Jaybee's tuna flavored hot-dog comment, except that for me, this is a Cannon plug-dog. I was really hoping for a Sam Gawith version of Kendal flake or Ennerdale, with Sam's great VA components and a bit of the old floral thing.

Well, this is something entirely different. The tobaccos used are first class, of course, but the topping is (I'm guessing) the same honeydew of Cannon, just Much less heavily applied. The result is pretty good. It's sweet, mild, incensey, but it does bite a little. (A lot in the wrong pipe). This isn't something I'll buy a lot of, because it wasn't what I wanted exactly, but it is a quality scented smoke. I can see this having a very loyal following like some other weirdly flavored tobaccos. (Royal Yacht and Lamb Cake Slices come to mind.)

If you thought about trying Cannon plug, try this first. Even if it's not the same topping, it will give you an idea.... (Just kick it to the 10th power.)

Strangely, I do love a good salmon burger, so maybe I'll try and make me a tunadog. Thanks Jaybee!

Well I...uh..the thing is...well. Friends and acquaintances would tell you that I'm not normally at a loss for words; that is until now. I'm not sure that I have the vocabulary to describe this. My smoking preferences are pretty democratic and the taste of this is not bad, just somehow disjointed...sort of like biting into a hot dog and tasting tuna....Now if you're used to tuna-flavored hot dogs, this wouldn't be such a bad thing. The virginia is top notch, but the flavoring is so strange I can't help but think my tastebuds have gone south. The good thing is, if you ever start to stray from some of your favorites, just have a bowl of this and it will send you right back. This one's on my short list of experiences not to repeat in the near future.....my apologies to those who seem to love this blend. Two stars for historical significance, unusual taste and longevity.

The analogy of Earl Grey Tea is quite an apt description of Grousemoor. This tobacco seems to start as quite a nice Virginia. I was surprised at how mellow the tobacco was, with no tongue bite and very little discernable nicotine content.

I would love to give this tobacco a higher rating, since I am generally quite fond of Samuel Gawith tobaccos. I really believe this to be a high quality aromatic tobacco. The added flavour does mask the tobacco, however. Since I find it hard to develop a real liking for this flavour, however, I cannot rate it higher than 2 stars.

If you are looking for a high quality tobacco with lots of added zest, this may be for you. It is a high quality tobacco-and if you like aromatics, it may be a great favourite. Perhaps a good transition for those wanting to get away from the chemical based American aromatics as well!

If you want pure tobacco enjoyment in your pipe, stick with Samuel Gawith favourites, like Squadron Leader or Full Virginia Flake. They will provide lots of unadulterated flavour.

Grousemoor.21/03/07. Remember back in the seventies there was a saying that if something was really good,then it was "GROUSE" I'm sorry,but I didn't find anything "GROUSE" about this blend! I was bitterly disappointed from the the very first light,and my opinion did not have reason to change along the way to bowl's end. Remember,it's your money and to me there are finer tobacco investment's out there.

This is not a bad blend, if you are looking for a mild change of pace. I detect a mossy flavor, not too sweet. It is not a strong smoke, though. Some bite, and burns wet right out of the tin. Hoping that will cange in the coming days/weeks. Certainly not a bad smoke, but I can't say there was anything superb about it.

As I puffed away on my churchwarden, I imagined a damp morning in Britain somewhere, heading out for morning chores with leather work gloves and dirt under my boots.

I foolishly picked Grousemoor up because it looked like the sort of tobacco one might smoke while hiking. I've been trying various blends to find one that will work well in a small pipe while hiking in Alaska. This ain't it! Maybe it has some good qualities, but in spite of the cover showing men wandering the moor, it is NOT a good idea to shove a wad in your hiking pipe and light up. I was badly burned and the taste overpowered me, I tried to puff more lightly but when moving over rough country with my hands full of a stick, a shotgun and a dog that's not very easy. I'm going to come back to it later after I heal. Maybe it would work well in something with a long, long stem.