Samuel Gawith RB Plug

This fine tobacco has received in my opinion, a profoundly bad rap. When I first had it, it was in a pipe that had Old Ironsides, and Balkan Sobranie regularly smoked in it. Those tobaccos proved to be just as jealous as this one.

The topping is fantastic. This is a classic, century old recipe that proves the Gawith greatness. It is elegant, refined, and a bite-free, cool smoke. The flavor is rich, as is the aroma. I cannot compare it to any other tobacco insofar, but a lychee scent is prevalent. The tobaccos are obviously virginias, and the taste is as sweet and aromatic as the room note. I might not smoke this indoors, but eventually the aroma dissipates, and you get much more of the tobacco taste towards the end of the bowl. It does not goop like so many aromatics do, and you're left with a fine, white, DRY ash. This tobacco has become a staple in my collection. My bride enjoys the smell, and unlike all the others I enjoy, this one doesn't turn her off.

This is a classic, brilliantly made tobacco, and it is worth every penny. God bless Gawith.

If you are willing to take the time with a plug, this is a great one to try. Opening the package, I got a strong smell of gingerbread. The plug was easily cut to thin slices using a sharp knife. Rubbing out the slices took some patience though - the tobacco seemed somewhat sticky. I must say that once this tobacco is lit, it stays that way! The smoke was thick and seemed to sitck to things. This is a strong tobacco with a high nicotine content. It has a very sweet flavor, and is one of the few tobaccos I feel as though I could smell while I smoked it. Flavors ranged from sweet to spicy to nothing throughout the bowl. THis is one of my evening favorites.

I am writing one review to cover RB Plug, Cannon Plug, and Flake #7. I am guessing, and can be wrong, that Cannon Plug is a lighter version of RB Plug, and that Flake #7 is the Flake version of one or the other. This is more a description of a method to prepare them for smoking than a normal review. All are an acquired taste, and it took me many months to finally acquire that taste. Initially all three were impossible for me to smoke. All reeked from perfume that was so strong that the perfume transferred to my hands just from handling the tobaccos. I tried a few times to smoke them fresh from the bag, and had to dump them out. The perfume was overpowering the smoke. Since these blends have existed for over 200 years, I was determined to smoke them. I now cut off a chunk that would provide for about 6 small bowls. I leave the chunk in a plastic bag for a week or two. This allows some (but not all) of the perfume to evaporate. I find that I cannot rub out the drier chunks of plugs. So, I chop them into little square pieces, and then I put them into a very small jar. After about another week, they feel very dry, and I can't rub them any finer than they are at this stage. I then give each a twirl in a coffee blender. This transforms them into a decent size to smoke. And, to my surprise, after the coffee blender treatment, they are still very moist although they feel dry to the touch before the treatment. I then let them dry on a piece of paper until they reach my preferred level of moisture. I smoke them in a small meerschaum. Not only would they flavor a briar, but they actually flavor the meerschaum a bit for the next few smokes (not a bad experience). After all of this preparation, they turn into a very interesting and enjoyable smoke. The quality of the Virginias with just a lingering hint of the flavoring provide for a very decent, quality smoke. At the same time, the flavoring produces a very pleasurable and acceptable aroma that is very noticeable while smoking, and that adds to the total experience. Nicotine strength runs around 5-7 for me out of 10. With this preparation, they smoke dry and leave a very fine almost white-gray ash. The room aroma should be very pleasant to anyone in your presence. I really enjoy smoking a few bowls a week in a meer of any of the three blends. It took me decades to acquire a taste for Broccoli, but only a few months to adapt to these blends. The only negative for me is that the taste lingers in my mouth long after the smoke is finished. I will keep at least one of the three around for those special times when these unique blends appeal to me. For now, my choice of the three is the RB Plug.

As an former cigar smoker, I really didn't value aromatic tobaccos before I tried this one. When I first opened the pouch the scent was really strong. First image on my mind was that this smells like an after shave, it was overwhelming. Gradually I got used to it and now I can even enjoy it. I like cutting the plug, which is easy using a sharp knife. This tobacco is worth cutting to small pieces, this is how you can get an even burn. Tobacco lights up easily and the taste is just wonderful from the very beginning. The aroma is strong and very sweet. Although this is a heavily cased aromatic you can still taste the strong tobacco in it. This is why I like it. The taste stays really even from lighting to the last smokes and gives you easily 45 minutes of pleasure when smoking it in a medium size bowl. Yes, it burns slowly. I didn't get any tongue bite, regardless of my smoking habits, what you could discribe an intense one. If you are used to smoke natural virginias and would like to try an aromatic what still tastes like a real tobacco, try this one.

This is a nice stout plug tobacco which is not so far removed from the Irish classics (Mick McQuaid, Yachtsman, PPP) in its character, although it is pure Virginia leaf. The topping is not to my tastes excessive, indeed I find it quite subtle.

It's nice and hard so with a sharp penknife it produces good thin shavings which don't need to be rubbed much to be in perfect condition for smoking. I'm sure many of the criticisms regarding need for many matches with plugs are user error or inexperience. One match or two can see me through a bowl of this, even when it's quite moist.

The flavour is full, tobacco taste with wood and Virginia breadiness. It's not very sweet, there is a tart fruity sourness at times, and a light floral spice to it. It hasn't much development through the bowl, but builds in intensity. Strength is satisfactory and it smokes slow: even in my little Peterson system 317 I had a 45 minute smoke. It burns pretty completely. I don't think it will ghost a pipe much, but the topping is there.

There is a risk of tongue bite and a sore mouth, especially if smoked too much and too hard as I did over the course of a boozy evening... One detractor for me is that I don't find the aftertaste very pleasant, it can be a bit sour and soapy.

All in all, a fairly pleasant smoke. I'd be interested to know the story behind the name. Is it in some way related to Ogdens Readbreast flake?

Long produced and generation-popular Samuel Gawith RB (Red Breast) Plug Pipe Tobacco is an English aromatic blend of dark fired Tanzanian Virginia leaf traditionally topped with floral, woody and spicy flavours. RB plug is with its unique and complex cheviot flavour with hints of gingerbread. Cheviot is used for a Lakeland style taste of sweet, woody and spicy notes.

The plug has a farmyard aroma and smokes smooth and cool. Very similar to the now discontinued Special Flake no4.

The Summary:

Contents - Virginia

Flavouring - Cheviot (Floral, Woody, hint of gingerbread and other spicy notes)

Cut - Plug

Origin - Kendal, England

Tasting Notes:

Strength - Medium

Flavouring - Strong/Aromatic

Taste - Full

Room Note - Strong

A great aromatic, in a british way. Full taste & strenght. Aroma: musk, green underbrush, genuine old soap. (NOT recommend to anyone who is not a fan of scented tobaccos)

RB Plug is my all-time favorite blend. It's really unique and there is no other tobacco that can be compared to it.

The work needed to pack the pipe - cutting off small slices which are then cut into small cubes which are then 'gravity-fed' into the bowl - is also something that makes plug tobaccos stand apart from more 'modern' blends.

The tobacco base is excellent and the Patchouli flavoring is...well, something you either love or loathe, there is no middle ground.

The only thing I can say is: try it; however, maybe in a disposable pipe at first.

You won't be the first one to hate RB plug and neither the last one to love it.

I must admit, I am very undecided on this. The plug is a bit denser than many, but not by much. It isn't easy to get started (no doubt because I leave plugs somewhat chunky) but keeps the light well. The tin smell is gingerbread, but the actual smoke is more like pumpkin spices (cinnamon, ginger, allspice, and a touch of clove) which at first is pleasant and not in anyway overwhelming. Yet about halfway through a bowl, my tongue simply goes numb (1st time that ever happened!), and it pretty much stays that way for several hours. The only pipe that I managed to avoid that with was a gourd calabash. Although interesting, this won't be in the regular rotation!

So, if you like (or think you might like) spiced tobacco, go ahead and give this a try. If not, stay as far away as possible.