Samuel Gawith RB Plug

RB Plug is unlike any other tobacco I've experienced in 30 years. As such, it has to stand or fall on it's own merits, as there are no other tobaccos that one could claim are just like it only better/worse.

This is as dense as any plug tobacco I've ever seen. The tobacco was pressed and steamed so much that the plug resembles s solid block. Looking closely you may find an impression of a leaf that was on the outside of the block here or there, but it looks more like a chunk of chocolate than tobacco.

Finally, the aroma. At my local B&M, a patron who smelled it for the first time gave what I consider to be the perfect description: "It smells like a Grateful Dead concert." The casing is very reminiscent of incense. I won't venture to guess what's in the casing, but suffice it to say that there is a lot of it and it is very distinctive.

I find three things invaluable when I want to smoke RB Plug. The first two are a flat-bottomed, shallow ceramic bowl and a very sharp knife. With a sufficiently sharp knife, you can cut flake-sized pieces of this tobacco off of whatever sized chunk you're working with. The bowl helps in that it will catch any bits of tobacco that work their way loose, set aside each "flake" as you create it, and cut the tobacco into whatever final shape you want for smoking. Personally I try to cut very thin flakes and then I rough them up a bit in my hands. (I say "rough them up" rather than "break them up" because the latter is beyond my abilities.) I make sure I have enough finely chopped tobacco for the top of my bowl, either through tobacco falling away as I cut or from chopping up one of the "flakes". You will probably want to wash your hands after you're done handling the tobacco. The plug is very wet and oily, and your hands will definately take on the aroma of the toppings.

The third implement that you will need is a pipe. I strongly recommend a small bowl for this tobacco. Also, whatever pipe you smoke this in is going to hold the flavor for a while, perhaps forever. Early on, I dedicated a Sasieni prince to this plug and it's been the perfect companion. The bowl is small, perhaps a Dunhill group 2, and it is wider than most bowls of that capacity.

I load the tobacco up in whatever manner suits the flakes I've created. This usually entails a combination of folding and wrapping the flakes until they fill the space inside of the bowl without being packed tightly. (Pack this stuff too tight, and you will not be able to get any air through the pipe.) I then sprinkle the small bits from the bottom of the cutting bowl on top, and tamp them lightly.

This tobacco does not light as easily as most. It's generally a 4 to 6 match affair, and it's one of the reasons that I finally broke down and bought an Old Boy lighter. Even with the lighter the tobacco will require multiple lightings. If you've packed the bowl well the tobacco will stay lit once it's started, but in general I expect a few relights throughout the bowl.

So far, I've described a tobacco that's powerfully cased, oily, difficult to prepare, hard to pack, and hard to light. Why would anyone even bother.

For me, it's worth every bit of trouble or even more. Once it's lit, the tobacco is an amazing experience. It's just the Virginias and the casing, but what a combination.

The Virginias are brightly sweet...one of the sweetest things I've ever tasted...but have absolutely no "cloying" sweetness at all. The tobacco feels dry in the mouth, with the casing being the perfect counter-point for the overwhelming sweetness of the Virginias. Half of the taste is just like the smell, the "Grateful Dead" smell. The other half is the amazing sweetness of the Virginias.

On their own the Virginias would likely be too simple and too sweet. But with the casing added, there are moments when the sweetness is accopmanied by a salty flavor, sometimes a very slight bitterness, and even a bit of smokiness at times. These flavors are fleeting, always returning quickly to the sweetness of the Virginias.

It would not surprise me to find out that most people find this blend abhorent. It's definately a combination that works for me, and it works very well. The tobacco demands to be smoked as slowly as possible, and tongue bite is only moments away if you start puffing hard...but with proper technique (especially breath smoking) this plug rewards me with a wonderful taste that I can experience nowhere else. I find it to be strong and sweet, and a great before-bedtime smoke.

This could never be an all day smoke for me. It's a "special occasion" smoke, for when I have the time to contemplate a bowl and to use all of my skills to maximize the flavor without moving into tongue-bite territory.

RB Plug smokes down to a very fine white ash. If loaded well, no tobacco will remain at the end of the bowl. The pipe will now taste like RB Plug. I wouldn't hazard a guess as to how one could remove this flavor from the bowl.

If you enjoy RB Plug, then I have one further recommendation for you. Occasionally fill up your RB pipe with a straight Virginia or a milder Virginia/Perique blend. The essence of the RB in the bowl will flavor the other tobacco; it's an easy way to experience the "RB taste" without having to go through the trouble of cutting up more RB Plug.

I have three pounds of this in my cellar...certainly more than I'll ever smoke. But this is one tobacco that I simply do not want to be without no matter what happens. If you like RB then chances are you'll love it. If you dislike it, chances are you'll hate it.

I'm giving this three starts based on my assumption that most people would not enjoy this enough to be bothered. For my personal rotation, though, this is definately a four-star smoke.