Samuel Gawith Scotch Cut Mixture

In order to enjoy a blend the most I need to feel what I call "The bond", a sort of connection between me, my pipe and the tobacco. It all begins upon opening the tin, continues after smelling and packing it, and finishes with white ashes at the bottom of the bowl. I can certainly say SCM had that effect on me, and for that I am very pleased. The first half of the bowl gave a smooth and gentle latakia taste, which then turned to a creamy flavour (from the virginias and black cav I guess). It burned amazing and cool, and almost no relights were needed.

There are so many differences between the compoments of scottish mixtures in the market that may confuse even the experienced smoker this blend is an old recipe but not widelly known as other S.Gawith blends.once the tin opens a natural earthy and spicy smell comes out.the blend moisture is high and i recommend some drying time unless you don't mind lighting it every minute.ribbon and coarse cut does not make the packing difficult.while smoking you realize that this blend is easy going and pleasant.virginias are earthy,citrusy and sometimes dark fruits come out.burleys offer lots of spices,nuts and some barbeque sauce notes.the most known cavendishes from S.Gawith offer some creamy notes.last of all latakias pop up rare offering smokey and woodsy notes.generally the flavours combine well and balanced to a nice and natural result.burns slow and cool to almost perfect ash with a few moisture left at the filter.nicotine level is a bit lower than medium and the aftertaste is peppery.room note is almost heavy and no tongue bite is present.though the addition of compoments that usually are used for an after dinner blend this is an easy going and creamy all day blend.totally recommended.

For a long-time pipe smoker returning to 'English' blends after 30-odd years burning mostly aromatics, Scotch Cut Mixture was a homecoming for me. A simply thrilling and delicious blend with everything a serious smoker could wish for: mouthwatering tin-note, beautiful cut, easy packing and lighting topped off with a peppery-spicy, tangy flavour that had me coming back for more. I also found the aroma quite beguiling and had difficulty restraining myself from taking deep lungfuls of the smoke!

Fairly dry-tasting, Latakia well to the fore (it also contains VA, Cav, and Burley), and with a hint of liquorice about it, as is usual with Lats. This is now one of my favourites - I'm half-way through my first tin of it.

Scotch Cut Mixture is something growing on me, after a false start.

A curious blend of bright Virginia & Burley, expertly seasoned with unflavoured Black Cavendish and small Latakia. The Burley just rounds off the sharp edges of the bright weed, without adding any earthy tone, the smoke resulting buttery, slightly citrusy & smoky.

The strength is perfectly medium and so the body. Burns absolutely cool and dry till the bottom. Again I see the highest quality Samuel makes use.

The best of this blend comes now that the wetness is almost gone. That strange “grilled steak” room aroma (SWMBO's words!) is also almost gone, nor she laments the Latakia typical discomfort…

In my experience, SCM is fancy enough to make things interesting for a daily use. I cannot avoid thinking to a somewhat lighter 965 of old.

Nice blend, four stars.

I'm no expert on what a "scotch cut" blend of this variety should be like, but I enjoyed it. There's a kind of warm, perfumed feeling to the tin aroma that I found relaxing and intriguing. I would not classify it as an aromatic; the flavors seem natural, even herbal. On lighting up, I found it to be a mild and subtle virginia blend whose fragrances reminded me of oatmeal (really fine oatmeal, not the Quaker oats variety I eat every morning) but still with a satisfying tobacco taste. The latakia is laid on with a light touch and I have no idea what the cavendish is flavored with, if anything. "Meadowy" is the word that floats in my mind here.

Blended for the Chicago Pipe Show, two of the 500 tins made were given to me by a visitor who kindly brought them back. A smooth interesting tobacco, not demanding and certainly no heavyweight, the cavendish is the first to make it's presence felt, followed by the latakia which seems to have been used more as a condiment on a bed of fine virginia. This is a very pleasant "Light" English ? I detect no flavouring other than the cavendish which seems to be prominent throughout. If your holding onto a tin of this and are wondering what it tastes like, then my comparison would be with Old Dublin or a Murray's 965.

Now I draw upon these two comparables for the following reasons, first the initial taste reminds me of Old Dublin, second, I've tried Murray's version of 965 and found it a little flat in comparison to Orlik's 965 (which I prefer, Philistine or not).

I could smoke this early in the morning, during a very hot day for a change of pace or late in the evening after too much "sensory overload" Sadly, when these two tins go, there shall be no more.