Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG) Erinmore Flake

As you have probably read most people love or hate this tobacco. When I was a newer pipe smoker I loved the flake form( I always hated the loose mixture) smoked in a peterson system. My taste have changed and now I dont prefer heavily cased tobaccos. For those of you who like aromatics there is a possibility that you might like this but even as aromatics go this is very heavily cased and is much more harsh than most aromatics. Some try to classify this as a virginia flake but I would definately not. Even though it does contain virginias and is in a flake form it is definately an aromatic. If you are bold, give this a try. Careful, this Irishman is rough and tough and is not afraid to make his presence known!

I smoked this tobacco about twemve years ago, and although I liked it, did not return to it for another six or so years.

This is a tobacco that although can be smoked straight from the tin, is better when dried. The tin I tried was twenty years old and well aged.

Nothing in my mind says that this tobacco is laced with pineapple, to those who say it is I am glad you are not tobacco blenders or tea tasters.

Only the deaf and blind of taste could lead me down that road. This tobacco is topped with Apricot, and not pineapple.

The Virginia of which this tobacco is made is 'A' Grade mellow on the tongue, with a mellow fruity flavour. Smoking this tobacco new is nothing to the delight of smoking an aged tin.

This has to be cellared to be appreciated, and is one I will age and return to often in the future.

I remember trying this as a neophyte and it wasn't too bad. It had more of a plum or prune flavor for me and I was toking it in a big-bowled Grabow that had more fills than Appalachian Mountain back roads. The Grabow's thick walls insulated well and I would run through about 9 filters per bowl on this stuff.

All in all, it wasn't bad. It's like a bucking bronco that can give you a bit of a good ride or toss you off and then stomp you into the mud.

Smoke with discretion and smoke outside is my advice. Beginners should probably stay away from this stuff. Now that I've gotten more into the GL Pease and McClelland blends, I've no real reason to revisit this one, but I'd not refuse it if it was offered and I had no British Woods on me.

I'm afraid that I must admit that I did NOT try this to join in on the debate over this blend. In fact, I didn't even know there was such a heated debate over this blend! This was a recomendation from a friend of mine at the smoke shop. I thanked him very much for the recomendation later. I have had experience with flake cut tobacco before, so the rubbing process didn't elude me much. What I have found is that when you rub the flakes out, you must make a decision between the lesser of two evils. The evils I speak of are 1) rub it into long ribons, and it tends to smoke itself out, and loose some flavor; 2) rub it into smaller ribons and cubes, and it smokes much hotter, but with much more flavor. I tend to opt for #2 since I am accustomed to hotter smoke since I love Virginia and Burley. Yes, yes I know, I know, I'm American! One thing that stood out for me was that everyone claims that they smell pineapple when the open the tin. I never noticed that untill I read these reviews. When I open the tin, what I smell is a tart, tangy smell, almost like a citrus essence! After I read the reviews, I smelled the tin again, and I guess you can smell the pineapple flavors in the casing. Something to think about there... I don't have much of a choice other than to agree with some of the warnings that others have made about smoking this in a large bowl. I enjoy this the most when it's loosly packed into my Savineli Bent-Bob. The smoke is almost intoxicating. The flavors of the casing marry well with the smoke of the Virginia, making a very aromatic smoke in the room. My friends like the smell of the tobacco, but the room note has to be "pleasent to tolerable" because of the thickness of the smoke. All-in-all I have to give this a solid four out of five stars. The mixture of flavors and the wonderful (to me at least) smoke are definatly a winning combination!

When I first tried Erinmore, I was not prepared for it. This is a tobacco, that one must make a mental effort to prepare for, and appreciate. Reason being, the flavor of the tobacco is so strong, and so pronounced, it can overwhelm the smoker. This must be one of the most intense in flavor tobaccos I have ever tried. More so than Three Star Blue, Blue Note, and various other tobaccos I have found on the bar. When you first open the tin, you are greated with an aroma, that does not truely represent what you are about to smoke. It smells sweet, but not overly so. Since this is a flake tobacco, you must perform the rubbing yourself. Upon first lite, you are greated with a flavor, so rich, and so full, you will almost be ready to end your smoke after the first few puffs. Not because it was bad, but because to go further would be to overload your taste buds, and not be able to taste anything else, for at least several hours. The tin has a picture of a pineapple on the front. Maybe pineapple is used as an ingredient of the casing which is added to the tobacco? All I can say as to the way this tobacco tastes, is sweet, and perfume/flower like. It was very good, but my pipe tasted like the tobacco for a long time, even after smoking several bowls of other tobaccos, to include 100% Latakia. A word of advice, if you find yourself liking this tobacco, do not smoke Erinmore except in the original pipe you used to first smoke it in. Or else you will find yourself shopping for more pipes, because the others, all taste like Erinmore tobacco. This tobacco leaves a lasting impression, not a bad one, but one you realy never need to repeat. One bowl was enough for me. To smoke it again, would be overkill. Maybe in a year or two, I'll try it again.

I quite enjoy this tobacco, I'm a big fan of flake tobacco and Virginias for that matter and Erinmore embodies both of these traits.

The first thing I noticed on opeing the tin was the smell of well-aged Virginia tobaco. There is casing there, but it doesn't remind me so much of pineapple, but rather of something like apricot, with a bit of tang.

This tobacco is a joy to smoke. It smokes easily with no problems keeping it lit, either lightly rubbed out or well rubbed. The topping is there, but the thing I taste the most is the high-quality leaf Erinmore uses. I tend to smoke this tobacco in one of my smaller bowls as there is a good whack of nicotine in there. I'm not a reformed cigarette smoker so I'm a bit more sensitive to the big nicotine tobaccos. Unlike some Virginias I've never had Erinmore bite me at all. Always burns cool and the smoke is flavorful and thick.

I wouldn't reccomend this to a novice pipe smoker, but for the rest of us who can take a bit of nicotine it's a wonderful tobacco.

When I first started smoking a pipe some 35 years ago, I made the mistake of believing that tobacco should be quite moist for puffing. Back then, I first tried Erinmore and thought it was an abomination. I never finished the tin. Now that I know better, I decided to revisit it. The tin aroma is fruity and almost smells like cologne. I have a new method for heavily flavored blends including scented ropes. I took out a flake and laid it on a piece of paper until it was almost completely dry. I then rubbed it completely out until it almost became granular. I then left this to dry until very little moisture was left. During this drying period, most of the casing evaporates. After filling a Meerschaum pipe, I rehydrate the tobacco by breathing through the bowl a few times. The result was a fairly strong heavy, rounded Virginia/Burley smoke with a very decent nicotine content. The strong tin aroma was hardly noticed during the smoke, but it did present a nice room aroma. Using the method listed above, this is a decent smoke for those that like heavy tobacco blends. I will keep this around for an occasional smoke. I will only smoke it in a Meerschaum, as it will flavor a briar. Not recommended for beginners or those that find the room spinning when smoking strong blends.

I really enjoy the Lakeland genre, and so I had to try the classic old codger blend, Erinmore. The tin note is a exquisite floral medley with fruity undertones. The flakes are on the moister side, but they burn cool and smooth, drying is optional. The smoke definitely leans fruity over floral, unlike Gawith's Ennerdale. The nicotine content is a notch lower as well, which it makes it more accessible throughout the day. Ennerdale is quite powerful in comparison resulting in it being an end of the day smoke for me. Erinmore's flavour reminds me of the fruit cocktail cups I had in my school lunches as a kid, with the addition of a mild floral undertone. The base tobaccos are not overwhelmed by the toppings. The Virginias offer a grassy citrus note and the Burley offers some nuttiness. These tobaccos harmonize well with the toppings and give a thick body to the smoke. This is a thoroughly enjoyable experience for Lakeland lovers, and also for those who like an aromatic that still honours the flavours of the tobacco instead of trying to mask them. It's also worth a try if you found Ennerdale to be too floral and soapy (or expensive and hard to find), but want to give Lakelands another go. This has already become a favourite of mine that I'll stock the cellar with. Some may complain this blend has changed since the days of Murray. I have never tried the original version so I cannot compare, but this blend is excellent in its own right and I'll praise it for that — 4/4.

Tin note is very mildly floral, almost like a G&H aromatic in a way, but greatly toned down. In the smoke I get a mild floral aspect, and i could see mentioning apricot. Grassy, overall mild. The room note is very pleasant, and so is the rest of the experience. Flavor lasts throughout the bowl. Not thinking of any reasons not to give it 4 stars, this will probably be in my regular rotation from now on.