Dan Tobacco Patriot Flake

Dommage. Ce tabac est bien noté, revu par plusieurs fumeurs qui le recommande, et l'essayant depuis quelques jours, je le trouve sans saveur, très sec et pas agréable. Peut-être suis-je tombé sur une boîte pas terrible, ou simplement suis-je encore trop inexpérimenté dans les Virginias Purs pour pouvoir l'apprécier, toujours est-il que je ne l'apprécie pas, et je vais le conservé sous vide pendant quelques temps pour le réessayer plus tard et ainsi modifier ma critique.

This is a lovely flake from Dan, and an interesting smoke.

Its very much a "brown" virginia, in that it has those notes of dried hay and wheat bread and a touch of dried fruit like sweetness, as opposed to what you get with a red (tang, sharpness, deep sweetness) or a bright/gold (fresh, sometimes citrus, etc.), or stoved (dark, molasses sweetness). This one also has a touch of spice that reminds me more of a VaPer very light on perique than a VA with oriental.

Packs well, smokes well. Overall... nice. Still, not remarkable. Don't get me wrong, its pretty good. But not something to unseat many other reference VAs (to my tastes), especially given the fact that where I am (USA) this costs $2-3 more than other 50g tins of blends I think are better.

Its worth trying in the US if you're exploring VAs, who knows this might ring all the bells for you. For me, its not something I'll stock up on in lieu of other available blends for the reasons noted above.

2.5/4 stars.

I have been slowly working through this tin for a while now. I have mixed feelings about this one and can't really decide how I feel about it. While I find it to be an excellent smoke, I just don't find myself engaged by it nor do I find myself reaching for it often.

The scent from the tin is absolutely fabulous. The sweetness of the matured virginia could keep me smelling the tin for hours, it's just a delightful aroma. The flakes rub out easily and pack even easier into any size pipe. The smoking characteristics of this blend are very good. It smokes cool, even, and clean all the way down to a fluffy grey/white ash.

The flavor of this is exactly how the tin describes it, sweet and spicy. The sweetness is prevalent in the first third of the bowl, then spiciness takes over and dominates for the rest of the smoke.

While this is a quality flake, very refined and elegant, I just find it a tad on the boring side. There is nothing here that really holds my interest. I also find the spiciness a little more than I would prefer in a straight virginia not containing any perique and find it to tickle my tongue and throat a bit. Personally I prefer the bright, livliness of little brother Veermaster over the Patriot. Quality smoke that deserves to be sampled, however when my tin is gone I won't be running to the store for more.

I purchased this baccy for two reasons: I love flakes and neat looking tins! This blend was a bit on the sweet side. It was also on the strong side, too. The nic kick was sneaky, it started out in the middle and ended strong. I could swear I detected an additive of some sort (perhaps this was a result of the fermentation?). It was a fine sipper, but the overall effect, for me, was mildly disappointing.

2.50 stars (I always round down).

Keep on piping!

Not being the biggest fan of straight Virginia tobaccos i decided to give this one a try. It has a good tin note, burns good, and tastes a little spicy but not too much. It is like a straight virginia with a little twist in flavor. Not too bad, just not my cup of tea. I could see how a virginia lover would like this a lot so if thats your thing its worth a try.

I have to say that I was not really impressed with this flake, however after reading other reviews, I'll give it some time. What I did find was that by blending this with some of G&H's Brown Rope #4, you get a really nice smoke, the Rope brings a world of fullness to the Patriot.

11-11-04 A tin I forgot I had in my cellar!

Appearance and tin Aroma: Looks like a typical bright yellow flake with light brown specs here and there. Smells like hay with a subtle hint of honey.

Packing and Lighting: I prefer to rub out my flakes, I seem to be able to control the burn rate a lot easier this way. This blend lit easily.

Initial Flavor: This starts out bright and grassy, but after a relight or two, settles down.

Mid-Bowl: Nice round mellow flavor, the spicy high notes settle down. Occasional bursts of sweetness pop in and out. This flake reminds me of MCClellands 221b Honeydew, but with much less honey.

Bottom of Bowl: A quick crescendo of flavor and then it is all over, ash is fine and grey.

Overall: This is a great medium strength flake that is fairly easy to smoke, but with all the other great flakes available is going to be a hard sell due to its higher price tag ($11.50 - $13.00 for a 50g tin). I can think of many other flakes that are almost half the price, that are just as tasty. For me, I am still a Ratray's Man (Marlin Flake, old Gowrie) primarily, with an occaisional foray to the Mc Clelland flakes. IMO those blenders still outdo this blend.

Rating: 3 out of 5 points...