Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. American Blend Delite

I bought a half kilo of this blend on the strength of the positive reviews here. Sadly, apart from the lovely aroma from the bag and the room note that even my partner enjoys, the blend is lacking both flavour, strength and sweetness. Indeed I might argue that it tastes of nothing. You are likely to get bitten in your endeavours to get some flavour from the bowl.

I tried a couple of packs of 7 Seas Royal a week or two back and although a very mild smoke, I found that far superior to this G&H American Delite Blend and I’ve ordered a further kilo or so of that, of which I’ll mix half with the Delite to make it smokeable.

Given both blends mentioned are something of a Lanes 1Q tribute, I’ve taken the liberty of ordering a pound of 1Q to compare with the fakes.

On the whole American Delite is very disappointing. I imagine the only people who’d get a kick from it are those who’ve never smoked before.

Miles ahead of Lane 1Q, Captain Black is not even in the same ballpark. With that said, AD is on par with every GH blend I have smoked. Quality tobaccos, quality blending and a quality smoke. Good aromatic mainly due to the fact that the tobacco has not been overshadowed by the toppings. Mild fruit and Vanilla flavor, lights and burns well, consistent flavor throughout the process. Got no bite or goop from this blend. Not a nicotine heavy weight but ample enough to satisfy. All day smoke for some. Solid 3 here.

I had hesitated buying this for over 10 years. I finally pulled the trigger not long ago.

Pouch aroma/appearance:

The scent seems very busy to me. I do smell some cocoa, some fruitiness (not the American-type aro sickly sweetness) and the aroma of the vanilla and caramel are most obvious. Very uniform cut, medium brown mottled with specs of dark Cavendish leaf and bright Virginia.

Packing/lighting/smoking:

Packing gets ya sticky fingers. Appears to have a fair amount of PG, maybe it the topping. who knows.

Even with what seems a high moisture content, this lights very easily and stays lit. The flavor and room note don't seem to portray what the tin note led to believe. This does have a close resemblance to a 1-Q/Captain Black Royal taste and aroma. Definitely vanilla and caramel notes, but they don't overpower the true tobacco flavors either. Nicely balanced, stays even throughout the bowl. Never gets harsh, bitter or ashy. This is one flavorful aromatic I have no problem recommending!

If it's hot summer, then it is time to open American Delight. Fresh, subtle sweet taste of coconut, carmel and vanilla. According to nice room note and quite light strength makes it a perfect choice to smoke on summertime and also on rest of the year as a break from heavy nicotine-bombs. One of my favourite from G&H.

To start, this is nothing like 1Q. First off, this stuff is high quality tobacco... but the main notes I get from it are chocolate and strawberry.

This is very mild tobacco, with a burley note in the background as you smoke. This tobacco is very soft and comes sopping wet.. so be prepared to let it dry, and dry, and dry. When dry, it actually smokes well and the flavors come out. I can taste cocoa and a hint of strawberry.. the strawberry is what I think some say tastes "soap-like" as it reminds me of the strawberry scent of the toy "strawberry shortcake". Don't ask me why I've smelled the toy "strawberry shortcake" but I have in my youth at the babysitter's.

The room note is pleasant, and the smoke is gentle with light flavors. No chance of a bite if you let it dry all the way out.

edited my review and upped it one star after more smokes and more aging/drying.

I'm assuming that due to European or British regulations this cannot be labeled with specific flavors, but it's annoying when you want to know a specific fruit or flavor and it's not listed!

I am not a fan of 1q, so I probably would have never purchased this one on that alone, but a good sample was given to me by a forum friend so in the interest of being gracious I smoked it. I am glad I did as I found this to be much better than 1q.

Where the topping on 1 q makes me somewhat nauseous, this one did not. I really like Gawith Hoggarth and think they do aros perhaps better than anyone. There is no doubt a familiar taste in the topping and there is also no (what some people refer to as) soapiness to this one. It is clear what GH was going for here, and perhaps they succeeded using less PG? I don't know what would cause the difference, but it just was much more smokable to me.

With all that said, I am not a huge fan of the topping even as it exists here and would rather spend my time with some Coconut or Rum twist or some Rich Dark Honeydew if I want an aro. Still I do recommend this one. Particularly for the fans of 1q and the captains as I find this to be a better alternative.

I started my pipe smoking liturgy only 6 months ago, so I am still in th exploratory phase. I bought this tobacco in bulk from 4noggins. The smell of it unsmoked attracts me--I can't really put my finger on it, but it's quite nutty, with hints of caramel. It smokes fast, and as a fairly slow smoker, I have to relight it often. I find it to be a little on the damp side, and it often creates a puddle in my pipe (although, that may be attributed to my amateur smoking style). I tend to smoke indoors, and I would recommend smoking American Delight outdoors, as the smoke is thick, and unpleasant when entering my nose.

American Delight

Star Rating = 3.5

Rating Scores - 10 is the Best and 0 is the Worst

Pouch Note = 9

Room Note = 9

Flavor = 9

Bite = 9

Burn = 9

After Taste = 9

Raw Score = 54

Rated Percentage = 90%

Comment = Smooth, Mild, a little too much fruity Flavor, has a little After Taste

"American Aromatics get goopy, European Aromatics get bitter."

There's a truth I had not known. (thanks, I should have read your review sooner.) Dad sent me some of this, since he found it bad. The grumpy farts in the machine shop thought it smelled great. It did, in fact, smell great.

I won't knock this, since it was free, and I smoked it AT WORK. (In Your Face Mr. Man!) But, my oh my, I'd never buy it.

That's not very helpful, is it? As I remember, American Delight is sort of a caramel ice cream kinda thing. (Is that what the Brits really think of us? sheesh!) I like a good aromatic once in a while. So far, I haven't found one.

For reference, the Dad of which I often write, likes McClelland's Baklava in place of this. (That stuff has a room note as nice as a cream covered bean.)