Mac Baren Original Flake

The version of Walnut Flake I've enjoyed is from Ogden's of Liverpool and comes in a plastic sealed tray inside a pouch, not a tin. The in tray aroma is that of pure natural tobacco. Easily folded, bent and stuffed or rubbed out, Walnut Flake is easy to load into the pipe and easy to light.

It is wonderfully rich and stout with natural tobacco flavor that strengthens as the bowl is smoked down with absolutely no bite. It smokes very cool and slow with a superb balance of Virginia flavor complimented with a nutty burley flavor rounding it off nicely. In short it has a very musty earthen taste all the way down the bowl.

I truly enjoyed the time I spent with Walnut Flake while visiting relatives in Scotland. However, since Ogden's is not available in the States, I have to be content savoring the great memories of time spent smoking it. As this review is being written, I'm enjoying my last bowlful and will miss this flake a lot. If the opportunity should arise to procure more of this fine flake in the future, I'll surely do so!

**150 grams later and I've decided to upgrade this to the highest rating. I now tend to agree with the sentiments in the Pipe Smoker's Ephemeris article in the review below. ***



This is somewhat like Peterson's University flake, and somewhat like St. Bruno, and can give you a gut punch of the highest order.

There's a kind of mysterious berry note which may or may not be an added flavoring. It could be a blend reversal of St. Bruno, I have no idea. In any event, the added flavorings are not as strong, and the presence of VA is further in the background, than in St. Bruno or Condor. I find it very tasty and chimerical.

If fairly moist, smoked slowly, rubbed out and packed lightly, it is only medium in body, a little soapy and fruity, and the strength stays in the background. When dried further, packed too firmly (with unrubbed chunks), smoked quickly or inhaled, it can send you to the showers.

A slightly tempermental but exciting tobacco for the lover of strong English flakes.

I finally have managed to get enough of this to say I will smoke it regularly. In the package its cut, texture, appearance and aroma is about as similar to St. Bruno Flake as it could be without being St. Bruno. And its moisture content and handling characteristics are identical. At the match you notice the difference. This does not have as strong a flavoring component. My guess is that the tobacco elements are the same as SB's, but the top dressing is slightly different. While not as pronounced as in SB, the flavoring is there aplenty. The smoke is sweet and spicy (not peppery), and it has no bite. I would also guess that this blend has a bit more burly because the tobacco flavor suggests burly without coming right out with it. This has a full, rich tobacco flavor which grows in strength as the top dressing flavor recedes. Perhaps it was named after a street somewhere or perhaps it contains some walnut extract. I smoke it in a #4 meer. After finishing a bowl, I seem to detect an aftertaste similar to the aftertaste of English walnuts; not the taste, the aftertaste. It's a great companion to SB. Highly recommend to the lover of English scented flakes, and most highly recommended to the lover of St. Bruno. Paddy.

A dark flake somewhat in the tradition of St Bruno; the flavour is similar, but the 'fruitiness' characteristic of St B is nowhere near so pronounced here. Original Flake reminds me a little bit of the long defunct Player's Digger Flake. It's a slow burning and cool smoke with a pleasant room note; like all flakes (IMO) it's better folded than rubbed out. After a fairly unexciting start, the flavour develops in fullness and richness as you go down the bowl, and I never find any messy dottle at the end.

OF is fairly strong and needs to be taken slowly, but I know several people for whom it (and its previous avatar, Walnut Flake) is an all-day smoke. It all depends on what you like, of course; but if you're an old fashioned pipe smoker for whom St Bruno is a benchmark, this'll do you nicely. I think I'd describe it as more civilized and subtle than St B., but with the same kind of old fashioned and substantial fullness.

I find that OF needs quite a few relights, but that's no big problem, and it probably wouldn't if you rubbed it out. It responds well to DGT. Like many traditional blends that have been homogenised for mass production, it isn't as good as it used to be, but it's still a good choice, and value for money. Original Flake is packaged in the same way as St Bruno Flake is now, in an inconvenient (and unresealable) little plastic carton inside a plastic pouch; so you'll need to transfer it to a leather pouch or jar. Jarring it for a while mellows it noticeably, I find.

Word on the grapevine is that Original Flake is to go out of production fairly soon; so if you like it, now would be a good time to stock up.

Walnut (now Original) Flake is my idea of a proper quality smoking experience; alongside St Bruno and the now sadly discontinued Navy Cut Players. In a well-packed bowl it smokes slowly and slightly hot, giving off that enviable signal of a delicious smoke - a low, mellow cloud of white smoke that seems to inhabit the bowl along with the tobacco. It has no discernable topping or flavourings; the basic tobacco comes through true and strong, but with a maturity that adds voice to the leaf. It can be an all-day smoke but familiarity tends to lessen its impact, so it's well-worth smoking every other day. Resonantly good stuff.

This is based on only three bowls of Walnut Flake. The flakes are dark brown with a small number of light tan specs interspersed into the flake. There is a bit of the Lakeland style scent in the pouch that leans toward the soapy side, but it is not at all overpowering. It is moist is definitely needs some dry time. In the pipe, my best results were accomplished by a fairly light pack of small pieces with some rubbed out on top. This flake is very smooth and offers no bite, even when pushed, although I wouldn’t recommend it unless you’re sitting down as it has a healthy dose of nicotine. I am guessing that the smoothness is a result of steaming the tobacco, but that is strictly a guess. The flavor of this blend is quite deep although not complex. I find it richer and fuller than Ogden’s St Bruno. It is earthy, lightly sweet and doesn’t offer the sharpness (for lack of a better term) that I sometimes associate with dark fired. There is some added flavoring that I would liken to dark brown sugar. I think that this would be a great blend to cellar and I found myself wishing that I had.

This is a little bit bland. But it makes up for that with honest quality. It's no nonsense and stays cool and slow burning. It's pretty much st Bruno flake without the perfume infusion. Smells abit generic in the room, and the pouch note is mediocre. All middle of the road . But it's a honest no nonsense quality smoke. It's like Nescafé original in that it delivers the goods without pomp and ceremony. Satisfying nicotine hit too

This is an interesting one, I quite liked it. It's an odd taste but was nicer than I expected. Can't really explain what it is but it's nice.

This is what i compare other flakes to, its similar to John Sinclair Highland Sliced in appearance and close in flavour as well. Nice and cool, burns exceptionally slow and certainly a large does of vitamin N. An english tobacco institution.