Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. Brown Flake Aromatic
(3.15)
Comprised from the same tobaccos as unscented Brown Flake, this medium bodied flake is augmented with the addition of traditional British flavorings (70%) and vanilla and fig extract (15% each). Designed for those smokers who enjoy the Brown Flake, but want a more traditionally flavored British Flake.
Details
| Brand | Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. |
| Blended By | |
| Manufactured By | Gawith Hoggarth & Co. |
| Blend Type | Aromatic |
| Contents | Burley, Virginia |
| Flavoring | Fruit / Citrus, Other / Misc, Vanilla |
| Cut | Flake |
| Packaging | Bulk |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Production | Currently available |
Profile
Strength
Medium
Extremely Mild -> Overwhelming
Flavoring
Medium
None Detected -> Extra Strong
Room Note
Pleasant
Unnoticeable -> Overwhelming
Taste
Medium
Extremely Mild (Flat) -> Overwhelming
Average Rating
|
3.15 / 4
|
Reviews
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Displaying 21 - 27 of 27 Reviews
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 19, 2010 | Medium | Strong | Medium | Tolerable |
First up, I have to say that from reading the descriptions here I am not entirely certain that I am smoking the same blend as the other reviewers! Nevertheless, the tobacconists tub said it was Scented Brown Flake so I have to assume that it is.
So, let's cut to the chase. It's scented and then some! I've not tried many other G&H blends but I enjoy a bit of St Bruno and various other 'English' style flakes and plugs so I was prepared to like this. Unfortunately the particular scents used do not appeal to me at all.
I get a combination of violet, rose and geranium, all pretty cloying. The tobacco is there (I get a fair amount of burley in addition to VA) but it is mostly overshadowed by the powerful perfume. At about the half-way mark the VAs peep through more regularly and I experience the odd moment of pleasure, but not sufficient to make smoking the first half of the bowl worthwhile.
English readers may recall the flavour of those little purple 'Parma Violet' sweets from their childhood. Now imagine smoking them!
Somewhat recommended as if you enjoy that type of thing you will probably enjoy this tobacco more than I did. I am going to put mine in a jar then try it again in a few months to see if has mellowed at all, probably in a clay or cob to prevent flavouring my briars any further.
Of all the 'Gawith and Hogwarts' blends I have tried so far I have enjoyed Black Twist, Brown Twist, Revor Plug and Dark Flake Unscented (not because they all happen to be strong, but I have found the flavours pleasing). I have not enjoyed this flake or Rum Flake. Hopefully this will help other reviewers to orient themselves when assessing the relevance of this review for their own particular tastes.
So, let's cut to the chase. It's scented and then some! I've not tried many other G&H blends but I enjoy a bit of St Bruno and various other 'English' style flakes and plugs so I was prepared to like this. Unfortunately the particular scents used do not appeal to me at all.
I get a combination of violet, rose and geranium, all pretty cloying. The tobacco is there (I get a fair amount of burley in addition to VA) but it is mostly overshadowed by the powerful perfume. At about the half-way mark the VAs peep through more regularly and I experience the odd moment of pleasure, but not sufficient to make smoking the first half of the bowl worthwhile.
English readers may recall the flavour of those little purple 'Parma Violet' sweets from their childhood. Now imagine smoking them!
Somewhat recommended as if you enjoy that type of thing you will probably enjoy this tobacco more than I did. I am going to put mine in a jar then try it again in a few months to see if has mellowed at all, probably in a clay or cob to prevent flavouring my briars any further.
Of all the 'Gawith and Hogwarts' blends I have tried so far I have enjoyed Black Twist, Brown Twist, Revor Plug and Dark Flake Unscented (not because they all happen to be strong, but I have found the flavours pleasing). I have not enjoyed this flake or Rum Flake. Hopefully this will help other reviewers to orient themselves when assessing the relevance of this review for their own particular tastes.
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Aug 01, 2004 | Medium to Strong | Medium | Medium to Full | Pleasant to Tolerable |
This is the second of G&H brown flakes. I like the unscented brown flake the best - full and hearty but with a natural deep virginia sweetness and a helping of burley earthiness to boot. If I want something a little lighter (and I do mean a little), I go for G&H Best Brown Flake No. 2, which is also a little sweeter than the unscented, fuller version. But here goes with the aromatic version.
Same body and underlying earthiness as with unscented brown flake, but obviously here we have an amalgam of flavors added. No one flavor stands out to me, but it is noticeably sweeter than either of the other two versions. Tasty indeed. Smoked slowly it does not really bite me, but it can be a bit sharper than the other two. I understand the comments about the charing lights.
Despite the many flavors added (like maple, etc.), they are clearly evident but not overwhelingly so. (Some other G&H scented lakeland flakes are even more aromatic.) The natural tobaccos underneath still come through.
If you want a sweet full tobacco and you are use to flakes, give this a try. You'll probably like one of these three brown flake versions. If they are too much, try something like Germain's version (straighter) or then to Samuel Gawith's version (sweetened).
Same body and underlying earthiness as with unscented brown flake, but obviously here we have an amalgam of flavors added. No one flavor stands out to me, but it is noticeably sweeter than either of the other two versions. Tasty indeed. Smoked slowly it does not really bite me, but it can be a bit sharper than the other two. I understand the comments about the charing lights.
Despite the many flavors added (like maple, etc.), they are clearly evident but not overwhelingly so. (Some other G&H scented lakeland flakes are even more aromatic.) The natural tobaccos underneath still come through.
If you want a sweet full tobacco and you are use to flakes, give this a try. You'll probably like one of these three brown flake versions. If they are too much, try something like Germain's version (straighter) or then to Samuel Gawith's version (sweetened).
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Nov 25, 2003 | Medium to Strong | Medium | Medium | Tolerable |
Yep, another scented flake from the Gawith guys, this one built on G&H Brown Flake. This one is not quite in the same league as their other scented "soapy" flakes, IMO. The flavoring is quite similar to many others (they all differ in subtle ways, but the floral "scented" theme is the same). I happen to like the admittedly acquired taste, but others clearly do not.
I must agree with pipestud above that this blend has a wicked bite. My order arrived very dry, not sure whether it was shipped by G&H that way or had been sitting around at my suppliers drying out. At any rate, excess moisture was not the issue with the bite. In fact, I even slightly rehumidified about an ounce in case the bite came from too-rapid combustion, and it still had shark's teeth.
The odd thing is, regular (unscented) BF does not seem to have this biting problem for me. And other scented G&H flakes (like Ennerdale for instance) do not burn so hot. It seems like BFA is an outlier.
I would not recommend this blend for this reason. Maybe if one built up enough oral scar tissue though...
I must agree with pipestud above that this blend has a wicked bite. My order arrived very dry, not sure whether it was shipped by G&H that way or had been sitting around at my suppliers drying out. At any rate, excess moisture was not the issue with the bite. In fact, I even slightly rehumidified about an ounce in case the bite came from too-rapid combustion, and it still had shark's teeth.
The odd thing is, regular (unscented) BF does not seem to have this biting problem for me. And other scented G&H flakes (like Ennerdale for instance) do not burn so hot. It seems like BFA is an outlier.
I would not recommend this blend for this reason. Maybe if one built up enough oral scar tissue though...
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 28, 2022 | Medium | Medium | Medium | Pleasant |
Bag note is quite sweet floral vanilla and earthy. the flakes are quite damp and need drying time once rubbed out I spread mine out on a board for 30 minutes. It probably needs more drying time. The first 1/8 of the bowl was quite harsh before it smoothed out. Your puffing cadence need to be very controlled as this will bite back hard. Once you get the bowl going and you are past the first few tamps it is quite nice. Floral sweet vanilla Virginia (not much of the Lakeland soap) Nic hit is medium as well as flavor. It smokes like most Virginia\\\'s quite balanced. Anything other than lite puffing will produce harshness. This is not a stuff to and forget smoke, but if you keep your cadence controlled and dry it before smoking it really is quite nice.
update 1/25/24 after my bag was sitting for months in a jar this blend has become amazing buttery super smooth. All the harshness has disappeared. Now it can be loaded as flakes and lit directly. Very few relights required.
update 1/25/24 after my bag was sitting for months in a jar this blend has become amazing buttery super smooth. All the harshness has disappeared. Now it can be loaded as flakes and lit directly. Very few relights required.
Pipe Used:
Paronelli Briar and others
PurchasedFrom:
Chesapeake pipe and cigar
Age When Smoked:
3 months old
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Jun 20, 2021 | Mild to Medium | Medium to Strong | Mild to Medium | Very Pleasant |
A Virginia and Burley medium brown long flake with golden shades and the occasional dark brown speckle, this offering is topped with licorice, fig and tonquin bean according to the SPC description; and as a typical British flavorings with vanilla and fig extracts, according to TR. To my nose, what I perceive is more of the floral note (geranium, I believe) with some licorice. Once lit up the taste will be consistent with these notes but the room note unveils the vanilla as well as the licorice. The burn is very good once the tobacco has been dried some before packing and it does not develop into any type of complexity as I progress but the Burley brings some backbone and nuttiness to the overall experience. The floral note does not stick around for too long once the tobacco is lit. By mid bowl there is more of a tobacco taste supported by the Burley, which becomes more dominant and the Virginia accentuates the licorice but no in its sweet side. By the last third the taste of the tobacco is dominant with the licorice hanging around but it is more subdued. Nicotine is in the mild to medium range during the first half and upgraded to a bit below medium during the last third. Overall, a fine G & H bulk tobacco which I found very pleasant. The taste was very refreshing, if it makes sense. I am enjoying this tobacco a lot but would not recommend it as an all day smoke unless for the true and hard fans of Lakeland flavorings as the nicotine content is perfect for a daily repetitive smoke.
Age When Smoked:
Fresh bulk
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Jul 22, 2020 | Mild to Medium | Mild | Medium | Pleasant |
Scent on opening storage jar is reminiscent of Turkish Delight.
Raw flake is quite tacky/moist so does benefit from some air drying time before lighting (otherwise difficult to keep alight without constant drawing).
Burns quite hot. Not much in the way of fig or vanilla in flavour or taste. Medium strength. Pleasant room note.
Would recommend as a mild to medium strength flake.
Raw flake is quite tacky/moist so does benefit from some air drying time before lighting (otherwise difficult to keep alight without constant drawing).
Burns quite hot. Not much in the way of fig or vanilla in flavour or taste. Medium strength. Pleasant room note.
Would recommend as a mild to medium strength flake.
Pipe Used:
Missouri Meerschaum Mizzou Corn Cob
PurchasedFrom:
Astons of Manchester
Age When Smoked:
1 Month
| Reviewed By | Date | Rating | Strength | Flavoring | Taste | Room Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 29, 2017 | Medium to Strong | Very Mild | Medium to Full | Pleasant to Tolerable |
Not bad Flakes from Gawith Hogarth. Flavoring is very mild, somewhere in the background. Smoke is cool and smooth, no tongue bite or harshness. The best is to mix this tobacco with mild in strength heavy aromatic blend. Recommended.
Pipe Used:
Various
PurchasedFrom:
mysmokingshop.co.uk
Age When Smoked:
6 month
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