Samuel Gawith Balkan Flake

I really like this blend I'm not sure whether i like this or the Petersons balkan mixture the most. I think for the lat bomb definitely this blend. I love its smoky leatheryness and it is a good smoke to start or finish the day( or anytime in-between). I prefer to rub this so it burns nice and slow

I ordered the bulk package of this blend and it just arrived. I peel back the plastic seal and the vinegary ketchupy barbecue sauce notes instantly hit my nose. The long strips of flake make me wonder if my jar is big enough to store them. The flake is easy to break up and not overly moist. I am already anticipating a wonderful smoke.

I pack this into my favourite pipe for Balkan blends, my trusty Peterson Christmas Pipe, a rusticated bent rhodesian. I light this carefully letting the flame just kiss the top of the leaves to get the most out of this smoke. After a couple relights, I have the bowl smoldering. The first notes I receive are vinegary with a little spiciness. This leads into a woody and smoky flavour from the latakia. This is all wrapped together in a subtle sweetness. The smoke feels light and airy and not as heavy as some of the other offerings in this genre.

The flavour of the smoke stays rather consistent all the way to the end of the bowl, except for the vinegary notes giving away to grassier notes. This blend burns cool and doesn't bite the tongue. The bowl lasted a long time, which surprised me since I packed it in a wider bowl. The amount of nicotine is pleasantly medium. The roomnote is very light, and doesn't linger long especially if you smoke with a window open. This makes for a great all day Balkan blend, since the genre tends to be heavier.

4/4 - delighted to have this Balkan as something I can reach for any time.

Holy moly, what a cracking blend. Despite being comprised only of Virginia and Latakia, this is a delightfully complex tasting experience, with a great development. The opening is surprisingly sweet on the Virginia front, whilst the latakia is smoky and woody at this stage. As the bowl progresses the latakia takes on an earthiness akin to leather and soil, with a tinge of incense underneath that crescendos towards the end of the bowl very gradually. About half the way down the bowl you are left with what I can only describe as temple incense, a fragrant, aromatic smokiness that is almost like pine-smoke. Perhaps I am imagining things, but the latakia in this blend is particularly fragrant, especially considering the lack of Orientals. As one reaches the end of the bowl, the wafting incense reduces and the flavour profile reduces into a 'library' taste. By this, I mean a flavour resembling musty old books and a distant fireplace. A very pleasant close to what has otherwise been a fascinating gustatory experience.

I would certainly recommend this for somebody who wants a long, ponderous smoke.

For me so far this is my goto "Balkan" blend (though of course theres much debate on what defines Balkan) . The sweetness of the Virginia is reigned in by the smokey Latakia and kept cool throughout. Contemplative and engaging from start to finish this is a great smoke to unwind with. The flakes are thin and moist when new but there is a tendency for the Latakia leaf to turn to dust when rubbing out after some age on them requiring slightly more attention when preparing. The flakes began to plume after five months in a jar and the mellowness has turned this from a good smoke into an excellent one.

Gave this one a few proper smokes, from a few proper pipes, before writing this. Initially, opening the tin, you get a rich, deep, and a very cool whiff of the tobacco. Upon the first few smoke, I notice that it was quite damp, and further drying of the tobacco would help. I left it in the tin for an extra 3-4 weeks, and was so delightfully rewarded with a perfect burning bowl. Very minimal tongue burn, and a room note that's as close as it can get to a fine cigar

On the beginning I would like to say, that this is my first tobacco with Latakia and it remains my favorite blend to this day.

When we open the tin, our eyes can see very dark pressed tobacco. As producer quote, Balkan Flake is a blend of 70% Virginia and 30% Latakia. In the smell we can feel distinct smoky scent of Latakia and something like a plum confiture. This tobacco is also hand messing.

Smoking of Balkan Flake remind me a peculiar dance of professional dancer and and novice. This is dance of discordant partners - they don't dance in harmony way, but they try very hard. Of course it doesn't mean that this is bad tobacco. Balkan is also for a reason my favorite mushrooming blend. In the taste except for precious old leather, I can feel foresty, coniferous flavour. It remind me a calm, pine forest with a lot of resin. This blend also is filling the empty blank, after Balkan Sobranie withdrawn from Polish tobacco marketplace.

Summing up it's a delicious blend worth of buying and smoking and I can recommend this blend for all pipe smokers.

This is an oddly pleasant blend – a lighter take on the traditional English theme with smooth Latakia but no Oriental flavour.

It's a “Not sure” blend for me: At first I wasn't sure if I liked it as much as a traditional English, now I actually prefer it!

It's... Unusual. “Intriguing” I suppose is the word. I'm still not quite sure what to make of it, but I like it. Not an everyday blend but when you're in the mood, there's nothing else quite like it.

A bit moist out of the tin. I like my tobaccos on the dry side and so, like most flakes, I tend to rub out the whole tin and leave it on a piece of paper overnight before jarring it up.

Update & edit: The more I smoke this the more I like it. Is it an "English" blend? I'm not sure. I like orientals but don't miss them in this tobacco. The menthol and minty notes fade in and out (but only ever in the background). And it has that creamy, mouth coating oiliness that I've come to associate with only the best quality blends.

It's going to become a regular in my rotation. I'm uprating this to 4 stars.

My tin of Balkan Flake was from 2008 (eight years old), so these notes may not reflect current, un-aged production.

In the tin, this blend is inviting and intriguing. Sugar crystals show well-aged Virginias, with sweet, smoky and funky aromas. By "funky", I mean a kind of rotten sweet smell from anaerobic fermentation.

There was a disturbing amount of rust on the inside of my tin, but thankfully nothing that broke the airtight seal. As others have noted: beware of these square metal tins and inspect them often if you're aging in them.

I mostly smoked this loosely crumbled without extra drying out time. The smoke is delicious and complex, with many of the familiar Latakia aromas like leather and wet firewood. The Virginias are definitely present with a pronounced sweetness and complexity.

This blend is similar to Fairmorn's Lancer's Slices in that it is a perfect balance of sweet and smoky, and somehow presents a lot of English style complexity from only Latakia and Virginia.

Scrumptious scent of Latakia and natural tobacco-sweetness on opening the tin. Dark brown, almost black, quite thick flakes. It is a chore to fully rub out and it needs a whole lot of drying time. The reward is an outstanding, delicious (English-)Latakia smoke. It is difficult to pack and light. Once properly packed and lit, you get a slow, steady, and very cool burn. However, a few relights might be necessary sometimes. The “secret” of getting the perfect burn is finding the ideal point of moisture. Too dry does not necessarily lead to a better burn.

The flavourful, more campfire-smoky than leathery Latakia is obviously dominant throughout the bowl. In spite of this, the Virginia flavours of bread and yeast sparkle up constantly. It is not one-dimensional at all. The more bowls you smoke, the more subtle tastes you will find. Such as spice, cream, wood, hay, sweetness, richness, deepness, and more. It’s a master blend. A generous, though never overpowering, natural tobacco-sweetness is always there. I appreciate this. No casing or flavouring.

The fly in the ointment is its name. There is no Balkan/Oriental tobacco in this mixture (except Latakia)! It’s all about Virginia and Latakia exclusively. It should rather be called “Latakia Flake”. It’s controversial whether to call this an English Mixture or not, since there is no Oriental in it. Nevertheless, I highly recommend these flakes to all Latakia aficionados. It has been one of my top five favourites for years.