Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. Scotch Mixture

Somewhat baffling blend with a strong claim as Europe’s favorite Latakia blend. This is my second go round with this blend. First time I found the flavor of the blend intriguing, but there was a serious 4 stage fire on my tongue. All I really can recall was that Europeans must have a deep sadistic/masochist streak as this was an exercise in pain. The tobacco was thrown in a mason jar and a bit set aside for my neighbor to see if he experienced the same level of pain that I had experienced.

Shortly after gifting him an ounce of the fire weed I was strolling past his open garage and was greeted with what I can only say was the most classy, elusive room note I have yet to experience. I quickly asked what he was smoking as this room note was exactly what I expected quality pipe tobacco to have and whatever he was smoking must make its way into my rotation. Oh, he replied, it’s the tobacco you gave me the other day, Scotch Mixture.

The next day, out came the jar and again, 4 stage tongue fire!!!! Baffled, I re applied the lid and buried deep in my tobacco cellar.

Flash forward 2 years. Haunted by memories of the room note, I again dig up my jar of Scotch Mixture. Loaded up my 2017 Peterson Xmas Pipe that I had drilled out the stem to take a 9mm filter and much to my surprise, the gentlest, smoothest Latakia scent filled my head. Gently nudged forward and back by sweet Virginia’s and creamy burley....ohhhhhh, this must be why Europe loves this blend. It is delicious to the bottom of the bowl, Latakia present with floral hay sweet Virginia lurking in the background. Riding gently in the burley cream. No tongue bite but an occasional tingle when I’m pulling to fast for the next draw of what is, I have found, an almost perfectly balanced Latakia forward blend.

My 8 ounces in the jar is halfway gone so I committed to a 500G bag. I will see from the newest batch if the 2 years of banishment brought this blend under control or if really the key is using a filtered pipe. I suspect it’s 80% a filtered pipe and 20% some additional aging on the Virginia.

I think this blend goes to show, every blend has its ideal pipe conditions and personal chemistry. So this gives me hope that those other blends banished to the cellar are just in need of the right pipe combination and technique to bring out their bright sides!!!

08-10-04 This is another of the fine, exquisiste Lake District syle blends. For some of you that means "SOAP!" but weirdos like me, it means "delightful".

Appearance: Medium ribbon cut, mostly brown with occassional light and dark leaf.

Packing: easy, no fuss. Moisture is perfect.

Lightng:easy, two vestas

Initial Flavor: The floral flavor is there, but it is way in the background compared to most of the other GW blends, even less than their "Balkan" blend. The quality of the leaf used is also evident by the rich complexity of flavor.

Mid-bowl: This is where I like this blend best. This is a medium English blend, the latakia and turkish are there, but only as support. The VA in this can smoke a little hot so do sip this blend. The floral flavor comes out a little more.

Bottom of bowl: Slight build up of strength, The floral flavor recedes, the latakia and turkish give a slight "Tadum" and all you are left with is a grey fine ash.

Overall: This is a blend I like from time to time as a change of pace. I prefer to smoke it when I am not doing anything else so I can concentrate and enjoy its complexity. It does not have the fullness of a Balkan like I prefer, but is still a good smoke. I can see why it is so popular in the UK. Also, the nic content was fairly low compared to say, Dunhill. That is a plus for me!

Rating: 4 out of 5 points

This has a nice bit of everything. It's sweet, but not too much, it's spicy, but the latakia doesn't dominate, and the Virginias are fairly bright but not overwhelming. I do find that I get a teeny bit of tongue bite from this, but it's not bad, on a scale of 0 to 10 with 5 being something I'd likely never smoke again, and 10 being Coniston Cut Plug or MacBaren Virginia #1, this rates a 3. I have trouble with bright Virginias and I think the Cavendish in this really helps tame the edges. Good stuff.

UPDATE I don't find any Lakeland style toppings in this, it seems to have zero casing, other than the cavendish being rather sweet and possibly cased.

The ounce of bulk I have makes me wonder if there is a quality-control issue or if this needs a lot of aging (or if I am just sensitive to Lakelands). In any case, for me, the dominate flavor was the Lakelands (although they weren't as powerful as in some other GH blends I've tried), with barely a hint of latakia. Mixing it with other blends, however, reduces the Lakelands enough to make it a refreshing change of pace. Since I know there are many tobaccos out there I would rate a 4, the question arises would I rebuy this particular tobacco, assuming my tastes don't change much more. In this case, the answer is probably not.

Bulk: Supplied in bulk, SM is a long, thin ribbon, shag cut, ranging from medium to light brown, mostly medium, with a small percent of black ribbon. There is a very mild smoky latakia aroma, and a faint sweet scent in the background. The ribbon is supple and not very moist. There is no sticky residue lift on the fingers.

Burning: Burns with one match all the way to the bottom.

Taste & Aroma: The Kendal Lake District floral arrangement is subdued compared to, let's say, N0. 5 Mixture, presumably partly masked by the latakia, which is likewise not very evident. The amount of latakia makes this a rather mild English blend.

Top of Bowl: Subdued floral taste

Mid-bowl: The mild smoky latakia partly obscures the small floral arrangement.

Nicotine: Mild

Room Note: Pleasant to tolerable

Overall: The tin description says it is cased. Not really a substantial English blend, the latakia barely making its presence known. Like other GH blends of this type, there is a definite but mild salsa effect on the tongue. 2.9 stars.

Just thought I would add a little update about the 'tin description'....Here's a quote from the Gawith site:

SCOTTISH MIXTURE - A VERY TRADITIONAL BRITISH BLEND COMBINING FLUE-CURED VIRGINIAS, AIR CURED AND DARK-FIRED LEAF WITH THE ADDITION OF A SMALL PERCENTAGE OF LATAKIA. 100% PURE LEAF WITH NO ADDITIONAL FLAVOURINGS.

(Sorry about the CAPS. I'm not yelling at you, that's the way its printed by Gawith Hoggarth.) Now someone is probably going to tell me there is a difference between Scotch mixture and Scottish Mixture. If so, conk me on the head. They only list one.

8.27.2007: I saw a dust-covered paper sack of this blend behind the counter at a local (Sacramento) Tinder Box. The owner didn't even know it was there. Since it had been opened and not properly stored, the contents were quite crispy, and I got a good deal on two ounces. After re-hydration and combustion, I promptly went back for 4 more oz.'s. This is good. I'm guessing that the drying out of this blend reduced whatever top flavor there might have been to null, since I tasted nothing but tobacco.

It's a good blend. I add about five % Latakia to it. It's a little spicy and has a full round flavor. Smokes very cool and dry. This one I like to have on hand, though I only smoke a bowl a day.

My wife also smokes this one. She says it's the most relaxing tobacco I keep in stock. I plan on ordering more from cheaper sources.

p.s. As my wife is not a Full Time pipe smoker, this might be a good smoke for those new to the pipe.

Another fine offering from G&H. More of a traditional English with Latakia taking the lead all the way. Too much Latakia for me. It is a quality smoke however and for those who like the smoky flavors to dominate, this is a winner. I much prefer the Virginias and Orientals to be more in the foreground. Three and one-half stars.

I tried this blend for the first time in a long time. Initially, I was a little disappointed, having remembered it being one of my favorites. After 4 bowls, I left it alone in the jar for a few weeks. Low & behold, I don't know what happened but it's high on my list again. Just as I remembered, it has that unique floral Virginia taste that is only possessed by Lake District blends. The Latakia gives it the smoky spice keeping the floral taste in check. I can almost taste a presence of mint somewhere in the floral arrangement, but then the nutiness of the burley supplements the other tobaccos in the blend. The cavendish though in a small amount, seems to tie everything else together, giving this blend a unique character. I've read many descriptions of this blend and half say there is a special Virginia casing, the other half say no additional flavorings. I am inclined to believe there are no flavorings, as my familiarity with Lake District blends sets certain expectations of how that natural tobacco tastes.