Samuel Gawith Chocolate Flake

My go to morning smoke for many years. This is not a chocolate aromatic. The cocoa topping is very mild and comes in and out as you progress through the bowl. The virginias are front and center and the latakia sits nicely in the background providing a mild incense flavor. Pairs very nicely with coffee.

I was able to obtain a large bowl size sample from 2005 some weeks ago. With 181 reviews I see that this one is very popular. It is medium dark flakes and had what I thought to be whitish plume but read a review where this was described as sugar so sugar it is. The only way I can describe the smell of this flake to me is that of smoked bacon and kind of earthy. I folded and stuffed it and light up. I can tell this is premium tobacco with a mild chocolate/cacao topping and taste. About two thirds of the bowl it kind of lost some flavor. I like it but not enough to buy more. Due to its age another rare find for me from my local pipe club.

A very pleasing SG blend. Chocolate is subtle and so is the latakia. Hand rubbing is suggested. I did not need to dry it. Very mild for a SG tobacco. Recommended! Will buy more.

Update 4/16/19 The square tins SG uses do not keep air out! While the tobacco came to me a bit on the moist side, it is now brittle after only a month or so. However, it still smokes well, tastes good but I am detecting more of the Latakia than before. The Lakeland scent seems to be all but gone.

If you plan to cellar it, and you can find some in stock somewhere, don't open the tin!

UPDATE: 6/17/19 With some re-hydration it's good as fresh! And mighty good indeed!

CDM JR.

I had high hopes for this, as a friend of mine absolutely loves this stuff & raves about how it's like smoking a chocolate milkshake. My experience was very different - proving once again that everybody's palate is quite different. I've tried this in 3 different pipes with 3 different prep methods (rubbed-out, cube cut, and fold & stuff), and my smoking experience has been the same each time. This is not a bad tasting tobacco, but to me it is a very flat-tasting, uninteresting experience.

My flakes were a bit on the dry side, but not problematically dry. It takes a fair bit of effort to get these flakes burning, but once they were going good they required what to me seemed to be an average number of relights compared to other flakes I've smoked. To my mouth, the chocolate casing is extremely light, and is not evident in every puff - I was only able to detect it occasionally, and only if I was really focusing and looking for it. Not a chocolate milkshake - more like a mild cocoa dusting (think baking chocolate, or mild chocolate notes found in some dark roast coffees). The tobacco flakes appear to be decent quality tobacco, with an appearance that isn't that different from other SG or GH flakes that I've smoked.

The taste to me is very homogeneous - I can't really pick out the virginia, burley, or latakia in this. It all blends together in such a way that none of the components stand out, but together they somehow make for a very monotone, flat flavor. I enjoyed this most when I was reading a book, as I was then focusing on something other than the smoking experience. On the plus side, there was no bite, and the smoke produced has a thick creaminess to it despite the lack of popping flavors. The room note is inoffensive as well.

Needless to say, I have no desire to purchase/stock this in the future. There's a lot worse things to try to smoke, but there's a lot better too. Tastes are subjective, and this blend just doesn't do anything for me.

I've bought quite a bit of this Virginia based Samuel Gawith: Mayor's Chocolate Flake recently as it is so very very good. Tins & 250 g boxes. In lovely flake form, it's not a goopy aromatic but as others have noted, this Chocolate Flake has a lot more chocolate flavor than GH Bob's Chocolate Flake. It's truly wonderful. A "luxury blend?" Yes. It truly taste's like I'm smoking a chocolate milkshake. Very tasty and satisfying. It is clean and cool burning and leaves a pleasant, fresh aftertaste in the mouth. I don't taste much latakia in this at all, so if there's a lot in it, it's been expertly blended. Its wonderful with morning coffee. I find it's best enjoyed in a large diameter, deep-chambered pipe.

On Drying: This blend comes very wet in the tin or box. This might sound heretical but I rub out however much I'll need and then microwave it on a plate for 20--30 seconds. I place it on the table under a ceiling fan while I prepare my pipe. Within a couple minutes, it is dry enough to enjoy. Drying this tobacco does not affect its flavor at all that I can tell.

Upon opening a haylike smell is mixed with a hint that reminds me of a cherrypraline. Lightly sweet. The flakes are a bit wet and during smoking it needs a few more relights than average. A little drying time should reduce the number of relights for a more relaxing smoke. I rubbed out one flake and didn't let it dry. The taste is lightly sweet, but is in no way an aromatic. It's a faint chocolatenote that comes up better if you puff slowly. The Virginia plays the lead with a light note of latakia every now and then. No sharpness noticed.

Now called CH Flake. There’s very little chocolate here, maybe very mild cocoa but you have to search for it. The subdued Latakia takes a back foot. What you have is a deep flavoured, medium strength, quality flake with a subtle sweetness. I prefer mine moist but excellent dry as well – with a more pronounced, still condiment Latakia. Buy in bulk and allow to age, if you can.

Very neatly and beautifully presented dark brown flakes tin aroma is of Latakia dominant came out of tin just dry enough to packs easily and smoking is a pleasure... you get that Coco and chocolaty taste till the last drop burns evenly needed couple relights very enjoyable smoke experience with nic hit medium to someone intense upon smoking fast. Highly recommend!

This is a very good Chocolate Flake. I like it a little better than GH's version. Here, the VA's lead with notes of citrus and grass, the burley has notes of nut (goes good with chocolate, right!) and some earthiness as well. The Lat. is way in the background and comes through once in a while it is woodsy and sweet. The chocolate note is slightly bitter more like a dark chocolate and not very sweet, again like dark chocolate. It is very mild and does not overpower the tobaccos but is present and for me I could taste it in every puff. I do detect the lakeland essence way in the background from time to time. It was added with a very light hand but still present at times. Overall strength is med. but the nic is closer to the mild to med. range. Could be smoked all day if one was inclined to do so but it wins no complements from the wife and friends with its room note. Smokes slow and surprisingly dry for an aromatic. Well worth a try if you are looking for a chocolate aromatic blend.