Former Straight Grain Flake

(3.14)
A really full bodied but amazingly smooth dark flake tobacco prepared from traditional English recipes and methods. A good pinch of mellow yet spicy perique brings out the rich flavor of Former's Straight Grain Flake.

Details

Brand Former
Blended By  
Manufactured By  
Blend Type Virginia/Perique
Contents Perique, Virginia
Flavoring
Cut Flake
Packaging 50 grams tin
Country Germany
Production Currently available

Profile

Strength
Medium
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild -> Overwhelming
Flavoring
None Detected
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
None Detected -> Extra Strong
Room Note
Pleasant to Tolerable
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Unnoticeable -> Overwhelming
Taste
Medium to Full
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Extremely Mild (Flat) -> Overwhelming

Average Rating

3.14 / 4
9

9

2

2

Reviews

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Displaying 1 - 10 of 22 Reviews
Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Oct 27, 2016 Medium to Strong Extremely Mild Medium Pleasant
Former's - Straight Grain Flake.

Nightmare: I spent ages trying to find this last night, I knew I'd bought it but couldn't find it for love nor money! I opened my tobacco cupboard today and it had appeared exactly where I'd been looking; I think I'm loosing my mind!

Although it's listed as a flake, it's actually half broken (not ribbons, yet still not whole flakes). The smell from the tin is a little bit like a currant bun: dough and raisins. The moisture quantity is exemplary, and it needs no further rubbing for the way I load it; just more of a scrunch between the fingers as I stuff it in.

Straight Grain Flake only requires a light touch of the flame to initiate a good burn, and then it gives a very high quality smoke. It tastes similar to how the tin-note suggested it would; the Perique gives a raisin quality but there's also a kind of bready/doughy taste at first; it's not at all caustic. After about ten minutes the bready flavour subsides somewhat and the dried fruit becomes the dominant taste. The Virginia adds a slight grassiness, but in comparison it's nowhere near as bolshie. A bowl of S.G.F. burns well, leaving hardly any dottle.

I don't find the room-note too bad, again, there's a sort of mild dough quality, and the nicotine's just above medium.

Straight Grain Flake easily deserves four stars:

Highly recommended.
Pipe Used: Rattray's 2016 Pipe of the Year Poty Bullcap
PurchasedFrom: Smokingpipes.com
Age When Smoked: One Month
8 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Mar 28, 2015 Medium to Strong Very Mild Full Tolerable
The Virginias are grassy with a bit of bold earthiness, bread, some sour lemon, mild sugar, light wood and a small floral note. The sweetness is tart and tangy citrus, and tangy dried fruit. The earthy, woody perique is strong, offering some plums and raisins with a sharp spiciness in every puff. There's a prevalent musty, leathery, bitter quality that, depending on your personal preferences, either clash with or compliment the sweet and sour flavor. Despite all of that, you'll notice a creaminess from the topping that keeps this from becoming harsh, though I suspect a pinch or two of dark cavendish is present. The strength and nic-hit are a step past the medium mark. The taste is a notch past that level. Won't bite or get harsh, though there are few minute rough edges. Burns slow, cool and clean and requires some relights, leaving little dampness in the bowl. The flavor is deep and very consistent from top to bottom. Has a pleasantly lingering after taste, and stronger room note. Made for an experienced smoker, so it's not an all day smoke. In many ways, it's a bolder, sweeter, spicier version of Dunhill Navy Rolls with some different flavor hits.

-JimInks
7 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Sep 04, 2016 Medium Extremely Mild Medium to Full Pleasant
Another winner. First half gives me sweet dark fruit with some tang and spice. Second half the fruitiness fades a bit and is supplemented with baked breads and spice. Wonderful well rounded flavors. Just a great all around smoke.

Medium in body. Might be a touch of added fruity flavoring. Taste is medium to full. Burn is decent, but needs a relight or two or three.
Pipe Used: MM Little Devil Cutty, Little Devil Acorn
PurchasedFrom: smokingpipes.com
Age When Smoked: fresh
5 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Sep 03, 2005 Medium None Detected Medium Unnoticeable
Nice!

The flakes are broken and rub out easily if that is your preference (it is mine). The Perique comes through in gentle, soft waves while the Virginia is more demanding of your attention. I can't place my finger on the flavor as it is quite unique. Oriental undertones? Nah.

I think this will be a wonderful tobacco after a few years in the cellar. It's just a smidgen rough around the edges but provides an otherwise stellar smoke.

I must give Former's other offerings a try - and soon.
5 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
May 16, 2005 Medium to Strong None Detected Medium to Full Pleasant to Tolerable
I found this to be the most enjoyable of the newly introduced Former Flakes. The nicely prepared strips have an ideal moisture content and readily pack without rubout even in medium sized bowls. The blend consists of darker and redish VAs with just the right balance of Perique for my taste. However, you must like Perique to like this blend. Lighting and burn rate were excellent and resulted in an effortless smoke without relights. The taste and strength doesn't change much as the smoke progresses but this is a good smoke with natural tobacco taste. I'll order some more tins for aging and hope for even better satisfaction.
4 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 02, 2010 Medium to Strong Mild Full Pleasant to Tolerable
The appearance in the tin of this blend is similar to Stokkebye's Luxury Navy Flake but a lot darker. The tin aroma is a mix of the dark, tangy, sweet Virginias along with the underlying spice of the perique. There is also a hint of leather in there as well. This is one of my favorite smelling blends in the tin. It doesn't really smell like any other blend. I opened several other Vapers and stuck my nose in all of them and none of them smelled as good to me as this one.

I rubbed out the flake a little but to dry for a few minutes before packing this in. I have started using the Air Pocket Method for my flakes and broken flakes and that is what I used with this blend. I smoked this in a Peterson 268 Zulu shape as it seems the best for me with this blend.

Lighting was very easy. Once rubbed out this blend is made up of very narrow strips of tobacco which take to flame very easily. This blend has a very dark Virginia taste to start off with. There are some lighter flavored Virginias in there that provide high notes, perhaps Red or maybe even Lemon Virginia. I'm not sure but they are delicious. The perique is there in the background but it really comes to the forefront after about 1/3 of the bowl. Then it kicks in and rounds this blend out very nicely.

It has a fuller taste and strength than a lot of the blends in this showdown. Now this is not to say that this is a nicotine bomb like Night Train seems to be but it is definitely more full than any of the Hearth and Home blends. The taste and strength last through the rest of the bowl and never turns sour near the end.

Overall this is a very, very enjoyable blend. While it is not my favorite smoke it is definitely in my regular rotation. It is also one of the better bargains out there and I will be ordering more tins throughout the years to lie down in the cellar. This will be one that really gets better with age in my opinion.
3 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jun 24, 2016 Mild to Medium Medium Medium Tolerable
I did not find this as full tasting as other reviewers.

My one tin of Straight Grain Flake had 4-5 years of age on it. The nose on opening was of tobacco & fruit - especially apples - and some plum notes. The flakes were slightly messy and broken, with lots of black, brown and blonde colours. This is great smelling stuff in the tin, if you like those sorts of smells.

Lightup is sharp and bit thin - lots of citrus and apple tastes coming through. SGF really responds well to some resting time, and that is how I tended to consume it. The apple additive was tenacious, only dispersing after the half-way point of a bowl. The overall presentation is of a decent va/per, a bit stringent, but certainly in the 'good' spectrum. Nicotine strength was below medium for me, and the blend required an easy hand in stoking - lots of potential for bite here if overpuffed.

I enjoyed my tin, but find many other va/per offerings reach greater heights than this, so I will not be in a hurry to restock.

3 stars seems fair.
2 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Dec 25, 2011 Mild to Medium Very Mild Mild to Medium Pleasant to Tolerable
I was strongly - unfortunately - disappointed by this flake. Because it is not a dark flake, but mostly a golden VA with some darker leaf. Which means a smoke with a rather hay/cereal taste with barely a plum taste from the PER that does not seem to be fermented (which I still prefer to the peppery taste of the fermented variety). No surprises, no evolution in the complexity. It is not full bodied and the PER does not bring out any rich flavours. Smokes well but not suitable for the experienced smoker. I would recommend it, though, to the beginner that wishes to venture into VA/PER mixtures. Then, Escudo and Davidoff Medallion Flakes would be the next level.
2 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Apr 15, 2005 Medium to Strong Mild to Medium Full Pleasant to Tolerable
Thanks - freed from that mirror (see Montogomery).

Rumored, again, to be a clone of St. Bruno's Flake which is not available in the U.S. or in other places as well. TPSE (April '05) opined that this is a new replacement to St. Brunos in the U.S. and a good one

Darker virginias than the other new Former mostly bright flakes. With reds and some more perique here. This tastes like a full dark flake but with a little let up due to the reds.

To me it's more like Astley's 109 flake than St. Bruno. I've smoked the original St. Brunos, which is stout, dark, but with intensely sweet flavors, yet cool. This is not quite as sweet.

If you ask me, G&H's Ennerdale Flake is closer to and better than St. Bruno. But I am not a die hard. This flake is not as sweet.

But enough comparison, it's not that distant from St. Brunos, but it is good and deep in its own right. Dark, cool, stoutish, yet sweet, it's a leathery flake to feel and rub out or break up. I break it up a little for a small bowl.

If you want to try a darkish flake with a sweet fruity type note, give this a spin. I'll spend a while finishing the whole tin yet but I have smoked about 15 plus bowls in a small Dunhill. Enjoyable. The sweetness will probably become more pronounced with some additional age. It's deep and enjoyable even if you haven't tried the original saintly one.
2 people found this review helpful.
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Reviewed By Date Rating Strength Flavoring Taste Room Note
Jun 27, 2023 Medium Extremely Mild Medium Unnoticeable
Former Straight Grain Flake - The tin note is amazing and the smoke doesn’t disappoint either . Just cracked my 3rd tin and this may be my favorite vaper . This one has a good amount of Perique in it . Imagine a less bready and grassy Escudo with more Perique . The light topping ,also similar to Escudo. FSGF is also much cheaper . I stocked up on it . 4
Age When Smoked: Fresh
1 person found this review helpful.
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