Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. Top Black Cherry

This aro Toby is an example to me of how important this website has been in my "development" as a pipe smoker. Many of our compadre's have eloquently written of how much cleaner, how much more....authentic ....this blend is with regard to its cherry flavor, than the myriad of other such blends out there.

I have no other cherry aros of which to compare Top Black Cherry to, but that's the beauty of heeding the advice of others-we can learn from their trials w/o replication of disappointment ensued.

I find this blend shines in a Meer-to the point that I shan't depart from the combination. It's rich, smooth, cool, and it tastes of dark dark cherries -which have a subdued sort of sweetness, not of bright-red balls in light syrup.

I do agree that TBC does require tact in its preparation-with G&H aros I have learned to pull out 4-5 bowls worth of baccy, reseal the plastic and nestle that sticky cud back in its tin, then air out the loose black leaf for 6-8 hours in my 50% humidity home. And even then it can be a bear to get stoked.

It's nice to know I'm enjoying blends from them that have recd the same reception by like-minded fellows (as well as untold well-rounded ladies) for round a bout 2 centuries now. It's nice to have that comfort in an otherwise short-sighted society. Fantastic in every way!

Not a lot of aromatics make my favorite list. I had grown tired of trying the majority of awful cherry blends out there. I have to say I enjoy Hobbit's weed in its sweet cherry/vanilla candy presentation. This stuff is not cherry candy...it really is more like real cherry (i.e. the fruit). The tobacco itself is top notch and it shows. It seems like most cherry blends out there use lesser quality tobaccos because they know the casing will drown out most of the tobacco flavor anyway. Not the case with this stuff...good quality leaf and good quality casing makes the whole thing sing beautifully. A cherry blend benchmark for sure.

Gawith Hoggarth - Top Black Cherry.

The appearance of the blend couldn't be anymore like I expected: black ribbons! They look quite coarse but the blend doesn't include any broken-flake pieces that still need a rub. The aroma from the pouch is strongly aromatic; cherries of course! The hydration looks good, so on with the smoke:

It lights easily, and if I'm honest tastes nowhere near as toxic as the pouch-note implied it would. The cherries are very clear in the smoke, but not as bitter or harsh as is often the case with cherry blends. There's also no sourness from them; the flavour's really calm. The Black Cavendish gives the smoke a vanilla creaminess, and this makes it seem even more insouciant. I get no tongue bite from it and the temperature's fairly cool. I notice Top Black Cherry gives a good burn that requires very few re-lights and only the odd tamp, leaving behind a pure ash.

I find the nicotine mild and the room-note wonderful.

One of the best cherry aromatic blends I've had.

Highly recommended.

This is it as far as cherromatics go. The flavor is good but not too heavy, the aroma is good but not too heavy, it's not too sweet, it's just a perfect aromatic smoke. G&H's Top Black is easily the best cherry tobacco I've found ... it's not a category that has a lot of really good examples in it. That makes this one stand out even more.

I buy in bulk, and it's always at perfect smoking moisture. Stored in Ball jars, it stays that way indefinitely. This is easily one of my top two go-to aromatics.

I love this blend . The Black Cherry Flavoring is at a perfect amount for the blend . It's a touch moist , so letting it sit out a while wont hurt . The favor is a Black Cherry and not a red cherry , for anyone that knows the difference , and the black cherry flavor is quite natural in taste . The blend smokes about as cool as something can , the aroma is pleasant .. it's about perfect . In bulk , G&H are a bit Pricey compared to most every other maker and a cheaper alternative is Sutliff St. George blend , which is actually very good too but not as good as this most awesome blend

Update 11/2021 Ill add that the flavoring milds with age . Its exceptional fresh , slightly aged or well aged .. but the flavoring diminishes some as it goes

Top Black Cherry;

Star Rating = 4.0;

Rating Scores - 10 is the Best and 0 is the Worst;

Pouch Note = 9;

Room Note = 10;

Flavor = 10;

Bite = 10;

Burn = 10;

After Taste = 10;

Raw Score = 59;

Rated Percentage = 98%;

Comment = Very Smooth, Very Mild, Mellow, nice light Black Cherry Flavor, this is a very pleasant smoke.

I believe this is identical to Exclusive Black Cherry if you buy it in bulk. In any event, its likely not what many will be expecting. What it is in fact is a really outstanding tart cherry blend somewhat typical of all G-H tobacco products. It is not a sweet syrupy aromatic but a black cavendish blend, double fermented (so GH tells us and I believe them) and cased in a tart musky cherry flavor. The nic hit is above mild, closer to medium, and the flavor is full. Its delicious. I dont smoke many aromatics outside of the GH flakes and a few semi aro's like Macbaren dark roll twist and C&D's After Hours, but this one is great and nice change from my usual virginia flakes and vapers. Its more complex than one might expect. And the tobacco is very high quality, as is always the case with GH. Its worth a try. Smokes very cool and tasty right to the end of the bowl.

I just finished my fifth bowl of this tobacco, and much like my reaction to this companies blend Bob's Chocolate Flake...all I can say is, WOW! I have NEVER enjoyed a cherry aromatic blend as much as I am enjoying this tobacco. Most cherry blends I have tried have been dry and hot, leaving my mouth charred and needing skin grafts...but not this fine blend. It is very moist out of the tin and did require a few relights, but other than that, a very delicious topping that I personally feel is not overpowering at all, I could taste both casing and tobacco all the way down the bowl as I puffed, no tonguebite and no nasty aftertaste. A stronger blend than most cherry blend smokers would be used to, but that is another plus for me...and another WOW!...everyone around you will love this one...I recieved many compliments on the room note as soon as I began smoking this...yet another plus...Highly Recommended!!

*****UPDATE 5-24-06***** This blend just gets better and better!! I have figured out what this most reminds me of while smoking it..China Black variety Black Cherry Tea!! Absolutely fantastic!! The flavor comes through all the way down the bowl. If there were a five star rating available, this blend would get it!!

Smoking this as I type, this a very easy to smoke tobacco with strong notes of cherry, I would say that this is quite mild and could easily be smoked all day. I have smoked the Gawith American blend cherry and I would definitely say the top cherry is a better smoke, with a more natural cherry taste. Easy to smoke straight out of the bag. A top smoke, I will definitely be having again.

Pipe Used: Parker Basket Pipe (Hungarian)

Age When Smoked: Fresh out of the bag

Purchased From: http://www.gqtobaccos.com/gawith-hoggarth-exclusiv-top-black-cherry/