Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. Sweet Coconut Twist

The Virginas have the usual G&H flavor of wood, earth and a slight nuttiness with a touch of sweetness and spice. I can't say that I can detect the Cavendish. The sweet coconut flavoring smells stronger than it smokes. I'd classify it as mild. It's a very pleasant flavor. I do get a little bitterness at times in the second half of the bowl. The coins need to be sliced as thin as you can get them in order to get a good burn. It also needs a bit of drying time. All in all a very nice smoke.

Body is medium to strong. Taste is full. Flavoring is mild.

Whoa nelly SCT is quite the whopper! Essentially Brown Twist #4 from Samuel Gawith but with some Coconut top dressing, SCT will deliver big taste, nicotine and a much nicer aroma than BT #4 but without harshness or the motor oil taste of XX Black Twist. A great tobacco for a ten minute smoke break since the nicotine enters the blood stream fast with a small amount of actual leaf smoked and the aroma is not that strong to make women run while holding their noses. A bargain for what you pay and consequently what you get! An inch of SCT has the same amount of nicotine as a pound of BCA or 1Q (I don't know if that's accurate but sure seems like it is to me)...

I have samples of Rum, Maple, and Coconut Twist. I claim they are very similar and maybe the same rope with a different mild topping for each. The smoking was very similar to me in terms of flavor and burning characteristics, and so my reviews of these three will repeat themselves.

The rope came a little moist, and I sliced it into thin coins on a cutting board in the kitchen. The pouch note is a sweet tobacco with a pleasant whiff of coconut. The rope is a pretty uniform dark brown with a few flecks of tan in the cross section.

I rubbed out coins and was careful not to pack them to tightly due to the moisture. I did not dry it any. It took some BTU's to get it burning, but it smoked well and did not require an unusual number of relights.

I did not get much coconut in the flavor after the initial light. The flavor in general was very good - an earthy, full tobacco flavor with a slightly tart flavor when puffed. There was a heavy slightly overripe citrus flavor as well. The flavors intensified a little as the bowl progressed, but otherwise stayed constant through the bowl.

There is some nicotine in this, but it is not overwhelming. I tried mixing a rubbed out coin with some Smokers Pride Rich Taste, and this is a very good combo for more routine smoking.

This is a high quality and tasty rope. I recommend it unless you have a nicotine aversion and stick to lighter fare.

Very close to Irish Brown Twist, with a mild coconut casing.

My only previous experience with a rope tobacco is Samuel Gawith Brown #4 and while I enjoyed it I felt there was something lacking in the blend. It seemed just a little too bitter in the sense of a cigar. Not in a bad way but just too much of it for my taste (this is coming from a formerly exclusive cigar smoker so take that as you may). G&H Sweet Coconut Twist succeeds where Brown #4 failed for me. There is just a notch up on the sweetness level that plays perfectly with the dark notes of the rope and balances out with the bitterness of the wrapper. Much like a balanced beer that has a good interplay between the bitter hops and sweet malt.

I would suggest taking your smallest pipe, slicing up the rope into thin disks, rub the disks out gently, let dry for 20 minutes or so to the desired dryness and pack your pipe lightly. This seems to work quite well and avoids a nicotine overdose that would push you over the edge from comfortable to sea sick. It certainly does have a fair amount of nicotine but I think this blend is still approachable as long as you take some caution and respect the potency of the rope. I might suggest that new pipe smokers get a little experience under their belt before chasing after this one.

On light up there is a nice blast of sweetness with only the faintest breath of something resembling coconut. The rope smells only slightly of coconut and I think it would be folly to think of this as an aromatic. Scented would be the right phrase. I detected no bite as I slowly puffed along and encountered a nice full bodied smoke that was sweet, dark, African Virginias along with a tiny bit of bitterness that can be likened to my previous hops/malt analogy. It's a bit monochromatic throughout the bowl but it never becomes tiring.

If you're in the mood for a strong smoke that's a cut above the rest then I would most heartily suggest this one.

About a week ago, a well known and respected member of our pipe club brought in some bags of tobacco giveaways and laid them out on the table. I saw this one and just had to try it. It was a good 8oz of rope that I somewhat greedily snatched from the table. After realizing my lack of manners, I insisted he take 10 dollars (all I had in my wallet) to at least ease my guilty conscience. Yes, even us pipe smokers are not perfect at times. A few members read my posts as I am not completely anonymous so you can take this as my confession of sorts. Now that the smoke has cleared on to my review and experience dealing with rope. I like the art and craftsmanship that goes into making these, wish I could actually watch it in progress. The dark brown rope is about the diameter of a dime and I got out a disposable cigar cutter and clipped off about an inch. This is a really dense, thick rope and I had to really use some force to cut this. I took the wrapper off to use as kindling and broke the dime size piece up with a knife on my tobacco cutting board. Yes, all rope smokers should have one. I loaded it into my cob and placed the wrapper on top to help with the firing process. After 10-20 matches and almost as much time in minutes, I finally got it going. I now understand what the previous owner said with it being too much trouble. I also did have to relight quite some after letting my pipe rest. I am sure there are pro’s that could do a better job than me but no big deal. With the name “sweet coconut” I expected more than the wisp detected by my jaded sense of smell nor could I taste it either. A slight essence but I swear I think that was my mental telepathy willing the coconut oils to come through. If I had not been told I would never have guessed there was coconut. Several reviewers have alluded that this is probably Brown Twist #4 from Samuel Gawith with a mild topping. I have not tried brown twist but they may be on to something. The tobacco itself sans the topping is actually quite good and I have enjoyed what I smoked. Besides, the rope looks cool stored in my pint jar, unfortunately cut into 4-inch ropes to fit. I am looking forward to having more down the road. So, other than the boss lady saying it looked like something the dog left behind in the yard I can honestly say I liked the experience and will be smoking more in the future. 2 stars for lack of coconut, 3 for craftsmanship and the excellent Virginia tobacco.

If you've tried the unflavored ropes, you've tried this one. The bag note has a slight coconut odor to it. I loaded up G&H Coconut Twist in an Astley billiard. Apparently it’s made with a magical coconut flavored topping that you get exactly one whiff of coconut from but then just disappears after the charring light never to be heard from again.

Here is the thing, G&H ropes are fantastic if you like the genre. But when they say Cherry or Coconut, do not expect a Cherry or Coconut aromatic. I'm not sure what they put on the Cherry or Coconut but it certainly never lasts beyond the initial lighting that I have experienced. From then on, it's just great, rich tobacco. Maybe they wave a coconut over this at the factory or are just thinking about coconuts when they make it but it has no coconut flavor and no coconut aroma. Maybe have a Pina Colada or some Malibu Rum if you want some coconut while you smoke it. Actually, that might be good.

Presentation is rope - brown, between nickel and quarter diameter. Looks and feels dry, but oozes oils when prepped. To prep, one must slice thin coins with a sharp blade and then rub out the coins. Needs some drying time.

The coconut topping seems very lightly applied in this sample. Lighter than any of the other flavored ropes I've tried. That's a shame, because I love coconut, and the flavoring seems accurate and doesn't taste artificial. A bit sweet, like stealing a bite of the flaked coconut while mamma bakes pies.

This is brown rope...if you don't know what that means, here's what you need to know - prep is a bit of a pain, it takes a while to get it lit and it needs a higher than normal number of relights, and (most importantly) it is very very strong in nicotine. I'm not exaggerating - this is some of the strongest stuff out there.

I am not an aromatic fan, but I am a huge fan of G&H ropes and twists. This one is not cloying, although the flavor is present throughout the smoke. If definitely subsides significantly, leaving the majority of the bowl with a solid, familiar G&H twist character. It's an interesting changeup once in a while, but it's not one I would smoke regularly.