Samuel Gawith Sam's Flake

Che buono! Ottimo Virginia (come sempre nei SG) con degli Orientali che svolgono un lavoro completamente diverso da quello tipico delle EM. Una fumata tranquilla, serena, da tutti i giorni. Davvero piacevole.

Quite dark & cured tobacco.

Tonquin Bean aroma is mild, if not noticeable. However other notes such as cumin and pepper seem to be present, imho. It has a somewhat sweet taste.

Even though it looks like a tobacco that can knock a grown man out easily, it's not. I filled my medium-big sized bowl and enjoyed a rainy afternoon. It is fulfilling in terms of taste and nicotine. Easy on the tongue, and doesn't tire you.

Just don't forget to dry it out a bit.

While Sam's Flake is of undoubted quality, it's left me ambivalent.

I found a largish pipe best (Stanwell 29) to give it room to unfold revealing the delicate orientals before turning into the Rich Taste of a well known cigarette brand.

Using the virginia benchmark, I asked myself ; Is this preferable to Red Orlik? But that was like asking if a Mustang better than a Charger when you need a pick up.

4 bright stars because it's good but too mild for me.

This is a funny one. I am not really getting the orientals that are referenced in the description - to my palate this burns like a virginia flake with a little tonquin, and perhaps some perique (none to my knowledge is referenced, I am merely referencing a distinct spicy quality, especially in the first third of the bowl).

My flakes are old, and like strips of dark leather. They require a substantial (30+ minutes) amount of drying to be ready to smoke. They rub out easily, and burn for an eternity. When smoked slowly expect 1.5 hours or so from a medium sized bowl. The smell in the tin is very nice, sweet VA's and and raisin or prune quality. The tonquin is very mild, both in the tin and in the bowl, but it gives a nice additional dimension to this smoke.

It requires several false lights and light tamping to get it going, but burns nicely once lit. This requires slow smoking. While it does not bite, it will get quite hot if you puff too rapidy, and the flavor suffers. When smoked slowly the flavor is rich but mild. I taste VA's and spice, and not a whole lot else. The tonquin is there, but not in a forward way. This would be an excellent introduction to the flavor for someone not ready to take the 1792 plunge. There is not a lot of nicotine here, and a largish bowl can be smoked with pleasure.

Compared to most other flakes on the market this is a 4 star blend. The quality is off the chart, and the flavor, while mild, is singular. There are, however, other Gawith flakes that are significantly better, in my estimation, so I give it three stars. It does not have the magic of Best Brown or Full Virginia, or the complexity and richness of Navy Flake, 1792, of Chocolate Flake. It is a pleasant diversion, but once my stock is gone I will most likely not replace it, simply because of the aforementioned offerings that are simply better to my preference. This is definitely worth a try, however, and could fill a niche if you are looking for a VA flake that is different from most others.

Undoubtedly one of the best tobaccos I've ever smoked. I really love VAs, in all varieties, and also when accompanied by Burley or Perique. When I bought it, I was looking for a good quality VA with some more sweetness and flavour in comparison to "purer" leaves, and I found it! In fact, I wouldn't compare this tobacco to BBF, FVF or any other unscented VA, because these are different products entirely. What I get from my smoke is the taste of sweet, high-quality Virginia, a subdued, delicate scent of vanilla and tonquin bean. I think I'll smoke this tobacco whenever I'd like to smoke 1792 without being kicked in the butt by Nicotine. It has some of the wonderful creaminess of Kendal cream, but without the floral essence of the latter, which is also more acidic. The taste of Sam's flake reminds me of some freshly baked pastry. I wouldn't dare saying that the orientals don't come out at all, even if I can't isolate the taste. They probably cooperate in the final flavour of the blend. I'd absolutely recommend this tobacco to anyone who loves to taste some real tobacco but doesn't dislike a little casing, which in this case (as it is usually with Samuel Gawith, at least in my experience) is superb.

I freely admit I bought this because I'm called Sam. However, whilst milder and dryer than my usual preferences I really enjoyed it. Just taken a break from working and I found the aroma delightful. This tobacco wafts up pleasantly. It is not strong, and usually that makes me yearn for a punchy virginia flake or a bowl crammed full of St Bruno (which whilst not strong is just right to me, as is Full Virginia Flake). I will be keeping some of this for when I get a week or so off over Christmas. (It's the only time Surveying students get to sleep, especially when they work as well....) Seriously though it is a rather nice tobacco for crisp days. It's one of those tobaccos which puts me in a contemplative mood. I like it.

Kind of my go-to when I get the jones for a little tonquin but don't want to go for the full-bore blast of 1792. Not my favorite flake but I end up buying it repeatedly, so there must be something bringing me back. It is nice to have an oriental blend with tonquin, which seems kind of unique.

Presentation is OK by me. Not too bothered with Gawith's old-school method of slicing up a flake. Think of the effect that using a muddler will have when mashing up something for a mixed drink. Not so neat and tidy but a better effect with the smoke, which is what counts. The flakes are dark with some birdseye, covered with sugar crystals and obviously stoved as there is a rind on the outer edges of the flake.

Nice dark and slightly musty virginias, Gawith style. If I were to hazard a guess, I would say that the orientals are dominated by Izmir, since when I am smoking something with Izmir in it at the same time as when I have a tin of Sam's open there are some similarities there.

Flavor profile changes quite a bit depending on whether you fold and stuff vs. rubbing it out and also on chamber size. I prefer the fold and stuff method with this tobacco. In a small chambered pipe the taste is mostly virginias with more honey/lakeland and a hint of the orientals. In a mid chambered pipe, which I prefer, from front to back it goes orientals, virginias, a hint of tonquin and a tiny bit of the lakeland. I enjoy the slightly herbal flavor with the tonquin quite a bit, although I might prefer a bit more tonquin. It is not tonquin forward at all like 1792 is, so if you hate tonquin, dry it out and no worries. Pretty mellow flavor all in all.

If you work at it there is sometimes a delicious sweet note that I like to call the 'green note' that comes out - super nice. Not the sweetest flake otherwise, in spite of all the sugar crystals.

Over many years, I have found that a fabulous tin aroma doesn't translate into smoking pleasure. That is why this tobacco was so disappointing for me. It starts off harsh but settles down a bit. but where is the flavour? It has many components, but they seem to blend together to be lesser than their individual parts .

I have now got to the end of my 50g and it didn't come soon enough. For my favourites, please see my review of Full Virginia Flake

Opening tin with this tobacco was a big surprise for me. Turkish leaves get some kind of exotic aroma to the whole blend. When tasting it, this is a very fine tobacco, pure natural Virginias, but easy to smoke and a bit fruity(?) because of Turkish tobacco. It can be smoked both by natural tobacco lovers and beginners who are making first steps with non-aromatic tobacco.