Samuel Gawith St. James Flake

This blends resembles FVF when looking at it. Tin presentation was typical Gawith, it looks like someone packed the flakes into the tin with his feet.

That being said, although tin presentation is lacking, this was a really really good smoke. It was very wet in the tin so i would recommend some airing before smoking.

The taste was creamy with the unmistakable kiss of Perique. Really good stuff. I rubbed out some flakes, did the fold and stuff method and there was some variation but not much.

It really differs from what one would normally expect from a Virginia/Perique blend. The tobaccos are heavily stoved and the flakes are very dark in colour.

Its very good but not great. YMMV.

For South African Pipers, Gawith blends are available from Sturks in Cape Town.

Mo, South Africa.

This review is of a three year old tin of St. James flake. SG flakes commonly have sugar crystals on them, and this tin looked like a stack of very thinly sliced powdered brownies! And of course, the SG flakes are always quite moist. I smoked this tobacco in various states of hydration. From quite soggy, to dried over night brittle. As I expected, smoking this tobac on the dryer side, provided an easier burn and thus better control of flavor. When on the moist end of hydration, I have to rub this flake up a bit more than usual because it is quite dense and difficult to get burning.

Being a huge fan of FullVirginiaFlake, I expected a bit more of that deep buttery sweetness in SJF. Nevertheless, I was not disappointed. The Perique is amazing at times, providing a distinct pepper note, and a ghostly jam flavor. The signature Lakeland flavor seems more subdued or perhaps hidden in this blend. It all adds up to a delicious creamy smoke that is simple and wonderful, like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich!

I found a good range in flavor in SJF depending on moisture level. My girl at first hated the smell (smoke moist), but as I smoke it dryer, and very slowly, she actually loves the smell!

I will be purchasing more for the cellar.

I purchased several pounds of this tobacco in bulk a few months ago, thinking it was the same tobacco that I purchased in cans in 2009. This is not the same tobacco; my new purchase has Latakia instead of Perique. Although this is a very high quality tobacco, smooth with a hint of sweetness, I cannot smoke it because I don't like the taste of Latakia. This tobacco is superb for fans of Latakia but not for me.

SJF is most probably the FVF plus the generous help of my beloved Perique.

When talking about SG it's always of top notch tobacco components, that's out of any discussion.

But, to be frank, I expected a bit more from this. At the end of the only tin I've got from abroad (but SJF will be soon available here in Italy, and again at very top premium price…) I realize that my problem with SG's flakes is how hardly compressed they are. I just like softer flakes. As a matter of fact the fold & stuff method results pretty impossible, this thing is fireproof. So I cut the flakes in small dices, and that works fine. One size 4 bowl lasts a hours or more.

Regarding flavour, it's as natural as one expects from the purest VaPer. No trace of any chemical flavouring. No soap, no flowers. Just tobacco flavour. The Perique adds a deeper dimension to FVF – some of FVF's tender notes going lost – without so much pepper.

SJF is one of the coolest & driest smoke ever.

Light and mellow, smooth and creamy. St. James Flake is a great way to start the day, and may just replace my beloved E.M.P. (R.I.P.). I use the patented Fold n' Stuff method, and it lights and burns very easily (make sure it's good and dry first, however).

I don't find it to be a particularly strong 'baccy; I've experienced no kick from it, but that's fine with me. Despite being comprised of several different tobaccos, this is not a complex blend. All of the flavors play nicely together, making this just a simple, but rich, smoke. Recommended if you're in the mood for a softer VaPer, one that just settles on your tongue instead of stomping on it (don't be fooled however; it will bite *hard* if drawn from too quickly).

It took me a while to warm up to this fine flake, despite my love of all things VaPer. My tin was opened about 6 months ago and now has all of about 1 bowl remaining. But it's only been with the last few bowls that I've come to value this flake.

The dark colored flake is exceedingly moist in the tin and needs at least an hour's drying time before smoking. Aromas on opening are in some respects familiarly VaPerish—a sweet grassiness from the mature Virginias overlaid with slightly sour, fig and date smells from the Perique. I also find a not altogether pleasant tomato leaf quality to St. James Flake which is most present in the tin and at first light.

St. James Flake rubs out easily, but also smokes nicely rolled into a plug or folded and stuffed. The burn is generally cool (assuming proper drying), smoke is copious, strength is modest, and the flavors of grass and dried fruit are very pleasant, though rather quiet. For the first several bowls, I found this too bland, but lately I find its subtle flavors genuinely appealing.

This is not likely to displace my preferred VaPers—all of which tend to greater flavor intensity—but I don't at all regret that I have a few more tins squirreled away.

This is pretty much the first "pure" VAPER I've tried.

I purchased this tin at the Columbus show, and cracked it open right away to smell it and see what it looked like. The flakes are long and semi-broken rather than in discrete, individual slices as I've found in other tins. This didn't surprise me, as SG's Balkan Flake is very similar. The pieces had the whitish cast of sugar on them, which made my briar bretheren drool! (Again, the Balkan Flake had the same sugar mottling on it). In the tin, however, I detected a strong smell of damp straw, and not much else. It was suggested that I put the tin up for a month or so to let nature take its course, so I left the tin alone for about a month and a half, closed but not sealed.

Upon returning to the tin, I found that the green straw smell had dissipated, leaving a fairly straightforward Virginia aroma.

I loaded it into a pipe fully-rubbed. I used a fairly large-bowl pipe, which is what I smoke most of my blends in. This may have been a mistake. I say that because while the flavor was very good, I quickly found out that the nicotine delivered a "POW! right in the kisser!" punch that had me sweating rather quickly. I had to put the bowl down and reapproach it several times.

The flavor is mild, but I still enjoyed the complexity of the various VAPER flavors with each puff.

Given the nicotine punch it packs, it may be a bit too much for me, but it's a good 'baccy that VAPER fans and nicotine hounds should favor.

Nice. I'm a perique fan, and this has plenty. Not a huge amount. Got that tickle in my sinuses from it, though. The Virginias are as good as one might expect from Gawith.

Nothing really special or fantastic with this Va/Per flake, this is a classic and standard Virginia smoke, without any good or bad surprise, ALOT of perique.

There is much better Va/Per available from other makers.