Borkum Riff Vanilla Cavendish (Sungold)

Not sure if all of the negative comments are a result of the manufacturer changing recipes. I think some of the dates are a bit old. But I find this to be a simple, tasteful smoke. Easy to light, good flavor. Not overly vanilla. Pleasant room note. I have smoked it plain and I have mixed it with some black cavendish which is a good combo.

Borkum Riff's Vanilla for me falls in between their Cherry Cavendish, and their Whiskey flavoured one. The Cherry for me was the best, Vanilla second, followed by the Whiskey.

The Vanilla has less flavour and room note than the Cherry, and doesn't bite as bad or make me feel ill like the Whiskey one did.

I don't really ever smell or taste vanilla when smoking this. It's an OK smoke. Burns quickly though.

It would do in a pinch, but at nearly $60 Australian for a 50g pouch, I feel extremely dirty buying this, rather than ordering something better, for less, online.

I had left at home my tobacco pouch with some fine tobacco (one Peterson special reserve) so desesperate to get something I bought this Vanilla Cavendish without much advice. Too bad for me!

In the pouch there is a dominant smell of wax (we could say fine shoe polish). Smoking is disappointing, it bites the tongue without much enjoyment.

Some pipe smokers are reluctant to try an aromatic tobacco, fearing it would be too strong or too full of unusual aromas. They should not fear that one! The vanilla touch is fully unnoticeable!

So I join the other reviewers about all they wrote!

Between the Borkun Riffs, this is the one of best. I enjoy this and also the Cherry Cavendish and the Honey & Orange. The smokers that like Vanilla and Aromatics may be give to this blend a chance.

I like this is the best vanilla i smoked.(i like cavendish)its got real tobacco flavour and you can feel little bit sweet vanilla no bite gonna buy again.one of my favorites in the aromatic list.this tobacco always get bad ratings that i not agree whit(can it be becuse this is a pouch tobacco) this is much better than macbaren vanilla that gets god ratings that i not understand.

its very good lend,,if u want to quit smoking indeed,,,first few puffs u get the vanilla n after tht comes the heavy casing which distort ur tongue,,nuthing bt the casing sweetness is there too many promises non fulfilled,,burn into white lumpy ashes,,constant tamping is required,,aroma is decent thu,,wont b on my list

A friend of mine, who smokes primarily Borkum blends, recommended this to me. While I pretty much enjoy smoking it, I have mixed feelings, but back to that later.

Opened on the pavement right in front of the shop, I smelled the beloved Sungold-scent, but with some kind of alcoholic topping. Comes as no surprise, it is present in the taste as well, but not overwhelmingly. Comes a bit wet, so consider some drying. I found, it works better if packed a bit loosely, and smoked in a slower pace. Interesting much, the light aromatic taste never disappears, unless you smoke it like a locomotive, which is not recommended in spite of your tounge.

The taste delivers this Sungold-y "flowers and sunshine" mood, strongly recommended for outdoor smoking, on sunlit evenings and starry nights. As of drinks, works just fine with a cherry vodka and nearly anything milder. If you tend to appear near forests, grab a Belgian beer, find a bench and enjoy.

Why say I have mixed feelings then? It is because it's peers from the Sungold pool. Because truth is, even though it is a nice one, it is not top notch quality, Stanwell's and Alsbo's just simply outshines him, and with the prices matching, it's not a good deal overall.

This tobacco does have its merits. Whereas another offering from the STG stable, Larsen Unique, fought a losing battle in de-ghosting most of my pipes after some Lakeland sauce (Grasmere flake), Borkum Riff Sungold wasted no time in returning things to normal. I am pleasantly surprised by this all-day smoke.

I bought a packet of this tobacco whilst in France. It was pretty cheap and BR make an Admiral's Vanilla Flake which has excellent reviews... so I thought I'd give this a go. I'd probably rate it at 1.5 but was pleasantly surprised after all of the dreadful reviews so have gone for a 2 !

The tobacco compresses into a brick in the packet but breaks up easily and is easy to load. It burns quickly and is probably possible to smoke with one light (no need for a false light). I can imagine that some people find it bitey... but if you smoke it steadily you shouldn't have a problem

Unburnt the tobacco smells a bit peculiar... you get the vanilla but no sweetness. When smoked the vanilla drops away and I seem to get mainly burley. I've had worse tobaccos and will probably smoke the lot, but NOT buy any more. Or it may end up in my "compost heap" jar mixed with other tobaccos that I'm not overly keen on... they seem to mature, round each other off and miraculously produce something half decent.

Jan 2017 update: I'm still smoking this and haven't tipped it into my "compost heap" of rejected tobaccos yet. However it occurs to me that this isn't great value. It's cheap to buy (in France) but burns very fast. A decent flake may be more expensive but will last at least twice as long.