Davidoff Flake Medallions

This was one of those take it or leave it blends for me, While in no means an unpleasant smoke it just left me wanting a bit more in the flavour department...Maybe a touch more Perique or a tad more of the hay note on the Virginia either way it just came out a bit bland, neither fish nor fowl. Would I buy it again? No purely on the fact there’s better out there the likes of Peter Stockerbys luxury bulls eye for instance. maybe I cellared it for too long ? Dunno having read the reviews maybe I was expecting just a bit more.

Update.

Having returned to this blend after a couple of months the jar time has brought out more of the nature of this blend I feel. The Perique has started to shine a little more and the virginias chime in on the act.

After 3 months out of the tin it’s improved considerably from fresh out of the tin, also 2nd time around I smoked this in an old Peterson full bent which may have had a positive influence so I’ve upgraded the number of stars I originally awarded, if you have a tin my advice is let it breathe for a while and you’ll be rewarded

Really nice and creamy smoke. Real tobacco taste but more on the medium ro light side. Due to the little heart of black cavendish and the pinch of perique it gets depth and wider flavours. Sweet and a a very little subtitle of spice. I keep a a taste of this on the tung a good while after the smoke - what i also like…

The colour on the tin is really well chosen, because this blend really reminds me of red wine. It's fruity, lightly tart and sweet, with oaky vanilla overtones. Very frank, exceptional quality. Beautiful, fairly large medallions, a little bigger than Navy Rolls from memory. On the surface, it resembles Navy Rolls (personally I prefer the brighter and more distinct flavour of navy rolls), but this is a different beast, much darker, fruitier and less citrus notes, with the added vanilla Cavendish. Definitely recommended for the VA/Per lover, especially if you're into your oaky wines.

As a newcomer to this page I just realized that I lack stars to rate this mix. The reason is that I have to choose between giving it three stars, putting it at the height of Cabbie's Mixture or Hamborger Veermaster (which I like better) or giving it two stars, putting it at the level of Capstan Gold Navy Cut or Erinmore Flake (which I like less). So, being bullish, I give it all three stars, actually being two and a half. Tobacco smokes well and its presentation is a feast for the eyes, but in my novice opinion, it lacks flavor. I must listen to pipe smoking experts who say that if stored properly, it wins over the years. Unfortunately I cannot see in the tin how old the one I have smoked is.

2020/11/07: I recently smoked a tin of Highgate -Robert McConnell- that I found very similar and I liked it a lot, so I have prepared another tin of Flake Medallions to see if my valuation changes after having acquired more experience.

These silver dollar-sized, twist flakes possess a hard, dark Cavendish core which requires a little extra work to break up & creates an added dimension of flavor. A fairly tasty Cav/VA/Per blend, if you will. Moisture content was minimal. It is very ... smooth & presented a subtle sweetness at about the halfway point which I thoroughly enjoyed.

FM didn't ring my bell like Three Nuns, Navy Rolls or Escudo, but would be a satisfactory substitute that I could easily adapt to. Vitamin N content is satisfactory...about medium to strong, that seems to sneak up on you due to its mild smoking characteristic. For me, this blend is easy on the tongue & palate. If you like very smooth & mild smoking VA/Pers with a touch of Cavendish & a subtle hint of sweetness, this blend may be to your liking. I am partial to VA/Pers & FM is a good choice. Certainly worth a try if you don't mind parting with a little extra $$.

Some will love the flavor...some will not like it well enough to rate it highly and I fall into the latter category. Many a good blend falls short of being highly reccommended due to varying differences in smoker's taste receptors.

This is another one of my revised & partially copied reviews from 2009. I have since rejoined TRs & doing some catch up work. The fresh tin note was that of quality tobacco with a slightly sweet topping aroma which I cannot identify... maybe just the Perique essence. It expands well & has a good burn rate. These silver dollar-sized, twist flakes possess a hard, dark Cavendish core which requires a little extra work to break up & creates an added dimension of flavor. A fairly tasty Cav/VA/Per blend, if you will. Moisture content was minimal. It is very smooth & presented a subtle sweetness at about the halfway point which I thoroughly enjoyed. FM didn't ring my bell like Three Nuns or Escudo, but would be a satisfactory substitute that I could easily adapt to.

Vitamin N content is satisfactory...about medium to strong, that seems to sneak up on you due to its mild smoking characteristic. For me, this blend is easy on the tongue & palate. I concur with other reviewers in that this blend is very similar to PS Bullseye Flakes & doubt that I could discern the difference in a blind taste test. If you like very smooth & mild smoking VA/Pers with a touch of Cavendish & a subtle hint of sweetness, this blend may be to your liking.

I am partial to VA/Pers & FM is a good choice. Certainly worth a try if you don't mind parting with a little extra $$. Some will love the flavor...some will not like it well enough to rate it four stars and I fall into the latter category. Many a good blend falls short of being highly reccommended due to varying differences in smoker's taste receptors.

Flake Medallions is the first Davidoff blend I’ve tried, and I have to say, the well-formed medallions look first class in the tin. Here, short, slight ribbons are blended, spread out and pressed into a blanket that is rolled around a pencil diameter core of dense, dark brown Cavendish, then the resultant, 1 ¼” tobacco “log” or “dowel” is sliced into thin disks, AKA navy rolls, or medallions. The ribbons are primarily moist, variegated VAs ranging from golden, flue cured lemon, to air cured orange and brown, along with some darker, stoved red, and a little dark Pirique. While some have mentioned DFM’s similarity to Dunhill’s Deluxe Navy Rolls and Escudo, as far as I’m concerned, the similarity stops with appearances. Tin note here is cross buns with currants, and I tried to get some of this in the smoke, as well. There are several ways to prepare DFM. I preferred smoking it au naturale after it had rested in its re-sealed tin for a week rather than drying it and/or rubbing it out. I like to gently roll and loosely stuff a couple of crumbling medallions into a group 5+ bowl. It might well be personal chemistry, but DFM gets downright acrid on me if I smoke it too quickly. This consideration ups the ante for me when lighting DFM and keeping it going, but a slow pace is do-able. Smoked slowly at native moisture, there is a buttery taste and feel to the smoke, and it’s there in the scents, as well, like buttered popcorn. The VA’s start out mild and fragrant, with meadow grasses and faint flowers, along with the cross bun and currant thing. I really don’t get much from the Perique, perhaps a little souring fig. If I smoke rolled and stuffed medallions I get a period of vanilla from the Cavendish, mid-bowel. If I rub it out and re-blend it I hardly get a blip from the Cavendish. One way or another, I find this blend to be mostly about its VAs, which center on orange, but they are bluff, like some browns. I do get some dark fruit from the reds, but not much. Again, it’s all rather bluff and (surprisingly) uncomplicated, top to bottom. Strength is closer to mild than medium. Factoring in the acidity, tastes are more medium than mild. Room note is pleasant. Aftertaste shifts quickly from slightly acrid to VA sweet, and it lingers on nicely, better, perhaps, than the smoke, itself

I don’t get much Perique from Flake Medallions. However, it does sport “the same” varietals as Marlin Flake, so that comparison is apropos, I think. Given my reservations, and with the stipulations listed above, 3 stars.

She demands to be tamed!

Chewy prunes and leather throughout eventually finish on dense pillows stuffed with pages torn from antique novels. There are several electrifying, glorious puffs hiding within for the patient man to find.

This is a moon-gazing tobacco which demands patience. Don't try to smoke it on an empty stomach or in a crowded, noisy bar, or she will bite. I quickly learned, don't exhale through the nose. Ever.

The first eight medallions straight out of the tin (with some drying) were difficult to get through. The tobacco bit over and over. Eventually, a dryer tobacco, packed loosely did the trick. After the tin was opened, I returned to it 3 months later and found, to my surprise, that it held up favorably well.

The sweet zone with this tobacco is very narrow. But once you learn to dance with it, you'll be rewarded with a solid flavor profile and a thorough nic-kick.

I find DFM to be very close in taste to Escudo but very different from Luxury Bulls eye Flake. Very very elegant and contains the most top shelf ingredients money can buy which is good since Davidoff tobacco's are expensive! As has been said before, tangy Virginia's with earthy spicy Perique, what's not to like here?! Yummy! Since I find Escudo to be extremely similar I do not see the need to pay more for the Davidoff version but if I was in fly over land and out of tobacco I would certainly purchase this over any pouched aromatic....