Vauen No. 14 Virginia Flake

Vauen, No. 14:

Nice tobacco, really. Easy on the breakup of the flake and very friendly to light up. Comes in a neat little square can that will undoubtedly be useful in my quagmire of of a smoking/play room.

Strength --- on a scale(don't you just hate that expression?)of one to ten with the usual parameters from weak to strong at 10 I'd have to say it is about a "4". a pleasant"4" but nevertheless a "4".

Flavoring--- I didn't notice much if any. Then again tobacco tastes like tobacco to me unless the flavoring getsmore than a little obtrusive.Danish, German,and English blends were and are I can tolerate.That being verbosely said this tobacco Vauen ( the guys at PipesandCigars.com say it is pronounced "Vaugh")is a lightly flavored offering similar to Peter Stokkbye's Luxury Blend series. Most similar to Navy or perhaps Twist.

Romm Note/Aroma --- I don't have to worry about this but it does seem very pleasant.

Taste --- As has been stated it tastes nice. Not a "Wowser" but a pretty fair taste. Light Virginia is what is promised and delivered. Probably would make a good mixer for some of the "high-toney" blends as well.

Would I buy iot again? Probably not even though the price is very nice I would go with Peter Stokkebye probably for the same money. Just a personal opinion,mind you.

(Sorta like going to the senior prom with your cousin and hoping to meet the hottie from English Lit. class and dump your cousin on someone.)

In conclusion a good tobacco but not a remarkable tobacco--- at least not for me.If you are looking for a very mild and unassuming Virginia blend you might want to meet my cousin at the senior prom in 1965.

The piper at the Gates of Dawn (trucking in the crepuscular dawn)

Vauen - No. 14 Virginia Flake.

The tin contains two rows of slightly mottled, medium brown, quite thin, flakes. The thinner construction has aided the moisture in not being held in, so a fresh pipe lights easily.

The smoke has a touch of the usual hay, but the leading flavour's a unique nutty-Virginia one, accompanied by a honey-sweetness. It's quite unique compared to other Virginias. There's only a smidgen of citrus sharpness, the majority of the flavour's quite 'robust'. No. 14 burns consistently but can become too warm and a touch fast if not sipped. However, it remains bite-free.

Nicotine: medium. Room-note: pleasant.

If it were cooler as it went I'd rate this with four stars, but I'll deduct one due to the burn:

Recommended.

This is a nice blend of straight sweet VA. It will not lnock you socks off but it could easily be an all day blend as it has no bite at all if dried out a little. It comes in long thin flakes that break up easily and a touch too moist right out of the tin. Dried for a couple of hours being left out, it is just right. It breaks up essily to rub out, but I like to roll it up and stuff into my pipe bowl for a nice long slow smoke. It is the color of hay and the tin aroma is a musty vegi smell. Upon lighting up it has the nice hay like taste of a quality VA. It does gain strenth as it smokes down. It never gets overpowering or hot, but it goes from hay like to just sweet. It stays lit very well and burns down to a fine grey ash and no dottle. The room note is similiar to other Vs blends, some like it and some think it smells like cigarettes. I like it myself but a neighbor yelled over to me "are you smoking cigarettes now?". I would recommend this blend to anybody that wants a nice, smooth, no biting VA to smoke. For those that are really into to fancy VA's this might be a little simple for you.

As a non-VA smoker, this stuff is exquisite. Reminds me a lot of the Virginia flavor found in Peterson's Uni Flake but obviously with no topping. But still a decent amount of sweetness. This might convert me just a tad bit to the Virginia lovers category haha. We shall see. Good stuff!

A light Virginia flake, more flavourful than any of the Fribourg & Treyer flakes, with a sweet lemony twang in the style of Capstan Yellow if you know that old classic. Excellent.

The tobacco is a light mottled brown with prominent bits of very light stem embedded in the flake.

Tin Aroma is musty. I've had the same sensation in farm wineries - slightly fruity, but musty wood and grass aromas dominate. The flakes are very moist, and it is difficult to peel them off of each other. Upon rubbing out the flake and taking a deep inhale of the unburned tobac, the scent is more reminiscent of a Hay barn - the mustiness and grassiness take me back to when I used to throw and stack hay bales for the local farmers as a youth. I managed to pick off about a flake and a half and fold/stuff into the pipe. There was just enough sticking out the top of the pipe to rub out with my fingertips for easy lighting.

The charring light can be harsh. Initially, the flakes are very moist, and my initial reaction is that I should have let them dry. However, this blend lit right up, and after about the first quarter of the bowl, it really settled down. After the charring light, I got no tongue bite. This flake reminds me of an unscented Erinmore flake. The tobaccos are very similar, right down to the cigarette-ish flavor of the tobacco (sans acrid paper of course!) There has got to be a some burley in this blend - both because the blend did not bite, and because of the nutty bitterness that is telling of a burley. It's there. The middle of the bowl was rather unremarkable, in that there wasn't huge depth to this smoke, but it burned well and the cigarette tobacco qualities gave way to more of a cigar / cocoa smoke. The nicotine content was similar to that of a mild cigar as well, and wasn't entirely noticable until the bottom quarter of the bowl.

The flakes smoked down to a nice dark ash. This flake rubs out nicely, and Rubbed out, the smoke seemed a bit hotter, and harsher, but still did not bite, but I didn't force it, either. I think that the virginias stand out a bit more when rubbed out. (Both in the unburned aroma and burning state of the tobacco.)

Room note is almost pure tobacco. The ingering aroma is more cigarette than pipe. I'm not sure if this is a bad thing, but it may be a quality that prevents some from smoking it inside.

I'd give this a three out of four stars. It's a nice and pleasant unscented Virginia Flake. I think there are better out there, but it is definitely worth a try. I am planning on throwing a few tins in the cellar to see what some age does.

A Lighter Sweet Virginia Flake

I enjoy the Virginia varietals that K&K uses in their tobaccos. Here, they are on the sweet, bready and grassy side of the spectrum. They are smooth smoking without any bright notes. The Vanilla and sugar in the casing add a pleasant dynamic that accentuates the sweetness in the VA leaf. There is another added flavor that I cannot put my finger on.

It would be near perfect but something in the casing leaves a lingering aftertaste that I am not fond of.

A mild and sweet virginia. The moisture from the tin is close to ideal, making it both easy to pack and smoke. Few relights required. Dried fruit notes and the natural sweetness from the virgias dominate this uncomplicated yet flavorful blend. A perfect all day smoke.

My first experience with this noted German maker was rewarding. Natural VA sweetness from a smoke that lights easily and burns evenly without the need for relights.