Vauen No. 14 Virginia Flake

Opening the now round tin, with a now plain blue label stating "N°14 Virginia Flake in white font, I got greeted by the old rectangular cover-paper around the flakes. Inside there are two stacks of thin sliced, rectangular flakes. To my surprise the colors are not only mostly medium-brown, with golden-yellow, but also have some black strands all over the flake slices. I find it remarkable nobody else wrote about the black speckles. Maybe Cavendish-ed Virginas? The flake is rather dark for a Virginia, maybe some Burley/Kentucky as well? The taste as well suggests some Burley to me, but step after step...

...because the tin note also has a great smell to it! Underneath some honey and Virginia freshness (namely grass and citrus), there's very obvously a top -note! Very mild, but it's there, no doubt. Lovely, lovely scent of hazelnuts and milk-chocolate, wow, I superlove it!

At the beginning of the bowl Vauen's Virginia Flake is very mild, but it doesn't take long for the strength and flavors do develop.The flavor-profile steadily builds up throughout the first quarter and is then very consistent. In the first puffs I only perceive a nice mellow-sweet honey-ish sweetness that would build the sweet backbone of this blend throughout the rest of the bowl. Slowly sipped this flake has quite a bit to offer. Decently Bready, with slightly fruity and earthy nuances to it... but here it comes! A delicious, deliciously delicate (hazel-)nutty note is present all the way through the bowl and it also has a minor hint of bitterness to it (but in a most pleasant, nutty way!

It's that very nutty nuance, that makes Virginia Flake N°14 so tasty and loveable to me! It's so delicate and mellow, very unobrusive, yet always present, and oh so sweet! (Not in the sense of sugary, but beautiful) Damn... wouldn't have thought I'd find a VA Flake that I want to have around all the time... but well, here it is!

**EDIT:** I found a description only stating as following: "[...]with hints of hazelnut vanilla and almonds - all those aroma-nuances are coming from the tobacco itself, mind you; the applied casing is only to lift up the natural sweetness of the Virginias".... well... I'm most certains Virginias don't come along "vanilla-ish and nutty" by nature, I insist on a slight top-flavoring!

Anyways... be it pure Virginia, Virginia + Burley or even some Cavendish as well.... top-flavoring, casing or natural.... this blend is gold to me, and to every lover of a nutty, not overly sweet and smoothly spicy smoke! It's like having some hazelnut-syrup and cream in a cup of coffee.... great morning smoke!

**Edit 2:** It does have some flavouring to it 😉 https://service.bmel.de/tabakerzeugnisse/index2.php?detail_id=104917&site_key=153&stichw_suche=Vauen&zeilenzahl_zaehler=12

When a virginia flake is spotted that means a must buy for me!Vauen it's known for it's pipes and not so much for the blends as i found them only on Germany.when i cracked the tin a nice aroma of cocoa and honey accompanied from some citruses came out.the flakes are mixed from bright,brown virginias and some cavendish.their moisture was perfect either to rub or fold.i prefered the rubing method for easier lighting.while smoking the virginias are smooth and creamy.citruses,dark fruits,tea and grassy notes combine very well each other with the cavendish wich provide cocoa and honey notes.the flavours are very natural and satisfying.burns medium hot and slow with some moisture being created at the end of the bowl.the nicotine level is almost medium with no chance of tongue bite.the room note is pleasant.generally this blend is an easy going all day smoke that promises a tasty and smooth smoking experience.

Another folded flake from K & K but different from the others . This tobacco comes across as pretty close to straight Virginia , even though it is listed as having a topping. #14 does not smoke like an aromatic at all. K & K seems to have a special gift for these very lite toppings that bring out the flavor of the virginias . You need to sip this one , make it last . It delivers subtle high notes. It takes a few minutes to really get the goodness out of this tobacco but it is well worth the trouble . Pick a quiet time and puff slowly , you will thank me later . K & K is really the master of folded flakes .

5/12/19 After enjoying a smoke with Jiminks and reading his review I feel the need to update this review . While smoking with Jim I did notice a slight virginia topping . I was unable to pick out any other specific topping taste but I still feel that the Virginias speak for themselves and are of a high quality . The taste is smooth rather than tangy making it an ideal early morning smoke .

I got the opportunity to sample this via a German connection and I am glad that I did.

Vauen are of course a pipe maker and this brand is obviously made for them. Who by? I don't know, but the packaging, look of the flake and overall composition lead me to believe that it is most probably Mac Baren.

So we have a perfectly formed flake and a tin note that is both fruity and nutty alongside the expected natural sweetness of the base leaf.

The aroma from the tin pleasingly carries on into the smoke, where there is a taste which I can only describe as nougat, if this means nothing to anyone outside the UK, then my apologies.

As others have observed the flavour deepens a little further down the bowl, but it never departs from an underlying fruit and nut tang which remains pleasant throughout. Cased? Maybe. And if so very successfully in my opinion.

An interesting twist on an old standard, whatever the Vauen boffins specified in the composition of this blend, then they have done a fine job.

Highly recommended.

Suddenly “erinmore” (a fellow smoker from pipeclub.gr) introduced this tobacco into our lives. He reviewed this tobacco so fondly that forced me to search for it anxiously, but unfortunately I didn't find any understanding from my friends. With sweat and suffering, I managed to get hold of a second tin, which obligatory in order to open the first one. Pure, very sweet Virginia, “made” as a very beautiful and convenient – concerning the filling – flake. As the tobacco burns further and further down the bowl, its taste is improving and changing. It lights easily and it can bite if you rush your puffing. It is not very heavy. I must perform a comparative test between No14 VAUEN and Golden Glow so decide who gets the top position in my Virginia preferences. PS. Necessary correction. Eventually this tobacco was introduced into our lives by “Paris”, through “erinmore”. Just to restore the facts.

The first to review this blend, an honor indeed. Picked up a tin of this in Frankfurt. Very nice flake with a surprising nuttiness to it, its almost like Solani's Aged Burley Flake on the mild side. No burley is listed in this blend so I'm not sure where this nuttiness or chocolate tone comes from. A solid VA flake well worth the try if and when visiting Germany....top marks to an interesting and genuine VA flake, from a top German company.

3rdguy

Just finished a full tin and it did not take me long. Fairly moist from the tin, really needed some serious drying time and it was like that the entire tin. Takes several lights to get it going but once it does you can put the lighter away. Nice vanilla top note which doesnt take away from the Virginia at all but it is present throughout the smoke. No bite, burns to a white ash. Very nice retrohale of vanilla for me. I really enjoyed this blend. Made by K&K. I see it sells out fast and I can see why. I have a dozen tins in the cellar and will be looking for more. Highly recommended.

I have made a few updates to this review. My tin is the round, blue tin, not the square one. I'm not sure if the two are the same or have the same recipe.

Based on an approximate one year of age:

The flakes are beautiful and rustic like a C&D flake. They fall apart easily. There is a mixture of gold and brown Virginia. The smell is not natural at all , to me. It smelled of artificial fruits and vanilla. Those toppings showed up way too much in the smoke as well, unfortunately, for me. I dried this for a few minutes before loading. It burned quite well. .

The strength was maybe medium, and the taste was mild to medium. For the straight Virginia flake-lover, I cannot recommend this one, because in my opinion, that piper prefers a more simple, natural, and unadulterated experience. One star. However, I will return to this review with an update after I give this more air time. I want to see if the topping dissipates.

**Update** the topping does dissipate some and this becomes an enjoyable blend. After airing, and time in a jar this changed dramatically to a more natural smell. It has started to smell much like Opening Night, which smells kind of like a sweet bread.

Produces lots of smoke. Maybe there is some Cavendish in there, or some air-cured Virginia. The combustion is remarkable, rivaling MB Navy Flake. Notes of sweet bread, honey, wood, a touch of cinammon, salty chocolate, a sweet nuttiness, vanilla, sour woodiness, prunes, fig, and grass. It has depth and earthiness and fermented character. I previously upgraded to three stars, but I am changing it to four. Not sure if it's the age, but it's just that good. I can't deny it.

Mild and lightly sweet it is, should you lightly sip away to get up to speed. Interesting, though, when you drop it two gears and dig deep. The VA piping equivalent of hitting 5800 RPM in a Honda Civic Si, when the sweet DOHC iVTEC kicks in. You are greeted with plumes of smoke, and a deep, full, flavor/taste of sweet Virginny, including the tingle on the nose when retrohaling. Lather, rinse, repeat...ad libidum. 4 stars for a pleasantly surprising sleeper!