Newminster No. 400 Superior Navy Flake

This is an honest, simple, pure, satisfying Virginia flake that bite sensitive smokers can enjoy. Beautiful flakes with fresh pouch aroma of grass and sweet tang. It is just as good in quality as more expensive flakes. I sometimes want complexity in my smokes. Other times I'm looking for something that satisfies an itch for something down to earth. SNF satisfies, which is the most important, if intangible, quality I seek in a blend.

Man, this is a tough review to make. I REALLY wanted to like this a lot. I was banking on liking it a lot, and purchased several pounds of it. The pouch note gives off a delicious brown-sugary scent that makes your tastebuds water. The flakes are masterfully prepared and the box presentation is top notch.

The problem is that the smoke itself I find... lacking. There's lots of bright Virginia notes with a nice sweetness. But this is a tobacco I would equate with a gorgeous super-model type woman, but one that has very little depth or dimension. To draw another comparison, this tobacco is all treble and no bass.

Where is the low end on this stuff? Sadly it's not there. The smoke tastes and feels... empty. I don't know how else to say it. It's a decent tobacco and is very well priced. But for not much more money, you could get some Peter Stokkebye Luxury Navy Flake, which is far superior.

I've been using this as a blender, adding it to more brooding tobaccos, so as to not waste it. Shame, it really is a beautiful tobacco... just not much going on inside of there.

Wow, I am impressed with this Navy Flake. One of the best I've tried and would be a great choice for aging. And at an awesome price. You can't go wrong with this one. I hope Newminster continues to grow their line of fine tobaccos.

Very good straight forward Virginia. Don't let the low price point deter you from trying this. I don't choose to rub this out. I tear the pieces just shy of the rim and do this as many times as needed to fill the bowl then light and tamp as normal. All of the pieces are standing on end and after lighting, the tamping lays them down nicely. Great smoke for sure; stays in my rotation.

I like this blend for it's lighter citrus note. I always have a tin of MacBaren's mixture flake around, this blend is similar, but lighter. Of course MacBaren makes #400, so it's still very good quality and similar to mixture flake to me. So far this is the best of the Newminster line that I have tried, reasonably priced and a good smoke, recommended.

Nicely prepared flakes ~ 3"x1.5"x1/16" that I just fold and are easy to pack by this method. I thought that my bulk sample was a bit dry as received but it still smoked without getting hot. Not as sweet as some other VA flakes but smokes without bite or condensation and is an enjoyable trip. Give it a try if you enjoy VA flakes.

Newminster
No. 400
(bulk)

There are no significant blend notes.

Newminster 400 is a superb straight Virginia. The predominant taste is of perfectly toasted bread — yes, toast. Some reviewers think they are also getting honey or cacao, but I get none of this, just a very mild and very tasty straight Virginia. And, I should add, a very inexpensive tobacco for the quality.

There is none of the bright lemon or the tangy dark fruit that can come across in a Virginia. You just get a comforting, pleasant taste and room note. Good quality leaf that is blended expertly.

Easily a 3.5 out of 4 star blend rounding up.

In one word, this pipe mixture is delicious.

The aroma out of the baggie is cocoa and raisins.

The taste is sweet and raisiny. Not overpoweringly so. This is a mildly sweet smoke.

The mixture will get hot if pushed. So slow and gentle wins the race.

I'm a garage smoker. And sitting out there with the door open, my pipe, and my mug of tea, well, it's the perfect setting to contemplate just about anything. This can easily be an all day smoke. Just don't rush it, or it will get hot.

As others have noted, the thin flakes come apart very easily to facilitate packing the bowl.

There's nothing I can think of not to like about No. 400 Superior Navy Flake. And I will be getting more. The price is easy on the budget too.

Give it a try. I don't think you'll be sorry.

I received this in a bag, then moved it to an empty tin, and the notes come across differently for the bag and tin. In the bag, my impression was that this flake was treated heavily with propylene glycol. After moving to the tin, I'm no longer struck with this smell. The tin note is honey, hay, leather and a hint of tea.

Flakes are large and fall apart easily, and can be stuffed directly into the bowl.

After smoking several bowls of this, I can report tongue bite is a serious finding. You'll want to take slow puffs and manage the heat as well as sipping a beverage constantly and moving the pipe around so smoke doesn't touch the same point on the tongue throughout the smoke. Bite is much worse in the first half of the bowl. Afterward it mellows and gives the tongue a break.

On lighting, a sweet topping is detected: maybe honey, possibly rum, or PG based on initial impression. The topping burns off halfway through the bowl and gives way to more traditional virginia flavors.

This is definitely a sweet smoke with a pleasant aftertaste. Because of the bite and initial PG impression that turned me off a bit, I'm giving this 2.5 stars. I don't think I will purchase again. If bite were not so intense, this would be a solid 3.5 stars. Recommended for tough tongues and long stemmed pipes.

Update: After trying this flake in a church warden with matches and avoiding clenching, much less bite.