Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. Broken Scotch Cake

A somewhat disappointing entry from the G&H stable. Disappointing to me, anyway. Most of the other recent blends I've smoked had a lot more on offer. This one is an overly mild and bland coarse cut of lemon virginia with some different curing methods to alter the flavor. I didn't get much flavor from this one, but the room note was wonderful! And not just wonderful to a pipesmoker - I got a fair number of favorable comments from others as well.

This smoked naturally sweet rather than with the Lakeland essence. It got me wondering if some of those famous scents would spice this one up a bit. I just didn't find much of a personality with this one. It reminded me of a less citrusy version of C&D's "Ridin' The Raid". It's just sort of "tobacco" without a lot of character. This would possibly be a good entry point for the new Virginia smoker. Personal tastes are very different but this doesn't strike me as something a long-time smoker would derive much satisfaction from. It just lacks the full flavor of other G&H blends... and perhaps that was the point. 2 stars for me, but add a star if you like mild virginia blends.

This seems like high quality leaf, but it is very mild in taste and nicotine. Coarse ribbon cut that burns very readily and completely with little to no bite. I could detect no artificial flavors, just plain ole virginia. It lacks the typical sweetness that I normally associate with pure virginia blends; it has a spicy flavor similar to perique and more of a toasty flavor, similar to burley. The aroma from the can is pure natural leaf, almost undectable; surprisingly the Mrs. liked the room note. The tobacco just seemed a little bland to me. It would be a good blend for the yard/fishing/hunting due to the easy loading/lighting/burning characteristics.

2 stars

When I first started smoking this blend about four years ago, I like many others, felt it was too light in the flavor department and tossed it in a jar and forgot about. After revisiting it four years later, a few years didn’t change my mind completely, but it did improve. Very light Lakeland flavor, mild and now a bit sweeter than when new. It does burn clean and like all GH blends; the tobacco seems to be of high quality. I’ll finish the jar but won’t buy it again. If you like Virginia's, and are looking for a light Lakeland style blend, than this could be an option, but for me, Bright CR Flake by the same blender is a better choice.

This wasn't at all what I had expected. Reading the other reviews here I am wondering if the bulk package I got today is even the same tobacco. My sample isn't broken flake at all. It is a fuzzy shag. It isn't bland at all, or mild. A friend who was present, and not smoking, said that the smoke had a pleasant vanilla scent. That having been said, it was a fine after-dinner smoke tonight. The licorice flavor was the real problem with this blend. It gave me a slightly sick feeling. Like many G&H blends, it is a well-crafted tobacco, and it has weird flavoring because that is what this blend is supposed to taste like. If I liked licorice I would love this stuff.

This packed nicely, lit easily, and smoked smoothly. I don't know about other tins, but there was not a hint of Lakelands or other flavorings in this batch that I could detect. Despite all that, I found the actual flavor rather 'meh' -- one note that I didn't like that much, but wasn't in any way bad.

I like many of the Gawith & Hoggarth tobaccos, but some of them tend to bite me, notably any that have a lot of bright Virginias. This is one of them. It reminds me a bit of Coniston Cut Plug, which bites me a lot. This bites me somewhat, presumably because of the addition of some richer medium Virginias and a bit of latakia. It requires very slow and careful puffing to enjoy, but still, bites me somewhat, even with careful puffing.

Interesting light body and toasty mellow flavor, well behaved in the pipe, but not appropriate for my body chemistry. YMMV.

Oh, and it does have a very light Kendal Lakeland topping...

My bulk purchase consisted of nicely prepared flakes ~ 6" long x 1.5" wide of brownish VAs with some golden birdseyes. The moisture content was much < my preference and resulted in the tobacco crumbling in the pouch and especially during packing. This might have been older stock from my supplier but I couldn't bring it back to life. Normally, I don't rub out my flakes. It still smoked cool and dry without a hint of bite and was easy to light and keep lit. In addition, family felt that it had one of the better room aromas for a VA flake. It was mild enough for an all day smoke but failed my taste buds. I sensed a soapy undertone to the creamy, smooth taste that just spoiled the experience. Although not nearly as prevalent as with their Ennerdale Flake, perhaps this is a result of G&H processing or the VAs from Brazil or Zimbabwe that may be common to both blends.

Everything you’ve read in other reviews is true, so I’ll attempt to not repeat what others have said. For me, BSC has one characteristic that takes the smoke from bland/boring to enjoyable: texture. Once it gets going, BSC will coat your mouth in cool, creamy smoke. If you’re a beer drinker this reference might ring true for you as it does for me: it kind of reminds me of Boddington’s or some other cream ale. Not much to speak of in terms of depth or nuance of flavor, but the creaminess makes it pleasurable to consume. I was not at all impressed the first time(s) I smoked BSC. In fact I was downright disappointed in light of the other fantastic GH blends in my cabinet, most of which I count among my favorites. But taking it for what it is, I can now say I enjoy the smoke as a simple, think-nothing-of-it change of pace. 2.5 stars.

A straight-ahead blend. BSC has a nice sweetness, but its body, flavor, and mouthfeel are just way too weak for me.