Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. Curly Cut

The bright Virginia offers a bit of grass and hay, along with some citrus. The darker Virginias are earthy with a little dark fruit. Both varietals have a light floralness, and I sense a touch of Lakeland. The nic-hit is mild to medium. Doesn’t bite or get harsh, but has a rough edge here and there. Burns cool and clean at a moderate pace with a little inconsistency in the flavor, which is not very sweet. Leaves little moisture in the bowl, and needs an average number of relights. Has an unfulfilling after taste. Not an all day smoke, but one that is repeatable.

-JimInks

I love most Gawith Hoggarth blends but didn’t have the best results with Curley Cut Deluxe so I put this one off for a while. It was a mistake. The small coins are mixed in with a lot of ribbons and the pouch scent is that very familiar Lakeland scent, albeit faint. The Virginia tobacco is the dominate player here and I was pleasantly surprised by the subtle sweetness and milder strength (compared to many GH blends) of this blend. After smoking it in a briar and a cob, I enjoyed the cob more as it seemed to bring out a bit sweeter flavor. Curly Cut is a forgiving blend and there isn’t any heat or bite even when puffed a bit aggressively. If there is any topping on this, it is added with the lightest of hand. I expect this to age really well and followed up my first few ounces with a pound with that in mind. CC isn’t quite a four star blend for me now, but with a little age, I think it will be a home run.

This is a solid, simple smoke that satisfies on many levels. The darker Virginias give a good bottom and mid to the flavor profile and the Bright Virginias add the top notes for a well rounded smoke. Nice bit of sweetness and just a hint of floral as well. Taste great. Body is about medium as is the taste. Burns great after a little drying time. Another blend that I get fonder of the more I smoke it. I really can't find a single thing that I dislike about it. Smokes about the same in briar or cob. Perfect for when you want something simpler.

I guess this must be GH&Co's answer to Sam Gawith's Full Virginia Flake - not that they are really that comparable, except that they both fall into the category of a being a medium/strong, straight VA blend. I see the difference between them like this - if FVF were a suave London gentleman relaxing into a leather armchair at his Piccadilly club, Curly Cut would be his rough East End cousin, kicking someone's teeth in because they haven't coughed up their protection money.

This one doesn't have the complexity of the SG offering. Sweetness is muted but it does have some depth thanks to the dark leaf. The bright VAs are to the forefront, and if you don't pay respect, they'll hurt you. This is the sharpness that other reviewers have noted and it can be a bit much. The way to tame it is to make sure that the tobacco is properly dry (it comes very moist), and of course, to smoke at a sensible pace. I am sure aging would help a lot too.

From the above it sounds like this blend ain't all that, but in fact it has quite a bit going for it. Once you have tamed the bite using the methods above it is actually pretty forgiving and easy to smoke. Unlike some straight VA blends it isn't really that fussy about pipe or preparation (moisture level excepted), it doesn't need a lot of relights and I don't find it lacking in flavour. Of course, being GH&Co, the quality of the leaf goes without question and N satisfaction comes easily.

In summary, the lack of complexity and rough edges mean that it isn't going to make the 4 star mark, but it is definitely a solid tobacco. It would very interesting to see how it responds to a couple of years in a jar - and since I can buy it at a new found tobacconist near my office, this is an experiment I am planning to conduct.

Edit: I'm currently smoking a bowl that had a tiny pinch (and I do mean tiny) of blending perique added before setting it out to dry. It's very nice - still rough and ready, but not the disaster it could have been. Splendid.

I was very surprised when I saw the small little discs this tobacco has been cut into. It seems like this is some kind of rope tobacco which has been sliced for comfort and easy packing. The cut is somewhat coarse and will require some rubbing, but it burns quite cool in your bowl. I cannot detect any casing or any other tobaccos apart from the Virginia itself. I am finding this tobacco quite different from the usual GH range as I cannot detect any floral essence or soapy flavours. Because of its ribbon cut presentation, this tobacco seems to be more suited for bigger bowls to release all its flavour. The taste is kind of sweet, creamy and Virginia like, and it evolves quite nicely as you progress with your smoke. Also, it is very gentle on the palate and I cannot detect any tongue bite. Because of this, it might feel somewhat unidimensional or lacking taste, but any Virginia lover will probably appreciate it. I cannot see any mayor drawbacks or faults, so I will give it 4 stars.

Edit1: If you think this tobacco is boring or too unidimensional or monochromatic, just add a little bit of perique to it and the outcome might surprise you.

Gawith Hoggarth - Curly Cut.

My first impressions of Curly Cut are "it has a good Virginia aroma with a subtle smokiness to it but this will need a small amount of airing". Most of the blend comprises chunky curly cuttings that need a rub which is fairly straight forward once it has been aired.

This one takes to lighting relatively easily, again though, this depends on airing it correctly (I left mine out for the morning). The flavour from this isn't as smoky as I expected it to be from the aroma, there is a really slight smokiness however the rest of the taste is a solid Virginia one. The smoke from Curly Cut is a medium temperature one but there is a small negative in the fact that as it burns down it leaves behind a pure white ash that can impinge on any attempt to re-light it if the puffing is neglected a bit and it becomes extinguished. I find it great in the nicotine department, it's not too much nor too little. Curly Cut doesn't give me any tongue bite, very forgiving in that area! I don't find the room note to have much character to it really, it's not great, not bad but conjures up the feeling of indifference.

There seems to be a fairly mixed reaction to this one, but after all tobacco tastes are subjective and I score it three stars.

A nice Virginia, a good start to get used to stronger rope tobacco. It packs very well and burns to a white ash. There is an extremely mild floral note that comes and goes and it could bite if your tongue is not used to Virginias or if you puff too fast. That said, the taste is consistent and monochromatic as it should be with pure Virginias. I get a very tangy taste with brioche accents, a creamy smoke indeed.

Virginia lover

This was recommended to me by the proprietor of a wonderful shop in Durham City indoor market, County Durham England. I was dubious as he knows me and always shows me something that I haven't tried yet! It looks and smells unremarkable and was far too wet to smoke, so I let it dry out a little. Result a very pleasant fairly strong smoke.(no hiccups or hiccups is my naive comment on strength!) (None so far) Not sure what to compare it with yet, but will be trying more of this one. To give you my favourites of the moment may help, I like Petersons Irish Oak and Gawith Hogarth's Best Brown Number 2. My first attempt at a review, I have waited five years before daring to submit anything...

Curly Cut Regular Sliced;

Star Rating = 3.75;

Rating Scores - 10 is the Best and 0 is the Worst;

Pouch Note = 10;

Room Note = 10;

Flavor = 10;

Bite = 8;

Burn = 10;

After Taste = 9;

Raw Score = 57;

Rated Percentage = 95%;

Comment = Smooth, Mild, Natural Tobacco Flavor, Burns a little Hot, Slight Bit of a Bite, White Ash Burn

I don't know how this blend got such strong average reviews? It seemed to me to be medium at best. Although there were lots of very, very good flavours here they never seemed to assert themselves enough for me which I found slightly frustrating. Pipestud's review below is very much along the lines of my experiences.

I tried mixing with a small amount of blending perique which gave good results but the Curly Cut was easily overpowered.

This blend has none of the floral aromas which are usually associated with lakeland tobaccos but it does have a subtle richness (is that an oxymoron?) and an underlying natural sweetness which makes for an enjoyable overall experience.

I'll give it a recommended because it is of such high quality and if your palette is light enough you may never want to smoke anything else. As for me, I'll probably buy it once in a while when I'm in the mood but I imagine I'll always be slight disappointed.