Drew Estate Gatsby Luxury Flake

I enjoyed this blend . It’s got a litter sweetness to it, and a nice mellow flavor . burns ok whith out the need for exesive relights, don’t remember any bite

The particular tin I was gifted with was on the very dry side of smokable (i.e. it didn't quite need rehydration); perhaps that's why the fruit & sweetness noted by many other reviewers were very muted. The tobacco flakes shredded at the slightest touch, and burned on the fast side, although not to the point of unpleasantness. Despite the above caveats, the resulting smoke, if a bit on the generic side, was a moderate, mellow, and pleasant VA. 2 1/2 stars, bumped to 3 considering the tin condition

As reported, this consists of one long, folded flake in the tin. It's easy to break apart and load, and arrives at the perfect moisture level. Just pack and light, and you're on your way.

It is similar to Golden Sliced but is a bit heavier and richer. The Virginias are tart and tangy, delivering all the juicy sweet/sour notes that I love. The topping is very light -- dried fruit and citrus -- and never overpowering, artificial or bitter. It enhances the core tobacco.

It burns cool and sweet and is very easygoing and forgiving in the bowl. I've smoked this in a variety of pipes and it's consistently excellent each time. This is a real treat for the Virginia lover. Not an aromatic. It's the real deal, and Drew really hit it out of the park with this one. I was pleasantly surprised.

Highly underrated.

This is a very tasty, rather sweet flake composed of high quality brightleaf, mostly lemon and orange grades, and some golden Cavendish to which a mild and harmonious berry flavoring has been added. The flavor profile is not exactly duplicated elsewhere, in my experience. Like F&T Cut Virginia Plug with some berry. Very smooth and surprisingly biteless for a sweet smoke. I don’t find I need to rein in my tendency to puff fairly hard. This is now my go to flake when not in the mood for one of the darker McClelland flakes.This blend has been discontinued and is on sale as of 2017 at very low prices at some online merchants. I have stocked up to cellar many years supply. I think the Drew folk gave some pretty demanding manufacturing specs for their line, a pity it is gone. Ed: Feb 2022. My stock is gone, a pity.

This is another great mild Virginia blend that came in my tin as a long roll of blondish tobacco. The tin description states it has Virginia and Cavendish which i don't doubt due to the inherent sweetness. The tin note is delicious and made me salivate on the drive home, people must have thought i was on drugs since i had my shnoz firmly implanted in the tin! Beautiful to look at, very classy and with a pretty label (OK i'm sold!) I agree GLF is very similar to OGS and is one of the best of this genre, sweet hay notes, a little oatey, not bite if sipped and quite tasty! Drew Estates produces some fine cigars and pipe tobacco and this is at the top. 4 stars for quality, presentation and being very affordable. 3 stars for me bc i prefer other Virginia Flakes over this one but would without a doubt recommend it!

I really had no preconceived notions when I purchased this tin. I wasn't expecting anything other than a quality smoke and by itself I think that Gatsby is just that, a quality tobacco blend. It has a sweet fruity flavor that is present but not overpowering or fake tasting. I made the mistake of smoking my first bowl in a pipe I normally reserve for aromatic blends and the subtle flavor of the tobacco was lost by the ghosts of tobaccos past. My second (and subsequent) bowls after that however were in a fresh restored estate pipe and to my surprise and delight the more subtle flavors came out to play almost immediately. I don't know if I would considered GLF an "all day smoke" for myself but I could see how some might enjoy it on a more regular basis. Personally I view it as an excellent dessert smoke. Some tobaccos are more enjoyable when paired with a drink... GLF in my opinion is one that is best enjoyed when paired with a port wine. I found Sandeman Fine Ruby Port to be the most tasty and it complimented the fruit flavor while maintaining the creamy texture of the tobacco itself.

The only reason I gave this 3 stars instead of 4 is because (for me) it is more of a once in awhile smoke as opposed to something I could smoke all day every day and never get tired of it. I reserve Gatsby Luxury Flake as a treat rather than a constant companion.

First review here. On cracking couple month old tin (DE should put date stickers on the tins) the aroma was fig and something I couldn't quite put my finger on, something near a fruit juice but not forward and obvious. Aesthetically, the flakes were a gorgeous 8-9 inch long golden hued baccy. Not overly moist but enough to be very pliable without breaking the flake. On lighting, I got the VA grassiness and thick honey like sweetness. This is not an aromatic, but the honey was hard to ignore. Not an entirely bad thing. I sipped it relatively slow but did get more bite than I'm accustomed to. This could be the moisture being more present than most of my jarred stock . I may be returning to add to this as the tin nears it's end. Not at all bad but there are many others I would be eager to cellar.

10-Pleasure, satisfaction; 10-Top note, slip stream aroma, sipping the embers; 10-Delivery, balance, flavor profile; 10-Blend composition, quality; 9-Pack, relight, room note. A quality blend that delivers a consistent, honest smoke - roasty in nature. Solid 4 star.

Drew Estate pipe blends rarely showed up in my assimilations of other smokers tobacco collections, so, I bought some of each blend for my stash in the year they went out of business. Whatever year that was, that's their age. I opened this tin of Gatsby Luxury Flake to thin down some stronger blends I was working with and it worked satisfactorily. Now, on to smoking the blend itself. On opening I discovered what other reviewers had said about it's resemblance to Orlik Golden Sliced. The flakes were a golden hue with slight light and dark undulations and dotted with canary yellow spots. To my experience it resembles a whole host of Virginia Flakes rather than just one or two. The sniff test immediately separated it from most of the blends we are all talking about as they contain Perique. Gatsby Luxury Flake is a simpler form of Virginia Flake and smokes in a narrower range than many of the blends we are all smoking. Comparing it to English or aromatic blends just won't work. Here the Virginia is the main player with the cavendish attempting to pull the aroma slightly lower on the scale. In this blend it works, but, only to a point. I found smoking Gatsby to be satisfying at times with a rich Virginia flavor and at other times, somewhat flat and thin. I liked it, but, always wanted more. I am in total agreement with reviewer Bonneville 2014-07-30 in his assessment that Gatsby Luxury Flake is worth experiencing but is not exceptional and I recommend it at three stars.