Rattray Marlin Flake

There is no doubt this is a good tobacco and it improves with age. The tin I'm currently working on had nine months on it before I finally opened it; I don't know how long it had sat in the store before I purchased it. I'm afraid that my mistake was smoking this too soon after finishing a tin of Samuel Gawith's Best Brown Flake; compared with BBF Marlin Flake is just a good tobacco. Marlin Flake is sweet with a very pleasant tobacco taste; I get occasional hints of spice. I smoke this tobacco by leaving the flakes unrubbed and, properly dried, it takes few relights to smoke it all the way to a dry ash end. I will finish my current tin and will allow my second tin (a can, really) to age an indefinite period, perhaps several years. This tobacco definitely improves with age. While it is aging, I think I will continue to smoke BBF when I have a craving for Virginia leaf.

One of Rattrays best. I still prefer Brown Clunee... But this is a good pick. A little sweet, smoky, doesnt readily bite, Develops in the bowl to a richer flavor. creamy feeling smoke.

BETTER PICK: MCCLELLAND CHRISTMAS CHEER 05' OR 06

I hate to rain on this four star parade but I found the stuff in this tin harsh, bitter with not much flavor and a little bite. Probably will improve with age but I'm sticking with Old Gowrie for now...maybe just too strong for me

dunhill grp 3

Update: The more I smoke quality virginias, he less I like Marlin Flake. There are far too many additives which, in my opinion, make this an aromatic tobacco. MF is not even in the same class as Briar Fox, Best Brown Flake, or other quality virginias.

Don't get me wrong by the "Might try it again..." rating; Marlin Flake is a quality tobacco. I enjoy virginias but MF is just too heavily cased for me to enjoy. The flavor is anemic but the room note is a sure crowd pleaser. I want more body and substance when I smoke, i.e. Best Brown Flake. MF is just too weak and artificially sweet for me to enjoy.

When I think of Marlins, I think of the powerful billfish of sportmens' dreams and lore. Marlin Flake is a like this to me.

I dreamed that it would be magnificently flavorful. It is. I anticipated strength and was not disappointed. I hoped it would be manageable with the right skill. Here it let me down, as it smokes hot and requires a blow torch to keep lit.

The heat and difficulty lighting MF are likely related. Folded or rubbed; small or large pipes, MF speared my tongue.

Yet, in me the hook is set. I will let my stash dry out a bit and reasses my rating. My initial impressions are that the effort and patience will be rewarded. My den will have yet another trophy for display and enjoyment.

P.S. This bears little resemblance to Hal O' the Wynd to me, nor is it much like Old Gowrie.

UPDATE 12/2004: Something must have happened to my tin, because I believe it contained the skin, guts and bones of the great fish. Successfully smoking other flakes that smoke hot by reputation, I can find no combination of aging, pipe, form of leaf or method that makes the pain produced by this blend worth the flavor. It is called Marlin Flake as it is wild, untame and buffeting. Masochists and ascetics apply here.

4/25/2005: After 18 months, this is finally tame enough for me to smoke a small bowl with minimal discomfort. Very flavorful, and I detect a fair amount of tonquin. It is not as much as 1792 flake, but more than Stonehaven (?). It does leave the pipe smelling a bit funky. It remains a chore to light and keep smoldering, but it gains a second star.

Rattray's Marlin Flake is a wonderful looking "Full Dark Virginia Flake" (as the can states). Pulling it out of the can and rubbing it was a joy (as similar experiences usually are). The unlit aroma of this weed is reminiscent of the figs of Italy. In the early days of immigration by Italians to New York, it was a common sight to see fig trees trying to grow in the tiny patch of land outside of industrialised homes. There is something charming in the unlit aroma that also has a hint of chocolate. I thought that I would really like this, but it fell short. Once lit, it became flat and lost any nuance that I imagined it would have had from its raw form. Such a shame--although, admittedly, I am more of a Latakia smoker and never have tried a straight Virginia (Amsterdam aside, but that has nothing to do with tobacco). I am so disappointed in this offering, but there may come a time when I will give it another go (if only for the joy of rubbing).