Robert McConnell Scottish Cake

It is quite a wet tobacco when the tin is first opened. It definately benefits from a few days (closed but seal broken) drying before smoking.

The aroma of the unsmoked tobacco is excellent. It has a clean smell of tobacco, if perhaps with a mild sweetness. The sweetness is not at all fruity but rich akin to molassos, though certainly not that sugary.

The taste of the smoke is mild at first. It tends to burn a bit on the wet side but I would never call it a "wet smoker." This wetness tends to diminish towards the end of the bowl as the mildness of the smoke turns richer and moves into a medium strength range. This initial mildness makes it a good follow-up bowl after a bowl of pure virginia. That said, I find that I never enjoy an additional bowl of the Scottish Cake because the second bowl tastes bland.

As described, a dark brown, rubbed out flake with few bits of lighter leaf. The tobacco in this tin is exceptionally moist, and the paper cover is damp. The smell of the tobacco tells me a sweetener has been added, a sort of faint,raisiny note. I let the tobacco dry for about fifteen minutes. It is still a bit moist, very pliable and packs easily. The smoke is a dark, mild, honeydew Virginia flavor with no bite. I do not taste the Kentucky although it may be adding some subtle roundness. This is a good smoke. It is mild but the flavor of Virginia is distinct. As I guessed it would, this smokes a bit wet and requires a pipe cleaner half way through, but the tobacco burns very well without relights or tending. This compares to Marlin Flake, perhaps a little sweeter and a little less robust. It is not in the Best Brown or Full Virginia Flake category. All in all a very tasty smoke. Highly recommended to the lover of Virginia flake tobacco. Paddy.

This rubbed out/broken flake is one of my favorites from the Robert McConnell line of pipe tobaccos. Various light, red and brown Virginias make up this pleasant medium to full bodied blend.

It is an attractive tobacco in the tin, sporting various colors. The cut falls somewhere between broken flake and rubbed out-- not quite fully rubbed out, but moreso than most broken flakes. Darker reds and browns predominate in this mostly Virginia blend. The Burleys that are supposed to be there are in rather small quantities it seems given the proportions of different colors.

It smokes clenly to a fluffy greyish white ash and smoke remarkably cool for a Virginia blend. There is a slight sweetness to the Virginias but it is not a particularly overriding flavor. I can also detect a slight nuttiness from time to time (probably from the small quantities of Burley).

On the whole, it is a very decent blend; there is nothing spectacularly complex or fascinating, but the flavor is pleasant and the smoking properties good. Definitely worth a look for the lover of straight Virginia blends.