Bulk Tobacco / Gawith Hoggarth & Co. / Rum Flake

Rum Flake Pipe Tobacco

Product Number: 005-001-0014

Details

Strength:
3/5
Room Note:
3/5
Taste:
4/5
  • Components: Virginia, Burley
  • Family: Burley
  • Cut: Flake

About This Pipe Tobacco

Founded in Kendal, Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. has fashioned quality pipe tobacco since 1887, utilizing processes and techniques that date to 1792. The Cumbria-based company prioritizes natural tobacco flavor, and in many of their mixtures, Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. maintains the standards enforced by the United Kingdom's strict purity laws of the 19th and 20th centuries — such laws dictating how much and what type of flavorings could be added to pipe tobacco and ensuring that sub-quality leaf wasn't hidden under the veil of exorbitant toppings.

Rum Flake (also branded as Jamaican Flake) is a flake mixture of the finest Virginias and Burleys with a slight casing of rum and maple sugars, and it's among the pinnacle of Gawith, Hoggarth & Co.'s production. The blending house is particularly lauded for their flake tobaccos, which are still produced using machinery from the 1790s and with production patents from the late 1800s. Gawith, Hoggarth & Co.'s only production change in the last 100 years involved transitioning from coal-fired to gas-operated tobacco presses, and their flakes are pressed for nearly a month before being sliced and tinned, personifying traditional pipe tobaccos at their best.

Customer Reviews

Overall Rating:
4.6
57 reviews
Excellent Tobacco
October 04, 2025
Product: Gawith Hoggarth & Co. Rum Flake Bulk
This is an excellent tobacco, and a great entry point to Lakeland tobaccos. Do not be fooled - this is not a light and sweet aromatic blend (like C&D Autumn Evening, for example). This is a good and hearty Virginia Burley with a very slight sweet sauce (or “Lakeland essence”). Nothing like a goopy aromatic and not “sticky” to the touch. I detect maple and perhaps a light dose of licorice and vanilla. But it is just a hint of these flavors. Mostly just a good ‘ole VaBur from one of, if not the, best blending houses on Earth. The broken flakes are a tad moist akin to say Peterson University Flake. Some dry time (15-30 mins.) will help. Be prepared to relight a few times. Burns very cool but will leave some moisture in the bowl. More than adequate nicotine content. Not advised for the beginner. Note this is now sold as Jamaican Flake (it is the same exact blend as Rum Flake). If you like this blend and itch for a little more burley with less sauce, I recommend Gawith Hoggarth Best Brown Flake #2, another favorite of mine. If you want more sauce with similar components, I recommend Ennerdale Flake or Kendal Flake. Major kudos to the fine folks at Gawith Hoggarth. Their tobaccos are of the finest quality and I am convinced there is something for every pipe smoker on their menu. Be patient as their products will only be available a few times each year. Set your alerts to receive email notifications on Smoking Pipes and you can acquire these fine blends. And thank you to Smoking Pipes for offering the Gawith Hoggarth tobaccos. I am so appreciative....Read More
Exceeded Expectations
January 26, 2026
Product: Gawith Hoggarth & Co. Rum Flake Bulk
I was looking forward to this flake and I was not disappointed. Great flavor. Strength was medium as advertised. Rum and Mable are very much in the background. No lakeland essence detected. A little rough around the edges, which I appreciate. Will smoke 1st tin regularly then try again at 6mo and a year. Tin art was a huge disappointment. Looks like something you would see at Walmart or Disney. Expected something much nicer from such a fine old house....Read More
Now called Jamaican Flake
January 09, 2025
Product: Gawith Hoggarth & Co. Rum Flake 50g
My sentiment goes along with the rest of the reviews. Just thought everyone should know that if you order “rum flake” it will not show up with that lable in your mailbox. It is now apparently called “Jamacan Flake”
Great Aromatic Flake!
May 12, 2025
Product: Gawith Hoggarth & Co. Rum Flake 50g
Wonderful tin note.. a little bit more than a straight "rum" flake. More like rum-adjacent mixed with magic. The maple and vanilla are the main actors in my opinion. Smokes like a dream though. Top 3 for sure! Tad bit of licorice, so saith the back of the tin.. which by the way, looks nothing like the picture 😅.. but the flavors all come together in this brilliant flake....Read More
Solid Dark Flake
December 06, 2024
Product: Gawith Hoggarth & Co. Rum Flake Bulk
GH Rum Flake is a tasty, stout dark flake that has an underlying sweetness but without the Lakeland flavors. The rum is subtle; you can identify it as rum in the bag note, but in the flavor it comes through as a gentle sweetness that boosts the overall profile without being "aromatic" in the usual sense. Burns well, nice strength. A very reliable brown flake that doesn't bring you in through the usual anise and florals. (From Rum Flake, you can step toward Lakeland with 1792 Flake, which leads with tonquin, and then to GH Dark Flake Aromatic, which brings the Lakeland without apology.)...Read More

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