One of the questions we hear most often, both in the comments and through our customer service team, is simple: What are the strongest pipe tobaccos worth trying? In this video, Andy Wike and Steve Mawby each bring two of their personal favorites to the table, plus one legendary rope, to talk through the full-bodied, nicotine-forward blends they reach for most. Along the way, they cover polarizing Lakeland flavors, a blend that helped Steve give up cigarettes for good, and how to tackle a rope tobacco without losing your patience.

Setting Expectations

[Andy Wike]: We get a lot of questions about what our recommendations are for strong pipe tobaccos.

[Steve Mawby]: My recommendation is smoke them. As many of them as you can.

[AW]: That's the only way to really find out. Of course, if you're approaching pipe tobacco expecting something as strong as a cigar, you might be disappointed even with some of our selections here. But in the pipe-tobacco space, there are some really great blends with a lot of body, a lot of strength, and a lot of nicotine. There was no chemical analysis behind these choices. They're just great blends that Steve and I enjoy.

[SM]: I did take these to my lab, which is either my office or my back porch, where I smoked them and analyzed them very carefully. That's about as scientific as I get.

[AW]: For this video, we each chose two of our favorites, and then one special blend we both arm wrestled for. We both lost, so we're putting it on the table anyway.

Sam Gawith 1792 Flake

[SM]: One of my favorite tobaccos of all time is Sam Gawith 1792 Flake. It has Dark-Fired Tanzanian leaf and steamed and pressed Virginias, using a pretty unorthodox steaming method that Sam Gawith uses. It's also got tonquin, so you get smoky barbecue flavor, cocoa notes, and vanilla from the tonquin.

A lot of these blends are polarizing in terms of flavor. If it's something you really like, it'll grab onto you and leave an impression. If you don't like the tonquin, it'll also leave an impression, maybe not as good of one. I was smoking it very regularly several years ago, and it's still one of my go-tos. It ages very well, too. Just an all-around excellent blend.

[AW]: If you were to search for the strongest pipe tobaccos, it would be very rare for 1792 Flake not to show up on that list. A lot of Gawith products show up in the public perception of what strong tobaccos are, and I think that's a testament to their blending process. There aren't a lot of additives. It's mostly just really good tobacco, and you get more strength, body, and flavor from that.

Sam Gawith Navy Flake

[AW]: I also chose a Sam Gawith tobacco. If you watch our Mystery Tobacco Reviews, you know I'm not super into English or Latakia blends, but Sam Gawith Navy Flake has always been one I reach for. It's a really great blend of Virginias with a very small portion of Latakia, cased with rum.

This was my Saturday afternoon blend. I'd watch Black Sails, a gritty, Treasure Island-style pirate show, and smoke Navy Flake in an Old Dominion cob with a nice beverage while those guys drank rum on TV. It always tasted like smoked pork to me, with a really umami, salty, savory flavor. It had a good bit of nicotine, strength, and body, too. I don't smoke English blends often, but this one hits home for me.

[SM]: First of all, it's always a good idea to watch people drinking rum on TV, because then you're never drinking alone. I typically think of English blends as a late-fall-into-winter thing, and it's awesome that this one takes you right back to those memories.

Gawith Hoggarth Dark Flake Unscented

[SM]: That brings me to my second pick, Gawith Hoggarth Dark Flake Unscented. It was the first pipe tobacco I ever fell in love with. Before that, I was a cigarette smoker and a dipper. I smoked Marlboro Reds and Camel Wides and was always chain-smoking and chasing that nicotine hit.

When I got into pipes, people recommended Aromatics and lighter blends for beginners. They were good, and I could see the appeal, but they didn't hook me. Dark Flake Unscented was the first time my eyes popped open and I thought, this is something I want to do all the time. Once I had a decent supply of it, I gave up cigarettes and dip, which was very unexpected for me.

It's Malawi Dark Fired with Indian air-cured leaf and Burleys. Same kind of thing: smoky barbecue, very umami, some cocoa, and a nuttiness to the flavor. It's very polarizing. People seem to either absolutely love it or absolutely hate it.

[AW]: Gawith blends tend to be polarizing because so many of them have that Lakeland presence. Where does Dark Flake Unscented fall in the Lakeland range for folks who haven't tried it?

[SM]: It's noticeable. If you don't like Lakeland, you probably won't like this blend, but it's not one of the most overwhelming ones. I'd call it medium. It's not Bright CR Flake or Grasmere. Nothing that crazy.

[AW]: It's such a cool realm of pipe-tobacco casings. It's just not like other things.

[SM]: Gawith is one of those brands you immediately recognize, no matter how diverse the blends are. You know it when you pop the tin, and if you smoke a lot of them on an empty stomach or first thing in the morning without being prepared for the heavy hitters, you'll feel it.

Cornell & Diehl Old Joe Krantz

[AW]: Another one you'll feel on an empty stomach is Cornell & Diehl's Old Joe Krantz.

[SM]: One of my favorites as well.

[AW]: Today, a lot of folks follow Cornell & Diehl for what we're doing with Virginias, Orientals, and Perique. But historically, C&D's impact was on Burley blends. There were so many great Burley blends that packed a punch and were really complex, and Old Joe Krantz is one that has stood the test of time. It's dark, cube-cut Burley plus Red Virginias and a little Perique. In its modern incarnation, with 31 Farms Perique and some really good dark, heirloom Burley grades, it's amazing.

[SM]: That 31 Farms Perique really changed the profile of a lot of C&D blends.

[AW]: You get a little more fruitiness, a little more umami, a sort of pre-fermented flavor. But it's not an old-school Aromatic. Imagine the blend your grandfather packed like a pro after church service, then make a really elevated, modern version of it. That's Old Joe Krantz. It's great in the morning with coffee and great with a strong beverage in the evening. It's a study in how C&D approaches Burley, but it's still well-balanced with a lot of nuance.

Gawith Hoggarth Black Irish X

[SM]: That brings us to the one we both picked. You can't talk about heavy-hitter tobaccos without talking about Gawith Hoggarth Black Irish X.

[AW]: Just the name tells you it's going to be strong.

[SM]: When I was Customer Service Manager, if new hires were already pipe smokers, I'd hand them some and say, "Try it. I bet you've never had this before." Then I'd watch them open it up, see that thick rope, and ask, "What is this? How do I even prepare it?" As they smelled that pungent aroma, you could see the intimidation on their faces.

I've heard it described as smoking old car-tire rubber, and that's from people who enjoy it. I think that's accurate, and I mean it as a compliment. It's very pungent, very smoky, and very intense, unlike anything else.

[AW]: There are so many ways to prepare it. I like to slice it with a cigar cutter into little coins, then either rub those out or stack them in the bowl. I haven't had a ton of success stacking, since it's harder to keep lit. The moisture content in ropes is a bit higher than in ribbons or flakes, so it takes some preparation time. But if you want something unlike anything you've tried, Black Irish X is it. Brown Irish X is a riff on the same idea, using different varietals and casings.

[SM]: You're going to need a good knife.

[AW]: Gawith is one of the only producers left making ropes, and they're doing it the way they have for over a century. It's great to see that tradition still show up in the modern market.

[SM]: It can be a learning curve, and there's definitely prep time. Or you can be like Greg, one of our programmers, who famously poked a hole in the end of a two-ounce rope with a golf tee and smoked it like a cigar. That's probably the most impressive thing I've ever heard anybody do with tobacco. I love my heavy hitters, but I don't think I could smoke two ounces of Black Irish X in a single sitting.

[AW]: Because ropes are so labor- and time-intensive to produce, we don't have Black Irish X in stock very often. If you're interested, sign up for in-stock notifications.

[SM]: It's worth trying no matter what. Just be prepared.

Honorable Mentions

[AW]: Any honorable mentions you want to throw out there, Steve?

[SM]: One of the strongest blends out there, and a go-to when I need that nicotine kick, is Five Brothers. It's a simple shag cut, and it'll wake you up in the morning. If you can track down a tin, H.H. Rustica will definitely put hair on your chest.

[AW]: And if you can track down a pouch: Semois. It's a very fine shag cut of a super unique Burley from a small growing region in Belgium, and it definitely hits hard.

In C&D's line, there are almost too many to choose from in the strength four-to-five range. I smoked many tins of Riverboat Gambler, and I still think it's an amazing blend. Oak Alley is exceptional, too.

[SM]: Crooner, too. It has Deertongue, another unique, polarizing component.

[AW]: A lot of the Cellar Series blends are strong in both flavor and nicotine. Chenet's Cake has such a high percentage of Perique.

[SM]: You know I love that. Brothers in Arms, too.

[AW]: Lots of Dark Fired in that one. I also really like Redburn. It's maybe a little more subdued than Old Joe Krantz, but it's Burleys with a rum casing, and with about a year of age on it, it's a great all-day smoke.

[SM]: I'm glad you mentioned age. All of these blends age extremely well.

Finding Your Own Heavy Hitters

[AW]: If you want to test your nicotine tolerance or explore heavy hitters you've been intimidated by, use our Tobacco Locator. You can filter by strength rating, select four or five, and read through the descriptions to see what calls out to you.

[SM]: That's exactly what I did when I started smoking. I selected Strong and Very Strong and went through everything on the list. You'll find some good stuff there, and definitely some heavy hitters.

[AW]: Leave us a comment and let us know your favorite strong or extra-strong tobacco, and let us know if you'd like to see more content like this.