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A couple weekends ago I brought a few ounces of flake tobacco, in an unmarked bag, over to a little get-together Adam was throwing. When Jeremy asked what it was, I handed it over; he gave some a sniff and pronounced that the blend was clearly one of Gawith, Hoggarth & Co.’s.
Well that won’t do, I thought – this was supposed to be the next “Mystery Tobacco”. So it was that, in order to make life more difficult for those I work with, I determined from that moment to find another flake, one far less commonly known; one, in short, that they would never identify unless I was so kind enough as to tell them.
Josh Burgess:
Eric presented each of us with three attractive flakes—thin and mottled brown with a few black and tan strips. Moisture content is ideal for a Virginia flake. Aroma promises a mild to medium smoke and is reminiscent of a freshly opened bag of sweet feed: hay, oats, and molasses. I cut the flake into quarter-inch cubes and gently loaded them into one of my favorite VA pipes. Upon the first lighting, the tobacco delivers on all the promises made by the pouch note. As the bowl proceeds, the tobacco develops a nice harmony between a light citrus note, sweet hay-like middle tones, and a richer earthiness. By mid bowl, the lighter notes are mostly gone and the smoke becomes quite rich, earthy, and sweet. A slight spice note, perhaps cinnamon or clove, with stewed fruit presents occasionally. I suspect that the three of us will disagree on whether or not this tobacco contains Perique. For me, some of the tobacco’s richer notes suggest that it does, albeit in a fairly small quantity. While the tobacco may lack some of the complexity that I find in darker Virginias, its only serious fault is a slight harshness in the bottom third of the bowl. On the whole, this tobacco is quite good, and there aren’t all that many VA flakes that are going to smoke better fresh from the tin.
Jeremy Reeves:
Yet another of these haunting little packages arrived on my desk a few days ago. Mysterious tobacco with a smoke-by date scrawled in red marker. This time the package contained three well-formed flakes of brown tobacco specked ever so slightly with black flecks. The flakes hold up well, and yet are pliant and easy to manipulate. Apparently so am I since all it takes is to drop off a baggie with some tobacco in it and a date written on it and I am likely to smoke it and write about it by the date indicated.
This flake rubs out easily and burns well, effortlessly in fact. I set my pipe down once during the first run for about five minutes and when I took it back up I found that with three gentle puffs the bowl was right back where I left it with no relighting needed. If only other aspects of the multi-tasking that made me set the pipe down in the first place were so time insensitive.
I find myself to be a little befuddled by this particular toby. Occasionally I am reminded of Wessex Brown Flake during the smoke, but just as it comes, it goes. The topping on this is so reminiscent of honey-suckle! Really tasty and quite sweet, but rich tobacco flavors are present as well. I am almost certain that this contains VA and nothing else, though perhaps there is a hint of Perique. I mean FAINT.
So easy going and forgiving that heavy puffing yields no tongue-bite, only thick clouds of smoke and fuller flavor. Sipped this is deliciously nuanced with subtle spice and creamy textures, powdered sugar, spice cookies and sweet dinner rolls. I liked this best in a broad GBD long-shanked Pot which I folded and stuffed. Smoked on one light for over an hour and still got another 30 minutes out of the next light with plenty of smoke volume! Wow!
I think it's an Orlik product though not one I can place in my mental tobacco lexicon, but I can't wait to find out what this is so I can either buy some or go back to the tin I may have stuffed somewhere and give it a revisit, perhaps with some age. Nice stuff.
Shane Ireland:
I was both delighted and terrified when Eric tossed me a baggy of nondescript, medium-brown flake tobacco. “The time is nigh” I thought out loud to myself; it would be my very first Mystery Tobacco experiment!
The flakes looked familiar, smelled familiar, and rubbed out easily. I gave the rubbed flake a bit of drying time before loading into a favorite pipe of mine that has a chamber on the larger side of my preferred range. The charring light was easy enough and I immediately tasted honey and the side stream smelled of Virginia sweetness and bread still in the oven. I’ll admit that although Virginia flakes comprise about 90% of my rotation, this one wasn't “doing it” for me. I was getting a little harshness while snorking (exhaling through the nose) and there didn't seem to be much flavor despite being medium-bodied.
This morning, knowing that Eric would be expecting something more substantial than “meh” for a review, I brought my trusty, little Dunhill Cumberland Poker. I gave the chamber a quick ream and rubbed out a few more flakes to dry. I am now on my third bowl and suddenly; this Virginia flake is revealing its deepest, darkest secrets like a former child star on the couch of an overpriced therapist. I am still tasting honey but with an added clove-like spice. There is a faint Speyside spirit finished in oak Sherry cask note, grains, toffee, iced black tea, cornbread with honey-whipped butter and more vanilla-clove spicy sweetness. I must have missed it in the larger bowl, but in this narrow Poker chamber I can detect a hint of spicy condiment tobacco. I am unsure, however, if it is Perique (most likely), Dark Fired or a spicy topping…There is a creamy element that reminds me of certain almond and chocolate flavorings utilized by the boys over in Kendal, but I am sure that this was produced in Denmark, and probably by Orlik. I am now enjoying this mystery flake quite a bit. Time for yet another bowl methinks…
There are quite a few flavors and aromas that are familiar and recognizable, but I do not believe that I have smoked this particular blend before… My best guess would be Comoy’s Cask No. 4 or Stokkebye 1931 flake. Thanks, Eric! Now the entire Internet knows just how unrefined my palate is!
And now we enter the end-game. They’ve smoked it, they’ve enjoyed it, they all want more of it, but only I know its name. The cards are all in my hands. That is, except for the minor detail that I’ve simultaneously backed myself into a corner. In order for this article to have any point, beyond toying with the minds of my co-workers, I will need to reveal the blend’s identity to the general public.
Well let’s just spin it as I’m feeling particularly considerate, generous, and merciful, rather than say that I plotted myself right up against a wall. Deal? Deal.
Very good then: The blend is Fribourg & Treyer’s Vintage.
Now, let’s all pretend this never happened! At least, that is, until the day I devise a more effective stratagem…
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