[Sawyer]

Samuel Gawith - Best Brown Flake

Hand stripped Flue-cured Zimbabwe leaf steamed and pressed to medium brown. Made in England.


After having smoked about half a tin, here are my impressions:

Tin aroma is of dried fruit and very earthy. Tin contents consist of nice thinly sliced, medium brown, fairly moist flakes. The flakes dry out to proper moisture pretty fast once they are out of the tin. I have smoked bowls of folded and stuffed flakes and completely rubbed them out. There doesn't seem to be much difference in flavor or smoke quality between the two. It is a bit easier to get lit if it is rubbed out but both ways keep the bowl going to the bottom.

This is a mild smoke. Flavors are fairly straightforward but they are still very mild. I get hints of nuts, grass and hay, but not much sweetness or tang. I got a mild menthol flavor from time to time which was a bit of a surprise. It showed up along with a slight tingliness on the tongue.

I had a little trouble with tongue bite on the first few bowls I smoked of BBF. I tried to coax out more flavor than this blend was willing to give and ended up smoking it hot and moist. I have since realized that this is a light blend meant for sipping. It can be a very relaxing blend if smoked correctly.

Over all, this is a quality mild Virginia. It won't be in a my regular rotation, but I will probably keep some handy for a change of pace every now and again.