Newminster Superior Navy Flake
Opening a bag of these flakes smells just like opening a bee hive and removing that sticky sweet honey comb. The smell is intoxicating honey, which almost turned me off to this flake, but the bag note and room aroma are a big hit with the bystander. The taste doesn't translate long beyond the initial char and tamp. But, if you lick a flake, you can taste it, or I imagine you could squeeze some out onto your oatmeal. I've often thought about using one to sweeten my tea, "one flake or two?"
It is a selection of very bright Virginias with a casing of honey pressed into long flakes, which will require cutting to make them fit into jars. I like it fresh and with a little age, but after four months I haven't noticed any difference in the effects of aging, but it has only been four months.
If you think Virginia #1 bites, stay away from this one. Comparatively, it is a nest a rattlesnakes in your mouth, and VA #1 will seem like love bites from an attention hungry house cat. However, I really like that tingly acidic bite on the tongue. It doesn't last long after you finish the smoke, and the acidity and citrus flavors really appeal to me. But, of course I like strong citrusy drinks and foods, like Mountain Dew and a sour Key Lime Pie that makes your mouth turn inside out.
The flavor is subtle, as bright Virginias tend to be. You'll be tempted to draw harder to get more taste, but then the bite is magnified ten-fold. No, I recommend clenching and breathsmoking this one, unless you are looking for an excuse to stop smoking for a few days to heal your tongue and roof of your mouth.
If you're looking for a flake to give you a Nicotine hit, look elsewhere. This stuff is practically devoid of vitamin N, but in my opinion, it makes it a great all day clenching smoke. Yeh, you might want a cigarette afterwards, if you are trying to quit the cigs, but if you'll just light up another flake you'll be fine. I'm sure it has some nicotine... in there somewhere. But at the price that P&C offers this in bulk, you can just keep loading and smoking all day.
The flakes will come as wet as FVF, wet, wet, wet. After drying this one for a few hours, it still left a good drink of water in the bowl. I'm not kidding. You can pour it out. I recommend drying it to a crunchy, crispy state. This will make it burn cooler, taste better, and not leave a gurgling pool in the bowl. The honey casing is all it needs to slow the burn down enough to make it very palatable while smoking. I just open a jar and put them on a strip of leather to dry while smoking this in rotation.
Some have said that it is one dimensional, but I like to think of it as consistent, lol. Tingly, bitey, citrusy, honey sweet flakes, I like them in fat pipes, narrow pipes, tall pipes, and short pipes. In fact all of my pipes have burned this flake since the boxes arrived, and I haven't had a bad smoke yet. But, of course "bad" is relative. Just dry it, and don't puff. Just relax and forget you even have a pipe in your mouth. But, of course you'll get a reminder when someone passes by and smiles at the rich honey and amber aroma that you'll be giving off.
Hopefully, you saw a little tongue-in-cheek in my review. It is a good flake. But, it doesn't have the depth nor diversity of taste that FVF has. But, as I said, if you like to clench, not puff, and you want an all day smoke, then you might give this a try. Not for those that belly ache about Virginias biting. :
:
Opening a bag of these flakes smells just like opening a bee hive and removing that sticky sweet honey comb. The smell is intoxicating honey, which almost turned me off to this flake, but the bag note and room aroma are a big hit with the bystander. The taste doesn't translate long beyond the initial char and tamp. But, if you lick a flake, you can taste it, or I imagine you could squeeze some out onto your oatmeal. I've often thought about using one to sweeten my tea, "one flake or two?"
It is a selection of very bright Virginias with a casing of honey pressed into long flakes, which will require cutting to make them fit into jars. I like it fresh and with a little age, but after four months I haven't noticed any difference in the effects of aging, but it has only been four months.
If you think Virginia #1 bites, stay away from this one. Comparatively, it is a nest a rattlesnakes in your mouth, and VA #1 will seem like love bites from an attention hungry house cat. However, I really like that tingly acidic bite on the tongue. It doesn't last long after you finish the smoke, and the acidity and citrus flavors really appeal to me. But, of course I like strong citrusy drinks and foods, like Mountain Dew and a sour Key Lime Pie that makes your mouth turn inside out.
The flavor is subtle, as bright Virginias tend to be. You'll be tempted to draw harder to get more taste, but then the bite is magnified ten-fold. No, I recommend clenching and breathsmoking this one, unless you are looking for an excuse to stop smoking for a few days to heal your tongue and roof of your mouth.
If you're looking for a flake to give you a Nicotine hit, look elsewhere. This stuff is practically devoid of vitamin N, but in my opinion, it makes it a great all day clenching smoke. Yeh, you might want a cigarette afterwards, if you are trying to quit the cigs, but if you'll just light up another flake you'll be fine. I'm sure it has some nicotine... in there somewhere. But at the price that P&C offers this in bulk, you can just keep loading and smoking all day.
The flakes will come as wet as FVF, wet, wet, wet. After drying this one for a few hours, it still left a good drink of water in the bowl. I'm not kidding. You can pour it out. I recommend drying it to a crunchy, crispy state. This will make it burn cooler, taste better, and not leave a gurgling pool in the bowl. The honey casing is all it needs to slow the burn down enough to make it very palatable while smoking. I just open a jar and put them on a strip of leather to dry while smoking this in rotation.
Some have said that it is one dimensional, but I like to think of it as consistent, lol. Tingly, bitey, citrusy, honey sweet flakes, I like them in fat pipes, narrow pipes, tall pipes, and short pipes. In fact all of my pipes have burned this flake since the boxes arrived, and I haven't had a bad smoke yet. But, of course "bad" is relative. Just dry it, and don't puff. Just relax and forget you even have a pipe in your mouth. But, of course you'll get a reminder when someone passes by and smiles at the rich honey and amber aroma that you'll be giving off.
Hopefully, you saw a little tongue-in-cheek in my review. It is a good flake. But, it doesn't have the depth nor diversity of taste that FVF has. But, as I said, if you like to clench, not puff, and you want an all day smoke, then you might give this a try. Not for those that belly ache about Virginias biting. :
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