Solani Aged Burley Flake

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Feb 3, 2021
47
159
Pittsburgh
So I suppose I should start out by saying that the Solani that I have is not recently opened, but I also wouldn't consider it "Aged". When I stepped away from my pipes for a few years I had an open tin of it that I put in a sealed container with a number of other tins that I would periodically open up and smell. When the mood took me I would attempt a passionless fling with a poorly packed bowl, but it almost always resulted in tongue bite and a return to the indoors.

All of that to say, my Solani Aged Burley flake is old, but not exactly lovingly aged.

I don't typically employ flakes in my pipe smoking, which is probably why this sat unfettered for years at the bottom of the stack. However I recently cleaned up an estate pipe that's a smaller churchwarden, and the smaller bowl struck me as the perfect size to stuff a flake. Which it is. Yahtzee. The fold and stuff seems to be my preferred method for the smoking of flakes, as a more English centered smoker oftentimes rubbed flakes tend to bite without ample time to dry (also contributing to the neglect). I had recently rehydrated the flake, which didn't break apart as I Z-folded it, but threatened to. The tin note is exceptional, smooth burly scent but also an added layer of depth. For me the scent this flake is to Burley as espresso is to coffee. Denser and richer. I left a small air pocket beneath my stuff, also in an effort to cool the burn and even the draw. I was determined to enjoy this one.

As is typical with the fold'n stuff, it was a bit challenging to get lit. I approached with caution still, as my goal was still to keep this experience as cool and smooth as possible. After a good char and some patience, I was rewarded with a taste that reminded me fully of the note from the tin, but minus the acidity of espresso. In its place was a smooth milk chocolate texture and taste, with a smooth nutty backdrop. (There is a light Cocoa topping) The flavor was consistent enough to depend on, but also nuanced enough to remain interesting. Of course, as a result of this discovery and my own youthful excitement, I promptly steam trained my way to the acrid and overheated result that I remember. Fortunately with a quick rest and relight, I was back in chocolatey coffee heaven. When sipped, it remained lit very well and delivered a pleasurable smoke though nearly to the bottom, though not with the thick richness of the first 1/2 of the bowl.

I don't believe that this will be in my daily or weekly rotation any time soon, but then neither is a bar of expensive chocolate. I found this flake to be supremely Italian, and like much of my favorite Italian foods, it will be enjoyed when "the mood" arises. When I smoke my way through what I have left I will likely replace it with another tin, but only one. Unless of course I find that the time spent in the holding cell truly improved the flavor that much, at which point I will store some away for another 5 years, hopefully to be re-discovered in a similar fashion.

For myself and I firmly believe a number of other pipers, tobacco is a way to take us somewhere that we aren't, maybe somewhere that we have never been. Sitting out in the frigid tundra of PA in November, I found my mind pulled away to the sunny Amalfi coast, with a light breeze wafting the smell of the Mediterranean up the cliffs as a 60s alfa softly tickes its heat away just behind me. I have never been to the Amalfi coast, nor have I come across someone willing to let me accost their 60s Alfa. However if my vision is ever made a reality I will be sure to have a tin of Solani Aged Burley Flake close at hand.
 
Feb 3, 2021
47
159
Pittsburgh
Thanks for the review, I do smoke this tobacco quite often ,and have to come eventually to realize that folding&stuffing hardly work for me with this stuff, I rather prefer rubbing it out or cube cut and leaving to air dry for some 15-20min prior to smoking
For me I think its more or a know thyself issue with my preference toward stuffing. I tend to puff more quickly (particularly when its single digits out here in PA) and the denser tobacco gives me a wee bit more of a safety zone. I will try some cubed on my next Italian Job though for the sake of adventure.
 

karam

Lifer
Feb 2, 2019
2,341
9,012
Basel, Switzerland
I have a tin bought 1.5 years ago still unopened. I guess it is extra aged?

I haven't opened it because a friend gifted me a flake to try and I found it weird-tasting, like liquorice (which I can't stand) for at least 2/3 of the bowl. No nuttiness, no burley, no chocolate.
 
Feb 3, 2021
47
159
Pittsburgh
I have a tin bought 1.5 years ago still unopened. I guess it is extra aged?

I haven't opened it because a friend gifted me a flake to try and I found it weird-tasting, like liquorice (which I can't stand) for at least 2/3 of the bowl. No nuttiness, no burley, no chocolate.
Yours was the experience that I remembered at first, but I'm not honestly sure if it was the extra time for the tobacco or myself that changed my opinion. I bought the tin I have now in... 2013? I will return here to update when I start a new tin, but that may be a bit.
 
Last edited:

karam

Lifer
Feb 2, 2019
2,341
9,012
Basel, Switzerland
That was the experience that I remembered, but I'm not honestly sure if it was the extra time for the tobacco or myself that changed my opinion. I bought the tin I have now in... 2013? I will return here to update when I start a new tin, but that may be a bit.
It sounds wonderful indeed, will need to open it at some point.
 
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danimalia

Lifer
Sep 2, 2015
4,385
26,440
41
San Francisco Bay Area, USA
Nice review! Solani ABF is a great one. I tend to alternate between it, MacBaren HH Burley Flake, and the C&D Burley Flakes, depending on what I'm in the mood for and what level of nicotine I'm craving. The MacBaren is the mildest in terms of nicotine (though maybe the most flavorful), with the C&D flakes being the strongest. ABF is a very solid medium+. The Solani is unique in that it seems to contain only burley, where the others add a touch of VA, Perique and/or Dark-Fired Kentucky. The Solani, to me, is also a case study on how to add a flavoring that complements the tobacco without sublimating them at all.

I smoked a tin of the Wessex Burley Slices, and it was decent enough, but a rung below those above, in my opinion.
 

danimalia

Lifer
Sep 2, 2015
4,385
26,440
41
San Francisco Bay Area, USA
For me I think its more or a know thyself issue with my preference toward stuffing. I tend to puff more quickly (particularly when its single digits out here in PA) and the denser tobacco gives me a wee bit more of a safety zone. I will try some cubed on my next Italian Job though for the sake of adventure.
Interesting. One of my big issues with folding and stuffing flakes is I can never seem to get them going to provide enough smoke for me, so I tend to over puff. Then again, it's been a long time since I tried that method, so maybe I should give it another go.
 

tzanet

Lurker
Jan 26, 2021
34
66
35
Kefalonia Island, Greece
I have a tin bought 1.5 years ago still unopened. I guess it is extra aged?

I haven't opened it because a friend gifted me a flake to try and I found it weird-tasting, like liquorice (which I can't stand) for at least 2/3 of the bowl. No nuttiness, no burley, no chocolate.
This because ABF is actually topped with licorice. I also get a lot of molasses out of it and indeed the burley is fairly muted.
 

anotherbob

Lifer
Mar 30, 2019
15,678
29,400
45
In the semi-rural NorthEastern USA
Interesting. One of my big issues with folding and stuffing flakes is I can never seem to get them going to provide enough smoke for me, so I tend to over puff. Then again, it's been a long time since I tried that method, so maybe I should give it another go.
what I find works is to over light it. Get it going like the kind of cherry a lot of cigar smokers like bigger and deeper then recommended with a pipe. Get it really going let it chill out for less then a minutes and tamp a lot more then you typically do. Cuts way down on the relights. Also the more you dry it the better. I actually found if it snaps in half while still almost having some give before doing so still maintains much of the flavor. Then again I might just be a weirdo.
 
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