Cigrmasters List of Flakes

[cigrmaster]

I think it is about time that I list the flakes that I now cellar. I used to post this list once in a while while I was developing it,but now that I have finished my cellar and have no plans to add any more blends, I think it is time to post the final list. The TR next to a name means that in mostly all cases the tobacco needs no drying time and is ready to smoke out of the tin. The list is in no particular order of favorites, but if I was pressed to name only one as a favorite it would be the Wessex Brigade Campaign Dark Flake. I have more tins of that than any other blend. I hope this list helps any of you who are looking to get into the world of flakes. They are all I smoke and it took since May of 2012 to finalize the list. I have a body chemistry issue with Red Virginia's so you will not see any McClellend or Rattray blends on the list. The only blend I do have that has a small amount of red is the Solani Silver Flake, the Kentucky in it must minimize the effects of the reds in it because I can smoke this pain free. I have over the years smoked tons of other flakes and other types of cuts from a multitude of mfgs, but this final list is bite free for my tastes.
Virginia Flakes
Fribourg&Treyer Cut Virginia Plug TR

Fribourg and Treyer Vintage TR

Fribourg & Treyer Special Brown Flake TR

Wessex Campaign Brigade Dark Flake TR

Wessex Brown Virginia Flake TR

Wessex Gold Virginia Flake TR

Wessex Gold Brick TR

Samuel Gawith Best Brown Flake

Samuel Gawith full Virginia Flake

Hamborger Veermaster TR

Dunhill Flake TR

Astley’s no. 44 Dark Flake TR

Astleys 109 TR

John Aylesbury Luxury Flake TR

Rotary Navy Cut TR

Capstan Blue Flake TR

Brigham Klondike Gold TR
Virginia/Perique Flakes
Escudo TR

Solani 633 TR

Samuel Gawith St James Flake

Dunhill Deluxe Navy Rolls TR
Virginia/Burley or Kentucky
Solani Silver Flake TR

Petersons Irish Flake TR

GL Pease Navigator TR

Peterson 3P TR

Peterson University Flake TR

Mac Baren HH Old Dark Fired TR

Esoterica Stonehaven

 

[tedswearingen]

What about all the red Virginia's in Navigator? They don't bother you?

 

[cigrmaster]

Ted, I had no idea Navigator had red's in it. It must be like the Solani SS where the Kentucky negates the effects of the red's. It also must have a small amount because when a blend has a large amount like Rattray's Marlin Flake, it is like acid hitting my tongue the minute the smoke hits it.

 

[zack24]

Having seen the vast storehouses of leafy wealth you own, I'm not sure I would describe your tobacco holdings as a "cellar"....more like a "plantation"...

 

[cigrmaster]

Zack, lol. I am a rank amateur in comparison to Les Trout or even Peck. There are guys like Les who have been cellaring for decades and have over a thousand pounds of tobacco. I began cellaring in earnest in September of 2012 so I did pretty well in short period of time.

 

[petes03]

That's a long list of flakes! I don't smoke many flakes, or Virginias for that matter, thus the only one I've had on your list is Petersons University Flake( which is not bad ). Congrats on your cellar Harris!

 

[numbersix]

I thought your list was gonna read more like:
1. Peckinpahhombre

2. Cortez

3. Lawrence

4. Kevin

...

 

[peckinpahhombre]

Great decoy post Harris. You are a genius.
Numbersix, Santa lives in the North Pole, aka, Canada. Santa is a friend of mine - we play poker and smoke pipes every weekend. Expect to get a big package of Elephant fecal matter on the 25th.

 

[gwtwdbss]

Haha, too funny Six. Thanks for the updated list Harris. Much appreciated!

 

[dragonslayer]

Harris shot me a list about a month ago and have tried almost all of them. Needless to say I'm still working my way through the list and want to smoke at least six bowls of each before making final choices for the end year buy. So far the list has been fantastic with some far better suited for my pallet than others. This is a great list but it does leave out all the reds. There are many reds out there that rate very high on lists of flakes. You can find many reviews on flakes but this one is a great one, just don't forget the reds!
Craig

 

[yazamitaz]

Harris also shared this list with me and I wish I could pick up some Wessex Brigade Dark Flake. I know you said it was tough Harris but damn, I have been looking for almost a month and it is out of stock EVERYWHERE. I didn't realize this was a "Penzance-like" flake.
I do have some Klondike Gold and Wessex Brown flake and like them very much. Looking forward to trying a few more soon.

 

[peckinpahhombre]

Hey Yaz, the WCBDF is good stuff, but keep in mind that it is really sweet and I don't know if that is up your alley. Harris has a big sweet tooth so I understand the attraction for him. I love the stuff as well but I have to be in the mood for it - sometimes I get the most phenomenal smoke known to man from it and other times I feel like I'm smoking hot chocolate. Happy to send you some if you want to try it but it may be a couple of weeks before I get around to doing that.

 

[cigrmaster]

craig, you are correct in that I did leave our all the reds as I cannot smoke them. There are two on the list that have a smal amount of red, the Solani SS and the Navigator. I believe that the Kentucky in those blends helps reduce the acid burn I normally get from the reds. If I was able to smoke the reds, the list would probably be twice as large. It would be loaded with McCelllend and Rattrays Virginia's as I love the flavors of many of their blends but they bite me badly.
Yaz, unfortunately some of the blends on my list are a bitch to find. One blend that is easy to get that I really enjoy is the Rotary Navy Cut, that is a sweet tasting no bite blennd that has a nice rum topping. Sp has the best price on that one but even at their price it is not cheap.
If anyone wants a list of my morning, afternoon and evening smokes, just let me know as I go up the strength ladder as the day progresses. I never smoke Peterson Irish flake as a first of the day smoke as that would make me puke if I smoked it in the morning on an empty stomach. I typically go for the gold virginia forward flakes as a morning smoke. Blend like F&T CVP, Wessex Gold Virginia Flake, Dunhill Flake, Capstan Blue, Klondike Gold,are my typical morning smokes. I thenn go for a darker VA after the first smoke such as the 2 Astleys, 2 of the Wessex, Ja Luxury. Then go for either a Vaper or a Vabur as a third smoke of the day. When I was a cigar smoker I also would go up the strength ladder as the day progressed. A couple of my favorite morning cigars were the Diamond Crown no 6 or an Asthon Cabinet. For some reason whether it was pipes or cigars I always went up the strength ladder, don't ask me why because I honestly have no idea what that was all about. If anyone has never smoked a Diamond Crown 6, I highly recommend it. It is one of the creamiest cigars out there and great with a cup of your favorite coffee. The Diamond Crowns are not cheap, but they are some of the best made cigars on the planet. I never had one that did not burn to perfection. I used to get one box a year for free along with a free box of any Opus I wanted for being a moderator at Cigar Family.com I was way to cheap to ever pay for a box of either of those as they were big bucks.

 

[cigrmaster]

Peck is correct I do have a major sweet tooth but funny think is, a blend like Erinmore flake is way to sweet for my tastes and I cannot smoke it.I guess it all depends on the make up of the blend. I wish I could smoke the erinmore as it is always available.

 

[cigrmaster]

coal, you don't have to worry about competing with me anymore. I am done buying unless a new flake hits the market. The guy have to worry about is peck, he has enough for the next 50 but he still continues to buy tobacco. He will never smoke what he has, but he is addicted to buying and seeing the man dressed in brown show up st his door. He still looks for new blends to try, he still adds to blends where he has hundreds of tins, the man is a tobacco buying machine. I have never seen a guy like him who buys tobacco even though he has no need to buy more. I honestly think he would go into with-drawls if he stopped buying. I think an intervention is needed and as we are his friends it is up to us to have this intervention. I think we need to contact his wife to get the ball rolling so we can save him from himself.
peck, are you willing to let us help you or do we need to get the men in the white coats involved?

 

[mountainman]

Harris we have pretty similar tastes. Here are the flakes I keep in my rotation. I have at least 2-3 years stock on each of the following flakes. I tried a lot of these thanks to your recommendation over the last couple of years! I am surprised you don't stock MacBaren Navy Flake, as it is probably my #1 favorite.
Fribourg&Treyer Cut Virginia Plug

Fribourg & Treyer Special Brown Flake

Wessex Gold Virginia Flake

Dunhill Flake

Rotary Navy Cut

Capstan Blue Flake

Escudo

Solani 633

Mac Baren HH Old Dark Fired

MacBaren Navy Flake

Newminister Superior Navy FLake

Samuel Gawith St. James Flake

Wessex Burley Slice
I keep meaning to try the following, but haven't gotten around to it.
Peterson University Flake

Solani Silver Flake
-Josh

 

[cigrmaster]

josh, our lists are very similar. I think if you try both the Peterson University and the Solani Silver Flake you will add both to your rotation as I really enjoy both of them. If you get the Solani you will need to jar it right away as it does not come vacuum sealed. It comes in a tin but is wrapped in a cheap cellophane that does nothing to keep it fresh. The University ages great in the tin and I find it to be a very tasty unique blend. The plum topping is done just right as it is not too sweet. I find Erinmore flake to be much to sweet for my tastes and I do love a sweet blend.
Another nice thing about the Peterson is the price, it can be had for about 8 bucks a tin and for that kind of quality flake, it is a great price.
I actually do have a pound of the Mac Baren Virginia Flake from 2006 and half a pound of the Mac Baren Navy flake also from 2006. I find both of them just a bit boring in flavor though which is why I have not added more to the cellar. I bought mine from a guy who was selling his stash so I figured I would take a shot at them since they were both aged. I ended up giving away a bunch of them both and kept some to see how they are at the ten year mark.
Another couple of flakes I noticed you do not have on your list is:
Brigham Klondike Gold, my favorite new flake that comes aged 2-3 years in the tin and is really tasty.

Wessex Brown Virginia Flake, really nice stuff.

Wessex Brigade Campaign Dark Flake, probably my favorite blend but a bitch to get.

John Aylesbury Luxury Flake also a bitch to get( maybe the toughest blend to find on the market even tougher than Stonehaven) but super tasty

Astleys no 109, similar to the Wessex Brigade Campaign in that it has a similar molasses type sweetness but not as full flavored, readily available.

Astleys no 44 Dark Flake, similar to the Wessex Brown Flake, great all around blend that recently has been available. I smoke the Astleys 109 before the 44 during the day as it is milder.

Dunhill Deluxe Navy Rolls, I know people think it is the same blend as Escudo but I find it to be sweeter and less peppery and really enjoy it when I am in the mood for not so much pepper.

Wessex gold Brick, a solid plug that has a nice sweetness to it and I get some coffee notes at times when smoking it. For some reason it has become difficult to find.

Peterson Perfect Plug, a full bodied plug that is similar to Mac Baren Old Dark Fired. Definitely needs some age and you do not want to let it sit after lighting it. It turns bitter as hell if you start smoking it and then re visit even ten minutes later, kind of weird how it does that.

Samuel Gawith Best Brown Flake, great all around flakke that works well in numerous pipes. The Full Virginia Flake is also very tasty, b ut is very finicky in that it needs the proper prep and the right pipe for it to shine.
Just what you needed, a whole new list of flakes to try. lol

 

[planetary]

Great list. Looks like most of these will do very well as the years roll by.

 

[andypandy]

The guy have to worry about is peck, he has enough for the next 50 but he still continues to buy tobacco. He will never smoke what he has, but he is addicted to buying and seeing the man dressed in brown show up st his door. He still looks for new blends to try, he still adds to blends where he has hundreds of tins, the man is a tobacco buying machine. I have never seen a guy like him who buys tobacco even though he has no need to buy more. I honestly think he would go into with-drawls if he stopped buying. I think an intervention is needed and as we are his friends it is up to us to have this intervention. I think we need to contact his wife to get the ball rolling so we can save him from himself.
peck, are you willing to let us help you or do we need to get the men in the white coats involved?

Remember Peck, we don't hate you, we hate the disease. :crying: :wink:

 

[cigrmaster]

planetary, one of the great things about smoking flakes is that they age as good as any blend out there if not better than any other blend. I have never heard anyone say, they wished they had not aged their flakes so long. Where as I have heard people say they wished they had not aged their aromatics or Latakia blends as long as they did. I personally have never smoked a flake that did not get better with age. I do smoke plenty that are tasty when fresh, but so far everyone that I have aged has tasted better than when fresh. Even as little as one year of age can have a dramatic effect on the flavor. As an example, I recently opened a tin of 8/12 Dunhill Flake and the difference was amazing as compared to a fresh tin. The color was much darker, the flavor was much more rounded and fuller and the taste was sweeter. I have plenty of flakes that are much older than a year and those are great but I was really surprised at how much the Dunhill had changed.