I was interested to try a twist/rope tobacco because of its reputation for being a strong smoke. I also liked the idea of lightly topped, strong blends (such as Royal Yacht) that occupy that strange no-man’s-land between aromatic and non-aromatic.
So, I purchased some Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. Sweet Maple Twist. Some sites have this listed as a non-aromatic, composed of Burley and Dark Fired Kentucky, but as the name implies, there is a light topping to the tobacco.
Tin Note: The twist was similar in appearance to a cigar (I’ll leave the less flattering comparisons out here), and had a delicious aroma—almost like strong tea leaves. I’ve read that this is merely Gawith, Hoggarth & Co.’s Brown Irish X Twist with a bit of maple added. The maple is not immediately discernible in the tin note, but rather absorbed into the overall tobacco aroma, manifesting itself merely as a hint of sweetness.
Flavor: Upon lighting this blend, I immediately fell in love with it. The tobacco is rich, and—I don’t quite know how to put this—has texture to it in the mouth. The smoke is quite tangible, not in the way that an English blend is with its dominating latakia, but rather more subtle and rich. I’m still relatively new to pipe smoking, but this was a flavor with the fullness and depth of something like Peterson’s Irish Flake. That said, there was a distinct maple sweetness to the blend that makes this blend for me. Anyone expecting an aromatic would be quite disappointed: again, the topping is subtle, but I certainly could detect it, since there was a discernible sweet undertone to the blend. If C&D's Autumn Evening is the Log Cabin Maple Syrup of the pipe world, then this twist would be the corresponding authentic, no-sugar added maple syrup.
Smoke: I used a cigar cutter to slice thin coins and then rub them out. I had read online that ropes tend to require a bit of time to dry before smoking them, but I completely forgot this during my first smoke. I quickly remembered when I found I couldn’t keep it lit very well. It was not so wet as to be un-smokable, but I did have to relight probably at least five times.
The second time around I let it dry for about thirty minutes after rubbing out the coins and it smoked perfectly. I’ve read that although it might seem that the black ropes might be stronger than brown, actually the processing of the darker ropes removes some nicotine content. This brown rope was certainly robust. I have a fairly high nicotine tolerance, so it’s difficult for me to say, but this blend is in the class where I could feel the nicotine from it—along with Peterson Irish Flake, Five Brothers, and Royal Yacht. I’m not sure exactly how it compares to those since there are other variables—food on the stomach, etc.
In Summary: For some reason I can’t wait to smoke this again. It’s not a particularly remarkable blend in any one respect, but for me the maple undertone just perfectly melds with the tobacco to produce a cohesive experience. Sometimes it seems the topping of certain blends doesn’t quite go with the tobacco itself. Often even in blends I quite like, there are two discernible, separate flavors—the tobacco and the topping. In this maple twist, however, they mingle in a sort of perfect symbiosis for my palate and form one, unified flavor.
I’d recommend this tobacco to those who like strong, robust blends, and don’t mind a hint of topping. It tastes nothing like Royal Yacht, but I feel it’s in that same, somewhat rare family of blends that are robust but tangibly topped.
So, I purchased some Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. Sweet Maple Twist. Some sites have this listed as a non-aromatic, composed of Burley and Dark Fired Kentucky, but as the name implies, there is a light topping to the tobacco.
Tin Note: The twist was similar in appearance to a cigar (I’ll leave the less flattering comparisons out here), and had a delicious aroma—almost like strong tea leaves. I’ve read that this is merely Gawith, Hoggarth & Co.’s Brown Irish X Twist with a bit of maple added. The maple is not immediately discernible in the tin note, but rather absorbed into the overall tobacco aroma, manifesting itself merely as a hint of sweetness.
Flavor: Upon lighting this blend, I immediately fell in love with it. The tobacco is rich, and—I don’t quite know how to put this—has texture to it in the mouth. The smoke is quite tangible, not in the way that an English blend is with its dominating latakia, but rather more subtle and rich. I’m still relatively new to pipe smoking, but this was a flavor with the fullness and depth of something like Peterson’s Irish Flake. That said, there was a distinct maple sweetness to the blend that makes this blend for me. Anyone expecting an aromatic would be quite disappointed: again, the topping is subtle, but I certainly could detect it, since there was a discernible sweet undertone to the blend. If C&D's Autumn Evening is the Log Cabin Maple Syrup of the pipe world, then this twist would be the corresponding authentic, no-sugar added maple syrup.
Smoke: I used a cigar cutter to slice thin coins and then rub them out. I had read online that ropes tend to require a bit of time to dry before smoking them, but I completely forgot this during my first smoke. I quickly remembered when I found I couldn’t keep it lit very well. It was not so wet as to be un-smokable, but I did have to relight probably at least five times.
The second time around I let it dry for about thirty minutes after rubbing out the coins and it smoked perfectly. I’ve read that although it might seem that the black ropes might be stronger than brown, actually the processing of the darker ropes removes some nicotine content. This brown rope was certainly robust. I have a fairly high nicotine tolerance, so it’s difficult for me to say, but this blend is in the class where I could feel the nicotine from it—along with Peterson Irish Flake, Five Brothers, and Royal Yacht. I’m not sure exactly how it compares to those since there are other variables—food on the stomach, etc.
In Summary: For some reason I can’t wait to smoke this again. It’s not a particularly remarkable blend in any one respect, but for me the maple undertone just perfectly melds with the tobacco to produce a cohesive experience. Sometimes it seems the topping of certain blends doesn’t quite go with the tobacco itself. Often even in blends I quite like, there are two discernible, separate flavors—the tobacco and the topping. In this maple twist, however, they mingle in a sort of perfect symbiosis for my palate and form one, unified flavor.
I’d recommend this tobacco to those who like strong, robust blends, and don’t mind a hint of topping. It tastes nothing like Royal Yacht, but I feel it’s in that same, somewhat rare family of blends that are robust but tangibly topped.
