Lakeland Essence

[python]

I wanted to hear what everyone else thought about the Lakeland Essence (flavor) that are found on a lot of Gawith & Hoggarth blends. There are some Samuel Gawith blends that have it, but I find that flavor is more predominate in G&H blends.
I like the Lakeland taste. When somebody asks me what it tastes like, I just tell them that they have to taste it for themselves in order to understand it. It is a very hard flavor to describe in words, IMO.
A lot of people describe it as a soapy taste. I do not get a soapy taste, maybe a floral taste, but not soapy.
I actually had an epiphany a few weeks ago while I was making a cup of Earl Grey tea. After the tea was done, I was drinking it while smoking a straight VA blend and I kept tasting the Lakeland Essence. For a minute I thought that I was tasting a ghost in my pipe until I realized that I never smoked a Lakeland tobacco in that pipe.
I started paying more attention to the tea and discovered that, to my tastes, the Bergamot flavoring that is used in Earl Grey is a very similar taste to the Lakeland Essence. I am now wondering if other people have noticed the same thing.
Well, what say all of you?

Let's talk a little bit about the Lakeland Essence.

 

[jonesing]

Bob:
The only Gawith stuff I've tried is G&H Dark Bullseye and Kendal Dark.
I didn't notice anything except smokey smell in these.
In reading reviews I see that many people swear up and down that everything with the Gawith name on it has the Lakeland essence, even the "unscented" plugs and flakes.
I don't' drink tea and I've either not encountered Lakeland or my senses are too pedestrian to note it.
How would you describe it?
I hear geranium, citrus, "mediciney", and many other descriptors.
How does Early Gray and Lakeland strike you that makes them seem similar?

 

[rs422]

One that I love is GH Rich Dark Honeydew. It comes in a shag cut and is described by some as being the closest thing to St. Bruno in taste. It is only available at Mars Cigars.

 

[dunendain]

You are right Bob. It is more floral than soapy. I think people misunderstand, and think the tobacco taste like soap. If it did, I don't think so many people would love those blends.

 

[igloo]

Bob you are on to something got the tea , got the baccy .

 

[dudleydipstick]

Out of all the blends I've tried from either Gawith, the only one that seems like it might have the "Lakeland" taste has been Glengary Flake.
The rest; G&H Dark Plug, Cob Plug, Whiskey Twist, Brown Bogie, Best Brown, Chocolate Flake, Sam's Flake, etc., just taste like tobacco to me (with the exception of tonquin in Cob Plug).

 

[dunendain]

Thanks for the info man. I do know that I love this Kendal Cream. Good stuff.

 

[python]

Jonesing, like I said in my original post, I can not describe the Lakeland taste. The closest that I can come would be kind of floral, but not.
I know that I like it, lol

 

[python]

That's some good info Furandfeather! Thanks for posting it!

 

[oppie]

Kind of like perfumed soap? That's what I taste. Very distinctive.

 

[papipeguy]

Bob, thanks for starting this thread. When I smoke the Lakeland (Gawith) blends I think of the history behind them. We are smoking 200+ year old blends! I think it is fantastic that they have had this longevity. Floral? Sure; think about what was available at the time for toppings. There were no synthetic additives, so what we are experiencing is what the Founding Fathers could have smoked. This is the beauty of our hobby and every time I smoke the Lakeland blends I think about the generations of pipe smokers who embraced them.

 

[krgulick]

fur....if you are talking about the SG Kendal Cream Flake, it has a real good nicotine hit to it for me. A really good blend tho. May need some drying time for you when you first pop open the tin. But an excellent blend.

 

[stluisrey]

I tried my first G&H tobacco the other day, Best Brown #2. My guess is the lakeland essence you are referring too is that floral note when you first light the tobacco. At first I was not sure what to think. Kind of reminded me of a hint of soap. but as I keep smoking my Best Brown #2, it is starting to grow on me. Overall I do find this tobacco to be of exceptional quality and taste.

 

[robs]

I am not the greatest fan of the Lakelands purely because of the Floral overtone. A shame, because I know I am in all probability missing out on a real treat, but I cannot handle the floral "hit". Ghosts well too doesn't it!! Three recent additions have been used with these and no matter how sanitized they have been, it's still there.

 

[cortezattic]

Right you are Robs!
You almost have to dedicate a pipe or two to those blends, lest you taste the essences in everything you smoke. Back in March, 2010, member wsblevins described the Lakeland essence as somewhere between his grandmother's perfume and a urinal cake. That's about as funny, and accurate, as I think you can get.
This is probably one area where corncobs shine, because you can dedicate a pipe so affordably. Ghosting is not necessarily a bad thing though. I often enjoy a straight Va. flake in a Lakeland ghosted pipe.
One minor clarification: someone mentioned that geranium and rose were components of the essence (from a product description somewhere -- Kendal Flake, I think.) I thought this too, initially. Later I discovered that there is a shrub called "rose geranium," Pelargonium graveolens, grown in North America for its pink flowers and fragrant leaves, and is used principally in perfumes, flavorings and incense.
Here is a description from G&H Kendal Flake:

A stronger tobacco with light side proportions of 68% Virginia and a dark side of nearly 1/3, including 16% dark-cured Indian leaf, provide a medium strength smoke. The dominant flavour is one of scented almond and this complex top note is achieved by the combination of over 10 different flavours, including Rose Geranium, Vanilla, Rum, Tanquid, Musk, Heliotropin and Rose Fragrances.

 

[deathmetal]

The dominant flavour is one of scented almond and this complex top note is achieved by the combination of over 10 different flavours, including Rose Geranium, Vanilla, Rum, Tanquid, Musk, Heliotropin and Rose Fragrances.

It reads like the ingredients in a perfume. Musk?

 

[lordofthepiperings]

It reminds me of those little cakes they put in the urinals in public restrooms.
I tried Ennerdale Flake and found out very quickly I'm not a fan of Lakeland blends.

 

[cherchezlaghost]

I was smoking Fusiliers Ration by hearth and home recently and had the same thought, earl Gary and bergamot. Tin refers to "English flavoring". Any thoughts?

 

[andrew]

Here is a description from G&H Kendal Flake:

A stronger tobacco with light side proportions of 68% Virginia and a dark side of nearly 1/3, including 16% dark-cured Indian leaf, provide a medium strength smoke. The dominant flavour is one of scented almond and this complex top note is achieved by the combination of over 10 different flavours, including Rose Geranium, Vanilla, Rum, Tanquid, Musk, Heliotropin and Rose Fragrances.

That's strange as I actually looked that up about an hour before seeing this as I'm contemplating an order and had gotten a sample of this and it was a pretty much citrus taste, so to see all of these flavors I'm quite surprised, as I totally enjoyed it. It also didn't ghost my pipe.