Prepping SG Full Virginia Flake

[skydog]

I like to throw some in my carry tin (a small square orlik tin) and smoke it in my car over the next few days as it slowly dries out. If it gets too dry I just rub it out and throw it in with some Carter Hall which is a lovely combination. It's definitely finicky but on the bright side it makes McClelland flakes seem almost smokeable fresh out of the tin haha!

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Peck had a post a while back, and I have headed his advice on FVF as well as doing this for a few other blends. Cube cut your flakes (to me cube cutting is the best way to get that flake flavor without all of the flaky retardness of fiddling with the flake in my bowl throughout the entire smoke). Set the tobacco out to dry (for me in humid Alabama, I nuke the entire tin on a plate for about 30-40 seconds), and then put it in a jar for a month or so.

The idea is that drying it only dries the outside of the cubes, and letting it set in a container for a month or so evenly distributes the moisture back out (for me, making the dryness more even throughout the smoke).

 

[mikestanley]

For me, I rub out enough for a pipe onto a copy of The Pipe Collector sitting by my smoking chair. Ten minutes or so and it dries to a point that a bowl can be filled, and enjoyed.

Mike S.

 

[bent1]

I had the exact same issue at first. A friend showed me a trick, lay a couple strips on a paper towel, microwave it for 10 seconds, let cool for a minute or two. Pull flakes apart & rub out to suit. You may want to adjust the microwave time? Once I did this, it was like unlocking a treasure chest. Seeing as this thread is over 1 year, posting this reply for the archives.
Works on other flakes as well.

 

[canadianpuffer]

Pop the seal, separate the flakes. Stack loosely back in the tin, fold the paper pack and put the lid back on. Leave for a month. Then usually the outside flakes have dried enough to smoke and the drying didn’t get rid of the flavours. Patience pays off. Still a pain and I don’t go for it often.

 

[cigrmaster]

I fold and stuff almost all of my flakes at this point in my smoking career. One of the last holdouts to cube cutting is FVF. I have found that when I cube it into very small cubes and let it dry for 2 hours or so, I get a good smoke. One day I will attempt another fold and stuff with FVF, my first effort did not go well.

 

[crashthegrey]

I have heard good things about this method before.

 

[lawdawg]

FVF is a horrible and overrated tobacco. Send me your tins and I will dispose of them for you ::
Seriously, as the other members said, just dry it out. It can take quite a bit of time to dry depending on the humidity where you live. FVF seems to be packaged at a particularly high level of moisture. I've been smoking FVF for a couple months and absolutely love it. I rub out an entire tin, dry it in a dish overnight, and put it all back in the tin in the morning, and smoke it over the next couple weeks. There are other ways to dry it too, including the microwave as mentioned above.

 

[unadoptedlamp]

Arrrghhh! How could you "rub out" such a magnificent flake?!?
Well, that is what my first reaction is. Harris is bordering on heretics with the cube cut, but, I admit to indulging if I am in a hurry and it is not yet at sufficient moisture content.
It's just that when I see someone say that they've rubbed out a whole tin, or worse, one of the bulk boxes, I almost cry. To each their own. My only concern is that they are missing out on a sublime experience by doing so. I've tried it rubbed, early on, and it is a completely different smoke, flavour wise. To some, that may be the right change. To my tastes, it's a pale comparison to the full flake experience.
I think with flakes, and especially this one, the major trick is in having enough space in your pipe for expansion and to make SURE you do not push it down into the bowl. A loose fit will turn tight with fire, in my experience.
This one is incredibly easy to overfill as it expands (maybe due to the higher moisture) and that makes for an awful smoking experience. Too hot, too much steam, too little everything good.
When I smoke flakes, they perform most magically when I use less than what I think I need. It's something I trick myself into. I pull out what I think is enough, then take off 1/4 of that. I don't want to, but I force it. You'd think I'd have it figured now, but for some reason, always taking off 1/4 of what I pull out works wonders. Then I carefully load it to not make a dense plug and after the light when it gets going, it fills my pipe.
Rubbed out? Meh.
Cubed? Well, ok, if you're lazy and in a rush...

 

[lawdawg]

I've had little luck with the "fold and stuff" method. I also have a hard time believing that there is much difference in the flavor of the smoke between rubbing out and folding and stuffing. I would expect that the main factors are the dryness of the tobacco and the correct packing of the pipe. Honestly, the whole "you must fold and stuff your flakes for maximum enjoyment" thing reminds me of a kid I went to junior high with who insisted that the school's burgers tasted better if you smashed the buns down so that they resembled little pancakes :rofl:
However I am willing to admit that I may be wrong, and may be missing out by not folding and stuffing, so I will try again with my next FVF tin ::

 

[crashthegrey]

I find that flakes do taste more pronounced when folded and stuffed. However, as Cosmic is quick to point out, constantly battling the wall lining that this likes to cause is a nuisance, and I plan to attempt a comparative experience to verify if my like of the fold and stuff method is purely in my head. I am beginning to think so. However, I just had some FVF with 6 or so years on it and just stuffed the whole flake in there and I rather enjoyed it.

 

[unadoptedlamp]

lawdawg- I don't believe that the makers of flakes choose the method of cut for aesthetics, or some other frivolous reason not related to taste. A flake simply tastes different when left intact. Perhaps this is due to the different burning qualities? I can't say.
Maybe a hamburger does taste different when mashed? You may taste the tomato or pickle or whatever in a different way than if it were left intact (possibly more pronounced tomato, pickle, whatever flavour when you get a big cube of it compared to a mash -and marry of the flavours). He could have been on to something... for his tastes. You were just too busy laughing at him to see the point!
In any case, if you read about Mac Baren's take on flakes and how to prepare them, they explicitly say that "...smoking tobacco pressed or loose gives a tremendous difference in taste." https://mac-baren.com/how-to-fill-a-pipe But, what do they know?
It's all a matter of personal preference. To me, the taste is obviously different. To someone else, maybe not. It doesn't matter. It's best to experiment on your own, but I would suggest that it is worth while to stick at trying to find a way to smoke flakes intact. It can be a completely different blend.

 

[lawdawg]

Very interesting. I will revisit folding and stuffing and try it until I get it right. I might even try smashing one of my hamburgers.

 

[unadoptedlamp]

Don't mash your burgers... that's ridiculous!

 

[crashthegrey]

Don't mash your burgers, SMASH your burgers.

-Smashburger (yes, it is a real place)

 

[enrikon]

But I go against the current and I say that this is a tobacco that should be smoked wet, as mom did.

I do not think Samuel Gawith sells it so wet just to sell you more water and less tobacco. This is my experience: I crumble it and wet it. The flakes of SG are certainly the least combustible tobaccos in circulation, but it is only more problematic ignition, then, once turned on well, the smoke proceeds well as with any other tobacco.

If you like smoking the whole flake, then you have to leave it to dry, if you want to avoid a shocking experience.

 

[instymp]

And, does anyone know when Samuel Gawith Full Virginia Flake will be available again?

 

[bent1]

I had the same reaction as John, until a friend shared his secret. He laid a strip onto a paper towel, and microwaved it for 10 seconds & let it cool for a minute. Rubbed it out & packed to suit.