Smoking 9 Year Old Erinmore Flake

[natibo]

I cracked open a tin of Erinmore Flake that I was given to me by a forum member (thanks mrenglish). I was a little hesitant as I earlier smoked some that was 12 years old, and it was not that great. Maybe too much aging. Well, not so with the 9 year tin. The flake tends to crumble, but it's still moist and still has that great fruity smell. This stuff is awesome and reminds me of why I prefer Erinmore over FVF, Dunhill flake and OGS. It just has more flavor and I don't feel like I'm smoking a hay stack.
Note, age Erinmore 9 years and you will be rewarded.

 

[andrew]

I just finally cracked one of the 14 tins of erinmore flake I've acquired after Pipestud and Jimminks both gave a 3 out of 4 star reviews on tobaccoreviews.com. After a little more than a year age on it it's got a bit of nice plume streaking down the flakes. I can just barely taste hints of apricot here and there but overall I'd say it's basically a straight up tasting virginia flake. I can barely taste the top dressing, just on a few puffs here and there, none of the juicyfruit taste I've heard mentioned over and over. I have been smoking alot of G&H Bob's chocolate flake though recently so I think that's really gotten me used to the "urinal cake" kind of essence some people describe. Overall I'm quite happy to have 13 tins unopened for a blend that I picked up 14 tins of before even trying. It does have a bit of a sharp flavor at first but it actually gets smoother the more down the bowl you go I find, where most Va's I find build up in strength. I'd say the nicotine level is a medium, but nowhere near as strong as I find University flake, same with the flavor from UF. I'd say if you like straight Va's that are a bit on the sharp side you'll enjoy this, but it really gets smooth the more down the bowl you get. I think I'll let the tins age for a few more years but it's definitely a winner especially for the price. I was a bit worried about not liking it so the curiosity got the better of me and decided it was time to crack a tin and see what's it's all about. I'm curious to try the baking method except I think I'll just try leaving a tin out in the summer for a few days as it gets quite hot and I think it will have the same effect as I don't think the missus would be too keen on me baking tins of tobacco. But I like it as it is, if you haven't tried it and like Va flakes it's definitely one to give a go. You really smell the top dressing, but I don't find for me it translates much into the smoke, just on a few puffs here and there I'll pick up a nice apricot kind of flavor. I think this will age quite nicely without any problems in the tin, it was still quite moist even though I can smell it in the unopened tins coming through.

 

[gtclark]

I may need to give the current iteration of Erinmore a try. Bought a fresh tin about nine years ago, and was completely thrown off by the overpowering flavor of juicy fruit gum. Maybe the topping tones down a bit with a little age.

 

[saltedplug]

I smoked a lot of Erinmore when I was new, partly because JR was a discount store, and my tobacconist, at that time. But then when I'd learned a few tricks I decided that I didn't like it all that much and put it down. I tried it again 10 years ago and still wasn't thrilled, and have not tried it since. But this is one of the pipe tobacco standards; someone is always smoking it and writing about it. So I'll probably bite again.