Top Shelf VA Flakes?

[cigrmaster]

Boston, you may have an allergy to red Virginia's. I cannot smoke them and I avoid them like the plague. If I smoke one, the smoke burns my tongue like acid as soon as it hits it.
My cellar of Virginia flakes have no reds.
The TR next to a name means tin ready no dying needed for my tastes.
Fribourg&Treyer Cut Virginia Plug TR
Fribourg and Treyer VintageTR
Fribourg & Treyer Special Brown FlakeTR
Wessex Campaign Brigade Dark Flake
Wessex Brown Virginia Flake TR
Wessex Gold Virginia Flake TR
Wessex Gold Brick TR
Wessex Gold Slice TR
Samuel Gawith Best Brown Flake
Samuel Gawith full Virginia Flake
Samuel Gawith Kendal Plug
Dan Tobacco Hamborger Veermaster TR
Dan Tobacco Patriot Flake TR
Dunhill Flake TR= discontinued(now Peterson Flake) TR
Astley’s no. 44 Dark Flake -TR
Astleys 109
John Aylesbury Luxury Flake (now called Classic Flake) TR
Rotary Navy Cut TR- discontinued
Capstan Blue Flake TR
Capstan Gold RR TR
Brigham Klondike Gold TR-discontinued
Butera Royal Vintage: Dark Stoved- discontinued

 

[boston]

Hi cgarmaster, thanks, and perhaps. I am able to enjoy watchcity rythm & blues which I believe contains red Virginia. It's a very tasty blend. I have kept the many years of Christmas cheer in the cellar because I'm hoping that aging will round out the edges a bit.

 

[wooooo]

Most of the McClelland blends but Red & Black is a treat.

 

[cigrmaster]

Boston, you are welcome. It may be that R&B has a small amount of red which isn't an issue for you. Christmas Cheer is nothing but red.

 

[Sonorisis]

Gawith-Hoggarth Best Brown #2 and Dunhill GAF are the best I've encountered.

 

[greenmtnsmoke]

Capstan Blue and Germain Medium Flake.

 

[workman]

I certainly do not agree that OGS can replace all virginia blends. I find it dull and shallow. I can smoke it, but I'd rather not.

 

[Johnny_Pipecleaner]

Not entirely on-topic, but since we did also discuss VaPers, and since so many of you were so generously offering up such solid suggestions, I had to circle back and report that Watch City's Old Dominion is ridiculously effing good. Insanely good. So good you'll slap your momma. If you like spicy and rich, get yourself some. Don't sleep.

 

[perdurabo]

Echoing some previous sentiments, I can't get enough of...
SG FVF
SG BBF
OGS

OGS is really not bad with 4 years of age. The topping is tame. Not that it’s bad when fresh.

 

[troyniss]

I enjoy Newminster no.400 Superior Navy Flake. It has serious aging potential. Another blend that I enjoyed when I first started smoking was Dunhill Flake, now Peterson. I have about 5-6 tins in my cellar. Just a well rounded flake. I tried Capstan Blue and it was good too, but more expensive than it's counterpart Peterson Flake, I'll probably stick with Peterson. Also Sutliff 507C Virginia Flake is cheap, aging potential and a very nice bright and light leaf. I don't smoke virginias too often, but I have quite a bit cellared. I think I enjoy looking at them more than smoking tbh.

 

[Saintwilliam]

I enjoy Newminster no.400 Superior Navy Flake. It has serious aging potential. Another blend that I enjoyed when I first started smoking was Dunhill Flake, now Peterson. I have about 5-6 tins in my cellar. Just a well rounded flake. I tried Capstan Blue and it was good too, but more expensive than it's counterpart Peterson Flake, I'll probably stick with Peterson. Also Sutliff 507C Virginia Flake is cheap, aging potential and a very nice bright and light leaf. I don't smoke virginias too often, but I have quite a bit cellared. I think I enjoy looking at them more than smoking tbh.

I could not believe how good Newminster was. Is good enough a thing? Because between amphora Virginia and Newminster what more could one want?

In fact I’ll ask that non-rhetorically - what more could you want from a Virginia in a post-McC world with an impending tabaccopocalypse?

 

[sisyphus]

Also, I've seen more than a couple instances where folks say they've tried countless VAs and in the end they just stick with Orlik Golden Sliced, ultimately concluding there's really no reason to shop around because OGS is the champ.

Any truth to that?

No I think for any specific type of Va flake you're going to have people display a certain preference for one over the others. Let's use your OGS as an example. Tobaccos in the same vein as OGS include Butera Golden Cake, F&T Cut Va Plug, Dunhill Flake, Samuel Gawith Golden Glow, Dan Hamborger Veermaster, C&D Opening Night, Esoterica Peacehaven, etc ad infinitum.

Now as long as I can have Butera Golden Cake, I have no interest in any of the others. Remove McClelland tobacco from the world, and now as long as I can have Samuel Gawith MVF (Golden Glow), I have no interest in any of the others.

I think with any genre you need to try them all before you load up on any one. Imagine buying pounds of something, only to try something else and find that you prefer it not just a little. You will never smoke those pounds of whatever now.

You will find that you have an affinity for certain blenders, which means generally that you will prefer their version of tobacco X over other vendors' versions.

Lastly my personal opinion on the topic of Va tobaccos. McClelland certainly made some of the finest straight Va and Va blends that ever were. I would put Samuel Gawith on that same level, and thankfully being acquired by Gawith Hoggarth did not seem to have any negative impact on the quality of their tobaccos. I would also add HU as I think Hans is the greatest living tobacco blender and I haven't smoked anything from him that I didn't want to cellar. I won't mention Germain because it is for all intents and purposes unattainable. Watch City makes magic with Sutliff tobacco. Dan Tobacco has some of their stuff made for them by K&K and they are pretty much indiscernible from any other K&K blends. But, their in-house Va blends tend to be really, really good. Lastly, Mac Baren has grown up into a fantastic tobacco house. Ten years ago aside from Burley London Blend I would have told you that all Mac Baren blends were bland, smoked hot and tended to bite. Today it seems like they can do no wrong and everything new they come out with is more than solid.

Try it all and enjoy the journey

 

[Johnny_Pipecleaner]

I could not believe how good Newminster was. Is good enough a thing? Because between amphora Virginia and Newminster what more could one want?

I love when a tobacco knocks your socks off like that. That was me yesterday when my Watch City order showed up. In a way I felt foolish for fussing over all the mass produced blends all this time, not even realizing what I was missing. Like drinking Folgers k-cups all your life and then one day drinking some amazing locally roasted pour-over.

Not that some of the mass produced stuff isn't great, but I foolishly thought that was as good as it gets.

 

[Johnny_Pipecleaner]

I think with any genre you need to try them all before you load up on any one. Imagine buying pounds of something, only to try something else and find that you prefer it not just a little. You will never smoke those pounds of whatever now.

Words of wisdom indeed. This may ruffle a few feathers, but rookies such as myself have almost no business cellaring pounds of anything. I found this out back in 2003 when I first started pipe smoking, and I'm reminded of it now after picking the hobby up again after a 15 year hiatus.

Back in '03 it was Squadron Leader. I thought it was the bees knees and bought a couple pounds for the closet, only to find out a month or two later that I much preferred VaPers and VA flakes. Fast forward to now, and I made a similar mistake (on a smaller scale) by diving head first into a whole slew of latakia-forward blends that I don't want anything to do with since I quickly found my way back into VaPer/VA obsession.

And even now, after confirming the genre(s) that I'm into, there are so many great blends to try before stashing pounds in the "cellar". I'm honestly beginning to wonder if, for me personally, if it even makes sense to ever load heavy on one particular blend. Tastes change, and considering I only smoke 1-2 bowls per day, I'm not comfortable buying much more than 250g of any one blend.

 

[SpookedPiper]

Boston, you may have an allergy to red Virginia's. I cannot smoke them and I avoid them like the plague. If I smoke one, the smoke burns my tongue like acid as soon as it hits it.
My cellar of Virginia flakes have no reds.
The TR next to a name means tin ready no dying needed for my tastes.
Fribourg&Treyer Cut Virginia Plug TR
Fribourg and Treyer VintageTR
Fribourg & Treyer Special Brown FlakeTR
Wessex Campaign Brigade Dark Flake
Wessex Brown Virginia Flake TR
Wessex Gold Virginia Flake TR
Wessex Gold Brick TR
Wessex Gold Slice TR
Samuel Gawith Best Brown Flake
Samuel Gawith full Virginia Flake
Samuel Gawith Kendal Plug
Dan Tobacco Hamborger Veermaster TR
Dan Tobacco Patriot Flake TR
Dunhill Flake TR= discontinued(now Peterson Flake) TR
Astley’s no. 44 Dark Flake -TR
Astleys 109
John Aylesbury Luxury Flake (now called Classic Flake) TR
Rotary Navy Cut TR- discontinued
Capstan Blue Flake TR
Capstan Gold RR TR
Brigham Klondike Gold TR-discontinued
Butera Royal Vintage: Dark Stoved- discontinued

That's a fantastic list!

 

[SpookedPiper]

Words of wisdom indeed. This may ruffle a few feathers, but rookies such as myself have almost no business cellaring pounds of anything. I found this out back in 2003 when I first started pipe smoking, and I'm reminded of it now after picking the hobby up again after a 15 year hiatus.

Back in '03 it was Squadron Leader. I thought it was the bees knees and bought a couple pounds for the closet, only to find out a month or two later that I much preferred VaPers and VA flakes. Fast forward to now, and I made a similar mistake (on a smaller scale) by diving head first into a whole slew of latakia-forward blends that I don't want anything to do with since I quickly found my way back into VaPer/VA obsession.

And even now, after confirming the genre(s) that I'm into, there are so many great blends to try before stashing pounds in the "cellar". I'm honestly beginning to wonder if, for me personally, if it even makes sense to ever load heavy on one particular blend. Tastes change, and considering I only smoke 1-2 bowls per day, I'm not comfortable buying much more than 250g of any one blend.

I am not cellaring a ton of lat flavored blends as they tend to mello out over time and not being a huge fan of heaven lat blends, I would say enjoy and smoke'em up now and cellar the VA, VA/per, or VA/bur blends. That being said, the elders then suggest smoke the cellar at 10-15 years of age before it turn to turd-dust!

 

[sablebrush52]

McClelland: 22, 25, 27, Red and Black, 2010, Christmas Cheer, 40th Anniversary, Dark Star, Blackwoods Flake, McCrainie's Red Flake
C&D: Carolina Red Flake
Wessex: Campaign Dark Flake
Astley's: 44, 109 - look for pre 2016 tins from before the tobaccos got changed
F&T: Cut Virginia Plug
Germains: Brown Flake
Gawith: FVF
Rattray: Marlin Flake (technically a Va/Per)
John Aylesbury: Classic Flake
MacBaren: Capstan Blue
Rotary: Rotary Navy Cut
Sutliff: 507 C Virginia Slices
GL Pease: Union Square

 

[Spa32]

McClelland: 22, 25, 27, Red and Black, 2010, Christmas Cheer, 40th Anniversary, Dark Star, Blackwoods Flake, McCrainie's Red Flake
C&D: Carolina Red Flake
Wessex: Campaign Dark Flake
Astley's: 44, 109 - look for pre 2016 tins from before the tobaccos got changed
F&T: Cut Virginia Plug
Germains: Brown Flake
Gawith: FVF
Rattray: Marlin Flake (technically a Va/Per)
John Aylesbury: Classic Flake
MacBaren: Capstan Blue
Rotary: Rotary Navy Cut
Sutliff: 507 C Virginia Slices
GL Pease: Union Square

How does Capstan Blue compare to F&T Cut Virginia Plug?

 

[sisyphus]

Better. Different.

 

[sablebrush52]

How does Capstan Blue compare to F&T Cut Virginia Plug?

Capstan is a dark Virginia with a bit more strength of flavor than CVP. And the toppings are different, with CVP having more of a citrus topping. Both are very good blends with very devoted followings.