Tobaccos Sutliff Tobacco Company - Crumble Kake Red Virginia

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3047)	2018-09-20		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

The various aged, fermented red Virginias provide tangy dark fruit, quite a lot of earth, some bread and wood, a fair amount of tart lemon and tangy citrus, a little sugary stewed dark fruit, mild grass, a couple pinches of spice, and extremely light floral and sour notes. There's a touch or two of vinegar that isn't very obvious much of the time. They have some aspects of both McClelland 5100 and C&D’s Carolina Red Flake. The strength and taste levels fall a step short of medium. The nic-hit is a hair short of the center of mild to medium. Won’t bite or get harsh, but once in a while, you may notice a light rough edge. This crumble cake is mildly moist, and easily broken apart. Burns cool, clean and slightly slow with a very consistent, rich, deep flavor from top to bottom. Leaves little dampness in the bowl, and requires just slightly more than an average number of relights. Has a pleasant, short lived after taste and room note. An all day smoke that would also make a good mixer. Three and a half stars out of four.

-JimInks

46 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	moniker (220)	2018-12-14		Mild	Mild	Mild	Pleasant

Here’s a straight VA that might be acceptable to smokers who generally avoid VAs. It’s soft, very sweet, fragrant, and easy to prepare and smoke. Sutliff’s Crumble Kake Red Virginia presents in the tin as two large, thin-ish kakes (or two large, very thick flakes) that look to be made from pressed, fine shag tobacco, mostly deep, very dark brown in color with some golden and light brown flecks. After smoking it I guess it’s mostly deeply stoved and air cured, fermented reds and orange, with some brown, along with a little flue cured lemon. Tin note is muted, dark fruit leather, and over a couple of days some vinegar comes up (although it’s MIA when SCKRV is smoked). Anyway, there’s not much going on in the way of a tin note. Looking back, IMO it’s worth setting the re-closed tin aside for a couple of days before smoking SCKRV. Prep is just busting a chunk off a soft kake and pushing it into a VA pipe. I prefer this blend from a 3 – 4 pipe. It lights easily, and the smoker is immediately treated to a mouthful of sugar along with copious smoke. The combusting scent is fragrant, fluffy, sweet wheat muffin over stewed plum and peach, with fragrant, distant burning leaves, and the taste is a light, “voluminous” version of the scent. Again, this blend tastes very sweet, because there’s plenty of sugar on it. Tastes include some muted VA spices that intensify (relatively speaking) as it’s smoked down, gaining a little sharpness/acidity, and more of this as it burns down. For me, it basically smokes itself (with some tamping) down to past ¾. Then, absent some stirring, it goes out, at which point I prefer to toss the remainder rather than trying to smoke it. If it’s stirred and smoked down further it becomes somewhat acrid/ashen, at least compared to the main part of the smoke. YMMV, of course. Strength is mild. Tastes are more mild than medium. Room note is pleasant. Ash avoided, aftertaste is a sweet, lingering best of the smoke.

Yup, this is a good one, all right; easy-peasy, kick back, no-brainer good. It is pretty much one dimensional, but it’s a very good dimension! Although it’s hard being a VA these days, SCKRV offers enough for 4 stars.

Pipe Used: dedicated VA briars

Age When Smoked: rested 1 week

Purchased From: Cup O' Joe's

18 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	StevieB (2081)	2018-12-13		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Sutliff Tobacco Co. - Crumble Kake Red Virginia.

Appearance: the tin holds two slices of dark brown kake, about half a cm thick; a little similar to Bengal Slices to look at. Preparation couldn't be any easier, a delicate pinch removes a bowls worth from a slice. The moisture's maybe a bit high, but I like a tobacco to be on the moister side for cellaring.

What's the first word to come to mind? 'Wow'. This is a remarkable smoke. Although a Virginia I don't find the smoke consumed by sharp notes of grass, hay, citrus, etc. The leading flavour's one of rich, tangy, dark fruit. The flavour seems a little ambulant, becoming deeper after the halfway point. The smoke has a 'wet' feeling, and doesn't feel dry on the palate. The temperature's quite cool, producing a smoke without a bite.

Nicotine: below medium. Room-note: nice.

Crumble Kake Red Virginia? As tangy as some of the best McClelland Virginias. Definitely worth four stats:

Highly recommended.

Pipe Used: Peterson Dracula #221

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

15 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	TomTomPipersSon (1)	2018-11-11		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

A beautifully crafted crumble cake of Red Virginia's. Sweet, but not overbearing. Definite Red Virginia characteristics, light ripe fruit notes, not at all citrusy, no notes of hay or grass. Not McClelland, but with some age in the tin, I would dare to say it would come within the conversation. I'm proud as a North Carolinian that my state produced this fine, flue cured and fermented albeit briefly) leaf. Absolutely no bite. A good all day Red Virginia smoke.

Pipe Used: Rossi Rubino

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Pipes Ltd.

Similar Blends: McClelland Virginia's, Cornell and Diehl Small Batch Carolina Red Flake..

13 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30171)	2019-04-03		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Mostly black to dark brown with some light flecks, this came in 2 brownies that were incredibly easy to crumble. A soft pinch and pull did it just fine. A weird tin aroma (and indeed this tobacco was strange for a simple red) that I'm told is vinegar. I got that but I also groaned at what I thought may be an excessive Sutliff PG smell. As this one dried out quickly enough, my worry there was for nought. But the tin aroma is one I don't associate with straight reds. I think they were going for a McClellands fermented sileage aroma but missed, possibly due to the tobacco not being aged long enough. As straight reds have all but disappeared from the U.S market, I certainly can't blame Sutliff for wanting to get this one out quickly!

Each bowl of this started out smooth but with strange flavors. An occasional rough spot, but mostly smooth and with a kind of "wet" feeling. Wet isn't the best descriptor but if you're familiar with a dry mouthfeel, this one is the opposite. Kind of babies the palate - very soothing. Eventually this locked in and what I got was mostly what I would expect from a straight red... that tangy, dried fruit zesty roundness. But along with that, at times I got a spicy, fruity flavor that I associate with a light addition of perique. Is there perique in here??? Sure tasted like it and the snork rendered a light nose tingle I also associate with that condiment. Further, this blend is rounder than, say 5100 or Watch City's Simply Red. Not too much sweetness (just enough) but I suspect a small bit of bright VA is in here as well. All in all, I found this to be a "straight" red that has been fritzed with a bit. I think their 515 is a better example of a standard red VA. I actually liked this one enough to award it 3 stars but I think it's on a different plane than 515. This is just "more" than what I'm accustomed to with reds. No worries, though - this is a fine blend. Not one I'll stock up on but I enjoyed smoking it. It's not 5100, and that's ok... 515 is closer to that and Watch City's Simply Red closer still. The latter is where my dollars will go, but I wouldn't kick either Sutliff out of my bowl.

9 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Sasquatch (90)	2018-12-24		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

First, hats off to Sutliff for understanding a big hole in the market and bothering to fill it.

Tin note is vinegar. No joke - not fermented something or other, just plain white vinegar. Singe the hairs in your nose. And if you just load the pipe and fire it... this is pretty bad for about 5 minutes, then smartens up into a pretty tasty red va. Left on the counter for an hour before loading, all that vinegar nose just flashes off and leaves a really nice smelling red va, that deep sweet, almost woodsy smell.

In the pipe this is bigger than the lamented 5100 - more akin to something like Blackjack I supposed. Sweet enough, lots of flavor variation through the bowl... slight ammonia in the snork here and there. Don't know if more age would remove that.

Pleasant tobacco if you can get your head around the vinegar. Not in the same league as either Wessex Red Flake but the effort is there. Not quite a 4 star for me but perfectly acceptable and gladly received as there is a dearth of reds.

Pipe Used: ks111, castello,

Age When Smoked: fresh

8 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	CoffeeCan (3)	2019-09-17		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

This is my first review here. I have used this site as a very useful resource and want to “give back”, as it were.

I’ve been smoking pipes for 30 years, off and on; but I took a long hiatus from pipes for about 4 years, smoking cigars only for that time. Well, with an occasional pipe now and then. I’ve smoked some English tobaccos and an aromatic here and there, but I love my Virginias and had settled on several McClelland varieties as my pipe smoking staples. Imagine my dismay when I went online to order some McC’s a month ago and found they had shut down!

I’ve found nothing to compare to my beloved Deep Hollow, but that will come with some blending once I have the requisite substrates, I hope. The real gem I needed to find was a solid, smooth, plain red VA, something like McC’s 5100, and CKRV is definitely in the ballpark. Don’t get me wrong, it doesn’t compare to 5100 as new. But I have a pound of 5100 that’s sat in a jar for 11 years that I’ve just re-opened, and Crumble Kake fresh from the tin is remarkably close in taste and smoking qualities to the well aged 5100.

But enough of the comparo... CKRV presents in the tin as a very nicely pressed cake that crumbles easily. A bit moist, but nothing that half an hour on a piece of clean paper won’t fix. In the tin it smells like vinegar and molasses to my nose, with a deep sweet note under that, and plenty of rich, dark dried fruit greet the turbinates here. None of the old McClelland ketchup, here, I find it much more pleasant.

I didn’t wait, but smoked the first bowl straight out of the tin. The charring light was better than I expected, and after a light top-tamp it took the match much better than its apparent moisture in the tin led me to expect. It made lots of thick, rich smoke; the feel in the mouth was full and sweet with a hint of pepper that makes me wonder if there might be a pinch of Perique hiding in this blend. It smoked hot but without any bite for the first few minutes, then settled down in the middle 1/3 of the bowl, with no heat or bite, and the full flavor really came through. I taste plum and sherry, with strong quiet base of grass and autumn leaves. Deeper into the bowl, the flavor really rolls up its sleeves and gives that satisfying rich, full flavor I look for in my VA’s. The nic hit is stronger than I expected from the other reviews here, a pleasant surprise as far as I’m concerned.

I’ll be buying more of this stuff, and soon. I expect it to improve substantially with a month or two in the tobacco jar, so that’s where my second tin is going as soon as I finish typing this.

Pipe Used: Peterson Aran

Age When Smoked: Fresh from tin

Purchased From: Cup o’ Joes

Similar Blends: 5100.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Darth 69 (117)	2019-05-09		Mild	Very Mild	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

At first whiff one would think Sutliff is trying to take over where McClelland left off. But, I don't think that sour tang is from fermentation but the addition of sodium acetate or diacetate which is a food ingredient that imparts an acidic sour-salty aroma and taste e.g. salt & vinegar potato chips. It's different than acetic acid from fermentation and taste to me(and others) almost metallic with an undertone of gun powder. I hate it. This is a common ingredient used for decades in the tobacco industry and Sutliff uses it across their bulk cavendish blends. It just ruins tobacco especially aromatics where one may be smoking the likes of a maple cavendish with those metallic sour notes coming through. It just doesn't work. And it doesn't work with this tobacco of otherwise good red virginia. Fortunatley, it doesn't seem to come through the smoke which suggests to me it is being applied as a topping after made into a cake and sliced. Smoke wise, very mild for a virginia, light on the nicotine, simple and straight forward. Sutliff is trying to deceptively pass this off as a matured tobacco which it isn't. Get rid of that chemical additive and perhaps add a bit of a sweatener to reinforce the darker virginia flavor and then it would really be something.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	HabaneroHardy (403)	2020-02-10		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Unnoticeable

A friend of mine at the pipe club let me try some of this jarred 7 Apr 19. I found this to be still moist in the jar. I crumbled some up and fired it up. The first third of the bowl not much flavor but about halfway I started to get the nice Red Virginia flavor, nice and semi-sweet. Toward the end the flavor slightly diminished. I am by no means a Virginia expert but this was not too bad. I have had better but would not toss out the baby with the bathwater so to speak. I like the C&D much better and I hate to borrow clichés but ‘your mileage may vary’ YMMV.

Age When Smoked: Almost 2 years.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gr8tefuldawg (87)	2020-01-14		Mild	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Sutliff- Red Va crumble kake

18 reviews total for this one huh, I really want to like this blend, I’ve smoked it on occasion for the last year and a half but each time it’s still not what I want it to be.

The red VA’s which are sweet, are overpowered with a vinegar taste, that automatically just takes the sweetness from sugar cane, to Splenda, that artificial sweetness with that weird salty aftertaste. This comes in a kake format in two slabs that break apart easily, give this time to dry as the vinegar solution it’s bathed in needs to dry.

I can’t recommend this out of the tin, heck I can’t recommend it 1 year down the road either or in a jar, I cannot recommend this in a car, no I will not recommend this to you. Sorry sutliff only 1 star for you.

I will try this again next year. Till then see ya!

Pipe Used: MM cob, Morgan bones

Age When Smoked: Fresh to 1 year

Purchased From: Tobaccopipes.com

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tomcat (224)	2019-11-18		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Unnoticeable

The kakes break apart quite easily . Kind of like marble cake but much smaller pieces and you don’t have to worry about it rubbing to crumbs . Lots of thick fairly sweet smoke . Tastes better in a medium sized pipe . A little hay and grass and some baked bread and a little spice but not a lot . Not really any citrus or dark stewed fruit . Some vinegar does come through but not in a bad way . When i crave some red Virginia this does what i expect . A whisper of cocoa from the natural red Virginia taste . I like it . 3 1/4 stars just because it doesn’t wow me . It is damn good though .

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Mikefu (20)	2018-12-14		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

On opening the tin, one is greeted by two dark brown kakes of tobacco, wrapped in a paper basket, with some broken bits around the edges of the tin. The aroma is wonderful- dried figs, cherries, and a bit of tangy molasses. Brown bread and some spice undertones indicate that this is a well-rounded fermented Red Virginia. The kakes break apart very easily and are a bit moist, requiring some drying time. Filling the pipe is very easy, just rub ever so slightly and pack loose to allow for swelling as the flame is applied. This blend does take a bit of effort to get a good light, but once lit burns well with few relights. The flavor is delightfully tangy dark fruit with sweet dried cherries, figs, and light raisin leading the way with bass notes of mild spice, brown bread and earthy wood drifting in and out among the tang. Sweetness increases as the bowl burns down, as does a lingering light sourness on the palate, augmented by touches of marzipan. Flavor profile doesn’t change much through the bowl, aside from the aforementioned sweetening. Burns clean and dry, and is happy to smolder along. Can get nippy if pushed, but it burns so well that shouldn’t be an issue. Overall, a very nice fermented tangy red that should only get better with age.

Pipe Used: Various briars

Age When Smoked: 2 months

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	RondyR (8)	2018-12-08		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Full	Tolerable to Strong

This is currently my new favorite tobacco. Got to try it about a month or so before its release and I fell in love with it. I do not have the taste buds of Jim, not even close, but I absolutely enjoy every puff of this blend. The tobacco is at a fine moisture level and breaks off and rubs out easily. It is sweet, delicious, and satisfies the ol’ sweet tooth. I like it so much, in fact, that I’ve already purchased nearly a dozen tins and plan on grabbing more.

Pipe Used: Sebastian Beo Pot, Stanwell BB Rhodesian

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Tobaccopipes.com

Similar Blends: C&D Carolina Red Flake, McClelland 5100.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	wizard_duty (6)	2021-12-25		Medium	None Detected	Medium to Full	Pleasant

-Very lovely tin note. Fruits galore overwhelm the aroma. -Very thick flakes/crumble cake -Great moisture straight out of the tin. I have this up to 30 mins dry time in my humid environment and it seemed to burned a bit better. -Loads of rich, sweet VA flavor. Definitely one of the sweetest tobaccos I've smoked to date. Not a drop of topping on this beauty.

Pipe Used: Various briars - Pete, Ropp, Rattray's

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Antonius Blok (192)	2021-06-03		Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

In their tin, the kake chunks give off an intense and penetrating vinegar smell, perhaps the spiciest aroma I have ever had the taste of feeling. That tin note is so strong that I do not perceive other typical Virginia nuances. The tobacco is extracted from the kake by pinching it and it crumbles easily. After turning it on, you can see the red virginia and the predominant flavor is of raisins accompanied by a light coating. This flavor ranges from sweet to sour and sometimes even salty, depending on the moment and the puff. It burns well and doesn't sting.

I was surprised by this tobacco because although it looks like other red virginias, it has clearly different nuances. I have really enjoyed this tobacco and luckily I have some replacement tin for the future. Highly recommended.

Age When Smoked: Unknown

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	anglocatholicpiper (34)	2020-10-26		Mild	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Fantastic. As close to McC 5100 as I’ve found (and I’ve tried a number of possibilities). Very, very pleased with this blend. Not too sweet. Lots of tang. Lots of red Va goodness.

Pipe Used: Meers

Age When Smoked: Fresh tin

Purchased From: Boswells

Similar Blends: McC 5100, Sutliff 515.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Knightsmoker (218)	2019-12-16		Mild	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

Sutliff Crumble Kake Red VA falls well short of greatness. My take seems quite different from the current reviews so take it for what it is worth. The tin smells of vinegar and nothing else, it is over powering. When I first started really getting into VA's I haunted forums trying to understand as much about them as I could. Those that were interested in home curing their own tobacco all seemed to agree that properly aged VA's have a vinegar/Ketchup/silage aroma to them but it really does not translate into the smoke all that much if at all. McCelland did that and it did not translate into the smoke for me. Other blends use vinegar to treat tobacco (think St. Bruno Flake for example) and I get a note or two occasionally in the smoke but not much. This, however, was vinegar throughout the entire bowl. It's like they have tried to use vinegar to cover up the fact that the reds are not as mature at they claim. The tobacco flavors when able to come through beneath the vinegar are very earthy and vegetative. I cannot find any dark fruit notes that I associate with red VA's probably because I mainly get vinegar. Since others find this so appealing I will leave it as the somewhat recommended mark and avoid the rare not recommended rating but to sum up this blend in one word it would be vinegar. In fact after making in through 1/2 of bowl (and this happens with every bowl I have smoked), taking a sip of coffee the coffee tasted like I had just cleaned the coffee maker with a vinegar solution and should have ran another pot of water through it before brewing the pot.

To compare this with the other 2 red VA's I have smoked since October of this year I like this one the least and it cost the most. I would rather smoke C&D's red VA than this one and far prefer Sutliff's Matured red VA 515 RC-1 to both.

Age When Smoked: 6 months

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Oldbelt (10)	2019-02-03		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

After endless days of mourning the closing of Mcclelland, I decided to find something that would satisfy the void without constantly breaking open my reserve stash. Many half smoked bulk samples and opened tins scattered around, I went back to McCrannies and pleaded for help. Having gone through the same transition, ( their bulks were blended with McClelland and they always had an ample tin selection) it was recommended that I try the Sutliff crumble Kake Va. Wilh skeptical thoughts I bought one.

Open the tin: two brownies of Kake Va. neatly packed.

Aroma: dark fruit, fermented Va. notes. Smells promising.

The rub: a little moisture which was nice. Better than too dry.

In the pipe: loads easily, charring light had familiar notes. Relight and was carried away by Va. goodness. Smokes consistently all the way. No grass or hay. After all it’s tobacco not fescue. Good flue cured and stoved tobacco. It’s why I enjoy a pipe.

Overall: it’s not McClelland and not should it be. It stands on its own as a good straight forward Va. I look forward to putting a little age on some tins. I think it has great potential.

Pipe Used: Wiley patina

Age When Smoked: Straight from tin

Purchased From: McCrannies

Similar Blends: McClelland 5100.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	nkulk8r (90)	2018-12-23		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

"Wow" is right -- this is a remarkable tobacco. Being relatively new to pipes (2013), and being one of those smokers who generally avoided VAs (initially), I love, love, love this crumble. Just the wonderful earthy aroma, the fruity bouquet and the tang of the tin note alone lets you know this is something special indeed. And it is such a beautifully crafted crumble -- I'm appreciative (and very thankful) that there are people in the world who have the knowledge, the expertise, the science and the art of creating something so pleasing to the senses: to the eye, to the palate, to the nose. The cellar is heavily stocked.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipefitter (51)	2022-06-03		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is a fine , mature red Virginia with no gimmicks or sugary toppings, only fine sweet tobacco goodness. This is one for the veteran smoker that appreciates that, but might be a little to much for a newbie. Burns cool and clean with no rough spots unless ya puff like a maniac as the goodness of this tobacco takes, as with most, needs a little patience to let the flavor develop. This is a solid 4 in my book.

Pipe Used: Cobb

Age When Smoked: ?

Purchased From: Smokers Discount World in N. Windham Ct.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	J. Ward (71)	2021-11-08		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Sutliff has really brought their A-game in attempting to fill the void left by McClelland. Of course, no one will ever be able to fill their shoes, but crumble cake red Virginia is a magnificent tobacco, and provides an absolutely beautiful, rich experience. Loads of tangy ripe red fruit, very slightly sour, rich and sweet, and a bit of Earth, baking spice, and bready aftertaste underscores the flavor profile. This tobacco should age wonderfully but it's great straight out of the tin. To date, it's as close to 5100 I've found so far. Easily a 4-star tobacco. Well done!

Pipe Used: Cobs and briars

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Similar Blends: McClelland - No. 5100 Red Cake.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Bulldog8483 (25)	2021-05-29		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Crumble Kake Red Virginia (CKRV) comes in the form of two thick slabs off pressed tobacco. Very pleasing to look at and hold. The tobacco breaks off easily and fills/settles in the bowl very well. Takes a few lights to get it really going, but after that it stays lit well. The sour, vinegar- like taste is noticeable very early on in the smoke, but burns off quickly. The sweetness is present almost immediately, but builds intensity throughout the bowl and is very pleasing/almost addicting in nature. Very nice taste. The tobacco itself is earthy, a little tangy, figgy, sweet and dark ripened fruit-like at times as well. It's very easy to smoke. A set it and forget it type of blend. Dunhill Flake and CKRV are the two blends I smoke while fishing because of their smooth taste and easy smoking qualities. Give this one a try and remember to try different pipes to see which combination works the best. It is a very very good blend and one that I have well stocked. Aging should make this blend even more amazing given the high sugar content so pick up a few tins to cellar if you decide to pull the trigger. 👍

Pipe Used: Cob, Savinelli

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: Online

Similar Blends: McClelland 5100, Notes that are similar to C&D Carolina Red Flake, McClelland 40th Anniversary (at times).

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	cm1648 (108)	2020-04-29		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

Upon tin opening,you are met with an aroma of earth, sweet hay, and a load of vinegar. Despite the hay tin aroma and visible additions of brights added in the blend, you taste very little evidence of them. This blend is certainly all about tangy, fruity, earthy, and slightly spice, Red Virginas. As the smoke continues, the flavor deepens.

Truly one of the better straight Virginia blends I have smoked. I would also add that it is a solid candidate for newer pipe smokers dipping their toes into straight Virginia blends. I found it more forgiving and cooler than your average Virginia. 7.5/10

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	DrT999 (318)	2019-12-06		Mild	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

A mild, slightly tangy Red Virginia, but for me (after trying on and off for nearly a year) actually rather boring on its own. Nice to have around to round out some other blends that need a RV boost, or to tone down a blend on days when you want something less forward.

Pipe Used: cobs, meers, and briars

Age When Smoked: fresh when opened

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	saintcajun78 (5)	2019-04-03		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

This may be my favorite tobacco so far. Just like many novice to intermediate pipe smokers out there I have been trying to find the "ONE" and I have found many tobaccos that I liked and some that I didn't care for (not a Latakia or Kentucky dark fired fan) like Blockhouse and White knight...I wanted to like these but I was highly disappointed once I tried them. I started like most (2016 timeframe) with aromatics because they smelled great, however the taste of many of these (not all) left something to be desired. I then tried blends like Frog Morton's "On the bayou" and "Cellar" as well as Seattle Pipe Club's Mississippi River and Plum pudding and loved the Tangy-sour element these provided. I also tried Orlik golden Sliced and learned I really like Virginias which led me to try others like Peter Stokkebye's twist flake, bullseye flake and Navy deluxe twist. I loved the hay-like smell out of the tin, the retro hale as well as the natural sweetness you get when its smoked slowly.

So getting to back to Sutliff's Crumble Kake Red Virginia. I already knew that I liked Virginias and that I liked the tangy-sour element of Mississippi River, Plum Pudding and the Frog Morton series but little did I know that I would get all those elements from this can of Red Virginia. If I had to pick which tobacco I had to choose from if stuck on a desert island it would be this one! I love this stuff!

Pipe Used: Leonessa capri

Age When Smoked: New tin

Purchased From: Pipes and Cigars

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Bonneville (52)	2019-03-19		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

This tobacco has been a very pleasant surprise! It definitely helps fill some of the void that was left by our dearly departed McClelland tobaccos. In fact, as some have already mentioned, it's very close to MC 5100. It's mild with a nice tangy sweetness that reminds me of marshmallow. Like all fine Virginias, it's subtle and nuanced. Smoke slowly for maximum enjoyment!

Pipe Used: Peterson Squire

Purchased From: Beehive Cigars

Similar Blends: McClelland 5100.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	FP Stew (25)	2019-01-30		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Once you get over the tin note (Very Strong Vinegar Aroma with Hay and Grass), and once you get past the charring light (also a peculiar taste of something like vinegar without the zestiness of vinegar, mingled with grassy, and slightly figgy), this tobacco settles down to a pleasant Virginia that slowly builds in depth. If you change your cadence, you will be rewarded by various subtle flavors that mingle nicely. The last third of the bowl is what keeps me coming back. It is deeper and richer and has a nice calm finish. In the tin, the tobacco has the consistency of thick compressed saw dust like tobacco that breaks up well. You will find that from the tin there is considerable moisture and if not dried out for an hour or so, you will be needing to relight several times. All in all, this is a pleasant tobacco and worth a try.

Pipe Used: several

Age When Smoked: Fresh with out aging.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Serfchat (10)	2022-04-04		Mild	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I actually appreciate this blend because it lets me compare it with the Virginia-Perique blend also in the series so I can isolate the Virginia leaf. I like the VaPer better, but this is a great straight Virginia blend. The cake is a bit stiff and harder to dry and difficult to light, but I really like the fermented, sour and sweet flavor. Sutliff is doing a real favor by offering these blends. It's amazing how much variety in natural flavor can be accomplished in the leaf of a single plant.

Similar Blends: Newminster - No. 400 Superior Navy Flake, Sutliff Tobacco Company - Matured Red Virginia 515 RC-1, Sutliff Tobacco Company - Crumble Kake Va. Perique, Cornell & Diehl - Carolina Red Flake (Small Batch), Bengal Slices - Bengal Slices (re-release).

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JP Pipe (4)	2021-10-19		Mild	None Detected	Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

This tobacco smells great in the tin -- and comes as others have mentioned, in two large cakes that are very easy to break apart and fill your pipe with.

For me it was a very sour and sweet smoke, leaving quite a bit of aftertaste, almost a mouth-coating. It burned well, but was damp from the tin, and even after drying it burned wet.

No matter what pipe I tried, smoking cadence or even lighting method, I couldn't ever really enjoy this. After smoking a little more than half a tin, I gave up.

The tin was a gift from a pipe club member, as he didn't like it. I know I'm in the minority here, but I'd give this away too. After smoking this I felt I had to shave my tongue, eat or drink anything else or at the least smoke something good.

Look elsewhere for better Virginias that aren't so citrus (sour) laden, damp or one-dimensional.

Pipe Used: Briars and Meers

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Gift and worth every penny

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	hrhf (38)	2021-01-01		Medium	Very Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Disclaimer: I don’t claim to possess a world class palate when it comes to tobacco. I simply know what I like.

This tobacco, I like. I’ve noted several reviews that report a strong vinegar aroma. Personally, I detected nothing of the sort. After reading the reviews, I checked again and detect something there, nestled into a really zesty, inviting tobacco aroma. Power of suggestion, perhaps?

Anyway, I’m currently in exploratory mode when it comes to Virginias. Coming off a relatively long pipe hiatus, I sampled Black X and a couple other strong rope tobaccos I enjoyed, but that was years ago.

And the Virginias I’m sampling currently bear very little resemblance to THOSE Virginias.

Flash forward to today, and the only other Virginias I have under my belt to compare to this one are C&D Virginia Flake and the one that’s probably the baseline for most smokers, SG FVF.

I find those two have more in common with each other than Crumble Kake has to either. This one seems to have a little something extra that I really haven’t found in the others.

CK has some of that Virginia sweetness, but there’s a little extra zing here. Kind of a tang, that makes my mouth water during the smoke. I can’t recall experiencing that with any other tobacco... but I like it.

It’s not overwhelming, mind you... or distracting. It just enhances everything else that’s going on.

This is a review in progress, and I’m currently penciling in 3.5 stars. But this is certainly subject to change, and likely for the better.

But I’ve only had three bowls of the stuff. And I’ve liked each one more than the last. That may be a good sign... or a flash in the pan.

Stay tuned.

Update 3/29/21 I remain quite fond of Sutliff’s approach to Red Virginia, but I personally prefer the bulk version. I can’t tell any real difference flavor-wise, and I’m a cheapskate.

Age When Smoked: New stock

Purchased From: MJM Fine Cigars, Palm Harbor FL

Similar Blends: Sutliff Tobacco Company - Matured Red Virginia 515-RC1.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	okie (1)	2020-11-19		Mild	None Detected	Mild	Pleasant

Very darkly fruity with a little bit of citrus. Some leather and straw notes, to a much lesser extent.

The room note is definitely very pleasant, better than average in fact.

The smoke is a little rough around the edges. There's a little more bite than I'm used to from a Virginia this mild, and there's a harshness on the back of the throat.

ETA: After sitting in the jar for a week, I'm giving it another star. The bite went away and some of the rough edges worked themselves out.

Pipe Used: Gourd calabash w/ block meerschaum bowl

Age When Smoked: Fresh

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Elk (9)	2020-06-25		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Very Pleasant

I bought some tins of this about a year ago or so. After about a week in a jar I set out to smoke my first bowl of this. To be honest I wasn't impressed at all. I found it to be very green and young tasting and it was the same anytime I smoked a bowl of it in the first six months. So I put it in the back of the cellar in hopes that aging would improve this leaf. One year in a jar seemed to have done the trick to eliminate that greenness and bring out a wide range of red Virginia flavors. Now it reminds me of a somewhat muted version of their excellent Cringle Flake. It has nice fruity flavors, earth, sweetness and just a little spice. I am very happy to have found a tobacco that that will help me conserve my stash of Cringle Flake, I just need to jar a bunch up for the future. Nice smoke that will be put somewhere in the monthly rotation.

Pipe Used: Various briars

Age When Smoked: 1 year

Purchased From: Various online shops

Similar Blends: Sutliff Cringle Flake.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JaWiBr (562)	2023-05-15		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Tin note of pungent sweet, vinegar and sugar. Tobacco is a Krumble Kake of reddish brown with flecks of tan. Moisture content is good. Kake breaks apart and rubs out easily. Burns slow with a few extra relights. The strength is medium and nic is mild. No flavoring detected. Taste is medium and very consistent, with notes of sweet bread, tart and tangy stewed dark fruit, very savory, wood, floral hay, spices, sugar, vinegary fermented sour, citrus, slightly acidic, a lemon grassy background note, and a peppery retro. Room note is pleasant to tolerable, and aftertaste is great.

Pipe Used: Castello Old Antiquari G84

Age When Smoked: 4 years

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Blew_Smoke (17)	2023-04-19		Mild	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

For a red virginia leaf, this crumble cake was disappointing. Tin note was vinegar. Flavor fell flat. Some spice, but no other flavors. I missed the typical virginia sweetness. Not recommended.

Pipe Used: Savinelli 673 KS

Age When Smoked: 1 year

Purchased From: pipesandcigars.com

Nobody has rated this review yet.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Kal (4)	2022-09-09		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Y'all know from the reviews that this is a thick cut slice. The virginia is fabulous. Tangy sweet. Very good with a ale. My new football & beer tobacco.

Pipe Used: Savinelli Tundra 111ex

Age When Smoked: Fresh from tin

Purchased From: Tobacco pipes

Nobody has rated this review yet.