Tobaccos J. F. Germain & Son - Germain's Medium Flake

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	beaupipe (102)	2012-01-12		Mild	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Taken for what it is, Germain's Medium Flake is a lovely tobacco. But it is, without question, an aromatic—a mild, golden Virginia flake with an obvious topping applied quite liberally. A smoker expecting an unadulterated flake (or less obviously adulterated at any rate) will likely be disappointed with this otherwise fine offering.

This tobacco arrived on my shelf almost by accident. It was fuelled by a phone call from an e-tailer informing me that my order of Germain's Brown Flake couldn't be filled but the Medium Flake could be offered as a substitute. I agreed, even though I knew nothing of the tobacco. After I suggested the substitution, I wandered over to tobaccoreviews to get the skinny on MF and discovered few favorable reviews. A 2 ** blend. Ah well.

When I first popped the tin and loaded a bowl, I was less than impressed. What I encountered was a golden Virginia flake with a fairly intense citrus topping reminiscent of little Christmas oranges--mandarins, clementines, tangerines. The flake was pressed firmly into the wee tin and I found it well-nigh impossible to take a whole flake out of the tin. Instead, it came out as a fine ribbon--almost a shag—which, it turns out, is incredibly easy to load and keep lit.

I found this a little light and dull at first. But once the summer arrived in my dry, desert state, I began to turn to this lovely little smoke often. The mildness, gentle orange-flavored sweetness, and general cleanliness of this smoke just seemed to work exceptionally well in the dry, summer heat. I went for days where I smoked nothing but this. The only criticism of MF that I can offer is that even slightly accelerated smoking can transform the citrus notes into something more resembling burnt sugar.

Highly recommended as a hot weather smoke.

18 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	StevieB (2081)	2014-09-29		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant

J.F. Germain's - Medium Flake.

I adore Germain's Rich Dark Flake so this had a lot to live up to!

The moment I open mine up I am greeted by a Virginia aroma with a zesty addition. It's a little moist, but not Sam G' wet! Mine includes a few broken flakes. These are easy to prepare.

Lighting this one is a real easy task, a few short touches of the flame are plentiful to supply a full burn which is very even and consistent. I like the taste, it's mainly Virginia but in the background there's a notable tingling of citrus, which becomes amplified if retro-haled. The nicotine level is quite mild with this one, not ridiculously so, but still below medium. The burn's medium in temperature and it doesn't bite.

A nice flake that's just short of a full house.

Recommended.

Pipe Used: Falcon

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: G.Q Tobaccos

11 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipestud (1829)	2006-03-10		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

This is Gawith Best Brown Flake's handsome brother. Light in appearance but not strength or smoking qualities. It is semi-sweet and has some sort of fermented dark fig flavoring added with just enough presence to really enhance the overall presentation. If you are one who enjoys stouter Virginia fare, this might be worth a try. It does not change much as you work your way down the bowl, just rock solid Virginia that leaves the palate refreshed.

10 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Stefanos (222)	2017-03-21		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

The flakes have an overall bright appearance and are already sliced, so you cannot take out one piece as they fall apart. They are very soft with perfect moisture and rub out very easy. Once rubbed you get a mix of ribbons and shag(!) cut. Tin aroma is a distinctive hay-like Virginia with yeasty tones and there is a fruity topping as well which may be apricot as others have mentioned. Upon opening it smelled like a corked wine - something cardboard-like - but once aired it is certainly fruity. Yet this is not an aromatic tobacco, it's just slightly scented as most tobaccos are and here it is only more obvious.

Lights with ease and produces a rich, yeasty, succulent and creamy Virginia taste with honeyed sweetness and a nice counterbalancing hay-like sharpness. Smokes cool, dry and fairly slow. This is pure tobacco taste and the fruity scenting is barely noticeable, always agreeable and after some time vanishes. Moreover as the bowl progresses the flavors deepen becoming even more yeasty and show a mild spiciness. It is of medium strength with medium nicotine. A perfect tobacco!

For me this is a superb Virginia flake, deeply intoxicating, surely one of the top I've ever tried. Could be an all-day smoke, but it's too good for me to use constantly. Comparisons with Best Brown Flake and Golden Glow are unavoidable and I find Medium Flake much more pleasing and less fussy - actually it is one of the easiest tobacco to handle. I think Germain's Medium Flake is a much underrated and underappreciated tobacco.

9 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3048)	2015-05-19		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

The red, brown and gold Virginias offer a fair amount of tart and tangy citrus, some tangy dried fruit and grass, hay, bread, wood, and earth with a touch of spice and floralness. I’m not sure of the toppings, but it has some citrus and certainly some apricot, and they moderately sublimate the tobaccos, particularly in the first half on the smoke. After the half way point, the citrus, grass and hay are more obvious over the rest of the tobacco flavors, though you’ll still notice the aspects. The nic-hit is in the center of mild to medium. The strength and taste levels are a step past that. It won’t bite or get harsh, but has a few small rough edges. The thin cut flake is very easy to break part, mostly into strips that remind me of a slightly thicker ribbon cut. Burns a tad slow and cool, and fairly smooth. Leaves virtually no moisture in the bowl. Requires an average number of relights. Has a short lived, pleasant after taste, and lightly stronger room note. Can be an all day smoke. It's more of a two and a half star blend. Awarding it three stars pushes it because of the inconsistency of taste, so I settled on two.

-JimInks

9 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	DrT999 (318)	2014-03-04		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

The wide variety of reviews make me wonder if there are some quality control issues with this, or if it just shows how subjective we are. In any case, my tin is firmly in the apricot tin aroma (as opposed to citrus or florals), which really only showed up in the pipe the first few times I tried this. At that point, I was rather unimpressed, as I was left with a rather unpleasant last 1/4 of a bowl. With the tin almost finished, however, either the topping has blown off or I've gotten used to it, as it primarily tastes of medium-dark VAs with just the slightest hint of fruit at the beginning of a bowl, and it's a solid 'medium' blend. As I've noticed many of the Germain blends improve after being opened for two weeks, I'll go with that explanation. For me, it works best in taller bowls.

Since I know there are many tobaccos out there I would rate a 4, the question arises would I rebuy this particular tobacco, assuming my tastes don't change much more. In this case, the answer is not often.

Pipe Used: various briars

Age When Smoked: 1 year after purchase

Purchased From: pipes & cigars

9 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	gladi8tor96 (143)	2016-05-23		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant

The tin opens to give way to scents of tangy fruit mixed with leather and fermented hay. The tobacco is in almost broken, loose, flake. They are beautiful medium brown flakes with specs of yellow that easily rub into a long, thin, shag that is easy to load in the pipe. Lights easy with a charring light and then a second. Remains lit with gentle but firm tamping.

The smoke is creamy, tangy, and almost sharp, but not in an overpowering way. It seems to be a perfect balance of natural sweetness that is deep and rich that is offset by the citrus tang mixed with cream. The room note is wonderfully sweet, but not cloying. I'm lucky to have had a friend gift me some of this hard to get tobacco. It's very good stuff. It reminds me of Long Golden Flake, but the citrus is a bit more subdued, until the 2nd half of the bowl and the flavor seems to be more deep and rich than LGF.

Pipe Used: Morta Poker, El Dagner

Age When Smoked: Unknown

Purchased From: Gifted

Similar Blends: Reiner - Blend 71: Long Golden Flake.

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	kumo (4)	2016-05-07		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I am a huge fan of Germain. Be it their Esoterica, Smoker's Haven or in-house tobaccos, I consider them my favourite blender by a large margin.

Does that mean that Medium Flake is amazing? Well, no. Is it good? Well, yes. Really good? Well, kind of. It's subtle, fruity, and I love the cut. If you don't know Germain, you have to understand that the way they cut tobacco is rather unique. Their flakes look like shag. Their ribbons look hair-thin. Their cakes look like ribbons. Uncanny.

Back to Medium Flake. It's a fine, mild, fruit-flavored VA. Tin-note reminds me of fresh pineapple juice. But that's about it. Do yourself a favour. Get a tin of Capstan Gold instead and buy yourself a cold one with the remaining change. If you're expecting an epiphany with Medium Flake because it's Germain, you're in for a slight disappointment.

That's the problem with Germain. Now that everybody is fighting to get a tin, most forget that they also do tobaccos that are just fine without being incredibly good.

Pipe Used: various briars

Age When Smoked: new

Purchased From: GQ Tobaccos

Similar Blends: Mac Baren - Capstan Gold Navy Cut.

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	The Pale Horsreman (3)	2014-10-21		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Medium Flake is what is says ON the tin - Medium Flake is what you get IN the tin. If you are looking for a no- nonsense , easy packing 'all day smoke' , look no further. Presentation is not as a 'traditional' flake , but more like a 'block' of loosely pressed 'flakes' , lacking any real form.Don't be put off by this description - MF is very easy to pack and handle - tease & fold the 'golden 'strips' , or rub out if you prefer. The result is the same either way - sweet , VA's of superb quality , with a very slight peppery note - adding another dimension from time to time. MF is not complex or challenging , however , its simplicity and easy going nature is its strength.

Pipe Used: Falcons

Age When Smoked: Fresh from a new tin

Similar Blends: Orlik Golden Sliced..

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Wibblefishofdoom (139)	2013-08-12		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Having had a string of Germain's tobaccos recently, I picked this one for no particular reason other than not already having tried it. Given the appreciation I've developed for all the other offerings I have sampled, I had some expectation for this, I'm not sure this met or fulfilled the anticipation but am not completely disappointed.

The tin aroma was very pleasant, possibly lemon with hints of pineapple perhaps, made me think a little of Holger Danske's Royal Navy Flake with the flakes looking not too dissimilar. The tobacco rubs out just fine and lights just as well. The fruity flavour comes through nicely initially, not wildly exciting, just nice. A little of the tobacco comes through, but it's not hugely noticeable. This pleasantness, though does dip about a half to two thirds into the bowl into some kind of... mild unpleasantness is the only phrase that springs to mind, not sure if I can place it but there becomes a certain roughness and mucky taste to it that brings the the whole smoke down a peg or two.

I've found myself getting strangely bored of this. That first half of the smoke is pleasant enough, might have been enough to warrant three stars of it kept on going to the bottom of the smoke. That last third to a half though, while not necessarily that bad per se, is enough the bring the smoke down a notch. It's telling that, judging by the info above, that this is the only Germain's I've had that hasn't been blended by them and simply carries the badge. Will I buy this again? Probably not. Would I smoke it if I got given it? Probably, and I'd enjoy it in much the same vain as I have now. Two stars is about right.

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Stan (179)	2002-09-20		Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is another nice flake by Germain. It is mostly a bright golden virginia flake, but there are some other virgina types mixed in. However, it is densely packed in the tin (I got over 20 bowls from one tin in a local Tinder Box Ser Jacopo medium bent), and is difficult to lift or pull out many nice size slices for packing in a pipe. Most leaves come out in a rough shag. It still smokes cooly if you excercise a little patience in your packing. Maybe some who like to rub out their flakes more will like the resulting shag from the tin.

It is lighter, sweeter and tangier compared to its fuller and very cool brother, Brown Flake (which I like more). Medium flake may have a slight citrus scent, but it is light. Most of the steady sweetness must come from the naturally sweet golden virginia leaf.

I find many golden and bright virginia flakes delicious but hot. Only a couple are my regulars in my rotation. Germain's medium flake is a good one if smoked slowly, and is lighter than the robust Solani 633 golden virginia/perique blend, and not as round as the Solani Long Golden Flake. It is bit cooler and somewhat more complex than Gawith & Hoggarth's Bright CR Flake. And it's cooler than a lot of others.

Overall, this is dry, reasonably cool, and steady burning. If you like a sweet flake with a classic bright virginia tang (like a mild salsa, but not hot unless pushed), gives a tin a try.

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	TW (38)	2017-08-02		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Tolerable

A light to mid brown flake, I'd say 100% Virginias, and the tin note having some citrus quality to it. The cut is thin, like flakes used to be before the EU "1.5mm or more thick or get taxed at the much higher cigarette rate" rule came in. Maybe Germain's get away with the cut because although Jersey is a possession of the British Crown, the British monarch being Duke of Normandy since 1066, Jersey isn't part of the UK or EU. Anyway, on with the tobacco.

Very easy to load, though does take a few lights to get going. I bought a couple of tins of this while looking for a replacement for Orlik Golden SLoced which Orlik ceased selling into the UK a couple of years ago. And there is a definite similarity to OGS. The citrus notes are quite pronounced, whether from a topping or the tobacco itself.

As a mild, light flake it's very good. However...

Firstly, this tobacco bites like no other and does so ferociously. I can't smoke it at all without a filter and even with one have to smoke very carefully. I normally don't use filters and smoke a lot of Va based flake, but for Germain's Medium Flake I've found a filter or Peterson system pipe is essential.

Secondly, I have had the current tin I'm smoking open for a couple of months now and the contents are showing little to no signs of drying out. Which makes me suspect there's a humectant added to keep it moist - which may well be making the bite problem worse. I've not encountered this with any other Germain blend I've smokes, and I smoke a lot of their Brown Flake and Perique mixture. I've seen it said that Medium Flake isn't produced by Germain's but is made for them by one of the big European manufacturers. True or not, I don't know, but the blend and humectant do remind me of Danish-style aromatics.

If this didn't bite me like mad I'd give it three stars. But because of the bite I'll say I certainly recommend it as a tobacco worth trying if you like light Va flakes, but be aware that you might not get on with it.

Pipe Used: Filtered cobs

Similar Blends: Orlik Golden Sliced, several Danish/German/Scandinavian Va flakes..

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SteelCowboy (685)	2016-02-08		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

My review of Medium Flake is based on tins that are eight and fourteen years old, so put it in the “for what it’s worth” category. Not uncommon with Germain flakes, it can be difficult to remove the entire flake from the tin. I use look thin strips to pack each bowl. The tin note is inviting. There are more high notes in this blend offering some hay like flavor. It’s straightforward in flavor and medium in body. Surprisingly, even with age, the overall sweetness is lacking compared to other similarly aged flakes. I am less than impressed with the overall taste although those that prefer more hay-like flavor may disagree. Medium Flake seems to follow a similar pattern with Germain blends for me personally in that I find the products that they produce under other names (Smoker’s Haven, Esoterica etc) to be more of an attraction for me.

Age When Smoked: 8 and 14 years

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tantric (321)	2003-01-10		Extremely Mild	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Pleasant to Tolerable

IMO Medium Flake, like its sibling, Brown Flake, is a nice tobacco, well manufactured, probably of very good leaf, the initial taste of which is quite good but eventually tends to fade away, losing both in body and flavour. Unlike BF, Medium Flake is a kind of naturally sweet Virginia, in the same vein of Dunhill?s Three Year Matured (not as fruity though) or Bjarne´s Flake de Luxe. Equally moist, MF is lighter in colour than BF. I found it easy to break up the individual flakes, but difficult to light the tobacco once it was packed. Some airing is beneficial, but I have noticed that it can dry up very quickly and turn to dust.

As with Brown Flake, the initial flavour was surprisingly rich, smooth and palatable. I really enjoyed this flake for a couple of minutes, in which time I smoked it slowly and carefully. In spite of the difficulty in keeping it lit, it did burn well and smoothly. But once I was getting the ?feel? of it, there occurred some kind of chemical (or chimerical?) transfiguration and, spoof!, its structure and flavour simply vanished into thin air?It is as if some dark magical force (Voldemort?) suctioned the life out of this tobacco and rendered it innocuous and dull. Why? Cannot tell, but it just seemed that way. A shame, really. This could have been very nice.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pagan Piper (1)	2017-12-28		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

This up to now is by far the best I have smoked. After seeing a review by Tokin Tommy on YouTube, I was intrigued and had to get some. I wasn't disappointed. It has a lovely orange aroma too it, a really nice smooth Virginia smoke. Nice mellow sweet notes and hints of orange. I am definitely stocking up on this tobacco. Its beautiful.

Pipe Used: corn cob

Age When Smoked: new

Purchased From: https://www.thebackyshop.co.uk/

Similar Blends: I haven't smoked anything that resembles it at all yet. it is very unique.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Virginia lover (218)	2017-07-07		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I'm not one who likes toppings in tobacco but there's always exceptions. GMF is a pseudo flake of mostly golden with some brown tobacco that has a citrus topping. The taste is mellow, creamy, yeasty and hay with the topping more present at the beginning than at the end. Very good burning qualities, especially after a few weeks and easy packing, ensures this to be an all day smoke.

I must say that I had the bulk version so there was probably no aging on it. I didn't experience any bite or hot smoke and the topping never produced any gurgle. I would compare it to Reiner's LGF but with a creamier and rounder taste from the beginning.

Virginia lover

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SteveH (37)	2016-02-14		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

Broken flake, easily rubbed out to a fine-cut mixture, almost like cigarette rolling tobacco. Lightish brown. Almost completely tasteless - I had to keep checking that the pipe was still alight. Rubbish - which is a pity, because I've liked all the other Germain tobaccos I've tried.

(Edit) I take it all back - well, a lot of it, anyway. I'm now smoking my fourth bowlful, and it's suddenly come alive. I've no idea why the first two bowls were so disappointing, but now it's a pleasant, medium-strength, slightly fruity smoke. I wouldn't say it's outstanding, but it's pleasant enough. I have altered my ratings accordingly.

Pipe Used: Cherrywood, briar and meerschaum

Age When Smoked: New

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Mr. Big (321)	2011-07-31		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant

First, I don't get any of the "Fruit" flavor. I was expecting that orange or lemon flavoring but I can't find any, the tin note is apricots. That being said, this is good tobacco on its own. A well mellowed Virginia that smokes cool, no bite and a sweet flavor. Although it is listed as "Medium" this has plenty of flavor and "N" for the first 2/3 of the bowl. I would call this a rubbed out flake that has been pressed again into the tin ( Oh, great little tin that seals well and can be slipped in your pocket). Allow this to breath and dry a few weeks to bring out the best. It doesn't have the high notes of say a Mac's Virginia #1 or the "green" flavor of Orliks "red", but it is good. I find that it loses sweetness as you get to the last 1/3 of the bowl and gets ashy. I would rate this as a 2 1/2 star as it has a slight snuff component that I don't care for.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pseudo Nim (129)	2008-09-11		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Tolerable

Oranges, thats the impression I get, I've just lit up a bowl of orange Juice ! then it settles down, but with still a note of orange, eventualy this too dissipates leaving an o.k. virginia tobacco taste, but not a dramatic one. I waited a long time to try this and was sadly dissapointed. I will finish the tin, it is certainly smokeable, but I will not be buying more. Therefore, two stars if you like orange flavour for starters before the rather, and I hate to say this, insipid main course.

Final note: As with many others who tried this, I found the contents to have been cut in the flake style, but to have settled into a solid brick.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gentleman Zombie (729)	2017-02-13		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Earthy hay with a topping of citrus and slightly darker fruit, possibly apricot. Minimal sweetness and a touch of spice. A floral hint on occasion. The earthy hay tends to take over in the second half of the bowl. It's a decent smoke, but that second half tends to bore me.

Mild to medium in body and taste. Flavorings are mild. Burns very well.

Pipe Used: MM Little Devil Cutty, Little Devil Acorn, Marcus

Age When Smoked: fresh

Purchased From: smokingpipes.com

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2016-01-06		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

It is kind of a stretch to call this a flake since it comes out of the tin more in strings than anything, but that's what you get with Germain. They've been at this for almost 200 years, so I'm happy to trust their expertise.

Medium Flake fills a very specific role in my rotation: a crowd-friendly Virginia that I can smoke around people without offending them. It's much more satisfying than a super sweet American-style Cavendish, and the component Virginias are expertly blended. There's a lot going on underneath the flavoring here that is worth tasting, although that sweet fruity flavor is present to the bottom of the bowl.

Purists should avoid this blend, but nobody really cares what those people think anyway. Anyone looking for a pleasant, moderately complex, tasty Virginia smoke should see if Medium Flake scratches that itch.

Pipe Used: basket pipe

Age When Smoked: fresh

Similar Blends: 4th Generation 1855, Esoterica Peacehaven.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Bonneville (52)	2015-09-12		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium	Pleasant

Dear god in heaven, no this is NOT an aromatic, although it does have a more prominent topping than some Virginias. Picture a field of freshly cut hay. Next to it is an apricot tree with lots of ripe fruit, so ripe it's ready to fall off the tree. This is the tin note. Absolutely mouth watering.

The smoke is straight sweet medium Virginia tobacco with just a SLIGHT HINT of the apricot topping I was talking about. Midway, the topping is gone and you're left with nothing but top quality Virginia smoke.

Another outstanding offering from Germain.

Pipe Used: Peterson X105 billiard

Purchased From: Beehive Cigars, Salt Lake City, UT

Similar Blends: Esoterica Peacehaven.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	doc pipes (110)	2014-11-01		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This flake comes packed tightly in the tin, and pulls off easily in long strips. Rubbing it out yields a nice blonde/straw colored shag that packs without effort. Some drying time is definitely required. The tin scent is of rich lemon cake. The lemon topping comes through in the taste for the char light, and for the first 1/3 of the bowl. The VA gives nice gentle notes of earth and dried hay. The last third of every bowl I smoked gave a peppery tingle on the tongue and palate. The smell is light tobacco, and this one got no complaints from bystanders. This blend is mild-medium in body and will bite if not sipped judiciously. I wont be buying this particular blend again.

Pipe Used: numerous

Age When Smoked: fresh

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	donmartinthree (22)	2011-06-10		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

smokeable out of the tin, granted you can decipher the single flakes... it's all one big wad of flakes that are hard to take apart without breaking each. that's not too bad though. it's very soft, not too moist, not too dry. perfect.

the tin aroma is delicious - it smells of figs and raisins and hay, like most virginia flakes I know (so far).

and that's pretty much the taste as well. kinf of citrusy, kind of hay-like, kind of sweet, but not overwhelmingly so.

it's easy to fold and stuff and then light with two matches. it stays lit the whole way down. it smokes sort of quickly for a flake, because the strands you manage to get out are long and thin. almost like a fine or shag cut.

it's nothing special, but I still enjoy it very much when I do smoke it.

great on a really hot summer day. not 3 stars because it's not that special. good, not bad, not supergood.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2010-07-09		Medium	Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

My preferences lean towards the lighter Va flakes (eg. Reiners, Orliks Golden, Escudo) and some of the medium sweeter flakes or Va's (FVF, BBF, Stonehaven, Union Square, Laurel Heights). A touchstone for a light, towards citrus and balanced va flake would be Dunhill's Light Flake ... so I am always looking for something comparable and available since it was discontinued. Fribourg & Treyer's Vintage probably comes as close as any blend I have tried as a substitute. But I digress.

Not a big fan of heavy casing and the McClelland-type blends with their vinegar/catsup or caramel/brown sugar toppings. On the other hand the McClelland's red virginia bulk 2015 I have found an excellent blender with a true red virginia flavour profile without the catsup notes.

So looking for a virginia with a light touch and clean quality - balanced and nuanced rather than boldly flavoured or heavily sweetened.

Germain's Medium Flake, as other reviewers have noted, comes packed as a block of what turns out on separation and gentle rubbing to be finely ribbon-cut virginia, putting one in mind of a fine, almost cigarette cut that reminded me of Astley's No.55 Elizabethan. Unlike the thicker pressings and cuts typical of most quality flakes, this tobacco has been shredded quite fine before pressing.

There was a tin aroma that had a slight botanical note towards soapiness such as lavender, lilac or bergamot. It also gave up some typical virginia raisin notes and slight citrus, as another reviewer noted, towards orange not lemon, perhaps tangerine.

I was hoping the medicinal/soapy notes would not express themselves in the smoke. I don't think they did.

The tobacco was a suitable moisture level straight from the can, it might have stood a bit more drying, although it didn't bite from moisture IMO. It was difficult to pack loosely and get an even burn in the bowl on first light.

Insipid. Ashy. Medium strength in nicotine flavour, but an odd, characterless single note smoking experience that had a grassy and unappealing flavor for my palate. No discernible transition down through the bowl. Probably the most cigarette-like experience in smoking a pipe I have ever had - a nicotine delivery system, going through the motions of smoking, although it is a trying cut to smoke in a pipe bowl for me, but no subtlty. Like eating oatmeal or brown rice without sugar or spice. Just very little to commend itself, and a bit of a trial to finish a few bowls. Now that may well be a "pure" experience in the sense that the tobacco delivers an unadulterated virginia experience, but there was none of the organic underlying, untopped sweetness of the leaf, almost as if it was insufficently cured, or slightly green and raw.

I'll probably give away the last half of my tin and won't buy it again. Can't scold it for being unpleasant, but in a life with only so many bowls ahead of me and so many more tasty and finely balanced virginias to smoke ... I'll pass on this. 2 Stars, somebody must like it, there is nothing per se wrong with it, not my cuppa.

BTW - it says 50 gramms on the front and 2oz on the back of the tin. A troy ounce is 31 grams more or less ... I thought a standard ounce weight would be about 28 gramms - so what's up with weights and measures in Jersey?

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2009-01-29		Medium	Very Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant

update: going through my reviews here, i find that i'll have to downgrade a good deal of the praise i've given so many blends. 4 stars should, i feel, be reserved for the blends i find truly exceptional. so, this is downgraded a bit. end update.

tin aroma is definitely flavoured. my first association was to player's flakes, or perhaps will's capstan flakes. it's fruity, hay-like, winey. very pleasant imo, and a genre of flavouring i haven't smelled for years.

the flakes are medium brown. a bit difficult to get whole flakes out of the tin, but easy to load and light.

the taste and smell of the smoke is a lot less coloured by the flavour than is the tin aroma. it's first of all a sweet (in a quite different sense than so many continental blends), gentle, pure virginia of medium strength that burns nicely to the bottom of the bowl. there are faint whispers of vanilla and sandalwood, but the predominating taste is of well aged and pressed virginias with their fermented brandyish and berryish notes. very finely tuned blend, and the slight flavouring really complements the tobacco's own flavours.

i think it is delightfull, and i find myself smoking quite a bit of it.

an old fashioned, fine tobacco, which alas also wakens a nostalgia for all the wonderful british virginia blends now long gone (capstan, simmon's, fribourg & treyer's etc)!

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	NEWMAN (305)	2002-08-15		Mild	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Perhaps they should call this 'medium block'. Germain has taken very finely cut yellow VAs and pressed them into a single block ~ 3"x2"x1" that fills their tin. At the start, I had difficulty separating the layers and obtained mostly fine ribbons, even finer than the typical Germain's, that were difficult to pack evenly. This resulted in channeling, an extremely uneven burn, plugging of the air hole and some harsh tastes. However, in the last half of the tin, I was able to obtain some nice clumps and successfully pack them. Perhaps we should blame my packing techniques since a good tobacco taste developed when large bowled pipes were used. Even if this is a great tobacco, I'm not sure that I have the patience to experiment and discover it. There are other true VA flakes that require much less attention to obtain a great smoke.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	HabaneroHardy (403)	2020-12-22		Mild	Extremely Mild	Mild	Unnoticeable

One of my main sample suppliers, 😊 at the pipe club brought in this one and some others. This was a nice faintly sweet-smelling tobacco out of the tin with lightly reddish-brown flakes really jammed packed in there so as when you went to retrieve a couple you mostly got shredded wheat. If this is flavored it is extremely mild and to me only brings out taste of the tobacco. A really good smoke.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Gordon Tavistock (23)	2018-10-28		Mild	Mild	Mild	Pleasant

Flake? I'd say shag in lumps. But it doesn't matter a bit. Reminiscent of Samuel Gawith's Golden Glow, although that one is not flavoured. What they both have is some prime bright VA notes, with lots of citrusy deliciousness. In Medium Flake, som of this flavour also comes from the topping. Some say the topping is obvious. I'm not so sure. First time I smoked Medium Flake I used a brand new cob, and the mild corn flavour completely masked the topping. It's not unnoticeable, but it's much more of a supplement to the natural flavours than a flavouring with a taste of it's own. I don't usually prefer aromatic blends, but I certainly don't mind this. It's predominantly feels and behaves like a straight Virginia. Very very delicious.

Pipe Used: Billiards

Purchased From: Black Swan Shoppe / thebackysop.co.uk

Similar Blends: Samuel Gawith - Golden Glow.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Greekpipesmoker (201)	2018-09-16		Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Tolerable

I waited for a long time to purchase this blend because once they are released they are available for a little time.once the tin breaks a pleasant topping comes out with some grass and earthy notes.the bright and brown virginias are cut in shag way and then pressed into loose and smooth texture flakes wich brake apart very easy or can be folded as they are.the moisture is proper, lights well and very few relights are needed.while smoking the sweet topping wich has for sure apricot is not strong but enough to subtlimate the tobacco flavours wich are more obvious after a while.the virginia flavours are rich offering citruses,grass,earthy and bread notes.generally the flavours are pleasant and natural.burns quicker than the average pipe tobacco and medium hot.no tongue bite present with a nice aftertaste.the nicotine level is medium and the room note tolerable.leaves a lot moisture at the filter.an all day smoke.generally this one is a decent blend.

Age When Smoked: Fresh

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2017-12-26		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

I am not sure what the casing is for this Medium Flake but I can tell you it is just amazingly good! It is so good that it makes me crave another pipeful everytime I finish one. The flakes, once rubbed out, provide you with a shag cut leaf that is easily packed, lit and burns extremely well. As where it would have been rather bland without the casing, well the casing enhances the tobacco beautifully. Medium Flake is becoming a favorite.

Age When Smoked: 1 year 3 months

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	DenizBeck (323)	2017-09-27		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

Finally got ahold of some of this due to a very generous piping-friend who did send me 12 sample from the UK. Mostly G&H, but Germain's Medium Flake was one of the few that were not.

Stuck my nose into the baggie and was flashed by the very fruity scent. Clearly aromatized, but not in a way I'd call this a aromatic! The flavoring flatters the natural Virginia aroma. I get lots citrus/lime and few fruit notes along with some tea and bread in the back. I got mine rubbed out, so I can't comment on the slices.

Packed it into a sweet corn cob I got granted along with the samples (one with a small, stick-licke mouthpiece from wood; and rough corn (so not finished) on the bowl).

On first light I instantly got hit by a citrusy, and very tea-like aroma of the tobacco, before some fruitiness kicked in to enhance the experience. Dcent sweetness, but not overly. Stoved-fruits, citrusy freshness, lots of tea and minor breadiness create a exciting smoke that I instantly fell in love with! I also get some grassiness as I proceed the bowl. The flavoring really enhances the Virginias natural qualities. I love the intense tea-like aroma, that I have found in very few straight Virginias that intensly. Even tho I usually prefer most natural smokes, this one will certainly make my rotation, as soon as I get ahold of a few tins of this, as its pretty darn delicious! Also the flavoring fades a bit as you progress through the bowl.

I wouldn't even consider this a "Semi-Aromatic" as the flavoring is really just tweaking up the Virginias natural charme. Yet you can clearly make out its been flavored. They've hit a sweet-spot here for me. Perfect balance of natural taste and (enhancing) flavoring.

4/4 stars for a very, very delicious straight Virginia!

Pipe Used: Corn Cob

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Lazarus77 (91)	2017-07-21		Mild to Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Another good tobacco from Germains. Smokes cool, no tongue bite even if pushed fast. Very mild toping of orange flavoring applied which is in harmony with natural tobacco taste. Good smoke on hot summers day. Recommended.

Pipe Used: Ronson

Age When Smoked: 1 year

Purchased From: Cigarworld.de

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Braed (18)	2015-10-24		Mild	Mild	Mild	Pleasant

A very light tobacco. When you open the tin a realy nice virginia note comes out. The tobacco is a little bit wet. You should dry him a little bit. The flake has a nice cut. It burns very soft and slow. There are no tounge bites at all. This was my first flake and I have to say that this will be not the last one. Next week I will get a delivery with W.O. Larsen No. 32 and Mac Baren HH Pure Virginia. I hope these two flakes will be as good as the Germains Medium Flake. For all smokers who love pure virginia taste without any flavouring this is a very very good one.

Pipe Used: Rhodesian

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	virginia king (2)	2015-07-12		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

I've been smoking a pipe for a little over a year so still a newbie, I was sent a sample of this when I purchased my first pipe and found it interesting. A year later and sampling many other tobaccos I bought sum more medium flake,it's a medium strength virginia with a citrus topping not much to look at in the tin but the tin note produced is pleasant. I find the moisture content just right and smokes straight from the tin,packs and takes to the flame easily needing few relights. There's a wonderful citrus/lemony taste but not to overpowering and with the sweet virginia's it works well,it's a relaxing smoke with a medium N kick and find it smokes well in any pipe where other tobaccos have failed to do so. Will definitely be buying more and would certainly recommend.

Age When Smoked: New to 6 months

Purchased From: GQ tobaccos

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Jacinto Cupboard (209)	2014-03-27		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

This is a lovely bright broken flake in appearance. The tin note is sweet lemon and honey. I cannot detect casing outside of this.

Takes the flame well and is a single light, low maintenance smoke.

Produces a nice, clean, fresh Virginia aroma and is particularly sweet to the tongue. Would make a pleasant all day smoke for straight Va fans.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2012-10-10		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

Medium Flake is one of those tobaccos that tends to go un-noticed by many, much to their unbeknownst disappointment, for they are missing a fine experience. This is essentially a golden and bronze VA flake, but it is not cut or sliced, making it more like plug tobaccos. You can select to sheer off fine strips, with a texture like horsehair, or cut a cube of it for your favourite clay.

The VAs are scented with violet, s it typical of a Lakeland, which I find most enjoyable. They are exceptionally delightful if you slightly toast the leaf before you pug it in your pipe, and I generally take the lid of an old tin and place it over an oil lamp (with a trimmer) with lay out a bit of Medium Flake on that, which brings out the violet scent and unfolds its hidden sweetness.

Like most VAs, Medium Flake is greatly enhanced with age. I managed to uncover a 10-year tin in my cellar and opened it, not realizing how long it was in there until I flipped it over, as the experience was so amazing, I had wondered what I was doing differently. Two years at least is what I suggest for the full experience, but if you can manage to sneak one away for a decade or two, you will e i for a divine treat.

A green tin is still very pleasant, and I keep one in regular rotation at all times. I find it exceptional early in the day (just after rising), with tea, or after dinner. It does not mix well with scotch, as the delicate ambrosia of Medium Flake is easily overpowered by any strong serums that you may care to partake with it. I find that simple water is best here.

A to bowl size, unlike some VAs that tend to bite, I have never had an issue with medium Flake. I have smoked it in everything from tiny (Group 1) bowls and clays, to my trusty OBD. The experience is perfect in any size, and as it is close to a plug from the tin, if you don't sheer it or rub it out it smoulders cool and fresh for a very long, smouldering smoke, and makes a good companion for reading.

The control you have over consistency is remarkable, so if you want a faster burn or fewer relights, you need only rub it out a tad more and it behaves admirably. It is also a good DGT candidate, especially in larger bowls. My only regret is that i can't buy it in 1Lb bricks.

The overall composition of Medium Flake is a very mellow Lakeland background note, with motes of honey, cake, copper, and a mead-like quality that you need to experience to fully appreciate.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2003-10-31		Medium	None Detected	Medium	Pleasant

Medium Flake lives up to its name. It begins mild to medium in flavor and deepens to a solid medium level of aroma, flavor and strength. It can be quite yummy.

At its best, it produces a pure Virginia flavor profile, with high notes of burnt caramel and musty essences. There is a touch of spiciness when I exhale through my nose. Natural sweetness is present in taste, but mostly in the waft.

There does not appear to be any casing or flavoring. It can be provoked to nip the tongue mildly if puffed absentmindedly. Opening the tin and letting it relax (dehumidify) for a few weeks in proper storage seems to benefit its burning properties and flavor.

I find it very easy to pack by folding its long flakes over in half and in half again, usually placing a pinch of rubbed out flake at the very bottom and on the very top of the bowl. I suggest that one not be too quick to simply rub this out. It really works as a flake.

One good charring light and two initial lights get me most of the way through the bowl. One additional relight about mid-way seems a regular phenomenon with Medium Flake.

It seems to burn well in the medium and large size bowls I use. It loses something essential outdoors and is perfectly suitable to indoor enjoyment in the close confines of my car.

While I will not likely cellar this in significant quantities, it will be kept on hand for the times when I crave its refined character.

Medium Flake and its cousin, Brown Flake, have very little, if anything common. They are differing offerings for different desires. Both are worthy.

Another quality Germain product.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2003-08-20		Mild	None Detected	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

Upon opening the lid of this small tin I detected very little to no aroma of the brownish colored tobacco with slivers of golden Virginias pressed into this small container.

As I rubbed out this Medium Flake to my liking I detected it was fresh and a little moist. I had no problem in packing this medium flake in a 1963 Group 2 Dunhill Prince, it lights easily and as long as you have a tamper there is not too much problem in keeping it lit.

I did not notice any tongue bite, but.....this tobacco will get a bowl hot real fast. IMO this is a mild tasting Medium Flake, but improves to a medium tasting tobacco as you smoke this towards the bottom of the bowl.

Keep Your Pipe Cool, Smoke it Slow, Enjoy it Longer

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Peace Piper (2)	2022-07-30		Mild to Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

This is a quality tobacco with quality Virginias presented in a very tightly packed flake. I find it impossible to peel off a whole flake but that hardly matters as it smokes perfectly straight out of the tin and didn’t need any dry time and only one light after the initial flame. The aroma is of subtle floral notes with some background of fruit, maybe plum? But everything about this tobacco is subtle except for the enjoyment. For me that’s full on. This is great smoking tobacco and I love it.

Pipe Used: Northern Briers and various other briers

Age When Smoked: One year

Purchased From: Where ever I can find it.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Tomcat (226)	2021-08-21		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Unnoticeable

Germains Medium Flake - A flake ? A straight shag with a couple flake looking pieces easily pulled apart to a shag . Mostly bright Virginias with a few brown and less orange -red strands . Has that apricot smell like most Germain Virginias but I taste more orange in the smoke . The toppings are lightly applied . A lot of grass and hay and citrus . Some floral and bready notes . It is a good tasting very mellow smoke . I dont care for the cut , think three sails . You could easily roll this up if so inclined. I smoke pipes only for a long time . You have to smoke real slow to avoid bite . I haven’t pushed it to find out . It gets better at the bottom of the bowl . It is a good smoke but there are many better in this Genre . I wouldn’t buy again so I somewhat recommend 3 for taste , 1 for the cut . 2 stars

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Elk (9)	2021-02-13		Medium	Mild	Medium	Very Pleasant

Opening the tin I find soft feeling brown broken flakes that smell sweet and fruity, just what I love in a virginia flake and so typical of this outstanding blending house. The various virginia's provide tons dark fruit , citrus, a little spice, bread and has some nicotine, which I love. I prefer a fresher tin to an aged one as I find over time these virginia's mellow out and become so delicate and smooth that I can't feel the smoke at all and I lose that slight spice hit I crave. Some may love this but I like to feel my smoke. However, the taste, sweetness and wonderful room note retain all of their pleasurable characteristics. I don't know why this one doesn't get great reviews but you would never know it by how difficult these tins are to aquire these days. Love this stuff, four stars!!!!

Pipe Used: Ben Wade English Hand Model

Age When Smoked: New and aged

Purchased From: Anywhere I can find

Similar Blends: Brigham Klondike Gold is similar in taste but overall not as refined or as luxurious as Germain's Medium Flake..

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Eddie (11)	2020-05-30		Medium	Extremely Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant

I asked my local tobacconist to get me a list of rare tobacco blends. He focuses 70% on cigars, and only 30% pipe. Most of his collection was C&D, and Dan's Tobacco. He finally began receiving Esoterica. He is now well stocked on Esoterica. He has 7 of the blends including Penzance. I recently asked him to try to acquire the Germain's 1820 flake, and the Balkan sobranie. I'm waiting to hear from him. He also received 2 tins of Germain's medium flake which I purchased from him at $20 a tin. I love this guy. He has the best tobacco business I've seen in a 200 mile radius. I finally opened one of the Germain's Medium Flake 45 minutes ago. It is silky smooth strands of golden and dark golden Virginias.

Smells like hay. Really, and nothing but hay.

It tastes like hay more than any other blends of VA, or Vaper. It is so delicious that I think I'm going to ask him to get me few more. It has subtle sweetness with no artificial flavor detectable.

It is semi moist in tin, but ready to smoke in 10 min. It lights up surprisingly fast and burns evenly due to its strand-like form. It stays lit with little effort. This allows you to puff very gently and enjoy it without constantly worrying about relight.

It burns moderately hot. No worse than typical Virginia. It tastes the same from beginning to the end. Very consistent and well behaved. What a gem is this. I hate to say it, but after trying all the Esoterica line, and now this medium flake from Germain's, now I definitely agree with the hype. This company is unique. All their tobacco blends taste aged. To give you an example, the Esoterica Penzance that is sitting in my local tobacconist shelf is covered by this fine sugar powder Crystals.

And so, this tobacco also feels very grounded. Even though it is all Virginia, it is very mature, and stable. Get in contact with your tobacconist. That's the only way.

Pipe Used: Vauen billiard. 9mm filter

Age When Smoked: 6 months

Purchased From: Local tobacconist

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	renwardhoop (177)	2020-03-31		Mild to Medium	Medium to Strong	Medium	Unnoticeable

Like the other poor souls I fell into the same trap with this one. Thinking that this was merely a virginia flake I ordered it. I was surprised therefore, when the open pouch (not a tin) gave off a strange odour.

I couldn't identify this scent at first; tangerine/orange/satsuma was the last thing I expected. The next thing I found was the cut. There was clearly welded flake strips in a mass at the bottom of the pouch, but the tobacco resembled candy floss. Not in taste or colour, obviously, but the look and feel was wispy, cobweb-like almost. I've had this style of tobacco before somewhere, but just can't place where.

I pulled this loose mass of (not sticky) tobacco out and found that it needed pulling apart to a degree before loading.

The smoke was somewhat brief. It burnt through very quickly and I found that the zesty, tangy flavour almost overrides the virginia. It comes through in the smoke and appears like a tide of orangey citrus sea that washes around your mouth. I found it had a mild soapy taste when halfway through the bowl. Not quite as nasty or prononced as those Kendal blends (and Larson's reserve).

I am not sure I could smoke this continually, especially in my briars, as it might ruin them and am treating this as an aromatic and will let the meers loose on it. Certainly can't recommend this as a viginia.

Pipe Used: Briars latterly meers

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: Smoke-King (Greens)

Similar Blends: Larson's citrus blends, Mclintocks orange dream.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pryhosm (248)	2019-06-16		Mild to Medium	Very Mild	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I find some of the Germain's VA's VERY similar: Medium Flake, Goldleaf R/R, and then Esoterica's Peacehaven and Brighton, all seek to overlap very closely, one might guess that the Esoterica's are copies of the ones sold under the blenders name.With that said, a rose by any other name is still a rose. Medium flake is a flake in name only. It is so fine it immediately breaks apart when touched, the tobacco reminds me of semois in it's presentation, incredibly fine orange and brown strands. The tin note is sweet and fruity from what ever topping is used. I cannot quite nail it down but it seems to be apricot with orange and perhaps fig, not much tobacco aroma comes through but it is very pleasant. The top note either sublimates well with the tobacco's or the aroma is not as present in the flavor. The bright Virginia's are sweet and citrusy and the aftertaste is very nice. Flavor is fairly consistent down the bowl and the cut makes this burn to the bottom with almost one light if you are attentive. Great morning and summer smoke.

Pipe Used: Briar's, meerschaum and cobs

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Rustedrailsmokes (293)	2019-01-01		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I picked up a tin without ever hearing of it in the past. I was expecting a "Flake" when I opened the tin, but got a broken flake almost a shag instead.

The cut makes it really easy to pack and light up. The flavor I got was "hay" with a fruit topping which I took to be maybe Apricot at the light. It burned easily with no fuss without any tongue bite.

I've found myself reaching for the tin quite often since I've opened it and I'll definitely purchase more in the future.

Pipe Used: various

Age When Smoked: Fresh from Tin

Purchased From: Smitty's Cigar Lounge

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	moniker (220)	2018-03-17		Mild	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant

Perhaps you are hoping to find something like the medium and darker VAs used in Germain’s fabled, elusive ET blends. Well, their Medium Flake is not that. Rather, it’s mostly moist (not wet), yellow and golden, flue cured, broken flakes in the tin, fermented and smelling very faintly of apricots and oranges, and more so of wet hay, grasses and leather. It can be plucked, loosely stuffed and smoked straight from a newly opened tin, and it will burn like this with constant attention; but it smokes better if it’s left to rest for a while then dried some. Lit, the smells and tastes parallel the tin note, hay and grasses, Seville oranges, and maybe just a suggestion of tonquin, very faint. It’s slightly tannic, also buttery, and it warns me that it will bite if it’s pushed. There is a vaguely musky, earthy quality to the grasses, earthier than F&T’s Golden Mixture, but it’s hardly an “earthy” blend, if you know what I mean. Strength is more mild than medium, and tastes can be tweaked to get them close to medium. Room note is pleasant. Aftertaste is a tapering off of the best of the smoke, provided no re-lights at the end of the bowl.

GMF has not been an easy smoke for me. I think I’ve spent more time so far evaluating it than I have smoked it for pure enjoyment, coaxing it and trying to decide how to describe and rate it. I’ve gotten to where it’s always great off the match. However, I’ve only had full, 4 star smokes from it a few times, always outdoors in a light breeze (?). It tends to get a little sour/acrid on me as I smoke it down, and I don’t mean by this that it’s “astringent” in a good way, like a nice Chenin Blanc. Still, I can’t shake the feeling that there’s more to it than I’ve been able to get to date. Perhaps aging will take care of it. For the nonce, in the interest of moving on, I’ll give it a 3, but I can’t give it 4, if only because the competition’s too tough in this Brave New World of Pipe Tobacco.

Pipe Used: VA briars

Age When Smoked: fresh to 2 months

Purchased From: Liberty Tobacco

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Xeneize (275)	2007-11-06		Mild	Very Mild	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Tolerable to Strong

Although this blend's got some similarities with Brown Flake, it lacks the depth provided by the mature Virginias in the latter. It also has some fig topping that is very nice to smell in the tin but not that pleasant to my palate.

With so many great Virginias out there, there is no reason to recommend this one.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30194)	2005-05-22		Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

A smoke very similar to Samuel Gawith's Best Brown Flake except a little sweeter.. There's a hint of grassy hay-like overtones and is sharper in flavor than Germain's Brown Flake. A enjoyable pure Virgina smoke.

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	John_B (35)	2019-09-16		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild to Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I have tried to like this blend but it is not my sort of tobacco. It is heavily dosed with an orange/tangerine topping and this has not dissipated any in the 9 months in the jar. It lights readily but has a tendency to burn hot with the cut being very fine like a cigarette shag. There is something else going on though, as it seems to be incompatible with my mouth in a chemical Ph sort of way. Maybe it is too acidic for me, who knows ? Taste is tolerable but, as cool as I can smoke it, it bites me. I tried drying it for a long time and no improvement. It is one of the few blends that has beaten me, and I have tried a few, from the strongest twists and plugs to the mildest virginia blends. Good luck if you like it, but I can not recommend it.

Update:- 17/12/19

Now over 12 months old and I still can't get a good cool smoke from this blend. I determined to give it one last try in a Peterson 303 System pipe (very cool smoker and avoiding direct tongue bite with the P lip ) and it lit flawlessly and burned cool for all of 5 puffs, and then assaulted my tongue with a sadly familiar chemical tingle, and I stopped short of a full tongue bite. I will gift it to some other more fortunate piper who can enjoy it better than I am able to. Most frustrating !

Pipe Used: Various

Age When Smoked: 9 months

Purchased From: GQ Tobaccos

Similar Blends: Unique.

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	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	flint (30)	2004-11-30		Mild to Medium	None Detected	Extremely Mild (Flat)	Tolerable

I was really hoping to gain a friend with this blend but I didn't. Let me start out with what I liked, the cool little tin, the flakes wrapped in wax paper and the initial aroma of the blend still in the tin. But that was about it I'm sure this of good leaf and handled well. I was hoping to find a wonderful sweet aged virginia flake. But it's just way to bland for me, there are much better virginia flakes out there to spend your time and money on.

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