Tobaccos Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. - Rich Dark Honeydew

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2010-01-13		Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium	Tolerable

This one was a surprise to me. I'm very sensitive to the taste of "Lakeland florals", preferring to refer to them as "soap" since that's what it tastes like to me. There was some of that flavor in this blend and, for some reason, it absolutely worked for me! It did burn off relatively quickly, as other reviewers have noted, but it stayed long enough to perhaps mellow the tobacco through the whole bowl. Just speculation on my part, but this brought to mind what might be accomplished by layering strong tobaccos with lighter ones. Interesting!

As mentioned, this produced a bit of a fruity, grassy flavor that segued into a combo of light and heavy - but never TOO heavy. In a sense, this is a confounding tobacco to review. All I can really say is that whatever G&H did to it, they did it "right" to my taste buds. It doesn't quite merit 4 stars but it's very close. If you can find some, try an oz or so. I'm going to pick up more of this.

18 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	JimInks (3046)	2014-08-13		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

The Lakeland scent and honey make an interesting mix of toppings because you taste them both, and they work well together. They do sublimate the citrus sweet, grassy Virginia and toasty, nutty earthy burley a little, but you will get a decent amount of the inherent qualities of those tobaccos. There are a few dark fruity notes here and there, too. The Lakeland scent is minor, and diminishes some as you reach the half way point, but it never totally vanishes. Burns at a moderate pace, cool and clean with some smoothness. The very rich flavor has a light inconsistency. Leaves a little dampness in the bowl, and needs a few relights. Has a very pleasant after taste. While it's not quite an all day smoke, it's repeatable during your smoking day. Three and a half stars.

-JimInks

15 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SteelCowboy (685)	2011-05-06		Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

The thought of honeydew and tobacco in the same sentence I thought was not possible for most of my pipe smoking life, but Gawith Hoggarth has that great way with scents. Yes, its a bit soapy in the pouch and arrives a bit moist. But for the most part its a fairly strong tobacco (which I like!) with a nice background sweetness and scent of honeydew that works. Other than the name, RDH is nothing like a typical aromatic. I was also able to try some well aged RDH and the tobacco had grown very dark and rich so not only does this taste well new, but it is an excellent blend for the cellar! Recommended.

11 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	DrDyson (148)	2015-04-15		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

Is this supposed to be a clone of Gallaher's long defunct Rich Dark Honeydew? I remember the Gallaher original only vaguely, from years back, but I thought this a very successful blend in its own right: slow burning and with a distinctive flavour that isn't soapy or gimmicky. It's not a mild tobacco in terms of Vitamin N, but it isn't unduly strong either. The room note is pleasant in a traditional sort of way, and it doesn't leave any messy goop behind in the bottom of the bowl. There's a slight bitter aftertaste, I found, but, on the whole, I liked this a lot. I've bought it several times now, and it's establishing itself as one of my regulars. I recommend it warmly to people who value what I think of as old-fashioned blends. To my mind, it's a good smoke for a long winter walk in the country. Don't rush it, though, or it'll get hot and bitter. Not one of my all-time favourites, but I'm happy to recommend it. Incidentally, despite what it says in the blurb, this is a shag cut, not a broken flake.

Update, 2018: thanks to a change in the EU regulations governing the description of tobaccos, this is now called 'Rich Dark Spring Dew'. Heaven knows why.

Purchased From: Durham Pipes and Tobacco, Durham, UK

9 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pipestud (1829)	2008-11-29		Medium	Extremely Mild	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

gnossos is a fellow SF member and his review of G&H Rich Dark Honeydew is spot on with my impressions (other than the fact I could taste Virginia leaf in this blend). Almost a "campfire" effect when smoking, particularly near the bottom of the bowl, I found this to be a tasty choice without much added (if any) flavoring or Lakeland scent.

It's a little hard to find, by the way.

9 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	StevieB (2081)	2015-02-07		Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

Gawith Hoggarth - Rich Dark Honeydew.

As you can see in the picture it isn't that coarse a broken flake. The scent from the pouch is mildly floral and sweet. Mine had good hydration to it.

The smoke's quite pleasant. I get more sweetness than floral/Lakeland. The tobaccos have a nicely balanced flavour, nutty, rugged, Burley and a hay note from the Virginia. It doesn't bite and burns well.

Nicotine: quite healthy. Room-note: quite strong.

A decent smoke that just lacks the quality needed for four stars, so I give it three!

Recommended.

Pipe Used: Askwith Chubby Poker

Age When Smoked: New

Purchased From: G.Q Tobaccos

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Peter Piper (41)	2013-11-06		Strong	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant

Well most of the reviewers here seem to be of one mind and I concur!

Not a typical Lakeland by any means, which for me is good. Some Va/Bur blends can be heavy going, but here the flavouring works beautifully to just add some sweetness which takes the edge off and provides a very pleasant smoke. Beware though, it is so easy-going that you can find yourself smoking it quickly and, if you do, it will kick you in the pants!

Recommended.

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2008-11-28		Medium to Strong	Medium	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

Very, very smooth. A touch of scent, but not of the ordinary "lakeland" (read: Ennerdale) sort. This does have a touch of perfume, but more earthy and gives way to full bodied dark tobacco flavor. My guess is that it's mainly a fired burley shag with the scent. It is less "perfumey" than Coniston Cut Plug or Bosun Cut Plug.

Will never bite. Enough nicotine to keep it interesting. Perfect for a stormy day. Even if you are wary of "scented" blends, give this one a go - it's different and very, very good.

7 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	SeoulSister (37)	2014-02-06		Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

In the bag, Rich Dark Honeydew has the strong soapy smell that comes with many Lakeland style blends. I get no flavor of Honeydew at all. I find it a little bitter without much sweetness. Even though there is no Latakia in it, I get a bit of smokiness. I enjoy a lot of Lakeland style blends, but I find this one is too soapy and leaves a taste of stale perfume in my mouth. The strength of RDH isn’t too strong for me, but it is on the strong side. I don’t get any bite from this blend but that is my only positive. RDH isn’t a blend I will be smoking again anytime soon.

6 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2008-04-11		Medium to Strong	Mild to Medium	Medium to Full	Pleasant to Tolerable

This blend has been sitting on the board, looking lonely and un-reviewed since it was added. I guess I'll give it a shot.

First off, it is a little more than 'lightly flavored', but not too much. I don't get any perfume from this one. What I do taste is maybe a numbed down Rum Flake taste or a supercharged Sir Walter Raliegh aromatic quality, sometimes both. It's a pretty good flavor as far as top coats go. But there is nothing I would call melon flavor, if that's what you're looking for in this 'Honeydew' (I wasn't).

The tobaccos are definitely there for the tasting too. As to what they are, I'm going with a combination of virginias and some burley, maybe a little bit like Brown Flake. Like Brown Flake, it can be taught to bite, but usually won't when not abused.

Facit: This is a nice rich, satisfying blend. Easy to load and it burns well, though it's unique taste may taint your cake. I don't smoke this often, but when I do it's a nice treat. (___________this is the place where my joke would be. it has been left out, due to drastic content, to protect the overtly sensitive___________)

p.s. (2 days later) My Dad just popped in for a two week visit and has has been smoking this quite a bit in the evenings, albeit with comments as to strength. It does indeed smell nice in the room department. Tonight I plan to tell him the unpublishable joke.

5 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Kilmarnock Piper (251)	2012-02-06		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Very Pleasant

Just had a bowl of this (I've had a few) in a Yello-Bole I just found out is probably from the early to mid 30s. This to me is a sign from above that it's time to review. True, I have not had all that many smokes of this recently aquired weed, but it's pretty straightforward. Nice thin ribbon, almost a shag. They really did mean that about a "small amount of broken flake;" I just noticed it while breaking out this last bowl, and until I got in here and read that description, thought the literally one piece I found had just made it in by accident!

Not a Lakeland floral topping. Almost a MacBaren-type topping, but it smokes differently than a MacBaren. I can tell it's GH. A little sweeter, perhaps. Honeydew, not just honey! Burns consistently throughout the bowl, tastes about the same all the way, no matter what the smoking rate, though best sipped, like most things. I do get the urge to puff a bit with tobaccos like this, though. No harm results to my tongue with Rich Dark Honeydew. The name isn't quite right: it's mainly light brown, with some darker flecks. Rich, but not strong or all that complex. No problem; nice smoke I will enjoy going to quite often.

4 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	A. Morley (97)	2018-05-24		Mild to Medium	Medium	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

This could prove an agreeable gateway, if you will, into the realm of Lakeland aromatics. It's nicely behaved and none too eccentric. The Virginias are nice and grassy, but they are of the brown variety, so not even they bite that much. The darkish burley, that I imagine comes from Africa, keeps things cool and mellow, if not a little bitter.

The aromatic dressing has a honey sweet tang that lacks the aggressive florals of the typical Lakeland. I happen to like aggressive florals, but Rich Dark Honeydew is just a tad closer to some typical American aromatics, so I think that those inexperienced with some of the the various tobaccos from the various Gawiths might start to dip their toe in with this mixture. It's not bad tobacco, even for the experienced pipe man who has gone through some of G & H's headier offerings.

Age When Smoked: Six months

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	TallPuffO'Burley (633)	2016-11-22		Strong	Mild to Medium	Medium	Tolerable

I bought 2 oz of this one off the strength of the reviews here plus my enjoyment of nearly everything GH. I can't say I was disappointed at all with it. I found the topping to be different, but couldn't say for sure what it actually was. It is always hard to tell the toppings of GH blends as they all have that little touch of Lakeland essence. Even Top Black Cherry tastes nothing like Cherry to me and that is probably why it is my favorite Cherry aromatic.

Back to this one. It is a solid VaBur that underlies the topping. Had I been forced to guess the topping I would have said that it was molasses. That is similar to the effect the honey and Lakeland essence had on me. It is good. When I first got the bag I smoked through a lot of it, but then slowed up a little as the topping started to get to me.

This leads me to believe this could not really be an all day smoke for someone rather a great change up for the occasional Lakeland smoker. Like all GH blends, this refuses to bite and it packs a pretty good nicotine hit as well. A very good smoke IMO. I put this above three stars really, but I can't hang a fourth on it as it is not my top GH aro. And I do consider this an aro even though you can actually taste the Virginia and burley under it.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Emeritus Account (30167)	2009-08-30		Medium	Mild	Medium	Pleasant

This is a nice tobacco, fine cut shag, can burn hot if not careful. The flavor is lovely, dark, sweet, fruity, but goes away fairly quickly, probably due to the flavors being added by casing. I like it, but prefer other G&H tobacco such as Kendal Kentucky which has a more straightforward flavor but it stays throughout the smoke.

3 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Fusty the pipe (33)	2020-10-11		Mild to Medium	Strong	Medium to Full	Very Pleasant

Jack Hargreaves - the television presenter from yesteryear used to smoke the old Gallaher’s version of this but that blend has long gone - I see that old tins (empty) are still for sale on EBay though. I couldn’t tell you if this GH blend resembles the Gallaher’s version at all but I really rate this stuff. The smell in the pouch is absolutely gorgeous and it it sings like a siren, tempting you to have a smoke. It has a rich, honey voice that says “smoke me,” so it’s best not to refuse. The opening few pulls reminds me of the old Condor my Grandad used to smoke; very full but kind on the tongue. It has that old taste - some call it floral, some call it soapy but I think it is sublime. I’ve raised this question on my Condor review: was the Lakeland soapy, flower arrangement of Condor, honey? I don’t know, I could be well off the mark but it certainly reminds me of some tobaccos of another era. I could be completely wrong about this memory but, after the first bowl, I was whisked back to an armchair in West Yorkshire when all was right with the world. The blend isn’t too moist straight from the pouch; I do find that the none tinned tobaccos seem to be more ready to smoke than the tinned versions which, presumably, have more moisture to keep them fresh when they languish on a tobacconists shelf for a few months. It isn’t too strong for my tastes but it will ghost a pipe - as most aromatics will. It comes as a ready rubbed which packs easily into the bowl but it does smoke fairly quickly, especially when compared to some of the Titans: St Bruno, Condor etc. This makes it very good for a quick smoke between jobs; even in my larger bowled pipes it goes quickly. I’ve bought several ounces of this so far - an ounce comes in between £7 - 8 which seems to be the norm these days. The room note is pleasant enough and the smell doesn’t hang around too much when you’ve finished smoking.

All in all - one to try and see if it tempts your palate like it does mine.

Pipe Used: All sorts

Age When Smoked: Under a year.

Purchased From: GQ

Similar Blends: Condor of old (in my humble opinion)..

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	MarkTheLad (46)	2017-07-17		Medium to Strong	Mild	Medium to Full	Tolerable to Strong

This is a very nice tobacco from G&H, as with most G&H blends, it's made with some quality leaf. It's nutty from the burley, rich and sweet from the honey. The maple really comes through in the pouch note but it's a kind of in the background of the actual smoke, which I like, so it doesn't mask the natural tobacco flavor and that makes this a tasty blend. The Lakeland essence is there as with many G&H blends, but it imparts a nice floral note to the flavor profile that I find refreshing. Once it's packed and lit, it burns effortlessly and with very few relights and won't bite even if pushed. It also has a pretty decent hit of vitamin N to it, so I would have a little something on the stomach prior to smoking.

Pipe Used: Peterson Sherlock Holmes Strand

Age When Smoked: 2 weeks

Purchased From: Smokingpipes.com

Similar Blends: Unique.

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Bud_Harold (24)	2016-09-25		Mild to Medium	Mild	Mild	Pleasant to Tolerable

This gets a single thumbs up from me. Mostly because, although it's a flavorful blend, it's not flavorful enough for me. The notes of floral, honey, some sweetness, and fruitiness are there...just not enough for me to give it two thumbs up. That being said, this blend is well constructed, burns like a dream down to white flaky ash and packs easily. Room note is not cloying at all. Very slight perfume and toasted pecan, Pleasant enough that I'm allowed to smoke it in the house. :0)

I can recommend it, just not highly recommended.

Pipe Used: Ben Rodgers tomato

Age When Smoked: 1 yr

Purchased From: Gifted

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Blackhorse (96)	2010-12-17		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

I was also surprised...that I like this so much. The cut is quite fine, sorta shaggy. That sure does help the burn cause this one just takes off and goes all the way to the bottom with ease. If smoked slowly it has quite a good flavor...rather like some of the other 'brown & twisty' Gawith's, but with that light aroma of honey-whatever. I don't get honeydew, as in the melon...but maybe others on the opposite end of the pipe do. One of my favorites? No. A nice agreeable change of pace? Certainly!

2 people found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	captain duff (13)	2023-02-25		Very Strong	Very Mild	Medium	Pleasant to Tolerable

I'm not sure why it took me a while to try this one. Possibly because it is listed as an 'aromatic' (it really isn't), possibly because it sounded a little too sweet (no again). In the end, it was wanting to at least have a proximation of what the late broadcaster, Jack Hargreaves, smoked as his regular pipe tobacco when it was produced by Gallahers. Not having tried the Gallahers original I don't know how close this is, but if it is half as good then old Jack like with most things knew what was what.

It wears whatever casing it has very lightly. You will struggle to detect any floral lakeland, although a hint may be there. This is a wonderful even smoker, not too strong in flavour but with a nicotine kick that can catch you out of you have enjoyed it too quickly. Once it is away no relights are needed, and it burns right to the bottom of the bowl but with no bite at all. This will probably not mean much to a lot of people, but if you are a UK cask ale drinker and loved the taste of Jennings Bitter when it was still brewed in Cockermouth, Cumbria, then this for me is the tobacco twin, with a natural sweetness that lightly dances around a wonderfully dry and long flavour finish. A fantastic English blend!

Pipe Used: Falcon standard

Age When Smoked: n/a

Purchased From: My Smoking Shop, Preston, UK

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	Pikey Mick (49)	2022-03-25		Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Mild to Medium	Very Pleasant

Jubilant! I've just finished a bowl of one of the finest offerings by G&H that I have had to date! Perfect from the pouch, with a slight honey and maple aroma caressing a very good Virginia /Burley blend. Came in a broken flake that packed like a dream and smoked with one relight to a white ash at the end. I smoked this on an empty stomach with a black coffee for breakfast and enjoyed every puff! Gawith and Hoggarth seem to do V/Bur blends extremely well and it's rare that I get one that I dislike. The honey is never overpowering and is there if you take it very slowly and the room note is probably the best ever with a honey/vanilla breeze that wafts in the air. Nicotine level for me is a light to medium and put me in deep contemplation for a decent hour. I totally recommend this to all, although novice pipers may miss the subtle nuances in the flavour if the cadence isn't as gentle as a stream trickling over pebbles in a trout stream.

Pipe Used: MM Emerald straight

Purchased From: GQ

Similar Blends: Kind of reminds me of Macbaren Vanilla although the Macbaren is way more heavily cased..

1 person found this review helpful.

	Reviewed By	Date	Rating	Strength	Flavoring	Taste	Room Note
	thesmoggypipester (77)	2018-11-22		Medium	Mild to Medium	Medium	Pleasant

rich dark honey dew is one of then blends that if you had a grandfather that smoked a pipe, chances are they had a bowl of this stuff.

back when it first came out it was made by gallahers and many moons ago it got discontinued, although a scour around the bay will come up with empty tins, sometimes a sealed one will pop up for astronomical prices.

anyways fast foreward and gawith and hoggarth have came to the rescue although it isn't exactly the same supposedly it is in the same ball park.

so what is it like?

opening the pouch I get honey straight off the bat, a quick ruffle of the long dark ribbon, up pops some vanilla, backed by maple syrup and some nuts and a slight wisp of cocoa and floral. it's a nice long ribbon with a touch of broken flake, this keeps the burn in check, perfect moisture to load and burn. once packed and lit, the honey does come across but never overwhelmingly, the vanilla backs it up along with the maple and that slight touch of cocoa and floral.

towards the middle of the bowl the flavours stand down slightly and gently bring up the earthy dark Virginia's with a touch of hay and the burley with a little spice and touch of cocoa.

the end of the bowl it's tobacco goodness all the way, the burley comes to the fore seamlessly intermingling with the earth and dark fruit of the dark Virginia. Burn rate is fantastic one light should do it and it's a nice middle of the road burn, not to fast and not to slow, the touch of broken flake does it's job in slowing the burn very well. Do beware though, going at this like a freight train will cause it to get hot and bite, but a regular cadence will cause no problems.

All in all this is a lovely blend and one that does well for repeated bowls during the day, the strength is just right not too much that it overwhelms but not enough that it leaves you feeling...meh. it's just right and the flavour never bores or cloys. it is just one of them simple old fashioned pipe tobaccos that just does the job and does it very well.

room note won't garner you any enemies, although it produces plumes of smoke it isn't heavy and it shouldn't raise to many eyebrows within your company.

one thing i have noticed is that the pouch aroma bears quite a resemblance to mac baren Scottish mixture and mac baren navy flake so if you like either or both of these two then you should have no problem liking this one.

finishing off this is a beautiful blend, enough straight tobacco flavour for the purists amongst us and just the right amount of added flavour to keep the aromatic fans happy.

Will confidently recommend this, 5 out 5 EASILY earned.

Pipe Used: corn cob

Age When Smoked: new

Purchased From: mysmokingshop.co.uk

Similar Blends: aroma wise mac baren Scottish mixture and navy flake, would confidently recommend this blend to fans of either or both.

Nobody has rated this review yet.