Rollie Tobacco: Vanilla (5/10)

I haven't a lot to say about the Gawith and Hoggarth 'Auld Kendal' Vanilla rollie tobacco. It is exactly what the name suggests- tastes of vanilla. In fact, there is quite an intense vanilla aroma, both in the unsmoked tobacco, and in the smoke itself... strong, but I wouldn't say overpowering. It will be all down to your taste, but I would not recommend this tobacco if you are not a vanilla fan. I would recommend it if you are smoking around other people who might not like the dry cloying smoke of Drum or Golden Virginia.

The Vanilla tobacco is only moderately tarry, and not terribly strong. In addition, it keeps for a rather long time before drying out which is certainly useful for me who only goes through about 12.5 grams per week or less. Give it a try, it is neither spectacular nor bad in any way... just vanilla-ey.

• Flavour: 5/10
• Sweetness: 5/10
• Tar (1=wet, 10=dry): 4/10
• Value for Money: 6/10
• Indulgence Factor: 4/10
• Overall Rating: 5/10

Cigar: La Rica Tubitos (6/10)

It is quite nice to be able to review a cigar with which we were quite impressed, and even more so, these were not even Cuban, so our American friends can purchase them with ease. Hurrah!

La Rica Tubitos are a small 32 gauge panatela. They are composed of Nicaraguan hybrid filler (mixture of full leafs and short bits) with an Ecuadorian wrapper. They are also hand-rolled, and very tightly packed. This gave them a nice thick strong-flavoured smoke that was entirely pleasant. They are moderately tarry, but this was not a problem because they were only slightly over 4 inches long, and finish before the tar builds up to irrigating levels. Finally, they were well packaged (a very important bit of production most cigar manufacturers overlook) in that they came in well-sealed tubes and should last a considerable time before going dry without the aid of a humidor.

We recommend La Rica Tubitos; while there are certainly better cigars out there, one cannot beat the cost. they should cost you only around £2 each.

• Smoking time: 12-18 minutes
• Flavour: 6/10
• Smoke Sweetness: 3/10
• Tar (1=very wet, 10=very dry): 5/10
• Value for Money: 7/10
• Indulgence Factor: 4/10
• Overall Rating: 6/10

Cigarillo: Exotic Fine and Flavour by Neos (3/10)

Well, once again we bring you a cigarillo by Neos, a Belgian manufacturer. Despite the name, we found these cigarillos to be neither fine, nor exotic, nor terribly flavourful. They have a definite added sweetness which is demonstrated not only by the sweet smoke, but the blackness of the ash. Quite amusingly, halfway through the smoke, which is dreadfully short, the cigarillo collapses between the fingers, which leads me to believe the only reason they were not deflated initially was due to the dry stiffness of the filler- as soon as the tar built up... squish. After this happens, the smoke gets quite hot and you know it's time to give it up... We don't recommend the Exotic Fine and Flavour by Neos, they're just not right... If you do find them and want to give them a go, it'll cost around £3 for 10.

• Smoking Time: 2-4 minutes
• Flavour: 4/10
• Smoke Sweetness: 7/10
• Tar (1=wet, 10=dry): 8/10
• Value for Money: 3/10
• Indulgence Factor: 2/10
• Overall Rating: 3/10

Pipe Tobacco: American Sweet Peach (5/10)

Well, what can I say about the American Sweet Peach by Gawith and Hoggarth: It is sweet, has a peachy flavour, and is presumably American...

To be fair, I expected this tobacco to be blow-your-head-off sweet, a kind of sickly syrupy cloying sort of sweet- it was nothing of the sort- indeed, it was well-balanced. There is a definite peach overtone to the flavour, and it is very aromatic, but it was quite nice. Apparently, according to Jim, our tobacconist, this tobacco was one of the most popular until Gawith and Hoggarth released their Cherry and Vanilla.

The Sweet Peach does have a couple drawbacks though; first, it produces a very light smoke unless puffed quickly enough to get the tobacco really hot. This is related to the second problem, which is that the tobacco goes out with incredible ease. Most of the pipe-fulls I had went out at least twice during the course of the smoke. For one who is skint, matches are not a cheap commodity, and it was irritating to have to waste as many as I did relighting the pipe. The tobacco is also quite tarry, and I suspect one might need to clean their pipe every other smoke with this one.

If you enjoy aromatics that are relatively sweet, I recommend giving this tobacco a go... just invest in a lot of pipe cleaners, a pipe-knife and matches first!

• Flavour: 6/10
• Smoke Sweetness: 8/10
• Tar (1=wet, 10=dry): 4/10
• Value for Money: 6/10
• Indulgence Factor: 3/10
• Overall Rating: 5/10

Cigar: Guantanamera Cristales (4/10)

Well, it's not often we have a proper cigar to review- the both of us are too skint to afford to bring you reviews of the finest Davidoff and Montecristo churchills every day... and I wish we had a better cigar to review for you. Sorry.

The Guantanamera Cristales are a medium-gauge 15 cm long cigar which are hand-rolled and 100% Tobaco Cubano... sounds good right? Well, they should be good, but we found these cigars terribly disappointing. The first half smoked considerably dry and had a very light smoke, in fact, the lightness of the smoke is comparable to smoking a cigar with a filter attached. In addition, they had very little flavour. Thankfully, the second half had considerably more flavour; likely due to the buildup of the minimal amount of tar these cigars contain.

Unfortunately, the Cristales do not come if sealed tubes, so must be stored well. Perhaps ours were not. In addition, they come pre-cut with a cross-pattern slice into the cigar, rather than the traditional sliced-off end. I suspect this is partially responsible for the lightness of the smoke, and when we re-cut ours, they were considerably nicer.

One might think upon seeing these Guantanamera Cristales; 'oh, hand-rolled Cubans, must be good...' I have to say, we certainly will not be buying these again. If you do however, they will cost you about £5.00 each.

• Smoking time: 20-30 minutes
• Flavour: 2/10
• Smoke Sweetness: 3/10
• Tar (1=very wet, 10=very dry): 8/10
• Value for Money: 4/10
• Indulgence Factor: 1/10
• Overall Rating: 4/10

Pipe Tobacco: Rich Dark Honeydew (6/10)

The Rich Dark Honeydew by makers Gawith and Hoggarth is quite a strange tobacco, but certainly not unenjoyable. According to Jim, our tobacconist, it is quite popular and sells fairly well. I personally found it to have an oddly simultaneously dry and sweet smoke, a trait I am not terribly fond of and suspect is the result of using a dry tobacco base and simply flavouring it with a sweet aromatic mixture, without concern for how they complement each other. Nevertheless, the smoke was acceptable, certainly better than many other tobaccos I have tried recently and will appear in our review shortly. The Rich Dark Honeydew is moderately tarry, and the tar- more than the smoke itself, has a fruity tone to it. The tobacco does smoke quite quickly and is not terribly thick, but this is likely a result of being quite finely shredded and ready-rubbed. Give it a try, you shant be disappointed, but it's likely you wont be terribly impressed, and just think; 'well, not bad, I've tried something new...'

• Flavour: 6/10
• Smoke Sweetness: 6/10
• Tar (1=wet, 10=dry): 4/10
• Value for Money: 5/10
• Indulgence Factor: 4/10
• Overall Rating: 6/10

Rollie Tobacco: Dutch Flake (5/10)

Time again for another rollie tobacco, and this time I am reviewing the Auld Kendal Dutch Flake by makers Gawith and Hoggarth. This hand-rolling tobacco is a blend of Virgina and Burley tobaccos and has a slight, very slight spiced aromatic flavour. In fact, I wasn't even aware of the spice until it was mentioned by another who smokes this particular tobacco, but knowing it's there, I can taste it... perhaps it's all in the mind.

The Dutch Flake has no strong flavours of any sort, for better or worse, but I think this leaves something to be desired. It's certainly not bad, but not that good either- the limbo of rollie tobacco... Nevertheless, its moderately strong with a moderately thick smoke, and fairly good for smoke rings (a very important trait!). Give it a try, I am not terribly familiar with specifically Dutch style tobaccos, but apparently this one is quintessentially Dutch.

• Flavour: 5/10
• Sweetness: 4/10
• Tar (1=wet, 10=dry): 5/10
• Value for Money: 6/10
• Indulgence Factor: 3/10
• Overall Rating: 5/10

Pipe Tobacco: Rum Flake (4/10)

The Rum Flake by makers Gawith and Hoggarth is a bit of a let down... First of all, it's not particularly rum-flavoured, although I can detect hints of molasses at the beginning of the smoke which is mildly enjoyable... perhaps... however, there is a problem with this tobacco: the smoke gets considerably worse as time goes on. It begins by being simply moderately dry, not very sweet, with hints of molasses or dark cane sugar, but as the tar builds up at the bottom of the pipe, most of the slightly pleasant flavours disappear and are replaced by a mustiness that is altogether terrible. The smoke is also not particularly thick, nor is the tobacco very strong.

It's possible there are people out there who like this tobacco, but certainly it was not for us.

• Flavour: 4/10
  
• Smoke Sweetness: 3/10
  
• Tar (1=very wet, 10=very dry): 6/10
  
• Value for Money: 4/10
  
• Indulgence Factor: 1/10
  
• Overall Rating: 4/10

Cigar: Petit Panatelas (5.5/10)

The Petit Panatela cigars, by Occidental Cigars Santiago are hand made in the Dominican Republic with long filler, both traits that make the cigars much nicer (long filler is full tobacco leaf filler, rather than shreds and stems). These cigars didn't have any particular or unique flavour, they just feature a light, simple and pleasantly enjoyable smoke. They also have very little tar, which happily does not dry out the smoke, unlike many smaller cigars and cigarillos in which either they are tarry with sweet smoke, or tar-less with incredibly smoke.

We recommend giving these Panatelas a try; they cost about £2 each. For those of you who are fortunate enough to have a humidor, we suggest buying a pack of these to lay down in your humidor (for most tobacconists will give you a discount if you purchase a pack or box) for occasions when company is around, but you don't want to invest a considerable length of time smoking a churchill...

• Smoking time: 12-18 minutes
  
• Flavour: 4/10
  
• Smoke Sweetness: 3/10
  
• Tar (1=very wet, 10=very dry): 8/10
  
• Value for Money: 7/10
  
• Indulgence Factor: 2/10
  
• Overall Rating: 5.5/10

Pipe Tobacco: Brown Twist (4/10)

The Brown Twist is tobacco- pure and simple... The makers Gawith and Hoggarth advertise that the Brown Twist is the most natural of all pipe tobaccos, free from additives. So, if you are looking for something similar to what the Native Americans passed around in the peace pipe- this is it.

Having said that, I cannot say that I am a fan. The Brown Twist is alright, but if I want tobacco in a pure form, I definitely prefer a fine Cuban cigar. The Brown Twist features a very earthy flavour, and is incredibly dry. This is not due to the tobacco itself being dry- in fact the shreds I was given were quite moist and well-kept, but nevertheless, produced a very dry smoke. Definitely keep a drink to hand! In addition, the Brown Twist produces a fairly light smoke that is not particularly strong, and is quite difficult to keep lit- I had to relight several times. Give it a try if you want, but it's certainly not a favourite for me.

• Flavour: 3/10
• Smoke Sweetness: 2/10
• Tar (1=wet, 10=dry): 9/10
• Value for Money: 4/10
• Indulgence Factor: 3/10
• Overall Rating: 4/10

Cigarillo: Cohiba Mini (4/10)

Hecho en Cubano... what more can we say? Actually, if you're looking for the Cuban cigar (or cigarillo experience) I don't recommend these, for I have tasted considerably nicer Cubans in my lifetime. However, as cigarillos go, these are not bad.

They are distinctly Cuban in flavour, but are also quite dry (we would suggest keeping them in a humidor) and packed a bit more loosely than expected. However, the filler was a hybrid (meaning both short edge trimmings, but also leaves) and perhaps had these been better kept, they might have scored a bit higher, so bear that in mind. Certainly, if you are looking for a cigarillo to offer to someone else without seeming cheap or ignorant, these will work... but to be honest, if you can get ahold of the Montecristo Minis, go for those instead. If not, these will cost you around £5.50 for a pack of 10.

• Smoking time: 4-8 minutes
• Flavour: 4/10
• Smoke Sweetness: 4/10
• Tar (1=very wet, 10=very dry): 7/10
• Value for Money: 7/10
• Indulgence Factor: 4/10
• Overall Rating: 4/10

Rollie Tobacco: Black Cherry (6/10)

The Black Cherry rollie tobacco by Gawith and Hoggarth is quite probably the most popular of all the bulk handrolling tobaccos down at the market, and is certainly one of the most popular in the world. Now, my experience has been that nearly everyone who smokes rollies buys that prepackaged stuff- Drum, Golden Virgina etc. but certainly, the flavours of the bulk tobacco cannot be beat.

I am not one who necessarily enjoys sweeter tobaccos, but I enjoyed the black cherry considerably- primarily because it is not nearly as sweet as one might suppose. However, it does have more tar than a plain rollie tobacco like the Burley Flake- about halfway through my rollie, the white paper had turned quite brown. Do not let this put you off though, it didn't taste any more tarry than other rollie tobaccos I have tried. I definitely recommend giving this tobacco a try. First, it's cheaper than Drum and Golden Virgina and all those other prepackaged tobaccos, and has more flavour. Second, non-smokers around whom I was smoking the Black Cherry enjoyed the smell. Don't be the average person who smokes average prepackaged tobaccos- get something new and exiting- it might lead to a conversation with a hottie who likes the smell.

• Flavour: 6/10
• Sweetness: 6/10
• Tar (1=wet, 10=dry): 4/10
• Value for Money: 7/10
• Indulgence Factor: 4/10
• Overall Rating: 6/10

Cigarillo: Hamlet Fine Aroma (3.5/10)

Hamlet is a well known brand among smoking aficionados- indeed nearly everyone who regularly smokes cigarillos has at least tried a Hamlet... some like them, some do not. Speaking as someone who is not a huge fan of regular Hamlets (actually I did smoke them regularly for about a month before I realised I preferred rollies without filters to Hamlets), I would recommend trying the Hamlet Fine Aroma.

The Hamlet Fine Aroma is aromatic, unlike its more familiar cousin, and we found this helps subdue the dryness that one would expect of a regular Hamlet. Of course, when something is aromatic, there are additives which are most certainly less good for you than pure tobacco. Although it had a slightly sweeter and more flavoursome smoke, featuring vanilla tones, the cigarillos were still quite brittle and dry, due to being a medium-loose pack of short filler.

Give them a try- at least they are quite cheap!

• Smoking time: 4-8 minutes
• Flavour: 3/10
• Smoke Sweetness: 5/10
• Tar (1=very wet, 10=very dry): 6/10
• Value for Money: 4/10
• Indulgence Factor: 3/10
• Overall Rating: 3.5/10

Cigarillo: Supreme Dutch Cigars (1/10)

Terrible, absolutely terrible! Just completely, entirely and utterly not worth smoking. Okay, perhaps I am being a little harsh, but so were the Dutch Supremes in the mouth. Perhaps the ones we tried had not been kept properly, but they had a very dry smoke, virtually no tar, were loosely packed and brittle. Unless you like the sort of smoke that brings to mind a scorching Sahara in your mouth, we certainly do not recommend these cigarillos.

• Smoking time: 4-8 minutes
• Flavour: 1/10
• Smoke Sweetness: 1/10
• Tar (1=very wet, 10=very dry): 9/10
• Value for Money: 1/10
• Indulgence Factor: 1/10
• Overall Rating: 1/10

Pipe Tobacco: American Whiskey (9/10)

I must say that I was slightly skeptical when purchasing this particular tobacco- it was indicated to me that although it had a few dedicated followers, it was not the best selling tobacco that Jim had in the market. In addition, I tend to vie away from anything that has American in the name, or worse still, with the spelling of Whisky with an 'e'. Everyone knows Scotch Whisky is far superior to any 'Whiskey.' My fears immediately disappeared when I took my first puff of this delectable tobacco.

The American Whiskey, by makers Gawith and Hoggarth, features a thick smoke, slightly sweet but incredibly flavourful. I detected the slightest hints of vanilla and almond, and of course, whisk(e)y tones that were quite delightful. It almost tasted buttery to me, but in a smooth and mellow way. The tobacco did feature quite a lot of tar, but it did not hurt the aroma in any way as some tars do. I certainly recommend that every pipe smoker try this particular tobacco. It is certainly a contender for my favourite- up there with the Coniston Cut Plug.

• Flavour: 9/10
• Smoke Sweetness: 6/10
• Tar (1=wet, 10=dry): 3/10
• Value for Money: 7/10
• Indulgence Factor: 9/10
• Overall Rating: 9/10