Welcome to another episode of "Tasting Notes." If you've been following the Tasting Notes series recently, you might already be aware that I have decided to revisit a lot of old friends from Kendal. I'm planning to smoke through all of the flakes produced by both of the Gawith houses, Samuel Gawith and Gawith Hoggarth. Today I am revisiting one of the most popular of those products: Bob's Chocolate Flake.

Bob's Chocolate Flake: Incredibly Unique and Complex

Like a lot of the English/Aromatic flakes coming out of Kendal, Bob's is very unique compared to the rest of the pipe-tobacco world. Whether you're used to smoking typical English/Oriental blends or Aromatics from the Danish-style school or the American-style school, or whether you're a straight Virginia guy, pretty much all of these products are going to be a change of pace. Bob's Chocolate is a welcome change and definitely among the most unique experiences you can have as a pipe smoker. I first tried this tobacco 16 or 17 years ago, and I've smoked it in between that time, of course, but even after all these years, I'm still trying to wrap my head around Bob's Chocolate. It is that unique, that interesting, and that complex.

Bob's Chocolate Flake: Unique Components

Let's say first that it is a medium flake, primarily made of flue-cured Virginias from Africa, a little bit of African sun-cured, and a little bit of African Burley. I think it's about eight percent Latakia, which is a really interesting addition to this tobacco, and I think it's what makes it so special. But I will say that while some of you might prefer English tobaccos or Latakia tobaccos, Bob's Chocolate is going to give you a very different experience from your typical Latakia blend.

These are really beautiful pressed flakes from the Kendal house. Compared to some of the other straight Virginia offerings, we also have a lot more dark leaf here. I don't think that's specifically just from the eight percent Latakia. That has to be from some of the sun-cured and Burley varietals from Africa, as well as just the process of producing these types of flakes. So they're a little bit darker and are moist straight out of the tin.

I would give this a good bit of airtime, not anything beyond the five-to-10-minute range if you want to retain all of the lovely top dressing and all of the complexity that this tobacco has to offer. I also think that even more than the actual drying time, after I rub it out, I give it a good bit of aeration to separate the strands a little bit more and to fluff the tobacco without losing too much of the moisture content.

I would also recommend something like at least a Group 3 bowl or even larger, and I would pack this a little bit less dense than you might otherwise pack your straight Virginia flakes. I end up getting the tobacco burning a lot easier, a lot quicker, and also get a big burst of flavor. Then I manage the actual pack once the tobacco is burning by tamping a little bit more aggressively in the initial part of the bowl than I otherwise would. And then you're off to the races, and you're good to go.

The added Latakia definitely does a lot to the flavor profile and to the body of the tobacco, but I also think it makes the burn nice, cool, and slow. And that's very welcome with a tobacco like this that has such a complex top dressing and so much to offer in terms of aromatic quality. Especially through the retrohale, you want to sip it as slowly as possible, and you really aren't going to fight it that much to keep it burning when you're backing off on your cadence. I attribute that to the Latakia.

Appetizing and Comforting Tin Note

Bob's Chocolate Flake has one of the most unique tin notes that I've ever encountered in tobacco. I would also say one of the most appetizing, and I don't really use that word too often. In this case, I don't even mean it figuratively. I mean, I really would try to eat this. It smells so good.

It doesn't have the typical campfire Latakia notes. Really, you're getting a lot more sweetness. The cocoa comes through in the tin note, the vanilla comes through in the tin note, and whatever other Lakeland essences there are in this tobacco. It's nutty and it's sweet smelling. You're getting a decent amount of woodiness, some zesty character, and some malty flavors from the tobaccos themselves.

There are hints of earthiness and a smoky quality. It reminds me of the holidays; roasted nuts, eggnog, a little bit of campfire, cocoa, warming spices, all of those comforting smells that have a warm character to them. Ah, man, really, really, it's a lovely tin note. And I think so much of that comes through in the smoke. I would say that if there was one word I would use to describe Bob's Chocolate, it would be comforting.

Warm and Delectable Flavors

So let's get this lit back up here. After the charring light and an initial tamp, I get more of the Burley quality coming forward as a condimental leaf than I do even the Latakia. I get a good bit of nuttiness, roasted and toasted-type flavors more so than campfire. The vanilla is immediately noticeable, and I think it does a lot to smooth out the edges of a fresh tin of this. What you end up with is a really round and warm flavor profile, basically straight out of the tin and straight off the shelf. It's medium-bodied, medium-strength, and just a bit over medium in flavor.

Once it really gets going, and as you progress further down the bowl, the chocolatey notes come through more and more. Right now, it's a little bit like cocoa powder. It's a little bit lighter, and I'm not getting as much sweetness as I think I will when I've smoked through a little bit more of this bowl.

The chocolate starts to emerge a little bit on the slow side, similar to the Latakia. They eventually make themselves more known and sort of stay more present throughout the rest of the bowl. I'm even getting a little bit of some floral qualities, some of the hay-like notes, and the brighter zesty notes from the Virginias. There's plenty of creaminess, and the sweetness is intensifying. It reminds me of a Cadbury egg, like that milk chocolate and that Cadbury cream. Wow. It's pretty in your face, actually.

The natural tobacco character does come through a good bit here, maybe even more so than some of the other more heavily floral Lakeland-type flakes. I do get a nice malty character, with some of the woodiness and the nuttiness from the Burley. And as the smoke progresses, I definitely feel the incense-like quality and a little bit of the smokiness from the Latakia. The Latakia is felt more than it's tasted in this blend, which is surprising because at eight percent, you would think that's enough to really feel the presence of the Latakia. But the way that it's balanced with the chocolate and vanilla toppings helps subdue it, and pushes it into the background, making it a supporting character.

Clarin Clay Pipes: Ideal for Tasting Tobacco

To help me through my journey back through all of the Kendal Flakes produced by the Gawith houses, I am relying heavily on my trusted Clarin Clay pipes. The quality, the craftsmanship, the design, everything about these I love. When it comes to tasting and evaluating tobacco, I think a good quality clay pipe is about the best thing that you can use. Right here is the Clarin Canadian One. I have a number of these and I've smoked them quite a lot and find their performance to be impeccable. And like I said, the craftsmanship is amazing.

Pleasant Room Note in Mixed Company

As far as the room note goes on this one, compared to most Latakia mixtures, I think this is passable in mixed company. Those of us who aren't pipe smokers — those weird folks — I think they'd be okay with this one because it smells floral, chocolatey, and sweet; it's not all campfire.

Richer Chocolate Sweetness

A little further into this, closer to the halfway point, the cocoa powdery, delicate chocolate flavors have amplified a lot. It's a lot richer. I think I am getting more sweetness from the natural sweetness of the Virginia tobaccos. It's making the contrast between the sweet notes and what I'm getting from the Latakia a little bit more stark.

Also, I think the vanilla and the chocolate toppings have turned into something that is, for me, less cocoa powder and more like Mexican hot chocolate, like mole with a little bit of chili powder, to be honest. If you like your mole a little spicier than sweet, that's the territory you're in here. It's rich and it's dense on the palate. I am getting more of the campfire and the woody quality along with the incense-like quality from the Latakia. These balance really well with the sweetness of the natural tobaccos and also the perceived sweetness from the vanilla and the chocolate topping.

As I said, this is just a comforting smoke. I think a lot of smokers could find this comforting all day. For me, particularly in the winter months or as an after dinner sort of a smoke; this smoke is perfect. It's very rich and it's a good dessert smoke, particularly if you prefer natural tobacco flavor over sweetness, but you do want to have a little bit of that sweetness there.

This is one of those tobaccos that is rare for me. I do really enjoy the retrohale and I recommend it for sure, especially if you're after complexity. But this one is so rich on the palate, I find myself not needing to retrohale as much. And whether I'm smoking cigars or pipes, I'm retrohaling 70% to 80% of the time. It's where I derive most of my pleasure from smoking. And this is one of those rare tobaccos where I feel like I get almost as much complexity on the palate as I do through the nostrils.

A Distinctive Change of Pace

Comparing this to other tobaccos wouldn't even be fair. Bob's Chocolate Flake is such a unique experience. I think everybody owes it to themselves to give it a try or to revisit it if it's been some time. Whether you're a diehard Aromatic, Virginia, English, or Oriental mixture fan, this is going to be a really welcome change of pace. And I've been saying that about the Kendal flakes for many years, that at the very least they are novel, interesting, and a good change of pace to what you're normally smoking. There's nothing else like it. There's a reason that these blends have been so popular for so long. That's all from me. Make sure you get a tin of Bob's Chocolate before the holidays. You'll thank me later.