Dock
Well-known member
- Joined
- Dec 15, 2007
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Anyone familiar with J.M. Barrie's "My Lady Nicotine" can attest to his love for the famed and fictitious "Arcadia Mixture". I can readily share Barrie's enthusiasim for a tobacco. If I were an author I would write my own volume about my Arcadia: "MacBaren's Navy Flake".
Navy Flake is nothing special blending wise. It's a simple but effective combination of Burley, Va's & Cavendish created by MacBaren's blenders in 1965. It was previously available in 1.5 oz tins as well as bulk but today is only packed in 3.5 oz tins. The flakes are cut into long square stips and are dark in colour. The humidity is optimum being neither too dry or too moist. The smell in the tin is quite sweet and most would probably swear that it's a highly cased aromatic blend but this isn't the case.
I have tried rubbing it out fully but have found with experience that simply folding the strands into the bowl decreases the burning rate substantially and releases it's full flavor. Because of it's incredibly SLOW burning rate it smokes best in a group 3-4 sized bowl. It's an ideal blend for a fast smoker like myself. It lights reasonably well and needs far fewer relights than other similar flake blends that I've smoked. It's flavor is nothing short of intoxicating but it's also very hard to acurately describe. It has a sweetness from the cavendish but also a very natural tobacco flavor from the burley and Va's. It's like nothing you will ever smoke. You'll either love it or hate it. As far as I've heard in the reviews I've read there's no inbetween with NF.
It's flavor stays consistent all the way down the bowl and it burns to a light grey ash. I have NEVER experienced tongue bite with it which is a common issue with outher McB's blends. For some reason this stereotype just doesn't apply with NF. Brother Muddler recently called it "MacBaren's Flagship Blend". I agree with this totally!
It does have one heck of a nicotine kick and will make your head swim if you don't smoke it with respect. Not a good mowing the lawn blend. If you happen to inadvertantly inhale it you may very well fall off your mower. It also has a trerrible room note and isn't much of a crowd pleaser. My employees hate it when I smoke it on long tow truck drives to pick up cars out of state.
I smoke Navy Flake all day long, noon til' night for seven days a week and never tire of it. I figure I've smoked more than 40 pounds of it over the last few years. It's my go to blend and if it were ever unavailable I may actually quit pipe smoking all together. This is the god's honest truth folks!!!!
One more thing. Aging does nothing for it. I've smoked 15 year old tins that were identical to newer production. Don't waste your money on aged tins. The new stuff is just as good.
Navy Flake is nothing special blending wise. It's a simple but effective combination of Burley, Va's & Cavendish created by MacBaren's blenders in 1965. It was previously available in 1.5 oz tins as well as bulk but today is only packed in 3.5 oz tins. The flakes are cut into long square stips and are dark in colour. The humidity is optimum being neither too dry or too moist. The smell in the tin is quite sweet and most would probably swear that it's a highly cased aromatic blend but this isn't the case.
I have tried rubbing it out fully but have found with experience that simply folding the strands into the bowl decreases the burning rate substantially and releases it's full flavor. Because of it's incredibly SLOW burning rate it smokes best in a group 3-4 sized bowl. It's an ideal blend for a fast smoker like myself. It lights reasonably well and needs far fewer relights than other similar flake blends that I've smoked. It's flavor is nothing short of intoxicating but it's also very hard to acurately describe. It has a sweetness from the cavendish but also a very natural tobacco flavor from the burley and Va's. It's like nothing you will ever smoke. You'll either love it or hate it. As far as I've heard in the reviews I've read there's no inbetween with NF.
It's flavor stays consistent all the way down the bowl and it burns to a light grey ash. I have NEVER experienced tongue bite with it which is a common issue with outher McB's blends. For some reason this stereotype just doesn't apply with NF. Brother Muddler recently called it "MacBaren's Flagship Blend". I agree with this totally!
It does have one heck of a nicotine kick and will make your head swim if you don't smoke it with respect. Not a good mowing the lawn blend. If you happen to inadvertantly inhale it you may very well fall off your mower. It also has a trerrible room note and isn't much of a crowd pleaser. My employees hate it when I smoke it on long tow truck drives to pick up cars out of state.
I smoke Navy Flake all day long, noon til' night for seven days a week and never tire of it. I figure I've smoked more than 40 pounds of it over the last few years. It's my go to blend and if it were ever unavailable I may actually quit pipe smoking all together. This is the god's honest truth folks!!!!
One more thing. Aging does nothing for it. I've smoked 15 year old tins that were identical to newer production. Don't waste your money on aged tins. The new stuff is just as good.
