Time to set aside the fruit salad and chocolate cake and street-walker perfumes. One of the original recipes from Samuel Gawith, certainly glad I tried this one. I get no floral at all, nothing other than tobacco. Rich full tobacco.And that’s just fine with me! If you’ve ever been in a walk-in humidor at a tobacco shop, or better still, sat in that old, high back leather chair that was the favored perch of a long time pipe smoker, that kind of tobacco smell. Warm, deep and comfortable, I now know what snuff is supposed to be! All the associations you’ve ever seen made in other snuffs along the lines of earthy, woody, peaty, they’re all present in this one! One of the first snuffs I’ve tried that I can see getting something larger than 10g at a time!
welcome to the world of samuel gawith my friend. glad i could be of help to you. now you have to try the rest of them. of the 20-30 i have, only 1 or 2 do i dislike.
Indeed jack, thank you! I’ve a couple more Sam G’s from a recent order to try yet. Pinch of the KB now, morning fresh nose, and this is more in line with what I had envisioned snuff to be.
I loved your first line! that was great. Yes, SG to me, is what I always imagined snuff to be. I don’t know if you’ve been to their site, but they have a handy grind/aroma/moisture calculator which helps a lot to determine what you’d like to try next. Which other one’s did you get?
I had more fun with their site, articles calculator and all. Irish D Original and SP Scotch remain to try. Probably later this afternoon before I get to them.
KBO hails from the halcyon days when tobacco blending was the chief means of obtaining variety in taste and texture for aromatic snuff. The non-proprietary name of Kendal Brown has a number of variants (that by Wilsons is, in my opinion, quite ghastly), but this is the original 1792 blend. To ensure that no one is left in doubt about that fact, Samuel Gawith registered sole right to use ‘original’ (previously ‘genuine’) in trading in 1877. As well as having a wonderful texture and flavour it does not cloy thereby inviting heavy indulgence without congestion. Because the mixture uses much stalk the flavour lingers although care must be taken to prevent premature drying. I buy this snuff by the pound.
Always enjoy the snuff history tid-bits Philip, could never be enough of them. And I can certainly appreciate wanting this one in bulk!
There doesn’t seem to be a source for SG bulk snuffs in the US. I have been very happy however with a home grind using Cob Plug from Sam G, available as pipe tobacco from Marscigars.com. There are a few SG plugs available and with a bit of effort, all would probably make first rate snuffs.The plug is pressed between heated iron plates and cooked for some time resulting in a dense dark block which is then scented or not. The result is a superb, slow burning and powerful pipe tobacco. The “flake” version is pre-sliced plug served up in a can. But there is an arcane satisfaction in cutting or rasping off the tobacco from the plug.
@stitch History, arcane piques my curiosity. I just took a look at Mars, no SG Cob at the moment but there is Black XX, Brown No.4 twists… Found one thread here on snuffhouse about snuff from twists, I imagine I could find more, but could you expand a little. What do you use as a rasp and what would a complete novice such as I look for in a rope or twist for suitable material to, er…, rasp?
Somehow I’ve managed to never try KB orginal from SG. I do have a the G. Smith’s Kendal Brown. Can anyone say if that is the same or not. I’m presuming it was milled by Sam Gawith.
“Somehow I’ve managed to never try KB orginal from SG. I do have a the G. Smith’s Kendal Brown. Can anyone say if that is the same or not. I’m presuming it was milled by Sam Gawith.” No, it’s not the same. Making snuff outside Kendal and marketing it under that name is rather like a Champagne being produced outside Champagne. Given the mixture of KBO 1792 original - a closely guarded secret - it is a safe prediction that, however educated the nose, this snuff can never be counterfeited. That produced by Gawith Hoggarth is the closest.
“Always enjoy the snuff history tid-bits Philip, could never be enough of them.” Always happy to historical add tid-bits whenever I can. SG used to advertise the date of their Kendal Brown on the tin, emblazoned in bold yellow letters the date 1792. That was the year before Louis XVI of France looked through the little round window and sneezed into the sack.