Hearth & Home Marquee Virginia Memory

Virginia Memory has a very pleasant tin aroma. It was a bit moist and hard to light at first. After 4-5 bowls I still do not get a lot of taste from this flake. It might benefit from aging.

Mac Baren always comes to mind when I think of sugary Virginias, and Virginia No. 1 was my favorite tobacco of this genre. However, Virginia Memory surpasses every other honey or brown sugar topped Virginia that I have smoked. I purposely waited a while to write this review because I was not impressed with the contents of the freshly cracked tin, but I could tell that the stuff had potential. The Virginia needed to ripen, and the topping needed to settle into the tobacco. Don't even bother smoking this tobacco until the tin has been open for two or three weeks. I jarred the contents of the tin, and have been smoking some of it pretty much once a week, and it tastes better each time I smoke it. If I had the discipline to let it sit for a good long time, I am sure that it would be ridiculously delicious. Like most all Virginias, this tobacco will bite if you push it too hard, however it is remarkably well behaved considering its sugar content. Also, the flakes are very odd in construction, but they work well. If you are an aromatic smoker who wants to branch out, or are a seasoned Virginia lover who likes Mac Baren Virginias—but doesn't like the bite they tend to cause—give this flake a try. With a few weeks of aging, it is easily a five-star tobacco.

As a burley lover, I find this a nice addition to my rotation. It has real tobacco taste, not adulterated with flavorings, and when properly packed, I like to use short pieces of the slabs rather than rubbing it out, requires a minimim number of relights! A really nice smoke that is a must try!

Perhaps I didn't know what I was getting into, but this tobacco (to my palate) was a massive miss. It has a strong topping of caramel/vanilla/peach that was completely unexpected given the description. It's not a straight Virginia by a long shot, and shouldn't be marketed as such. Heavily topped, sickly sweet...not good if you're looking for a straight virginia flake.

I enjoy this very much. Beautiful tin note. The smoke had the usual sweetness of the Virginia. There was some pepper and a slight coconut note. I must say though that my sample was dated February 2003, so it did have plenty of time so settle right.

What a wonderful smoke! This was the first true flake in the Marquee Series and the first true flake that I have ever smoked. I had to do some research on the many ways to load my pipe with flake tobacco, and in the end I chose to tear a flake in half and then fold it loosely two to three times (depending on bowl size) before gently inserting and tapping it into my pipe. The lighting and burning were very easy using this method. The smoke was very flavorful with an overall sweet taste. It also left me with a slight tingling sensation in my mouth. Very enjoyable!

This is a great smoke. It has a fantastic tin note that smells like chocolate when it is first opened and then turns to that grassy, hay like tin note that so familiar with great VAs. This is truly a great VA. Taste great and consistent through the whole bowl. Great tasting tobacco.

Nice smoking Virginia. It had an incredible tin note when first opened that smelled like chocolate but changed to the more familiar hay-like aroma after a few days. It came in beautiful flakes that were easy to either fold or rub out. Great tasting tobacco and no bite.