Samuel Gawith St. James Flake Burnt Ends

Burnt Ends is a product resulting from collecting the leftover edge pieces from Samuel Gawith's St. James Flake production. It carries the main blend's leaf structure: bright virginias are combined with perique from Louisiana's St. James region, a bit of sugar is added to the mixture, and it is pressed and sliced. Since the edge portions of the pressed block don't yield neat slices, they are collected separately; so the product consists of irregular, partly rubbed pieces rather than a regular flake. The flavor profile sits on the same ground as St. James Flake: virginia's hay and bready sweetness is topped by perique's peppery, lightly plummy spice. Because the edge pieces come from the block's outer surface, color and moisture distribution are more variable.