I find that if you let the Coniston Cut Plug age in the jar a bit the virginias sweeten it up very nicely and smooths out the dark fired Kentucky. The last batch I bought was very tasty. My experience with Gawith flakes is if they sit in a very well sealed Mason jar, time works some magic with those blends.I also have a jar of Brown Flake scented that I didn’t like initially, but after it sat for a few years and then after a little more drying time, I felt it was much more enjoyable. The Rum Flake is a Xmas type blend for me and I love smoking it that time of year. Loved when they made the scented version of Coniston back in the day, but found the unscented version to be a little sharp. Will have to revisit some time!