As I said, relatively a beginner, and this is just my experience. I got this because reviews made it seem difficult and legendary and I wanted to jump in the deep end. First, it's a flake. That's fine, I just broke it up well with my fingers, then it's a ribbon like the other 3 or 4 I have tried. On opening the tin, the smell was rank, horrible, off-putting. I kept in mind that everyone says tin odor doesn't relate much to smoke. OK, I forged ahead. It felt about right for moisture to me, but in hindsight it was a bit moist. Should have given it a few minutes. Even so, it burned well and smoothly about half way down. A relight after a few minutes rest, and it took me through to about 20% remaining. There I quit, not wanting to press my luck.
As a newbie, I'm not going to comment on subtleties of flavor etc because I don't have a lot to compare to. I'll just say I found it flavorful and pleasant, there was nothing to object to.
Bottom line, newbies, don't avoid flakes! Don't panic if the stuff smells gawdawful. But it really does smell bad, which is unavoidable since you have to handle it quite a bit. So minus one star on the total experience.
