| Author | Message | ||
     manav guha Member Username: Manav Post Number: 106 Registered: 06-2004 |
Hi All... As many of you have pointed out, the varieties of pipe tobaccos and mixtures are simply mind boggling! Indeed, part of the pleasure of smoking a pipe is to try out this colourful kaleidoscope of tobaccos. However, I was wondering...how many of you - after having worked your way through these various blends - have decided to stick to a single blend for an extended period of time. By extended period of time, I mean at least 5 years. So, what I am asking is how many of you have smoked the same blend - and only that blend - for at least 5 years? Naturally, the follow up question is: What is that favoured blend? {Post moved to Tobacco Questions -MSS} | ||
| Frank Member Username: Ebonit Post Number: 9 Registered: 12-2008 |
For some years now I stick to a SERIES: The "neutral" ones from Aylesbury. I love both changes and regularity, so I smoke about 6 of that series which seems to me very straight. I mean they are different of course but you can see the line. | ||
| Mike Peters Member Username: Thejackal Post Number: 8 Registered: 12-2008 |
Life is too short to only smoke one blend or type of tobacco. I do have my favorites, however. In the latakia field, I prefer Dunhill Nightcap. It did become the only latakia I smoked for quite some time. When I smoke aromatics, I tend to like black cavendish which I get from my tobacconist (house blend). Stick to all the colors of the rainbow--it makes life more interesting! | ||
| manav guha Member Username: Manav Post Number: 107 Registered: 06-2004 |
Frank...I get what you mean about the 'series'. Mike: Well said! However, I find myself doing the following: Till recently, I used to smoke Squadron Leader all the time...everyday! But I also used to have MacBaren's Navy Cut in my drawer. This functioned as my aromatic fix. I had gotten used to SQL and it was something the taste of which I liked and something which I could smoke without a care. One of the reasons I posed this question to the forum was because the few pipesmokers that I do know personally always seem to smoke a single blend. Sure, like me and I suspect the majority of others, they are willing and eager to try other blends, but their stock blend never varies. When I asked the reason why, they said that (1) they enjoyed their individual blends and (2) for them smoking their pipes was like - in their words - 'their second nature'...something that they did without consciously thinking about it. There is one other interesting thing about this. It seems that they all smoke their own concoctions - meaning their blends were always mixtures that their tobacconists made to order for them. They were not blends that were tinned or otherwise packaged! Cheers! | ||
| Chuck Wright Member Username: Truckerchuck Post Number: 1039 Registered: 05-2004 |
I smoked a mix of Dunhill 965 and Nightcap until Murray quit. Now it is C&D's #99. | ||
| james robert Member Username: Scottish_piper Post Number: 80 Registered: 12-2006 |
I have a favorite blend which I have been smoking almost exclusively for the past few years , but I really can't tell you what it is exactly. I started a box pass a few years ago on another pipe forum , in the end when I got the box back , I was amazed at how much tobacco I ended up with. After trying them all , I decided that I didn't really care for most of them so I mixed all the open tobaccos ( about 5 pounds) and stored them away for a couple of months (I still have all the sealed tins aging). The end result was the most tasteful and enjoyable tobacco I have ever tried , so much so that I dread the day I will run out of it. Once this is gone , not being able to replicate it , I will go back to smoking my few favorites , Rum Flake-Navy Flake-Penzance , on an alternating basis. I tend to agree with Mike tho , that part of the smoking experience is to try different tobaccos , at least occasionally , or you could miss out on a real good one. | ||
| Kaseri Member Username: Kaseri Post Number: 2 Registered: 10-2008 |
My favorite blend is G.L. Pease Westminster. Every month I buy two 2oz tins and one 1lb tin which I store. I'm hoping to have so much that if the blend should ever be discontinued I'll have enough to smoke for the rest of my life. | ||
| matt Member Username: Matty Post Number: 1 Registered: 12-2008 |
Most real old timers I know smoke drug store blends captian black and borkum riff, I give them samples of my premo stuff like haddo's and full va flake and they are not really into it like I am, I hord as much good tobacco as I can. | ||
| manav guha Member Username: Manav Post Number: 108 Registered: 06-2004 |
Kesari...lol! Does this mean that you only smoke GLP's Westminster? From the posts that you folks have made thus far, I am coming to the conclusion that there are perhaps two kinds of pipe smokers. For the sake of convenience, I will label them as follows: The first type, I will identify as 'the connoisseur' - those who like tasting/ trying out various types of tobaccos. They generally have a variety of tobaccos in their cellars. These folks also have a good number of pipes - they also have quite a few high-end pipes. They are really into pipe-smoking as a hobby. These folks are into the finer nuances of pipe smoking. These are the folks who have fairly detailed 'rotation' schedules etc. The second kind of smoker is what I will term as 'the regulars'. These folks, while they have spent the time learning how to smoke a pipe, settle down fairly quickly to either a single blend of tobacco or a very small spread of blends. These folks are also not very 'rotation conscious' - when it comes to their pipes. These smokers generally have a limited number of pipes, which more often than not are in the mid-range. More often than not, they smoke multiple bowls on a daily basis and while they may not seem to be fastidious about their pipes, they will not be caught without them either. These folks have pipes in their hands and mouths most of the time. I guess, one way to distinguish between the two is to say that while the former may be considered as hobbyists, the latter are smokers - if you know what I mean. Yes, I know the above is a gross generalization...but what do you folks think? Is there some truth in this? | ||
| manav guha Member Username: Manav Post Number: 109 Registered: 06-2004 |
James...interesting concept this 'box pass'!!! | ||
| burro Member Username: Burro Post Number: 53 Registered: 02-2008 |
i could easily smoke prince albert as my only tobacco | ||
| Wayne S Benge Member Username: Wsbenge Post Number: 428 Registered: 05-2005 |
Yeah Manav, I follow what you say. I am just a smoker, it seems. I am very tired of buying expensive tobacco that I don't like as much as Prince Albert, or Captain Black White. Some of the Flake tobacco is nice, though. It shows up in a store, once in a while. | ||
| David Member Username: Davy51 Post Number: 98 Registered: 11-2007 |
I guess i fit the second category I always have my pipe and do try different blends but have my regular blends on hand all the time I do collect older pipes and have about 45 of them I have about 5 regular blends mostly Burlys | ||
| Chuck Wright Member Username: Truckerchuck Post Number: 1043 Registered: 05-2004 |
After reading your addendum, I guess I am somewhere between hobbiest and regular. I do stick to a rather strict rotation with my regular smokers and clean/polish my pipes once a month. But, I also smoke only one blend. Most of my pipes are in the mid to upper price range. | ||
| carlos beceiro Member Username: Rambler Post Number: 61 Registered: 09-2007 |
Manav, I don't think it categorizes that simply. Seems like some "connoisseurs" as you would say have many many high end pipes, but only smoke one or two blends really. I'm thinking of two that post regularly on this forum, the forum mediator Melvin, who only smokes Penzance in the most expensive pipes available, Dunhills, and of Chuck, who posted above, who seems to mainly smoke Engine 99 out of higher-end Petersons. I might fit into the second category, with six cheaper pipes (a couple of cobs among them), except I am constantly trying new tobaccos and looking for them. So, I can't really agree with your scheme there. But thanks for the idea! I like it. | ||
| manav guha Member Username: Manav Post Number: 112 Registered: 06-2004 |
Carlos... Well...as I said this classification was a very rough and general one. Also, please do not misunderstand me. What I was trying to get across was that the connoisseurs - as I term them - are the ones who experiment. They experiment with tobaccos and pipes - as a consequence, they build up quite a collection of pipes and tobaccos. I referred to such folks as the 'hobbyists'. The so-called 'smokers', however, are the ones who while they may care for their pipes are not very particular about their habits. They are also (again, very generally speaking) single blend smokers. These folks, while they may have quite a stash of tobacco, usually have one particular blend or a few secondary alternatives. They don't usually keep large stocks simply because they are smoking it up all the time. As for their pipes, well, to put it simply, they are merely utilitarian, which is why I said that they end up being generally mid-range. In short, the 'smokers' don't really put too much thought into smoking their pipes...They just smoke them! If you catch my drift. Pipe smoking is not a hobby to them. Needless to say - as Chuck points out - there are crossovers. My primary question still remains - I am more interested in the single blends that our forum members smoke. That bit about the classification was, I guess, more of an aside. Cheers! | ||
| Harvey Click Member Username: Fafhrd Post Number: 1345 Registered: 03-2006 |
Well, let's see, back in the 70s I think I went through three years or so when I mostly smoked Mac Baren Golden Extra, though I did occasionally smoke other blends for variety. And for three or four years in the 80s I smoked nothing but Barking Dog (this was the original and "true" BD made by Philip Morris, and I would still smoke at least two bowls of it every day if it were still available). These days I start off with two bowls of Walnut, progress to a variety of blends in the afternoon, and almost always settle down with Bracken Flake or SG brown or black rope in the evening. | ||
| carlos beceiro Member Username: Rambler Post Number: 62 Registered: 09-2007 |
Manav, I agree it is tempting to explain reality in terms of dualist logic, but it is just a tool to gain perspective, and one finds that such classifications are ultimately false and worthless. It also may help you to imagine a "spectrum" with these two "characters" you've imagined at either end, but again you will eventually find too much evidence that refutes it. I like your general scheme, but I think it is incorrect. Thank you again for posting! I can't really answer your first question as I haven't smoked any one blend solidly for five years straight. Happy Holidays! | ||
| manav guha Member Username: Manav Post Number: 113 Registered: 06-2004 |
Harvey...thanks for sharing the info. When I was in the UK, I used to see the SG Brown and Black Ropes on the shelves. My tobbaconist warned me that they were strong, so I resisted buying and trying them. I regret that now. Carlos...lol! I am with you in so far as the dualistic logic goes, though I was not trying to understand pipe smoking in philosophical terms! Maybe I should! In so far as I am concerned, my current circumstances are forcing me to smoke CBW ( tried to flavour some locally available flakes with Rum, but that experiment turned out to be a disaster - there is a thread on this elsewhere on this forum)...simply because I cannot get my preferred blend (Squadron Leader and/ or MacBaren's Navy Flake) easily - though I am exerting myself strenously to gain a secure and assured channel to get them! Happy Holidays to you and to all! | ||
| Kaseri Member Username: Kaseri Post Number: 3 Registered: 10-2008 |
I have a few blends that I enjoy but Westminster is my favorite English blend. | ||
| Kurt Toelken Member Username: Michigander Post Number: 26 Registered: 09-2008 |
When I started smoking 35 years ago, I smoked Three Nuns exclusively (the original, not the current). At some point after many years, I began trying others. I now have a 40 pipe rotation with a 16 Tobacco rotation. I do not see myself ever going back to a single smoke. | ||
| James MacKay Member Username: Bigjim Post Number: 53 Registered: 09-2008 |
I guess that this series of posts explains why we are all pipe smokers! I am very fastidious about maintenance, rotation and quality of my pipes. I am not picky about the tobacco that goes in them as long as it is mild and tastes like tobacco. Prior to the internet, and moving to a large city, my tobacco choices were limited to the local drugstore. However, if Amphora brown was still around, I would probably still be smoking it! Skandinavik just isn't the same! | ||
| Joseph Conrad Member Username: Joseph_conrad Post Number: 121 Registered: 08-2006 |
re: "...how many of you have smoked the same blend - and only that blend - for at least 5 years? Naturally, the follow up question is: What is that favoured blend?" I don't smoke only one blend, but I could easily get by on nothing but Dunhill Early Morning Pipe. It appears that it and all other Dunhill tobaccos are going extinct as we speak. It figures. :^( | ||
| Gig Azar Member Username: Gigazar Post Number: 25 Registered: 11-2007 |
I have yet to smoke a blend that I like enough to smoke all day and every day. I'm desperate to find it, for I am a man who likes routine  | ||
| Robert Bittner Member Username: Rmbittner Post Number: 245 Registered: 01-2005 |
"...how many of you have smoked the same blend - and only that blend - for at least 5 years? Naturally, the follow up question is: What is that favoured blend?" Wow. I cannot imagine doing this. To me, pipe smoking is exploration, discovery, reflection. While I do have some favorites, they number more than a dozen. And I am constantly trying new blends while continually cellaring favorites both old and new. (I guess I fall into Manav's "Connoisseur" category, although I wouldn't use that word myself.) So, I have about 96 blends in my cellar at present, but a good two dozen of them are single tins that I just haven't gotten around to trying yet. The rest are cellared in quantities ranging from 4 tins to 46 tins. | ||
| Gig Azar Member Username: Gigazar Post Number: 47 Registered: 11-2007 |
I love Boswell's Northwoods but its difficult for me to get as they do not sell internationally, maybe oneday. Another tobacco which is my mainstay tobacco and easy for me to obtain locally and I have always on hand is PS Luxury Navy flake. it's a consistently good smoke for me and one I could smoke all day |