Does anyone else enjoy smoking a pipe?

[Chadwick]

Several years ago a doctor told me I needed to stop with the smoke in the lungs. I grew up around grandfathers and old men that smoked pipes and the doctor concurred, reluctantly, that smoking a pipe may be the least harmful way to use tobacco as long as you do not inhale. Thus, my pipe smoking began.

Rather than tell the tale of how I discovered that good tobacco is not unlike good beer. I'll skip that whole story and ask the main question.

Who else enjoys a GOOD pipe? And I assure you, regardless of what is happening in some states, I'm talking about smoking tobacco in a tobacco pipe. Briar pipes are my preference.

I'll start by mentioning that I find that English/latakia blends are excellent paired with dark stouts. I enjoy more Virginia based blends with perique along side of IPA's.

 

[Clonefan94]

I certainly enjoy it. A new vice I just picked up. Right now I'm finishing up a small bowl of Davidoff Royalty in an estate Big Bowl Ranger. Just the right size for a nightcap. I agree with your parings above.

There has been a great thread started on this, you should join the discussion there.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f19/pipe-smoking-lost-art-315645/

 

[bajaedition]

Back in the 70s I tried it but everyone thought I was smoking weed

so I stopped

then about 6 years ago one of my good friends picked it up, took me about 3 weeks of smelling his tobacco to go out and pick up a pipe of my own and start the downward spiral into GOOD tobacco

I have some nice pipes now, have been gifted soem really nice ones and have gone out and gotten a few really nice ones
but my favorite
is a cheap churchwarden that smokes like a 400 dollar Rinaldi.

 

[sandyeggoxj]

My preference is cigars but I smoke a pipe from time to time. I carry one and a tin of tobacco in my fire pack in the summers when I'm stuck on some wild land fire incident somewhere. Things get slow when we are monitoring so I'll bust out the pipe and enjoy the afternoon.

I agree that it is a lost art. Everyone looks at me like an old fart, but last I checked mid-twenties is pretty damn young.

 

[Wheelspin]

I smoked a pipe for about ± 20 years - then one day gave up completely. And when I say I smoked a pipe, I mean really smoked a pipe. Breakfast, lunch and supper. It was my trademark. Absolutely loved it at the time, nothing better than relighting a pipe that has already had a few puffs taken out of it then put down. But the real deal is that smoking a pipe is not a "better option" than cigarettes. In fact it is probably even more hardcore. The stinky tar that drips out of the stem is (not to put too fine point on it) foul, you get holes in your clothes and everything you wear smells of smoke.

However, everyone seems to love the smell so you score there. It also looks, kinda quirky so I suppose that's another plus. However, I'm very very happy that's all behind me now.

I suppose if you can do it in moderation it's cool. I couldn't.

 

[n240sxguy]

My wife got me a sweet Nording pipe for Christmas, after prodding her for the last year and a half. She was vehemently against me smoking because I usually overdo most everything that I get into. I smoke it about every couple weeks, which she said she could handle. Her brother smoking cigars, and me lighting one up with him when we got a chance to visit, opened her up to the idea. She said she smelled a nice cherry pipe tobacco someone was smoking outside walmart the other day, and I should get something like that. I told her that was probably nasty tasting stuff because the cheap cherry stuff most places sell smells great, but tastes horrible.



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[progmac]

it's CRAZY smoking a cigarette after taking up smoking a pipe with good tobacco. the cigarette sort of tastes like a garbage can.

i enjoy a pipe maybe once a month.

 

[Clonefan94]

Got this in the mail on Friday. I had a bowl of the Davidoff Royalty at a friends house. Had to give a try to some others in this line. Good variety of tobacco that should last me a while. And at $40 for the lot, it will really help me reduce my cigar costs. From what I've smoked so far, this is probably the equivalent of a $400 cigar purchase as far as smoking time goes.

Don't get me wrong, still love a good cigar, but the price comparison really can't be beat. Plus, I love the idea of loading just enough for the time I have, as opposed to not finishing a $6 cigar and relighting the next day.

 

[Chadwick]

Got this in the mail on Friday. I had a bowl of the Davidoff Royalty at a friends house. Had to give a try to some others in this line. Good variety of tobacco that should last me a while. And at $40 for the lot, it will really help me reduce my cigar costs. From what I've smoked so far, this is probably the equivalent of a $400 cigar purchase as far as smoking time goes.

Don't get me wrong, still love a good cigar, but the price comparison really can't be beat. Plus, I love the idea of loading just enough for the time I have, as opposed to not finishing a $6 cigar and relighting the next day.

I'm a big fan of the G.L.Pease line. I've heard good things about Davidoff tobaccos, but haven't tried any yet. Let me know your impressions. For what it is worth, I prefer non-aromatic blends. One of my favorites is a large 8oz tin I have of Cumberland by GLP, it's the old original blend containing the 20+ year old KY burley. I have about half of it left. So creamy and rich, so smooth and you cannot make it bite if you tried. That is my biggest thing. I do not tolerate even a hint of bite in a tobacco. I age some of my tobaccos for a very long time before I smoke them because of this. Orlek golden sliced, for example. I like this tobacco, but I have to put it in a mason jar and wait at least a year before I can smoke it.

My favorite 5 pipe tobaccos are: Irish Flake, Cumberland, Triple Play, Chelsea Morning, and Jackknife Plug. Although I have at least a dozen more in my rotation. But these 5 are the ones that I savor and treat like, well a treat!

Thank goodness I don't have to wait as long for beer to age.

 

[sandyeggoxj]

Got this in the mail on Friday. I had a bowl of the Davidoff Royalty at a friends house. Had to give a try to some others in this line. Good variety of tobacco that should last me a while. And at $40 for the lot, it will really help me reduce my cigar costs. From what I've smoked so far, this is probably the equivalent of a $400 cigar purchase as far as smoking time goes.

Don't get me wrong, still love a good cigar, but the price comparison really can't be beat. Plus, I love the idea of loading just enough for the time I have, as opposed to not finishing a $6 cigar and relighting the next day.

They make $6 cigars? I'll have to throw out my humidor of $10+ and go get what you are smoking!

 

[Chadwick]

They make $6 cigars? I'll have to throw out my humidor of $10+ and go get what you are smoking!

I actually got a mail order magazine in today from Cigars International which has a lot of hand-made cigars for as little as $0.50 per cigar. Of course, if you want the high rated stuff, you will pay at least $3 a pop. Still, that is way cheaper than buying from a price gouging tobacco shop that is mostly focused on pushing Philip Morris stuff.

www.cigarsintl.com if you want to check it out.

 

[Clonefan94]

They make $6 cigars? I'll have to throw out my humidor of $10+ and go get what you are smoking!

Yeah, but I alway buy full boxes. I usually order online and spend $200+ each time. Obviously it depends on what you smoke, but I usually buy a box of La Gloria Cubana Series R - $110/20, a box of punch - $65/25 and then throw in something else that trips my trigger. Just like brewing, I buy in bulk to keep costs as low as possible. Then again, I've been smoking cigars long enough that I've found the brands I really enjoy and give me a good consistent smoke.

These are every day smokes though. I'm not talking about the Cuban Monte Christo #2s, that when I can find them I buy and they definitely break that budget.

Cigars International, Mikes Cigars are a couple of places I buy from that even have the major brands at or near the $6 mark for something you'd pay $10 in a tobacco shop for.

 

[Clonefan94]

I'm a big fan of the G.L.Pease line. I've heard good things about Davidoff tobaccos, but haven't tried any yet. Let me know your impressions. For what it is worth, I prefer non-aromatic blends. One of my favorites is a large 8oz tin I have of Cumberland by GLP, it's the old original blend containing the 20+ year old KY burley. I have about half of it left. So creamy and rich, so smooth and you cannot make it bite if you tried. That is my biggest thing. I do not tolerate even a hint of bite in a tobacco. I age some of my tobaccos for a very long time before I smoke them because of this. Orlek golden sliced, for example. I like this tobacco, but I have to put it in a mason jar and wait at least a year before I can smoke it.

My favorite 5 pipe tobaccos are: Irish Flake, Cumberland, Triple Play, Chelsea Morning, and Jackknife Plug. Although I have at least a dozen more in my rotation. But these 5 are the ones that I savor and treat like, well a treat!

Thank goodness I don't have to wait as long for beer to age.

I'm really new to this latest addiction, so I'm not sure how much my impressions really are worth. But here it goes.

The Royalty, imo, is great. Lotsof intricate flavors throughout the smoke. Just what I would expect in a quality cigar, only in pipe form.

The Danish mixture is another of my favorites. Again, a lot going on in the smoke, yet still holding true to a non-aromatic smoke.

Flaked medallions. Never expected this when I opened them. Wheels of tobacco basically, with a cavendish center. I had to go online to find out how to even pack the bowl with this. In the end though, another quality smoke.

The English mixture and scottish mixture both seem to be slightly aromatic. Really good, imo, but there are flavors in them that don't necessarily speak to the trueness of the tobacco.

So far, the Royalty is still my favorite. I'm an old time cigar smoker, so I really like to have that tobacconess shine through as opposed to a lot of aromatics. This delivers. I wouldn't hesitate to buy any of the 5 again, but of the 5, the Royalty will be a staple I keep on hand, the Danish is up there possibly as well. The others though, I like, but I'll definitely give some other brands a shot before I pick up more of them.

I hope this helps. Hell, for all I know it could be the presentation they give you when you open the tin. Beautifully pleated paper wrap opens to find a card stock label matching the tin face covering the tobacco. As a graphic designer, I'm a sucker for a good presentation.

I'm so new, that I have no idea if the price for these is good or not. at $8/pop, seems good compared to cigars. A lot of smoking in one tin that would be at best, 2 cigars. So I'm not put off. I have seen reviews on them that say they are pricy, but coming from cigars, I'd pay this all day for any of these so far.

 

[gravel]

I quite enjoy pipe smoking. I only get the chance 2-4 times a month. I prefer VA blends but I do smoke an occasional burley or light-medium English blend.


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[zombie]

I usually smoke cigar but I do enjoy smoking a pipe from time to time. A Missouri Meerschaum and Captain Black. Great taste and great aroma for around 15 bucks.

 

[n240sxguy]

I usually smoke cigar but I do enjoy smoking a pipe from time to time. A Missouri Meerschaum and Captain Black. Great taste and great aroma for around 15 bucks.

Which captain black?


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[zombie]

Regular (the stuff in the white pouch)

 

[Chadwick]

Captain Black has bitten me in the past. I've steered away from it ever since. If I recall correctly, the white pouch stuff wasn't nearly as bad to bite as some of the others. I still have those pouches. They are old enough now they might be worth re-hydrating and trying again to see if age improved them. I packed one of my cob pipes with some Smokers Pride Whiskey blend that is about 6 years old now. Age didn't help that one at all. Still bites like a rabid dog and tastes as sour as ever. Oh well, not everything improves with age.

 

[n240sxguy]

I've tried the captain black white and gold pouch. Not a big fan. They aren't too bad. I prefer the CAO moontrance and Eileen's dream. Sutliff alexander bridge is pretty good.


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[hunter_le five]

I used to be a daily pipe smoker back in my college days. I guess it was sort of a hipster phase, but the pipe smoking was as far as it went. Smoked everything from Prince Albert and Captain Black to Dunhill and a multitude of custom mixes from various local tobacconists. I had about 10 pipes at one point, including some home-made ones, but I've since gotten rid of most of them.

I'll still smoke occasionally on a camping trip or vacation, but other than that I've mostly given it up. I got tired of always smelling like smoke and the effect on my taste buds.