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carlweis

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 7, 2014
146
1
Coming into my 2nd month smoking pipe tobacco, I find myself reaching more oft than not for non aromatics. I was never quite taken with the flavoring of most. I did taste the fine almost absent taste of some blends and enjoyed them as I was starting but I quickly moved closer and closer to my current favorites, those being mostly Dunhill London, Standard Mix, Elizabethian mix, and H&H Mature Virginia. If I want something sweet I just usually just pack a bowl of straight black cavandish and usually more so for company than anything. My wife does not like my choices but I find they suit me quite nicely. Is there anyone who has stuck with the aro's as opposed to the non aro's? This Early Morning Pipe is great, I'm more and more happy I bought a good half lb of it instead of Night Cap.

 

newbroom

Lifer
Jul 11, 2014
6,087
6,394
Florida
I started in earnest in late May, or somewhere around there....and sought non aromatic tobacco after my first pouch of Captain Black. It's taken me awhile to learn how to smoke a pipe, and now I find when I try out an Aro..I enjoy it more. (pack, pace, and puff)

Our 'journeys' have been mirror opposites, almost.

I think a pipe smoker should be open to the experiences of several tastes. Naturally, there will be favorites.

 

carlweis

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 7, 2014
146
1
LOL, Newbroom have you tried Solani Blend 369, its a virginia burley and sweet perique, but it smells and tastes of nuts and apples? It's really nice on a cooler day, I'm saving for fall. I've tried tons of different tobacco's and it surprises me what I'm drawn to during certain times. All I used to smoke was Nightcap, it was my favorite, but now... its Dunhill. I'll tell you one thing though, Stockkebys stuff... I find it very harsh even when sipped in all of my pipes, the taste advertised is there but its got some harshness to it, same with Mac Baren. I had a surprise with Mac Barens HH Mature Blend, very smooth and nice tasting and burns nicely. The one great thing about this hobby is the vast experiences with pipes and tobacco. I just finished a much needed cake scraping to my petersons and polished up the nickle while I was at it and really buffed hard on my Comoy 2nd (Drury Lane England). The briar is beautiful as well as the shape I'm just not really enjoying the bite proof stem and the gurgle. I think I'm gonna have to plug smoke it like my Nording.

 

cmdrmcbragg

Lifer
Jul 29, 2013
1,739
3
I smoked mainly aros for most of my first year before deciding to move on (or grow up). I still smoke some Molto Dolce (mainly for the benefit of others around me) but I've gone full tilt on VAs and English blends.
Personally, I prefer EMP or MM965 over Nightcap. Those Dunhill blends are quite good on the whole.

 

carlweis

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 7, 2014
146
1
I don't know maybe being a previous smoker has drawn me too the english blends?

 

torque

Can't Leave
May 21, 2013
444
2
My journey has been strictly non-aro, though not by choice. I have some strange physical aversion to aromatics, I've yet to try one that didn't give me a very painful headache. My understanding is that there are some really high quality aromatics out there that transcend the "low quality tobacco covered by flavoring" stereotype, and wouldn't mind trying some of these blends. Unfortunately that's a side of pipe smoking I'll never be able to explore.

 

papipeguy

Lifer
Jul 31, 2010
15,778
35
Bethlehem, Pa.
I started with the usual cherry blends and other OTC aromatics available 44 years ago. When I discovered a little B&M in Passaic, NJ the elderly owner turned me onto Dunhill and other English blends in addition to selling me my first GBD pipe. It's been latakia for me ever since. I will admit that on very rare occasion I get a sweet tooth and have a bowl of Gentleman Caller, Autumn Evening or something similar.

 

edgreen

Lifer
Aug 28, 2013
3,581
15
I started with lat bombs and va/pers and they still count for the vast majority of my smokes. There are some aros I enjoy, mostly vanilla and nutty, or rum/whiskey as a change of pace. To answer your question, though, stats still let us know that 90% of pipe smokers smoke aros. Where these people are I have no clue. Certainly not on these forums, or any pipe magazine writers and reviewers. Denmark is just not that large to affect percentages.

 

puffy

Lifer
Dec 24, 2010
2,511
98
North Carolina
Other than straight Virginia.I can pretty smoke anything except blends that are flavord with alcohol.They seem to smoke a bit hot to me.

 

ravkesef

Lifer
Aug 10, 2010
2,912
9,173
81
Cheshire, CT
Hi Carl, coming back to your original question, do some smokers start with an aromatic and stay there? Of course they do--if the taste is exactly what they were seeking when they started smoking a pipe. Believe it or not, Sutliff sells a lot of Mixture 79--it's not a niche market. And there are smokers out there who have never smoked anything else. Why don't we hear from them? Because they're not on this forum. They have their favorite pipes, and their favorite tobacco and they see no need for them to experiment. I never criticize another person's taste. If he's happy with it, great – he sees no need to experiment with different tobacco use, he's not looking to build up a collection of artisanal pipes or a fancy tobacco cellar.–

 

phil67

Lifer
Dec 14, 2013
2,052
7
I started out with aro's as I thought that all pipe tobacco was meant to smell fantastic! The trouble for me was that the 'flavoring' of all these numerous aro's never went beyond leaving a nice room note, but absolutely no flavor other than a hot vapid air. Granted, there were a few that were marginally satisfying, but not enough to keep me interested. I finally ventured out into the non-aro's and for me it was a big awakening. About the only tobacco that I now smoke that comes close to being an aromatic is Mac Baren Virginia No.1, Dunhill Royal Yacht and Peterson University Flake which I absolutely love and discovered only about a month ago. If by chance my daughter and granddaughter are over I'll smoke some PA with a wee bit of 1-Q mixed in. For those that enjoy aro's it's simply a matter of whatever floats your boat just as there are those who love Latakia, which I personally can't stomach other than Mississippi River which I seem to be smoking more and more often now.

 
Jan 8, 2013
7,493
733
I really didn't gravitate toward one or the other. Of course I started out with Captain Black, then tried balkans, and a virginia or two. Somehow I kind of got stuck in the middle. One day I may want a balkan and the next I may want an aro. Or I might want a virgina... sometimes I'll take an aro and add a bit of a balkan blend to it. Call me strange lol.

 

bigboi

Lifer
Nov 12, 2012
1,192
3
I started with Aros, then went VA flake, then English. Like Anthony, I stick mainly to the middle with a slight more leaning towards VA blends. I just this past 2 weeks got introduced to the Lakeland essence. I fried and smoked some Ennerdale flake and decided I really liked it. I tried a pinch of Condor as well. I will be trying to get my hands on more of those two to add to my somewhat meager cellar.

 

phil67

Lifer
Dec 14, 2013
2,052
7
The day that Latakia rules I'll stop smoking a pipe and never look back! :wink:

 
Mar 1, 2014
3,646
4,916
I really do highly recommend Sutliff Frosty Mint, even if only once. It's all about the topping and there's no missing it.

Most aromatic tobacco that I've tried are decent. It seems that most toppings do alright, though a bigger bowl may be helpful.
Strong ordinary flavours are preferred, so the saltiness of Latakia and sweetness of Virginia are most appealing.

The flavour of aged Virginia does intrigue me though, it's not just the sweetness that's appealing there. It has its own flavour that especially shows up in the aftertaste, it reminds me of nothing else I know of, but I definitely like it.

 
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