First Rope - Recommendations?

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phred

Lifer
Dec 11, 2012
1,754
4
So there I was, out on my back patio last night with my meerschaum and some Frog Morton "Across the Pond", scribbling down some ideas for short stories that I want to get outlined for an upcoming writing seminar, and it occurred to me that for research purposes, I should probably try some rope or twist tobacco so that I'm familiar with the additional steps in prepping said tobacco, as one of the (somewhat minor) characters I'm playing around with is a pipe smoker among a crew of tobacco-chewers on an airship (so not a lot of pipe smoking going on except when this character's "at liberty")...
So - as a relative newbie myself, I've not requested a lot of tobacco recommendations as my palate is still under development, and I can find a lot of recommendations by trawling the older threads. Ropes, however, appear to be very much a different sort of thing altogether (based on the threads I've found so far), and I suspect that a few that I've seen mentioned will be very much out of my wheelhouse. After my initial head-spinning, eye-crossing, sinus-ghosting experience with Black House, I fell very much in love with Latakia-forward blends, so it's entirely likely that something similar could happen with ropes. So far, I've gathered that they're mostly produced by the Gawiths - Samuel Gawith/Gawith & Hoggarth - and that the black ropes are 'stoved', whereas the brown ropes are not, which in turn has some effect on flavor and relative levels of nicotine, but what would y'all recommend for a first-time rope smoker?

 

settersbrace

Lifer
Mar 20, 2014
1,565
5
I'd recommend Samuel Gawith's Black XX Rope. It's really not a bad smoke if you prep it right. I slice coins off, let them sit for a day or so in the open air and rub it out. Some additional dry time may be needed but you'd be surprised at just how much drying it can take. Load and smoke, not a real heavy hitter in the nic dept. but it's adequate. There are many who still in fact use it as chewing tobacco, (I've tried it, not a huge fan) the Brown Rope is a more potent twist I've heard.

 

Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
43,248
108,340
Ropes do pack a punch, so definitely proceed with caution. Definitely agree with the Black Twist XX, and settersbrace is dead on about rope prep. XX tastes like flame charred steak, and is amazing, but try it first in a small pipe first and proceed from there. Enjoy!

 

bonehed

Part of the Furniture Now
Nov 27, 2014
636
0
I'll vote Brown as well. I'm not a fan of the Black, though many are...

 

settersbrace

Lifer
Mar 20, 2014
1,565
5
CM is right about the "flame charred steak" reference. It's been some time since I've messed with it but reading his post caused an immediate taste flashback! Now I have to go cut a hunk off and prep it, I'm hungry!

 

phred

Lifer
Dec 11, 2012
1,754
4
Thanks for the info! I'll definitely save any experimentation for the weekend, and preferably one where I don't have to drive anywhere...
There are many who still in fact use it as chewing tobacco,

Perfect. Not something I plan to do on a regular basis (spittoons gross me out...), but knowing it can be done will give the scene I'm working on some versemilitude. :D

 

saltedplug

Lifer
Aug 20, 2013
5,194
5,097
I've only smoked GH Brown and Black rope, but from what I've heard the SG ropes are very close. Now that they're under the same roof perhaps the two will merge. The Brown is stronger but both are so strong that if you can smoke Black you can easily smoke Brown. I find the flavor of the Brown good but plain; to me the Black has more flavor.
Rope for its strength and presentation is a tobacco that I would try if for the only reason that it is 250? years old; cut a length and put it in your pocket and you're good for a day in the mines, or in a different environment, at sea. It's pipe history in the same way that a Dunhill patent bulldog is that was made during the blitz.
But if Black House was too much rope will be far too much. Answer: if you want to explore, put the pipe down immediately when your stomach says something funny. If you keep smoking past this point, you're going to be streaking for the bathroom. It's easy, just put the pipe down and you can try again in ten minutes. I do this when I'm smoking too fast and I can't seem to slow down.

 

phred

Lifer
Dec 11, 2012
1,754
4
Thanks for your insights, everyone. I'll take them under advisement while I put together a TAD order...
But if Black House was too much rope will be far too much.
Well, Black House was only too much the very first time I smoked it, which was about 3 weeks after I first started smoking. 8O Now that I know more about what I'm doing, it's become a cherished favorite, and I no longer get the collywobbles. Lessons learned, which I'll apply to the rope experimentation. :D

 
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