Multiple Tobacco Choices Or Stick To One?

[Skapie]

Do you stick to the one blend you like, or do you keep multiple options to use as and when you feel like it?
I don't have what you would call a developed palate but I like to try new things, so I currently have 4 different blends and "flavours" at home, one of which I just bought based on a review on the home page, Peterson's Irish Oak. I'm keen to try non-aromatics.
With the rate that I'm smoking this amount of tobacco will last for years.
Do I keep buying and trying out new blends, or do you find that after a while you choose one and stick with it?

 

[judcole]

This is very much an individual thing. I keep 20 or so blends in rotation. When I started, however, it was one blend at a time.

I think it might well be advisable for newer folks to keep it simple at first. Get to know a blend, and don't overwhelm your palate. ::

 

[cosmicfolklore]

For me, if I smoke the same blend twice in a row, I stop tasting it. I like to keep at least four different blends open in my rotation, sometimes up to twelve. But, we have members here who only smoke one blend all of the time. And, in the past, we have had members who smoke just one blend in one pipe all of the time. So, you get to make your own path through this hobby (or whatever you want to call it).

 

[mcitinner1]

I always have around ten jars on my desk to choose from. Four or five of them get grabbed most often for a while. Then I'll put most of them back in the "cellar" and pick some different ones.

 

[Skapie]

Thanks gentlemen. I think Jud's advice makes logical sense to me. While I've been smoking pipe for about 7 years now, I did it so little and infrequently that I'm still very much a newcomer to it all. For instance only after reading this forum did I realise I was packing too densely. My pipe now stays notably cooler than before, even though I always took care to not let my pipe get too hot.
I also hear what you guys are saying about variety.
Sheesh. For now I think I'll stick to what I have, make notes about what I do and don't like about each one, and thereafter return for more advice!

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Yeh, in going from cigars to pipes, I think a lot of us overpack, because we think that they have to be as tight as a cigar. The best analogy is to a drinking straw. Pack so that it feels like drawing on a drinking straw with a soda in the cup. If it feels like the cup is empty, it's too loose. If it feels like a milkshake, it's too tight. Cigars always tend towards the milkshake side.

 

[mso489]

Forums attracts many pipe people who make an adventure of trying many blends, and having quite a few on hand. Some members' cellars exceed those of most pipe shops. But Jud's advice is good. Indeed, it might be the way to go on a regular basis. Most old time pipe smokers had a favorite and smoked mostly or only that. My dad was a Granger smoker and seldom smoked anything else. As you are a new pipe smoker, I would at least suggest that you take your time and when you do try something new, buy only in the smallest available quantity, like one tin or pouch, and an ounce or two of bulk. Even if you love a blend, I wouldn't buy more than two ounces, for the first few years. Moderate smoking is a good idea, too, as a hedge against health effects. Welcome aboard.

 

[jpmcwjr]

I usually have about four blends in play at anyone time. But have tried many dozens of other ones over time.

 

[oldmojo]

I usually have about four blends in play at anyone time. But have tried many dozens of other ones over time.

Ditto. I normally have a Balkan, an Oriental-forward English, a VaPer, a lat-bomb and one or two that defy categorization in daily rotation. Some stay in rotation for quite a while, while others pass through rather quickly. Variety is the spice of life, and there are hundreds of blends to try. Palates change over time. It doesn't have to be boring.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I have over seventy blends in my closet just to have something to scratch a particular itch at the moment. Could easily manage with just ten, but with the looming FDA insanity on the horizon, I wanted to squirrel away what I can while I can.

 

[PaulTheScandinavian]

I'm pretty much the way as Jud and Mso described,keeping something three open at at time,and all these vary by cut, one ribbon

one ready rubbed yet slow burning flake among these I'm picking one which suits for the moment and my mood,apparently can't do without burley forward blends(meaning its my stable butter&bread) ,but likewise virg-perique or virg-orient they have their own moments,blends like Old Gowrie or Solani633,OGS all them suit me well

Nevretheless I must point out with current(northern) EU region retailing prices and dragonian customs restrictions in addition,its becoming pretty hard to keep even smallish basic tobacco cellar in stability, o to say you gotta plan all buyings&orderings well in advance,no mistake made is allowed here.

 

[Skapie]

Hmm. So after trying the Peterson Irish Oak I'm wondering if I shouldn't stick to light aromatics, which is possibly what drew me to pipes in the first place.
I'll see if it blends well with a pinch of a stronger aromatic, if not it will have to go a friend to test and so on. The nicotine hit was a bit much for me as well, something I've never experienced before from pipe tobacco.

 

[cortezattic]

It's my impression that blend/brand loyalty is a phenomenon among cigarette smokers, and less so among cigar smokers, and hardly at all among pipe smokers. That may have been different in the past. Personally, I need a change-up very frequently, although I do stick to a few favored genres.

 

[lazar]

Sticking to one blend would be like only eating pizza and never having pasta or salad, let alone Chinese, Mexican, Indian, Thai etc. I don't see the point, unless you only like one blend. My dad was like that, but to me exploration is half the enjoyment.

 

[PaulTheScandinavian]

Lazar: You nailed it

 

[newbroom]

There is a learning curve, and thanks to this forum, I got on the right road.

If you're confident in your technique, so that that isn't the source of complaint or interference, I'd say go for it and sample new tobaccos. You'll find your way.