My First English

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texmexpipe

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 20, 2014
998
246
When I was about 4 my grandpa taught me how to swim, and forgot to tell my mother. That summer my family went down to the neighborhood pool, and I immediately jumped into the deep end. My mother nearly died, and I swam like a fish. Thus at that young age, a pattern in life was started. I picked up the pipe a few weeks ago. I had smoked one with friend a few times about 15 years ago but was a poor college student at the time and never got into it. I've had one terrible pouch tobacco that I smoked almost all the way through just to be sure, and Sutliff's Maple Street which I really enjoy. I tend to obsess over things very easy and get _AD very easy in any new area that I become interested in. After reading loads on the interwebs about different blends and English blends especially, I took the proverbial plunge.
Today my box came from P&C and as I opened it I was greeted with a unique smell. It was the cross between bbq sauce and a camp fire. In the box was 1oz of EMP (yet to be smoked), 1oz of Nightcap, a MM Legend and some unexciting pipe cleaners. I have to say when I opened the Nightcap and stuck my nose in I wasn't sure what to think. It wasn't unpleasant, just different. Woodsy, smokey, that almost BBQ smell.
Char light was magic! Whoa! Where did that intense flavor come from, and how in the world does it taste so good? I can only assume that my uneducated pallet was tasting the latakia. I like it, I like it a lot. It came across almost like incense, but with more depth than that, in that it felt substantial. I was suprised to find a subtle sweetness there that I can only assume was the Va. I am not sure as to all the flavors that I experienced during the bowl. I did find that midway through it I tasted a little of a grassy note from time to time. I didn't find the spiciness unless I retrohaled, which I did at several different points to see how it would change. Not to much change there. I don't know how to describe the bottom third of the bowl, only that it seemed to mellow, which was different than I expected. It may be that by that time I had slowed down enough.
It certainly delivered on the nicotine end of things, and I was quite happy with the gentle sway that I felt by the end. I'm no fiend for the stuff, but I do enjoy it on occasion. I tend to smoke outside and during the first part of my smoke it began to rain. So I moved under the eves of my house and enjoyed the smoke while in my head Eddie Rabbitt sung about his love for a rainy night.
So like the kid who jumps into the deep end, or the 14 year old who discovers the opposite sex for the first time, yup I'm there all over again. Good stuff!

 

texmexpipe

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 20, 2014
998
246
Indeed, I don't see myself putting down the aros or anything, Im far to currious for that, but I certainly wont shy away from the non-aros and English blends. I really do wonder why people seem to discourage people from starting with an English.

 

beefeater33

Lifer
Apr 14, 2014
4,063
6,119
Central Ohio
We don't want you to like the English so there will be more for us!! LOL!! Just Kidding, but I started with aros, and never got much taste...... Sure, the smell was great, but NO taste. English blends don't smell so good, but the taste is there.... kinda like stinky cheese, so much to explore. Welcome to the forums by the way, and like I said-- Enjoy the journey!!

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
Welcome aboard, texmex. It sounds like you have discovered the taste of tobaccos themselves. Aromatics are

comforting for new smokers because, for most, tobacco is an acquired taste, a little like coffee and tea. You have

to get the hang of it. Once you do, it is the essence of flavor and smell with a pipe. I still enjoy aromatics as a

change of pace, but only if they are tobacco forward.

 

puffy

Lifer
Dec 24, 2010
2,511
98
North Carolina
I got a little side tracked with this post.I started remembering when I had sex for my first time...Let me keep it on pipe smoking though.I smoked only aromatics for over 20 years.One day about 20 years ago a co-worker gave me a bowl of Frog Morton to try.It was love at first puff.I still smoke some aromatics.Not the goopy fruity stuff.I like things like Captain Black-White and 1Q..Mostly I smoke Latakia blends.I just love that taste.

 

edwinbaz

Starting to Get Obsessed
Aug 26, 2014
243
1
Houston
Way to jump head first into the pool! You're not the only one who's had that experience. Welcome!

 

newbroom

Lifer
Jul 11, 2014
6,087
6,394
Florida
I filmed myself opening the box containing my first ever Latakia blend. Newminster's Ultimate English.

I had been smoking only Burley, Virginia, Kentucky non aros for the first 3 months of my piping.

The smell was SHOCKING at first and I laughed out loud at the idea that this stuff was considered enjoyable and good. I really was amazed at the smell, which seemed to awaken all sorts of nostalgia that I couldn't quite identify.

I will agree with texmexpipe and probably most of you that the flavor when smoked, the burning characteristics, of the latakia make for a wonderful smoke.

I've since tried some other blends containing Lat and they're nice too. My Nightcap sits on my spice rack flanked by some WhiteKnight and Balkan Sasieni, all awaiting trial. They look so nice on the wall with their other tin brothers of OGS and Escudo, which fill the remaining shelves in a modest display of tins on a spice rack.

 

dottiewarden

Lifer
Mar 25, 2014
3,053
57
Toronto
As a Lat virgin, I'm savoring my cellared tins of Old Dublin and the Frog Morton Series for that oh so special moment.
The anticipation is driving me wild!

 

judcole

Lifer
Sep 14, 2011
7,149
32,917
Detroit
Glad you're enjoying. Welcome to the latakia world. :puffy:
As a Lat virgin, I'm savoring my cellared tins of Old Dublin and the Frog Morton Series for that oh so special moment.
*Waves magic wand* It's here. Enjoy!

 

bulldogbriar89

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 3, 2014
644
1
If you like that smokey wood smell and flavor try McClelland Frog Morton Cellar, It is one of my favorites.

 

texmexpipe

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 20, 2014
998
246
Bulldog, FMC is on the "list" I am actually struggling with some TAD at the moment, but I do love my wife and she's pretty handy to have around, so it will have to wait just a little while longer. Not too much longer though.

 

dottiewarden

Lifer
Mar 25, 2014
3,053
57
Toronto
I honestly thought I could spend all my money on TAD and PAD and get away with it, but the wife's starting to ask some tough questions, such as, "How much money have you spent on pipes and tobacco?" I just mumbled something about it not being too expensive and hope the question doesn't come up again.

 

fnord

Lifer
Dec 28, 2011
2,746
8
Topeka, KS
Welcome to the clambake, Tex.
I fiddle-farted around for years with Aros and the over the counter burleys my granddad smoked. But when somebody introduced me to the King of Smokes I got a hook through my liver.
I started buying the "crossover" English blends - not quite full on Lat blends but the English "aromatics" and enjoyed them until I picked up a tin of Dunhill Nightcap.
As Keith Jackson used to say, "Whoa, Nelly!"
Talk about a knife fight in a phone booth: rare vs. medium rare grilled steaks over charcoal - thank you very much, raw Australian Cabs vs. equally as raw Argentine Malbecs, 9mm vs. 45.cal, Randall vs. Busse blades, Wild Turkey vs. Pappy van Winkle bourbon, etc.
To this day NC remains the standard bearer for Latakia smokes that buzz my buttons. If you love Nightcap be sure and try Mr. Pease's Gaslight, C&D's Montford Point Marines & Star of the East, Capt. Earle's Stimulus Package and Ten Russians, Mr. Oulette's 10 to Midnight, Black House and Larry's Blend plus, a new blend to me, Dan's Old Ironsides flake.
Life is way too short, Tex. Experiment and enjoy.
Fnord

 

apatim

Can't Leave
Feb 17, 2014
497
0
Jacksonville, FL
My experience with Nightcap was similar. I fell in love with Latakia and now have no taste for aromatics other than occasionally having a bowl of Melange with my morning coffee.

 
Mar 1, 2014
3,646
4,916
-dottiewarden
I honestly thought I could spend all my money on TAD and PAD and get away with it, but the wife's starting to ask some tough questions, such as, "How much money have you spent on pipes and tobacco?" I just mumbled something about it not being too expensive and hope the question doesn't come up again.
As a single person I have a few liberties that those more blessed than myself may not have, but within my own budgeting it helps a lot that I know that I smoke at a very moderate pace, a single 50g tin will last months, a 1lb bag should do me for a whole year. I consider tobacco a long term investment, it's not like buying a flat of cola that is gone in a week, and each can only occupies me for as little a few minutes.

My first point is to encourage someone on a budget to smoke at a moderate pace (my pace is a few times a week), you'll save money and won't have to worry about overloading your tastebuds either.

My second point is to actually have a budget, which means there's no surprises. From everything I've read and heard, it's irresponsible to spend money without knowing well in advance what it was to be used for. If you're already stressing a relationship with tobacco purchases, I suggest stopping for the moment, and then making a plan for next year. With that kind of lead time there should be nothing to fuss about.

I basically know what it's going to cost to use a pipe for the rest of my life, and knowing that, it's not difficult to set aside the funds I'm going to need.

 
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