Do you dedicate a pipe to each tobacco style?

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thnaks

Lurker
Oct 8, 2015
27
0
Do most/all of you dedicate one (or more) pipes just for your aromatics, one for your virginias, one for your english blends, etc? Thx

 

aldecaker

Lifer
Feb 13, 2015
4,407
42
Short answer, Yes. Longer answer: Stronger flavors naturally overwhelm milder flavors. Dedicating pipes is usually done with very distinctive blends you don't want crossing into other blends. Examples that leap to mind for me are cherry aromatics, Lat-heavy blends, or anything with the famous/infamous Lakeland scent.

 

thnaks

Lurker
Oct 8, 2015
27
0
Got it. That was a very helpful longer answer!

...I suppose I'll need to get some cobs

 

jmatt

Part of the Furniture Now
Aug 25, 2014
770
74
I have english/balkan pipes, and Va, VaPer, VaBur pipes. I don't discriminate any further than that.

 
May 3, 2010
6,423
1,461
Las Vegas, NV
I have my pipes split up between aromatics and Va/VaPer blends. Certain ones are just for aros and certain ones are just for Va/VaPers.
I also have one pipe dedicated to just cherry aromatics. Those ghosts pretty strongly.
I've been meaning to get a few new cobs for trying English/Balkan blends. Trying to widen my tobacco horizons.

 

dcrguns

Part of the Furniture Now
Aug 19, 2013
892
2,610
57
Ruidoso, NM
I am generally with warren on this one. I only have a few pipes I save for stronger aromatics which I seldom smoke and use for tasting sessions. I don't want the aros in my pipes I smoke English or Va style tobaccos in. Other than that, I smoke the pipe I pick for the day.

 

stickframer

Part of the Furniture Now
Apr 11, 2015
875
8
Yes. I have 3 for English blends, 2 for Virginias and 1 for VaBurs/Burley. It works for me but again there's no hard rule.

 

thnaks

Lurker
Oct 8, 2015
27
0
I love the idea of less complicated. I will keep any strong aromatics out of my 2 good pipes. Thank you for your thoughts, everyone.

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
I find certain pipes do best by certain blends, but I don't designate pipes since I don't smoke any of the blends that will persistently ghost a pipe. Switching off between tobacco forward aromatics, which I don't smoke much, and English, Balkan, Va/Per, Va and burley blends doesn't seem to ghost pipes. Perhaps people with especially sensitive taste and smell might need to do this, or people who just like to organize things strictly. Never felt the need. No Lakelands in the cellar. I try to keep pipe smoking as relaxed and free form as possible.

 

stickframer

Part of the Furniture Now
Apr 11, 2015
875
8
I've been a dedicated pipe guy since I took up the hobby. My newest pipe has less than 10 smokes in it, all VA. I'm going to try a bunch of different blends in it to see if I can notice a difference.

 

andrew

Lifer
Feb 13, 2013
3,042
400
Indubitably. Ever since I found a good source for estate pipes and have enough now to do it, I find it's an essential part of truly enjoying pipe smoking. I disagree that it complicates things, as I found before I had dedicated pipes there were alot of unpleasent bowls where I thought I didn't like the tobacco but it was because I was smoking an english blend in a pipe I'd used for aro's, or vice versa. Also different pipe shapes will really bring out the flavors in blends. I think it's a newer concept as there are so many blends available now whereas in the old days most pipe smokers would have their one blend they smoked and that was it. If you have more than 3 pipes one should be english, one Va, and one aro pipe, but even with aro's the tastes of other aro's will come through. Same with VaPer's, I had a pipe I smoked alot of St. James woods in and then whenever I smoked anything else in it like an english blend all I could taste was a peppery blast and not much else. If you smoke different blends, it makes sense to dedicate pipes.

 

samanden

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 11, 2013
247
48
Alexandria, VA
In short, yes. I have two pipes for seven different tobacco categories: aromatics, English, VaPer, straight VA, Orientals, cigar leaf, and Aro/Engl X-over. I don't have a Burley blend pipe because I don't particularly care for Burley-heavy tobaccos. Over the years I've fiddled around with the combination to get the right rotation. I find that dedicating pipes to blend types makes for consistent "good smokes," as I like to say.

 

JimInks

Sultan of Smoke
Aug 31, 2012
60,846
553,706
Yes. I have some pipes dedicated to single blends only, too. My meers are for aros, Lakeland blends, and some English. I vary it with cobs.

 
Apr 26, 2012
3,342
5,130
Washington State
I have a few pipes that I smoke my aromatics in, I have a couple that I smoke my flakes (Virginia's) in, and I have lots that I smoke my English/Balkan blends in. I have several cobs that I smoke whatever in. I have only one pipe that I dedicate to one blend.

 

dutch65

Might Stick Around
Feb 11, 2012
93
2
I tend to dedicate specific pipes to Virginia blends, but I am not as particular about dedicating a specific pipe to a specific Latakia blend. In my Lat pipes, I tend to smoke a variety of blends.
Also, I have an Olivewood pipe I have dedicated to McClelland Drama Reserve.
Keep in mind, when you smoke a pipe with some cake buildup, you are smoking the cake, in addition to the tobacco.
Since I tend to enjoy well aged Virginia's, I am more particular about sharing different Virginia's in a single pipe.
This is simply due to the fact that it takes more time to properly age straight Virginia's, than it does to age Latakia and Balkan blends.
I haven't always been this particular, but as my pipe collection has grown in size to around 225 pipes, I now have the flexibility to dedicate a specific blend to a specific pipe.

 

rfernand

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 2, 2015
669
39
I do four groups for genre dedication:
- Cased or strongly flavored (such as Peterson's Connoisseur's Choice)

- Pure Virginias (such as Dunhill Flake)

- Virginias with Burley or Perique (such as Peterson's University Flake) - even with a bit of flavoring, they "group" well.

- Orientals and English (such as Dunhill London Mixture) - note I see no advantage in splitting here, since the orientals I like contain Latakia, which to my taste is the dominant remaining ghost.
In addition, blends such as G.L. Pease's Westminster or C&D's Autumn Evening have made me dedicate a pipe (sometimes specifically buying a pipe for that purpose). I know, excuses, excuses.
I have a meerschaum-lined briar that I use for anything I try for the first time. I've been struggling with a gourd I intend to keep for that purpose as well. No meerschaums or cobs for me, tough.

 
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