Haunted Bookshop.....help

northernpipeshed · Aug 17, 2017

After smoking quite a few pounds of HB I started ordering for the cellar.(all bulk). I have just opened a jar from Nov 2016

( I ran out) :lol:. The taste was great but it lacked something....I put it down to me-pipe-packing etc.
After about half a dozen bowls I opened another jar (same date) to check and it tastes the same.....it's not bad...in fact I quite like it...but it hasn't quite got that overall taste of HB. It looks the same.....it tastes very similar....goes a bit flat about half way through, the Burley is more nutty and predominant, the perique is not really noticeable and the VA is well in the background.
It was bought from Smokingpipes (Excellent in my experience....I use no other from the States) in Nov 16 a Sealed 1lb Bag.

I think I will end up pressing a bit of Perique into some of it, as although its quite a nice smoke it's a bit bland. I have read reviews of HB where people have stated it was O.K. but nothing special and a bit ordinary........now I cracked another jar from Feb17 and its back to "service resumed" (very special for me).....anyone any knowledge-experience-comments
thanks in advance-enjoying the forum....a lot!

noquarter · Aug 17, 2017

I've had different batches of C&D of Haunted Bookshop that I like more than others(I like the chunkier cut). I just adjust my packing technique or just choose a different pipe from my rotation to suit the tobacco. If i want a simple ordinary smoke, it's usually Haunted Bookshop or Morley's Best.

cortezattic · Aug 17, 2017

I noticed similar changes. I used to smoke it (from bulk) several times a day, every day; but after a prolonged layoff I came back to it and it seemed to have gone flat in some way. I label my jars, but I never thought to compare their dates. I just assumed that it's better fresh than aged.
Since there is no reason to believe that the flavor had dissipated with age, or that the recipe had changed, I'm guessing that there was some variance in the source leaf.
In any event, I have about a pound put up in jars, so it'll be a while before I can work through it and replenish my stock. I may try adding some blending Perique -- but tweaking is rarely successful for me.

deathmetal · Aug 17, 2017

I have noticed some variation in blends as well. The Red Virginia is particularly important in some blends.

toddryan84 · Aug 17, 2017

Haunted Bookshop I got in bulk a few years ago from Smokingpipes and even then it was kind of bland to me, however, I noticed of all the bulk tobacco I have, the HB for some reason is the driest....it's like burnt grass dry. It's not a bad smoke, but it's definitely a one dimensional smoke for me.
Do they sell Haunted Bookshop in tins? or is it bulk only?

cortezattic · Aug 17, 2017

SmokingPipes sells it in 2 and 8 oz. tins as well as bulk.

pitchfork · Aug 17, 2017

I smoke a lot of Haunted Bookshop and I've noticed differences in every single batch I've ordered, both in terms of cut and in terms of taste and pouch aroma. I don't know if it's the leaf or how the mixture settles in the warehouse or what.

toddryan84 · Aug 17, 2017

Hmmm, reading reviews of it online seems to give the same impression. I've seen a few reviewers comment the same as me that it is almost bland, dry tobacco, cigarette like in flavor....I tend to agree with this sentiment. I enjoy it still because it's simple and requires no thinking.

wyfbane · Aug 17, 2017

I haven't smoked it that much, but I have noticed differences from the sample I was given to the 2 oz I bought at my local B&M. I also chalked it up to age, but now I wonder.

toddryan84 · Aug 17, 2017

@wyfbane
Was the sample better or worse than the tin?

northernpipeshed · Aug 18, 2017

Thanks for the replies..........
Interesting that others have found a similar problem.

As I live in the U.K. the shipping adds quite a cost to the product so I have to be careful with what I order, but it shows not to judge by one sample of tobacco as I probably wouldn't have reordered HB if this batch had been my first sample.
Oh and as an after thought, this batch appears to be a little drier than usual ( not by much).....I might try re-hydrating a small amount.

perdurabo · Aug 18, 2017

I've noticed differences too. The bulk taste better to me, the tin was bland. To me the bulk has a bigger perique note. The big question for me is: Was this always the case with HB or is this a new thing since the merger?

whitebriar · Aug 24, 2017

same house; different blend--i have just received a pound of OJK that is totally different

than all my earlier purchases--i thought maybe the vendor sent the wrong tobacco--now i wonder--
for the record i have noted slight differences in Haunted Bookshop also

codecreatively · Aug 24, 2017

I was considering ordering some OJK to try. Maybe they changed the blend a bit? How's the new stuff?

noquarter · Aug 25, 2017

Got 2 1lb bags of OJK from SP 6 months ago and it tasted like my HB stash from last year.Ordered 8oz OJK from 4noggins last month, still the same. Tiny pseudo cube cuts and a mish mash of ribbons. My jar from 2015 is chunkier,with bigger cubes and as I remember it, was a lot stronger and spicier.

codecreatively · Aug 25, 2017

Thanks noquarter. In the HB that I've had jarred for a couple years, there are those tiny cubes you mention. They turn into hot spots in the bowl. Tiny, hot red embers amongst the rest of the nicely smoldering tobacco. I was hoping OJK was different.

perdurabo · Aug 26, 2017

I ordered 8oz. Of Haunted Bookshop recently and there were flakes of tobacco running throughout as well as a more defined shag/ribbon cut. That tells me Haunted Bookshp is pressed in flakes and spun out, or at lest one of the tobaccos used is. The last Bulk OJK was wet with more of a shag/ribbon cut. To get it to taste like OJK of old, I had to air dry it, bone dry. Being a little wet will help with the aging process. These blends are so close in looks and smell, I wonder if the two are being confused for one another at the vendor level. Especially when Haunted Bookshop has been blended with more of a perique hit.
Can someone from C&D/Smokingpipes.com chime in to clear up some of the confusion?
Another thing to consider is the leaf that C&D uses can change. They are blending these tobaccos with the same ratio, but getting different variations of flavor because of the leaf. Tobacco is like wine in that way. Crops change. Just a thought.

unkleyoda · Aug 29, 2017

Every blend of C&D tobacco I've tried tastes flat to me.

mso489 · Aug 29, 2017

Though it is not the same blend, just as a point of reference, I had a tin of GLP Westminster that I aged for two or three years, not intentionally but by chance. This blend is almost universally praised. I had several great smokes from it, but soon the Lat went very flat. It is high quality tobacco, so I propped it up with other condimental leaf. I didn't try to renew the Lat but relied on other blending tobacco like cigar leaf or another English, and so was able to use the tin. The only reason it surprised me is that generally blends are durable and predictable. On the other hand, my tastes do change. Sometimes, a blend is pretty wonderful for a year and two, and then it's just not what I want.

thomasw · Aug 30, 2017

I prefer OJK to HB and I have a couple pounds of OJK coming to me. I hope OJK hasn't altered significantly from my previous experience... I love the blend with which I am familiar.

Haunted Bookshop.....help

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