One Tin at a Time

Log in

SmokingPipes.com Updates

New Cigars




PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor

PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor

PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor

PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor

PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor

Status
Not open for further replies.

kane

Can't Leave
Dec 2, 2014
429
3
Just curious if anyone here is a one tin smoker.

It seems that we have multiple tins / blends going consecutively in what we call our rotation, just as we have multiple pipes going as well.

But what , if any, are the merits of taking it one full tin at a time, for a while at least, i.e., starting a tin and staying with it 'til the end before moving on to the next?

It seems that could prove educational in learning one blend or style of blend extremely well, as well as learning to adapt one's technique by being forced to deal with only one blend under different circumstances, different pipes. It seems like 50g's at a time might be an educational, and challenging discipline for pipers, particularly neophytes who may be overwhelmed with the endless choices out there.

Anyone doing this?

 

aldecaker

Lifer
Feb 13, 2015
4,407
42
I dig the variety aspect too much to only have one blend at a time going. I was supposed to break in briars with nothing but CH or PA, and I didn't even have the self-discipline for that. That's even considering the fact that I actually like PA and CH.

 

beastkhk

Can't Leave
Feb 3, 2015
327
1
My ideal is in the 3-6 range, more than that I am spreading myself thin; less than that and I don't feel I am giving my pallet enough contrast.(that 1 or 2 tins would become bland or lose their appeal to me before getting all the way through them)
Admittedly I am well beyond my threshold (recently participated in the monthly crawl); but, I will work to try and be disciplined until I can get back to the 3-6 tins.(Or until the June crawl which is probably the more likely occurrence :) )

 

cobguy

Lifer
Oct 18, 2013
3,742
15
When I first started out it was one pouch (CH) and two pipes (Cob and Dr. Grabow).
Anymore, I have around 20-25 blends in current rotation ... diversity is the spice of life! :puffy:

 

peteguy

Lifer
Jan 19, 2012
1,530
906
I spoke with a gentleman a few years ago who is a one tin guy and has been for 20 years. Blew me away. It never even occurred to me to do that. My uncle only drank Olympia beer so I shouldn't have been so surprised I guess.

 

cobguy

Lifer
Oct 18, 2013
3,742
15
Here's another recent thread as well ...
http://pipesmagazine.com/forums/topic/anyone-here-a-one-or-two-trick-pony

 
May 3, 2010
6,423
1,461
Las Vegas, NV
I typically only have one tin open at a time. I usually get through it in a week maybe 8-9 days. I have some jars of Stokkebye's Luxury Bullseye Flake and 1Q that I intersperse with getting through the tin.

 

cigrmaster

Lifer
May 26, 2012
20,249
57,280
66
Sarasota Florida
I like variety too much and have all 28 blends in my cellar available at all times. I know each of my blends very well as before it even makes my cellar, I have smoked a full tin in a number of different pipes.

 

jmill208

Lifer
Dec 8, 2013
1,087
1,163
Maryland USA
I sort of do this. I'll open one (usually aged) tin at a time and smoke it until it is gone. I like to try to give each tin a fair shake and try it in different pipes under different conditions. Even though I'm not really a new pipe smoker, I am still learning and working my way through the many blends and tobacco varieties available.
BUT, I also always seem to have samples, loose bulk tobacco and other miscellaneous stuff hanging around. Also trying new blends at my pipe club keeps me from the boredom of the same old-same old.
So, I do it-but I don't. :puffy:

 

condorlover1

Lifer
Dec 22, 2013
7,993
26,607
New York
I usually have a couple of different twists on the go at any one time and then I mix them in with my Condor as my fancy takes me or I mix them up with Dan's excellent shredded African leaf. I have not been into the tin thing in twenty five years as I prefer to cut my tobacco to suit my taste although recently I picked up a 1/4 pound unopened cutter top tin of Capstan Blue from before the war. I am sort of tempted to open it or maybe sell it/trade it with the right person. Popping tins just doesn't get me excited anymore these days.

 

derfargin

Lifer
Mar 3, 2014
2,028
28
Kennesaw, GA
Haha, my 38 blends open cellar laughs at your paltry 25 blend rotation

.... ;-) Uh...I mean I think I need pills. I want to get it down to something in the 20s range.
But me and my first world problems.

 

newbroom

Lifer
Jul 11, 2014
6,087
6,394
Florida
Anymore, I have around 20-25 blends in current rotation ... diversity is the spice of life!

Coming up on my first year anniversary of pipe smoking here in May, though I don't know the exact date, but surprisingly, I've got the same number of blends in MY current daily selection, and have tasted many more.

Thanks to a lot of advice and the generosity and good will of one particular forum member, I got to try several blends I might not otherwise have gotten to...the guy's an enabler for sure....but it's ALL GOOD!

 

menuhin

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 21, 2014
642
3
I am not a heavy smoker, but I have 36 tins opened and a couple of tobacco samples from friends and tobacconists sitting there. :oops: When I want to load a pipe usually a number of 4-7 blends come into my mind.
If I were to become a Zen monk perhaps it is good to focus on one tin at a time, at least the review of that certain tin will be really detailed.

 

hedgehog

Might Stick Around
Sep 25, 2013
61
10
I've been sticking to a one-tin-only rule for about a year now. I love it. While I don't always love the one time I'm working my way through, I feel I am becoming more acquainted with the various blends I try, and better at smoking because it's always a challenge to figure out the best shape, pack, and moisture level for any blend. I have, however, been considering upping my game to two at a time, where I smoke something I'm familiar with alongside or in between something I'm trying for the first time. I don't know. Maybe that much variety will cause my head to explode.

 
I like a light aromatic in the morning to suit my girls noses (so they they don;t stink when they get to school), light Virginias all afternoon (or the cosmic twist of LNF and LTF), a VaPer after lunch, then light Balkans or orientals till bedtime, and then it is either a rope or some other strong blend to get me to sleep. I usually have 6-12 blends open at any time. I keep a pipe in my clench from the time I wake up till bed, unless I am eating or enjoying a cigar. This system works for me to not overwork my taste buds going from light flavors to heavier ones throughout the day.

 

maxx

Part of the Furniture Now
Apr 10, 2015
709
6
Five open tins (two of these with a Cob's worth left), with a sixth opened but jarred and put away because I think it's vile.
I don't know what others do, but when I open a tin I transfer the tobacco to a pint Mason jar, shake up the contents, label the lid, then shake out a couple of bowl's worth back into the tin, from where I can dry it before smoking.

 

michiganlover

Can't Leave
May 10, 2014
336
3
I never have more than 3-4 blends going at once. One of those is almost always a beloved OTC. I've been known to get bored with a tin before finishing it. Especially on blends that are good, but not knock your socks off great.
The limited number of blends going at once does allow me to learn each one really well.

 

brass

Lifer
Jun 4, 2014
1,840
7
United States
When I try a blend new to me, I make a point of smoking from that tin every day until it is complete - usually two to three bowls a day. I also have open about a half dozen blends that I keep in my rotation, each tin from a different style of blend. So, I will have open a VaPer, a VaBur, a Lakeland, a cigar leaf, a straight Virginian, an English/Lat and/or oriental. When I finish a tin, say Orlik Golden Slice, I'll replace it with a tin from the same family, say GL Pease Fillmore.
This gives me a lot of variety but with some structure. I don't see a lot of sense in having open 5 or 6 lat blends, 7 or 8 VaPer, etc. If I were strictly a Vaper or Lat smoker, it would be a different story.
I do have a few goto blends that I keep on hand at all times: GLP Quiet Nights, now Classic Burlye Kake, SG Luxury Navy Flake or PS LNF, Bob's Chocolate Flake and a couple of others.
So, I'll generally have available somewhere around ten or 12 tins/jars but I'd like to think there is a little order to it - the new blend I'm studying; 5 or 6 from different types of blends; and 4 or 5 go-to blends.
It took me while to develop this still changing system but I don't feel so helter-skelter anymore.
After this month's crawl, I'm going to have to make room for Russ Oullette's Magnum Opus and El Nina in the regular rotation.

 
Status
Not open for further replies.