Smoking Va/Per and English in the Same Pipe?

erichbaumer · Apr 26, 2013

I found a thread related to the topic, but I wanted specifically to ask if anyone does smoke both in the same pipe. I have dedicated pipes for Cavindish blends and latakia blends and have just started looking into Va/pers. I understand the aro/cav vs. "natural" tobacco dedication is important, but is it absolutely necessary to differentiate between VA and English briars? I'm sure if I stick with VA I'll end up dedicating pipes to it, but for now I don't know if I'll be smoking it in the future and it'd be simpler just to alternate between English and VA in the same pipes.

spartan · Apr 26, 2013

Necessary? Is it necessary for me to drink my own urine? No! But I do it anyway, 'cause it's sterile and I like the taste.

-Patches O Houlihan

judcole · Apr 26, 2013

Roth has it down pat.

alexl · Apr 26, 2013

I suppose this divide was invented by pipe makers.

tslex · Apr 26, 2013

I smoke VaPer only very occasionally, but I have a pipe that's dedicated to it.

flyguy · Apr 26, 2013

Roth said:

Latakia's flavor can b!tch slap you with intensity; it can also "ghost" a pipe

You got that right! That used gourd calabash I purchased on ebay was used by the previous owner for strong latakia blends. The meerschaum bowl was cracked many times on the bottom and he kept smoking away. When I purchased the pipe, I wanted to use it for Virginia flakes. The pipe tasted nasty! It was so nasty, I decided to take desperate measures, risking the pipe itself, to bring it back to a smoke-able state. It took most of a bottle of Everclear and a 2 cups of salt and many scrubbings with curved brushes to remove that ghastly ghost! It is extremely difficult to clean the gourd in the crook. This process actually lightened the gourd's patina somewhat. I did learn that calabash gourds are tough and resilient to this kind of cleaning abuse. It now smokes and tastes great.

I smoke Virginia flakes and VaPers in the same pipes but I think it is wise to use different pipes to smoke latakia blends.

cigrmaster · Apr 27, 2013

I personally would not smoke a Vaper in an English pipe. You will rob yourself of the complexity and nuances of the Virginia's and Perique. As roth said, English blends will over power any other type of tobacco.

doctorthoss · Apr 27, 2013

To me, there is not type of tobacco that can be ruined by a "ghost" faster than a VA or VA/Per, which tend to be comparatively subtle and complex. In fact, if it weren't for the fact that I love some Vas and Va/Pers, I might not bother dedicating any pipes at all. Since latakia and some of the other orientals will definitely ghost a pipe, I would most certainly keep these separate!

Just my two cents worth, of course!

erichbaumer · Apr 27, 2013

Thanks for all the advice. One more question-how feasable is it to transition a pipe dedicated to something else over to Va? Say a pipe that's been smoking aro's/cavendish lately?

dragonslayer · Apr 27, 2013

Latakia and Perique being smoked in the same pipe...buy another pipe, you’re losing the true flavors with the cross over ghosting.

john218 · Apr 27, 2013

Since starting up smoking again last Spring, I've been smoking as much Virginia blends as English blends and I am in the proccess of choosing pipes that will be dedicated to Virginias and Vapers.
Some of the pipes I'll use are recent estate buys and have been thoroughly reconditioned and I've only used for Virginias, but others are pipes I've smoked English blends in for decades.
Do you folks think I could change some of my older pipes from English Blends to Virginias without having to give them the retort or salt treatment? My thought is that, with time they would make the transition.

doctorthoss · Apr 27, 2013

YES -- you should be able to convert your pipes, but it might take a little time/effort (not much though).

I've done this several times, so I know that it works so long as you're trying to remove particularly powerful ghosts, such as those left by some of the stronger Lakeland blends.

First -- ream the bowl down to the wood (or as close to it as possible).

Second -- clean the inside of the pipe with pure grain alcohol.

Third -- Buy a pouch of Carter Hall and/or Prince Albert and smoke it all through your newly cleaned pipe. These build a cake nicely and will exorcise a ghost while not leaving a distracting one themselves.
Most of the time, you will have a pipe at this point that is ready for some Virginias.

ohin3 · Apr 27, 2013

You can easily turn a Virginia pipe into an English pipe, but turning an English pipe into a Virginia pipe, to me, is only wise if you plan to always switch back and fourth in that pipe. The crossover effects can be enjoyable between straight Virginias and English blends, but if you want to truly appreciate a straight Virgina or Virginia/perique, it is best done in a pipe that has not smoked latakia. I have dedicated straight Virginia pipes, Virginia/perique pipes, English pipes, aromatic pipes and a couple crossover pipes.

john218 · Apr 27, 2013

Thanks for the input, guys.
The pipes in question have always been smoked with the the original Balkan Sobranie, some Dunhill blends and a few other English blends, never with aromatics or heavily cased and flavored blends, so I figured it would just take some time to change them over after a thorough cleaning and reaming.

kashmir · Apr 27, 2013

Out of my herd if 65, I keep different sets of pipes for Lat forward blends, straight VAs and burleys, and for VaPers. Also I have a couple pipes dedicated to aromatics. Tend to be pretty strict about pipe blend separations. Otherwise it muddies the waters. The other day, I was going to smoke a Lakeland and couldn't figure which pipe to use, lest I savagely ghost one of my favorites. Ended up buying a nice Stanwell featherweight which I plan to dedicate to Lakelands.

chopz · Apr 28, 2013

latakia is the only thing i keep separate from the rest. otherwise anything you smoke will taste like lat. i remember trying to smoke a vaper out of one of my english-dedicated pipes (which i hardly use since i don't smoke english often) and all i could taste was english.

pipinho · Apr 30, 2013

latakia... oooh that loud, obnoxious, vibrant woman you thought you could never go for.... Untill that one night she rocks your world in the back seat of your car. Now you know that she has ruined lovemaking for you.... At least in the back seat of your car that is.

pipinho · Apr 30, 2013

oh i forgot to answer your question. Yea get a dedicated pipe for her, i mean english blends.

PlanxtyPipes · Apr 30, 2013

I have 1 pipe that I use only for VA and VA/Per tobaccos; a Savinelli billiard. I have 2 pipes I only smoke English blends in; both Petersons, a straight billiard and a bent apple system 303. And I have a couple of cheaper pipes that I use mostly for aromatics or as knock-arounds when I don't want to use my "good" pipes. I have definitely noticed that smoking a heavy English like say Nightcap in a pipe will cause some ghosting. I don't mean that the VAs taste foul or anything if you smoke them from the same pipe. I just mean that some of the more subtle flavors may be covered up by a hint of the latakia ghosted in the pipe. I haven't noticed as much of the ghosting in the aromatic pipes, but I smoke them very rarely these days.
In my opinion it's good to have a pipe for VAs and a pipe for English blends if you can. That said, there is nothing wrong at all with crossing tobaccos if you are enjoying your smoking experience. You aren't going to "ruin" your pipes by smoking anything in them...especially if you do it infrequently. And many people report that if you sweeten, ream, and switch to only smoking VAs the latakia ghosting will eventually go away or reduce enough as to not be readily apparent (after 10-12 bowls).

Smoking Va/Per and English in the Same Pipe?

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