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mctrav

Starting to Get Obsessed
Feb 26, 2012
167
0
Long Island
When I started smoking a pipe I never bothered with OTC brands but recently found out that my buddies dad smoked half and half. I can remember loving to be around him reading his paper and smoking his pipe. So I recently acquired a pouch of Half and Half, Carter Hall, and Captain Black White. First bowl of H&H I fell in love..lots of taste and consistently cool, an all day smoke. The CH was good too just not as tasty. The CB was OK just a bit of a chemical taste for me. Tomorrow I will search out some SWR too. I can see why some of the veterans still fall back on these as they are enjoyable all day. Figured I'd post because I read a lot of negatives regarding the cheaper stuff but I found them a must in my rotation. Can't always drink champagne, sometimes beer hits the spot!

 

bobpnm

Lifer
Jul 24, 2012
1,543
10,400
Panama City, Florida
The great thing about pipe smoking is that if you love it, it's a great smoke! The great thing about this forum is that if you have a great smoke, we understand and are happy right along with you!

 

05venturer

Lifer
Nov 25, 2012
1,622
2
Amery,WI
I am a fan of Carter Hall, but you need to try Prince Albert also if you are looking for a good OTC.

Also Captain Black Royal (blue pouch).

 

Perique

Lifer
Sep 20, 2011
4,098
3,884
www.tobaccoreviews.com
I try to like OTCs but I seem to be hypersensitive to whatever chemicals they put in them. And I strongly suspect that the formulas have changed dramatically over the years - that they are, in actuality, sheet tobacco made somehow in the shape of pipe tobacco.
I will say, however, that I've found Walnut tasty in a Kaywoodie with a stinger. And I like the bottom quarter of a bowl of CH. On Roth's recommendation I've mixed up some Wal-Hall and jarred it for tasting in the near future. I've also experimented with some CH/Aro mixes.
Some swear by CBW but I found the chemical content overwhelming.

 

bigvan

Lifer
Mar 22, 2011
2,192
12
I disagree with the "Champagne and Beer" analogy. To me, the difference between quality tobacco and OTCs is more like "Great Lakes Dortmunder Gold and Natty Light", and there's NEVER a need for Natty Light.

 

mctrav

Starting to Get Obsessed
Feb 26, 2012
167
0
Long Island
The use of the champagne and beer analogy is actually quite accurate, because analogies tend to be vague, whereas the one u gave is quite specific to your tastes so it doesn't apply to what I was trying to portray.

 

wildcat

Part of the Furniture Now
Jan 1, 2012
682
1
The use of the champagne and beer analogy is actually quite accurate, because analogies tend to be vague, whereas the one u gave is quite specific to your tastes so it doesn't apply to what I was trying to portray.
:clap:

You need a new paint brush bigvan.

 

pitchfork

Lifer
May 25, 2012
4,030
605
I agree about Natty Light, and while I love a great IPA, for instance, sometimes I just crave a cold, light-tasting Pabst Blue Ribbon.
Big Van, do you ever just want some buttered toast? For me, that's a plain burley blend like Prince Albert. Similarly, while it's possible to make a grilled cheese sandwich with artisanal sour dough, aged cheddar, heirloom tomatoes and freshly made mayonnaise (yum), sometimes one's palate calls for something simpler, like colby on white. The good OTC blends like Prince Albert and Carter Hall do indeed have their place, even if we can speak more ore less objectively about the higher quality of other, more flavorful or complex blends.

 

brdavidson

Lifer
Dec 30, 2012
2,017
5
It is mctrav, fisher blends CBR with CH, since 1Q is similar figured I'd try it, give a nice nutty flavour to th 1Q

 

wildcat

Part of the Furniture Now
Jan 1, 2012
682
1
Well said, Pitchfork.

Well spoken, yes. But reading it, at least from my perspective (and it's all about individual perspective), there is a sense of condescension as regards OTCs. That buttered toast is less than an artisan grilled cheese sandwich, is an assumption by the author. I say that buttered toast is not less than the grilled cheese sandwich, rather it is as different as the night is different than the day. Is night better than day? Is day more beautiful than night? Is a field of clover lit by the sun more beautiful than a field of stars bathed in the light of the moon? The answer is no, they are different. And that ain't bad.

 

pitchfork

Lifer
May 25, 2012
4,030
605
Well spoken, yes. But reading it, at least from my perspective (and it's all about individual perspective), there is a sense of condescension as regards OTCs.
Depends on what you mean by condescension, I guess, but I don't agree that OTC's and McClelland VA's, for example, are simply "different." I think they're different in specific ways that many of us probably agree on. Take Prince Albert, for instance. I enjoy it, but I recognize that it's not nearly as flavorful or complex nor (depending on my mood) as enjoyable for me as a good Vaper like Escudo or Solani 633. I know I'm comparing burley to VApers here, but still... Just the same, I recongize that C&D's Burley Flake #2 (mostly burley, plus a touch of VA) is a higher quality tobacco than Prince Albert. Now, I'm not saying one or the other is better in some absolute, cosmic sense of "better," but the differences are pretty clear. To wit, the tobaccos in C&D's Burley Flake #2 have been treated with more care, retain more of their natural tobacco flavors, have a fresher, more complex taste, higher nicotine, etc., while the tobaccos in PA have been more heavily processed, contain some amount of artificial humectant, plus other unknown additives, etc.
I don't see how it's condescending to point those things out. I certainly don't imply any condescension towards those who smoke PA or other OTC's, especially as I'm one of them. If there was some suggestion of condescension in what I wrote, it probably stems from the fact that I assume (correctly, I think) that many smokers are condescending about OTCs, just as many beer aficionados are dismissive of Pabst Blue Ribbon or, to name a previous example, Natty Light. That's all.

 

mctrav

Starting to Get Obsessed
Feb 26, 2012
167
0
Long Island
I couldn't agree more wildcat, its variety and the many differences that makes pipe smoking such an enjoyable leisure activity, and perhaps the reason why so many people, including all of us here, can sit back with their favorite blend and savor its unique perspective.

 

captainbob

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 5, 2010
765
2
No negatives from me. I smoked exclusively Half & Half for 19 years. I always wanted to learn the art of blending. The first triumph was being able to satisfactorily re-create my favorite Half anf Half. It did take a year! Then I branched out into what evolved into the C&D Captain Bob's Series with Craig Tarler. I learned so much and I am so pleased that I followed my heart. While I no longer smoke Half & Half, I repect it and I understand it. Beyond that I have simply developed three blends that I prefer. So, smoke what you like and above all, like what you smoke!

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lordnoble

Lifer
Jul 13, 2010
2,677
14
Thanks a lot, guys... Now, I gotta bite the bullet and try Half & Half AND Carter Hall. I tried PA and didn't like it. SWR Aro is good, but SWR is a great blend when you don't want to think about it.
-Jason

 
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