Use same pipe when retrying a tobacco?

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macabra11

Starting to Get Obsessed
May 14, 2014
294
0
Boise, ID
When you guys try a tobacco for the first time and it doesn't go so well (might not have been dry enough, bad packing job, gurgling, multiple relights, etc), when you try that blend again do you use the same pipe as before? I know different pipe shapes, sizes, materials can greatly alter the perception of a particular blend, and some blends are better suited to specific pipes. So if you're trying to determine things to change, is it advantageous to switch pipes in addition to modifying other aspects (pack, moisture level, etc)? Or better to change one thing at a time in between trials?

 

northernneil

Lifer
Jun 1, 2013
1,390
1
That is a good question macabra, it would make sense to try and smoke at least a couple of bowls from the same pipe as there might be a ghost that needs to be cleared before the true flavor of the tobacco comes through. It is also a good idea to try multiple pipes as one might work with the tobacco better than another.

I'm curious to hear others responses.

 

macabra11

Starting to Get Obsessed
May 14, 2014
294
0
Boise, ID
I smoke it in the same pipe until I beat it into submission

Well that is kind of where I was going with the question sparks! lol My first thought would be that I should just stick to one pipe for a few smokes until I get a feel for it. However, if the pipe is part of the problem, then I may be shooting myself in the foot every time I light up. Chicken or egg?

 

tallguy

Lurker
Sep 2, 2014
43
0
I know different pipe shapes, sizes, materials can greatly alter the perception of a particular blend, and some blends are better suited to specific pipes
This is very interesting for a newbie... I know that's not the subject of this tread, but I'll just catch the ball and ask if there is a tread somewhere that directly address this subject.
BTW, I am interested to what people will say with the subject of this tread! :)
Thx in advance!!

 

warren

Lifer
Sep 13, 2013
11,700
16,209
Foothills of the Chugach Range, AK
Opinions vary widely with regard to dedicated pipes to blends.
I usually go through a full tin before forming a concrete opinion on a blend. Except for my experience with "Troost," about half a bowl convinced me that it was not a blend for my palate. I use different pipes as tobaccos smoke differently in different sized bowls when exploring a new blend.
I won't write a review so I do not scrape my tongue, cleanse the palate and regulate what I eat prior to testing/tasting a blend for evaluation anymore than I use the same bowl, same cake, same dryness, etc. for each test. It is just not that important to me. Others, God bless 'em, do the research, develop a discerning palate, dedicate pipes to blends . . . I suspect some of them have a tiny room, hidden away, accoutered with all sorts of tools of the trade, perhaps even a brain in a jar which awaits transplanting into the hand-assembled body hidden away in a corner of the lab . . . Nor do I carefully monitor and control my diet and health.
Some here smoke different blends as they love the experience of learning new tastes and enjoy trying to unravel the blender's recipe. Others simply enjoy the pipe as a "pacifier" which provides a calming and relaxing experience or, simply delivers the nicotine. Then there are others in between, exploring always pipes and blends, while enjoying the "pipe experience."
I'm in the camp of, while I enjoy the experience of a new blend now and then, I tend to smoke a couple of chosen ones in lovingly purchased, excepting the MMs, pipes. I guess it all depends on what you are expecting from your pipe experience.

 

sablebrush52

The Bard Of Barlings
Jun 15, 2013
19,632
44,858
Southern Oregon
jrs457.wixsite.com
It's a process of elimination. To do that, some part of the equation needs to be a constant. In the case of trying out the preparation of a tobacco, I'll try a number of bowls in the same pipe.
But I'll select a pipe based on the type of blend for starters. If I'm trying out a Balkan or English blend, I'll go for a pot, or larger billiard as these types of blends tend to do better with that chamber shape. With Virginia or flakes, I'll go for a smaller bowl, or a narrow shaped chamber as these blends tend to do better with that configuration. If, after testing different preparations, the blend still isn't doing anything much, I'll change out the pipe.
If, after trying different combinations, I'm still not thrilled, I'll cross that blend off the list and move on. There are a lot of satisfying blends available, so why deal with a PITA?
Some blends, like Stonehaven, are finicky, and even when you've got a working combination, the result can very from bowl to bowl, or even puff to puff.

 

phred

Lifer
Dec 11, 2012
1,754
4
It would depend on how many other variables I'm confident about - if I were uncertain of my packing, for example, I'd probably continue to use the same pipe while I sorted out the proper pack. On the other hand, if I were reasonably confident that the issue was, in fact, the specific pipe, I'd try a different one.
Case in point - my first attempt at smoking one particular blend (it might have been Luxury Navy Flake) resulted in a truly nasty, bitter smoke. I had, however, mistakenly tried smoking it in a pipe that I normally used for Latakia-heavy blends. Once I switched back to my regular Va/Per pipe, I enjoyed it a lot more - enough that I'm down to just shy of a bowlful left, so maybe I'll finish that off tonight!

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
It's not scientific, but I'd move on to another pipe, trying to guess if a bigger/smaller bowl might be better,

deeper, narrower, etc. One could move with great care from one variable to the next. I'm looking for a good

smoke, and might not be that patient.

 
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