Wish me luck

Last August I tried Haddo's for the first time. Oh Lord how I loved the taste, the aroma, the burn,..everything. That is for awhile. It's a good thing I was only two steps from my bed because that is where I spent the next two hours,unable to move my head. By far, the worst nic hit I've ever had. I'm ready,after these months, to give it another go. I think I've improved my puffing and packing techniques and I also will try one of my small bowls. When I first came back to the pipe after almost 40 years I tended to smoke everything in huge bowls. I know better now.

I plan on having a nice lunch, with a sugary dessert, before I try, but the fear of a repeat is still there.

I went with a Savinelli Elegante I bought to add to my green pipe collection. It's the smallest bowl I could find. and I went for a Barq's for refreshment because of the caffeine. Still an enjoyable, flavorful smoke. I got a little nic hit, but nothing like last time. I smoked cigars for thirty something years and never once had the kind of nic hit I've gotten a few times smoking a pipe.

I kind of came to the conclusion that worrying about it was not a pleasurable experience about half way through the bowl and once I conquered that it tasted a whole lot better. I think I will make it a rare, sometime smoke because I really like the tobacco. It sure would help if we had a set of nicotine standards, like amount of nic in a certain amount of tobacco, much like food labels. Oh well, I guess why there is a place for a forum like this.

I was able to handle my early evening Magnum Opus in a large Wiley even after having the Haddo's, so it's been a good day.

I love the blend, which is the only reason I would go to this trouble. I will keep it in rare rotation and enjoy it when I can. There are so many Va/pers I love; Escudo, Esoterica Dunbar, Rimboche' SJ, Brigham Legend Acadian, Elizabethan Mixture, etc.

Then there's always the "fake" Va/pers that I also enjoy like the Royal Cajun line. I don't think I'll have trouble only pulling out the Haddo's every once in awhile. I think the flavor is glorious and would not think of mixing it with anything else. I have pipes also that I only smoke on special occasions and I can't think of another use for that Savinelli other than Haddo's. It's such a delicate, little pipe, but the draw is really nice and now I know I can enjoy Haddo's occasionally and really enjoy it rather than worrying.

Although I usually don't like carbonated drinks while smoking, a good quality cane sugar made root beer works great.

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It would not have occurred to me to go for the sugar rather than high fructose corn syrup. Thanks for the tip. We do have a substantial sugarcane industry here and several brands of cane based root beer available. I wish Barq's used cane sugar. It also contains caffeine and is one of my favorite beverages.