Blendtobac

Blendtobac's Activity

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post Stay Right Here, ‘Cause These Are The Good Old Days   1 day, 18 hours ago
  

  I guess this article must have hit home with a number of you, and that makes it all worthwhile. I can’t express strongly enough my appreciation of Mike and Mary McNiel, Greg Pease and Craig Tarler for driving the artisanal pipe tobacco market and creating a path for those of us who have followed. The [...]

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post Stay Right Here, ‘Cause These Are The Good Old Days   5 days, 19 hours ago
  

  I can only imagine what the expression on my face must have looked like when I was smoking Bengal Slices, the Sobranies, John Cotton’s 1 & 2, etc. That’s one of the reasons that I have so much fun at pipe shows because I get to see the look on other peoples’ faces when I [...]

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post Burley - The Rodney Dangerfield of Tobacco   1 month ago
  

  I should have clarified in my post above that sauces and casing would not add to actual tongue bite, which is more of a cramping feeling, but it definitely can make a blend more likely to burn the tongue, which is a totally different thing.

  Russ

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• Blendtobac and Markw4mms are now friends   1 month, 1 week ago

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post Where Am I Going & What Am I Doing In This Handbasket?   2 months, 4 weeks ago
  

  I truly love what I do for a living, but there are aspects of it I wouldn’t wish on anyone, mainly the garbage I get from anti-smokers. But, it’s more than made up for by all the kind words from customers and the friendships I’ve made with amazingly talented people in the industry. I used [...]

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post Hearth and Home Black House Review   4 months, 1 week ago
  

  Charles, I will definitely be there. I’ll be the one with tobacco everywhere except in my hair, since there isn’t enough of that for the tobacco to stick to. I’m looking forward to seeing the regular attendees and the newbies.

  Russ

• Blendtobac and Mickey24 are now friends   4 months, 1 week ago

• Blendtobac and Littlehoss are now friends   4 months, 2 weeks ago

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post A Smattering of Pipe Terminology   5 months, 1 week ago
  

  The pipesters across the pond say la-TAC-ee-ah, but the transliteral spelling of the port city in Syria puts an apostrophe before the q in Lata ‘Qiyah, so the American pronunciation would be the more correct one.

  Russ

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post A Smattering of Pipe Terminology   5 months, 1 week ago
  

  I’ll address the reason for Holmes’ association with the calabash in my next article (October). It’s a neat little story that makes perfect sense when you read it.

  Russ

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post A Tale of Two Syrups - Casings and Top Dressings   6 months ago
  

  As far as artificial flavorings go, there are some that I know of such as banana oil, which doesn’t come from bananas, but for the most part, artificial flavors are still extracted from the real source. For example: vanillin is classified as an artificial flavor, but it is derived from vanilla. A lot of flavors [...]

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post A Tale of Two Syrups - Casings and Top Dressings   6 months, 1 week ago
  

  People have been topping their own tobacco for years, usually using liquor. They real key is to use something with an alcohol base, so liquor and extracts work the best. In the case of liquor, it can used straight, but extracts should probably be thinned with vodka or water as the flavor might be too [...]

• Blendtobac updated the “Basic” information on their profile   6 months, 1 week ago

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post In Search of Pipe Dreams Book Review   6 months, 4 weeks ago
  

  This is a warm, very human view of the artistry of pipes and the people who make them. Rick has a scholarly, learned approach to our hobby, but he always makes sure that the focus is on people and their involvement in, and the enjoyment of, pipe smoking.

  Russ Ouellette

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post Virginia Tobacco NOT from Virginia!?!?!   8 months, 1 week ago
  

  The brown Lakeland Virginias are, more or less, fermented, and the Acadian or Cajun Black tobaccos (think McClellan’s Royal Cajun) are Virginia that has been smoked (fired)and fermented in much the same way as Perique. I will have a fermented Virginia at some point, but it takes quite a while to process

  Russ

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post Virginia Tobacco NOT from Virginia!?!?!   8 months, 1 week ago
  

  Fermentation is the chemical breakdown of organic matter, usually through the use of heat, bacterial action and/or pressure (which helps to generate heat). Making wine, compost, maturing tobacco and tea leaves are all examples of fermentation. Burley is fermented when processed for cigars (Parodi and DeNobili toscani-type cigars are made from fermented Kentucky and Tennessee [...]

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post Oh, The Things We’ll Do for Pipe Tobacco   9 months, 1 week ago
  

  Thanks for the nice comments. When Kevin and I first talked about my writing some articles for PipesMagazine.com, I wanted to do it because I enjoy talking about tobacco with people, and this gave me an opportunity to reach more people. Everyone has been so supportive and appreciative, and I’ve gotten some great ideas from [...]

• Blendtobac and Jcsoldit are now friends   9 months, 2 weeks ago

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post 2011 Balkan Sobranie Throwdown   9 months, 2 weeks ago
  

  I can’t speak for Mike or Carl, but we will definitely offer our blend for sale. It would obviously have a greater chance of succeeding if it’s the winner, but I’ll at least make it available as a limited edition, or possibly as an addition to our new Marquee Series.

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post Lovin’ Latakia   9 months, 3 weeks ago
  

  The reason for using the replacement flavoring is that I was informed that deertongue was no longer considered a proper flavoring by the FDA. I still had a source for the product, but even if the rule isn’t hard and fast (I never saw any documentation), we didn’t want to take the chance, especially since [...]

• Blendtobac and Marmal4de are now friends   10 months, 1 week ago

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post Hearth & Home Magnum Opus Tobacco Review   10 months, 1 week ago
  

  Thanks to reviews like Kevin’s, we’ve already had to send out our fourth batch of Magnum Opus for tinning. In fact, all three of the Marquee Series have been selling at a faster rate than expected, and have been our most successful new releases. In the case of Magnum Opus, our first order (from someone [...]

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post Lovin’ Latakia   10 months, 1 week ago
  

  I had a few ideas for upcoming articles, but the suggestion to write about Cavendish makes perfect sense, and fits right in with the last two. There’s certainly enough material for an article, there, and I can clarify some of the inaccurate concepts about Cavendish. Thanks for the idea!
  Russ

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post Common Misconceptions Redux   1 year ago
  

  Tobaccoblender:

  You’ve been misinformed about propylene glycol (which, as I stated, I don’t use). The main component chemical in antifreeze is ethylene glycol (which is decidedly toxic), not propylene glycol, which is food-grade and FDA approved for consumption. Its purpose in food is maintain moisture is a variety of products so they don’t dry out on [...]

• Blendtobac and Doverpipes are now friends   1 year ago

• Blendtobac and Surfmac211 are now friends   1 year ago

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post How to Adjust a Blend   1 year, 1 month ago
  

  This i a great example of what can be done at home with minimal equipment. This method of flavoring is often referred to as infusing. If you want, do the same thing with the rum heated up a bit, or with the container in a warm place. It helps release the fumes.
  Thanks for the nice [...]

• Blendtobac and Thezman are now friends   1 year, 4 months ago

• Blendtobac and Flanative are now friends   1 year, 5 months ago

• Blendtobac and Lane are now friends   1 year, 5 months ago

• Blendtobac and Fhb2532 are now friends   1 year, 5 months ago

• Blendtobac and Cortezattic are now friends   1 year, 5 months ago

• Blendtobac and Pstlpkr are now friends   1 year, 5 months ago

• Blendtobac and Sapo59 are now friends   1 year, 5 months ago

• Blendtobac and Crabhao are now friends   1 year, 5 months ago

• Blendtobac and Stephenspring are now friends   1 year, 5 months ago

• Blendtobac and Admin are now friends   1 year, 5 months ago

• Blendtobac and Phil are now friends   1 year, 5 months ago

• Blendtobac and Python are now friends   1 year, 5 months ago

• Blendtobac commented on the blog post Tobacco Blending Processes   1 year, 6 months ago
  

  As far as the illustrations go, thank the staff at Pipes Magazine. The pictures they chose are virtually the same as the images I had in my head as I was writing the article, so I have to wonder if Bob or Kevin is psychic. But as far as playing around with blending goes, I [...]