Pipe Dedicating Gone Awry

[Ryan]

It seems that on a consistent basis the question of whether to dedicate a pipe to one blend comes up. Of course, the basic answer is “do what you want”.

I don’t really do a lot of pipe dedicating, except that I reserve the ooccaional goopy aromatic for one pipe. However, if I have a good smoke with a blend in a pipe, I may repeat the pairing.

There was one pipe that I first smoked Anniversary Kake from, and I guess I thought it was ok because I kept smoking the blend from that pipe. I didn’t get all of the flavors the reviews mentioned, but I didn’t think much of it because I often don’t get every flavor that reviews mention. The blend seemed ok, but nothing special.

One day I tried Anniversary Kake in a different pipe, and it was like a new blend for me. It tasted so much better, it was really a night and day difference. Next, I tried another blend I was very familiar with in the same pipe that had been previously been “dedicated” to Anniversary Kake. It tasted sour and bitter. I repeated with another blend, same result. Turns out nothing tasted good in that pipe. I got rid of the pipe.

This is unlikely to happen to you, but I just thought I’d share this story of one way that pipe dedication went wrong, at least for a while.

 

[Sigmund]

Was the dedicated pipe cleaned well on occasion? Dedicating a pipe to a blend does not reduce maintenance.

 

[sardonicus87]

If a blend seems to not be what others claim when there's a lot of people that claim the same thing, or seems to be not what I expected it to be based on what it is and knowing my own tastes, I know the pipe likely needs a cleaning.

Of course, some blends are just bold enough in flavor to mask that.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Definitely sounds like a dirty pipe.

 

[Sig]

I don't dedicate pipes to blends, just genres.
But I 100% agree some pipes taste better with some blends.
I currently have a pipe that I recently cleaned up. It just doesn't taste good.
It was reamed to the wood and very clean....but it just makes everything taste muted. The drilling all seems good, the briar looks fine. It smokes great.....but tastes like butt.

 

[jguss]

There’s a large consensus that the same blend can taste very different in two different pipes, cleanliness aside. Some perhaps is workmanship but most is the vagaries of the briar.

 

[Ryan]

Was the dedicated pipe cleaned well on occasion? Dedicating a pipe to a blend does not reduce maintenance.

It was an estate pipe that had been thoroughly cleaned, and the bowl had a salt/alcohol treatment on top of the cleaning. I don’t know if the pipe was bad from birth or became that way, but it couldn’t have been any cleaner.

 

[InWithBothFeet]

I bought some Cobblestone Cafe Mocha Flake and didn't like it. I ignored it for a few months and tried it again and it was a 180 from the first try. I ordered another tin, and haven't had the same experience since. I have no idea what pipe I was smoking when I had the good experience with it. I need to pay attention and perhaps take notes when I have a particularly flavorful bowl.

 

[Doctor Chopper]

I attempted to ghost a meer with deer tongue and failed. Smoked 3 tins, maybe I had to do more.

 

[OzPiper]

It was an estate pipe that had been thoroughly cleaned, and the bowl had a salt/alcohol treatment on top of the cleaning. I don’t know if the pipe was bad from birth or became that way, but it couldn’t have been any cleaner.

I have received estate pipes which looked pristine, with well-reamed chambers.
The shanks were sewers that had never been, or only minimally cleaned.
Most vendors do not spend enough time cleaning shanks and mortises, in my experience.

 

[Ryan]

I have received estate pipes which looked pristine, with well-reamed chambers.
The shanks were sewers that had never been, or only minimally cleaned.
Most vendors do not spend enough time cleaning shanks and mortises, in my experience.

You are so right, but in this case I was the one who did the cleaning and the shank and mortise were clean as a whistle. The pipe just tasted sour for some reason.

 

[OzPiper]

You are so right, but in this case I was the one who did the cleaning and the shank and mortise were clean as a whistle. The pipe just tasted sour for some reason.

Was the stem oxidised ?
I had an old stem that was oxidised internally and smoked sour.
Only solution was to get a new stem cut

 

[Ryan]

Was the stem oxidised ?
I had an old stem that was oxidised internally and smoked sour.
Only solution was to get a new stem cut

Acrylic stem with no oxidation.

 

[captainsousie]

That's interesting. I bought a pair of strawberry wood pipes from the same carver and after much experimentation found that one liked lat and the other liked VAs. I let the pipes tell me what they liked. Some will call me crazy but it really works for me.

 

[gnarlybriar]

oh boy! here we go! I have almost been successful cleaning pipes - eliminating ghosts (except if Erinmore was smoked in it). I recently got a beautiful Comoy. my gosh I want to enjoy it! Despite all ! at cleaning - the darn ghost remains. It smells up the entire house - even wrapped up in a rag! Out damn spot!

 

[telescopes]

That's interesting. I bought a pair of strawberry wood pipes from the same carver and after much experimentation found that one liked lat and the other liked VAs. I let the pipes tell me what they liked. Some will call me crazy but it really works for me.

I find the pipe is always right.

 

[OzPiper]

I let the pipes tell me what they liked. Some will call me crazy but it really works for me.

Gees, some owners are too easygoing.

Me ? I’d get a huge Lat-blend or Lakeland and smoke that recalcitrant piece of shit into submission

 

[captainsousie]

Gotta show that pipe who's the boss eh? Fair enough.

 

[ThermionicScott]

If I don't like a new blend right away, I will definitely try it in other pipes to rule that out. You should be able to figure out what genres work best in a newish pipe before it gets too ghosted, too.

I've had to learn not to get too attached to my initial plans for dedicating a new pipe.