A Late Introduction

[pathos]

Howdy. Been a member for a little over a year figured it's about time I start saying hello.

I started pipe smoking sometime last year. Ive been a cigar smoker prior to that, never cared for cigarettes. Never picked up the habit, which Ive found to be beneficial to the enjoyment of tobacco rather than being a slave to it. Still working out the secret to finding the flavours of tobacco. Starting to think it's all in how you first light the bowl. Every now and then I can detect hints of flavour other than smoke.

 

[Simmerdown☕️]

Welcome!️

 

[Tommy Boy]

Welcome from S.W Michigan

 

[lightxmyfire]

Welcome!

 

[Pipelady20]

Welcome!!

 

[cshubhra]

Welcome!!!

 

[mikethompson]

It is certainly a learning process. To make matters more complicated, what works for someone else might not work for you.

Good luck on your journey! Be sure to ask any questions you have.

 

[augiebd]

Welcome from Western Canada! You are correct, how you light can make a big difference. You don’t want to be too aggressive and create too large and hot an ember. The dryness of tobacco, packing and pace of smoking will also effect flavour.

 

[cigrmaster]

Welcome from Florida. Packing the pipe and lighting it are two of the most important aspects to enjoy pipe smoking. You will need to some research and experimenting. Many of us have our ways of doing things but may differ from yours.

When I pack a pipe I do it in three stages. After the third I check the draw. I want to feel some resistance before I light up. I hate a loose pack as ut burns too hot and I lose flavor. If I over pack all I need to fix it is a pipe cleaner into the bowl. The first light should be a toasting the tobacco, the next light is called the true light and you want to get a nice cherry of tobacco so you can begin drawing the smoke into your mouth, don't take huge puffs, go slow and sip your pipe. Be patient as it is an art to smoke a pipe.

 

[pathos]

Thanks all.

augie, how far west? I'm out in BC.

cigrmaster, using a pipe cleaner to fix a tight draw, that's an interesting one. I'm assuming you push it through the stem to loosen the tobacco at the bottom a bit?

 

[cigrmaster]

Thanks all.

augie, how far west? I'm out in BC.

cigrmaster, using a pipe cleaner to fix a tight draw, that's an interesting one. I'm assuming you push it through the stem to loosen the tobacco at the bottom a bit?

I pack my bowls pretty tight and at times a piece of tobacco will get stuck. Usually one tapered cleaner does the job but then once in a while it might take 1 or 2 Bristled cleaners. There are also times when I jam a group sized flake into a large group 4 pipe. That is always fun. Before I even try to light the pipe I stuff a bristled cleaner knowing it is going to be tight. Usually 1 will work sometimes 2. At times the flake is a bit too tall for the pipe so I will jam it down, light it and then using my trusty tamper and do a dance that tries to keep hot ash from falling in my lap,

 

[wordheavy]

Welcome

 

[indoeuro]

Welcome! Don't sweat the effort in finding flavor; mastery will come by doing, like all good hobbies.

 

[gervais]

Welcome from Ontario Canada

 

[tech49]

Welcome!

I retired from teaching various sensory evaluation college courses in Culinary Arts, and Brewing & Distillation Science, and I found with my students that it wasn't that they couldn't taste, they tended to lack the aroma/flavor recall and vocabulary.

The easiest way to start building your tasting skill for anything (food, spirits, wine, beer, cigars, pipes) is to practice identifying aromas and flavors.

Go to your kitchen and pantry and sample aromas from spices, dry cereal, nuts, herbs, fruits (dried and fresh), jam, vegetables, etc. Burn the aroma into your brain and remember it. Sometimes for fruits and veg you should cut them up, put them in a glass covered with plastic wrap and let them warm to room temp. After a few minutes remove the plastic and stick your nose in there.

When it becomes safe to go to the grocery store without a mask again, it's a great place to pick up all kinds of stuff to practice with.

Eventually you will be able to recall the aroma in your mind, once you get good at it.

 

[saltedplug]

Welcome!

I retired from teaching various sensory evaluation college courses in Culinary Arts, and Brewing & Distillation Science, and I found with my students that it wasn't that they couldn't taste, they tended to lack the aroma/flavor recall and vocabulary.

The easiest way to start building your tasting skill for anything (food, spirits, wine, beer, cigars, pipes) is to practice identifying aromas and flavors.

Go to your kitchen and pantry and sample aromas from spices, dry cereal, nuts, herbs, fruits (dried and fresh), jam, vegetables, etc. Burn the aroma into your brain and remember it. Sometimes for fruits and veg you should cut them up, put them in a glass covered with plastic wrap and let them warm to room temp. After a few minutes remove the plastic and stick your nose in there.

When it becomes safe to go to the grocery store without a mask again, it's a great place to pick up all kinds of stuff to practice with.

Eventually you will be able to recall the aroma in your mind, once you get good at it.

My sketchy palate was the single most frustrating part of my pipe-smoking. I wish I had had your method of training it by the nose. Though it doesn't make sense, smell is more important to taste than the tastebuds. When I smoked and exhaled through the nose there was more flavor, yet I never made a practice of this.

Taste recognizes tastants ands smell odorants; the two follow separate routes but then converge to provide the final taste.

 

[saltedplug]

Though it doesn't make sense, smell is more important to taste than the tastebuds.

EDITED: Untrue. They are both influential.

 

[mso489]

Interesting post by tech49, from professional experience. An acquaintance of mine was working on a degree at Baylor (years ago) studying taste sensory perception (something like that). I take tech49's point that the skill requires training and cultivation. My friend also pointed out that there were genetic differences in how people tasted different flavors, as of course there would be. I've always been interested in subjective responses to the meats beef liver and lamb. I'm in the group that finds beef liver repugnant, very redolent of iron like rusty nails, and I don't like the texture either, whereas some people exalt in it. Conversely, I enjoy lamb roast and chops, and many find it gamey and unsavory. So taste is a practice and a study.

 

[tomatamot]

A warm welcome from Rotterdam.