A Newbie Log

[InWithBothFeet]

No real questions. I guess unless told otherwise, I will use this thread to kind of chronicle my experiences. Constructive comments are most welcome.

Smoked a bowl of OGS this afternoon. Bowl #3 in my journey. I am still at that point that everything tastes like I am licking an ash tray. One thing different this time is that I intentionally packed very light and once I got it lit, I did not need a re-light with very light tamps throughout the bowl. There is a storm coming in, so the wind was fairly howling and I was closing off the bowl by cupping my hand over it. That probably contributed to it staying lit. It was getting plenty of air. The one thing that stood out to me is that when I rubbed it out, how dry it was compared to the other tobaccos I have played around with. I got some Country Squire Tombigbee in the mail today and it is sopping wet in comparison.
I have some CBRM that I want to try but am a little afraid of ghosting my new briars. I have a MM bent Country Gentleman coming in the next week or so for that. "The vaping piper" channel on YT said that was flavored strongly enough that new pipers will be able to taste it.

 

[proteus]

You're getting the hang of it. Pack light for sure. Drier is best. Truly dried out tobacco is totally different from what some people think is dried out.

 

[solideogloria86]

If you find that OGS straight from the tin is dry, your barometer for wet and dry tobacco may not be properly calibrated yet. Mine wasn't for quite a long time, but properly drying tobacco was the single greatest piece of pipe smoking advice I've ever received. It unlocked a whole new level of flavor that I'd never experienced before. I believe this advice to be so useful that I made a post detailing the method I use to dry tobacco in a post for posterity.

Drying Tobacco- One Method :: Pipe Smoking Basics & Beginner Questions

Edited: For caps and clarification. Here's a quick guide on drying your tobacco. Please note that this is the method I use to get tobacco dried to my preference. You can experiment with different levels of moisture and find out what works best for you. Spread the tobacco out in a single layer...

pipesmagazine.com

 

[InWithBothFeet]

There's nothing calibrated about what I am doing at the moment.. LOL I about gagged myself a couple times via breathing at the wrong moment. A hearty retrohale was a bad move too.

 

[tmcg81]

Not that I'm any kind of expert, but dry tobacco and a looser pack typically yield good results for me. Just keep at it. Any time spent smoking a pipe is time well spent.

 

[Chasing Embers]

piper

Aromatics really aren't a good place to start. Beginners often smoke fast and will flash the flavor off of even the heaviest topped blends. Excluding Lakelands, permanent ghosting is mostly a myth so I wouldn't worry about that. As far as YouTube, most of the smokers there know about as much about smoking a pipe as Kermit the frog.

 

[InWithBothFeet]

 

[Trainpipeman]

Thanks for sharing your experiences. It is always a pleasure to read the experiences of a new pipe smoker.

Before you realize it, you will be an expert on packing your pipe.

 

[bullet08]

For the benefit of trekkies on the forum, you should always start this type of posts with "star date...".

 

[FLDRD]

Simple perseverance is your friend.
Bowl 3?
You've got lots of fun ahead, and you'll learn from every bowl.

 

[kcghost]

Aromatics are dreadful place start as they are usually hotter than other tobaccos so give English's a try. Remember to not pack your pipe so tightly and to moderate the pace of puffing. If you have to relight your pipe is no crime. Your there to enjoy your pipe and live up to some yahoo's standard of what's right.

 

[Old Smokey]

Aromatics are dreadful place start as they are usually hotter than other tobaccos so give English's a try. Remember to not pack your pipe so tightly and to moderate the pace of puffing. If you have to relight your pipe is no crime. Your there to enjoy your pipe and live up to some yahoo's standard of what's right.

Again, a wealth of information.

 

[FLDRD]

I'll also add that the "good smelling" vanilla & cherry type of aromatics from the B&M were an actual impediment to my personal journey. Once I stopped trying to make those work for me, everything improved and progress really began.

 

[InWithBothFeet]

Harumph! I have some non-aromatics back home, including an english (bought the Amphora Sampler pack), but here all I have are aromatics except for the OGS.

As to the drying, I set out a good 3 finger pinch of the Tombigbee last night and it dried nicely I believe. If it's not raining this evening, I'll see how that goes.

 

[Trainpipeman]

Good luck with the drying! Hopefully, an enjoyable smoke.

 

[InWithBothFeet]

As an aside... the smoking frog is now my avatar. I think it suits the situation better. hehe

 

[InWithBothFeet]

After reading some "beginner tobacco blend" threads here, I think I will look around locally for an OTC non-aromatic codger blend.

 

[InWithBothFeet]

Well that was kind of a fail. Ended up with an ounce of 1Q and RLP-6. Both are aromatics but mildly so. The cigar shop was mainly a cigar shop. The other "tobacco" stores are just head shops.

 

[AJL67]

Simple perseverance is your friend.
Bowl 3?
You've got lots of fun ahead, and you'll learn from every bowl.

I remember bowl 3 it was magical, that's when i mastered loading a bowl and smoking it down to ash! What a day that was!

 

[InWithBothFeet]

Smoked a bowl of the RLP-6 this afternoon. Not as much ashtray as the OGS. Retrohales weren't harsh like the OGS. I can't say I got any good flavor out of it, but the ash tray was a milder ash tray. Had a few relights but nothing excessive. Got a little nic hit out of it I believe, I've never been a smoker. The bottom of the bowl was damp, but not wet. Filter was damp, but not wet. I didn't smoke to the bottom of the bowl, I probably scraped out 3/8" of tobacco. It got harsher as it got lower in the bowl. For bowl #4, I call that a success.

Edit... got the MM country gentleman in today. Drawing through it tastes/smells of glue. It needs to offgas a bit. hehe