I think pipe and cigar tobaccos come from different parts of the cow! :!:
To experiment with your idea, I went and got some rolling papers, the thinnest I could find. I rolled an aro and some Dunhill Flake. Rolling the aro was a challenge because I have never rolled loose tobacco. The flake was easier because it was solid. The flake I tore into thin long strips, and rolled five of them into the paper, thinking it would have similar channels to long leaf cigar tobacco. The Dunhill strips conveniently the exact length of the paper.
The room note on both was to me the same as in a pipe. The first few puffs didn't taste significantly different than in a pipe. It reacted to heat similar to how it does in a pipe in that you could sip it for a cool taste, or puff at it hot and get bit.
The flake smoked surprisingly well in paper it stayed lit and provided a lot of smoke.
About one third in, you get an occasional tang form the liquid which develops when smoking pipe tobacco. Unlike a pipe, it has no buffer as it does in a pipe. I smoked about half of each. I wouldn't recommend further than than. As you can't smoke it to only ash, as with a pipe, it is more wasteful than a pipe.
Would I do it again? Sure. It may be an option for when I am playing music and have short breaks where I do not have time to deal with a pipe properly.
It was definitely an interesting exercise. There is no question that a pipe remains king.
