Bog Morta?

[kcghost]

@kcghost = As noted, you may want to Email Russ Cook. All I could find was something about the "bog wood" in Lake Michigan being harvested from the lake bottom, which IIRC is very deep and supposedly buried in the sediment.

I think I will do that. I will also ask him whether the pipe he won Best Non-Briar Pipe at the KC Show in 2012 was made of LMM or BM.

 

[lestrout]

Harris - judging from my Askwith and Becker mortas, this wood does throw a very interesting earthy depth into the mix, so a light VA (flake) starts to mirror a GH with its exotic Malawi, etc. leaf. Maybe even a hint of Tambolaka. The 'morta effect' is most pronounced in the first couple of dozen bowls, at least relative to taste. Olivewood is the same for me - at some point the cake dominates the taste profile.
I first got the 2 mortas because of the reputed synergism with Latakia, and found it was so. But I tried various VAs, including flakes, to see what would happen, and was very pleasantly surprised to find a new dimension to familiar VAs. At the time, several years ago, I didn't find anyone else commenting on this wrinkle.
hp

les

 

[tbradsim1]

I am smoking my Becker Rhodesian Morta with Wessex Campaign, smoked the same tobbaco yesterday in a Becker Briar and I"m getting some earthiness I didn"t get with the briar.

 

[cigrmaster]

roth, How do people know how old it really is, do pipe makers do carbon testing on it? Siberia, never heard of bog coming from there, that is very cool. I thought most of the Morta came from England.
Les, thanks for that thoughtful post, very interesting indeed. It sounds like I should be prepared for a different kind of smoke in the beginning and then as the cake builds more of a briar type flavor.
Bradley, is that earthiness a good thing or do you feel it takes something away from that blend? That is one of my favorite all time smokes and I am not sure how I would feel with earthiness added to it.

 

[peckinpahhombre]

I don't really detect the "smoky" or "earthy" flavour in my mortas anymore - I do think it dissipates. I love my mortas especially when I travel because I can just take a couple of mortas and don't feel so bad about smoking two or three successive bowls.

 

[tbradsim1]

Harris, 2 things , I was told the darker the Morta the older it is, Becker did not say how old it was,the bog was in Germany and was assumed. To be over 5000 yrs old. The taste thing I will try to describe, the campaign has for me at start and mid bowl a sharp flavor,with my Morta the flavor is still there but subdued, not in a bad way, one thing it is a Nitecap smoking machine. Is it better than Briar? I don"t know, if you can get a deal.you ought to try it.

 

[cigrmaster]

roth, you fussy, say it ain't so. lol I hear you buddy, I am the exact same way, I would rather wait months than get something not perfect.
Bradley, thanks for the description, I do get a sense of what you are talking about. I am definitely going to grab one soon and see for myself.

 

[rockymtnsmoker]

Gentlemen, I have been to morta school. FB, thanks for that amazingly descriptive post on your incredible morta collection. To you all... :worship:

 

[zonomo]

Here's mine. I love it. Smokes a little hot but I love thinking about the thousands of years this wood was under water. This was made by Davorin. He signed a Certificate with my name and everything. Very cool.

 

[fishnbanjo]

Harris et alia,

Took the 9 1/2" Askwith Morta Cutty out with the now nearly 7 y/o Anniversary Kake and here is the report on that smoke.
I always take great care when lighting a Cutty since you generally can't see the flame on the tobacco so in order to prevent charring the bowl I cant it so it is pointing straight out then find the center of the side of the bowl and move the lighter to my finger on the opposite side then center it, I use a pipe lighter with a soft flame and it has served me well.
At first light I was immediately greeted with the taste of wine on my palate and snork with medium grey smoke, tamped it and the smoke continued medium grey and the taste alternated between wine on the palate and spice on the snork with hints of cocoa at the end of the palate after the wine. This playful concert continued through 1/3 of the bowl then a huge spice note on the snork with a Vitamin N hit on its heels which then settled down for 10 minutes and the playful concert of wine and spice picked up again somewhat subdued almost taunting you to take another puff. The final 1/3 was a continuation of a lovely concert of wine and spice very cool smoke throughout the 50 minutes and was left with nothing but grey ash, no dottle nor moisture nor any relights.
I plan to repeat this smoke off using a VA and perhaps a mild Lat blend using all 8 pipes. I will discuss more tomorrow.