Could Ghosting Actually be a Good Thing?

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Dimitri

Lurker
Jul 2, 2020
31
54
St. Helens, England
EDIT: Fixed Capitalization in Title (See Rule 9)

I know, how dare I, but hear me out!

Is it possible, that a certain tobacco smoked in a certain pipe, with a certain amount and certain type of ghosting could actually taste better than if it was smoked in a neutral pipe and be a match made in heaven?

Of course the tobacco wouldn't taste as the blender intended, but rather than the ghost taking away from the flavour, possibly it would actually enhance it?

Say I had a pipe heavily ghosted with latakia, there may be a tobacco out there without any latakia in the blend that would benefit from this "slight touch"


Apologies if this is a silly thread, its amazing what your mind can come up with when you're puffing away!
 
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ChickenT00th

Starting to Get Obsessed
Apr 30, 2020
112
400
While trying to see which one of my pipes Telegraph Hill would smoke better in, I packed a bowl of it in my Chacom Billiard that is usually dedicated to English blends, just for the heck of it. The slight ghosting of Latakia with that bowl of Telegraph Hill was pretty nice. Made me think of adding a pinch of this Pirate Kake that I have sitting around to my jar of Telegraph Hill. Might still do it!
 

laniromee

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jul 31, 2018
105
129
I thought about that one a lot. I have some Frog Morton stashed away that I was planning to smoke in a dedicated pipe to make a "Frog-Morton-ghosted" pipe for my endless enjoyment...

I believe the ghost effect can potentially add another dimension to whatever you smoke in the pipe, just like how we rub garlic on a piece of bread to make italian bruschetta. It would take someone much more competent than me to figure that one out, though.
 
Jun 18, 2020
3,798
13,538
Wilmington, NC
I thought about that one a lot. I have some Frog Morton stashed away that I was planning to smoke in a dedicated pipe to make a "Frog-Morton-ghosted" pipe for my endless enjoyment...

I believe the ghost effect can potentially add another dimension to whatever you smoke in the pipe, just like how we rub garlic on a piece of bread to make italian bruschetta. It would take someone much more competent than me to figure that one out, though.
I love the garlic bread analogy.
 

seanv

Lifer
Mar 22, 2018
2,958
10,405
Canada
I agree with the idea. I have smoked some cherry blends in a Latakia pipe and enjoyed it. Some burley in a Latakia pipe has also gone well. Experimenting is fun
 
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mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
I suppose it is strictly a matter of opinion and personal taste. I've suggested this as an aside in past threads. I don't consider a blend sacrosanct, and even blends I like best, I might occasionally tweak with another tobacco, or not mind if a tobacco from the past surfaced during a bowl. Obviously, the ghost blend and how well you like it matters a lot. Some might always love (or hate) a Latakia ghost, or fill in the leaf or flavoring. If I had five or ten pipes, it might matter more to me, or if I smoked some of those aromatic Lakeland blends that hang around for eternity. My many pipes rest so long in rotation, they can't remember the last blend by the time they get smoked again, so that may apply.
 

lawdawg

Lifer
Aug 25, 2016
1,792
3,801
Of course ghosting is neither good nor bad, depending on what you want out of your pipes. People speak critically of ghosting just because when you want to smoke one blend, you might end up tasting a bit of another. I've got a pipe I've been smoking a lot of Luxury Navy Flake with, and last night I smoked a bowl of Capstan blue out of it, and there was a spicy perique ghost in there that I enjoyed. I sometimes also enjoy smoking a burley blend (usually Carter Hall) out of one of my cobs after smoking a few bowls of something like Molto Dolce. It's like smoking a very tobacco-forward blend but with a powerful aromatic element.
 

anotherbob

Lifer
Mar 30, 2019
15,675
29,391
45
In the semi-rural NorthEastern USA
I know, how dare I, but hear me out!

Is it possible, that a certain tobacco smoked in a certain pipe, with a certain amount and certain type of ghosting could actually taste better than if it was smoked in a neutral pipe and be a match made in heaven?

Of course the tobacco wouldn't taste as the blender intended, but rather than the ghost taking away from the flavour, possibly it would actually enhance it?

Say I had a pipe heavily ghosted with latakia, there may be a tobacco out there without any latakia in the blend that would benefit from this "slight touch"


Apologies if this is a silly thread, its amazing what your mind can come up with when you're puffing away!
literally how ghosting was presented to me when I started smoking a pipe. That it's a matter of personal taste.
 
Jan 28, 2018
12,952
134,578
66
Sarasota, FL
I can see how that may work but if I don’t like a blend enough for it to stand on its own, I will just smoke the blend I do like I was going to ghost the pipe with. I don’t leave a splash of high end bourbon in the glass thinking it will make the cheap crap good.