Did You Lose Your Taste for Aromatics Over Time?

[boston]

Mostly Latakia blends from GLP and Dunhill, and concoctions from Craig Tarler (night train, ojk, old Hollywood, Mississippi mud etc) for a long time. Then got into aromatic lakelands like 1792 and Emmerdale. Never had another aromatic I enjoyed until I had a few from KBV. Then I started to enjoy straight VA.

I've not had any new 1792 or Ennerdale for about a decade; had plenty in the cellar and I'm an infrequent smoker. Heard they are not the same from a few folks... dunno. KBV has good aromatic blends, Burley morning pipe for example is hard not to like...

 

[Architeuthis]

I used to enjoy coffee and tea flavored with all sorts of confections or fruit essences and gravitated to those things in tobacco as well. Time passes and tastes change. I no longer have coffee or tea flavored with anything. The sugar in the sugar bowl has solidified into a hockey puck from lack of use. Generally the same has happened for tobaccos. I still have a variety of aros but rarely choose to smoke them. At least the ones flavored with sweet dessert flavorings. Come to think of it, I don't eat those desserts anymore either.

 

[demian_dec]

I was quite curious about aromatics at the time I began smoking pipe seriously, as they are what I associated pipe tobacco with in my late childhood. So I tried a few (five, to be precise), but they all turned out not to be something I prefer - they were light and lacked flavour, being somewhat bland and characterless even.

I then - relatively early, after three or four months of smoking - dipped my pinky into the pond of non-aromatics - day and night difference, everything I could ever desire from pipe tobacco was in it for me. Ever since then I steer clear of aromatics and am very monogamous about the blends I smoke.

 

[beargreasediet]

My experience has been opposite to the question put in the OP; I first began with English and Balkan mixtures. I suppose this was in part out of some sort of assumed snobbery on my part but I truly just enjoyed the heavier flavors of Latakia and ortientals. I’ve only recently (within the last couple of years) come to appreciate VAs and VaPers, and for a hot minute those were all I wanted to smoke! I was a little worried, in part because Latakia blends were what I had cellared!

And that brings us to aros…. I thought I would love Sillem’s black. And I did, for a bowl or two. Same with Molto Dolce, and the McB’s Vanilla Roll Cake which briefly captured my fancy is still mostly intact. However, I have fond memories of, and some attraction yet to, those blends, at least the Sillem’s and Roll Cake which are carfullly preserved. And having recently developed a hankering, will likely order some others to try in the near future.

Like so many other things, the mountain evidently comes and goes. Which is just fine, who knows, maybe when I finally grow up my desert island tobacco will be capt black grape…. I kinda hope not but whatever.

 

[solideogloria86]

Other way around for me. Smoked non aromatics for decades then realized I could taste aromatics the way they smelled. Now I primarily smoke aromatics and straight orientals.

Very similar story here. I can finally actually taste aromatics after years of finding them bland and unsatisfying.

 

[Bassman65]

First aro’s I started with were vanilla or cherry based. They were just ok. Then I tried one with anise and thought this is awful. I consequently moved to non-aros and found my groove with an occasional aro mixed in for giggles. Then I found Lane’s Black Raspberry. God it’s good. Unabashed aro lover now! And I smoke with a filter. lol. The shame

 

[filmguerilla]

I'm mainly an English/latakia blend guy, but I started in the late 80's with aromatics from my local pipe shop in Missouri. They were store blends that I can confidently say were rebrands of classic Lane stuff. At this point I only occasionally smoke an aro--and I'm very picky about them. There a couple by Boswell that I enjoy, as well as Country Squire, but to be honest the only aro's I circle back to regularly are Sillem's Black, GLP Virginia Cream, and C&D John Marr. Of course, I'm not including Lakeland blends here, even though they do have that topping/sauce; I absolutely adore Gawith tobaccos.

 

[Lucro]

New to pipe and smoke a lot of aromatics. Cult Blood red moon being a favorite. I also enjoy many Boswell blends bc in his aromatics you generally can still taste the tobacco. Just depends on my mood. I like a good aromatic with my morning coffee then later in the day I’ll be feeling an English. Like another fellow said, smoke what you enjoy. Also if you like Latakia forward English blends, give Boswell’s Northwoods a try. I don’t think you will be disappointed. It was my first English blend and I immediately vibed with it.