I finally got my Goodie bag from Pipesandcigars in the mail yesterday, and I'm quite happy with it. Although I'm not certain what I'm going to do with the Chinese cobs, I'm contemplating taking a couple of them apart and turning them into a reverse calabash, or perhaps I can fashion the three of them into some kind of pipe rest. The Club Macanudo cup will be good for coffee at home, and the book will be going to a friend since I already have a copy. As for the tobacco, I have yet to try the John Bull, but I'm nearly finished with my first bowl of Drexel as I write this. Before loading my pipe I looked up the blend on tobaccoreviews.com and found a review by Jim.... no surprise there... I believe he's smoked every blend ever created, ever. I will include his review below...
The picture fell over sideways, but as you can see, the Stanwell is coloring quite nicely, and the grain is starting to show through a bit better.
Anyway, opening the package of Drexel, I was surprised that the pouch isn't sealed and is held closed only by a little piece of tape, but the tobacco didn't seem too dried out and the flakes were fully intact. I'm putting the pouch in a ziplock bag, but will soon transfer it to a jar. I chose two flakes, folded and stuffed and struck a match. There's not much for me to say that Jiminks didn't mention in his review above. But I'll add, that to me, the perique was more raisiny, figgy, plummy than spicy. And the virginias seemed more citrus and honey than grass for me. The sweetness fades to an earthy flavor at the end of the bowl. There was that slight acidity he mentioned, and it is indeed slight and isn't constant. And although there were a few (and only a few) relights, for the most part it burned quite nicely. My only real complaint about this blend is the packaging. I would rather it came tinned, as in the pouch it's probably best to jar it up immediately since the pouch isn't sealed. They just fill the pouch and close it with a bit of tape. I'm not much of a Virginia Perique smoker, but I've been trying a few here and there, and this one I found enjoyable. I'm contemplating ordering more, but the unsealed packaging troubles me. One reviewer states it's just like Orlik Golden Sliced, so I may try that and compare. If they're so similar, I may just purchase that instead. I'm definitely glad I tried it, and glad P&C included it in the free goodie bag. So a big thank you to Pipes And Cigars for that.
Because of the packaging, I'll give this blend 4 out of 5 puffies... :
: :: :: ::
And so, once again, this pipe has proven quite effective for fold and stuffed flakes, and I can be serious about dedicating it to that purpose. Happy smokes! ::
So I grabbed the Stanwell Authentic 15 which has twice so far proven to be good for flakes.
The picture fell over sideways, but as you can see, the Stanwell is coloring quite nicely, and the grain is starting to show through a bit better.
Anyway, opening the package of Drexel, I was surprised that the pouch isn't sealed and is held closed only by a little piece of tape, but the tobacco didn't seem too dried out and the flakes were fully intact. I'm putting the pouch in a ziplock bag, but will soon transfer it to a jar. I chose two flakes, folded and stuffed and struck a match. There's not much for me to say that Jiminks didn't mention in his review above. But I'll add, that to me, the perique was more raisiny, figgy, plummy than spicy. And the virginias seemed more citrus and honey than grass for me. The sweetness fades to an earthy flavor at the end of the bowl. There was that slight acidity he mentioned, and it is indeed slight and isn't constant. And although there were a few (and only a few) relights, for the most part it burned quite nicely. My only real complaint about this blend is the packaging. I would rather it came tinned, as in the pouch it's probably best to jar it up immediately since the pouch isn't sealed. They just fill the pouch and close it with a bit of tape. I'm not much of a Virginia Perique smoker, but I've been trying a few here and there, and this one I found enjoyable. I'm contemplating ordering more, but the unsealed packaging troubles me. One reviewer states it's just like Orlik Golden Sliced, so I may try that and compare. If they're so similar, I may just purchase that instead. I'm definitely glad I tried it, and glad P&C included it in the free goodie bag. So a big thank you to Pipes And Cigars for that.
Because of the packaging, I'll give this blend 4 out of 5 puffies... :
: :: :: ::And so, once again, this pipe has proven quite effective for fold and stuffed flakes, and I can be serious about dedicating it to that purpose. Happy smokes! :
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