Experienced Pipers 20 Years+ Opinions on Definitive Blends

[ThermionicScott]

Sorry…I was referring to the OP’s post and most of the comments that addressed it. I wasn’t commenting on the “no unicorns” post.

Whoops, sorry myself.

 

[Yadkin1765]

Aromatic Smoker’s Pride Cherry Cav
Balkan Balkan Supreme
Burley Granger
English Larry’s Blend
Lakeland KC Creme (by a mile!)
Oriental Don’t smoke condiments
Scottish Haven’t yet
Virginia Capstan Yellow
VA/BUR Half and Half
VA/PER PS Luxury Navy Flake

This precisely answers the exact question posed. Well done.

 

[SBC]

Ok, a sub-thread here has become comparative VaPers, so this may be a good place to seek some insight into my own tastes, esp. from @sablebrush52 (although I welcome input from anybody) --

Straight VA is my favorite genre (HH Pure VA may be my favorite), but I have disliked many of the most highly rated VaPers I've tried. Ergo, I assumed for awhile that I must not like perique.
Nevertheless, there have been a few VaPers that I adore, and that has me curious whether there's a subset of perique that I like (or some similar dynamic in play).

VaPers that I sort of disliked include --

• Escudo (current production, never tried the older one)
• Viprati
• Telegraph Hill
• Sixpence
• Anniversary Kake
• Bayou Morning

VaPers that I tolerate include --

• LNF
• Match Victorian
• Dunbar (actually I'm torn on this one... I think I really like it, but not in a way that I want all the time)

VaPers that I REALLY like include --

• J.M.'s Private Stock (Boswell)
• Cabbie's Mixture
• Stonehenge Flake
• LBF (aged)
• OGS (although I don't think this really counts as a VaPer)

So, based on the VaPers I do and don't like, what is my diagnosis?
Is there a common thread to the ones I dislike? Or a common thread to the ones that I like?

Thanks. Just curious.

 

[sablebrush52]

Ok, a sub-thread here has become comparative VaPers, so this may be a good place to seek some insight into my own tastes, esp. from @sablebrush52 (although I welcome input from anybody) --

Straight VA is my favorite genre (HH Pure VA may be my favorite), but I have disliked many of the most highly rated VaPers I've tried. Ergo, I assumed for awhile that I must not like perique.
Nevertheless, there have been a few VaPers that I adore, and that has me curious whether there's a subset of perique that I like (or some similar dynamic in play).

VaPers that I sort of disliked include --

• Escudo (current production, never tried the older one)
• Viprati
• Telegraph Hill
• Sixpence
• Anniversary Kake
• Bayou Morning

VaPers that I tolerate include --

• LNF
• Match Victorian
• Dunbar (actually I'm torn on this one... I think I really like it, but not in a way that I want all the time)

VaPers that I REALLY like include --

• J.M.'s Private Stock (Boswell)
• Cabbie's Mixture
• Stonehenge Flake
• LBF (aged)
• OGS (although I don't think this really counts as a VaPer)

So, based on the VaPers I do and don't like, what is my diagnosis?
Is there a common thread to the ones I dislike? Or a common thread to the ones that I like?

Thanks. Just curious.

Just proves that variety is the spice of life. Some that you dislike I like and vice versa. One thing might be the "dirty sweat socks" smell that some of your dislikes have, like Viprati and Sixpence. Might not be the Perique as much as the Virginias with which it is combined.
Aged LBF is an excellent blend and one of my favorites. The Virginias and black Cavendish support the fruitiness of the Perique. Fresh it's like smoking cardboard. When you're good to return to smoking, let me know and I'll send you some HU Directors Cut.
I really liked Sixpence when I first bought it and was very disappointed with it when I opened another tin after 6 years. I might love it on another occasion.

 

[vosBghos]

I feel like this thread is discriminatory!
Where are the moderators when you need one?

was kind of a joke I mean “if ever than always“ as witch most things didn’t mean to be ageist

 

[Chasing Embers]

So, based on the VaPers I do and don't like, what is my diagnosis?

Salty Dogs

Is there a common thread to the ones I dislike? Or a common thread to the ones that I like?

Nope, like everyone else your taste varies.

 

[SBC]

Salty Dogs

This was on a long ignored "To Try" list for years. You just reminded me to look at it again.
So, just now I read its description again and a few reviews. Hot darn, does that sound like the ticket!

 

[uzzi101]

I’ve always seen escudo highly recommended but I never purchased any until last year. It’s gotten a little better after a year in a jar but it still leaves much to be desired. I’m glad to know I’m not just crazy in my assessment.

IMO Escudo is terribly finicky and can taste wildly different depending how tight a pack it and the pipe I smoke it in.

My typical virgins pipes - stack billiard, bent or straight makes Escudo taste bland a bit bitter to me.

Escudo packed “medium pressure pack” in my slightly bent apple, with a wider shorter bowl makes this blend song to the heavens.

It’s extraordinary how a pipes shape makes such a difference.

Would be great to know the optimum pipe share for each exact blend to have the zen experience each bowl.

 

[vosBghos]

IMO Escudo is terribly finicky and can taste wildly different depending how tight a pack it and the pipe I smoke it in.

My typical virgins pipes - stack billiard, bent or straight makes Escudo taste bland a bit bitter to me.

Escudo packed “medium pressure pack” in my slightly bent apple, with a wider shorter bowl makes this blend song to the heavens.

It’s extraordinary how a pipes shape makes such a difference.

Would be great to know the optimum pipe share for each exact blend to have the zen experience each bowl.

I read somewhere that Presbyterian in a small shallow bowl is better I tried it and must agree it's more punchy and to the point when not spread across a wide bowl

 

[Auxsender]

The following is copied and pasted from a thread entitled "Gold Standard Blends - Revised" at another forum:

A list of widely available reference blends for folks interested in exploring new genres. These are not meant to represent "The Best" nor are they necessarily our Favorites, they serve as good starting points and useful benchmarks.
No Unicorns here.

Aromatics:
British/Lake District:
Bosun Cut Plug
Coniston Cut Plug
Gawith & Hoggarth Co. Brown Flake, Dark Flake/Plug (scented or unscented), Ennerdale Flake, Broken #7 Flake, Best Brown #2

European:
Davidoff Danish Mixture
Dan Tobacco Blue Note
Peterson Connoisseur's Choice
Solani Blend 369 Blue Label
Peter Stokkebye (pick one)

U.S.A.:
Boswell's (pick one)
Cornell & Diehl (pick one)
The Country Squire (pick one)
Lane's 1Q and RLP6
Sir Walter Raleigh Aromatic
Sutliff (pick one)
Watch City Deluxe Crumb Cut
Wilke Tobacco's (pick one)

American OTC:
Carter Hall
Half & Half
Prince Albert
Sir Walter Raleigh

British OTC:
Murray's Revor Plug
Original Flake
St. Bruno's Ready Rubbed and Flake

Burley (Non-Aromatic):
Peter Heinrich's Dark Strong Flake
Peretti's Burley Plug Cut
Solani Aged Burley Flake
Uhle's 00 and Perfection Plug Burley
Wessex Burley Slice

Virginias:
Light to Medium:
4th Generation 1855
Capstan Yellow
C&D Yorktown
Dan's Hamborger Veermaster
F&T Cut Virginia Plug
Orlik Golden Sliced (*very light perique)
Peterson Flake
Samuel Gawith Golden Glow

Medium to Dark:
Astley's 109
John Aylesbury Classic Flake
Capstan Blue
GLPease Union Square
Samuel Gawith Best Brown Flake and Full Virginia Flake
Watch City Rhythm & Blues

Dark:
Astley's # 44
Rattray's Dark Fragrant
Wessex Brigade Campaign Dark Flake

Red:
C&D Bijou, Interlude, Opening Nights
F&T BlackJack
MacBaren HH Pure Virginia
Sutliff Matured Red Virginia 515 RC-1
Watch City Simply Red
Wessex Red Virginia Flake

Virginia/Perique (VaPer):
Escudo
HU Director's Cut
Samuel Gawith St. James Flake and Cabbie's Mixture
GLPease Telegraph Hill
Peterson DeLuxe Navy Rolls
Peter Stokkebye Luxury Bullseye Flake and Luxury Navy Flake
Watch City Rougaroux and Old Dominion

Virginia/Burley (VaBur)
C&D Pegasus
Erik Stokkebye 1931 Flake
MacBaren Navy Flake and Old Dark Fired
Solani Silver Flake
Uhle's 44

Virginia/Burley/Perique (VaBurPer):
C&D Old Joe Krantz
HU Edward G
McConnell Scottish Cake
Peretti's No. 8 Sliced
Rattray Hal o' the Wynd
Reiner's Blend 71 aka Long Golden Flake
Watch City Slices

English:
Classics:
Samuel Gawith Squadron Leader and Skiff
GLPease Westminister
Peterson Early Morning Pipe, Standard Mixture, MM 965, and Nightcap
Peretti's Tashkent
Rattray's 7 Reserves
Peter Stokkebye Proper English

Crossover English:
Boswell's NorthWoods
C&D Epiphany
Kramer's Cary Grant & Danny Kaye
Lane HGL
Peter Stokkebye EOS & Luxury English
Sutliff Match Revelation

Scottish:
MacBaren Scottish Mixture
Perretti Pride of Loch Lomond
Rattray's Red Rapparee and Black Mallory

Balkan:
Balkan Sasieni
GLPease Odyssey
Hearth & Home Black House and White Knight
Seattle Pipe Club Plum Pudding Special Reserve
Peter Stokkebye Balkan Supreme


Sources:
Original Gold Standard Blends list created at PSF
Review of TR Top Rated/Best Sellers
A lengthy thread and two polls here at PSD
Additional PSD member suggestions for updates and revisions.
Overhauled 12/17/2021 by:
Gold Standard Review Committee:
DarkFlake (* RIP), DmKerr, Fr_Tom, JimInks, Sablebrush52, Sasquatch, Spillproof, TallPuffofBurley.

Very well done. Thanks.

 

[samuelgawith01]

I reccomend you smoke them yourself,and draw your own conclusions. I can’t possibly tell you what to think about this blend or that blend.Having just started out,you have a long way to go.Tastes change over time.Mine have.

 

[metalheadycigarguy]

I've been smoking a pipe for 12 years now, so I'm 8 years short on the demographic you're looking to gain answers from. I can say this; explore a variety of tobaccos on your own. Taste is very subjective. One person's favorite or go to blend could be terrible for another person. Don't put to much stock into what others think, focus on what you enjoy.

Look up different blends, read the description, and if it sounds interesting than give it a try. I found that buying 1oz or 2oz samples over the years was very helpful. If the blend was good or great, then obviously I would buy more. If I hated it or it just wasn't my favorite, then I'm not out a bunch of money and stuck with a near full tin of a tobacco I won't enjoy.