I recently re-inventoried my tobacco cellar after selling off some of it (600+ tins) several years ago. And I found that I currently have over 70 different blends represented. These are all blends that I’ve smoked and enjoyed in the past.
And it got me thinking about all of those threads about “What famous pipe smokers smoked.” And the answer usually comes down to one blend…maybe two. ”Einstein smoked *this*.” “C.S. Lewis smoked *this*.” You don’t get a list of a dozen favorites, let alone 70! The pipesmokers of the past apparently settled in with a chosen blend, much like a cigarette smoker who picks their one brand and smokes nothing else.
I’d struggle with that. I love the variety we have with pipe smoking today. I love being able to go from English to Virginias, flakes to fine-cut. Besides, with so many blends becoming increasingly hard to find (assuming they’re continuing to be produced at all), being dedicated to a single blend seems a bit risky.
So I’m curious: Are there any experienced pipesmokers here who limit their smoking to only one or two constant companions?
Or this: If you were told you could only smoke a single blend from now on, do you know what blend you’d choose? Would you be happy with this arrangement…or would you consider giving up the pipe altogether?
I enjoy the act of smoking too much to see myself giving up the pipe even if I were limited to one blend. But I have no idea what blend I’d choose if I had to make that choice; the only one that has come close to being a “lifetime” companion for me is Penzance…so where does that get me?
And it got me thinking about all of those threads about “What famous pipe smokers smoked.” And the answer usually comes down to one blend…maybe two. ”Einstein smoked *this*.” “C.S. Lewis smoked *this*.” You don’t get a list of a dozen favorites, let alone 70! The pipesmokers of the past apparently settled in with a chosen blend, much like a cigarette smoker who picks their one brand and smokes nothing else.
I’d struggle with that. I love the variety we have with pipe smoking today. I love being able to go from English to Virginias, flakes to fine-cut. Besides, with so many blends becoming increasingly hard to find (assuming they’re continuing to be produced at all), being dedicated to a single blend seems a bit risky.
So I’m curious: Are there any experienced pipesmokers here who limit their smoking to only one or two constant companions?
Or this: If you were told you could only smoke a single blend from now on, do you know what blend you’d choose? Would you be happy with this arrangement…or would you consider giving up the pipe altogether?
I enjoy the act of smoking too much to see myself giving up the pipe even if I were limited to one blend. But I have no idea what blend I’d choose if I had to make that choice; the only one that has come close to being a “lifetime” companion for me is Penzance…so where does that get me?
