Hi,
I'm a beginning pipe smoker of about 12 years. Not that I smoked much for the last 10 or so, but I recently got back into it. I like to smoke a pipe when I go for a walk in the woods. I got into the hobby in a kind of backwards way. Growing up, I never used tobacco of any kind and never gave any thought to trying it. Then one day I read an article in a magazine called The Backwoodsman about producing your own tobacco, which the author smoked in a pipe. I was fascinated. I bought some tobacco seeds the following spring, and grew, harvested, and cured a few pounds of tobacco. I flavored some if it with whiskey, vanilla extract, and a touch of maple syrup. Then I bought a pipe, a Missouri Meerschaum Country Gentleman. I tried some of the tobacco and surprisingly enjoyed it even though I packed too tight and smoked too fast.
For various reasons, smoking and hiking both became inconvenient and I didn't touch the pipe for 10 years. Recently it became convenient again. I still have most of the tobacco I grew, whole leaves in a cardboard box in the closet. I assume, stale beyond any chance of reviving it. I never bought any commercially produced tobacco until a couple weeks ago. I was sort of hoping that my home brewed tobacco was actually terrible and that the store bought stuff would be worlds better, but it actually wasn't, so against all odds I guess I did a decent job with my homemade aromatic blend. Then again, all I can get from my local smoke shop is Captain Black and Half & Half, so hopefully some of the more high-end blends actually are better than my homemade stuff. I'm about to venture out in search of tobacco shops with a better selection soon, or order some online if I can't find any. Just getting it online would be easier, but hunting down some good stuff from a brick and mortar is part of the fun.
