Hits & misses from 2016

[curl]

My hits include Standard Tobacco Company of Pennsylvania for their John Cotton blends and for War Horse.

H&H Anniversary Kake was a welcome addition to my rotation this year.

I learned to appreciate burley late this year, especially OJK.

A good friend went to England this summer and got 2 pouches of Revor for me.
Crooner disappointed me this year; so did MM Missouri Pride.
However most of the new blends I purchased this year haven't been opened yet: the new Dunhill re-releases, 4 tins of Balkan Sobranie, 4 tins of McClelland Christmas Cheer, Russ O's Acadian blends. I won't know if these are hits or misses for quite a while.

 

[mso489]

A few of my select hits for 2016, opening my first tin of Royal Yacht; Tabac Manil Semois continuing; and Russ's Log Cabin in MM cobs and Fire Storm in briars.
There have been a few clunkers, but I mix blah tobaccos and fiddle with pipe problems, and usually get things going on the right track. If I think of any bummers for the year, I'll post again.

 

[clickklick]

Hits: 1990s Craven, John Cotton Smyrna, Castello Pipes
Misses: John Cotton #1, John Cotton #1&2, 2000 era Ashton Pipes

 

[beefeater33]

Hits: Drucquer & Sons Levant Mixture- Fantastic stuff, I bought all the re-releases, but this is the only one I have tried so far.

Warhorse Green-- definitely a Hit!

GLP- Temple Bar-- When its good, its DEVINE..............

Peretti's Oriental #40-- I really like this one too.

For me, I leaned towards the orientals pretty heavily in 2016, my tastes seem to constantly change.....
Misses: Crooner was a big disappointment.

I tried GH Kendal Dark Flake- just couldn't "get it".........

Warhorse RR didn't do much for me either, a fine tobacco, just not one I reach for often...

Tried the Solani Aged Burley Flake too...... Meh.......... ::

 

[litup]

Hits: GLP's Chelsea Morning, McClelland's Matured Virginia Navy Cavendish, and Peterson's Irish Flake.

Misses: Esoterica's Pembroke, C&D's Black Frigate (sorry fans), and McClelland's 2014 Holidy Spirit.

 

[virginialover]

Hits: My 2 commissioned Blatter pipes,1 GBD Virgin 135 estate. Samuel Gawith Full Virginia Plug, Kendal Plug and St James Plug. WhiteKnight by H&H and Condor Ready Rubbed by Gallaher Limited.
Misses: Samuel Gawith Cob Plug and Penzance by Esoterica.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Almost any lat. blend, esp. From Std. Tobacco of PA, GL Pease, and H&H.
Misses: Royal Yacht, Elizabethan Mixture, heavy pipes.

 

[tschiraldi]

Hits - Stonehaven, John Alesbury Luxury Flake, Margate, Gas Light, Peterson's Balkan Delight, Comoy's Golden Grain, Jesse Jones Billiard, Mark Tinsky Billiard, Castello.
Misses - Old Dublin, Penzance, McClelland, Perique, Savinelli (except Nonpareils).

 

[jndyer]

Hits: Sav. 316KS, MacB Vanilla Cream, PSLBF (my biggest hit of the year)
Misses: Carter Hall, Lane BCA, Lane MV100, EMP and Nightcap (I still have not found Latakia to be my thing)

 

[jerwynn]

Ok... off the top of my head:
HITS: I made entry to the world of estate pipes this year, having never done that before. I have been astounded at the delight per price-point that has made my experiences thus far amazing... of course a trustworthy dealer in the fine folks of SPC... and so far 3 Polinski hand-mades, an IPE Prince, and 3 "Former Design" Bentleys and I dun feeled like I've died and gone to pipe-heaven!
Also hits: SG Brown Sugar Flake, C&D Bijou, samples of aged Mac Baren HH Old Dark Fired and Motzek Strang through the immense generosity of a great forum member, Standard Tobacco of PEE-AY: Bengal Slices-War Horse RR-Smyrna(Santa's bringing some War Horse Green), Solani Aged Burley Flake, and there had to be others.(And strangely Sillem's Black!)(Very strangely!)
Misses: The fetid FDA folderol and flaming flatulence thereuntoappertaining, Savinelli 140 - just couldn't make myself like it as much as I wanted to, but, of course, it shall be revisited at a later date. And I ended up tossing some older aromatic tobaccos because they really DO NOT age or cellar well once opened, even though I liked them fresh. All in all, a good year. (Oh.. I found out that COPD sucks, but I'm trying not to let that dampen my enthusiasm.)

 

[cobguy]

Tobacco Hits: Whole-leaf tobacco and all the DIY's that come with it (Cigars, Plugs, Ropes, Snuff, Cavendish and Perique). It's truly been a year of intense study and practice and I've had more fun with tobacco than ever before.
Pipe Hits: Moonshine Pipes, Radice, Castello and my first artisan Ron Powell (great guy, great pipe)
Misses: No big ones other than the occasional aromatic and I should just quit trying them.

 

[newbroom]

Tobacco Hits: Daughters and Ryan Bulk Blends, I've brought in 7 different blends and each offers value.
Pipe Hits: B.Barling & Sons smooth 4065 for $29.00 as new, and old Grabows: 2x Westbrook, TRU-GRAIN, & Linkman's Supreme.
b]Misses:[/b] A cracked shank on a Barling's Make Brandy military mount arriving from the pipe repair shop in an envelope with stem in place. (the stem will be useful on several cobs)

The stummel had arrived in a batch of pipes I got for cheap and cost me next to nothing.

The new stem cost me $28.00 & mailing.

Oh well. I won't chase the repair guy for any sort of compensation. My stummel could have been cracked when I gave it to him to stem, but I hadn't noticed it when smoking it using another stem I had.

NB: It was not one of our members who provided my stem work, unfortunately.

 

[mso489]

Another hit, my Sav Hercules Hungarian as a Tabac-Manil Semois smoker, big deep bowl, not too broad, perfect. Also, Bob Hayes sold me an excellent rusticated Dublin with a bamboo shank at the TAPS pipe show for a breathtakingly good price. I kind of paid up and ran, whereas I should have stayed around and chatted, but I felt like I was hallucinating and was afraid I'd wake up.
A miss, my GLP Westminster went really flat, but I rescued it by mixing with MacB's Lat Flake and other blends; I think the Lat in the GLP had just had it.

 

[prndl]

Hits...The Castello collection seems to be expanding.
Misses...I had to swear off Gawith. The last two tins (Cabbie's and FVF) tasted like Chanel #79.

 

[PaulTheScandinavian]

Hits: All my brand new Savinelli pipes,Tortuga,673 Roma Lucite,Bing's Favorite Rusticated,Rossi Lumberman,Amphora Original Blend, Semois of Manile Belgium, readig tobacco reviews carefully prior to buying a new tobacco

Losses: Carter Hall in lesser degree,yet my new Peterson Shannon 407 Prince which had very thing steam fitting and after dropping it gots a hair crack on the mortise/shank area,although,still perfoems pretty well despite of this doggone drawback

 

[woodsroad]

HITS:

The McClelland bulk flakes. All of them. A rediscovery, really. Cellared them deep in '16.

Samuel Gawith Bothy Flake. Another one that I put away more than a few tins of.

Russ Ouellete's entire Perique foray. This stuff will be legend.

Russ's Acadian Gold. Very unique, exceptionally delicious.
MISSES:

The FDA

Capt. Black Grape. Not nearly as bad as the FDA, but...
I'm very pleased to see our Standard Tobacco Co. of Pennsylvania blends on so many hit lists. Seeing how many of you are enjoying our efforts makes it all worthwhile.

 

[irishearl]

Didn't get to buy any pipes in 2016-sort of "missed" that. :? Think it was the beginning of 2016 when I first tried Old Dark Fired, which, needless to say, was a big hit and has remained a constant since. Being the kind with a very constraining budget, I tend to only buy tobacco blends I know I like with little experimentation. So, no real misses in 2016.

 

[theosprey247]

Hits: old dark fried, Louisiana Red, French pipes, aging tobacco
Misses: all the aros I tried, Elizabethian mixture (the match was better)

 

[cranseiron]

Hits: Moonshine Pipes, Wire Rusticated Stoker; Solani Aged Burley Flake
Misses: Dunhill Ye Olde Signe

 

[fmgee]

I cannot remember the all (or even many of them) but I tried a lot of new things this year.
Hits: Rattray's Old Gowrie, Samuel Gawith FVF, GLP Quiet Nights, GLP Odyssey and a huge surprise Gawith Hoggarth Ennerdale Flake
Misses: Dunhill Flake, C&D Bayou Morning