Hey there folks! I joined the forum a few days ago because I had some tobacco related questions that needed answering (and they were answered quite well, I might add) but this seems like a nice place where I could learn a lot so I decided to stick around!
I've been smoking pipes for about a year now, since last October, and coming from a hookah smoking background (and being rather bored of the flavors of what I thought of as "plain tobacco" after 25 years of cigarette smoking) I found myself gravitating towards aromatics for the wide variety of non-tobacco'y flavor options. It was a bit of a difficult learning curve, figuring out proper smoking cadence so my pipes didn't get too hot and I didn't get tongue bite, but the YouTube pipe smoker channels (Muttonchop and the late Matches especially) really helped me learn the ropes and these days I can't remember the last time I got tongue bite from anything other than a bright Virginia heavy blend or had a pipe get too hot to hold... aside from my Peterson 124 sandblasted Dracula, but that pipe has always been kind of a persnickety princess.
As far as pipes go, I currently have a modest little collection of 7 pipes with 1 more on the way. Darn you SmokingPipes, you vile temptress! In any case, I've got 2 (soon to be 3) Savinellis, 2 Petersons, 2 Missouri Meerschaum cobs, and an AKB meerschaum. I enjoy them all but tend to smoke the cobs the most, since they smoke just as well as—if not better than—any of my other pipes and I have a job where I'm outside walking around on concrete all day. They're pipes that I don't have to baby or worry about the finish getting scratched on the job, they're just really solid and dependable workhorses.
For tobacco I'll admit that I've got a fairly strong preference for aromatics, though as time has gone on I've come to appreciate the more lightly cased ones where you can still taste the Virginias peeking through and those tend to be my favorites. Peter Stokkebye Highland Whiskey has been my default afternoon smoke for quite awhile now, and Erik Stokkebye's 4th Generation Morning Blend is always a great way to start the day!
I've been branching out a bit to non-aromatics this past month though and quickly discovered that I don't much care for the flavor of Burley, and that I seem to have a weird and unfortunate allergy to Latakia or some kind of wood used in the Latakia curing process (take my word for it that having your throat swell up every time you smoke an English blend really takes the enjoyment out of it), but I do enjoy the flavors of Virginia and Dark Fired Kentucky tobaccos so those are what I'm playing around with at the moment. I've got an order for some Escudo, Elizabethan Mixture, Orlik Golden Sliced, Peter Stokkebye Luxary Navy Flake, Mac Baren HH Old Dark Fired, and a tin of Ennerdale along with a few new aromatics to try arriving in the mail tomorrow that I'm very excited to dive into!
Anyway, I've probably rambled on enough for one post so I'll just wish you all a good day and say that it's nice to be here!
I've been smoking pipes for about a year now, since last October, and coming from a hookah smoking background (and being rather bored of the flavors of what I thought of as "plain tobacco" after 25 years of cigarette smoking) I found myself gravitating towards aromatics for the wide variety of non-tobacco'y flavor options. It was a bit of a difficult learning curve, figuring out proper smoking cadence so my pipes didn't get too hot and I didn't get tongue bite, but the YouTube pipe smoker channels (Muttonchop and the late Matches especially) really helped me learn the ropes and these days I can't remember the last time I got tongue bite from anything other than a bright Virginia heavy blend or had a pipe get too hot to hold... aside from my Peterson 124 sandblasted Dracula, but that pipe has always been kind of a persnickety princess.
As far as pipes go, I currently have a modest little collection of 7 pipes with 1 more on the way. Darn you SmokingPipes, you vile temptress! In any case, I've got 2 (soon to be 3) Savinellis, 2 Petersons, 2 Missouri Meerschaum cobs, and an AKB meerschaum. I enjoy them all but tend to smoke the cobs the most, since they smoke just as well as—if not better than—any of my other pipes and I have a job where I'm outside walking around on concrete all day. They're pipes that I don't have to baby or worry about the finish getting scratched on the job, they're just really solid and dependable workhorses.
For tobacco I'll admit that I've got a fairly strong preference for aromatics, though as time has gone on I've come to appreciate the more lightly cased ones where you can still taste the Virginias peeking through and those tend to be my favorites. Peter Stokkebye Highland Whiskey has been my default afternoon smoke for quite awhile now, and Erik Stokkebye's 4th Generation Morning Blend is always a great way to start the day!
I've been branching out a bit to non-aromatics this past month though and quickly discovered that I don't much care for the flavor of Burley, and that I seem to have a weird and unfortunate allergy to Latakia or some kind of wood used in the Latakia curing process (take my word for it that having your throat swell up every time you smoke an English blend really takes the enjoyment out of it), but I do enjoy the flavors of Virginia and Dark Fired Kentucky tobaccos so those are what I'm playing around with at the moment. I've got an order for some Escudo, Elizabethan Mixture, Orlik Golden Sliced, Peter Stokkebye Luxary Navy Flake, Mac Baren HH Old Dark Fired, and a tin of Ennerdale along with a few new aromatics to try arriving in the mail tomorrow that I'm very excited to dive into!
Anyway, I've probably rambled on enough for one post so I'll just wish you all a good day and say that it's nice to be here!
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