I am the same when it comes to tobacco. I can never have enough and it provides me with a variety.
Less is More
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I get it. I enjoy burley and the plainer it is, the better.
It’s the flavorings and additives that turn me off of most blends.
I’ve developed an expectation that I’m going to enjoy my pipe and I’m perfectly fine with getting exactly what I expect.
Whenever I try something new, like yesterday; I cracked open a 2014 tin of Sutliff 1849 Virginia Perique. Yes, I could taste the citrus and plum and smell the vinegary tin note, but it’s not my “thing.”
So I grabbed a cob that had some 5 Brothers and just smoked and smoked surrounded by nothing more than simple leaf.
There’s a reason men started putting fire to tobacco. It’s a simple pleasure.
It’s the flavorings and additives that turn me off of most blends.
I’ve developed an expectation that I’m going to enjoy my pipe and I’m perfectly fine with getting exactly what I expect.
Whenever I try something new, like yesterday; I cracked open a 2014 tin of Sutliff 1849 Virginia Perique. Yes, I could taste the citrus and plum and smell the vinegary tin note, but it’s not my “thing.”
So I grabbed a cob that had some 5 Brothers and just smoked and smoked surrounded by nothing more than simple leaf.
There’s a reason men started putting fire to tobacco. It’s a simple pleasure.
Having only recently returned to pipe smoking after many years' abstinence, I find I am already fighting off PAD, having acquired a dozen pipes of varying denominations to see what suits me best. Similarly - though not as acutely - I am struggling against the siren call of TAD, whilst trying out different Va/Per blends in order to narrow down later to maybe two or three which afford me the most pleasure. In other words, my intention is to acheive a less-is-more state, but to do that I find a preliminary expansion is necessary in order to effect a reduction. One other thing: I generally limit myself to one pipe a day, never more than two - and those I find I really enjoy. I try and devote myself to the experience: as the old farmer said, when asked what he did in the evenings: "Sometimes I sits and thinks, and other times, I just sits." Substitute 'smokes' for thinks', and that's where I'm at at present, and don't excpect to change.
important trick learn to appreciate what you have. It's amazing how far that can go.Barry Schwartz wrote a book about the paradox of choice that gets at exactly what you are talking about re too much choice. Here is aTed Talk Barry gave on the subject that I really like.
The paradox of choice
Psychologist Barry Schwartz takes aim at a central tenet of western societies: freedom of choice. In Schwartz's estimation, choice has made us not freer but more paralyzed, not happier but more dissatisfied.www.ted.com
I am down to two regular tobaccos and a few occasional leftovers. My regular pipe rotation is down to 3.
I have to sort the remainder and decide what to do at some point when I get time. I am envious of those who have already accomplished this task.
I have to sort the remainder and decide what to do at some point when I get time. I am envious of those who have already accomplished this task.
I agree- appreciate what you’ve got, it’s probably pretty great.
I also have done so. My wife has instructions on how to contact my friends, Tinbids.com and Pipestud. As long as she only does so AFTER I die.
Given your avatar you might like this article if you haven't seen it already.
I'm still enjoying the ride too much as a new pipe smoker to be envious. But my goal is like yours. Eventually, my journey will wind down to a few blends and a smattering of favorite pipes. I suspect I'll always have a few tins of "treat" tobaccos.
I learned that lesson a few times but the first, was when I was little and would go to a rich kids house and be all like you have that toy and that one too.... And they'd be like yeah it's boring. The little bastards would seem to get less out of a mass of great toys then I could get out of the one or two new toys I got months ago.
I started with cigars, then pipes, then cigarettes for too many years, now back to pipes. Unfortunately, I have an eye for quality and bought several very good quality pipes when I was young. I then figured out what I liked and bought a few more. Some have some sentimental value, believe it or not. Of the 25 pipes I have (all but one are bents) there are nine (older) that are 'perfect' in my opinion ... the rest (newer) are merely great and don't get used that often. None bad. Those are the ones I may pass on. I mainly smoke Sutliff 507-C and Lane 1-Q now. The 507 fills my virginia craving and the Lane 1-Q fills my sweet craving. The rest are like desserts you try once in awhile and enjoy but don't fill a craving. That's just me though. Each smoker has to find out what they like by trying various blends and pipes. Then once you know what you like stick with it and scrap the rest. Just my two cents adjusted for current inflation ... that plus 5 bucks may get you a coffee somewhere !
P.S. Surprisingly, or maybe not, my least expensive pipes are the ones that smoke the best but then they were purchased years ago when briar and craftsmanship were better (imho).
A thought about fewer pipes: I was trawling through eBay recently, looking for pipe racks, and it struck me that the older ones are generally made to accommodate no more than six pipes - that's at most one for every day of the week, including the one in current use in your pocket, and no more, assuming they were always intended for one man's personal use... or (as my grandmother once related to me when she was a young girl in her father's house - this would have been in the early 1900s - kept for visitors as well as oneself: he kept a selection of new clays, particularly for Sundays, when after Church or Chapel, he would hold court by the fireside and he and his friends would smoke and argue about religion, politics and Life, The Universe, And Everything. He worked in a steel mill, had six children and I reckon that wealth and pleasure to him was half a dozen clays and a few fills of baccy to be generous with.
Fantastic read! Sorry for late reply. Thanks so much for this.Given your avatar you might like this article if you haven't seen it already.
Have you met me? Lol!I'm one of those weirdos who has TAD but not PAD. In fact, I would go as far as to say that the thought of having more than a dozen pipes legitimately gives me anxiety. And even that is a very generous number--I'd probably be fine with half that, each dedicated to a different blend group, and involuntarily feel the need to cull the herd if I got into double digits. About half of the dozen I currently possess were given to me as gifts, and I'd be hard pressed to get rid of them. Which is probably a significant factor in keeping PAD at bay.
Tobacco? That's an entirely different story. Perhaps it's because I bought a ready-made cellar from someone back in the early days, and since then I've just been adding and subtracting blends on the fly (mostly the former), as I began to suss out what things I loved, what things I abhorred, and everything in between. More is better when it comes to blends; I just love the variety too much to be confined to even a handful of blends. In jars alone, I currently have about 30, with a fair mix of Virginias, VaPers, VaBurs, aromatics, and Englishes. Basically everything but Lakelands and burley-heavy blends. Another element here is that I'm hedging--tobacco will never be cheaper or more readily available than it is at this precise moment, and we all know this to be true. So in a few years' time, I've built a respectable cellar in the neighborhood of two dozen pounds, and I'm basically set for life, even if I tripled my current usage.
One final thought: I can't help but think that many of the constituents of pipe smoking lore who smoked only one or two blends would have expanded their menu if they were around in the present time. I can't imagine C.S. Lewis not filling his SP cart with some Mac Baren bulk on sale for 15% off just to hit that free shipping threshold. And maybe snagging a couple tins of Davidoff Flake Medallions because holy shit it's back in stock again, better hit it quick! And some pipe cleaners. And that bitchin SMS estate meer with the carved C.S. Lewis face. You know, just to be ironic. And a pouch of Captain Black Platinum, just because hey, it's just VAs and burleys with no cavendish, might be interesting. Whoops, C.S. Lewis just overdrew his bank account. Better cash out that Bitcoin while you can!
I have gotten to a place where I am very particular about my pipes and only smoke 3 or 4 blends on a regular basis. 2 (or 3) Virginias and a Lakeland. I will dip into something else occasionally, but I could live with just my top 3 or 4. I know what I like now with both pipes and tobacco, so I can’t really justify buying anything different. I’ve run the gambit on both. Why buy Virginia A that I like when I can buy Virginia B which I love?
I will agree with you that this has been a great read. It is fascinating to learn what motivates certain folks to buy and cellar (or not) the way that they do.
I love your philosophy on the whole game. You know what you like and you stick with it. I agree, but do like to swerve out of the lane occasionally. But if it ain't broken.............