Looking for Non-Aromatic Recommendations:

[mah2325]

I’m new to pipe smoking (for about 6 weeks). I’ve tried multiple different blends and seems to initially be enjoying Aromatic’s more. My favorites so far have been Cornell & Diehl: Autumn Evening, Peterson Connoisseurs Choice, Lane Limited: 1-Q.

I don’t want to pigeonhole myself into only smoking Aromatics. Looking for advice on non-aromatics I may like as a newbie and ones you liked when first picking up the Pipe.

Thanks in advance

 

[ziv]

I mean... tons of blends out there, everyone's favorites are different.

But you should try all the major categories: English, Virginia, Virginia/Perique, Burley. Some of them you might not like initially but get into sometime later.
I'd personally recommend starting with bulk blends since they are cheaper. C&D has a lot of bulk offerings in each category. Jar the ones that you don't like initially and revisit them later. Good luck!

 

[lukasstrifeson]

I’m new to pipe smoking (for about 6 weeks). I’ve tried multiple different blends and seems to initially be enjoying Aromatic’s more. My favorites so far have been Cornell & Diehl: Autumn Evening, Peterson Connoisseurs Choice, Lane Limited: 1-Q.

I don’t want to pigeonhole myself into only smoking Aromatics. Looking for advice on non-aromatics I may like as a newbie and ones you liked when first picking up the Pipe.

Thanks in advance

Elizabethan Mixture is a great va/per to start with. I'd also try Chelsea Morning as a lighter English.

 

[Brad H]

Elizabethan Mixture is a great va/per to start with. I'd also try Chelsea Morning as a lighter English.

Agreed. Gets you a base line on types of blends. Would give you an idea of what you may like.

 

[BriaronBoerum]

As a newish smoker I second what's been already said, and if you really want to go down the rabbit hole . . . . try reading reviews on sites like smokingpipes and tobacco reviews, pick a category and search for the most popular/top rated blends, and read what people say. You'll get a more detailed sense of what flavors are foremost in particular blends, and can compare it with what you taste as you try them out. For me, it's a good balance of developing my own sense of what I like and don't like, while also being guided by those with more experience.

 

[mah2325]

I mean... tons of blends out there, everyone's favorites are different.

But you should try all the major categories: English, Virginia, Virginia/Perique, Burley. Some of them you might not like initially but get into sometime later.
I'd personally recommend starting with bulk blends since they are cheaper. C&D has a lot of bulk offerings in each category. Jar the ones that you don't like initially and revisit them later. Good luck!

Thanks for the advice ! I’ll do some searching for those C&D bulk options

 

[mah2325]

Thanks for all the replies / advice. The hunt is on for some of each of these categories.

 

[LeafErikson]

Some easy-going non-aromatics that won’t knock your socks off with nicotine would be:

PS 301 Natural Dutch Cavendish
Rattrays Old Gowrie
C&D Pegasus

Another great tobacco, which is technically an aromatic, is Sir Walter Raleigh Aromatic. It sort of bridges the gap between non-aromatic and aromatic as it’s not purely cavendish-based and a lot of tobacco flavor comes through. As someone who smokes a lot of non-aromatic tobacco, SWR Aromatic my go-to aromatic tobacco.

 

[Servant King]

Your thread will soon fill up with so many recommendations, it'll make your head spin worse than a nicotine wallop on an empty stomach.

My advice is to peruse the What Are You Smoking? thread, at least a good dozen or so pages of it. You'll likely spot a good handful of blends that pop up frequently in the mix. A little research on TobaccoReviews.com, and you should have a decent idea of what you might want to start sampling. Then it's just a matter of getting a bevy of 1 oz. samples from SmokingPipes; if you really want to get value, you can wait for a sitewide sale, although the soonest one is probably Black Friday, a good three months away.

That's what I did anyway.

 

[Kollman]

Time to add to the soon-to-be massive list.

Peter Stokkebye's Luxury Navy Flake: A popular, easy-to-find Virginia flake that offers a natural sweetness.
Escudo Navy De Luxe: A legendary Va/Per that is often recommended as a benchmark for this blend type.
Cornell & Diehl's Bayou Morning: For those who enjoy Virginia/Perique (Va/Per) blends.
Peterson Standard Mixture: A well-balanced English blend that isn't overwhelmingly smoky.
Solani-656: Aged Burley Flake: This is a highly regarded Burley blend that is often cited as a benchmark for what a high-quality Burley can be.
Cornell & Diehl's Haunted Bookshop: This is a fantastic "American English" style blend that uses a Burley base.

 

[mingc]

This is a good place to start: a list of "gold standard blends" that another forum came up with. Gold Standard Blends - Revised - https://pipesmokersdens.com/threads/gold-standard-blends-revised.1117/. Some of the creators of that list are participants on this forum as well.

 

[CurlingWisps]

You’ll probably want something with a heavy topping to transition from aromatics.
Someone mentioned Solani Aged Burley Flake. That is really nice and has a chocolate (not overpowering) topping.

 

[AirOne]

Take a look at SP's 'best-selling' articles for each blend category. While they may not be the absolute best, they generally serve as good representations of their respective classes.

 

[judcole]

I would suggest that, if you use TR, you first concentrate on finding reviewers whose tastes agree with yours.
The other thing I would say is "What is the rush?" You've been at it 6 weeks. You've tried "multiple different blends". Have you smoked 2 ounces of anything as yet? Take your time. Relax. Enjoy. It's not a competition. Get to know some of those blends you have.

 

[mah2325]

I would suggest that, if you use TR, you first concentrate on finding reviewers whose tastes agree with yours.
The other thing I would say is "What is the rush?" You've been at it 6 weeks. You've tried "multiple different blends". Have you smoked 2 ounces of anything as yet? Take your time. Relax. Enjoy. It's not a competition. Get to know some of those blends you have.

I'm an impatient person That has been my favorite part of smoking a pipe. It's all about patience (aging tobacco, slow sips of the pipe when smoking, etc. ). It forces me to slow down and relax.

Joking aside, I think it's more excitement as there is a whole world of tobaccos to explore.

 

[Briarcutter]

Have you smoked 2 ounces of anything as yet?

Yes, I would agree. I can't really "know" a blend until I've smoked at least several ounces of it. Tastes change as well over the years. Sometimes, today's favorite is tomorrow's forgotten and vise versa. Don't toss anything you don't like today, you may like it in the future. Try some of the codger blends, Carter Hall,Prince Albert and the like.

 

[khiddy]

Yes, I would agree. I can't really "know" a blend until I've smoked at least several ounces of it. Tastes change as well over the years. Sometimes, today's favorite is tomorrow's forgotten and vise versa. Don't toss anything you don't like today, you may like it in the future. Try some of the codger blends, Carter Hall,Prince Albert and the like.

Wisdom here. I went on a “gotta try them ALL!!!” bender early in my return to piping and chased unicorns and really chooched through dozens if not hundreds of blends in the process. Now that I’ve kicked that habit (kind of? LOL), I’m returning to the jars and tins that I didn’t spend enough time with, and finding some real gems.

But the biggest realization I’ve had is that many of the codger and codger-style blends are fantastic. Field & Stream, Walnut, Edward G. Robinson, Granger, Lane HGL, they were popular for a long time for a reason. Unfortunately many are gone now, as are their (often superior) match versions from Sutliff, but there are modern codgerish blends to fit the bill.

 

[Spring-Loaded]

Personally, I found John Bull Fragrant English to be the blend that opened the door to non-aromatics. It is lightly cased but still tastes like an English. (All of their tobaccos are very good). Others that might be worth trying are Balkan Sasieni, Presbyterian Mixture, and Sir Walter Raleigh. Most likely your tastes will change and you’ll get better at smoking and tasting different flavors. Don’t throw anything out if you don’t like it. You might like it in a few months or a year. Happy hunting.

 

[anotherbob]

I’m new to pipe smoking (for about 6 weeks). I’ve tried multiple different blends and seems to initially be enjoying Aromatic’s more. My favorites so far have been Cornell & Diehl: Autumn Evening, Peterson Connoisseurs Choice, Lane Limited: 1-Q.

I don’t want to pigeonhole myself into only smoking Aromatics. Looking for advice on non-aromatics I may like as a newbie and ones you liked when first picking up the Pipe.

Thanks in advance

my advice is just go with your gut while also actively seeking out a variety of different styles. I don't really see anything as being more or less enjoyable to new smokers. That said I find that Va and their variations are more sensitive to technique and dry time then other styles such as English or Burly. But less sensitive to technique then Aromatics which if you're enjoying those you just might not have any issues with more tobacco forward blends.
Another possible avenue is to seek out aromatics that are more tobacco forward. C&D Founding Fathers is a good aro where you can taste the tobacco notes clearly. Ashton Gold Rush is basically a Lemon Va enhanced by the toppings like the way adding sugar brings out more of the flavor of certain teas. And then there are what are called cross over blends like one of my favorites Blend For Cary Grant. Which is a mix of an aromatic and English blend. A best of both worlds.
Finally nothing wrong with sticking with what you already know you enjoy either.

 

[Morbius]

You've gotten some great advice here. My only quibble with it is with respect to tobacco reviews. Some of them read like wine reviews where the wine critic says he can taste early season strawberries or some such stuff with a hint of lavender and you're tasting the same wine and you're wondering what in the great wide world of sports that jackass was talking about.

It's going to take you some time for you to develop your technique to taste all the things that are in many of the tobacco reviews. I admit I am not there yet, but just like with wine -- I have gotten to where I know what I like which is all that really matters anyway.