Hello! I first got into piping around 5-6 years ago when I was 15 (I know, kind of young to be smoking anything) and had a MM Washington with OGS and Frog Morton Cellar. Eventually, I got caught and my mother took it away, understandably so, but anyway, I remember being able to pick out the flavors easily and it was very enjoyable. I just bought a few pipes recently. A Savinelli 614 Roma, a MM Washington, and a Nording Freehand. I've been enjoying my English blends in my Savinelli, and Va/Per(s) in my Nording. I have had probably 4 bowls in my Savinelli and 1 bowl in my Nording so far. I don't know if I somehow lost my tastebuds, but the flavors are not nearly as apparent and distinguishable as I remember them to be when I smoked out of the cob I used to have. I've smoked C&D Black Frigate and H&H Blackhouse in my Savinelli and all I've really been getting is a generic tobacco flavor without any subtleties or nuances. I was able to pick out some flavors, but they were extremely subtle, and I had to really pay attention/think about what I was tasting (I know this is part of the art of piping, but it was much more thinking than I feel like I should have had to do). The same went for the bowl of OGS I had today in my brand new Nording. I remember Orlik having a pretty apparent sweetness and brightness in my cob, but I didn't get these flavors at all in my Nording. Other than the very first bowl I had, I really have been paying attention to the moisture of the tobacco, how I pack (handshake method), and having a slow cadence while smoking. That being said, I know cobs don't really need to be broken in at all and that they will generally smoke well from the first bowl onward, but do briars need time to break-in, in order to maximize the flavors of tobacco?