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jollyroger

Starting to Get Obsessed
Oct 10, 2015
105
0
Hello gentlemen and gentlegals.
I've recently made the leap from self rolled cigarette tabacco to pipes and I'm having a little trouble finding a pipe leaf to my taste.

I've tasted so far:
1) Peterson Irish Flake - I felt it was slightly bitter, far too earthy to my liking and didn't tickle my highly developed sweet tooth.
2) Solani Virginia Flake with Perique. While it smelled divinely, i felt it lacked much in flavor and I found myself not wanting to finish the bowl.
3) Captain Black gold edition (Yes I know.. I know.. not very high quality) due to simply loving the room-tone of it when someone smoked beside me, however when I tried it myself, I was shocked to find out that aside from that room tone, there was nothing else to it, and the flavor was dreadful.
4) Macbaren Virginia - Smoked hot, bit hard, and didn't even taste good. On the contrary, it tasted like an earthy camp fire in my mouth, with no depth or flavors.
Now I've made one order of Tabacco containing H&H Anniversary Kake and Lane Limited 1-Q (hoping it has more than just room tone), however I would like your advise as to what other 2 Tabaccos I should look into, in order to better get my bearing for the different types and their overall general taste.
From my past smoking experiences I've discovered that i'm not too big a fan of Virginia leaf.
I've been considering the H&H Black House in order to experiment with a Balkan mix, would you say that this is a good first Balkan experience?

Furthermore, I'd like to order something predominantly Oriental, to better differentiate Oriental flavors from the other types of Baccy out there, and would wholeheartedly appreciate your advise as to what would make a good first choice?
Thanks for your time and attention,
--Jolly

 

aggravatedfarmer

Part of the Furniture Now
Sep 9, 2015
865
3
Welcome aboard Jolly.
1-Q is a good aromatic that has a lot fan base. I think a full flavored English blend is what you should start dipping your toes in. If you order from P&C you can get Baby's Bottom match and I think that may get you what you need. It's also quite mild for an all day smoke. If you want some Latakia I'd Recommend Sutlif R Blend. It starts sweet and ends smokey. For a dark Kentucky blend that has sweetness to it, Orlik Dark Strong Kentucky is a good.
A couple honorable mentions to check out: Dunhill Nightcap, G. L. Pease Sixpence, Missourri Meerschaum Great Dane, anddddd Frog Morton Accross the Pond (Syrian Latakia blend).

 

tarheel1

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 16, 2014
936
2
My first thought is you are smoking too hot. The majority of my experience with orientals is from English and Balkan blends. My first recommendation is G.L. Pease quiet nights. It's a great English blend with perique added.McClelland s has a quite a few Oriental blends with green labels and have heard nothing but good comments on them. There are several Oriental blends without Latakia if interested.

 

rhoadsie

Can't Leave
Dec 24, 2013
414
20
Virginia, USA
+1 on McClelland and their oriental forward blends. If you want an aromatic with good tobacco flavor try Pipeworks & Wilke No. 191. They also have a number of english blends that vary in strength. Try their sampler package.

 

samcoffeeman

Can't Leave
Apr 6, 2015
441
4
If you've got a sweet tooth, don't give up on Virginias so easy. Sure, a good aro can do that but like a good virginia. Drew Estate Gatsby Luxury flake is a good sweet virginia, as is capstan gold and wessex brigade campaign dark flake, which is a dark sweet virginia. The last would probably be my first recommendation for a newer smoker. Just make sure you dry it a bit before smoking.

 

jollyroger

Starting to Get Obsessed
Oct 10, 2015
105
0
I knew I've come to the right place.

Thank you all for your input.
I think I'll order 4 brands as opposed to just two in order to better speed up the process of familiarizing myself and finding a daily smoke to my liking.
Would you say that Balkan Sasieni would be a better choice than Black House?

 

jollyroger

Starting to Get Obsessed
Oct 10, 2015
105
0
Sadly P&C do not ship to my location. Is Baby's Bottom available elsewhere and if not, what other English blends would you suggest as alternatives?
Again,thank you. You're experience is pure gold to me.

 

kingjon

Can't Leave
Aug 27, 2013
352
1,020
Have considered 4noggins? Should have most of what was recommended, except the P&C blends will able ship it anywhere.

 

wayneteipen

Can't Leave
May 7, 2012
473
221
For your sweet tooth, Lane 1Q is a good place to start. You might also try some of the Boswell aromatics like Sweet Tea, Christmas Cookie, Pennsylvania Dutch Treat, and Berry Cobbler. All very good American aromatics with pleasant room notes. My personal favorite aromatic is Reiner's Professional because it tastes like it smells, has a great room note, and doesn't get goopy. It's more of a Danish style aromatic. You do have to be careful with it because it can bite if you rush it; especially if your tongue isn't conditioned.
For orientals, I think the best place to start is with McClelland's Grand Orientals and Samsun would be my first choice.

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
I think it's pure guesswork to recommend for someone else. So I would guess you might really enjoy Nat Sherman 536, an elegant and refined English blend, non-aromatic but as tasty to me as any aromatic, mild but flavorful. It's not inexpensive, but if you rotate it with other less expensive tobaccos -- whatever you decide you like -- I think you will enjoy it a lot. It's at smokingpipes.com. An wonderful blend from pipesandcigars.com is their Home and Hearth Midtown series blend Chestnut, another non-aromatic, a little more edgy, and artfully blended with six tobaccos. Maybe sample it in the pouch before buying a tub. Just ideas. You might like neither, but I suspect you'll like one of them, at least.

 

Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
43,248
108,337
Would you say that Balkan Sasieni would be a better choice than Black House?
I would go with Sasieni. Black House has a sweetness about it that I don't care for.

 

aldecaker

Lifer
Feb 13, 2015
4,407
42
Switching from cigarettes to pipes can be difficult; the actual physical mechanics of smoking are very different. Once your technique is a little more refined, the flavors you get out of any given pipe tobacco will be much improved.

 

jollyroger

Starting to Get Obsessed
Oct 10, 2015
105
0
This was a truly great thread. Never imagined I'd get so much valuable information so swiftly.
I placed my order and it includes:

H&H Anniversary Kake

Lane limited 1-Q

H&H Black House

Dunhill mixture 965

G.L. Pease Quiet Nights

Savinelli Doblone d'Oro (got it for free)
And last but not least, my wife pampered me and added a Savinelli Clark's Favorite smooth,to join the family.
I think I'm set for a few weeks of experimenting before looking into several other brands you guys mentioned that are now on the top of my curiosity list.
Thank you all for your assistance. You've been amazingly welcoming and insightful.

-- jolly

 

davidintexas

Part of the Furniture Now
Jun 4, 2013
673
209
The H&H Anniversary Kake is pretty good. It is a mixture of Virginias in a crumble cake form. But, being Virginias you need to take it slow, or they may bite ya. The Black House is another good blend but like everything else it just depends on your particular taste buds. Another good H&H in a crumble cake form is Classic Burley Kake. You didn't mention burley but it is very tasty in my opinion, and has some red Virginia mixed in with it for sweetness, along with a mild note of anise. All the H&H blends are made by Russ Ouellette. You got two of them

 
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