Prepare to Be Boarded, Crew of the Black Frigate!

[phantomwolf]

New tobacco order from P&C showed up well-packed and on time! I got a few blends I have been curious about to include the renowned blend Black Frigate.
As I was unpacking my new bounty, my housemate remarked "Damn, dude. More tobacco?"

I replied "Just a TAD..." The joke was lost on him of course.
Avast! To The Frigate:

So far it is delicious. Love the cake and cut. May be the easiest to store and prepare blend I've worked with. A pinch and a twist and my pipe was lit and billowing cheer a moment later. A lot of flavour on this one. Great mouthfeel and a lot of complexity already on this inaugural smoke. I will put a real review off until I've finished my first tin, though I can already tell this will not be my last.
Also picked up some Deep Hollow, Grey Havens, Stonehenge, and a pouch of Super Value English. If the Super Value is half as good as it's reviews claim, it will be great to have a cheap pouch of English I can just toss in my pocket for a day in the woods.
Anyway, thank you all for the great track-record of tobacco recommendations! It's a 'drag' not having any friends who are enthusiastic about pipe smoking to share the hobby with, but a good forum is the next best thing.
Cheers,
Justin

 

[aldecaker]

Yar. The Frigate be turnin' into a houseboat!

 

[bassbug]

The only time I say "frigate" is when I can't keep my pipe lit. :nana:
Evil weed that latakia.

 

[Chasing Embers]

BF actually only has a tiny amount of latakia in it. That's why I love it, hate lat bombs.

 

[phantomwolf]

@aldecaker and bassbug- hahaha
@bassbug, you hate all latakia?

 

[phantomwolf]

@ChasingEmbers- It is much less noticeable in the tin note than other lat blends, but I can taste it readily enough. WOuld it be the 'navy Cavendish' that is this pronounced, dark, rich flavour then? First I've had navy Cavendish.

 

[Chasing Embers]

The Virginias, Turkish, and rum are what I pick up most on. The latakia is in the background, and the unsweetened black Cavendish adds body to it. A very balanced blend, but the dark richness, I would contribute to the interplay of the Virginias and Latakia.

 

[aldecaker]

Don't you mean the interplay between the oakum and rope tar?

 

[phantomwolf]

@aldecaker, All jokes aside, I have often described lat blends as tasting like an oily, sun-bleached, old rope. I like it though. Reminds me of an oily packed-earth floor in a barn too. Hay dust filtering through the air..

 

[aldecaker]

Some blends can be extremely evocative that way. Too much Lat talk; now I have to go fire up some Old Dublin!

 

[Chasing Embers]

Don't you mean the interplay between the oakum and rope tar?

:mrgreen: Now that, be piratey humor!

 

[bassbug]

@bassbug, you hate all latakia?

I've only tried it once, and that was more than enough. I believe the blend was Mac Baren 7 seas.
Within 60 seconds of lighting my pipe, I was nauseated. Within 3 minutes, the headache started.
Evil weed...pure evil.

 

[jpmcwjr]

And you are sure it was only the Latakia that did it? No possibility of it being due to any other factor?

 

[bassbug]

I've tied a couple of blends with perique and, although I didn't like them, they did not have that effect on me. My regular blends are mild to mid strength. particularly, Mac Baren Golden extra, Original Choice and Vanilla Creme. I also like a 50/50 mix of 1Q and BCA.
All in all, I quite readily admit I am the textbook wussy pipe smoker

 

[anthonyrosenthal74]

Welcome aboard, Phantomwolf. Don't get too close though... some of us may have scabies 8O

 

[jpmcwjr]

Well, bass, I am not suggesting you're a tobacco wuss at all. Merely suggesting that a single instance of a single tobacco is not a great test.

 

[phantomwolf]

@anthonyrosenthal Thanks, matey!
@bassbug Wow. That sounds extreme. I almost feel it was something other than the lat in the blend. I recently gave up cigs, so I'm no stranger to nicotine, but some blends like Royal Yacht, Tsuge-Raijin or Acadian Perique will still get me if I get ahead of myself. Maybe try something like Frog Morton or even Shortcut to Mushrooms if you're fond of aromatic. I started off smoking those blends and never felt sick. If you have a desire, that is. Sounds like you already know what you like and there's certainly nothing wrong with that.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Any blend with more than condimental amounts of Latakia taste exactly the same to me. I gave them up too.

 

[bassbug]

@jp
Feel free to call me a tobacco wuss...I most certainly am

 

[jaytex1969]

The ranks of the Frigate

they swell with the tide

The young buccaneers

all wantin' a ride
Well, there's room for the masses

providing you take

a shift in the crow's nest

and bring yer own cake
We'll lower the sails

when the sunset is low

and drift through the fathoms

with our pipes a-glow
'Till we see a vessel

down-laden with gold

Then we'll lean on the tiller

and draw our steel cold
Load up the stove pipe

and touch off the charge

'till they strike the colors

on their sinking barge
And if they surrender

their treasures and stores

We'll spare them a dinghy,

Carter Hall and some oars.... :nana: