Progress with cobs

[pritch13]

Hello everyone.
I have made a few posts here over the past week or so and its coming up to about my 3 weekish pipe smoking anniversary already.
After having just finished a bowl of Lane 1Q in my MM washington that lasted me just over an hour, sipping slowly and taking my time, smoking it all the way to the bottom with good taste all the way through i think I'm really getting into the hobby and enjoying it. Yesterday i smoked out of my MM legend and had it filled with Frog Mortons Cellar and without a doubt much preferred this blend over the lane 1q. I enjoyed the subtle sweetness that came with it but not too overpowering and it was rather tasty. The 1q was definitely sweeter but was not as flavorful as FMC. I have heard that it isn't really a true english blend but more a crossover which i like, so if anyone has some suggestions for similar blends please let me know as i do have a big sweet tooth but still want some nice flavor.
Regardless of how slow i smoke my bowl still does become rather hot to touch which I'm guessing is due to my packing technique. Its always an easy draw and i don't feel i tamp that heavily. I just started to try the air pocket method which i think helps make it last longer but could be making it overheat a little. (the smoke is always very cool in my mouth though)
Let me know your thoughts and any tips and suggestions are always appreciated (i am also receiving some Orlik golden flake in the mail tomorrow and eager to try that)

 

[blackbeard]

I've been smoking out of cobs lately and just recently had mine get hot for the first time, this wasn't due to my packing methods that haven't changed....I thought about it for a second and realized something I hadn't payed attention to. The wind was blowing. Wouldn't be an overlooked factor here would it?

 

[pritch13]

I think it was to begin with as I was only smoking outdoors but your definitely right tyler,it was making a difference. (loving the mustache by the way)

 

[frozenchurchwarden]

Slow down if your pipe is too hot to comfortably hold. "Hot" is usually fine but if you start saying "ouch" let the pipe sit for a minute, and then gather your wits and attempt to puff slower. Especially Cobs will be less resistant to heat.

A note on the fast burning aromatics, I actually have to smother them to be able to smoke the bowl at all (cover the pipe with the bottom of a metal tin), otherwise they sit and burn continuously without assistance, which means I could wait forever and it wouldn't cool down.

It was quite a while ago that I last tried one though, my cadence was probably too fast, but once it reaches critical mass Top Shelf definitely needs intervention.
On to blends...

Sutliff Mountain Pass has a good pudding flavor.

Sutliff Top Shelf is plenty sweet but with topping similar to to Frog Morton's Cellar, though it's pure cavendish so it will behave similar to 1-Q.

Maybe try some Peter Stokkebye English Oriental Supreme for another crossover type.
And then to break out a bit, Sutliff Elizabethan Match is a good Virginia blend that's nicely ribbon cut and has lots of flavor. I'm sure Dunhill Elizabethan would be good too (opinions vary on which is better, both are just approximations of an older blend at this point).

 

[pastordaniel]

Pritch - You and I are both newbies ... I started the end of August. I had a breakthrough this week with the Frank method. I used to burn hot with my cobs but realized I was packing too lightly, and Frank seemed to help. I think I was afraid to overpack, because I kept seeing that warning everywhere I looked. My last 2 pipes burned slow and bowl remained cool with fewer relights and only 1-2 tamps. I've also slowed down my cadence.

 

[brass]

You might try Autumn Evening

 

[ray47]

You may want to try some of Missouri Meerschaum's Natural (Nekid) cobs. The Pride is similar to the Washington and Legend. I particularly like the Natural Country Gentleman. The Naturals are the coolest smoking cobs of the MM line IMO. I never get a hot bowl. I have over 40 cobs and am still buying them and all my new cobs will be Natural cobs from now on.

 

[aldecaker]

You're on the right track. I think now it's just down to practice, practice.

 

[pritch13]

Thankyou guys, just the responses i was after! I really like the look of the natural cobs anyway so i think I'm going to buy a couple and see how they go and i have just tried the frank method for the first time and am seeing huge improvements with it also. I think i am on the same boat as you pastor, as after seeing all these warnings about overpacking i have gone far too lightly with packing my bowls.

 

[sjfine]

This article was was a game changer for me. I have been lighting the middle of the tobacco ever since reading this, and all of my tobacco gets smoked, and the flavors come through to the end, and pipe only sometimes get hot. It is a rare occurrence for a bowl to get too hot for me to handle, and that is usually caused by smoking in the wind.

 

[mso489]

My wife gave me a natural freestyle (MM) for Christmas and that holds a easy hour or more of 'baccy, and does not get hot. Also it comes with an acrylic stem, which is a plus. However, my other cobs don't seem to heat up much, neither MM's nor Old Dominion. Burleys seem to stay pretty cool, including Semois and the whole array of C&D burley blends. You may be focused on smoking; if you let your thoughts wander, but maintain your smoking cadence, your cobs may cool down. Part of good pipe smoking is not having to think about it so much. Outdoors, try a wind cap, about $2.50.

 

[blackbeard]

Above you mentioned tightness of packing, I always check the draw as I'm packing the bowl. Helps keep me from getting the tobacco in my mouth while smoking too, go ahead and get those little pieces outta there and make sure it feels right. Problem with going by one solid method of packing..., (more experienced people please correct me if i'm wrong) is that it changes with your blend, cut, and bowl sizes. Just gotta find what works for you. To paraphrase Goldilocks - "This bowl of tobacco is juuuustttt right."
On a side note, a lot has changed since my picture. that mustache isn't waxed up anymore and is about 9" long. I appreciate the compliment nonetheless.

 

[pritch13]

Your mustache is longer than any one of my pipes... Lol haha :lol:

 

[blackbeard]

I checked it, from middle to edge my mustache is longer than my pipes, and it can wrap around my ears....just thought it humorous and felt I should share. Can't wait to see what happens in a year.

 

[danimalia]

As a fellow newbie, I think a lot of this stuff really does come down to technique. I know I shouldn't get frustrated by having to re-light, but damnit, I can't help it. It annoys the hell out of me. Well, last night, I smoked a couple of bowls and just sort of practicing and aping what I see in youtube videos, I am getting better each time.
I just went on a long weekend road trip, and smoked like a half dozen different cigars while driving. Like a pipe, you figure smoking a cigar is a pretty straightfoward thing. And it is. But when I start to think about all the different tricks and techniques I have developed over my years of cigar smoking, it really puts the initial pipe smoking dificulties into perspective. I am sure that all of us newbies will find that as we keep practicing and educating ourselves, we will eventually become total pros.

 

[blackbeard]

Thats the hope danimalia. Learning more by experience and the great people here on pipesmagazine

 

[pritch13]

I think I will stick to my path of exploring more aromatics for now. After my second bowl of OGS, although the after taste is great, the actual taste while smoking is not for me (very odd I know). And smoking things you like definitely makes practice easier :D

 

[danimalia]

Pritch, I think sticking with aromatics is not a bad idea. Coming from cigars and cigarettes, I anticipated that I would gravitate towards non-aromatics. That hasn't really been the case. The Latakia flavor is so strong that I don't pick up much nuance. Don't get me wrong. I like it! It's just that my palette isn't there yet, and the Latakia blends don't smoke as well for me yet. I recently tried the Orlik GS, and while the taste is divine and the flake format is really cool, I found that it required a lot of maintenance to smoke.
Meanwhile, I have tried a few aromatics. A Stokkebye 48 Golden Dansk, a house blend from a B&M, and a tin of Tsgue Autumn. To me surprise, I find the aromatics to be a more enjoyable experience for me at the moment. They tend to burn cool and stay lit, and I enjoy the hints of flavor. I am sure my tastes will evolve, but even if they don't they are some great aromatics out there as far as I can tell, and they make a nice change of place from the natural flavors of cigars, and my custom hand-rolling cigarette blends.