Representative Examples of Classic Styles

[pipesmokingtom]

Mason jars, mate. Mason jars.
As far as the cherry goes, nothing will help it. Cherry tobacco was put on this earth to punish us for our sins.

 

[chaffers]

*sigh*
Went back to the same shop and asked for a couple of tins of typical english blends, unfortunately it is now the law that you cannot browse tobacco products. They are kept in a cupboard which they will not open so you have to ask for things by name.
Got home and looked up what I was recommended and I've got two hot burning aromatics... Pretty much the opposite of what I wanted.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Oh, Lordy what a state! I hope it's not an indicator of what we'll have in the States in a few years.....
Are any of you gents in London? In any event, i am looking for recommendations as to where to go for pipe shops. It used to be The Burlington Arcade was worth a visit, but that was last century! There were two or three good shops right there, but that was then, some 40 years ago.

 

[chaffers]

Very difficult to find a tobacconist, there isn't one in my City for example (Newport).
Just been back up to the only one I could find, about 15 miles away, to return the unopened aromatic. Probably useful not to think of it as a tobacconists, more a market stall which specialises in selling bong pipes to students in black t-shirts.
I pointed out that I'd asked for an English or Balkan blend and that this was pretty much the opposite.
He pointed out that is was against the law to return tobacco products.
Hmmm.. After a quick lecture he became more amenable, probably because I've spent quite a bit of money in there recently. So I asked again for an English or Balkan blend and he picked out something which I knew wasn't and said that this was as close as I was going to get.
I suspect most veteran pipe smokers would struggle to name or recognize anything but their own favourite brands from a 3 second peek behind a cupboard door. I'm not saying the proprietor wasn't knowledgeable, but he did seem to be in a rush, and clearly thought the fact that a Dublin company made the tobacco made it an English blend.
Finally mentioned Balkan again and he said he had Balkan blend loose ( there were jars with tiny name tags far too far away to spy, though those I could read had useful names like number 5 mixture).
Just lit my first bowl and if not the badger itself this is much closer to it!

 

[pipesmokingtom]

GQ tobaccos is England based. He's been retailing online for a bit now and I think he's opening storefront sometime this year. That'll be Nottingham though, probably 4 hours north of Newport.
Wasn't sure if you checked out his site. He has house blends and carries major brands.

 

[chaffers]

Things of course get much more interesting if you wish to buy pipe tobacco from a corner shop or supermarket. There are pretty much three brands you might see, St Bruno ( mild and uninteresting), Condor ( strong but uninteresting) and Clan.
Rule of thumb is that there will only be Clan left, and the packet may well be older than you are.
I suspect some crafty Civil Servants once held a very expensive conference in order to formulate a way of preventing anyone in the UK from taking up a pipe. Various schemes were proposed however one was seen to nullify every advantage that a pipe could bring and that answer was Clan.
What irked the craft civil servants the most was the length of time one could spend blissfully enjoying a pipe. Clan however burns at a slightly faster rate than fuel air explosives, especially when the packet is older than you are.
It was also noted that people tended to enjoy the flavour of pipe tobacco, Clan got around this by making it aromatic with no discernible taste to the smoker.
Whilst you are more likely to get a nicotine kick from burning a cigarette in front of your face with a welding torch as you are with Clan, even if you persist past the point of needing medical attention for burns to your mouth there is no noticeable nicotine in it.
As for marketing I rather suspect it isn't sold in Scotland, though the same 'blend' may exist with a St George's cross emblazoned on the front and a name that infers a love for sassenachs. Maybe it is sold in the states as King George IIIs favourite?
It is genius at work and shows the importance in having a powerful nannying government at the wheel.
Suffice to say it isn't easy to find anything remotely enjoyable about smoking a pipe unless you persevere at it in the UK.

 

[pipesmokingtom]

It's a shame that they make it such a chore to get in to the hobby. I honestly had no idea it was that much worse in the UK than the US. I thought our laws and taxes were absurd. They still are, mind you, but England sounds horrifying.
I would start a thread and ask where UK folks generally buy their supplies. Maybe an online retailer that caters to you or a list of B&M's. Maybe someone in the states can buy and ship to you somehow and work around customs? I'd put it out there and see what the best practices currently are for more efficiently getting products in to your hands.

 

[chaffers]

It isn't the cost that bothers me, it is the pernickity legislation that doesn't even allow you to read the labels on the tins.
As far as I can tell there must be thousands of different blends of pipe tobacco, and probably several hundred brands. The way it is set up is pretty much take it or leave it and they are talking about going further..
Plain packaging for all tobacco products. Hence I don't even know how it would work. Do you have any smidgeon's old stinker? No. Hmm.. What do you have? Lots of white tins with health warnings on.
Okay, I'll take a Virginia / Perique blend.
Which one is that?
Can I have a look?
No.
Can you read out what it says on that tin?
Hmm.. I'm not allowed to keep the cupboard open sorry. You'll have to buy it to read it.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Holy Cow! London used to be heaven for pipe smokers. Now I wonder if I will even have a nice shop to pop into.....
And will the bast***s let me bring in 3-4 ounces of my own tobacco to smoke for the days I am there??

 

[chaffers]

Yes, you are allowed 250g, presumably in your hold luggage as any containers have to be transparent if over 100ml ( I think).
All due to politically expedient terrorist plot which was foiled just as several politicians were caught dipping their wicks into other people's inkwells or with their hands in the till.

 

[beefeater33]

It isn't the cost that bothers me, it is the pernickity legislation that doesn't even allow you to read the labels on the tins.
As far as I can tell there must be thousands of different blends of pipe tobacco, and probably several hundred brands. The way it is set up is pretty much take it or leave it and they are talking about going further..
Plain packaging for all tobacco products. Hence I don't even know how it would work. Do you have any smidgeon's old stinker? No. Hmm.. What do you have? Lots of white tins with health warnings on.
Okay, I'll take a Virginia / Perique blend.
Which one is that?
Can I have a look?
No.
Can you read out what it says on that tin?
Hmm.. I'm not allowed to keep the cupboard open sorry. You'll have to buy it to read it.

This is why the Colonists founded America..............

Sadly though, here also, our freedoms are being lost, little by little everyday......

History ALWAYS repeats itself......... (SIGH).................. :|

 

[chaffers]

"I look forward to your reaction on smoking some of these pure. Particularly the latakia and perique. The Orientals might be a fun experience on their own as well."
On my first bowl of pure Latakia now...
First impressions are that I slightly prefer it to the Balkan mixture, no soapyness just hard smoky flint. Borderline acrid, but not unbearably or uncomfortably so. Dry heat though difficult to keep alight on it's own. Rather pleasant in a tongue tingling sort of a way. Reminds me of barren arid mountains and scrub, clay fired hearths and tinder dry wood.

 

[chaffers]

The pure perique is.... Lush!
Cool yet very crisp, where the Latakia tingled the tip of my tongue and lips the perique takes it's place in the middle and towards my soft palette. The two would compliment each other very well I feel.
Reminds me of gin, though doesn't taste of it per se. Simple, clean and straightforward, it certainly heightens the senses! I had to go outside and sit in the sun, the smell of freshly cut grass helped with the experience, though it wasn't entirely from the tobacco. Reminds me of spring, a Mediterranean salad but also a deep burning curry, something onion based with some zest. The Latakia would be like a Jalfrezi with green chillies, the Perique a Madras where the spice builds.
It is... wonderfully efficient and relaxed, a real joy that I would happily smoke on it's own. Very nimble and almost cravenly puritanical in a subtle way.
I love it.

 

[chaffers]

The Turkish is a bit of a let down, easier to smoke than the Latakia and earthier, though similar enough that I had to check I'd put them in different pipes. Not quite as spicy, not quite as strong, more common pasture earthyness than barren upland soil. Still quite rich and smokey but in a very Latakia lite sort of a way.

 

[pipesmokingtom]

You're just chugging right along! My only bit of advice would be to give your sinuses and mouth significant cool down time between the different leaves. Some of the bolder styles can really stick around and muddle what you're perceiving. If I smoke latakia, I'll rarely go back to a Va/Per that same day because the subtleties are buried by the residual tastes buried in my face. And if you have a beard or mustache, well....

 

[pipesmokingtom]

This is why the Colonists founded America..............

A lot of people think that's true for some reason, but actually America was founded on puritanical beliefs that were much more stuffy. Those folks came to America because they found Europe to be too liberal and freedom loving. It wasn't freedom of religion they were after, so much as freedom to dictate more stringent religion.
That was the initial settlers anyway. By the time the founding fathers got around to doing their revolutionary thing, freedom and individual liberty was certainly more prized. They wouldn't have stood for our tobacco being legislated away from us, that's for sure - many of them being Virginia land owners and all. I suspect a lot of our tobacco world come from Jefferson or Washington acreage.

 

[chaffers]

Hmm... Good advice...
Just tried the straight Virginian as a change of pace....
Soapy and as bland as could be. Probably a bit unfair to try it after the three above though!

 

[pipesmokingtom]

Yeah, there is some sweetness and grassy nuance in Virginias that you'll be hard-pressed to find after bombing your taste buds like you have.

 

[okiescout]

it is now the law that you cannot browse tobacco products. They are kept in a cupboard which they will not open so you have to ask for things by name.
Seriously?

Time to relocate!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[chaffers]

Coming to your shores soon my friend....
Think of it as a re-import of previously exported political correctness.