Smoke and Drinks Analogy

[carlosviet]

I recently was talking about the reason I like pipes as a hobby, not just as smoking them. It came to my mind this analogy and although I wrote it in a spur of the moment, it sounds very true to me…
Cigarettes are Coca Cola. They are available everywhere and for years they had similar marketing strategies to look cool and hip. Everyone knows they are just chemicals and shit, but no one really cared, until they did.
Cigars are coffee. The pinnacle among them is the habano, as the pinnacle of coffee is the espresso. That’s the purest expression of each. There are small variations: with milk, mocha, long, etc… But they are just deviations of the norm. Real coffee is black and strong. It’s a man thing.

Coffee and cigars have the peculiarity that they can be rated as good or bad; there is a standard of what a good coffee or a good cigar is, and the closer you get, the best the coffee or the cigar becomes.
Cigarillos, the mini-cigars, are Nescafe or any instant coffee. An easy cheap thing that tries to remind you of real coffee missing the point completely.
Pipe Smoking is tea in leaves. There are so many different kind of leaves and curing methods, and so many new and traditional blends, that the explorer of the leaf cannot usually rate the blends as good or bad, and thus a long subjective explanation is necessary. Not only brands: The amount of blends to try is almost endless.

Similarly to the tea lover, the pipe lover has also a thing to collect and care for the instruments we use for our leaves, and as much passion and care you can find to pipes as to tea sets.
There is also one version of tea in bags: The over the counter tobacco. We know is not the best thing, but it does the trick.
Can you think any further ideas?

 

[topd]

A Pipe and Single Malt Scotch! Nothing like it in the evening. Pure Enjoyment!

 

[grafikchaos]

+1 topd. But I'll venture to compare pipe smoking to beers. Not being a tea drinker, so I can't relate, but I am a beer drinker, and I definitely love a good beer with my pipe. Like tea, with beer there are so many variations. Also, it's a whole lot of fun trying to tie what beers go really well with what pipe tobaccos. One of my favorite combinations is a good Dunkel with Peterson Irish Oak. Makes for a fantastically tasty evening.

 

[cajunguy]

I like matching different tobaccos to coffee. I'm a huge coffee drinker, and a pipe smoker, so I equate the two together.

 

[carlosviet]

I am afraid that was not what my post was about; it was a metaphor, an analogy... My fault, I couldn't explain myself better.

 

[ohin3]

I rather like the analogies in your post. And I would say that your analogies are accurate. Interesting comparisons Carlos.

 

[waznyf]

I am afraid that was not what my post was about; it was a metaphor, an analogy... My fault, I couldn't explain myself better.

I understood what you were getting at calosviet. Loved the analogies and thought they were pretty dang accurate.

Made me even happier to smoke a pipe.

I am also a cigarette smoker and I thought your statement regarding cigs and coke was pretty accurate. Thanks!

 

[lordnoble]

I think your analogies are spot on!
-Jason

 

[bigmike]

A good pipe full of a favorite tobacco and a glass full of "Black Jack" on the rocks after dinner....M'mmmmmm

 

[scotrob]

really though you can mix and match almost any way you like....i tend to smoke more in the late afternoon and evening than in the morning, and at that time of day I will either be having a whisky (or a whiskey to which i am also very partial) or wine....and although you might not think it, white wines can partner quite well with a pipe, even delicate pinot grigios.

 

[lankfordjl]

Being a coffee and tea drinker myself as well as a pipe smoker, I completely understand. There are just as many types of brewing and roasting methods for coffee beans as there are tea preparation; I've compared coffee to pipe smoking myself. But I understand you're comparing pipe tobacco to fine teas and cigars to bold coffees. Good analogy, it will help me explain the difference between smoking cigarettes and pipe smoking to the naive. :clap:

 

[topd]

I caught on and understood your analogy perfectly Carlos, a very good metaphor. I thought it was poetic actually. I'm just not a tea drinker. I'm with grafikchaos in fact on the beer, perfect on the lake or golf course, cans or bottles. Although I've preferred bottles since I was about 5 months old, I drank from the tit before that. "But Scotch or Bourbon in the evening."

 

[ocpsdan]

Interesting thoughts. The more I think about it, the more I agree.

 

[bubblehead33]

+1 carlosviet

i think you hit the nail on the head. nicely worded.

 

[romeowood]

I for one enjoyed the analogies, Carlos, and would also add Kevin's bold assessment of hookah being the wine coolers of the tobacco world (though there's quite a difference in the Western approach and the Middle- and Far-Eastern approaches) :lol:
And while we're on the subject, here's a couple articles you might enjoy: something about Tea and (pipe) Tobacco, and a little riffing on Coffee and Cigars. I think that guy's onto something! 8)

 

[barkar]

Carlos! Your analogies are right on the money. Although I had never thought about it myself, everything made perfect sense right down to the loose tea leaves (which is the only way to drink tea).

Well done... :clap:

 

[thbg]

Great observations, well done. I agree completely.
I am an avid tea drinker and pipe smoker. Enjoying some PG Tips loose leaf brewed in my Bialetti Moka Express with some Orlik Golden Sliced in my Castello Sea Rock as I type.

 

[baronsamedi]

E-Cigs are like popping No-Doz. All Chemical, no fun. Snuff (Nasal) is like going to a soda fountain and ordering a Lime Rickey. It's an old pastime and you Gotta do it to appreciate it.

 

[brownbilliard]

Ah, smokes and drinks. They go together like magic. For me its Penzance and black coffee in the morning or cognac and a cavendish blend in the evening ::

 

[tbradsim1]

STRONG BLACK COFFEE,OR A GOOD WHISKEY,TBRADSIM THE OLD CAJUN