The Escudo Stole My Pipe Cleaners

[kyriefurro]

I had to run into town today to do some errand running and general shopping. Among other things on the list was a stop at the local B&M for some more pipe cleaners. I'd also made the decision to buy a new pipe lighter - something in the butane family to go along my Zippo - and maybe a couple of ounces of bulk tobacco, since I was running low on everything except several flavors of Frog Mortons.
I walked in and was surprised to see someone new at the counter, and was very pleased to learn that *this* guy actually smokes a pipe regularly. Most of the other employees there are cigar guys who only dabble in pipes, if they smoke them at all. I spent some time looking over the lighters and settled on a new Xikar Resource. Then we started talking about their various bulk tobacco offerings. I was still hemming and hawing when I noticed a couple of tins of Escudo sitting off to the side of the counter. Remembering all the good things that everyone here on PM.com said about Escudo, I decided to go with that instead of anything from the bulk jars, planning to give it a try tonight after dinner.
I was really curious about this stuff, so no sooner did I get home then I popped open the tin. What a wonderful smell! Sweet and rich with just a hint of some sort of berries. Forget dinner, I had to try it. Oh my! What a wonderful flavor, cool smoking and just a little sweet. Love it.
And the Xikar lighter is just what the doctor ordered for lighting it. I didn't have anywhere near the problems using it that I've had with my Zippo, even though I overpacked the pipe just a bit (I used the fold and stuff method and wasn't sure how many coins to use heh).
So, all in all, it was a very successful visit to the B&M except for one small problem. I never did get the damned pipe cleaners

 

[trailspike48]

Just think of the pipe cleaners as an excuse to return to the B&M. ::

 

[mlyvers]

I have a little bit left in a mason jar (ball jar). I really enjoy escudo myself, been smoking the stuff for a number of years. Glad to hear you enjoy it.
Mike.

 

[kcghost]

Escudo is just great stuff, even this new version.

 

[cigrmaster]

kyriefurro, glad to hear you really enjoyed your first taste of Escudo, it is one of my favorites and has been for a long time. I am with you about the zippo pipe lighter being a pain in the butt, I only use mine in really windy conditions when none of my other lighters will work. Your Xikar comes with a lifetime warranty, hopefully you will not need it. I hear good things about their lighters.

 

[kyriefurro]

Your Xikar comes with a lifetime warranty, hopefully you will not need it. I hear good things about their lighters.

Yeah, I was kind of iffy on this model since it has the piezo-electric ignition. But I did some research and it got good reviews on several forums and even the people who did have problems with them commented on how great Xikar's customer service was.
I love how solid it feels, and makes pipe lighting a breeze. And having all my pipe tools attached to my lighter is really cool - less crap to have to juggle around while I'm smoking ::

 

[cigrmaster]

I love my IM Corona lighters because they have the built in tamper, I dislike having to carry a tamper separately, way too easy to loose.

 

[brdavidson]

I have the Xikar pipeline lighter, which is modelled after the IM Corona lighters and I love it. Breeze sometimes being an issue means either the Zippo (pain in the ass to light the bottom of a bowl) or a good old bic. I have a bic and a pipe tool in my car, my office, my briefcase and my table beside my smoking chair just in case.

 

[kyriefurro]

Kyrie, if you ever do have a problem with the lighter (or any other Xikar product), you can return it to any retail Xikar dealer, whether you bought the product there or not, for a replacement, no questions asked.

Sweet! I didn't notice that part. I did note the part where they'll fix it for free....forever. Which, quite honestly is pretty damned good in this day and age. Not many companies out there any more that stand behind their product like that.

 

[kyriefurro]

Nope! Just be sure to keep your receipt in a safe place.

You can actually go into their website and register your lighter purchase - the don't ask for the receipt. Once you register they send you a complimentary leather pouch designed to fit your lighter (cigar cutters, too, if you buy one). If you need warranty work, you can just reference your registration when you send it in.

 

[metalheadycigarguy]

I hate it when I do that, but at least you have a good reason to return to the store.

 

[yazamitaz]

Great story and you won't be disappointed with Xikar. I bought one for my cigars about 10 yrs ago and went to my B&M thinking it needed repair. They sent it out for repair and Xikar said it couldn't be fixed, so they sent me a BRAND new one. I like the new one better than the old one.
For that reason I picked up this guy for pipes Xikar Pipe Lighter It comes with a tamper to make life even simpler
Happy smoking ::