Tip On Making the Tobacco You Don't (Can't) Smoke Smokable

[greatsteaks]

I have only been smoking a pipe since December 2012. Like most new pipe smokers I have bought a bunch of different aromatics that bite the hell out of my mouth and have swore I would never smoke again. I have found that cutting them with BCA makes them smokable to actually enjoyable! I cut as much as 3(BCA)to 1 while others as little as 3 to 1(BCA). Now im sure you could cut it with numerous other mild brands I just had some BCA to cut it with. Now this might not be a news flash for experienced smokers but I figured I would throw it out there for people like me.

 

[judcole]

Or, better yet,new guys, don't buy cheap aros! :nana: :rofl:

 

[Perique]

I've had good luck mixing Aros with burleys. I'm mainly a VaPer smoker but have some Aros I like - just find them too, well, aromatic: not enough backbone. Too much bite. Etc. So I've mixed them with Mac Baren Golden Extra and Burley London Blend. Also with Angler's Dream and occasionally Carter Hall. I've jarred up some of these mixtures and am giving them six months or so to think about themselves. Some examples include: Gatlinburlier's Mountain Mall Mix with London Burley and Angler's Dream (I especially enjoy the AD mix), and Stanwell Melange with London Burley and, separately, with Golden Extra. On Roth's advice, I've also created some "Wal-Hall" our of Walnut and Carter Hall and found it a pleasant mixture.

 

[kashmir]

Here's a thought. Chuck the Aros. Buy a tin of C&D's Star of the East an sip slowly. Tell me you don't see the face of God when you light up.

 

[greatsteaks]

"Or, better yet,new guys, don't buy cheap aros!"
Ow come on now, don't you remember when you first started smoking a pipe, so many great flavors right behind the counter of your local drug store and you want something new NOW! Lol

 

[kashmir]

Well, I still smoke what I started on 30 yrs. ago: Captain Black White. Ain't nuttin bettah for when the sweet tooth kicks in. An no Lane's 1Q don't come near it.

 

[drrock]

I started out my pipe smoking days with aromatics many, many years ago and still enjoy them regularly (but not solely) today. Sounds like you have a solution to your problem - adding a sweet aromatic to tobaccos that aren't so good. If you like BCA, try 1Q & RLP-6 too.

Or better yet, try the aromatics from Uhles, Milan Tobacconists, Boswell, Peretti, and pipeworksandwilke. No bite in my experience and many great choices.

 

[jjmitchem]

I have a mason jar full of lane 1Q, same thing- bought some when I started and was given some more by others. Don't really like it now that I've discovered some premium tobaccos.

I'm saving this stuff to take to the field with me but if anyone has some blending ideas with Lane 1Q then by all means share

 

[bigboi]

Also Jack Lee Blend's put out some fantastic Aromatics!!!

 

[dlattim]

I find a pinch of 1Q mixed in with a VaPer like Bayou Morning or Escudo to be very nice. Of course, for me, you can't beat Escudo on it's own.

 

[eibhir]

Or, better yet,new guys, don't buy cheap aros!

I like cheap aros. They are great for mixing with odds and ends. Besides PA make everything better. :nana:

While some may be too embarrassed or have a nose up too high to admit it, many of us did indeed pick up that Cherry Blend, Fruity Loop, or Rum-Whiskey

Is there really a flavor called Fruity Loop and if so where can I get it please? ::

 

[eibhir]

Sorry Not that I know of. I tend to talk (and write) in metaphors.

Darn, I love that cereal. Oh well I have found some flavors that should have that name. Plus I've discovered I don't like mango aros. That's how you find what you like, you try them all then mix the bad ones up for something if not good at least unique. :lol:

 

[drrock]

[Russ Ouelette (Hearth & Home for P&C) also makes a number of great aromatics as well. P&C's Butternut Burley is nice too.]
Absolutely - forgot about those. While I don't think it's one of Russ' blends, P&C Trout Stream is another favorite.

 

[judcole]

Oh, I tried the cheap aros when I was new, 'cause I didn't know any better. Found better stuff, and that was that.

 

[nsfisher]

I'm saving this stuff to take to the field with me but if anyone has some blending ideas with Lane 1Q then by all means share

It mixes really well with Walnut, mate. Also like it with MacBarrens Mixture, Original Choice, HH Highland Blend, Carter Hall, etc, etc. I find that a bit of 1-Q can go well with many baccys.

 

[rigmedic1]

I have to let those drug store Aros dry out a bit before I smoke them. On the other hand, I have mixed some really bland Virginia tobaccos with some Dark Star or Royal Cajun black to make some fine smoking experiments. McClelland 5100 is a really good mixer as well.

 

[zonomo]

I always find it interesting when "experienced" pipe smokers tell new pipe smokers to junk the aros and smoke English or Virginia's or ________. Being relatively new myself, I have tried some what I consider fine non-aro's and for some reason, my tastes buds at the moment just do not care for them. I enjoy my Hobbits Weed or Boswells much better at the moment - and yes Captain Black White very much. I remember when I started drinking wine a few years ago, people were telling me that I'd really like a nice Pinot but again, for some reason, I have never cared for them and still don't to this day. I'm a Cab, Syrah or Malbec man. Just like what you like while you like it and like what you like then when then happens.

 

[cigrmaster]

When I started out I never smoked OTC's and aro's. I was brought into pipes by a cigar buddy and he mentored me in my pipe and tobacco choices so I began smoking English blends like the Frog series and Gl Pease English blends,Rattray's and McClellland Virginia's right off the bat. The first OTC I ever smoked was about a month ago and it was Carter Hall.
I dabbled with Boswell Aro's when I joined this site and actually enjoyed the flavors, but the pg dried my mouth something fierce so I no longer smoke them. My one aro I smoke now is Peterson University Flake and I guess some people do not consider it to be an aro, but it is to me. I believe that if someone finds a blend they enjoy, do not let anyone tell you to chuck it. It does not matter what people think about it, as long as you enjoy it. Everyone's tastes are so different that what I like does not mean you will like it. There is no right or wrong in this hobby, it is only about finding what you enjoy.

 

[javajunkie]

As a reinforcement to prior points, yes you should like something and not smoke it because you are supposed to, and no everyone will not like the same things, but i will add that you shouldn't give up on something entirely. tastes change and mindsets change, and revisiting a smoke you thought was behind you could bring a pleasant surprise. Dont go pounds deep, but still...
more to the point, i am in a similar boat right now of being in a highly experimental newb stage; most aros are not for me yet, but blending them down so to speak with something more flavor neutral can help. i have found old school price albert and carter hall to work wonders so far. like rice as a backdrop for a meal.

 

[cigrmaster]

roth, I remember when people were telling me that I just had to try McClelland 5100 Red Cake and it was the end all be all Va blend. I bought a pound of it and tried smoking it for a couple of months. It did have a nice flavor but it burned the crap out of my mouth every time I smoked it. I finally gave up on it and realized that my tastes are my tastes and I will smoke what I enjoy, not what other people think I should enjoy. It was a similar story with Rattray's Hal O' the Wynd and Marlin Flake, again those were highly touted blends that everyone should enjoy. I have learned over the years what I like and could care less if other people enjoy these blends, in fact I kind of wish people hated the blends I like so I wouldn't have a hard time finding them. lol