Tobacco flavored gripes

[bobby46]

Before joining here, I frequented other sites to get info on yet untried blends. There were
three flavors of posts/reviews that repeatedly got my goat.

1. "I was stranded in (podunk, usa) without a tobacconist in sight, and had to lower my
standards with an OTC. Back home, I spilled it into my garden". (Thanks for sharing.)

2. "(mommy, mommy), that tobacco bit my tongue! Whaaaa, Whaaaa...."

(I dare you to tell that one at a biker bar.)

3. "I detected a slight hint of basil in the tin" (insert here as well apricots, peach melba,
stewed prunes, daffodils,etc.

(Sorry, but I bought the stuff, and didn't get any of that! Pleeeeease, omit the platitudes and
name another brand it was similar to!)
No offence to anyone just honestly meaning to describe their experience. I did not see a lot of
those type statements here, so here I am. Just my opinion; I had to get that out. I feel much better, now. This is not said to divide the readership. I should be more mature/tolerant. This what what you get having an open enrollment.......

 

[spartan]

Not sure what to make of your thoughts Bobby.
But for #2, sometimes tobaccos bite. Hard. I would rather drink a cup of boiling water than finish an hour long bowl of a tobacco that bites. It can hurt; a lot.
And for #3, Some people are going to taste things you won't be able to, and vice-versa. If I put vanilla, chile powder, and maple syrup in a cup of coffee I'm 100% possitive not everyone is going to taste all of those. Because flavors can be EXTREMELY SUBLTE, and sometimes aren't there for you to notice, but instead are there to accent other flavors. When mixed together sometimes they take on a whole new flavor that is both impossible to describe and confusing. While others will feel confident enough to let you know what they tasted, and maybe they won't hit one of the ingredients, but instead come up with completely different notes that come closest to what they THINK they tasted.
It's not a science. People screw up. Every day.

(Sorry, but I bought the stuff, and didn't get any of that! Pleeeeease, omit the platitudes and
name another brand it was similar to!)

Sometimes there just isn't anything close to a particular blend...
Can't wait to hear a review from YOU sir! hehe. All in good fun. Welcome to the forums Bobby!

 

[jchaplick]

+1 spartan

 

[bobby46]

I'm surprised I didn't get thrown off. I had spent a few hours at other sites having an unusual amount of negative tobacco reviews. I think I wanted to remind myself and others the power of the internet. So many "bite" complaints followed by dozens of responses to "puff slower". As for OTC blend bashing, We all need to remind ourselves that we may get like responses from a few others, but unseen, there could be a hundred staunch old-timers that may have gotten insulted. It appears that I've just done likewise. Travel to other review sites and you will see what I mean. The bite remarks invariably pointed to MacBaren, which (undaunted by bad reviews) I tried and like. I came here for the more sensible posts and hope that mindset never changes.

 

[dhizzy]

I'm smellin' what you're shovelin', welcome!

 

[spartan]

There are definately some MacBarens blends to be loved, and I am still fairly new to the pipe smoking world so I try not to let the bias get to me. So far 2 out of 3 blends I've had from MacBaren bite me so much that I can't smoke them.
I'll still buy their blends but if it bites and I can't fix it with all my magical might... then I won't buy that blend again.
From my experience tobacco bite is a conflict of body chemistry vs. tobacco chemistry. Some just don't mix well with me. I LOVE the flavors of the tobacco that bites me, but no matter how slow I puff of the moisture content of the tobacco I am still getting bite from a few of their blends.
But I won't give up until I eliminate all options lol. Combined I have about 6oz of tobacco that bites. I'm trying them in all my pipes and at different moisture levels, and packing methods, to see if I'm just missing the sweet spot.
If I can't find it with 6oz of tobacco. Then game over. :?

 

[bobby46]

It's my experience that bite can be controlled by a longer stem, a filter, different bowl size, altered packing technique. Many reviewers are only relating their experience with one pipe.
I started smoking only last year at age 65. With all the economic uncertainty, some wonderful brands could suddenly disappear, or further taxation could soon ruin everything. I had hoped to create a cellar, and may have developed a "bombshelter" mentality defence. I found internet reviews a confusing frustrating jungle. I gave up on reviews due to saturation, and now take a blend I find too strong and mix in some carter hall, or just save it up for future tries. Virginias seeming too weak get a sprinkle of frogmorton.

If/when I do review a blend, it will be positive, succinct, and relevant.

 

[marmal4de]

Bobby, I have to say that as a connoisseur, I whole heartedly disagree with all of your assertions save the first, but it takes all kinds.

 

[bobby46]

Speak to me. I'm not here to accumulate sycophants.

 

[mluyckx]

I believe Mr.O wrote an article about this a while back. But there's a difference between "bite" and "burn".
"bite" is indeed a body chemistry reaction, while "burn" is a reaction to fast smoking, hot vapor, etc... Although bite can be reduced by smoking slower or drying tobacco longer, if it's body chemistry, nothing will help. In addition, given a similar blend of tobacco varieties, I would be surprised if there is one brand whose blends bite more than another brand.
I know of guys that hate VA's and find that most of them give them discomfort. Personally, I have the same with Lat blends. I've tried about 1/2 dozen of different Lat blends, from different blenders, (C&D, GL Pease, H&H, Dunhill, Davidoff,..) in different pipes, different states of dryness. All the same sore mouth feeling, sometimes hours after smoking. Hence I'm relatively sure it's a body chemistry thing. So I tend to stay away from them. VA's now there are some that smoke hotter, whilst others are cooler smoking and sweeter. But I personally don't seem to have a body chemistry problem with them.
That's to say that

1) "All MacBaren tobacco bites" is imho a dangerous generalization, unless MacB puts something in their tobaccos that no other blender does and to which you have a negative reaction. Which sound weird to me.

2) You cannot always control bite. Sometimes it's just body chemistry. No matter what pipe, no matter what brand.
My .00002 ;-)

 

[bobby46]

Mick,

If you go to tobaccoreviews.com and read the hundreds of mac-blend posts, there will be references to "the notorious mac-bite". I didn't say that; they did. I don't go there anymore.
I am prepared to discover that there may be blends/brands I could never get to like. I bow to anyone with more knowledge, and am not professing expertise, just observation.

 

[jchaplick]

I love macbarens, its my favorite brand overall so far, I do enjoy OTC's as do most in this forum, and there are rarely complaints of bit, if there are someone will most likely jump on a solution to fix the problem, its a good place here, I would read abit more before you start making generalizations, but to each their own

 

[bobby46]

I think my initial post above was due to having run out of prune juice, and ensuing "irregularity" made me cranky.

 

[dburrows]

Re: #3; I think the flavors you see being described are typically very subtle and Spartan also speaks well to how subjective it is. As you relax with your smoke more and more you will begin to pick out flavors and aromas that are hard to describe but may be familiar. Some may be much more subjective while others are relatively common - like raisins often get used in reviews for VA's. This will happen more and more as you get familiar with the different tobaccos being used.
I remember at first I never got the flavors described in most blends I was smoking but I'll never forget the first pure VA I had and the initial smoke immediately brought that grassy cut hay and raisins that everyone describes so much. In the next blend I had (Westminster, as a matter of fact) I tasted the VA's quite a bit more and was suddenly getting the same thing in and out of the bowl - grassy, hay and mild hints of raisin along with the regular latakia flavor I had grown so fond of.

 

[spartan]

I think my initial post above was due to having run out of prune juice, and ensuing "irregularity" made me cranky.

We like cranky here. Livens things up a bit lol.
Everyone has an opinion and as long as things stay civil and noone takes these things too personally there's no reason we can't beat a topic to death and have fun doing it. ::

 

[mluyckx]

I think my initial post above was due to having run out of prune juice, and ensuing "irregularity" made me cranky.

:rofl: I get that way before coffee and a pipe. Don't bug me in the morning until I have had both.
But as an aside, you're somewhat correct on many reviews out there. I'm not that good with flavors either and I just peruse the reviews to get an overall idea. My family is big into wine (and has been for 30 years, before it was "hip" here in the US) and they can talk about it for hours. Me... nope... never got the feel for it. I think it's the same with tobacco. Pompous ? Maybe.. but if that's what they like, then have fun. To each his own. For me: tobacco and beer.

 

[bobby46]

Yep, I did get the mac-b VA #1 raisins, the hay, and even a bread/pastry aroma in the case with C & D kajun kake. Please understand I had reacted to reading too many reviews to which I fully expected to enjoy the nuances but for me, weren't there.

 

[bigvan]

Just to touch on a few of the points raised...
Many of the Mac Baren blends are made with sugars and flavorings. Those sugars and flavorings can burn rather hot. This can be managed with the right pipe, the right pack and the right technique. Some enjoy managing these (and other Danish-style blends), some don't. Though I'm not a fan of their overly sweet blends, I believe they use very high quality leaf and flavorings and are to be respected.
As for OTC blends, I think they use pretty low quality leaf and then just cover it all with sugar and PG. Mass market mediocrity.
You wanted opinions, well you got mine.