Tobacco for Wife's First Smoke

[ricebiscuit]

My birthday is coming up - the big 3-0, and my wife has been asking what I would like to do (Pipe smoking, Duh.) I have decided I would like her to come with me to a local pipe/cigar lounge and try a pipe, and She has agreed to give it a shot. Im hoping this will help her to at the least understand why I like pipe smoking so much. Heck, she may even like it.
Here is where I need help - What non aromatic blend should I have for her to try? She has never smoked a pipe or cigar before. The shop has a good assortment of C&D bulks she can chose from, so thats an option. I will have some 1Q for her to try, but also wanted a non aromatic that is naturally sweet.
Recommendations?

 

[mso489]

Review the tobacco pages of SP and PC online. You want something really mild. Many of CD's wonderful burley blends are not mild. I really think mild would make the best first impression.

 

[economistandfisherman]

To be honest, to me, the sweetest non-aromatic (i.e., not topped) is the good ole OTC Carter Hall; it seems to be cased with something sugary, but I can't tell that it's topped with anything (maybe someone more familiar with it's process can chime in)...just my opinion of course...

 

[Chasing Embers]

My wife has been smoking Haunted Bookshop for a few months now. Even ordered herself a couple of pounds of it.

 

[rdavid]

I second the Carter Hall suggestion. Really easy to smoke with a non-goopy sweetness.

 

[prairiedruid]

PS Luxury Navy Flake has sweet notes and when rubbed out is pretty forgiving for a novice piper.

 

[workman]

I just tried Fribourg & Treyer's Golden Mixture. A wonderfully bready sweet virginia with no bite and a very easily handled ribbon cut. Don't know if it's available for you, but I'll recommend it anyway.

 

[redone]

Another vote for Carter Hall or if you want more flavor and and better tobacco, Chatham Manor.

 

[frozenchurchwarden]

For the ease of packing and enjoying the process of smoking a pipe, Carter Hall was my first thought.
For flavour, back when I was starting out the first time I tasted sweetness was Samuel Gawith St. James Flake, though I don't know if that would have been discernible on my first bowl, you need some time to acclimatize.

From what I remember of my first week of pipe smoking, being able to "taste" tobacco takes three or four bowls, making sure you give enough time between bowls to recover (at least a day to rest your mouth).

You could be smoking the most cloying aromatic and taste nothing one week, and then suddenly the next week it's all toasted marshmallows.
Thus, I really think flavour shouldn't be the primary goal and you might be better off trying to make sure the person being introduced to the pipe can just sit down and enjoy sipping the pipe and playing with the smoke.

 

[olkofri]

For first bowl I'd go with something that's least likely to give tongue bite. A raw tongue can make someone quit the pipe faster than they pick it up. I'd doubt she'd taste anything, so belabouring the choice isn't gonna probably help much. She's also quite unlikely to smell anything she's smoking, so, likewise (tough I'd still wouldn't go for a latakia bomb).
OTOH, she may smell what others are smoking, so, for yourself, choose something whose scent won't put her off.

 

[mothernaturewilleatusallforbreakfast]

Campaign Dark Flake

 

[jaytex1969]

Maybe you can stage a "pre-screening" for her to familiarize with the various components.
As you lead up to your birthday outing, let her have a puff or two from some select blends you are enjoying. Maybe include an English, a VaPer, a codger blend, etcetera.
Give her a few puffs, not enough to thrash her mouth. One per day, so she can taste and reflect before trying the next one.
By the time you two head off to the birthday outing, she may have determined what class of tobacco she has the best odds of enjoying.
The blend that hooked me into pipe smoking was John Cotton's #1. Good luck.

 

[thedbs999]

I'd go with Carter Hall
dan

 

[pappymac]

For a first time smoker, I would go with Carter Hall.
Strange, but I expected to see a lot of people suggesting Lane 1Q...

 

[Chasing Embers]

Aromatics really don't make for good beginner tobaccos. That's for later on.

 

[timt]

For something easy to smoke, naturally sweet and with a little citrus, Orlik Golden Sliced gets my vote.

 

[jeff540]

From my own experience, my wife liked Orlik Golden Sliced (OGS) better than any of my other 30+ blends. She smokes a bowl every now and again as an alternative to cigarettes, the consumption of which she has greatly reduced from 1 pack a day to only 3 or 4 sticks a day.

 

[disinformatique]

Heres what I would suggest.
1. GL Pease Westminster

2. GL Please Six Pence

3. Orlik Golden Sliced

4. Mac Baren Navy Flake
Stay away from aros, she will burn her tongue out if she has a tendency to puff hard.
Cheers,

Chris

 

[georgebmcclelland]

I would think about what may match her tastes in food and drink. Does she like bold, spicy foods, or plain and simple, or rich, or has she got a sweet tooth?
If she's rather unadventurous in her palette I would stick to something basic, but if she enjoys exotic and intense food, why not see if she'd enjoy a tobacco blend to match?

 

[frozenchurchwarden]

Strange, but I expected to see a lot of people suggesting Lane 1Q...

That was much more common a few years ago.

I think people switched to recommending Carter Hall because it better represents what enthusiasts think pipe smoking should be, but still fills the novice pipe smoker niche.

It has good burning characteristics and the flavor is both pleasant and subtle enough it doesn't offend anyone, new or experienced.