Tobacco Recommendations for a Beginner.

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Birddog66

Lifer
Nov 29, 2020
2,997
53,371
Newhaven England
Aromatics aren’t necessarily about room note, I don’t give a damn how my tobacco smells to others. A lot of casings are barely noticeable, only there to enhance the tobacco used. I think perhaps you’ve just made poor choices but that’s not gonna change by just smoking non aromatics. As mentioned before it could just be that your tongue reacts poorly to some types of tobacco (like me and Virginias) or it may be overly sensitive. What I’m trying to say is keep an open mind, there’s thousands of blends out there and you will find something that you like eventually. As is often said, the best tobacco in the world is the one you enjoy the most. By the way what sort of cigars did you prefer, Maduro or Claro? I always found Maduro’s to be smoother personally but a friend thought otherwise. This kind of illustrates how tricky it can be getting advice on different blends, what’s good for the goose isn’t always good for the gander. After you’ve been on here for a while you can always swap those you don’t like for some you do. I hope you find something you love soon though, keep puffing.
 

viera92

Lurker
Sep 26, 2013
28
20
Mexico
Hey, you can’t have your Cake and Ice Cream both! LOL ?

Tongue Bite first, Room Note Second! LOL ;)
Haha I'm sorry I know I want everything hahah.
The thing is, when I made this post i was smoking outside, but in my city we can be at 30°C one day (86°F) and then 5°C the other (40°F), so its been cold this last week and now I'm smoking in my room so room note came to mind.
 

andre3s

Lurker
Dec 7, 2020
33
137
Chambly, QC
Haha I'm sorry I know I want everything hahah.
The thing is, when I made this post i was smoking outside, but in my city we can be at 30°C one day (86°F) and then 5°C the other (40°F), so its been cold this last week and now I'm smoking in my room so room note came to mind.
I know how rough the weather can be... I only have the option to smoke outside. Yesterday the temperature was around -3°C (27°F) which was good. Below that is difficult.
 

andre3s

Lurker
Dec 7, 2020
33
137
Chambly, QC
@viera92 Before staying away from aromatics, I have some words...
As a beginner I am, one of my first mistakes was to put the flame too close to the tobacco when igniting it. Actually I basically used to put the flame inside the bowl.
It seems to me that the temperature goes too high and you end up scorching it and getting tongue bite and an awful taste.
What I do now is to keep the flame away from the tobacco and gently pull it towards the top of the tobacco.
This technique dramatically improved my experienece.
Hope it helps you too.
 

viera92

Lurker
Sep 26, 2013
28
20
Mexico
I know how rough the weather can be... I only have the option to smoke outside. Yesterday the temperature was around -3°C (27°F) which was good. Below that is difficult.
Wow! For me 15C outside is enough to get inside. I'm used to hot climate.


@viera92 Before staying away from aromatics, I have some words...
As a beginner I am, one of my first mistakes was to put the flame too close to the tobacco when igniting it. Actually I basically used to put the flame inside the bowl.
It seems to me that the temperature goes too high and you end up scorching it and getting tongue bite and an awful taste.
What I do now is to keep the flame away from the tobacco and gently pull it towards the top of the tobacco.
This technique dramatically improved my experienece.
Hope it helps you too.
Yeah I will try to keep the flame at a distance.
 
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PipeIT

Lifer
Nov 14, 2020
4,376
26,150
Hawaii
Wow! For me 15C outside is enough to get inside. I'm used to hot climate.



Yeah I will try to keep the flame at a distance.

Besides distance, if you use an adjustable soft flame lighter like an IM Corona Old Boy, it makes a difference too, being able to light with a smaller flame! ? ;)

 

luigi

Can't Leave
May 16, 2017
456
1,265
Europe
It's interesting to see so many different suggestions and advices. I'm sure everybody has its own way and you will probably find yours too.
It took me about a year to learn the technique and after the second year I found those tobaccos which fit my taste.
You may also want to check out the difference between bulk and tinned "premium" tobacco by yourself, explore the tobaccoreviews.com and hunt down your perfect match. ?
Good luck.
 

andre3s

Lurker
Dec 7, 2020
33
137
Chambly, QC
It's interesting to see so many different suggestions and advices. I'm sure everybody has its own way and you will probably find yours too.
It took me about a year to learn the technique and after the second year I found those tobaccos which fit my taste.
You may also want to check out the difference between bulk and tinned "premium" tobacco by yourself, explore the tobaccoreviews.com and hunt down your perfect match. ?
Good luck.
Beautifully put!
 
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wayoutwest

Starting to Get Obsessed
Mar 28, 2016
193
3,137
KY
After a brief stumble through LBM jarred aromatics I found Early Morning Pipe. It redefined what a pipe could be. I don't smoke it, or English/latakia blends, that that often anymore, but I found it to be a great "gateway" tobacco.

I really don't think anyone should start with an aromatic, especially one heavily cased with PG.
 
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stokesdale

Part of the Furniture Now
Apr 17, 2020
845
2,532
Stokesdale
Here in lies the problem when new members post questions about tobacco recommendations...74 posts on the topic...I wonder if anything was actually learned or is it information overload with the final result being that they will muddle through tons of blends until they find what they like just like everyone else on here did? Not that it isn't a valid question, it is, but it's like asking beer drinkers what brand beer is the best...
 

Daga

Lurker
Jan 2, 2021
1
2
I'm pretty new to pipe smoking and have been having good success with Boswell blends. I bought an aromatic sampler and English sampler. The "Boswell No Bite Delite" is my current favorite out of the aromatic sampler. I haven't tried all of them yet, so this could change.
 
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PipeIT

Lifer
Nov 14, 2020
4,376
26,150
Hawaii
I'm pretty new to pipe smoking and have been having good success with Boswell blends. I bought an aromatic sampler and English sampler. The "Boswell No Bite Delite" is my current favorite out of the aromatic sampler. I haven't tried all of them yet, so this could change.

Well, unless your eating and drInking habits have never changed...

But oh you’ll change in time. LOL ?

So many styles! ?
 
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viera92

Lurker
Sep 26, 2013
28
20
Mexico
Ok, so sharing the experience after almost 2 weeks, sorry if too long, theres no need to read it.

I bought:
1. virginia: P. S. twist flake
2. vaper: P. S. navy flake
3. burley: HH old dark fired ready rubbed
4. english/balkan: arango balkan supreme


Summary:

Unfortunately I can't notice MUCH difference between blends, both in aroma and taste. Even between this blends and the aromatics, besides the toppings, can't tell much difference. BUT I really liked 2 of them, the burley and the english.

Abut the pipes, I like my grabow better than the new corn cob.

Both virginias smelled to me and to my family like cigarettes, and thats very bad. Did enjoy the smoke but had a bit of bite.

The burley smelled good to me, but bad to my family. Cero bite, really liked it but did not found anything special about it.

My favorite between the 4 was the english, pleasant aroma to me and tastes good but family was not near to judge the room note. Cero bite.


Long story:
I now understand the guy that said that he had to taste the same tobacco several times in a row to actually tell it apart. Was hoping for a whole new world but at the end of the day, its still tobacco.

The corncob have a very wide canal so there's cero resistance while drawing, even after packing tighter so it tends to burn hotter because of that. Did not found any difference about bite using one pipe or the other.
Good thing is I did love the straight shape, my grabow is "bent" so really liked having 2 different shapes to choose.

The first day I tried the burley, and had tobacco overload. After finishing I had nausea and was sweating, first time experiencing that, but at least didn't vomit.

After that I tried all several times to try to find the different nuances and heres what I found.

About the virginia and the vaper:
I really liked the flake, found it easier to pack just folding it and stay lit longer.
Smell:
They are labeled as "pleasant" aroma, but unfortunately to me and to my family as well, they all said it smelled like cigarettes and that's a no-no. Again, its still tobacco. Specially the vaper, found my room smelling like a bar for several hours. Still could enjoy them outside the house.

bite:
They both did bite me a little bit, but WAY WAY less than the aromatics, so little that I could actually brush my teeth after smoking, that was impossible with the aromatics. I think the vape bit me more than the twist flake, so the topping on the twist flake was not a problem in terms of bite.

Won't talk much about taste because I already stated that found very difficult to detect differences.

In conclusion, I like them, but can only smoke them outside, and probably won't buy again because still finding some bite on them.

About the burley:
Besides the bad tobacco sickness, after trying it again, liked this one, but nothing special.
I could and probably will buy more of this and try different tobaccos from this same style, don't know if I liked the burley perse or the "fire pressed" thing on the kentuckys. In contrast with my fear about burleys and chemical bite, this one did not bit AT ALL, cero bite. I'm glad I took one of the advices about not giving up on burley.

Smell is stronger than the virginias, for me was a pleasant aroma, but in the end my family again said it smelled like "burnt trash, with cigarettes" haha. The good point is the smell did not stayed in the room long like the vaper did.

Conclusion: Will buy this one again, and try different blends of this same type.

About the english:
My favorite.
When I first smelled the bag, the tin note was strong, and weird, to the point that had a bit of nausea but, after some days I got used to the smell and began to like it.
If this weird smell is the latakia, then the HGL blend have near to none latakia in it, to me its a normal aromatic.

CERO bite, very pleasant and relaxing, and I really liked the aroma while smoking and the room note on my room after finishing. This time my family was not here to judge the room note, but for me was WONDERFUL (they will probably say it smelled like cigarettes anyways)

Will DEFINITELY try more english/balkans/oriental blends in the future.
Because I really liked reading inside while smoking, I do care about room note so I will try some english aromatics like the HGL.
Maybe I will find some day a good english aromatic with no bite. would be nice.



Thanks again to everyone about all the advice.
 

PipeIT

Lifer
Nov 14, 2020
4,376
26,150
Hawaii
Welcome Back!

I’ll keep it simple, because at this stage in the game it’s what you need, in order to keep you interested in pipe smoking.

You’ve already been given a lot of information, which is good and bad, bad as in Information Overload, and then you Burn Out!

You have enough now about some pipes and tobacco, so at this point in time, it’s going to be a lot of experimenting to get the acquired taste ‘Pipe System’ down, so to speak of, and it’s not complicated, and hopefully less work for the tongue Bite. I bought my first few pipes, a few tins, that was it, and I was happily puffing along.

Again, you may just have an overly sensitive tongue, also do you have any allergies, or find that foods others typically eat, you have problems, as it relates to your tongue?

The most IMPORTANT thing you need to never forget, is that the tongue needs to be educated! Becoming like @jiminks doesn’t happen over night. I’m sure you’ve heard the expression; ‘Acquired Taste’. ?

When was the last time you can remember seeing in life, or on TV, etc., someone trying alcohol for the first time, and they coughed and gagged and spit, yelling how it tastes like gasoline, or lighter fluid, or some other nasty thing, saying how can you drink this, etc., etc... You see, this is where you are at, new, and your tongue has not adjusted, this is why you are struggling with the various differences in tastes between blends, besides tongue bite.

SO, taking a few steps back, follow, these steps.

Smoke only 1 bowl in a pipe, then clean it, wipe out the inside chamber very lightly after smoking with a paper towel to help reduce cake/carbon build up, then run both a bristled and soft cleaner through the pipe, then let the pipe dry out for a 1-3 days before smoking again. How long to dry? After 1 day smell the inside of the pipe, if it still smells like burnt tobacco and ash, let it dry another day. The objective here is to wait until the inside starts to smell more like pipe tobacco and less like ash, and sweeter smelling. All my pipes start smelling nicer within 2-3 days. Now if you had 5 pipes in your rotation, then each pipe will naturally get 4 days of rest.

Because of your tongue sensitivity a nice pipe lighter with an adjustable soft flame, might just be the thing you need, if you haven’t invested in one like the ‘IM Corona Old Boy’. For now, forget about trying to keep the tobacco lit, don’t worry about having to keep relighting it over, that will come in time. It’s better because of your tongue sensitivity, to barely light the tobacco, so there won’t be much heat, then take a VERY SLOW and SMALL SIP, maybe only 1-2, then let the tabac go out, and let the pipe cool down, to where it actually feels cool, and no warmth, then light it again, repeating the same slow small 1-2 sips, they also don’t need to be sips in a row.

When it comes tobacco, you can certainly hear what everyone has to say, but be sure to go online to read company descriptions on the blend as well.

Now you just need to take all of this VERY SLOWLY and in time your tongue will get smarter, and hopefully more Tongue Bite resistant. ?

Also keep in the back of your mind, that your tongue could also possibly always be sensitive, and if that happens to be true, then you’ll want to use filters in your pipes.
 
Last edited:

viera92

Lurker
Sep 26, 2013
28
20
Mexico
Welcome Back!

I’ll keep it simple, because at this stage in the game it’s what you need, in order to keep you interested in pipe smoking.

You’ve already been given a lot of information, which is good and bad, bad as in Information Overload, and then you Burn Out!

You have enough now about some pipes and tobacco, so at this point in time, it’s going to be a lot of experimenting to get the acquired taste ‘Pipe System’ down, so to speak of, and it’s not complicated. I bought my first few pipes, a few tins, that was it, and I was happily puffing along.

Again, you may just have an overly sensitive tongue, also do you have any allergies, or find that foods others typically eat, you have problems, as it relates to your tongue?

The most IMPORTANT thing you need to never forget, is that the tongue needs to be educated! Becoming like @jiminks doesn’t happen over night. I’m sure you’ve heard the expression; ‘Acquired Taste’. ?

When was the last time you can remember seeing in life, or on TV, etc., someone trying alcohol for the first time, and they coughed and gagged and spit, yelling how it tastes like gasoline, or lighter fluid, or some other nasty thing, saying how can you drink this, etc., etc... You see, this is where you are at, new, and your tongue has not adjusted, this is why you are struggling with the various differences in tastes between blends, besides tongue bite.

SO, taking a few steps back, follow, these steps.

Smoke only 1 bowl in a pipe, then clean it, wipe out the inside chamber very lightly after smoking with a paper towel to help reduce cake/carbon build up, then run both a bristled and soft cleaner through the pipe, then let the pipe dry out for a 1-3 days before smoking again. How long to dry? After 1 day smell the inside of the pipe, if it still smells like burnt tobacco and ash, let it dry another day. The objective here is to wait until the inside starts to smell more like pipe tobacco and less like ash, and sweeter smelling. All my pipes start smelling nicer within 2-3 days. Now if you had 5 pipes in your rotation, then each pipe will naturally get 4 days of rest.

Because of your tongue sensitivity a nice pipe lighter with an adjustable soft flame, might just be the thing you need, if you haven’t invested in one like the ‘IM Corona Old Boy’. For now, forget about trying to keep the tobacco lit, don’t worry about having to keep relighting it over, that will come in time. It’s better because of your tongue sensitivity, to barely light the tobacco, so there won’t be much heat, then take a VERY SLOW and SMALL SIP, maybe only 1-2, then let the tabac go out, and let the pipe cool down, to where it actually feels cool, and no warmth, then light it again, repeating the same slow small 1-2 sips, they also don’t need to be sips in a row.

When it comes tobacco, you can certainly hear what everyone has to say, but be sure to go online to read company descriptions on the blend as well.

Now you just need to take all of this VERY SLOWLY and in time your tongue will get smarter! ?
Im really grateful, can't believe all the help I'm still getting after so many weeks of making this post.

Forgot to add that had a weird "wax" sensation with the english one, coating my mouth. Is not unpleasant at all.

Again, thanks!