What Tobaccos can I Smoke in One Pipe?

[Stan2]

Title edited for caps and punctuation. See rule 9. -jpm

Hey all, new pipe smoker here. I've read you have to have at least 3 pipes- one you'll smoke virginias in, one for aromatics and one for latakias. Is it true? Also if yes, and I have only one pipe which I smoked a virginia in, can I smoke a blend of virginia/burley/kentucky/perique in that pipe? Thanks in advance!

 

[OzPiper]

It depends on how you are sensitive to "ghosts" in a pipe and how many blends you intend to have in your rotatIon.

I don't like the remnants of a previous bowl "muddying" the flavour of my smokes, so I have different pipes for different genres of tobaccos - English/Balkan (Latakia and Oriental blends), Virginia/Virginia Perique and Aromatics.

Latakia, Oriental, dark fired leaf and aromatics "ghosts" more than Virginia, burley or cavendish.

If you are not that sensitive to ghosts, then have just that one pipe.

Some find that having the ghost of a previous blend "make it more complex" smoking a different blend

And despite what some aver, ALL pipe making material, meerschaum included, will ghost.

 

[Ahi Ka]

Enjoy only having one pipe for as long as possible.

 

[judcole]

Many pipe smokers, including myself, maintain different pipe rotations for those three types of blends.
May I give some advice to a new smoker?
Don't try to master all of those types at once. It can't be done. Start with one. Explore it.
Don't pay lots of attention to all the conflicting advice. Sometimes I think we were lucky not to have social media when I started,
Finally, buy the best pipes you can afford and smoke the best tobacco you can afford to increase your enjoyment of the hobby. Nothing wrong with being careful with your money, but don't be cheap, either.

 

[Sir Yak]

You can do anything you like. Over time you’ll figure out what “rules” make sense for you. If you prefer to keep different categories of tobacco to different pipes, getting several cheap Missouri meerschaums might be a good idea as you’re starting out. Just enjoy trying different things and stick with it. Smoking a pipe takes time to get the hang of. Have fun.

 

[Elric]

+1 to the great advice given. It might be worthwhile to pick up a couple of cobs to maintain some separation until you determine how sensitive you are. Then, even if you aren't particularly prone to be bothered by ghosts, you'll have a couple yard/fishing pipes handy.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

+1 to what @judcole says. When I started, the tobacconist advised me to fully explore one blend until I develop a taste for it. It doesn't matter much which one, just choose one, and smoke it till you can taste and fully understand it. I didn't, but I am also one of those people who tears tags off of mattresses, just because they say not to.
But, I eventually did. And, it does really help.

Everyone is all, but what if I don't like it, or what if it isn't my genre... in the beginning, hardly anyone really tastes the tobacco in the smoke. Your still learning to slow down, slow so far down that your smoking on the verge of it going out, and getting rid of those instincts to speed up when you do start to taste something you like, and speeding up kills the taste.

So, stop fretting over the tobacco till you get your technique and instincts on track. But, if you're like me, you'll think... ahhh, I understand it enough, or I got this, so... but no... you don't, but you probably will anyway.

 

[captpat]

I don't have a particularly sensitive palate, and I avoid blends that will ghost a pipe in a not-so-good way (Lakelands). YMMV. So I mix and match a bit, tending to smoke VAs in narrower bowls and Latakias in wider bowls, though no hard and fast rules for me. If a pipe starts to taste "muddy" I just give it an alcohol/salt treatment, followed by a few bowls of straight burley and all is well again.

As a new smoker I wouldn't advise dedicating pipes to blends. Experiment a bit and see what appeals, there will be time later to dedicate pipes if you desire. For now enjoy the journey and don't over-complicate things.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

I'm an advocate for dedicating pipes to blend genres. I like the suggestion of buying a few cheap cobs to expand your tobacco experimentation.

 

[DanWil84]

+1 on the Cob route. I didn't follow it because my teeth hurt from the plastic stems until I found the acrylic stems on "special edition" cobs. I use a Carolina Gentleman cob now for vanilla aromatics. If your in the USA it easier to order Forever stems from Vermont Freehand with a few cobs and save the rest of your money for tobacco.

Im also +1 on the dedication of each pipe to a blend or genre. Allthough my pipe smoking (or smoking quality tobacco in general) is quite young i'm somehow very much able to discern tastes from each other and taste what was before in the pipe. This is only the case for me with fired tobacco like Latakia and Kentucky, a pipe I smoked a Virginia Perique blend in before I can use for a straight Virginia. A aromatic I never tried in a pipe I smoke something else in.

Trying one tobacco before another is something that was not necessary for me due to above mentioned reasons, but that's a theory that could work for someone else. I can imagine for a starting smoker trying several blends mixed with each other can be a bit confusing. Don't make the mistake to start an aromatic or straight virginia, try a burley blend first. They are a bit more forgiving in how fast you smoke them, I made the mistake to try a virginia blend quite fast and my mouth felt like I chewed on a nest of wasps.

 

[captpat]

+2 on the Cob route, the "best" pipe is not necessarily the most expensive pipes. Likewise the "best" tobacco is not necessarily the most expensive or rare. Many have started on codger blends (e.g., Carter Hall) to work on packing, tamping, pacing, and to generally figure out if pipe smoking is going to be a long lasting hobby, before branching out. Codger blends are readily available, not expensive and have no bad habits or other idiosyncrasies to deal with.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Title edited for caps and punctuation. See rule 9. -jpm

Hey all, new pipe smoker here. I've read you have to have at least 3 pipes- one you'll smoke virginias in, one for aromatics and one for latakias. Is it true? Also if yes, and I have only one pipe which I smoked a virginia in, can I smoke a blend of virginia/burley/kentucky/perique in that pipe? Thanks in advance!

Yes, you sure can.

 

[burleybreath]

Do both. Smoke everything there is in one pipe, and devote three others to the aforementioned categories. See which route gets you to where you want to go. (Profound, I know. You're welcome.)

 

[warren]

Your pipe, your rules. What people say they do with regard to their own pipes are not "rules"/ They are preferences, even "quirks." Just do as you wish and enjoy the experiences. No one will come by your house from the "Pipe Police" and head-whip you with an Danish freehand for violating some arcane pipe law, as there aren't any. Pipe laws nor pipe police.

 

[mso489]

I don't build cake in my pipe chambers. I don't smoke Lakeland aromatics. And I have lots of pipes that I clean after each smoke. So I don't designate pipes, not for genres, and not for specific blends. My taste isn't so discerning that I pick up flavors from past smokes. This is my way of smoking; I'm not recommending it to anyone else.

 

[OldWill]

Here is another vote for "smoke as you please".
In my case, the only concession I make to pipe dedication is for Lakelands: I try to smoke them all the way to the bottom, with slight ash stirs as needed near the end, then, after cooling, take that pipe apart and lightly clean it.
If I have ever had significant ghosting, I haven't been able to discern it using this method.
Cheers!

 

[anotherbob]

pipes ghost. Yes but is that bad does it ruin pipes? Only if you feel that it does. Now if you smoke one thing for years or some other long time then that is going to ghost a pipe more seriously. I agree with what people are saying here, especially warren.
I'll put it this way there are facts. Ghosting is a fact. How to handle that including if it is an issue or not to you.
Now I have some suggestions as do most of us. Most of the advice that people give here is pretty close to the advice I got early on. I never paid attention until I felt something could improve or needed to. First advice I really took and wanted was about avoiding tongue bite.

 

[solideogloria86]

There are no rules. Only preferences.

Smoke everything in your one pipe. You'll have a good time. I did for years.

Eventually you'll decide to dedicate pipes, or not. Don't sweat stuff like that this early in the game. If you notice any adverse effects, pick up a couple of cobs.

 

[mingc]

There are no rules. Only preferences.

Smoke everything in your one pipe. You'll have a good time. I did for years.

Eventually you'll decide to dedicate pipes, or not. Don't sweat stuff like that this early in the game. If you notice any adverse effects, pick up a couple of cobs.

Yes, yes, yes. ?

 

[PaulTheScandinavian]

two types of tobacco I would be prudent with are Latakia & Lakeland blends, smoking these multiple times in one pipe will sure leave perceptible ghost