Who Is Your Favorite Pipe Tobacco Blender?

[NookersTheCat]

TK-6 is definitely on my list of blends to try, along with Hazelnut, Buttered Rum, BL/WB, BCA, and Black Raspberry. I'll be picking up an ounce of each to try next month!

And don't worry, your goodies are going out in the mail tomorrow too. I just got a little behind schedule on things this week!

No problem brother, trust me I know how it goes. I'm literally typing this from my office computer as we speak... and as you know, I'm on Eastern Standard Time

 

[jbfrady]

Professionally, Per Jensen. Non-professionally, me.

The problem in the modern times is the FDA regulation. Jeremy Reeves is great at what he does, but due to the regulations at hand, he’s left to reinterpret blends already being made by C&D a decade ago, and that certainly kneecaps his creativity. I’d be truly curious to see what he could come up with were the shackles taken off.

 

[Gerald Boone]

Who is your favorite pipe tobacco blender, and why? Here are a few in no particular order:

GL Pease
Jeremy Reeves of Cornell & Diehl
Steve Willett of LJ Peretti
Ernie Q. of Watch City
Ken Byron of Ken Byron Ventures
Per Jensen
Russ Ouellette
Jon David Cole & Quinn Crawford of The Country Squire

As time goes on I find myself buying blending tobaccos in bulk and blending them myself. I like Perique. I like Latakia. So my blend is usually 60% Perique 30% Latakia and 10% tobacco I consider "filler". I have so much fun making my own blend. Perique and Latakia, I have the greatest respect for the people involved in that complex task of making these supreme tobaccos. All that said...you may find my blend beyond anathema.

 

[First Sealord]

Myself. I exclusively use whole leaf tobacco and make my own blends. I do not add casing, just the leaf as is.

I will never go back to commercial tobacco. Too many humectants. Too many additives. I find it much more harmful than whole leaf, particularly at the oral health level.

 

[BooksBassBriars]

Really enjoying this thread to learn about the names and people behind the blends.

 

[rectifythis]

The majority of my cellar falls under 2 names; Gawith and Germain.

 

[Barry H]

Looking at my list of faves, UK-centric out of necessity, there's a tie between
Samuel Gawith
Charles Rattray
Robert McConnell
Robert Lewis

I'm a bit surprised no one has mentioned Alfred Dunhill given the longevity and continuing popularity of his blends (or at least those originally produced by his company - now STG/Peterson). He received a Royal Warrant in 1921 and was made a Fellow of The Royal Society Of Arts in 1925. Also wrote 'The Pipe Book' which, so far as I'm aware, is still in print.

 

[woodsroad]

Rus blending John Cotton prototypes, 8-15​

 

[AroEnglish]

I think Quinn Crawford blended bowser’s castle level 2 which might just be my favorite single tobacco.

 

[woodsroad]

Rus blending John Cotton prototypes, 8-15​

Just as there are important distinctions between Favorite Chef and Favorite Restaurant, so are there between Favorite Pipe Tobacco Manufacturer and Favorite Blender.

STG isn’t my favorite manufacturer, but the wealth, depth and breadth of knowledge, experience and creativity shown by Russ Oullette is unparalleled in modern tobacco history. Mike and Mary McNeil finish a very close second, but the scope of Russ’ work eclipses McClelland’s extraordinary but very focused higher end product line. Russ blended for all pipe smokers, demonstrating an incredible range of taste. It was a great honor to have worked with him.

 

[Pipke]

I just opened a four year old tin of GLP Key Largo. The tin note was heavenly. The smoke divine. So right now my favorite blender is Greg Pease. Anything he blends is excellent IMHO.

 

[johnnyflake]

GL Pease - Top Tier
Russ Ouellette - Very Good

 

[OldDJ]

J.M. Boswell
L.J. Peretti
G.L.P
Wilkes
C&D

 

[WirelessSmoke]

I'm a bit too new to have experienced many blenders, but the blends I smoke the most are from Watch City's Ernie Q. so he's certainly one of them. I also like whoever is responsible for my favorite blends from Samuel Gawith, and the Kopp blender responsible for my favorite Robert McConnell blends. Going to keep following this thread for others I need to look out for as well.

 

[Puff nstuff]

Russ Ouellette
Per Jensen
And the wizards at Gawith Hoggarth, who make my favorite tobaccos, hands down.

 

[metalheadycigarguy]

Mike & Mary McNeil
Peter Stokkebye
Russ Ouellette
Whoever came up with the Samuel Gawith blends; Skiff Mixture, Squadron Leader, Perfection.
Whoever came up with the Dunhill blends; Early Morning Pipe, Nightcap, Standard Mixture, Durbar.
Whoever came up with the Esoterica blends; Penzance, Margate Pembroke.

 

[renfield]

Mike and Mary McNiel
Hans Wiedemann
Ernie Q
Russ Oullette
Per Jensen
The blender(s) at Gawith Hogarth

All winners and hard to rank them, but Mike and Mary would definitely be my favorite.

 

[shikano53]

Absolutely and without a doubt Mike Whalen known on here as newbroom.
Best darned blender in the tobacco world.

 

[Mike N]

View attachment 371230

Rus blending John Cotton prototypes, 8-15​

Fokker Circus Pipe News posted an interesting interview with Russ on YouTube.

 

[woodsroad]

Fokker Circus Pipe News posted an interesting interview with Russ on YouTube that I enjoyed.

Russ was let go from STG in October.