I started smoking a pipe when I was 16 ( that was legal in the uk at the time) I was working with my uncle and asked to try it
Why Did you Start Smoking a Pipe, and Why Do You Still?
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My interest in pipe smoking started at a early age. My Paternal Grandfather smoked a pipe and my Father's youngest brother smoked a pipe as well as one of my Mother's brothers. I was always enthralled with pipes and my Grandfather gave me a small bent stem briar when I was 5 years old and I followed him around when he was out and about smoking his pipe with my little pipe clenched and waiting on the day when I could actually put tobacco in it and smoke for real. When I turned 9 years old, I decided that since I was old enough to have been chewing snuff and loose leaf tobacco, I was also old enough to smoke my pipe. I would find old cigarette butts and take the tobacco out of them and smoke it and it wasn't very pleasant lol... , but a old guy that lived close to our farm smoked a pipe and he saw me and what I was doing and he had pity on me and took me under his wing and turned me onto smoking Captain Black in the white pouch and that's where it all started. Still chew tobacco and still love the pipes after 50 years of it, although, I'm not much on the Captain Black anymore.
I started because of my Grandfather. I loved the smell of his pipe smoke, and he would often take me with him to a tobacco shop in Chicago(not Iwan Ries)which featured cool pipes, and all kinds of neat tobacco tins(none of which I actually remember the names of today!)
I gave it up for a while because pipe smoking seemed to be falling out of favour, and I was usually the only person smoking one(cigarettes were the in thing, I should have stayed with the pipe!). But after my Grandfather died, I inherited his collection, and started again. But I think I appreciate it more now than I did in my youthful days.
I gave it up for a while because pipe smoking seemed to be falling out of favour, and I was usually the only person smoking one(cigarettes were the in thing, I should have stayed with the pipe!). But after my Grandfather died, I inherited his collection, and started again. But I think I appreciate it more now than I did in my youthful days.
When I was 7 or 8, my mother read a book to my sister and me. This photograph was on the back cover. I thought this man must have been the coolest for writing such an amazing story. That’s probably why I started: just because of this “cool” Englishman. Today, I smoke out of sheer enjoyment and the almost instant relaxed and contemplative state of mind it brings. 
Why did I start smoking a pipe? To be the ultimate "eccentric rebel with a traditionalist bent".
Why do I still smoke a pipe? See previous answer.
Oh: also it tastes good and smells good and helps take a load off at the end of the day.
Why do I still smoke a pipe? See previous answer.
Oh: also it tastes good and smells good and helps take a load off at the end of the day.
What he said. +++++
I feel relatively new despite smoking a pipe for around a year. I love smoky whisky and after inviting friends around an outside smoky fire during covid I thought I would try cigars. Gave it a few months but realised I didn't really enjoy the flavour, nicotine hit or the macho fire arms and roid rage BS around the whisk(e)y/cigar scene. I thought I would get a cheap cob and some sample packs of pipe tobacco. I much prefer it. I don't smoke much, only 1 or 2 bowls a week bit I am happy with that.
Mainly to assert some independence during the lockdowns. And to deal with a nicotine habit based on cigarettes and vapes. Rather than an easy way to get a quick fix, this requires patience and care, so it can't easily be turned into just a physically addictive behavior. When done right it stimulates thought and does a number on the senses.
About 10 years ago, I was curious about pipes. I purchased a pipe and some tobacco. I found out about the Chicago Pipe Club. Since then, I have learned how to smoke a pipe, what tobacco works for me, and made many friends.
Same here, smoking a pipe is so much less offensive than my cigarettes and no one complained. Did you smoke unfiltered camels by any chance? That was my tobacco of choice...
My father smoked a pipe (usually outside, sometimes inside) and I loved the smell of the burnt tobacco as well as the blends themselves. Something about the shapes also intrigued me. It just seemed to be a very natural thing for me as I was growing up. I loved the accessories, the old 1970's style ashtray, just all of it.
I started smoking a pipe regularly after purchasing a Peterson at the local tobacconist in the area. His blends were fantastic and his knowledge about pipe smoking was encyclopedic. Some of his blends were the finest I ever smoked. He's no longer with us sadly, but his memory lives on. The times in that store, learning about the hobby and trying different blends is something I will never forget.
I think that may have a lot to do with it. There's history in a pipe and in a blend. There's wisdom in there. It's not just tobacco and wood, it's craftsmanship and a link to the past in a way that few other things accomplish in this world. Especially a more complex blend, it's alive in a sense, at least to me. When I greet one of my favorite blends, I don't just stuff it in. I try and figure out what makes it special and unique, pondering the ingredients, proportions, and how it all mixes together into a perfect symphony of balance, history, and perfection.
I guess at this point in my life I'm sort of asking myself why I wouldn't want to smoke a pipe...I got back into the hobby because I missed all these things dearly and was worth the sacrifice of any negative health effects or perceptions of others as being seen (or smelled) as a smoker.
I started smoking a pipe regularly after purchasing a Peterson at the local tobacconist in the area. His blends were fantastic and his knowledge about pipe smoking was encyclopedic. Some of his blends were the finest I ever smoked. He's no longer with us sadly, but his memory lives on. The times in that store, learning about the hobby and trying different blends is something I will never forget.
I think that may have a lot to do with it. There's history in a pipe and in a blend. There's wisdom in there. It's not just tobacco and wood, it's craftsmanship and a link to the past in a way that few other things accomplish in this world. Especially a more complex blend, it's alive in a sense, at least to me. When I greet one of my favorite blends, I don't just stuff it in. I try and figure out what makes it special and unique, pondering the ingredients, proportions, and how it all mixes together into a perfect symphony of balance, history, and perfection.
I guess at this point in my life I'm sort of asking myself why I wouldn't want to smoke a pipe...I got back into the hobby because I missed all these things dearly and was worth the sacrifice of any negative health effects or perceptions of others as being seen (or smelled) as a smoker.
Tobacco has been a part of my life since I was born, in whatever fashion that it is or was consumed, cigarettes, cigars or pipes, chew, dip or snuff (the powdered kind) Pipes has always stood out the most, many people I knew or know smoked pipes, I love the taste of the different combinations of pipe tobaccos, much better than any cigarette I have ever smoked(and I have smoked a many) It's pretty self explanatory, It Tate Good!!
My great-grandfather was a jewish Polish immigrant in London and his house backed onto the railway lines. My brother and I would stand on wooden milk crates waving at the trains as they ran by and grandad Henry would stand behind us waving away as he puffed on his pipe. I was 6, 7 yrs old in those days and still remember my mum reprimanding grandad Henry as he let me puff on his fresh packed (unlit) pipe. Fly thru 30 odd years later and after I quit cigarettes I wanted something to smoke when it was too cold to sit outside and enjoy a cigar. So I turned to the pipe. And even now, sitting in my back yard - albeit nowhere near the railway lines - I still close my eyes and remember those halcyon summer days as a boy talking with grandad Henry, waving at the trains, and laughing with my brother.
I think it has something to do with the smell and the ritual of it. Was surrounded by cigarette smokers growing up. Always hated the smell. Still do. Never smoked a cigarette either. Grabbed my first cigar at 18 to celebrate graduation with some friends. Loved the flavor. Had one relative that smoked a Grabow with classic codger blends. Picked up a cob and a Savinelli a few years later. Started going through blends until I stumbled on Greg Pease’s and found a couple that hit all the right spots for me. Now I keep a small humidor full of sticks, and I’ve got around 20 pipes, and a small but growing cellar. Maybe around 7-8lbs. I keep smoking a pipe because it is some of the best Zen out there. Go to the gym, lift heavy things, then relax in the sauna. Come home, eat and sit down with my pipe for a spell. Like a full reboot for my brain.
I too started I my early college days. I was drawn into the smell as a kid. My parents best friend would come over and smoke pipes and cigars with my father and I loved that smell and thought it looked so elegant. It took me a while to stick with it - I was off and on for years. Finally, I started smoking correctly and trying blends I actually enjoyed and not just whatever aromatic sounded appealing.
Now that I've found a smoking style that works for me, I continue smoking because it is one of my most relaxing past times. I now enjoy trying new smokes and reviewing them, and also enjoy my favorite old smokes. This hobby also pairs nicely with my other hobbies - listening to records, model trains, repairing old Accutrons, woodworking, etc.
The more knowledgeable I become, the more I love and respect the art of smoking a pipe.
Now that I've found a smoking style that works for me, I continue smoking because it is one of my most relaxing past times. I now enjoy trying new smokes and reviewing them, and also enjoy my favorite old smokes. This hobby also pairs nicely with my other hobbies - listening to records, model trains, repairing old Accutrons, woodworking, etc.
The more knowledgeable I become, the more I love and respect the art of smoking a pipe.