You Never Forget Your First: Reflections on Three Years of Pipe Smoking

[K.E. Powell]

Perhaps since today is Easter Sunday, and I am well past the point to reasonably expect any gifts from the Easter Bunny, I had a sweet tooth something fierce yet didn't think I had anything on hand to satisfy my craving. Then I remembered I had a few really sweet aromatics still jarred and waiting for me. One in particular, Cult's Blood Red Moon, was my very first pipe tobacco, and I had plenty left over. Hell, I probably haven't smoked any in well over a year. My tastes these days lean towards burley bombs and VaPers, but I do enjoy aromatics every now and then. I couldn't help but smile as I reached for it, curious to see how it would compare to how it first tasted to me nearly three years ago. I even smoked it today in the same battered MM cob that I keep just for these kinds of goopy aros.

It hit the spot. It is definitely sweet! But compared to the more "complex" or "old-fashioned" tobaccos, it didn't quite have the body or stoutness that I usually prefer. But I didn't care. It satisfied my sweet tooth. More importantly, I noticed just how much easier it was to smoke when compared to when I first started. My pipe never got remotely hot; relights were few; teasing out the flavors was easier than before; everything felt intuitive and natural, nary a frustration to be had.

It's a big leap from when I first started. It made me thankful I stuck with it. It also made me thankful that I could sit comfortable and enjoy this simple pleasure in perfect contentment. Yes, much of that contentment came from experience, to say nothing of the excellent and kindly offered advice given freely on this forum. But I also realized it came from a maturation of the self, that I am slowly but surely getting better at attaining equilibrium and savoring what I have to the full. In short, I grew with my hobby, and I feel vindicated in my choice of vice. It's kind of neat, for lack of better word, to enjoy a pipe and think back and see where you were and also see where you are now. Made me feel good, you know?

What about you fine folks? You ever go back to an old blend and/or pipe and find yourself contemplating about things like that? I know three years ain't much for a lot of folks here; hell, it ain't much to me, because it doesn't seem like three years have passed! But here I am. I'm just lucky and thankful to be happy where I ended up.

 

[Scottmi]

hmm. well. there are plenty of 'firsts' i remember all right. but my first pipe? my first cigar? nope. way too many other significant 'firsts' happening about the same time (nigh on 40 years ago).. but some blends? Yes, some at least! That is where the senses come into play...

 

[bullet08]

Blood Red Moon was one of the blends I smoked when I started also. I still have most of the second tin in a mason jar. I guess it was last year when I tried to smoke it. It felt little thin. Not sure if it was the age of the blend or I have moved away from that blend. Wasn't very satisfying. Mostly I've been smoking VA, VA/Per and Latakia since my early days, not that that was long ago. But I have been mildly surprised by some of the aromatics. I think I can enjoy aromatics if right blend can be found.

 

[Wet Dottle]

You guys are going to laugh, but I started smoking Mixture 79 in a Ronson pipe. Liked it so much that I never stopped since then. The blend changed and I moved on to others, but I still remember it with fondness. And still have the pipe.

 

[Chasing Embers]

You guys are going to laugh, but I started smoking Mixture 79

Why would we laugh? I bought that blend by the pound and even commissioned a pipe for it.

 

[SBC]

You ever go back to an old blend and/or pipe and find yourself contemplating about things like that?

I was recently remembering with fondness Boswell's "No Bite DeLite," which I hadn't smoked in at least a decade. I don't smoke aromatics anymore, but, what the heck, I put in an order to Boswell's ... and oh boy, it's better than I remember.
Like you, I expect that skill/experience now allows me to enjoy it in a way that I couldn't then.

 

[sablebrush52]

The tobaccos I started with aren't even made anymore, but I did develop an affinity for America's number one seller, Captain Black White, and smoked it exclusively for several years. Eventually curiosity got the better of me and I moved on, bidding farewell to the Captain.

Decades pass, and I wonder how much I'd still enjoy the blend, so I picked up a pouch. Well, it's true that you really can't go home again. That stuff just tasted like a chemical factory with a spray of vanilla to hide it. Left an unpleasant aftertaste that lingered, like Banquo's ghost. Tossed the pouch and never looked back.

 

[kcghost]

I think my first pipe was a plastic Dr. Grabow and Borkin Riff. Don't remember which kind it was but the pipe was a blue one. Dreadful.

 

[sablebrush52]

I found my first pipe the other day while deep cleaning my closet as part of the move. I'm in full bore "get rid of it" mode. Anyway, I chucked it.

 

[novaki]

The first thing I ever bought was Captain Black and a cob from a local B&M I mostly only bought Djarum cloves and other cigarillos from. I remember reading the CB packaging and not knowing what Cavendish was and thought it must be something really fancy or special. It smelled good anyways. I remember my first light was on a hot and humid Mississippi summer day. The pipe was blistering and the steam about scorched my tongue as I attempted to walk through the woods and smoke at the same time, having to relight every five minutes and burning through bowl after bowl without any waiting or dry time. I just barely caught the flavor of something sweet that kept my attention. In between doing everything wrong and not using a filter like I do now (for moisture mainly) and burning the mess out of it with a Bic lighter, I was somehow getting some kind of flavor by sheer dumb luck and that kept me going.

That must have been around 2015 or so. I now have a few large Peterson 9mm briars to my name and greatly prefer them to cobs (with the exception of the Country Gentleman). I insist on using filters and can hardly smoke without them, probably due to the Mississippi humidity. After trying every form of fire starting known to man, I finally settled on a Kiribi - Mikazuki lighter and wouldn't be caught smoking without it. I've become quite the red Virginia snob and prefer that to almost everything else. If I smoke another kind of tobacco outside of my usual wheelhouse, I consider it a greater leap than I did before when I would jump from thing to thing. I used to never buy anything over 2oz and predominantly smoked pouches and OTCs. Within 8 years' time, I feel like I've finally settled on what I like/dislike and how to smoke it... But here I am, resisting the urge to buy a can of Original and/or Royal for nostalgia and going against my better judgment. *sigh* I guess you really never forget your first time.

 

[augiebd]

My first was a Lorenzo Cadore bent billiard with a rum and butter house blend. Both of which I bought at a Sheffield & Sons in a local mall. I still smoke this combination on my pipe smoking anniversary and enjoy it. I also tried CB White in the early days but was lurking on this forum so branched out quickly. At first to English blends. I still enjoy many codger blends mixed with a wide range of other blends. Variety has been my pleasure.

 

[K.E. Powell]

I was recently remembering with fondness Boswell's "No Bite DeLite," which I hadn't smoked in at least a decade. I don't smoke aromatics anymore, but, what the heck, I put in an order to Boswell's ... and oh boy, it's better than I remember.
Like you, I expect that skill/experience now allows me to enjoy it in a way that I couldn't then.

That's one I haven't tried yet. If I do go a sweeter aromatic, I usually go with a Boswell blend. Man makes some rather delightful confections.

 

[mso489]

I have taken an unexpected liking to Lane Limited HGL lately, in my usual rotation of GPL Barbary Coast, Esoterica Tilbury, and C&D Bayou Night, and other blends. HGL is called an English aromatic based in Cavendish with Latakia and burley and undesignated flavoring. To me, it's tobacco forward, not pushing the flavoring too far.

So far as I know, HGL was not one of the re-named aromatics from the Tinder Box jars sold as house blends. Some of those developed bad aftertaste after a while and I didn't like them then.

 

[captpat]

I don't remember my first pipe or even the first several pipes, and I don't have any in my collection from those early days. Early on, I smoked a lot of a Tinder Box house blend called Nightlighter, primarily because my girlfriend (now wife) liked the room note. It was a gooper and very difficult to keep lit. Later moved on to MacBaren offerings and haven't looked back.

 

[PaulTheScandinavian]

since my teen years I have had always decent briar pipes on hand ,but I mostly smoked cigarettes back then , stiil remember my first two pipe tobaccies It was Clan Aromatic and Half & Half

 

[Lumbridge]

Been smoking pipes for about 5 years now. My first experience was Captain Black regular in a Legend cob. I actually had a pretty good experience with it, perhaps because the tobacco in the pouch had dried a little. I still revisit it every now and then because it reminds me of when I was a noob.

 

[Browny]

Hasn't been too long so not hard to remember, for now.

My wife bought my first pipe, tin of tobacco and some other samples in 2011 as a surprise gift to help me try and kick the cigarettes.
The tinned tobacco is no longer made unfortunately, I quite liked it, and my better half liked the smell, in the tin and while I smoked it.
I don't puff in the house but that was still a winner.

I still have the pipe though, a new (at the time) Barling, still in use naturally. I've bought myself a few more since then so if I'm grabbing a pipe now, my wife asks "you using my pipe?"
It has top position in the ranks.

Think I still have that empty tin around somewhere.

 

[fishmansf]

Perhaps since today is Easter Sunday, and I am well past the point to reasonably expect any gifts from the Easter Bunny, I had a sweet tooth something fierce yet didn't think I had anything on hand to satisfy my craving. Then I remembered I had a few really sweet aromatics still jarred and waiting for me. One in particular, Cult's Blood Red Moon, was my very first pipe tobacco, and I had plenty left over. Hell, I probably haven't smoked any in well over a year. My tastes these days lean towards burley bombs and VaPers, but I do enjoy aromatics every now and then. I couldn't help but smile as I reached for it, curious to see how it would compare to how it first tasted to me nearly three years ago. I even smoked it today in the same battered MM cob that I keep just for these kinds of goopy aros.

It hit the spot. It is definitely sweet! But compared to the more "complex" or "old-fashioned" tobaccos, it didn't quite have the body or stoutness that I usually prefer. But I didn't care. It satisfied my sweet tooth. More importantly, I noticed just how much easier it was to smoke when compared to when I first started. My pipe never got remotely hot; relights were few; teasing out the flavors was easier than before; everything felt intuitive and natural, nary a frustration to be had.

It's a big leap from when I first started. It made me thankful I stuck with it. It also made me thankful that I could sit comfortable and enjoy this simple pleasure in perfect contentment. Yes, much of that contentment came from experience, to say nothing of the excellent and kindly offered advice given freely on this forum. But I also realized it came from a maturation of the self, that I am slowly but surely getting better at attaining equilibrium and savoring what I have to the full. In short, I grew with my hobby, and I feel vindicated in my choice of vice. It's kind of neat, for lack of better word, to enjoy a pipe and think back and see where you were and also see where you are now. Made me feel good, you know?

What about you fine folks? You ever go back to an old blend and/or pipe and find yourself contemplating about things like that? I know three years ain't much for a lot of folks here; hell, it ain't much to me, because it doesn't seem like three years have passed! But here I am. I'm just lucky and thankful to be happy where I ended up.

I remember the first time I tried my non aromatic. It was Three Nuns and began smoking it just after Thanksgiving leading up to Christmas time. It was one of the most magical experiences of my life and almost immediate made me realize how much I hat aromatics. There was a flavor in it that reminded me of Christmas not sure what it was but I believe it was the Kentucky. There was also another flavor in there I really enjoyed as well, one I couldn't quite put my finger on. Went to my local B&M and asked what the tobacco was and he gave me a sample of some straight brown viringias. Fell in love with them from that point onwards. That first smoke of Peterson Flake was magical as well and one I'll never forget.

 

[krizzose]

My first bowl was Peterson's DeLuxe Mixture, 12 years ago. I still have a bit of that tin in a jar somewhere. I didn't dislike it, it was just a little bit boring.

 

[driftedshank1]

The tobaccos I started with aren't even made anymore, but I did develop an affinity for America's number one seller, Captain Black White, and smoked it exclusively for several years. Eventually curiosity got the better of me and I moved on, bidding farewell to the Captain.

Decades pass, and I wonder how much I'd still enjoy the blend, so I picked up a pouch. Well, it's true that you really can't go home again. That stuff just tasted like a chemical factory with a spray of vanilla to hide it. Left an unpleasant aftertaste that lingered, like Banquo's ghost. Tossed the pouch and never looked back.

If you want an aromatic that may remind you of Capt Black/RLP-6 without the chemical taste try KBV Deep House. Far superior in flavor, much better tobaccos.. Definitely worth a try.