Your Favorite Third Of The Smoke?

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That Guy

Part of the Furniture Now
Aug 8, 2021
509
1,649
Central Florida
1. The ritual light up and the first taste of that delicious tobacco ( and hopefully the chance to finally sit down and relax) ?

2. The 2/3 when your in the groove and everything is going smooth. Your set to cruise control and enjoying the ride?

3. The final stretch when your blissfully enjoying all the different transitions the smoke has gone through and your getting every lost drop of goodness?
 

jndyer

Lifer
Jul 1, 2012
1,020
725
Central Oregon
For me, it is the last two thirds. Typically, I have the ember going strong. The flavors are being enjoyed and the pipe is just humming along..

I also almost exclusively smoke VA's and VaPer's and wonder if it would be different if I focused on other categories of tobacco.
 
Aug 11, 2022
2,227
17,526
Cedar Rapids, IA
When I was starting out, it was always the charring light. That’s when the taste, filtered through that big stack of fresh tobacco, seemed to match most closely what I expected from the tin note. And it only seemed to get duller and ashier from there. I imagine that’s how it is for a lot of newbies.

Now that I sorta-kinda know what I’m doing, I’d say the first 2/3 is all pretty great. The last third is often good, but it can still get ashy and tougher to keep going. Although I’ve made a lot of progress in keeping that last third from getting wet and gurgly! I’m excited for better and better experiences as I improve my technique. puffy
 

K.E. Powell

Can't Leave
Aug 20, 2022
493
1,781
37
West Virginia
Voltaire's pithy saying about alcohol sort of applies here: Froth at the top, dregs at the bottom, but the middle excellent. I wouldn't say that holds strictly true for pipe tobacco, but for me, most blends are at their best in the middle third. There are exceptions, of course. Namely perique-heavy blends. Also, my favorite blend, Briar Fox, shines in the last third and takes on a slightly spicy character that just never fails to delight me.
 

BriarsAndBottles

Starting to Get Obsessed
Sep 4, 2022
293
1,210
36
Hercules, California
Voltaire's pithy saying about alcohol sort of applies here: Froth at the top, dregs at the bottom, but the middle excellent. I wouldn't say that holds strictly true for pipe tobacco, but for me, most blends are at their best in the middle third. There are exceptions, of course. Namely perique-heavy blends. Also, my favorite blend, Briar Fox, shines in the last third and takes on a slightly spicy character that just never fails to delight me.
Perique heavy blends being best at the end?
 

BriarsAndBottles

Starting to Get Obsessed
Sep 4, 2022
293
1,210
36
Hercules, California
In my experience, yes. They take on the fullness of their character by that point. That is entirely subjective and not the case across the board. But broadly speaking, yea, perique-heavy blends really shine in that last third.
Thanks for the explanation. Do you have one in mind that particularly showcases this? I’d like to see for myself.
 

judcole

Lifer
Sep 14, 2011
7,149
32,928
Detroit
I like it all. My favorite pipe is the one in my mouth, my favorite tobacco is the one I am smoking at the moment, and my favorite part of the bowl is where I am right then. Anything else is overthinking it. YMMV.vintage-pipe-smoking-gentleman-illustration-33114501.jpg