Drugstore suggestions?

[Valdus]

I want to try what the common pipe smoker smokes day to day, suggestions on drugstore tobacco?

 

[D.L.Ruth]

Carter Hall is the only one I've smoked on a regular basis. It's not that i don't like others just haven't tried many.

 

[BriarBeagle]

+1 for Carter Hall

 

[eggman]

+1 for the carter hall. If you can not find it in your area let me know. Either on this thread or in a pm. I can help you out with some.

 

[Fr_Tom]

I would suggest Carter Hall, Prince Albert, and SWRA as great smokes that are easy to find OTC.

 

[Zanaspus]

Carter Hall and PA are hard to beat.

 

[Donk93953]

Prince Albert & Sir Walter Raleigh Almost constantly in my pipes

 

[Brunello]

Not to be a contrarian, just to provide counterbalance to the group pile on, but why settle for boring codger blends when you can get quality tobaccos in bulk for just as cheap? My nearest B&M sells Amphora pouches for just two bucks more than Velvet or Carter Hall.

Maybe it's not a question of money, more a rite of passage just to say you tried them?

P.S. I do keep SWR and Edgeworth on hand for blending purposes, but not for smoking by themselves.

 

[ftrplt]

Carter Hall, Prince Albert, Granger, Half & Half are four that immediately come to mind. Sir Walter Raleigh is another. Hickory, Middleton's Cherry Blend, John Rolfe, Sugar Barrel are other considerations!

 

[RSteve]

Not to be a contrarian, just to provide counterbalance to the group pile on, but why settle for boring codger blends when you can get quality tobaccos in bulk for just as cheap?

I rather enjoy being a codger or, depending on my mood, a cantankerous old phahrt.
Seriously, though, I do agree with Brunello. There are fine blends from Sutliff and Stokkebye that on sale (20% off) and in 16 oz. quantities sell for $1.34 an ounce, actually cheaper than most drugstore blends.

 

[RSteve]

There are fine blends from Sutliff and Stokkebye that on sale (20% off) and in 16 oz. quantities sell for $1.34 an ounce, actually cheaper than most drugstore blends.

I just checked with two major on line vendors and Carter Hall in the ($4.35) 1.5 oz pouch sells for $2.90 oz, almost double that of many quality bulks.

 

[Ranger107]

Just went back to codger blends a couple of months ago and I do like CH and SWR with my morning coffee. Have smoked several sutliff aros and like them as well but haven't tried any of their burley blends. Would appreciate suggestions.

 

[Donk93953]

Not to be a contrarian, just to provide counterbalance to the group pile on, but why settle for boring codger blends when you can get quality tobaccos in bulk for just as cheap? My nearest B&M sells Amphora pouches for just two bucks more than Velvet or Carter Hall.

Maybe it's not a question of money, more a rite of passage just to say you tried them?

P.S. I do keep SWR and Edgeworth on hand for blending purposes, but not for smoking by themselves.

New member, long time pipe smoker....54 years with a pipe in my mouth.
I've done the Morton's, the Diehl's, Dunhill, etc.....
Have tried the "boutique" burleys from various pipe shops around the globe.
Occasionally will have a bowl of one the the Balkan Sobranie wanna bees.
Enjoy a touch of Amphora or Sail original from time to time.
But, I keep returning to burley.

I like it....and so does my boss.

 

[Brunello]

Just went back to codger blends a couple of months ago and I do like CH and SWR with my morning coffee. Have smoked several sutliff aros and like them as well but haven't tried any of their burley blends. Would appreciate suggestions.

You've hit on something here, and that is the pairing of what I called "boring" codger blends with coffee (or any other favored drink). That's where this idea of smooth and one-dimensional makes sense to me because you are adding complexity by the interplay between the coffee and tobacco. Some simple but tasty tobaccos I've enjoyed with morning coffee are: Stokkebye Black & Burley 23, and either Lane or Sutliff match of Edgeworth ready-rubbed. My last batch came as a cube cut, loads easy and smokes smooth, very good with a medium or dark roast coffee.

 

[Brunello]

New member, long time pipe smoker....54 years with a pipe in my mouth.
I've done the Morton's, the Diehl's, Dunhill, etc.....
Have tried the "boutique" burleys from various pipe shops around the globe.
Occasionally will have a bowl of one the the Balkan Sobranie wanna bees.
Enjoy a touch of Amphora or Sail original from time to time.
But, I keep returning to burley.

I like it....and so does my boss.

The simple answer is to follow Ozark Wizard's advice: Smoke what you like, like what you smoke!

The more nuanced reply also touches on why this issue is a pet peeve of mine...

Back in August 2016 when I first discovered online forums (but before I found BoB) I read a similar thread to what is going on here and it led me down a path of much time and money spent on codger blends which mostly ended up in the compost pile. Why? Group hysteria leading to a rash of unqualified statements. There is a tendency these days to reduce everything to comfortable soundbites, and texting in short grunts and groans. My own brother will often respond to a text with a simple emoji to summarize how he feels on the topic. Anyway, when somebody asks for recommendations we really should all make an effort to understand what the person is looking for, what they've liked and not liked in the past.

For me codger blends are simple and one-dimensional, maybe like a tasty milkshake, but nothing I can really sink my teeth into. So when well-meaning souls extol the virtues of Carter Hall or Velvet with lots of exclamation points, but no qualifying discernment, that doesn't do anybody any favors.

Don't mean to hijack this discussion with a topic that should probably have its own thread.

 

[RSteve]

I, perhaps, began with the erroneous assumption that one begins to explore drugstore brands as a means to economize. My prior post(s) basically pointed out that drugstore brands rarely, if ever, save you money. For many years my brother only smoked the original iteration of Amphora. When asked why, he said, "because pouch to pouch it never changes." It makes me wonder what additives and flavorants are added to keep the blend identical year after year even though every crop of tobacco is going to be a bit different.
I think of myself as a common pipe smoker but I don't recall any time in my life when I smoked much drugstore tobacco.

 

[Ranger107]

I have been smoking pipes since college in the early 70's. Like many of you I started out with many of the "drugstore"blends. CH, Swr, amphora, sail, captain black, even cherry blend(ugh) , really liked the original London Dock. Because their was a good B&M right next to "college town" I gravitated to higher quality. Bsosm was my fav, but also Rattrays, McBarens, Dunhills, etc. In 2001 moved to Little Rock. There was a good pipe and cigar store near the university and a veteran pipe smoker there got me smoking McClellands and GL Pease blends. When I moved to Cali in 2003 took a hiatus from pipes for about 12 years. Started up again around 2015 or so. Found out McClellands was going out of business and stocked up on FMOTT. Still have a couple of tins. So started looking for other options. Have a pretty good stash of tins that I haven't even tried yet. As I said this forum got me to again try some of the codger blends. I like CH, SWR, even PA. So when I saw the thread on bulk blends figured you guys could offer suggestions so I don't start just exploring everything. Economy isn't the concern, I can, fortunately, buy whatever I want, but if I can get good bulk blends for less, well, why not? Just thought suggestions on here would shorten my exploration and maybe help me find other suitable blends I like. Been buying my pouches from a local shop but 3 to 4 bucks for CH, etc. isn't really cheap. I am not averse to saving money but I know msny of the bulk blends are very good. So, to sum up, suggestions and advice on what you guys find comparable and good smoking would be much appreciated. Thanks,