Newpipers Adventures.

[Newpiper19]

This is from Smoking Pipes...

“We have a number of different payment methods available. The simplest is to simply use the secure shopping cart and use your American Express, Discover, VISA or MasterCard credit or Debit card. However, if you do not feel comfortable giving out your billing information online, you can check-out using the 'offline payment' option and mail in a check...”

I think most vendors will do this...I’d call customer service at one of the vendors and chat about sending a check or even a Money Order by mail.

Options.  Plenty of ‘em.

I actually have not spent much time on Smoking Pipes, so I didn't know you could send in a check. Thanks for the heads up man.

 

[Blackhorse]

I think any of the major vendors out there would do the same.

 

[user 2027]

Read the JimInks review.  His is the most detailed and descriptive per the different components.

http://www.tobaccoreviews.com/blend/1259/mac-baren-three-nuns

If I knew exactly what the other blends available to you were I could suggest something.  Do you have a problem with ordering from an online vendor?

I don't have a credit card right now, so ordering online is a no go.

Well, of the tinned stuff, they have some the Sutliff/Mac Baren stuff.  HH pure virginia, HH matured Virginia, HH Bold Kentucky and HH old Dark fired. HH Acadian Perique. HH latakia.  All three Crumble Kakes.  Red Virginia Crumble kake, English number 1 Crumble kake and Va Perique Crumble kake.


Also, some pouches of 1m, D40, b20, Black cherry, buttered rum, and whiskey.

Been smoking the hell out of Sutliff Red Crumble Kake and I'm a big fan. That is good stuff!

 

[Newpiper19]

Read the JimInks review.  His is the most detailed and descriptive per the different components.

http://www.tobaccoreviews.com/blend/1259/mac-baren-three-nuns

If I knew exactly what the other blends available to you were I could suggest something.  Do you have a problem with ordering from an online vendor?

I don't have a credit card right now, so ordering online is a no go.

Well, of the tinned stuff, they have some the Sutliff/Mac Baren stuff.  HH pure virginia, HH matured Virginia, HH Bold Kentucky and HH old Dark fired. HH Acadian Perique. HH latakia.  All three Crumble Kakes.  Red Virginia Crumble kake, English number 1 Crumble kake and Va Perique Crumble kake.


Also, some pouches of 1m, D40, b20, Black cherry, buttered rum, and whiskey.

Been smoking the hell out of Sutliff Red Crumble Kake and I'm a big fan.  That is good stuff!  

I was wondering about it. Going to read some reviews, but I need to get a straight Virginia blend. I said a while back that I wanted to educate my self on individual components and straight red Virginia is as good a place to start as any.

 Seeing as my wife gave me my weekly pittance,  I used it to pick up a Tin of Old Dark Fired. I am going to save smoking that until I get through my Nuns and break in my pipe. Going to at some point pick up a pipe for only vanilla aromatics, so I will sit on my small stash of B20 till then.

 

[Newpiper19]

Here I am with a new first impressions. Smoked a bowl of Mac Baren HH Old Dark Fired.

First thing I noticed when loading it was that the fold and stuff method was not ever going to work, as the flakes crumbled into pieces upon trying. So took two flakes and broke them up as good as I can and stuffed them into the pipe.

This was night and day compared to my poor experience thus far with Three Nuns. I tasted a nice woody, earthy flavor that had a kind of whisper of grass and sweet. It was apparent with every puff. With in the first quarter of the bowl I was already commenting to myself how great it tasted. I was not sure if the incredible dryness was causing any issues with the flavor, as I thought it was good.

I will say this, I am not sure if I am ready for this blend. By the end of the bowl, Taekwondo master Nic-O-Tine had proceeded to kick me in the teeth. It was the strangest thing to feel the same kind of tipsy/buzz that I did with the big cigar weeks ago. It was soo bad I went in to the bathroom and threw up a tiny bit of my dinner. After a shower and brief nap I felt quite a bit better.

This maybe one of those blends, that for me is best enjoyed out of a pipe with a smaller bowl then the Country Gentleman. I think something holds half that amount to maybe 3/4th of that amount would be perfect for sampling stronger tobacco blends.

 

[Blackhorse]

The cure is easy...just get some pipes with small bowls.  That’s a good start.

Or...set you pipe down halfway through...then pick it up again later. Most blends are not like a cigar where doing that would kill it. Many pipe blends do very well with the DGT (Delayed Gratification Technique).

Glad you found a tasty one.

 

[Newpiper19]

The cure is easy...just get some pipes with small bowls.  That’s a good start.

Or...set you pipe down halfway through...then pick it up again later.  Most blends are not like a cigar where doing that would kill it.  Many pipe blends do very well with the DGT (Delayed Gratification Technique).

Glad you found a tasty one.

So pipes can be sat down? Hmm, ok I didn't know that pipe blends were that different to cigars that putting it down wouldn't kill the flavor. Do you know why that is?

But yea, it just made sense after getting sick that at my level of inexperience that a smaller bowl would probably help immensely with my nic levels.


This was such a difference. The taste was spot on and delicious right from the first puff and stayed that way. Funny enough that, some puffs emphasized different flavor aspects. Some puffs were heavy on wood, and some had more sweet, and most others balanced.

I assume nothing to worry about with regards to the crumbling dryness? The how to pack flake videos all showed them being moister and more pliable. But if it is going to fall apart then I will just break up each one and not worry about it.

Going to pick up another cob tomorrow from the tobacconist just so I can have one dedicated to aromatics.

 

[Blackhorse]

There are all levels of consistency re flakes. Might be it’s more like a “crumble cake” format. Yet another iteration.

 

[Newpiper19]

Hello everyone! So last night after a 4 hour marriage and parenting seminar, I wanted to light up another bowl of ODF. It hit me as I was holding the flake that in my last post I did not use good enough words to describe just how dry this tobacco came to me from the store.. I used the word crumbly.. That was the incorrect word. The correct word to describe what I have is brittle. It was so dry, I shattered like a thin pane of glass into tiny pieces no bigger then grains of sand.

I took ever piece out of the tin and while being careful in my handling as to not shatter them, found they too were as dry as to be shatterably brittle.

On a whim, I took out my Three nuns and noting that half of the small, loose coins had fallen apart, I rubbed out the entire tin.. The coins that were still intact, pre me rubbing them out, were almost as brittle as the ODF, with the darker, outer spirals breaking off the lighter inner spirals, and the entire contents felt like dry grass.

It makes me wonder if they were already overly dry while they sat at the B&M or maybe they came to the store in such a state from where ever Sutliff/Mac Baren stores there stuff for US domestic sale.

So I did a search here and on Google on how to rehydrate tobacco and found several methods. Today I bought a spritzer bottle and distilled water. I laid the ODF out as carefully as I could to avoid shattering them on a plate and gave a few spritz with the distilled water per the instructions I found online. I did the same with the Three Nuns.

Then, per the instructions, I placed them back into their respective tins.

Next purchase I will inspect for such dryness and will use the other methods I found. The sponge method and the piece of wet paper towel method. I think the paper towel method will really work well for tins like ODF that have a the tobacco inside a box made of fine goldfoil paper. I can just lay the paper towel piece down on the foil.

I will keep you guys informed to see if I can salvage these items. If not. I likely wont purchase pipe tobacco from that B&M any more. Which would be sad as they are really nice guys.

 

[Blackhorse]

It sounds like your local vendor is selling really old and dead stock. To be honest...I would toss it and count it as a loss, wasting no more time and tears. I know some guys tout their success with rehydration but from your comments I think your stuff has gone past the point of no return.

I know there are also some blends that do well while being pretty dry...but they are not the way you describe your two.

 

[Newpiper19]

It sounds like your local vendor is selling really old and dead stock.  To be honest...I would toss it and count it as a loss, wasting no more time and tears.  I know some guys tout their success with rehydration but from your comments I think your stuff has gone past the point of no return.

I know there are also some blends that do well while being pretty dry...but they are not the way you describe your two.

I think you may be right. I compared the ODF to the flakes you sent me of Dark brown(licorice) and it was as plain as day.(Thank you again for the kind gift sir!)   It is mystifying that they have this HUGE walk in humidor for their thousands of boutique premium cigars but are not taking the same care of their pipe tobacco.  

What makes it even more disappointing is that the ODF, despite being brittle had better flavor then the Nuns. Which makes me really wonder about what it would taste like if it were not brittle and stale.  Same for the nuns.


Edit. You were clear.. I am tossing them and will re order both and some other recommended flavors online. It is sad that this B&M did not take as much care for their pipe tobacco as they do their cigars... Thinking on it, I think I am the only person who bought any pipe tobacco from them, as when I revisited the story, nothing else had moved in the tins and pouches.


Blackhorse, sir I thank you for your advice through out this.

 

[Blackhorse]

Not a problem. And...no harm in waiting to see how your experiment turns out. Ya never know.

Plus...it’s not that the vendor isn’t taking care of his products. Shelf life for sealed tobacco tins is fairly long...just not forever. Every shop I’ve ever bought from just has tins sitting out. Your vendor might appreciate knowing the tobacco was brittle-dry...if presented in a cordial manner.

But you never know. I once took a rancid bottle of Bloody Mary mix that was well past the pull date printed on the bottle back to a liquor store. I had my receipt and everything. I politely explained the situation and asked for a refund. The guy went BALLISTIC and accused me of all sorts of vile things. Told me to get out of his store. WTF! Lost a potentially life long customer over a $6 bottle of mixer.

 

[Newpiper19]

Not a problem.  And...no harm in waiting to see how your experiment turns out.  Ya never know.

Plus...it’s not that the vendor isn’t taking care of his products.  Shelf life for sealed tobacco tins is fairly long...just not forever.  Every shop I’ve ever bought from just has tins sitting out.  Your vendor might appreciate knowing the tobacco was brittle-dry...if presented in a cordial manner.  

But you never know. I once took a rancid bottle of Bloody Mary mix that was well past the pull date printed on the bottle back to a liquor store.  I had my receipt and everything.  I politely explained the situation and asked for a refund.  The guy went BALLISTIC and accused me of all sorts of vile things.  Told me to get out of his store.  WTF!  Lost a potentially life long customer over a $6 bottle of mixer.  

Hmm.. Well, when I go back to them, I will be as cordial as I can be. They seam like nice guys and they are the only major tobacconist for half the city. Sure we have some other tiny shops but they don't stock anything other then what you see at gas stations. Sadly, like a moron, I didn't keep my receipts so I wont be returning them.

Really, they went ballistic over returning a bottle of rancid Bloody Mary mix? Such a strange thing. You would think that refunding a cheap bottle is no hassle considering it would have given them a loyal patron for life as you say.

 

[Brewdude]

Newpiper19, when you open a tin that has not been compromised you'd be wise to jar the contents up in a mason jar. The lid seal will retain the moisture content much better and will last that way for many years.

Choose a jar sized just large enough to contain the contents as you don't want too much head space. If the tin comes a little moister than you prefer you can always dry out a pipe's worth before smoking. And then when you're about halfway through the jar, re-jar it in another mason sized appropriately. That way the head space won't be excessive and dry out the 'baccy prematurely. I've been doing this for years with great results.


Cheers,

RR

 

[Newpiper19]

Newpiper19, when you open a tin that has not been compromised you'd be wise to jar the contents up in a mason jar. The lid seal will retain the moisture content much better and will last that way for many years.

Choose a jar sized just large enough to contain the contents as you don't want too much head space. If the tin comes a little moister than you prefer you can always dry out a pipe's worth before smoking. And then when you're about halfway through the jar, re-jar it in another mason sized appropriately. That way the head space won't be excessive and dry out the 'baccy prematurely. I've been doing this for years with great results.


Cheers,

RR

Thanks for the advice. Any thoughts on what jar is appropriate for single tins of 1.75oz? I assume the smallest ones.

Currently in the middle of my rehydration experiments, the Nuns seems better then it was yesterday, less like hay. The ODF I think needs one more day, as while it is no longer shatterably brittle, it still is dry enough as to prevent it from being folded in half and is now breaking in to large chunks.


You bring up a good point Brewdude. I need to get some jars and start canning up everything I am not smoking that is open.

 

[Brewdude]

Newpiper19, when you open a tin that has not been compromised you'd be wise to jar the contents up in a mason jar. The lid seal will retain the moisture content much better and will last that way for many years.

Choose a jar sized just large enough to contain the contents as you don't want too much head space. If the tin comes a little moister than you prefer you can always dry out a pipe's worth before smoking. And then when you're about halfway through the jar, re-jar it in another mason sized appropriately. That way the head space won't be excessive and dry out the 'baccy prematurely. I've been doing this for years with great results.


Cheers,

RR

Thanks for the advice. Any thoughts on what jar is appropriate for single tins of 1.75oz?   I assume the smallest ones.

Currently in the middle of my rehydration experiments, the Nuns seems better then it was yesterday, less like hay.  The ODF I think needs one more day, as while it is no longer shatterably brittle, it still is dry enough as to prevent it from being folded in half and is now breaking in to large chunks.  


You bring up a good point Brewdude. I need to get some jars and start canning up everything I am not smoking that is open.

An 8 oz jar will house up to 2 oz of 'baccy. Get the wide mouth style as it'll be easier for you to grab what you need. And you'd be wise to get some of the smaller jelly jars as well when it's time to re-jar.


Cheers,

RR

 

[Zanaspus]

Rande, not to be oppositional, but I can get 4oz in a pint jar rather easily.

 

[Newpiper19]

Newpiper19, when you open a tin that has not been compromised you'd be wise to jar the contents up in a mason jar. The lid seal will retain the moisture content much better and will last that way for many years.

Choose a jar sized just large enough to contain the contents as you don't want too much head space. If the tin comes a little moister than you prefer you can always dry out a pipe's worth before smoking. And then when you're about halfway through the jar, re-jar it in another mason sized appropriately. That way the head space won't be excessive and dry out the 'baccy prematurely. I've been doing this for years with great results.


Cheers,

RR

Thanks for the advice. Any thoughts on what jar is appropriate for single tins of 1.75oz?   I assume the smallest ones.

Currently in the middle of my rehydration experiments, the Nuns seems better then it was yesterday, less like hay.  The ODF I think needs one more day, as while it is no longer shatterably brittle, it still is dry enough as to prevent it from being folded in half and is now breaking in to large chunks.  


You bring up a good point Brewdude. I need to get some jars and start canning up everything I am not smoking that is open.

An 8 oz jar will house up to 2 oz of 'baccy. Get the wide mouth style as it'll be easier for you to grab what you need. And you'd be wise to get some of the smaller jelly jars as well when it's time to re-jar.


Cheers,

RR

Looks like that is next on my shopping list. 8 ounce jars.


So far I have all my baggies of tobacco jarred up in 3 large mason jars, still in their bags. Going to get some small 8 ounce jars this weekend and transfer them all into separate ones.

 

[Newpiper19]

End of Bag review!

Hello everyone, Newpiper here with an end of bag review of Classic Burley kake. This bag as well as others were graciously given to me by Mr. Black horse.

This was smoked in my MM Country Gentleman.

So I smoked nothing but this for a period of about 2 weeks even took my cob to work and smoked it on the route. As you all know I have had a pretty disastrous time thus far with my purchased blends. This was not a disaster


From first puff to the last I enjoyed every second of it. My only complaint was that it ended sooner then I wanted it too.


The first taste after the real lighting was a very strong sweet caramel flavor. After a bit, no more then 5-8 minutes or so, the intense sweet settled down from Caramel, to a nice molasses flavor. That molasses flavor sat on top of a nice and tasty flavor of nuts and crème. This combo of molasses and nuts and crème lasted till about the half way point of the bowl. From their the molasses sweeet faded into a nice whisper, with a new coco flavor becoming the dominant flavor, which itself was still backed up by the nice creamy , nutty flavor present.

This coca/creamy nutty flavor profile lasted the rest of the way towards the end of the bowl, with the coco flavors disappearance marking the end of the bowl.

Upon emptying of my bowl I found little remains of the tobacco and a mix of dark and grey ash, with some white sprinkled in. Their was moisture on the bottom of the bowl, but it never gurgled and was easily wiped clean.

This baggie of Classic Burley Kake was a god send for me. I actually looked forward to my time spent with this bowl and while I have not sampled the other burley aro's that came in the gift I received, namely Storm Front and Butternut burley, I know for a fact that this will be one my next online order. I would have gotten it right away, but I spent all my personal money on paying for my Real Estate classes.

But my purchase is soon coming and I will be getting a few cans of this tasty morsel. Makes me wonder if I should dedicate a briar to it..

 

[Brewdude]

Pretty good review there Newpiper19. Good to know you're enjoying the hobby.


Cheers,

RR