Rotating and Pipes for certain tobaccos

[Behike54]

Gentlemen,

Well, it looks like I am here for the duration and I am beyond grateful.

That said, I have one pipe and as pretentious as it sounds, I am a bit of an aesthete.

But even more so, I am concerned and interested how people rotate and decide what blends they smoked in what pipe and/or of they use one pipe, say, a meer, to try out new tobacco?

This hobby my rival for passion for cigars, er, uh, candy I order from Switzerland.

I wish my wife smoked, it would make all of this so much easier.

 

[Anonymous]

When you find a tobacco you like tastes exceptionally good in one particular pipe, that combination is a match.

I would recommend reading the various essays on pipes and tobacco that G. L. Pease has posted at his site. Some of them deal with just this topic.

:face:

 

[MisterE]

Every once in a while you'll hit on a combination that just works. Logic has very little to do with it unfortunately. Your intellect might say "this should work with this" but rarely happens that way. Certain pipes will just love a certain tobacco. Those are the ones you'll end up dedicating to that particular blend. The more pipes you have the easier it is to hit on those combinations.

I have a few pipes that are dedicated to one specific tobacco, but not many because the "perfect match" is a fairly rare event. I do try to keep all of them type specific however. Vaper pipes, English pipes, etc. I believe it is a practice one ends up falling into over time.

 

[alfredo_buscatti]

I have never experienced any pipe/tobacco affinity; those that claim to have done so are certainly daft.

I give my pipes 3 days rest between smokes; some say 7, and some 14. Basically you decide how long you think that your pipes need for the moisture that accumulates in the bowl to leave the porous tissues of dead wood.

For me, I have pipes that I like more than others simply because although they all are good smokers, I like the fit and finish of some, more. I like to keep a good pipe amongst pipes I don't like as much in most mini-rotations (right now I have 3 pipes dedicated to Bow-Legged Bear, 3 to Dark Flake, etc., etc.

After that it is simply a matter of bowl size. Group 4s can give a long smoke with flake, Group 6 with ribbon.

 

[dshpipes]

I have never experienced any pipe/tobacco affinity; those that claim to have done so are certainly daft.

Not sure I understand this assertion. Could you elaborate?

What I'm hearing is this: you believe that people who claim that a particular pipe can make a certain tobacco taste better than other pipes are insane. Is that correct?

 

[MisterE]

^ I think he's just poking fun at Yak and I.

 

[dshpipes]

^ I think he's just poking fun at Yak and I.

If that's the case, I need to buy myself a sense of humor. Sheesh!

Maybe I'll put off buying pipes and tobacco for a while to save up.

 

[alfredo_buscatti]

MisterE follows the deft convolutions of my logic in this matter.

 

[Behike54]

so, basically, I need somewhere between 3-50 pipes? *thud*

Ok, it's about the process, not the final destination. *gulp* :shock:

GREAT recommendation about GL Pease website. I have been so busy looking at Pipe Porn I knew I forgot something. Another BoB recommended GLP for complexity, which is a characteristic I value highly when smoking cigars.

Thanks everyone! :mrgreen:

 

[DrT999]

so, basically, I need somewhere between 3-50 pipes? *thud*

Naw, unless you become a collector of certain types/brands/etc, you shouldn't need more than 20 or so :face:

 

[alfredo_buscatti]

I don't know. Settling for 20 pipes on the rack doesn't leave room for 2 or 3 devoted to those 10 blends you really love, and aside from this allow sufficient pipes to pull into a new dedication. For example I have a new love in Bow-Legged Bear. Since I have 50 pipes I was able to cull 3 from the herd to be employed for it, leaving another 15 or so available for other new, discovered tobacco needs. Sometimes I find that I blend that I used to smoke quite often is not at present one that I smoke this often now; at which point I redirect one or more of its dedicated pipes to new ends.

Unrealizable wealth being just that, most of us don't have the means to populate said collection with the $500.00-$1000.00 price tags of the high-end makers over whose work we wax eloquent. But there are plenty of pipes out there that can be had for $50.00-$100.00, new or estate. They smoke fine and are good enough pipes, and I wouldn't hesitate to put them in my rack.

 

[Behike54]

For example I have a new love in Bow-Legged Bear.

Really? I hadn't heard.

Since I have 50 pipes I was able to cull 3 from the herd to be employed for it, leaving another 15 or so available for other new, discovered tobacco needs. Sometimes I find that I blend that I used to smoke quite often is not at present one that I smoke this often now; at which point I redirect one or more of its dedicated pipes to new ends.

I like that way of really honoring the tobacco experience while conjoining the appreciation and pleasure of pipes. My first one-off is going to be something special.

Unrealizable wealth being just that, most of us don't have the means to populate said collection with the $500.00-$1000.00 price tags of the high-end makers over whose work we wax eloquent. But there are plenty of pipes out there that can be had for $50.00-$100.00, new or estate. They smoke fine and are good enough pipes, and I wouldn't hesitate to put them in my rack.

NOW you tell me after coveting all the work of Japanese pipe makers and Peder Jeppesen.

 

[pipesmoker09]

behike as a aficionado of cigars as well i am somewhat the same boat you are in... its kind of like once you find that great maduro or corojo wrap cigar you stick with it as a "regular" then I crossed the road to pipes my self and I absolutely fell in love with it as well, and asked my self when do i change out pipes?? I have been smoking pipes now for a little over 6 months and about a month ago I purchased a slightly used dunhill from a family friend for a good price and somehow this became my "go to" pipe I find my self smoking 5 bowls in a row before i feel the need to switch pipes... I dont know if others have the same experience or hopefully other dont consider this an "unorthidox" approach but it seems to work just fine for me..
cheers
mike

 

[Anonymous]

The limit -- in one sense -- to how many times you can smoke the same pipe back-to-back is how long it takes the tobacco residues inside the shank, never allowed to completely dry out, to develop mildew-like obnoxiousness.

Overlooked in this is the quality of the taste delivered. Which, depending on how things are going inside, can start heading south just past the char light of bowl number one.

Not to come off as some cooler-than-thou "aesthete," but I suspect you will find that, with time, experience and attention, you will gradually find your way to packing and smoking in that narrow "zone" where optimum flavor lives.

I also suspect that once you get familiar with that sweet spot, you will find that a well-rested, thoroughly dry pipe is flavor-optimum.

Assuming you're smoking one pipe each day, a seven-day rotation is all you can really justify. Two each day = 14 and so on.

That, at any rate, is what I've come to after 40-odd years.

Your Mileage May Vary, and Probably Does.

:face:

 

[Behike54]

The limit -- in one sense -- to how many times you can smoke the same pipe back-to-back is how long it takes the tobacco residues inside the shank, never allowed to completely dry out, to develop mildew-like obnoxiousness.

Overlooked in this is the quality of the taste delivered. Which, depending on how things are going inside, can start heading south just past the char light of bowl number one.

Not to come off as some cooler-than-thou "aesthete," but I suspect you will find that, with time, experience and attention, you will gradually find your way to packing and smoking in that narrow "zone" where optimum flavor lives.

I also suspect that once you get familiar with that sweet spot, you will find that a well-rested, thoroughly dry pipe is flavor-optimum.

Assuming you're smoking one pipe each day, a seven-day rotation is all you can really justify. Two each day = 14 and so on.

That, at any rate, is what I've come to after 40-odd years.

Your Mileage May Vary, and Probably Does.

:face:

This is a great post. Thanks.

First let me say, without pretense, that being an aesthete and having the wallet to honor that part of myself is going to be tough. I was for lack of a better way to put it, speaking from "the ideal" and not REALITY.

I would imagine I will end up somewhere between 7-14, hopefully 3-5 will be "different" in a way that is just short of inspiring, a quality I connect to in all art forms.

Now, back to optimum taste and rotation, it's tough for me right now because I have one pipe and having just moved, I am relegated to that for a while. THE PROBLEM continues to be my ignorance. While keeping the pipe clean to the point of being meticulous, I never considered TIME and moisture. Furthermore, instead of trying one tobacco a week, I have been sampling all week. i think I am going to stick with a tobacco for 3-4 sessions and then switch.

The Lat-bombs puros_bran sent me have been heavenly!

So many lessons. I have always been one to be in a rush and failing to appreciate the journey, which I am beginning to understand is a part of the joy of pipe smoking! A great reminder.

With sincere thanks,

Jack

 

[Kyle Weiss]

Not to come off as some cooler-than-thou "aesthete,"

Oh quit being so damned modest. :lol:

 

[jlong]

I agree, a pipe needs to air out a few days or it becomes sour. They should also be dedicated to burleys, vapers, englishes, etc. or they impart taste. So it depends on the variety you smoke and how often you smoke.

That said, PAD is not a disorder, it is a matter of survival.