To Mix or Not to Mix

I have spent a great deal of time thinking about what pairings may be good or bad.  This tobacco with that tea, and this beverage with that type of leaf.  I suppose that is all well and good, not meaning to criticize the great pairings of the past, but I have been in an interesting funk lately.  Firstly,  I have been enjoying more than a few bowls of Hartenstein Trail.  This is a great full flavored latakia blend from the Edwards Tobacco in Denver.  Excellent smoke in a multitude of different bowl sizes.  Cool smoking and a great low nicotine level that makes it particularly perfect for before bedtime smoking.  Worth every moment.

The second thing that I have noticed is that I don't find myself wanting to pair my smoking with my tea/coffee drinking lately.  I have stumbled across some great flavor combinations in the past for sure, but I have been more interested in the tobacco by itself.  Coincidentally, I have also been interested in the tea and the coffee by themselves as well.  It seems that adding anything to the equation means that I will (of necessity) pay less attention to either of the things I am tasting individually.  I imagine, as things warm up again I will ease back into pairing my puffs with my beverages, but for the moment I am enjoying the simplicity.  What say you?  Do you enjoy things more in pairs, or one experience at a time?

The Next Step

Could this be what beautiful tastes like? I never would have known! It is no secret that Dunhill tobaccos have returned. The return of Dunhill tobaccos has been much celebrated by the internet pipe smoking community, and with good reason. I am told by word of mouth type sources that Dunhill used to outsell every other brand of tinned tobacco available. This was the experience of one Tobacconists down in Denver, anyhow. I, however, took Dunhill tobaccos for granted, never trying one before they left us. No one told me how good they were, or sang their sweet songs until they were already quite gone. I chanced upon a tin of London Mixture some months ago and was impressed to no end. But, as those closest to me will tell you, I am easily impressed.

I have often wondered if it is a bad thing to be easily impressed. I have to admit I am a bit overawed by this amazing world, by the amazing and wonderful people in it. It seems like there is no charge for being amazed with life. I'm not sure what people gain out of being difficult and ornery, but that's not my problem here! Perhaps I just watched Pollyanna too many times as a child, but if you meet me, you can make a wild guess that I like you, and am interested in what you are going to say next. Call it a character flaw; I'm not changing.

But back to the tobacco. So I finally got my hands on a tin of Nightcap and a tin of Early Morning Pipe. I just got it today, so this is a "first impression" review. I smoked the Nightcap, because it is night. I am very strict about observing the tobacconists wishes of when he or she thought that said tobacco was to be enjoyed.

I didn't expect much. People often romanticize anything once they can't get it anymore. It is so safe to say, "That was the best tobacco ever!" Once you can't get it anymore. I think it also lends fodder to the whiny negative hearts who always long to look back and find the best things in memory and the worst up ahead. I personally believe the best tobaccos are yet to be made, but enough religious talk!

This tobacco is delicious. It is smooth, yet full bodied, the blend virginias and latakia is perfect, beautiful, wonderful. The tin aroma smells very similar to London Mixture. This is a query that I have had for some time. It seems that tobacconists manage to maintain a thread of consistency through wildly different blend. C&D's tobaccos all have a strange (but lovely) Cornell and Deihl aroma. MacClelland's tobaccos are famous for having a vinegar, or ketchup aroma when the tin is first popped. If you were to hold a pouch of fresh Prince Albert under my nose and then one of Carter Hall, I would never be able to tell the difference (both Middleton tobacco). However, it may just be the result of some similarity in the blends, in this case.

This tobacco smokes extraordinarily well. Truly a delight, cool and smooth, and it only required one relight (this is usually a result of a tobacco that I know well, but in this case it smoked easy). The bowl (standard size) that I smoked in took around an hour plus to smoke, and there was still some noticeable doddle after all that. (I had to go in, as my toes were cold). In any event, I would invite you to try it, if English blends are your speed. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and I look forward to enjoying Early Morning Pipe tomorrow at 5:30 am - SHARP.

My prediction: I predict that those of us who never tried it before will say: "WOW! This was great, but I will continue to smoke my other tobaccos as well!" and those who enjoyed these tobaccos before will begin soon to pine for "old" Dunhill and to talk about how they were before. This will leave everyone wondering if they aren't really after the feeling that they had those years ago, rather than the tobacco...

First Pipe in a While

For the first time in quite some time I got to get outside and have a full bowl. It was a great and wonderful, peaceful and sweet. It was quite cold out and life has been busy, but at long last it was just warm enough to sit out and enjoy the nice taste of some Special Balkan from Edwards. The spicy and rich taste of Latakia and Orientals tantalizes and calls to me. There is a sweetness that comes in and out as the bowl continues.

I enjoyed this bowl in my new pipe, which is still smoking very nicely. I finally broke with an experiment that I have been at for the past three months. For the previous months I had dedicated each pipe to a particular blend. There is a thought that if a pipe is dedicated to a specific blend the smoker will be able to taste new the deeper complexities of the tobacco and thereby enjoy the tobacco more. Results: I'm just not there yet. It was nice, and for a while I wondered if I was tasting more of the subtleties. Then I decided to finish the test by tasting the same familiar tobaccos across the pipes that were dedicated to other blends (even crossing the lines between natural, English and [gasp] aromatics). I decided that there is not much to report for me personally and therefore I'll not bother about it for a while. More to think on...perhaps I will try again later and see.

Another Evening with the Frog

I don't know that I have a favorite tobacco. I guess I just like them all so much that it's hard to make a definite choice. I bought a small container of Frog Morton tobacco not a week ago. I have been smoking mostly bulk tobaccos for most of my pipe smoking life. I have enjoyed bulk tobaccos a great deal and have often thought that trying anything else could be quite dangerous as I could then be committed to spending more money on an already expensive habit. Yet, so much about this tobacco called to me that I could not resist it any longer.

Things that drew me to this tobacco:

1) The Picture - I don't imagine that this is really the top draw, but I am confident enough in my superficiality that I can say that I just love the picture of this well dressed Frog having a pipe on a log and enjoying his little bit of latakia and cavendish.

2) The Reviews - The reviews that I have read and seen have all lead me to believe that a great number of people want to say something negative about this tobacco, but can't seem to find the words. The rest of the reviewers seem to enjoy it greatly and want to keep it around.

3) Room Note - I always smoke outside (I have not yet been able to win the battle for tobacco indoors) so room note means very little to me. What does mean something to me is getting kicked out of my bed for smelling too strongly of nice English blends. My wife has no taste, but I love her no less for that fact. Besides, it would be worse if she liked it, I don't think we could afford two pipe smokers in our household. The usual English bulk blends I smoke are half latakia. There's quite a kick there for the non-smoker to smell!

4) LOTR association - I am hopelessly in love with the world of Hobbits, Wizards and Pipes. So anyone willing to allude to Tolkien's work at least has my attention.

So, after all of the hype, what did I think. I gotta tell you, I don't believe a person can be truly objective, less so a pipe smoker concerning tobaccos. I know that if I put my mind to it I can enjoy anything from Captain Black to Prince Albert to Aromatics to Naturals...you get the idea. (I have to add the brief caveat that I really have never been able to enjoy cherry blends...cough syrupy. Ugh! But this proves my point more than anything. I try new cherry blends already scowling...not objective at all!) So I decided I liked this tobacco a week and a half before I smoked it when I was hearing it described. (The back of the can is great as well. It is written for someone like me...someone who wants to be drawn into their little world and pretend that a frog really spent four years putting together this perfect blend of tobacco for my enjoyment).

And can you imagine that I really like it? I do! The Latakia is nice and the blend is superb. I love the casing on the cavendish (my local tobacco source swears it to be vanilla...ok) The whole thing is rather nice. It is a nice slow smoke ( a 1.5 hr bowl tonight while reading The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes) though I do have more relights than average on this one...especially near the end of the bowl. I can't decide what it is that sets this blend apart from the bulk tobaccos I usually smoke, beyond the obvious difference in the amount of latakia and presence of some aromatics. It just feels like there is an extra touch of care in it. I can't figure out how, why, or when, but I feel like that goofy little frog actually put some good time and heartfelt effort into blending this tobacco and I'm glad to benefit from it!

Latakia - the Tobacco Version of Salt!

I tried my first Latakia not too long ago. It was good. Too good. Latakia is to blame for a full revival in my pipe smoking habit. Latakia is to blame for my wife deciding that she doesn't like the smell of pipe smoke as much as she thought she did. Latakia is to blame for my sudden shifting of funds so that I can try more Latakia blends. Latakia is lovely. The man who owns the tobacco shop that I smoke at (and buy from) suggested that for Latakia lovers pipe tobacco without Latakia is like food without salt. I see it. I still love my aromatic and natural blends. I even love the velvety taste of chocolate creme casing on a nice cavendish tobacco. But all cheers go to latakia. It's got a real taste to it that makes one think, "WOW! This is what tobacco is supposed to taste like! It's the REAL thing that I have been looking for!"

Another fine thing about Latakia is the staying power. If I have a pipe of Latakia earlier in the day I find myself tasting Latakia throughout the day. Not the ashy, nasty aftertaste of cheep tobaccos, but the hints of the same beautiful taste it gave me when I was smoking it. It calls me back. Draws me in. It is resurrected by a sip of black to and the haunting memory is enough to draw me out into the cold for another sip. Latakia is deep and rich enough for me to not even be able to hold a conversation while I am smoking it. It as I draw its flavor through the bit of my pipe it draws me into the present moment. The future becomes distant and worthless and the past a dream. The reality being consumed into one of God's fine gifts - Latakia.