Beginner needing some info

[James]

A few weeks ago my brother bought me a briar as a half-joke present. I now have found that it's not the best starter pipe but I'd like to persist because I quite like it. I've had half a dozen goes at it now but I'm left with a few queries...

I love the smell of a pipe being smoked by other people and I enjoy packing it and having a nice half hour of peace and quiet. The problem I have is that smoking it, generally, is rubbish! Let me elaborate

1. The general taste is stale-ashtray tobacco for me, is this the norm and do you guys just get used to that? If so, I'm giving up now!

2. I get the ocassional whiff of the good stuff if I catch the tail end of some smoke but it's half a dozen times in a smoke, is this what it's all about??

3. I find that packing it more tightly prevents it going out but I get a thicker more acrid smoke, what's the reasoning behind the loose packing that is recommended?

4. There's plenty of information around about packing a pipe but not smoking it - I find that the whole breathing smoke out through the nose thing isn't the nicest smell/taste in the world but if I give a couple of very short puffs and then blow the smoke clear I often get a faint hit of the tobacco smell (pre-lighting) which is very nice

5. Is the fact I'm smoking outside likely to be what's ruining it for me? Is it blowing away all the nice smelling smoke?
In essence, what do you guys get out of smoking a pipe?

Sorry for all the questions!

Cheers

James

[leasingthisspace]

I haven't ever smoked a pipe but I would think the stale taste of the pipe would have alot to do with what are you using, how you are storing it, and how often you have cleaned out the pipe. I am sure the BOTLs that smoke pipes on here will be helping with the answer soon.

[CigarDood]

I don't smoke a pipe, but as I understand it, pointing at things with you pipe is quite satisfying. See, e.g., http://www.clubstogie.com/vb/showthread.php?t=177543

[James]

Pointing is indeed quite satisfying, I wonder if that's what it's all about!

Welll, everything's pretty new - the tobacco is stored in the metal container it came in, doesn't appear to wet/dry. The pipe is cleaned after every use and has built up a bit of a cake on it now.

Hopefully someone will shed some light on all this, otherwise I'll just need to get someone else to smoke it so I can enjoy the smell

[dogsplayinpoker]

Originally Posted by CigarDood

I don't smoke a pipe, but as I understand it, pointing at things with you pipe is quite satisfying. See, e.g., http://www.clubstogie.com/vb/showthread.php?t=177543

It is actually.

I digress.

Holy Cripes man! Lots of questions that I will now answer.....with more questions. What is the brand of the pipe that you are smoking your rubbers in? Reason I ask is that some brands use a bowl coating that tastes like tee-total until it all burns away or you sand it out.
Next question; are you smoking a tobacco with a name like "Apricots and Lilacs" or "Peach Cobbler"? Reason I ask is that not all tobacco is created equal. I learned many moons ago that the smoker rarely smells what everyone else is going all yummy over. Even when you do, the casing(induced flavor) usually lasts for about half the bowl and then all that is left is crappy tobacco.
Packing is an artform and should, at some point, be included in the Olympics. Winter of course. You will have to spend some time and find the packing method that best suits you. I drop a pinch of tobacco in the bowl and barely press it down. Then I get another pinch and press it down a little harder. The final pinch of tobacco, I stuff into the bowl with more force. I light, tamp down the tobacco that springs up(with a tool called a tamper for some odd reason) and then relight the tobacco.
How to SMOKE a pipe? Really?! C'mon man. You draw(suck, if you prefer) smoke in and blow it back out. Don't inhale it into your lungs. "Nosing" while exhaling is more appropriate for experienced smokers or if you have some kind of tear duct issue and you really need to produce some tears. Maybe you're in a play or something, I don't know?
Last question. Smoking outside, if you have to(dang newborn babies and their clean lungs) will not affect you getting "the good stuff".
I smoke a pipe for a myriad of reasons. It is cheaper than cigars, which I still love but my bank account does not. When you smoke quality tobacco, the flavors can run the gamut from hay to dark chocolate. Really amazing experience. You have to work at it and pipe smoking requires you to be "all there".
You must follow your own path grasshopper.

[Dzrtrat]

HHhhhmmmm........Well there is a lot of room here. First what are you smoking? How fast are you smoking it? Are you letting the briar dry out? what are you cleaning with? etc...etc....

Not all pipe tobacco's are created equal, There are probably as many different pipe tobacco's as there are different cigars....maybe you haven't found what you like yet.

How fast you smoke the pipe has an effect on how the tobacco burns and what flavors and aroma the smoke will carry, I suggest taking small sips, if the tobacco goes out...it goes out, just relight it, its not like a cigar.

The briar needs to air dry I allow mine to dry at least a couple of days, thats where a "rotation" comes in to play. Get you a couple of cobs...there great for trying different tobacco's in.

Are you just using pipe cleaners? Or are you also using some sort of sweetener? I use ever clear 100 proof works great.

Bottom line is there are different opinions on all this, its just what I do and it works great for me. Keep with, it just takes some practice.

[James]

Hey, I thought I was doing well knowing it was a briar pipe, as for brand - no idea! I take it there's a marking on it somewhere?

The tobacco is called winding road. It smells great (to me) unlit and ocassionally I get a really nice whiff but it's certainly not for the vast majority of it!

"You draw(suck, if you prefer) smoke in and blow it back out"
That's where I'm going wrong Let me rephrase - is there some method of smoking to make the nice smell magically appear instead of the ash tray effect

Nail on the head with the newborn baby thing! Thanks for the (witty) reply

Onto the next one ...


I'm smoking winding road which is apparently a mix of cavendish and virginia if that helps.

Speed of smoking varies I guess. I've tried short puffs, long puffs, mixes of the 2. Generally it takes about 25-35 minutes to get through a bowl

The briar is left for at least a day between smokes (While I try and find a new way of getting the nice pipe smell!)

Cleaning just with pipe cleaners. I didn't do any of the coating with honey/water things

I do like the smell of the tobacco unlit and as I keep harping on about, the ocassional delightful arom is caught. I take it you guys get this pretty much all the time then and don't have the ash tray mouth I'm being left with??

So very short puffs then? That ties in with how I've had (limited) success getting the bit I like

What's the ever clear stuff?

I'm happy to soldier on with this as long as there's a light at the end of the tunnel. Not knowing any piipe smokers I wanted to know what an experienced smoker gets out of it. Is it fair to say you get the nice pipe smell throughout then?

Thanks a lot for the feedback so far guys

James

[dogsplayinpoker]

There should be something stamped on the pipe itself. Some don't. Did the inside of the bowl look gray BEFORE you started smoking?
Winding Road is not a bad tobacco. Actually a pretty good first choice. However it is an aromatic and they just don't work for me. Partly because I don't experience that great flavor that everyone else is raving about. Never have. I think Burley and cavendish react poorly with my body chemistry. Before you become disillusioned, I suggest you try a different tobacco. Something like Mac Baren's Dark Twist. Or Mac B's Plumcake. These are very flavorful and smell nice to others but I wouldn't call them aromatics. Also, when you are able to, check out the NewPipeSmoker thread. It is a very good way to get lots of samples of different styles of tobacco.

[James]

I'll try and get the marking tonight and report back. I was too busy excitedly packing the pipe to notice if it was grey, black or sky blue inside - sorry!

Apparently the guy who sold them the tobacco said it was good for a first-timer like myself so glad it has a partial thumbs up.

When you talk about flavour - where do you get that from? Do you mean the flavour of the smoke in your mouth or the smell after you've inhaled? I'm not really getting the whole concept of subtle nuances at the moment-it's all smoke to me (especially prior to being exhaled)

I had a quick look through the beginner's guide thread, will peruse again shortly.

A new tobacco may be on the cards then. The thing I wanted to try and find out most was where the enjoyment lies in the taste and whether or not I can expect to get the smell a third party receives without any of the downsides I have at the moment-I'm still not sure on the answer to that one

[dogsplayinpoker]

To get flavor I draw the smoke into my mouth, let it sit there a couple seconds, then blow it out. I derive enjoyment from the taste because I have rarely been able to enjoy what a third party is smelling. If you really want to "taste" something try a blend that has latakia in it. Like Frog Morton on the Town by McClelland. You WILL taste something. May not like it but you will taste it.

[Mister Moo]

general taste is stale-ashtray tobacco... is this the norm and do you guys just get used to that?

This has never been part of my experience. It sounds awful. We wouldn't like pipe smoking if this was part of the deal. Something is off track.

2. I get the ocassional whiff of the good stuff if I catch the tail end of some smoke but it's half a dozen times in a smoke, is this what it's all about??

I leave the whiff aroma for others; most of my taste/aroma comes from snorking the smoke. The intense glory is in the snork, for sure.

3. I find that packing it more tightly prevents it going out but I get a thicker more acrid smoke, what's the reasoning behind the loose packing that is recommended?

Tight pack is bad as is the word "acrid" in association with pipe enjoyment. Tight means harder drawing, hotter pipe, fried mouth and flayed tongue. Substitute the word "fill" for "pack" and regroup. Review: http://www.clubstogie.com/vb/showthr...t=pack%2C+fill. A proper fill allows air to pass through the tobacco with very slight backpressure; the smoke with be as thick and tasty as you could desire. A gentle tamp now and then will keep burning embers in touch with unburned tobacco.

4. ...I find that the whole breathing smoke out through the nose thing isn't the nicest smell/taste in the world

Nose smoking or snorking is where the flavor is. This procedure DOES NOT involve inhaling smoke into your lungs.

5. Is the fact I'm smoking outside likely to be what's ruining it for me?

Outside smoking is a bit more difficult than inside smoking - too much going on. It can also be very rough - ruinous, even - on a pipe that is not thoroughly broken in.

[James]

Latakia, no idea what it is but sounds like I won't like it! So it's fair to say the third party does best out of smoking a pipe?

Mister Moo -

Very happy to hear it, I wondered if it was one of those things people got used to (much like cigarettes)

What the hell is a snork?! ... Scratch that I got to your next comment

I've managed to avoid tongue burns pretty much since the first smoke. The slightly tighter packing (Still pretty loose though) just seemed to help it stay lit. Maybe I'm not getting enough of the tobacco to light, it seems to have hot spots of embers

Is there a trick to the 'snork'?

Unfortunately I'm banished to outside so this could be part of the trouble.

So do you guys not inhale the smoke after it's been exhaled at all?

[Rolando]

I am betting the pipe was coated. Primarily because it already has a cake forming which would not happen this fast especially with someone who is barely enjoying it.

Finding the right filling method will take some time. Keep it loose and relight as necessary in the beginning. Eventually you will get a feel for it.

You also may not like this tobacco. Aromatics are really more for the room. You do get some flavor from them but not as much as other types of tobacco.

Sign up for the new pipe smoker trade.

[James]

So you wouldn't expect a cake for a while then?

I keep tweaking the filling method but I'm changing the smoking style, lighting etc all as well, would like to get some bits right and move on

"Sign up for the new pipe smoker trade"
What's that then?

[Rolando]

Well how many bowls of tobacco have you smoked? A precoated pipe tastes nasty but the cake forms much faster than normal. I remember one of mine coming pre-coated and it might have been more than one but I don't remember... keep in mind that most of my pipes are over 15 years old.