Smoking a pipe.

[Infinity]

Perhaps this is a stupid question.

Years ago I smoked a pipe. In those days I did it to get off cigarettes. I bought run of the mill, over the counter type tobacco. I inhaled almost all puffs.
I do not and have never, inhaled a cigar and so to my question...

Is the pipe smoking you guys talk about as refined as cigar smoking in that it's all about taste and you do not inhale or you do inhale. ???

Brian

 

[Newfie]

For me Brian, it's a little of both. Personally, I don't smoke any (your words) "run of the mill, over the counter type tobacco". I buy for the most part premium tobaccos.

I have many different blends of tobacco (none "flavoured" technically) of many different strengths.

Some, like Dark Birds Eye, are strong and to inhale those would be like inhaling a JdN Antano. Others, like Early Morning Pipe are milder, and while I don't inhale directly gown the gullet, I do inhale & exhale through the nose at times.

As for being Refined, some would say yes, more so than cigars, some would say no.

Again, personally, pipes take more Maintenance than cigars, both during the smoking experience, and after you're done. Having smoked a pipe previously, you may or may not agree that it takes more skill to pack, light, smoke properly and clean a pipe than to cut, light & smoke a cigar.

I have hardly lit a pipe since May, but now with the cold weather coming on, I can see the Humis and Coolers going to the back of the room and the pipes and tobacco storages returning to the front line.

I'm quite looking forward to some discussion with many of the more experienced "pipe smokers" here on this.

 

[LilBastage]

I don't have a lot of experience yet, but I approach it much like cigar smoking. I certainly do not inhale (at least not on purpose) but I practice the same nasal exhalation I exercise with cigars. So far, my new experiences are few, but I used to smoke a pipe quite a bit and I quite enjoy the activity.

The main reasons I am concentrating on pipes right now are the approaching cold (many of my favorites cigars cannot withstand cold weather smoking plus the time factor of standing out in -0 temps), the economics of it (while piping is not "cheap", I can stretch my tobacco money much further with the pipe than I can with cigars), and just a change of pace (I tend to get bored with cigars lately).

One of the other big reasons is the pipe itself. I just love pipes!

It doesn't hurt that my grandpa smoked a pipe and I've really been on a nostalgia kick lately. The pipe allows me to go back to a time I remember quite fondly. What can I say, I miss home (and my grandpa ).

 

[psyktek]

I've never inhaled pipe tobacco, and very few pipe smokers do. Mostly it's the exhale thru the nose (something my anatomy, for some reason, makes impossible for me) to get the nuances of a blend.

A lot of OTC tobaccos are aromatics, where the casing/topping overwhelms the flavor of the tobacco. Many ae also treated with PG, which makes it literally impossible for them to dry and causes them to smoke "wet".
Of the non-aromatics, a few stand out, Carter Hall and Edgeworth Ready Rubbed for me. These are basic burley blends, nice but sort of "one-note".

The more complex blends are both more and less subtle than cigar tobacco. If you're fortunate enough to have a good "palate" there can be much more complexity than in a cigar but, really, they are two different smoking experiences.

And nostalgia can be a great thing!!

 

[Shooter]

I picked it up last fall, and lemme tell you I am awful at it. Always relighting or gettin my pipe to hot. I did enjoy it, but it was to much of a hassle at the time, and I put it away. I am thinking now of getting everything back out, as the weather cools off. It does take some trial and error and it seems to be hard to travel with. My opinion only, I would equate myself as a pipe smoker to a guy who still smokes swisher sweets. I am totally a newb with about 4 tins of tobacco.

Don't get me wrong I enjoy the challenge, but I have yet to get it down to where it is relaxing. Thats the goal this year. I would reccomend it, who knows.

There is something to be said about kicking back in a recliner with a pipe and a book.

 

[Newfie]

Shooter, from your description, I'd guess your tobacco was a little on the damp side. Personally, one of the toughest things to learn was that the tobacco should be "almost crispy" to the touch in order to smoke properly. That's mainly why "drugstore Aromatics" are so hard to smoke. They're normally full of PPG and almost never dry out.

 

[Shooter]

Shooter, from your description, I'd guess your tobacco was a little on the damp side. Personally, one of the toughest things to learn was that the tobacco should be "almost crispy" to the touch in order to smoke properly. That's mainly why "drugstore Aromatics" are so hard to smoke. They're normally full of PPG and almost never dry out.

They were wet, albeit they were not drug store tobacco. They were bought on advice from this forum. Thanks for tip.

 

[Coinguy89]

I don't have a lot of experience yet, but I approach it much like cigar smoking. I certainly do not inhale (at least not on purpose) but I practice the same nasal exhalation I exercise with cigars. So far, my new experiences are few, but I used to smoke a pipe quite a bit and I quite enjoy the activity.

The main reasons I am concentrating on pipes right now are the approaching cold (many of my favorites cigars cannot withstand cold weather smoking plus the time factor of standing out in -0 temps), the economics of it (while piping is not "cheap", I can stretch my tobacco money much further with the pipe than I can with cigars), and just a change of pace (I tend to get bored with cigars lately).

One of the other big reasons is the pipe itself. I just love pipes!

It doesn't hurt that my grandpa smoked a pipe and I've really been on a nostalgia kick lately. The pipe allows me to go back to a time I remember quite fondly. What can I say, I miss home (and my grandpa ).

You've definitely summed up my opinion. I loved my grandfather and I loved the way he smelled.

 

[Taj]

I don't inhale either pipes or cigars.

I do have preference of pipes over cigars, but that's due solely to the fact that I have much more experience with pipes and am quite new to the world of cigars. I also do love the feeling of a pipe in my hand, or hanging from my mouth... I'm not quite sure why, it doesn't even matter if it's lit or not. There's just something about a pipe which brings me a feeling of comfort.

That being said, I do prefer socializing with other BOTLs while smoking a cigar, to me a cigar has more of a social feel to it than a pipe does. This may be because most the people I socialize with while smoking don't have a pipe and it's easier to offer someone a cigar than a pipe.

Yes, my grandfather smoked a pipe too, but he also smoked cigars as well, however he stopped smoking both when I was quite young. The other day I was over at his house doing some maintenance work on some of my cobbling machines and offered him a cigar, which he turned down... almost disappointed me. I was looking forward to sitting and smoking with my grandfather. He has looked for his pipes so that he could give them to me, but has been unable to find them.

 

[JMMARICH]

I smoke pipes inside my local cigar shop during the summer, and at my house outside in the winter. I smoke cigars year round. Pipes are much more relaxing to me. I love the smell of pipe tobacco.

 

[clay bell]

Been smoking a pipe for 45 years, I inhale, whats the point not inhaling if your going to smoke anything. The nicotine is what relaxes. I never smoked drug store tobacco or cheap pipes. I've smoked English, Baltics and aromatics, and have spent much of my pleasure time in aromatics, not cheap syruppy ones but well blended and flavored with tru essences
Clay

 

[dk_ace]

I don't get a damn thing out of it because I can't figure it out! It probably doesn't help that I have a cob pipe and an aromatic blend from the b&m that doesn't seem to dry out like you guys say it should. Part of me wants to invest the money in a good pipe and some good tobacco, but then I look at the cooler full of cigars I've recently purchased and decide that I should hold off for a while. The only thing spurring me on is the cold weather recently, but that has been helped by warmer temps the last few nights.

gunsandcigars88 told me that he's getting the pipe thing down pretty well, so maybe the next time we hang out he can tell me what I'm doing wrong.

The times I've halfway got it to work I've found it enjoyable (only slightly since I can't get things working for long), and I've never inhaled it. Exhaling through the nose seems to be more important with the pipe than the cigars IMO, but I haven't tried any stronger blends either.

D

 

[cuppajack]

Part of me wants to invest the money in a good pipe and some good tobacco, but then I look at the cooler full of cigars I've recently purchased and decide that I should hold off for a while.

i really like the way cobs smoke... Maybe just try a decent tin of something in the cob? You can get a tin for the price of a nice cigar. Try Frog Morton on the Town or Dunhill Early Morning Pipe!

 

[hoshnasi]

... Part of me wants to invest the money in a good pipe and some good tobacco, but then I look at the cooler full of cigars I've recently purchased and decide that I should hold off for a while....

I found one of the best ways to try alot of different blends is to buy a bunch of cobs. Good pipes (briar) can take on flavors of tobacco you smoke in it. It is a good idea to delligate good pipes to certain types of similar tobacco. That way your Latakia blend for example doesn't taste like that Captain Black you might have bought at the B&M and smoked in the same pipe.

Cobs are cheap, so are samplers. Experiment now, then when you find a tobacco you want to commit to, buy a nicer pipe and then start building the cake!

Its a process, thats for sure. Don't rush it and you'll be rewarded with a tobacco you love and a pipe you broke in with that tobacco so that cake and pipe will be seasoned just right.

 

[dk_ace]

Alright, you convinced me. I'll keep at it, but first I'm going to see if I can find somewhere to get a decent tin of tobacco to try.

Brian, my apologies for the threadjack. I didn't realize I was about to derail the thread with my post. It didn't seem off topic as I was typing it, and I'm going to blame that on the pint of stout that I'd just drank.

D

 

[gunsandcigars88]

Tobacco Road has tins of Ashton Pipe Tobacco. Not sure how good Ashton is since I haven't tried it, but those are the only tins that we can get around you dk_ace.
B

 

[MadMan56]

I smoke both pipes and cigars. It just depends on my mood at the moment, like choosing to sip on a shot of scotch or of bourbon. I don't inhale either of them, I get enough nicotine absorbed in my mouth.

To me, pipe smoking seems a little more gentlemanly, but I'm not sure why. I certainly agree with the guy above who said cigar smoking is better in social occasions. Pipe smoking is better suited for settling down after a busy day.

To all who have a hard time making pipe smoking work for them, just keep at it and you'll get it. I'd add a hint that if your pipe tobacco is too moist (even if treated with PPG) you can nuke it for 8 or 9 seconds and fluff it while it cools back down. This works pretty well.

Enjoy! :thumbs:

 

[hoshnasi]

I smoke both pipes and cigars. It just depends on my mood at the moment, like choosing to sip on a shot of scotch or of bourbon. I don't inhale either of them, I get enough nicotine absorbed in my mouth.

To me, pipe smoking seems a little more gentlemanly, but I'm not sure why. I certainly agree with the guy above who said cigar smoking is better in social occasions. Pipe smoking is better suited for settling down after a busy day.

To all who have a hard time making pipe smoking work for them, just keep at it and you'll get it. I'd add a hint that if your pipe tobacco is too moist (even if treated with PPG) you can nuke it for 8 or 9 seconds and fluff it while it cools back down. This works pretty well.

Enjoy! :thumbs:

I agree with you. I love my cigars. Not giving that up any time soon. However with a pipe I just enjoy the process of it all. The prepping of tobacco, the packing the bowl. The lighting process. The slow rythem to the breathing to keep the bowl lit just right. Tamping the ash to keep the draw tight. Its just a great way to do something that is totally about relaxing. Its one of the best things to do on a quiet chilly night when you have some time to be alone and think.