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Brown Leaf Newbie Check-In & General Chat

I'll go ahead and post an introduction, since I've been "lurking" for some time. I have had pipes in some form or another since the late 80s, but tend to smoke them every few months or so sporadically (I know-the horror).

I've posted pics of them in the thread about "thanks for posting" and in the pipe gallery... Every one seems to be a from a different make, but they all hold fond memories of college, purchasing them on vacation with my lovely wife, or the person I inherited them from. The Wellington is from my wife's grandfather, and he was a kind southern gentleman through and through. My father was a cigarette smoker most of his life, but I have fond memories of him with a pipe, too.

The pups in my avatar are our rescue doggies-Kitten and 'Cuda... Foster dogs we couldn't let go, so we just had to keep them.

I'll be perhaps one of the only ones to admit it. I still like the aromatics... Eeeeek!-maybe I haven't smoked enough for my palate to go for the good stuff, LOL.

Have a great day,

Dean
 
Had 2 bowls of Dark Twist after hearing so many good things about it. I didn't particularly care for it. I could smoke it, but just didn't really care for it.
I aged the tin for about 6 months and pulled it back out. 2-3 more bowls and I can honestly say that I still don't really care for it.
What to do.......age it some more or trade it off in our beloved subforum. ....
 
Had 2 bowls of Dark Twist after hearing so many good things about it. I didn't particularly care for it. I could smoke it, but just didn't really care for it.
I aged the tin for about 6 months and pulled it back out. 2-3 more bowls and I can honestly say that I still don't really care for it.
What to do.......age it some more or trade it off in our beloved subforum. ....

That stuff gave me THE WORST tongue bite when I first tried it. Sulfurous magma style.

I put it away for a while and then tried it in a variety of pipes. I've found it tastes better in long shanked pipes, especially a Duncan Hill Canadian.

But you could always trade it in the SE :)
 
I'll go ahead and post an introduction, since I've been "lurking" for some time. I have had pipes in some form or another since the late 80s, but tend to smoke them every few months or so sporadically (I know-the horror).

I've posted pics of them in the thread about "thanks for posting" and in the pipe gallery... Every one seems to be a from a different make, but they all hold fond memories of college, purchasing them on vacation with my lovely wife, or the person I inherited them from. The Wellington is from my wife's grandfather, and he was a kind southern gentleman through and through. My father was a cigarette smoker most of his life, but I have fond memories of him with a pipe, too.

The pups in my avatar are our rescue doggies-Kitten and 'Cuda... Foster dogs we couldn't let go, so we just had to keep them.

I'll be perhaps one of the only ones to admit it. I still like the aromatics... Eeeeek!-maybe I haven't smoked enough for my palate to go for the good stuff, LOL.

Have a great day,

Dean
Welcome to the BL! You're far from alone in loving the aros here, as a matter of fact some of our more distinguished(ahem) members are quite fond of them. Feel free to join in the conversations or start one of your own.
 

Kilroy6644

Smoking a corn dog in aviators and a top hat
Tip: If you've got some blends you don't like, you can always PIF them in the Stock Exchange, but don't be afraid of experimenting with them. Two particular blends, GLP Gaslight and Samuel Gawith Black XX, don't get along with me. They have too much nicotine for my tastes, they have disagreeable flavors, and they're hard to keep lit. So I was stuck with two tins of tobacco that I didn't like, and a stubborn streak that didn't want to give up on them. Well, I picked up a tobacco grinder, originally with the idea of grinding them up so they would pack better, and maybe dry out more. Then I wondered what would happen if I mixed them together. The Black XX had a flavor I just didn't like, while the Gaslight had a flavor that seemed like it might be up my alley if it wasn't so strong. So I tried it, and it worked. The bold flavor of the Gaslight helped mask the flavor of the Black XX, while the XX helped mellow out the Gaslight. It wasn't a particularly good blend, but it was better than each individually. To mellow it out some more, and add a more agreeable flavor, I added some Captain Black Royal, and that made it a decent blend. Not a favorite, and I probably wouldn't buy it again if it were a commercial blend, but it's not bad. So that's what's in my pipe whenever I'm smoking "Kilroy's Mundungus."

But I wasn't done experimenting. The Mundungus could only be mixed a little at a time, so making a decent amount was a time consuming business. I was going to have to smoke more of these two straight if I wanted them gone (plus, I wanted to "conquer" them). But they didn't like to stay lit, and if there's one thing worse than consuming something you don't like, it's having to work at it. I needed to dry them out. Leaving them out for a length of time hadn't worked, and grinding them up and letting them sit for a half-hour was out. I'm too impatient for that; when it's time to smoke, it's time to smoke. So one night a week or so ago, when I was smoking some other blend, I took the lids off those two tins and set them on top of the wood stove. (The stove has an outer casing, so they weren't directly on the stove.) In the morning they were bone dry. They were a little harsh, as expected, but they stayed lit (surprise, surprise), and the flavors really mellowed out. The first smoke I had with the Black XX was a wash: the bad flavor was mellower, but the smoke was harsher. Last night I tried it again, and was pleasently surprised. The smoke wasn't as harsh, and the flavor had moments where it wasn't too bad. The Gaslight had mellowed enough to where I could actually pay attention to the flavor instead of getting overwhelmed. Turns out that it's in the ballpark of tobaccos I like, but it's not on my team.

Anyway, the moral of the story is: experiment. If you find yourself stuck with something(s) you don't like, play with it and see what happens. Mix it with something you like, see if the mix is good. Mix it with something else you don't like, see if they complement each other. Dry it out, hydrate it, spritz it with booze, dip it in spaghetti sauce, whatever. Or give it to someone that will like it. You've got nothing to lose.
 
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Tip: If you've got some blends you don't like, you can always PIF them in the Stock Exchange, but don't be afraid of experimenting with them. Two particular blends, GLP Gaslight and Samuel Gawith Black XX, don't get along with me. They have too much nicotine for my tastes, they have disagreeable flavors, and they're hard to keep lit. So I was stuck with two tins of tobacco that I didn't like, and a stubborn streak that didn't want to give up on them. Well, I picked up a tobacco grinder, originally with the idea of grinding them up so they would pack better, and maybe dry out more. Then I wondered what would happen if I mixed them together. The Black XX had a flavor I justdidn't like, while the Gaslight had a flavor that seemed like it might be up my alley if it wasn't so strong. So I tried it, and it worked. The bold flavor of the Gaslight helped mask the flavor of the Black XX, while the XX helped mellow out the Gaslight. It wasn't a particularly good blend, but it was better than each individually. To mellow it out some more, and add a more agreeable flavor, I added some Captain Black Royal, and that made it a decent blend. Not a favorite, and I probably wouldn't buy it again if it were a commercial blend, but it's not bad. So that's what's in my pipe whenever I'm smoking "Kilroy's Mundungus."

But I wasn't done experimenting. The Mundungus could only be mixed a little at a time, so making a decent amount was a time consuming business. I was going to have to smoke more of these two straight if I wanted them gone (plus, I wanted to "conquer" them). But they didn't like to stay lit, and if there's one thing worse than consuming something you don't like, it's having to work at it. I needed to dry them out. Leaving them out for a length of time hadn't worked, and grinding them up and letting them sit for a half-hour was out. I'm too impatient for that; when it's time to smoke, it's time to smoke. So one night a week or so ago, when I was smoking some other blend, I took the lids off those two tins and set them on top of the wood stove. (The stove has an outer casing, so they weren't directly on the stove.) In the morning they were bone dry. They were a little harsh, as expected, but they stayed lit (surprise, surprise), and the flavors really mellowed out. The first smoke I had with the Black XX was a wash: the bad flavor was mellower, but the smoke was harsher. Last night I tried it again, and was pleasently surprised. The smoke wasn't as harsh, and the flavor had moments where it wasn't too bad. The Gaslight had mellowed enough to where I could actually pay attention to the flavor instead of getting overwhelmed. Turns out that it's in the ballpark of tobaccos I like, but it's not on my team.

Anyway, the moral of the story is: experiment. If you find yourself stuck with something(s) you don't like, play with it and see what happens. Mix it with something you like, see if the mix is good. Mix it with something else you don't like, see if they complement each other. Dry it out, hydrate it, spritz it with booze, dip it in spaghetti sauce, whatever. Or give it to someone that will like it. You've got nothing to lose.

Well said! You can also throw it in a dark hole and come back to it in 6 months. No matter what, someone is happy!
 
I have a jar of roughly five lat blends mixed together from tins that people swore I'd love if I gave them a chance. Well I still hate Latakia, so I've got this hodge podge jar that's been melding for at least 3 years now. Not that I'm ever going to smoke it, but someday I'll PIF it and tell one of youse that it's Penzance or something:tongue_sm
 
I have a jar of roughly five lat blends mixed together from tins that people swore I'd love if I gave them a chance. Well I still hate Latakia, so I've got this hodge podge jar that's been melding for at least 3 years now. Not that I'm ever going to smoke it, but someday I'll PIF it and tell one of youse that it's Penzance or something:tongue_sm

If it disappears from your lair before then...uh...it wasn't me! :biggrin1:
 
Tip: If you've got some blends you don't like, you can always PIF them in the Stock Exchange, but don't be afraid of experimenting with them. Two particular blends, GLP Gaslight and Samuel Gawith Black XX, don't get along with me. They have too much nicotine for my tastes, they have disagreeable flavors, and they're hard to keep lit. So I was stuck with two tins of tobacco that I didn't like, and a stubborn streak that didn't want to give up on them. Well, I picked up a tobacco grinder, originally with the idea of grinding them up so they would pack better, and maybe dry out more. Then I wondered what would happen if I mixed them together. The Black XX had a flavor I just didn't like, while the Gaslight had a flavor that seemed like it might be up my alley if it wasn't so strong. So I tried it, and it worked. The bold flavor of the Gaslight helped mask the flavor of the Black XX, while the XX helped mellow out the Gaslight. It wasn't a particularly good blend, but it was better than each individually. To mellow it out some more, and add a more agreeable flavor, I added some Captain Black Royal, and that made it a decent blend. Not a favorite, and I probably wouldn't buy it again if it were a commercial blend, but it's not bad. So that's what's in my pipe whenever I'm smoking "Kilroy's Mundungus."

But I wasn't done experimenting. The Mundungus could only be mixed a little at a time, so making a decent amount was a time consuming business. I was going to have to smoke more of these two straight if I wanted them gone (plus, I wanted to "conquer" them). But they didn't like to stay lit, and if there's one thing worse than consuming something you don't like, it's having to work at it. I needed to dry them out. Leaving them out for a length of time hadn't worked, and grinding them up and letting them sit for a half-hour was out. I'm too impatient for that; when it's time to smoke, it's time to smoke. So one night a week or so ago, when I was smoking some other blend, I took the lids off those two tins and set them on top of the wood stove. (The stove has an outer casing, so they weren't directly on the stove.) In the morning they were bone dry. They were a little harsh, as expected, but they stayed lit (surprise, surprise), and the flavors really mellowed out. The first smoke I had with the Black XX was a wash: the bad flavor was mellower, but the smoke was harsher. Last night I tried it again, and was pleasently surprised. The smoke wasn't as harsh, and the flavor had moments where it wasn't too bad. The Gaslight had mellowed enough to where I could actually pay attention to the flavor instead of getting overwhelmed. Turns out that it's in the ballpark of tobaccos I like, but it's not on my team.

Anyway, the moral of the story is: experiment. If you find yourself stuck with something(s) you don't like, play with it and see what happens. Mix it with something you like, see if the mix is good. Mix it with something else you don't like, see if they complement each other. Dry it out, hydrate it, spritz it with booze, dip it in spaghetti sauce, whatever. Or give it to someone that will like it. You've got nothing to lose.

I guess I was just venting a little frustration. I had heard so many good things about the blend. Descriptions such as spiced bread or even a cinnamon toast and I get none of it out of it. Yes I am no stranger to the SE! Just venting I guess!
 

Kilroy6644

Smoking a corn dog in aviators and a top hat
I guess I was just venting a little frustration. I had heard so many good things about the blend. Descriptions such as spiced bread or even a cinnamon toast and I get none of it out of it. Yes I am no stranger to the SE! Just venting I guess!
What blend was that?
 

Kilroy6644

Smoking a corn dog in aviators and a top hat
Never mind. Just went back up and saw. I actually wasn't providing advice to anyone specific. I just wanted to tell about drying my stuff on the wood stove, and then I thought I should explain why I would dry it till it was crispy, and my post just kept growing from there. I guess I just called it a tip in case any noobies stumbled upon it. Vent away! :thumbup1:
 

oc_in_fw

Fridays are Fishtastic!
Welcome to the BL! You're far from alone in loving the aros here, as a matter of fact some of our more distinguished(ahem) members are quite fond of them. Feel free to join in the conversations or start one of your own.
Yep. I don't care for aros, but just about everything on this site is YMMV
 
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