I intended to mention the room note, but ran out of time & was not wanting to abuse people's attention/interest level by rambling on even further.

Evenings from 8:30 (when I get home from work) 'til 10 (bed lunch) are Mrs. Yak's TV time & Mr. Yak's smoke-one-of-his-pipes-while-playing-on-the-computer time. The computer's in the bedroom, so I usually get a room note comment at 10:00. Sometimes this is favorable (she likes Embarcadero) ; other times, although she likes the taste of little share puffs of it, meh (FVF).

This time, with Union Square it was a puzzled "I thought you were going to smoke a pipe." (?)

That's pretty subtle.

PS : The assumption (one I'd made) that US must be essentially similar to BBF is a misapprehension. BBF hits the ground running with citrusy, grassy/hay-like and sweet. Which can, as you're nearing the finish line, get just a teeny bit wearying.

Those probably are elements in US's makeup, but they aren't so prominent that they "are" what it "is."

Union Square is an authentic revelation.

Heh, I like knowing Mrs. Yak partakes in her own way. So I take it US was kind of a non-issue one way or the other with her? I've been told by some people it smells like toast.

Personally, I consider BBF a distant relative of US, maybe speaking the same language and with accent (to one another) but generally brought up in different ways--both charming and interesting, but...one grew up in the hills a little and the other in the valley. Probably a terrible metaphor, but it's all I got right now.

Hi Kyle

She was puzzled because there was no room note she could detect. Granted, we both have allergies, and intermittent thunderstorms with temperature drops & consequent relative humidity spikes play jolly hell with taste-smell acuity (I suspect one reason "why" your taste can be so finely honed is your relative humidity. Dry days -- especially cool ones -- and you can smell all kinds of things). Still, the room note seemed worth mentioning for those of us who have wives whose fathers, uncles & grandpas didn't smoke pipes when they were young, blessing them with an automatic association of pipe aromas with happiness and wellbeing.

PPS : A/The word I was groping around for the other day, was unable to come up with, and had to suggest the gist of by painting a picture was

WHOLESOME

Ah, yes. "Wholesome." Kind of a crypto-consumer term that gets abused by marketers, but in this case, apropos. I'd rather be left to describe something like US as wholesome rather than read it on a package of hamburger buns (if that makes sense). Union Square's simplicity is not to suggest it's simple, it's just a good solo virtuoso. Sometimes, you don't need the whole damn orchestra. (...and that's coming from a former violist, who often relied on said whole damn orchestra quite a few times)

You're probably right, the dry factor around here does something. When recently visiting Sacramento with a buddy, smoking there took on a different avenue. I had to draw and puff slightly differently to really "settle" into the flavors I've come to expect. Sacramento gets a lot more moisture, and a lot of it from the salt air that blows in from the Bay Area. It was interesting, and opened my eyes. Recently, too, taking my pipes up into the mountains at 8,000 feet (but still pretty dry), the mountain air even further cleared my senses as I wasn't around the various exhaust, cooking smells and "urbana" from the apartment complex balcony.

No wonder I get a lot of folks older than I actually requesting I smoke my pipe around them, I've been told my calm demeanor and just the smell of the smoke reminds them of good times with family and friends from a long time ago. I thought it was just nostalgia (which I was honored to provide), but now I suspect it's a little more than that--relaxation is contagious!

That was a very high Humidity day even for Sacramento.

OK. I'll be giving US a try on my next order. Gotta see what all you find so intriguing in it.



Cheers,

RR

In a nutshell : Sip it slowly, make sure it has plenty of air, and you realise -- by taste -- that tobacco is a vegetable. It has the same taste of its own that kale, spinich, carrots, cucumbers and potatoes have. Only you smoke the leaves rather than eating them.

Wholesome, natural, clean and intriguingly subtle flavor, with a hint of the earth it grew in.

I thought I knew what Virginia tobacco was before I tried Union Square. i didn't. I only knew what heavily processed Virginias were.

Union Square : no makeup, no push-up bra, no hair dye/-do, no any of that "beauty" treatment business.

100% real.

Honest tobacco goodness.

A rarity in the world.

Wow guys. I have been wanting to try this for a while and can't seem to find it. Anyone know where I could get some?

Just about anywhere in the internet. Smokingpipes for one of many.

Smoking Pipes and Pipes and cigars were both out. Maybe I didn't exaust all my internet options. I just picked up 2 tins of Chelsea Morning at Wingenroth's up in Lebanon. He also was out of US.

My bad, then. Sorry.

Mars Cigars ?

Should be temporary.

I don't like the idea of Union Square being out of stock.