Don't blame the Baccy, blame the Smoker

[Smokey Joe]

I think that TobaccoReviews.com is a great site that provides many viewpoints of different tastes and preferences. But after reading quite a few reviews, it seems that some good tobacco blends are getting ripped apart.
Now, we all know that Tobacco taste is highly subjective. One guy may consider a certain blend to be topnotch (ie-FVF) and the next guy may think that same blend is pure crap.
Some of the Flake review comments such as, tastes like hot steam, fried my tongue, sour, pipe bowl on fire, etc are probably due to lack of technique and not the blend itself.
I used to avoid Flakes like the Plague years ago, because I could not get any smoking satisfaction. Once I learned to prepare and smoke Flakes correctly, I never had any of the issues mentioned above. In fact, I haven't experienced tongue bite in years.
But , to trash a blend based on frustration instead of poor technique, doesn't do justice for the Blend. It simply gives the impression that the Blend is no good.
IMO, Samuel Gawith produces top quality Flakes. Hell, they've been in the baccy business almost as long as this Country has been a Country :shock: . Yet, there are some who rate SG on the same level as dime store baccy :roll: I've read comments like, Tastes like soap, perfume,flowers,etc.
Well, I don't eat soap and I don't drink perfume so I wouldn't know what that means.
I guess the point of this post is that there are many things that can influence one's perception of a blend. We all have our likes and dislikes when it comes to Tobacco. We should keep in mind that some pipe smokers, especially newbies, may be influenced by negative reviews on good blends, which may result in missing out on some good smokes.
Just my 2 bowls worth....

 

[mrlindeman]

:cheers: I agree. Also SG ST James Flake ROCKS!!!!!!!!!!! Some reviews are pretty rediculous.

 

[Handsome Dynamite]

I don't like how on tobaccoreviews a lot of reviews comment on tongue bite or heating up or hard to keep lit. That's about the smoker 99% of the time. I used to get hot pipes, tongue bite and my pipes would always go out. Then I got good at packing.

 

[Doc Manhattan]

I know that the proprietor of TR has been trying to institute a meta-review/mojo feature where people can rate the ratings.

The upside would be the ability to downrate unhelpful reviews (people who insist on rating tobaccos of a style they know they hate, etc.)

The downside is the technology is hard work, subject to abuse, and when he tried it for a bit, it proved unwieldy for the tobaccos with the most existing ratings... not many folks have the patience to slog through 50+ reviews (esp. reviewes they've read before) and give them rankings. (And if ratings are biased, then so are metaratings by the same people...)

 

[Slow Puffs]

I know that the proprietor of TR has been trying to institute a meta-review/mojo feature where people can rate the ratings.

The upside would be the ability to downrate unhelpful reviews (people who insist on rating tobaccos of a style they know they hate, etc.)

The downside is the technology is hard work, subject to abuse, and when he tried it for a bit, it proved unwieldy for the tobaccos with the most existing ratings... not many folks have the patience to slog through 50+ reviews (esp. reviewes they've read before) and give them rankings. (And if ratings are biased, then so are metaratings by the same people...)

Doc,

I noticed that this is being employed by some newspapers in Canada, especially when there are comments submited on a political situation. Readers can read the comments and give it a simple 'thumbs up' or 'thumbs down'.

I was reading through the TR about "Cumberland" yesterday... holy crap, the comments were all over the place.

Some of the best reviews come right on this board, IMHO.

On the TR, the most helpful reviews are often the ones that have revisited the tobacco in question a year or two later and re-evaluated their initial assessment.

 

[aaronbtxnc]

I've found a few reviewers who rate tobaccos highly that i really like then look at their other reviews to get ideas. I just ignore if the reviewer bitches about bite or heat or moisture as they are typically smoker-related more than tobacco. If I read a tin description that catches me I will generally sample it before buying more than one tin. I'd never order a pound based simply on anothers review or not order a tobacco i think sounds good based on a few bad reviews. Why would someone who doesn't like, say English blends, review them at all? That just doesn't make sense, it'd be like me giving reviews of different coconut creme pies, they all taste like suntan lotion.

 

[the macdonald]

I’m glad someone brought this up. I can give a pass to the guys that don’t or can’t appreciate a particular blend because of tongue burn, frankly, I have been smoking ten years and still can’t enjoy a VA forward blend. I know how to smoke a pipe, they, just like broccoli, just don’t agree with my body chemistry. What constantly irritates me is the page long analysis of a blend that begins with, “I am a new pipe smoker,” or, “this is my first (VA, English, Oriental, ect.) but I am going to pontificate for the next 10,000 words as if I pointed the weed out to the Indians a day before Sir Walter Raleigh stopped in.” That is just a waste all together.

You could, the last time I was there, filter by reviewer in order to find someone with a reliable opinon or taste. Or operate under the maxim, "opinion are like a-holes, everyone has one."

 

[gandalfpc]

It is fairly easy to pick through the reviews and toss the bad ones - but I hate how it throws off the Average Recommendation

There should be a note when you post a review regarding tongue bite and technique - cautioning against posting a poor review due to poor technique, but at most saying the tobak requires good technique and is not for the newbie

I will send an email to TR and see if he would consider such a notice...

 

[Doc Manhattan]

He might well post such a notice, but the effect it would have on users is dubious.

Jon already has a very reasonable list of guidelines for civility and ease-of-use, and they're not always honored and TR is badly understaffed to enforce them.

I would fondly like each review to come with Quantity Sampled and Price Paid per Oz. criteria. It would give some objective markers to reviews that are "one bowl and chuck it" or people of who upgrade or downgrade one star out of four based on perceived value. But every new database column is a little more bandwidth, a little more work for Jon. I don't blame him for wanting to simplify instead of expand.

 

[smokey422]

TR can be pretty subjective at times. I agree about the reviews that are often a result of poor smoking technique. I also hate to see reviews that start with "I hate all aromatics (or VAs, or burleys, or whatever) and this aromatic sucks." With preconceived notions like that, how can a fair review be given? If I don''t think I'll like a particular blend, I don't buy or review it. That's why I don't have many one or two star reviews there.

Smokey

 

[puros_bran]

I can't help but chuckle....

Peoples opinion of TR.com has started more than one long standing dislike on various pipe boards...

I'll be honest, I read reviews there more for chuckles than any thing else... My very favorite is the fellow that loved Dunhill Mix. Medium... He's reviewed every thing from the various Capt Blacks, to the Ashtons,GL Pease,Gawith baccys, to the off the map hole in the wall mom n pop house blends.. Each one ends with... This isn't Dunhill Mix Med..

That ole boy that used to review and give us tales of Zombies n Knights n Wizards and what not was pretty good too...

That's the real problem with TR.. To many try to take it as something that will actually help them choose a tobacco instead of. The psychological review it actually is.

 

[Justpipes]

I find it interesting that on TR.com the most consistantly high rated tobaccos are the "OTC" or "drugstore" blends.

 

[jlong]

I get a chuckle out of some of those reviews too. By the tone of some of them, I can tell it must be some pretty damned good intoxicating shit and worth trying.

 

[Al in Canada]

I have had much the same response to postings at TR, and find it amazing the reviews on some of the tobaccos I like and then find them getting "ho-hum" reviews. SG Balkan flakes is one that falls in that category.

On reviewer who can review out of his own comfort zone is Steve Fallon "pipestud", and generally seems to be able to identify quality in a blend that is not his normal cup of tea.

I recently won some C&D Cordial in a contest, and having never tried it was somewhat perplexed, as the taste seemed to vary all over the place, the same components were there everytime, but they did weigh in the same every time. Then I rubbed some out more fully, which hadn't seemed required, and all of a sudden it is consistly good. I suppose the same thing would occur with aging, as the flavours would have married in the tin, or had it been pressed, but blending and tinning had not managed this.

One of the odder reviews I heard of a poster raved about a Peterson blend, gave it four stars, then down graded it to 2 stars when he realized his local shop was charging him twice the price of another makers blend. On the pricing fron i think he should have been reviewing his source's pricing policies, not the tobacco.

It would be interesting for someone to put together a comprehensive survey of taste preferences, things like do you like: dill pickles; vanilla ice cream: pumpkin pie; hot peppers: Scotch whiskey; bourbon; salty foods: etc. and then if you liked cherry pie over pumpkin, sweet gherkins over kosher dills, bourbon over scotch, black tea over green, etc. it would give a certain taste rating and see if a person with a similar rating liked the same styles of tobacco.

Quick lads there is a government grant and a doctoral thesis in there!

wonder what kind of tobacco goes "vanilla Coke" or Dr. Pepper and Gin??

(I actually dated a lady gymnist who drank Dr. Pepper and gin, but that's another story...

)

 

[phillpsych]

I love this site for tobacco reviews. Before I wised up, I was influenced by TR.com... and tried some stuff I didn't like... and was questioning my own taste buds because other guys didn't like what I liked. Then, like the mature person I try to be, I said "Heck with them... I'm smoking what I like..." Honestly, there are some tobaccos I really love that not a lot of guys smoke... but it makes me think about smoking my pipe, and actually getting excited because I know I'm going to light up a bowl... Pipe smoking, and pipe smokers... gentlemanly and gentlemen... you smoke what you like, I smoke what I like, and I may even try yours, because I respect you, and hey, there's not a lot of us out there, we need to stick together.
Make smoke, not tobacco wars...

 

[shootist51]

I enjoy the reviews on TR. It's as close as many of us can come to sitting around a BM discussing the different blends.

I have found a couple of reviewers that seem to have similar tastes as myself and pay special attention to their opinions, however, as someone else stated, tastes vary and so do opinions of different blends.

I agree that many negative aspects of a blend can be traced back to the smoker and use this knowledge to, I hope, my advantage, in choosing to try some blends.

To new smokers I would say, try as many blends as you feel you can afford. Look to others for their opinion, but rememeber opinions are like a--holes, everybody has one.

When you find a blend that you like, add it to your cellar and explore its complexities, particularly as it ages and you gain more sophistication in your own taste.

It has been amazing to me the way my taste has grown as I smoke a favored blend over time and begin to pick up the nuances of the blend. This is where the opinions of others can be a tool for enhancing your experience.

If you try a blend and are not happy with it, seal it up in a mason jar and come back to it in a few months, years. You may be pleasantly surprised at how it and you have improved.

When you find a blend that really is all you hoped for, cellar a pound or two and then maintain a supply against inflation, taxes, TEOTWAWKI(the end of the world, as we know it).

I make it a point to buy 3 tins of any blend that looks promising, as well as maintaining a cellar of tins and bulks of blends that I smoke regularly. I smoke one tin and cellar the other 2 for sampling later. If I am particularly taken with the new blend, into the rotation and cellar it goes.