Dmoore13
Member
- Joined
- Jun 26, 2010
- Messages
- 14
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Hey everyone,
My name is Dave and I am somewhat of a new pipe smoker, having started about a month ago. I am the ripe age of 22 and a student at Kent State University in Kent, Ohio, and a soon to be student at Stetson University College of Law in Tampa, Florida. Hobbies of mine other than pipe and cigar smoking are competitive bodybuilding and powerlifting as well as being a Alumni Brother in The Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity here at KSU.
As for the topic of pipe smoking, I have been lucky to find several pipe smoking websites that helped me to get started as well as to give me the knowledge to have the most enjoyable smoking experience possible. My first pipe was an Italian H.I.S. (Hugo International Series) half-bent billiard by Gardesana. Not many people know about H.I.S. and it took me some time find out who made this brand and what it stood for. From the research that I have done, I found that the majority of people thoroughly enjoy this brand and recommend it to not only the beginning smoker, but also the seasoned smoker. In fact, I like this pipe so much I just went out today and picked up another. This time I got a H.I.S. black, sand-blasted, straight Dublin. I haven't started to break it in yet because I've been focusing on the salt and alcohol treatment I put on my billiard, but I will get the pleasure to enjoy it tonight for the first time. For those of you that aren't familiar with H.I.S., I found that the only problem, or rather, negative aspect is the pipe cleaner test. Both of my Hugo Series pipes (especially my billiard) have trouble passing a pipe cleaner without a little fines, but all I have to do is twist it one or two times and it goes right in. To me, this is not a problem at all, and from what I have learned, this isn't considered a big problem to many smokers.
Although I have done a lot of pipe smoking research online, the most knowledge that I have received is from my local tobacconists. I am fortunate enough to live very close to my favorite tobacconist, The Pipe Rack in Akron, Ohio. The employees here are nothing shy of human pipe and cigar databases and they have helped me greatly. I would, and still do spend about 3 hours a week (give or take) in the shop racking the brains of a few employees. I have had the opportunity to go to most of the local tobacconists in my area and The Pipe Rack is the best. All of their tobaccos are hand blended (I know the guy that does all the blending), and they have the best pipe selection I have seen thus far, covering an entire wall of the shop. Another great thing about this shop is the amount of pipe tobacco, having about 12 or so different blends ranging from sweet Virginia's and mellow Burley's, to strong Latakia's and Perique's. They also have a decent selection of tin brands, including the ever-so-popular Mac Baren Navy Flake and a personal favorite of mine, Blue Note. If you are in the area and have a chance to stop in to the shop, ask for Jim or Dave, they can explain all of their blends and answer any questions you might have about them. A close second to The Pipe Rack is the Briarpatch in North Canton, Ohio, having a great Virginia and Cavendish blend called Alsatian (apparently a best seller in several states). Another tobacconist that I have found to be good is the Village Tobacconist in Montrose, Ohio. Here, they have a great cherry blend that I enjoy frequently.
Most, if not all of my personal tobacco selection consists of aromatics. Though I still enjoy a good aromatic, I seem to have had a taste shift that wants to focus more on non-aromatic tobaccos, in fact the same taste shift that I have recently experienced with cigars. I did like the mild to medium category including the Oliva Connecticut Reserve Toro and Drew Estate's Isla Del Sol Toro, but I find more enjoyment out of the medium to full-body category including Oliva Serie G Maduro (Perfecto) and my new favorite, the Cain 660 Habano (6x60) also made by Oliva.
If you spent the time to sit and read this post, thank you and hopefully I'll see you on the forums soon.
Dave
Ua mau ke ea o ka aina i ka pono
`Onipa`a
My name is Dave and I am somewhat of a new pipe smoker, having started about a month ago. I am the ripe age of 22 and a student at Kent State University in Kent, Ohio, and a soon to be student at Stetson University College of Law in Tampa, Florida. Hobbies of mine other than pipe and cigar smoking are competitive bodybuilding and powerlifting as well as being a Alumni Brother in The Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity here at KSU.
As for the topic of pipe smoking, I have been lucky to find several pipe smoking websites that helped me to get started as well as to give me the knowledge to have the most enjoyable smoking experience possible. My first pipe was an Italian H.I.S. (Hugo International Series) half-bent billiard by Gardesana. Not many people know about H.I.S. and it took me some time find out who made this brand and what it stood for. From the research that I have done, I found that the majority of people thoroughly enjoy this brand and recommend it to not only the beginning smoker, but also the seasoned smoker. In fact, I like this pipe so much I just went out today and picked up another. This time I got a H.I.S. black, sand-blasted, straight Dublin. I haven't started to break it in yet because I've been focusing on the salt and alcohol treatment I put on my billiard, but I will get the pleasure to enjoy it tonight for the first time. For those of you that aren't familiar with H.I.S., I found that the only problem, or rather, negative aspect is the pipe cleaner test. Both of my Hugo Series pipes (especially my billiard) have trouble passing a pipe cleaner without a little fines, but all I have to do is twist it one or two times and it goes right in. To me, this is not a problem at all, and from what I have learned, this isn't considered a big problem to many smokers.
Although I have done a lot of pipe smoking research online, the most knowledge that I have received is from my local tobacconists. I am fortunate enough to live very close to my favorite tobacconist, The Pipe Rack in Akron, Ohio. The employees here are nothing shy of human pipe and cigar databases and they have helped me greatly. I would, and still do spend about 3 hours a week (give or take) in the shop racking the brains of a few employees. I have had the opportunity to go to most of the local tobacconists in my area and The Pipe Rack is the best. All of their tobaccos are hand blended (I know the guy that does all the blending), and they have the best pipe selection I have seen thus far, covering an entire wall of the shop. Another great thing about this shop is the amount of pipe tobacco, having about 12 or so different blends ranging from sweet Virginia's and mellow Burley's, to strong Latakia's and Perique's. They also have a decent selection of tin brands, including the ever-so-popular Mac Baren Navy Flake and a personal favorite of mine, Blue Note. If you are in the area and have a chance to stop in to the shop, ask for Jim or Dave, they can explain all of their blends and answer any questions you might have about them. A close second to The Pipe Rack is the Briarpatch in North Canton, Ohio, having a great Virginia and Cavendish blend called Alsatian (apparently a best seller in several states). Another tobacconist that I have found to be good is the Village Tobacconist in Montrose, Ohio. Here, they have a great cherry blend that I enjoy frequently.
Most, if not all of my personal tobacco selection consists of aromatics. Though I still enjoy a good aromatic, I seem to have had a taste shift that wants to focus more on non-aromatic tobaccos, in fact the same taste shift that I have recently experienced with cigars. I did like the mild to medium category including the Oliva Connecticut Reserve Toro and Drew Estate's Isla Del Sol Toro, but I find more enjoyment out of the medium to full-body category including Oliva Serie G Maduro (Perfecto) and my new favorite, the Cain 660 Habano (6x60) also made by Oliva.
If you spent the time to sit and read this post, thank you and hopefully I'll see you on the forums soon.
Dave
Ua mau ke ea o ka aina i ka pono
`Onipa`a
