Home Blending for the Admitted Amateur

[Carlos]

I just tonight realized how I am destined to failure as a home blender of tobaccos. I am not depressed about it. It's just that it took me this long to know I am doomed in my attempts.

Oh, I can modify an existing blend. The Great Odyssey Experiment proves this, for me. I can kick-'em-up-a-notch. I could even purchase a fairly wide variety of blending tobaccos and make presentable smoking mixtures.

What I cannot do is replicate (bad choice of word) better blends. Meaning. I cannot get more than the most very basic oriental tobaccos.

So, I get my lemon Virginia, my bronze Virginia, some latakia (which I think there may be many different grades/types/etc.), some Turkish. Even the Turkish available for blending looks like it's often a blend itself. I reach for orientals...I am lost. Where do I get my hands on a variety of orientals? Basma, Izmir, Yenidje, and all the other orientals I have never heard of. Where do I look for toasted Virginias? Just what is toasting, as the term was used by Dunhill?

You see my problem. I cannot get the spice or condiment tobaccos. Nor can I replicate a process at home that I know virtually nothing about. All I can do is pester Craig and try to get him to blend something for me. In the hopes he can understand what I am asking for in my limited knowledge of the subject.

I am so doomed.

 

[Justpipes]

I wouldn't say you are doomed, just keep trying and remember you can only do as much as your limitations will allow.

 

[earl]

Carlos, I'd thought of asking Craig to blend me up something too but I know so little about the art of it I wouldn't even know enough to know what to request as to constituents. So, I just keep trying various blends he's already come up with. Earl

 

[Carlos]

Yeah, I keep buying as much as I can. I wonder if the U of I offers a course.

 

[tweaksource]

I know this is an old thread, but it is now relevant for me.

I, too, have been blending at home and have had moderate success. One area that still escapes me is similar to that of the OP - orientals.

I ordered Turkish Ribbon from Pipes and Cigars. I am not dissatisfied with it, but it is not what I was looking for. By itself it is very bland. In a blend it has its place, but very much needs to be sweetened or somehow enhanced.

4Noggins has a nice variety of blending tobaccos as well as good descriptions. They are very helpful over the phone as well.

From 4 Noggins I ordered the Turkish Izmir. It is much closer to the oriental..."whang" that I am looking for. I find also that stoved Virginias (McC 5105) are essential to my English blends and add much of the character that I expected to come from orientals.

I would also like to get my hands on Basma, Yenidje, Dubec, etc. "Oriental" tobacco is such a broad term and is rarely well defined, IMHO.

You may also try the McClelland Blending Orientals. I'm not sure what's in it, but I am currently awaiting a shipment.