It wouldda been nice if he demonstrated it.
He took five and a half minutes to tell ya to refer to a post by LL on Smokers Forums.
Here is the post for the benefit of y'all who are banned. :lol!:
Posted by LL:
First off, I take no credit of any sort for what's to follow. I merely came by the information courtesy of Steve Stein, of the Greater Kansas City Pipe Club, and am passing it on. (He's a former president of that group, still active at several levels with them, and easily the most dedicated, helpful, and enthusiastic VA-fanatic I've ever met.)
How helpful? When he learned I was interested in becoming "VA literate," he not only answered any and all questions, he eagerly offered up all sorts of info. Then, for an entire evening literally filled my pipe, watched, and coached me as I smoked it. Sound like overkill? Not at all, as I discovered.
The setting was the GKCPC's hospitality room at this year's KC show. They'd gotten the largest suite in a new (2 weeks open!) hotel, and stocked it with fine cheeses, Mediterranian appetizers, good wines, and ultra-premium spirits. (Laphroaig for the grabbing? Bombay Sapphire? Wild Turkey Rare Breed? Yup. THANK YOU AGAIN, QUINTON WELLS!!! ) In the room were many pipeworld notables, including Lee Van Erck, Michael Lindner, Toni Nielsson (sp?), Ron Fairchild, and the like. Mike McNeill ("Mr. McClelland") was in and out, as were the Hermit people, and many shop owners and lesser-known carvers.
Back to VA prep and smoking. My lessons with Steve had started that evening on the show floor, when I'd asked him some questions. His answers led to more questions, and so on, until we were in deep conversation and found ourselves in the hospitality room. After we were "established"---comfy in a chair and scotch at hand---Steve asked me to quit the pipe I was working on (filled w/a Balkan), and fetch a fresh pipe from my room. I did, and upon returning with it, he filled it from his own pouch. The hands-on lesson(s) had begun. "Watch," he said, and did a simple scoop-and-tap-to-settle motion. Then he handed me the pipe back. "It's now filled," he said. "Never more than that. Do NOT press it down."
"You're kidding, right?" I asked, incredulous.
"Nope. That's it. Just don't tip the bowl until it's lit... once it is, the tobacco will swell enough to stay put."
I drew on the pipe, and it whistled. No resistance at all.
"I repeat... this is a joke right? The VA-noob being hazed...?" I said.
Steve just laughed and smiled. "Really. That's how you do it. Just light it, and you'll see."
I did. Got it going. Surprisingly, it stayed lit well, just smoldering. The draw was effortless, the smoke cool and flavorful. Tiny sips were all it took to keep it going, and the flavor grew huge. I looked at Steve and nodded, and he just smiled. When it finally did go out, I pulled out a tamper and got it halfway to the bowl. "No!" he said, "Don't tamp yet! Just relight. NEVER tamp until it won't stay lit anymore WITHOUT tamping. Then when you do, just with the weight of the tamper itself. Only flatten the ash."
I did as instructed. A couple of times in the next half hour's group conversation I re-lit, and noticed Steve was watching me like a hawk. When at last I convinced him that it was "out out," and the ash needed a bit of flattening, he laughed and said, "OK, then. But remember, no pressure!"
(Sounds crazy that he was so motherly, but he knew exactly what he was doing. My urge to do the wrong things from 30 years of habit was almost overwhelming at times. Wanting to tamp the draw so it was tighter was like a horrible itch.)
The smoke by this time was the best I'd ever had, however---bone dry, enormously flavorful, and extremely cool---so I was starting to "get it," and surrendered myself to following instructions to the letter.
In another half hour, my pipe finally went out and wouldn't relight. Flattening the ash resulted in the tamper simply hitting bottom. I turned the bowl into an ashtray, and nothing but fine ash came out. I moved to a bright light and looked into the bottom with the digger-end of my pipe nail at the ready, but there was nothing there. I looked up at Steve, and he was simply nodding and smiling like a Budda. Then he held out his hand for the pipe. "Watch this," he said. And he ran a cleaner into it, and pulled it back out. Only the last quarter-inch was discolored, and it was only a faint grayish amber. No black, no gook, no wetness, no nothing.
If I hadn't just smoked the pipe myself, I never would have believed such a thing was possible.
The entire experience was immediately repeated with a second fresh pipe and a different VA (and slightly less oversight, LOL!); then again with still a third pipe and different VA. Quinton, Steve, Mike Lindner, and I were the last ones standing at about 2:30am, when we finally succumbed to the show's 8:00am Saturday opening.
In the weeks since I have had 80% success using Steve's method on my own. I've experimented a lot to try to determine how important the leaf used is to the technique. The answer is some, but not as much as you'd think. The keys are these:
-- Cut the flake into BB-sized triangles/cubes
-- Let it dry until it no longer feels cool to the touch (but definintely not crispy). How long that takes depends on the humidity and temp where you live, as well as the tobacco's wetness to start with, so no elapsed time can be given.
-- Put the BBs in a pouch or bag and simply scoop like grain, tapping the side of the bowl to settle it
-- Do NOT press it down, just light and start smoking
-- Yes, it WILL whistle and feel WAY too loose when you light. Resist the urge to pack! That's how it should feel!
-- When it goes out, do nothing but light again, repeating until it won't stay lit anymore
-- Then, only tamp the ash, not the tobacco
-- Continue until the bowl is consumed
Oh yeah, besides the unequalled flavor and ease-of-smoking, I notice a LARGE decrease in mouth irritation/bite. I can easily smoke three bowls in succession this way, while two "conventionally packed" bowls leaves me burnt.
There. The longest post the history of Knox, finished at last!
Enjoy!
