Semois Story in NYT Magazine

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glpease

glpease

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Nowhere has this story of this tobacco been told as beautifully as in Wil S. Hylton’s engaging account of his journey to Semois, both figuratively and literally, specifically to the home of Vincent Manil, one of the three remaining producers in the valley. Tobacco That's So Brooklyn but Made in Belgium has just been published in The New York Times Magazine. I had the pleasure of spending a few hours with Wil before he left on his trip, and have been anxiously awaiting this. It was worth the wait.

For the Times to publish something not only pro-pipe, but pro-tobacco enjoyment is bold and uncharacteristic step, and we should support their decision by leaving positive comments on the article. Let the editors know we have a voice.
 
Damn interesting account Mr Pease. Thanks for sharing it.

Now I've got the interest in trying this out for myself!

And yes, this is very unusual for the Times to publish a pro-tobac article.


Cheers,

RR
 
That was WONDERFULL !! Thanks for posting it !! I've seen it offered by some of the German websites to bad it's not available over here :p
 
Wow, excellent read, superbly written.

So Mr. Pease, is a Semois blend in the works? Is it possible?
 
What a fantastic story, I wish there were another 500 pages to it!

Where can Semois be purchased? Is it only distributed by Vincent and should I try to contact him?

Any ideas?

Thanks,

Lou
 
Stories like this makes our hobby so much more interesting. Incredibly well written story and it will now start the quest for all pipe tobacco aficionados to acquire the elusive Semois.
 
docwatson":54s2zzgo said:
Stories like this makes our hobby so much more interesting. Incredibly well written story and it will now start the quest for all pipe tobacco aficionados to acquire the elusive Semois.
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Yes, indeed, Andy and I have just the source in mind...
 
I just read this article this afternoon.

I though hell had frozen over when I realized that the Times was publishing a laudatory piece on pipe tobacco.
 
skaukatt":gi7ahdak said:
Where can Semois be purchased?

Lou
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I was fortunate enough to have been given a bowl of Semois from pipe maker Jeff Gracik a few years ago at a pipe show. He had been given a bag from someone who brought it back from Belgium. It was excellent. Afterwards, I tried everything I could to find a source, to no avail. There was one internet shop who would sell and ship it, but they spoke no English. Unless some other overseas shop has access to it, speaks English and is willing to ship it in a plain brown package and not label it tobacco, I think the only way to get it is to physically bring it back from Belgium.

Even then, you'll have to know where to look for it. My sister in law went to France last summer and I asked her to try to find some for me. She asked around, couldn't find anyone who knew anything about it.
 
That article was a win for pipe smokers everywhere. If you're in the middle of the whole anti-smoking quasi-genocide thing, wouldn't you want to try it now and see for yourself? And you should. We get so much crap for having what people see as a senseless vice and it just isn't.

Overall though, I'm impressed. Wil Hylton is a true wordsmith with a powerful message for the talking heads: discover what the fuss is all about for yourself.

By the way, he had me at "Hoovering" when he made it capital H. Well played, city-slicker.
 
What a well written, and deeply respectful, article. I wish I'd seen this before I went to Germany a few weeks ago. I was in a tobacco shop in Heidelberg, and bought a tin of tobacco. Don't know if they would have had this, but at least I could have asked.

Like others, I would love to try this blend. If that is not possible, however, I wonder, Greg, if it is something you might be able and willing to re-create? 8)

Mike
 
gospelman":hlsy1onh said:
What a well written, and deeply respectful, article. I wish I'd seen this before I went to Germany a few weeks ago. I was in a tobacco shop in Heidelberg, and bought a tin of tobacco. Don't know if they would have had this, but at least I could have asked.

Like others, I would love to try this blend. If that is not possible, however, I wonder, Greg, if it is something you might be able and willing to re-create? 8)

Mike
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Recreation of this tobacco is impossible. It's kind of like Cuban cigars: the same seed is planted all over the place, and has resulted in wonderful cigars being made in many other places, but none of them, despite marketing claims, taste like Habanos. Or Burgundies: the same bud stock is grown in California, and there are wonderful Pinot Noirs being made, but none of them taste like Burgundies. And on and on...

For that matter, there are no "virginias" grown anywhere else in the world that are like our own, so maybe it's a fair trade.
 
What's funny about that -- bordering on hysterical -- is that from what I've read, our Virginia tobacco strain was imported, early on, from the Caribbean, while "Oriental" tobaccos are this same Caribbean Virginia planted in Greece, Bulgaria, &c.

Different locale, different plant.

:face:
 
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