Scott F.
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Peterson - Irish Whiskey 50g
Too Harsh
There are few tobaccos that I’ve ever considered throwing out after first trying them. If we don’t get along, I’ll usually throw them in a mason jar and let them age in my cellar to see if a little more time will help. For this one, there’s simply zero enjoyment for me. It’s way too harsh of a smoke. It’s like smoking a snuff tobacco. Usually the virginias will at least help pull the experience along but, in this case, it’s as though the harshness of the DFK overpowers the smoke. I may give it a couple more bowls to see if I can extract something from it, but, if not, it may be destined for the trash can. By far, it is the worst VaBur I’ve tried to date. Prov. 3:5,6

G. L. Pease - Penny Farthing 2oz
A Good VaPer w/ a DFK Chaser
Kuddos to Greg on a very enjoyable VaPer. This is my first shag cut and, out of the tin, it lights well, stays lit, and has a great moisture content. The flavor of the virginias and perique is spot on and the dark fired Kentucky adds a certain masculinity to the blend that sets it apart. I always look for tobacco that is enjoyable from first light to the bottom of the bowl and leaves you wanting more. One where you don’t want your pipe time to end. This cannot be said for a lot of tobaccos out there. But Penny Farthing hits the mark for me. I recommend it for those who enjoy good VaPers. Prov. 3:5,6

Rattray's - Wallace Flake 50g
The Good Stuff
If you enjoy VaBurs, this is a great representation of those blends. Burleys, to me, smoke with the nutty flavor profile of a pecan (pronounced peh-kahn not pee-can) shell. Add the Virginias to it, and you get an all around pleasant and enjoyable smoke. There’s a slight fruitiness in the retrohale. Take your time with it and you won’t get any harshness. I keep mine vacuum sealed in a mason jar with a 72% Bóveda humidity pack to keep it moist and ready. Prov. 3:5,6

G. L. Pease - The Virginia Cream 2oz
LOST IN TRANSLATION
I opened my first tin of this this morning on my drive in to work. The tin note is a pleasant vanilla/bourbon which is the desired result given the topping. But that's where the enjoyment ends. Now, full disclosure, G.L Pease is one of my first loves. I learned how to appreciate the complexities of 'baccy on Quiet Nights and have ordered a lot of Pease tins for my cellar. But this was bitter and harsh right out of the tin, which I contribute to the VA's in it, and didn't get much better. No harm nor foul there. You have to know how to take VA's if you're going to smoke them. After burning off the topping, I settled into more of the Perique which did improve the smoke a little. There was also the agitation in the retrohale which often comes with the addition of DFK in the blend. At the end of the day, a smoke should be enjoyable. That's what keeps us pipers coming back for more. This blend just doesn't translate. Prov. 3:5,6

A&C Petersen - Escudo Navy Deluxe 50g
Muscadine Grapes
Anyone raised in the Deep South is more than likely familiar with muscadine grapes. Shoot, we used to pick em straight off the vine and pop em in our mouths. So when, after smoking my first tin, I read that someone had picked up the faintest hint of muscadines, I realized that that was what I, too, was picking up on and why I was enjoying Escudo so much. Some may liken it to apricots or some other fruit. To each their own. Bottom line, Escudo has a permanent place in my cellar. It’s a sweet and tasty VaPer rolled in delightful coins that are easy to rub out and pack into your favorite pipe. The moisture content is great straight out of the tin for me with little drying time required. The muscadine is most prominent on the retrohale and it’s another one of those “baccys” that I enjoy all the way to the bottom of the bowl. Prov. 3:5,6

Orlik - Golden Sliced 100g
The Gold Standard
This is my first review EVER on SmokingPipes and I chose to do it on Orlik GS for a simple reason: it has become the standard I use when considering all other VAs or VaPers. I’ve lovingly dubbed it the “little man in the can” as anyone who opens a tin will know why. It is one of those tobaccos that I find myself enjoying all the way from start to finish. The virginias are sweet and enjoyable in the retrohale (look at me talking like a seasoned piper!) though I don’t get the Perique and probably wouldn’t know it if I did. I can’t recommend Orlik enough, especially for new pipers who have just learned how to properly “taste” their tobacco in the nasopharnyx where the majority of your sense of taste resides. I’m buying this up in the 100g tins as fast as I can get them and cannot wait to see how well it ages. Prov. 3:5,6

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Aleister Crowley: The Beast That Inspired The Beast
  • ► Hard Pass. C.S. Lewis is a far better example of a human being and Three Nuns is a better suggestion for a smoke. But don’t take my word for it. William H. writes, “ this stuff has zero attributes of perique and by the time it got blended with rum, cavendish, burley and God knows what else, the characteristics of perique have disappeared entirely”. Jewman22 adds, “ It tastes awful, yes there is a spiciness to it, and a little sweetness, but overall it just kinda ended up tasting like a fart”. Personally, I’m beginning to think that American tobacco companies are more about marketing and less about quality blends. I’ve yet to find a C&D blend that lives up to the hype and delivers the “wow” factor on first light. As for the association with a drug addicted occultist, I would advise SmokingPipes to “read the room.” Many of us pipers are the salt of the earth type and not ones to relate to opium dens and unfettered indulgence. I imagine the author of this piece, Rose Kiser, felt a bit like Lewis when he wrote The Screwtape Letters. Writing the mind of a devil isn’t a pleasant experience.
  • ► Crowley died 1 December 1947. He spent his final days sequestered in a single room in a boarding house in Hastings. Impoverished and bed-ridden, reportedly living off his “followers” and royalties from his writing, his legacy is that of a “hedonistic egomaniac, bent on acquiring power over others and addicted to sex and a multitude of mind-altering drugs.” So reprehensible was the man that his hometown forbade his being cremated within their boundaries. His death certificate gave the cause of death as: “1a Myocardial degeneration; II Chronic bronchitis; Chronic Heroin Addict”. Good job C&D.
  • ► I’m over it. I get so tired of companies that ignorantly wade into controversial subjects because they are either too stupid to realize it, or simply don’t care one way or the other. Instead, they get everyone all riled up and insulting one another and their religious leanings then call it “good” for business. Well, my invoices with SmokingPipes totaled over $1500 for the first quarter of this year. Maybe that matters. Maybe it don’t. But piping for me is a peaceable and contemplative hobby. Certainly not this. And for a company to be a facilitator of this vitriolic diatribe is offensive to me. Enough for me to consider purchasing elsewhere.
  • ► I would venture to guess that, among most pipers, you would be the exception rather than the rule, though I’m not so naive as to think that everyone believes the same way I do. And dissenting opinions and beliefs don’t bother me. What irritates me is that SmokingPipes had to know that this subject would agitate a lot of Believers who happen to be pipers, especially in the weeks leading up to Easter. So why do this now if not to accomplish exactly that? And if that is the case, what does that say about how this company views people like me? Is there a malignancy to this? It certainly seems suspect. And if that is the case, do I really want to patronize a company that has that much disdain for my beliefs? I’d say all of these are fair questions.
  • ► I doubt few companies that become mired in controversy set out to do so intentionally (though some do). But I take issue with this being a “contrived” as evidenced by the number of dissident comments. It seems to me that this has offended more than one person. I run a family business that deals with the public and I can assure you, I know what will and will not offend my customers. You don’t piss off the people that pay the bills.