Basic stuff

[Nic]

Hello all! This forum is packed with great information for those who have somewhat of a clue, I don't so this is why i want to ask some basic questions.
I am growing tobacco for the first time this year and after reading about y'all enthusiasm about blending etc I came to the conclusion that i need a pipe. A great way to try out the crop I thought so I decided to order some of those MM corn cob pipes and i'm also looking at WLT's 5 sampler pack as a Snus and Pipe starter kit just to get a clue of what to expect.

But now to the questions, and keep in mind I am new to this and just wanna get started and try it out (without the store bought crap).

1. When I get the tobacco what do I need to do to get it pipe-smokable? Just cut it up and smoke it? roll it to a rope? press it? stove it?
2. And for the blending part. What is a good blend with the types in that pack? Your favorites?
3. Anything else I need to get started? Latakia?


Thanks all, I will surely have some more Q's later.

 

[Jitterbugdude]

Nic, Just cut it up up and smoke it. Try each tobacco all by itself. It will give you a better understanding of what each variety contributes to a blend. Pipe blends vary a lot. Once you sample each variety you can decide if you prefer Burley more than Flue Cured. Once you decide, you can start adding other tobaccos. A common blend is Flue cured, Turkish and Latakia.

 

[Knucklehead]

You can make your own Perique: http://fairtradetobacco.com/threads/2873-Really-Easy-Perique-Press

And make your own Cavendish: http://fairtradetobacco.com/threads/637-Making-Black-Cavendish-Pipe-Tobacco

Pure tobacco pipe blends: http://fairtradetobacco.com/threads/3926-Pure-Tobacco-Pipe-Blends-You-Can-Make

Folks on the forum are still working on home made Latakia, so if you like Latakia go ahead and get some. Don has some great Latakia.

 

[DonH]

For pipe tobacco, I prefer pressing. It gives it the right consistency and burn rate and helps marry the flavors of the different types in the blend. But like JBD said just shredding and stuffing the pipe works well.

 

[Nic]

Nic, Just cut it up up and smoke it. Try each tobacco all by itself. It will give you a better understanding of what each variety contributes to a blend. Pipe blends vary a lot. Once you sample each variety you can decide if you prefer Burley more than Flue Cured. Once you decide, you can start adding other tobaccos. A common blend is Flue cured, Turkish and Latakia.

For pipe tobacco, I prefer pressing. It gives it the right consistency and burn rate and helps marry the flavors of the different types in the blend. But like JBD said just shredding and stuffing the pipe works well.

Thanks. I'll try both!

You can make your own Perique: http://fairtradetobacco.com/threads/2873-Really-Easy-Perique-Press

And make your own Cavendish: http://fairtradetobacco.com/threads/637-Making-Black-Cavendish-Pipe-Tobacco

Pure tobacco pipe blends: http://fairtradetobacco.com/threads/3926-Pure-Tobacco-Pipe-Blends-You-Can-Make

Folks on the forum are still working on home made Latakia, so if you like Latakia go ahead and get some. Don has some great Latakia.

The cavendish process looks easy enough and is surely one i will try! I have some counterfeit domenicans that I will try making cavendish of just to see how it goes. They ain't all bad but I got better so they were left in the box...
I think I'll leave the Latiaka and Perique processes untill later

 

[jolly]

Nic, Just cut it up up and smoke it. Try each tobacco all by itself. It will give you a better understanding of what each variety contributes to a blend. Pipe blends vary a lot. Once you sample each variety you can decide if you prefer Burley more than Flue Cured. Once you decide, you can start adding other tobaccos. A common blend is Flue cured, Turkish and Latakia.

This is excellent advice. Try them all by themselves first. It's hard to blend the ingredients if you don't have a handle on them individually -- not just from a taste perspective, but how they burn (fast/slow/med), nicotine strength...

I've found I enjoy straight burley if I mix lower stalk positions with upper in a 2 to 1 ratio. It's beautiful by itself. The lower stalk positions are mild, low nic, and burn really well. The upper portions are stronger and burn a bit slower. The tips I only use to spike blends with higher nicotine (easy to overdo).

While you're experimenting with the varieties by themselves, I'd also recommend experimenting with the cut by varying the size of the ribbons you're making. Pressing vs wide ribbon vs narrow ribbon can make a big difference in burn rate and taste. If you do this with pure varieties you'll have a better feel when it comes time to put them together.

 

[chris m]

I likes silver river by its self and the mcb was good to

 

[Nic]

Thanks for the tips guys!

I got the sampler pack last week and I have been doin some puffin on the corncob!
Just got in from smoking a pipe with straight firecured and I have to say I was surprised by the taste! Kinda acidic but still smooth?! very good imo. However, I didnt like the Maryland and Burley that much, not straight anyway. Maybe needs some time to age? My first blend turned out just fine tho, just mixed a bit of everything, put in some casing and sweet coffee liqueur. Put it in the oven to dry for a bit and into the pipe!

Now to the Questions
How long do you toast your tobacco, burley in particular?
I found some info on this forum and tried to toast some (soaked burley and virginia) in the oven set on 175 f (80C) for maybe 30 min and I couldn't tell a big difference from the non-toasted (Bare in mind that I have only been smoking a pipe for a week!)... I want to get it smother! What to do?

I'm about to do a second batch and have been studying this tread http://fairtradetobacco.com/threads/3926-Pure-Tobacco-Pipe-Blends-You-Can-Make thoroughly and now the baby woke from her nap, gtg

Thanks
//Nic