Is the intial few puffs supposed to be the best?

Is the intial few puffs supposed to be the best?

Hello All,

There is a question I have had for a while. When I light up and first
apply the charring light, the smoke is great. When I then light the
pipe, the smoke is fantastic for maybe 5-10 minutes. I can taste the
different nuances of the tobacco, and at this stage I tell myself,
"God, I love smoking my pipe".

Then it goes down hill from there. The smoke becomes harsh, hot and
that initial taste goes away. It tastes more like ash or something.
I've tried various tobaccos and pipes and it seems to hold true for
most. Any comments suggestions? Is this how it is supposed to be?

Thanks,

K

Re: Is the intial few puffs supposed to be the best?

On Thu, 3 Jul 2008 13:00:44 -0700 (PDT), k_pip_k wrote:

> Then it goes down hill from there. The smoke becomes harsh, hot and
> that initial taste goes away. It tastes more like ash or
> something.

I would guess it's from smoking too fast. I have the same problem, and
I'm not a gentle puffer. From what I gather, smoking too fast raises
the temp in the bowl, creating excess pipe juice, which soaks the
tobak underneath. When you reach that tobak, it burns harsh and
flavorless.

Many have said that they learned to smoke slowly by smoking VAs.
Straight VA *has* to be smoked slowly, or else it burns the hell out
of your tongue.

Hope you're well,
Ian
--
It is better to have loafed and lost than
never to have loafed at all. (James Thurber)
http :// www .aspipes.org/
http :// www .bookstacks.org/

Re: Is the intial few puffs supposed to be the best?

On Jul 3, 4:04 pm, Lance Manyon <rastall...@gmail,com > wrote:
> On Thu, 3 Jul 2008 13:00:44 -0700 (PDT), k pip k wrote:
> > Then it goes down hill from there.  The smoke becomes harsh, hot and
> > that initial taste goes away.  It tastes more like ash or
> > something.
>
> I would guess it's from smoking too fast. I have the same problem, and
> I'm not a gentle puffer. From what I gather, smoking too fast raises
> the temp in the bowl, creating excess pipe juice, which soaks the
> tobak underneath. When you reach that tobak, it burns harsh and
> flavorless.
>
> Many have said that they learned to smoke slowly by smoking VAs.
> Straight VA *has* to be smoked slowly, or else it burns the hell out
> of your tongue.
>
> Hope you're well,
> Ian
> --
> It is better to have loafed and lost than
> never to have loafed at all. (James Thurber) http :// www .aspipes.org/http://www .bookstacks.org/

I am a slow smoker, but I enjoy the entire bowl for different
reasons. I suppose the middle bowl smoke is just about right for me.
jerrygarrison

Re: Is the intial few puffs supposed to be the best?

I think a lot of pipesters go too easy on the charing lights, then find
themselves over puffing to keep things going. Try taking a more aggressive
approach to your charing light, clear the smoke fully and quickly from your
mouth, then wait a few beats before puffing. I find that while this may
rarely produce a "harsh" charing light, it's at least with fresh tobacco,
not tobacco and ash. I also find this method makes for a more pleasurable
smoke over all.

You might also try exhaling out through your nose ocassionally to "freshen"
the flavor of your smoke.

Andrew


k pip k <ken.kamdar@gmail,com > wrote in message
news:ff8f17fa-24eb-4086-915a-a76144081d5a@w8g2000prd.googlegroups,com ...
> Hello All,
>
> There is a question I have had for a while. When I light up and first
> apply the charring light, the smoke is great. When I then light the
> pipe, the smoke is fantastic for maybe 5-10 minutes. I can taste the
> different nuances of the tobacco, and at this stage I tell myself,
> "God, I love smoking my pipe".
>
> Then it goes down hill from there. The smoke becomes harsh, hot and
> that initial taste goes away. It tastes more like ash or something.
> I've tried various tobaccos and pipes and it seems to hold true for
> most. Any comments suggestions? Is this how it is supposed to be?
>
> Thanks,
>
> K

Re: Is the intial few puffs supposed to be the best?

k pip k wrote:
> Hello All,
>
> There is a question I have had for a while. When I light up and first
> apply the charring light, the smoke is great. When I then light the
> pipe, the smoke is fantastic for maybe 5-10 minutes. I can taste the
> different nuances of the tobacco, and at this stage I tell myself,
> "God, I love smoking my pipe".
>
> Then it goes down hill from there. The smoke becomes harsh, hot and
> that initial taste goes away. It tastes more like ash or something.
> I've tried various tobaccos and pipes and it seems to hold true for
> most. Any comments suggestions? Is this how it is supposed to be?
>

No, it's not supposed to be like that!

How thoroughly do you clean your pipes? Whenever I experience an ashy,
tasteless smoke, it's because I haven't cleaned that particular pipe
recently. Swab out the stem and shank with alcohol soaked cleaners.
You'll be surprised how much brown gunk can build up in there.


Regards,

Tim Parker ... A&C Petersen's - Escudo in a Savinelli 1994
Pipe-of-the-Year

--
"Man will always be Man. We tried so hard to create a society that was
equal, where there'd be nothing to envy your neighbor. But there's
always something to envy: a smile; a friendship; something you don't
have and want to appropriate. In this world, even a Soviet one, there
will always be rich and poor; rich in gifts - poor in gifts, rich in
love - poor in love." - Comrade Commissar Danilov in "Enemy at the Gates"

Re: Is the intial few puffs supposed to be the best?

On Jul 3, 4:00 pm, k pip k <ken.kam...@gmail,com > wrote:
> Hello All,
>
> There is a question I have had for a while. When I light up and first
> apply the charring light, the smoke is great. When I then light the
> pipe, the smoke is fantastic for maybe 5-10 minutes. I can taste the
> different nuances of the tobacco, and at this stage I tell myself,
> "God, I love smoking my pipe".
>
> Then it goes down hill from there. The smoke becomes harsh, hot and
> that initial taste goes away. It tastes more like ash or something.
> I've tried various tobaccos and pipes and it seems to hold true for
> most. Any comments suggestions? Is this how it is supposed to be?
>
> Thanks,
>
> K

Ian is right; I think you're smoking too fast. The hot, harsh
description is a giveaway. Sip the smoke slowly. Remember it's not
how often you puff, it's how slowly you take in the smoke. Good luck.

Re: Is the intial few puffs supposed to be the best?

On Jul 3, 3:00 pm, k pip k <ken.kam...@gmail,com > wrote:
> Hello All,
>
> There is a question I have had for a while. When I light up and first
> apply the charring light, the smoke is great. When I then light the
> pipe, the smoke is fantastic for maybe 5-10 minutes. I can taste the
> different nuances of the tobacco, and at this stage I tell myself,
> "God, I love smoking my pipe".
>
> Then it goes down hill from there. The smoke becomes harsh, hot and
> that initial taste goes away. It tastes more like ash or something.
> I've tried various tobaccos and pipes and it seems to hold true for
> most. Any comments suggestions? Is this how it is supposed to be?
>
> Thanks,
>
> K

I have the same problem with aromatics. That is one reason that I do
not smoke many of them. I find Virginias to get better toward the end
of the bowl. The flavor builds to a crescendo and then it is all
gone. I did have to learn how to enjoy Va's without burning my
mouth. I still go too fast sometimes when I am distracted. I force
myself to slow down and get a much better result at the end of the
bowl. I sometimes dump a small amount of the ash out of the pipe
before the last relights. This makes lighting easier.
JMHO
I hope all is well in your world.
Mitchell

Re: Is the intial few puffs supposed to be the best?

I have a quick draw and the same thing used to happen to me. If you
fill your pipe with too much tobacco or press it down too much when
filling your pipe, then your pipe can actually filter out the taste
of the tobacco. the tobacco underneath will just act like a filter
for the smoke coming down from above it. Try using the gravity fill
method with a larger bowled pipe and you will notice the difference.
Gravity fill does the trick because there is more air for the tobacco
to get through to the shank.

The Great Pawn Hunter
Aspian since Jan 07
smoking pipes for 29 years