Sounds like a plan, I'm looking forward to hearing about it.
Peter,
Dunhill hasn't blended their own tobacco for a very long time. If you know the blend and its proportions I know blenders that sell good tobacco varietals and sell them in more reasonable quantities to blend it yourself. Any toppings of course would have been proprietorial so I don't know if that would be helpful or not.
on the off chance you didn't know.. bladder cancer is associated with Agent Orange and will almost always get you a disability rating. Contrary to years ago the VA is totally different this days and very responsive. If you were on the ground in RVN you are considered to have been exposed.
Blue Raccoon,
thanks for the info, however, I'm retired from the Navy and had Boots on the Ground in Nam during the spraying of AO, and was reevaluated about a year and a half ago. I was told that bladder cancer was NOT caused by AO. Have they changed, or we're they giving me the old VA BS. I had to go to the VA Facility in Portland, Or. Any help would be appreciated.Regards!
Safaripete
Thanks for chiming in on this Gareth.Hi Wilfredio
All the info given here by other members is good stuff, but most of the baccy recommendations aren't much use to us Europeans as we have difficulty getting American tobaccos!
My favourite, easy to get baccy from the Netherlands is Troost Slices, a flake tobacco with not much flavouring added. Lovely stuff. Of course, a flake is not ideal for a beginner but it is an easy flake to rub out before loading.
Also I have one of those Hans Christian Anderson sets, the Cutty style. Nice pipe and I tend to smoke it more as a standard length rather than the churchwarden! It doesn't get anywhere near the use of my couple of Falcons though. Now that's a great pipe for a beginner. Tough as an old boot and a great smoker, easy to clean and a cool smoke. Cost a bit more than a corn cob but far less than a lot of other pipes.
You don't say where you are in the Netherlands but if it's near Amsterdam, I can recommend a visit to Hajenius on Rokin. An amazing shop and museum! It has an excellent selection of pipes and tobaccos and a HUGH selection of cigars! Every time I've been to the city I've had to buy myself an Habano and smoke it in their lounge with their free coffee!
Good luck
Gareth
Thanks for chiming in on this Gareth.
I'm actually not living very near Amsterdam, but I've found a shop in the city of Zutphen (W. Schimmel) which supposedly has a nice collection of pipes. The website states it has a collection of 1000 pipes, so there must be something in there for me.
I've discussed this with the wife and she is actually very supportive which I think is pretty cool. Next week she and I have a couple days off, and we'll be going to have a look at my first pipe and tobacco. I'm not really sure about the HCA as my first pipe any more, but we'll see what comes out.
I will definitely let you guys know!
Wilfred.
I briefly smoked cigars when I was about your age, In the mid-90's they were all the rage. My fiancé couldn't stand the cigar smell but was OK with a pipe, so I switched.Have any of you started out on pipe-smoking and not having smoked cigarettes beforehand? And at what age?
I'm not looking for a daily habit which I know is not good for my health (but probably pretty good for my wellbeing), but more of an occasional indulgence. I really like the outlook of having the occasional pipe, sitting in peace and quiet for an hour or so with a good book and maybe a wee dram. Thing is, my head keeps telling me it's a bad decision but my feelings are telling me to go ahead and do it and don't worry about it.
Secondly I would like some practical advise. I read a bit on the net on the pro's and con's of materials, shapes and such. I really do like the looks of a churchwarden type pipe (something like the Peterson Prince), but I wonder if it would be a good beginner's choice?
Well, I've been to the nearest decent tobacconist last week ( see http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/292914-One-down-a-lot-more-to-go-I-think ) and the pipe I picked is a Big Ben made by a well known Dutch pipe manufactorer. They can be obtained in the states too I think.I agree that a missouri Meerschaum corncob is a good choice for a first pipe. I have several. If you get one I recomend getting a "forever stem" to go with as the stem that comes with it is plastic and leaves a lot to be desired.
If you have money to burn though, go Peterson. I may be what some would call a "Peterson snob", but IMHO there's nothing that smokes better, for any price. You can get into one for $70- $100 for many of their lines and have it forever. As far as shape, pick whatever feels good in hand. You will know it when you hold the one, it will just fit, in the hand and mouth it will just feel right. If you have a tobaconist in your area he will have little vinyl sleeves to put on the stem so you can put it in your mouth to see if you like it.
He will also be you best scource of advice on a tobacco to start with, probably a nice Cavendish rather than some wild tasting aromatic.
Brett
Hello to all here in the Brown Leaf, and thank you for putting me on to another pursuit...
Well, not really. I've had it in my mind for some time now to try a bit of pipe-smoking. Funny thing is that I am in my 35th year of life, and apart from a 2 week period in high school and the occasional cigar on new year's eve, I've never really smoked in my life.
So to firstly find out if I'm not a complete idiot and alone in this I want to ask the following:
Have any of you started out on pipe-smoking and not having smoked cigarettes beforehand? And at what age?
I'm not looking for a daily habbit which I know is not good for my health (but probably pretty good for my wellbeing), but more of an occasional indulgence. I really like the outlook of having the occasional pipe, sitting in peace and quiet for an hour or so with a good book and maybe a wee dram. Thing is, my head keeps telling me it's a bad decision but my feelings are telling me to go ahead and do it and don't worry about it.
Secondly I would like some practical advise. I read a bit on the net on the pro's and con's of materials, shapes and such. I really do like the looks of a churchwarden type pipe (something like the Peterson Prince), but I wonder if it would be a good beginner's choice?
Thanks in advance for your kind help.
Wilfred.