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Your "go to" leaf...(groan)

My go to is Nightcap, always satisfies me. Probably not recommended as a "get your feet wet" tobacco. I'm an English fan, so there's that. I'd say get a variety of blends. I think there was an attempt at one time to do a "quintessential" blend thread that had your prototypical blends for each style of tobacco. I'd say try these if you can to get a taste for each style:
English - Nightcap (heavier english) Squadron Leader (light english);
Virginia (FVF - straight virginia) virginia blend HoTW;
VaPer - Escudo;
Burley - Old Joe Krantz; Stonehaven (delish boutique burley);
Aromatic - Lane 1Q...

So many more that could fill this list. Just a short "off the cuff" list of what I consider quality blends that offer a good idea of the tobacco blend style - I've probably overlooked a few styles as well. I haven't dabbled on the Stock Exchange in a while, though when I first started my journey I was blessed to have a good variety of samples sent my way. I'd be willing to send a few samples your way (given that your in the US and it hasn't become a big hassle to send in a small USPS flat rate box), though I believe that you would need to start a thread on the Stock Exchange for that to happen. If you get over to the stock exchange, then tag me and we can get something going. 🤙
 
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AimlessWanderer

Remember to forget me!
My go to is Nightcap, always satisfies me. Probably not recommended as a "get your feet wet" tobacco. I'm an English fan, so there's that. I'd say get a variety of blends. I think there was an attempt at one time to do a "quintessential" blend thread that had your prototypical blends for each style of tobacco. I'd say try these if you can to get a taste for each style:
English - Nightcap (heavier english) Squadron Leader (light english);
Virginia (FVF - straight virginia) virginia blend HoTW;
VaPer - Escudo;
Burley - Old Joe Krantz; Stonehaven (delish boutique burley);
Aromatic - Lane 1Q...

So many more that could fill this list. Just a short "off the cuff" list of what I consider quality blends that offer a good idea of the tobacco blend style - I've probably overlooked a few styles as well. I haven't dabbled on the Stock Exchange in a while, though when I first started my journey I was blessed to have a good variety of samples sent my way. I'd be willing to send a few samples your way (given that your in the US and it hasn't become a big hassle to send in a small USPS flat rate box), though I believe that you would need to start a thread on the Stock Exchange for that to happen. If you get over to the stock exchange, then tag me and we can get something going. 🤙

Although I do like to have my net cast wide (as per post #19), I could probably get my quite comfortably with just a select few of each category... if I had to. Of course, I'd rather not have to.

My top picks per category would probably be:

English - Squadron Leader, Skiff Mixture
Virg/Bur - Revor Plug, Peterson Irish Flake, Coniston Cut Plug Unscented
Lakeland - Condor Flake, Grousemoor, No.7 Broken Flake
Aromatics - Gawith Hoggarth Red, Rattray's Sir William, Peterson University Flake, Gawith Hoggarth Reunion Flake (though this is the main category where I really would like a lot more variety)
Virginia - Gawith Hoggarth Four Squires, Gawith Hoggarth Bright CR Flake, Peterson Sherlock Holmes
Virg/Per - Gawith Hoggarth No.27 Perique Flake, Solani Virginia Flake.

Germain's would have been on the list, with Brown Flake, Rich Dark Flake, 1820 Flake, and Royal Jersey Perique, but I'm not interested in chasing down stuff that's hard to get. Not when so many good blends are so readily available over here. If they ever become a normal stock item, I might consider having a dabble with them again, but they're not worth the hassle... or expense... at the moment, in my opinion.
 
What a great question! I'm not sure how to answer it. What separates my favorites from go-to blends? Every one of my favorites as well as my go-tos has started in my rotation as a fad. And now I'm not quite sure how to differentiate the favorites from the go tos.

Some of my go to blends have nothing to do with me or my smoking. 7Seas Black is Mrs. Rookie's absolute favorite smelling tobacco. While I'm not a huge fan of cavendish based aromatics I do like smoking in the car and other places around her.

Some of my go tos aren't my favorite in category. Oriental Silk is my go to blend for breakfast, I haven't found anything better with coffee than an oriental forward Virginia blend. But why OS and not Sunday Picnic? The cut. I haven't figured out how to roll and stuff or fold or whatever for flakes. The only way I can get a consistently good smoke from a flake is to rub it out. In the car commuting to work it's far easier to codger scoop a bowl full of OS than rub out the broken flakes of Sunday Picnic, which I actually like better. The dry ribbons keep me reaching for a set it and forget it kind of smoking I do in the car where I smoke breakfasts 5 days out of 7.

Sometimes my go to blends are my go to because they are in fact my favorites in a category, or at least favorites for now. Haunted Bookshop and J4 Burley are great examples of that. They are my go to burleys because they are (again right now) my favorite burleys. They smoke great, taste great, and are affordable. Which brings me to my next thought.

My go to va/per is Sutliff Victorian. I like Elizabethian better. But Sutliff's offering is much cheaper and available in bulk. I guess it's like having a bottle of Johnny Walker for my nightcap while the bottle of Sagamore sits collecting dust until a suitable occasion presents itself.

To throw our another variable, because it's fun, are blending houses. Peter Stokkebye takes that honor. It's true that none of my top favorites or go to blends come from Stokkebye, as a whole they are such quality blends at reasonable prices that I'll happily recommend anything they make. They are consistently good. I haven't had anything from them that was disappointing. Quality leaf each time, just some of the blends aren't my cup of tea and some of their blends aren't quite as good as other offerings from other houses. But that isn't the same as not good blends.

Oriental Silk, Field and Stream Match, 7Seas Black, J4 Burley, Victoria (Elizabethian Match), and Haunted Bookshop would be my tl;dr list.
 
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