Recent Articles | Smokingpipes Daily Reader

Tasting Notes: Missouri Meerschaum Luminaire

July 21, 2023 by Shane Ireland

2 Comments

This episode of "Tasting Notes" examines a new tobacco called Luminaire. It's one of three new blends from Missouri Meerschaum, the other two being Party Line and Drawdown, which we'll cover in upcoming videos. ... Read More

Introducing Small Batch: Sun Bear Tupelo, The Latest Iteration of C&D's Most Popular Summertime Blend

July 21, 2023 by Chuck Stanion

16 Comments

What often differentiates good tobaccos from great tobaccos is nuance. It's the subtle alterations that commend a particular mixture, perhaps through a well-aged component, the minimalist addition of a proprietary top note, or the application of long-term pressure. It doesn't take much to modify a blend in interesting and ... Read More

Introducing: Caribbean Blue by Kohlhase & Kopp

July 19, 2023 by Gabriel Bass

German blenders Kohlhase & Kopp are responsible for producing many of the most sought-after pipe tobaccos among seasoned smokers. Anyone who enjoys Robert McConnell, Rattray's, Sillem's, or Solani has benefited from the expertise and passion that K&K bring to their work. I'm a particular fan of K&K blends, especially ... Read More

9th Annual American Pipe-Making Exposition

July 14, 2023 by Shane Ireland

2 Comments

It's time for our American Pipe Making Exposition 2023. The American Pipe Making Exposition is an annual event where we ask for submissions from some of our American carvers, submissions designed to push the limits of their comfort zones and the limits of pipe design in general, and all of this is tied together ... Read More

America's First Artisan Pipe Makers

July 13, 2023 by Gabriel Bass

7 Comments

When we think of artisan pipe makers these days, the image conjured is likely of a craftsman painstakingly shaping a block of briar amid a panoramic scene of lathes and belt sanders. The prevailing narrative is that pipe making was largely an industrial process prior to the mid-20th century, when Sixten Ivarsson ... Read More

Top 11 Best-Selling Burley Tobaccos

July 12, 2023 by Gabriel Bass

28 Comments

Updated for 2023. urley is, by definition, an air-cured varietal of tobacco. Unlike flue-cured leaf, Burley is more alkaline on the pH spectrum (rather than acidic), has practically zero sugar, and is naturally high in nicotine. In addition to its two most common grades, white and dark, Burley can also be smoked over ... Read More

Common Tobacco Pipe Materials: Briar, Meerschaum, and More

July 7, 2023 by Chuck Stanion

26 Comments

Modern pipes are made from a number of materials: briar, meerschaum, clay, various woods like cherrywood and olivewood, corn cobs, morta (also called bog-oak), and gourds are the most popular. They've withstood generations of use and have proven to be good performers. For someone just deciding to explore pipe ... Read More

Enhanced Pipe-Smoking Flavor and Comfort with Breath Smoking

July 6, 2023 by Chuck Stanion

10 Comments

Many of the challenges encountered by pipe smokers can be minimized or terminated through the practice of breath smoking. Breath smoking, when mastered, dispenses with excessive moisture and gurgle, tongue bite, frequent relights, and flavor compromised by the inordinate generation of heat. ... Read More

How to Pack Flake Tobacco

July 5, 2023 by Truett Smith

7 Comments

Today we're talking about flake tobacco and specifically how to pack it properly into a pipe. We've discussed packing ribbon tobacco, but flake tobacco adds one extra step to that process. Now some — especially beginners — might wonder why exactly we should smoke flake tobacco or why we would even want ... Read More

Smokingpipes' Own Shane Ireland Has Joined The Confrérie Des Maîtres Pipiers De Saint-Claude

June 30, 2023 by Chuck Stanion

22 Comments

The discovery of briarwood as a medium for pipes was perhaps the most important technological advancement in pipe-making history. Before briar, fragile clay and meerschaum pipes dominated the choices of pipe smokers, supplemented by pipes of various kinds of wood: boxwood, cherry, beech, maple ... Read More

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