Pipes on the ships of old were nothing new. Tobacco and rum made their appearance in short order with tobacco inherited from American Indians and rum from the Caribbean. Smoking aboard ship was allowed by limited to a safe area and at safe times, ergo the "smoking lamp". Where? Usually near the Galley, as it is here. A huge thanks to the amazing da'rum - a man of high ideals and many talents. This is just one of them.
FLAKE CUT: Tobacco packaged as large, flat flakes. Must be rubbed out to separate the flakes. One can also fold the flake, first lengthwise and then across the flake. This would then be simply inserted into a pipe and lit.
RIBBON CUT: Tobacco cut into long, thin ribbons, though not as long or as fine as SHAG.
Plug: Pressed tobacco in a block.
SHAG: Tobacco which has been shredded very finely. Renowned as the type of preference for Sherlock Holmes; at that time, shag was considered an inferior grade.
NAVY CUT: Traditionally the tobacco was put in a long thin canvas tube and twisted tight. Later when taken out it was a an 1″ thick rope of tobacco. If a piece was cut off its called a plug. Sliced examples of this style are Escudo, Three Nuns Slices, Bengal Slices. This is generally a slow burning tobacco.
There is also Cube cut, not to be mistaken with Plug. Cube cut is a method of preparing Flake or Plug tobacco by cutting it again into small squares approx 3x3mm and loading that with medium pressure into your pipe. It creates a cool and steady burn and does help in limiting re-lights.
What with Sue Sea's accident, I've spent minimal time but please know your efforts are appreciated. A question: way back when I smoked pipes it was mostly a matter of buying a package of tobacco that was already shredded (Sherlock's shag?), then tamp it down a bit, light and smoke, relight as necessary.
I'm fascinated and surprise, so is Sue Sea. Our question: if you were to smoke the same blend but in these various forms: flake, block, shag, rfibbon, Navy, cube) what differences if any, would be noted?
Is one form better than another (assuming you have a choice), and why?
This is a tricky question to answer because there are many blends that are the same as in Virginia/Perique (VaPer) or Virginia/Burley (VaBu) along with many others. However the flavour changes with each brand, form and casing technique.
It would be very rare to find the exact same brand selling the exact same blend in different forms.
What I can answer is what differences in flavour and burn quality one could expect in the different forms.
Ribbon cut/Ready Rubbed
Packing
This is easier to pack than other forms, especially for beginners but one must take care to not pack too tight or too loose. If The tobacco is packed into the pipe correctly you should get a nice long smoke with fewer relights. It is normal to light your pipe and then let it go out then tamp down again and relight, this is par for the course and called the 'Char Light'. The 'Char Light' is done mainly because the Tobacco will expand on the first light therefore upsetting the firmness of the pack.
Taste
(a) Aromatic, if your ribbon cut tobacco is aromatic then the blend is made for an optimal flavour goal as set by the manufacturer. It is then up to the customer to decide if that flavour floats his boat or not. Keep in mind flavoured tobaccos can be heavy on humectant and can bite (1) so smoke slowly and judiciously.
(b) Non Aromatic, for your cased but minimally or non flavoured tobacco. There are some absolutely fantastic ready rubbed/ ribbon cut tobaccos that can't be matched by a similar flake. Dunhill 'Nightcap' is a brilliant example of a ribbon cut and will have your eyes rolling to the back of your head as you slowly enjoy its character.
Next up Flake, Plug and Navy.
Ok here is where it's at for me.
I find myself buying and enjoying the compressed block form of tobacco than the Ribbon cut or Ready Rubbed form. I include in this all of the above 3.
Flake, Navy and Plug
Preparation and Packing,
Now these forms take a bit more effort to pack and take a little bit of trial and error to get right. Until you develop your 'knack' with these forms you will have occasional annoying repeating relight issues and burn control issues. DO NOT LET THIS DETER YOU!!! The time it takes to get acquainted with the packing techniques and what works for you is rewarded with arguably the best most satisfying smokes you can achieve with a pipe.
Technique 1; Rubbing out (with plug you must first cut a slice from the plug with a sharp knife.)
Taking a piece of Flake, Navy Roll or Plug slice (from now on referred to as FNP ) roll it gently in the palm of your hand until it breaks up into stringy springy pieces that can be packed into the pipe bowl in the same way as Ribbon cut/Ready rubbed.
This is a good way for FNP beginners to try a FNP as it is a stepping stone to the flavours that the FNP's deliver. However some of the character of the tobacco is lost due to this process.
Technique 2; Cube cut.
This is the process of cutting the FNP into small squares of about 3-5 mm x 3-5 mm (1/8- 3/16) and loading them into the bowl with a firm but not too firm pack. This method enables a cool flavourful smoke and really makes the most out of the production process. It is arguably the best way to prepare FNP but with the draw back of needing scissors or a sharp knife and time to prepare. If the smoker has the time then this is the method for him.
Technique 3; Fold and Stuff
This is the method of simply folding your piece of FNP in half lengthways then again widthways twisting a bit and stuffing the tobacco into your pipe. When I'm out and about this is the method I use but has taken me quite a bit of time to get it right. It provides a great smoke and runs an extremely close second to the Cube Cut method. The drawback is that if you aren't already confident with the firmness of the pack required for your pipe you can tend to either pack too loose or too tight. The upside is you can have a pipe ready to rock n roll in about 15 seconds.
Note 1 Bite or Tongue Bite, this is a common problem with people who hungrily puff away at their pipes. The tobacco will burn hot, create steam and cook the end of your tongue. It is not the tobacco that is normally the problem but instead moisture and heat combining. If you are or were a cigarette smoker you are going to have to learn a whole new way of enjoying tobacco if you take up pipe smoking. Hungrily puffing will destroy your pipe, your tongue, your tobaccos flavour and any chance of enjoyment. Sip your pipe, take your time. If you are going to err then err on the side of smoking too slow as a relight is much preferred to tongue bite and buying a new pipe. Tongue bite will heal in a few days but very much undesirable.
