Maybe I missed something here, but aren’t Black and Milds made from pipe tobacco? They certainly smell like it.
IANATU (tobacco user), but I can tell you that in my circle of friends, clove smokers are laughed at. Maybe it is all their mascara, I dunno. But I love the smell.
Cloves and cigarettes are kinda two different things for me. When I was a full-on pack-and-a-half-a-day smoker, cloves would knock me on my ass. It’s the only cigarette I smoked that I felt lightheaded and nauseous after smoking. I nearly vomited.
Needless to say, that experience has totally put me off cloves. Hate the cigarettes, hate the smell. I think they’re much harsher than regular cigarettes, but YMMV.
You know, I started with Pipes and Clove Cigarettes, and now that I smoke “real” cigarettes I have the exact same reaction to cloves. Just one and I am light headed and nauseous. And they tastes SO sweet.
I used to love em though. Bali’s or Djarum Blacks were great. I still occasionally think I like them and will by a pack, but without fail they make me sick and hurt my throat.
I despise that smell, far worse that ordinary cigs. Note that I have heard that one clove is about as bad for you as an entire pack of regular.
They’re made from really shitty pipe tobacco, as are Captain Black cigarettes and all the other pre-packaged junk.
What are close cigs? Are they flavored or something?
Also with flavored cigs & cigars how do they add the flavor? Someone told me with the ciggies its the filter and with the cigars its in teh leafs its rolled with. Any truth to this?
Clove Cigarettes are made of tobacco mixed with ground-up cloves (a fragrant herb.) They are traditionally smoked in Indonesia, but are also enjoyed all over the globe. They have a very distinct smell, somewhat sweet and “spicy,” and the cigarettes are usually rolled in colored paper. The most popular kind is Djarum, which is black. I have heard that cloves are worse for your health than regular cigarettes.
I used to smoke them when I was a teenager. They were “cool” when you’re a kid, then after that it’s generally considered kind of immature to smoke them.
Flavored cigarettes like the Camel Flavored cigarettes that were hot about three or four years ago and Nat Sherman’s mint cigarettes are flavored via the filter. As mentioned above, clove cigarettes have cloves and other spices ground up with the tobacco. Flavored cigars and pipe tobacco have flavorings added directly to the leaf.
From the wiki article: “It cured his chest pains and he started to market his invention to the village, but he died before he could mass market it.”
YEAH! Gimme some of that.
You can??
Damn. I’ve made special trips to El Paso or Flagstaff just to pick up some cloves.
I’ll have to check out Sandia on the way out of town tomorrow.
Tobacco loves to pick up ambient odors. Generally, to make flavored tobacco (menthol, vanilla, etc.), all you need to do is to put tobacco is the same enclosed area as some kind of flavoring agent. Wait a few days, and the tobacco will have picked up the flavour. “It’s in the filter” is a popular fallacy, but take a look the next time you’re somewhere that sells loose cigarette tobacco–you’ll see that you can buy menthol rolling tobacco. No filters included. Same for machine-made packaged cigars in various flavours; as well as various aromatic pipe tobaccos.
As for the OP, there are a number of reasons. Some were mentioned upthread–the different kinds of pipe tobacco, for instance–but it also has to do with the curing. Pipe tobaccos go through a lot of different curing techniques (pressing, heating, drying, etc.) depending on the blend that is being made and the natural flavours the blender is trying to produce. The oils in the tobacco need time to “marry,” or not, as the case may be; and there is also a leaching process that occurs so only a certain amount of natural nicotine is left. As was said, with pipe tobacco, it’s all about the flavour and aroma, and not about the nicotine kick, so the pipe tobacco curing process makes sure that pipe tobacco has plenty of flavour.
With cigarette tobacco, it’s a different story. Because cigarettes are inhaled, the idea is to cure the tobacco in such a way as to “lock in” the nicotine. This is generally done by “flue-curing,” which is a quick process involving (among other things) “toasting” the tobacco. Although I have no definite times for this process, I’d say it could be done in less than a week, compared to six to twelve months (or longer) for pipe and cigar tobacco.
There are a few other reasons as well–the cut of the tobacco, for example (cigarettes, being smaller, must necessarily have their tobacco cut finer if the draw and smoking quality is to be right)–but generally, it boils down to the above. Cigarettes are designed to be smoked frequently by folks who must satisfy their addiction, so a large amount of tobacco must be processed. This needs to be done as quickly and as efficiently as possible, and with flue-curing, it can be. Pipe and cigar smokers don’t inhale, so they don’t need the nicotine, but they do want the flavour. So the blender takes the necessary time with smaller batches (comparatively speaking) to see to their needs. Generally speaking, top quality pipe and cigar tobacco costs plenty more than cigarette tobacco, ounce-for-ounce, and this care in preparation and lengthy curing time is part of the reason why.
Wish I had some linked cites for this, but I don’t. What I do have is plenty of experience writing material for a couple of high-end tobacconists who specialized in pipes and premium handrolled cigars. I’ll have to stand on the research I had to do for my clients, and my clients’ experiences, and my own experience as a pipe and cigar smoker.
Thanks for the details, Spoons!
I have to admit, I’m sad that pipe tobacco isn’t more common. Maybe I can get some to stick in an incense burner.
Side question: Pipe smokers, when I encounter them, seem to practice their habit infrequently. Does this have more to do with the lower levels of nicotine in the product, or the fact that loading a pipe takes more time, effort, and expense? Behold, a classic, impossible to answer GQ question 
I’ll admit the method of burning the tobacco, between pipe and cigarette, is different, but isn’t the inhalation by the smoker different too? A pipe smoker doesn’t inhale as deeply, if at all, correct?
You can roll cigarettes with pipe tobacco, but as mentioned above, you will have multiple problems. One is that the tobacco won’t stay lit if you don’t constantly puff it. Ever watched a pipe smoker fiddling with his pipe? He has to relight often. Cigarette tobacco has stuff added to it to keep it lit. Notice that when a cig is put in the ashtray it burns right down all by itself. pipe tobacco won’t do that.
It used to be saltpeter that was added, but I don’t know if that is still used.
Isn’t the amount of curing time different also? Cigarette tobacco is drier, is it not?
Although many brands now advertise “No additives.” Makes it much safer, no?
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I used to work for a guy that rolled his own from Prince Albert. I guess years of practice had made him good at keeping them lit. They sure did smell better than regular cigarettes.
Not an impossible question at all. Your latter guess is more on point; the nicotine isn’t a factor really, since very few (and no serious) pipe smokers inhale. But the gadgetry and ritual needed for a good pipe smoking experience makes a pipe impractical in many situations.
First, I select the pipe I’m going to smoke. It generally won’t be the one I had a smoke in yesterday; they really should rest a day, preferably two, between smokes. Then, I choose the tobacco (at any given time, I may have up to three different blends on the go), and prepare it–if it is a flake tobacco, it needs rubbing out, for example. Other cuts need certain kinds of preparation too. Then, I fill my pipe carefully–don’t ask me how; I’ve done it for so long, it’s pure habit. Anyway, my filling technique works such that when I do light up, my pipe will stay lit for a long time before needing a relight. Check the draw–maybe tamp with a finger–check again, and I’m ready for a light. One light, then a tamp with a tamping tool, then another light, and I’m ready to sit back and enjoy my pipe for the next 30 to 60 minutes.
It does take time and effort to do it right (and well), so if I’m going to make time for a pipe, I’m going to do it when I can sit back and enjoy it without something else needing attention. I don’t have a pipe when I’m driving, working, or otherwise likely to be distracted somehow, but I will have one in my favourite easy chair when I have nothing more important than a good book or sports on TV to pay attention to, and I have the time (and the free hands) as well. Cigars aren’t nearly as complicated, but the idea is the same: a good smoke (and with cigars, it can also be a very expensive smoke) forces you to sit back and relax with it. You pay attention to it, in other words, because of the time, trouble, and expense you put into it.
And when it’s done, it’s done. Think of pipes and cigars as fine whiskies, and you’ll get the idea: having one or two is great, but there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. You can get drunk on single-malt Scotch, but that’s not why you drink it. Similarly, a good smoke is a treat to be savoured, not something to be overdone to the point where you feel ill from it. So when you finish your smoke, you set your pipe aside or you put your cigar nub down, and you look forward to the next one–tomorrow, or next week. No rush.
Not am impossible question at all, but I hope my answer makes sense.
Thanks again, Spoons!
Although, having your cigarette go out seems like a fine thing to me. My mother would often just leave them burning in a nearby ashtray, completely forgotten. If the buggers went out every few minutes, she’d probably save a lot of money. Plus, they would finally be more of a hassle than just quitting, and her perpetual excuse would be subverted.
The next time I am at a veterinary conference, I’ll keep my eyes open for a woman puffing on rolled pipe tobacco. . .it’ll likely be Pullet. (Especially if poultry topics abound)