Here We Go AGAIN

[wdteipen]

IAWR.

Dry briar is the key to a good smoker not old briar. It just so happens that most old briar is pretty dry.

[pipedreamer]

My Briar is Magic! I cut holes in it and smoke comes out, Really.

[Yak]

OK, children.

Has anyone who's been doing this long enough noticed (or been reliaby informed of) a difference in taste between briar

-- from different countries ? (If so, what ?).

-- differently aged ? (Longer = better ? No ?)

IOW is there the end of a string here that can potentially be rolled into a ball of experience-based agreement ?

[Sasquatch]

Actually yes, and my experience mirrors Trever Talbert's:

http://talbertpipes.blogspot.ca/2007/04 ... briar.html



Really, whether briar is Algerian or Corsican or Martian, how it is processed seems to be more important than where it grew. Mimmo's blocks are absolutely uniform in color and texture, and he candidly admits that he gets it trucked in from ALL OVER THE MED.

Now, I've used Algerian from Yazid, Spanish from Jaume, Greek from Alex Zavvos and Makis Minetos, Italian from Mimmo, the Italian supply from Molina (Samantha on eBay), Tim West's stuff (greek at the time I think), and some from a mill in Tuscany I got through another pipe maker.

I can make generalities that agree with Trever's findings. In GENERAL the greek stuff seems to be a little earthier in flavor, a little darker. The Italian is either bright and almost tangy in flavor or sort of soft and muted, almost like a filtered pipe, depending on the mill. The Algerian tasted a little different, a little sharp too.

Now, these are VERY small differences, and lots of pipe smokers wouldn't find them or care about them and it's really, in my opinion, the least of a guy's worries in pipe making. The exact nuance of your briar flavor is not going to put anyone on or off your pipes.

I've sent multiple pipes to many guys, purchases or just tester pipes, and I've not hinted at my own findings (sometimes don't have findings yet) about the wood. For example, when I started with Makis, I sent some pipes out and asked for opinions. What I got back, across the board was "This wood is... nothing. It tastes like nothing, it's totally boring." I got that from about 6 different people. Contrast that with the Molina wood, which seems to offer a very shiny bright smoke without being bitey or sharp. Sweet and intense if anything, and I think Yak that you would agree with that.

After 50 smokes? I doubt anyone could tell anything about any pipe - briar source, oil cured.... none of it. Then you are left with a briar pipe and the mechanics of the pipe will dictate the final smoking properties more than the briar.

Are some pipes just insanely easy to smoke, and is it briar related? Seems to be. But the variables aren't controlled. I have a huge ugly pipe cut from defective Spanish wood, and good Lord, it's a smoker. Mechanically not ideal, but it just cruises along at the perfect temperature and offers wonderful flavor with everything you put in it. A magic pipe. Is it the wood? A factor. The drilling? Factor. The bore? Factor.... all factors. And the next guy might smoke that pipe and say "Meh, it's all right I guess."

So I chose a vendor that offered me good consistency, hardness and grain I liked, a good price, and shapes that I feel inspired by. And the pipes smoke.... just fine.

So that's all there is as far as I can tell. Pipes I cut from yesterday's wood smoke identically to pipes cut from 30 year old stock after 50 smokes.

[Yak]

Sweet, intense, lively, focused & transparent. Weightless soprano. If there's a letdown, no sign of it yet after a year.

[Vermont Freehand]

Sas hit the nail on the head.

Once a cake is built up in the chamber, I doubt anyone can tell any difference in the briar.

But, FWIW the 50 year old stuff does have some different characteristics than the newer stuff, and to understand it, you'll have to work the stuff and come up with your own conclusion. If you have never worked or tested briar that old, you should try, you'll see many noticable differences.

It's a fact that when briar is that old (in age, not growth rings), the color of the briar has a "seasoned" look, for lack of other words. It is consistantly darker throughout the whole block. There are always tannins etc inside wood, so when those tannins age, they reach a point where they are not affected by more drying and barely affected by sunlight (my ametuer mind calls it dead tannins). This is something you do not see in newer briar. It also has a distinct smell that is the same with the whole batch of old blocks, as opposed to newer briar that will have varying smells from block to block. The dryness of the old stuff is so consistant through the blocks, that I can only imagine that it soaks up more gunk compared to new briar. It will most definitely smoke cooler and dryer until it reaches the point of being fully caked, then will act as any pipe would.

Keep in mind, when you hear "100 year old briar", I would imagine that they are refering to a burl with 100 growth rings, not a burl that has been dried for 100 years.

[sandahlpipe]

I can attest to the smell of the briar. It smells like antique books when you're sanding and even has a hint of the same flavor for the first few smokes. Also, you can get away without the lighter coat of stain and still have a great contrast because the color is about what most people aim for in a contrast already.

Thanks, Sas for the thorough contribution. I've not tried nearly the variety of briar that you have.