Is there ever enough cigar and pipe related items to own? Most would say yes. To the fine ladies and gentleman in our circle the answer would be no. There will always be something new and exciting that catches your eye. You can try and fight the urge, but you will purchase it at some point. The Cigar Pipe caught my eye immediately. I didn't even try and fight this one. Purchased on the spot. Please take a moment and read the review below. This was one of those times that my urge was one hundred percent correct.
The Ad Copy:
Love your cigars but find it frustrating trying to finish out the last couple of inches? The various diameters this pipe offers provides a tight fit for most cigars so you can enjoy it to the very end.
Stats:
Product: Cigar Pipe
Retailer: Bulldog Cigars and Pipes
Designer: American Heritage Pipes
Carver: American Heritage Pipes
Material: Maple
Diameters: 1", 7/8", 3/4", 5/8"
Pricing: $150.00
First Impression:
I was sold on this as soon as I seen it on Bulldog Pipe and Cigar's Instagram page. We have all "nubbed" a cigar down to nothing. There are spikes, daggers, burnt fingertips, and a ton of other ways to accomplish this. This was intriguing to me since the inside was gauged specifically for cigars. My curiosity alone made this purchase easy.
First Usage:
This pipe is beautiful. Well carved with a great finish. I honestly had a brief moment where I was just going to display it and not use it. I did come to my senses and moved forward. The first cigar I used was a NUB Tripe Roast. Love this cigar and make every attempt to smoke it down to nothing. Inserting the cigar was actually very easy due to the multiple grooves in the bowl. The only thing that I did was insert it a little before it was actually at the nub level. I wanted to see if I could keep the cigar lit and insert it without burning my fingers which I could without an issue. Once inserted I took my first draw and it was amazing. I feel like it had a stronger taste through the pipe, but that just could have been in my head. It does have a different feel smoking the cigar direct then finishing through a pipe. Something about the smoke having to travel changes it. The distance also seems to make the draw less warm then going direct form the cigar. All in all the experience was very pleasant and new to me.
One Week Review:
After one week with my new favorite accessory I have to say it has become part of my routine. I finished three cigars this week using this pipe. First, was the NUB Triple Roast. The second was an Opus X Lost City. The third and final cigar for the week was an Acid 1400cc. Each cigar was a different length and gauge. While the length doesn't matter as much the gauge does. I can say with 100% certainty that 48, 50, and 60 gauge work like a charm.
Two Week Review:
Two weeks down and I am very happy with this purchase. I find myself impatiently waiting to get down to the nub to use my new toy. In the second week of use my cigars of choice were a Liga Privada No.9 Belicoso and a San Cristobal Leviathan. Gauge sizes were 52 and 64. Again, there was zero issues with making these sizes to work with the pipe. In the interest of completion I grabbed some Seattle Pipe Club Plum Pudding tobacco and used it as a standard pipe. All was well int he world.
My Preference:
The cigars and tobacco I used are listed below. I did want to note that I did try and use tow different types of lighting methods. The two methods were butane torch and soft flame. While the torch did get thee job done it appeared to me that more than a few uses would damage my magnificent pipe. The other method used (my preferred method) was a soft flame from a Zippo pipe lighter. Just my humble opinion, but this is hands down my preference.
Cigars Used To Review:
I wanted to use a wide variety of cigars and sizes for the test. At the time of writing this review I was able to use the pipe with 5 different cigars. I also made use of it as a regular tobacco pipe. The cigars and pipe tobacco I used are listed below:
NUB Triple Roast - 4 x 60
Opus X Lost City - 6.75 x 48
Acid 1400cc - 5 x 50
Liga Privada No.9 Belicoso - 6 x 52
San Cristobal Leviathan - 6.5 x 64
Seattle Pipe Club Plum Pudding
Final Thoughts:
Amazing is the best way to to describe this pipe. It has a duel purpose and does them both very well. There is not much to say except this is one you will enjoy.
You can head over to Bulldog Pipe and Cigar website at www.bulldogpipeandcigar.com. You can also give them a call. Paul is very good with customer service and a very cool guy to speak with.