Wilke Pipe Tobacco Wilke No. 188

I tried this in seven pipes with differing results, but in the end I’m giving away the remainder of my supply. In non-filtered cob and meer this was a ghastly 1-star experience. Exceedingly weedy, and a real chore to even finish a bowl simply for the purpose of an evaluation. Yes, all my pipes are cleaned after every use (Everclear or 151) and allowed to sit for several days. Have you ever had dandelion weed in a salad or steeped as a tea? With Brigham filters or Falcon’s proprietary cellulose filters the rating goes up to 2-stars with the weedy character now more of a dry grass and Echinacea. Just a hint of herbal bitterness and a fleeting wisp of the caramel-toffee-tinged Cavendish. Best results were in a Savinelli 673 using the new 6mm charcoal filter, now we’re at 2.5 stars, with no weeds in the garden, smoother mid-palate, and more consistent caramel.

As for what leaf does what, who cares? I can’t get past the unkempt garden weeds.

These inconsistencies between the older reviews and what I receive have me scared off of buying anything in large quantity from boutique blenders. I know it’s not my taste buds because I take my evaluative capabilities very seriously (i.e. if I’d had any Naproxen in my system for the last 24 hours) and of course you can read my profile to see about my background as a wine and food educator, and specialty coffee reviewer. It’s not just the boutique tobacco blenders suffering from product consistency as I recently reviewed a coffee that won the 2020 award for best espresso blend, and my fresh 2-pound bag was tainted with bell pepper pyrazine, making it unusable! Still, frustrating when it’s all on my own nickel.