Glossary

A

Aromatic: A type of tobacco which is either cased or top flavored in order to produce a taste and room note other than the tobacco's natural smell, whether simply sugar or molasses, whiskey or other alcohols, or many other flavorings. Used as a major category for pipe tobaccos, along with non-aromatic and latakia based blends.

B

Briar: Actually a mistranslation of the French bruyère, briar among pipe smokers refers to the wood of the erica arborea, a species of flowering plant in the heather family. After 30 to 60 years of growing time, the football sized plants are harvested, cooked, dried for several months, and further processed before they are made into pipes.

C

Cake: Cake refers to the buildup of residual carbon that forms in the bowl of a pipe. Most recommend trimming back the buildup to keep it at roughly the width of a dime in a briar pipe in order to create a protective layer which cools the pipe and reduces moisture. Cake is frowned upon in meerschaums, and the subject of much debate among corn cob pipe smokers.

D

Dottle: The leftover plug of unburnt tobacco and ash left in the heel of a pipe bowl after smoking. Dottle is avoided by smokers as a waste of tobacco and occasionally souring of the bowl, but is sometimes unavoidable.

Drama: A sweet type of tobacco with a natural olive oil fragrance grown on the Southern slopes and foothills of the Rhodope Mountains in Greek Eastern Macedonia.

E

English: Aside from the obvious geographical uses, the word "English" is often used among pipe smokers to refer to blends with latakia in them. In reality, however, the term only developed to differentiate blends made in the United Kingdom, especially in the days of the now defunct Tobacco Purity Laws, which prohibited humectants and most flavorings from being added to the tobacco. A more precise term is "latakia based".

F

Flake: Flake tobacco is made by slicing thin sheets off of a cube, which in turn is formed by pressing whole tobacco leaves into a compressed form, usually under significant pressure for long periods of time. Flake tobacco may be sold in slices, or fully or partially broken or rubbed out.

G

Ghost: A ghost is the taste or smell of a previously smoked tobacco remaining in a pipe and coloring the taste of a different blend smoked in the same pipe. Generally the cause of tar in the shank, but usually blamed on cake.

H

Hand: A hand is a bundle of tobacco tied at the end and hung from the knot for curing purposes.

I

Izmir: A type of Turkish tobacco with rich flavor, low nicotine, and cool smoke. It has a very aromatic nature and is often blended with Latakia to somewhat subdue this property. Primarily used as a condiment with pipe tobacco, but occasionally offered by itself.

K

Kentucky: Dark-Fired Kentucky is a type of pipe tobacco made from burley which is cured over a fire and flavored by its smoke.

O

Oriental: Used interchangeably with "Turkish" to refer to sun cured condimental tobaccos grown in the Eastern Mediterranean. This category of tobaccos includes Yenidje, Smyrna, Samsun, Izmir, Drama, Xanthe, and often Basma, which is not a particular leaf but a generic Turkish blend, and all that pipe tobacco blenders are often able to find due to the purchase of most oriental varietals by cigarette manufacturers.

P

Pipe: A tube with a small bowl at one end used for the smoking of tobacco.

P-Lip: A type of pipe mouthpiece invented by Peterson of Dublin and relying on a small hole on the top of a stem rather than a hole at its end. Meant to reduce tongue bite by directing the flow of smoke away from the tongue.

S

Slot: A slot is the wide opening at the end of the mouthpiece tapering into the airway of the pipe. Generally seen only on vulcanite and acrylic stems from the last century, the slot is funneled both to make the insertion of a pipe cleaner easier and to make for a smoother flow for the smoke.

Y

Yacht: Another name for the Zulu pipe shape, with a canted dublin bowl, oval shank and 1/8 bent stem. Among others, Kaywoodie used the term Yacht for pipes of this shape.

Z

Zulu: A shape of smoking pipe hallmarked by a canted dublin style bowl, an oval shank and a 1/8th bent stem. Also referred to as a Woodstock or a Yacht.