Steel Close Up: Camillus 18508

What haven't I said about this knife? Oh, that it's good...I guess it's kind of growing on me, a decent project knife for me to hone my sheath making skill and something I really don't mind modifying. Let the pictures do the talking.

Steel Close Up: Ka-Bar Foliage Green

I thought this knife would be unwieldy and big, lacking style and function. I was wrong. This knife is great, and has capability of being a great bushwhacking blade you can keep on your side. I was out in th backwoods and needed something along these lines to assist me in my journey. Also, I enjoy owning a piece of history, Ka-Bar is true history. So I got what I wanted, not necessarily the classic, not necessarily the all black tactical knife; something different. You be the judge, this is more than I ever expected from a blade this size.

Keep your steel sharp my friends.

Pipe Close Up: The Scoot

I think this is that part of my Kentucky collection, I should be getting my MacQueens and the rest of my collection in the mail shortly. So this close up has to tide you over for a little while; sorry.

New Brew: Peach'n'Apple Stout

I'll be honest, there's not much I didn't cover in the extensive video, but at least I can use this blog for showing you what happened before the camera started rolling. I chopped up some peaches and an apple very thinly, surface area is key to extracting flavors and let them boil for fifteen minutes. I added a touch of molasses before the boil to merry the flavors. After fifteen minutes had passed I was left with about a cup of water, so I topped up to about 4 cups total with some spring water, and added molasses turned the burner on high until it came to a boil. The camera was rolling at that point, so here's a progression of the wart prior to that point:

 While it reaches a boil.

 During the boil.

 After adding extra water and molasses.

 The boil prior to adding any malt.

Hope you enjoy and learn from the video, it was a difficult single take endeavor full of rambles, foibles, and some solid fundamentals of brewing. 

Pipe Close Up: Peterson Flame Grain

I got this pipe from my darling girlfriend for Christmas. I only own one other Peterson and it's a standard bargain bin straight estate. This pipe really shows me the quality in briar and the great smoke a true Peterson can have. They are one of my new favorite brands.

Tobacco Close Up: Christmas Cheer

I've seen this McClelland blend every year since I started smoking a pipe. I never really had any idea what it was suppose to be like or if it was just a gimmick. After the end of the year you can almost always find this blend on sale for a fairly reasonable price. This year I decided to try it. The tobacco is mini-flakes that have the fragrance of sweet almost fruity tobacco. Despite being a little moist for my taste this has become one of my favorite tobaccos to smoke on special occasions. Here are some pictures; expect a review to be on my channel.

Cigar Review: PANACEA Azul

Flatbed Cigar Co. makes allot of sticks that I have enjoyed. They're quality, cheap, and down right solid cigars. Their cigars have no fancy names, they are strictly referred to by the color of the label. No gimmicks; the tobacco does the talking.

The Azul is a leathery sweet smelling tightly wrapped pyramid. The Cameroon wrapper shows some signs of holes but is very slick with a minute amount of tooth. There is a certain heft to this cigar, and it's foot is an amazingly tight composition of Dominican, Nicaraguan, and Pennsylvania tobaccos.

Upon cutting this cigar and giving it a few draws I taste pure tobacco creaminess with a hint of leather. Accompanied by a very slight sweetness that is the very vague representation of the sugars in the leaf.

Once lit your mouth is pinned by the clear presence of black coffee, that is so pronounced you can hardly taste the pleasant lightly toasted notes of nutty tobacco. As the burn progresses a hint of cocoa is added as the black coffee becomes the finish. The room note has a sweetness that is far more apparent than it is on the palate. The first third is mixed with slight complexities of leather and nutty note that I find extremely creamy. However, there is no note of spice  , which is something I was expecting.

By the time you're at the second third the amount of smoke produced has increased. The smoke is airy, but not bland. The flavors are bold but not over powering. The coffee and chocolate are now vague and I can't say I miss them with the pleasant hickory tobacco notes complimenting the creamy leather-nut finish. There is still no spice as it comes to a close, but it would be out of place in this cigar, it is certainly not needed.

The final thirds marks the smokiest, boldest section of this cigar. The smoke is thick, rich, and blue. The black coffee is back now, and bolder than ever. However the nutty flavor has subsided and given way to a much more complex and earthy hickory leather note. The closing remarks are still slightly sweet with hints of dark chocolate certainly leaving you with a pleasant memory.

Despite having to play with the cap of this cigar to get a decent pull from time to time it is one of the most interesting PANACEA's by far. The smoke increases gradually until you are almost overwhelmed. The heart of flavors build and subside then come back again to keep the smoke interesting throughout. This cigar is never dull and isn't necessarily the best offering from Flatbed, but it exemplifies the deliciousness of a Cameroon wrapper perfectly.

Keep on smokin'

Pipe Close Up: Mr. Brog Oak

I cannot stress the affordability of these pipes enough; they are cheap! Also, I find them extremely interesting. You can find them on Amazon with free shipping which makes them super accessible keep in mind you do get what you pay for, so don't expect to be turning any heads.

 I was still smoking it while taking pictures.

Pipe Close Up: Chris Askwith

Chris Askwith has a very unique style that is exemplified in everyone of his pipes. Each pipe is a one of a kind work of art with a very smooth pull and dry smoke. The bowl is pre carbonized so it smokes excellent out of the box and only gets better with time; which is surprising because it's already pretty good. Well, enough of my jawing here's what the video couldn't show: