Half & Half

Darmon

Having never tried Half & Half I was wondering if anyone could liken it to some other blend or describe it for me.  P&C have it listed as an aromatic, is it heavy aro or just barely noticeable or somewhere in the middle?

PappyJoe

Personally I don't find it to be that heavy of an aromatic. It's one of the stalwarts of the old time OTCs and worth the money you spend on it. I think of it as a Carter Hall with more flavors added. A smooth smoke that has never bitten me.

Darmon

@pappyjoe thanks, i'll have to pick some up and try it out.

judandhispipe

That's one of the few of the old codger burleys that I have never smoked. I think @pappyjoe is right - those blends are worth what you spend on them. Maybe I'll smoke some at some point, but I won't rush out. 

PipeProfessor

No worries @Darmon, I have never smoked it either. My uncle smokes it and really enjoys it, so I may give it a go. I just picked up my first 'box' of Carter Hall the other day. I'll get around to opening it soon and may use it as a base in a mixture if it don't speak to me on it's own. 

PappyJoe

Just because it was sold in drugstores, doesn't mean its bad tobacco. The local drugstores down here all sell the high class hooch like Patron, Glenfiddich and Maker's Mark.

highstump

Half and Half was about all my dad smoked and the first tobacco I ever tried. I still keep a tub of it around along with PA and CH. As long as the pack is not tight, I find H&H to be a great smoke.

daveinlax

I've tried it and found it to be smoking composted grass clippings soaked in chemicals. 

tomatobodhi

I think it tastes like it has been soaked in robutussin and after one bowl it took months to get that flavor out of the pipe I smoked it in. I got some in a monthly club shipment and after I tried it I threw it away. I'm not being snobbish - I just really didn't care for it.

In all fairness, though, there is no accounting for taste.

PappyJoe

Some people are just born contrarians. Is Half & Half for everyone's taste? No. But consider how long it's been on the market. If it sucked that bad they would have stopped making it 40 or 50 years ago.

Kwaite2011

I agree with Pappyjoe and I think it's a great smoke. Try mixing it with a good cherry blend and it's even better...

tomatobodhi

"In all fairness, though, there is no accounting for taste."

PappyJoe

@tomatobodhi - yes. It cuts both ways.

drac2485

I cringe every time some one says mix it with cherry...  If it's that bad that you need to cover up the taste with cough syrup...  I haven't tried it yet but plan on it during my week off as I have somehow picked up a few pouches in various samplers.

lesliesrussell

I'm new here. But I have always found that aromatics take more patience than other blends. It requires infinitely more awareness and skill to enjoy than does the average English blend. Cadence is everything with aromatics. Blends like H&H are an acquired taste, but to my mind, worth the effort. The combination of anise, cherry, and licorice root is not for everyone to be sure, but if for no reason other than there historical significance to a segment of the world of pipe smoking, you should put forth the effort to gain the respect of blends like H&H.

dstrib

Going to have to give Half and Half a try. Usually see it in small town grocery stores just never pick it up. If it was really all that bad one would thing it would have gone the way of the dodo bird. Maybe I'll get a coupon in the mail for a good discount on a pouch. Just registered at one of STG Lanes other sites https://halfandhalfpipe.com/gate/

ghostsofpompeii

I'm another one who has never tried Half And Half -when I was younger I always thought of it as an old codger blend ... now that I'm an old codger it never occurred to me to give it a whirl. After all I've just recently returned to Carter Hall and forgot what a great simple smoke that was. Got to make a point of buying a pouch of Half And Half next time I'm at a Smoke Shop. It's probably one of the few blends those places actually carry.

pwkarch

Ghost

I have them all. Some days are just H&H, CH, PA, SWR, or whatever. Variety is the spice of life when it comes to pipe tobacco.

motie2

Half and Half is not half bad.....

ghostsofpompeii

Yea, but which half?

motie2

Well, being that it's supposed to be burley and bright, the burley is probably the better half.

Ropentie1

I like H & H, but only when it is very dry. Not sure why, but I just don't care for it much when it's moist. Same way with VaPer blends. Maybe I'm just a wuss!

Hiker007

I have some coupons for Half and Half.   However, I have not found any place locally that sells it. 

Corey562

Round here @Hiker007 most grocery stores carry it.

Hiker007

@Corey562

Mom and Pop stores or national chains?

Londy3

I never tried it either. Don't think I will. Seems like cigarette tobacco to me...

PappyJoe

@Londy3  You should the old "Codger" blends. Some of the are surprisingly good and for them to have survive being on the market as long as they have, well, let's say if they were bad they wouldn't be around. I have smoked Half & Half, Prince Albert and Carter Hall in the past year. A couple of months ago I acquire a 14 oz. tin of George Washington, which was made before 1974 and its better than some VABurs on the market today. 

Charles

Of all of the different tobaccos I have smoked throughout the years, PA, SWR, CH, and H&H are always my go to tobaccos.  For me, PA and SWR are my absolute go to tobaccos and I always have them in my rotation. I agree with PappyJoe, these tobaccos have been around a long time, some nearly 100-yrs and they are still just as good as they were in their time.  Would not give them up for anything. 

Corey562

@Hiker007 well I know Ingles market carries it and I am sure walmarts have it.

Woodsman

To me Carter Hall is a straightforward tobacco for when I just want a good uncomplicated  smoke.

motie2

I have been intrigued by the number of you who have had complimentary things to say about Carter Hall. 
Bradley at Stuff and Things made it the first of his four OTC reviews, as he usually reviews only English/Orientals and VaPers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSY2yl_5boo