Weird question: What brand of cigar did pirates smoke?

I'm a huge fan of the pirate era. Especially the "Golden Age of Piracy" so I really want to know the answer so I can find one! I'm also new to the cigar world!

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New Boots

Well, welcome to the boards!

I'm not real keen on pirate smokes, but stick around this place...I think you'll find it to your liking.

Amos Umwhat

Well, they had access to all the islands in the Caribbean, but I would guess they mostly smoked whatever the former Captain of their current vessel smoked. Likely more pipes than cigars, I'd think, but cigars have been around a long time. Interesting question.

edelrionyc

I'm sure we won't be able to find the exact cigar blend or line that pirates smokes. We can most likely figure out what islands they might have visited and smoke tobacco from that island. I don't think a cigar blend or line of tobacco is the exact same as those days.

New Boots

OR! We could all pool our money, buy a boat...and BECOME pirates!

webmost

usmc03grunt:
I'm a huge fan of the pirate era. Especially the "Golden Age of Piracy" so I really want to know the answer so I can find one! I'm also new to the cigar world!

Read your Esquemeling. IIRC, in the early part of his account, where he describes how the original boucaniers lived, he tells how they not only smoked meat, but planted tobacco, cured it, then hired torcedors to roll it. I'm not as familiar with Basil Ringrose, but I believe he mentions cigars as well. Of course, a lot of the cargoes they captured were tobacco leaf in bales or barrels.

In short, they rolled their own.

webmost

New Boots:
OR! We could all pool our money, buy a boat...and BECOME pirates!

Of course, a true pirate would not buy a boat; he'd steal it. I read once about a tanker takes Guinness to a bottling plant in Britain. Good place to start.

New Boots

webmost:
New Boots:
OR! We could all pool our money, buy a boat...and BECOME pirates!
Of course, a true pirate would not buy a boat; he'd steal it. I read once about a tanker takes Guinness to a bottling plant in Britain. Good place to start.

That does sound like a solid start!

***end thread-jack***

Lee.mcglynn

CgaRRRRRRRRs

Bob Luken

Wow. That makes me wonder,...... I would have thought that pipes were more common/popular at that time but then again, when did cigars, as a finished product, become widely available as a commodity?

Martel

Man, all the cool comments are taken. Guinness piracy? Good start. Cigarrrrrrrrs! Dang it!

Bob Luken

Lee.mcglynn:
CgaRRRRRRRRs

LMAO. Yes!

Gray4lines

Amos Umwhat:
Well, they had access to all the islands in the Caribbean, but I would guess they mostly smoked whatever the former Captain of their current vessel smoked. Likely more pipes than cigars, I'd think, but cigars have been around a long time. Interesting question.

Definitely more pipes. That's how rope tobacco came around I think. Tobacco is spun into a rope and it holds moisture very well. Can be cut off in chunks and smoked or chewed.

webmost

Lee.mcglynn:
CgaRRRRRRRRgs

fixed it for ya

raisindot

usmc03grunt:
I'm a huge fan of the pirate era. Especially the "Golden Age of Piracy" so I really want to know the answer so I can find one! I'm also new to the cigar world!

That's a great question! When the first Europeans came to the new world, tobacco was either chewed or wrapped in corn husks to create rudimentary cigars. North Americans natives used primitive pipes.

However, the "commercialization" (i,e. "branding" of tobacco products) really didn't come about until the 19th century. By that time, the golden age of piracy was largely over. So it's unlikely that pirates ever used a particular tobacco brand; they just bought (or stole) whatever they found on the islands or on the ships they captured. Maybe some preferred Virginia tobacco over Cuban tobacco, but it's doubtful that English pirates boarding a Spanish vessel ever found boxes of banded "Columbus" cigars or tobacco pouches on board. The stuff was generally shipped out in bulk.

flowbee

New Boots:
OR! We could all pool our money, buy a boat...and BECOME pirates!

Relocate to Somalia! they have pirates there

New Boots

flowbee:
New Boots:
OR! We could all pool our money, buy a boat...and BECOME pirates!
Relocate to Somalia! they have pirates there

On the job training! I LIKE IT!

jd50ae

"Tobacco was the usual 17th and 18th Century accompaniment to eating and drinking and could be taken by pirates in several forms : Snuff - ground and powdered tobacco flavoured with herbs or dried fruit and sniffed straight up the nose ; using tobacco leaves rolled into Spanish cigarillos - long thin cigars ; and of course shredded tobacco leaf smoked in clay pipes. Having tobacco but possessing no pipe saw seamen roll the shredded tobacco leaf in a scrap of paper in order to ‘draw the smoak’ through the paper tube - this emergency-practice later evolved into the first cigarettes. Tobacco was also chewed aboard ship to alleviate hunger-pangs and because many sailing ships had stern regulations about non-smoking on board when on duty. Pirates - though not in any way regulated by a captain as common seamen were - made themselves subject to some of these rules such as not smoking below decks ; any pirate found smoking an uncovered or un-lidded pipe below decks - or carrying an un-fastened candle-lantern there - would be subject to punishment as the danger of any uncontrolled fire aboard a ship at sea manned solely by habitual drunkards was an obvious hazard."

http://www.sea-thieves.com/education_pages/seathieves_edu_diet-tobacco.htm

No_one21

I've been sailing on ships like this one for about 14-15 years now so I could be the captain unless someone else is certified. Then I could be 1st mate hehe but my vote is we take this one:

http://www.easternyachts.com/grandturk/

New Boots

No_one21:
I've been sailing on ships like this one for about 14-15 years now so I could be the captain unless someone else is certified. Then I could be 1st mate hehe but my vote is we take this one:

http://www.easternyachts.com/grandturk/

No_One gets my vote as captain. It was my idea though, so I get to be Admiral. IE: Eat, drink, smoke, sleep. That is my job description.

Martel

usmc03grunt:
I'm a huge fan of the pirate era. Especially the "Golden Age of Piracy" so I really want to know the answer so I can find one! I'm also new to the cigar world!

How about...

Arrrrrrturo Fuente?

Lee.mcglynn

All answers are good but sorry guys they smoked viaje skull and bones jeez!

ckrddsmke

Darn and I thought their fav was "Tramp Stamps" or was it "Skull Crusher". Wonder what herbs they used?

honorknight7

No_one21

New Boots:
No_one21:
I've been sailing on ships like this one for about 14-15 years now so I could be the captain unless someone else is certified. Then I could be 1st mate hehe but my vote is we take this one:

http://www.easternyachts.com/grandturk/
No_One gets my vote as captain. It was my idea though, so I get to be Admiral. IE: Eat, drink, smoke, sleep. That is my job description.

This will be our theme song:

Jetmech_63

So a pirate walks into a bar with a steering wheel shoved in his pants...
Bartender says "hey buddy, what's with the steering wheel?"
Pirate responds "Arrrrrrr it's driving me nuts!"

BA dum tssss

ckrddsmke

honorknight7:

Were those salvage from the Queen Anne's Revenge?

New Boots

No_one21:
New Boots:
No_one21:
I've been sailing on ships like this one for about 14-15 years now so I could be the captain unless someone else is certified. Then I could be 1st mate hehe but my vote is we take this one:

http://www.easternyachts.com/grandturk/
No_One gets my vote as captain. It was my idea though, so I get to be Admiral. IE: Eat, drink, smoke, sleep. That is my job description.
This will be our theme song:

I'm down with the theme song!

Also, as Admiral, I assign Rain to be head wench.

LiquidChaos66

Martel:
usmc03grunt:
I'm a huge fan of the pirate era. Especially the "Golden Age of Piracy" so I really want to know the answer so I can find one! I'm also new to the cigar world!
How about...

Arrrrrrturo Fuente?

I can't be the only one to acknowledge te fact that this answer is the best one so far?

Ken Light

Really? No one suggested 5 Vegas Gold Nuggets yet? For shame!

Or Viaje Skull and Bones?

How about Berger and ARrrrrrgenti?

Of course they'd light and cut them with a Xikarrrrrrr....

jlmarta

Bob Luken:
Wow. That makes me wonder,...... I would have thought that pipes were more common/popular at that time but then again, when did cigars, as a finished product, become widely available as a commodity?

Your post just begs for a thread-jack, Bob, so here it is..... (Lol) what is the significance of the big ol' plane photo in your signature line??