Today, seven types of leaf are in general use for tobacco blending:

VIRGINIA: a sweet-tasting and light tobacco which forms a large part of the content of pipe tobacco in the UK.
BURLEY: an air-cured tobacco, mild yet distinctive in flavor, which provides the base for many mixtures.
SUN CURED: a stronger tobacco with a very full flavor
FIRE CURED: the strongest of all full-strength tobaccos, though it provides an exceptionally cool smoking quality.
ORIENTAL: grown largely in the Balkans and eastern Mediterranean: and providing a distinctively aromatic smoke.
LATAKIA: again, a product of the eastern Mediterranean, and used in certain mixtures to give a distinctive flavor.
PERIQUE: grown largely around New Orleans, and subject to a curing process known to only one family, perique is used as a seasoner for other pipe tobaccos, providing a distinctive taste and aroma.

Ultimately the pleasure of a good tobacco lies in the blending process: individual manufacturers jealously guard the secrets of their own brands, which are as numerous and distinctive as individual pipe designs - from the richness of Latakia-based mixture, to the mellowness of certain of the Virginia flakes.

The beginner is faced with a multitude of choices, and it is only by trial and error that he will find the exact blend to meet his taste.

Initially, however, a couple of points are well worth bearing in mind: that the lighter and more fine-cut the tobacco, the hotter and quicker it is to burn. The more moist, heavy and coarse the mix, the slower it is to burn and the more it relies on expertise to keep alight.

Between these extremes there is a wide range of choice and it is possibly better for the new Pipeman to select one of the blander varieties before experimenting with any of the more exotic, or rarefied brands. He should ideally start with a medium strength, ready-rubbed tobacco of a medium cut. Alternatively, imported tobaccos from Holland and Scandinavia offer many advantages to the new Pipesmoker. They are relatively mild, aromatic and pleasantly flavored, with the additional advantage of staying alight easily.

The golden rule is to keep trying and experiment with other brands. Sometimes the beginner may give up too soon just because he has got hold of the wrong tobacco for his palate.