Did you love Latakia at first, or did it grow on you?

[Cool Breeze]

Title says it.

Was it love at first taste?
Or were you on the fence about it for a while and acquired a taste for it?

For me, it was the latter.
I was a very new pipe smoker and I tossed my hat into the NST for pipes. To that point I had mostly smoked aromatics, like many newbies. I was paired with @Tony78 who blew my doors off and included several English blends for me to try. I don't remember everything that was included but I know there was some aged Frog Morton, Dunhill EMP, Dunhill Nightcap, GL Pease Abingdon and probably a few more I'm not thinking of at the moment.

I immediately fell in love with the Virginias and Vapers that he sent, but wasn't so sure about the English blends.
At first the Frog Morton was the only one I really liked, as it was aged and had a nice sweetness and the Latakia was somewhat mellowed by the years it had spent in the tin.
By the time I smoked all of the Nightcap I was really enjoying it too. Next thing I knew I had smoked through most the English offerings.

Then out of nowhere a bomb was dropped on me by @Haebar . In this bomb I was introduced to C&D Billy Budd and PS Proper English. The Billy Budd is good but the Proper English is phenomenal. I would rank it definitely in the top 3 Lat blends I've tried so far.

So here I am a few months later, a borderline Lat whore thanks to these two guys.

[Shemp Jizzle]

actually it was backwards for me. At first i utterly loved the stuff but now i rarely can deal with it.

[tmoran]

I'm with Shemp. Lat blends were some of my early favorites. I hardly ever smoke them now. The few that I do smoke somewhat regularly are very light on the lat and usually have a bit of Cavendish for some sweetness. Then there is Pine Grove, which is a lat doesn't really taste like one. That's a good one.

[c.ortiz108]

As a new smoker, so far I like them best. Maybe it's because my dad smoked English blends so I grew up smelling it. To me it's the quintessential pipe smoke smell and flavor.

[JustTroItIn]

I loved them when I first started, but I think a lot of that had to do with my coming from the cigar side. Still really like them, but they're usually my morning or late night smoke now. During the day usually VA/VaPer.

[Cool Breeze]

Still really like them, but they're usually my morning or late night smoke now. During the day usually VA/VaPer.

I too enjoy English blends at night. I'm not much of a smoker in the a.m. myself.

I usually finish the night up with Lat though.

[cpmcdill]

I started with some Lane Limited and OTC blends and when I discovered English/Balkan I converted to non-aro. Now I distribute my attention between lat blends, virginias, vapers, and crossover blends (light aro with lat added). I like burleys and burley blends, but they are less of an everyday thing, unless I'm on a burley binge, which happens occasionally. Straight cavendish-based aros are quite rare for me nowadays.

[Haebar]

I started out with drug store blends in the 70's and was oblivious to Latakia until my first visit to the Tinder Box where I was impressed by the smell of the shop. I bought two of their Tinder Box blends, Epicurean and Connoisseur and enjoyed them. I like the smell of the tobacco itself in a room. I smoke English blends every once in a while but mostly smoke Virginias and/or Burleys, sometimes with Perique.

[Ropey]

actually it was backwards for me. At first i utterly loved the stuff but now i rarely can deal with it.

This is looking like my trajectory too. Started w it, now migrating to VaPers and aros. Not sure why.

[mooster]

I loved them right off the bat. In fact, I'd probably be smoking them still (along with my virginias, of course) but I just can't taste the stuff anymore. I still love the smell of it, but flavor-wise, it's just air.