Escoterica - Stonehaven. How to look for it?
- Thread starter stevuke79
- Start date
SmokingPipes.com Updates
Watch for Updates Twice a Week
PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor
Site Sponsors
PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor
PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor
PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor
PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor
- Status
What @metaheadycigar said, patience will pay off. I've managed to pick up most of what I want to try without chasing it, (still waiting on the Stonehaven, it will happen eventually) I think a lot of people have unrealistic expectations of these blends and end up being disappointed, I like the Pembroke and the Woodbridge, the Penzance was/is good but if I had spent a ton of time trying to track it down, or had spent more than msrp I probably would have felt a little let down.
I don't go out of my way to search for them but when I see it in stock I'll buy the blends I love. I've managed to get many pounds of Stonehaven, Penzance, Pembroke, Margate and Tilbury over the years and I have a lot of various tins. If you have a good local B&M I would check with them as that will be your best bet. When I lived in Portland, some of the shops there would actually take your name and number and call you when they get some in stock. I most definitely wouldn't pay the secondary market prices.
I will say that Margate is one of my all time favorite English blends, it's just sublime!
Good luck.
I will say that Margate is one of my all time favorite English blends, it's just sublime!
Good luck.
Stonehaven has a flavor topping on it so I don't really look for it, but the best thing to do is start looking around when you hear of one place getting a scarce blend/brand that you miss out on.
Margate's not bad and I have some in storage and the rotation, but I think that the "new" Sobranie is overall a similar but better experience.
:
:
Margate's not bad and I have some in storage and the rotation, but I think that the "new" Sobranie is overall a similar but better experience.
:
:
Agree with others, Stonehaven and Penzance are good, but not worth the hunt when there are so many other greats out there ( see a list below of some nice Virginia flake mixes you may enjoy ). VA flake is something that takes time; knowing correct pipe, dry times, taking time with the smoke are all key to having that GREAT experience - you may not get that pure smoking bliss every smoke but man when you do, just sit back and enjoy the ride. The strength of some of the flake listed below can creep up on you so until you know what your dealing with, start with smaller pipes, cone-shaped bowls work best IMHO and doing the fold/stuff with the flake will give you a great slow/cool burning smoke.
Peterson: University Flake
Dunhill: Flake
Astley's: No. 44 Dark Virginia Flak
Solani: Virginia Flake - 633
Fribourg & Treyer: Vintage Flake
Solani: Silver Label - 660
Wessex: Brigade Campaign Dark Flake
McClelland flake are outstanding, but take even more time to work out the balance - dry times, smoking speed, etc. I started with these blends when just starting out, OUCH - they tore my mouth up because I smoked them WAY too fast.
Peterson: University Flake
Dunhill: Flake
Astley's: No. 44 Dark Virginia Flak
Solani: Virginia Flake - 633
Fribourg & Treyer: Vintage Flake
Solani: Silver Label - 660
Wessex: Brigade Campaign Dark Flake
McClelland flake are outstanding, but take even more time to work out the balance - dry times, smoking speed, etc. I started with these blends when just starting out, OUCH - they tore my mouth up because I smoked them WAY too fast.
:mrgreen:
Yep, a play on the phrase "ember chasing". A method of pipe smoking where you manipulate the ember in a downward spiral down the bowl with a tamper. A personal preferred method that extends smoking time dramatically. :wink:
Here's how I did it this past week:
1. Notice your favorite online merchant is receiving shipments of hard-to-finds
2. Determine when online stock is updated. These are usually on an automatic schedule. For me, it was 2:30PM CST
3. Sit and wait (may need to refresh page on 5 minute marks) for webpages to update
4. Buy as soon as you see it. Don't jack around, don't go searching for more stuff to add to your cart to hit free shipping (you should have wishlists ready to go at all sites for exactly this purpose!), just buy it.
Of note, some retailers put Esoterica blends up one by one every X minutes or so. In my case, it was 15 minutes. I'm glad I held out and didn't buy that TIlbury first!
Caveat: This will only work at online retailers who take eCommerce seriously, not some Joe Schmo B&M outfit that lacks digital inventory control.
1. Notice your favorite online merchant is receiving shipments of hard-to-finds
2. Determine when online stock is updated. These are usually on an automatic schedule. For me, it was 2:30PM CST
3. Sit and wait (may need to refresh page on 5 minute marks) for webpages to update
4. Buy as soon as you see it. Don't jack around, don't go searching for more stuff to add to your cart to hit free shipping (you should have wishlists ready to go at all sites for exactly this purpose!), just buy it.
Of note, some retailers put Esoterica blends up one by one every X minutes or so. In my case, it was 15 minutes. I'm glad I held out and didn't buy that TIlbury first!
Caveat: This will only work at online retailers who take eCommerce seriously, not some Joe Schmo B&M outfit that lacks digital inventory control.
Just after reading this post, I logged into smokingpipes and searched Esoterica. Well looky there, Stonehaven is for sale, but just 1 tin per day per customer. I put it in my cart noticing there are 46 tins available. But I don't want to pay for shipping, so I poke around to add something to my cart so as to make the shipping cost go away. By the time I'm ready to check out, Stonehaven is sold out. All that took less than half an hour.
Lesson: keep a bunch of stuff in the shopping cart just in case something special becomes available.
Lesson: keep a bunch of stuff in the shopping cart just in case something special becomes available.
- Status