Getting back on subject, in my dealings with the pipe tobacco production world, I've never come across a situation where the bulk stock is different than what gets tinned. I'm not saying that it hasn't, or doesn't happen, just that I've never heard of it. So the any perceived differences between bulk and tinned tobacco would have to either be batch-to-batch variations or the fact that tinned tobacco, especially with some age on it, may have been in a low-oxygen/anaerobic environment. That is if there are any active microorganisms at work in that tin.
That and $16.50 will get you a damned good lox and bagel sandwich at the Famous Fourth Street Deli in Philly.