I was wondering if anybody ever liked a pipe tobacco but felt like it wasn't worth the price of admission? For me, I liked Gawith, Hoggarth & Co. Top Black Cherry. It had a decent flavor with just a little topping. As far as aromatic blends, it was a pretty good smoke. But I didn't think it was worth the money. I would rather spend my money on Frog Morton or some other mild aromatic blends. If I am going to spend money on a blend, I would rather spend it on a English/Balkan blend. But I do have to confess, I still would spend the money on Hobbit's Weed.
Ever Like a blend but not for the price?
- Thread starter harlockfan
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Ugh ... Hobbit's Weed. I loathe that blend for so many reasons: LoTR novelty capitalism, cherry aro and notoriety. It is a local blend for me (Tewksbury is a 10 minute walk from my college campus) and I just hate fruity blends.
I won't buy any tins from my local B&M because of the markup. They have one house blend I really like and it is the only reason I ever go there.
I won't buy any tins from my local B&M because of the markup. They have one house blend I really like and it is the only reason I ever go there.
Honestly? No. I think most blends are dramatically under-priced when you consider how many actual smoking hours they provide. I can't think of a single blend I enjoy smoking that seems over-priced. And if you don't enjoy smoking it, then even "free" can feel like too much! 
Most blends work out to 50-75 cents a bowl. For me, that's an incredibly reasonable price to pay for 30-45 minutes of smoking pleasure. Nothing else compares, and I'm definitely happy to pay that for any blend I enjoy. For the ones I absolutely love, I'd pay twice that. (And for some once- or twice-in-a-lifetime tins, I've paid closer to $4/bowl.)
Bob
Most blends work out to 50-75 cents a bowl. For me, that's an incredibly reasonable price to pay for 30-45 minutes of smoking pleasure. Nothing else compares, and I'm definitely happy to pay that for any blend I enjoy. For the ones I absolutely love, I'd pay twice that. (And for some once- or twice-in-a-lifetime tins, I've paid closer to $4/bowl.)
Bob
@cmdrmcbragg--I guess I am easy to please. I like alot of the cherry aros. Cult Blood Red Moon is next on my list. I have a tin and ready to go after I work through some other stuff. Hobbit's Weed is good to me since it doesn't taste like medicine and I can actually taste the cherry when I smoke it. Since I am relatively new to this, I still go to Tobaccoreviews.com for all my selection. Also this board is really helpful too! I bought some Escudo to cellar and can't wait to try it.
@rmbittner--But do you ever feel you get the same experience for less money? I totally agree with your point though. You make valid argument.
@rmbittner--But do you ever feel you get the same experience for less money? I totally agree with your point though. You make valid argument.
+1 Bob. I'm always tempted to grouse a little about paying $12-15 for a tin at a local B&M, but I'm starting to learn how long a tin can last - I just got back from a 7-day beach vacation, 3 bowls a day of 965 and I still have a considerable amount of that tin left.
Once you're past the initial investment in a minimal rotation of pipes, this need not be a spendy hobby unless you choose to make it so by cellaring massive amounts of tobacco.
Once you're past the initial investment in a minimal rotation of pipes, this need not be a spendy hobby unless you choose to make it so by cellaring massive amounts of tobacco.
harlockfan wrote:
"But do you ever feel you get the same experience for less money?"
I don't think I know how to answer that. I only get the same experience from the same tobacco. . . so I guess I'd have to say no, I never feel that way.
I've never encountered two different blends that delivered the exact same experience. But it should be said that I don't really smoke aromatics. So my experience is really limited to non-aromatic blends. And I never buy bulks, so bulk pricing vs. tinned pricing is never on my mind.
Perhaps I'm an oddity here, but price never enters into my enjoyment of -- or expectations of -- a blend. And I don't hold cost against a blend that I just didn't care for or didn't think lived up to its potential.
Bob
"But do you ever feel you get the same experience for less money?"
I don't think I know how to answer that. I only get the same experience from the same tobacco. . . so I guess I'd have to say no, I never feel that way.
I've never encountered two different blends that delivered the exact same experience. But it should be said that I don't really smoke aromatics. So my experience is really limited to non-aromatic blends. And I never buy bulks, so bulk pricing vs. tinned pricing is never on my mind.
Perhaps I'm an oddity here, but price never enters into my enjoyment of -- or expectations of -- a blend. And I don't hold cost against a blend that I just didn't care for or didn't think lived up to its potential.
Bob
+1 Rob, compared to all other forms of smoking or tobacco use, pipe tobacco, even at the higher B&M rate, is way cheaper. I think some get all mentally twixt when they compare online bulk rates to tins and such. It's all cheap, and not worth looking for a cheaper alternative to what is already cheap. Besides the differences in prices is usually in single digits. Unless you're a college students without a car and eating Ramen noodles every day, or unemployed and living in your mom's basement, splurge the extra buck and smoke whatever you desire. Life is too short to spend it looking for a cheaper alternative to what is already cheap.
I cringe, flail, and self-lacerate myself when I pay $20 per 50g for Warrior Plug, Condor, and St. Bruno,
but dammit, there ain't nuthin' else like 'em,
life is too short not to fully enjoy
that lovely leaf.
:crying:
but dammit, there ain't nuthin' else like 'em,
life is too short not to fully enjoy
that lovely leaf.
:crying:
Wait MLC, you pay $20 or someone pays you, because I would require a higher fee to smoke that, LOL. JK. Glad you have something you can enjoy. Everyone is different :
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I have fell victim to not buying a tobacco that I like because of price only once that I can remember. It wasn't so much the baccy price as it was the shipping that caused me to back out of the transaction. To me, $14 tacked on to a few ounces isn't worth it. Thanks to this thread I checked and one of my favorites is back in stock. There is a certain member who lives near Tewksbury... I wonder if he could be bribed?
@metarzan and cmdrmcbragg---- after you take it out of the baggy, you can't tell its hobbit's weed. I just googled "best tasting cherry pipe tobacco" and came up with some results. Top Black Cherry, CAO Cherrybomb, Hobbit's Weed, Lane Very Cherry, 7 Seas Red, etc. I ordered almost all of them. Haha! What can I say, I am sucker for a gimmic. I am going to order the Nosferatu during my next order. I love Absinthe and since this blend has anise in it as well...I am going to give it a shot. I love pumpkin too. So I bought some of Sutliff Taste of Autumn. Expecting goods things out of that one!
I just do not like fruity aros. I love aros, but not if it tastes like fruit. If I want fruity I'll smoke a hookah.
I'm with Bob. This is pretty much where I net out. I am in the, "Life is too short to eat, drink, smoke and in any other way consume things which are to me distasteful," camp.
ae1pt - It sounds like we're on similar voyages of exploration. Over the last 16 months I've enjoyed bringing in just about every kind of tobacco I could find. Friends here, and elsewhere, have been generous with samples, and I've been able to narrow my area of focus on a few key types of tobacco blends, and some specific named brands and blends.
To the OP. If I find something I enjoy, I'll pay for it. If I stop enjoying something, or can't afford what I like, I'll stop buying it. I don't buy cheap scotch because I need scotch, I wait until I can afford the bottle I want, then buy it, consume it, and begin the waiting process again. I'm not there with tobacco. But I can imagine myself getting to that place.
If I'm being honest with myself, when I was smoking cigarettes I was in a totally different situation. When I could, I'd buy the cigarettes I liked (Dunhill International King Size). When times were tight, I bought cheaper cigarettes that didn't taste as good. When times were really tight, I re-rolled half-smoked butts. I'm pretty sure that I wasn't smoking cigarettes because I enjoyed the flavour. :? I know that I was addicted, habituated, to them.
It's pretty nice to be able to exercise choice again.
-- Pat
Living in Europe and paying alot more than most of you guys is frustrating. It's also frustrating that ALL tobacco is priced at €20, give or take, per 50g regardless of if I buy a tin or in bulk.
On the plus side no one blend is more expensive than any other. :?
On the plus side no one blend is more expensive than any other. :?
I'm with Bob, too. At a few points in my life I've been pretty strapped for cash, but I've never smoked garbage because of it. I smoke what I like, because most of my favorite blends are in the realm of 60 cents a bowl and last an hour. It's too cheap to get cheapstakish on.
There isn't a lot in life you can do for 60 cents an hour. You can hike, if it's near enough to walk rather than drive to the trailhead. You can bike, if you ride a simple bike like I do. But other than that, not much. You can sit and read the internet, I guess, or a long book, for less than 60 cents an hour. A glass of decent beer is $1.50 a bottle here, and that lasts less than an hour. A glass of whisky is more like $2-5 a glass, depending on the malt.
So I don't worry about cost of pipe tobacco, and don't think anyone should, either.
There isn't a lot in life you can do for 60 cents an hour. You can hike, if it's near enough to walk rather than drive to the trailhead. You can bike, if you ride a simple bike like I do. But other than that, not much. You can sit and read the internet, I guess, or a long book, for less than 60 cents an hour. A glass of decent beer is $1.50 a bottle here, and that lasts less than an hour. A glass of whisky is more like $2-5 a glass, depending on the malt.
So I don't worry about cost of pipe tobacco, and don't think anyone should, either.
Is not that I can't afford it. Trust me on that one. I just sometimes feel that some blends aren't really worth the price. For me with anyting, there is a cost to benefit ratio. If I love the blend, I will get it. I just think that some blends just aren't worth it. If they were the cat's meow, maybe they might be worth price of admission. I drove BMWs for years. For the most part, they were worth the expense when I had free time. Now with everything else going on in my life, I don't have all day to get the oil changed at Global Imports. Now I own a Lexus. Everything has a price, but for me...there are some blends that are just not worth it. I would pay more for Frog Morton but Top Black Cherry is just priced too high for what it is. There are just too many blends in that price range I like better.
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