Purchasing Question

Smoke a tin. If you like it smoke two more tins. If you still like it a pound. . .and so on. You can spend a lot or less. Realistically, really and truly, what's your budget? Are you blowing both short and long-term savings on pipes and tobacco? It's easy to do. I've done it.

That's a great question, and important to consider $ when TAD hits. Opinions are all over the board on this topic, each of us does it differently. For example, I am at the point that I know what to cellar and thus I go deep and go for the best value (larger tins, bulk, boxes, etc). However, I prefer to purchase small tins always as a default. I like having 50 grams divided in to many tins, vs 1 lb in mason jars. I am willing to pay more for the smaller tins because it fits with my lifestyle better. But I guarantee, many will prefer bulk and larger tins and cost saving.
The real problem is purchasing tobacco at the beginning of the hobby. So many blends to try, so much time and money wasted developing your own pallet.

The real problem is purchasing tobacco at the beginning of the hobby. So many blends to try, so much time and money wasted developing your own pallet.

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The trick is, once you've found a blend you enjoy, add another tin or two to future orders when you're purchasing more blends to try. You're trying new blends while already beginning to cellar something you enjoy.

I agree with the above posts.... But in this particular case, with ODF..... Most people love it and there's a good chance you will too.... Buy the larger !!

Tobacco is tobacco, and unless it's a godawful, chemical-tasting, humectant soaked, cheap leaf blend, then you could jar it if you don't love it and come back to it months, years later. You could then maybe realize it's the most sublime thing you've ever tasted, be it because it aged well or because your palate and preferences changed. Were that not the case, many people will be more than happy to trade aged tobacco, so there is an argument to be made for taking a risk in buying more quantity and saving money while at it.

That said, I tend to go with 50g tins or 2oz in mason jars if I'm trying a blend. I'll buy 100g+ once I know I like a particular mixture or if it's a genre I love, with the exception of when it's a raved about/hard to get tobacco and the window opens to buy some (I bought some FVF 250g boxes before I tried it).

Good were the days of samplers, the PAX Crawls, the Pipe Tobacco of the Month Club. Those were fantastic for trying blends that might not have been on one's radar. P&C still has samplers, and the Battle of the Blends is a great way to try and pay less for 50g tins. In fact, they had a tin of Orlik Dark Strong Kentucky and one of Mac Baren ODF for $16, I think.

The ideal scenario in the sampling phase is to have pipe smoking friends, or a nearby pipe club. That way you can split the cost, try a wider variety and begin deep cellaring your favorites quicker. Sure, I want to be like JimInks when I grow up, but at the rate I smoke right now I know I'll discover many blends I'll love way past the 2021 mark if I go at it alone. That's why I'm spreading the tobacco gospel among my friends and I started a scraggly pipe club 4 people strong.

In the end, you do you, and keep going with the methodology that works best for you.

Can't go wrong no matter how you purchase it. If you don't like it now, you may like it in the future...if you still don't like it you can always trade what you have for something you want.

The way the laws are changing, the key is to have as much tobacco as you can afford in your possession.

Possession is the key to this point!

Buy the 100g tin to try out. If it's not to your immediate liking, jar the rest and revisit in a month or two. ODF seems to really open up after a bit.

It seems smart to try something in the smallest available quantity. If it's shipping that is stopping you, just order quite a few samples (carefully, not just to fill up the box). You'll rotate between blends usually, so you'll have a tin or jar around long enough to decide. I usually finish off the sample and wait a while, meantime trying other blends. Then if I want to re-order after some weeks, I know it really impressed me. Blends are going to accumulate on you anyway, so it's not like you're going to run out of leaf. Some people just want to live large and order by the pound, and if that's your nature go with it. But it does cost more.

I buy the smallest size available first to try it. I recently visited the local Tinder Box (30 minutes away) and purchased one ounce each of Sunset (Lane HS-3) and Wilshire (Lane 1-Q). It's a convenient way for me to try tobaccos. If I don't like it, no great loss...if I like it, great I'll buy a larger quantity in the future.

I have been buying from L.J.Peretti since the 80's...They have 1oz, 8oz, 1lb. There home blends

I really like.

I don't necessarily recommend my habits for anyone else but I'm happy to share them, anyway.
I learned with buying surplus rifles and ammo, "Buy 'em cheap and stack 'em deep!"
Finite resources may or may not be there whenever you return.
With the deeming regs looming and the general constricting public attitude towards tobacco, it won't be too long before we here are slinking around in alleys, under the cover of darkness, to swap tins with one another...
So, pay your bills, fill your pantry and designate a reasonable portion of what's left to cellar construction.
I have tried several dozen blends over the past year. Enough to know that, if I stick to non-aro's, there's well above a 95% chance I'll enjoy it. In a year of putting everything I could get into my pipe and smoking it, I've had exactly one reject.
So, now I search for deals. Bulks and bargains. I've no need and little desire for unobtanium. What I do need is more closet space and more canning jars...