Whats the Deal With Pennsylvania?

Pennsylvania is very friendly for those that enjoy pipes/cigars and for the merchants as well. Taxes are very low their on tobacco, so that's why several of the larger online retailers are there. There are some good pipe makers there as well.

PA is great for smokers. I live in outside of Pittsburgh and there are 7 B&M's and 4 Clubs within 20 miles. Bars that sell more booze than food can get a smoking exemption. There is one a mile from my house, and a totally stocked Cigar shop/club 5 miles from me. Totally laid out furniture, flat screens, and private humidor boxes. It's BYOB and people store tons of top shelf in their boxes. People pass out the best to everyone and party there until 4 AM, It closes when everyone leaves. Events happening all the time from every pay per view, jazz bands, to full pig cookouts. Even has a bocce court out back. It's my little hideaway. I drink cappuccinos and a perfect stick or 2. Prices are cheap, you can get a quality stick for under $8, and 90+ stick for around $10.
One of the companies I buy from is in New York but ships from PA, which kind of sucks because I have to pay the 6% tax.
We are the only state; well actually we are a commonwealth which may explain it. We haven’t been hit with any state Nazi taxes, and there is no legislation pending to change that.
But it does suck here in the winter...
Craig

Taxes are reasonable for them as well. In fact, a couple years ago, a rather large online cigar vendor actually packed up shop from Kingston, NY (taxes were killing his business) and moved it to PA and he's doing fine now.

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roth, who might have this been? Grew up and lived just south of Kingston until a few years back and was just curious?

Glad to get this perspective on PA. When I got back into piping, Philadelphia was just issuing the anti-smoking ban in bars and restaurants, and soon after the state followed. My Morley's Pipe Club had to change venues a couple of times but now we are safely and happily ensconced in the Pen & Pencil Club. Where else can you puff away with friends, eat a hot cooked-to-order meal (and pretty inexpensively too), and order libations, and still hear each other talk?
hp

les

Wow. Can I come visit?

Perhaps we pipesters who keep the email and fax lines burning to our state legislators every time they even think of raising PA taxes on pipe tobacco plays a small part. My state senator and house members know me well. I always squeal at any hint of increased taxation. Thus far they have only been hitting the cigs pretty hard.
dragonslyer: I'd sure like to know where all these B&Ms are here in the 'Burgh, besides El Fumador and Allegheny Smokeworks and maybe Jernigan's.
jmitchelliv: you must have a huge family. This is Ukieville.

As a 20 year resident of Pennsylvania I can tell you that it is way more smoke friendly than NY and NJ. Our area is home to CI and Famous Cigar. CI just sold their cigar bar in Bethlehem but it remains smoke friendly. Famous just opened a much higher class restaurant, Leaf, that allows cigar smoking. I'm not sure about pipes there.

We have a 6% state sales tax but that's it' so we're a relative bargain compared to most of our neighboring states.

The B&M I frequent is the friendliest place I know. Everyone is made to feel welcome and I'm sure it's the same at other places.

So drop on by. "You've Got A Friend In Pennsylvania".

Pennsylvania's just a great place. Honest earthy people for the most part. With so much tobacco grown here by the Amish and Mennonite farmers i'm not surprised we're so easy on tobacco. I live near CI Hamburg and go there now and again, though i tend to avoid weekends because they're a bit crazily packed with folks from Cabela's. I'd love to see a smaller more pipe oriented tobacconist in the area though. There's really only one guy at CI who knows his stuff, and he's always super busy.

As a 20 year resident of Pennsylvania I can tell you that it is way more smoke friendly than NY and NJ.

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As a resident of NY, the Vampire State, I can tell you that NY is only friendly to those who don't want to work and to those who want to tell me how to live, what to drink and eat and how to think. Welcome to the Left coast.

I grew up in Beaver Falls PA. I have always found the tobacco culture to be alive and well. I love going back to the area to see family because I can actually go to a bar and smoke a pipe indoors in the winter.

Where abouts do you live, Dragonslayer? I have family all over McKees Rocks and Carnegie. If you run into anybody with a Ukrainian last name out there, odds are they're one of mine.

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dragonslyer: I'd sure like to know where all these B&Ms are here in the 'Burgh, besides El Fumador and Allegheny Smokeworks and maybe Jernigan's.

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I’m in Monroeville and East Euro decent. They immigrated to “The Run” like most. I’ll look up the names and addy’s for the other shops you didn’t list. There’s the Leaf and Coffee down on the strip. I did lose one a mile from my house about two years ago to Internet sales.
I was one of the founding members of the Cigar and Spirit society at the Lemont. But when the owner wrapped his corvette around a telephone pole he sold the restaurant. Now that was a club, personal handmade smoking jackets dry cleaned between meetings. Five course meal with cigars in-between by Blumes. Don’t think they do Pipe Tobacco, been so many years since I’ve been there, but they're down Southside off Carson.
Craig