Any Pipe Shop in Austin, TX?

[mushjoon]

Hey, I am in my friend's house in Austin, TX for Christmas break and of course, I decided to take a tour to downtown.
I went to the pipe shop called Heroes and Legacies, but they don't have a lot of tin tobaccos in stock.
I actually wanted to give a try of that Frog Morton because everyone seems to love it, but I don't think Heroes and Legacies have that in stock. Maybe I'll go there tomorrow again.. I tried Orlik Golden Sliced, but once again, I tried fold & stuff method which I'm not really good at... gotta give it another try.
So my questions are:
1) Are there other GOOD tobacco stores in Austin?
2) What do you guys think about McClelland's Matured Virginia? Heroes and Legacies got #22, #24, #25 and #27.
3) Any recommendation for flake/roll tobacco?

 

[judcole]

I've had the Virginia 24, IIRC, and thought it tasty. McClelland does good things with Virginias. Their Black Woods Flake is very nice. I am also fond of Ben Hartwell Signature, Dunhill Flake, and Sam Gawaith Best Brown Flake.

You might also want to try MacBaren's Navy Flake, or Peterson's Universsity Flake or Irish Flake. The latter is loaded with nicotine, so a word to the wise. ::

 

[mushjoon]

Yeah... I just realized that the store that I went to doesn't really have a lot of Samuel Gawith in stock.
I think they had Best Brown Flake, though I'm not sure, but I DO know that they have Chocolate Flake, which I find quite unattractive...

 

[mluyckx]

Try pipeworld of Anderson lane. I think they carry the frog Morton series. They're friendlier as well than the pipeworld in round rock. Pipeworld.com for the website. I've written my review of both here on the store locator

 

[creekspecter]

Pipeworld on Anderson is a good recommendation. It's difficult to find a good tobacconist in the area. hill country Humidor in San Marcos is a good bet. Rob, the owner, uses Stokkebyes for his blends, and usually has an eclectic selection of tins. I've searched around San Antonio (yes, pipe smokers can get that desperate here, to drive 70-some miles to find a tobacco)and have only found Club Humidor off of San Pedro and I-410W to show any consistency stocking pipes or pipe tobacco.
While Heroes doesn't have a large stock of tins, the new blender uses McClelland tobaccos in her blends. She's trying to get more of an inventory built up, which is a challenge, because the store is more known for its (really great) selection of cigars, and kind of let their pipe section die off after their last blender left. Try her on a Tuesday night, when the pipe club usually meets. She wants to look after her "pipe guys," and cut me a pretty sweet deal on a 2011 Peterson 03 Christmas pipe the Tuesday before Christmas. I also picked up her last tin of SL, however, she noticed that it had been opened and had dried out, apologized, took my name and email for a replacement, and threw in 2oz of what she calls "Blenheim," a fairly mild Latakia blend. She understands tobaccos, is trying to get in a larger stock of S&G and C&D, and was very helpful and patient with the four brand-new pipe smokers (probably in their early 20s) who were shopping at the same time I was. She steered them away from the aromatics, found them some decent, low-bite Burleys, and asked them to come back some time to try a Latakia, then a Virginia. She explained to them that she wanted them to make sure they enjoyed their pipes first, before making a large investment. She sold them Savinelli Naturals which were on sale, instead of the "pretty pipes" (Savinellis on sale for $35 - $40, "pretty pipes" were the Petes, Porsches, etc.).
So... Central Texas, you have a lot of places where you can pick up a good cigar, but no real joy for the pipe smoker. Good luck, try Heroes again, and give Pipeworld a shot.

 

[mushjoon]

I went to Pipe World today with my friend, and boy, were they so nice and kind...
I even got Frog Morton on the Bayou because the guy who works there praised the Hell out of it.
And now, I fell in love with this blend!!! This tobacco is sweet, relaxing, cool and does NOT bite AT ALL!!!
I felt so good with this blend that I smoked 3 times today..

 

[pylorns]

I have to 2nd that comment about pipeworld in round rock - the staff there are generally unfriendly.

 

[joeahearn]

I didn't even know about Pipeworld on Anderson Lane. I will check it out. Thanks for the tip.

 

[pylorns]

Yeah, I work right next to it which is nice.

 

[rigmedic1]

B&B cigars in Marble Falls is very pipe oriented, has quite a stock of McClelland sample tins open. It is about 45 minutes from downtown Austin.