Are we really losing that much with the closures of Mac Baren and Sutliff?

[runscott]

For me, losing 507 stoved is as bad as losing the old version of Condor Plug.

 

[Zamora]

To answer the original post, yes and no.

No in the sense that their are is a vast variety of tobacco's still available to pipe smokers. Even though it seems like we've lost hundreds of blends, there are some blends that were duplicates. For example Mac Baren brand x may be the exact same blend as STG brand y, so there is no point in packaging the same tobacco in two different tins with two different labels. Eliminating duplicate packaging can save a company a lot of money, so while it seems like we're losing a lot of blends, some of them will still exist under a different label. It sucks losing a favorite blend, but with all the tobacco's on the market their is an opportunity to find a new favorite.

Yes, as we're losing a long standing American company, with employees losing their job, and a community losing an iconic business. Same goes for Mac Baren. Besides employees losing their jobs, a major loss is the machines that made these tobacco's at both factories. I don't like the idea of these machines being scrapped, as someone that loves history, and antiques; I think these machines/equipment should be saved and put in a museum or on display somewhere to show case the history of the industry. I understand that STG may not have the space to store this equipment, but in my opinion it needs to be save and displayed somehow. It would be a shame to lose such history.

Yes, as a lot of B&M shops rely on the Sutliff bulk and blending tobacco's. It will definitely hurt some of our favorite B&M shops tobacco sales as I would bet that most pipe shops sell more bulk blends than blends in tins. While there is still an opportunity for these B&M shops to acquire bulk and blending tobacco's from other manufacturer's; a lot of regulars (codgers) that smoke only a handful of B&M shop blends won't like the change.

Yeah I always thought having duplicates under different brands was ridiculous, too bad there isn't much transparency about that. I think it's probably worse with cigars. Codgerdom is a two edged sword because if you only smoke something owned by STG you probably have nothing to worry about for now, but if you smoke something owned by Sutliff then you better find something else soon or be SOL.

 

[metalheadycigarguy]

Yeah I always thought having duplicates under different brands was ridiculous, too bad there isn't much transparency about that. I think it's probably worse with cigars. Codgerdom is a two edged sword because if you only smoke something owned by STG you probably have nothing to worry about for now, but if you smoke something owned by Sutliff then you better find something else soon or be SOL.

Unfortunately, that is one of the downsides to all of this. For someone like me that smokes a variety of blends it's not a huge loss, as I have plenty of other tobacco's to smoke. It still sucks, but it's not the end of the world for me. However, if you are one of those that only smokes a handful of blends or one blend; whether it be a packaged OTC, or bulk OTC, a bulk blend, or a particular tin tobacco; it does make the loss much greater. Those individuals are going to have a much harder time with this than someone like me.

 

[Zamora]

Unfortunately, that is one of the downsides to all of this. For someone like me that smokes a variety of blends it's not a huge loss, as I have plenty of other tobacco's to smoke. It still sucks, but it's not the end of the world for me. However, if you are one of those that only smokes a handful of blends or one blend; whether it be a packaged OTC, or bulk OTC, a bulk blend, or a particular tin tobacco; it does make the loss much greater. Those individuals are going to have a much harder time with this than someone like me.

Yeah I'm bummed there's a bunch of MacB and Sutliff stuff I planned on trying but now probably never will but there's still tons of other stuff to explore. Hell some companies I was never particularly interested in trying but now I want to because they need our support. I was always more interested in trying new stuff over having favorites and between a big rotation and irregular smoking schedule one tin lasts me a long time.

 

[wyfbane]

Within every loss is an opportunity. Yes some ( ok a whole lot ) blends will be gone. On the other hand it forces us to expand our investigation of those that remain. I fully expect, at some time, my favorite blend might disappear. So I must adapt and find an alternative. I will surely be trying blends I have not, in the past. The world is full of oysters, so start looking for pearls.

Mike, it's great to see you on here. I take loooong breaks from the site and haven't seen you on here in quite some time. I hope you are happy and doing well!

As to the OP, yes it is huge. But I am in no position to do anything about it, other than observe. There are some blends I will miss, for sure.

I am more concerned about the new iterations of some of those retained. I love (LOVE) MacB Navy Flake. It needs 5 years to wake up, but it is a magnificent smoke in its current form. I have no idea what a change of factory is going to do to it. I'm hoping I have enough to never have to find out, but we shall see.

 

[Zamora]

Mike, it's great to see you on here. I take loooong breaks from the site and haven't seen you on here in quite some time. I hope you are happy and doing well!

As to the OP, yes it is huge. But I am in no position to do anything about it, other than observe. There are some blends I will miss, for sure.

I am more concerned about the new iterations of some of those retained. I love (LOVE) MacB Navy Flake. It needs 5 years to wake up, but it is a magnificent smoke in its current form. I have no idea what a change of factory is going to do to it. I'm hoping I have enough to never have to find out, but we shall see.

Honestly for me the idea of buying a tin and letting it sit for years before smoking it is really appealing.

 

[wyfbane]

Honestly for me the idea of buying a tin and letting it sit for years before smoking it is really appealing

When I first started this thing, you could still get tins on eBay. I lucked into some 5 year aged Navy Flake and never looked back. I'm likely set for life, now, but I was buying some each year so I was never out of the aged stuff. I still have 3 of my original eBay tins. They have over 16 years on them now, lol.

 

[Zamora]

When I first started this thing, you could still get tins on eBay. I lucked into some 5 year aged Navy Flake and never looked back. I'm likely set for life, now, but I was buying some each year so I was never out of the aged stuff. I still have 3 of my original eBay tins. They have over 16 years on them now, lol.

That's awesome

 

[Warlee]

I like a variety, but my top three blends are Wessex Gold Slice, John Cottons Virginia and GL Pease Embarcadero. The first two are made by Sutliff so I’m super bummed.

 

[pantsBoots]

With the soon to be ceasing of operations of Mac Baren and Sutliff, I wonder if we are really losing that much. I mean, there are still many other options for essentially similar blends from many other sources. Does anyone find any of the soon to be gone blends that are truly unique?
Anyone believe that Mac B or Sutliff may become the next McClellands? I'm sure that many thought Dunhill would become a unicorn brand, but Peterson came through and brought back many of their blends.

I would love to know what my alternatives will be for:
MB Dark Twist
MB Stockton
MB Plumcake
Savinelli Brunello Flake
Sutliff Match Ready Rubbed
Sutliff Match Walnut

I smoke(d) a lot of all of those and now I'm down to rationing them.

 

[tschiraldi]

The pipe community as a whole, yes. Me personally, not at all… yet. I’m good with only a few blends and none of them have anything to do with McBaren or Suttliffe. My only concern is that two of my favorites are already difficult to find at times and I’m afraid others will add to the competition while searching for replacements.

 

[filmguerilla]

I won't miss anything MacB related--especially since the only one I smoke isn't going anywhere--but I dig Hearth and Home stuff. I got a pound each of the White Knight/Black House bulk versions, as well as a pound of Sutliff RC-272 (a weird aromatic that I like and that I rarely see talked about). Country Squire and Boswell's have both said they will be fine with the closure, but I'm still wondering about LJ Peretti.

 

[Michigan_Bill]

Three of my favorites are Eastfarthing, Alexander Bridge, and PS Nougat. So I figured out how much to order, and ordered that. Then that much again. So I'm in good shape.
(MB Mixture Modern is pretty good so I snagged a couple of those, too.)

 

[VDL_Piper]

Do we have clear sight yet on what will survive the cut, I assume some must.

 

[Warlee]

Do we have clear sight yet on what will survive the cut, I assume some must.

This thread has the list:

Just in from STG/MacBaren/Sutliff :: General Pipe Smoking Discussion

Just got this in an email. I guess that means all the tinned tobacco are going away.

pipesmagazine.com

13 blends make the cut.

 

[VDL_Piper]

This thread has the list:

Just in from STG/MacBaren/Sutliff :: General Pipe Smoking Discussion

Just got this in an email. I guess that means all the tinned tobacco are going away.

pipesmagazine.com

13 blends make the cut.

Thanks

 

[Servant King]

Thanks

The way you said that, I now feel obligated to stick around and listen for the sound of a single gunshot...

 

[anotherbob]

One thing we might lose is that every blend out there is potentially someone's favorite or more importantly the one that starts the love affair with pipes.
Though any change in any market opens opportunity (if anyone takes it or succeeds with it is another story).
Another odd thing we might gain is how people I've known getting into to pipes are often overwhelmed when visiting any online vendor. So many choices and explanations that mean nothing sensible to the new guy. Have actually seen a few people almost quit at that point. Funny they can pick a pipe in their price range because they can see how much they like the look. But tobacco is another story. I guess I am saying it might actually help in some way for there to be less choice now.

 

[VDL_Piper]

The way you said that, I now feel obligated to stick around and listen for the sound of a single gunshot...

Ahhh I knew it was bad but gee whizz they have pulled the proverbial pants down and not offered any lube have they I’m glad I have what I need and I just collected from the post another pound of 515 and buttered rum to insulate a little more. I really will have to work on anything Kopp have fingerprints on now too as they are probably the next ones in the gun and they have huge bearing on Pease and C & D going forward so we aren’t out of the woods yet I’d say. One look at this screen shot should get everyone’s pulse racing!

 

[anotherbob]

Yeah I always thought having duplicates under different brands was ridiculous, too bad there isn't much transparency about that. I think it's probably worse with cigars. Codgerdom is a two edged sword because if you only smoke something owned by STG you probably have nothing to worry about for now, but if you smoke something owned by Sutliff then you better find something else soon or be SOL.

I know more then a few older smokers who have the blend. Anything else they won't even try.