Cellaring: How Much is Too Much?

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aspiring_sage

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 7, 2021
556
1,945
West of the Twin Cities, MN
Howzabout you figure out what you like to smoke first, then figure out how to get enough to last you a year, because in the meantime your tastes may change.
I’m content with this attitude for now. I’m relatively new, figuring that with the break for MN winter I only went through a pound last year. I want to try more blends but I’ve got about two pounds and can’t justify acquiring more unless my habits change.

I do like that I can smell it when I walk by the cupboard and it cheers me up every time I walk by.
 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,459
One remedy is to "shop at home." When you feel an urgent need for a pipe or a new blend, sift through what you already have. Clean and polish a few pipes, and read the labels of the tins deep in your cellar. You will likely discover pipes and tobaccos you haven't seen in a long time or don't remember having at all.

Pretend these are precisely the blends you intended to age, and commend yourself on having such restraint in keeping them this long, then pop the lid on one of them. And light up the blend in one of your brand new old pipes.
 

hawky454

Lifer
Feb 11, 2016
5,338
10,221
Austin, TX
Yeah even a lot of the heads I know weren't aware of their collaboration. It's pretty on point and also one of the more unique things in rap.
Yeah I’m digging their stuff. Kool Kieth is one of the more unique rappers, in my opinion. This album under his Dr. Octagon moniker is one of my favorites, highly recommend it if you haven’t already heard it.

FF374534-0580-47BB-9590-B4F50BFFE429.jpeg

& this album under his Kool Kieth Moniker.

642765FD-A90E-45AD-B022-14073703AF56.jpeg
 

Duke of Erinmore

Can't Leave
Jul 5, 2020
316
1,415
45
Bayreuth, Bavaria, Germany
I would say I have a moderate cellar compared to other people here, and if I had known at the time I started what I know now, it would look completely different. There are some blends that improve so much with age that it is almost disappointing when you open a fresh tin. So instead of having cellared like 2 tins of 20 different OK blends, I would have cellared 20 tins of the two best aging ones. Instead I waste ridiculous money on vintage blends.

But there is also a part collectionism connected to cellaring because it's part of the overall pipe smoking story. Calculating the size of the cellar dependent on smoked bowls per time - wouldn't the same also apply to the number of pipes needed? And why would anyone smoke Bangs and Dunhills instead of Stanwells that also do?
 

DrTeeth

Might Stick Around
Sep 2, 2022
94
320
Indiana
shiftdrinkpodcast.com
Yeah I’m digging their stuff. Kool Kieth is one of the more unique rappers, in my opinion. This album under his Dr. Octagon moniker is one of my favorites, highly recommend it if you haven’t already heard it.

View attachment 183000

& this album under his Kool Kieth Moniker.

View attachment 183002
Hell yeah! I’ve seen Kool Keith several times, and got to see a Dr. Octagon show in SF a few years back (with special appearance by Deltron 3030). Diesel Truckers is one of my top “underrated albums” of the 2000s.
 

chopper

Lifer
Aug 24, 2019
1,480
3,317
Although I tend to be a 'glass half full' kinda guy, who's grateful for what I have rather than what I don't, there are times when I'm kinda jealous of those who can buy whatever blends they'd like at reasonable cost, tinned blends in-particular.


Due to my situation I only buy bulk blends from the U.S. [better chance of reaching my front door than tins]
Since this is the best time of year to get tobacco past the border, I've spent over $1,000 on tobacco this last month alone. [Postage per order is $48usd by itself]

A mate asked that very question recently, "How much is enough?"
'Enough' is what would comfortably last me the rest of my living days.
I'd be way happier and content to pass over with 50lbs of tobacco in my 'cellar' than to spend even my last month here on planet Earth without [No way would I ever pay $140 for 50g of baccy on sheer principle]

Properly stored, tobacco will keep for decades.
Many blends improve with age.
Popular Virginia and VaPer blends for example, can be a very good investment [just check out online auctions for McClelland blends like Christmas Cheer for instance]
If the proverbial sh!t should ever hit the fan, tobacco would be a valuable trade item.

For these reasons alone, the answer to your question is; there's no such thing as "too much tobacco". puffy
 

gervais

Lifer
Sep 4, 2019
2,081
6,990
39
Ontario
I am definately a victim of TAD, however most of my purchases this year and last were on pipes. I am starting to look at more and more tobacco and getting that urge to buy more, but I always just go and look at what I have and think to myself "OK. Realistically I won't be able to smoke through all of this before I die, even if I live till 100. Don't buy it!"

It has worked more often than not. 🤣
 
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krizzose

Lifer
Feb 13, 2013
3,133
18,272
Michigan
You're correct that any answer will be subjective. I cellared to have blends that I like available to me when I want to smoke them. Blends and blenders have a way of disappearing without warning. I also cellared against a time when online purchasing would be outlawed, or prices raised. Aging wasn't really much of a consideration, but it has happened as a consequence of buying more than I smoked. I probably have a 12 year supply, which is likely to outlast me. So I've stopped buying tobaccos.
I’ve stocked up for the same reasons. I have a relatively modest rate of smoking, so the actual amount I have is pretty low for a “lifetime” cellar. For that reason, the total cost was also relatively low, and was spread out over years. In any event, it was all discretionary income and something I never “budgeted.”

Whatever I’m doing, it’s not a financial investment. I suppose hedging against future price increases is a good thing, but more than anything I’m concerned about restrictions or prohibitions on online sales. Maybe someone from Washington state can comment on how fun an online purchase ban is. While I like the idea of supporting local B&Ms, show me one with the selection that Smokingpipes has.