Davis & Son Tobacconists in Wilmington, NC

[carolinachurchwarden]

If you ever happen to pass through or take a trip down to Wilmington, NC, you have to stop in to see Davis & Son Tobacconists. They have a ton of great pipes and are the real deal when it comes to blending tobacco. The wife and I took a trip down to Wilmington this weekend to eat a nice dinner on the Riverwalk. As I always do, before we take a trip, I look for interesting places for us to catch while we're out and about. This was the first such trip since I picked the pipe back up, so I began searching for a tobacconist that was either along the way, or in the city we're traveling to. I found Davis & Son Tobacconists online and called them to see if it was worth stopping by, and man was it ever. It's a huge shop in comparison to others I've been to and he doesn't just buy bulk tobaccos and dump them in a jar. They're an actual tobacconist and Tim, the son, does all his own blending, save for 1 or 2 blends. He had upwards of 20 jars of his own blends and I smelled quite a few that I liked, but walked away with an ounce of some he claimed that you can't get the tobacco for anymore, but found a supply somewhere. Said he wouldn't say what they were, but I'm not the type to press for details. I understand his hesitancy. It smells great and is one of the best English blends he had and has quite a small following of those that know about it. He can only get small batches of the blending ingredients, so he's trying to keep the notoriety of it down so he can keep selling it without being out all the time. I'm drying it out now, plan to smoke it later today. I can't wait. I also bought a zippo, butane pipe insert for my lighter and will be using that bad boy later as well. He's extremely knowledgeable and is awesome to talk to. I would quite highly recommend stopping by to see Tim if you're ever in the Wilmington, NC area.

 

[anthonyrosenthal74]

I was just browsing some of their blends. I may try a few of them. Thanks for the link, Carolina! ::

 

[carolinachurchwarden]

No problem Anthony! Their Danish Matte smelled absolutely fantastic! I decided to go with their Trafalgar's Mixture. It smells awesome. I might try a few of their other blends the next time I want to make an order. To be honest, he didn't have a single blend that didn't smell good.

 

[mso489]

This place has been building a good reputation for years. I'd sure stop there next time I'm in Wilmington. Eons ago, I was offered a job at their newspaper, The Wilmington Star, which is a good one, the city government beat. That was some years before I-40 was extended all the way to Wilmington, and having grown up in a big metro area, I just couldn't quite do it, despite it being a port city. It felt isolated. I ended up in Raleigh, the state capital, which was probably a better choice. But Wilmington has become quite a town, movie studios and all.

 

[nitemair13]

Welp, guess I'm planning a drive to Wilmington soon.
Hey CCW, you don't know of any good pipe places up around Boone, NC do you? Gonna be up in that area shortly.

 

[carolinachurchwarden]

It certainly has my vote for a great pipe shop. Wilmington however has always been on my radar. I lived in North Myrtle Beach for about 6 years or so and had to venture up there every few months to take the car in for service (one of those specialized deals). I never spent a lot of time there, but the historic district area is full of top notch restaurants, pubs, breweries, shops and history. It's quite the charming area. Not too many port cities seemed to maintain their old market districts, and fewer still seem to flourish quite like that area of Wilmington. I really enjoy it when I get down there.

 

[carolinachurchwarden]

Hey CCW, you don't know of any good pipe places up around Boone, NC do you?

I do not. I haven't been up there in a couple years, before I picked up the pipe again. From most of my understanding though, most of our mountain college towns smoke mostly green leaf, so it might be dotted with head shops. There's likely one somewhere there though that has a supply of a few jars, I'd imagine. If you find something cool, let me know.

 

[nitemair13]

I'll keep an eye out, not gonna be up there long. There's a record store up there I want to visit though so I'll ask there and see if they know. Internet searches haven't revealed much, hoping to find a nice little shop. I'll let ya know what I find.