Esoterica

[sablebrush52]

Before there was a bulk sale on Eso and it was not sold out for 24 hours pointing out that high demand is purely due to the resellers market.

Before when? The panic buying began long before the secondary market for "vintage" tobaccos became a thing. In 2007 Germain's missed a few shipments and people went nuts hoarding Penzance. Nobody gave two farts about the other Esotericas and you could pick up "old" tins of "legendary" tobacco for bupkis.
Buyers always set the prices, except in a monopolized market. Sorry, but true.
Anyone who has a real issue with eBay listings can simply report them, since all of these transactions are in violation of eBay regulations and are technically illegal. Really, go ahead.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

Jesse nailed it. Same with almost any product. Don't blame the sellers, blame the buyers if you feel like you have to blame anyone. The reality is, the people complaining contribute as well by constantly starting these threads and giving Esoterica more exposure. If you're frustrated, angry or whatever about the prices of Esoterica products, the best thing you can is never, ever mention the name.
I like several of their blends. But I also wouldn't lose any sleep or shed a tear if they never shipped again. I'd much rather see McClelland come back and Esoterica go away if somehow that tradeoff could be made.

 

[ashdigger]

What a collection of manure. I really don't understand people crying out about blends that are hard to find or how much they cost. Its the way it goes.

 

[georgebmcclelland]

Haha, this is the part when I slowly start to back away from the commotion I've helped to create... If I make it to the doors I can chain them behind me and escape!

 

[georgebmcclelland]

On a slightly more serious note, though, I'm realizing that the folks who have been here a while have probably seen these kind of threads so many times, I can see how it would get annoying and tiresome. My bad.

 

[oldgeezersmoker]

I like several of their blends. But I also wouldn't lose any sleep or shed a tear if they never shipped again. I'd much rather see McClelland come back and Esoterica go away if somehow that tradeoff could be made.

You win the thread.

 

[hawky454]

They have some stellar blends to my tastes and if you’re patient and alert you can still often find them for decent retail prices, I personally wouldn’t pay those higher prices eBay is asking for. Their VA blends are ga ga ga great! Love me some Margate and Pembroke too, never was too crazy about Penzance but I do enjoy it from time to time and I do understand why it has such a following and of course the obscurity really adds to its hype. IMO if you pay those high prices there’s no where to go but to dissapointment unless of course you’ve tried it before and you’re willing to pay $200 to $300 for half a pound but don’t pay those prices just to try it for the first time.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I'd much rather see McClelland come back and Esoterica go away if somehow that tradeoff could be made.

I like Pembroke and Dunbar and get them at retail prices from B&Ms, but if losing them could bring back McClelland, then oh, yes.

 

[techie]

I went through a similar curiosity phase and eventually landed a bag of Margate and some aged Penzance. I'm glad I got to try them but I wouldn't go out of my way to get them again. I like the Penzance but don't care for the Margate. But I sure won't pay more than the normal retail price for Penzance, if I happen to come upon a tin. If I don't, I'll never give it another thought.

 

[lawdawg]

I like several of their blends. But I also wouldn't lose any sleep or shed a tear if they never shipped again. I'd much rather see McClelland come back and Esoterica go away if somehow that tradeoff could be made

+1
I would love to get Christmas Cheer and the Frog Morton blends back on the market.

On a slightly more serious note, though, I'm realizing that the folks who have been here a while have probably seen these kind of threads so many times, I can see how it would get annoying and tiresome. My bad.

Weekly Esoterica scalper thread, along with the weekly McClelland and Dunhill closure threads.

 

[pipehunter]

Good stuff, among many, many great blends out there, as has been said already. Worth the retail price in my opinion, but beyond that I wouldn't recommend chasing it. Once you are at $5/ounce (is that retail for Esoterica, roughly?) for a blend, you can buy the finest small, hand blends, as well. I am in the camp that thinks Esoterica makes great tobacco, but there are blends I prefer at LJ Peretti, the Owl Shop, and Pipeworks & Wilke (though I still need to try the new Wilke versions).
Edit: As I think about it, for $5-6/ounce, I recently saw jarred 1993 Dunhill 965 at one of the better tobacco shops. Given tobaccos like that come up now and then at reasonable (to me) prices, the ebay prices for Esoterica blends seem even less attractive.
The only real caveat is that if you are considering reselling them, the market for unopened tins and bags is robust while that for jarred bulk blends is pretty thin. Never been an issue for me, personally. And since I don't really trust the mylar (or whatever) Esoterica bags for the long-term, I've jarred mine anyway. :D

 

[sablebrush52]

Once you are at $5/ounce (is that retail for Esoterica, roughly?)

No. Actual retail is about half that. Actual MSRP is the same price as for a bulk. These blends were largely sold as bulk by Germain's.
Shows you what hype, hysteria, and the pipesmoker lemming/hive mind can do to elevate a line of tobaccos intended as a good quality everyday smoke to the godhead. The same kind of hive mind process is happening with McClelland since their closure.
McClelland and Germain's are very different blenders and their flavors do not intersect. A lot of McClelland products were spectacular, and a lot of them were duds. Would I happily trade one for the other? No way. What I will miss are McClelland's Reds. That's a flavor that will not be repeated by anyone else. But, I love Dunbar and Dorchester no less than CC, McCranie's, or their other Reds.

 

[pipehunter]

Ok, I looked at a 2 oz tin and assumed retail was at least $10. I usually see it around $14 locally.
Bags are cheaper obviously.

 

[trouttimes]

I demand a special council be convened! Scalping is against the law! I want more oversite!

 

[hawky454]

McClelland and Germain's are very different blenders and their flavors do not intersect. A lot of McClelland products were spectacular, and a lot of them were duds. Would I happily trade one for the other? No way. What I will miss are McClelland's Reds. That's a flavor that will not be repeated by anyone else. But, I love Dunbar and Dorchester no less than CC, McCranie's, or their other Reds.

Very well said and I absolutely agree.

 

[oldgeezersmoker]

At UK shops, it seems that bulk Germains carries less than a 10% premium to something like Gawith & Hogarth bulk. I suspect without knowing for sure that the wholesale price Arango charges shops for ET is only a little more than what they charge them for GH

,

 

[cohibajoe]

TP sent a Email Alert for Esoterica at 11:05EST...Sold Out...They do have Balkan Sobranie.

 

[3rdguy]

Seems like more frequent drops lately.

 

[hiplainsdrifter]

To me the disgust is not at all about affordability, it comes from the fact that these are people who buy up all the tobacco they can solely in order to re-sell it at far more than the price which they paid, just to make money off of the people who they cut out of the original purchase. None of that extra money goes back to the manufacturers, and people who had nothing to do with the creation of the tobacco are making truckloads of money with little to no effort.

This is some ignorant blather. Have you ever bought anything in a store? Ever? Guess what genius, the store owner didn't pay the same amount that they are selling it to you for. It is common for stores to double the wholesale cost of an item, with no value added other than that they have it where and when you want it. No difference here. I personally think you are a huge tool for badmouthing people you have never met.

 

[wyfbane]

I personally think you are a huge tool for badmouthing people you have never met.

Is this irony?

lol