Germain and Sons Stopping Production?
- Thread starter Dr. Van Loafer
- Start date
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Same reason McClelland did? Just a guess, as I'm not knowledgeable about the logistics of the business. Unfortunate though, and a reminder of why I stock up on all my favorites whenever I can.
No need to apologize. Just keep in mind that there are a hell of a lot of good options, Sutliff 507-C slices being one of them. It's a flake that ages very nicely and really hits above its weight. And, it's available. Peter Stokkebye tobaccos are released too young, but all that means is that if you're patient and let them age a few years, you're going to get some very, very good flavors down the road. C&D's Carolina Red Flak is pretty good, as is Bijou, and one of my faves, Yorktown.
McClelland's matured Red and Orange Virginia blends were in a class of their own, but a lot of people didn't really like them,
Gawith and Hoggarth produce some of the best Virginias to be found, and their sources are still good, with real character. I think the availability issues were largely to do with mediocre distributorship, but that looks to have changed. HU Director's Cut may be different, but it's not a bad blend at all. Even after K&K screwed the blend by stuffing it with cheap dark fired in place of Perique, a few years of aging allowed the cheap dark fired to settle down and it's surprisingly good. The more recent stuff reduces the cheap dark fired, so it's better.
McClelland and Esoterica have become fanboy star fucker blends for a couple of reasons. McClelland closed up shop and people who never gave a rat's ass about it started wailing and ripping their robes. It was a great blender, but not the only great blender, and as we saw with the Cringle Flakes, not entirely irreplaceable.
Esoterica wasn't a big deal until 2006, when shipments were interrupted and fans of Penzance started panicking. As soon as Penzance reappeared the panic buying set in, eventually extending to include Stonehaven and continuing on to other offerings that nobody ever thought twice about.
The stuff sells out online with the major stores, but sits around at B&M's so all of the whining about it not being available is just due to an unwillingness to make an effort to find it.I 've aquired over 50 lbs over the years, and after smoking some and giving away quite a lot, still have more than I'll likely live to smoke, and I can still aquire it with no problem. You just have to make an effort.
I like a lot of Sutliff's match blends. Some people complain of a taste to them that they think is from a casing, but I've never noticed or been bothered by it. Their Edgeworth ready rub match is highly regarded by aficionados of the real thing. Match Victorian is a very successful clone of the Murray version of Elizabethan Match, and these are in bulk.
All this is a way of saying that you haven't missed anything important. There's still top quality tobaccos available, that don't get major media attention. Personally, I'd be much more concerned if Sutliff went away. A lot of blends made by a lot of different companies would be screwed if that happened.
McClelland primarily closed because they could no longer source some leaf varietals that would meet their quality standards. And some other reasons. Very little similarity between them and Germain's.
Mmmmm, I merely posed the notion that they maybe, like McClellands, they would rather close than have someone else make money off their hard won reputation. But, how would anyone know whether Germains may not be having sourcing issues?
Sable did say that some blends were changing recipes, via discussed with Jiminks.
Ha ha, but of course all of this is just armchair rhetoric… until Pipestud tells us likewise.
Sable did say that some blends were changing recipes, via discussed with Jiminks.
Ha ha, but of course all of this is just armchair rhetoric… until Pipestud tells us likewise.
Out of stock at Smokingpipes.com
If they closed up shop or sold out and changed recipes, it wouldn't effect my world at all. But what would all the ET Lovers chase after next?
Happy I have a very good supply that is probably aging better than I am.
I heard a similar rumor--that Germain is just rebranded KBV blends. Or something to that effect, in any case.
I have a cousin who's neighbour spends a lot of time on reddit....yeah, actually, never mind.
@beargreasediet Don’t feel bad man, I use to let it get under my skin, all the so called Unicorn blends, then I finally got my hands on quite a few over the years, and I’m not impressed.
There’s a lot of great tobacco out there, just enjoy the hunt, it’s part of the fun too, trying out new blends, there’s always something great out there.
There’s a lot of great tobacco out there, just enjoy the hunt, it’s part of the fun too, trying out new blends, there’s always something great out there.
There was some speculation, but it was pretty much kept underwraps until the end. And the few people who actually did know weren't talking. It just started disappearing from vendors inventories. But it took several months before it was all sold out. They didn't want a frenzy over product by announcing ahead of time the shutdown.
Thank you friend! I was taking the piss regarding not smoking what I’ve got squirreled away - no plans to sell the things I know I like. And we’ll probably be eating ze bugs before I’m able to make my way through it.
But I do appreciate the encouragement and all the excellent advice - trying to broaden my horizons on my own would be daunting - lots of recommendations I need to try. While I suspect I am partial to the Jersey sauce, I will no doubt find something I enjoy at least as well.
That's why I said it wasn't spoken of openly. A few of us knew and were silently buying but the loss of 5100 and Christmas Cheer should have been a big red flag to others.
I have never smoked a blend so good that I said, "If they stop making this blend, I'll stop pipe smoking."
Never fear, if they do close I'll be ready with replacements.
