Hermit Works before 2010

[BriarsAndBottles]

Does anyone have any experience with these? Aside from the Captain Earles They seem to have holiday blends, their XV series, the Antique press, and some one offs like mystic and Rosebud

The XV are just described as a hodgepodge of various vintage leaves. I’ve learned that old isn’t necessarily better, and that how you blend stuff matters too. Throwing a bunch of good leaf in a tin doesn’t constitute a masterful blend.

It also seems like all that’s left of the company is the captain earle series. Are they still around?

 

[daveinlax]

No, but I think Louise still owns the Capt Earle name. J (RIP, I miss you brother) spent a lot of time blending the vintage tobacco he bought for the small batch blends. They might not be your cup of tea but a lot of thought and effort went into each one.

 

[BriarsAndBottles]

No, but I think Louise still owns the Capt Earle name. J (RIP, I miss you brother) spent a lot of time blending the vintage tobacco he bought for the small batch blends. They might not be your cup of tea but a lot of thought and effort went into each one.

I appreciate the response and information, sad to hear about J.

They do sound like my cup of tea unfortunately. Problem is my tea cabinet is already overloaded. Do you have any favorite Hermit blends?

 

[jpberg]

Buy whatever old Hermit Blends you can find.
You’ll never have them again.

 

[Wet Dottle]

The old Hermit blends were great. Ten Russians and Mystic Blend were my favorites, but they were all good. Here are some of the original tins:



Note that these are the same tins that used to be loaded with 2oz/50g of other blends, but these are packed with 100g of tobacco for the Hermit blends. Eventually they were changed to 50g also.

 

[romaso]

Here's a couple articles on Hermit Tobacco and Jay's passing (from 2011 and 2012):

Broken Pipe: Jay Jones, Hermit Tobacco

It is with deep sadness, shock, and regret that we bring you the news of the untimely passing of Jay Jones of Hermit Tobacco. We received second-hand word over night, […]

pipesmagazine.com

Hermit Tobacco to Continue & a Thank You from Louise Jones

You may recall the sad news that we reported in mid-November of the passing of Jay Jones, of Hermit TobaccoWorks. We received a letter today from his widow, Louise Pavonetti […]

pipesmagazine.com

 

[briarflyin]

If anyone is looking for some Hermit tobacco, I have some I'll be selling very soon. I'm inventorying
by tinned goodies. I have around 300 tins and I don't believe I'll be around enough years to enjoy it all.
I have around 15 tins and most of them are in the 2000-2010 vintage. While Mystic Blend and Ten Russians are my favorites too, there are a mixed variety also available. My email has changed, so if
anyone wants to chat, I am at: kevin@besthandymancompany.net

. . . . Cheers and happy smokin' to all. Kevin

 

[kcghost]

It was sad day when Jay passed away. Seems like Louise really lost interest in the business. Shortly after that.

 

[AroEnglish]

Interesting that this thread popped up today as I was just listening to Louise's interview (ep. 107) on my drive to work.

It was sad day when Jay passed away. Seems like Louise really lost interest in the business. Shortly after that.

When the interview was recorded it was a few years after Jay died and Louise sounded fairly enthusiastic about pipes and tobaccos. But that interview released nearly 10 years ago so I'm sure there's a lot that's changed since then.

 

[kwg116]

Jay was such a nice guy. I had the chance to hang out with him and Louise at a few pipe shows and he was a great person. If you didn’t know him you would be afraid to talk to him, he was a big guy with a booming voice, but once you talked to him you realized what a passion he had for tobacco and all things vintage tobacciana. You never knew what you could find on their tables at the shows. RIP Jay.

 

[AroEnglish]

Also, if seems like at some point the Captain Earle line (and maybe other Hermit lines) we transferred/bought by C&D. I know C&D always produced their tobacco but Jay and Louise actually owned the recipes, etc.

 

[dottlejockey]

I have one partial tin left that i've been slowwwwwwwly smoking from my last jar. It is their Happy Holidays Blend from 2001. Love this stuff. Too bad i didn't cellar this one a bit deeper back in the day!