I agree, and it happens quite often. K&K and STG are the most notorious offenders.
HU Director's Cut
- Thread starter Cappy
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No surprise out of STG. When you are as big as they are and pipe tobacco is a tertiary thought to their cigar biz , after all they are a public company , make it cheaper and quicker . Most consumers wouldn’t notice , except on this forum …
I hope my stash of cans is the best vintage, it is from 2018-2019 . Tobacco snobs unite . PSA for TAD when you find a blend that sings for you , buy a bunch .
I hope my stash of cans is the best vintage, it is from 2018-2019 . Tobacco snobs unite . PSA for TAD when you find a blend that sings for you , buy a bunch .
explain to me this
If the blend is being made for HU by K&K surely the ratios etc of the various tobaccos are stated in the contract/agreement and by changing it K&K are breaking the contract.
or does it not work like this.
If I was having something manufactured under contract I would clearly state what it was I wanted made and how
If the blend is being made for HU by K&K surely the ratios etc of the various tobaccos are stated in the contract/agreement and by changing it K&K are breaking the contract.
or does it not work like this.
If I was having something manufactured under contract I would clearly state what it was I wanted made and how
I would think that HU needs KK more than KK needs HU so it's probably a too bad if you don't like it situation
It sounds like HU was not aware that their blend had been cheapened.
maybe,but I wouldnt be too happy to have my reputation damaged by someone I have contracted to,but maybe its just such a small amount of smokers who even notice the difference.As stated above
Or HU is trying to shift the blame to K&K.
K&K makes a lot of blends for a lot of different companies. I doubt they would be as big as they are if they changed recipes with out the brands approval or knowledge.
I don't know the first thing about tobacco manufacture contracting, but I would imagine that somewhere in the document there might be language that allows the manufacturer to make certain substitutions based on the availability of product or pricing increases to be at the manufacturers discretion.
Hans wouldn't shift the blame. He's a very honest man, and I've gotten to know him pretty well the last seven years. He was surprised and a bit distressed that Directors Cut had been changed, but he also said it was selling very well.
As for K&K, they've changed some blends in the past couple of years. Many of the Astley's and Peter Heinrichs blends have under gone changes. They lessened the topping of HU Makuwa and HU 4th Anniversary, as well.
I don't doubt K&K did the shift on their own. K&K owns many of those trademarks, so they can pretty much do whatever they want. Most smokers don't have the palate to pick up on changes like a leaf substitution. They might think maybe something's kinda different and then just go buy another tin, so there's no real downside to cheapening the product for the most part. A lot of smokers just want their fix of "baccy".
My last batch of HU purchases, in 2019, were uniformly disappointing. Besides Director's Cut, Makhuwa was almost unrecognizable, as was 5th Anniversary. I don't buy HU because I want average and ordinary. I can buy average and ordinary locally.
Quality will be going down overall anyway, as less people grow, cheaper harvesting methods lower quality, cheaper and easier gain momentum. Why would that be different with tobacco than it is with any number of trades. But I like, admire, and support people and businesses that believe in quality and who walk that walk.
Frankly, I've gotten burnt out on this cheap dark fired leaf. It's become ubiquitous in recent releases. It's SPAM, SPAM, SPAM, SPAM, and SPAM! But no Pepsi.
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What’s funny is i only had “new” Makhuwa, and really liked it, can only fathom the original.
The original was like smoking a rich chocolate milkshake.
My question is why not just raise the price instead of cheapen the leaf. The type of pipe smoker that buys HU tobacco or other boutique brands isn't worried about the tin costing and extra buck or two. Otherwise they'd be smoking Super Value or something like that.
I don't know but you would think there would be a contract in place forbidding the manufacturer from altering the blending formula without prior approval from the owner of the blend.
I know old post, I was just gifted some 2108 from @AJL67 I’m mentioning you, in case you see this, and can also share thoughts?
This 2018 is amazing, has anyone smoked any purchased last year, or this year, and can share how it’s working out?
I really want to get more, but if this years blend is not like this, not so sure I want to try... hmm
Thanks
This 2018 is amazing, has anyone smoked any purchased last year, or this year, and can share how it’s working out?
I really want to get more, but if this years blend is not like this, not so sure I want to try... hmm
Thanks
I would also like to know… I’ve held off adding DC to my orders since 2020, but I will likely be placing another order soon, and if the recipe has been corrected, I’d like to re-up on this one. I also noticed the Makhuwa change, but have not bought any more since then - any info on whether that recipe was fixed also?
You won't know until you try some.I know old post, I was just gifted some 2108 from @AJL67 I’m mentioning you, in case you see this, and can also share thoughts?
This 2018 is amazing, has anyone smoked any purchased last year, or this year, and can share how it’s working out?
I really want to get more, but if this years blend is not like this, not so sure I want to try... hmm
Thanks
Well, after @JimInks and I noticed that the blend had changed he contacted Hans about it and Hans contacted K&K. They reduced the DFK that they had used to replace the Perique, but hadn't replaced the Perique that had been taken out. So it's different from what I bought in 2016 but not as pungent as the kilo I'd ordered in 2019.
I opened a jar last year to see if the DFK had settled down and fortunately is has. It's a pretty nice smoke, just not the same as it used to be. I haven't smoked anything newer, so I can't comment on where it now is.
Good to know, thank you.
Any info on Makhuwa being re-adjusted to get closer to its previous glory?
The Makhuwa I bought in 2019 was shockingly bad. Unrecognizable. It used to taste like a smooth creamy chocolate malt. The 2019 was sour to the extent that it had any flavor at all. I haven't tried it since, and as I don't need to buy any more tobacco, I doubt I'll be giving it a another shot. K&K really screwed the pooch with that one.