I've been away a while - help me catch up!

[Geronimo_Von]

It's a whole different landscape.

2016 - The FDA Deeming Rules were announced, which spelled potential death for blends not continuously in the US market before Feb 15th 2007. Since then, the rules have mutated a bit, become slightly more flexible, but a lot of blends went away.

2018 - McClelland did close its doors in January of that year. Prices for their blends have gone through the roof on the secondary market.

2018 - BAT, which holds the manufacturing rights to the Dunhill blends, announced that they would be ceasing production of said blends in 18 months. The company was returning to it's roots, making overpriced "luxury" goods and engaging in other dubious luxury services. STG, which made the blends for BAT, eventually secured the rights to continue making the blends, using their Peterson brand name in place of the Dunhill name. Blends have not changed but less of them are in production.

Germain's continues to produce the Esoterica line and make erratic shipments, which has been the norm since 2006.

Blends that weren't huge sellers got the axe.

C&D has upped its game quite a bit and isn't the laughing stock it was 6 or so years ago.

Smokers have become aware of foreign blends not distributed in the US, like HU, and are ordering them from Estervals and other exporters.

You can no longer buy tobacco from Britain or Denmark, but you can buy through a few foreign exporters.

Pheasant Run was sold and is being bulldozed to create a multi purpose real estate project. The Chicago Pipe Club got clubbed, first by the sale of Pheasant Run and then by Covid.

Virtual pipe clubs and zoom pipe get togethers have become a "thing".

The thing about buying the components rather than finished blends is a workaround necessitated by the FDA Deeming Rules. The rules apply to finished blends, not to components.

The secondary market for "vintage" tobaccos has grown rapidly. You can now buy a discontinued $16 tin for $280, and feel grateful.

Asia is getting a lot of pipe tobacco as it's popularity has grown there and they don't bitch about prices.

THANK YOU!

This is mostly bad news, though. Sad to hear most of these update.

C&D were a joke when I tapped out which must have been around 2015-2016. They made loads of similar blends which mostly had unaged tobacco within, and were harsh and stingy to most palates. Thought of as a budget blend and usually thrown in as freebies. Good to hear they've come on.

Terrible to hear about Pheasant Run. I loved that show. Used to go with two friends and we'd get lunch at a local Greek place and then hit the floor. Great community.

All in all, blech. Still, even more grateful I secured so much product between 2010 and 2016 now. Still have 80% of it. Chasing down disappearing blends and brands is hellish sounding.

 

[strave19]

@Geronimo_Von , I was in the same boat as you in 2020. I was "out of it" since about 2014 or so. Things have... changed. And yet they stay the same. I'll just say that everyone definitely focuses on the out of production and impossible to find stuff, but there are some great, new, and available blends still being produced. Cheers.

 

[Geronimo_Von]

@Geronimo_Von , I was in the same boat as you in 2020. I was "out of it" since about 2014 or so. Things have... changed. And yet they stay the same. I'll just say that everyone definitely focuses on the out of production and impossible to find stuff, but there are some great, new, and available blends still being produced. Cheers.

I learned that too. I finally did secure two full bowls of well preserved 759, as well as some other grail blends. All in all, they didn't live up to the hype.

 

[sablebrush52]

THANK YOU!

This is mostly bad news, though. Sad to hear most of these update.

C&D were a joke when I tapped out which must have been around 2015-2016. They made loads of similar blends which mostly had unaged tobacco within, and were harsh and stingy to most palates. Thought of as a budget blend and usually thrown in as freebies. Good to hear they've come on.

Terrible to hear about Pheasant Run. I loved that show. Used to go with two friends and we'd get lunch at a local Greek place and then hit the floor. Great community.

All in all, blech. Still, even more grateful I secured so much product between 2010 and 2016 now. Still have 80% of it. Chasing down disappearing blends and brands is hellish sounding.

Most of C&D's offerings are still as you describe, but their small batch offerings have been a real step up. Instead of cellaring no C&D I've added a few of their releases to the hoard.

You should take a gander at Watch City Cigars, who are making some outstanding blends.

Hans Wiedermann, creator of HU tobacco is probably the most gifted and creative blender working today. His blends are well worth checking out.

Sutliff tobacco has also risen from being a source of much undeserved derision after people became aware that many of their favorite blends were blended and produced by Sutliff for other companies. Sutliff has also produced some truly outstanding small batch blends under their own label, such as their 2020 and 2021 Cringle Flake.

K&K's quality has taken a hit in the last few years. They've taken to subbing out some of the Perique content in their blends and replacing it with Dark Fired in order to save a few pennies on each tin. The results are not good.

 

[Rob NC]

C&D has upped its game quite a bit and isn't the laughing stock it was 6 or so years ago.

I've been a C&D customer since they were in Pennsylvania, and you called Craig Tarler on the phone to place your order, and I also enjoy the GLP blends made there. I wasn't ever aware of them being a laughing stock. Can you elaborate?

 

[Geronimo_Von]

C&D has upped its game quite a bit and isn't the laughing stock it was 6 or so years ago.

I've been a C&D customer since they were in Pennsylvania, and you called Craig Tarler on the phone to place your order, and I also enjoy the GLP blends made there. I wasn't ever aware of them being a laughing stock. Can you elaborate?

My take is in the early mid 2010's they had lots of blends but the tobacco itself seem unaged and lacked complexity. Lots of their stuff seemed to be packed with the same tasteless low grade stuff, usually heavy burley that had a huge nic hit but nothing else. Kinda like packing your pipe with cigarette smoke. That was the image at the time, fair or not. But sounds like they've upped their game.

I was always a fan of Sutliff. Some of my earliest smoke were from there. Great Outdoors, Bosphorous Cruise. Lovely stuff.

 

[btp79]

C&D has upped its game quite a bit and isn't the laughing stock it was 6 or so years ago.

I've been a C&D customer since they were in Pennsylvania, and you called Craig Tarler on the phone to place your order, and I also enjoy the GLP blends made there. I wasn't ever aware of them being a laughing stock. Can you elaborate?

I wasn't aware of this either. I rather like a number of their blends and intentionally or otherwise have quite a few cellared.

 

[Tomcat]

Nope. All B&Ms ship.

I know several that don’t.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I know several that don’t.

You'd be the first to mention that they don't. They want to move product and in this day and age, they are getting fewer clients. I haven't ran into one on this list thar didn't.

Retailer Directory

pipesmagazine.com

 

[dctune]

This is all anyone needs to know about dunhill...
They don't want to be associated with tobacco, and they sell these for $400
View attachment 113048

Just brutal.