Starting a Cellar

[sablebrush52]

Hmmm. Sounds like you're ready to offer a trade! One man's poison is another's treat, though in this case, not mine.

The Balkan Sobranie that I have stacked in a box? I suppose that I could put it up for $40 a tin and get called a gouger. That's actually an attractive possibility.
For now, it's sitting, and occasionally I give away a tin of it when the whim hits me.

 

[averagegent]

I'm just sifting through all the info I've been bombarded with (in a very good way!) now, but thanks for all the advice!

 

[cosmicfolklore]

The cost for information on this forum... is your sanity. :wink:

For the most part everyone just makes up their own way to do things.

 

[griffonwing]

I didnt start cellaring tobacco til after I was about 10 years into piping. I smoked about half a dozen different vanilla blends before finding the perfect one for me, which happened to be MacBaren Vanilla Cream. Once I found that, I bought a couple 1-lb bags from smoking pipes, as well as a few other blends that I wanted to try. It was during those extra "toss that ins" that I came across some Samuel Gawith Skiff and Squadron Leader, and GLPease Charing Cross, and instantly fell in love with a whole different level of smoking.
I would order some tobacco about once a month, and rarely smoke even a 1/4 of what I had before I bought some more. Before I realized it, I was acquiring a small stash of goodies: Staples of smoking, as well as new blends and even specialty blends.
As for specialty, I consider McClelland Christmas Cheer a "specialty" blend as I only smoke that tobacco during the holiday season, and I have a specific pipe that is dedicated to that blend and that blend alone.
Basically, don't start out wanting to cellar. Let it graduate there naturally. Your tastes will change, new tastes will develop. As as you go along, your stock will expand with new blends and old.

 

[easterntraveler]

BUY a lot of tobacco.
Buy tobacco before pipes or at least set a tobacco goal before spending a lot of money on pipes. Find 1 or 2 good bulk tobacco and stock up on that first. Something like Peter Stokkebye Luxury bullseye, MissississippiRiver or Edgeworth match by sultiff. After you get 3 to 5 pounds which should be about $100 to $120 bucks, then go with the "higher quality" stuff in tins. This will also allow your bulk to age while acquiring tinned tobaccos.
How to get hard to acquire/rare tobaccos? Go to the popular sites like smokingpipes.Com and create an account and get on email lists. I have $100 always set aside. When I get a notification then I have the finances to acquire the tobacco. This is also when I buy other things I am cellaring. Generally there is a limit on the rare stuff so I load up on the stuff I want to cellar when I buy the rare tobaccos. I also look for your typical Dunhill sales and what not. I put about $15 to $20 a month into the "tobaccos jar" by the time something like John Aylesbury comes along I have enough cash to get some then stock up on the other stuff. You can also put stuff in your shopping cart at smokingpipes.Com and let it sit there. So once the rare stuff comes along all you do is add it and check out.
If you want cellared tins with some age on it or something no longer in production the go to pipestud.Com and get on his mailing list. He always has some crazy stuff for sale. You can check with 4noggins on there consignment link to find cool stuff too but I think it is way over priced.
Next thing you know.....BOOM you got 40 to 50 pounds of tobacco. Definitely set goals.

 

[plugugly]

Here is a thought. All are worried about availability (No more internet sales for example), blend extinction (FDA effectively kills most blends) or cost (taxes, taxes, taxes!) So you might NEED to be in a hurry and don't know what you like. Possibly you should buy insanely popular and proven blends like Escudo or Capstan --- and trade for what you want when you know what you like!
Plugugly.

 

[okiescout]

"The cost for information on this forum... is your sanity. :wink:

For the most part everyone just makes up their own way to do things." :rofl:
"I wouldn't go cellaring anything your first year of smoking. I would be trying a bunch of different blends from categories that interest you."
+1, Harris.
Averagegent, a great way to follow out on the logic Harris has pointed out, is to get in on as many of the various samplers that sound interesting which you feel you can afford as well as actually have the time to smoke. P&C offers these on a monthly basis. You can read up on them before buying, but your own experiences, having done that, will shape your journey. Happy exploration.

 

[jvnshr]

I came here to see if Peck has uploaded any new photos, that's all

 

[philobeddoe]

After I realized what blends I truly liked, I would buy 2 tins every time I went to the tobacconist, one to store and one to smoke. It adds up quickly, and an occasional internet order of several pounds will get you a decent cellar in a few years.

 

[captpat]

Agree completely with sable's contrarian advice.

 

[okiescout]

It has never happened to me yet, but the threads are full of the painful cries of those who have had a cherished blend discontinued.

Brush's statement was indeed appropriate for experienced pipe smokers. ::

 

[cigrmaster]

plugugly, makes a really good point that I forgot about. The apocolypse is indeed in it's way and could hit very soon. Here is the list of all my cellared tobacco. They are all flakes and many can be traded like plugugly has said. They also will be worth quite a bit more in ten years as they all age beautifully. The TR next to a blend means tin ready, smoke right out of tin with no drying time.

Virginia Flakes:

Fribourg&Treyer Cut Virginia Plug TR

Fribourg and Treyer VintageTR

Fribourg & Treyer Special Brown FlakeTR

Wessex Campaign Brigade Dark FlakeTR

Wessex Brown Virginia Flake TR

Wessex Gold Virginia Flake TR

Wessex Gold Brick TR

Samuel Gawith Best Brown Flake

Samuel Gawith full Virginia Flake

Hamborger VeermasterTR

Dunhill Flake TR

Astley’s no. 44 Dark Flake TR

Astleys 109TR

John Aylesbury  Luxury Flake TR

Rotary Navy CutTR

Capstan Blue FlakeTR

Brigham Klondike Gold TR

 

Virginia/Perique Flakes

EscudoTR

Solani 633 TR

Samuel Gawith St James Flake

Dunhill Deluxe Navy RollsTR
Virginia/Burley/Kentucky Flakes

Solani Silver Flake TR

Peterson Perfect Plug

GL Pease NavigatorTR

Petersons Irish Flake

Peterson University Flake

Esoterica  Stonehaven

Mac Baren HH Old Dark Fired

Wallace Flake TR

Orlik Dark Strong Kentucky TR
Aromatic flakes.
Mac Baren Modern Virginia Flake TR

Mac Baren Vanilla Creme Flake TR

 

[averagegent]

Thanks again chaps! I'm starting to compile a list of baccy's now - certain ones I like, ones I've heard age well and some classics. Unfortunately though, living in Britain, I don't have access to some of them that have been mentioned (AKA ranted about!)...
Plugugly, my thoughts exactly (or, at least partially - I kinda just like the idea of cellaring too!), and something Cigrmaster expands on...
Philobeddoe, good point! And mental note made!

 

[mso489]

I can't call my tobacco stash a cellar. That would be pretentious. But when you try blends, and get some as gifts, and keep some you want to try, but delay opening them, you end up with what you can call a cellar, as a kind of fantasy. In that sense, cellars happen. You buy some of this, get some samples of that, buy two tins of something you really like, and voila, you have a variety of blends and single leaf tins, and you realize, you aren't catching up with most of this any time this year. In my case, there is little intentional about it, except that it has been done with enough forethought that I usually don't find myself with blends I really don't like. I did accumulate too many aromatics as I lost my taste for them, and tarheel1 solved my problem by mentioning that his homeless vets like aromatics best. Problem solved.