You answered in your OPDo I have any recourse if the tobacco is bad?
that the cost is for the packaging (which is collectible) and while the tin/pouch is sealed the tobacco inside in not for consumption.
I know this happens because I got away with it ONE time then got shut down. One of the Bay's "rules" is that the "collectable tin" is supposed to be out of production. They enforce ALL of they're rules very sporadically. I've been shut down three or four times, spread out over about 18 months.If you're buying anything Esoterica or JF Germain related, then chances are they're fresh packages/tins from the last couple months.
It's been mentioned here, on the forum, of buying tins off ebay and finding them to be advertising tins; sealed with no tobacco in them.It's important to remember that even a sealed tin that looks good from the outside is no garantee of tobacco that is ready to smoke.