Update on the STG Closure Of Sutliff and Mac Baren
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Man, I went nuts when McClelland closed shop. I feel a little embarrassed about it really haha. I’ll probably try to snatch a couple more tins of Sutliff stuff if it comes back available, but I’ll not be going ham like I did then. I’ll smoke what I got til it’s gone, and enjoy it all. That having been said I would like to visit the factory one time before they shut her down for good. Does anybody know if they will be doing any last tours of the factory? Or if it’s even a thing?
Mine are the 2023 flake. Says only 5000 were made. Not demure how true it is. Wanting to know how it smokes. How strong it is. Can we complain it to something.
Mine are from 2020. Thousands of tins were produced regularly but labeled in groups for some reason. AFAIK, they're identical blends.
When the news hit I had three tins of Crumble Kake VaPer in my cellar and I picked up a fourth this week when my local B&M finally restocked. I just bought the first three because I wanted to age them, I wasn't concerned at all that they'd suddenly become unavailable. Now I'm very glad I have them, I'll be aging them for much longer periods than I originally
It won't, C&D produces their own tobacco and GLP uses C&D tobacco. It will probably be a boon to them both as people will buy more from them, there's a big push to support them and the other blending houses that aren't under STG. All of the brands Sutliff supplied leaf / blended for will most likely try and get C&D to do it for them but C&D almost certainly isn't capable of helping all of them so who will make it is anybody's guess.
I'm hoping that STG will be better, because the Mac Baren version was better than none, but not anything approaching the Ogden's, far less pungent toppings and far less rich of a Virginia base.
Never forget, Denmark is where British blends go to die.
Also, whatever cheesy flavorings Mac Baren used fade out in a few years. If STG does worse St Bruno than Mac Baren won't be worth a nickel to me.
I bought a half pound of Frosty Mint. This will make 4lbs of EZ1. EZ1 is an blend that is pleasant with overtones of chocolate and Mocha with a touch of Mint. Kool.
I snagged the chocolate and mint for future reference, will pick up the mocha once I recover from the debacle since it’s C&D
Denmark: Where Blends Live On In Name Alone
That's any brand. As years go by, variations is crops happen as well as proportions of components.
The same hereI snagged the chocolate and mint for future reference, will pick up the mocha once I recover from the debacle since it’s C&D
It seems like a majority of posts on this topic include some reference to how much the poster has stocked up, size of cellar, etc - sort of a “well, at least I got mine approach”. The pipe tobacco hobby seems to attract hoarders to some extent. I certainly was headed down that road until I realized how ridiculous it had become and that a) I almost certainly have multiples of the amount of tobacco I will smoke in my lifetime and b) even if I don’t it really doesn’t matter. Maybe that obsession with collection and avoiding perceived or actual scarcity - the thrill of the hunt - is part of the appeal.
There's definitely a Pokemon like aspect to it, Gotta Smoke Em All
The thrill of smoking what ya like is very appealing.
And gotta have what you like to be able to smoke it.
Now, there are other blends. There will be new blends made (very few) but the ones we know and like are what I stocked up on.
I will never run out of Mac Baren plumcake.
I don't think there's any "maybe" about it, except for a few stoics out there. Think about it. Who needs more pipes than a seven day rotation, if that, yet many of us have multiples of that number. I certainly have more pipes than I need, but I am a collector of a specific make and the thrill of the hunt is definitely part of it.
With regard to tobaccos, once you're had a number of favorite blends disappear without warning your thinking changes. For most of my smoking "career" I had nothing cellared. I went to the local tobacconist and bought what I needed until I needed to replace it with another trip to the tobacconist.
Then all of the pipe shops closed, and a bunch of favorites disappeared. So I started stocking up as a preventative.
Memory plays tricks any you forget what you have squirreled away. I finally realized that I have more than enough and stopped actively buying about 4 years ago. That said, I still buy the occasional vintage pipe for the collection, and a few tins of this and that. My purchasing is a small fraction of what it once was, but it's not completely over.
Yes. It’s human nature. We want more than we need. I beat myself up for not having a lifetime supply of 40th Anniversary, when years ago when it was easily available, I knew nothing about it. I think there is the fear that one might lose a very special experience. But at the same time, we can adjust our expectations. I’ve found that in many way Quiet Nights scratches a similar itch to 40th Anniversary even though they are completely different animals. There’s a tendency to want what we can’t have and to over idealize what is less available. Happens between men and women all the time ! “The grass is always greener!” Right ?
If you went so “nuts” maybe you can unload some 40th Anniversary on me ! At a profit, of course !