+1 Peck
1 - Buy tobacco as a hedge against the political climate. In no circumstance will it be cheaper and it’s naive to expect that the price won’t go up. It’s like a 403b so invest for your future smoking happiness and if your wife or SO doesn’t complain, buy them a nice ring.
2 - Buy tobacco when you find a mixture that you like. There’s no guarantee that even if bought soon after the initial purchase that it will be the same but it’s likely to be.
+1 rmbittner
3 - Tobacco is a natural crop and it may be different even from the same farm and especially season to season. Good manufacturers aim for continuity but think of wine where different vintages are more prized than others because the taste profiles changes for every component leaf and see point #2 above.
Ageing mixed leaf tobacco products, whether in cigars or for pipes marries the blend. The result often tastes smoother at the expense of the distinction of flavor. When a tobacco product ages too long the flavors 'meld' into a core taste with distinct flavors reduced to nuance or indistinguishable.
Know the component leaf in the mixtures and understand what you’re attempting to do. For example, burley readily adopts flavors so they may reduce the impact of strongly flavored condiments like perique or latakia. Don’t expect different mixtures to age the same even if they are of the same blend type, know what’s in them and their percentages. Good luck.