Would You Pay?

[woodsroad]

You got to ask Jim Inks about that. We fed Jim a whole bunch of original WH Plugs from the 50s through to the 80s so that he and Russ could get it as near as perfect as possible. On the other hand Weezell and myself have smoked plugs from the 70s that get you truly twisted. As to what the guys in PA do with the stuff today I have no clue but people seem to like it. Sadly it was never a whole leaf plug so we will never know what could have been. Dan may chime in as he had a lot to do with that part of the process.

Simon,
We were the right thing, at the wrong time. Wanting to produce vintage blends in a time of great uncertainty in the pipe tobacco industry. Russ did his best with what he had, and certainly the War Horse line was unique, to say the least.
I damn near lost my lunch the first time that I tried the factory prototype!
-Dan

 

[condorlover1]

They were fun times and I would not have missed it for anything. Especially the'Chicago Pipe Show' air freshener card!

 

[unadoptedlamp]

Tobacco in Canada is at the very least 20 metric dollars an ounce for the crappy bulk stuff

I live part time in Canada. Aside from a decade or more ago when it was reasonable, I have never bought at Canadian prices. It's simply not necessary.

I can even make tobacco arrive in countries where importing tobacco is flat out forbidden.

Making borders "disappear" is a little like finding those hard to get blends. With just a little bit of creativity, they seem to not be an issue. This isn't the place to discuss so called "illegal" activities, but from my perspective, any government that makes it illegal or ridiculously expensive to import a small amount of tobacco of my choice can kiss my ass. I don't feel the slightest bit of guilt in circumventing those types of laws. Besides, the worst thing I've ever encountered is that the shipment is either destroyed or sent back. The authorities are not interested in making your life problematic over such a thing.

I've tried a lot of the "unobtainable" blends long before they were ever "unobtainable". Very few of them stick in my craw as something that I just have to get again at a "premium" price. There are so many fantastic blends to get, that it is not worth the trouble. Or cost, if that's an issue. It's not really the money that drives me away. Most "unobtainable" blends are still a hell of a lot less expensive than a box of good Cuban cigars, for example. They're just a hassle that is hard to justify with so much great stuff out there.

But that doesn't matter much to anyone who hasn't tried them. All of the hype makes it seem like there is something magical missing. Sure, some very good blends can be tough to get. But for every one of those, you could easily list 10 that are just as great or better and readily available, in my opinion. Not much consolation though.

By dollar figure, I spend my money on pipes. I get a lot of satisfaction out of a well made pipe that is pleasing to my eye. Maybe that is vain for some people. But I just like holding a piece of art (to my eye) and I have a lot of satisfaction from that. I never get tired of turning my favourite pipes around in my hand to study the construction and grain. It's mesmerizing.

I can't say any of the "unobtainable" blends cause a similar reaction for me.

 

[warren]

Nothing like publicizing one's illegal activity to get the bots buzzing. Well done! I think.

 

[tobefrank]

I think about how I won't hesitate to buy a cigar for $20, but $50 for a tin of tobacco that holds enough for 12ish smokes seems overpriced, and I wonder if it's all just relative.

It reminds me of the tea merchant I visit. I was asking about some of the super premium Chinese stuff and she said tea drinkers are cheap and won't pay more than $20 for 100g. But coffee drinkers will shell out 5 bucks for garbage.

Premium cigars here are now anywhere between $40 and $150 Australian. Compared to that FVP and SJF are a cheap smoke.

 

[unadoptedlamp]

Nothing like publicizing one's illegal activity to get the bots buzzing. Well done! I think

There's not much to look into. I've been caught red handed. Know what happens?

"Sorry, this is not allowed. We will be sending it back."

"Ok, have a nice day."

That's it. Really.

I know you're a "law" man. But really, there is a time for civil disobedience. And this is hardly a matter of importance. To anyone.

 

[warren]

I'm impressed with your definition of "civil disobedience". Situational ethics at its best.

 

[condorlover1]

@warren +1

 

[unadoptedlamp]

I'm impressed with your definition of "civil disobedience"

You know my life story as well as I know yours, which is to say, not at all.

I'm sure you're a good man. I'm only "sure" of that because the overwhelming majority of people I meet are.

If importing tobacco to places where it is not allowed makes me a bad or immoral person, well, I guess all I have to say is that I try to do better in other areas of my life.

To any nation that is offended by my tobacco use and methods of achieving that, I sincerely apologize. Maybe my fingers are crossed behind my back. I don't know.

For the record, I never discuss the particulars on how to "break" an import "law" here. That would be a contravention of one of the forum rules.

Cheer up! The world is full of good people. Perhaps I am not one of them, but let's spread some positivity in the forums just for the hell of it. It's fun.

 

[Ahi Ka]

If I still ordered I’d probably be happy to pay 5x more than the listed retail price on SPC, even for something bulk. That being said, like @tobefrank I would still be making a huge saving compared to domestic prices here in NZ - eg 4oz of macbaren is now.

@unadoptedlamp, hook the brother up so we all know you’re not bluffing Haha just kidding.

Putting tax differences aside, The last thing I purchased was a 2003-2006 pack of st Bruno flake for about $30us

 

[Ahi Ka]

Edit: 100g tin of macbaren is 200us here

 

[sablebrush52]

There are a couple of blends for which I paid a premium. I bought tins of Petersen's Escudo for around $28 a tin (of course, now they go for $120 a tin and up), an 8oz Tin of Our best Blend from 2005 for $50 (which go for about $275) a few tins of McCrainie's 1996 vintage Red Ribbon and Red Flake for $35 (now about $60 to $70 a tin) and a few tins of Haddo's Delight from 2001 thru 2004 for $35 (which is a little bit lower than they normally go for).
Other tins of Rattray's mixtures from the 1990's I picked up for considerably less than retail because they were "old" tins, not "vintage" tins.
I wouldn't pay the prices now being asked for these blends. For me, there's not a blend ever made that's worth $40 or more an ounce.

 

[karam]

Not when there's so many great tobaccos available.
As a relatively new pipe smoker of 3 years daily and ~10 years on and off I know I've missed out on a lot, but it doesn't bother me. Just had a bowl of HU Zulu, every bowl has been sublime, last night had some Salty Dogs, and before that had Motzek Sweet Crushed Twist, all of which gave me a heap of enjoyment, so why bother, why pay through the nose, and THEN get hooked chasing unicorns which may or may not work out, and may be hard/impossible to find later?

 

[Chasing Embers]

Nope, $5/ounce for tins and $60/pound of bulk is near the top end of what I'll pay. I've never paid more than $35/bag of Esoterica and I've got a lifetime supply of McClelland favorites all bought at retail.

 

[saltedplug]

Any price I would pay for a pipe would be premium, because I couldn't smoke it. I know this thread is about tobacco but. . .So saying, last night I checked to see if a pipe I've been eyeing for two years had been sold. Not yet. So then I checked my money. Good there. That's unusual. Then I thought whether I would like that money in savings or in the pipe.

I'll let you know.

 

[judcole]

A couple of recent for sale threads made caused me some interest on this subject. One man’s average is another’s spectacular, and it sure sucks to have a favorite discontinued. So what are some of the blends you would pay a premium for? And how high would you go over then-current retail?

Absolutely none whatsoever - I won't chase Unobtanium blends, either. There are too many interesting blends to smoke as it is. I have a decent cellar, that I built up over years, back when we built a cellar specifically to age blends, not because we were afraid something was going to be discontinued.
Am I disappointed when a favorite is discontinued or hard to find? Sure. But I just suck it up and smoke something else. I'll get by.

 

[workman]

Out of curiosity, I might pay some extra money for a tin of something special. I never have though, and I may never do it. But I could see myself grabbing a tin of very old Three Nuns or St Bruno, Capstan or something like that for a premium price.
That would be no different from sometimes paying a little extra for a cozy meal or a good scotch.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I refuse to smoke cheap shit. Life’s just too short. So, I’ve asked Skip at the Briary to charge me four times as much as regular customers.

 

[newbroom]

I consider anything other than bulks to be premium, as in costs.
That said, there are a few blends I expect to eventually buy that I consider exceptional by reputation and blender...
in the 6 yrs I've been enjoying my pipe, I've become primarily a burley/VA/Perique/Turkish consumer, and buy them and mix them to taste.

 

[pantsBoots]

Don’t bother bidding on McClelland Orientals. They’re complete shite. And they’ll ghost your pipe. And come with tobacco beetles baked in. And they smell like horseshit. And taste like ass anyway. Avoid them at all cost. They’re awful. Awful, I tell you.

Methinks thou doth protest too much.

I see FM come up all the time and they're fantastic. In several months, I've rarely seen McC Orientals come up. I think I see what's going on.