Thoughts on low aged Tobacco and Pricing???

[DurinsRest]

Hey all,

So basically what I'm interested in knowing is what everyone thinks about light aging and how that effects the price of tobacco. So I'm talking about 1-3 years age on the tins. I've been smoking for over a decade but relatively new to deep cellaring of tobacco. I have noticed that even just 1-3 years on some tobacco is enough to drastically improve the taste and experience. Comparing autumn evening and briar fox to some that's been 2-3 year aged is night and day. So i guess my question is would you spend extra to get still available tobacco but aged? And if so how much more would you pay for the age? Thanks

 

[mosin1932]

I'm definitely not the target audience here, but I think this question speaks to a deeper problem in the pipe community. Everyone sees the outrageous prices being charged for discontinued/aged tins and wants to think they have an investment when they really don't.

You can ask whatever you want for what you're selling, I've seen people doubling the price on a tin of orlik because it had a year on it, someone selling half an ounce of esoterica in a mason jar for $160 bucks, but that doesn't mean that's what it's worth.

I don't buy any tobacco I can't stock up on because tobacco is supposed to be smoked or traded. The reason no one is using the trading threads on these forums anymore is because greedy people come along and ruin it for the people who just want to trade some tobacco and try different stuff.

There are quite a few people, myself included, who would love to just give away the hundreds of samples, full tins and miscellaneous tobaccos to other pipe smokers so we can all try everything. It could never happen though, because I know a bunch of people would just try to sell it because "it had a few years on it". Good luck selling your pipe tobacco.

 

[DurinsRest]

I'm definitely not the target audience here, but I think this question speaks to a deeper problem in the pipe community. Everyone sees the outrageous prices being charged for discontinued/aged tins and wants to think they have an investment when they really don't.

You can ask whatever you want for what you're selling, I've seen people doubling the price on a tin of orlik because it had a year on it, someone selling half an ounce of esoterica in a mason jar for $160 bucks, but that doesn't mean that's what it's worth.

I don't buy any tobacco I can't stock up on because tobacco is supposed to be smoked or traded. The reason no one is using the trading threads on these forums anymore is because greedy people come along and ruin it for the people who just want to trade some tobacco and try different stuff.

There are quite a few people, myself included, who would love to just give away the hundreds of samples, full tins and miscellaneous tobaccos to other pipe smokers so we can all try everything. It could never happen though, because I know a bunch of people would just try to sell it because "it had a few years on it". Good luck selling your pipe tobacco.

Thanks for the reply! I was looking at this from a buyers perspective bc I enjoy the smokes myself that have some age just trying to get an idea of pricing so I don't get taken for a ride trying to get something I enjoy smoking! And I feel you on the "wish we could all trade and try things" what I'd give to try some blue mountain, drama deserve, kingfisher etc but I just don't have 400$ to blow on 2 Oz lol

 

[Blackhorse]

Frank Norris said it best in his great American novel, “The Octopus”. When asked how the California railroad companies set their rates his reply was, “Whatever the market will bear.”

 

[daveinlax]

I don’t put much of a premium on age in available tobacco.

 

[DurinsRest]

I don’t put much of a premium on age in available tobacco.

Well once I can post on wanted hopefully i can find some people on here to help out with some stuff im interested in!! Im glad to here that alot of people on the forum that have messaged me are extremely nice and not trying to bend me over a barrel for 2 oz lol

 

[ftrplt]

I haven't "fallen" for the aged tobacco bit (really only applies to Ginnyweeds and blends containing Ginnyweeds). I admit to going on a crusade for certain "unobtaniums." But even there, I had my limits on $$$ spent. That said, I get a true "kick" out of Steve Fallons "Pipe Stud" sales on most Saturday mornings!! I typically turn to look at my tobacco stash/collection and quietly compute how much $$$ is sitting on the shelves! But I ain't sellin'; I'll just smoke it up!!! FTRPLT

 

[DurinsRest]

I haven't "fallen" for the aged tobacco bit (really only applies to Ginnyweeds and blends containing Ginnyweeds). I admit to going on a crusade for certain "unobtaniums." But even there, I had my limits on $$$ spent. That said, I get a true "kick" out of Steve Fallons "Pipe Stud" sales on most Saturday mornings!! I typically turn to look at my tobacco stash/collection and quietly compute how much $$$ is sitting on the shelves! But I ain't sellin'; I'll just smoke it up!!! FTRPLT

Huh so you honestly can't taste a difference between a fresh can and some that's aged? I wonder if its blend specific bc I smoked some new pirate kake and some 7 yr aged last night and its an extremely noticeable difference. But im right there with you im gonna smoke everything I got. Well or trade for some of those " unobtainable"

 

[ftrplt]

Huh so you honestly can't taste a difference between a fresh can and some that's aged? I wonder if its blend specific bc I smoked some new pirate kake and some 7 yr aged last night and its an extremely noticeable difference. But im right there with you im gonna smoke everything I got. Well or trade for some of those " unobtainable"

Not what I meant. There is a definite taste difference for Ginnyweeds & their blends. I just meant I wasn't into paying the princely sums being asked for them!! FWIW, I have 'baccy going back 25+ years! My stacks of older Ginnyweeds & blends have so much "bulge" I have to carefully stack them with some support around them. I didn't do all this on purpose; it just happened over the years! Gotta' remember I've been at this "hobby" for 59 years next month!! Cheers! FTRPLT

 

[Zeno Marx]

I wouldn't pay for it. First, by my estimation, one of life's greatest virtues is patience. I can age my own tobacco. The prices are already sort of ridiculous, and I don't like the small batch thing at all in tobacco. It is bad enough in the alcohol spirits world. It's not something I ever wanted to see happen in the tobacco world. Every hobby I have, or used to have and still continue to watch, has its version of this, and while it might not be avoidable anymore, I don't have to like it. I don't. For blenders to have to sit on masses of blends and warehouses of tins for 1-3 years would be very pricey. I'm not the most ambitious type out there, but why would anyone want to take a tobacco like Sutliffe 507C, as an example, that is a bargain and turn it into a boutique blend and nullify its bargain status because you're either too lazy or too impatient to do it yourself? That behavior bleeds into the hobby overall and changes things for everyone. No thanks. It's already an unsavory situation as it is.

I don't understand the people who buy shortly aged tins of tobacco that is still available, like buying a tin of 2 year old Orlik Slices for twice the retail rate. I scratch my head at all that going on at Pipestud, that tin auction site, and privately on message boards. To be honest, I think it becomes about consumerism at that point. Gotta always be buying something. A steady flow of new pipes. A steady flow of new tobacco. I watched this happen with shaving soaps. Watched people amass hundreds of jars of shaving soaps. They'd need 25 faces and 6 lifetimes to use all this shaving soap, and it doesn't have the luxury of aging. Just always buying something. Everyday, clicking "pay now" like it is an addiction. Everyone laughs about it, but uh...is it really that funny? Enough people do that, and it changes the landscape for everyone.

If it's about money, I feel it is a better process, and financially smarter, to do some calculating, and each year buy at least what you think you smoked and do your own aging. If I smoke 1LB of X per year, each year during a big sale, I buy 1LB of X and store it. Before you know it, you have jars of 1, 2, 3, 4, etc years of aged and aging tobacco.

I don't know if I misunderstood the OP, so if this diatribe doesn't apply, I apologize.

 

[mosin1932]

I wouldn't pay for it. First, by my estimation, one of life's greatest virtues is patience. I can age my own tobacco. The prices are already sort of ridiculous, and I don't like the small batch thing at all in tobacco. It is bad enough in the alcohol spirits world. It's not something I ever wanted to see happen in the tobacco world. Every hobby I have, or used to have and still continue to watch, has its version of this, and while it might not be avoidable anymore, I don't have to like it. I don't. For blenders to have to sit on masses of blends and warehouses of tins for 1-3 years would be very pricey. I'm not the most ambitious type out there, but why would anyone want to take a tobacco like Sutliffe 507C, as an example, that is a bargain and turn it into a boutique blend and nullify its bargain status because you're either too lazy or too impatient to do it yourself? That behavior bleeds into the hobby overall and changes things for everyone. No thanks. It's already an unsavory situation as it is.

I don't understand the people who buy shortly aged tins of tobacco that is still available, like buying a tin of 2 year old Orlik Slices for twice the retail rate. I scratch my head at all that going on at Pipestud, that tin auction site, and privately on message boards. To be honest, I think it becomes about consumerism at that point. Gotta always be buying something. A steady flow of new pipes. A steady flow of new tobacco. I watched this happen with shaving soaps. Watched people amass hundreds of jars of shaving soaps. They'd need 25 faces and 6 lifetimes to use all this shaving soap, and it doesn't have the luxury of aging. Just always buying something. Everyday, clicking "pay now" like it is an addiction. Everyone laughs about it, but uh...is it really that funny? Enough people do that, and it changes the landscape for everyone.

If it's about money, I feel it is a better process, and financially smarter, to do some calculating, and each year buy at least what you think you smoked and do your own aging. If I smoke 1LB of X per year, each year during a big sale, I buy 1LB of X and store it. Before you know it, you have jars of 1, 2, 3, 4, etc years of aged and aging tobacco.

I don't know if I misunderstood the OP, so if this diatribe doesn't apply, I apologize.

Very well put Zeno, the first hobby I saw this happen with was shooting. Some people would just buy everything that was on the shelves, even if they didn't have that caliber. The people buying the majority of the ammo will never live long enough to shoot all of it, and probably don't shoot much to begin with.

It makes my blood absolutely boil, I started reloading a few years ago but you can't reload .22LR!

 

[lgoldberg]

Frank Norris said it best in his great American novel, “The Octopus”. When asked how the California railroad companies set their rates his reply was, “Whatever the market will bear.”

That's just good business. We all want top dollar when we're selling things, but we want a 'deal' when we're buying things. Market forces will tell you what something is truly worth when both sides are reasonably happy.

 

[lgoldberg]

It makes my blood absolutely boil, I started reloading a few years ago but you can't reload .22LR!

I bought a rifle that takes the same ammo just in time to not be able to buy anything for it, lol.

 

[Swede]

I wouldn't pay for it. First, by my estimation, one of life's greatest virtues is patience. I can age my own tobacco. The prices are already sort of ridiculous, and I don't like the small batch thing at all in tobacco. It is bad enough in the alcohol spirits world. It's not something I ever wanted to see happen in the tobacco world. Every hobby I have, or used to have and still continue to watch, has its version of this, and while it might not be avoidable anymore, I don't have to like it. I don't. For blenders to have to sit on masses of blends and warehouses of tins for 1-3 years would be very pricey. I'm not the most ambitious type out there, but why would anyone want to take a tobacco like Sutliffe 507C, as an example, that is a bargain and turn it into a boutique blend and nullify its bargain status because you're either too lazy or too impatient to do it yourself? That behavior bleeds into the hobby overall and changes things for everyone. No thanks. It's already an unsavory situation as it is.

I don't understand the people who buy shortly aged tins of tobacco that is still available, like buying a tin of 2 year old Orlik Slices for twice the retail rate. I scratch my head at all that going on at Pipestud, that tin auction site, and privately on message boards. To be honest, I think it becomes about consumerism at that point. Gotta always be buying something. A steady flow of new pipes. A steady flow of new tobacco. I watched this happen with shaving soaps. Watched people amass hundreds of jars of shaving soaps. They'd need 25 faces and 6 lifetimes to use all this shaving soap, and it doesn't have the luxury of aging. Just always buying something. Everyday, clicking "pay now" like it is an addiction. Everyone laughs about it, but uh...is it really that funny? Enough people do that, and it changes the landscape for everyone.

If it's about money, I feel it is a better process, and financially smarter, to do some calculating, and each year buy at least what you think you smoked and do your own aging. If I smoke 1LB of X per year, each year during a big sale, I buy 1LB of X and store it. Before you know it, you have jars of 1, 2, 3, 4, etc years of aged and aging tobacco.

I don't know if I misunderstood the OP, so if this diatribe doesn't apply, I apologize.

Zeno, well said, and I thought of your previous posts about PS Luxury Navy Flake and the way it changes from new to aged. If I remember correctly, you thought it lost some of the flavors you like upon aging. That made me think differently about storing up tobacco. I pretty much smoke it based on "mood" and don't worry about opening something that hasn't aged "enough" yet.

 

[Zeno Marx]

Right on. When blenders end their experiments, they conclude because they arrived at their goal and/or what they liked. Right in that moment. Afterall, that's the only thing anyone can guarantee and know for certain. In other words, it's ready to smoke as-is. It might not be "better" with age, just different. I think that is the other inadvertent advantage of hitting the big sales each ear, having jars from 2015, jars from 2016, jars from 2017, and so on. Don't wait until they all hit the same age to try them. Try them at the different stages. You might prefer them brand new. You might prefer the 2 year old to the 5 year old. Heck, even 6 months used to greatly diminish McClelland #2015 for me. That quickly, and all the wonderful hay and grassy notes were pretty much gone. Don't get sucked into, or stuck with, the mindset that age = better. I have some 5 or 6 year old Night Train that went tangy (didn't go rancid or bad, just went in that direction as it aged), and at 3-4 years, it was superbly and richly dark fruity, datey, figgy, pruney. I won't be going back to it for another year, hoping it will age out of that tangyness. *it helps to split your poundage into several jars so you can do this. I'm at the broken record point, so I'll try to stop typing.

 

[Singed]

I fear this would lead me down a rabbit hole I could not escape. Were tobacco less expensive in Canada, I can easily see myself buying one for me and one for future use. Alas, I must restrain myself. I do notice a distinct difference in jarring tobacco for immediate use, it may be a similar effect to decanting wine. I have stopped keeping tobacco in tins after opening them for just this reason.

 

[Blackhorse]

I bought a rifle that takes the same ammo just in time to not be able to buy anything for it, lol.

I finally got a new Ruger stainless .22LR (7722) in my bedroom…with a few 25 round banana clips hidden close by. Then I tumbled into the “buying .22LR ammo” rabbit hole…primarily CCI Mini Mag. Back yer truck up to my garage some Sunday afternoon and we can slide a few crates of lead your way.