Tobacco prices getting ridiculous?

Opus X

Opus X

Puff Daddy
How many of us are cutting back on what we are buying because we can't afford it any more?
Soon pipe and cigar smoking is going to only be a rich persons pursuit and us poor working people are only going to be able to afford the cheap castoffs. And we will be paying what we used to pay for decent tobacco for that junk.
The governments are finally starting to get what they want, forcing a large number of people out of smoking.
The thing they don't really realize is, people can still grown and process their own tobacco even now.
 
Prices of everything are getting outrageous, but a lot of the tobacco cost are due to the health nazis.
They don't realize that a lot of the poorer folk will do without food/medicine to support their habit. If they really wanted to do society good they could offer free clinics to get off that nicotine habit. But that would mean it would cost money. It's more important to punish than to assist in todays world view.
 
I was looking to buy some more Larry's Blend over on Pipes & Cigars last night.
You can't find it any longer.
I guess that FDA regulation that tobaccos blends had to be 10 years old or older to get around having to go through the expensive submission process to keep it on the shelf really raised the prices and killed many blends.
Sadly several of those that are gone were some of my favorites.
Not only that the tobaccos that they do still sell has gotten really high.
 
Funny you should mention that. I just got a settlement check in for my bipap machine from the lawsuit with Phillips Respironics. Since it is basically "free" money I went over to Pipes & Cigars and was going to invest in some of the bulk blends I used to buy. Larry's Blend was one of them. Imagine my surprise at not only the price increase (which was about 250% over the last time I purchased any bulk) but the fewer number of blends that were available. And as you noted, Larry's Blend was nowhere to be found. In fact, even some blends from some of the major names were gone from their listing.
Even the tins that I purchased when I stocked up years ago that I got for $11.00 range are now in the $16.00 range.
Hearth & Home Signature Daybreak, which I purchased shortly after Dunhill quit producing their Early Morning blend for $1.13 USD per ounce in bulk quantity now sells for $3.68 USD an ounce if you buy the one pound package of it. If you buy just an ounce of it, you are going to pay $4.73 USD an ounce.
It's getting where now even pipe smoking is becoming a "rich mans" hobby. Even the cheap bulk trash tobacco you could buy in the past at a local smoke shop for $20 for 2 pounds is now upwards of $40 for it.
 
Cigars are not a lot better. But a lot of that has to do with the new taxes that were applied to them because of so many buying the cheap machine rolled cigars and turning them into blunts.
The government saw another way to make some extra money.
I also noticed that several of my favorite blends are no longer available after recently.
One is Dunhill Durbar.
I really miss that one as it was a spicy tobacco that was nice for a cool fall day.
One that I am happy is still around is SPC Plum Pudding.
At first I did not get what everyone liked about it but after smoking a few pipes full it grew on me.
I hate now that the tin that used to cost $15 is now around $27.
 
Oh man... Durbar is a MAJOR loss for me.
I really enjoyed this time of year sitting out with the telescopes and smoking a pipe or so of it.
It was not overly aggressive in the "mouth burn" aspect and had a great taste of the different tobaccos.
It really makes me miss smoking the last few tins I had and not keeping them for special occassions.
 
I am that way with a few of those tins you gave me.
I should have kept some of them set back to let them age like I do my cigars.
 
I just cracked open a 7 year old tin of Dunhill Aperitif and am smoking on it. Reminds me why I still have 6 tins left. I usually only crack one open on a special occasion but just felt the need last night.
This was one of those sleeper blends.
 
Do you still have your Frog Morton?
If so are you planning on smoking it or selling it?
I have seen some tins listed for $250.
 
Yes, I've got two tins of Frog Morton (the original) and then 3 2017 Christmas Blends and 4 2016 ones.
Looking at the prices at one of the major reseller locations for discontinued tobacco that amounts to around $2000 in tobacco tins.
Granted, if they sold for that I'd only get about 70% of that amount.. but that is still WAY more than the roughly $100 I invested into those tins.
 
Are you thinking about selling them?
I know you commented on wanting to get a larger telescope.
If you sold them would that allow you get get what you want?
 
Not thinking of selling them right now. In fact, one the 2017 McClelland Christmas blends I popped the top on and am smoking it.
I was honestly surprised as I am use to the Peterson Christmas blends and them being an aromatic. These are more a Virginia based, but they have some spice to them.

As for the prices continuing upward, I got to thinking (a dangerous thing). I wonder how much of the price increases are also due to a shrinking base of purchasers? There are set costs involved in the production of the tobacco that you can't really get around. You then price the product based upon a set level of expected sales. If those sales decrease, your profit decreases and you either have to raise the price to off-set the fewer sells or simply quit generating that product line and maybe look at something more popular.
 
In our country, government has high taxes on tobacco related products, not just tobacco. Interestingly, 99 percent of tobacco tax goes into funding a cancer hospital.
 
Nomad said:
Interestingly, 99 percent of tobacco tax goes into funding a cancer hospital.
Click to expand...
It would not be so bad if that was done here, but usually the taxes go into the general funds where they pay for the special interest desires of the politicians.
 
The taxes here go to whatever special interest is important to the party in power.
I would not mind if it went to health related benefits but it does not.
 
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