Pipin' ain't cheap up north!

[KarlMaldensNose]

Since I started a couple weeks ago, I've been buying 10 grams here and there of various mixes in bulk from my local tobacconist. I believe they are Mr. B's brand. I've tried a straight Virginia Flake, a few English mixes, and a couple aromatics. They've been okay but nothing has stood out yet. If I had to choose, I'd say the Virginia Flake was best in terms of flavour, smoothness and ease of lighting and smoking (I'm guessing that me being a cigarette smoker has something to do with this preference). But I thought I'd raise the stakes a bit and try a well known tobacco in a tin. Frog Morton (the plain one, Latakia heavy) seems to get a lot of pub here and on youtube so I bought a 50 g tin from said tobacco shoppe. When I looked at the price sticker on the tin and saw $28.38 I thought nothing of it. It's tobacco and tobacco is expensive, right? Well, apparently not. I just checked some online tobacco vendors and the 50 g Frog Morton I bought for damn near $30 sells for under $9 in the U.S. Come on! I know we get taxed heavy on tobacco products up here in Canada, but something seems a bit off in this case. So I bring the issue here to you guys. Does that seem excessive or about right from your experiences? And I'm not even sure if I paid tax on top of that $28.38 because I bought a few other items with it that could have confused the taxes for me.


Aside from the sticker shock, the smoke was excellent. Wow! First pipe tobacco I've tried that has some discernable flavour, and Frog Morton is considered a mild tobacco, if I'm not mistaken. Maybe I just have a taste for Latakia. I'll be checking out some other heavy Latakia blends soon to try to figure out my tastes. Are there any straight Latakia-only tobaccos that have a good reputation or that you guys would recommend?

 

[Uncle Jackie]

Many of us Canadians order from the US for just that reason.

Mr. B's Virginia Flake is Solani 633 without the perique (in case you didn't know). It is very similar to SG FVF and Orlik Golden Slice. A damn good tobacco!

 

[KarlMaldensNose]

Thanks, I didn't know that about Mr. B's... glad you told me b/c I've actually been itchin' to try both Orlick GS and Gawith FVF ever since I took favourably to the Mr. B's VF... now I won't be in such a hurry to place orders for them and can explore some other stuff. The tobacco shoppe I've been going to (the only certified tobacconist around) carries quite a few Solanis; in general, is Solani a respected pipe tobacco brand?


If I'm being honest, I will probably end up getting most of my tobacco from U.S. online stores, but I do like the idea of supporting local brick and mortar businesses. I wish I knew just how much of that $28.38 was government pick-pocketing and how much was shoppe mark-up. That would make my decision of where to buy from much easier.

 

[Argonaut]

Solani is a very respected brand, but an expensive one. If you paid that much for a tin of FM, I shudder to think of what some 656 will run you.

 

[Xilbus]

I order all my stuff from the states and I love the store that i order from. The last Mr b's i got was the chocolate one and i really loved it. Too bad brigham started to outsource their pipes to italy

 

[buyandhold2018]

Rich at 4noggins is your friend! Just sayin!

also, when you go into the US for more than 48hours (I believe), you are allowed to bring back 200 cigarettes, 50 cigars and 200 grams of pipe tobacco (per person). I always come back with a dozen or so tins... just get one of the vendors to ship to your hotel, or wherever you are staying.

 

[KarlMaldensNose]

I order all my stuff from the states and I love the store that i order from. The last Mr b's i got was the chocolate one and i really loved it. Too bad brigham started to outsource their pipes to italy

Funny story about Mr. B's chocolate aromatic blend. Actually a bit sad, but here you go anyway, I'll keep it short, and it fits nicely within the theme of this thread about the hobby not being cheap for me....

Browsing and sniffing last week throught the Mr. B's and other bulk jars of tobacco on the shelf of the tobacco shoppe. I grab the chocolate aromatic mix by the lid and the jar falls out down to the floor. Luckily it was a wooden floor so the jar didn't break, but spill its contents all over the dirty floor it certainly did. Clerk said don't worry about it but I couldn't show my face there again if it went down like that, so I insisted he bag it, weigh it, and charge me for it. Came out to a bit more than $40 for an aromatic I didn't get to smoke (it had bits of hair and other various shmegma in it) and probably would have hated anyway (no disrespect, Xilbus, I just don't seem to care for aros). Nice, huh?

@Joesph,

Thank-you

 

[oc_in_fw]

It ain't easy, either. Wait, you said "pipin"

 

[Xilbus]

Funny story about Mr. B's chocolate aromatic blend. Actually a bit sad, but here you go anyway, I'll keep it short, and it fits nicely within the theme of this thread about the hobby not being cheap for me....

Browsing and sniffing last week throught the Mr. B's and other bulk jars of tobacco on the shelf of the tobacco shoppe. I grab the chocolate aromatic mix by the lid and the jar falls out down to the floor. Luckily it was a wooden floor so the jar didn't break, but spill its contents all over the dirty floor it certainly did. Clerk said don't worry about it but I couldn't show my face there again if it went down like that, so I insisted he bag it, weigh it, and charge me for it. Came out to a bit more than $40 for an aromatic I didn't get to smoke (it had bits of hair and other various shmegma in it) and probably would have hated anyway (no disrespect, Xilbus, I just don't seem to care for aros). Nice, huh?

@Joesph,

Thank-you

Its all good we can't all like the same stuff .

 

[legrandfromage]

One of the cigars that I smoke regularly are Davidoff Long Panatellas. A tin of ten costs about $40.00 here in overtaxed NY State; from outside the state, they are $23.00. I happened to be looking at a UK web site this afternoon and the same cigars are around thirty five pounds, or about $54.00US, over there. At these prices, it's cheaper to go down to the local school yard and get something else to smoke.

 

[Vlad]

Rich at 4noggins is your friend! Just sayin!

also, when you go into the US for more than 48hours (I believe), you are allowed to bring back 200 cigarettes, 50 cigars and 200 grams of pipe tobacco (per person). I always come back with a dozen or so tins... just get one of the vendors to ship to your hotel, or wherever you are staying.

This man has a system for everything. Soap, baccy, anything good, he can get it.

 

[buyandhold2018]

Its all good we can't all like the same stuff .

Ditto, but if you want to try a seriously awesome english blend... 3 oakes syrian!

One of the cigars that I smoke regularly are Davidoff Long Panatellas. A tin of ten costs about $40.00 here in overtaxed NY State; from outside the state, they are $23.00. I happened to be looking at a UK web site this afternoon and the same cigars are around thirty five pounds, or about $54.00US, over there. At these prices, it's cheaper to go down to the local school yard and get something else to smoke.

Those are awesome smokes!

This man has a system for everything. Soap, baccy, anything good, he can get it.

LOL! The wife would say I waste far too much time researching stupid things!

 

[CptBlueBear]

Pipin's bloody expensive down south! Or under, at least.

That tin of Frogmorton will cost you $46.95 here. Assuming the one store in the country that carries it has stock. For us the tax is around $450 a kilogram (about $220 a pound in the old money) so that 50gm tin is netting the federal government about $23. I'm guessing it costs about $10 a tin landed here based on previous experience of commercial imports and the markups local retailers expect. Maybe a dollar more if Customs or Quarantine decide you have to pay some sort of inspection fee.

If you think that's nasty, check out the price of cigars here.

I can't find much on Canadian tobacco taxes - except that it's complex because you have federal and state taxes. Base on US retail and a vague knowledge of shipping costs and retail markups, I'd guess you're paying around $10-$15 a tin in tax. Why don't you ask your tobacconist? You can roughly work out his margin from there.

I'll add my voice to Rich at 4Noggins being a great guy to deal with. Get some Chowards mints while you're at it (I'm guessing that being Canadian you don't have any issue getting maple syrup locally). I wouldn't try the coffee 'cause few things make customs inspectors pay attention like coffee...

 

[zatopus]

It ain't easy, either. Wait, you said "pipin"

Just made me drop the clay pipe. Think that's the pipe equivalent of the spit take.

 

[oc_in_fw]

Just made me drop the clay pipe. Think that's the pipe equivalent of the spit take.

I hope no damage occurred.

 

[PugslyCat]

It's not all smooth sailing down here, either. There is a considerable difference in tobacco taxes between states. I bought a bag of cheap aromatic tobacco in Iowa for $22 a while back. The same bag purchased in Nebraska last weekend was $14.

 

[jdto]

I also like 4noggins.

 

[zatopus]

Only dropped about 8 inches. Still good.

I hope no damage occurred.

 

[oc_in_fw]

Only dropped about 8 inches. Still good.

Good, I know those clays can be fragile. I still want to try one for work, though. A half a bowl in my billiard is good for the lunch break, but something smaller would be great for a quick puff.

 

[Xilbus]

Good, I know those clays can be fragile. I still want to try one for work, though. A half a bowl in my billiard is good for the lunch break, but something smaller would be great for a quick puff.

look up the Brebbia "Go-Go" pipes they are perfectly small for break times. also small kaywoodies hope that helps