Just met @Londy3 at his local pipe shop, Pipes by George, in Raleigh, NC. What a great old pipe shop, and George is a wonderful person... like most pipe smokers!
@jfreedy was great to have a bowl with ya man! Great times for sure! 👍 and great little old pipe shop. George is a class act. Hit me up when you get to NC again.
Atlanta has a pipe and cigar shop on the perimeter road (I-285) on the east side of town. The sign just says "Cigars" but they do bulk tobacco and many tins and sealed pouches, as in the Esoterica line.
The staff there remembers my favorite blends and when I walk in point me directly to them. They also have a lounge with TV,etc. Highly recommended.
Super disappointed to find that Ye Olde Pipe and Tobacco in downtown Phoenix closed this year. I bought my first Dunhill at that shop and it was a favorite place to stop and visit when I was in town.
@jfreedy Sorry, no I do not. I have only been out of Montana a few times (and I prefer it that way) and never to Colorado except to make a flight connection to Californication. After watching Lt. Kenda: Homicide Hunter, I don’t ever want to go anywhere near Colorado Springs...or Colorado for that matter🙂
I visited Stag Tobacconist in Colorado Springs last week. Nice tobacco shop with lots of pipe tobacco. They basically have a separate humidor full of pipe tobacco (loose and tins). Steve is a dedicated pipe smoker and really knows his stuff. The locals say that he’s forgotten more about pipe smoking than most will ever know. Nice guy too (shocker).
They are still pretty limited by current COVID restrictions (only so many in the humidor at a time, cannot smoke in their inside smoking lounge), but still a nice shop. Tobacco tax is like 40% so that limited my purchasing. I always want to shop at B&Ms when possible, but MAN... it's so much cheaper online. I picked up a tin of Ratrray's Marlin Flake based on Steve's recommendation. I'm glad I did, but it wasn't cheap!
@RockyMountainBriar - you may want to wait until Colorado's COVID restrictions lighten up.
Made it to Ted’s Pipe Shoppe in Tulsa a couple of weeks ago. I love this place. They’re the guys who taught me how to smoke a pipe. So I’ll always have a special place in my heart for this historic pipe shop. If you’re ever in Tulsa you’ve got to visit Ted’s. Mark, the owner, and everyone else will make you feel right at home.
Found a Tinderbox still in business in Mobile, Alabama. They didn’t have a lot of tinned tobacco but the did have around 16 jars of Tinderbox blends. Picked up some Philosophers, Sunset Rum and Peach Melba.
This was a great thread to read, and I envy anyone with a good local shop. I sort of gave up years ago trying to find a good shop where I live (Dallas/Fort Worth). When I started the pipe there was a wonderful old shop in downtown Fort Worth called Tobacco Lane. I think it was associated with the old Tobacco Lanes that were in the malls during the 70s and 80s. Those were always fun places to go back in the day; they always had cool knives and other things to look at: the big wooden Indian, vintage-style signs, etc. My grandfather would always get his cherry tobacco in the mall when we were there.
Most smoke shops around here are for vaping or they are cigar places. There is a nice little shop in a neighboring town that sells pipes, tobacco, and cigars. I won't mention the name. A few years ago I went in to get some pipe tobacco (their bulk stuff was never that great but it was handy) and there were two employees watching football (why does every place have to have a TV these days?). When the lady realized I wanted to check out, she rolled her eyes, visibly annoyed to have to leave her Cowboys game. I made sure to never annoy them again. Not long after I was in another local shop where I told this story to the fellow there. He seemed eager to hear all the details, even descriptions of the two employees. Turns out he owned that shop and was not happy. I don't know what happened to football girl but I let him know I'd never go in there again.
I'm still willing to try any new shop I hear about, but most are cigar-heavy and pipe-light. I need to look up some Dallas shops since there are surely some good ones in a city that size? I'm not too far away from Dallas. I was just in Austin a couple weeks ago. I wish I'd read this thread before then so I could've made a stop in the shop listed here.
@TakeMeToTheShire; There is no excuse for rude clerks. I never go back to a bad experience. I'm sure it doesn't have any impact on that business, but It's all I got. My bride will always give a place a second shot, but she is more forgiving than meself. With me its one and done.
I'm the same way. I tip according to service as well...great service? 20%. Crappy service or service with an attitude? 0%. I never feel guilty about walking out of a restaurant without tipping if the server didn't deserve a tip, and I'll never go back.
@opipeman One and done here too. I'm like Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice when it comes to bad service: my good opinion, once lost, is lost forever. It would be different if times were tough and it was the only place in town to get bread for my family. But we're talking about pipe tobacco, a luxury item that exists out of an overflow of prosperity and abundance. In fairness to the owner I didn't list this shop's name, but if I'd been treated that way by the owner I surely would.
As most of you know, I'm fortunate enough to have a Tinderbox about 1/2 hr. from my house. The wife wanted to do some shopping in that area, so I naturally took advantage and trekked to the B&M...
Naturally there are pipes too, but I was there for blends. Here's what I came away with: 2 oz Tinderbox After Dinner Ashton Rainy Day Ashton Guilty Pleasure Chacom Saint Claude I always try to support local B&Ms...
@KA9FFJ I know I have mentioned it before, 99% of the smoke shops around here head shops, the other 1% are a sceene from Goodfellas. The only thing I like about one of the shops around here is, they make a reproduction of a cigarello from the 1830s that is a hell of a quick smoke. The pipes they do keep in the case are neglected and oxidized all to hell. The location of said store is urban to say the least, so I'm sure pipes are not high on the profit side of the ledger.
@Zouave See if they'll give any major discounts on a pipe(s) you like that have oxidation on the stem(s)... or better yet, make them a low offer... you never know🤔🙄
@KA9FFJ I also think I may be nearing that critical moment of "one more pipe, and I'm calling a divorce lawyer" so I have been taking a break from pipe buying for the time being. 😂
Sad to see the tobacco shops turn to vap CBD stores now. Zero atmosphere, low end pipe tobacco and poor choice of cigars. The two Tinderbox stores here closed up. The only true gem around is Pipes by George. There is one other in Charlotte that would be worth going too. Kinda sucks.
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Safe travels back ✈️
http://www.stagtobacconist.com/selections/pipes-tobacco/
@RockyMountainBriar - Do you have any suggestions for the Colo Springs area?
Sorry, no I do not. I have only been out of Montana a few times (and I prefer it that way) and never to Colorado except to make a flight connection to Californication. After watching Lt. Kenda: Homicide Hunter, I don’t ever want to go anywhere near Colorado Springs...or Colorado for that matter🙂
🤔Maybe there is a reason to go to Colorado Springs. That’s a nice shop🙂. It might be worth chancing getting murdered to visit it someday.🤔
@RockyMountainBriar - you may want to wait until Colorado's COVID restrictions lighten up.
Glad to hear you liked Stag’s.
Enjoyed this article, especially concerning Max...
Tnx...
There is no excuse for rude clerks. I never go back to a bad experience. I'm sure it doesn't have any impact on that business, but It's all I got. My bride will always give a place a second shot, but she is more forgiving than meself. With me its one and done.
The wife wanted to do some shopping in that area, so I naturally took advantage and trekked to the B&M...
Here's what I came away with:
2 oz Tinderbox After Dinner
Ashton Rainy Day
Ashton Guilty Pleasure
Chacom Saint Claude
I always try to support local B&Ms...
See if they'll give any major discounts on a pipe(s) you like that have oxidation on the stem(s)... or better yet, make them a low offer... you never know🤔🙄
🤞🏻