@Jayhawk422 - The next time you come to New Orleans, let us know. The New Orleans Pipe Club meets on the 2nd Thursday of each month at Mayan Imports on 18th Street in Metairie.
@PappyJoe thank you for the invite. I just may have to plan another trip down there just for that!
My wife and I went on our honeymoon to New Orleans this July. The first full day we were down there was when we went to the farms and to Poche. Some of my friends back home couldn’t believe that she would let me do this, let alone spend the whole first day. Mark Ryan was a big help of setting that up, but also he said after you are done you need to take her to the Houmas House, walk the garden and have lunch, and be romantic. Said this way she won’t hold it against you for the rest of your marriage.
@Jayhawk422 it was a nice little shop called Cigar and Tabac. The owner was nice and spent time talking pipes and tobacco with me which great as I am new to the pipe.
My issue now is do I buy McClellands and get hooked on something I won’t be able to get again or just move on not knowing what I missed? I’ve heard good things about C&D maybe that’s where I should put my money.
@Ryanmclellansr I haven't had the pleasure of having any myself,but if I can order a tin or two I will. Main reason is just to have the experience. Even if you like it, or not, it will give you the reason to respect and hold dear the other brands, and McClellands, within the industry. Just my two cents. I really enjoy Eileen's Dream and Stanwell Extra Fine. If they were to stop I would be upset but that just means I get to try more until I get a favorite again.
@Woobie -- I agree, totally. Losing Dunhill was bad but losing McClelland is catastrophic in my book! I bought several Frog tins last night. I'm noticing not much left in P&C as well as Smoking Pipes. Get what you can.
I just did an updated inventory of my tobacco cellar. Not including any McClelland blends I have in jars because they are technically opened, I only have 3 tins of McClelland left - Holiday Season 2017, Frog on the Bayou and Black Tie. I also have a tin of Eric Nording's Hunter's Blend Labrador which was produced by McClelland. Of the three, I will admit that I will miss the Labrador more than the others.
I also only have 3 different tins of Dunhill - Aperitif, Mixture 965 and Standard Mixture Mellow.
This only represents 12.25 oz. of tobacco or roughly 1/10th of my total tobacco on hand.
@Ryanmclellansr cigar and tabac is a great shop. Spent many of hours in there, the pipe club meets there and they help put on the pipe show in KC. Past couple of years their tin selection has gone down due to everything that has gone on.
McCllelland does make up a bit of my cellar, but have always treated them as a treat for their tin and use their blenders to make my own VaPer. I do have to say I smoke a lot of Dunhill, but since their announcement last tear been trying other blends and found some new favorites.
I would take this opportunity to get the blends of what you would like and cellar them, use them as the special occasion blends. Also what @PappyJoe just said time to start exploring other blends. Look at it as a good thing of getting to further your tobacco journey!
I have a sentimental tie to Legends. When I lose someone great in my life, I find a quiet spot and smoke a bowl in a little Stanwell acorn I have. I'll be snagging as many of those as I can.
Beyond that, my priorities are Brindle Flake and Pebblecut.
I'll get what else I can, but I have to have those three.
So I’m traveling again, this time Fort Jackson, SC and I stopped into a local tobacco shop and found these. The crazy thing is the 24 is from 2011, Honeydew 2012, Blackshag 2011 and the other three are from ‘14, ‘15 and ‘16. I hope this is a good thing.
@Ryanmclellansr Nice score! I'm a big fan of Honeydew Flake, and I hope to stock up on a few more tins before they fade away. Grey Havens is a nice one, too. Haven't tried the others, but Shag is on my list to pick up before it goes away, along with Arcadia.
Some of my friends have started growing and curing their own tobacco, maybe @motie2 can come up with handy references for small growers. I grow Deer Tongue as an ornamental grass but I only use a few small leaves as an additive to some blends. I guess I can squeeze a plant or two in somewhere.
I can't believe it. A very sad day with this news. Such wonderful people Mike and Mary and the blends they have created over the years are some of the best in my opinion. I always enjoyed speaking with Mike at pipe shows he made me laugh and Mary is one of the sweetest and kindest people I have had the pleasure to meet. Their generosity like supporting functions at the CPCC show and other Pipe shows has been exemplary. They will be missed, I do hope they are able to enjoy their retirement, they have definitely earned it.
@Ryanmclellansr@Jayhawk422 your recent posts of seeking our a local B&M while traveling for work inspired me. I'm also on a work trip today and stopped into a local shop, which like many is mostly a cigar shop. I asked if they had any McClelland Virginias ... the reply was "just this last pound of Red Cake". It will be cellar bound when I get home! I did also thank him by asking for a few of his cigar recommendations, and purchasing a few of them as well. Thanks gents for inspiring me to explore a local shop.
@Go4Broke glad I can be part of the inspiration. You never know what you will find. I enjoy going into local B&M’s when I do travel. Glad you find a hidden treasure. Where were you traveling at for work?
@Jayhawk422 Just a few hours north in Omaha, so not too far from home. The shop was on the west end of town. There's another B&M in the Old Market downtown that had a few Dunhill tins the last time I was in there a few months ago. I'll have to pop in there again one of these days.
That is awesome @Go4Broke. With an old job I had, I use to go that far north, now I cover the southern part of the Mid West. The best part is the people that you meet, and how excited they are (in most cases) that you stopped in.
If any of you make it down to Houston, the Briar Shoppe as of yesterday still had several McClelland blends in stock. They are very limited though, only 2 tins per customer. I was there when Mary called the shop in tears to let them know they would be ceasing production a couple of weeks ago. The Briar Shoppe was one of their first customers, and many of their blends contain McClelland components. I know this is the same story for many tobacconists, there are some big shoes to fill in the industry to be certain. It is indeed a sad time, they were one of my favorite tobacco blenders and will be sorely missed by all.
Comments
My wife and I went on our honeymoon to New Orleans this July. The first full day we were down there was when we went to the farms and to Poche. Some of my friends back home couldn’t believe that she would let me do this, let alone spend the whole first day. Mark Ryan was a big help of setting that up, but also he said after you are done you need to take her to the Houmas House, walk the garden and have lunch, and be romantic. Said this way she won’t hold it against you for the rest of your marriage.
My issue now is do I buy McClellands and get hooked on something I won’t be able to get again or just move on not knowing what I missed? I’ve heard good things about C&D maybe that’s where I should put my money.
I also only have 3 different tins of Dunhill - Aperitif, Mixture 965 and Standard Mixture Mellow.
This only represents 12.25 oz. of tobacco or roughly 1/10th of my total tobacco on hand.
McCllelland does make up a bit of my cellar, but have always treated them as a treat for their tin and use their blenders to make my own VaPer. I do have to say I smoke a lot of Dunhill, but since their announcement last tear been trying other blends and found some new favorites.
I would take this opportunity to get the blends of what you would like and cellar them, use them as the special occasion blends. Also what @PappyJoe just said time to start exploring other blends. Look at it as a good thing of getting to further your tobacco journey!
Beyond that, my priorities are Brindle Flake and Pebblecut.
I'll get what else I can, but I have to have those three.
So I’m traveling again, this time Fort Jackson, SC and I stopped into a local tobacco shop and found these. The crazy thing is the 24 is from 2011, Honeydew 2012, Blackshag 2011 and the other three are from ‘14, ‘15 and ‘16. I hope this is a good thing.
https://www.wikihow.com/Grow-Tobacco
http://www.newhopeseed.com/tobacco_growing.html
http://www.thesurvivalgardener.com/why-you-should-grow-tobacco-and-how-to/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Growing-Tobacco/
https://www.grit.com/farm-and-garden/crops/growing-tobacco-zm0z16ndztri
I especially like the last URL, from GRIT!!!!!!
I was there when Mary called the shop in tears to let them know they would be ceasing production a couple of weeks ago. The Briar Shoppe was one of their first customers, and many of their blends contain McClelland components. I know this is the same story for many tobacconists, there are some big shoes to fill in the industry to be certain.
It is indeed a sad time, they were one of my favorite tobacco blenders and will be sorely missed by all.