How old is too old for tinned tobacco?

[Haebar]

I got these MacBaren's tins on Ebay; they are unopened. They are several decades old; one of them has a price tag that says $1.64. Do you reckon that the tobacco is any good for smoking?

http://i1377.photobucket.com/albums/ah50/haebar/Cigar%20Bum%20photos%20001_zpsrzripkfs.jpg

[Tobias Lutz]

Absolutely not! Send them to me immediately so that I can safely dispose of the contents :)

Those have some age on them...I imagine the Virginia, in particular, should be might tasty! May I be so bold as to ask how much you got that auction for?

[Haebar]

Absolutely not! Send them to me immediately so that I can safely dispose of the contents :)

Those have some age on them...I imagine the Virginia, in particular, should be might tasty! May I be so bold as to ask how much you got that auction for?

All five of them were $49. The two Club Blend tins are 2 oz., the others are 3.5 oz.

[Desertlifter]

I've had Edgeworth Sliced that was from the 80's, and it was amazing. Have a couple of flakes stored away, in fact. This stuff you picked up should be great as long as it is sealed well.

[Haebar]

This might be a dumb question, but should I pop these open and jar them for safekeeping? The vacuum seal could already be compromised by age.

[BryGuySC]

This might be a dumb question, but should I pop these open and jar them for safekeeping? The vacuum seal could already be compromised by age.

I'd do a test first. Put each one in a ziplock bag, and leave it for a week. Then open each bag and sniff. If you smell tobacco, you should probably open it, rehumidify if necessary (hoping not!), and jar it. If there is no scent, the seal should still be intact.

Nice buy, by the way!

[Branzig]

Where am I when all these deals pop up?!?!

Custombilts for 40 bucks, tins of 20 year old tobacco for 50 bucks...The resale on that stuff....jeeebus!!!!

I would say "you suck" but apparently I suck at finding amazing deals :p

[LandonColby]

This might be a dumb question, but should I pop these open and jar them for safekeeping? The vacuum seal could already be compromised by age.

I'd just go ahead and pop them open and jar it. Won't hurt anything by it and you also get to sample the goods! Sounds like a win/win to me.

[Haebar]

I popped the lid on one of the tins and heard a reassuring Whoosh! This tobacco is in good shape; can't wait to try some this evening (girlfriend is here now).

http://i1377.photobucket.com/albums/ah50/haebar/Cigar%20Bum%20photos%20003_zpshdtnigu1.jpg

http://i1377.photobucket.com/albums/ah50/haebar/Cigar%20Bum%20photos%20004_zpsbinrkeek.jpg

http://i1377.photobucket.com/albums/ah50/haebar/Cigar%20Bum%20photos%20005_zpsdheqccbt.jpg

[cbr310]

Where am I when all these deals pop up?!?!

Custombilts for 40 bucks, tins of 20 year old tobacco for 50 bucks...The resale on that stuff....jeeebus!!!!

I would say "you suck" but apparently I suck at finding amazing deals :p

Coming from the king of pipe restorations.....:p

[BryGuySC]

I popped the lid on one of the tins and heard a reassuring Whoosh! This tobacco is in good shape; can't wait to try some this evening (girlfriend is here now).

http://i1377.photobucket.com/albums/ah50/haebar/Cigar%20Bum%20photos%20003_zpshdtnigu1.jpg

http://i1377.photobucket.com/albums/ah50/haebar/Cigar%20Bum%20photos%20004_zpsbinrkeek.jpg

http://i1377.photobucket.com/albums/ah50/haebar/Cigar%20Bum%20photos%20005_zpsdheqccbt.jpg

You've GOT to review this!

[rx2man]

That is pretty cool, BUT if in the 1st pic that is how it looked when you opened it then it was opened before. The folding is perfect til someone opens it up. That being said I should still think it could seal back up if not messed with and the rubber stayed soft. Still a great buy either way. Am thinking I need to be looking for tins on ebay.

[Haebar]

That is pretty cool, BUT if in the 1st pic that is how it looked when you opened it then it was opened before. The folding is perfect til someone opens it up. That being said I should still think it could seal back up if not messed with and the rubber stayed soft. Still a great buy either way. Am thinking I need to be looking for tins on ebay.

Good eye! Actually it was perfect when I opened it but I shoved it back down in a hurry for a photo and didn't get the folds just right. You are very perceptive.

[rx2man]

Good eye! Actually it was perfect when I opened it but I shoved it back down in a hurry for a photo and didn't get the folds just right. You are very perceptive.

Ha lol, I tried once to get the paper back right. I gave up quick, just not happening am and not OCD enough that it matters. Nice score, you got a real bargain. I have one old tin that I got in trade and dummy me forgot to write down how old it was. Not that it matters, sealed tins and old unsmoked pipes are safe with me lol. You're the smart one though......smoke that stuff lol.

[Branzig]

That Virginia No. 1 looks flipping super amazing delicious!

[Tobias Lutz]

I popped the lid on one of the tins and heard a reassuring Whoosh! This tobacco is in good shape; can't wait to try some this evening (girlfriend is here now).

http://i1377.photobucket.com/albums/ah50/haebar/Cigar%20Bum%20photos%20003_zpshdtnigu1.jpg


It takes a lot to make me jealous- you sir, have made me INCREDIBLY jealous! Nice haul :)

[OnePyroTec]

All five of them were $49. The two Club Blend tins are 2 oz., the others are 3.5 oz.

That would be a hellovadeal

[GWBowman]

Wow. Good for you Tab.

[Cool Breeze]

Wow. That's awesome.
I agree that you have to review this and let us know how it is. I'm betting pretty darn good.

[bigdaddychester]

any ideas yet on the age? it looks amazing!

[Haebar]

any ideas yet on the age? it looks amazing!

I would guess it to be at least 20 years old if not older.

[OnePyroTec]

I would guess it to be at least 20 years old if not older.

I have 100 gram Virginia No.1 tins that are over 20 years old with a price tag of $6.99 This Virginia No.1 tin pre-dates mine. My guess it is pushing 30 at least.

[MrMotoyoshi]

Very jealous over here. But elated with how much enjoyment you will have with that deliciously aged tobacco :)

[bigdaddychester]

Wowww eee!!! tell me youve smoked a bowl or 3 by now, right?

[quo155]

Beautiful find!

I too can't wait to hear how these smoke...and see the others once opened. Awesome!

[Haebar]

Wowww eee!!! tell me youve smoked a bowl or 3 by now, right?

No, not yet (getting over a virus). But I sent samples of that first tin to two CigarBum members to try out. Maybe they will review it.

[LandonColby]

No, not yet (getting over a virus). But I sent samples of that first tin to two CigarBum members to try out. Maybe they will review it.

I hope you'll review it as well! Or at least tell us whether it's good or not haha.
Hope you feel better soon, Tab.

[NeverBend]

No, not yet (getting over a virus). But I sent samples of that first tin to two CigarBum members to try out. Maybe they will review it.

Hi Haebar,

Great purchase! Sorry for the lengthy post but I wanted to fully explain my opinion. Are there any labels on the bottom of the tins and which tin is priced? Can you post pics of the tin bottoms? Any information could help date them.

Trying to determine the age by price may depend on which tin has the $1.64 tag (2oz or 3.5oz) and whether they were on sale at the time of original purchase. The tins may not all be the same age but I suspect that the estimates here are short by a decade or more.

Symphony and Virginia were rubbed out, Club was a roll cut (curly) and despite the difference in weight they were close to the same price. Looking at your tins I have to go back a long, long time where my memory is more sketchy and I didn't see the inside of the tins very often. I suspect that the Club will be smaller curlies than they are (or have) been more recently because they were hand rolled (thus more expensive).

The excessive staining of the doily (wax-backed paper placed on top of the tobacco when tinned) often indicates a lot of age because it infiltrates the paper slowly. MacBaren tended to pack a little more moist than some other companies that could have caused more staining. Packing of the tins was a cool process that was done by hand but I'd assume that process is now obsolete.

Wayne @OnePyroTec (http://www.cigarbum.com/forum/member.php?u=42)h mentioned $6.99 on a tin that he feels is close to 30 years old (say 1987) and that dovetails with their price of about $4.95 to $5.50 in the early 1980s (say 1981) and those were years of high inflation.

As a kid, starting in 1965 and onward, I made it my business to know every price, and price change, in the store but I only remember a price range between $2.25 and $3.00 for the Symphony (Virginia the same price). MacBaren was sold wholesale to stores at about a 40% discount (wholesalers paid less) so even if the marked tin was heavily discounted it was almost certainly from the 1960s (and the tin art jibes).

I don't know when MacBaren was first made available in the USA. I do remember it from the 1960s. From the tin, design, packing and price tag I can't see how that tin (and possibly all of the tins) can be any later than the late 1960s. If the price of $1.64 is a retail (not discounted price) then the tin may be older than that by several years.

I went to the MacBaren website to see if there was information about their history and tin art but the only thing of note was a picture of a man, pipe barely visible, looking like a junkie on the street waiting for his fix. What are they thinking!?
http://mac-baren.com/pipe-tobacco

In my opinion these tins are 40 years or more years old. It's quite possible that they're 50 years old or even more. Why not send pics to MacBaren and see if they can date them and don't be surprised if they wish to purchase them at a healthy profit.

Great find, store the open tobacco in a mason with as little air as possible and enjoy. No telling how all of the tins have handled time but the Virginia, followed by the Club were best suited for age when tinned although no one at MacBaren (or any other company) expected them to have been kept for so long.

Pete

[Haebar]

Pete, you really know your stuff! I just sent them an email about it. I only opened one tin; I put it in two half-pint jars.

[NeverBend]

Pete, you really know your stuff! I just sent them an email about it. I only opened one tin; I put it in two half-pint jars.

Hi Haebar,

Just going from memories. I sold them for a lot of years but only bought some to smoke for myself just the other day. Ironic.

A lot of people are paying big money for old unopened tins but few will ever be able to get them as old as yours. May I ask which tin had he price label?

Enjoy!

[Haebar]

Hi Haebar,

Just going from memories. I sold them for a lot of years but only bought some to smoke for myself just the other day. Ironic.

A lot of people are paying big money for old unopened tins but few will ever be able to get them as old as yours. May I ask which tin had he price label?

Enjoy!

I just packed them in bubble wrap last night. It was either the Virginia No. 1 or the Symphony.

[Haebar]

Hi Haebar,

Just going from memories. I sold them for a lot of years but only bought some to smoke for myself just the other day. Ironic.

A lot of people are paying big money for old unopened tins but few will ever be able to get them as old as yours. May I ask which tin had he price label?

Enjoy!

Sorry it took so long to answer but it is on the Symphony tin; I have wrapped them in bubble wrap for now.

[NeverBend]

Sorry it took so long to answer but it is on the Symphony tin; I have wrapped them in bubble wrap for now.

Hi Haebar,

The label being on the Symphony can't make it any younger. I'd like to know when MacBaren was first imported because my gut is that you have at least one and probably a cache from their earliest days of importation.

OK, now the report on how it smokes should follow :).

[Haebar]

Hi Haebar,

The label being on the Symphony can't make it any younger. I'd like to know when MacBaren was first imported because my gut is that you have at least one and probably a cache from their earliest days of importation.

OK, now the report on how it smokes should follow :).

A sticker on the back says:
Distributed in the U.S.A.
Fireside Industries, Inc.
50 Graphic Pl. Moonachie NJ 07074
Made in Denmark

I will review it when I recuperate from this cold.

[NeverBend]

A sticker on the back says:
Distributed in the U.S.A.
Fireside Industries, Inc.
50 Graphic Pl. Moonachie NJ 07074
Made in Denmark

I will review it when I recuperate from this cold.

Is that the label on all of the tins?

I forgot about Fireside, it's been a long time. Though they may have changed importers/distributors, Fireside is the earliest name I associate them with. Everything supports very old. Now you take care of that cold :).

[Ropey]

Whatever happened to this thread?

[Haebar]

Whatever happened to this thread?

I got well and smoked some of the Virginia No. 1 and wrote a review:

http://www.cigarbum.com/forum/showthread.php?2663-Vintage-MacBaren-s-Virginia-No-1

It is one of the best tobacco experiences in memory. I still have one sealed tin of it and a little less than half of an open tin in a Mason jar. I have not opened any of the other tins.

[fastnbulbous]

This was a super fun read.


Hi Haebar,

Great purchase! Sorry for the lengthy post but I wanted to fully explain my opinion. Are there any labels on the bottom of the tins and which tin is priced? Can you post pics of the tin bottoms? Any information could help date them.

Trying to determine the age by price may depend on which tin has the $1.64 tag (2oz or 3.5oz) and whether they were on sale at the time of original purchase. The tins may not all be the same age but I suspect that the estimates here are short by a decade or more.

Symphony and Virginia were rubbed out, Club was a roll cut (curly) and despite the difference in weight they were close to the same price. Looking at your tins I have to go back a long, long time where my memory is more sketchy and I didn't see the inside of the tins very often. I suspect that the Club will be smaller curlies than they are (or have) been more recently because they were hand rolled (thus more expensive).

The excessive staining of the doily (wax-backed paper placed on top of the tobacco when tinned) often indicates a lot of age because it infiltrates the paper slowly. MacBaren tended to pack a little more moist than some other companies that could have caused more staining. Packing of the tins was a cool process that was done by hand but I'd assume that process is now obsolete.

Wayne @OnePyroTec (http://www.cigarbum.com/forum/member.php?u=42)h mentioned $6.99 on a tin that he feels is close to 30 years old (say 1987) and that dovetails with their price of about $4.95 to $5.50 in the early 1980s (say 1981) and those were years of high inflation.

As a kid, starting in 1965 and onward, I made it my business to know every price, and price change, in the store but I only remember a price range between $2.25 and $3.00 for the Symphony (Virginia the same price). MacBaren was sold wholesale to stores at about a 40% discount (wholesalers paid less) so even if the marked tin was heavily discounted it was almost certainly from the 1960s (and the tin art jibes).

I don't know when MacBaren was first made available in the USA. I do remember it from the 1960s. From the tin, design, packing and price tag I can't see how that tin (and possibly all of the tins) can be any later than the late 1960s. If the price of $1.64 is a retail (not discounted price) then the tin may be older than that by several years.

I went to the MacBaren website to see if there was information about their history and tin art but the only thing of note was a picture of a man, pipe barely visible, looking like a junkie on the street waiting for his fix. What are they thinking!?
http://mac-baren.com/pipe-tobacco

In my opinion these tins are 40 years or more years old. It's quite possible that they're 50 years old or even more. Why not send pics to MacBaren and see if they can date them and don't be surprised if they wish to purchase them at a healthy profit.

Great find, store the open tobacco in a mason with as little air as possible and enjoy. No telling how all of the tins have handled time but the Virginia, followed by the Club were best suited for age when tinned although no one at MacBaren (or any other company) expected them to have been kept for so long.

Pete