Stokkebye: cheap tobacco or good tobacco cheap?

[c.ortiz108]

Like the title says.... I've noticed PS blends are on sale at smokingpipes and at P&C. Some have good reviews and some not. Seems like their flakes get the most praise, but what about their other stuff? Their lat blends and aros. I'm strangely compelled by the Black Cherry Black Cavendish, I read that hobbits smoke the nougat!

[Tobias Lutz]

It's middle of the road, IMO. Many shops buy the PS bulk and "rebrand" it with local names for sale in their bulk canisters. Some are overly gooey with PG, but many are decent. Some, like the Straight Virginia are best used only for blending.

[Aguineapig]

I think they are great. Proper English is a nice blend, the Burleys they do are quite nice incl. aromatic dutch slices and cube cut. The flakes are all famously solid. I've tried the bullseye and they are very nice, and the navy flake is on my TAD list. B&B is probably the greatest aro I have ever smoked. I don't smoke many aromatics (aside from B&B) because I'm not an aro smoker except for a rare exception. But I can definitely vouch for the few blends mentioned.

for the price, Stokkebye and C&D are my two "cellar sweller" brands.

[c.ortiz108]

Hmmmm.... Two pretty different opinions so far! They're cheap enough that I might just pick up a couple, but I'm trying to avoid the "can't resist a bargain" mentality. Especially because I only smoke once or twice a week, so even a couple ounces lasts me a while.

[JustTroItIn]

You can't go wrong with Luxury Navy Flake, Luxury Bullseye Flake, and Luxury Twist Flake. The only other I have tried is Amsterdam but that was for RYO not pipe smoking.

[Alligator Gar]

Eric Stokkebye 4th Generation Tobacconist 1882 Founders Blend is a very nice English. I keep it in my regular rotation. Not sure I'd call it cheap. I paid $25 for a 100 gram year old tin at Edwards Pipe and Cigar in Atlanta.

[Cool Breeze]

Luxury Bullseye Flake and Luxury Navy Flake are good smokes.
Proper English is a fine English blend IMO. One of my favorites in fact.

Luxury Twist Flake is not a bad tobacco, but it is VERY mild for my tastes. It smells good enough to eat in the bag but just falls a little flat in the flavor department.

I've not tried any of their aromatics and frankly don't care to. I haven't tasted one from any manufacturer that has impressed me all that much.

[Haebar]

I have tried the English Luxury and Proper English and enjoyed both of them. Recently ordered some of their three flakes: Luxury Bulls Eye Flake, Luxury Navy Flake, Luxury Twist Flake. Two of them were on back order when I ordered. PS is mid-range in the price aspect but better than average flavor.

[Bruck]

It's both :)

[Beebo]

To toss in my 2 cents. I am pretty fond of the stokkebyes. I think my favorites are the Black Cavendish, and the Peaches and cream. They are quite regulars for me.

[commonsenseman]

You can't go wrong with Luxury Navy Flake, Luxury Bullseye Flake, and Luxury Twist Flake. The only other I have tried is Amsterdam but that was for RYO not pipe smoking.

This^^^

The Luxury blends are very good, I can't speak to the rest. My personal favorite is the Luxury Navy Flake.

[c.ortiz108]

I've not tried any of their aromatics and frankly don't care to. I haven't tasted one from any manufacturer that has impressed me all that much.

I hear you. The only aro I've really liked so far is SG Firedance Flake. I suspect that's partly because Gawith tobaccos are high quality, and partly because it's not a burley aro. Whatever, it's strangely good! Some of the PS straight Black Cav aros are tempting, and get really good reviews.

[Bruck]

I just ordered a bunch - some PS Amsterdam, Proper English, and one other that I can't remember and am too danged lazy to dig up the receipt for :)

[Cool Breeze]

If you enjoy straight forward English blends, I don't think you'll be disappointed in the Proper English.

[Aguineapig]

Yes Proper English is excellent. I could go for one of the 5 lb bags someday when I have the extra cash. Just a comfortable, latakia forward smoke. Not so much lat that it becomes a novelty smoke (like Pirate kake, which I like but only here and there). Also manageable nicotine wise to smoke a bunch of.

[c.ortiz108]

Proper English is going in my cart, along with Oriental Supreme and some other stuff....

[BryGuySC]

If you haven't tried it, I suggest Luxury Bullseye flake. It is a solid one.
I've got about half a pound squirreled away, and feel like it should be more.

[Emperor Zurg]

I just ordered a bunch - some PS Amsterdam, Proper English, and one other that I can't remember and am too danged lazy to dig up the receipt for :)

I hope you ordered an ounce or two of Aromatic Dutch Sliced to try :p

[c.ortiz108]

If you haven't tried it, I suggest Luxury Bullseye flake. It is a solid one.
I've got about half a pound squirreled away, and feel like it should be more.

I already have some Davidoff Flake Medallions, which is pretty much the same thing from what I understand. So far I find it just okay, but if I learn to like it more I'll try the LBF, too. My pipe smoking palette is still fairly primitive - it likes latakias and big strong flavors, so I need to work on appreciating the subtleties more.

[cbr310]

+8 on luxury navy flake, I need to grab some more of that stuff!

[Bruck]

I hope you ordered an ounce or two of Aromatic Dutch Sliced to try :p

No, dangit, that was even on my list of things to try... and I must have neglected to look at the list :(

[cpmcdill]

One important index of the value of the Stokkebye brand is how Peter Stokkebye was regarded in his day. It seems to me he was held in high regard among pipe smokers and people in the trade when he was alive, and the pipe magazines, including the legendary Pipe Smokers Ephemeris published a lot of tributes and eulogies to him after he passed away. Admittedly, he's no longer in control of the use of his name connected to pipe blends, but personally, I've been consistently pleased with all the PS products I've bought, which are the non-aros -- English, Virginias, VaPers, and blending tobaccos. Can't speak for the aro blends. When this sale came up I made sure to get ~5 lbs of flakes and Englishes, some for the cellar.

[bluenoser]

I have some of the peter stokkebye french vanilla aro and I think it's pretty good stuff, but I like aro's lol

[Ropey]

PS is respected as a brand with a consistent line of good tobaccos at good prices.

Not many in the PS line that would be called outstanding, but not many that would be called bad either.

[Ropey]

Here's a very detailed review of PS Luxury Navy Flake:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtpHZq1WlEA

[NeverBend]

I already have some Davidoff Flake Medallions, which is pretty much the same thing from what I understand. So far I find it just okay, but if I learn to like it more I'll try the LBF, too. My pipe smoking palette is still fairly primitive - it likes latakias and big strong flavors, so I need to work on appreciating the subtleties more.

Morning Chico,

This goes back to a question that you asked elsewhere about blends that may be marketed under different names.

Stokkebye is a tobacco processor and they supply retailers and wholesalers and resellers. There aren't a lot of processors, so by knowing the processors you have an idea of who made a mixture based on its origin . Anyone can toss two ingredients together for a unique mixture but few have the ability to process, cut, press and pack (and market and sell). I no longer know all of the processors but Stokkebye is one of them.

It's possible that a reseller has a completely customized mixture but it's likely to be an altered form of a generic base, similar to adding pigment to a paint base. It's simply not good economics to manufacture, track (QC) and especially to source tobacco for a vast number of individual mixtures. Pipe and cigar leaf blenders have an ongoing war with the changes in crops. If you ask for Pekoe Virginia (in a mixture) you'll get the closest leaf that they process.

Don't let the prices fool you, Stokkebye knows how to process tobacco. I've smoked Luxury Navy, Bull's-Eye and Twist as well as Balkan Sasieni (that I believe they make), and all are quality tobacco products that are made with good leaf. I suspect that I've smoked other mixtures that they make but certainly I've smoked mixtures with one or more Stokkebye components.

With pipe tobacco, cheap is as cheap smokes. I've not tried a large quantity of their offerings but those that I have are inexpensive but not cheap.

[c.ortiz108]

Morning Chico,

This goes back to a question that you asked elsewhere about blends that may be marketed under different names.

Stokkebye is a tobacco processor and they supply retailers and wholesalers and resellers. There aren't a lot of processors, so by knowing the processors you have an idea of who made a mixture based on its origin . Anyone can toss two ingredients together for a unique mixture but few have the ability to process, cut, press and pack (and market and sell). I no longer know all of the processors but Stokkebye is one of them.

It's possible that a reseller has a completely customized mixture but it's likely to be an altered form of a generic base, similar to adding pigment to a paint base. It's simply not good economics to manufacture, track (QC) and especially to source tobacco for a vast number of individual mixtures. Pipe and cigar leaf blenders have an ongoing war with the changes in crops. If you ask for Pekoe Virginia (in a mixture) you'll get the closest leaf that they process.

Don't let the prices fool you, Stokkebye knows how to process tobacco. I've smoked Luxury Navy, Bull's-Eye and Twist as well as Balkan Sasieni (that I believe they make), and all are quality tobacco products that are made with good leaf. I suspect that I've smoked other mixtures that they make but certainly I've smoked mixtures with one or more Stokkebye components.

With pipe tobacco, cheap is as cheap smokes. I've not tried a large quantity of their offerings but those that I have are inexpensive but not cheap.

Informative post as usual, thanks! I find it all pretty confusing when one company makes brands for another, though I guess it's like cigars. Gurkhas are not made by Gurkha, but by various factories. Arango has their award-winning Balkan Supreme which I understand is made by Stokkebye. And Stokkebye has their own Balkan Supreme sold under their own name. I guess the only way to tell if they're the same is to smoke them side-by-side.

Anyway, with the P&C and SmokingPipes deals I have no excuse not to at least try a couple of their blends.....

[NeverBend]

Informative post as usual, thanks! I find it all pretty confusing when one company makes brands for another, though I guess it's like cigars. Gurkhas are not made by Gurkha, but by various factories. Arango has their award-winning Balkan Supreme which I understand is made by Stokkebye. And Stokkebye has their own Balkan Supreme sold under their own name. I guess the only way to tell if they're the same is to smoke them side-by-side.

Anyway, with the P&C and SmokingPipes deals I have no excuse not to at least try a couple of their blends.....

Hi Chico,

The P&C sale is great because the Stokkebye was already on sale at 4oz/$7.00 and now $5.60! That's $22.40/lb.

Like any industry there are source producers and many sellers (often including the producers). Nothing really different and your example of Gurkhs is appropriate.

Pete