Quote Originally Posted by NeverBend View Post
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.....