Massachusetts & Watch City

Condor

Condor

Well-known member
No to get into any diatribe but am I correct that @Ernie Q Or Watch City will not , can not , send “ “”flavored “ tobacco to a Mass address? Yet, if I drive up to Waltham from Chatham ,Mass I could buy at the shop ? Or not ? Most of my blends are not aromatics, but it seems like a stretch on some blends. Please advise ?
 
Sasquatch

Sasquatch

May Cause Drowsiness
Staff Member
Ernie will know more and hopefully chime in. I know Peretti's has some kind of weird exception that they applied for and got approved allowing them to sell what they do, but I do NOT know if it includes local sales or mail order or what exactly.

Similar legislation in Canada derived from big(ish) tobacco putting banana and grape flavored cigars out at the gas-station level, certainly was an attempt to gain a.... younger clientele, shall we say. But yeah, trying to ban soapy-tasting pipe tobacco is a tough pill to swallow for sure.

Anyone posts a half-inch sideways in this thread and they disappear.
 
Ernie Q

Ernie Q

Well-known member
Patron
Sales
Old Ted Award
OK....so here's the deal. I am strictly forbidden to sell any flavored tobacco in the store or ship any within Massachusetts. It's ridiculous but that's the way it is. IF you have a Cigar Bar you are allowed to sell flavored tobacco by special permit however the customer MUST CONSUME THE PRODUCT ON THE PREMISES. I believe what designates a cigar bar is controlled bu the towns and cities and our town does not consider us one. What sort of special arrangement Peretti has I don't know....the fact they have been there since God was a boy may have something to do with it but that's their business.
Now the loophole is that if you have a letter from a manufacturer that states that the tobacco is not flavored, then you are allowed to sell it. We had to prove that every tin we have here on the shelf is not flavored by procuring letters from every manufacturer listing what tobacco/cigars are not flavored. It's a veritable skyscraper of paper. Manufacturers by and large were accurate and would not list any obviously flavored tobacco. The only exception was Acid Cigars as Drew Estate's argument is that they are not flavored but infused and have no characteristic flavoring.
All of this is just a preview of what is coming. All menthol and flavored cigarettes and cigars will be banned within the next 5 years on a federal level. While the current language mentions noting about pipe tobacco, i assure you that it is going to happen eventually.
So to answer the original question, we cannot sell it in our MA Store and we cannot ship it to a MA address. Out of state is fine.
By the way, our store is in Framingham.....the Waltham store is a small cigar shop only and does not sell pipe tobacco.
 
Bach6032

Bach6032

Well-known member
Ernie Q said:
OK....so here's the deal. I am strictly forbidden to sell any flavored tobacco in the store or ship any within Massachusetts. It's ridiculous but that's the way it is. IF you have a Cigar Bar you are allowed to sell flavored tobacco by special permit however the customer MUST CONSUME THE PRODUCT ON THE PREMISES. I believe what designates a cigar bar is controlled bu the towns and cities and our town does not consider us one. What sort of special arrangement Peretti has I don't know....the fact they have been there since God was a boy may have something to do with it but that's their business.
Now the loophole is that if you have a letter from a manufacturer that states that the tobacco is not flavored, then you are allowed to sell it. We had to prove that every tin we have here on the shelf is not flavored by procuring letters from every manufacturer listing what tobacco/cigars are not flavored. It's a veritable skyscraper of paper. Manufacturers by and large were accurate and would not list any obviously flavored tobacco. The only exception was Acid Cigars as Drew Estate's argument is that they are not flavored but infused and have no characteristic flavoring.
All of this is just a preview of what is coming. All menthol and flavored cigarettes and cigars will be banned within the next 5 years on a federal level. While the current language mentions noting about pipe tobacco, i assure you that it is going to happen eventually.
So to answer the original question, we cannot sell it in our MA Store and we cannot ship it to a MA address. Out of state is fine.
By the way, our store is in Framingham.....the Waltham store is a small cigar shop only and does not sell pipe tobacco.
Click to expand...
Given what you've described (the "skyscraper of paperwork") it's a miracle you can maintain your sanity.

Do those crushing regulations in any way contribute to the "Boston Nice" thing?
 
BlueMaxx

BlueMaxx

Well-known member
Markem said:
I think that you are right, @Ernie Q; we are at the top of a slippery slope. Without getting into a discussion of the merits, since that would be a banned topic, several local banning ordinances were overturned in Oregon solely on the basis that it is the state's job to create such bans.
Click to expand...

I am buying as fast as I can!
Laying off pipes, they will always be available.
But tobacco?
Not so much.
Reallocate spending priorities no matter how much I lust after a pipe.
And E, thanks for your posts.
I always learn something from them, I know unintended consequences.
 
Condor

Condor

Well-known member
Ernie Q said:
OK....so here's the deal. I am strictly forbidden to sell any flavored tobacco in the store or ship any within Massachusetts. It's ridiculous but that's the way it is. IF you have a Cigar Bar you are allowed to sell flavored tobacco by special permit however the customer MUST CONSUME THE PRODUCT ON THE PREMISES. I believe what designates a cigar bar is controlled bu the towns and cities and our town does not consider us one. What sort of special arrangement Peretti has I don't know....the fact they have been there since God was a boy may have something to do with it but that's their business.
Now the loophole is that if you have a letter from a manufacturer that states that the tobacco is not flavored, then you are allowed to sell it. We had to prove that every tin we have here on the shelf is not flavored by procuring letters from every manufacturer listing what tobacco/cigars are not flavored. It's a veritable skyscraper of paper. Manufacturers by and large were accurate and would not list any obviously flavored tobacco. The only exception was Acid Cigars as Drew Estate's argument is that they are not flavored but infused and have no characteristic flavoring.
All of this is just a preview of what is coming. All menthol and flavored cigarettes and cigars will be banned within the next 5 years on a federal level. While the current language mentions noting about pipe tobacco, i assure you that it is going to happen eventually.
So to answer the original question, we cannot sell it in our MA Store and we cannot ship it to a MA address. Out of state is fine.
By the way, our store is in Framingham.....the Waltham store is a small cigar shop only and does not sell pipe tobacco.
Click to expand...
Ok , thanks for the cogent response ! Got it !
 
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