Another Tobacco Storage Question...???

[bowler1]

Hi,

I know there have been a lot of questions about tobacco storage. The consensus seems to be mason jars. I have purchased a bunch of mason jars and have them in my closet where it is dark and about 65-70 degrees (don't have a cellar or someplace cooler).
I have been disappointed in the flavor of the tobacco I have had in there for a few months and am wondering if it is due to how I am storing it.
I have the tobacco in pint sized jars. When I want to smoke it I open the jar up and then re-seal it. As a result, the jars are unsealed and then resealed several times. Also, as I use the tobacco the jars get partially emptied (obviously) such that there is a half a jar or less remaining.
I am wondering if the fact that the tobacco is stored in an only half-full jar which has the seal broken and then re-sealed is causing the tobacco to dry out. What do you think?
Does the tobacco need to be stored with less air space?
Would plastic ziplock baggies with the air squeezed out be better? What do you recommend?
thanks

Matt

 

[huntertrw]

bowler1
As you read threads on this subject you will find a broad range of opinions concerning Mason jars. Some swear by them; others swear at them.
Certain Forum members swear by the mylar-like PermaMoist bags (PermaMoist Bags) sold by Iwan Ries, and I agree with them. A bag of Dr. Bradley Mixture which I purchased over two years ago, and which was packaged in one of these bags, is still fresh despite being opened and closed numerous times. Unlike Mason jars, you can expel some of the air inside of these bags before sealing them with the built-in closure. Further, being bags, they don;t take up as much space, and won't break if you accidentally drop them.

 

[easterntraveler]

If you are opening these jars alot through out a week then you are not cellaring any tobacco. IMO to cellar is to Jar/store for a prolonged period of time and then accessing the tobacco at a later date. You can then put it back into the cellar but then I would not open it again for awhile if the goal is to "cellar it". Also a couple of months cellared us probably not going to change the flavor or complexity that greatly if at all. Did you like the flavor of the tobacco before attempting to cellar it? Also exactly what are you celkating?

 

[johnnyreb]

Are you jarring more than 2-3 oz and then smoking out of that jar? In other words are you jarring more than one tin of a kind? I pretty much agree with easterntraveler. I jar my tobacco one tin per jar (1.75 - 3.0 oz) and work out of that. If I am cellaring it then I put 8 oz in a quart jar and seal it for long term. Lately after Greg Pease went into great detail about his new lids I have been keeping my Gaslight in his tall 4 oz tins, slicing up a plug in advance. So far that has worked well and I have not experienced any degradation in his tins.
I have often wondered about the green glass humidor jars with cork seal lids found in every pipe rack for years. Those are probably capable of holding a pound. Do they keep tobacco well? I don't know.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I've never heard anyone say anything negative about mason jars. However as easterntraveler points out, you are not cellaring anything. Cellaring entails putting up your tobacco for the purpose of aging, and not breaking into it again until they've reached a certain number of years that you anticipate results. Breaking the seal is just killing the microbial environment established inside the jar.
You are just trying to keep your rotation from drying out. For this, I put mine in ziplock bags and then put the bags inside of these resealable Snap-tight plastic storage containers sold at the grocery store. They suck for aging, but do a great job of preventing things from drying out.
You also didn't mention what the genre of tobacco is. IMO, aromatics just don't stay fresh tasting for very long after they've been open. So, I almost always throw away this blend after a couple of weeks, if I haven't smoked it all by them. I don't smoke but one bowl a day of aros, so I try to only keep 1 oz of an aro open at a time.

Virginias do well with a little dry time, so those will last me for over a month. Latakias, umm, no experience there.
But, if you want to age a blend, seal it up and leave it alone for 2-20 years, and don't touch it.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

@johnnyreb, those large jar humidors are great for heavily PG'd codger blends, which won't dry out. But, for the tobaccos that I prefer to smoke most often, they suck. They were really popular with the codger, one pipe, one tobacco folks. Not, so great for the pipe hobbyist or connoisseur, IMO. :wink:

 

[cortezattic]

I use wide mouth ½-pint Mason jars. As you observed, as tobacco is removed, drying occurs with increased air space.

With small jars the increasing dryness is less of a problem. Also, using many small jars allows the unused tobacco to age

without interruption.

 

[aquilas]

Are the mason jars you are using the jars with the 2-part lid? Some have said that those lids are way more effective than the jars with the single piece lid. Keeps the inside of the jar more air tight.
Anyways, as far as the flavor goes, your storage practices might be fine and your pipes might be parting the unsatisfying flavor?

 

[bowler1]

To follow up on this post...yes, as someone above pointed out I am really just looking to keep my rotation from drying out. I am not really attempting to cellar / age the tobacco.
A challenge for me is that I don't really get to smoke that often, given that my wife hates me doing it. As a result I need tins to last a few months.
I went with Mason jars to try to preserve my rotation, but the air space issue as they empty seems to be causing them to dry which is making them less enjoyable. That is my hypothesis.
I really just want to keep my tobacco from drying out for a few months at a time or maybe a year.
Matt

 

[easterntraveler]

Use really small jars then. Honestly I don't think it matters how much space is in the jar just make sure it is sealed tight.

 

[okiescout]

Picked up on the Mylar here on the forum. Best thing I have done in respect to cellaring. I am actually going to go back and empty some jars into bags. I have been ordering gallons and quarts as they mentioned. The gallons hold 5 tins of arros ie: Cult or Shenandoah#79 size. Bulks I will stay with the quarts. If you are careful you can iron them shut with an iron, then they can be opened and resealed with the iron. This would apply primarily to pulling tins, in my case. I will not open quarts until I have aged the Virginia's. Then jar them as I use them.You need tubs to keep them in because they do not stack well. I pay a little more for the food storage quality bags. They are opaque and you can write on them with marker. Do not know who started it, but it works great for me. I only put the oxygen reducers that come with the bags in the "tin" bags. The rest need some oxygen to age. After 25 lbs jars just become unmanageable. :mrgreen: Costs are less than jars and reusable to a certain extent.

 

[peteguy]

Storing your tobacco in the manner you describe is fine. The taste and moisture shouldn't be any different than the day you put the tobacco in the jar unless the jar was not clean before hand or the lid isn't sealing.
If you want to change the flavor then you need years of cellaring or "aging". These jars should not be opened or not opened very often.

 

[meatballj]

Having read this thread brings a question to mind before I embark on my own cellaring journey. I noticed that johnnyreb slices up plugs before he puts them away to cellar. Is this a common practice or can you cellar the plug as is? To go with this, is there anything that should/could be done to prepare the tobacco before cellaring? My plan is to purchase and cellar tins but with planning to pick up things like Gaslight I was just wondering.

 

[buckaroo]

@okiescout - So using Mylar probably saves a lot of space? I have jars everywhere since I crossed over fm cigars to briars back in 2008. Thx for the info and posting your thoughts as I missed that thread.