But many reviewers say you lose flavor by drying and that the blender packed it at the right amount of moisture for smoking. Where is the truth?
In my experience, it varies. Blenders often pack a bit wet because they figure that the tin will hang out in your pocket for a few days while you smoke through it and lose moisture during that time. Also, your personal chemistry comes into play here.
When Cosmic says that this is "subjective," he is alluding to the fact that we all approach this from different places. In addition to what he mentions above, some people prefer the dry "taste" sort of like some like "dry" wines. I find that sometimes just a little drying works wonders.
For example, I love
The Beast. It is one of the greatest blends for Perique freaks ever created. It has a pleasant topping, but out of the tin, might be a bit much. Mix it with some
Five Brothers and the moisture transfers somewhat, making the Burley taste "pop" a bit more and pushing the topping and Perique
slightly to the background.
Full drying would probably not be as efficacious, but it does result in less moisture in the pipe and easier burning, which is important for when one is smoking, for example,
Brown Twist Sliced, an oily mess of slithering strands that gets tamed by thirty minutes in a dark, dry corner.