Cellaring Aromatic Virginias

Aging Vanilla Cream isn't going to give you anything better than what you have. I am smoking two year old tins of it now, and its just as good as the day I bought them. What you did was OK. Because if you had of given room and the ideal environment for aging, you may have lost some of the aromatic-ness. I think what you are wanting is to preserve them, not necessarily age them.

I think what you are wanting is to preserve them, not necessarily age them.

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Good point on storing aros.

their is no point to age aros they will not gain anything because they coat them to get that flavor in it.

Newbie is coming across as a bit of an ass with his comment. Let's see his expert card (Newbie). I am basing my suggestion on the writing of GLP and others who are experts in the field, as well as my own experience. There are two forms of aging processes, check this out. After a tin is open or bulk is received for aging to take place the bacteria needs oxygen and moisture to get established, and using those resources sets the seal by creating a vacuum. Then the process begins. With tins the process is different. As far as what those differences are, I am still admittedly new to this, so I defer to the Dark Lord Pease once again. Yes, I am no expert, but I at least don't just post crap based on what is heard on here. If I was going to do that, I'd post that vacuum seal suggestion that is debunked by better men than me in the tobacco world. But, this seems to be all over the forums as a pop myth.
Maybe try reading as much as you can on the subject and listening to a few radio shows. I wouldn't just willy nilly experiment with five pounds a month without doing my homework. And, I wouldn't just make a suggestion based on casting chicken bones. I don't have that kind of money to take unneeded risks.
Griffonwing, even on this forum, suggestions can be risky. Brian has some of the best tobacconist talk about this subject on the radioshow, and I would defer to those tobacconists that you trust and their blogs and such. There is good researched work out there on this subject.

You must have missed my comment about two types of aging. In the tin is a whole different process. But, hey, some anonymous posted called "newbie" is overriding Greg. Take it for what it's worth, ha ha.

Eh, I've told tales of the great "Out There." Ha ha. But, yeh, no one should just take a comment from a forum, if they have a sizable investment of tobacco riding on it. Those weren't my words. I'm no expert, but check out the actual experts. I would take a blog post by GLP or Russ's blog from P&C. We did used to have a micro-guy on the forums that had good info on what is happening inside that jar. Look for old posts on the subject too, but dredge through the chicken bones from people re-hashing good advice. It's a forum, or you could just ask the Magic 8 Ball. ::

Griffonwing, I hope you didn't think that I was admonishing you for your cellaring style or for asking about it. I have had twenty tins of this Vanilla Flake for two years. I had no idea that one tin for just my morning smoke would last so long. But, as I open these tins that I have had for the longest (and no telling how old they were when I got them) I notice that some of the flavor has diminished significantly. I have bought tins of Erinmore and Firedance that had been on the shelf for quite a while only to find that almost all of the flavor had left them also. For me, I won't be buying bulk aromatics anymore for this reason. I think that the toppings just don't last, and aging them doesn't do anything positive that I have seen, not like a pure Virginia or VaPer. Setting aside the argument for or against aging, I think that if it were me with a box of these aromatic flakes, that I would just put them all in a jar, not worrying about aging, and just open the jar and pulling out what I need a handful at a time. In this case with this type of tobacco, I don't think that aging will result in a better product, so opening the jar and closing it back up wouldn't be a concern for me.
But yes, if this were a Virginia or VaPer that you wanted to see significant results from aging, then small jars, a bit of headroom in the jar, and don't open them till you're ready to smoke them.
But, as stated, I am no expert. I am just going by what I have read and deduced from reading and listening to the real experts.

The problem with this whole aging thing is that people keep repeating the mantra that tobacco ages via a fermentation mechanism. Tobacco does not age via fermentation. It ages via enzymatic reactions with the amino acids, sugars and other constituents in the leaf. Leffingwell has done considerable research in this area so

I'd sugest if anyone wants to learn more to read up on his studies.
Another ding against the fermentation theory is that almost all tobacco has PG added to it ( not all but most). PG is a very effective anti microbial agent. Add to the fact that Viginia (flue cured) is heated above 130F during the curing process. This temp is high enough to kill the existing bacteria/yeast that is on the leaf.
There is no data to support the fact that fermentaion is responsible for the change in flavor profile but there is plenty to support the enzymatic process.

I don't think anyone on this thread used the word "ferment" or "PG." Honey and most casing were added to tobaccos to stop mold and microbial actions as well. But, people report all sorts of good things happening with aged versions of those flakes. I don't smoke anything that I can detect any PG added (detect, being the significant word in that sentence). But, really from what I've read, Virginias and VaPers are two blends that show any significant results from aging. So, I have very strict standards about what I buy in bulk or multiple tins of. I do have a few Latakia blends and mixtures that I have in there, added before I knew what I was doing, but I don't expect anything wonderful to come of those. I just add to the cellar what I think will benefit the most from aging. It's not like I would put five pounds of Hobbit's Weed or 1Q in there or anything, ha ha. In fact, I see most production run tobaccos (even Virginias) as not being worthy of trying to age. MacBarons or Lane, paleez. What would one expect from trying to age one of those? (I know, I know, tobacco snob, but somebody's got to say it, ha ha)
There are those who age there favorite blends and those who hoard. Hoarders can just vacuum seal up their collection, because they don't care about the aging effects. People aging their tobaccos need to monitor the temperature and light that their blends are exposed to. It's really two totally different things.
I will check out this Leffingwell guy. Thanks for the suggestion.

"After a tin is open or bulk is received for aging to take place the bacteria needs oxygen and moisture to get established, and using those resources sets the seal by creating a vacuum. "
This is fermentaion

...not necessarily. I can witness this happening. I may not have the exact wording on what is causing it, but it happens. Like, when I push the button on my key, the door unlocks. Not much to argue about it. Now, whether it is enzymes or bacteria, phhht, who cares? It happens, and the stuff tastes good. Beyond that I could care less the exact names of tiny magic bugs that do whatever it is they do. I don't know exactly how my iPhone works, but I can use it.
I tried to read some of Leffingwell's work, but it is so jargon ridden that I would have to pull out my college chemistry books to decipher what they are saying. And, I'm not even sure if this stuff pertains to exactly what we are talking about when we talk about aging on the forums. It looks like most of this stuff is for the cigarette industry pertaining to the loss of flavor in cigarettes. RJ Reynolds has its name all over the research.
Not to discount Leffingwell's work, but at least GLP and Russ bring the info to us on a level that we can understand what to do. And, these two bank their whole livelihood on aging to some degree, especially Greg. And, they are accessible on this forum. You can always ask them, and they frequently post or comment on here. So, be careful, the Dark Lord of Latakia may be watching, ha ha ha.

My point is... Leffingwell has conducted scientific studies on how tobacco ages, GLP and Russ have not! I tend to go with the science guys. Most people in tobacco sales tend to say things that are not supported by anything but conjecture. Others read this and assume "they must know what they are talking about" and repeat the myth.. and so on and so on. Say it enough and it becomes gospel. Not trying to open up a can of worms here, just pointing out that science says tobacco ages via enzymes. As such that means you do not stop the aging of tobacco everytime you open the lid.

OK, here's your chance. Enlighten us all as to how Leffingwell dispels the knowledge of the tobacconists. Put up or shut up, so to speak. ::

Explain to us where these men have gone astray in their knowledge of tobacco.