Ageing in Mason Jars Question

[josiah]

Hi All!

My name is Josiah and I've just made a little introduction post over on the thread for new folks.

This is my first proper post so please tell me if I'm in the wrong place or anything. Just need some opinions:

I've got some Stokkebye flakes that I'm attempting to age in mason jars with the two part screw-on lids. I heated the jars first so they'd take a bit of a seal but the seal on one jar hasn't popped down. I've tried to reseal it a few times but it just isn't vacuuming at all. I've made the lid as tight as I can, will it dry out over time or should it age just fine? This is my first experiment with ageing and I can't afford tobacco very often, so i really want to get this right!

Thanks in advance!

J

 

[doctorthoss]

OK -- first of all, I need to know how long you waited before deciding to try and re-seal it. Once you screw on the lids, it could take up to 2 weeks for the seal to completely form. It doesn't necessarily happen overnight. Just stick it in a cool, dry place and it will happen.

Secondly, I don't believe it's necessary to actually seal the jars to store it. I've stored tobacco for years with no ill effects by just stuffing a Mason jar with tobacco and then screwing on the lid. The trick is to not open it until you're ready to smoke it.

But, a seal is a good idea, since you never really know what's going to happen. I never bother boiling the jars. All I do is take a Bic lighter and heat up the gum on the inside rim of the lid, press it down tight (making sure the adhesive is working) and then screw it on.

Remember to always use clean jars and don't re-use the lids.

Best of luck!

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Is the seal new? Is there a flake of tobacco between the seal and glass?

Sometimes my jars will take several days to ping. But, I'm in a warm climate. Me, I pull the warm jar out of the dishwasher, fill it up, and nuke it in a microwave for 15 seconds. If the jar was warm, like right out of the dishwasher warm, it should ping within a day. The colder the room is the faster the temperature differential will set the seal. I've had jars ping after a few days when the glass wasn't even all that warm when I filled it. Maybe, be patient. If after a week, it hasn't popped, you can do it over. A week in an improperly sealed jar shouldn't dry it out.
When I jar veggies in a pressure caner, it sometimes can still take +24 hours to ping.

 

[gmwolford]

There are a lot of folks that don't heat-seal the jars at all, only tighten the lid down and leave it along. In my personal experience this works just fine. As said above, it can take time to vacuum seal, if that is what you are going for. In this case, no matter how you end up doing it, you probably need to replace that cap IMHO since its been heated and removed more than once.

 

[dixcreek]

I have many mason jars of tobacco and I have found that most of them seal by themselves with no heat, Make sure you start with clean jars new lids and clean rust free rings. I also like to put mine in an old cedar chest I use for tobacco jars. Keeps em dark and cool

 

[josiah]

Wow! Thanks for all the quick, helpful responses. What a great forum! I tried resealing the jar in the first couple days after all the others popped. It's been about a month now. I can't find the right kind of lids here in England to replace it, so I think I'll just risk it and make it the first jar I open after a year of aging. Thanks guys, I was gonna just open it now but it sounds like it may be ok!

J

 

[salewis]

Another way to speed up the aging process is to cook the tobacco while still in the tin. Set the oven on bake and cook it on 250 to 300 degrees for four to five hours. Let cool and then commit to a wide mouth Mason, Ball or Kerr jar. This cooking process mellows out the smoke of most tobacco blends. You might want to give this oven treatment a try and compare it with the same blend not cooked.

 

[dragonslayer]

Welcome to the forum. If you take a look at older threads they're loaded with a huge amount of information about the entire process. Well worth the time.
Craig

 

[josiah]

Salewis - I've heard of that method before and it's really intriguing! Though I've heard mixed opinions of it and my tobacco collection is pretty limited so I may wait until I have a little more to spare for experimentation. Does it reduce the overall flavour or just the harshness?

 

[josiah]

Craig - Taking your advice I've begun to browse through some older threads and there really is loads of info! I should have joined this forum ages ago!!

 

[petes03]

I just put the tobacco in a fresh jar, with a fresh lid and forget about it. It might take weeks, but it will eventually seal itself. I've never had any problems doing it this way.

 

[smeigs]

I agree with petes03. I usually just thrown in my fresh baccy in a new jar and close it up tight and leave it in a cool dark place. They always seem to seal themselves over time and I have never had any issues with them drying out at all.

 

[allan]

Josiah
Welcome to the forum!
My only advice here is to mention (on a thread i mentioned it earlier) do not purchase inexpensive jars that imitate Ball or the other well known brands.
I had purchased some Chinese knockoffs and stored larger quantities of tobacco for some time-not realizing that the seal did not work. These were the clamp down mason style jars, but not quite...
Re hydration and self recrimination at my stupid desire to save some sheckles...
Don't do it!

 

[stbruno70]

Welcome to the forums.
I do not heat tobacco or fuss over the seals. By using clean jars and lids I have never had a problem. I prefer the screw top to the wire bail variety.
Good luck to you.

 

[metalheadycigarguy]

I have about 35+ mason jars in my cabinet. Anything in a mason jar is far game for smoking, but many jars sit for a while before I get back into them. I have no issues with them drying out, and most of them seal by themselves by just screwing the lid on like normal and leaving it be. Good luck with your process.

 

[haroldt]

I'm about to begin to cellar. I can understand cleaning out the jars, but for the life of me, I can not understand why I'd need to use a new lid. Seems to me so long as the lid is clean and has not rust, I should be good to go. Glad to see St Bruno 70 (above) feels the same and apparently gets good results.

 

[leparker]

A Mason jar is a molded glass jar used in canning to preserve food. The mouth of the jar has screw threads on its outer perimeter to accept a metal ring (or "band"). The band, when screwed down, presses a separate stamped steel disc-shaped lid against the rim of the jar. An integral rubber ring on the underside of the lid creates a hermetic seal to the jar. The bands and lids usually come with new jars, and bands and lids are also sold separately; while the bands are reusable, the lids are intended for single use when canning
FROM WIKIPEDIA ON MASON JARS

 

[theboz]

The seal material will deform over time, and definitely will after being heated. Probably not a problem with short term storage. The deformation may not allow a vacuum to form as the microbes use up the oxygen in the jar, it is this vacuum that allows the anaerobes to age the tobacco.

 

[leparker]

While doing a little research on this I found these reusable canning jar lids...
HERE

 

[salewis]

A Mason, Kerr or Ball jars work great. I have used these jars for many years and do not worry about hermetically sealing these jars since just by screwing on the lid so that it is firm, not too tight, is sufficient to keep your tobacco blends fresh for a long time. However, if your tobacco is too dry to begin with these jars will not hydrate dry tobacco. There is no need to place the jars into boiling water to seal in the freshness. Wile this technique is fine, once you dip in once to retrieve some tobacco the seal is broken.