Aging and Cellaring Tobacco

[cranseiron]

I was always under the impression that aging tobacco was ALWAYS the way to go. I started cellaring back in 2011 and just recently started cracking into some of these tins and jars. Some have markedly improved in certain ways and, to be truthful, some are not as good and are much better when fresh. This came as a surprise to me and one particular tobacco brand is noted for its positive aging properties. I'm not saying the aging process ruined some of these, but, in my estimation, the fresh variety is better as some of the casings applied to these are an important part of it's flavor profile and they have disappeared over time. I'm not talking aromatics, mind you. I'm reluctant to mention brands as opinions differ and some may not find the same disfavor that I did. But, the flavor profile absolutely changed and changed in a way I was not expecting. Some of these I simply will not smoke as I find them uninteresting now and two of the aged brands now taste rather ashy. So far, all these cellared brands maintained their seal, developed no mold and had appropriate moisture levels when opened. One was a European hard plug, one was broken flake and one was a standard flake. I sampled these tobaccos with a cob, meerschaum and my best Ser Jacopo briar that smokes anything you put in it exceptionally well. My results, so far, have proven disappointing. As a matter of fact, of the five aged tobaccos I pulled from the cellar, three have been major busts. I have plenty more, but of all I put away, a significant portion may have been a complete waste of time and money (in my opinion).

 

[karam]

As @sablebrush52 has said about a thousand times, ageing doesn't improve tobaccos, it changes them. I have had sublime aged tobacco, and others which were 10 times better right out the tin.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

Without Nam ng the blend name, difficult to comment. I don't understand the reluctance.

 

[Sobrbiker]

Faff around with the leaf at your own risk.

 

[TheIronMonkey]

Aging can soften some rough edges on some ”not ready for prime time” tobacco, but it’s worth keeping in mind that most blends are created with the flavour profile at the time of release as the one to be consumed and experienced.

 

[woodsroad]

Buoy Gold is sublime with 20 years on it.

Name names, please.

 

[sablebrush52]

I was always under the impression that aging tobacco was ALWAYS the way to go. I started cellaring back in 2011 and just recently started cracking into some of these tins and jars. Some have markedly improved in certain ways and, to be truthful, some are not as good and are much better when fresh. This came as a surprise to me and one particular tobacco brand is noted for its positive aging properties. I'm not saying the aging process ruined some of these, but, in my estimation, the fresh variety is better as some of the casings applied to these are an important part of it's flavor profile and they have disappeared over time. I'm not talking aromatics, mind you. I'm reluctant to mention brands as opinions differ and some may not find the same disfavor that I did. But, the flavor profile absolutely changed and changed in a way I was not expecting. Some of these I simply will not smoke as I find them uninteresting now and two of the aged brands now taste rather ashy. So far, all these cellared brands maintained their seal, developed no mold and had appropriate moisture levels when opened. One was a European hard plug, one was broken flake and one was a standard flake. I sampled these tobaccos with a cob, meerschaum and my best Ser Jacopo briar that smokes anything you put in it exceptionally well. My results, so far, have proven disappointing. As a matter of fact, of the five aged tobaccos I pulled from the cellar, three have been major busts. I have plenty more, but of all I put away, a significant portion may have been a complete waste of time and money (in my opinion).

As @sablebrush52 has said about a thousand times, ageing doesn't improve tobaccos, it changes them. I have had sublime aged tobacco, and others which were 10 times better right out the tin.

This sums it up. There are tobaccos, like McClelland 2015, that I much preferred fresh. But I'd rather have it aged than not have it at all. That's one of the trade offs. Like you, I've noticed that some blends change in a way that I like better, some don't change much at all, and some change in a way that I don't care for.

With the exception of a few makers who can't wait to get their blends to market and put out blends that are still screaming in their diapers, the majority release their blends at the point that represent what they want their product to taste like.

Even aging the same vintage product in different containers may end up with different results. I have a box of FVF that I separated into three different glass jars. They were jarred within minutes of each other, sat on the shelf next to each other, and changed in different ways. One developed an almost caramel like sweetness, one was sweeter than it originally was, but not to the same extent, and the third seemed a little flat.

I stocked up on blends that I liked so that I would have them in the future because blends have a way of disappearing without warning, and components can change. I didn't set out to age blends because aging automatically "improves" them.

So, for the thousandth and one time, aging doesn't improve blends. Aging changes blends. Whether that change constitutes an improvement is up to the individual smoker to decide.

 

[cranseiron]

Buoy Gold is sublime with 20 years on it.

Name names, please.

Capstan, Salty Dog and Union Square-- so far. Full Virginia Flake/Plug, Best Brown flake/plug and Anni Cake are sublime.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

Capstan, Salty Dog and Union Square-- so far. Full Virginia Flake/Plug, Best Brown flake/plug and Anni Cake are sublime.

I find Capstan Blue and Gold improve significantly with age, especially the blue. No idea with Salty Dogs. I can understand someone thinking Union Square did not improve with age. It gets much another but perhaps a bit flat. I'd take the aged version but not by as much as Capstan. FVF and BBF improve a ton with age to me. My experience with Anniversary Cake is minimal. It would have to improve with age I think as I didn't find it very good fresh.

 

[woodsroad]

My experience with Anniversary Cake is minimal. It would have to improve with age I think as I didn't find it very good fresh.

I have a pound of Anniversary Kake that’s probably six years old, maybe eight. I enjoyed it when I sampled it two years ago. I should revisit it. PM me.

 

[TakeThisCobAndStuffIt]

I'm not sure I understand why you would be reluctant to share your opinion on how a particular tobacco aged. Sharing our opinions is pretty much why we are here and it's the only reason a site like TR exists...to accumulate opinions on various blends.

 

[Servant King]

I stocked up on blends that I liked so that I would have them in the future because blends have a way of disappearing without warning, and components can change.

^^^^ THIS

 

[Simmerdown☕️]

Like others here I purchase mostly so that I have it in hand. The only blends that I cellar for aging are Luxury Bulls-Eye Flake & Full Virginia Flake as they both develop beautifully for me with 3-5 years of age on them. Otherwise, I smoke most blends fresh from the tin as they were meant to be enjoyed. ️

 

[cranseiron]

I'm not sure I understand why you would be reluctant to share your opinion on how a particular tobacco aged. Sharing our opinions is pretty much why we are here and it's the only reason a site like TR exists...to accumulate opinions on various blends.

No, I understand that. But, well... because it's an opinion. What's one man's treasure is an another man's trash. Someone already expressed their love of aged Capstan. I didn't want to bias anyone as they may be steered away by an opinion and never try the blend. As mentioned, they may love it and they should give it a go to see for themselves. Some may take it as an affront to a favorite of theirs. I intended the post more as an expression of my "discovery" than anything. Someone said Jesse has covered this topic one thousand, no, one thousand and one times. But, I only visit here occasionally, and, therefore, not up to snuff on topics.

 

[TakeThisCobAndStuffIt]

I hear you Cranse, and I am not trying to wear you out, but I would submit that you may have some really good knowledge to share. It's really in how you share it. For example, I don't really care if you like a blend or not and I usually ignore that part of a review. However, if you shared that the blend got sweeter as it aged I would be interested to know this. Similarly, if you aged a tin of CVP and found that the topping had disappeared and the blend became flat I would also want to know that and decide if I should crack a tin sooner. Virginia No.1 bites the crap out of me, but I love the flavor. Even with age and drying it out it still bites the crap out of me. In a review I would highly recommend trying it because if it doesn't bite, it's fantastic. But for me, I can't smoke it.

 

[Terry Lennox]

I agree with the original post and much of what's been said here. To my taste (and this is purely subjective) I was never able to repeat the experience of cracking a fresh tin of Squadron Leader from any of the tins I have aged. In fact, for English and Balkan blends I fear the years are not kind to the Latakia. I still cellar these Balkans because, as Sablebrush said, I would rather have them aged than not have access to them at all.

Now, on the other hand, my tins of Best Brown Flake and Davidoff Flake Medallions and just about all the Virginia's and VaPers I have cellared are deeper, richer, and less sharp (more mellow) after aging. To me this is an improvement.

So it really depends. What do you smoke and what do you want out of the blend.

I don't smoke Burleys or Kentucky so I have no expertise there.

 

[Terry Lennox]

I just want to add one clarification to the above: for me the issue with aged Squadron Leader (and Balkans) is not the softening of the Latakia, which can be good. It's that the components had melded into one flavor. I could no longer pick out the Orientals or the Virginias. That dance and intermingling play between the highs and lows was gone, replaced by a uniformity. Still enjoyable but different. The bright power of the fresh new tin was gone.

 

[VDL_Piper]

For me Virginia dominant tobacco's improves mostly, English blends become more rounded but I don't cellar for betterment I cellar with the grave fear that it will soon be all gone. All it takes is a stroke of the pen and what you have is all you will ever have.

 

[kcghost]

Some age and improve where others do not. Aromatics are very suspect candidates for aging. Not saying you shouldn't cellar if you want to be sure you have some when the inevitable happens.

 

[sablebrush52]

Given what a huge success Prohibition was I just don’t see that ever happening.
Death by a thousand cuts and social marginalization is doing just fine.