Aging Tobacco

[pipebuddy]

So you guys are saying that the C & D tins are as prone to leaks than the Dunhill type tins?

 

[cosmicfolklore]

So you guys are saying that the C & D tins are as prone to leaks than the Dunhill type tins?

I only take issue with the "as prone to leaks" part. You can have seal failure on any tin, given the human component of machinery and such. But, I don't think any tin leaks more or less than others, even the square tin myth that keeps getting purported on here. Sure, some may leak, but it's not like a flaw in the industry, just a tiny imperfection in the industry.
BTW, Harris, aged Solani Mango Flakes are the bomb. Unless you want a big dose of aromatic-ness, aging brings forward the Virginia more. But, I am pretty sure it's a red Virginia, like the Vanilla Cream Flakes use.

 

[sablebrush52]

So you guys are saying that the C & D tins are as prone to leaks than the Dunhill type tins?

With the exception of cutter top tins, which went out of use in the 1970's, all tins are a hit or miss proposition for long term storage. The worst are the square or rectangular tins. Round tins are better. The C&D type tins can hold up, but it can vary with how the tin was made.
As an example, I opened two tins of Haddo's Delight, one from August 2001, the other from Jam 2002. The 2001 tin, which had a gold colored surface, was fine. The 2002 tin, which had a silver colored surface was dried out, stale. and a corpse. The interior of the 2002 tin had completely corroded inside, under the label, while the 2001 tin was perfect. While the tins looked identical on the outside, and in both cases looked perfectly fine with no corrosion showing on the outside, they were clearly of different manufacture, and were complete opposites in terms of maintaining a seal.
If you don't think your tins are leaking, try putting them in a sealed tupperware container for a couple of months, or less, then pop the top and take a sniff. Assuming you have a sense of smell, you'll smell tobacco, even though all of the tins are unopened.
Keep in mind that these tins weren't designed with the intention that they would need to hold up for decades. Long term cellaring is a recent phenomenon. But you can be reasonably confident for a few years before some tins start to fail, while other continue to hold up for a longer time.
Finally, if you can't provide a cool, dark, dry place to store your stash, that's your problem, because that's your part of the long term storage equation.

 

[pipebuddy]

@Cosmic & Sable: thanks for the infos, guys. Well appreciated.

 

[hawkeyeted]

I know this goes against conventional wisdom, but in my experience, cased aromatics age just fine. The casing mellows with the tobacco naturally. It's "topped" aro's that tend to sour or lose flavoring.
"Topping" is flavoring that is sprayed on AFTER pressing, and often contains glycol. Glycol evaporates shortly after application, leaving behind a "top-note." It's the residual glycol that tends to "fester" during aging, and ruins the leaf over time.
Casing, however, is applied similar to the Cavendish process, and is done generally to Burley or Virginia. The casing freely exchanges with the tobaccos natural sugars and mellows over time. An example: Dan Tobacco "Sweet Vanilla Honeydew". Syrupy and cloying when it's first opened, and when you can keep it lit, it tends to burn hot and bites like the dickens. However, age it for a few years and the whole blend mellows. The Virginia's mellow out and burn much cooler, taste much sweeter, and the vanilla casing creates an amazing supporting role of a toasted marshmallow. I've had similar luck with Blue Note and Peterson's Sunset Breeze.
I make it a point to find aro's that people complain about being too wet, syrupy, hot, what have you, and let them age for a few years. I haven't been disappointed yet in the outcome.

 

[cigrmaster]

hawkeye, great first post, thanks for the info.

 

[jitterbugdude]

Glycol evaporates shortly after application

Actually, no it doesn't. Glycol, specifically propylene glycol is very stable. It has a very low vapor pressure and a high boiling point. It stays around forever.

 

[fitzy]

There are some tobacco's like PS Luxury Bullseye Flake that I wasn't too fond of fresh but with a few years of aging in it was great.
Also latakia blends to tone down their smokeyness over time.

 

[mso489]

My experience is that tobaccos improve with aging. I've had only a few where the flavor diminished, where the Lat faded to nothing and had to be bolstered by something else. But many Lat blends seem to become more nuanced and complex. Likewise, burley is known for keeping well, not so much for blooming with age like Virginias, but again, most burley blends to me seem to get more joined with other leaf in a blend and improve. Going out on a far limb, I'll also say that many aromatics become more joined and pleasing in their flavor with other components, the tobacco comes forward and the flavoring works better in its supporting role. Even if tobacco dries out quite a bit, as long as it doesn't dry to dust, time helps it out. Not every blend, not every batch, will improve, but mostly the trend is good.

 

[whiteburleydude]

Hawkeye you should read the link to GL Pease interview above. According to him, it's the casing that contains PG, not the topping. The casing is left to evaporate till the proper (or improper to some) moisture level is archived, then the final top note is added to the finish product. Most of the heavy flavor and moisture in an American Aero is from the heavy casing that contains the syrup and the sugars etc.

 

[mackeson]

In my experience, age always helps harshness to some degree. There are a few tobaccos that I prefer fresh though. Black Mallory and GLP Westminster are a couple I prefer fresh, but most are a little better for me with at least 8 months age if not a couple years.

 

[darthpipe]

Do you open the tins to age, or keep them sealed?

 

[cortezattic]

I keep the tobacco in the sealed tin. I think most folks do too. This keeps the anaerobic process going. Once the tin is opened the aging process takes off in a different direction -- presumably re-starting aerobic activity.

 

[archerdarkpint]

Hawkeyeted,
Fully with you on the "Sweet Vanilla Honeydew" from Dan Tobacco.
I purchased two large bags, maybe ten-twelve years ago. On first smoke, burned hot as described and overly sweet. I stored them in a large Tupperware like container and through the magic of time, it's become a VA forward lightly aromatic smoke. The leaf aged wonderfully.
Aging transitioned the once bright in color leaf to something that's as dark as chewing tobacco. And the taste/flavoring over time, while slightly redolent (think macaroons), has transformed into a subtle undertone, complemented by the natural flavor of the Virginia leaf.

 

[mso489]

Iwan Ries Three Star Blue tempted me, so I bought a pouch. This was about four years ago. It just seemed quite simplistic and harsh, so it sat around for a year or more, not even jarred. On a whim, I tried it again and it was in the rotation immediately. The various tobaccos and the flavoring came together nicely, so I eventually bought a tub for aging. This has happened with several blends. The lesson to me is, if you don't like a blend, jar it and give it a year or two and try again. It could be quite wonderful, either because age improves it, or because your tastes develop, or both.