Can Tobacco Change For The Worse?

[steelarts]

Okay, this might sound like a daft question but is it possible for casing/topping to go off? The reason I ask is back in March I bought some SG Kendal Cream flake which I promptly jarred. I thought it tasted lovely back then. Today I wanted something different to smoke so I rubbed some out and from the outset it just didn’t taste right. Anyway, I persevered until halfway down those bowl I called it quits. It was bloody awful, just bitter and nasty. In fact it was like smoking old car tyres. It’s left my mouth tasting bitter and dry. It smells okay in the jar but I’m wondering what, if anything, could have changed to cause this?

 

[TakeThisCobAndStuffIt]

I wonder if it's not your pipe? I have not noticed much change in any tobacco in just 8-12 weeks in a jar.

 

[lukasstrifeson]

So many different factors could be in play here.

But from what you described, it sounds more likely to be a technique issue than something changing in the tobacco in a couple of months.

 

[BingBong]

Clean your pipe first. Try it unrubbed too, stuff bits of flake in tight (so long as you can still draw) and give it several charring lights until the engine runs.

 

[didimauw]

A quick warm water flush into the bowl through the stem can neutralize the pipes flavors. Also, humidity can change the flavors by a big margin.

 

[renfield]

I’ve never experienced a topping or casing going “bad” like you described. They can definitely fade, sometimes to the point of being almost undetectable.

Stranger things have happened, but, like others have said, it’s more likely something other than the tobaccco.

 

[ThermionicScott]

Mold?

 

[Chasing Embers]

just bitter and nasty. In fact it was like smoking old car tyres

Sounds like you got it too hot.

 

[sablebrush52]

Can tobacco go bad? Of course it can. But it usually takes a lot more time for a blend to go tits up. Did you smoke it in the same pipe in which you first smoked it? Did you smoke it in the same way. same moisture, same pack, same cadence? A lot of factors can influence how a tobacco tastes.

 

[beefeater33]

A quick warm water flush into the bowl through the stem can neutralize the pipes flavors. Also, humidity can change the flavors by a big margin.

It's okay to run water through our pipes?...........

 

[sardonicus87]

It's okay to run water through our pipes?...........

They're wood*, not sugar.

I don't personally do the water method, but others do and have no issues. It seems to be a contentious issue off-and-on.

*or clay, or meerschaum, or corncob, etc.

 

[yanoJL]

It's okay to run water through our pipes?...........

It is for me.
I read a post a few years ago where @cosmicfolklore recommended cleaning with water. So I did it. No problem. Now I do it every 15-20 bowls and I never have to worry about sour pipes.
I do allow plenty of drying time afterwards. At least 24 hours but sometimes longer as I have enough pipes to not need any particular pipe every day.
I've only done briar, but IIRC @Chasing Embers used water on a meerschaum and nothing catastrophic happened.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I've only done briar, but IIRC @Chasing Embers used water on a meerschaum and nothing catastrophic happened.

I have NEVER nor will i EVER use water on a pipe due to the war and mud slinging that incurred when that became a thing.

 

[Sigmund]

There are a few posts here and there where people have lost the finish on their pipe due to water. Ive tried it but I only do it to pipes I dont worry about and are really dirty. I recently did it to my travel pipe. It gets a bit neglected.

I bet the pipe is dirty or it was too hot....probably a dirty pipe but a dirty pipe would not dry out your mouth...heat would. Let us know.

 

[JOHN72]

I am in line with Sable. We have to test and discard. Trial and error. For example. I don't like crunchy or dry tobacco, without any slight point of humidity, I also prefer a gravity pack, I don't like a tight pack. Among other things that Sable has already mentioned. As for the deep and quick cleaning, I find 96º alcohol very useful, it melts all the oils and burnt slag inside the burner. Then there is the other world of young tobaccos, and aged or very aged tobaccos. With all that entails the degradation of these essential oils. And here I get lost, because most of my tobaccos, do not have a considerable age of age. The issue of washing with water does not convince me too much, maybe because here, in my city, the water has a high percentage of lime and also tastes like chlorine. This could determine to add to the burner, an unpleasant, strange taste, and ruin a good tobacco and a good pipe.

 

[simong]

Doubt it was the tobacco.
If it’s not a dirty pipe or smoking too fast & hot, it’s probably a ‘body chemistry’ thing. Also known as tongue gremlins.

 

[Jon C.P.G.]

Doubt it was the tobacco.
If it’s not a dirty pipe or smoking too fast & hot, it’s probably a ‘body chemistry’ thing. Also known as tongue gremlins.

Pesky tongue gremlins will get you every time, this is why I smoke 1792 flake 80% of the time

 

[Sig]

I agree with what others have said, most likely a pipe related issue.
But, sort of on topic........
Aging tobacco does not ALWAYS make it taste better.
Some blends lose a lot of their flair when aged multiple years.
And, it can also be subjective.
Some people love an aged tobacco, some do not like it as much as "fresh".
Your tobacco has not been sitting long enough to change much though.

 

[Jon C.P.G.]

I agree with what others have said, most likely a pipe related issue.
But, sort of on topic........
Aging tobacco does not ALWAYS make it taste better.
Some blends lose a lot of their flair when aged multiple years.
And, it can also be subjective.
Some people love an aged tobacco, some do not like it as much as "fresh".
Your tobacco has not been sitting long enough to change much though.

I've always been under the impression that it's mainly Virginia dominant blends that age well, burley definitely don't, all due to the sugar content in the leaf.

English blends with a lot of Latakia get more smooth and creamy and less slap you in the face bold also. I got an 8oz tin of some 11 year GL Pease Odyssey from a friend and it's different than any fresh stuff I've had. Not better, not worse, just different.

Some blends are better aged some are better fresh. I figure this is why the old codger burley blends were so popular, to my knowledge burley has a very low sugar content so aging it won't do anything but degrade nicotine.

 

[sardonicus87]

For what it's worth, G&H have said before that their blends are designed to be enjoyed fresh and not meant for aging. I have several of their tins unopened that I haven't gotten to yet, but Ennerdale didn't hold up after 2 or 3 months, or maybe 6 months, I don't remember (I had forgotten about it and came upon the open tin later, and I don't now remember how long it had been opened when I found it again).

I have noticed some aros definitely loose a lot of their luster at the 1-2 month mark, while others seem to not change much at all even 6 months later. People knock PG, but damn if it doesn't help that flavor last.

But it should be noted, I don't jar/seal my tobaccos. Once they're opened, they go in an air-tight food storage container with other open tins in the same genre, and I keep my tobacco in the tin it comes in, but despite being air tight, there's still air in there (not vacuum sealed). It's also why I typically get small tins (50 g/1.75 oz), and try not to have too many open at once. A small tin usually lasts me a month if I smoke one bowl per day out of it. I do keep them in a cabinet though (no sunlight), but it's also not a cool place (just room temperature).

But, even if you vacuum seal the tobacco after you pop the tin, you've already restarted some fermentation with that little bit of air it was exposed to, and it doesn't immediately stop once you seal it.