Cellaring Tinned Tobacco

[SeniorAMG]

Is it more appropriate to leave tinned tobaccos sealed in their original packaging when putting them to cellar, or is it better to crack them open, to combine them in a larger jar?
Has anyone experienced the difference either way?
I'm organizing my 'cellar' and thought consolidating everting to same-size jars would be easier for storage... but don't want to compromise the quality if it's unnecessary.

I appreciate your input...and hope you're all well and healthy.
Aloha.
-aaron

 

[alaskanpiper]

If you use the forum search you will find numerous threads on this topic with varying opinions, but generally most people will tell you that jarring is the safe option, particularly with square tins.

 

[SeniorAMG]

If you use the forum search you will find numerous threads on this topic with varying opinions, but generally most people will tell you that jarring is the safe option, particularly with square tins.

I've come across quite a bit of information. Difficult to filter through it all.
Wondering if there's a difference in the quality of an aged, unopened tin versus the same tobacco untied and jarred equally?

Thanks, dude.

 

[anotherbob]

I leave them in the tin it's usually fine except for one thing which is it can get opened and that's bad. But you can check if they're sealed by try to open it without breaking the seal. If you can do it jar it.

 

[BROBS]

I've come across quite a bit of information. Difficult to filter through it all.
Wondering if there's a difference in the quality of an aged, unopened tin versus the same tobacco untied and jarred equally?

Thanks, dude.

There is much debate on this as well. The problem with opening them all is if in the future you want to sell or trade, it’s not as accepted or valued in a jar vs tin.

 

[SeniorAMG]

There is much debate on this as well. The problem with opening them all is if in the future you want to sell or trade, it’s not as accepted or valued in a jar vs tin.

Excellent point.
Just thought about gifts, too. Makes more sense to keep 'em tinned.
Thanks for that.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

Purchase some 7 mm bags, insert tins then heat seal. Now you have the best of both worlds. The reality is, unless you're planning to store the tins 10 years or more, storing in the tins has shown to be about 99% effective.

 

[Richmond B. Funkenhouser]

You pay extra for the tin, you should use it.

 

[SeniorAMG]

Purchase some 7 mm bags, insert tins then heart seal. Now you have the best of both worlds. The reality is, unless you're planning to store the tins 10 years or more, storing in the tins has shown to be about 99% effective.

Cellaring is new for me. Would just smoke and replace as needed. Finally entered a stage in my life where I can enjoy the hobby. Cheaper than wine, that's for sure. And no one in my family touches my stash. Couldn't say the same about the wine.

 

[judcole]

I label the tin with the purchase date and stash it. I have had the seal on one rectangular tin fail, out of I don't know how many hundreds of tins.

 

[pappymac]

In my opinion...

You don't need to jar the tobacco until after you open the tin and then it depends on how fast you're going to smoke the blend. If I open a 100g tin, I usually jar about half of it and keep the other half for daily smoking.

The exception to this are the jewelry box type 100g tins where the tin is not airtight and the tobacco is in a cellophane package. Those I jar immediately because the tobacco will dry out fast.

 

[BROBS]

I label the tin with the purchase date and stash it. I have had the seal on one rectangular tin fail, out of I don't know how many hundreds of tins.

unless it's Hansom flake..
in that case the failure rate is like 75% haha

 

[sablebrush52]

I've come across quite a bit of information. Difficult to filter through it all.
Wondering if there's a difference in the quality of an aged, unopened tin versus the same tobacco untied and jarred equally?

Thanks, dude.

Greg Pease was one of the foremost evangelists for the cellaring of tobaccos, starting in the 1980's. His subsequent career as one of the world's top blenders has given him a much greater understanding of tobaccos and how they age over the years. Greg's mantra has always been to keep the tobaccos in the tin, a position that has been accepted by the vast majority of people building cellars.

And then Greg changed his mind on this about a year ago. As he put in a letter addressed to Mike Glukler's Youtube channel, "too many disappointments" in his cellar. That is, too many tin failures.

What Greg now advocates is immediate jarring once the tin arrives, to start long term aging.

Square and rectangular tins aren't intended for long term aging. They weren't designed for that. Round screw down tins are better, as are canisters, but long term, as in decades, neither is 100% reliable.

If you want optimal tinning for long term aging, go with a cutter top. The problem is, no one has been tinning in cutter tops for decades. Durability has given way to convenience.

Will decanting the tobacco and putting it in a jar affect the aging process? Sure, though nobody can either quantitatively or qualitatively tell you in what way, so it doesn't really matter. Besides, different tins of the same blend from the same year stored in the same place, can have noticeable differences in flavor. So there isn't much point in getting that granular over it. In addition not all blends "improve" with age. Blends will change with age. Whether that change constitutes an improvement is up to the individual smoker to decide.

So why cellar? The only reason I do it is to improve the odds that I'll have future access to the blends I enjoy smoking. Blends have a way of unexpectedly going out of production. And in this cultural environment, access to blends is going to become increasingly inconvenient. Also, prices go up, tobacco taxes go up, and quality is not going up.

The potential "benefits" of aging are a very small part of my equation. I'm just hoping that aging doesn't make some of the blends I like fresh less appealing. I'm also accepting that some percentage of what's cellared with go south. I'm just trying to keep that percentage to a minimum.

 

[BROBS]

So why cellar? The only reason I do it is to improve the odds that I'll have future access to the blends I enjoy smoking. Blends have a way of unexpectedly going out of production. And in this cultural environment, access to blends is going to become increasingly inconvenient. Also, prices go up, tobacco taxes go up, and quality is not going up.

The potential "benefits" of aging are a very small part of my equation. I'm just hoping that aging doesn't make some of the blends I like fresh less appealing. I'm also accepting that some percentage of what's cellared with go south. I'm just trying to keep that percentage to a minimum.

absolutely.. I agree. Any aging for me is secondary to simply having access to the blend.
I fear a nearing ban on buying pipe tobacco online... also the possibility of the "disappearing blend".
My goal is to get enough in my cellar that I will not need to buy any at all, unless I run across a "treat" or something special.

 

[SeniorAMG]

So why cellar? The only reason I do it is to improve the odds that I'll have future access to the blends I enjoy smoking. Blends have a way of unexpectedly going out of production. And in this cultural environment, access to blends is going to become increasingly inconvenient. Also, prices go up, tobacco taxes go up, and quality is not going up.

The potential "benefits" of aging are a very small part of my equation. I'm just hoping that aging doesn't make some of the blends I like fresh less appealing. I'm also accepting that some percentage of what's cellared with go south. I'm just trying to keep that percentage to a minimum.

Sablebrush52... thank you for that. I tend to get focussed on the gnats ass... and your comment about not getting granular about it was spot on.

You too, BROBS. Appreciate the follow-up.

Like you, cellaring for the most part is to ensure I have plenty to smoke regardless of what may come. I also live on a small-ish island, with no real tobacco store (we have 'pipe' shops, but they are 420-driven and they only sell Good Stuff pound bags, Captain Black pouches, and Black and Tans.) With everything being shipped in, it is most economical to buy in bulk. Up until late last year, I was buying a few tins at a time. A mistake.
I really just wanted to ensure I was properly preserving my cache for years to come.

Mahlao plenty.

 

[SeniorAMG]

I meant Black & Milds.
Black and Tans was a Freudian slip.. and a more accurate depiction of where my mind usually is.

 

[BROBS]

I meant Black & Milds.
Black and Tans was a Freudian slip.. and a more accurate depiction of where my mind usually is.

SOUNDS GOOD TO ME LET'S GO THERE

 

[SeniorAMG]

I won't lie. It's 1030 and i just made a trip to my kegerator.

 

[judcole]

unless it's Hansom flake..
in that case the failure rate is like 75% haha

Not sure what you're getting at, here, sonny. I said I have had one rectangular tin seal fail. I did not extrapolate. Just my personal experience.

 

[BROBS]

Not sure what you're getting at, here, sonny. I said I have had one rectangular tin seal fail. I did not extrapolate. Just my personal experience.

just a joke because the Hansom flake tins sucked and most of them popped open. Sam Gawith even glued half the tin lids with hot glue in the corners.

you don't have to act like you invented the rectangular tin.