Drying Before Smoking

[jpmcwjr]

Just wondering what everyone’s routine is before smoking their tobacco. I’ve heard of drying 5 to 10 minutes, even on a paper towel. I’ve heard of people drying for 30 minutes to a hour even. I know some tin tobacco can be pretty moist but, what if you bought tobacco out of a jar at a brick and mortar?

I don't go by a set time. I go by feel. Since most of what I smoke are Virginias and their variants I look for the tobacco to be just shy of bone dry. For me that means that the tobacco feels dry to the touch when squeezed, no cool sense of moisture against my skin. Still pliant if a little crispy at the ends, but not crumbly dry. That's the level of moisture that brings out the most flavors in a blend. Getting to that state varies by manufacturer, from 45 minutes to 4 to 5 hours. With some aros I'll allow the tiniest bit more moisture for the sauce, more of a reduction than a thin soup. "English" blends and their variants are far more forgiving, but even with "English" blends limited moisture improves their flavors for me. YMMV.

Yes, mileage is all over the place! Depends on the cut, initial moisture level, and conditions in your drying spot and of course, your own preferences. In addition to feel, I use a small hygrometer.

 

[WVOldFart]

If I know what I want to smoke the next day, I put some out to dry overnight. I like the tobacco mostly dry anyway. If I forget or choose something else to smoke, I will lay some out to dry for a few minutes while I do something else then go back and pack and smoke.

 

[Grangerous]

When I open a tub of Granger it’s ready to go and as I smoke through that tub the top layer of tobacco is always a bit dryer than what lay just beneath. No thought to drying.

Pegasus from C&D comes rather dry. I never bother with it either.

I don’t smoke wet aromatics. If I did I suppose drying my tobacco would become a thing.

 

[bullet08]

If tobacco needs to be dried, it should be dried. We have this sensory appendages called fingers. You can feel the moisture level that works best for you.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Maybe you can tell, but if it's got humectant in it, to me it'll feel wetter than it is.

 

[mso489]

I often pack a pipe the night before I smoke it, and I will leave a bowl or two of a home mix in a crockery bowl ... I won't even say how long, but days. Usually, dryness is a friend, for a good even burn and flavor.

 

[solideogloria86]

I don't go by a set time. I go by feel. Since most of what I smoke are Virginias and their variants I look for the tobacco to be just shy of bone dry. For me that means that the tobacco feels dry to the touch when squeezed, no cool sense of moisture against my skin. Still pliant if a little crispy at the ends, but not crumbly dry. That's the level of moisture that brings out the most flavors in a blend. Getting to that state varies by manufacturer, from 45 minutes to 4 to 5 hours. With some aros I'll allow the tiniest bit more moisture for the sauce, more of a reduction than a thin soup. "English" blends and their variants are far more forgiving, but even with "English" blends limited moisture improves their flavors for me. YMMV.

This is exactly it for me.

 

[scout19d3]

I often pack a pipe the night before I smoke it, and I will leave a bowl or two of a home mix in a crockery bowl ... I won't even say how long, but days. Usually, dryness is a friend, for a good even burn and flavor.

This

 

[PipeIT]

@Laurent it’s all just personal preferences, you have to experiment to find what suits your needs, but of course to a certain level, we don’t really want to smoke tabac that has to much moisture.

The worst that happens is bite, I would assume, might be considered the biggest reason for drying, to have a nice cool comfortable smoke.

Most seem to go by giving a clump a pinch, either having a very slight moisture or barely any when squeezing it, or going bone dry many like to do also.

Just play and you’ll get it!

Happy Drying!

 

[HawkeyeLinus]

I am banned from using the microwave.

I am sometimes impatient which has translated to a couple of pipe experiences that weren’t ideal. Just a little too anxious to enjoy a different pipe or new tobacco.

I’m reminded of Richard Pryor - “Foreplay? I’m only good for one, maybe two plays!”

 

[btp79]

I've got a 2 yr old and 5yr old at home so the wife is a HUGE fan of me leaving tobacco out to dry! On top of that, the humidity has been hovering between 70 and 90% so I don't know man, I just don't know lol.

 

[jpmcwjr]

How 'bout the top of your refrigerator? Or hot water tank?

Good luck; you need some!

 

[GothPiper]

As others have said, blends vary greatly in their need for drying. However, I have noticed an inverse relation to drying and flavor.

When I smoke a blend slightly more moist, the flavor comes through a bit stronger (but is more difficult to keep lit). Whereas when I dry longer, the flavor is somewhat more muted (but stays lit much easier). I'm not talking about a massive difference in flavor, but many of those subtleties that folks speak about in reviews are lost to me when I dry thoroughly, but are present when I smoke more moist.

 

[Searock Fan]

Just wondering what everyone’s routine is before smoking their tobacco. I’ve heard of drying 5 to 10 minutes, even on a paper towel. I’ve heard of people drying for 30 minutes to a hour even. I know some tin tobacco can be pretty moist but, what if you bought tobacco out of a jar at a brick and mortar?

I used to know a guy who took his new pipe tobacco, spread it out on newspapers on the kitchen table and let it sit for 2 or 3 days until it was bone dry. Of course he was also on medications for mental problems, so maybe this isn't such a good example to follow.

 

[dunnyboy]

How much of the starting moisture is driven off by the intense heat of the ember? I would have thought that the unburnt tobacco would be pretty much dried out once the pipe is staying lit. Obviously, that would happen sooner with drier tobacco but should happen fairly quickly even with moister tobacco, unless it's really sopping.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Interesting point, but I think the drying effect of the heat is offset and at times, overcome, by the steam created in combustion. That is why, I think, that a lot of folks have damp dottle. Moist mixture. Turgid tobacco.

 

[Searock Fan]

The pipe and stem may have too small a diameter draft hole. Bore it out a little and it can help.

 

[Wildlands]

My dry time is based purely on how the tobacco I’m smoking at the time feels to me. There is no hard and fast rule for this in my opinion, and also depends on your personal moisture preferences.

 

[Sweet Home Alabama]

I used to know a guy who took his new pipe tobacco, spread it out on newspapers on the kitchen table and let it sit for 2 or 3 days until it was bone dry. Of course he was also on medications for mental problems, so maybe this isn't such a good example to follow.

Might have been caused by ink from newsprint poisoning.

 

[dunnyboy]

Interesting point, but I think the drying effect of the heat is offset and at times, overcome, by the steam created in combustion. That is why, I think, that a lot of folks have damp dottle. Moist mixture. Turgid tobacco.

I assumed the H2O produced by combustion would be a constant in the equation, so to speak. I do know empirically that drying tobacco to the "right moisture" seems to produce better-tasting smoke—maybe for the same reason you dry the surface of meat before searing. It speeds up the maillard reaction (browning), which is where the rich caramel and umami flavor is. Fun to think about but, of course, finding the ideal moisture for any given blend is more an art than a science.