Drying out a Fresh Tin: Your Method?

[turbomunkey]

Ive been experiencing tongue bite like most newbs, despite really sipping the smoke and doing so slowly. I have read that another factor can be moisture of the tobacco. I am curious, do you dry your tobacco one bowl at a time, or do you air out a whole tin?

Also, what is your time frame for your drying method?

 

[Chasing Embers]

I've never really found a need to dry tinned tobacco. What are you smoking that's burning you?

 

[turbomunkey]

I've never really found a need to dry tinned tobacco. What are you smoking that's burning you?

Peter Stoke Navy Flake

 

[LeafErikson]

Peter Stoke Navy Flake

IMO that stuff can be rather harsh if it’s not aged. What I do is rub it out vigorously, let it sit for 10-15 minutes, and then pack the pipe. Remember to pack that one gently because it’s one of those flakes that really expands as you smoke it.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Peter Stoke Navy Flake

I'd let it dry a couple of hours. Do you have a similar reaction to other Virginias or Perique blends?

 

[olkofri]

I dry only the amount I need to (roughly) fill a pipe with. The whole point of mason jars is that the tobacco DOESN'T dry out at all. I've tobacco I purchased 7 years ago that's still moist in its mason jar.

 

[VDL_Piper]

I dry my tobacco in my pipes, generally ends up like fine white ash............

 

[turbomunkey]

IMO that stuff can be rather harsh if it’s not aged. What I do is rub it out vigorously, let it sit for 10-15 minutes, and then pack the pipe. Remember to pack that one gently because it’s one of those flakes that really expands as you smoke it.

These are all of the nuances I dont know. I didnt rub the tobacco out terribly well. I also smoked it immediately after packing. I will try that next time. I am going to experiment with letting the tobacco rest a bit before packing. Thank you.

 

[turbomunkey]

I'd let it dry a couple of hours. Do you have a similar reaction to other Virginias or Perique blends?

Thus far I have smoked morning pipe, night cap, 965, autumn evening, and the navy flake of course. The 965 was an incredible experience compared to the others. Ill have to get more pipe time to really give you feedback on how other tobaccos work for me. I smoked last night for the first time in maybe 3-4 weeks. Work and such....

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I dry the whole tin or jar, once I've popped the seal, aging has stopped anyways. And, to me, it is a total waste of time doing it bowl by bowl. I'm in the game to smoke, not play with the tobacco.

I dry mine one of several ways. If it is winter and very dry, I will leave a jar of tin open, maybe not even ever putting the lid or top back on. And, sometimes I use a coffee mug warmer to push off the moisture, leaving the jar or tin on it overnight sometimes. At that point, I don't worry about the lid or top unless it is so humid that I don't want to let ambient moisture to be reabsorbed.

Something like one of these. They are cheap on Amazon.

 

[Chasing Embers]

The 965 was an incredible experience compared to the others.

Latakia blends tend to be a lot more forgiving.

 

[Simmerdown☕️]

If it’s a 2oz tin, I open it and pull from the tin until it’s gone. If it’s a bigger tin, 4oz or larger, I put 2oz in a small Ball jar & put up the rest.
When I prepare for a smoke I mostly rub out my flakes and dry them in my leather tobacco tray for about 15min- 1/2 hrs time. That usually takes care of most moisture concerns pre-packing.
Pack the pipe lightly so it has a bit of cushion as you press down. If there is no soft cushion when pressing down then it’s often packed too tight and will often not allow moisture to disperse properly. Tamping every 10 minutes or so has helped me limit moisture and proper air flow.
With loose cut or ready rubbed blends like Haunted Bookshop, I don’t give them much drying time at all before loading the bowl. Hope this helps. ️

 

[bluegrassbrian]

You must remember, tobacco left out can only get as dry as the air that surrounds it.
If the weather has been humid/rainy - it ain't getting any drier. Sometimes it will actually become more moist.

All of my pipes and tobaccos are stored in my partially finished basement. It's humidity follows closely the relative humidity of the days weather.

When it's dry out, I'll spread the contents of a tin out on a small try so there is little overlap. Sometimes I'll place the tray in an open window sill. Usually takes a couple hours when conditions are right.

If it's not super dry but not super humid either, I've had good luck just letting it sit on the tray uncovered, over night.

In general I like my tobaccos to be just shy of crispy. Not mummified, but unmistakably dry to the touch.

 

[Sacred_summit]

Are there different quality mason jars?
I bought all of my mason jars from the dollar store. From what I can tell, they are identical to mason jars 5x the price. They seem to seal well etc. However, after storing tobacco for 1-2 months in one it gets pretty damn dry. I do open and close said mason jar to take out my tobacco whenever I want to smoke some. Could that be the only reason the tobacco is drying out so quickly? Or are my mason jars not truly air tight? Is there a way to tell?

 

[captpat]

I'll dry an entire tin by leaving the lid off for a few days up to a week. It depends on the starting moisture and the type of cut, I check periodically an restore the lid once the desired level of dryness is achieved. If I'm impatient a few seconds in the microwave does the trick.

 

[krizzose]

I oftentimes dry an entire tin when I open it. I just leave it spread out on a plate. If it’s flake I’ll lean the individual flakes on some silverware to get airflow on all sides. 40 minutes to an hour will get most blends to where I like it. If it’s Samuel Gawith, more like a week.