Drying Tobacco

[andrew369]

I was having a smoke today while reading through the site and noticed a lot of people mentioning leaving tobacco out to dry before smoking it, especially aromatics which I am currently smoking exclusively. Was wondering if there is any way to gauge if this is necessary as all my tobacco feels absolutely dry to the touch, would almost guess it is too dry from the broken up twig/leaf feel. So in short should I only leave it to dry if I can feel any trace of moisture?

 

[ohin3]

Try the pinch test. Pinch a wad of tobacco between your thumb, index and middle finger. Pinch hard. If, after you let go of the pinch, the tobacco stays in a pinched clump it is too wet. If it falls apart it is A-Ok for smoking.

 

[andrew369]

Thanks guys that sounds like a great test, will try it out next smoke .

 

[slackerdiver]

This "pinch test" sounds brilliantly simple! I'm in...

 

[redbeard]

Pinch test never fails, I have some aero that I put in a jar and left the lid just sitting on top not sealed shut to help out with dry time. The other night I set out a bowl and went the next day and it was still so moist!

 

[oklansas]

Here is a bit of a follow up,
How can you tell with flake?

 

[oklansas]

Ah,
That's logical. I've only cubed flake so far, think the fold and stuff in a bit advanced for me. I launched into flake with McB navy and it has been pretty forgiving so far.
Thanks for the info!

 

[johnbarclay]

Yes i read it to somewhere else to make tobacco dry first for a while and then smoke for a better taste. I didnt try it yet.

 

[tokerpipes]

I like mine almost crunchy. Some tobacco takes longer than others. And it also depends on the casing like Altadas may take longer than most.

 

[bigvan]

The conventional wisdom is that drier tobacco burns easier but loses flavor. Personally I've never had the need to dry any tobacco I've smoked, but relights don't bother me.

 

[tonguebitepipecleaner]

I've been drying out my bowls *snigger* more and more as I've been smoking my first aromatic blend (De-Luxe), then I resolved to leave the tobacco out on a desk, all spread out to dry until it felt like my first English blend. Took damn near all day but the resultant bowl burned ten times better and less tongue bite. At the end of the day I think of tobacco like I think of tea, they're DRIED leaves. Smoke em dry! Also this video I made kind of illustrates how different leaves burn by default and I found that black cavendish wants to smolder a lot more than the paler tan coloured leaves which burst into flames. Video!

 

[buster]

I some times pack a bowl before I go to bed. Then smoke it in the morning.
I keep a leather pouch with enough 1Q in it for a week or more. The pouch is not air tight and dries out slowly. It is almost always the perfectly dry.

 

[metalheadycigarguy]

The only tobacco I've had any real issues with is Mississippi River. I just leave it out over night on a plate to dry or pack the bowl in advance and leave it out over night. Both ways work pretty good.

 

[numbersix]

The conventional wisdom is that drier tobacco burns easier but loses flavor. Personally I've never had the need to dry any tobacco I've smoked, but relights don't bother me.

I seem to fall in this camp. Even my aros (which are good quality and not overly goopy) often do fine with minimal drying. I find tobacco that's too dry will burn extra hot, so I'd rather it too moist than too dry.
I'd say on average, I dry my tobacco for only 15-30 mins, both aros and no-aros.

 

[judcole]

The only thing I really worry about drying are SG flakes. ::

 

[ffmurray]

+1 The only thing I really worry about drying are SG flakes

They come so wet, I feel bad paying for all that water, but they are good