How to Store Pipe Tobacco
- Thread starter AlabamaDan
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Best practices are to put everything open in a canning jar -- tinned, pouch, tub, bulk, whatever. That's high church cellaring. I suspect some unruly faction (ahem) leaves some blends in the tins or pouches, especially if they are in rotation and being used steadily. The success of that depends on your climate. Mylar bags and plastic snap tops are other methods, but the gold standard is the jars. In arid or seriously humid areas, better stick with the jars when possible.
I use these jars, no idea if it has advantages/disadvantages over other jars, its just what kind the wife bought when she wanted to serve Christmas dinner dessert in a different container & I said I need some jars for tobacco when you're finished with them
The rubber seal and clip lock seems to work ok
The rubber seal and clip lock seems to work ok
I've never had any luck with rubber seal bale top jars. A couple months tops is all I've gotten for keeping pipe tobacco moist. So, screw tops for me.
This is interesting to me. I wonder what compromises the glass to rubber seal. You would think that both would be an airtight seal. Hmmm
Bale top jars are what is readily available in Germany. I use them and when kept in the cellar they have kept some of my opened tobacco in good nick for a couple of years. The cellar remains a fairly constant temperature and isn't overly dry and it is nice and dark down there.
I will let someone more experienced with ageing chime in, but I would think the answer is yes. I have a number of 8oz tins, so I'm interested in more opinions on this.
I switch all mine out to silicone seals for this reason.
the silicone seals are terrible and will actually get ruined by the tobacco.
a rubber seal on a HIGH QUALITY Italian made bail top jar is all I would trust.
or a Quattro Staglioni screw top.
those or ball jars but I hate the loose disc tops.. garbage. I do use them but prefer the others.
I have never had tobacco dry out in a Bormioli Rocco bail top jar. over 4 years plus so far.. just as moist as when jarred.
a rubber seal on a HIGH QUALITY Italian made bail top jar is all I would trust.
or a Quattro Staglioni screw top.
those or ball jars but I hate the loose disc tops.. garbage. I do use them but prefer the others.
I have never had tobacco dry out in a Bormioli Rocco bail top jar. over 4 years plus so far.. just as moist as when jarred.
I will add that these rubber seal bale-top jars are made for canning and preserving.. so the seal shouldn't be an issue as long as it's installed correctly and you don't get a bunch of tobacco on the seal (same with ball jars).
if your bale-top jar doesn't state that it's for canning/preserving it is not an acceptable jar IMO.
if your bale-top jar doesn't state that it's for canning/preserving it is not an acceptable jar IMO.
I have some experience in canning foods. One piece of advice I can give you is to never by off-brand or cheap quality jars or lids, if you decide to go with the two-piece canning jar lids. Ball or Kerr products are safe and readily available options. The seal is maintained by the gasket on the underside of the disc. The ring keeps the lid in place. Cheap jars and lids may not align properly and fail to seal.
What bothers me about using these jars for tobacco storage is the lack of heat. Canned food is sealed when the pressure + heat pulls the lid in for a tight seal. This is why you may see canned food stored without the ring around it. You don't really need it once the lid is "sucked down" on to the jar.
There is some seal with a "cold" lid placed on a jar but not enough to make me 100% comfortable. It's not how these lids are designed to work. Ball refers to them as "two-piece vacuum packs." The discs cannot be reused for this reason - they lose their ability to seal after being vacuum sealed the first time.
I'm sure I'll get some blowback on this, given that it's the common way people store their tobacco.
The Ball company does state that you can store dried fruit and jerky in canning jars like this, but it also states that you can use plastic storage containers and vacuum packages. (Ball Blue Book, 37th ed.) This can apply to tobacco as a dry good, in my opinion. Admittedly, I use these jars now because we have lots around. But I think I'm going to move towards the bail top jars. As @BROBS stated, all bail jars are not created equal. Not all are for food storage.
Edit: Bail jars are also commonly used for storing pickles and other fermented foods.
What bothers me about using these jars for tobacco storage is the lack of heat. Canned food is sealed when the pressure + heat pulls the lid in for a tight seal. This is why you may see canned food stored without the ring around it. You don't really need it once the lid is "sucked down" on to the jar.
There is some seal with a "cold" lid placed on a jar but not enough to make me 100% comfortable. It's not how these lids are designed to work. Ball refers to them as "two-piece vacuum packs." The discs cannot be reused for this reason - they lose their ability to seal after being vacuum sealed the first time.
I'm sure I'll get some blowback on this, given that it's the common way people store their tobacco.
The Ball company does state that you can store dried fruit and jerky in canning jars like this, but it also states that you can use plastic storage containers and vacuum packages. (Ball Blue Book, 37th ed.) This can apply to tobacco as a dry good, in my opinion. Admittedly, I use these jars now because we have lots around. But I think I'm going to move towards the bail top jars. As @BROBS stated, all bail jars are not created equal. Not all are for food storage.
Edit: Bail jars are also commonly used for storing pickles and other fermented foods.
over time.. the bail top jars suction down (not sure if from fermentation or what) .. so much so that I often need to use my thumb to "pop" them open like a new tin.
We have dozens of opened tins at my work, some as old as 10 years, having sat on a shelf unsealed for years. Very few of them are too dry to smoke. Almost all of my opened tins have been opened for 5+ years and they're all perfectly fine. Don't sweat it too much is what I say.
And not a single mention of boveda packs. Facebook has been awful lately recommending this for pipe tobacco. Thank you for being the best advice on the internet. Lol.
Just to clarify my previous comment and before anyone gets upset, I'm not stating that using the two-piece lids is wrong or ineffective. It's just that canning lids may not be giving the intended seal (at least initially).
I just believe that other options - like quality bail jars - that are available for dry food storage are also effective for tobacco.
I just believe that other options - like quality bail jars - that are available for dry food storage are also effective for tobacco.
people think too much about shit sometimes, man.
but what else can you do with your mind besides think as you wander the forest in your wizard robe with knobby walking cane and cobbit pipe... while dreaming of JRR Tolkien?
Okay then A serious question. I am not known for them. Say one got over enthusiastic and ended up with a foot of twist. Now I could just grind it up and store it, but where is the fun in that? How the hell do you cellar a twist? Deb says dip it in shellac cuz it probably wouldn't taste or smell any worse when smoking it, but she was kidding. I think.
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