Humidity Control

[unadoptedlamp]

I nearly always buy tins, but am stocking up on some bulk blends as well for long term storage. Has anyone ever tried using the Boveda humidifier packets for long term bulk storage? I'll likely use mason jars.
They've kept my choice Cubans at perfection for years, so I figured they're good enough for some pipe tabak. Curious to know if there is any difference in quality after a year or two with humidity control in bulk storage. Does it age better/worse/same?

 

[cortezattic]

Pease discusses the use of these packs here: http://pipesmagazine.com/blog/ask-g-l-pease/ask-g-l-pease-volume-41/
Pease also said, "I once researched the relationship of relative humidity to tobacco moisture content, and found that at 55-65% RH, many tobaccos will equilibrate very close to the 12-13% moisture content that we like for smoking."

 

[jzbdano]

If you jar it at the proper moisture a mason jar should hold it at that moisture for several years, maybe even decades.

 

[unadoptedlamp]

That's some good information, thanks. I guess I will stay away. With all the fear surrounding tobacco lately, I was looking into a "decades" scenario. Perhaps I'll just stick with tins. The sight of mould would be horrific in 15 years when all tobacco sales have dried up. I don't think I'm into dried blueberry leaves...

 

[cortezattic]

Personally, I have never used any moisture control device, and the tobacco stores very nicely by itself in a Mason jar.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Yes, to the above. Adding moisture when not needed is increasing the odds for problems. (Most tobaccos are packed and shipped at moisture levels that are above that which makes for great smoking).

 

[Chasing Embers]

I have blends in jars from the '90s that are just as perfect as when they were filled.

 

[whitebar]

I have blends in jars from the '90s that are just as perfect as when they were filled.

Me too. Jars are very effective storage vessels for tobacco.

 

[unkleyoda]

I don't use any moisture packs or humidification for jarred tobacco. I do however use humidification for open tins that I am currently smoking. I have a cigar humidor that I use. When I open a tin of tobacco, I store in there when I'm not using it.

 

[cigrmaster]

I smoke mostly tins and have somewhere around 20 open at the same time. I buy these plastic tubs at walmart and they come 4 to a package of 4 different sizes for around 6 bucks. I have had open tins in them for over 1.5 years and the tobacco stays humidified to the proper levels. In this pic you can see the opaque containers with the white tops. Easiest way I know how to keep open tins.

 

[unadoptedlamp]

Thanks for the tips everyone. I normally just kept a stock big enough for a few months, but am now getting on to the idea of insuring myself against disappearing blends.
I never got much out of aged tobacco, and I'll be a heretic here -saw it more as a really fucking clever marketing ploy (no offence to the blenders, it's pure genius).
I was in Prague and happened to come across a small tobacconist. I didn't see any Full Virginia Flake, so I asked on a moonshot. The guy climbed a ladder, dusted some stuff off, moved boxes around and came back with two 30 gram tins. Maybe they were 35? I hadn't seen them since, but I wish that size would come back for travel convenience. When I opened them, the paper was stained darker than an oiled lunch bag. The smoke was flavourful and great, but pretty much what I was accustomed to. And I think I have a pretty good sense of smell/taste.
I like the idea of plastic containers for open tins. I don't collect many cigars, but the ones I do are treated very, very carefully to maintain a moisture content I like and prevent horrors. It's refreshing to know that I'll not have to worry so much about the pipe tobacco... I don't need more work!

 

[oldgeezersmoker]

I am a big fan of the Boveda 62 humipaks for open tins, MacBarens pound bags, etc. I stick the zip locks that shops use for a couple of ounces in a Tupperware container with a large humipak. I am presently working on about 10 blends.
Everything else either stays in the tin or goes into a Mason Jar. Never used a Boveda in the latter scenario.

 

[mikestanley]

I recently opened a jar of 2004 FVF I put up in 2006 and a jar of 2010 Bob's Flake. The moisture was perfect in both. NO added moisture.
Mike S.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Many plastic containers and most tobacco shop small plastic bags are worthless for anything other than short term storage/usage.
With proper jarring, no need for moisture packs or any other such nonsense.

 

[weezell]

Personally, I have never used any moisture control device, and the tobacco stores very nicely by itself in a Mason jar.

Bingo! Nuff said...

 

[unadoptedlamp]

It's interesting how differently pipe tobacco and cigars behave with moisture. Or at least the perception.
For instance, I keep my cigars at 69% and find that outside of a very narrow range, I can generally expect my brand of cigars to not deliver the flavour I am accustomed to. I once left a box of cigars on my desk in Brazil and could not smoke them for nearly two weeks until I could get the humidity down. They were maybe around 75% or 80%, and that made them a complete waste to smoke, for me.
I think I'm more sensitive to it because while I don't smoke or buy a load of cigars, when I do, they are pretty expensive (for my taste) and I demand the best possible experience if I'm lighting up $30-$60 in one go.
Maybe I just pack my pipe differently, subconsciously even, if the moisture is too high or low. Maybe it's the reason for some of those truly exceptional bowls that I can't quite put my finger on for why they are so good.
I smoke a lot of GL Pease blends, which to my senses, seem a little more on the dry side compared to Sam Gawith or perhaps even Reiner's flake. And for some reason, I tend to get a more consistent satisfaction with GL Pease. I still smoke, and very much enjoy the other blends, but find them more finicky.
I think I'm going to run a small experiment with a week's supply of tobacco, and get different blends to the exact same moisture content. It won't change how I store tobacco long term, with all of the good advice about avoiding mould and not having to worry about it drying out.
I just can't understand why moisture content is absolutely essential in cigars for maximum flavour and getting subtle scents and tastes from a well made cigar, but more forgiving in a pipe. Maybe it's not...
Does anyone have a preferred moisture level in different types of tobacco (say flake/ribbon) that they've actually measured?

 

[warren]

I usually don't have a tin around long enough to dry out. A couple of the blends, 3Star Blue for one, needs to maintain a certain moistness. Those couple of blends get a button in the jar.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I never got much out of aged tobacco, and I'll be a heretic here

Not so. Some of us cellar to combat ever rising tobacco costs. Any blend improvement is just a perk. A lot of blends are perfect fresh.