I Don't Like Too Dry

[hoipolloiglasgow]

I'm one of those people who does not like my tobacco too dry. It has to pass the 'pinch test', but I definitely am not one to preload a bowl at night for in the morning or let tobacco sit out for long periods of time. I like the Peterson/Dunhill and Gl Pease straight from the tin moisture level best. They have nailed it IMHO. I like almost every Russ Oullette recreation and blend, the way they taste, but I think they would be much improved with some more moisture. A good example would be Bengal Slices, White Knight, and Blackhouse. Bengal turns almost to powder when you try to rub it out. I love his blends, but if they were of Gl Pease/Dunhill caliber, they'd be much better smokes. That's my only gripe of Russ and similar blends. That's just my preference. What say you?

 

[Lumbridge]

Definitely prefer most blends on the dry side. Not crunchy, but drier than they are usually packaged. I prefer the taste and burn when they've had some time to air out.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Freshly bone dry.

 

[hoipolloiglasgow]

I know that some blenders may have them overly wet so they can stay good in the tin for a bit. Me personally, as soon as I open a tin, unless it's extremely wet like some of the Gawith stuff, I jar it without drying. It would take me too long smoking out of the tin that the tin would become too dry by the time I'd finish it. Maybe I'll try adding some moisture back to Bengal slices and see how it does. Russ Oullette blends tend to smoke hot and I think it has something to do with the moisture level. I do realize that a lot of people prefer their tobacco on the dry side.

 

[hoipolloiglasgow]

Definitely prefer most blends on the dry side. Not crunchy, but drier than they are usually packaged. I prefer the taste and burn when they've had some time to air out.

I usually prefer most blends after they have sat in a jar for a few weeks and have been opened and handled. I can deal with that.

 

[Lumbridge]

I usually prefer most blends after they have sat in a jar for a few weeks and have been opened and handled. I can deal with that.

They do tend to taste better a week or more after opening the tin, yeah. Kind of like how wine and spirits can taste better after some oxygen exposure. I smoke them out of the tin until they dry out to my preference, and then it goes in a jar.

 

[didimauw]

Freshly bone dry.

Exactly this. I don't like stale dry, but fresh and dry enough that it will crunch and even turn to powder if I wanted it to.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Some I like, crunch crunch. Some I like just a breath more than crunch.

 

[yanoJL]

I recall hearing Russ Oulette mention this on a podcast. His position was that customers should buy tobacco, not water. So I understand the sentiment. But with a little more moisture, as is the case with the blenders previously mentioned, the customer gets flexibility and choice; to dry a blend to suit individual preferences.

 

[RustiePyles CPG]

I used to dry everything out, I find now I'm starting to prefer the stuff I like fresh out of the tin with no more than 10-15 min of dry time.

 

[Servant King]

I have found that I have to dry everything at least a little bit. For me, Englishes seem to need the least amount of time, say, less than 15 mins. VAs and VaPers benefit from a little more. Aromatics need the most, which should come as no surprise. Within that genre, I don't smoke anything excessively goopy (CAO Moontrance is about my limit in that regard), but even so, I need to dry them all quite thoroughly. But it's still a sliding scale--Lane BCA needs much more time than Ashton Winding Road, for example. For the record, Sutiff Balkan Sobranie Orig. Mix Match is the only blend I'm able to smoke directly from the bag.

That's just me. As always, YMMMV. (Your Moistness Mileage May Vary)

Ain't acronyms fun?

 

[jpmcwjr]

Smoke 'em as you like 'em. All my tobaccos get some air time before loading, unless it's a new blend I can't wait to try. It still gets dried a bit, even if I have to use the microwave.

Nobody likes "too" dry nor "too" moist...

 

[anotherbob]

Freshly bone dry.

I am with Embers on this. Except for a handful of blends. One thing I really like about dry is just it smokes easily with little effort.

 

[Winnipeger]

Russ Oullette blends tend to smoke hot and I think it has something to do with the moisture level.

I'd say the opposite is true. Usually if a blend is too wet it's going to tend to smoke hotter, but cadence, and packing method, etc. etc. are going to have a lot to do with how a blend smokes. White Knight and Magnum Opus are all-time favourites of mine. I like the fact that they're fairly dry straight out of the tin. That being said, I can take something like Full Virginia Flake right out of the tin and if I thoroughly rub it out and pack it loosely enough it will burn just fine. I find it tastes better and burns cooler if I dry it out though.

A lot of us here on the forum talk about how we like our tobacco close to bone-dry, but there are many ways to skin a cat and your preferences are totally valid. I'm sure it's true that G.L. Pease blends (and others) are packed at the perfect moisture for smoking. I normally don't dry out GLP, or Dunhill/Peterson blends and they smoke great right out of the tin. I find Daughter's and Ryan, Cornell and Diehl, Hearth and Home, easy to deal with though. It's those GH&Co. ropes that need 24 hours in a food dehydrator to get them to burn. YMMV.

 

[bluegrassbrian]

Straight Virginias and/or any simple blend with nuanced flavors is best smoked dried - just a notch below bone dry, IMO.
Less moisture = less steam created by the ember = more flavor being available to the taste buds.

 

[warren]

That's just my preference. What say you?

It's your pipe and tobacco. No point in me commenting. Except I just did.

 

[Skippy B. Coyote]

For me it really depends on the type of tobacco. I've noticed that Virginias tend to be the most flavorful, least bitey, and coolest smoking when they're dried to the point of being almost crispy; but I find Burley blends and most aromatics provide the best flavor when smoked just a little moist. Gawith Hoggarth and Cornell & Diehl blends in particular are almost always ready to go straight out of the tin with no dry time needed, and drying them only reduces the flavor and makes the Burleys more abrasive on my throat.

As with anything your milage may vary, but the only blends I tend to dry at all are Virginias and anything with a high percentage of Virginia tobaccos in it like VaBurs, VaPers, or English blends. Burleys and aromatics are generally best enjoyed with a bit of moisture to them.

 

[bullet08]

Most of the time, the bone dry tobacco is mentioned for the benefit of the new pipe smokers. Then there are those that enjoy freshly bone dry tobacco. But that all depends on the individual and what blend they are smoking. That doesn't mean everyone has to smoke them dried till crisp. For me, VA and VA heavy blends seem to tolerate being dried as much as possible. Codger blends just out of pouch is wonderful. Latakia blends, dry to touch, but still trace of moisture. Everyone's different.

 

[didimauw]

The only blends I don't dry out before smoking are Daughters and Ryan, and Semois

 

[sablebrush52]

Different strokes for different folks. I smoke for flavor, so my choice for moisture content is based on experimentation. What provides me with the most flavor is what I choose to do.
Since I smoke mostly Virginias, that means just shy of bone dry. For Aros I’ll leave a little more moisture. English blends are generally good straight from the tin.
These are general guidelines and, depending on the blend can vary a little.
Russ tins at what he considers to be optimum moisture level for that blend to extract the best flavors.
Different smokers will get different results. They may respond differently to a particular level of moisture, or taste sensitivity. Not everyone has an equally sensitive palette. Not everyone knows how to optimize their smoking experiences.
Ultimately it comes down to personal preference, what works best for that individual.