Idea for a Weird Tobacco Blend

[captainsousie]

I have some odds and ends of unlabeled tobacco lying around so I decided to throw them together to see if they might taste good or like poo. While I was doing this I wondered what would happen if I added some rum to the mixture and let it age a bit. Then it hit me. I have some bags of hops lying around too waiting to be used. I could either add whole flower hops (in a teabag so they don't get too mixed in) to the mix or infuse some vodka with hops and put some of that in instead of rum.

What do you all think? Is it a good idea for an experiment or a colossally stupid idea? Has it been done before? I'm seriously thinking of trying one of the above and seeing what happens.

 

[tjameson]

Weird because I just saw the Hopz cigar made by Ted's Cigars in the Pipes and Cigars catalog. What the Hell you never know you may stumble onto something amazing. Go for it.

 

[photoman13]

I think I got what you putting down! Sounds like an experiment in the making!

 

[captainsousie]

I might start with a split batch with whole flower hops in one and hop extract vodka in another. We'll see how it goes. How long would you leave it in the jar to "marry" the flavors? I was thinking a couple of months.

 

[photoman13]

I wish I could answer that for you but I don't have any experience aging or blending tobaccos. I would think that a couple of months would be enough though. Maybe you should do some with different aging times as well.

 

[tjameson]

Um before Captain Bob jumps in I will say this..."take notes on everything."

 

[captainsousie]

That is a great suggestion. As a homebrewer, I always take notes. I might have to do this experiment with only one type of tobacco as my little "odds-and-ends blend" will be impossible to replicate.

 

[tjameson]

Also a great suggestion to yourself...I would start with maybe a plain black Cavendish although that could be boring and just another aromatic tobacco. I think a nice dark VA base would be good maybe something with a slightly smokey sweet taste would go well with the hops.

 

[photoman13]

Man I am so impressed that there are so many home brewers. Some talented people in this world of ours. What do you brew?

 

[fshu2]

ya know what you make it and i will sacrifice and give a try for you. but in all honesty it sounds like a good idea to me.

 

[hawk60ce]

Do it!

 

[papipeguy]

Beer Blend? Why not? Go for it. As far as how long it will take to infuse the blend all I can say is that I have a cigar infuser that has a plastic disk with a sponge in it. The idea is to soak the sponge with your choice of libation, put the disk in the cylander( a round plastic container)insert the cigars and wait 2 weeks. It works reasonable well. With pipe tobacco I'd say at least that long but I don't think it'll take months as tobacco is pretty absobant.

Good luck and keep us posted.

 

[papipeguy]

Sorry, just had another thought. You could also make a concoction using distilled water and spray it on the tobacco. That should cut the infusion time substantially.

 

[sparroa]

I'm not going to lie to you - it doesn't sound like this will work...
Hops get nasty when they are exposed to air for any length of time. They lose their aromatics and soon turn yellow and take on a cheesy smell. This process will probably begin as soon as you break the sealed package.
The hops/vodka infusion will probably add an unpalatable bitterness and a vegetal flavour as opposed to the pleasant aromatics that you are expecting, but I can't say for sure.
I guess you'll have to try it to find out!

 

[mlyvers]

try bourbon.... let the tobac dry out.... then lightly spray the bourbon onto the tobac.... turn the tobac frequently...... it works... good luck to you sir.
mike.

 

[pipeinhand]

I see 2 problems but, I say go for it.
1. You don't know what the baccy is to start with so you will not be able to duplicate it.
2. Flavor is a strange bug, it will work fine on some baccy and just turn to sh!? on others.
Try this: take a little of each bag and try a flovoring on each to see if it will funk the taste/smell. Then take some more and do a big blend of all, then do the same with the flavoring. Last, sort out smell/type pairings (since you don't know what the baccy is) and do the same with the flavoring.
Just remember, what ever you get, you may never get again because of the unknown blends of baccy, AND take notes, maybe you can 'get there' but putting together what you 'think' they may be.
Oh and +1 simenon on the Hops, I tried a Guinness blend once, after the vomiting stopped, I buried it in the yard. Nothing grows there now.
My 2P

 

[captainsousie]

I'm not going to lie to you - it doesn't sound like this will work...

Honestly, that's what I'm afraid of. I would hate to create a cheese flavored tobacco (hops can get a "cheesy" or cheese-like smell when stored improperly) instead of hoppy goodness. I would also hate to have a tobacco that tasted like burning grass (not that kine of "grass"). I even thought about using a hop oil in some way but I'm not sure how that would work. I guess I'll just have to acquire some blending tobacco and start experimenting. As for the other blend, I think I'll just try and smoke it after a bit and see what I made. Thanks for the input as it's always nice to hear other people's thoughts. Plus, it's always good to get thoughts from a respected blender like pipeinhand. I'll update with what I decide to do.

 

[sparroa]

The thing about hops is that the only way you can maintain those pleasant aromatics is to keep them sealed and to refrigerate/freeze them. So your experiment would eliminate those two conditions.
Most hop extracts/oils I know are for adding bitterness to a beer. I don't know of (m)any that are for the aromatics because that is something that can't be easily processed due to their volatility. Again, application would be a problem, because even misting the concoction would result in an uneven distribution of the solution. That would be a big deal if you are talking about a potent and concentrated liquid.
Then you are faced with the foibles that adding moisture to a tobacco brings, namely mold. Hops have antibacterial properties but I don't think they can contend with mold...
By adding the dry hops to a tea bag, they will flake to dust somewhat as they dry and you are going to end up with a nice bit of hops plant matter in your tobacco jar even if the mesh is very fine. Hops is a relative to cannabis but I have heard from experimental folk that it is not as pleasant to smoke and has none of the psychoactive properties! :lol:
Lastly, I brought up the idea of immersing spices such as cloves/star anise into tobacco not long ago.
The general consensus was that there wouldn't be much of a flavour impact from that approach, even if you "steeped" them for months. The spices I mentioned are very hardy and their smells/flavours generally last for quite a long time. Hops on the other hand will fade EXTREMELY quickly and it won't take long for them to take on the unpleasant characteristics we have discussed.
So, honestly, it sounds hard to flavour tobacco with hops. You would likely have to buy more tobacco to experiment with dilution ratios for your vodka infusion, instead of using up your 'waste' tobacco - so the whole point would likely be eliminated.
The rum infusion on the other hand has been done many times as it is a traditional tobacco combination, with varying levels of success at the amateur level. I would say that is much easier to do but you will probably face combustion issues down the line with the addition of sugars and moisture. Time is probably your friend with an addition of rum to your tobacco.
Either way, I encourage you to experiment, I've just been giving you some straight talk about my thoughts on the matter. Let us know what you choose to do!

 

[tjameson]

After some of the input here I think a better route might be to try and create a blend of tobaccos that resembles hops in flavor.

 

[buster]

Try smoking hops on their own first. Second blend some with a few bowls worth of tobacco and give that a go. Personally I would just go with rum or whiskey of some sort.