Keeping Tobacco Fresh

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Flatfish

Part of the Furniture Now
Jan 20, 2022
615
1,530
West Wales
Regarding the container for keeping tobacco. What order should these be (in terms of keeping things fresh and useable) . I imagine there will be variations per container.
Also how long would tobacco remain useable in each. (roughly)

Glass storage jar
Pouch it came in
Tin it came in
Leather pouch
Other
 
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Jan 28, 2018
12,955
134,678
67
Sarasota, FL
Mason jar will maintain the moisture the best as well as a mylar zip lock bag. It drops off substantially after that. Unless you're in a really dry desert climate though, I believe you can have the tobacco in a pouch, tin or leather bag for a month or two and it will still be smokeable. Probably longer.

I'm finishing off a 100 gr tin of Reiner Long Golden Flake that's been open for a year or more. It's quite dry but smoking fantastic.
 
Jun 9, 2015
3,770
23,560
42
Mission, Ks
It really depends on what kind tobacco your working with. Heavily topped aros will stay moist even the worst of conditions, sometimes so much so they can be difficult to dry out enough to even smoke. Non-aro tobaccos are far more susceptible to drying out and I find that a thoroughly cleaned mason jar works the best. I personally don't leave anything in a roll-up pouch for more than a few days. I tend not to put more in a roll-up than I'm going to smoke in a short period.
 
Dec 3, 2021
4,792
40,305
Pennsylvania & New York
The posts above cover most of the answers. There are so many variables involved—how much propylene glycol is or isn't in the blend, the seal of the tin prior to transferring to another container, tobacco cut, relative humidity in the area, etc.

What I find interesting, being both a cigar and pipe smoker, is that with cigars, there's a greater focus on maintaining a relatively constant humidity (often between 65 and 70 percent, depending on how you prefer your smoke) and temperature (under 70 degrees Fahrenheit to prevent tobacco beetle eggs from hatching), and that circulation of fresh air is encouraged in the equation to keep the sticks from getting musty. It seems with pipe tobacco storage, pipe smokers are content to keep things in a sealed jar, with no consideration for getting fresh air into the mix (perhaps, more out of a concern of preserving existing moisture or creating aging conditions).

I use humidification beads in at least one of my pipe tobacco jars and most of my cigar humidors, although I'm considering switching back to green florist foam for one of the humidors, if only because it's easier to get a quick visual on the moisture level when refilling with distilled water.
 
Jun 18, 2020
3,800
13,540
Wilmington, NC
The posts above cover most of the answers. There are so many variables involved—how much propylene glycol is or isn't in the blend, the seal of the tin prior to transferring to another container, tobacco cut, relative humidity in the area, etc.

What I find interesting, being both a cigar and pipe smoker, is that with cigars, there's a greater focus on maintaining a relatively constant humidity (often between 65 and 70 percent, depending on how you prefer your smoke) and temperature (under 70 degrees Fahrenheit to prevent tobacco beetle eggs from hatching), and that circulation of fresh air is encouraged in the equation to keep the sticks from getting musty. It seems with pipe tobacco storage, pipe smokers are content to keep things in a sealed jar, with no consideration for getting fresh air into the mix (perhaps, more out of a concern of preserving existing moisture or creating aging conditions).

I use humidification beads in at least one of my pipe tobacco jars and most of my cigar humidors, although I'm considering switching back to green florist foam for one of the humidors, if only because it's easier to get a quick visual on the moisture level when refilling with distilled water.
I have wondered about that as well. Hmmm
 
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I think that the reason we want to seal the tobacco is for long term aging where the oxygen is depleted as the microbes (or enzymes) break down the sugars, and is replaced with CO2. This is a different sort of aging (or fermentation) than what we see in cigars.

As to the use of the word "freshness"... having grown, cured, and created my own blends of tobaccos, the use of the word "freshness" is a tad confusing. Before the tobacco reaches the tin or bulk bags, it is dried and rehydrated at least once, probably more when the blender is not the manufacturer of the tobacco. Then it is usually aged, processed in different ways depending on the cut of the tobacco. I'm not sure what is meant by fresh. I think hydrated is a much better word, as some water and oxygen is needed to start off the aging process that we are looking to happen when cellaring a tobacco.

I am also certain that a tad bit of mania about keeping tobacco "hydrated" up to the moment we then dry it out to smoke it. Some waiting to dry out one bowl at a time just before loading the pipe. While moisture is essential for the aging/fermenting/cellaring process, I think that we way overthink how long we must keep a tobacco hydrated after breaking the seal changing the environment inside the jar/bag/tin. At the point where we disturb that inner environment, we no longer have to be as delicate with the tobacco. If one prefers to smoke a dry tobacco, why not just go ahead and dry it all out, so that you can more quickly load the pipe?
For tobacco to get to the point where we consider it "stale" (or devoid of the flavors and essential oils) takes a very long time, beyond months, and for some maybe even years.
 
Jun 18, 2020
3,800
13,540
Wilmington, NC
I think that the reason we want to seal the tobacco is for long term aging where the oxygen is depleted as the microbes (or enzymes) break down the sugars, and is replaced with CO2. This is a different sort of aging (or fermentation) than what we see in cigars.

As to the use of the word "freshness"... having grown, cured, and created my own blends of tobaccos, the use of the word "freshness" is a tad confusing. Before the tobacco reaches the tin or bulk bags, it is dried and rehydrated at least once, probably more when the blender is not the manufacturer of the tobacco. Then it is usually aged, processed in different ways depending on the cut of the tobacco. I'm not sure what is meant by fresh. I think hydrated is a much better word, as some water and oxygen is needed to start off the aging process that we are looking to happen when cellaring a tobacco.

I am also certain that a tad bit of mania about keeping tobacco "hydrated" up to the moment we then dry it out to smoke it. Some waiting to dry out one bowl at a time just before loading the pipe. While moisture is essential for the aging/fermenting/cellaring process, I think that we way overthink how long we must keep a tobacco hydrated after breaking the seal changing the environment inside the jar/bag/tin. At the point where we disturb that inner environment, we no longer have to be as delicate with the tobacco. If one prefers to smoke a dry tobacco, why not just go ahead and dry it all out, so that you can more quickly load the pipe?
For tobacco to get to the point where we consider it "stale" (or devoid of the flavors and essential oils) takes a very long time, beyond months, and for some maybe even years.

Makes sense, Thanks!
 

chopper

Lifer
Aug 24, 2019
1,480
3,317
Yes I agree with Cosmic that the word 'fresh' is a tad confusing when applied to pipe tobacco.

I've been dabbling with growing my own tobacco and two relevant things I've learnt is this;
Once fresh grown leaf has been dried and then brought back to case [moisturised ready to smoke] it smokes as rough as guts.
It's advised to age homegrown for a year before smoking but it's much smoother even after six months in a jar.
Homegrown leaf must be stored at a much lower case [drier] than commercial blends to avoid mould.
Why that is I'm not entirely sure but it's said that all commercial tobacco leaf is cased so that must explain why that is.

The price of tobacco here in Nanny State Australia is contemptibly expensive - $140aud - $95usd for 50g [I shit you not] so I've been conscientiously building my cellar since I found American on-line tobacconists several years ago.

At first I ordered tins but soon found that they get detected at the border more often than bagged so I've only ordered bulk blends since.
Just opened my last tin of MacBaren Golden Extra that must be close to 8yo and it smokes fine.
My bulk blends that don't arrive in a mylar bag are jarred.

I've not had any problem with a single blend. All of my older tobacco smokes just fine and some blends just get better with age.
A good example is Aj's Vaper. Did not like it fresh but when I tried a small bowl after it was aged for 3-4 years it was simply superb.

Properly stored at a suitable moisture level, pipe tobacco will keep for decades.
 

LeafErikson

Lifer
Dec 7, 2021
1,858
15,815
Oregon
If you’re gonna smoke it in less than a couple of months it’ll be fine. Some of the 100g tins that screw shut are good for many, many months. I never really have anything open without finishing it for more than a few months and I can’t recall a bowl that was ‘too dry’. I live in Oregon though not the desert or at crazy high altitudes so it might be different for you. I use a roll up pouch for my ‘all day smoke’ which is Sir Walter Raleigh that I replenish every few days or so but I suspect it would be good for quite some time in that pouch as it’s lined with some sort of latex material. I have some bulk blends as well as blends that I don’t smoke that often that I put in a jar for longer term storage. It’s easy to overthink it but unless you live in a crazy dry climate you’re gonna be good if you finish the tobacco within a few months.
 
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