Mold in Cornell & Diehl Steamworks

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bluegrassbrian

Your Mom's Favorite Pipe Smoker
Aug 27, 2016
6,926
69,076
42
Louisville
Well I opened another 2023 tin of C&D Steamworks…

No “C&D Mold” that’s so pervasive as the PM hive mind suggests.

Guess I’ll just have to keep trying.


View attachment 319735
Don't be too positive about the blend.
It's one of my favorites and I don't need more people than absolutely necessary smoking it.
Far as I'm concerned the more people that believe it's mold-ridden the better.
 

craig61a

Lifer
Apr 29, 2017
6,485
56,555
Minnesota USA
The whole ‘C&D Mold” legend has gotten bigger over the years…

Started back in 2016 with the first release of Carolina Red Flake. All 2048 tins were recalled because there was a very remote possibility that the entire batch had mold issues.

I commend the leadership for being so proactive in taking the step of recalling all of it.

I had ordered 10 tins of 2016 Carolina Red Flake, and had no issues with any of it being moldy.

And ever since then there’s always somebody talking smart about C&D tobaccos. Moldy, how could they stay in business selling such inferior tobacco, I’ll never buy a C&D product again…

Yet some of the same people are constantly complaining about new C&D releases. I thought they weren’t going to buy anymore.

Ya gotta take what you read here with a big grain of salt. Some people don’t engage their brain before running their mouth. 🤣🤣🤣
 

mpjetset

Starting to Get Obsessed
SO much discussion, pondering, and debate over this... it's C&D! We were here 30 years ago with C&D mold. I lost $700 worth of tins from a charity drive to C&D mold (GLP 9/11 commemorative; I have involvement in that morning), and several other buys. It just doesn't stop, does it?

Sorry for the rant. I edited it down a little, but this brings out my Italian.
 

craig61a

Lifer
Apr 29, 2017
6,485
56,555
Minnesota USA
SO much discussion, pondering, and debate over this... it's C&D! We were here 30 years ago with C&D mold. I lost $700 worth of tins from a charity drive to C&D mold (GLP 9/11 commemorative; I have involvement in that morning), and several other buys. It just doesn't stop, does it?

Sorry for the rant. I edited it down a little, but this brings out my Italian.
IMG_2672.gif
 
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boston

Part of the Furniture Now
Jun 27, 2018
591
1,325
Boston
SO much discussion, pondering, and debate over this... it's C&D! We were here 30 years ago with C&D mold. I lost $700 worth of tins from a charity drive to C&D mold (GLP 9/11 commemorative; I have involvement in that morning), and several other buys. It just doesn't stop, does it?

Sorry for the rant. I edited it down a little, but this brings out my Italian.
Tribute was a nice idea. Proceeds went to family of freedom as I recall. And yes, many/most of the tins went to mold. But man that was so long ago now and Jeremy was likely a kid (I don't know) and had nothing to do with Craig and Patty and Greg..and others ...in trying to do something good really fast. It was a very sad time.

Not admonishing you, I purchased many tins too. Still have some too...likely most not good but some may be (a few were) ok. Heck, mold happens. Like unexpected other things.

I happen to really like the work Jeremy is doing at C&D. I buy Sun Bear every year. They will make good on the tin of steam works. Never have had a problem with that operation; they are very good in my experience. Sykes worked very hard to make that company what it is.
 

craig61a

Lifer
Apr 29, 2017
6,485
56,555
Minnesota USA
Every vendor has had mold in their product. The frequency that it occurs however is very small. Nowhere near what is purported to occur here.

And the veracity of the reports on the PM forums is suspect…

The fact that Cornell & Diehl just moved (again) to a larger production facility last year would indicate to me that their sales are increasing.
 

mpjetset

Starting to Get Obsessed
SNIP... Not admonishing you, I purchased many tins too. Still have some too...likely most not good but some may be (a few were) ok. Heck, mold happens. Like unexpected other things.

I happen to really like the work Jeremy is doing at C&D. I buy Sun Bear every year. They will make good on the tin of steam works. Never have had a problem with that operation; they are very good in my experience. Sykes worked very hard to make that company what it isis.
Thanks, that was a bad memory and loss. It wasn't just that blend, you'll recall. It was a trend. Of course, Craig and Linda are everyone's family; great people, and Sykes has done more for the craft than I'll ever know. I've lost touch and glad they seem to be back on track again.
 

mpxstyle

Lurker
Mar 9, 2024
20
28
Chile
I have found some fuzzy things in some parts of one of the steamworks tins, dont smell mouldy, and I think is not expanding, just a few pieces of flakes have a little fuzzy thing. I have a photo with a magnifying glass, witch is not really clear, and take some of the fuzzy things for the microscope, and is hard to tell. I put another piece in a grow medium, and will be easier if it grows. First time with something like this 1X@20250618_115517.jpg1X@20250618_115620.jpgIMG_5349.jpeg
 
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DotAndBang’sPipes

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 27, 2016
248
585
44
Orlando, FL
The more I read about tobacco and mold, and the more I experiment with whole leaf tobacco, the more I realize there really is a bit of a spectrum at play in that all tobacco (like any vegetable) may have some living bacteria… and it seems like the veteran blender consensus is to wait until the so-called “mold” is widely spread, highly visible, and unmistakable. Otherwise, based on these same leaf-handling veterans, it’s okay to smoke “technically speaking.” Obviously, a given smoker may not be comfortable with any level of “mold” but to each his own. My wife will drink milk a day past the “use by ____” date, but I won’t. I have, similarly, cut off “moldy” portions of whole leaf and smoked the rest countless times without any difference in flavor or any other adverse result. Just my two cents.
 
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sablebrush52

The Bard Of Barlings
Jun 15, 2013
22,198
54,853
Southern Oregon
jrs457.wixsite.com
Mold spores are everywhere, including most, if not all, of the tins and bags of tobacco that we buy. It doesn't become an issue unless the mold activates and grows a nice furry beard on the leaf.

When the C&D 2016 release of CRF showed activated mold in a number of tins from different batch dates, C&D wisely recalled it. Jiminks checked with a friend of his who is an expert on plant molds and her advice was to get rid of it.

Activated tobacco mold is highly toxic. There's no "safe" part of the leaf in a tin or bag where the mold has activated. It remains a person's choice whether to smoke it or not. Since I only get one set of lungs, my choice is not.

YMMV.
 

bluegrassbrian

Your Mom's Favorite Pipe Smoker
Aug 27, 2016
6,926
69,076
42
Louisville
Steamworks has been my daily morning smoke since late Summer of ‘23. As of today I’ve smoked through at least two dozen tins from ‘23 & ‘24. I’m smoking a bowl of it right now. Not once have I hit the mold lotto.

I’ve got a feeling though… the day will come where I’m down to my very last tin. I’ll open it, knowing full well it’s been a long and flavorful ride, and it will be packed with webby molds.
 

mpxstyle

Lurker
Mar 9, 2024
20
28
Chile
Steamworks has been my daily morning smoke since late Summer of ‘23. As of today I’ve smoked through at least two dozen tins from ‘23 & ‘24. I’m smoking a bowl of it right now. Not once have I hit the mold lotto.

I’ve got a feeling though… the day will come where I’m down to my very last tin. I’ll open it, knowing full well it’s been a long and flavorful ride, and it will be packed with webby molds.
that's some nightmare material XD
 
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mpxstyle

Lurker
Mar 9, 2024
20
28
Chile
The more I read about tobacco and mold, and the more I experiment with whole leaf tobacco, the more I realize there really is a bit of a spectrum at play in that all tobacco (like any vegetable) may have some living bacteria… and it seems like the veteran blender consensus is to wait until the so-called “mold” is widely spread, highly visible, and unmistakable. Otherwise, based on these same leaf-handling veterans, it’s okay to smoke “technically speaking.” Obviously, a given smoker may not be comfortable with any level of “mold” but to each his own. My wife will drink milk a day past the “use by ____” date, but I won’t. I have, similarly, cut off “moldy” portions of whole leaf and smoked the rest countless times without any difference in flavor or any other adverse result. Just my two cents.
yep, everything is cover in mold and other microorganism, we deal with that everyday, and will be a forever fight, but in the other hand, now we have a lot of knowledge and tools to preserve things, so it feels really frustrating when we face something spoiled. As a Winemaker, I'll talk from my experience, wine is delicate, and full of bacteria and yeast, and the main enemy of wine is the oxygen, not only cause oxidize the wine, but also activates all the bacterias that can spoil the wine, so the basic preservation tool is avoid all contact with air after the wine is done. We also started bottling the wine, but then the corks that we use to cap the bottles could have mould and spoil the wine and we started using screwcaps, and so go on. of course is a natural thing, and is ok if happen once in a while, but sometimes when something starts to became common, there is a need for actions.