Just curious for you long time smokers. Since you’ve been at this for years , how often do you smoke a fresh tobacco vs pulling something from your ”cellar“
New vs Cellared Tobacco
- Thread starter mah2325
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I just did this. Out of curiosity I bought some new Capstan Blue, Marlin Flake, Old Gowrie and Hal O The Wynd.
New are good. Cellared are way more gooder.
New are good. Cellared are way more gooder.
I’m a big fan of way more gooder..
Everything in my cellar is 3+ years old. I just grab whatever is closest.
I’ve always bought a few tins at a time of what I want to try. I pop one and store two. The blends I normally smoke or that I know I could smoke I go deeper with.
If you’re in the building stages just save one to the side and start a regiment of airing a couple out to smoke now.
As said above it’s generally more gooder later but it’s still good now.
It accumulates quickly though!
If you’re in the building stages just save one to the side and start a regiment of airing a couple out to smoke now.
As said above it’s generally more gooder later but it’s still good now.
It accumulates quickly though!
I pretty much stopped buying tobacco five years ago, so almost everything I smoke has some age on it. Whether a blend has "improved" is a matter for the individual smoker to decide.
There are blends I preferred fresh to aged, like McClelland 2015. Now, all of that is 7+ years old, and I'd rather have it aged than not have it at all.
There are blends that didn't change all that much over time, and there are blends that I like better aged.
I recently opened up a bag of Esoterica Dunbar from 2013. The apricot topping has almost completely faded out and the anise is very mild. Fortunately, the base of Virginias is very smooth, so while it doesn't taste like Dunbar, it still tastes great.
The 22 year old Haddo's Delight I've been smoking is superb.
I think Virginias improve more with age than any other blend type. I pretty much smoke Virtuous blends exclusively. I'm to the point I do not smoke new tobacco. I've yet to smoke a new Virginia blend that's as good as one with 3 or more years of age.
When I started exploring Virginias, years ago, I would buy two tins of a "new to me" blend - one to try, one to cellar. I've continued that practice. The only time I smoke something that does not have some age on it is when I try something new - which is not as often as it once was.
I smoke new tins much less than aged, because I just have such a huge cellar. But, I will smoke fresh tins if it’s a new release, or if I’ve run out of aged in that particular blend, and I’ve reordered it to stock back up.
I have this fear that I will run out of my favs and be left with shit I stocked up on before I realized I hated it.
I have this fear that I will run out of my favs and be left with shit I stocked up on before I realized I hated it.
So aged crap is still crapI smoke new tins much less than aged, because I just have such a huge cellar. But, I will smoke fresh tins if it’s a new release, or if I’ve run out of aged in that particular blend, and I’ve reordered it to stock back up.
I have this fear that I will run out of my favs and be left with shit I stocked up on before I realized I hated it.
Absolutely!So aged crap is still crap
The recent c&d release is what raised this question in my mind. I was curious if people would buy some and smoke it fresh or cellar it and wait for it to age.
If I hear one of my favorites have had any type of change, I buy a new one and smoke it to see what's up. This happened with English Chocolate 2-ish years ago and I was satisfied. If I was not, then I'd be out on a mission finding any of the previous stock out there and buying it.
I hardly buy tobacco anymore. I think my cellar is about six years old. Very fresh tobacco smells strongly of hay or freshly cut grass, and when it's a little aged, it's also very intense and has a very nice aroma when you smoke it. I have some glass jars that I seal with Teflon tape. It's impossible to open them. So I have to call a lathe operator, or an Olympic athlete who specializes in opening glass jars, or just look at the tobacco through the glass and suck on a lollipop, watching it turn blacker and blacker. 
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I could just copy and paste what @sablebrush52 said, but I'll add a bit.
Most of my cellar is from 2001-2017, with a bit of 2019 spattered in there. This Spring I added about 100 tins and maybe 5 pounds of bulk after coming back to piping after a 7 year hiatus.
MOST of what im smoking is well aged, but ive been popping a few tins of new stuff ive never tried, to see if I need to cellar more.
Does aged tobacco taste better?
Sometimes, not always....occasionally it get worse tasting.
Generally Virginias get "better", while some Burley gets better, but most stays about the same in my opinion.
The main thing I want to point out here is this.....Latakia blends absolutely can improve over time. I cannot tell you how many times I hear that aging Latakia blends is a waste of time, and a waste of money. Next to Virginias, Latakia blends change second most for the better.
I have SOTE, Old Ironsides, GLP blends, Murray era Dunhill, MacB Vintage Syrian and several more Latakia blends that are better now than 10-20 years ago when I cellared them...in my opinion....as far as I recall. Either way, they are FANTASTIC now.
I recently popped a tin of FVF from 2008. At first I wasn't very impressed versus the new stuff....until I tried some new stuff recently. The 2008 is much better. Its darker, richer, danker, and tastes like a Fig Newton, in a good way.
Most of my cellar is from 2001-2017, with a bit of 2019 spattered in there. This Spring I added about 100 tins and maybe 5 pounds of bulk after coming back to piping after a 7 year hiatus.
MOST of what im smoking is well aged, but ive been popping a few tins of new stuff ive never tried, to see if I need to cellar more.
Does aged tobacco taste better?
Sometimes, not always....occasionally it get worse tasting.
Generally Virginias get "better", while some Burley gets better, but most stays about the same in my opinion.
The main thing I want to point out here is this.....Latakia blends absolutely can improve over time. I cannot tell you how many times I hear that aging Latakia blends is a waste of time, and a waste of money. Next to Virginias, Latakia blends change second most for the better.
I have SOTE, Old Ironsides, GLP blends, Murray era Dunhill, MacB Vintage Syrian and several more Latakia blends that are better now than 10-20 years ago when I cellared them...in my opinion....as far as I recall. Either way, they are FANTASTIC now.
I recently popped a tin of FVF from 2008. At first I wasn't very impressed versus the new stuff....until I tried some new stuff recently. The 2008 is much better. Its darker, richer, danker, and tastes like a Fig Newton, in a good way.
