"One of the things I've wondered about is how Companies like Mac Baren and the late lamented McClelland, could still produce pungent Syrian Latakia blends more than a decade after the last harvest, given that Latakia has a relatively short shelf life. It's not like the last production runs of Vintage Syrian were made from a fresh crop. Something is keeping these stocks from fading."
That's a fascinating question. When I've opened up a fresh tin of blending Latakia (Syrian, back when they had it) from O'Connell, it shows no sign of fading... and I've been fortunate enough to open up some old tins with Syrian as a component where I've only gotten a vague hint of what was, so I'm optimistic that I would know the difference. Same thing with some of the McClelland blends, H&H, etc. where the Syrian wasn't really in question. It pops pretty brightly and noticeably, and then begins to fade
It does make me wonder if they were compressed and stored in actual airtight containers, bags, etc. to retard the aging process in some capacity. "True" anaerobic storage? In any event, I agree with Sable that blenders are somehow able to store tobacco long-term without significant changes to what we perceive as "freshness."
