Aging bulk

[eastwood44mag]

I'm cheap and proud of it. Since I can buy twice as much in bulk as I can in a tin (if not more), I have a tendency to buy loose. How do I best age it, then?

Details:

-2 tins of McClelland 5100 (sealed by Bufflehead, or whatever the name is, as of 2/05)-->how long should I let it sit for best smoking?
-100 gr Balkan Sasiene from the local shop, bagged-->any help?
-English, aromatics, and VA from all over the place, all in bags, and sealed up in a tupperware temporarily-->can they stay together, or should they be separated, and how should I treat them?

Thanks, all.

[tedski]

Long-term tobacco aging is best done in the original selaed tin - or in glass jars with good rubber seals. When I buy pounds of bulk tobacco I generally follow these steps:

1. Buy several pint or quart Mason canning jars and lids at the grocery store. They run about $1 each.

2. I'll run these through a quick cleaning cycle in the dishwasher. I won't use much soap and I'll select the sanitary (hot) rinse.

3. When finished and while the glass is still pretty warm, I'll load up with tobacco - don't pack too tight - about the same as a pipe bowl - and I'll leave about 1/4" of room at the top.

4. Screw the lid on tight and put it in the stoarge area.

There has been much discussion lately about home stoving (cooking) - especially for Virginia tobaccos. Basically you take a sealed tin and put in a 200 degree oven for 5 hours - then remove and allow it to cool off for a couple of days. This has the effect of accelerating the aging process somewhat. It's not really the same as aging, but the end result is that the sharp and tart flavors normally seen with young Virginias have been replaced with flavors described as mellower, richer and sweeter. You might try this with one of your tins of 5100. The other one I'd put away and open up next Feb.

You can keep your tobaccos in zip lock bags / tupperware containers for a few months - but beyond that they will start drying out and losing flavor.

[CHESS NUT]

I know this is an old post but I havent been here for a bit I just read it. Great info tedski!

[ZachS]

his advice is right on, it's standard practice for good reason.

the only thing i would add for really long term aging (more than a few years) is to seal the outside of your jars as much as you can with silicone (don't use paraffin like i did, trust me...) because w/o the vacuum that you get when you fill the jars up with something really hot, the rubber on the lids won't work quite as designed.

plus, mason jars are designed to keep jam eatable for a few years at most.... not to keep tobacco airtight for decades (which is the kind of timeframe you should be thinking about... it ain't going to get any cheaper, that's for sure, and you can buy a good chunk of a lifetime supply for a grand or so)

[CHESS NUT]

another nice tip! Thanks Zach

[Mr. Morbid]

Originally Posted by ZachS

his advice is right on, it's standard practice for good reason.

the only thing i would add for really long term aging (more than a few years) is to seal the outside of your jars as much as you can with silicone (don't use paraffin like i did, trust me...) because w/o the vacuum that you get when you fill the jars up with something really hot, the rubber on the lids won't work quite as designed.

plus, mason jars are designed to keep jam eatable for a few years at most.... not to keep tobacco airtight for decades (which is the kind of timeframe you should be thinking about... it ain't going to get any cheaper, that's for sure, and you can buy a good chunk of a lifetime supply for a grand or so)

Wax also works well too... Someone sent me some of that McClelland Red Cake and the whole outter part of the jar was covered in wax...