sablebrush52
Full Member
Posts: 903
Favorite Pipe: Barling
Favorite Tobacco: whatever is in it
Location:
|
Post by sablebrush52 on Jan 11, 2019 13:40:12 GMT -5
Re S'brush's "Blends from houses like Germain's can be enjoyed fresh. They don't need aging because they're already aged when released. Other makers, like C&D and Stokkebye, release their blends young and those do benefit from aging before smoking." - not so much lately with the onslaught of hoarding demolishing every drop lately of Germain's, etc. but until recently, tins from across the Pond tended to be more aged when they worked their way through the supply chain (factory, exporter, shipper, importer, distributor, store). Many 'fresh, newly bought' Euro- and Brit-tins were already quite a few months old by the time they got into my hot, greedy hands for the popping. In contrast, C&D, GLP and such would be in my hands within days of manufacture, especially if I got them from SP. hp les HI Les, I thing the difference is still there, because the weed isn't tinned or bagged for distribution until it's aged to the blenders satisfaction. A few months on the shelf after distribution certainly isn't going to do any harm, but you can pop a fresh bought tin and get tobacco that the blender thinks is ready for immediate consumption. McClelland sought to do the same thing with their blends, modeling their practices after the traditional British methods. The problem with this is that it means tying up one's capital for a much longer period before making one's money. So tobaccos are getting tinned and released way earlier than used to be the case. And the aging is put on the buyer, not the manufacturer. Back when Dunhill was making its blends, the blends were famous for their "stink", that scent of ripe fermentation that one encountered when opening a fresh tin. Some of those blends went through a number of lengthy fermentation stages before and after tinning, and prior to release. A favorite case in point is Royal Yacht, recent incarnations of which were sauced to imitate the fermentation that it no longer went through back when Dunhill made it. |
|
|
|
Post by PhantomWolf on Jan 11, 2019 15:04:50 GMT -5
The conditions under which tobaccos are cellared play an important role in how well they age. I've smoked 35 year old Sobranie Original Smoking Mixture that was sublime, and 35 year old Sobraine Original Smoking Mixture that was garbage. Latakia will fade over time, but many smokers actually prefer the mellower flavor of aged Latakia. Orientals age quite well. A 40+ year old tin of Ardath London Mixture was one of the best things I've ever smoked. Sure the Latakia had faded, but the orientals were stunning. Eventually all tobaccos will go south, though burley seems to be the aging champ. So while Latakia may lose pungency after 10 years, its presence in the blend may still be quite apparent at 20 years. After that it can fade to nothingness. Virginias are good for decades, but after 40 years or so they can take on an unpleasant (to me) floral taste. Above that date they can turn to nasty sludge. Toppings may fade over time. The 1941 Capstan Blue I smoked a few years back still tasted like Capstan Blue, if less flavorful overall, and the 1938 Capstan Blue was pure zombie sludge. Aros are good for years, but eventually the toppings fade. From what you wrote about bagging and sealing your tins and jars it sound like you're taking all the steps you can to preserve your investment. The square and rectangular tins are not good protection for long term aging. They're leaking from the get go and the contents can dry out after 10 years. The circular tins hold up better. If you find something that you not only like, but continue to enjoy over time, cellar that deep. On the topic of aging, I don't agree that aging improves blends. Aging changes blends. Whether that change is an improvement is up to the individual smoker. Blends from houses like Germain's can be enjoyed fresh. They don't need aging because they're already aged when released. Other makers, like C&D and Stokkebye, release their blends young and those do benefit from aging before smoking. Just one of those replies that need liked twice. |
|
|
|
Post by PhantomWolf on Jan 11, 2019 15:09:11 GMT -5
Re S'brush's "Blends from houses like Germain's can be enjoyed fresh. They don't need aging because they're already aged when released. Other makers, like C&D and Stokkebye, release their blends young and those do benefit from aging before smoking." - not so much lately with the onslaught of hoarding demolishing every drop lately of Germain's, etc. but until recently, tins from across the Pond tended to be more aged when they worked their way through the supply chain (factory, exporter, shipper, importer, distributor, store). Many 'fresh, newly bought' Euro- and Brit-tins were already quite a few months old by the time they got into my hot, greedy hands for the popping. In contrast, C&D, GLP and such would be in my hands within days of manufacture, especially if I got them from SP. hp les HI Les, I thing the difference is still there, because the weed isn't tinned or bagged for distribution until it's aged to the blenders satisfaction. A few months on the shelf after distribution certainly isn't going to do any harm, but you can pop a fresh bought tin and get tobacco that the blender thinks is ready for immediate consumption. McClelland sought to do the same thing with their blends, modeling their practices after the traditional British methods. The problem with this is that it means tying up one's capital for a much longer period before making one's money. So tobaccos are getting tinned and released way earlier than used to be the case. And the aging is put on the buyer, not the manufacturer. Back when Dunhill was making its blends, the blends were famous for their "stink", that scent of ripe fermentation that one encountered when opening a fresh tin. Some of those blends went through a number of lengthy fermentation stages before and after tinning, and prior to release. A favorite case in point is Royal Yacht, recent incarnations of which were sauced to imitate the fermentation that it no longer went through back when Dunhill made it. Interesting hearing about this 'Stink' and the topping on Royal Yacht to mimic it. When I first tried Royal Yacht, I didn't like it as the tin note reminded me of the ripe, off-smell of discarded tomatoes as my grandmother would go about her canning in the summer. A specific smell to me and it instantly ruined the blend, though I'm sure many love it.
Sorry for the formatting issues. haha |
|
|
|
Post by Dramatwist on Jan 11, 2019 15:11:19 GMT -5
We're fortunate to have three or four members around here who are "tapped in" to what's going on in the pipe tobacco world. I think we all know who they are.
|
|
|
|
Post by PhantomWolf on Jan 11, 2019 23:51:21 GMT -5
Any thoughts on Rattray's 100g tins for aging?
|
|
|
|
Post by Legend Lover on Jan 12, 2019 2:24:34 GMT -5
I've got to the point where I'm not opening new tins anymore.
I've enough open tins which I'm smoking through very slowly, that I don't need to open any more.
I'm now happy that I'll have some long term cellaring going on until I feel the need to experiment with a new blend (maybe on a special occasion).
Only tins I'll open are the square ones from SG.
|
|
|
|
Post by Dramatwist on Jan 12, 2019 2:52:23 GMT -5
I've got to the point where I'm not opening new tins anymore. I've enough open tins which I'm smoking through very slowly, that I don't need to open any more. I'm now happy that I'll have some long term cellaring going on until I feel the need to experiment with a new blend (maybe on a special occasion). Only tins I'll open are the square ones from SG. I have a three-tired approach to open tins and cellaring... 1. Open tins I know I'll use up relatively quickly. 2. Open tins that are jarred, not for aging, but so I can dip into them when I feel like it. 3. Sealed tins for aging, that will not be opened for at least a few years. If it's a square tin, I jar it just in case. I also use jars for bulk tobaccos and others that need a bit of age on them. |
|
|
|
Post by daveinlax on Jan 12, 2019 10:30:22 GMT -5
Any thoughts on Rattray's 100g tins for aging? They should age very well. I hosted a party a few years ago that featured a tasting selection of the three versions of Black Mallory K&K, McConnell and a puffed up tin of Rattray's. They were all good but the Rattray's aged incredibly!   As I type this I'm smoking bulk PSBS that I jarred in 2007 it's drying out a bit in the AZ air but otherwise IMO it's perfect. |
|
|
|
Post by pepesdad1 on Jan 12, 2019 11:20:41 GMT -5
Va's that are fresh, usually tear up my mouth (probably a Ph thing)...so I let them age 5 years before indulging...and I find that they are delicious the way they are supposed to be. Fortunately, I started this cellaring about 5 years ago...so now most of my stock is aged enough to enjoy. Square tins I bagged in vacuum sealed bags...hoping that keeps them from getting exposed to air.
|
|
|
|
Post by beardedmi on Jan 12, 2019 14:42:06 GMT -5
Va's that are fresh, usually tear up my mouth (probably a Ph thing)...so I let them age 5 years before indulging...and I find that they are delicious the way they are supposed to be. Fortunately, I started this cellaring about 5 years ago...so now most of my stock is aged enough to enjoy. Square tins I bagged in vacuum sealed bags...hoping that keeps them from getting exposed to air. The vacuum sealing will help but there will be long term transfer since common bag material is porous enough to allow a gas exchange. Mylar and the like are the exceptions. |
|
cwpiperman
Junior Member
Posts: 234
Favorite Pipe: Radice Rind Pure Billiard
Favorite Tobacco: Black Frigate/Mississippi River/Plum Pudding/NightCap/Gaslight
Location:
|
Post by cwpiperman on Feb 1, 2019 9:20:29 GMT -5
I have decided, for myself, my strategy. I am having enough fun with smoking the darn stuff that cellering is not going to become, for me, another hobby. It is quite like music. Some people play guitar, but there are many who participate in other parts of the hobby - collecting guitars, repairing guitars, buying and trading guitars, building guitars, etc. I have just purchased a small cabinet so I can store some and can see what I have stored. My rule is going to be a refusal to buy another piece of furniture for tobacco storage. My cabinet is filled, I smoke it. Nothing in there over 6 months old, except if acquired old. When there is space in my cabinet I will order more, and not until. I now keep a list of "wanna try" and when space opens i will drag out my list and see whats what. I have enough to mitigate price changes to some extent, and not worry about running out, and not enough to worry about anything going bad before I smoke it. I am vulnerable to the often talked about coming tobaccapocalypse, and there is some concern. My recent trip to central England I learned just how anti pipe things can get. I spent a whole day to visit a tobacco shop indicated on my garmin (sat-nav as they say) in York only to find it closed a few weeks earlier. And a feeling on the part of most people that 1-I don't like smoke so its not a problem, 2-no difference between pipe smoking and any other kind of smoking, or vaping. !!??!! But at present I am happy, and my new strategy works for me. What I am getting at is not that anyone should do it my way, far from it, but that cellaring is a thriving fun activity related to pipe smoking that many enjoy and not a requirement to enjoying the pipe smoking life. I think that something that may worry some about this approach is the uncertainty about the the price, or even the AVAILABILITY of tobacco in the future. It's not unreasonable to expect that as time goes on, FDA and other regulatory agencies will expand their reach to the point where tobacco such as we can purchase freely now becomes extraordinarily expensive (as has happened in other countries)..or even impossible to purchase. I think there may be other folks who cellar to head off these admittedly (on my part) mildly paranoid notions. I have about 10#, and I generally smoke no more than 1 bowl a day, 2 at the most, if that (often it's only 2-5 bowls in 7 days, last 3 weeks nothing at all). Depends on my mood and availability. My main reasons to cellar is current pricing, possible improvement with age, and an uncertain future in terms of availability. I'm still acquiring slowly, as I find out what I'd rather not do without. CW |
|
