A Kiln, Tobacco, the Process, and Why

[deluxestogie]

I think your selection is well chosen. If you are satisfied with those, I would not hunt for other varieties.

A good seed source in Germany: http://www.tabakanbau.de/de/sitemap.php
An excellent seed source in the US: Northwood Seeds

Bob

 

[Shao]

Hallo guys.I have always wondered why cigars had such a specific flavors.Sometimes I think they are making such flavors artificially.For example the leather flavor.I can't imagine how the plant should have an animal odor(The smell of a horse).

 

[deluxestogie]

The leather-like aroma of cigar leaf is entirely natural. My home-grown Little Dutch, PA Red, Long Red, Dutch Ohio, Lancaster Seedleaf, Swarr-Hibshman and Glessnor all finish to a leathery, woody aroma. No magic. No artificial anything.

Finished leather does not smell anything like the sweat (butyric acid) of a horse or steer. What you are smelling in leather is a combination of volatile compounds from the staining and oiling.

Bob

 

[vilbertob]

I am a little desperate .... I have fermented Virginia Bright and kentucky fire cured leaves in my kiln closed in cellophane bags. 11 weeks have passed and while kentucky no longer smells of ammonia the virginia leaves have it and it is still very strong ....
I also followed Bob's advice and brought the kiln from 122 to 127 fahreneit always with 80/85% humidity .... Nothing, however ... When I open the envelope the ammonia is very strong. What I do? Do I open everything and let them rest for a while?

 

[Knucklehead]

I am a little desperate .... I have fermented Virginia Bright and kentucky fire cured leaves in my kiln closed in cellophane bags. 11 weeks have passed and while kentucky no longer smells of ammonia the virginia leaves have it and it is still very strong ....
I also followed Bob's advice and brought the kiln from 122 to 127 fahreneit always with 80/85% humidity .... Nothing, however ... When I open the envelope the ammonia is very strong. What I do? Do I open everything and let them rest for a while?

Yes. Let them rest awhile and allow the ammonia smell to dissipate. It is normal and not a sign of a problem.

 

[burge]

I am a little desperate .... I have fermented Virginia Bright and kentucky fire cured leaves in my kiln closed in cellophane bags. 11 weeks have passed and while kentucky no longer smells of ammonia the virginia leaves have it and it is still very strong ....
I also followed Bob's advice and brought the kiln from 122 to 127 fahreneit always with 80/85% humidity .... Nothing, however ... When I open the envelope the ammonia is very strong. What I do? Do I open everything and let them rest for a while?

I have that happen when I open a vapor proof bag it is normal and part of the aging process. The leaves need air.

 

[Jitterbugdude]

Did you open the bags once a day while they were in the kiln. As the leaves go through the fermentation process they produce by-products that need to be allowed to escape. If the bags were sealed the entire time there would be nowhere for the ammonia to go but to stay in the bag.

 

[vilbertob]

Yes...I'm doing that now! It Is Better now.... Virginia are going to have a Better smell....day by day. Thank you!

 

[burge]

Yes...I'm doing that now! It Is Better now.... Virginia are going to have a Better smell....day by day. Thank you!

Not a prob I was worried at first too

 

[plantdude]

I've got individual gallon size Ziploc plastic bags full of leaves. Each bag corresponds to a different variety or height on a plant. I opened the tops of all the bags, rolled them so they wouldn't reseal and set them inside a plastic trash bag in a cardboard box to keep everything upright. I misted the inside of the trash bag, added moist paper towels, tied the bag securely shut and stuck it in the attic. I check them once a week. After 3 weeks my first trashbag full looks ok and smells nice. Am I going to be messing up the flavor and aroma of the individual varieties doing it this way though? Is it better to just kiln one variety at a time or does it matter?

 

[deluxestogie]

Am I going to be messing up the flavor and aroma of the individual varieties doing it this way though? Is it better to just kiln one variety at a time or does it matter?

So far as I can determine (using an actual kiln), it doesn't matter a bit, unless one of the varieties is fire-cured.

Bob

 

[plantdude]

So far as I can determine (using an actual kiln), it doesn't matter a bit, unless one of the varieties is fire-cured.

Bob

Thanks. I have thrown a few varieties in the smoker beofre just to see how they would turn out. I will keep those separate from the others when I put them in my "seasonal kiln".

 

[Shao]

Hello guys. I have such a situation here. I fermented bezuki,connecticut shade,connecticut broadleaf, Cuban criollo.habano 2000 and Havana long leaf in different bags for more then 2 months .the temperature was 45c. Humidity was about 65-80.I took them out every 4-5 days and the final result was that only bezuki just has a relatively different aroma.The rest are no different from each other.They do not have a pleasant odor.what do you recommend. Aging or repeated fermentation.

 

[Knucklehead]

Hello guys. I have such a situation here. I fermented bezuki,connecticut shade,connecticut broadleaf, Cuban criollo.habano 2000 and Havana long leaf in different bags for more then 2 months .the temperature was 45c. Humidity was about 65-80.I took them out every 4-5 days and the final result was that only bezuki just has a relatively different aroma.The rest are no different from each other.They do not have a pleasant odor.what do you recommend. Aging or repeated fermentation.

When you say unpleasant, can you describe it? Ammonia, like grass, moldy, etc.?
How long did it rest outside of the kiln before you tried it? Sometime a rest helps.
Temp should be up higher, 53C to avoid mold problems.

 

[Shao]

Not ammonia.more like the smell of grass.moldy.but they look pretty well.no signs of mold.About 1 month has passed.temperature is about 20C.

 

[Knucklehead]

Not ammonia.more like the smell of grass.moldy.but they look pretty well.no signs of mold.About 1 month has passed.temperature is about 20C.

Grassy smell to me says more kilning or aging is needed.

 

[Shao]

I need them for cigar rolling.can you tell me the highest temperature for wrapper and for filler that would not damage them.

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

You could also let them rest a month just to see, and then put them back on the kiln if necessary.

 

[Knucklehead]

I need them for cigar rolling.can you tell me the highest temperature for wrapper and for filler that would not damage them.

I run my kiln 50C to 53C, I think Deluxestogie may run his a couple degrees warmer. My temp control is set with a 5F degree spread, on at 123F (50C), off at 128F (53C). It’s hot enough to kill mold, but not too hot. I think at 60C?? the temp starts breaking down enzymes you don‘t want broken down (possibly related to further aging). I can’t remember all the scientific reasons, I do well to remember my set points.

 

[deluxestogie]

5F degree spread, on at 123F (50C), off at 128F (53C)

This is my kiln temp range. It does not kill mold, but it prevents any vegetative growth of mold. I kiln for two months in high humidity, then allow to rest in low case for at least a week or two--sometimes a year or two.

Bob