Nasal snuff progress and processing

absinthe

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Several batches of my tobaccos have finished fermenting and have been stabilized and vacuum sealed for aging. I have made tobacco flour out of several varieties now when I have some leftover scraps ( mostly stem) and have experimented with snuffing them as raw flour and by adding small amounts of salt, baking soda and some food grade oils, etc. Here is what I have discovered so far:

Virginia Gold-well fermented- flue cured-This tobacco flour is sweet and mild with low nicotine. Its smell is very sweet, similar to figs.

Havana-well fermented- air cured-A slightly stronger in nicotine, but still mild flour. Smells like raisins. I have added some salt and baking soda which makes it seem a little stronger. I added some rum flavoring and wow! This is going to be my rum-raisin Havana snuff! Delicious!

Samsoun-not fermented-sun cured-Stronger in nicotine. Smells like walnuts. I think a little vanilla flavouring would make this an excellent Vanilla-walnut Samsoun snuff.

Burley-lightly fermented- air cured- This tobacco flour has strong cocoa notes. Mild nicotine. I have mixed it with a little salt, baking soda and a tiny bit of cocoa powder. Excellent! Koko-burley snuff.

Rustica-well fermented-air cured- This is flour I just tried. I snuffed a small amount up each nostril. Bad idea! This useful and fantastic tobacco flour has nearly no smell. Perhaps it is a little smoky, tobacco scented. This flour is extremely high in nicotine. Clearly this is NOT meant to be used straight. Holy cow. The nicotine rush was like smoking a whole cigar in 10 seconds. I got dizzy and had to sit down. This will be a fantastic boosting agent to strengthen other tobacco flours that are much lower in nicotine, but a little clearly goes a long way. I think I will blend this at about 5% with other flours to refine the nicotine strength I am after in each snuff variety. Use with caution!

My method is simple. I just grind stems mostly and leaf scraps with a cheap electric coffee/spice mill. For fine powdered flour, make sure the stems are completely dry 0-5% moisture. The more moisture in the tobacco, the coarser the grind. You can sift it through fine sieves to get the texture you want. Most tobacco flour has its own unique scent based on the type of tobacco used. I try to compliment the natural scent of the flour with a suitable flavouring, ie. Vanilla walnut. I use a small amount 1%of powdered noniodized salt and about 1% baking soda to raise pH very slightly. Baking soda is easier on the nose than sodium carbonate. Flavourings are just food grade flavourings from the bakery isle and used in very small amounts 1-2 drops per 10g. I want to experiment with making the snuff a little more moist as the the dry, fine powdered snuff sometimes gets inhaled deeper than intended. I want it in my nose, not my lungs. So there is my whole update. I like snuff a lot. It is a great way to use stems that would otherwise be wasted. It is discreet and gives you a nicotine hit without having to go outside to smoke or getting smoke in your lungs. It is odor free. Downsides are you sneeze and have to blow your nose. It is not well known or widely used. Let me know what you think.
 
Last edited:

johnny108

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Very
Interesting tasting notes!
I am curious as to what Rustica variety you used?
 

Juxtaposer-

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There are some categories of snuff you may want to try making.
Toast; one of my favorites, I put some snapped up stems in a dry crockpot on high for a few hours, stirring occasionally until a wonderful scent developed. This made a fluffy, buttery smelling, and slightly nutty flour. I used Burley.
Oiled; Butter or lard are traditional but modern snuffs mostly German are made with mineral oil for shelf life. Schmalzlers as they are called may be right up your alley being heavier and almost impossible to inhale past the throat.
Sweet; most sugars will be hydroscopic and also make your flour heavier. There is a wide world of syrups out there.
Scented; specifically indirectly scented. Whole spices can be put into jars with your snuff. Think baking spices. Nutmeg is my absolute favorite. Tonka beans were popular in the days of old. Most types of scenting can be done indirectly as well with dabs on a cloth or cotton ball.
Medicated; menthol is most popular. Eucalyptus, camphor also fit in this category. There are also many resinous woods. Mint is also worth mentioning. Menthol in particular will be a fresh sinus opening experience quickly followed by minor but annoying swelling in the sinuses.
Vinegar; vinegars can be used to freshen up dead snuffs. The acidity is pleasant but inhibits nicotine absorption so they are not so popular.
You may also play around with steaming or stoving tobaccos.
One of my very best snuffs was a “cabinet” snuff. This is what they called the dust that was brushed of the cabinets near the grinding room. I collect the dust that sticks to the top of the coffee grinder. May not be your thing though as you can occasionally exhale small clouds of dust ou of your mouth after insufflating. I was very interested in making snuff over ten years ago. I have a thread that was posted on the snuffhouse forums back then, it has been archived and can be found by searching “snuffmaking101”. I am knee deep in pipe tobacco making now but there is still a mortar and pestle at my bedside.
It is nice to see your snuff making knowledge and skills at such an advanced level. Thank you for sharing. Looking forward to hearing more.
 

absinthe

Active Member
Joined
Apr 10, 2025
Messages
31
Points
33
Location
Denmark
Very
Interesting tasting notes!
I am curious as to what Rustica variety you used?
Hi Johnny. I used a Danish localy grown variety known as Bondetobak. It is very hardy in this climate, yes, but susceptible to fungal disease. I highly recommend using a fungicide in this climate or prepare to lose 90 % of your crop to fungus.
 

absinthe

Active Member
Joined
Apr 10, 2025
Messages
31
Points
33
Location
Denmark
There are some categories of snuff you may want to try making.
Toast; one of my favorites, I put some snapped up stems in a dry crockpot on high for a few hours, stirring occasionally until a wonderful scent developed. This made a fluffy, buttery smelling, and slightly nutty flour. I used Burley.
Oiled; Butter or lard are traditional but modern snuffs mostly German are made with mineral oil for shelf life. Schmalzlers as they are called may be right up your alley being heavier and almost impossible to inhale past the throat.
Sweet; most sugars will be hydroscopic and also make your flour heavier. There is a wide world of syrups out there.
Scented; specifically indirectly scented. Whole spices can be put into jars with your snuff. Think baking spices. Nutmeg is my absolute favorite. Tonka beans were popular in the days of old. Most types of scenting can be done indirectly as well with dabs on a cloth or cotton ball.
Medicated; menthol is most popular. Eucalyptus, camphor also fit in this category. There are also many resinous woods. Mint is also worth mentioning. Menthol in particular will be a fresh sinus opening experience quickly followed by minor but annoying swelling in the sinuses.
Vinegar; vinegars can be used to freshen up dead snuffs. The acidity is pleasant but inhibits nicotine absorption so they are not so popular.
You may also play around with steaming or stoving tobaccos.
One of my very best snuffs was a “cabinet” snuff. This is what they called the dust that was brushed of the cabinets near the grinding room. I collect the dust that sticks to the top of the coffee grinder. May not be your thing though as you can occasionally exhale small clouds of dust ou of your mouth after insufflating. I was very interested in making snuff over ten years ago. I have a thread that was posted on the snuffhouse forums back then, it has been archived and can be found by searching “snuffmaking101”. I am knee deep in pipe tobacco making now but there is still a mortar and pestle at my bedside.
It is nice to see your snuff making knowledge and skills at such an advanced level. Thank you for sharing. Looking forward to hearing more.
Thank you for your thoughtful post. I will definitely post updates on my work and thank you for your suggestions. I have several more tobacco varieties fermenting right now that I will be experimenting with, including: Kentucky air cured, fire cured and light fire cured, Golden Burley air cured, Maryland air cured and Badischer Gudertheimer air cured. All well fermented varieties.
 
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