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Have I Got Things Right?

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Orson Carte

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In the past few days I've taken my first batch of Virginia (I think it is - seed given to me) from my fermenter.
I de-stemmed and shredded the leaf, pressed it and ran it through my Cuthof Shredder (don't buy one, if you've ever considered it).
Then I mixed up a casing concoction of glycerine, syrup, honey, brown sugar and cocoa (in water, of course) and mist-sprayed the 'shag' quite wet.
Then I spread it out in a tray and dried it all to around 20% moisture (according to my cheap meter) and now have it sitting in an air-tight jar.
My query is; are there any major faux pas I should be made aware of? And, (considering it is for cigarettes) should I have toasted it at some stage after the casing. If so, when and how?
I have to say, for a raw beginner, all the stuff I've now smoked from this first batch has actually been pretty good.
 

Jitterbugdude

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Sounds alright to me but I would suggest trying your homegrown with nothing added to the leaf. It'll give you an idea of what your tobacco actually taste like without all the "stuff" added to it. You'll probably find it tastes great all by itself.

Was your Virginia flue cured, air cured or sun cured?
 

Orson Carte

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Sounds alright to me but I would suggest trying your homegrown with nothing added to the leaf. It'll give you an idea of what your tobacco actually taste like without all the "stuff" added to it. You'll probably find it tastes great all by itself.

Was your Virginia flue cured, air cured or sun cured?

It was air-cured.
I had tried it, straight out of the fermenter, without anything added. It was definitely consumable but I felt it had a 'sharpness' about it that I thought I might be better eliminated, if possible. These things are totally subjective, of course. Other people may find it perfectly acceptable as it is, with an equal number declaring it 'crap'.
I've only grown one variety and I have no way of laying my hands on anything else to blend with it. (Next year, after I'm able to source some other types to play with I possibly won't have to worry quite so much about flavouring).
I hope you understand, at the present time I'm still on a sharp learning-curve, and greatly appreciate any advice.
Thanks for your input.
 

Jitterbugdude

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O C, The next time around try sun curing your Virginia. Air curing does not set the sugars in the leaf, therefore they get consumed in the air drying process. Sun curing and flue curing set the sugars so you get a naturally sweet tasting leaf. The sharpness you tasted will most likely go away if you let the leaf age a month or so but then again a lot of the taste also has to do with the amount of fertilizer used, the maturity of the leaf, the variety and the curing/fermenting/aging process

It gets a lot easier the second time around.
 

DGBAMA

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You said a key word... Subjective. If you like it, then it is a success.

I find the more varieties I mix, the better, to a point. No flavorings required. With but one variety you only have two options, smoke as is, or add something to make it better
 
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