Pipe tobacco topping

[GreenDragon]

Yes, it's a great video, but as I've stated before, you never see them actually apply it to any tobacco, so no conclusions can be made. Except it makes a great holiday video....
(Full disclosure, I'm a card carrying cynic.)

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

Were you pleased with the result?

A bag of Moes Confetti had dried out a bit before I jarred it. To bring it back to case I sprayed it with a little Jim Beam [Straight because I didn't think to dilute with distilled water]
It improved the flavour & was quite popular with a couple of mates.

Bundaberg dark rum has a very distinctive taste so I think that will be a winner. [Bundaberg also has a coffee & chocolate flavoured rum that I'm keen to try]
Is it correct that I need a little PG to stop the flavour from dissipating? [Glycerine goes 'off' after a few weeks so I'm not keen to use it]

The cloves worked and I was quite happy. I didn't take notes like I usually would. Essentially i made a paste of clove powder and glycerin and added it to flue cured tobacco and made cigarettes. I can't say how much of either went into the cigarettes. They were very much like djarum. I don't think it would be very good as a pipe tobacco because of the anaesthetic effect, but the principle of having the actual spice in the tobacco, rather than trying to do an extract is i believe, the moral of the story.

 

[deluxestogie]

having the actual spice in the tobacco

Clove is combustible.

Bob

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

Clove is combustible.

Bob

Yeah, when I tried putting a tungsten rod in, it had a terrible burn.

 

[CobGuy]

Thanks CobGuy - I should have watched that before asking questions, lol [Only 3 mins long for those who usually avoid clicking on vids]

I'm surprised at how much sugar was used. Is that much used just for a caramel flavour?
Would a topping like that need to be diluted with distilled water before applying to tobacco?
Did not notice any PG being added to the mix. Not necessary?

I'm not sure how much to apply but a little trial and error would be easy.
PG is definitely not necessary and is primarily a humectant to make the tobacco stay moist longer.
To me, it has a discernible flavor that I don't care for but many people smoke aro's exclusively.

 

[LivinInPiperHell]

I'm not sure how much to apply but a little trial and error would be easy.
PG is definitely not necessary and is primarily a humectant to make the tobacco stay moist longer.
To me, it has a discernible flavor that I don't care for but many people smoke aro's exclusively.

Like many pipe smokers I started on aromatics then drifted towards non-aromatics.
Lately I've started enjoying aromatics that aren't gloopy or over-sauced, especially in the mornings or social occasions.

Unfortunately all I had in my cellar was 1lb of Mark Twain amongst the non-aromatics & a few tins of this & that. Over the Christmas rush I managed to sneak in 5lbs of baccy [Butternut Burley. Trout Stream. IQ. RLP-6. Mark Twain] so that will last me a year or so. Once it runs out I'll have hopefully worked out the art of topping.

I've got a few pounds of Burley from last year to experiment on. It will take me some time but I'll post my results when I do.
I'm leaning towards using honey & maple rather than sugar. That with dark rum & vanilla will hopefully produce a nice semi-aro.

 

[LivinInPiperHell]

Butternut Burley is my favourite aromatic [the 4noggins BB is much cheaper than the Scottys original] I'd be delighted if I could make a similar blend.
Not that there's anything wrong with the other aromatics that I bought. I'd be happy if I could recreate any of them.

 

[GreenDragon]

I put one drop of this into a small blend and it was pretty tasty. May be what you are looking for.

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

Once it runs out I'll have hopefully worked out the art of topping.

My recommendation to begin approximating the feeling you get from commercial aerobatics--knowing that this is not how they actually do it--is to use air-cured or flue-cured bright tobacco, and make black cavendish via the pressure cooker or insta pot methods with 2-5% vegetable glycerin. This will be the base for your flavouring attempts. The air cured can be blended in higher amounts, and will require less flavouring, while the flue cured would need to be used in lower amounts in a blend and would need to be flavored more heavily.

 

[LivinInPiperHell]

I put one drop of this into a small blend and it was pretty tasty. May be what you are looking for.

View attachment 29445

Thanks GD. I wondered from where the 'butternut' flavour was derived. That looks well worth trying.
Buying that would be heaps cheaper & easier than attempting to make ones own.

 

[LivinInPiperHell]

My recommendation to begin approximating the feeling you get from commercial aerobatics--knowing that this is not how they actually do it--is to use air-cured or flue-cured bright tobacco, and make black cavendish via the pressure cooker or insta pot methods with 2-5% vegetable glycerin. This will be the base for your flavouring attempts. The air cured can be blended in higher amounts, and will require less flavouring, while the flue cured would need to be used in lower amounts in a blend and would need to be flavored more heavily.

When checking out suppliers to accumulate what I need to start experimenting, it said that once the container of glycerine is opened it needs to be refrigerated where it keeps for 2-3 weeks before going off [turning rancid?]
What stops it from turning bad when added to flavourings as a topping?

 

[GreenDragon]

When checking out suppliers to accumulate what I need to start experimenting, it said that once the container of glycerine is opened it needs to be refrigerated where it keeps for 2-3 weeks before going off [turning rancid?]
What stops it from turning bad when added to flavourings as a topping?

I’ve never refrigerated glycerine. It doesn’t go bad. Ever. Probably just a standard disclaimer they slap on everything. Or just trying to make a lot of money.

 

[deluxestogie]

Here is a 27 page pdf (1997) on glycerine: https://www.aciscience.org/docs/Glycerine_-_an_overview.pdf

Bob

 

[LivinInPiperHell]

Here is a 27 page pdf (1997) on glycerine: https://www.aciscience.org/docs/Glycerine_-_an_overview.pdf

Bob

That's a long read but worth the effort.
Can't see any down side in using it on tobacco.

Thanks Bob.

GreenDragon; yep you were correct. It doesn't go 'off'.

 

[tullius]

it said that once the container of glycerine is opened it needs to be refrigerated where it keeps for 2-3 weeks before going off [turning rancid?]

don't buy it from wherever you read that: pure unadulterated bull hockey

 

[deluxestogie]

I would class glycerin among ketchup, mustard, soy sauce, whiskey and other eternals.

Bob

EDIT: One other point of trivia: Glycerin is a pure chemical, with a well defined chemical structure. There is no difference between "vegetable glycerin" and any other kind of glycerin. Glycerin is glycerin. How it was created, and on what day of the week, is meaningless.

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

There is no difference between "vegetable glycerin" and any other kind of glycerin. Glycerin is glycerin. How it was created, and on what day of the week, is meaningless.

There are some reasons for saying vegetable glycerin.
One is because that's what the bottle says.
Another is because chemical words scare some people, and hey, why the heck not reassure them with a much more familiar word?
And possibly more important--and I'm not here to out anyone--but there may be members who wonder if a vegan friendly glycerol exists.
Where things come from has different (or no) meaning to different individuals. That's actually why many of us are here growing our own and using WLT.

 

[LivinInPiperHell]

I would class glycerin among ketchup, mustard, soy sauce, whiskey and other eternals.

Bob

EDIT: One other point of trivia: Glycerin is a pure chemical, with a well defined chemical structure. There is no difference between "vegetable glycerin" and any other kind of glycerin. Glycerin is glycerin. How it was created, and on what day of the week, is meaningless.

Thanks for pointing out that distinction, or should I say, the lack off one.
The retailer with the instruction to ditch 2-3 weeks after opening, labels it's product as 'vegetable glycerine'.

After reading that long PDF I was scratching my head thinking it was odd how it did not make any mention of any distinction between veg or mineral glycerine.
Was starting to question my comprehension skills & was considering re-reading it to pay closer attention, lol.

 

[deluxestogie]

When the sourcing is categorical, like sunflower oil vs canola oil, there is a difference in the chemical composition of it. ("Oil" is categorical.) Pure table salt is sodium chloride, whereas "sea salt" is mostly sodium chloride, along with a number of sea water-derived contaminants. "When it Rains, it Pours" Morton salt is contaminated with fine silica, to prevent clumping in high humidity. Iodized salt is sodium chloride plus a salt of iodine. "Kosher" salt is merely certified to be just plain old sodium chloride--just like non-iodized, non-Morton table salt.

As for glycerin, its source matters to certain religious prohibitions, even though the final chemical is identical. [e.g. Orthodox rabbinical decisions have ruled that pork-derived insulin is just insulin, and so is therefor kosher, whereas pork-derived insulin is not halal.] I'm sure that some vegans consider the source of glycerin to be important.

Bob

 

[LivinInPiperHell]

I put one drop of this into a small blend and it was pretty tasty. May be what you are looking for.

View attachment 29445

They have some rather tasty looking flavourings.
Thought I may as well buy a few flavours since postage would be 3-4 times the cost of an ounce bottle.
Maple, plum & caramel all looked

I put one drop of this into a small blend and it was pretty tasty. May be what you are looking for.

View attachment 29445

Unfortunately LorAnn Oils does not deliver to Oz but I did find a distributor here.
They only stock the little 1 dram bottles but it's enough to get started.

They've got quite a range of flavours, many of which are water soluble.
I've ordered the vanilla butternut, caramel, chocolate, liquorice, maple & glycerine.