Cased Tobacco Pipe Blend Recipes

[Hemlock]

Started experimental recipe #2
130g

20% Krumovgrad
21% FCV Lemon
29% Red VA
25% Perique
5% Latakia

Misted the Virginias with WLT casing #1




I will let this one stay in the press for a couple weeks this time and plan to heat in the oven for a stoving effect at the end for a few hours. Updates to follow.

 

[AceFour]

Happy little accidents time . . .

Basma Bastard

Happy little accidents! I tried to make 2 more Angel of Izmir plugs and when I pulled them they seemed small. Thinking back I actually forgot to add Izmir to the blend. Ups Error GIFfrom Ups GIFs The end result is a pretty smooth smoke without the citrus of Izmir.

blog.acefour.org

 

[Hemlock]

Started experimental recipe #2
130g

20% Krumovgrad
21% FCV Lemon
29% Red VA
25% Perique
5% Latakia

Misted the Virginias with WLT casing #1


View attachment 53340View attachment 53341

I will let this one stay in the press for a couple weeks this time and plan to heat in the oven for a stoving effect at the end for a few hours. Updates to follow.

Pressed this to the limit using a bar on the clamp handle, tightening several times. Stoved the plug for 4 hrs at 190F while still in the SS tube. Didn't lose any mass from the heat. Let it sit 1 more week in a vacuum sealed pouch.

Here's the finished product. Super dense flake. Really good burn stayed lit and smouldered even though not very dry. First taste is as good as commercial. Very full natural flavoured, perique forward. Quite impressed. As good as something I would buy

 

[Juxtaposer-]

I have three blends that are in the process of a double press method. (Press for six months, air for two weeks, press for six more months). They are done airing and are being re-pressed at the moment. The noodle press works great for this as the puck fits perfectly into the 4oz and 8oz jars I have. Three hours in the press with tightness checks then pushed out into the jars that will hold the pressed tobacco tight. After six months, sliced, broken and aired by storing in larger jars that get their lids opened at least once a day and occasionally dumped in a bowl for more exposure. The idea is to let them get some air without drying out. All three blends were of course taste tested during this time. The straight Virginias that were cased with citric acid, and maple syrup were already amazing. The WLT ripe Va and the ’22 bright had a lot to do with it I’m sure. The coffee, chocolate, date syrup cased, made with red tip burley, dark air, and Maryland 609 was a fine blend that showcased the awesome red tip. The third blend was Maryland, ‘22 bright, with a little red tip, cased with licorice root, aniseed tea, and maple syrup. Love this stuff!

 

[Hemlock]

Used some of the WLT 1:1 hand-tied orphan case bright Virginia I bought over a year ago and ripe Virginia adding 12% perique to get another plug. The hand tied had a somewhat garlic aroma, strangely, but faded when destemmed.

Casing for Virginia leaf was 1:1 sugar water, some vinegar for sugar inversion and a Swiss organic prune nectar. Layered in perique while stuffing the tube. 1 week press then stoved at 200F for 4 hrs. Final plug 6 oz.

 

[Hemlock]

Pressed this to the limit using a bar on the clamp handle, tightening several times. Stoved the plug for 4 hrs at 190F while still in the SS tube. Didn't lose any mass from the heat. Let it sit 1 more week in a vacuum sealed pouch.

Here's the finished product. Super dense flake. Really good burn stayed lit and smouldered even though not very dry. First taste is as good as commercial. Very full natural flavoured, perique forward. Quite impressed. As good as something I would buy

View attachment 53550
View attachment 53549

Update on above experiment.

After another few weeks of resting the plug in a vacuum pack, it's now sliced and off for jar storage for an indeterminate time. I smoked as a broken flake and it is complex, cool and full even at just a month. I'm sure it will improve over time. If this was a commercial brand, tinned and labeled with a catchy name, limited release etc, I would likely pay up and hoard it
It's rewarding to achieve such results at home with whole leaf.

Middle Brook Flake (125g)

 

[Juxtaposer-]

I have made some blending tobaccos with my recent WLT purchase.
Cased, pressed, cut, and rubbed out So they are ready to blend with some of my other loose blending tobaccos.

Red VA cased with licorice root and molasses.
Canadian VA cased with licorice root, molasses, and elder flower.
Pensilvania binder cased with cocoa and date syrup.

I am planning to make a cake using some of my 12+ year old Turkish.

50%. Canadian VA
25% Red VA
12.5% Pensilvania binder
12.5% Aged Turkish

I just finished smoking a test bowl and am so exited I had to post right away.

i have also made a few half leaf twists with some Tennessee dark fired.
Some with maple syrup, some with molasses. Both sets of twists were also pressed and jarred. This will be my next project, to make a blend using this TN tobacco.

 

[Hemlock]

I have made some blending tobaccos with my recent WLT purchase.
Cased, pressed, cut, and rubbed out So they are ready to blend with some of my other loose blending tobaccos.

Red VA cased with licorice root and molasses.
Canadian VA cased with licorice root, molasses, and elder flower.
Pensilvania binder cased with cocoa and date syrup.

I am planning to make a cake using some of my 12+ year old Turkish.

50%. Canadian VA
25% Red VA
12.5% Pensilvania binder
12.5% Aged Turkish

I just finished smoking a test bowl and am so exited I had to post right away.

i have also made a few half leaf twists with some Tennessee dark fired.
Some with maple syrup, some with molasses. Both sets of twists were also pressed and jarred. This will be my next project, to make a blend using this TN tobacco.

Post us some pics! What are the specifics of the casing recipes if you could share?

 

[Juxtaposer-]

Post us some pics! What are the specifics of the casing recipes if you could share?

Pics of tobacco, spray bottle, noodle press, knife, jar, hmm… I guess some pics would be nice. I did think about it. I thought it a bit redundant. Maybe some pics of the twists would be nice once they come out of the jar thats holding them pressed.
The casing water to sugar ratios are not specific as the water evaporates any way, and the total amount of casing used is variable, I would rarely use the total amount. I am not expecting to reproduce any of my blends but am going for one of a kind creations. I would guess a table spoon of syrup to 4oz of water.
I don’t want my posts to be bogged down in details such as “ the water is distilled”. Do you think I should be doing that? There is a whole paragraph of what the best water to use is and I know distilled water is not the “best” choice nor is it the “worst”.
I feel tobacco blending is an art and once the basic mechanics are learned trial and error is the way to go.

 

[Juxtaposer-]

The licorice root was specifically two table spoons of root pieces in eight ounces of boiling water off the heat source for five minutes. Strained with two table spoons of molasses added.
The elder flower was the same except two table spoons of dried elder flowers were added the same time as the licorice root.
The cocoa was two table spoons powder added to four ounces of hot water stirred and strained through a coffee filter with one table spoon of date syrup added.

 

[Juxtaposer-]

The citric acid was about 1/4 heaping teaspoon per 8oz. This was also in the VA’s casings.

 

[deluxestogie]

I feel tobacco blending is an art and once the basic mechanics are learned trial and error is the way to go.

I'm sure that is how many of us blend tobacco or, for that matter, cook food. But a novice blender (or chef) searches for a starting point, with recipe specifics. Quantitative specifics, even if they are just guestimations.

Bob

 

[Hemlock]

The licorice root was specifically two table spoons of root pieces in eight ounces of boiling water off the heat source for five minutes. Strained with two table spoons of molasses added.
The elder flower was the same except two table spoons of dried elder flowers were added the same time as the licorice root.
The cocoa was two table spoons powder added to four ounces of hot water stirred and strained through a coffee filter with one table spoon of date syrup added.

Thanks @Juxtaposer- those are helpful notes. I'm still in trial and learning phase. So far I have found all my casings to be extremely subtle in both aroma and taste in the smoking, even if the concentrated casing itself was sweet and fragrant. It's a better outcome than overpowering I suppose... but I'd like to achieve something evident if I'm putting the time and effort in the process. Lately I've only been doing plugs for flakes so maybe it's muting flavors more than ribbon cut or rubbed out flakes.

Your ratios of additions are higher than I've been using so I may try higher amounts of ingredients in future batches.

I just ordered some whole licorice root which I'll probably use with some burley WLT in the cellar.

 

[Hemlock]

Special thanks to @deluxestogie and @AceFour for inspiring and sharing experience on home tobacco blending with whole leaf tobacco. A little bit more trial and learning, and I may think twice about buying any more commercial blends.

Sharing shots from a recent plug. Used the following leaf from WLT
Canadian Lemon, Red, Hand-Tied bright, Ripe Virginias, Samsun and Dark Air Cured. Date sugar based casing.

This time skipped the perique.

 

[deluxestogie]

Wonderful looking flake, and a no kidding, plug cutter.

Bob

 

[AceFour]

I believe that qualifies as tobacco pr0n! Well done!

 

[Hemlock]

Tried a hand at a dark fired recipe using WLT.

54% Virginias (ripe, bright and lemon) cased with 1:1 sugar water w/w, plum extract.
24% Dark Fired unprocessed
15% Burley Red Tips toasted in oven for a few minutes to tame it... casing was boiled with tablespoon of cacao nibs
7% Dark Air Cured untoasted but cased with same as Burley

This was tube pressed and then stoved at 200F for a couple hours. Didn't turn out as black as I was hoping. Maybe needed to case it more or stove longer or perhaps just too much virginia- though I wanted to ensure it was balanced.

I then decided to make a broken flake out of it, thinking I will run it out more, along the lines of making my own MacBaren Old Dark Fired ready rubbed. For now melding the flavours in a tight vacuum pack before I will age a little longer in mason jars.

Preliminary taste test suggests it's a good hearty smoke. A little rough but I hope it smooths out with time.

Happy to hear feedback or suggestions. Would be curious to hear from any folks that have mastered a dark fired flake recipe that emphasizes the leaf without being too extreme.





From L:R. Dark air, dark fired, burley red tips

 

[Juxtaposer-]

Is the dark fired a VA or a Burley?

 

[deluxestogie]

Dark air-cured and Dark fire-cured are separate USDA use classes, not closely related to burley. (There are a small number of dark air/dark fire varieties that contain the name, "Virginia", unrelated to flue-cured varieties.)

Bob

 

[Juxtaposer-]

Dark air-cured and Dark fire-cured are separate USDA use classes, not closely related to burley. (There are a small number of dark air/dark fire varieties that contain the name, "Virginia", unrelated to flue-cured varieties.)

Bob

So how would these compare to a dark fired Kentucky?