deluxestogie Grow Log 2014

[Bex]

A man of many talents.....So, is this auricle thing only for cigars, or can you do something with them for cigarettes??? And great idea on how to pull up the stalks, as well. I had a heck of a time pulling them last year - most of the plants that were grown were located in a greenhouse (and this year, the tunnel). I imagine if you watered the tunnel well (and then hoped for sun) your technique could be duplicated. It was a wrestling match, trying to get them out.

 

[deluxestogie]

I see black pepercorns in the pickle jar but what's the other stuff, roasted sesame seeds ?

Every time I make a pickle of any kind, I spice it differently. These particular two are similar:

• black peppercorns
• yellow mustard seed
• dill seed
• garlic cloves (1 head per jar!)

The brine allows them to ferment at room temperature:

• 1 qt. water
• 1/4 cup salt
• 1/4 cup white vinegar

I allow them to sit on the counter for about a week, agitating them several times a day, then move them to the refrigerator for ~4-6 weeks. Although the fermentation (lactic) happens best in a brine without the vinegar, its presence eliminates the risk of Clostridium botulinum growth. I seldom use heat treatment for pickles.

...is this auricle thing only for cigars, or can you do something with them for cigarettes???

Don't know. I expect that it would work. (Dashboard curing is a certified redneck method. Place the sealed bag on the dashboard of a closed automobile during the summer.) Give it a try, and report.

Bob

 

[rustycase]

IF auricle is the scrap left on the stalk after harvesting a leaf, just as Bob, I have gone back later, after they browned out, and grabbed them to mix in with my ciggy blend. Nothing wrong with it... it's good tobacco.

I hope to try those cherry peppers next year, Bob. Our kid brought some hot & Sweet peppers home from Trader Joe's store and I thought they were great!
...Have not herd of mini pear tomatoes, though... kinda like a tomatillo?

Very bad germination this year with the hots, and the deer destroyed most my peppers, beans, and tomatoes a couple times this year.
Next year I'll have some sort of heated germinating table and much more of the cheapo deer netting. It IS effective, here.
Best
rc

 

[deluxestogie]

...Have not herd of mini pear tomatoes, though... kinda like a tomatillo?

Google "yellow pear tomato".

Bob

 

[deluxestogie]

Some of My Year-old Wrappers

After curing and kilning wrapper, its appearance is fairly well fixed. What then changes with age are its flavor/aroma and its burning qualities. My greatest challenge in appreciating this is to not smoke up the wrapper after it has rested a few weeks out of the kiln. It's good then, but only gets better.

Below are two of my wrappers from the 2013 crop that miraculously survived.

The FL Sumatra fairly well demonstrates the difference that stalk position makes in determining the final color of the leaf. Though kilned in different batches, the kilning conditions were identical for these upper leaves and the tips. Lower leaf (not shown) yields a light EMS--almost Spanish claro. I did not fully rehydrate these leaves for the photo, since they needed to immediately go back into storage.

The 2013 Machu Picchu Havana (only the 2013 year, and only this variety) produced a lot of marbled or harlequin coloration. The photo is of leaf from the mid-stalk. Although no avid consumer of industrial cigars would drop a dime for such a strange looking wrapper, their taste is smooth and slightly sweet. The aroma suggests a vague vanilla, but not really aromatic in the flavored sense. They burn fairly well, but are not particularly sturdy. I have no clear idea of what causes this harlequin effect. The spots near the leaf tips are likely from sunshine on rain droplets.

Improbable, but yummy cigar

Although wrapped in a conventional FL Sumatra leaf, and double-bound with Besuki, the filler is entirely burley. It's 2/3 BigBonner red tip burley (2012 crop), and 1/3 light Harrow Velvet burley (2013 crop).

Burley blended into an otherwise Caribbean cigar cranks up the nicotine quite a bit. But in the absence of dark Caribbean tobaccos, the nicotine seems lower. The flavors and aroma are smooth and far more subtle than you might expect from burley.

I would caution that the red tip burley needs some age on it. My experience with Larry's burley is that some time in the late spring (following the year of harvest), it significantly changes, if allowed to stay in low case. The changes after that first sweat are slower and less noticeable. By the second summer after harvest, I think it reaches its prime. (I believe it is TN89.)

If you've never smoked a burley cigar, don't laugh. Well into the 20th century, many American cigars were made with burley, either as wrapper or filler.

Bob

 

[Cigar]

That Fla Sumatra leaf looks very..very nice there Deluxestogie.

 

[Bex]

I have no clear idea of what causes this harlequin effect. The spots near the leaf tips are likely from sunshine on rain droplets.

When still growing on the plant, would these spots present as yellow spots on the green leaf??

 

[deluxestogie]

When still growing on the plant, would these spots present as yellow spots on the green leaf??

It looks like happy, homogeneously green leaf. And then it morphs into harlequin patterns during curing. I suspect it's something related to curing conditions during a specific window of time, but I certainly don't recall any circumstances that were unusual for that variety alone.

That Fla Sumatra leaf looks very..very nice there Deluxestogie.

FL Sumatra provides me with the most consistently excellent sun-grown wrapper, with ~80% wrapper grade.

Bob

 

[deluxestogie]

The Watcher in the Garden

Some time during the chill of night, a mushroom emerged from the damp soil of my garden. It makes no sound. It's just watching. It watches me. It particularly watches the neighbor's nearby goats. I can't be certain, but I believe I saw it blink once. I'm afraid to cut it down.

Bob

 

[Cigar]

thats really cool deluxestogie..I had a pow-wow with one of those many years ago..then next day came-up with great idea?

 

[Bex]

The Watcher in the Garden

Some time during the chill of night, a mushroom emerged from the damp soil of my garden. It makes no sound. It's just watching. It watches me. It particularly watches the neighbor's nearby goats. I can't be certain, but I believe I saw it blink once. I'm afraid to cut it down.

Bob

Don't cut it down. If you look really carefully, you can see little fairies sitting underneath it. If you cut it, you will leave them totally exposed...and angry, which is not a good thing.
Actually, in the dim recesses of my memory, I seem to recall another post of yours regarding mushrooms coming up last year....is your new mushroom in the same area??
And cool about your neighbor having goats - one of my favorite animals. I live in cattle country, and some of the old timers keep a goat or two in with their cattle herd, as, for whatever reason, the goat keeps the cattle calm. With all the veg/tobacco that you grow, you must have pretty good fencing...

 

[dvick003]

2000 Words

Bob

Hey Bob,

Do you have an update on the PA Swarr Hibshman? Any notes on the drying/curing/smoking of this big leaf?

Gavin

 

[deluxestogie]

Do you have an update on the Hibshman? Any notes on the drying/curing/smoking of this big leaf?

None of the PA Swarr-Hibshman has made it into the kiln yet. It has color-cured to a medium brown, and is presently hanging in the shed.

Bob

 

[dvick003]

Thanks for the update. Can't wait to see how it does down the road...

Gavin

 

[Bex]

Looking at this photo again, I am wondering how easy it was to get up from that position.....

 

[deluxestogie]

Two assistants removed the leaf from my lap. Then I just stood up.

Bob

 

[BarG]

Nice photo Bob, you could probably use that leaf as a para-sail to stand back up with a little wind.

 

[deluxestogie]

Leaf that Dries Green

PA Swarr-Hibshman suckers on the left. Two strings of Olor on the right.

What to do? The usual answer is to throw it out. It's worthless. That may be true. In the photo above, we see three strings of leaf that were harvested in late October, with curing conditions that were too cool and too dry. I had 4 strings of leaf that looked like this, hanging in the shed, and were crispy dry.

I left one string hanging in the shed, as a control. The other three were hung on the clothesline, and left to fend for themselves. They were subjected to sun, drizzle, day temps in the mid 30s to mid 50s, night temps down as low as 11ºF, and winds as high as 35 mph. There was nothing to lose.

Olor.

As you can see, the wind had its way with them, but they hung in there. The sun is gradually breaking down the chlorophyll. The PA Swarr-Hibshman looks like shriveled, dark green weeds--much worse for the wear.

They will continue to hang. The control string, still in the shed, has not changed at all. I may end up with brown leaf that tastes like garbage, or it may be smokable. I may allow them to hang through the heavy rain that's due in a couple of days. I haven't decided yet.

Bob

 

[leverhead]

Do you think pressure curing (perique) some of it would be a worthy experiment?

 

[deluxestogie]

Do you think pressure curing (perique) some of it would be a worthy experiment?

Maybe I'll try that with the control string, once the press is available.

Bob