Why doesn't my cured leaf smell like cigar tobacco?

[ladaok]

.... cigar tobacco, smell and taste like cigar tobacco ? It grows well to good looking leaf, cures to nice colours & smell, BUT !

I strip the whole plant and dry all the leaves @ the same time ( waiting till the lower leaves turn yellow ) maybe too much nutrient ? soil too acid / alkaline ?

this is the seed I have .. some may NOT be cigar tobaccos ?

Dutch Ohio, Comstock Spanish, Florida Sumatra, Havana 142, Havana 503B, MD 609, Habana 2000, Havana Cuban, Costa Rica 589, Huehuetenango, Paris wrapper

ta ...robbie

 

[SmokesAhoy]

Re: Why doesn't my ....

Did you kiln it yet?

 

[deluxestogie]

Re: Why doesn't my ....

How old is the leaf? Have you kilned the leaf?

Nearly all tobaccos will smell "raw", which is a grassy/ammonia smell, after only color curing. From your list, Paris Wrapper is a flue-cure variety (despite its name), which can also be air-cured. Maryland (MD 609) can be used in cigars, but is its own class. Costa Rica 589 is Iztepeque, which is a primitive type that works okay in a cigar. The rest are cigar varieties.

If you don't have a kiln, this would be a good time to consider building one. Cigar leaf requires several years of natural aging, or one month in a kiln. Go to the Index of Key Forum Threads (http://fairtradetobacco.com/threads/3868-Key-threads-in-the-FTT-forum) and look at Curing: Other. You can use a converted, old refrigerator, or build a kiln from wood and insulation board. The "Exoskeletal" kiln and the "Endoskeletal" kiln are conceptually the same, but the wood framing is either outside the insulation or inside it. The essential requirements are a well insulated box large enough for your needs, a temperature controller (from Ebay) and a Crockpot for heat and water.

In the Flue-Curing section, the Cozy Can, which is nothing more than a study of how absolutely simple a flue-curing chamber can be, can also be used as a kiln. I think the general design of the Endoskeletal kiln, though, is a much better approach.

Bob

 

[Bex]

Depending on how involved or professional you want to get with this, I used an old chest freezer for my curing chamber - I've seen others here get those nice commercial fridges (cheap, because they don't have to work) and convert them. While I use my chamber primarily for flue curing, it's an artificial environment that you can use for kilning, as well. I've had a similar experience to yours - the leaf looks great but still smells 'fresh'. That dissipates over time - and kilning can make that time go faster.

 

[SmokesAhoy]

I've wondered about the safety of using my frig kiln with hot plate heat source as a flue cure chamber. Your freezer is just the standard moulded plastic lined deal right bex?

 

[riverstone]

Smokes
I used mine this year and it worked very well. I sit my crock pot on pavers (cobbles) and they keep the direct heat from the bottom of the fridge. I also put as many pavers as I can fit in to use as a passive heat source. It evens out temp swings and stops the crock pot from cycling too often.

 

[SmokesAhoy]

I do the same thing but with fire bricks. I guess 170 or w/e isn't a huge difference from the 130 it can occasionally hit when kilning

 

[burge]

In the meantime get some from Don. Some people have emailed me telling me there leaf they have grown is not great but okay. Don's leaf is properly aged.

 

[deluxestogie]

Smokes,
An empty Crockpot gone wild will max out at the boiling point, or thereabouts. A hotplate used to heat a kiln, should there be a control mishap, can set the whole thing on fire. (100 to 300 watts vs. 1000 to 1500 watts)

Bob

 

[SmokesAhoy]

That's a good point, I guess I was just a little leery about running it dry. I'll try it for my next run

 

[ladaok]

Thanks you fellas, i'll read up and make something to kiln the leaf

ANOTHER QUESTION : is there a variety I should have ? .... what would your pick of the bunch be from my seed ?

ta ... robbie