Hello from Prescott

[cmcnabb1]

Hello, my name is Cameron and I am located in Prescott, AZ.
I am wanting to grow, cure, and ferment my own tobacco for making my own cigars.
I know that the traditional method for curing cigar tobacco is air-curing and the tradition fermentation process for cigar tobacco is staking the cured tobacco leaves into piles. However, both of these processes take too long so I am trying to find out ways to cure and ferment the tobacco leaves as quickly as possible.
I know a little about fuel curing tobacco leaves, which should cure the tobacco leaves much quicker than air-curing, but now I'm looking into ways to speed up the fermentation process. In addition, I also want to flavor my tobacco leaves with honey and with liquors, such as Scotch, Burbon, Amaretto, and Drambuie (a Scotch based - Honey liqueur).
I was wondering if you might have any suggestions for me?
I was thinking about maybe steaming my tobacco leaves and then letting them dry out. Would that speed up the fermentation process as well as allow me to flavor my tobacco leaves? What about putting the tobacco leaves in a sealed mason jar and then putting those in a pressure cooker? I think I've read comments from you in regards to this?

Thank you very much, Cameron

 

[deluxestogie]

I would suggest you begin by reading the New Growers' FAQ and scanning through the Index of Key Forum Threads--both linked in the menu bar.

Bob

 

[Alpine]

Welcome to FTT. What you’re looking for is a kiln!

pier

 

[cmcnabb1]

Welcome to FTT. What you’re looking for is a kiln!

pier

Thanks - When you say "what you're looking for is a kiln", are you referring to a kiln where I would fuel cure the tobacco leaves? What about methods to speed up the fermentation process? Any ideas on that?
Do you know how good fuel cured tobacco is in regards to using it for cigars?

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

Thanks - When you say "what you're looking for is a kiln", are you referring to a kiln where I would fuel cure the tobacco leaves? What about methods to speed up the fermentation process? Any ideas on that?
Do you know how good fuel cured tobacco is in regards to using it for cigars?

He meant a kiln is for increasing fermentation.

By "fuel cure" I assume you mean flue cure. You could do that but you don't want to. Your tobacco will suck. That method is only for cigarettes and pipe.

Using a kiln to assist the aging process is the only thing I recommend. Growing your own tobacco is an involved, labour intensive, and patient endeavor, and producing cigar leaf worth smoking is the longest of them all.

 

[MarcL]

Welcome to Fair Trade Tobacco.
I notice, for some reason, at the top of this thread there are a number of search items you asked about. (maybe its just me?)

cigar tobacco - curing - curing / drying chamber - curing chambers - curing tobacco - fermenting tobacco - growing your own

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

Maybe play around with whole leaf before you decide to grow your own.

 

[Charly]

Welcome to FTT.

 

[CobGuy]

Welcome from another Desert Rat (Lake Montezuma / Rimrock) … I lived in Flagstaff for 17 years and Prescott for 6 years before moving here.
It's pretty challenging to grow tobacco here in the arid southwest.
Growing, itself, isn't too terrible but you'll need a controlled environment to color and air-cure.
As suggested, read and read some more …. there's a ton of info on this site.

~Darin

 

[cmcnabb1]

Welcome from another Desert Rat (Lake Montezuma / Rimrock) … I lived in Flagstaff for 17 years and Prescott for 6 years before moving here.
It's pretty challenging to grow tobacco here in the arid southwest.
Growing, itself, isn't too terrible but you'll need a controlled environment to color and air-cure.
As suggested, read and read some more …. there's a ton of info on this site.

~Darin

Thank you Darrin for the response. Did you ever try to grow and process your own tobacco when you lived here?
Any experience with flue curing tobacco in this area? I know cigar tobacco is traditionally air-cured, but have you tried using flue cured tobacco for making cigars?
Also, any tips on how I can flavor my cigar tobacco, with flavorings such as honey or Scotch?

 

[CobGuy]

While living in Prescott, I did have one good grow which was all Semois.
If you prep the seeds and soil correctly, the growing part is not too difficult and using a cardboard box to maintain humidity during the color-cure seems to work well.

Flue-curing isn't a "regional" thing as it involves a closed chamber with a heat and humidity source and can be done almost anywhere.
Large operations have traditionally done this in flue-curing barns but you won't be using that much space.
Also, because of the naturally lower sugar content, cigar varieties are not flue-cured.
The only time I incorporated any flue-cured leaf, aka Virginia / Brightleaf, was using Red FCV as a wrapper.

The others have eluded to using a "Kiln" which, for all practical purposes, is a flue-cure chamber running at lower temps.
Definitely spend a BUNCH of time reading the Growers FAQ here … I'm still reading after 5 years!

~Darin

Edit: Forgot to mention that @GreenDragon can chime in about using a little liquor in the cigar mix … adds a nice aroma.

 

[cmcnabb1]

While living in Prescott, I did have one good grow which was all Semois.
If you prep the seeds and soil correctly, the growing part is not too difficult and using a cardboard box to maintain humidity during the color-cure seems to work well.

Flue-curing isn't a "regional" thing as it involves a closed chamber with a heat and humidity source and can be done almost anywhere.
Large operations have traditionally done this in flue-curing barns but you won't be using that much space.
Also, because of the naturally lower sugar content, cigar varieties are not flue-cured.
The only time I incorporated any flue-cured leaf, aka Virginia / Brightleaf, was using Red FCV as a wrapper.

The others have eluded to using a "Kiln" which, for all practical purposes, is a flue-cure chamber running at lower temps.
Definitely spend a BUNCH of time reading the Growers FAQ here … I'm still reading after 5 years!

~Darin

Edit: Forgot to mention that @GreenDragon can chime in about using a little liquor in the cigar mix … adds a nice aroma.

Can you tell me a bit more about how your air-cured your tobacco crop, while at the same time maintaining enough humidly so that the leaves don't get to dry or dry green while they are being air-cured? How long did it take for you to fully air-cure your crop? Did you use a Kiln to ferment your crop? If not, how did you ferment your crop and how long did the fermentation last for?

 

[CobGuy]

As the leaves start to yellow, from the bottom up, I prime these and place them in a cardboard box.
These will need to be checked and rotated / shuffled until they achieve that nice, yellow color.
After that, they will need to completely dry to brown. Creating a tent or closet for this works well so they don't dry too fast.
Once this step is completed you can either put it in long term storage or use a kiln for 4-6 weeks to finish up the fermentation.
I've built a kiln from an old refrigerator and use a small crock pot for the heat / humidity source.
However, if you kiln the tobacco inside separate containers, the extra humidity may not be necessary.

This is all just BARELY scratching the surface of info and you'll need to spend a lot of time reading to get it all.
Perhaps someday we can meet up for a smoke and discuss this ad nauseum!

~Darin

 

[cmcnabb1]

As the leaves start to yellow, from the bottom up, I prime these and place them in a cardboard box.
These will need to be checked and rotated / shuffled until they achieve that nice, yellow color.
After that, they will need to completely dry to brown. Creating a tent or closet for this works well so they don't dry too fast.
Once this step is completed you can either put it in long term storage or use a kiln for 4-6 weeks to finish up the fermentation.
I've built a kiln from an old refrigerator and use a small crock pot for the heat / humidity source.
However, if you kiln the tobacco inside separate containers, the extra humidity may not be necessary.

This is all just BARELY scratching the surface of info and you'll need to spend a lot of time reading to get it all.
Perhaps someday we can meet up for a smoke and discuss this ad nauseum!

~Darin

Interesting. I've never heard of someone air-curing their tobacco in a cardboard box. I thought that the tobacco leaves needed to be strung/stitched together and hung up to properly air-dry.
My friend has a enclosed tent-like thing that has a humidifier and heat source (lamps) in it. I was wondering if something like this would be good to air-cure my tobacco leaves???
In regards to fermentation, I've read that some people ferment their tobacco leaves in sealed mason jars that are inside a styrofoam box.
That sounds good to me man. Let me know when you make a trip up to Prescott and we can meet up!

 

[CobGuy]

The box is for the color-curing and then you would hang to dry. During that time, you don't want too much moisture or heat as this can lead to mold. Next time I'm coming down there for some gold panning I'll give you a heads-up!

 

[red]

Hello, my name is Cameron and I am located in Prescott, AZ.

Thank you very much, Cameron

Sorry, no suggestions, just a bienvenida from San Manuel, neighbor Remember to keep the humidity up to a right level. If you only want something to puff, dampen a leaf in what flavoring you like (stogies were at one time made with rolled leaf, not chopped tobacco), allow it to damp dry and smoke. I raise the wild version of wivian and use it as a medicinal. It's a deer tongue, and here, at least, is a perennial. Other varieties can't handle the mid desert sun in summer. But, there's always hope. Best to you. Let us know how you're doing.

 

[smoknron]

Welcome Cameron ! So much to learn about tobacco and process here, you'll no doubt appreciate the experienced here !