Preparing Burley for cigarette blend

[Knucklehead]

Have you tried airing out the burley with the ammonia smell? I had some like that and airing it out on the porch got rid of the smell.

 

[AmaxB]

Yes AlabamaKnucklehead I broke it apart and the smell is pretty much gone. Am really just trying things to see what the tobacco will smoke like after playing with it.
Not really interested in making a Marlboro or Camel, but rather nice full bodied cigs that smoke smooth.
I did 3 hands of Burley last night (gave em a bath in the Honey / Maple till soggy) MD Red Tip - MD mid stalk - Dark Air Cured. Sampled a leaf of the dark this after noon (was nice) than bagged it.
I'll do the other 2 (sample and bag) here in a bit. Think I'll leave em in the bags for a day or two than let em finish drying out. Took a few pictures I need to re-size them and I'll post up.

 

[AmaxB]

The tub with Honey / Maple Syrup solution


A little Tobacco


The Hands

 

[istanbulin]

I found a Burley casing recipe in tobaccodocuments.org which belongs to RJR, created for duplicating Marlboro.



The differences between Method A and B are only the sources of sugar.

 

[leverhead]

I just looked up St. John's Bread, it's Carob Pods.

 

[AmaxB]

LOL St. Johns Bread I wondered now I need to see what Carob Pods are.

 

[Randy]

AmaxB how long did you soak the tobacco in mixture?

Randy

 

[istanbulin]

LOL St. Johns Bread I wondered now I need to see what Carob Pods are.

Carob pods or Carob beans are the fruits of the Carob tree. They have a delicious taste.

 

[deluxestogie]

Carob is often available in health food stores, as a replacement for chocolate. It has a similar taste.

Bob

 

[AmaxB]

AmaxB how long did you soak the tobacco in mixture?

Randy

Hi Randy
I am new to all of this so but not afraid to get my feet wet. I soaked until it penetrated the leaf. I sampled the three types of Burley after they hung for about 18 hours.
It seemed to be working but the Red Tips were still a bit harsh for me, am leaving them in sealed bags for two days than will remove and let them dry out and sample more.
I used 1 and a half gallons water, 2 cups syrup, and 1/4 cup honey that had gone to sugar. I think maybe a cup of honey would be better.
Am going to do another batch today with Honey & Molasses and maybe some white sugar.

 

[DonH]

Did you toast the leaves? That's what will make Burley smoother.

 

[AmaxB]

Hi DonH
Not with this stuff here I haven't (not Yet) I got a special oven here (but is small bout 3 cubic feet) I use for circuit boards, I built a year ago.
it has Quartz emitters Med. wave, 2 thermal censers, and a Hi Tech controller. I can hold a temp at 1C plus / minus for as long as I want can also thermal profile if I want. It has air circulation to.
Am thinking I might make some thing bigger using this controller so I can do more than a pile at a time I could use it as kiln or toaster. I'll take a picture (my little oven) and put it up so you can see what I am talking about.

 

[SmokesAhoy]

Yeah toasting alone improves the harshness, the sauce is there to change ph and mouth feel. Ordinary kitchen ovens do a fine job, just preheat first. Try just toasting the leaf you already saturated at different temps/times to see what you like the most.

 

[AmaxB]

Thanks for the advice SmokesAhoy I did some sample tobacco I got a month ago with the kitchen oven and the Micro Wave. It worked out pretty well, I got a bacteria infection in my lungs a year ago and lost most of the left one. It is growing back now they told me it would take bout 5 years any way I can't smoke strong like I used to. I am new to leaf tobacco and having a lot of fun in discovery right now. I am 56 and remember a time of lighting up and really enjoying the smoke, that got lost over the years. After smoking some leaf I got it back and am having a hell of a good time with the different taste and strength of combinations.
The burley that was strong on ammonia was a little wicked for me after soaking in the dip it really helped it out and it has a nice full flavor. It comes out of the bag today so I'll toast some and sample it.

 

[AmaxB]

Here is my little oven the dark brown box on top houses the controls

 

[DonH]

I don't think it's necessary to dump the leaves in a tub of syrup. You don't need that much sugar and you may leach out nicotine and flavor. You can just shred it and spray it with a solution of a cup of water and a teaspoon or a little more of some sweetener, then toast it at 200 to 250F until it dries, turning it over once. Then take it out of the oven and spray it lightly again with the solution, put it in a ziploc overnight until the moisture is evenly distributed and you're good to go. Simple really.

 

[AmaxB]

I like your post above DonH I guess I am complicating things.

 

[SmokesAhoy]

we often do complicate things for ourselves

my leaf is all dry, all i do is lay the leaf down on a baking tin, pinch the midrib out, shattering the leaf holding it.then flat hand into the pile to crumble it to desired consistency. a bit of baking soda and molasses dissolved into about a 1/4 cup water, then pour the leaf shrapnel into a tupperware, the water solution over it, kneed it up till all water is absorbed, then put it in the oven at 200 until it is mostly dry, agitate with fingers and let it go a little extra time, then just put it into an airtight container.

the trick to sauce is don't make it too strong, and there is no trick to toasting, if it's dry its done. i pull it out when most is crispy dry but i know a few clumps still have moisture in them, so the airtight container will redistribute moisture over time.

 

[AmaxB]

I see in the past I toasted till it was um toasty I may have over done it SmokesAhoy
I'll try your method with molasses and honey
Thank You Guy

 

[Brown Thumb]

I grew va509 burley this year and it is not harsh after 5 months shredded and bagged ?