Whole Leaf Cigarette Tobacco

[WLT3]

Hello all ! I'm going to make a purchase of couple of pounds. Thinking about Flue Cured Virginia Red Leaf. I was making my order and then i ram into this site , talking about Processing whole leaf tobacco before consuming. There was a big red warning text: "Consuming Whole Leaf Tobacco that has not been processed can be dangerous!" So ofcourse this made me do little more research and not just go and buy

So what i learned is that you should toast the leaf, so the dangerous chemicals in it will fade away.

And what i was curious about is that , are these leaf types like Flue Cured Virginia for an example , already processed/toasted so the chemicals have faded?

I know you need to remove stem, shred it yourself and process it that way. But are they already toast processed, so there is no chemicals ?

- Kind Regards , Jesse!

 

[leverhead]

..."Consuming Whole Leaf Tobacco that has not been processed can be dangerous!"...

Welcome! Where did you read that? Are you going to be making cigarettes?

 

[DGBAMA]

Welcome Jesse.

I also am curious where you saw that warning.

Toasting should not be necessary if you get good leaf. It is a technique normally used to remove harshness from leaf that is not well aged. Mostly burley. Flue cured does not need toasting.

For a first order I suggest the sampler here:
http://wholeleaftobacco.com/SAMPLER-of-7-types-of-Cigarette-tobacco-Smplr7.htm

It is enough of each common cigarette tobacco to figure out what you like without breaking the bank.

 

[Freeotatv]

Welcome jesse.

The leaf that whole leaf tobacco sells has been cured /processed so when you receive it...it is ready to shred and smoke.

Toasting a d casing is a personal preference.

If you use maryland in you mix instead of burley...there is no reason to toast...but i may recommend casing.

Current blend is

30% red va
30% va bright leaf
20% maryland 609
10% prilep
10% dark air

I posted a diy recipe in the casing section...

But for your first order you may wana buy some of wlt's casings which are really good.

Tbe leaf sampler pack is a good move

You probably want to start thinking about a shredder

Good luck

 

[FmGrowit]

Welcome to the forum. I too would very much like to know where you read the warning about whole leaf tobacco being dangerous.

 

[deluxestogie]

That would be here: http://fumo-bros-tobacco.com/how-to-process-whole-leaf-tobacco.html

Bob

 

[Bex]

Welcome, Jesse!
If the information that you have read is from the link listed above, note that they say 'these chemicals make smoking raw tobacco very unpleasant'. They are talking about taking a green leaf directly from the plant and smoking it. Which, indeed would be very unpleasant. The whole leaf tobacco that you buy on the internet has already been cured - it is no longer 'raw', and you can smoke it as it is without doing anything else. If you are attempting to duplicate a commercial cigarette that you have been smoking, then chances are you are going to need to play around with various blends to get the taste the way that you want it. Commercial cigarettes are normally a blend of Burley, Virginia and oriental tobaccos. So it will be a bit of trial and error before you come up with a blend that you enjoy. If you are just starting out, getting some Burley and some Virginia, and then mixing them in different proportions may be a good way to start.
So, to answer your question - yes, flue cured tobacco (or any 'cured' tobacco, like air curing, etc.) has already been processed so that you don't have to do anything else to it.
These chemicals make smoking raw tobacco very unpleasant.

 

[Freeotatv]

If you dont want to get yelled at for toasting leaf in the oven you can try maryland 609 instead of burley which doesnt require toasting.

wlt's new organic burley is marketed as not having to toast...you can give that a shot as well...i asked in the forum for user reviews of the new organic but noone has replied yet.

 

[FmGrowit]

wlt's new organic burley is marketed as not having to toast...you can give that a shot as well...i asked in the forum for user reviews of the new organic but noone has replied yet.

Read carefully

A milder Burley means less impact and reduces or eliminates the need to toast or further process the tobacco to make it palatable.

It's still Burley, so you'll need lungs made of iron to smoke a straight, raw Burley cigarette.

 

[Freeotatv]

Thanks don..i was writing that in the context of using the organic burely in a blend..

are you saying that the organic burley does need toasting when using it in a blend..say 20%.

 

[Bex]

While the question is not directed at me - just a bit of a newb response here; no WLT that you buy off the internet 'needs' anything, unless this is what you prefer to do. I toast nothing. I shred what I buy and smoke it. If you want to know what pure burley tastes like, try a More cigarette:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/More_(cigarette)
To my taste, at least, whole leaf burley and More cigarettes taste exactly the same. When you buy your whole leaf, you may wish to try toasting a leaf and smoking it, to see what the difference is, and whether you prefer it or not. AFAIK, toasting, flavoring, etc., is often done by commercial tobacco companies to hide that portion of inferior quality leaf and product that they use. It is done by personal growers as they either prefer the taste of it, or want to hide some harshness in their leaf. The leaf that you would buy from Don, for example, is good quality, prime leaf that is smokable on its own - nothing needed to hide the taste of it.

 

[DonH]

Thanks don..i was writing that in the context of using the organic burely in a blend..

are you saying that the organic burley does need toasting when using it in a blend..say 20%.

At 20% you don't really need to toast any Burley. It just depends on how smooth you like your cigarettes. I haven't tried the organic burley yet, but the site says it's grown in Wisconsin or somewhere north and that can make it smoother than real Kentucky Burley. On the other hand, some years ago I bought some Burley grown in New Hampshire and it was really harsh because it wasn't aged long enough. I forgot about it for three years and when I tasted it recently it had really smoothed out.

Also, the Burley I grew myself last year and the year before is extremely smooth compared to stuff I bought. Probably had to do with conditions where I grew it: sandy soil, only about 8-9 hours of direct sunlight.

So if you find the 20% blend a little harsh, you can toast, but just shred and blend should be fine. If you went up to 40% Burley, toasting would help a lot, but at 20% I wouldn't worry.

 

[Bex]

If you went up to 40% Burley, toasting would help a lot, but at 20% I wouldn't worry.

Oops, my blend is somewhere around 55% burley - untoasted. Maybe kinda like an old sailor.....???

 

[DonH]

Oops, my blend is somewhere around 55% burley - untoasted. Maybe kinda like an old sailor.....???

I tried your blend with toasted Burley and it was still intense!

 

[Bex]

I tried your blend with toasted Burley and it was still intense!

Yup, just like me.....LOL!!

Actually, now that everyone is commenting that my blend is so strong, I'm going to have to see if taming it down a bit still gives me the smoke I want. Will have to research the percentages that other people on the forum use, and try them.

 

[DonH]

Yup, just like me.....LOL!!

Actually, now that everyone is commenting that my blend is so strong, I'm going to have to see if taming it down a bit still gives me the smoke I want. Will have to research the percentages that other people on the forum use, and try them.

Well I've tried a More and compared to your blend a More is like inhaling a fresh breeze.

 

[DGBAMA]

Yup, just like me.....LOL!!

Actually, now that everyone is commenting that my blend is so strong, I'm going to have to see if taming it down a bit still gives me the smoke I want. Will have to research the percentages that other people on the forum use, and try them.

Try cutting the burley by 10%, replacing it with oriental, like Izmir or Prilep. Add flavor and smoother smoke.

 

[FmGrowit]

Yes, Air Cured Burley has long been know as a tobacco condiment. I'd suggest starting with 10% in your blend and working your way up from there.

 

[Bex]

Well I've tried a More and compared to your blend a More is like inhaling a fresh breeze.

I live right on the windswept North Atlantic - too much fresh breeze, actually. My point was that I think that More cigarettes are basically burley, as straight burley tastes just like a More cigarette to me. Will have to investigate the orientals....

 

[DonH]

I live right on the windswept North Atlantic - too much fresh breeze, actually. My point was that I think that More cigarettes are basically burley, as straight burley tastes just like a More cigarette to me. Will have to investigate the orientals....

More's are heavily cased. So I think you're tasting the flavorings, especially in the brown papers they stuff it in. Most likely it's majority flue-cured that has chocolate flavors added. Chocolate is the main flavor you get from Burley.