I had planned to store partially smoked tins using this method: Soak mason jar in a mild solution of oxyclean free and 150 degrees tap water Rinse completely with hot water Sanitize both jar and new lid using bottle recommended strength of BTF Iodopher and cold water Air dry Load tobacco into jar without touching it Vacuum seal with Foodsaver attachment Is this perfectly reasonable for tobacco? An almost identical process works fine for fermenting beer, which is very sensitive to getting infected by wild yeast and other contaminants.
I've been cellaring tobbaco for years, in mason jars, and I've never sterilized or sanitized any of them. Never had a problem with the baccy. Never got mold. Of course, they should be clean prior to put the tobacco into them, but a normal wash is enough. If you want an extra cleaning, let the dishwasher do the job. Most of the tobys are treated enough at factory as to not develop any kind of plagues in "normal" storage conditions. Here you have a link to a photo report a friend of me made at the Samuel Gawith's factory in Kendal. The text are in spanish, but the pictures are explaining enough by themselves. No sanitization nor sterilization at any part of the process is performed in factory; why do you want to do it at home?: http://rinconpipa.foroactivo.com/t3239-samuel-gawith-reportaje-fotografico-de-marcelino-piquero
Thanks much for the excellent link. I had pictured the Sam Gawith factory as a gigantic sanitary factory consisting of stainless steel everywhere and employees wearing Tyvek suits. Those pictures give me hope for the world that not everything has to be made by a giant corporation. I will enjoy my next bowl of SL much more now. I know that cigar humidors can get mold infections. I know cigars are stored in a much higher humidity (80%) than pipe tobacco (40%?). Pipe tobacco must be treated with something or another that inhibits mold growth. Either way, it sounds like plopping it in a vacuum sealed, reasonably clean jar is plenty of effort.
Tobacco is not sterile. Nor is the processing of. If you truly wish to use all of that, your choice but i kind of think the iodophor, even the slightest hint of it will ruin your leaf if it's in there for any length of time. I know you said you'd rinse but imo, you are way overdoing it and setting yourself for unexpected failures. Dishwasher is good enough. Clean hands. New seal-caps. That's all you need. Ed Puff
This is how I pictured their production facility, archaic, dirty and unorganized, and their shipping department, no wonder they cannot keep up with demand!
After seeing all those pics I can understand why SG is always behind in production. Still, it's worth the wait.
Iodopher evaporates and at recommended strenghths is no rinse. No matter, looks like the dishwasher is sufficient. DunhillMans pics were enough to convince me, "no worry, be happy"
Thanks for the link, I love all that old machinery. Like the old adage goes, "If it ain't broke don't fix it".
This all seems beyond my attention span. I just pull a new jar out of the package, cram the toby in, and put the lid on the jar. If it's for long-term I heat the jar with a hair dryer, before packing the toby in, to help inspire a mild vacuum.
wow the pics of the SG factory are amazing! I wonder what it smells like? I bet just walking in the room where they are grinding snuff would give me a buzz.
Yeah! That's all the vacuum it needs, no more. Some air inside delivers a better ageing than a full vacuum.
I have about twenty pounds in unwashed Mason-style canning jars. I buy them, unwrap the flat, stuff them as the tobacco arrives, and that's that. All has been well. Glass doesn't harbor bacteria very well, so I don't worry about it. What's the bacteria going to live on in those empty jars?
If you do use iodophor, rinse it very very well......and rinse well again! Trust me, it's odor lingers! Over 30 yrs experience working with it. I'd slosh a shot of grain alcohol inside each jar if i were paranoid of growing crap in my cellar jars. Ed Puff
I don't have much toby in jars, I mainly open a tin and smoke it all. The jars I have used were just washed with dish detergent and then thoroughly rinsed and dried. Some of my jars are 20 years old now and don't exhibit any mold or any other horrors.
