Thread: Good Pipe Tobacco Storage questions

I am accumulating a stash of tobacco. I don't smoke every day and a pound lasts for a year or more. I like to rotate blends. Some mildly aeromatic some more english. What is a good economical storage for the tobacco. I am presently keeping them in ziplocks in a small playmate cooler that once served honorabily as my dinner bucket. I don't want glass that will let light in as it seems to me this would be bad. I also store this in my garage/smoking area so there are tempture swings.

Don

I've tried all methods in the past (from the ziplock baggies, to lock jars (the ones with the hinged top and the locking mechanism)) but the one that works best (and confirmed by P&T magazine) is mason jars. Get a jar just large enough to fill completely (I use the wide mouth jam sized jars). If you want to go even a step further, and have a food saver, you can get an attachement that sucks all the air out. Although not necessary, you've essentially "tinned" your tobacco at that point and can last upwards of 50 years.

As you've noted, store in a cool, dry, and dark place, and you'll be good to go.

One last tip if you do go the mason jar route - make sure to label and date your tobacco - makes for a less intriguing game of "guess that blend" but you'll be much more satisfied in the end!

Mark

Thanks,
I just happen to have a food saver. I think I have some little mason jars as well. I will have to see if I can find any canning lids.

Don

i keep my pipe tobacco in open ziploc bags inside a humidor. (not the same humidor as my cigars, though)

I keep the humidity in there much much higher than I do in my cigar humidor, about 80%, as I like my pipe tobacco very moist and slow burning.

Originally Posted by jockeys

i keep my pipe tobacco in open ziploc bags inside a humidor. (not the same humidor as my cigars, though)

I keep the humidity in there much much higher than I do in my cigar humidor, about 80%, as I like my pipe tobacco very moist and slow burning.

Do you smoke any aeromatics? If so do you let the tobaccos mingle? I might have to build a humidor to accomidate the open mason jars I'm going to put together. I can keep the quanitys small and only open what I need.

Don

Originally Posted by junkinduck

Do you smoke any aeromatics? If so do you let the tobaccos mingle? I might have to build a humidor to accomidate the open mason jars I'm going to put together. I can keep the quanitys small and only open what I need.

Don

About 3/4 of my pipe tobacco is "flavored" and the rest is virginia long cut or some such. I let them mingle because I enjoy the complexity and subtlety that is added this way. I do the same thing with my cigars: they are all separated by wooden dividers, but they are all in the same giant humidor, and they age and become even more enjoyable after a few years, not to mention extremely complex.

I use Mason jars. I don't use any sealing apparatus. I just stuff them and tighten the lid. I keep them in a cabinet so that exposure to light isn't an issue. I have stored tobacco of years this way with no problems yet.

I use small square food jars they work best for me. They seal at the top and have an added bonus of a small area on the front of the jar to write with chalk, very handy as I have 4 "regular" cuts I keep at home.

+1 on mason jars. I bought a set of 12 Bell's that can hold between one and two ounces (depending on how moist the blend is when it's weighed) for... well I don't remember how much, but they were pretty cheap at Wegmans. It can be a bit of a pain to get the tobacco out if it's too low to get my fingers in. Widemouth jars would fix that, but I just hold my pipe in my knees, tilt the jar with one hand and use a pipe tool to pull the tobacco out and drop straight into the bowl. A toothpick would work just as well.