I'm not sure if it's from the vacuum sealing or not :shrug: My second batch is a lot lighter 'So Far', As I'd posted about how age etc can effect herbs and spices I decided to invest in an Very Inexpensive scale to weigh the leaves, cinnamon and Allspice to try to get some consistency.
I'm also going to 'play' with using the oil. However I'd prefer to use what your mother did. With that said, the proper bay leaves that I find are between $10 per ounce or $40 per 8 ounces (Plus Shipping). Perhaps Panama can share where he'd found them for $44 per lb.
Anyway here's the $10 scale showing how much a small Bay Laurel Leaf weighs:
Attachment 252070