Storing, Managing & Organizing tobacco

Londy3

How do you store, manage and organize your tobacco? I thought this would be a cool topic to discuss because of all the variables on how we smoke our pipes, frequency, tobacco's we buy and how we buy them, among other variables. I am mostly a weekend pipe smoker so i can actually find time to relax and have my quiet time for a bit.  I do not buy my tobacco in bulk as i am still trying to sample different tobaccos so i opt for the tins. I don't want my tobaccos to go bad, dry out, mold or whatever, so i decided to store them in glass mason jars. This will also show me how much i have left and when to reorder if it is a tobacco that i enjoy.  I have created lids that match the tins they came from so i know exactly what is inside.  The labels are made of paper with poster board backing, i can always replace them with a new label if i happen to not like a certain tobacco.  This also makes for a decent presentation for my little pipe area near my desk.  I dont have a lot but i keep what i have simple. 

What do you do?

Londy3

....or maybe this is a stupid thread

motie2

@Londy3 -- Ya never know what will grab the public's attention.

I store my tobaccos in pyrex bowls that have air tight silicone lids. Each heavy glass bowl has a one cup volume. When I buy tobacco, I usually buy the Sutliff Private Stock blends which come in 1.75 oz. tins. The contents fit nicely into a bowl. When I buy Sutliff bulk, I've found 2 ounces fit just as well. I pitch the tins. 

I have a big(ger) air tight jar, the kind with a rubber ring seal and a metal wire latching system, that I pour the remainders into, creating a constantly changing (but not too much) Best of the Rest type blend. But, I'm a small timer. Right now I have  a pyrex each of Barbados Plantation and Vanilla Custard, and two of Mrs. Hudson's, plus the everything jar, which currently has Molto Dolce, Creme Brulee, Maple Street, and Carey's Classic Black Aromatic, unless memory fails, which it does from time to time..

Londy3

I like the idea of best of the rest.  so you are mixing up your aromatics?  Glad you are using glass bowls though.

motie2

I could lightly warm them before closing and get a semi-vacuum, but being air-tight my tobaccos have stayed in the goldilocks zone for my taste.

Londy3

I actually thought my sexy pic of my tobacco jars would have earned some respect... LOL

motie2

I like what you've done with the jar lids. I use little pieces of paper, a pen, and Magic Mending Tape.

Londy3

LOL..yeah, i did it a little over the top.. LOL, oh well

xDutchx

I either store in Mason jars, or leave the tobacco in the tin it came. If I am dealing with the square European tins, which are subject to lose their seal, I will go ahead and Mason jar those just to insure I don't find them popped and dried out at some point down the road.

My American tins are kept inside large 55 gallon coolers, for humidity and temperature fluctuation control. I started this practice, when I found that several of my tins I had opened, which were 15 plus years of age, had started to develop rust on the inside. The seals had not been lost yet, but eventually the rust would have made it's way through to the outside.

There is a huge markup on these style coolers, so shop around before you buy the first one you find.

Hiker007

@Londy3 I think your labels are awesome. Very professional looking. Can you give more details on how you made them and printed them?

judandhispipe

Unless I expect to go through a tin or pouch fairly quickly, it goes in a ball jar after a week or so. Jars are labeled with masking tape and sharpie. Bulks are stored in such jars anyway. Long term jars are in a big cooler, as much for convenience than anything else. Long term tins (unopened) are labeled with date of purchase, and are either stored in an old dresser in the basement - with the drawers labeled - or in various plastic storage boxes. The dresser is for those blends I have a lot of tins of - Red Ribbon, for example.

BigSkyPiping

Londy3 those labels are great.  I need some of those for my mason jarred tobacco.  Right now I just got some white labels slapped on the jars saying what they are and when they were cellared. 

My current storage right now consists of anything that I plan on cellaring going into a mason jar and put into an extra safe I have laying around. The safe has been great at helping me from dipping into my aging tobacco too often. Anything I buy that I plan on smoking right away, I just keep in its tin or pouch then put the tin or pouch in a zip lock bag or Tupperware container to make sure they don't dry out.

ghostsofpompeii

@Londy3 I like what you did to the tops as well. Muttonchops Piper was trying to explain how to do this on one of his videos but I'm too lazy and just did the peal and stick hand written labels on the side of the jar. Your way not only looks better but is a Hell of a lot more practical because a lot of my jars are stacked neatly in a chest - and I'm constantly pulling the jars out to look at them because the label is on the jar and not the lid. Also makes for an excellent presentation. 

motie2

@ghostsofpompeii -- Leave out the o -- Muttnchop Piper

Some day, I'll take  a picture of my Man Upper Corner, and you can all pity me.... or laugh.

Woodsman

Most of my jars are labelled on the side and I just realized that the reason I do that is that is the way my Mom did her Canning and the jars were up on the top shelf. It looks as if I'm going to have to label the tops as well as I can see more tops than sides on my cellared stuff.

Old Dog still learning.

jfreedy

I love it, Londy3. I do the same thing. I think I first saw Muttonchops Piper do this and thought it looked cool. I just find the tin label on Google Images, print/cut it out and Elmer's glue stick it to the lid. Muttonchops Piper also suggested using a soda crate from Hobby Lobby or Michael's to store them in. (Supposedly, the tall half pint mason jars fit perfectly.) I've gone to both but can't find them. Anyone know where to find one?

 

motie2

Not to be picky, but there is no "o" in Chris Carlisle's Muttnchop Piper.

xDutchx

@motie2, There is an "o" right in between the "h" and the "p." Even you put an "o" in there! :^)

motie2

OK, ok. I'm a careless idiot. But Chris spells it "Muttnchop Piper"

xDutchx

@motie2, You're not a careless idiot, but you're not ready to go to DC and compete in the Scripps National Spelling bee neither! :^)

rustedrailpipes

I'm going to have to try that idea for the labeling. Much better than my handwritten sticky notes

Londy3

Sorry it has taken me so long to reply back. This stupid website will not allow mobile devices to text back...ugh, it's so 90s.  

Anyhow...glad y'all like my labels. I do it easier than Muttonchop. I also Google the images of the tin. Then I print all on a page. Apply some clear packing tape to protect the print then cut out some poster board to give it some body.  You do not have to glue it down, if you do, the glue may seep and discolor the labels.  Once I glue to poster board, I cut out and simply place on lid and screw down the ring. The ring holds the label in place. This way, it makes it easier to switch out labels if you change the jar contents. 

Londy3

Correction: I do NOT glue anything. I could not edit my previous posts. Just cut the printed labels and cut the poster board the same size. Then place on lid, screw down ring and you are good to go. The ring will hold the label down....very easy.

pipeman83

@Londy3,sorry we were not able to get together when you were in Cleveland, I wasn't sure if you got my message, we ended up having to cancel our pipe club meeting because the shop closed at 7:00, hope you had a good time and a nice holiday, hopefully if you come back home next year we can try again.

Londy3

Hey Pipeman83, i just sent you a note....

Corey562

I tend to go with the mason jar for tins and larger jars with rubber seals for bulk. As for a place to store them I have a large pipe cabinet with storage underneath that stays fairly cool and dry.

ghostsofpompeii

Maybe someone can help me with this. I currently store my tobacco in two places - bedroom closet in the extra bedroom (where I keep my large quart jars of bulk tobacco) and a chest in the family room when I store the bulk tobacco in smaller easy access jars ... as well as the tinned tobacco. I've also got jars in the two end tables as well as a small cabinet we use as a telephone table. So my collection is kind of scattered throughout the house taking over what limited storage space we already have. If you open up a cabinet drawer you're bound to find a jar of tobacco in there somewhere.

Both the family room and closet are of course temperature controlled ... as well as dark and dry. But I was wonder if it's feasible to store tobacco in an unheated garage which would be subject to extreme temperature changes. I use the garage as my smoking area, and I'm sure I could make a nice place in the garage to store all the tobacco in one place without having it clutter up the house. I wouldn't dare store canned veggies or anything liquid for fear of freezing - but can the fluctuation in temperature actually affect the tobacco to the point of ruining it?  

WookieeJake

In the vein of storage methods, I have a question.  I recently bought an ounce of Peter Stokkebye Luxury Navy Flake.  Needless to say, I fell in love with it and ordered a pound of it.  Are there any tricks or tips y'all could give me for cellaring flake tobacco or is it the same as ribbon cut?

pipeman83

@WookieeJake, I have LBF that has 9 years of age on it, just place it in the jar and forget it, that type of cut doesn't break up.

WookieeJake

@Londy3 what do you think of the Wild Hare?

WookieeJake

Shiny.  Thanks @pipeman83