Solani Aged Burley Flake

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billmess

billmess

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Does Burley get better with age like a virgina does?
Because I cracked open a tin of Solani Burley this weekend and I really enjoyed it.
It was very light and a little sweet. There was no bite at all and I was really huffing on this stuff.


Thanks,
Bill
 
I'm pretty sure the "aged" is with reference to how long it's been settling down in the warehouse. Tobacco needs that.

:face:
 
Sorry, I meant to ask if it continues to age while I have it in my cellar.

thanks,
Bill
 
Depends how it was treated but in general yes, just about any straight tobacco that is dried/cured/fermented naturally will improve with age. Aros would be excluded. Fire cured & latakia & some stoved (depending how hot) may retard/stop enzyme activity and prevent or stop aging from these mechanisms.

After years of cigars and seeing their improvements with age my finding derived from that to my pipe tobacco. I will transfer from the tin to a jar depending on what type the original packaging. For McClelland and anything from C&D's facility as long as the tin is in tact then i'll leave them because they're good at making sure the moisture level is good when packaging. Some types of tins like those used by Davidoff/Mac Baren/Peterson i'm not a fan of the coffee filter like paper they wrap their tobaccos in so I'll usually transfer those myself to glass (i want the oils to stay in the tobacco not get sucked into paper, just my personal opinion and preference). I'll put the tobacco into a big jar and throw in a 70% RH water pillow used for cigars keep it at 70* for a week or two so the tobacco is properly hydrated then i'll move to their permanent house jar. Straight VAs 1-3 years would be good, i'm guessing burley would benefit from the same time scale. Since i've been smoking pipes for only a year these numbers are from cigar experience but new FVF compared to a new cigar of roughly the same properties I'll say the FVF will need 3+ years to be where I want it, I'm two years out from confirming this though. I'm pretty good at smoking something and estimating when I should come back. Dried to a crisp tobacco doesn't really age. It's a balance between enough moisture to age quickly but not grow mold. 75% at 70* is walking a little too close to the line for my comfort so I go with 70% and 70* (plus those water pillows are usually +/- 2% so 77% is too high.
 
I'm smoking a bowl of the 656 now after several years hiatus. My opinion when I last smoked it was that like other burleys I'd smoked, it was tasteless. My! how things change. I've really enjoyed it. There IS taste, really as much as many other blends that I enjoy. Only in the first 10 minutes was the flavor at all subtle, and then BAM!, it opened up, plenty to keep me interested, especially as it's a new-to-me flavor.

It also smokes cool and was slow-burning. It didn't have any pronounced nicotine, but it is a hearty smoke. I have most of the tin left to enjoy as well as an unopened tin that I bought at the same time. I'm looking forward to it. This is the first time I've been able to say this about a straight burley.
 
Alfredo,

I agree. I've been smoking about 1-2 bowls a week of the solani burley and each time I go back to it I am suprised how good it is.


Bill
 
Bill,

I'm no expert on burley blends but I sure hope the tins of Solani ABF in my cellar are aging!

I recently opened a 7+ year old tin of Wessex Burley Slice and although I have not smoked a fresh tin to compare, it is very smooth and does not crap out half way through the bowl like some other straight burley's that I have smoked. It is good all the way to the bottom with no bitterness. I don't think aging burley has quite as much of an impact as aging VA will but there seems to be some smoothing out.

Let me know if you'd like a few flakes of the Wessex to try

 
Only if i could furnish you with a few of the solani flakes.


Bill
 
Going back into the archives here. I have a tin of Solani ABF coming. How does Newminster superior round slices compare to the Solani Aged Burley flake? If it's anything close or better I'm stoked bc I love the newminster SRS!
 
Due to the sugar content of burley, aging has little effect. Virginias age best, everything else less so. Latakia will fade some with age and perique mellows after a number of years. Burley mostly stays the same.
 
Old Nate":d7sm93oo said:
Going back into the archives here. I have a tin of Solani ABF coming. How does Newminster superior round slices compare to the Solani Aged Burley flake? If it's anything close or better I'm stoked bc I love the newminster SRS!
Click to expand...
Two totally different animals. ABF is burley, SRS is Virginia wrapped around a dark-fired Kentucky core.

Both are good, but don't buy the ABF expecting something overly similar to SRS.
 
idbowman":b8tcg59b said:
Old Nate":b8tcg59b said:
Going back into the archives here. I have a tin of Solani ABF coming. How does Newminster superior round slices compare to the Solani Aged Burley flake? If it's anything close or better I'm stoked bc I love the newminster SRS!
Click to expand...
Two totally different animals.  ABF is burley, SRS is Virginia wrapped around a dark-fired Kentucky core.  

Both are good, but don't buy the ABF expecting something overly similar to SRS.
Click to expand...
Hmm, good to know. I knew SRS was Kentucky wrapped in Virginia, thought there might be some similarities, though. I'm liking burley more and more these days, so bring it on!
 
JimInks":cgh07oa0 said:
Due to the sugar content of burley, aging has little effect. Virginias age best, everything else less so. Latakia will fade some with age and perique mellows after a number of years. Burley mostly stays the same.
Click to expand...
Took the words right out of my mouth!! I have many "aged" tins of ABF, my poor ol' taste buds can hardly tell any difference in fresh vs. older. It's just dang good!! :cheers: FTRPLT
 
Figured I'd throw this out there for y'all. I smoked burley almost exclusively for 20 years. Mostly the old drug store blends. Those were readily available at junk shops and flea markets and I sucked up cans from as far back as the 1930's at decent prices back then. What I found was that the burley doesn't age like VA's do at all. The time frame for burley is also much different than for VA. After decades in sealed tins you will get some changes to the burley, it mellows. To my taste buds it becomes richer but has softer edges if that makes any sense to you. Bare in mind finding the old cans of SWR, PA or even CH has become almost as difficult as finding old tins of Balkan Sobranie. I'm down to the last of my cans of quite a few of these oldies and I much prefer them to what's available now. The new stuff has a lot of rough edges that need time to smooth out. If you're willing to put them away for extended periods of time I'm sure when you do open them you'll be glad you waited, just don't expect 3-5 years to do much if anything.

Jim
 
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