VA breakdown

[deepbass9]

So, I see lots of descriptors used for VA. Some I know, some I ain't so sure, as they say...

Stoved - this is heated and kinda ferments.

Red - not real sure, other than a type of leaf like orange or lemon (I see black, too...). Or are they the colors resultant of some processing? How do the types differ?

Ripe - often used with Red, but not real sure what it means.

Matured - is this another way of saying stoved? Not real sure here either.

Bright - I take this to mean the grassy, hay-ish, citrusy flavor of, say, OGS...

Young - is this another way of saying bright?




Can someone help a brother out and spell it out for me? :?: :drunken: :?:

 

[Anonymous]

http://www.glpease.com/FAQ.html

Good place to start.

:face:

 

[deepbass9]

http://www.glpease.com/FAQ.html

Good place to start.

Read it previously, along with lots of other webpages regarding tobacco and pipe tobacco. Other than mentioning the descriptors I wrote, I still have not seen definitions of them, but thanks.

 

[Anonymous]

I'd be kind of surprised if the basic info wasn't embedded in the common accounts like that one.

Yellow/bright Virginia is flue-cured : dried quickly so that the sap doesn't have time to undergo the changes it ordinarily would in drying slowly (especially the natural sugars present in it). That produces a light, grassy/hay-like sweetness.

Red Virginia is air cured. Still sweet, but differently, with more mid-range content.

Dark Virginias are pressed -- sometimes stoved &/or steamed as well. Essentially cooked.

:face:

 

[deepbass9]

I'd be kind of surprised if the basic info wasn't embedded in the common accounts like that one.

Cool...that make sense, and though I'm aware of the different curing methods, I didn't make the connection to the "red" or "yellow", etc.

An "aha" moment...much obliged.

 

[deepbass9]

Found a comprehensive answer here, on pipesmagazine.com, courtesy of one Russ Ouellette:

Yellow Virginia is usually the sweetest kind, being lemon to banana yellow and having a noticeable acidity to it with distinct citrus notes.

Bright Virginia usually is a mixture of yellow and orange, possibly with a bit of red, and is less sharp than yellow, but with a little more depth to the flavor.

Orange is a touch less sweet still, and has more of a hay-like quality, and red is more toasty with bread-like notes and noticeably less sugar.

The term "brown Virginia" usually refers to matured flue cured. To mature the leaf, heat, pressure, aging or any combination thereof may be used. This normally deepens the flavor and increases the nicotine content.

Finally, stoved Virginia is actually (typically) yellow Virginia that is roasted on a metal surface until it turns black. This caramelizes the sugars and brings out a fruitiness that can add a nice dimension to a mixture.

 

[Anonymous]

And there you have it ! 8)

:face: