I am so happy. I have a good pipe. And a question.

I was a smoker from age 14 to about 34. I quit when I got my first child, and anyway grew sick of cigarettes.

Now I’m 39, and finally I got myself a pipe. It’s a fine pipe, I got some tools, and two different blends from a leading Scandinavian tobacco dealer, right here at my desk. Mmm, the smell of the tobacco gives me goose bumps.

I plan to spend several evenings in my garden when spring comes, with my pipe and a book. Perhaps even a glass of whiskey. I’m so happy. First the kids, and now this.

One thing I wonder though, is if I should keep this wonderful, wonderful, tobacco in the fridge to keep it fresh. It’s 2x50 g, and I reckon it will last some time, and if nothing else, since it is not cheap, I would like it to keep its freshness as long as possible.

Any advices?

No fridge. Tobacco does best at 70 degrees and 70 percent humidity. Get a humidor.

I had a friend who kept a gallon sized Ziploc of pipe tobacco on the rear deck of his car in warm weather. He said it changed the flavor for the better. For some reason, stoners and cops stop him to talk about it.

My father was a big pipe smoker. When he died, I think each of us (five daughters) got at least one pipe from his collection. He was a fan of keeping it in an old coffee can with an air-tight lid, with a slice of apple in the can. Then again, he favored “vanilla” type scents and possibly cherry. Couldn’t abide the “perfume-y” ones; said they tasted just like they smelled.

It was tobacco that killed him, though more from cigarette smoking than pipe, I would think. Watching him with his pipe, I always thought it was more of a hobby than a habit.

Just BTW, my hubby, now nearing 50, says when he’s 80, he’s going to take up smoking a pipe. Neither of us have ever been smokers, but his grandpa smoked a pipe, and he’s nostalgic about the smell and all.

NO!

Don’t listen to Turble! Cigars to best at that temp and humidity, pipe tobacco is different because it is smoked differently. You want to keep pipe tobacco cooler and dryer than a cigar. There is no need to keep it in the fridge though.

You want your pipe tobacco at a little under 60% humidity, but for storage it doesn’t really matter, and pipe tobacco is more tolerant of temperature because it is processed a lot by the time it gets to you. Don’t let it get really hot or cold, but room temp is fine to store it at. If you are comfortable your tobac is comfortable. A little cooler than you are comfortable is ok too. It’s fairly hardy stuff. You DO want to keep them away from high heat except under certain circumstances where you are intentionally trying to alter the flavor of the tobacco.

You will want to keep it in an air tight container of some sort though. I use mason jars that have been well washed. You don’t even need to put them into the jars hot for a vaccumme seal. The anerobic bacteria on the leaf will eat up the air in the jar in about 2 weeks, and that is a good thing. Just make sure that the lids have a rubber gasket and never reuse lids (though you can reuse jars).

You don’t need to spend a lot of money on this stuff. What blends did you get? Were they house blends from the tobacconist? If so I assume that they aren’t in tins already.

Also, get yourself another pipe or possibly two. You never want to smoke your pipe 2 days in a row if you can help it. Give yourself second one to rotate onto.

Feel free to PM me with other questions. In fact, please do PM me with other questions, it would be nice to be able to help you out.
ETA: Many folks dislike the apple in the tobacco method because it had a greater chance of introducing mold to the tobacco. Moldy tobacco is* really *no good.

Thanks for answering, all. No fridge it is.

Now that you’re saying, I once knew an old man working at the same place I did looong time ago, who did the same.

My philosophy of life is not to postpone things that make your life richer, if possible. Carpe diem etc.

One more thought.

Go visit this website if you have a chance Wakinyan.
http://smokersforums.co.uk/

It’s a pipe smokers message board and is possibly the best resource on the internet when it comes to pipe smoking. There are many people over there who have been smoking for 40+ years, and their knowledge is vast. I recommend that everyone who starts pipe smoking at least spend some time looking around those boards.

Yes, they are house blends. One is black cavendish type with smooth virginia, and the other is a burley blend. It’s in small plastic bags with a zipper.

Very much appreciate your information and generosity, NAF1138.

I think the plastic bags will suffice for a short period of time, but you’ll eventually want to get an airtight container, as NAF1138 mentions above. Really, all his suggestions are spot on. I like to get a bunch of these jars, and they work great. They’ll keep your tobacco in great condition for years.

I wouldn’t recommend fruit, though some old timers do it. I’d keep that level of moisture and potential bacteria away. If you need to rehydrate your pipe tobacco for any reason, you can place a damp sponge in the jar.

You’ll want to dry your tobacco out to the point where you like to smoke it. If you don’t know what that point is, then leave it a little too moist, then pack your pipe 30 minutes (or more or less) before smoking. When you get a good feel for how you like it, then you can do the whole batch so that it is ready to smoke the minute you pack your pipe.

I like the jars Labrador Deceiver mentions too, but I am cheep and those cost more than the ones I use which are similar to these with thistype of lid.

I agree. My husband’s thinking, though, is that any damage he does to his body by smoking will be mitigated by the fact that he’s old. :wink:

Frankly, if he took up cigarette smoking now, it would upset me, but if he took up a pipe tomorrow, it wouldn’t bother me one bit.

Another pipe smoker quickly checking in. Many good suggestions so far, but I want to add that as noted above, moldy tobacco is something you really want to avoid. I lost some very nice Virginia Flake to mold once. (And I do like Virginia Flake.) Stick with what has been suggested here and you’ll be fine.

You’re throwing in a good – well necessary – point into this thread. As your previous post hinted at, one should not disregard the health aspect. Tobacco is simply not healthy, and it is a good thing that that is being said in a thread about smoking. I myself definitely need that reminder every now and again; I’m not used to it yet, but I’m not all that young anymore, am I? One have to take care, too.
Your posts about your father and your husband is great read, thanks for sharing.

These boards have given me a lot. Every once in a while, I get the opportunity to give back.

You are more than welcome.

I stand corrected; not being a pipe smoker, my information did indeed apply to cigars and cigarette tobacco.

I hope you don’t choose to take this to PM … I am always happy to learn something new.

I was going to send him some links to a few retail sites, I don’t want to seem like I am advertising on the SDMB. Particularly not in GQ. But I know a fair bit about pipes and tobacco (though a lot less about cigars) and am more than happy to answer any questions you might have.

If you are interested you should also probably check out the link I posted above. Its a really nice community of folks over there with tons of knowledge. It’s particulalry usefull for people who are interested in learninb about pipes as an object and collectable (not my thing, but it is many people’s). The information available from the members about carvers and materials an companies is stunning.