What's new

Aging Virginian tobacco

About 6 weeks ago I purchased a small amount of C&D Red Virginian tobacco. Smoked a couple bowls of it and didn't really care for the taste of it. Heard somewhere that if you age Virginian it forms little crystals and sweetens. So I put the rest in a half pint Mason jar and put it away. Question is how long will it take to sweeten up? Weeks, months, or years? Want to see if I like it aged before buying a pound or two.
 

Columbo

Mr. Codgers Neighborhood
A good Virginia (not going to get into the nuances between the dark and brighter varieties) has a good workable sugar content, and will typically respond well to cellaring as those sugars ’evolve’.

You should expect noticeable changes in as short as six months, and may notice slight ones after just a few months. But as with many things, time is your friend here. When you start extending the cellaring time out to years, the improvements can become quite profound. I cellar Reiners out at least a decade, and it smokes like fine champagne that far out. Just sublime.
 

Kentos

B&B's Dr. Doolittle.
Staff member
Be aware that C&D does great at many things, but red VAs are not one of them. If you are thinking about bulk reds, cconsider Sutliff 515-RC Matured Red Virginia

Review Link

I would disagree with my esteemed colleague and say some of C&D’s reds are pretty good, but many are not.

Any red Va will get better with age, but as with all things the better the product at the beginners means the better the product at the end.
 
Be aware that C&D does great at many things, but red VAs are not one of them. If you are thinking about bulk reds, cconsider Sutliff 515-RC Matured Red Virginia

Review Link
I was wondering about that too. Years ago, C&D used to come extremely dry. For a VA to age well, it needs moisture to some degree. I was curious if C&D got a bit "wetter" over the years...
 

Hirsute

Used to have fun with Commander Yellow Pantyhose
I will also note that C&D tends to ship their blends on the "young" side without giving them much time in the tin before shipping . I typically set aside any C&D blend for at least 6 months before cracking it. To really experience what aging does, though, you need to set it aside for years. You may notice changes in a year or two, but I typically cellar virginias at least 10 years, and often 20. And beyond that, I've had blends that were 40-50 years old. They're still very good at that age, but they start to lose a little something. I've found the sweet spot for aged virginias and VaPer blends if around 25-30 years.
 

Kentos

B&B's Dr. Doolittle.
Staff member
Thanks for all the knowledgeable responses. At 57 now I don't think I'll live to see any age to 25 years or beyond but 6 to 15 is probably doable. At 10 yrs I'd have some nice Virginian to start enjoying leading into my retirement years😃

That is exactly my plan as well. Smoke as much of my aged blends in my twilight years as possible. They will probably bury me with a pipe clenched!
 
Top Bottom