Paul's Anniversary Cavendish Kake

[KellyG]

I have a little project going using pault's blend, 50% Lane BCA & 50% H&H Anniversary Kake.
It smokes pretty good right out of the mixing bowl, but Paul suggests "pressing" it using a vacuum sealer, for a crumble cake effect. I've a couple of 8oz bags sitting in the cellar since Christmas; I want to get 4 to 6 months on them, so there they sit.
Here is the new deal. Over on Pipe Smoker's Den, there has been some excitement (as only pipe smokers exhibit) about using a Noodle Press to press tobacco. They are available from several sellers, including Amazon (if we didn't buy them out).
The pucks are 2" in diameter and around 1" thick, depending on how much tobacco you press and how much pressure. My first puck is a 515RC-1/Rimboche SJ (70/30) blend and it came out as good or better than I expected. A few pics:

I just mixed up an 80g batch of Paul's Anniversary Cavendish and loaded it in the press. In three or four days, I hope to have a tasty puck of PACK

 

[Kentos]

I have a little project going using pault's blend, 50% Lane BCA & 50% H&H Anniversary Kake.
It smokes pretty good right out of the mixing bowl, but Paul suggests "pressing" it using a vacuum sealer, for a crumble cake effect. I've a couple of 8oz bags sitting in the cellar since Christmas; I want to get 4 to 6 months on them, so there they sit.
Here is the new deal. Over on Pipe Smoker's Den, there has been some excitement (as only pipe smokers exhibit) about using a Noodle Press to press tobacco. They are available from several sellers, including Amazon (if we didn't buy them out).
The pucks are 2" in diameter and around 1" thick, depending on how much tobacco you press and how much pressure. My first puck is a 515RC-1/Rimboche SJ (70/30) blend and it came out as good or better than I expected. A few pics:

I just mixed up an 80g batch of Paul's Anniversary Cavendish and loaded it in the press. In three or four days, I hope to have a tasty puck of PACK

Thanks for this! I needed some first hand info .

I have a new found love in the Sutliff Va ribbon, and pressing it with some Perique and a smidge of cavendish might be nice.

 

[Kentos]

Um, just looked up that Rimboche tobacco. Sounds like that Kake will be killers.

How much tobacco for a 1” thick puck?

 

[KellyG]

A little more info:
I use a couple of pieces of parchment paper, cut to fit, in the bottom and one in the top of the press. I don't know if they are necessary, but it seemed like a harmless idea that might help avoid problems.
After the initial press, I turn the handle a 1/4 turn or less, every 12 hours or so. I will say that it feels like we are pushing these little presses to their limit, so I try to not over-torque. Some folks are doing more than three days but I'm not that patient. I'm not even sure three days is necessary but that was the initial trial by Ted, and it seems reasonable.
What I know for sure is that this is a lot of fun. Maybe it makes up for me not getting a chemistry set when I was a kid!

 

[KellyG]

That first puck was 70g at 70% 515 & 30% SJ.

 

[Kentos]

Maybe you can press for x days, then vacuum pack for x weeks, then unwraps and cellar?

 

[Kentos]

That first puck was 70g at 70% 515 & 30% SJ.

That’s perfect. My other press was too huge and if a blend is terrible a lot of Toby was wasted.

 

[KellyG]

It is interesting. The SJ, by itself, has a nice fruity note from the perique, more so than spicy, although the spice is there in the background. The 515/SJ blend, loose, brings out more of the spice in the perique (I'm guessing) and the fruit note is way back. But it is an nice VaPer blend for sure. The pressed version is deeper, richer, and with a more pronounced fruit note. It is a VaPer on steroids, at least from a one bowl data set. I plan to give it another go in the Larrysson later today.

 

[Kentos]

It is interesting. The SJ, by itself, has a nice fruity note from the perique, more so than spicy, although the spice is there in the background. The 515/SJ blend, loose, brings out more of the spice in the perique (I'm guessing) and the fruit note is way back. But it is an nice VaPer blend for sure. The pressed version is deeper, richer, and with a more pronounced fruit note. It is a VaPer on steroids, at least from a one bowl data set. I plan to give it another go in the Larrysson later today.

You are getting me excited

 

[KellyG]

The puck that emerges is quite dense. Someone said as much as Salty Dog, but I've never smoked that, so...
The puck fits perfectly in a Ball 6oz jelly jar.
I just measured the puck and it has expanded to 1.25" thickness. Maybe that extra couple of days would be useful? Or maybe it's no bid deal!

 

[Kentos]

The puck that emerges is quite dense. Someone said as much as Salty Dog, but I've never smoked that, so...
The puck fits perfectly in a Ball 6oz jelly jar.
I just measured the puck and it has expanded to 1.25" thickness. Maybe that extra couple of days would be useful? Or maybe it's no bid deal!

SaltyDog is like a cube of sugar. You can cut it paper thin it’s so dense. I don’t know if a crumble cake needs to be as dense.

 

[KellyG]

I may want to back off on the additional daily torque and just let it set for a few days. The initial press looks to have the puck at 1 1/8th in.

 

[Kentos]

A low moisture content will inhibit adhesion as well. Reading up on the SJ it seems to ship close to crunchy?

 

[KellyG]

The Anniversary Cavendish Kake I have in the press right now is not short on moisture. I had the press laying on its side last night and this evening when I looked at it, there was approximately a tsp of brown sticky liquid that had leaked out. I suspect this puck will adhere pretty well!

 

[Kentos]

The Anniversary Cavendish Kake I have in the press right now is not short on moisture. I had the press laying on its side last night and this evening when I looked at it, there was approximately a tsp of brown sticky liquid that had leaked out. I suspect this puck will adhere pretty well!

My press should be here by Tuesday so I can join in the fun!

 

[Riff Raff]

Even if you weren't blending two blends together this would be cool to see how pressing it changes the flavor profile. I would be interested in some of the bulks I have cellared being pressed. Hmmm....I might have to jump on this train.

 

[Kentos]

Even if you weren't blending two blends together this would be cool to see how pressing it changes the flavor profile. I would be interested in some of the bulks I have cellared being pressed. Hmmm....I might have to jump on this train.

Smoking Pipeliner/Tad likes to break off chunks of crumble cake and pack a pipe without crumbling. Supposedly it leads to a cool smoke. I have an aged cake of Briar Fox that’s is coming apart. I might repress that’s one too.

 

[KellyG]

The second puck has emerged. It is Paul's Anniversary Cavendish: a 50/50 H&H Anniversary Kake/Lane BCA blend. 80g pressed for 3 days. The question is, how much goop is in a blend such as this? The answer is: A lot. ~30 hours into the press, a pool of goop was discovered under the press (laying on its side), probably a tsp or two. I'll let the pics speak for themselves as to the goopiness of the puck but suffice it to say there was equipment clean up to be done. The good news is that hot water made quick work of the goop. And I'm glad I was using parchment paper at both ends. The puck came out at 1 1/8" and is as dense as the first puck. It doesn't slice as cleanly and is more like a crumble cake. As for puck note: I'm afraid I may have turned a rather nice light aro blend into an aro on steroids. While a good amount of goop was pressed out, the toppings seem to be quite concentrated . I'm going to give it a smoke, likely in a cob that I don't mind pitching. Frankly it smells like a molasses cake for eating rather than smoking. But, I may be surprised. Note that I would love to eat some cake that smelled like this! More to follow.

 

[KellyG]

Oh my. This stuff is good. Maybe better than good. It is how a rum/molasses cake with perique frosting might taste. I crumbled it and let it dry for 30 minutes or so, packed it in a small cob, and fired it up. A deep, creamy smoke; sweet underneath with an edge of perique spice. This shall be known henceforth as Paul’s Anniversary Cavendish Crumble.

 

[Kentos]

Looks like a brownie!