I’m not sure why it got cut off there. I’ll check again later to see if the entire quesiton posted.
Good evening fellow snuffers. I have a questions for those who have delved in making their own snuff. I used the recipe on this sight for German Hanover snuff and had some questions. I did sub the sweet yellow clover for calendula petals and added a dash of agave for a little sweetness and hopefully to fuel fermentation. I cut the recipe to 1/5 of the original and used 100 grams of bone dry tobacco that I ground up about 2 months ago. The tobacco was already cured and fermented as a leaf when I bought it. Though I subbed the clover, all other ingredients were used in the correct measurements to 1/5 of the recipe. Reading Juxtaposer’s notes when he tried this recipe, he talks a lot about a strong ammonia smell that appeared instantly and lasted a long time. I have not smelled ammonia aside from when I mixed the ammonium chloride into the liquid. I mixed well with the tobacco and it has been in an airtight container for two days at ~ 100 degrees F. I read that 12 hours is a good time to start adding salt to control fermentation but how do I know fermentation is happening? I have no ammonia smell at all.
Any Idea’s? Is fermentation taking place but not giving off an ammonia smell?
Here’s the recipe I used:
http://snuffhouse.com/discussion/6008/snuffmillers-snuff-receipe/p1
Gonna take a little longer with bone dry tobacco to begin fermentation. You should smell ammonia, when fermenting, plus an earthy, “funky” smell. You might want to add a touch of water, and leave the jar open for a bit so the yeast has a touch of oxygen to get going on.
Hope this helps. Also, message Juxtaposer, as he has successfully pulled off this recipe.
R
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Thanks for the input. I might try leaving it open for a big for a little more oxygen. I haven’t seen that @juxtaposer has been active for a while, but maybe tagging him will help. Thanks.
I’ve been lurking for years. Now I have a few questions. How moist is the snuff? How is snuffing it?
Clever books of mine collection states: Allowed moisture levels for British made snuff are from 16% (dry snuff such a High Dry Toasts) to 32% (moist snuffs like Black Rappe) and other inorganic matter (other than water) up to 5%. Jack
@rossarlen A bit of moisture is a good idea to get the tobacco fermenting, but not because of yeast. It is a bacteriological fermentation with tobacco, like with sauerkraut, kimchi, pickles, etc.
Thanks everyone! @Jackgrave Thanks for that info! That’s really useful to have an idea where I should be. My original post stating the tobacco was dry as a bone before adding should’ve said before following the recipe. @Juxtaposer it’s not overly dry, but not too moist. I added 10 ml of liquid for the 100 grams of ground tobacco. I added it little by little and mixed very well. The snuff has turned really dark and has picked up a chocolatey scent. I went ahead and added the salt yesterday and transfered the snuff to two airtight sealed jars for aging. I started another batch last night using the same recipe, but this time with 200 grams of tobacco and 20 ml of liquid. Same result so far. Before jarring, I did try a little and it was really good. As a side note, thanks for all you’ve posted on here. I’ve read it many times and learned a lot from it.
@moemojo Thanks for the correction. Good to know what’s actually happening when all that wonderful aroma is being released…
Aromatic microbes grow in anaerobic environments. Other fermentations happen with oxygen. Cigar tobacco is a good example of a fermented tobacco scent. Has anyone heard about a worm that eats tobacco and leaves behind some very aromatic snuff?
Yeah I’ve heard about those infesting people’s home made fermentation chambers.
(Tobacco, enzymes and “aging”.) on you tube talks about using cellulase to break down the cellulose in tobacco. Using snus making times and temperatures would be my recomendation. This would be similar to the composting that bulk tobacco can go through but with much less time involved. Cigarette companies are using the cellulases as well. The question of what is the best acidity to have the tobacco in while digesting remains with me. Give it a try or maybe I will. @Creator
If I’m not mistaken, the fermenting should be done while in leaf form and in the absense of oxygen such as big piles of leaf that are turned on a set schedule. The leaves on the bottom are the ones fermenting and are least exposed to the elements. The outer leaves insulate the heat produced and also provide a barrier. The bundles are rotated to ensure even fermentation.
Temperatures above are wrong for this. Body temp is correct. I understand they try not to let the compost piles get above 115 F. 120 would kill the enzymes.
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I heat my flour to about 110F, add about +/- 6% water by weight, and before it cools start adding alkalizing agents (Sodium Carbonate for all OSP offerings, but I’ve been experimenting with potash and salmiak) while agitating until I get hit with a wall of ammonia. There is no tried and true “this much per these many grams” that works across the board, because each kind of leaf carries a different pH. Once it’s “booming”, I put it into sterile buckets (with two chamber bubblers) and use a pad/band system to keep the flour at exactly 118F for about 48 hours (stirring about every twelve, as the moisture starts drawing towards the center), before killing the band and bringing it back to ambient temp (78F) for up to two weeks. After that, I take it out of the bucket, heat it back to 120F in the oven (kind of restarts the process), and last it out to sit in cool, open air. After about another week, the ammonia starts really dying down. That’s when I add my Kosher salt, check the pH, and if it’s too high, bring it back down SLOWLY with alcohol. The flour seems most receptive to water based flavorings very early on, oil based flavorings right after adding salt, and alcohol based flavorings after the entire process is finished. This is, of course, for making more than a mason jars worth (I cook in the 2,000-9,000 gram range), but hopefully you can glean something from that. @Afterglow Those are actually two different things. What you’re talking about is referred to as “sweating” the leaf, and is part of the initial curing process. What we’re talking about here is using an additional fermentation cycle after the flour is blended?, for one of two purposes. First would be to artificially “age” the tobacco, and second, if blending more than one kind of leaf, is to “marry” the constituents. It’s not at all necessary to do a second fermentation. OSP Batch #1 was fermented in the manner described above. Batches #2 and #3 were not. Batch #4 is. It all depends on what you’re going for.
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@Juxtaposer Actually the volatile oils start breaking down at 130F, Nicotinic Acid at 140F.
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I’m trying to upload a picture, but it won’t let me…
Maybe a moderator can help you… 
:))
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