Could you upload a pic of the snuff? Open can, that is. Would appreciate that!
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What a snuffbox! Thanks for the pic, Iāll include this African Singletonās in my next order. Grind/moisture/colour is similar to that of most English menthols. If you are interested in trying them, good start could be Wilsons of Sharrow Singletonās Super Cool. I can bet you would enjoy it - it matches your liking, being dark and moist (another dark one is Viking ISS). Grind is similar or even a tad coarser.
I wonder if Big mamma in SA uses theses snuffs
@boiledonions, I just scented 5 g of plain fine dry snuff (6P Krishan Sudama) with one drop of bergamot essential oil (pure, not thinned with ethanol), adding it directly and stirring with a spoon for a couple of minutes. Seems like a righteous amount, definitely not overdone, very enjoyable. Tin note is much stronger than the flavour in the nose, it doesnāt linger for too long. A very familiar flavour that is (saying āHello!ā to Tom Buck :)). Backdrip isnāt neither harsh nor irritating.
As noted on the label of my bergamot e.o. bottle, it blends nicely with cypress, juniper, lavender, lemon-balm, neroli and all citrus oils, but itās great on its own. Just took another panch, delightful thing.
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@volunge I have it a shot at homemade. I ended up using about 10 dried out Panter Blue cigarillos. Ground them down in a mortar and pestle and seived through a tea ball. It took some work, but I ended up with 3.4 grams of flour. To that I added a sauce made of 6% (.3g) sodium bicarbonate, 2% salt (.1g), 25% (1.27g) water and 2 drops of bergamot essential oil. I meant to only add 1 drop of oil. Oops! It has been fermenting for 2 days now. The grind is pretty coarse, close to Thrice Brewed. In the tin, the bergamot is strong but not overwhelming. Just took the first pinch and I mostly getting barnyard notes right now. I do not have the biggest tolerance to nicotine, and I am definitely getting some from this. I was not able to detect any baking soda scent, but like I said, the barnyard/ stable scent is really over powering right now. I will get back to you as it mellows. This is fun! I am already thinking of what to do next. Should I leave a lid on or off as it sits and ferments for the first few days after mixing? I have been doing a little bit of both so far.
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Ammonia/barnyard notes usually goes away in a week. If you tolerate it, donāt air it - airing will happen naturally, opening tin for taking a pinch. As far as I understand, in the course of the first 3-5 days (during the peak of āfermentation/brewingā phase) ammonia is inevitable, and airing it results in significant moisture loss, which might slow down the brewing and ālockā the ammonia for longer.
I procured some bicarb as well and will run a small batch with it. Good to hear it doesnāt impair the scent! After all, some manufacturers use bicarbonate, too. Could be the case with Neffa Ifrikia - similar Tunisian rustica snuff Neffa Souffi contains both carbonate and bicarbonate (92% rustica, 8% texture agents (carbonate, sodium bicarbonate, water)).
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Cool, thanks for all the info! I have a pouch of Prince Albert burley pipe tobacco that I will never go through, so I am thinking of using some of that for the next batch. The main scent I get from it is dried plum. I am going to keep some totally plain with a little salt and bicarbonate, and would like to try scenting the rest with bourbon or brandy. Would I add a tiny amount of the alcohol directly to the sauce as I did with essential oil? Or should I maybe do half water/ half booze in the sauce? Would too much alcohol prevent fermentation?
Not really sure, but I suppose the āfermentationā (or, using older term - ābrewingā) we are talking about is not actual fermentation; ferments are not playing any role in this process - itās more about nicotine freebasing, that is, the penetration of alkalis and moisture into the cells of powdered tobacco, if I get it all right. Certainly, more interesting things happen during the alkalization (the break down of a certain amount of nicotine (thatās where ammonia comes from) and other compounds, as well as their interaction), which all change the organoleptic properties of the snuff.
However, carbonates and bicarbonates are insoluble in alcohol and most probably are barely soluble in stronger beverages (even cut with water at half/half ratio), so it might inhibit or slow down āfermentationā (alkalization). I would use bourbon or brandy for scenting in the final stage, mixing it with already alkalized snuff (āfermentedā for at least 3 days). For the life of me I canāt find the data on carb/bicarb solubilities in ethanol-water mixtures. Unfortunately, I have almost ran out of pure ethanol (literally, a couple millilitres left) and donāt have any beverages at home, so canāt run the test.
So which snuffs has this āmanureā scent? Makla? I like to think of it as elephant
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Interesting discusion.Ā
I never got so far to make some microbiological observations on the āfermentationā proces. I think however that addition of alkali can promote the growth of specific micoorganismsĀ which might be responsible for the āmanureā scent.
Jaap Bes.
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Good day, dear Jaap!
Based on what Iāve read in various sources, increased pH (just below 9) prevents the growth of bacteria and fungi. However, judging by the amount of alkalizers in most recipes of historical snuffs (continental), the pH of those snuffs rarely exceeded 8.5 (in most cases probably was closer to 8). So, I think it is correct to assume that with lower amounts of alkalis (anything below 3-4%) and in all cases where alkalizer is added gradually or only in the final stage of snuff preparation, microorganisms (both endogenous/airborne and added ones, like wine lees, which contain both yeasts and bacteria) and/or actual tobacco ferments are indeed responsible for breaking down nicotine (releasing of āmanureā scent/ammonia) and the actual fermentation process in general.
With best greetings,
Aidas
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@volunge: thanks for our answer.
As I said I am no more in the position to do some microbiological research, But maybe some interested microbiological institution or reseacher could pick up this challenge.
Greetings,
Jaap Bes.Ā Ā
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An update on my first batch: the ammonia has pretty much dissipated now at around 5 days and left the bergomot to shine through a bit. The result is like a bergamot only SP like Tom Buck or SP Extra, but on a very course and moist grind. I like it! Next round of trying to get something like an SP, I am going to reduce the water to 20% and use a much finer seive, and add some lemon e.o. to heighten the bergamot. I ran another batch today, this time using the American Spirit Perique cigarettes I mentioned before. The contents of 8 or 9 cigarettes yielded 4.6 grams of flour after being seived through a fine chinois I had left over from my professional cooking days. The grind was much finer than what I got from the tea ball, but I would still call it semi coarse. I will have to buy some screens to get closer to a medium or fine grind. I figured perique is unique enough on its own and opted to not use any scenting, just adding 4% baking soda, 2% salt, and 25% water. I will see how it turns out ina few days!
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