A few weeks back, I bought some do-it-yourself schmalzler. Wanted to experiment with adding natural oils after reading that it is supposed to be noticeably better. I got a bit carried away greasing up more snuff than I’m going to use for a while. For some, I fried out my own lard and mixed the tobacco/pork fat about 80/20 and experimented with adding peppermint, menthol crystals, camphor and even lavender essential oils. I did find one mixture I really like with just the tobacco and organic coconut oil at about 85/15 - 90/10. Love the natural coconut scent. I am not too concerned about the coconut oil going bad, but unsure with the pig fat - especially one tin I lost in a hot car trunk for a day or two. I can’t find any information on shelf life of schmalzer with perishable fats. I think that the tobacco should act as a preservative, but don’t know for sure? Any help is appreciated.
it supposedily smells rancid or that is what I’ve heard.
Bob is right - you will know when it’s gone off. There may be some inhibiting of the microbes that cause fat to go rancid because of the make up of the snuff - or not, equally, it has to be said. I think you might be a Snuffhouse pioneer on this one. Might be an idea to keep it in the fridge.
Hard to imagine that this is too unusual It is called “Sternecker Echt Fresco Ungefettet” and sold by Mr. Snuff. I know at least one other brave soul has tried it because the order page lists one reviewer. The snuff I made from nicotiana rustica grown by native Americans may actually deserve pioneer status. I grew up farming tobacco and made my own since I was a kid. And, rustica is supposedly the original tobacco before being genetically modified to appeal to a wider audience. It contains 9% nicotine vs. the 1-3 % in common tobacco.
I have noticed Rustica improves exponentially with age. Too bad for me the extra alkaloids are too much for my psyche to handle.
@CPeak You should contribute to our archives, you must have a wealth of tobacco knowledge. By pioneer I meant I don’t think anyone has fried up their own pork fat and added it to a snuff. Not that I’ve heard of anyway.
I did the homemade schmalzler. I did not use homemade lard though, so no telling how long that will last. If it has any proteins left in it, ie: not purified enough, then the shelf life will be reduced. The lard I used was good for about 3-4 months, and I made two batches of schmalzler with it. By the time I was ready for a third batch, the lard had taken a bit of a rancid odor, so I dumped it. I had kept it refrigerated while I had it. I don’t think the tobacco would help to keep it any longer, but the two batches I made kept fine in my schmalzler bottle for a few weeks each. A professonal butcher can sell you some high grade lard, and also will know how long it will keep, and under what conditions.