Hello all!
Back in May 2005 I purchased several tins of Dunhill Light Flake. I took one of the tins and placed it in my truck to "auto-stove" which is a process that "ages" your tobacco at an accelerated pace in a controlled enviornment. I let the tin sit in the closed truck until September then brought it into the house to sit in room temperature for a couple of months. Before I continue, I must tell you that this past Summer here in New Jersey was a record-breaking heatwave! For four months that tin of DLF sat in well-over 100 degrees heat!
A few days ago I opened the tin for the very first time. I was surprised at the visual changes to the leaf. First and foremost was the color. A new tin of DLF is usually a light brown/tan hue with good pliablity in the slices, however, the aged leaf was a bright yellow/gold color and the texture was much softer than the newer pliable flakes. Upon taking a couple flakes from the tin, they seemed to fall apart easily requiring great care to keep them intact for loading into the pipe.
The taste was absolutely amazing! What was normally a grassy almost cigarette-like flavor was now sugary sweet lemon Virginia! Much less prone to bite than it's younger form, this leaf smoked sweet, smooth, cool and mellow. Throughout the entire bowl this tobacco was pure bliss. What a difference the aging process made!
If you have never tried doing this, I recommend that you do it at least once to see the difference.
