Slow Cooker Extraction of Tobacco and Tea
- Thread starter scarf-ace
- Start date
- th_trl_thread_readers 0
- Status
My first extractions are were with a 65/35 PG/VG and tight lids. Covered about 2/3rds of the way in a slow cooker on just "warm" which was about 150 degrees (and covered the slow cooker) for 5 days. I've been enjoying some of Bill Herbst's extractions and tried to follow his method. He's actually great at trying new methods so I just picked one of his extractions that I really liked and went with that one. I cooled the jars and filtered with the Aeropress per my earlier post. It seemed to work pretty well although I'm still letting them steep right now. I had no issues with condensation or pressure in the mason jars. My extractions appear pretty dark (all cigars) and particulate free. I'm certain there are many ways to come up with good extractions and I'm not scientific enough to pursue detailed side by side comparisons.
I have always used tight lids on jars in a hot maceration, with a lid over the container to reduce evaporation. I have a hot plate with a thermostat, and also a temp probe in the water, to be sure nothing gets out of control (i.e. too hot). I only use the hot method if I'm in a hurry, I have noticed no difference in flavor or strength between hot or cold macerations, so if in doubt, you can use the cold maceration method.
That was my concern initially, and is a good point, but the boiling point of the PG only lowers slightly with 10% PGA, so its still safe at the temps I use 50C to 70C with the lids on. Best for interested people to research this themselves to be sure (and safe), but that was the conclusion I came to. One can also visually check that the lids aren't bulging up under pressure, which I do and have not seen this happen.
I use covered mason jars in a crock pot on warm. I do leave the lid slightly off and a thermometer in the water to make sure the temp stays low. I leave it in for about 24-36 hours then let cool and strain/filter (5 micron filter is the smallest I have done so far). I have tried longer, hotter (lid on crockpot) and have not found any real difference in the final result. Just what is working for me....
One thing to consider, the primary solvents used to macerate tobacco are supposedly hygroscopic, in that they readily absorb water/moisture. I would imagine that, exposed to the high humidity present in a covered slow cooker, an uncovered container of macerated tobacco would absorb some amount of water vapor. I'm not sure if this is a problem as many people add a small percentage of clarified water to their final mixes anyway.
Finished my first 4 slow heat extractions yesterday.
Two Friends - Valle Crucis, Balkan Supreme, China Black Whiskey (golden cavendish + oriental), Ashton Artisan's Blend.
35% tobacco 65% PG 2 days 6 hours/day 55°C followed each time by cold maceration of 18 hours + 24 hours cold maceration 3d day
Filtering : cotton cheese filters + permanent coffee filters +- 10 times. Wanted a clean juice. Got it.
Tried them today on a magma. 10% concentrate 90% equal PG/VG
Result : If I have to judge them at this moment, it will be definitely negative for the 4 of them. But I know that in about 10 days, my opinion could change. It's what I hope.
Tobacco flavor is far too weak for my expectations, due to my 10x filtering. I'll have to find another system which will give clear results but will leave more tobacco flagrance.
The sweetness sugary flavor is too predominant. I think it's normal due to the non steeping of the maceration. With time to steep, this sweetness will disappear in favor of the tobacco nuances. It's what I've read in this thread and I hope it will happen with mines.
Tried this week the Sun Cured Turkish tobacco from NET.com. Beautiful. Do anyone here taste it and know his composition ? I'll love to try to approach it with my own tobacco maceration.
Two Friends - Valle Crucis, Balkan Supreme, China Black Whiskey (golden cavendish + oriental), Ashton Artisan's Blend.
35% tobacco 65% PG 2 days 6 hours/day 55°C followed each time by cold maceration of 18 hours + 24 hours cold maceration 3d day
Filtering : cotton cheese filters + permanent coffee filters +- 10 times. Wanted a clean juice. Got it.
Tried them today on a magma. 10% concentrate 90% equal PG/VG
Result : If I have to judge them at this moment, it will be definitely negative for the 4 of them. But I know that in about 10 days, my opinion could change. It's what I hope.
Tobacco flavor is far too weak for my expectations, due to my 10x filtering. I'll have to find another system which will give clear results but will leave more tobacco flagrance.
The sweetness sugary flavor is too predominant. I think it's normal due to the non steeping of the maceration. With time to steep, this sweetness will disappear in favor of the tobacco nuances. It's what I've read in this thread and I hope it will happen with mines.
Tried this week the Sun Cured Turkish tobacco from NET.com. Beautiful. Do anyone here taste it and know his composition ? I'll love to try to approach it with my own tobacco maceration.
Influence, congrats on your first extractions!
You will need to increase your extracts to 20% of the finished juice to get full flavor. Also, give juice a little time to develop. It takes a day or two for it to attain much flavor and a couple of weeks or longer to blossom.
Try the rest of the extracts you got from NET.com and from me, mixed at 20%. Give them a couple of days before making any decisions. You'll find others even more flavorful than the Sun Cured Turkish and worthy of ordering for extraction.
Ten filtering passses is excessive. I make cleaner extract in two passes using qualitative lab filter paper, one oass through 6 micron, one through 2.5 micron. Your coffee filter could still work for the first filtration but get the finer media for the final filtering.
Good luck and keep us posted.
You will need to increase your extracts to 20% of the finished juice to get full flavor. Also, give juice a little time to develop. It takes a day or two for it to attain much flavor and a couple of weeks or longer to blossom. Try the rest of the extracts you got from NET.com and from me, mixed at 20%. Give them a couple of days before making any decisions. You'll find others even more flavorful than the Sun Cured Turkish and worthy of ordering for extraction.
Ten filtering passses is excessive. I make cleaner extract in two passes using qualitative lab filter paper, one oass through 6 micron, one through 2.5 micron. Your coffee filter could still work for the first filtration but get the finer media for the final filtering.
Good luck and keep us posted.
Last edited:
Thank you John for your support !! Your Bayou night is fantastic 
Didn't get the time to try the others, but I'm certain to enjoy them all !
I did it deliberately mixing only 10% extract at the beginning just for test see how they respond, not to get too saturated on flavors, after I'll mix them 20 or even 30 for the leak ones.
Just ordered 10 minutes ago mainly Cornell&Diehl : Star of the East, Byzantium, Jamaican Rum, Bayou Morning, Captain Bob's Blend, Cherry Bon Bon, Mocha, Old Joe Krantz, Orion's Arrow, Walnut Liqueur, Habana Daydream, Izmir Turkish, Chopped Cigar Leaf and Billy Bud
"You'll find others even more flavorful than the Sun Cured Turkish and worthy of ordering for extraction" suggestion for the next order more than welcome
John, if you could send me here or PM me the link were to buy qualitative lab filter paper that could be shipped to France, I've looked and didn't find any here
All the best
Didn't get the time to try the others, but I'm certain to enjoy them all !I did it deliberately mixing only 10% extract at the beginning just for test see how they respond, not to get too saturated on flavors, after I'll mix them 20 or even 30 for the leak ones.
Just ordered 10 minutes ago mainly Cornell&Diehl : Star of the East, Byzantium, Jamaican Rum, Bayou Morning, Captain Bob's Blend, Cherry Bon Bon, Mocha, Old Joe Krantz, Orion's Arrow, Walnut Liqueur, Habana Daydream, Izmir Turkish, Chopped Cigar Leaf and Billy Bud
"You'll find others even more flavorful than the Sun Cured Turkish and worthy of ordering for extraction" suggestion for the next order more than welcome
John, if you could send me here or PM me the link were to buy qualitative lab filter paper that could be shipped to France, I've looked and didn't find any here
All the best
Influence, glad you're finding some flavors that you like! The tobaccos you ordered should yield several winners IMO.
I sent a link to filters via PM and hope you can find them at a reasonable price in France. If not, I'll mail them to you from here. They will fold flat enough to send a few in a letter sized envelope.
Best of luck and keep us posted!
I sent a link to filters via PM and hope you can find them at a reasonable price in France. If not, I'll mail them to you from here. They will fold flat enough to send a few in a letter sized envelope.
Best of luck and keep us posted!
VG tends to have a sweet taste. I believe that NET dot com uses 70pg/30vg in standard blends. That would give less sweet and more bite. You may try increasing the pg ratio in your mixes. I use 50/50 or more vg but I don't mind the sweetness.
Influence, congrats on your first extractions!
Try the rest of the extracts you got from NET.com and from me, mixed at 20%. Give them a couple of days before making any decisions. You'll find others even more flavorful than the Sun Cured Turkish and worthy of ordering for extraction.
Ten filtering passses is excessive. I make cleaner extract in two passes using qualitative lab filter paper, one oass through 6 micron, one through 2.5 micron. Your coffee filter could still work for the first filtration but get the finer media for the final filtering.
Good luck and keep us posted.
Influence,
Congratulations.
I agree with Johni, right down the line. Less and better filtering, and more extract in mixing juices. Cheese cloth and coffee filters won't cut it no many how many times you run the macerated solvent through them. Cheese cloth might be good for a quick first pass to remove the bulk of solids, but then let gravity do all the work in a single pass through a good lab filter.
Unless your extract is more potent than any I've ever seen, 10% will make weak, unsatisfying NETs. I mix my pipe tobacco and cig/RYO extracts from 13-20%, and cigar extracts at 20-25%. Yes, steeping time will improve your extracts over the next month or two.
I'm glad that you jumped in and got started. Now it's just a matter of better filtering material and finding tobacco blends you like.
I use a crock pot with lid and use plastic bags and rubber bands to cover the jars. The bags keep unwanted moisture out of the jars and will allow for air expansion in the jar to occur, in the cooling stage the plastic bag contracts not allowing moisture to enter the jar.
I don't know where you got the idea of uncovered maceration jars in the water bath, but I would never do that. I put lids on everything---the maceration jars, which are sealed with screw-on lids, and the pot, which is covered with a normal pot lid (meaning not sealed, just covered).
I've never used a crock pot (for macerations or for cooking). Never owned one. When I started home extracting, I didn't want to buy a crock pot, but I had large pasta pots with lids, so I decided to use a heated water bath. Sealed lids on the maceration jars and a cover on the pot just seemed like common sense.
The OP (in the first post), details using uncovered mugs inside a covered slow cooker. Later in the thread the OP indicated the reason for leaving the mugs uncovered is to acquire condensation. I must admit I never tried it that way, always sealed mine specifically to prevent such from happening.
- Status
Similar threads
- Locked
