Will toasting tobacco stop it from aging?

[KroBar]

Will toasting tobacco stop it from aging?
WHile I'm here, does fire curing prevent a leaf from aging?
I've been toasting some Dark Air cure tobaccos (10 minutes at F260) to amazing results.
It really increases the complexity and unlocks the sweetness.
Last night i rolled a twist with some toasted DAC and a little Fire Cured.
Then it occurred to me that toasting it might kill all the microbes and stunt any further aging / fermenting.
Will the microbes in the Fire Cured inoculate the toasted DAC?
Anybody made a plug or carrote with toasted tobacco?
I mean, I could cut it up tonight and it should still be delicious, but will it change over time?

 

[GreenDragon]

Yes.
Maybe - depends on how hot / long it was treated.
Aging happens through enzymatic action in the presence of moisture within the leaf, no bacteria involved.

 

[KroBar]

Thanks!
I've come in to the world of tobacco from making my own snus, and the idea there is to pasteurize it, so it doesn't ferment anymore, and stop production of TSNAs.
BUt toasting the leaf is for a totally different purpose. it's to alter the flavor.
I toast it at F260 for 10 minutes.
I brought it up to case after that though, so I could work with it to roll a twist.
But my plan is to dry it to a low case and stick it in a jar or a plastic bag for a while and forget about it.
I guess that's coming from reading about the pipe guys aging / cellaring blends.
Keep reading about the oldtimers who hung their twists up in the closet.
How would that effect it differently than sticking it in a jar?

 

[deluxestogie]

149°F denatures the leaf's primary intrinsic oxidase (aging) enzyme. 191°F denatures the secondary (and less effective) oxidase enzyme. These are the "aging" enzymes in fermenting or kilning leaf. Their effect is capable of slowly continuing for years, if those enzymes are still active. Once pressed or packed, microbes then bring about subtle changes. I wouldn't call these latter changes aging per se, but they are nonetheless changes.

Bob

 

[KroBar]

Thanks!
So I can expect them not to "age", but the microbes might still work their magic?
ORRRR, I probably killed them off too, and the only changes that will occur are from the 1/6 part FIre Cure I twisted up with it?
No sense in waiting around then... Best get to smoking it I guess

 

[deluxestogie]

Microbes are ubiquitous. Unless you store your toasted tobacco in sterilized containers, sealed during a canning process, it will have microbes. Microbes don't just sit and party. They replicate, some as rapidly as doubling their numbers every 20 minutes, until they have consumed the available resources. The "prune" character of some pressed and stored tobacco is likely from the ubiquitous yeast, Pichia anomala.

Bob

 

[KroBar]

Now that's what I was hoping to hear! An Exponential Yeast Party! Count me in