Malawi Style Cob Curing.

[TychoMonolyth]

I've been thinking about how I could make Cobs in bulk. Making one at a time for myself is OK, but to make enough to sell would take me a long time. So I'm buying an old Lieberman cigar rolling machine. I think it'll work with a few modifications. The Corn should be ready by the time my Girls are.

Just have to find a way to quickly bind them semi-mechanically so they all turn out relatively the same.

 

[Guest]

Hi Tang,guys.

Got a few quick snaps of my first attempts in cobbing.

Haze /Kali China after 2 months.

Tikal and Zamaldelica after about 3 weeks.Not enough moisture on the Zam but not very dry,gonna leave it for 5 more months anyway ...The Tikal has nice moisture levels.

Tikal

Zam

All the aromas have changed a lot .The haze /kc has definitely got the sickly sweet fermented thing...The Tikal giving more of an acrid/ammonia smell (no mould)and the Zam has gotten sweeter than the jar cured...

I tested the hz/kc today and it has a great smooth taste,not a big difference in effect than the jar cured ,feels like a more mature smoke for sure.Gonna take my chances chewing some tomorrow .Sorry for the bad pic quality,got some problems with resizing...

 

[stellarjay]

hey Syd, nice pics man! are those buds in your pics jar cured versions of each variety?

 

[Tangwena]

Hi Syd the first one the haze cross Kalichina got a good fermentation you can tell by the colors. The others as you said maybe less so.
But if you keep them vac sealed in a warm place you will be surprised how they turn out.
The Zamaldelica can get outstanding with a dark cure. I had some of mine from last year yesterday I couldn't stop laughing! As one of my African friends in Zimbabwe who was a lot older than me said a long time ago "Laughing alone is not good my friend"
Those buds look top notch as well you must be very happy with that lot.

 

[Tangwena]

I've been thinking about how I could make Cobs in bulk. Making one at a time for myself is OK, but to make enough to sell would take me a long time. So I'm buying an old Lieberman cigar rolling machine. I think it'll work with a few modifications. The Corn should be ready by the time my Girls are.

View Image

Just have to find a way to quickly bind them semi-mechanically so they all turn out relatively the same.

Solved the problem straight away I'd say.
You can pre weigh them so they will all turn out roughly the same size as well.
I have used a bamboo sushi rolling mat it works on a similar principle.
The buds usually stay rolled even without maize husks as the resin sticks them together. You can then wrap them or leave them unwrapped its even quicker.

 

[9DRAGONS]

very nice.

 

[TychoMonolyth]

...
I tested the hz/kc today and it has a great smooth taste,not a big difference in effect than the jar cured ,feels like a more mature smoke for sure.Gonna take my chances chewing some tomorrow .Sorry for the bad pic quality,got some problems with resizing...

Very nice. Looks like beautiful granite.

--
Resizing pictures? Here's what I use. It's the absolute best for doing lots, super simple to use and won't mess with any windows settings at all.

https://www.faststone.org/FSResizerDetail.htm
(remove the "s" from httpS)




Here's one of your pics with the settings showed above.


This is optimized for small size so some details are lost. But you can experiment until you're happy. Personally, I like your big pictures.

 

[Guest]

hey Syd, nice pics man! are those buds in your pics jar cured versions of each variety?

Thanks Jay,yes, same plant different curing method.

Hi Syd the first one the haze cross Kalichina got a good fermentation you can tell by the colors. The others as you said maybe less so.
But if you keep them vac sealed in a warm place you will be surprised how they turn out.
The Zamaldelica can get outstanding with a dark cure. I had some of mine from last year yesterday I couldn't stop laughing! As one of my African friends in Zimbabwe who was a lot older than me said a long time ago "Laughing alone is not good my friend"
Those buds look top notch as well you must be very happy with that lot.

Hi Tang!Do you think I could spray them with a little water and re cook for another day?Or just have them on top of the fridge ( lightproof)for a few months as they are?Thanks for the guidance!

Very nice. Looks like beautiful granite.

--
Resizing pictures? Here's what I use. It's the absolute best for doing lots, super simple to use and won't mess with any windows settings at all.


This is optimized for small size so some details are lost. But you can experiment until you're happy. Personally, I like your big pictures.

Thanks a lot TychoMonolyth,looks like a nice application,will try!

 

[DRM Ranch]

Got any pics? Dont be too sure the vacuum has failed.
When the pot is sweating it produces gases most probably just water vapor ect which give the appearance that the vacuum has failed.
McKush who sweats his cobs in a crock pot at about 60c has had then blow up like a balloon in the hot water.
Only to shrink back to tight when they cool down.
I use lower temps around 40c and when they sweat it gives the appearance of the bags being loose as well. But the seal is intact.
It will not harm them but you could check them at anytime by opening them and then resealing them it doesn't hurt them.

To get your pictures I will open them, how long does the sweat need to happen...or is that simply a personal preference thing?

 

[DRM Ranch]

And pictures...

In this picture you see that I taped the crap out of the whole getup, mostly to get it as air tight as possible though I doubt it was needed. Previously I had plastic wrap and foil layers in place of the tape.

Here we have the outer vacuum seal bag, I wrapped it in nylon cord to assure maximum compression.

This is the inner vacuum seal bag holding two individual COBs.

Yes there is a full measured oz. in each of these two, they are/were super tight when I wrapped them at first.

DRM Ranch

 

[Tangwena]

Hi Syd I wouldn't spray them just store them vac sealed in the warmest place you can find.
They may cure slowly that way.
My thinking is the plant needs to be still alive or dying when the sweat happens. If it is too dry it has stopped breaking down internally. Hence the green look, the sweat just hastens the process and takes it further due to microbial action in the fermentation process.
Thats just a wild guess on my part but it seems to explain the color changes.
The unfermented ones will still smoke good so no big loss there.
Next time try them a little fresher. They should yellow nicely if they have even a little moisture left in them if they are sealed and warm.
The good thing is you haven't stuffed them up they are still good to smoke no mold means they are good to go still.
Its a fine line to get perfection it takes a little practice like anything. But once you do get it your on a roll and you will wonder why it seemed so hard.
The Haze x Kalimist should give you an indicator of the changes you can produce give it a bit of aging it is not finished yet.

 

[Tangwena]

And pictures...
View Image
In this picture you see that I taped the crap out of the whole getup, mostly to get it as air tight as possible though I doubt it was needed. Previously I had plastic wrap and foil layers in place of the tape.

View Image
Here we have the outer vacuum seal bag, I wrapped it in nylon cord to assure maximum compression.

View Image
This is the inner vacuum seal bag holding two individual COBs.

View Image
Yes there is a full measured oz. in each of these two, they are/were super tight when I wrapped them at first.

DRM Ranch

Hi DRM they look fine from the pics.
It will be interesting to see when you open them.
As long as they were moist enough when wrapped they should ferment nicely. They will need to be warm though to support the change.
The biggest mistake people make the first time is drying the buds too much its no big deal as the buds stay fine.
But once you get the feel right its real easy.
Not saying you didn't get it right but if you didn't they will still be good.
You dont loose anything if they didn't ferment as long as they are vacuumed and yours look very well sealed.

 

[TychoMonolyth]

Tangwena, I was just thinking about the ferment. I've seen people wash their buds in water and lemon juice, rinse them in clean water, then hang to dry. I've done this myself because I dropped a cola in the garden and got earth on it. After the wash, you wouldn't believe the crap and bugs that came off it. I'm wondering if part of the crap that is washed off (bugs and such) contributes to the ferment.

Should the buds ferment even if washed?

 

[Gr33nSanta]

Tangwena, what would you think instead if one was to simply fill a mason jar with not quite dry herb, compress the flowers really hard to remove oxygen instead of using vaccum sealing in a bag. no cob leaves, could this work as well? nothing else than dying cannabis, a mason jar, a lid and good timing.

 

[Gr33nSanta]

and say that you were to put a hygrometer that you can see through the glass, what would be the RH after 2 weeks, 70%rh? 65%rh ?

 

[Tangwena]

Tangwena, I was just thinking about the ferment. I've seen people wash their buds in water and lemon juice, rinse them in clean water, then hang to dry. I've done this myself because I dropped a cola in the garden and got earth on it. After the wash, you wouldn't believe the crap and bugs that came off it. I'm wondering if part of the crap that is washed off (bugs and such) contributes to the ferment.

Should the buds ferment even if washed?

If the buds are moist enough before the wash, washing the bugs and dirt off will not effect anything its the moisture in the buds themselves that aids the fermenting.
If you air dried them so the wash water was gone they would be back to square one and ready to start the cure.
A chick I know washed her bush grown buds and couldn't believe the amount of red dust she washed off them. Outdoor grown will always be contaminated by the environment they grow in.
But thats natural and the same with anything grown outdoors.

 

[Tangwena]

Tangwena, what would you think instead if one was to simply fill a mason jar with not quite dry herb, compress the flowers really hard to remove oxygen instead of using vaccum sealing in a bag. no cob leaves, could this work as well? nothing else than dying cannabis, a mason jar, a lid and good timing.

These buds were green all over until they were sweated for 24hrs at 40c in a jar that had been vacuumed.
If you do it without a vacuum mold will grow very fast in warm moist conditions there is no short cut I know off.

 

[HaHaHashish]

My thinking is the plant needs to be still alive or dying when the sweat happens. If it is too dry it has stopped breaking down internally. Hence the green look, the sweat just hastens the process and takes it further due to microbial action in the fermentation process.

I've tried cobbing bud that was too dry, misted them with water and it didn't work (much like trying to bottle cure bud that has been dried too much). I now sweat buds have only been hung for a few days and are way too wet to smoke in a joint and this works for me. When I first started cobbing I didn't get great results trying to cob buds that have been drying for over a week)


re : washing bud that is muddy or dusty or had mites....If a branch droops down in the mud or has been infested with mites etc, you can throw it away, but if that's all you have then try to fix it. I find it's best to place the branches in a pan (or bath) of room temperature water, don't agitate them aggressively or leave them in there too long..a few gentle swirls and most of the dirt and insect shells, shit and eggs will wash off, then slow arc them so the water runs off and then hang to dry. If you aggressively agitate the buds in water and or leave them in the water for a long time, there will be terpene and resin loss resulting a weaker smoke. It's also best to trim any mite infested bud very tightly, removing all the leaves, even the small leaves close to the bud, then swirl in water.

 

[HaHaHashish]

sweated for 24hrs at 40c in a jar that had been vacuumed

I must be doing it wrong then! I wrap the cobs, place them in a plastic bag (sealed shut to retain the moisture that comes out of the buds, but the bag is not vacuumed) on a 40C heat source for 24 hours (or 12 or 36 hours), unwrap the cobs, dry them until they are less damp not wet (usually 8 hours or less at 55%-ish humidity), then wrap them tightly in Saran wrap (as I don't have a vac sealer) and monitor them every few days until "cob cured" 40 + days later.

Would I be right saying that cobs won't mold when placed in a bag on 40C + temps for only 24 hours? as I haven't noticed it. But of course, keeping the cobs oxygen free for a month after that is where the magic (the fermentation) happens, (but also note, that cobs can mold when using Saran wrap instead of a complete vacuum seal. Saran wrapped cobs are best kept in a room with humidity levels lower than 55% and mold won't occur..the only time I've noticed fine surface mold on the dense cobs I make is when they were kept in a high humidity room, even though tightly wrapped in many layers of Saran or PE wrap).

 

[Tangwena]

sweated for 24hrs at 40c in a jar that had been vacuumed

I must be doing it wrong then! I wrap the cobs, place them in a plastic bag (sealed shut to retain the moisture that comes out of the buds, but the bag is not vacuumed) on a 40C heat source for 24 hours (or 12 or 36 hours), unwrap the cobs, dry them until they are less damp not wet (usually 8 hours or less at 55%-ish humidity), then wrap them tightly in Saran wrap (as I don't have a vac sealer) and monitor them every few days until "cob cured" 40 + days later.

Would I be right saying that cobs won't mold when placed in a bag on 40C + temps for only 24 hours? as I haven't noticed it. But of course, keeping the cobs oxygen free for a month after that is where the magic (the fermentation) happens, (but also note, that cobs can mold when using Saran wrap instead of a complete vacuum seal. Saran wrapped cobs are best kept in a room with humidity levels lower than 55% and mold won't occur..the only time I've noticed fine surface mold on the dense cobs I make is when they were kept in a high humidity room, even though tightly wrapped in many layers of Saran or PE wrap).

The method you quoted will work of course. You just run the risk of mold developing during the long cure.
Its worth buying a good vacuum machine you can use them for its original purpose when not making cobs they are a great food preservation tool.
The initial sweat does not need to be vac sealed its just for the longer fermentation that vac sealing is good insurance against mold.
I just vac seal at every stage because it is insurance against any mold developing.
The whole process can be done without it but the conditions we keep the cobs in ie warm and damp are perfect for growing mold.
If you have the buds to spare it can be attempted without vacuum sealing and can work well but you need more than a little skill and a good slice of luck on your side. Vacuuming is a lot easier.