Malawi Style Cob Curing.

[b8man]

I'm giving this a go with some Panama x Bangi and some Panama x Malawi that was recently chopped. Doing a little experiment with one sweated for 12 hours and one for 24 hours from each strain. Currently in the ferment stage which I'll be doing for 7 days before a 1 month cure.

I've got a theory that the thai varieties that I used to adore while I lived in Asia probably went through a sweat/ferment stage given the heat and humidity - maybe that's what made it so special? I know the looks-like-shit-but-great-high local shwag used to be stored air-tight in plastic for transport in gas tanks. And of course the thai-sticks.

 

[Tangwena]

I'm giving this a go with some Panama x Bangi and some Panama x Malawi that was recently chopped. Doing a little experiment with one sweated for 12 hours and one for 24 hours from each strain. Currently in the ferment stage which I'll be doing for 7 days before a 1 month cure.

I've got a theory that the thai varieties that I used to adore while I lived in Asia probably went through a sweat/ferment stage given the heat and humidity - maybe that's what made it so special? I know the looks-like-shit-but-great-high local shwag used to be stored air-tight in plastic for transport in gas tanks. And of course the thai-sticks.

Please post pics when you open them after the 7 days.
My last run which was my best yet for smell and looks as well as taste i started slow drying after 7 days then aged for a month.
You can over ferment if your not careful and you loose a lot of taste and aroma.
They should be smelling sweet and like fermented fruit with a flowery smell when ready. Good luck those strains can be awesome cured like this.

 

[HaHaHashish]

They should be smelling sweet and like fermented fruit with a flowery smell when ready.

I usually get a scent that reminds me of raisins and something deeper that is damp and earthy, but in a nice way, maybe I should use a lower temp for the sweat and be not so wet going into the sealed bag stage of cobbing to get a more flowery scent?

 

[b8man]

Please post pics when you open them after the 7 days.
My last run which was my best yet for smell and looks as well as taste i started slow drying after 7 days then aged for a month.
You can over ferment if your not careful and you loose a lot of taste and aroma.
They should be smelling sweet and like fermented fruit with a flowery smell when ready. Good luck those strains can be awesome cured like this.

Will do. It'll be tomorrow that they're finally opened. Do I still need to use the corn husk after the fermentation stage?

 

[Tangwena]

Will do. It'll be tomorrow that they're finally opened. Do I still need to use the corn husk after the fermentation stage?

No you dont even need to use them for the fermenting stage it works just fine straight in the vac bag.
I just use them because its more authentic and like the traditional ones in Malawi.
But once its fermented i sometimes remove the skins it just depends on how they look no other reason.
If you sniff the bag it should smell strongly of fermented fruit but deeper. Once your tuned in to this cure you will just go by your eyes and nose after all every plant is different what works for one might not work for another.
The basics stay the same though ferment, cure and dry and age.
Just the temps and times vary for each basic bud type eg chunky resin buds or airy sativa buds ect.
Both react differently to fermenting hence the use your eyes and nose. Once you smell a top fermentation smell you will never forget.

 

[Tangwena]

They should be smelling sweet and like fermented fruit with a flowery smell when ready.

I usually get a scent that reminds me of raisins and something deeper that is damp and earthy, but in a nice way, maybe I should use a lower temp for the sweat and be not so wet going into the sealed bag stage of cobbing to get a more flowery scent?

Generally the lower the temps and shorter the fermentation times the more colorful and aromatic the result.
Most of my best cures have started with 24hr sweat but only 1 week fermentation.
Most of the people I know who are cobbing at the moment are going for the shorter fermentation times. Using the smell of the fermenting buds to decide when to start slowly drying before starting the aging process. Rather than a rigid time table.

Still vacuum sealed at every stage off course.
I find most growers find the fermentation smells easy to identify and once you smell the ripe aromas you will never forget and just go by the smell and look alone.
The recipe as it stands is just an easy way to get an acceptable result but by fine tuning you will find outstanding aromas, tastes and effects are at your finger tips.

 

[b8man]

Thanks for the support Tangwena.

Getting a really intriguing sweet, raisiny smell with something familiar in there. Nothing like the smell of the buds themselves. Very nice altogether and something I could easily imagine chewing on.

Not a lot of difference in the smells or colors of the 12h and 24H sweat. And some of the cobs have uneven coloring so I suspect some areas were in more contact with the heat than others. And these did use lower quality buds as this was an experiment. It wasn't all airbuds but the airbuds padded it out.

How long should they be left out of the bags to dry before being resealed and put away to cure? And for the cure does it need any special temps?

 

[Night4wings20]

I can answer that one


If the fermenting is to your liking (if it smells pleasant) you un-seal the cob, let it dry completely. You can then either re-seal the cob in a vaccum bag or put it in a jar like normal buds. For curing a cool, dry and dark place is best. This is medicine after all so treat it as such.



This is my basic understanding, I hope it helps, I'm sure Tangwena will chime in and correct anything that I left out.

 

[b8man]

I can answer that one


If the fermenting is to your liking (if it smells pleasant) you un-seal the cob, let it dry completely. You can then either re-seal the cob in a vaccum bag or put it in a jar like normal buds. For curing a cool, dry and dark place is best. This is medicine after all so treat it as such.

Thanks man.

It smells pleasant to me but I'm new to this so no idea if it could be nicer. My plan was to cure it for a month anyway while I got accustomed to the effects of the strains vaped, then I'd have a good idea of how the high will have changed when I sample it.

The weed is currently moist but not wet to the touch. Smells really interesting - just can't pinpoint where I've smelt it before.

 

[repuk]

Cut a chunk to test and vacuum the other, to experiment if you wish; looks really good to my eye ageing wise, but nose is more important! Experiment, try and take your pick...

Before testing it tho, let it dry, really slowly, e.g. for 2 hours, jar and wait 12, another 2 hours drying, etc... over the course of several days for best results. It really makes a difference on the high potency and quality.

Once dried (bend it: not supple, should break), either use (keeping it jarred), or vacuum and store.

Expect the high to be really something else, really unique; of course, what goes in, goes out...

 

[Tangwena]

Not much more to say thanks guys. there speaks the voice of experience as Repuk says dry and then vacuum seal.
Temps for aging dont seem important i store mine at average 24c but once you dry it the fermentation stops and the aging process begins.

 

[Mick]

My last run which was my best yet for smell and looks as well as taste i started slow drying after 7 days then aged for a month.
You can over ferment if your not careful and you loose a lot of taste and aroma.

Hey Tang, I think I may have over fermented a bit. The Malawi turned out black. Trippy and deep. Next time I'll try some shorter ferments as well.
Spotify has a playlist on it called Cob Music Helps take me deep into some crazy awesome places. Great music for mushrooms too.
Here's a taste, although it's not all this spacey.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgJKm0FZ4Cg

 

[Night4wings20]

No worries as long as I helped

 

[Tangwena]

Hey Tang, I think I may have over fermented a bit. The Malawi turned out black. Trippy and deep. Next time I'll try some shorter ferments as well.
Spotify has a playlist on it called Cob Music Helps take me deep into some crazy awesome places. Great music for mushrooms too.
Here's a taste, although it's not all this spacey.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgJKm0FZ4Cg

Yeah thats a trade off the terps for never never land man some of the trips I've had on a black Panama cob I have.
The last time I had it I got lost walking from my kitchen to the laundry ha ha.
Some cool dude must have put that music up man.
Its awesome how people are embracing what is to most people a crazy thing to do.
Ha ha it is only crazy people do it, we are the best kind are we not?
I have to post a pic by the wizard of the desert. He will make himself known if he wants to but he has just been promoted from space cadet to captain Kirk ha ha awesome short ferment.




Just 24hrs at 36c unbelievable. Click on the pic I dare you.

 

[Drunken Buddha]

Thanks Mentor Man........I'm talking with Alice right now using my old standby, McKush's MH7 cob. In a month or two or three I'll have a nice new assortment to test. Beam me up.


e.T Special

Vietnam Black x ((Kandahar x Thai) x Panama))

 

[Tangwena]

Thats my brother right there, you see what I mean kinda gets you by the goolies doesn't it.

 

[Drunken Buddha]

Chaco's Sour Nevil buds....."Canary Bud Stylee" - 12 hour dry and then sweat for 18 hrs. @ 115F (46C)....Zip lock bag only, no vacuum.


Easy to see the difference that fermenting makes, however the real difference is in the smoke.

 

[Tangwena]

Chaco's Sour Nevil buds....."Canary Bud Stylee" - 12 hour dry and then sweat for 18 hrs. @ 115F (46C)....Zip lock bag only, no vacuum.


Easy to see the difference that fermenting makes, however the real difference is in the smoke.


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Wow thats lip smacking good man what are you going to do with them now?
Hows the aroma? or shouldn't I asK?
From the looks of them the aroma will be very nice especially as they dry.
I would love to try those buds at say the 12 hour mark just as they start to turn. This is something I must try with my next lot with the right buds and the right aromatic cure it would be exactly like some big loose cobs we used to get from Mozambique.
Big fat bracts all golden yellow even the resin looked like golden sugar. Not compressed just gathered up in a large loose bark cob.
The aromas were out of site.

 

[Night4wings20]

Very nice looking cobs, can't wait to make more of my own and join the real Cob club

 

[McKush]

Thanks Mentor Man........I'm talking with Alice right now using my old standby, McKush's MH7 cob. In a month or two or three I'll have a nice new assortment to test. Beam me up.


e.T Special

Vietnam Black x Kandahar x (Thai x Panama)

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Good looking cure DB! hehe

Glad you still have some of the MH7 left. I'm down to only two cobs left so am rationing it out slowly. going to miss it when its gone, it was a great plant.