Malawi Style Cob Curing.

ahortator said:

Hello. Very interesting thread. Thank you very much for your research!

This is tobacco, but imagine...

https://youtu.be/iTZ5PHCrqMA

https://youtu.be/PTEvVwpCKpc

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Fermented said:

I've also tried cobbing with re-hydrated bud that had been dried enough to smoke in a joint (but needs re-lighting several times) and all I got was compacted bud ....and also tried with bud that was beginning to bottle cure and that was the same result..little or no difference in the high compared to standard cured bud. As Tangwena said, fermentation doesn't happen unless the bud is "semi-alive" and still retains some moisture and is pliable. If the bud is even a day or two before bottle curing, it's probably too late for fermentation and the positive changes that occur with cobbing won't happen.

The more I cob, the less time I spend air drying the bud beforehand. I only dry (in the humid, slow drying conditions here) for 3 or 4 days, (one week max) then roll them into cobs, the leaves are droopy but still pliable and definitely not crispy.

Around here for most months of the year t takes a minimum of 3 or more weeks to dry bud enough to be ready for bottle curing or to smoke in a joint without going out several times..and even after 20 days, it's not really dry unless a dehumidifier is used. The other advantage to cobbing is that I don't have lots of branches hanging around for weeks. waiting to dry!

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treepwnzor said:

So beautiful, Tangwena!

Lets keep cobs raining in this thread:
- My latest 2 cobs out of zamaldelica that flowered little over 100 days.
I'm pleased with the results so far. Definitely will keep the bigger one for special occasions - like a wedding !

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damien50 said:

Thank you Tang for this method.

Do i need to remove anything besides the fan leaves before I seal?

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Tangwena said:

You can remove as much or as little as you choose my friend they all end up amalgamated into the compressed bud after the cure.
I personally leave all the sugar leaves on but you dont have to it works just the same on manicured bud.
Just remember you get out what you put in. Great buds make great cobs and visa versa.

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damien50 said:

Thanks. My wife was complaining about trimming and I was complaining about weak bud. You solved both our issues.

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bugman52 said:

im not noted for trimming well either , ive been wanting to try this cob curing for a while , it took me a minet to re fined this thread ,i remember that Tangwena had this thread , so now i found it again im gona try an roll a few smaller cobs .

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treepwnzor said:

So beautiful, Tangwena!

Lets keep cobs raining in this thread:
- My latest 2 cobs out of zamaldelica that flowered little over 100 days.
I'm pleased with the results so far. Definitely will keep the bigger one for special occasions - like a wedding !

View Image

View Image

Click to expand...

Fermented said:

Instead of vacuuming the cobs after the 24 hours @ 40C (and half a day to air out and become drier though still pliable), I just wrap them very tightly in cling (PE or "Saran" or film whatever you call it..every country has a different name for it!) wrap and monitor them to make sure moisture levels and smells are within the right range. I really must get myself a vacuum sealer, as this would be way easier, better and safer. But since I've done this for awhile, I now can keep the cobs sealed and moist enough for long enough to ensure fermentation occurs while not getting mold which is a challenge when cobbing without a vac seal. If mold occurs, it's usually a very faint while or white/greyish "powder" in patches on the exterior of the cob. This can be wiped off with a cloth that is dry/damp with vinegar...but even if the mold is wiped off with vinegar or water, it seems the taste changes and the effects are diminished....that is why it's important to monitor un-vacced cobs every few days for the first few weeks, then weekly afterwards for a month or so..it's all about prevention.

Yeah, I know I should buy a vac (it's on the list!) but cobs have been made in Africa for ages without the use of vacuum sealers, so it's not impossible to do it this way, you just have to straddle a finer line between too dry (which little or no fermentation occurs) and too damp (which increases the chance of mold occurring)

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bugman52 said:

im not noted for trimming well either , ive been wanting to try this cob curing for a while , it took me a minet to re fined this thread ,i remember that Tangwena had this thread , so now i found it again im gona try an roll a few smaller cobs .

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Fermented said:

I wanna drill a hole through that and smoke it like a blunt. Need more rep, never enough.

It would burn for an hour or more! and you would get thirty people high...let me know, I'll bring the lighter

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funkyhorse said:

Master Tangwena:
This is a small update on fermenting
The results I am obtaining with the vacuum jar are similar to what is described on cobs.
I live in Humidland, the average humidity where I am is 70%.
So when I "dry" the pressed weed, it always retains humidity and when back on the jar, I get a fermenting process which lasts about 4-7 days before I start seeing signs of mold.
When I see these signs, I stop the fermenting process, everything out of the jar for a second and final dry and after that, everything backs to the vacuum jar for the long curing.
Results really improves with time. I dont take pictures because I am really bad at it, the colours are not seen properly. I am not a photographer and it was never my hobby

My experiment curing on vacuum after just dried, was not succesful, or maybe it is succesful depending how you look at it, but it is not to my liking. I get narcotic stuff this way and I dont like it and not what I look for, maybe I did something wrong or this is the result you should obtain curing this way.
I post it because it might be good for someone else.


This is a little fermenting challenge for your summer fishing camp: to recreate and bring back the mammoth!! The mammoth is called fumo da lata or the can's smoke and I put the story in that thread because many smart and skillful thai strain growers write there and it is a pure thai landrace and probably they will have things to say about this and correct all things I might be wrong:
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showpost.php?p=8503049&postcount=1103

Pd: Master Tangwena, I think it could be a great idea if you could edit the first post of the thread and place there the most up to date info so it becomes easy to find for newcomers. This post is a must on first page:
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showpost.php?p=8215898

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CannaRed said:

When I got home from work the temp in crock pot had climbed to 124° F. Only 20 hours in, I took lid all the way of now it's 113°F.
Buds have definitely darkened quite a bit. Hope I didn't ruin it by temp getting so high.
I'll remove it from crockpot and open vacsealed bag at 24hrs. Unless I hear otherwise from you guys.

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Tangwena said:

Hi my friend I would remove the pot from the heat and dry the buds until they are dry on the surface only but still moist in the center then vacuum seal them for a week.
Then open the bag again and dry further re seal for another week.
By this time you should have a sweet fermented smell when you open the bag.
Once you get that sweet smell dry the buds and re seal them to age for a month minimum after one month they should be ready to smoke or chew.
All buds are different some it takes a week some two or three to get the sweet smell but the sweet smell is the most important indicator of fermentation having occurred or still occurring.

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