Patent ID: 7025066

Claim:
A method of reducing the sucrose ester concentration of a tobacco mixture comprising a first Oriental tobacco having a relatively high sucrose ester concentration, the method comprising: contacting a first Oriental tobacco having a sucrose ester concentration of at least about 1,600 ppm with (i) a second dissimilar Oriental tobacco having a lower sucrose ester concentration than the first Oriental tobacco, (ii) a non-Oriental tobacco having a lower sucrose ester concentration than the first Oriental tobacco, or (iii) a combination thereof, to form a tobacco mixture having a first total sucrose ester concentration, wherein the tobacco mixture comprises at least about 10 percent by weight of the first Oriental tobacco, based on the total weight of tobacco in the mixture; heating the tobacco mixture for a time and under conditions sufficient to reduce the concentration of sucrose esters in the tobacco mixture to a second total sucrose ester concentration lower than said first total sucrose ester concentration; and incorporating the heat-treated tobacco mixture into a smoking article.