Why buy a Humidor?
You may be new to the cigar scene, or you may be a seasoned connoisseur; but every Cigar smoker eventually runs into a common problem: you are accumulating cigars at a greater rate than you smoke. As a result, you are filling bag after bag with your growing collection. It may be time to buy a humidor. A humidor is a sizable investment — so today we will be discussing what to consider when choosing a humidor.
Keeping your Cigars Happy and Healthy
Before we go over the different options in the humidor market, let’s talk about proper cigar care. In order to keep cigars in their best condition, they need to be stored at a certain range of humidity and temperature. According to Tobacconist University, cigars are best kept at a temperature of 70 degrees Fahrenheit and at a relative humidity between 65 and 70 percent. Some people prefer to keep their cigars closer to 65 percent, especially those who collect Cuban Cigars, and others prefer to keep their cigars closer to 70 percent. It is all a matter of preference — at the end of the day, the best humidity is the humidity that works for you — just keep it between 65 and 70 percent. For more help deciding which humidity is right for you, check out this article.
Dangers of Improper Cigar Care
If humidity and temperature are too low, cigars will dry out and the leaves will become brittle. This will result in the cigar burning too fast and losing its flavor. If humidity and temperature are consistently too high, the leaves will expand from holding extra water. This can lead to cigars splitting, tighter draws when smoking, and burn problems.
Mold growth and tobacco beetles are also dangerous risks of storing cigars in an environment that is too warm or over-humidified. In a warm, humid environment, mold can spread from cigar to cigar and can ruin a whole humidor. Likewise, tobacco beetles can hatch and spread to all the cigars in your humidor, making them unable to be smoked. We will discuss mold and beetle prevention and management later on in the article.
Types of Humidors
There are numerous ways to store cigars. The two most common kinds of humidors are travel humidors and wooden desktop humidors. Travel humidors are made of a hard plastic, similar to a small gun case lined with foam. They are great at preserving your cigars and keeping them safe on the road. They are typically inexpensive and come in a variety of sizes ranging from 5 count travel humidors to 40 count travel humidors. These humidors are very low maintenance and are great for beginners. A variety of brands produce these humidors and they can be found at most premium cigar shops.
The other type we will go over are wooden desktop humidors. These are typically made entirely from or lined with a veneer of Spanish cedar wood. Spanish cedar is great at holding moisture without imparting unwanted flavors or odors to your cigars. These humidors vary in price but you generally get what you pay for with these. Desktop humidors are typically aesthetically appealing and are great for storing, aging, and collecting cigars. Unlike travel humidors, however, desktop humidors require significantly more maintenance.
Preparing a Desktop Humidor
Wooden desktop humidors require some preparation before they are ready to store cigars. The Spanish cedar wood functions like a sponge, it is porous and holds in moisture. That is how a humidor moderates the humidity within the space inside it. Brand new humidors do not come properly humidified — the wood is dry. If you store cigars in a brand new dry humidor, it will suck the moisture out of them. The process we use to properly prepare a humidor is called “seasoning.” There are a couple of ways in which people season their humidors.
One common way is by wiping the wood with a sponge of distilled water. However, more people are recommending against this because there is an increased risk of mold growth and warping the wood.
Humidity Packs
Another way to season a humidor is with high humidity 84 percent humidity packs. This is the simplest and easiest way to season your humidor. All you need to do is remove the humidity pack from the plastic and place it in your humidor. The amount of humidity packs you need depends on the capacity of the humidor. If you are using humidity packs made by Boveda, you would need one 60g pack for every 25 cigars your humidor can hold. You would then shut your humidor and let it sit for two weeks with no cigars in it. DO NOT PUT YOUR CIGARS IN THE HUMIDOR WHILE IT IS SEASONING AND DO NOT PLACE A HIGH HUMIDITY SEASONING PACK IN THE SAME CONTAINER AS YOUR CIGARS. DOING SO WILL RUIN THEM.
If humidity packs are unavailable, one other method you can use is taking a shot glass and filling it with distilled water and placing it on the bottom of the humidor. Do not spill it. Shut the humidor and let it sit for two weeks (or three weeks if your humidor is bigger). Every few days check the shot glass, and if it is empty, refill it. After the two weeks are up, take the shot glass out. Your humidor should now be seasoned.
Proper Humidor Maintenance
Humidor maintenance complication is not usual— however, it does require some commitment. Two accessories you will need to properly maintain a humidor are a humidification source and a calibrated digital hygrometer. There are two commonly humidification devices for humidors: refillable humidifier gel/beads and two way humidity packs. There are pros and cons for each kind which you can find here. What matters, regardless, is that you follow the directions on the packaging for the humidifier and that you consistently refill or replace it.
The other accessory you will need is a calibrated digital hygrometer. Many hygrometers come pre-calibrated; however, if you need to calibrate yours, check out this article. There are also analog hygrometers available, but they are far less reliable and need to be recalibrated more often.
Inspection and Care
Once your humidor go through proper seasoning, you may place your cigars and your humidifier in the humidor along with your hygrometer. If you have a larger humidor, you may want to invest in a second hygrometer to make sure humidity and temperature are constant throughout it. Now that your humidor is in working order, make sure you routinely check the hygrometer and the humidifiers and make sure the temperature and humidity are within the ranges discussed previously. If your humidor does not seem to be holding humidity you may need to re-season your humidor or it may have a weak seal. In the case of a weak seal, then use a humidifier with a rate for 72 percent or 75 percent.
Routinely inspect your cigars and the humidor for mold and beetles. Mold looks like a white or blue fuz or web. Be sure to visually inspect every single cigar and every corner and crevice of your humidor. If you find mold on the foot of a cigar, smoking it is not a recommendation. If the mold is widespread, here is how you can mitigate some of the damage. Tobacco beetle eggs are on all tobacco leaves but they are typically not visible during the manufacturing process by means of freezing. However, not all cigars are egg free. If the humidity and temperature of a humidor get too high, the eggs may hatch. Symptoms of a tobacco beetle infestation are swiss cheese-like holes in the cigars and a fine brown dust on the floor of the humidor. If you encounter signs of a beetle infestation, check out this article.
You can easily prevent these humidor catastrophes by properly maintaining and monitoring your humidor. One last thing to mention is that it is a good idea to open the humidor up and rotate your cigars routinely. Mold likes sitting air so it is good to ensure there is some air movement in the humidor. Some bigger humidors have fans to circulate air.
Choosing the Right Humidor for You
Now the final question remains, what humidor is best for you? Generally as a rule of thumb, it is a good idea to buy a humidor that has a capacity significantly bigger than what you currently need. Here are some questions to ask yourself:
- How many cigars do I currently have?
- What is my budget?
- Where will I put my humidor?
- Do I plan on collecting/aging my cigars?
These are just a few questions to consider. If you need help making an informed decision on a humidor, it is best to check with your local brick and mortar shop. Your local tobacconist should have the expertise and the experience to help you out. If you are looking to buy a humidor or have any questions regarding humidors, cigar care, or anything else the staff at Crown Cigars & Ales are more than happy to help.
