The Best Way to Save a Cigar | Lifestyle

by DaveSabot

If there is one tragedy where a box of high-quality cigars is concerned it would be in their being ignored and going stale. While many people wrongly believe that a sealed box of cigars is impervious to many common problems, the fact of the matter is that they are not packaged to retain their best qualities. This is the reason that the best tobacconists keep their cigars in proper storage cabinets with humidifiers and hygrometers fully engaged.

The first thing to know, however, is that the humidor is the final destination and not the embarking point. If you happen to have a few empty humidors or one that is not currently serving in a humidifying capacity you can start the restoration process there, but if not, you can just bust out the largest plastic zip locking bag you have. You will have to ruin it by poking some air holes in it, but it will be worth the sacrifice. Next, you will need to find a relatively stable location, such as a cupboard or closet where the humidity and ambient temperature are fairly steady and reasonable. You can leave the cigars in this spot for the next three or four days.

So, is there a way to improve the condition of cigars after they have been abused or neglected? Yes, with a well-balanced humidor and a few insider tips anyone can get a cigar back into excellent smoking condition. It actually begins outside of a highly controlled environment and requires the use of a plastic bag or non-humidified cigar box. The cigars should be put into the container and left in a place where overall conditions will remain steady for a period of three to four days. After that they will need to have a damp sponge, saturated by distilled water only, placed into the container for a period of seven to ten additional days. This will bring the dehydrated cigars very slowly back to life and allow the outer tobacco leaf wrapper to re-humidify without bursting.

Once the initial rehydration process has been completed, you can then move them to the humidor that is actively humidifying its contents. Of course you still have another thirty days to wait before the cigars will have reached a decent level of moisture for smoking, but it is well worth the effort and the wait.

If you want to age cigars that have been dehydrated, you simply follow this same process and leave them in the humidor for another full calendar year. The humidity level must be at seventy percent and the ambient temperature at seventy degrees for the process to work successfully.

DISCLAIMER: This article is provided as information only and is not to be taken as financial advice.

Dave Sabot is the owner of an online specialty cigar lighters store. With expert knowledge of cigar accessories, including nibo group lighters, Dave also owns a premier online cigar accessories store.