Do cigars go off?

[BlkKnight]

I picked up come cigars from Cuba two years ago and totally forgot about them until I found them clearing out my book cupboard.

They are in an unopened wooden box.

If I spark one up am & going to end up with a burnt nose?

[Legion]

The more seasoned smokers will pipe up soon (no pun intended), but I think it has to do with the humidity they are stored in, as they can dry out.

Having said that, I have smoke cigars that were several years old and they have been fine.

[Commander Quan]

The first question is where did you get them? If you bought them in an official Habanos shop they they will need to be slowly brought back up to humidity, if you bought them off off a street vendor or somewhere other than a state cigar store they're fake and probably not worth the hassle of trying to save, keep them for a display.

[dpm802]

Unless they are cracked and falling apart, they are probably still smoke-worthy. They might not taste quite the same as when they were fresh, though.

If it doubt, take a couple of them to your local tobacconist and ask his opinion.

[BladeDE40]

It's not going to blow up in your face....but if they were not stored in a humidity controlled environment they will most likely be dry and not taste very good...if they are dry you can try reviving them in a humidor.

[inspiringK]

I think that you can usually see mold of it starts to grow on cigars. In your case though I'd bet they have gone dry and become flaky. I am not a cigar expert, hopefully one of them can chime in, if not I would try to recondition (rehumidify) them with the old ziplock bags and wet napkin trick.

[Don Barbiere]

Make sure if they are dry you add humidity slowly ,you dont want to add them to 70 humidity right away or they will split,the process is slow but well worth ,i have revived some before and it took me good nine months but they were excellent,you want to start with low humidity let say in the fifties and slowly increase it every month!i will also keep them sepqrate from your good cigars that you already keep between 65-70 depending what your set up is!

[Walter Sobchak]

Make sure if they are dry you add humidity slowly ,you dont want to add them to 70 humidity right away or they will split,the process is slow but well worth ,i have revived some before and it took me good nine months but they were excellent,you want to start with low humidity let say in the fifties and slowly increase it every month!i will also keep them sepqrate from your good cigars that you already keep between 65-70 depending what your set up is!

That's good advice. Sloooooooow.

[lz6]

It all depends on the humidity and the changes in that humidity over the two years in your book cupboard. Cuban cigars age extremely well from 62% to 68% and the lower ranges is where long time storage, 10 year+, does the best. Temperature control is also important obviously. If they have been with almost no humidity for two years, box open or not, they would probably make good tent pegs! Sorry for your loss. You can't restore any cigar to being close to a decent smoke once the essential oils have evaporated. You can slowly bring moisture back to the tobacco but there is no point.

[BlkKnight]

To answer come questions:

- Yes they are state official ones - purchased from the government sponsored shop.

- They have been stored at an ambient temp of about 20deg C +/-2

No idea what the relative humidity is :)


In terms of moistening them up (without spending any money) is there anything I can do? My Dad used to keep some lettuce in with his pipe tobacco :)

[Legion]

What I have done with pipe tobacco is put it in a sealed Tupperware container and then put in a small piece of damp sponge, but not touching the tobacco. As the water evaporated out of the sponge it went into the tobacco and brought it back to life. I assume this might work with a cigar.

[BlkKnight]

That sounds reasonable

[Mr.Goodfella]

As stated above, make sure to bring up the humidity slow. You can get a hygrometer from the local B&M for a pretty low price; start at around 50% RH and work up to around 65%RH, this should take some time (2-7 months depending) but it will be your best bet. Tupperware and a sponge works just fine if you don't have a humidor, make sure the sponge doesn't touch the cigars and it is always smart to lay a paper towel down under the sponge in case it leaks. I have had a Dimplomatic Edition cigar (which was gifted) that was left to dry out and the guy brought them back to life and it tasted just fine, probably one of the better cigars I have had but you never know when it comes to these things. Give it a shot, if it works it works, if not you have a starter for fireworks:w00t:

[Don Barbiere]

Male sure you use distilled water in the process or as a matter of fact for your good cigars as well,i have an Oasis for my set up but i strongly encourage to use beads or beads and active humidifier(Oasis or any other) is even better!

[Mr. Goodkat]

If they're still physically intact you can resurrect them using the aforementioned methods, but they will still be mere shells of their former selves.

[Alacrity59]

Occasionally I see stories of people finding a stash of cigars perfectly preserved in dampish basements after decades that turn out to be wonderful.

Apparently grains found in the pyramids . . . will germinate.

On the other hand . . . fresh spices do seem to be a bit better than those sitting in a rack for a few years.

I'll leave it to you then . . . is a good thing revived better than a not so hot thing fresh?

Good luck

[The Count of Merkur Cristo]

It all depends on the humidity and the changes in that humidity over the two years in your book cupboard. Cuban cigars age extremely well from 62% to 68% and the lower ranges is where long time storage, 10 year+, does the best. Temperature control is also important obviously. If they have been with almost no humidity for two years, box open or not, they would probably make good tent pegs! Sorry for your loss. You can't restore any cigar to being close to a decent smoke once the essential oils have evaporated. You can slowly bring moisture back to the tobacco but there is no point.
lz6:
+1 and I could'nt agree with you more...because a Cigar without their essential oils is day without Sunshine. http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff258/truckthis/emoticons/themoticon-0157-sun.gif

BlkKnight:
In my opinion...I would'nt waste the time...buy more Cigars. :thumbup:

Christopherhttp://i266.photobucket.com/albums/ii262/leederbottoms/smoke.gif

[BlkKnight]

Fair enough.

I'll bust them open at the next opportunity (when swmbo isn't looking!)

[Pescara]

You may be pleasantly surprised. I found a few Davidoff 2000s (cedar-lined tubos) which had been sitting in a box in my basement for at least a decade. They were slightly dry but not at all crumbly. The first one I smoked was excellent. Not at all harsh, which is what I expected. Good luck.