Storing Cigars

Ideally, cigars should be kept in a humidor, a box designed especially for storing cigars. Humidor is most often made from wood, typically Spanish cedar which helps prevent tobacco worm infestation and mold growth, and at the same time, gives cigars a unique flavor. But as long as the box maintains constant temperature and humidity level which should be about 70 degrees and 70%, respectively, it doesn’t really matter if it’s made from Spanish cedar or other type of wood or material.

Choosing the Best Humidor

A humidor with Spanish cedar inner lining is always a good choice but even more important is to choose a quality built/designed unit. In addition to having a perfect square shape, it is crucial that the box closes tightly and evenly, and that it has no gaps. If it does, it will be extremely difficult to maintain the ideal temperature and humidity level, not to mention keeping them constant. Likewise, it is advisable to choose a humidor that includes a hygrometer to be able to monitor humidity level.

Humidors used to be very expensive (some still are) but it is also possible to find a quality unit for the price of a package of fine cigars. So if you are looking for a humidor only to keep your beloved stogies properly stored, you don’t need to spend a fortune. Even though inexpensive humidors cost one tenth or less of the price of their high-end counterparts, they do their job just fine.

Importance of the Right Temperature and Humidity Level

The so-called 70/70 is ideal because when stored at the temperature of 70 degrees and humidity level of 70%, cigars taste their best. A few degrees/percents up or down don’t make any major difference but any larger deviations can seriously affect cigar flavor or even make them unsafe. Too high temperatures pose a risk of mold growth. The same counts for overly humid environment. If the temperature is too low but humidity is maintained close to 70%, your cigars will taste just fine but won’t age. But if humidity is too low, your stogies will dry out regardless of the temperature.

Storing Cigars Without a Humidor

Humidor is desirable but it isn’t a must to store cigars. As mentioned earlier, it doesn’t really matter where they are stored as long as you maintain the ideal temperature and humidity level. It can even be a glass jar or plastic container. However, these can be used to store cigars only up to one year. Likewise, storage boxes and containers that aren’t made from wood don’t allow aging. This is because they don’t allow the so-called marrying or the cigar components mixing with each other.

Which Position? Horizontal or Vertical?

It is advisable to store cigars horizontally to reduce the so-called layering effect. It refers to irregular mixing of dry and moist air causing cigars to be more moist/dry on one end. Horizontal storage (and avoidance of unnecessary opening of the storage box) minimize this effect.

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