Cigar Smell

mobyallan

I have been having some humidity fluctuations (55%RH-65%RH) and I have noticed that my sticks have a slight "Crackle" to them when I roll them between my fingers. In addition, I noticed that they all smell the same. I have a habit of smelling a cigar when I take it out of the humidor (im sure many of us do this before we smoke) and this is when I noticed it.

The smell is stale-like if that helps. Have they gone bad?

camgfs

I doubt that they've gone bad. Cigars that are kept in the same humidor will pick up slightly on smell and flavor from other cigars that they touch, but that's not always a bad thing, AND it takes a long time for that to happen, unless you have 'flavoured' cigars in the same humi.

In winter months, you will find it more difficult to maintain a constant humidity. A drop in RH for a few days will not ruin your smokes.

The "Crackle" sound you hear is common with almost any premium cigar, even at 75% RH, so don't worry about that. Cigars start to "Crackle" only a short time after they are rolled (short, as in weeks to months) and are like that before they are shipped to distributers. It just means the tobacco has dried enough to be smoked.

I'm sure someone will correct me if I am wrong on that

mobyallan

camgfs:

I doubt that they've gone bad. Cigars that are kept in the same humidor will pick up slightly on smell and flavor from other cigars that they touch, but that's not always a bad thing, AND it takes a long time for that to happen, unless you have 'flavoured' cigars in the same humi.

In winter months, you will find it more difficult to maintain a constant humidity. A drop in RH for a few days will not ruin your smokes.

The "Crackle" sound you hear is common with almost any premium cigar, even at 75% RH, so don't worry about that. Cigars start to "Crackle" only a short time after they are rolled (short, as in weeks to months) and are like that before they are shipped to distributers. It just means the tobacco has dried enough to be smoked.

I'm sure someone will correct me if I am wrong on that

Don't have any flavored cigars - not my thing. The smell isn't really slightly the same to be fair - it is identical. I smelled a Jose Padilla Artisan and a Don Pepin Serie JJ and they were totally the same smell. Bummed me out because those two cigars have wonderful flavors in them - hope they smoke ok.

camgfs

I do hope that they smoke ok. I keep several types of cigars in my humidor, all with the cellophane off and I have never had any issues at all. You sure you don't just have a cold or some sinus thing going on? When I have a cold, my sense of smell and taste are off. I also have one humi that is not consistent on RH levels in the winter, but no problems with the cigars at all. They smell and taste just fine.

All I can suggest is to relax, have a smoke and hope it's good.

mobyallan

Will do. I am a bit stuffy - its kind of rainy here in SoCal right now. Glass of scotch and a gar right now sound real good. Thanks for the advise. I'll post an update when I light my next one.

kuzi16

camgfs:

I'm sure someone will correct me if I am wrong on that

i dont think you are wrong. i do think its arguable when you say:

camgfs:

Cigars that are kept in the same humidor will pick up slightly on smell and flavor from other cigars that they touch

the amount of oil in the transfer is very minute, if at all. and this is only if you have them sitting next to each other for years on end without any cellophane on them.

there was a thread that went pages about the theories behind this a long time ago but i just dont have the energy to look it up right now. I remember that maddy and i went back and forth on it for quite some time.