Would a cigar jar be good for aging?
WaterDemon
Posts: 269 ✭
in Cigar 101
So It might be the pain killers im on from my wisdom teeth being pulled but I had an idea. Would a cigar Jar be good for aging cigars? I was thinking of purchasing the AJ Fresh Rolled cigars and let them rest. But I saw the Cigar Jar and thought "Maybe if I put a Boveda pack in there with 20 of those cigars it will work....?" Any thoughts? Is the jar even good at keeping a seal? I don't plan on keeping it out in the open where sunlight can hit it. Anyone try this? 0
Comments
I have since cleaned it, removed the wood, and it's a jar for bagged pipe tobacco.
Edit: If you opened the jar everyday to grab a smoke, it would be OK. But long-term aging with it kept shut might not be a good idea. That plastic just does not breath like wood, or even a bigger cooler does.
First off . . . . Water demon . . . this would have been my feedback to your original question. I wouldn't think a jar would be a good candidate because it has too tight a seal. My understanding is that to get aging you need some air flow and thats why humidors are wood, they let some air in and out even when shut but keep the humidity nice and moist in there. I could be way offbase here, but a jar would hold them humid and fresh but I think it would be more preserving rather than aging. Hope this helps but it looks like you came to the exact same conclusion already.
Medic, you might already know this, but I just wanted to real quickly point out that I don't think "airtight" is the best option. Not that I have a cooler, so I might be way off here, but I think this is one of the downsides to coolers is that sometimes they have too tight a seal. I know alot of folks use em though so there is probably a good solution to make them mostly airtight. Anyway again, just pointing this out in case you didn't realize that already.
Good ventilation gets rid of the ammoniac smell in no time so if you cannot wait and want to get rid of the smell in quicker time, storing cigars in the open if the atmosphere is not too dry, or opening your humidor or box of cigars for some time everyday helps.* Good ventilation also encourages fermentation, faster fermentation makes cigars more flavorsome quicker. Oxygen though, in large quantities, destroys some of the delicate flavors which may be a plausible explanation of why cigars packaged in varnished Cabinets, and in airtight glass gars age much more beautifully after a few decades. Slower fermentation, longer time raw materials are continuously supplied during aging, more time for the chemicals to react with each other to form more complex flavors thus better results. Good aging of Havanas cannot be accelerated by any artificial means without loss of quality; this has been tried and failed. Whether you should breathe your cigars periodically depends on the time frame you wish to age newly purchased Havanas before consumption. If it is just a few years, or even a few months, do breathe your cigars. If you want a beautifully aged cigar and time is no concern, never breathe your cigars
However, the fact is Habanos change dramatically with aging and time. many people enjoy fresh rolled cigar in Cuba rather than aged Habano. The same group of people do not like the same Habanos when they smoke the same cigar in another country. In Cuba freshly rolled cigars are openly stored because Cuba has the perfect temperature and humidity to store cigar in the open air.
Ventilation allows the cigar to get rid of undesired ammonia and it also releases flavor quickly. At the same time loose the charm of the slow aging. During the slow age process, the flavors and aroma have more time to marry with each other for more complexity and better result.
Just like a good wine, true Habanos(not all Cuban puros are true Habanos, I will talk about this some other time) should not be rushed for aging. Frequent breathing get in touch with more oxygen which effects the delicate flavors and aroma of a cigar. I am experimenting this in two different humidors over a year and will be able to share my experience within few years-:)