Experimentation in Rest and Aging.

clearlysuspect · August 2009

Well, I've benefited from the wealth of knowledge the members here on this board, but now is the time to see the benefits of rest and aging for myself. On Saturday I received two of the Cigar.com Brasilia Label 5 packs from the Daily Deal. So I have 10 cigars to begin my experiment. The control and variable is simple. I will smoke 1 of these cigars quarterly; one every 3rd Sunday of every 3rd month; the experiment will last 2.5 years. I will closely monitor the temp and humidity as I do on a daily basis. I have decided to remove the cellophanes from these cigars for this trial. After smoking the cigar, I'll write down my notes and record what I have observed, and I'll post those findings here. This is a cigar that I know I like.

clearlysuspect · August 2009

Cigar.com Brazil Label Torpedo #1. This is part of a 2.5 year experiment to observe and learn from the benefits of rest and aging on cigars.

Comments on Cigar:
I enjoyed this cigar on the patio just after sunset on a day when I was already relaxed. I drank a Memmosa with it. The cut was straight and clean and it had a good prelight draw. The cigars arrived only yesterday and has only had 24 hours rest. The cigar was somewhat hard. I noticed the wrapper is a little thin, a trait I have associated with cheaper cigars. The burn was very even all the way down and I had no problems at all with it going out as it sat unattended as I read Power & Greed: A brief history of the world. The taste began bitter, became sweet and chocolaty and ended bitter. Hopefully, the 3 month cigar will be better with rest.

Garen B · August 2009

You might want to stuff these sticks back into their cello, the wrappers on them are a bit thin and the cello will help keep them from getting too beaten up in the ole humi, especially since your doing a 2.5 year experiment on them. Would be a shame to see it end early due to cigar damage.

clearlysuspect · August 2009

Garen B:
You might want to stuff these sticks back into their cello, the wrappers on them are a bit thin and the cello will help keep them from getting too beaten up in the ole humi, especially since your doing a 2.5 year experiment on them. Would be a shame to see it end early due to cigar damage.

Good idea, but I've thought into this one and I'd like for them to be out of the cellophane for maximum humidification. I'll possibly gain some information about in/out of cellophane and humidification issues. I've taken them out of the cellophane and tucked them to sleep in an isolated section of my humidor where they will not be affected by traffic. Good concern though.

kuzi16 · August 2009

2.5 years, to some, may be the low end of age. if you did it every 6 months you would get far better results.

the real question is if you have the patience.

clearlysuspect · August 2009

kuzi16:
2.5 years, to some, may be the low end of age. if you did it every 6 months you would get far better results.

the real question is if you have the patience.

Kuzi, I'll take your word as expert experience and make it one per 6 months, extending the experiment to 5 years. I have nothing but time and I do not think temptation will be a factor as it's a low end cigar to begin with. Now if I were trying to do this with some GoF's, I probably wouldn't make it past week 1. The real question is will I remember to come update this message in 6 months. I'm co-ordinating this thing through my Office Outlook calendar so I can always just build a reminder into the scheduled event.

Renaissance_Man · August 2009

clearlysuspect:
Kuzi, I'll take your word as expert experience and make it one per 6 months, extending the experiment to 5 years. I have nothing but time and I do not think temptation will be a factor as it's a low end cigar to begin with. Now if I were trying to do this with some GoF's, I probably wouldn't make it past week 1. The real question is will I remember to come update this message in 6 months. I'm co-ordinating this thing through my Office Outlook calendar so I can always just build a reminder into the scheduled event.

Awesome idea! Just mind though that your perception of the cigar will continually change! So even though the cigar might have 2 years on it and might be a million years better than the one you just smoked, maybe after 2 years you will just hate this cigar. There are so many variables that will affect your perceptions - even your Memmosa or whatever. Where you smoke it, with whom, what time of day, what mood you are in, what you drink, what you had to eat before, etc, etc... It is an awesome experiment but due to the fact YOU are NOT a robot (i hope) and do not have consistency built in you, it might not be a very successful experiment. Mainly due to the time - it is toooo long for reliable data. Yes, that's the point of aging, but I am a bit pessimistic.. Then, I am always a pessimist lol... Anyway - I will be excited to find out results from this. You should have however gone with a slightly "better" cigar. Cheers and good luck!

A way to help you with things and also keep track of it better is to start a BLOG. Consider doing this and keeping a very detailed journal of every time you smoke. In the blog you should also LOG every other cigar you have smoked. Just a log - no descriptions needed. And also note any changes in your preferences that come up with time. God speed!

clearlysuspect · August 2009

Renaissance_Man:
clearlysuspect:
Kuzi, I'll take your word as expert experience and make it one per 6 months, extending the experiment to 5 years. I have nothing but time and I do not think temptation will be a factor as it's a low end cigar to begin with. Now if I were trying to do this with some GoF's, I probably wouldn't make it past week 1. The real question is will I remember to come update this message in 6 months. I'm co-ordinating this thing through my Office Outlook calendar so I can always just build a reminder into the scheduled event.
Awesome idea! Just mind though that your perception of the cigar will continually change! So even though the cigar might have 2 years on it and might be a million years better than the one you just smoked, maybe after 2 years you will just hate this cigar. There are so many variables that will affect your perceptions - even your Memmosa or whatever. Where you smoke it, with whom, what time of day, what mood you are in, what you drink, what you had to eat before, etc, etc... It is an awesome experiment but due to the fact YOU are NOT a robot (i hope) and do not have consistency built in you, it might not be a very successful experiment. Mainly due to the time - it is toooo long for reliable data. Yes, that's the point of aging, but I am a bit pessimistic.. Then, I am always a pessimist lol... Anyway - I will be excited to find out results from this. You should have however gone with a slightly "better" cigar. Cheers and good luck!

A way to help you with things and also keep track of it better is to start a BLOG. Consider doing this and keeping a very detailed journal of every time you smoke. In the blog you should also LOG every other cigar you have smoked. Just a log - no descriptions needed. And also note any changes in your preferences that come up with time. God speed!

Good points. As far as tastes changing from time to time, I don't know anything about that yet. Perhaps I'll learn something I wasn't expecting. Concerning environment, I'll try to keep it the same as usual. The company generally will not change. It's always just me and my patio and occassionally my wife will come out there and read. I am keeping a log through my computer on Microsoft Office Outlook. I actually have appointments scheduled on there for the next 5 years so that I won't forget. There is a spot for my comments and also a reminder to come here and update this message board. As far as selecting a better cigar, I'm considering starting a similar experiment with a better cigar with an annual cigar over 10 years. I'll keep you posted if and when that starts.

Renaissance_Man · August 2009

clearlysuspect:

Good points. As far as tastes changing from time to time, I don't know anything about that yet. Perhaps I'll learn something I wasn't expecting. Concerning environment, I'll try to keep it the same as usual. The company generally will not change. It's always just me and my patio and occassionally my wife will come out there and read. I am keeping a log through my computer on Microsoft Office Outlook. I actually have appointments scheduled on there for the next 5 years so that I won't forget. There is a spot for my comments and also a reminder to come here and update this message board. As far as selecting a better cigar, I'm considering starting a similar experiment with a better cigar with an annual cigar over 10 years. I'll keep you posted if and when that starts.

Awesome! Wish I could fast forward in time now to see what happens lol...

clearlysuspect · August 2009

Renaissance_Man:
clearlysuspect:

Good points. As far as tastes changing from time to time, I don't know anything about that yet. Perhaps I'll learn something I wasn't expecting. Concerning environment, I'll try to keep it the same as usual. The company generally will not change. It's always just me and my patio and occassionally my wife will come out there and read. I am keeping a log through my computer on Microsoft Office Outlook. I actually have appointments scheduled on there for the next 5 years so that I won't forget. There is a spot for my comments and also a reminder to come here and update this message board. As far as selecting a better cigar, I'm considering starting a similar experiment with a better cigar with an annual cigar over 10 years. I'll keep you posted if and when that starts.
Awesome! Wish I could fast forward in time now to see what happens lol...

Yes me too. I believe this is where the most complex control agent of the experiment comes into play, PATIENCE! LOL

clearlysuspect · September 2009

This is already getting hard. It hasn't even been a month and I already want one of these. I can't imagine if these were a better stick, I'd really be going crazy.

Renaissance_Man · September 2009

Bump... How's this going

?

Krieg · September 2009

I am actually doing my own little experiment in aging. I am basically taking every order I get and splitting it 50/50. Half goes into my aging humi and the other half I smoke. I started to write the dates the smokes go into the humi, that way I won't lose track. Once I have aged them a couple of years, I am going to smoke a new one, and then the aged one and see how they compare.

vankleekkw · September 2009

Just an FYI.... Anything less than 5-10 years technically is just resting.

j0z3r · September 2009

vankleekkw:
Just an FYI.... Anything less than 5-10 years technically is just resting.

That's a pretty rigid time fixture. Not all cigars are going to age the same, and some will hold up to 5 years far better than others. So in that respect, you can't truly fix one length of time as "true aging".

Related to that, I looked up an article on cigar aging written by Steve Saka of Drew Estates cigars...hopefully the relation to DE doesn't shake his credibility.

Link

Lasabar · September 2009

j0z3r:
I looked up an article on cigar aging written by Steve Saka of Drew Estates cigars..

"Aging a cigar is great... you have to let it "REST" for at least 5-6 months and let it "AGE" for 3 years... after 3 years the SUGAR we dipped our damn cigars in will really settle in and make you get cavities"

j0z3r · September 2009

haha, you funny funny guy.

Krieg · September 2009

vankleekkw:
Just an FYI.... Anything less than 5-10 years technically is just resting.

actually, it depends on the cigar.

kuzi16 · September 2009

vankleekkw:
Just an FYI.... Anything less than 5-10 years technically is just resting.

j0z3r:
vankleekkw:
Just an FYI.... Anything less than 5-10 years technically is just resting.
That's a pretty rigid time fixture. Not all cigars are going to age the same, and some will hold up to 5 years far better than others. So in that respect, you can't truly fix one length of time as "true aging".

Related to that, I looked up an article on cigar aging written by Steve Saka of Drew Estates cigars...hopefully the relation to DE doesn't shake his credibility. Link

i agree with joe here a bit. Here is a thread that goes a bit more into all of that.

this is also linked in another active thread

clearlysuspect · February 2010

17 days until cigar #2. I'm getting excited. :-)

nightmaremike31 · February 2010

Damn, it's been that long already? I'm stoked to hear the comparison!!

Unthought_Known · February 2010

You can cut the tension with a knife!

TatuajeVI · February 2010

17 days? man that's a long time.

I got a couple of the ccom brazillia last month. Perhaps I should smoke one the same day you do!

kuzi16 · February 2010

another factor to consider....

maybe over this time you have developed your palate a bit. maybe the cigar didnt change that much but your perception of it has. any thoughts on that?

clearlysuspect · February 2010

kuzi16:
another factor to consider....

maybe over this time you have developed your palate a bit. maybe the cigar didnt change that much but your perception of it has. any thoughts on that?

I dunno Kuzi. Perhaps. Certainly wouldn't rule it out. I don't think my taste change much at all. As far back as I can remember, I've always enjoyed bold, robust, deep flavors. And I've always enjoyed things that pack a punch. I love coffee, dark chocolate, straight scotch, steak, cabernet sauvignon. I can't recall the last time my taste has changed. As far back as I can remember, these have been my favorite things. Naturally, dark, full-bodied cigars are my favorites. I started smoking cigars with full-bodied cigars. Switching to mild would be a serious transition for me. I've only found 2 connecticut cigars I enjoy (NUB, cigar.com Purple).

If they've done anything similar to what my Tarazona cigars have done, then I'm expecting good results. My first couple of Tarazonas I thought they were a very good cigar, but not my favorite. 8 months later, I smoked another one. Probably the best cigar I've smoked so far. I was blown away by the difference after just 8 months of rest.

Either way, I'm looking forward to it. I'm even planning on a couple mimosa's just to keep the variables to a minimum. The biggest factor I'm worried about is the 70 some degrees in temperature drop since August.

kuzi16 · February 2010

its not so much that your tastes have changed, but your palate. now that you pay so much attention to flavor, have you developed your palate so that you taste more in a cigar than you would have in the past?

madurofan · February 2010

kuzi16:
its not so much that your tastes have changed, but your palate. now that you pay so much attention to flavor, have you developed your palate so that you taste more in a cigar than you would have in the past?

This right here is why I gave up on aging, resting, whatever and trying to tell the differences. Now I just smoke em when I feel like it. If I smoke a cigar and can tell it needs more time to finish its fermentation then I note that. Other than that I just smoke em and enjoy them. You can definetly think your way right out of enjoying a cigar.

nightmaremike31 · February 2010

madurofan:
kuzi16:
its not so much that your tastes have changed, but your palate. now that you pay so much attention to flavor, have you developed your palate so that you taste more in a cigar than you would have in the past?
This right here is why I gave up on aging, resting, whatever and trying to tell the differences. Now I just smoke em when I feel like it. If I smoke a cigar and can tell it needs more time to finish its fermentation then I note that. Other than that I just smoke em and enjoy them. You can definetly think your way right out of enjoying a cigar.

See, and I think this is an amazing part of why I enjoy cigar so much. I can't think my way out of enjoying a cigar, but instead I can find so much more to enjoy in cigars that I thought were just "meh" and the ones that were great when I first started. I feel that my palate can appreciate more now that I've experienced more. But there is still so much more I wish to experience and get to know better with cigars.

kuzi16 · February 2010

madurofan:
kuzi16:
its not so much that your tastes have changed, but your palate. now that you pay so much attention to flavor, have you developed your palate so that you taste more in a cigar than you would have in the past?
This right here is why I gave up on aging, resting, whatever and trying to tell the differences. Now I just smoke em when I feel like it. If I smoke a cigar and can tell it needs more time to finish its fermentation then I note that. Other than that I just smoke em and enjoy them. You can definetly think your way right out of enjoying a cigar.

ive just noticed that i tend to like very strong cigars that have had a few years to age.

clearlysuspect · February 2010

kuzi16:
its not so much that your tastes have changed, but your palate. now that you pay so much attention to flavor, have you developed your palate so that you taste more in a cigar than you would have in the past?

Could be, Kuzi. I know I stated at the beginning of this that I might end up learning something completely different from what I set out to learn. What fun is an experiment anyway if everything goes exactly as planned.

madurofan · February 2010

kuzi16:
madurofan:
kuzi16:
its not so much that your tastes have changed, but your palate. now that you pay so much attention to flavor, have you developed your palate so that you taste more in a cigar than you would have in the past?
This right here is why I gave up on aging, resting, whatever and trying to tell the differences. Now I just smoke em when I feel like it. If I smoke a cigar and can tell it needs more time to finish its fermentation then I note that. Other than that I just smoke em and enjoy them. You can definetly think your way right out of enjoying a cigar.
ive just noticed that i tend to like very strong cigars that have had a few years to age.

We've had this discussion before, but for the benefit of others I'll rehash it.

I believe you like stronger cigars aged because you like a smoother earthier cigar with more subtleties. I enjoy an in your face, peppery cigar that finishes with a bite. The bite is the first thing to go when a cigar is aged. The peppery notes tend to subside as well. This is good for the complexity of a cigar but bad if you enjoy those.