Ageing/Resting

transplant

I'm fairly new to cigar smoking.  Several friends of mine have been smoking them for years, but aren't much into the whole "cigar thing" (telltale sign being that they don't own a humidor).

When  I first read about some folks religiously "resting" their newly-bought smokes, I kind of rolled my eyes a little.  I mean, it's not like the sticks that just arrived in the mail were born yesterday. Then I read about some of you hardcore resters who put your smokes away for years before putting them to the torch.  Jeez!

Balanced against my initial skepticism is that, and this may just be my imagination, I recently noted that some of the sticks that have been in my humidor for a while seem to be a bit smoother and don't leave that lingering "cigar mouth" sensation.  

I need to learn more.

Do all cigars benefit from resting?  Do some benefit more/less?  Is there a recommended "minimum resting period?"  Please educate me.  Thanks.

YankeeMan

When I get an order of cigars, I put half in my aging humidor and the rest in my other humidors.  I find that the fuller cigars seem to age a little better,  but I have found that all cigars benefit from aging.

My oldest cigar is about five years in the aging humidor.  That's a cigar that A J Fernandez rolled for me at a cigar event.  I'm saving it for a special occasion which I haven't figured out yet.

I have noticed that even the cigars that have been in my other humidors over time, do taste better than the same cigar smoked immediately upon delivery.

Experiment for a while and see how you like it.  Enjoy!

Amos_Umwhat

Many of your new purchases will be much better in about a month, if you'll leave them in a properly maintained humidor.  Some will continue to improve, some, not so much.

peter4jc

I believe everything will benefit from a short rest, a month as Amos_Umwhat says, only to get acclimated to your humidor because of what a cigar can be subjected to en route to you.

For longer rest (of which I have zero experience in that I started enjoying cigars Summer '14) I've read that milder cigars won't improve as much as the full-bodied ones.

jlmarta

Greetings, @transplant, in answer to your question I suggest you visit the Tobacconist University at the link shown below. Spend a little time wandering around the website to become familiar with it. You probably won't be interested in some parts of it but in particular, have a look at the FAQ section. It has some good info regarding taking care of your cigars, Humidors, etc. 

Heres the link: http://tobacconistuniversity.org/faq.php

Hope this helps. I found it quite useful. 

transplant

Amos_Umwhat said:

Many of your new purchases will be much better in about a month, if you'll leave them in a properly maintained humidor.  Some will continue to improve, some, not so much.

Thanks, Amos and also peter 4jc.

I can't age everything I have 'cause I just started getting into cigars...I mean I GOTTA SMOKE SOMETHING NOW!

I bought myself a second humidor and will do some resting (I like that better than ageing) in that.  I doubt I'll ever age smokes for years.

I recently purchased some diesel unholy cocktails.  I've read that diesels need resting more than most.  True?

onestrangeone

transplant said:

Amos_Umwhat said:

Many of your new purchases will be much better in about a month, if you'll leave them in a properly maintained humidor.  Some will continue to improve, some, not so much.

Thanks, Amos and also peter 4jc.

I can't age everything I have 'cause I just started getting into cigars...I mean I GOTTA SMOKE SOMETHING NOW!

I bought myself a second humidor and will do some resting (I like that better than ageing) in that.  I doubt I'll ever age smokes for years.

I recently purchased some diesel unholy cocktails.  I've read that diesels need resting more than most.  True?

Welcome @transplant, Imo it's not that the UC NEEDS ageing they are good 'as is' the UC is one of those cigars that age very well and there is a dramatic change in the flavor profile, smoke a couple in a month or so then 6 months and a year. Maybe try to set up a trade with someone for a couple that have a year or two already. Most of Don Pepin Garcia's age well, so does Oliva's V. Good Luck!     

transplant

Thanks, onestrangeone. Unless I hear something compelling to the contrary, my plan is to set up a system where my better cigars get at least a month of "rest." before the torch. It's the best I can commit to.

peter4jc

transplant said:

...my plan is to set up a system where my better cigars get at least a month of "rest." before the torch. It's the best I can commit to.

But that's only because CAS -Cigar Acquisition Syndrome- hasn't set in yet.  In no time you'll be buy three times more than you can smoke in a month, and the resting period will happen by default.  :-)

jarubla

peter4jc said:

But that's only because CAS -Cigar Acquisition Syndrome- hasn't set in yet.  In no time you'll be buy three times more than you can smoke in a month, and the resting period will happen by default.  :-)

+1 to this!!!

Nolagizmo

jarubla said:

peter4jc said:

But that's only because CAS -Cigar Acquisition Syndrome- hasn't set in yet.  In no time you'll be buy three times more than you can smoke in a month, and the resting period will happen by default.  :-)

+1 to this!!!

They ain't lying

Amos_Umwhat

Nolagizmo said:

jarubla said:

peter4jc said:

But that's only because CAS -Cigar Acquisition Syndrome- hasn't set in yet.  In no time you'll be buy three times more than you can smoke in a month, and the resting period will happen by default.  :-)

+1 to this!!!

They ain't lying

Yup.  Before you know it, you'll pull one out and think "Didn't I get this two years ago?"

Bob_Luken

Hence, the need to put little stickers on them with the buy date. Year or two later, no guessing.

transplant

peter4jc said:

transplant said:

...my plan is to set up a system where my better cigars get at least a month of "rest." before the torch. It's the best I can commit to.

But that's only because CAS -Cigar Acquisition Syndrome- hasn't set in yet.  In no time you'll be buy three times more than you can smoke in a month, and the resting period will happen by default.  :-)

I completely believe this.  Recently when I added up how many cigars I had ordered over a 2-day period, I concluded that I had better get me a 2nd humidor pronto.

Bob_Luken

Go ahead and getta' koooola!

Starter cooler. (Also for use as an overflow cooler when you get a "bigga' kooola")
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Coleman-28-Quart-Performance-Cooler/23427946



Bigger cooler. (I like this one because it's big enough but, not too big to move around by yourself if you need to keep it outta' sight, if you know what I mean. The seal is tight and the price is right.) 
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Coleman-70-Quart-Xtreme-Cooler/23795246

transplant

If my wife found that i had filled up that big cooler even 1/4 of the way, I'd need to sleep with one eye open for a long time if you know what I mean.

So it's OK to go airtight for long-term storage?

Bob_Luken

Yeah, it works for me. I've heard people advise you to open it up every week or so to allow for air exchange but I've never worried about it too much and everything has been great. I've got several coolers and they work great. Especially in the winter when I drop my desktops into a cooler also. It beats having to battle the low humidity in keeping your desktop from drying out.

transplant

peter4jc said:

transplant said:

...my plan is to set up a system where my better cigars get at least a month of "rest." before the torch. It's the best I can commit to.

But that's only because CAS -Cigar Acquisition Syndrome- hasn't set in yet.  In no time you'll be buy three times more than you can smoke in a month, and the resting period will happen by default.  :-)

Sorry to backtrack, but I told myself I wasn't going to order any more cigars until I returned from my upcoming golf trip.  Then I saw DPG Blues as a daily special online.

Lord help me, I am so weak.

jlmarta

transplant said:

peter4jc said:

transplant said:

...my plan is to set up a system where my better cigars get at least a month of "rest." before the torch. It's the best I can commit to.

But that's only because CAS -Cigar Acquisition Syndrome- hasn't set in yet.  In no time you'll be buy three times more than you can smoke in a month, and the resting period will happen by default.  :-)

Sorry to backtrack, but I told myself I wasn't going to order any more cigars until I returned from my upcoming golf trip.  Then I saw DPG Blues as a daily special online.

Lord help me, I am so weak.

It's hard to beat them DPG Blues....

peter4jc

jlmarta said:

transplant said:

peter4jc said:

transplant said:

...my plan is to set up a system where my better cigars get at least a month of "rest." before the torch. It's the best I can commit to.

But that's only because CAS -Cigar Acquisition Syndrome- hasn't set in yet.  In no time you'll be buy three times more than you can smoke in a month, and the resting period will happen by default.  :-)

Sorry to backtrack, but I told myself I wasn't going to order any more cigars until I returned from my upcoming golf trip.  Then I saw DPG Blues as a daily special online.

Lord help me, I am so weak.

It's hard to beat them DPG Blues....

You'da said that no matter what cigar @transplant said, just to push him off that cliff.   

jlmarta

Naw..  Me??  I wouldn't do that. I'm a nice guy. If you don't believe me, just ask me....... 

kuzi16

Ligero ages fast. A heavy cigar with a lot of ligero will age faster and may or may not be better depending on how much of the cigar is ligero and how much you enjoy ligero aged. Cuban cigars age well and they tend to use less ligero and be more mild than the non-Cuban counterparts. So strength is not the only indicator of if a cigar will age nice. 

It is Possible to over age a cigar. Basically the oils will break down beyond the point where they have any flavor. This can take many many years

bigharpoon

In my opinion every cigar that you get through the mail needs a month rest after delivery. Most non-cuban cigars do not need any more than 6 months rest tops. There are exceptions but as a general rule most NC don't age well. No need to have years worth of NC stock in my opinion.

genareddog

transplant said:

peter4jc said:

transplant said:

...my plan is to set up a system where my better cigars get at least a month of "rest." before the torch. It's the best I can commit to.

But that's only because CAS -Cigar Acquisition Syndrome- hasn't set in yet.  In no time you'll be buy three times more than you can smoke in a month, and the resting period will happen by default.  :-)

Sorry to backtrack, but I told myself I wasn't going to order any more cigars until I returned from my upcoming golf trip.  Then I saw DPG Blues as a daily special online.

Lord help me, I am so weak.

Glad I am not the only one with this problem!!

Lee.mcglynn

IMO most cigars will benefit a few years of being buried. I know one guy and he said after a year it doesn't make a difference...I gave him a 3yr old opus and he went and bought a cooler. I do smoke stronger cigars so that may help with the length but really aging is a matter of opinion. I've smoked cigars fresh off the truck and have been happy but those were normally med-full or just med. as for cc's I have to say more is better especially if you have a ok to good or great pallet. But some do smoke good rott.

transplant

The more I've read and experienced (still very limited), I'm with buying good (pre-aged) cigars and letting them sit in the humidor a minimum of 3 weeks before smoking.  This is resting. It ensures that the cigar's internal humidity gets to the right place...the place the blending artist intended.

Aging seems to be a different thing entirely.  Aging causes the acids in the cigar to break down and make it more "mellow." Thing is, "mellow" is sometimes not what the blending artist intended.  Essentially, it seems to me that when you age a cigar for a year or more, you become something of a "co-blender."

I've decided that I'm not into "aging" cigars unless someone gives me a "recipe," e.g., "if you age a Diesel Hair of the Dog for 15 months at 70% RH, you'll get a smoke that will be both smooth and kickass...unlike anything you can buy."

This is my story and absent any better info, I plan on sticking with it.

bigharpoon

Yes and no. Aging will break down the long chemical chains in the cigar into shorter ones. This will produce different effects in different cigars based on what leaf is used, how it was grown and countless other factors too numerous to list. This gets back to my original post of not needing to age most NC cigars.

Most NC cigars will only mellow with age. Ligero leaf does not age worth a crap. It becomes less harsh and nasty and everyone shouts 'it has aged!' Granted, this is usually a nice improvement over the cigar when it is new. When you smoke a nicely aged cigar that has the right composition for it you realize what a wonderful thing it can be. Cubans, for the most part, age very well and produce flavors that are an amazing transformation from their starting point.

To each his own, do what you like and experiment a lot. There really is no wrong answer.

Rhamlin

Just remember that aging mellows cigars so if you are really into full bodied smokes that prized stick you love so much will start losing some of its kick after a year. I've always wondered what aging does for infused cigars. 

First_Warrior

I started rolling cigars a little while ago and am now delving into the mysteries of blending. Wow have I got a lot to learn. I usually roll four of a blend and smoke one right off the board.One rests for two weeks and the other two are laid to rest in my humidor. There is a great difference between the one off the board and the one that rests for two weeks. Usually a good difference. I like a little ligero but I've learned there is a great difference in ligero from different areas, same with seco and viso and binders and wrappers. Keeping a journal and banding all my cigars is a pain but i think it will pay off. I've got one blend that i really like and I'm going to roll ten and put them up .Maybe around Christmas I'll fire one up.    

pelirrojo

Hello @transplant Have you made any progress? 

UseAsDirected

A lot of good advice on here! I'm new and let them rest a month or so.