Leave sticks in cellophane? Please advise...

[Kalidor]

Hi!
I am somewhat new to the wonderful world of cigars...at least to the collecting and storing of them. I have a nice sized humidor that holds 175 sticks or so, and am actually upgrading in a couple of months (when my game room is ready) to a 500-600 count furniture humidor for display of my cigars.
For backround information to help you better assist me, I have a Cigar Oasis XL plus working wonders. Overkill, I know; but will be grand once I get that larger humidor
My question is as follows:
1) When I buy new, loose sticks that were in a cellophame wrapper in the store's humidor, should I leave them as such when I transfer them to my humidor?

2) What about boxes of cigars? I just got a box of Cu*Avana's and they are each individually wrapped in cello and in the wooden box they came in...I just plugged the whole box into my humidor and left it like that. Should I take each cigar out? Of the cigar box and cellophane?

3) I think I have my thought process correct in that, I don't want unwrapped Maduro's sitting wrapper to wrapper against my connecticuts...and obviously flavored (infused) should be all together seperate. Kuba Kuba by Acid is the only infused/flavored I really smoke (unless you count some Java Wafes from time to time) and I leave those wrapped in their cellophane, so as not to "infect" my standard sticks...And what about those Wafes? They don't come prepackaged in cellophane...should I seperate them as I have been doing? Or am I over-analyzing the situation?


Well, sorry for the long post and I thank you all for any help in advance!
Happy smoking!

Justin

 

[Barcochris]

Justin, Welcome to the forum.

The cellophane thing is really up to you. I personally like the look of a unwraped cigar. The cello will help protect the cigars if you go through your humidor often. It will also slow the aging process, but if you are smoking them before say the 2 year mark it does not really matter. Some guys will cut the Cello off right at the foot and leave it like that. Boxes, I just leave them in the same box.


As far as having one cigar next to another, that really has no bearing on anything. If you have a maduro next to a connecticut it is not going to cause a problem. Cigars do not exchange flavors like that. That being said I would not keep ANY infused cigars in a humidor with non infused.

 

[Kalidor]

Thanks for the fantastic reply and the welcome to the community!
Just a couple of follow-ups, if I may:

1) I have a small handful of Kuba Kubas, still in their cellophane in with my regulars...they should come out as well? They are totally wrapped, but still, segregate them?

2) Even with the Oasis, should I be concerned about going through my humidor often? I probably pick and choose a cigar on a daily basis...the lid open perhaps all of 30 seconds or so...so i should feel comfortable with removing ALL of my cellophanes (except the Kubas if above question is addressed)?

3) I keet a bunch of "cheapo" cigars (Don Elias' to be exact) to take up some of the room in my humidor, so as to assist the humidification process when I didn't have an Oasis...
I since bought the Oasis, it works fantastically...should I dispose of some of the undesireables? they are not a great smoke, as you may be aware, I was really using them when my sponges/crystals were struggling to keep the RH at 69 or so...

Thanks again! Any and all input is welcome!

Justin

 

[Barcochris]

1) Yes, i would remove any thing that is infused form your humidor. Acid's I think have the strongest smells.

2) The Cello is not to protect the humidity it is to protect the cigar. going through the Humidor to find a cigar on the bottom, you could potentially damage the cigars on top that you are moving out of the way.

3) Why? I still from time to time smoke a Yard gar. Do you not like them? if you do not mind smoking them keep them around , you never know. They are also great things to have when you know someone is not going to smoke a cigar but wants one to "try" give him something like that. I got buddies that always want a cigar when they come over but I always find them forgetting about them.

 

[kuzi16]

i always keep the cellophane on.

i do alot of digging. Ill have a cigar on my mind all day and inveriably when i get home it will be waaaaaaay at the bottom. if people send me cigars without the cello on im ok with that, but i will never take it off.

though i dont do much box storage i think it is a good idea to keep the box in the humi. its even more protection. plus it keeps em all together.


i have heard some arguements in the past that keeping cellophane on makes a cigar age more slowly. i dont think this is true.... and even if it was i think that a slow age is better.

and because you are on the track to ask about tubos next here ya go in advance:
http://cigar.ambackforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=46619
:thumbsup:

 

[Barcochris]

i have heard some arguements in the past that keeping cellophane on makes a cigar age more slowly. i dont think this is true.... and even if it was i think that a slow age is better.

Kuzi, It is most definitely true that cello causes a slow down in the maturation process. Think of aging as a kind of oxidation, the more air you can keep off the cigar the slower and better the aging process will be. that being said we are talking about LONG term aging, we are talking in decades not years. If you want to age a cigar for 15 to 20 years then this would be the way to go.

 

[Bikeman]

Welcome to the forum brother, you have asked some great questions, and I know you have found the friendlest place to get answers, that is for sure.

I am another guy that likes to keep the cello on, cause I find I am always digging for a cigar from the bottom of one of my boxes. That said, I also have a couple of boxes for special cigars that came into the world naked, and naked they shall be stored, if you know what I mean. Those are smaller containers that the cigars won't get disturbed as much in removing one of the cigars for smoking.

Once again, welcome here, and feel free to ask any question you might wish.

 

[PuFf]

I have a small 20ct humidor that I store the cigars in naked. This one is only for aging special cigars, nothing in it gets touched for 6-12mos. I also have a 75ct that I keep my smokers in, which I usually unwrap before doing so. In my coolidor, I keep the cigars in cello as I'm always digging through it to restock my 75 ct, or to send out as PIFs.