Resting Cigars

[Old Smokey]

I keep some at 62 and some at 65. They all seem to smoke well, taste good and burn nicely.

OP, when I started out I had the same questions about aging, resting and best RH. Most here feel aging doesn't really begin until you have had them for 2-3 years. Before that is resting. The purpose of resting is to allow you cigars to fully acclimate to your preferred RH. They change somewhere around 1% per week when resting. A fully acclimated cigar is at your preferred through out the cigar. The center is the same RH as the wrapper.

If you buy more cigars than you smoke it won't be long before you have some rested cigars and if you keep it up you will have some aged as well. It just happens and nothing to worry about.

[Dijit]

If you don't have a hygrometer its all guess work. You can pick one up anywhere for less than $10. Then you can track the humidity accurately.

I have an extra hygrometer you can have. It is an analog but keeps almost perfect track with my digital reading about 1% lower than the digital.

Lots of great advice here I too have had the sour cigar after aging a few weeks to a few months and have everytime with a little more age found them to be equally enjoyable as ROTT or even better. To do this though you need to start buying 5 packs or larger to get a better idea of how things age. One the blew me away is the Famous Nicaragua. ROTT its meh at best to me after 6 months it was smoother and actually a little stronger. After a year they have become one of my favorite sticks of all time. Best of all they cost less than the Alec Bradley's I like so much or many of the others. Just remember its all according to taste. All of us will tell you our taste is fine or great or some other version of right, but your taste is the one that matters here.

[rodwha]

I finally noticed the definitions and read through it.

That is quite awesome and appreciated Dijit! Would certainly like to put a home brewed beer in each hand!

[rodwha]

I've been buying 5 packs and samplers so far. Hoping to find things I like enough to buy a box of. I know I like Avos and those are the 5 packs. A box is a bit over my $100/mo hobby funding for Avos. Once I get a small stock pile I'll hang on to those funds and get a box of Avo or Southern Draw Kudzu (spl?).

[HabanoMan]

It has been a while since I smoked anything with less than 5 years on it. Keep in mind that I mostly smoke Habanos but I do smoke some non-Habanos also. I feel that the more age on the cigar the better the flavors meld together resulting in a smoother more well rounded smoke.

As far as aging cigars for a very long time, I have some Clear Havanas (cigars made in the U.S. with Cuban tobacco before the embargo) that are from the 40's and 50's. The are pretty darn good smokes.

[Zeede]

It's my understanding that as with wines, not all cigars will age for ten years or longer. The outstanding ones will, and mature into amazing smokes, but most will just fade.

[rodwha]

Since I had 10 CAO Gold cigars and had been craving a puff I smoked one ROTT and found it to be a bit unpleasant until maybe the last 1/4 of a 5" stick. I can't say I've noticed this before, though I likely would have smoked an Avo as those were the ones I got in samplers. But I also didn't smoke as often so they sat longer. I'm going to need to keep these going better!

[StogieNinja]

Lots of good questions and answers here.

For me, there are a three different types of reasons to rest a cigar.

First, there's what I call "downtime" which is anything after initial receipt, up to somewhere around 6 months, the purpose of this being to let the cigars acclimate to your preferred rH.

Then there's "resting," which for me is anything longer than 6 months, the purpose of which is to let the cigars settle into themselves a little bit. I've found with a lot of cigars, especially inexpensive cigars, six months or more can take off the rough edges, smooth them out, and help a cigar go from "meh" to "pretty decent." Take the Ramon Bueso Genesis. A bit rough initially, but with 6 month to a year, it becomes a much better cigar all around. The heavier dark cigars generally seem to benefit most from a resting period.

Then there's "aging" which is periods from a few years to decades, the purpose being to let the cigars age and the flavors marry. This results in a more complex smoke in many blends, but also can result in a flat and boring smoke in others.

The tricky thing is that not all cigars benefit from aging, and some are really only great after aging. One of my early favorites, the Liga Privada No. 9, smoked very well after a short bit of downtime, no rest or aging was necessary. In fact, a few that aged over a couple years tasted somewhat flat and boring compared to their young vibrancy. I find this is generally true of most full-bodied maduros, they smoke better after some downtime, but slowly lose that sparkle over time, though there have been wonderful exceptions. Conversely, I've smoked a few Opus X that were merely decent when young, but with a few years on them, they become exceptional cigars. Many Cubans are good both fresh and aged, the fresh ones being full-flavored and bold, the aged ones being more complex and nuanced.

So, the whole key is to get an idea of how cigars age by smoking from a box or a five pack over a period of time, and the only way to do that is to practice. After a few years of doing this with various fivers, you'll get an idea of how you think a cigar is performing now, and you can make an educated guess as to how it will age over time. Of course its just that, a guess, and there are no guarantees, but that goes for just about everything as regards cigars! It's one of the most frustrating and beautiful aspects of this hobby of ours.

[Automator]

I've been monitoring this thread and I think I'm beginning to understand the concept of resting or downtime as the case may be. Now, I'm putting together a wineador and will at some point soon transfer many cigars from a desk top humidor that stays at about 66% and 72° (though the temperature does vary some). The wineador is holding at 66° and about 66% rh. I understand that cooler air can hold let moisture than warmer air and that the moisture level of the cigars will be (some measure) less at 66° than at 72° given the same rh. First question: Am I being a picker of nits? Second question: If not, should the resting period be started over after the cigars are transferred?
Thanks!

[DrBob]

How does the climate come in to play? I would have thought it was its own climate. I'm guessing where it's humid a lower RH might be wanted?

I live in New Mexico and its very dry much of the year. If I keep my cigars at 65% or lower i tend to get peeling wrappers. When I take those same cigars at 65% to Louisiana they smoke just fine. I switched to 69% for home and those cigars behave perfectly and taste great. At 69% when I take them to Louisiana they swell and split and have burn problems. I have also tried 62% and 70%, and I have a buddy here in NM that keeps his at 72% and seems to have no problems.

Main thing is to experiment a bit and see what you like. One great way to experiment is to buy a couple of five packs and a small boveda of each RH you want try. Split them into ziplocs wait a month or two and smoke them.