Storing dried out cigars with good ones
I finally have my 100ct humidor rolling along I feel. Someone gave me a box of cigars last night and they seem pretty dried out to me. Is there a issue storing the dried out ones in my humidor with the others? I was just going to leave them in there and rotate them some to try to restore them but I was wondering will the dried ones suck up the humidity in there and dry out my good ones?
Comments
just fill up your humidification device before adding.
I would think that it would be okay depending on how "dried out" the cigars are and the ratio of the good cigars to the drier ones added. There was a thread recently debating whether a badly neglected box of cubans could be restored - not sure if a definite conclusion was reached. Also, if you use a boveda pack you could put it between the good cigars and the drier cigars. Another thing you could do is put the box in a zip lock bag with a boveda pack inside the bag and box, until proper humidity is reached.
cigars that dont crackle at all are not too dry. they dryer they get the more they crackle and flake. many cigars are also very firm with no resistance when pinched or squeezed. this is not an indication that they are dry at all. this is actually an indication of how packed of tobacco they are and the quality of the roll.
what brand are they?
if they are softer and dont crackle that would indicate they are too wet. if they were soft and flakey they they are dry and under filled.
either way, it does not matter. put them in a humidor that is at the RH you want and let them sit for six months to a year and you should be ok so long as they were not out of humidification for longer than 4 or so months under very dry conditions.
might not be the same cigar it was but it will be able to be smoked.
Depending on how dry they are, they should spend 3 months at approx. 50% humidity, then 3 months at 60% humidity, then 3 months in a fully humidified 70-72% environment. After that, they should be ok to smoke.
If you don't take your time like that, they will absorb moisture too quickly and crack.