what humidity for short and mixed filler cigars?

[FireDragon]

The consensus seems to be that 65-68% relative humidity is good for smoking cigars in general. But how about short or mixed-filler cigars, either machine-made or hand-made? I notice a tendency to have an easy draw and sometimes, burn hot, when storing them at 65%.

 

[Cigary43]

Short fillers and machine made cigars are inherently cheaply made ones...just autopsy one to see what is inside....lots of short leaves and bits of tobacco which generally do not respond to incubation of RH to make it smoke better. They are what they are...meant to be smoked immediately w/o having to provide much care. They fill a niche for those who don't have access to a hand made cigar and not that some machine made cigars are bad...there are some that are quite good. In this day and age handmade cigars sell for around $2 - $4 a stick and are very good and that makes them just as inexpensive as machine made cigars.

 

[ssaka]

Mixed and Short Fills should typically be stored at the 68-70% RH levels for two reasons:
#1 - This style of cigar tends to burn hotter due to the the fact that small cuts tend to burn fast.
#2 - Typically this style of cigar has a higher proportion of lighter leaf in it, which also burns quicker.

BR,

STS

 

[ChefBoyRG54]

Mixed and Short Fills should typically be stored at the 68-70% RH levels for two reasons:
#1 - This style of cigar tends to burn hotter due to the the fact that small cuts tend to burn fast.
#2 - Typically this style of cigar has a higher proportion of lighter leaf in it, which also burns quicker.

BR,

STS

Is your two years up yet?

 

[Tim H]

I have some machine made cigars mostly for sentimental reasons as my late grandfather loved his El Producto cigars so I smoke one occassionally in his memory. I keep mine stored at 67 RH in my tupperadors with all my handmade cigars.

 

[FireDragon]

Most of my smokes are short or medium filler. I smoke a lot of machine-mades, in fact El Producto used to be one I frequently smoked but they are hard to get now days (and I've always kept them in a humidor, in the past around 70-72% RH). A mass-market cigar like King Edward or El Producto is a very good morning smoke because they are so mild. However, I do smoke some hand-made cigars, maybe one or two a week. I used to smoke Rosa Cuba often, and it's mixed-filler, and I'm contemplating ordering some more soon.

I have some tins of Punch and La Gloria Cubana- they are about 36-38 ring gauge. I'm not sure if they are long fillers or not, judging by the price, probably short or mixed? I also have a bundle of Corona Cigar's Rancheros, they are about the same size. The Ranchero seems to burn relatively slowly; they are really good cigars but quite strong, I can't imagine smoking a much bigger Honduran cigar of this style.

It sounds like I might want to keep my main humidor around 68 and dry-box the few long filler sticks I'd smoke.

 

[ssaka]

Is your two years up yet?

Nope... June 17th, 2015.

 

[ssaka]

Most of my smokes are short or medium filler. I smoke a lot of machine-mades, in fact El Producto used to be one I frequently smoked but they are hard to get now days (and I've always kept them in a humidor, in the past around 70-72% RH). But I do smoke a few cheap hand-made cigars. I used to smoke Rosa Cuba often, and it's mixed-filler, and I'm contemplating ordering some more soon.

I have some tins of Punch and La Gloria Cubana- they are about 36-38 ring gauge. I'm not sure if they are long fillers or not, judging by the price, probably short or mixed? I also have a bundle of Corona Cigar's Rancheros, they are about the same size. The Ranchero seems to burn relatively slowly; they are really good cigars but quite strong, I can't imagine smoking a much bigger Honduran cigar of this style.

It sounds like I might want to keep my main humidor around 68 and dry-box the few long filler sticks I'd smoke.

Whenever anyone, myself included, talks about "ideal" humidity for smoking it really is a matter of personal choice. Typically for most folks somewhere between 67 to 70 RH will be favored, but really anything between 62 - 72 RH will work... lower you lose oils, higher you increase your risk of mold...

Some cigars smoke better slightly moister, others better drier, and what you like best may not be the same as the next guy.

Bottomline is you gotta experiment and find the sweet spot that satisfies you.

BR,

STS

 

[FireDragon]

Short fillers and machine made cigars are inherently cheaply made ones... ...They are what they are...meant to be smoked immediately w/o having to provide much care. They fill a niche for those who don't have access to a hand made cigar and not that some machine made cigars are bad...there are some that are quite good.

I know well that mass market cigars are packaged for convenient, immediate consumption. But, where I live it's difficult to get a good selection. Mostly all that is sold around here are small cigarillos packed in foil, and I prefer traditional cigar shapes and sizes So, I'm forced to order them by the box, sometimes as many as 50 at a time. But I'm not a heavy smoker (I only smoke 2 a day at most, and 2-3 a week isn't uncommon), so it makes sense to ask about long-term storage for them: I don't expect aging them will turn them into Macanudos or Montecristos.

Mass-market cigars in some cases are still substantially cheaper than hand-made cigars. And often times, the uniformity and even quality of the product is superior to comparably priced hand-made cigars (I have some 50 cent hand-made cigars and they definitely look the part). There's a reason that machine-making of cigars was revolutionary, it allowed decent smokes to get into the hands of average smokers.

 

[Zigarro]

Most of my smokes are short or medium filler. I smoke a lot of machine-mades, in fact El Producto used to be one I frequently smoked but they are hard to get now days (and I've always kept them in a humidor, in the past around 70-72% RH). A mass-market cigar like King Edward or El Producto is a very good morning smoke because they are so mild. However, I do smoke some hand-made cigars, maybe one or two a week. I used to smoke Rosa Cuba often, and it's mixed-filler, and I'm contemplating ordering some more soon.

I have some tins of Punch and La Gloria Cubana- they are about 36-38 ring gauge. I'm not sure if they are long fillers or not, judging by the price, probably short or mixed? I also have a bundle of Corona Cigar's Rancheros, they are about the same size. The Ranchero seems to burn relatively slowly; they are really good cigars but quite strong, I can't imagine smoking a much bigger Honduran cigar of this style.
It sounds like I might want to keep my main humidor around 68 and dry-box the few long filler sticks I'd smoke.

I keep all my H/Ms at about 67% and they do well. I've found a budget-friendly daily in Riata Dominican- maduro, avail. @ JR Cigar. You get a good tasting smoke with the rare draw issue for around $30 a bundle (22).

 

[FireDragon]

I tried a Dutch Masters Cigarillo stored at 68 percent humidity today. Maybe that's the sweet spot. It didn't have the harsh feeling on my tongue till the very last end of the smoke, and the flavors seemed more vibrant. The wrapper was wrinkled like crazy, though, and the foot had a small split (could be from moving it around or possibly too much humidity)?

 

[ascrivner]

What humidity is the bottom of a trash can?