I have a somewhat amateur question for the group. While on a visit to Tulsa Oklahoma, I made a tour of the local shops. The shops were all friendly and mostly well stocked and had a nice atmosphere. Basically, tulsa gets a thumbs up from me. Now the weird part. One shop that I stopped in was concerning and presented me with questions and concerns. The humidor didnt "feel right". I know what a 70/70 humidor feels like and this is the first one that I ever walked into and had it feel different. Antennas are up now. While cruising the selection, I noticed many empty boxes on the shelves and general disorder seeming to be prevelent. Now that I have set the mood, let me throw the real concern out there. I noticed many cigars seemed to have what I was not sure if it was mold or bloom covering them. I personally have never had cigars long enough to develop bloom but have read about it. I cant imagine a retailer having cigars aged enough to bloom. When I left the establishment, I asked the person working there what the humidor settings were and they replied "I don't know". Every shop I have EVER been in has a person working in them that knows cigars and humidors like the gospel. They also typically have meticulously neat displays in the humidors. Is it possible that this establishment had moldy cigars? I wish I had ever seen mold or bloom in person but my limited experience hasn't taken me there yet. Thanks to all for your input.
Mold or bloom?
- Thread starter n2bnemtp
- Start date
Very possible it was mold given what you describe. That said, occasionally shops will have vintage product or just a box that doesn't sell well. So it's not impossible to see a few that really do have plume on them from time to time.
If you see fuzz its mold. If you see small white crystals your good to go. Once you start to get mold in a humidor, it is very hard to get rid of and will ruin many cigars. Without pics I cant say for sure but I might consider a new cigar shop.
It's very easy to tell the difference:
Mold grows in patches or spots, bloom grows evenly all over the cigar
Mold is fuzzy, bloom is crystaline
Mole wipes off very easily, bloom doesn't
If a lot of cigars in humidor has it, it's probably mold as not every cigar will bloom
Mold grows in patches or spots, bloom grows evenly all over the cigar
Mold is fuzzy, bloom is crystaline
Mole wipes off very easily, bloom doesn't
If a lot of cigars in humidor has it, it's probably mold as not every cigar will bloom
From the descriptions so far, it sounds like bloom. I didn't notice it to be fuzzy and it wasn't patchy. Now for my further education, let me ask the group this: how long does a cigar have to age before bloom appears? As I stated before, I have never seen this in other shops.
