How long do you let your sticks rest before firing them up?

[Zach]

Just like the title says, how long does everyone wait and at what point do you think you get diminshing returns on aging? I liked to let my sticks rest for about 3 months before sparking one up but I dropped the hobby a while back and as such have many cigars from the 2005-2006 era still sleeping in the fridgador.

Curious to see what your rituals are! :thumbs:

 

[grateful1]

Depends on the cigar and how many boxes I purchase.

Also...are you talking from the time you get them...or the date they are made?

Diminishing returns eh? Well, that's somewhat subjective. The 70 y/o smoke I had a couple weeks ago was pretty good. A little musty but pretty good!

btw - there are many different factors that go into this....size of the cigar/blend/storage conditions..etc.

 

[bfreebern]

If I have something travel distances, I let it sit for a week or so. If I go to a shop and buy some today, I'll fire them up as early as tonight. I guess it just depends.

 

[kann]

Anything which I didn't personally remove from a trusted humidor gets at least three days, and that's only if I am really eager to give a certain cigar a go and get giddy like a kid on Christmas morning who has to wait until Mom and Dad get up to unwrap the presents. Usually it's a minimum of a week or more. Sometimes I put them in the fridgidor downstairs and forget about them (literally) for weeks or months.

 

[Acclaym]

If the voices in my head won't stop when I ask them, I'll smoke it right away...

 

[4cbln3]

Your voices must talk to my voices because I lit a Padron 85th ROTT and I ended up pitching it halfway.

When will I ever learn. <sigh> :laugh:

 

[broblues]

[sub]I always let my Padrons rest a few (several) weeks before I smoke them. Every time I have been in a hurry, I have been disappointed.[/sub]

[sub]Just my opinion.[/sub]

 

[ChiTown_Huck]

A week or so depending. Longer if they are really fresh.

 

[Bonfire Smoke]

I usually smoke one right out of the box if I order a box. If they need to sit for awhile, then I leave them alone. If I buy single sticks from the B&M I will smoke them. However, I have so many singles of different types because I am saving them for a special occasion. I have to want to smoke it. So, when I buy a few from the B&M my wife will ask me if I am going to save it for a special occasion. I really need to put some fire to those.

 

[Bayamos]

"dropped the hobby a while back and as such have many cigars from the 2005-2006 era still sleeping in the fridgador."

Yep dead as shit, send them all to me and I will dispose of them for you ;-)~

 

[Chemyst]

I usually let all mail order buys sit for at least a week.
If it's a box, I'll smoke one to get an idea of how long
to wait for the others. Since I only smoke a few each
week, I still have partial boxes that are 3+ yrs. old.
Most of them are strong cigars, and many benefit from
some age. The mild smokes don't benefit from age,
but don't deteriorate, either.

If I stop by a b&m on a nice sunny afternoon, I'll smoke
my choice(s) right away. Sometimes that's a problem, but
usually it's OK. Can't waste the good weather, you know.

Chemyst

 

[patep8]

this is an interesting question. If I purchase locally and it has a good feel to it I'll smoke it right away. However, I have recently started using two humidors. A large hubidor where I store a majority of my sticks which I keep at 70 RH but I have a small humidor I keep at 73-75 rh. If I have a couple buddies coming over the next weekend and we feel like smoking a nice oily stick I'll take a couple Part Black Labels, MX2s, or similar and let it sit a few days at the higher humidity. I did this as an experiment and really liked the outcome.

You guys all seem really well versed in the art of aging a stick so I maybe late to the party on this but either way felt like I might contribute a little.

 

[thechenman]

I pretty much smoke any of my cigars anytime I feel like it. Rarely, but sometimes ROTT or sometimes it will be years. In my limited experience (I'e only been smoking cigars since 2008), I've found that by and far, most NCs don't age all that well. That's not to say that they deteriorate after a prolonged time in humidor storage, but rather that there is not a significant change. Of course the exceptions would be some of the NC standard bearers, like Padron (especailly the x000 Series), Opus X, Anejos, Hemingways (the maduros), and a few other odds and ends. Where aging makes the most difference, and I think many would agree with me, is CCs. They benefit tremendously from age...even the more mild ones. Now age can vary, but from my experience all the CCs I've been able to compare are considerably better with at least a minimum of a year of age on them, and in most cases even better than that with more extended aging. That said though...cigars can be enjoyed both young and old...it really depends on what your palate is craving at the time.

I know thus far my post has been more about aging, and the OP may be looking for more info on when a recently purchased cigar is ready to smoke. To that I say this...

When I buy cigars at my local B&Ms, like others here, I will more often than not spark up the cigar right then and there. Honestly, in these instances there can be issues with the cigar as they often tend to be a bit overhumidified. This can lead to a bad/inconsistent burn requiring touch ups, or even worse...be off flavorwise, or even bitter. More often than not though, they are fine.

When I mail order cigars domestically, I will sometimes smoke one right away if it is something new that I haven't tried before, but more often than not I give them at least two weeks in the humidor. If I order from overseas, I will typically wait at least a month or more to allow the cigars to properly acclimate.

Hope that helps...

 

[TexasDude]

The boxes I buy I pull 2 out for long term aging. The 18 left I smoke 1 to 2 a month. The bundles I buy I sit on for 6+ months. The bundles are my inexpensive smokes that I hit hard in the summer months when I have tons of free time. I buy all of my boxes and bundles at Christmas time. My family buys me cigars for Xmas. I buy what I want and they reimburse me. It's a nice set up. I was tired of receiving junk for Xmas.

Once a month I head to my cigar store or Internet store and buy/order 3 to 5 cigars. I smoke these in the month I've ordered them. Also, my wife routinely surprises me with smokes. She goes to a local cigar store and buys 5 cigars the owner recommends. It pays to be a nice to your wife and do your "honey do list."

Life is good,

 

[likescarsz28]

If I buy something now, I probably won't smoke it for years, possible decades. IMHO, many non Cuban cigars age pretty well. Some of the nicest cigars I have had have been old 8-5-8 maduro, Hemingways, etc. I did find out that no matter how long you age a shit stick, it will always be a shit stick.

Since there is no longer any place in doors to smoke, South Dakota weather is good for smoking about three months out of the year. The rest is either too hot or too cold. Take out the rainy days and the windy days and I as of now, I have well over a 25 year supply of cigars.

For sales tax reasons, the State of South Dakota may reconsider the smoking ban. If the ban is relaxed, you can trim that supply to 5 years.

 

[fourthrail]

When I get them by mail ... I sometimes light the box on fire before I get the sticks out.

 

[Gonz]

3 years is probably where I'm at. The only exception is if I find myself at a smoke shop with a lounge, and didn't bring anything. Then I'll buy something there to smoke right away. Otherwise whatever I buy at the smoke shop goes home and I bring something older and ready to smoke while there. It really depends on the cigar though, and my "3 year" rule is just what my habits produce.

 

[coopsdeloops]

3 years is probably where I'm at. The only exception is if I find myself at a smoke shop with a lounge, and didn't bring anything. Then I'll buy something there to smoke right away. Otherwise whatever I buy at the smoke shop goes home and I bring something older and ready to smoke while there. It really depends on the cigar though, and my "3 year" rule is just what my habits produce.

Is this reasonable etiquette? As long as I purchase a few sticks I can bring something else? I've always wondered about this.

Sitting outside here in Seoul trying to enjoy a stick. 27 degrees. Brrrrrrrr.

 

[Petthefish]

Mail order or anything that ships I let them sit in the humi for a week or so just to even the humidity out. Now my local store keeps there humidor real humid and I always buy cigars there and let them dry out in a smaller humidor for a few days then move them into the big box. rp

 

[Gonz]

3 years is probably where I'm at. The only exception is if I find myself at a smoke shop with a lounge, and didn't bring anything. Then I'll buy something there to smoke right away. Otherwise whatever I buy at the smoke shop goes home and I bring something older and ready to smoke while there. It really depends on the cigar though, and my "3 year" rule is just what my habits produce.

Is this reasonable etiquette? As long as I purchase a few sticks I can bring something else? I've always wondered about this.

Sitting outside here in Seoul trying to enjoy a stick. 27 degrees. Brrrrrrrr.

There's entire threads and discussions about this question, but I think the bottom line has always been that you ought to give some business to the shops that provide us a warm, comfortable place to smoke. I wouldn't expect or really consider just using the local shop as a place to smoke the cigars I buy online. Ultimately it depends on the policy or preference of your local shop. Some shops simply will not allow you to smoke anything you have not bought there. Others are more relaxed about it. If I'm going to smoke something of my own that I brought into the store, I'm going to be very sure that the shop owners or employees are aware that I've purchased something there as well.