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69 RH vs 65 and below

4cbln3

4cbln3

WTF are skin tags?!
Joined
May 1, 2009
Messages
3,159
Location
Oahu,HI.
I went looking for a cigar to walk the dogs and I found a package of a recent buy with a tat 7th capa especial in it with some other sticks and 2 Boveda 69% in there. Mind you, they were in a Lock-n-Lock so no movement of air was possible, but they were recently put in there because the other smokes were some assorted La Casita Criollo's . I love the 7th capas and figured I would smoke the stray rather than put it in the open box I smoke from.

Didn't think much of the 69% being a factor in my cigar, and the walk went down with the cigar burning evenly and smoking fine. Just like the taste I like from this cigar. Cut the second band with my knife and brought the dogs home. When I sat in my chair to finish the rest, right after the halfway point the cigar went bitter on me and rather than purging, I just tossed it and went to help my daughter with a project in her room. Normally, I can nub this cigar, no problem.

I keep my humi in the low 60's regarding RH and if in Lock-n-Locks I keep them with more than ample 65% beads. I'm used to leaving out thinner wrappers to acclimate to my humidity here otherwise some foot splitting may occur when I light them. Been smoking this way since I built my humi and I like how my cigars smoke so I won't be changing my setup.

My thoughts were that am I too spoiled because I've found joy in lower RH's and because CP has taught me so much about HOW to keep my cigars aging nicely, I'd rather not even deal with a wetter stick, I'd rather just chuck it? :laugh:

Maybe I should have just dry-boxed the last half and come back to it in a couple of days.
 
I'm also a 65% guy. Although through trial and error I've found that one of my favorites, Avo 80th, smoke better at 70% to 75%. Everything else, all my Nic's, CC's and Anejo's smoke best around 65%.

I'm with you as I have no patience for cigars that won't cooperate. Chuck 'em and smoke another. To think of all the cigars we'd be wasting if we'd never found this place.

On the other hand the Tat could have just been a bad one, nothing to do with the humidity. ;)
 
I don't know if I could dry box a half smoked cigar and come back to it. It might taste like eating pure ash?

I've found 65% to be the sweet spot for most of what I have. If I'm about to smoke one of the usual suspects of bitterness, I'll usually just pull it out of the humidor for a few hours before lighting it up. It may burn uneven, but at least I won't have a mouthful of tar at the end.
 
whopper said:
I'm also a 65% guy. Although through trial and error I've found that one of my favorites, Avo 80th, smoke better at 70% to 75%. Everything else, all my Nic's, CC's and Anejo's smoke best around 65%.

I'm with you as I have no patience for cigars that won't cooperate. Chuck 'em and smoke another. To think of all the cigars we'd be wasting if we'd never found this place.

On the other hand the Tat could have just been a bad one, nothing to do with the humidity. ;)
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I still have half of my box of AVO 80th's left, I should try to place a couple with those Boveda packs and see if it brightens them up!
Thanks Whopper!

**note, forgot to put a :sign: after my last statement about dryboxing**
 
I never really paid too much attention to the specific rh percentage until I joined the forum. At that point I bought a cooler and 65% beads and haven't looked back. So far the only smokes that I think may have benefited from a slightly higher rh are Padron 3000's everything else seems to be perfect at 65%.
 
I keep my cooler at a steady 65-68. Ever since moving to the South Bay area, whenever I open my cooler instead of the rh immediately dropping, it now climbs to like 76. (Always goes back down mind you)

I haven't moistened my beads since I moved here back in June, and I'm waiting to see if it will ever need it again.

Maybe spring 2012? :D
 
I like storing long term at 69. Mind you that this takes some diligence, because Mold can grow with 69% Bovedas.
I think the higher RH retains the oleoresins much better. What I am going to smoke for the next month, I dry down to 65.
Just something I do as I found that too many of my smokes were losing some of the flavors I enjoyed when fresh.
It has worked for me. YMMV. I smoke most Nicaraguans at 60-65. Fuentes are a bit more forgiving at higher RH, and
if it has a cameroon wrapper, I definitely store at the higher end of the spectrum.
 
....dunno, my humi drifts up into the 67-ish range over the summer, and I kind of like it. Now that the heat came back on for the year, the ambient RH drops like a rock. I just added distilled H2O to the Staebell and have the humidifiers set for 67%.....

It's clearly personal preference, YMMV, etc.....

Cheers, guys - B.B.S.
 
I agree with whopper and PipeSmoker that some sticks taste and keep better at a slightly higher RH than 65%. Fortunately, most cigars I like smoke well at 65% so I rarely have a problem.
 
emoshun said:
I keep my cooler at a steady 65-68. Ever since moving to the South Bay area, whenever I open my cooler instead of the rh immediately dropping, it now climbs to like 76. (Always goes back down mind you)

I haven't moistened my beads since I moved here back in June, and I'm waiting to see if it will ever need it again.

Maybe spring 2012? :D
Click to expand...

I have a similar challenge living in Rhode Island. I have an Aristocrat with a set and forget system, but living here I cant just forget. The unit does a great job humidifying and cooling, but not a great job dehumidifying or heating up. But it is still a great unit.
 
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