Advice for handling and storage

[Zen Ape]

Hi all,

I don't really know the first thing about proper storage, handling, upkeeping. My father is shipping me out an extra small humidor he had taking up space, and I will be ordering some cigars online soon.

Mind you I live in Las Vegas and it is HOT here. My shipment will no doubt be sitting outside my house for hours before I can get home and retrieve them. Is this going to be a problem?

Also I was planning on bringing a couple on a trip we will be taking in a couple weeks. Should I leave them in the wrappers until we get to our destination? I don't have proper cigar holders (for more than one cigar anyway) for transport, so I was thinking small tupperware container for the trip. Suggestions on how to best go about this would be appreciated if there is a recommended way.

And lastly I received a cigar 3 years ago no that is still in the wrapper and has been in an airtight single cigar holder and I can tell it has dried out. Someone suggested steaming it for a short time. I'd like some advice on this as well.

Thanks in advance!

[Nismo#12]

If your shipment is outside for a few hours you should be ok. It's the long term that you have to worry. I'm in the mid-atlantic and I have shipments sit outside and humidity in the summer can get over 85%. Just let the sticks rest for a few weeks in the humi.

Traveling: Place them in a ziplock bag and/or small tupperware, you'll be good to go for a week or more. Maybe even pick up a small humidfication device (pack or tube) from your local B&M.

And to you last point,three years?!?! it's probally hopeless IMHO, I would never recommend steaming. Most suggest a slow approach to rehumidyfing over the course of months. You better off tossing it as the oils within the tobacco have dreid out which would severely damage the flavor.

Search the forum and you can find some more helpful info. Hope this helps.

[Herf N Turf]

The above is solid advice. For an "extra small" humidor, Id recommend getting a 65% Boveda pack. They will last you a couple months, are cheap and take up no room. You can lay it right on the cigars.
Traveling is the only time I leave the celo on my cigars. It helps keep them safe from the slings and arrows of adventure. If you use tupperware, put some filler inside along with a Boveda pack to take up the excess volume. A simple zipper bag works great, since you can add and subtract air as needed.
I see no harm in rehydrating that old cigar. If youre successful, you get an old cigar to smoke. If it doesnt work, who cares? Just do it SLOWLY. Dont add more than 5% humidity at a time and let it rest at that humidity for a few weeks. The entire process will take in excess of three months. You dont want the wrapper to come undone and you dont want to swell the fillers and binder' risking cracking the wrapper.
Smell the thing first. If it smells stale, dont waste your time. Toss it. Once tobacco oils are gone, their gone for good.

[apevia]

You can use a tupperware container for transport, and as mentioned before, get a "Boveda" packet. They are great! I got 2 when I started out with my first humidor. 1 packet is good for up to 50 cigars I believe. Side note -- I have 72% packets and it never gets above 68%, but it is still always at a solid 68%. As for the celo that the cigars come wrapped in, leave that on! It can breathe and will help retain the proper humidity for the cigars.

[ribletman]

Originally Posted by Herf N Turf

Just do it SLOWLY. Dont add more than 5% humidity at a time and let it rest at that humidity for a few weeks. The entire process will take in excess of three months. You dont want the wrapper to come undone and you dont want to swell the fillers and binder' risking cracking the wrapper.

I am not in the "do it slowly" camp for re-hydration. The wrapper absorbs the moisture first, swelling but leaving room for the binder, which swells and leaves room for the filler. Since hydration happens from the outside in, putting it in a normal 65% RH environment from the get go will be fine.

The troubles come from rapidly drying out a cigar, where the filler is fully swelled as the wrapper tries to shrink. Or where a cigar is over-humidified beyond the amount when rolled. The wrapper will not be able to swell beyond this original size, which why cigars can burst when put into 100% humidity environments, even only temporarily.