Freezing Cigars

[Tater]

I have only been smoking cigars for a month now and have been trying to absorb as much knowledge as possible. I was told that after buying cigars, I should freeze them. There wasn't a specific time frame given and I have also read that I should only need to freeze cigars if there are beetles present. Does freezing make the cigars better or do anything for them?

[Acesfull]

Here is an email I've received on the matter.

Just when you thought it was safe to open your humidor... You see the dreaded cigar beetle has devastated your entirecollection of smokes. As if maintaining humidity, choosing goodcigars, and getting a good cutter aren't enough, now you have toworry about bugs in your stogies. Cigar beetles can quickly devastate your entire collection if theyaren't noticed and controlled quickly. Like termites to wood, cigar beetles will crawl through cigars, leaving holes all over--and they multiply like crazy. The eggs of the beetle are smaller than the eye can see and arefrequently in the cigars you smoke. Nothing happens to them unlessthe temperature in your humidor gets up to 72 degrees, and thenthey can hatch. The easiest way to prevent this from happening is to make sure your humidor is in a cool, dry place. Another option is to freeze your cigars for a few days, then let them thaw slowly, putting them your humidor. This will kill all the eggs before they can hatch. If you find that you've been infected, remove all the bad cigarsand toss them. Take the rest of your cigars out of your humidor,and ensure they are lower than 72 degrees or freeze them. Somepeople will even freeze their humidor to make sure the eggs in thecedar are killed. With a little know-how and a close eye, you can make sure you never get infested with the beetle.

[stanthetaxman]

Hi, Tater. Thanks for checking us out.
I wouldn't mess with the freezing unless I had an outbreak. If you monitor your temp/humidity, there shouldn't be a problem.

[JAX]

Originally Posted by StantheTaxMan

I wouldn't mess with the freezing unless I had an outbreak. If you monitor your temp/humidity, there shouldn't be a problem.

+1

I don't buy into the freezing of great stogies either. Over the last 12 years or so, I've yet to have a single problem with beetles. Just keep the temp below 80* and you shouldn't have any issues.


BTW, welcome to the board!

[randomhero1090]

+1

Every article I have read has that you should store your stogies below 75* to keep the beetle eggs from hatching.

You can keep your stogies much cooler than that. I have mine in the basement 67-68*. If you go cooler, the only problem is keeping the Relative Humidity above 60%, which is a bit on the low side.

[stanthetaxman]

My house is around 76* when air conditioned. I keep the humidity between 63-65% and they smoke great and I have no problem with the beetles.

[Tater]

Thanks for the info everyone!

[Denahue]

Hey Tater, Welcome to the circus!!!!!

Another Coloradian heard from!!!!! Where abouts in CO??????

[Tater]

I am in Colorado Springs. Speaking of Colorado, would higher altitudes play a significant role in storing cigars? CO can get pretty dry at times.

[Denahue]

Noooooo, the dry times on the West slope don't bother mine much, so I imagine they won't bother yours. I just check mine a little more often than most..... About once a month....