Beetle Mania! More than just a Hard Days Night

[Herf N Turf]

Ok BOTLs, there has been tremendous scuttlebut about beetle infestations of late. I've never had one and I am pretty secure in my assertion that most of you haven't had one either. While possible, they are anything but probable and the possibilities of having a beetle outbreak seem to be something on the order of being struck by lightening.

That said...

When it comes to tobacco beetles, 80, seems to be the magic number. 80 degrees fahrenheit. Humidity needs to spike, aswell.

All CC's are now frozen prior to shipment. A lot of NC's are too. Point being, most of the cigars you buy now are impervious to beetle hatch.

But, there IS the out-chance you may get one...

What I do, is suspend all online ordering activity between spring and fall and buy exclusively from my local B&M's. I live in a hot, humid, environment, so whatever mail, or other carrier deliveries I get, come in trucks and package cars that spend all day in the sun. They get hot. I have opened a lot of packages where I could feel the heat radiate out of them, upon opening. Most of the USA stays around 80 for most of the summer. This is like playing roulette with beetles. I avoid bombing, and also try to discourage being bombed, during these months.

If I run across a deal I can't pass up, or a loving BOTL absolutely MUST bomb me, I sequester those smokes in a quarantine humidor for at least a month; inspecting twice a week for any signs of parasitic activity.

I never have, but if I did... see any beetle activity, I would Immediately double bag all smokes, put them in the refridgerator for two days, the freezer for two days, the refridgerator for two days and then, into a clean humidor for a month, before even considering smoking anything, or re-introducing them back into the general populice.

Hope this helps someone.

[Egis]

I do exactly the same thing! I shop only at local B&M, then I thought of the same thing you did, getting cigars shipped, takes two days or more, and etc gets scary! But Overnight shipping might work out! I have a friend he buys cigars from JR cigars non stop, takes the slowest shipping possible! He buys monetsino toro boxes, leaves them in a car for 7 days ( it takes him seven days to smoke whole box) and no beetles down hear in FL! summer time inside a dark car 120F! and it's been like that 6 years! but for single it's a different story!

[teoulennon]

You just scared me bigtime. I hadn't thought of beetles during shipment from online stores. It's avg 90+ degrees every day where I live. I just started ordering cigars online and have made lots of order this summer. Now I'm feeling somewhat...handicapped

[SmokeRings]

Originally Posted by teoulennon

You just scared me bigtime. I hadn't thought of beetles during shipment from online stores. It's avg 90+ degrees every day where I live. I just started ordering cigars online and have made lots of order this summer. Now I'm feeling somewhat...handicapped

i honestly wouldnt worry too much man. i live in south florida and the humidity and temp here are way above 80. i have received many packages through mailorder and they are fine. but just to be cautious, keep them out of general population for a little while. just in case.
GL

[teoulennon]

Originally Posted by SmokeRings

i honestly wouldnt worry too much man. i live in south florida and the humidity and temp here are way above 80. i have received many packages through mailorder and they are fine. but just to be cautious, keep them out of general population for a little while. just in case.
GL

Thanks for the peace of mind, it's good to know someone in south Florida hasn't had problems, I'll take your advice!

[tx_tuff]

Sounds like good advice at first, but where do you think the B&M gets the cigars from? Those same trucks that drop them off at your house! But hey I tell everybody to support local B&Ms, have to keep them open!

[Phantom57]

Seventy Five degrees is closer to the magic hatching number than eighty. Regardless, a day or two isn't going to matter. Some manufacturers, and some distributors freeze their cigars. The Cubans freeze too, but CCs and small boutique brands are the biggest risk as far as I am concerned.

[Rev2010]

Originally Posted by Phantom57

but CCs and small boutique brands are the biggest risk as far as I am concerned.

Yep, the majority of beetle complaints I've come across seem to be from people buying CC's. Kinda had me thinking that the cubans are so stuck up due to their "forbidden fruit" hype that they figured they can get away with not treating their tobacco to kill the beetle eggs. Meh, but what do I know?



Rev.

[orca99usa]

I had a beetle outbreak a while back, and the cigars they got had been in my humidor for more than six months. So much for the waiting a few days theory. I lost five cigars, all of them Rocky Patel blends (four Indian Tabac, one Vintage 1990).

[apevia]

This has me very worried. I am about to place an order for about 35 cigars. Is it worth the extra money to ship it overnight?

[orca99usa]

I would say no. Just freeze your shipment when it arrives. There are a couple of threads here that describe the proper way.

[RustyShackleford]

Damn now I am paranoid. I've never frozen a cigar I have gotten in the mail. Most of them have been from cigar collectors and CBid. *scurries off to check for damage.*

[ToJo]

What about simply keeping new shipments in quarantine in their own ziplock bag within your humi for a couple of weeks? They'll probably get decent enough air exchange, but won't be penetrable by the beetles (right??)

[apevia]

Originally Posted by orca99usa

I would say no. Just freeze your shipment when it arrives. There are a couple of threads here that describe the proper way.

Sounds good, I will freeze them when they arrive. Should I freeze all of them?