I'm still a novice in my cigar journey. I've been searching for a long form video that tackles over humidity because I had a feeling it was responsible for all my cigar issues - you nailed all of them! So thankful to find this video. Thank you! Subscribed.
Just recently got back into cigars after 12 years from smoking last . Come to find out I was doing so many things wrong , and it was completely my fault not the cigars . Now thanks to great content like your channel and a few others I’m finally able to really enjoy the experience of smoking great cigars . P.S. Dry boxing solved many of my issues. Your channel is one of the few that mentions that . I don’t know why more channels don’t mention that . BTW Very Impressive Cigar Collection , and Channel . 💯% 👍🆙
Thank you, I have been having these problems. Had a favorite purchased all my BM had and as is was work though them and started having problems like tight draw, tunneling, bad burn, bad flavor thank you again!
I am happy that dry boxing has worked for you! I went through the same thing back in the day. This technique totally changed the game for me as well. 😃
i have a electric humidor and have just recently have all the bad issues you mention, your advice i think will solve my problem. i have been using the 70-70 method and my area has had a week of high moisture and my cigars are bad over humid. bad draw bad taste bad burn and hard to keep lit. i am trying the dry box now and hope it helps. love your advice makes total sense.
Cooler and dryer is better. 70/70 is too wet and too warm for long term storage. 70 degrees is fine but you wanna be mid 60s rh. 65/65 beats 70/70 every time. For long term aging and storing you can go colder and low 60s. 60/60 honestly
I agree 💯! It just took me a few months to learn it the hard way! I went through a period where all my cigars were smoking terribly and tasted extremely sour and bitter! I started to write out the whole story of how I came to my realization, but it's just too much, lol. So long story short I realized that there's a big difference between desired storage humidity and desired "smokage" humidity. You have to let them things dry out a little! I use a Cigar Medics HumidiMeter Pro and if a cigar has a 7 at the beginning of it's humidity reading then it is not ready to smoke. You gotta dry box them things down to the low 60s and they will be nice and tasty! I just wish I would have seen this video back then so I wouldn't have had to learn it the hard way, lol! 😁
Conditioning cigars definitely takes practice but it’s 100% worth it! You are miles above the rest once you understand there is a difference between storage humidity and smoking humidity. Dry boxing is the only way I know that yields consistent cigars each and every time. Thank you for supporting the channel! It puts a smile on our faces to know people are picking this up. 😃
Yes, I see way too many overhumidified cigars from online retailers. I've actually let whole boxes that were way overhumidified sit out for a few days in the 50's before storage at 65% RH. Great, great video!!!
I have one, but I never have the need for it. I don’t think I used it even once in the last 3 years. Not since I started dry boxing my cigars religiously before smoking.
Thanks man this was great! Such a great point about having the cigar at the correct humidity not only while storing but at time of smoking. I have to admit that it will take me some time to sense when they are ready. But I'm going to learn 🙂
Food for thought. I have three digital hygrometers in both the humidor and Tupperdor. The humidor has humidification fluid and Bovedas and the Tupperdor has only Bovedas, I trust the Bovedas so I know that the hygrometers are all reading 4-6% high. But I have always preferred my sticks to be humidified to the point where there is no or minimal 'crackle'. The Greater Toronto area is always very humid. 70%, so I would not dry box a smoke because I think it will increase humidity shock.
I wouldn’t trust the technique you used for determining the accuracy of your meters. The only true way to know the accuracy of your meters is to test it alongside a certified calibrated meter. Also, I still believe that you would benefit greatly from dry boxing. I looked up your humidity in Toronto, and you were spot on. It’s like 76% out there right now. That’s nuts if that stays consistent throughout the year! 🤯I bet you never have dry skin.😂 So when I think of shocking a cigar, I’m mostly talking about taking the cigar from 70% down to a much lower humidity. This causes your oils to evaporate and drys out your cigar before the cigar can reduce moisture in the center of the cigar. Think of it this way; The outside of the meat is well done but the center is still raw. Now let me think about this a little further…. The outside humidity in Toronto is 76% RH right now. 🤔 How high does the humidity get within your house? Secondly, and this is the most important question. Do you believe you are having trouble with the draw, construction, or taste and flavors are very dull? If you aren’t having any issues at all then dry boxing isn’t for you. If you are, then dry boxing will solves most of the common issues out there. The question only becomes if you can effectively dry box in the area where you live?
Yeah man, it’s apart of why I started making videos. To help guide people pass a basic understanding of cigar storage, aging, and humidity control. Most don’t even know that there is a difference between storage humidity and smoking humidity. So I’m trying to do my best to help people out. My wife and I mostly focus on preparing cigars properly before smoking them. So we stress resting cigars, touching and listening to you cigars, and dry boxing cigars. Without understanding those staples, the cigar smoking experience will lack consistency.
I always had issues smoking out of the humidor, but have great results now with dry them out first. Why don't big cigar channels ever talk about the importance of drying them?
Sadly most reviewers care more about volume, than giving a high quality review. There are more subscribers and views in the volume game. The more reviews a RU-vidr drops per week, the more you have to take their review with a grain of salt. Most are only in it for the free cigars unfortunately. 😏
@DLovWife knowing this from the beginning would've saved me a lot of cigars and bad experiences. I watched tons of "beginner" videos and never heard of drying them.
Nice video. I definitely listen to my cigars. I keep my coolers at 65 RH and don't dry box. Any new cigars get a good nap. My preference is a year but if it's a new cigar I will likely dig in early. Always good to get different perspectives.
Honestly, 65% is still to wet to smoke cigars in my opinion. I purchased a humidimeter almost a year ago now. I previously only used my hands to feel the cigar, but i wanted to start attaching a humidity value to cigars that I deem ready to smoke. Most of my cigars are smoked between 60% and 62% under the cap. I don’t care anything about storing my cigars long term at a lower humidity. I personally think the sweet spot is around 67% to 68% for longer term storage. Then I use dry boxing to slowly bring the humidity down to 60% to 62% under the cap. This normally takes 4 to 5 days depending on the size of the cigar. I have gone over a week before with cigars like Andalusian Bull. I haven’t had any issues with loss of flavors nor any construction issues with this method. Every cigar is consistent. I don’t even have issues with Cubans and all I ever hear about them is Quality Control. I am sure Cubans have some issues like all cigars, but most people’s issues stem from smoking overly humidified cigars.
@@DLovWife I appreciate your dedication. People think I'm weird when I bring my own cigars on vacation, including Cuba. It's such a waste smoking wet cigars. I use to store my coolers at 62 and never had an issue. I agree, some cigars will smoke better closer to 60. I think I have some 62 bovedas around. I'll try putting something together to bring down the humidity on some cigars on deck.
Cool video. Thanks for the info. A lot of folks have great results with dry boxing. Unfortunately the humidity where I live is constantly 10-20% higher than my humidor so dry boxing won’t do anything for me but make it worse.
It’s not likely that dry boxing would make it worse. You just need to full understand how humidity works. Humidity is temperature dependent. The humidity runs high in your home, then you need to lower the temperature to reduce the moisture that is in the air. What is the humidity in your home and at what temperature do you keep your house?
Short attention span? That sucks bro. Haha Well, there are tons of gems in every video that I post. My videos have helped thousands of people and I am extremely proud of that. My information has spread so far out there that people like your self try to teach me things that I brought to the cigar community. It’s funny when it happens. I hope that you continue to enjoy any and all videos. 😃💪
Instead of dry-boxing, wouldn't it be better to store the cigars at a lower humidity say 62% or 65%? Especially if you like your cigars to be on the drier side.
So basically the conditioning process works like this. If my cigars are let’s say 70% RH, and I place the cigars in the dry box which naturally rest at 55% RH @ 70 degrees. The cigars will find an equilibrium point between the high of the cigar and the low of the dry box. Basically my cigar will be lowered to the low 60% RH @ 70 degrees under the cap. If you store cigars @ 62%, and your cigar on arrival are at 70% under the cap. Your cigar will only drop to around 65%. I find anything above 63% is a wet cigar. In fact 63% is at the high end of a cigar I will smoke. I aim for 59%-62% under the cap @70 degrees.
@@DLovWife I feel the same way about the reviews. People are like “it did burn well”and it’s always a dark cigar that’s wet and they didn’t dry box. I’m happy you are pushing this because some people been smoking for years and never heard of this. I’m on my second year and I won’t smoke a cigar unless I dry box it.
@@ckam7143 absolutely bro! You get what I’m saying 100%. How can we trust a review when they don’t prepare the cigar properly? I just don’t get it. Haha
@DLovWife how do you keep the temp stable in the tuperdores if your dealing w/the change of seasons? I live in S Florida, I would like to use this set up for storage. But my A/C bill would be astronomical if I kept my house at 70 degrees 24-7
Learning more from this one video in a day than all the fancy dudes reviews..dry boxed a cigar overnight but I think I rushed it...but I'm Learning thanks to you..
This is all facts, family. You'll catch a dud now and then even from the best. I love most everything from El Titan de Bronze but I've even had a few from them that didn't draw well even after a stint in the dry box, it happens. But to maximize your flavor and performance to really get your moneys worth ya gotta dry box and ya gotta know your tobacco. Not all tobacco is equal. Most CT Shade, Cameroon, some Habano, etc, will be tissue paper thin and will typically be rolled over more lighter leaf that puts off moisture faster. BUT something like the Espinosa Crema is using a heavier CT Shade leaf and is wrapped over heavy Nicaraguan tobacco. Your Corojo, Criollo, CT and PA Broadleaf, Mexican San Andrés, etc, is typically gonna be thicker and rolled over heavier tobacco and take longer to be primed. BUT some Dominican Corojo is mad thin and rolled over lighter tobacco while on the flip side Aganorsa Corojo and Criollo loves moisture and holds onto it like crazy. Also gotta factor where ya live. I'm in the hot and humid SE US so dry boxing is a must, but I got homies in the desert whose cigars will explode if they're too dry and smoke outside. Back home in NYC it was more about the seasons. I got homies in Central and South America that don't even use humidors cause the climate is perfect for maintenance but they still keep a dry box cause it's so humid for smoking, it all depends. Now I totally get that some folks don't wanna put all this thought into it and just wanna grab a smoke, turn their brain off for a while and enjoy themselves and as long as they're not having any real issues and are happy with the results, whatever, I'm not really talking to them. I'm taking to the real cigarheads who put real cash into their stash and want the most from their smokes. Can't believe I missed this video, family. Pretty sure I said all this before on your IG lol Stay up 👊
I am new to cigar smoking and I found this video quite helpful because I’ve had the issues described in this video while smoking. Sorry for this basic question, but is there a difference between dry boxing a cigar versus just leaving it out of the humidor? Could I just pull a cigar out and leave it on a shelf somewhere and get the same outcome or does dry boxing do something different? Thank you so much for your help!
Dry boxing takes a few days, depending on the size of the cigar. I dry box my cigars until they are between 60%-63% under the cap. I have taken cigars to 58% to get them to open up. I use a humidor because the wood helps to remove the moisture in a controlled manner. While maintaining a lower level of moisture than you would store cigars in at long term. Leaving it on the counter will shock the cigar imo. UV light exposure, loss of cedar aroma. The humidity in most homes can be significantly lower than 65% RH. Example: At 30%, The wrapper would dry out and become brittle long before the filler begins to open up. Dry boxing is a fine tuning of the moisture in the cigar. Storing at 65% or higher is good for longer term storage, but not for smoking. Most cigars will smoke wet if they are higher than 63% under the cap. I hope this helps. More information- try to maintain your dry box round 55% RH. Keeping cigars in the drying box at all times helps to increase the humidity in the drying box. You will figure out what best works for you over time and as you get comfortable with this method.
I open my humidors once every two weeks and do an inspection. If your humidor is running on the high side for moisture, then you definitely run the risk of mold.
Are you talking about listening to your cigars or the cigar busting as you smoke due to moisture? The crackling comes from rolling the cigar between your fingers. You will hear the crackling in the cigar. If it doesn’t crackle, then the cigar has too much moisture. The cigar wrapper will also bust on you as you smoke it if it has too much moisture. Hopefully that answers your question.
Currently its at 55% RH. Definitely lower than I would like it to be but I’m fighting the winter weather. I may bump up the humidity back to 60% here shortly. 😁 I find that humidity is the sweet spot for dry boxing.
70rh is too high. Its also close to mold levels. No need to store at 70. 70 is danger zone. Keep both temps and RH in the 60s and you will have no worries
Wrong, more like 73% @ 70 degrees Fahrenheit. That is the mold level. Lastly, I don’t use humidification. Cigars go directly into a weather tight containers without any added moisture. Unless you use a dry box or keep your humidor open to drier air. you can’t remove the moisture. Just that simple
@@ckam7143 you can dry box with the cellophane but it’s going to take much longer. Cellophane is used to preserve a cigar in its current state. Aging, humidifying, dry, etc… is a much longer process with the cellophane on.
Same here brother! Most reviewers are good for new cigar smokers. They aren’t able to help seasoned smokers in anyway. Nor do most even understand building and storing cigars for long term. Their humidors are filled with random cigars and most of their cigars get smoked within a few months. Most of the cigars that I buy are being aged for 3 years minimum before I even smoke them. Not saying they don’t have aged cigars but their intent isn’t to age. Over 90% of my collection has over 4 years of age. There really isn’t a reviewer out there that can relate to me and the cigar smokers I know. They are entertaining though and have a good message of fellowship.
That is all based on how the cigar sounds and feels. You can get a humidimeter and check the cigar until you bring the humidity down to the 60% - 63% range. I always check my cigars under the cap. Otherwise, Start off with maybe 4 days and smoke. Remember how that cigar feels in hand. Toggle how many days you need to dry box based on how the previously conditioned cigar smoked. The goal is to maximize flavors, drastically improve draw, and have your cigar burn evenly. When the ash drops, there should not be any coning of the cherry. The cherry should be almost flat. Remember that the larger the cigar is, the longer it will take to dry box. The cigar will also take some time if it has a closed foot. Welcome to the world of dry boxing cigars!
D-Lov! Brother i gotta be honest with you i was having all kind of woes trying to control temp and rh of my 10 tuperdores/desktops and trying to drybox with high humidity in the crib didn’t seem like it was doing anything. So i finally just gave up and pulled the trigger on that kingchii wineador i was asking you about. Thing is like i said dryboxing wasn’t cutting it with my house’s high humidity so i just switched to 65rh bovedas and kept the thermostat on the unit at 70. And its night and day difference my sticks are smoking better they got more strength flavor ect, my only concern is since my stash is so sizable now that it’s probably gibs take me 1.5-2years to run completely through my inventory. Do you think the cigars that will be in there mid-long term like that will have lost too much of their oils by the time i get around to smoking them? I family hope you’re able shed some insight as usual brother. May ﷲ ﷻ bless you and yours Ameen. 🙌🏼
Hell yeah bro. Controlling temperature is extremely important brother! I am able to store all of my cigars in weather tight containers because my home has stable temperatures. I use my KingChii as a dry box because it provides me with even more control over temperature. This increased my efficiency in conditioning my cigars. Hell, I would even question if you need to have Boveda in your thermoelectric with the high humidity levels you spoke about in your home. I haven’t used Boveda in years. I find it to be unnecessary unless you store cigars in wooden humidors. As for losing oils, It’s all about monitoring brother. If you feel like you need to add moisture because your cigars are feeling on the dry side, then you add moisture as needed. Just be attentive and you won’t have any issues. 😃
@@DLovWife My man! Ok. I was having huge temp swings and i think that’s one of the reasons i was having so many troubles, that and maybe since i had so many tups and desktops i wasn’t opening them all regularly enough for air exchange? Either way with all the sticks in one place with controlled temp and the lower rh they’re doing great right now. I’ll take your advice I’ll just see how long i can ride this gravy train lol. As far as the high humidity in the house the issue was that wasn’t a way to drybox them as both the humidity in the house and outside were sitting either close to or over 69 pretty much all times. It’s an issue that can’t go unaddressed because we obviously don’t want mold/mildew in the crib. I had bought a refurb’d dehumidifier but it tried to flood the house lol. Just waiting for a brand new unit i bought if best buy ever stop bs’n around lol. So once i do get the rh in my home down to let’s say 40-50ish then the bovedas might not be as redundant since i do open my wineador quite a bit. Thanks for giving me some peace of mind as always my brother of the leaf!
Basically the conditioning process works like this. If my cigars are let’s say 70% RH, and I place the cigars in the dry box which naturally rest at 55% RH @ 70 degrees. The cigars will find an equilibrium point between the high of the cigar and the low of the dry box. Basically my cigar will be lowered to the low 60% RH @ 70 degrees under the cap. This may take a few weeks to a month depending on the size of the cigar and moisture retention. If you keep your cigars at 62% RH, then your cigars will find an equilibrium point between the 62% and the high end of your cigar as time passes. This process is going to take much longer because you will be bringing down your cigars in a wetter environment than mine. After an extended long period of time, I suppose it’s possible to have your cigars gradually fall all the way to 62% under the cap, but I couldn’t tell you how long that would take. 🤷♂️ Also, I don’t know the long term effects of storing cigars at low humidity levels for an extended period of time. I tend to store my cigars as close as I possibly. Lastly, I have need seen anyone that does the method you are talking about have any cigars that burn well on any consistent basis. The includes most of the top reviewers.
@@DLovWife thanks for the reply :) What about the RH of the environment you're smoking in. For example in the dry winter months do you want your cigars to have more humidity or less to match the environment? Cheers :)
It takes a long time for tobacco to absorb moisture into the leaves. Unless you smoke in the rain. You will be fine. I always shoot for my cigars to be between 60% -63% RH under the cap. If you find you are smoking too dry, then smoke at a higher RH. If you find the cigar to be too wet then smoke at a lower RH. The ground work is up to you. 😃
Not for dry boxing. Just load up the dry box with cigars. Adding cigars to your humidor along will bump up the humidity. It is something that you will have to experiment with on your end. 😃
@DLovWife Thank you for replying so quickly. OK I'll monitor the natural humidity of a dry box which I will have to purchase as I use acrylic humidors. I'll e joy finding a good smoking temperature rather than straight out of the humidor :)
No, that’s not how it works. If you keep your humidor at 65%. Your cigar finds an equilibrium point between 65% and the humidity level your cigar arrives at. Unless your cigar can match my burn lines and draw. There is nothing to debate. 🤷♂️
There are definitely brands that can help you determine the humidity in your cigar. I can’t however endorse a brand name if they aren’t compensating me in some fashion. Sorry I couldn’t be more help.
You should rewatch the video. Don’t skip through. I don’t care what your meters say. Cigars do not draw in moisture at the same rate. Depending on the tobacco type, each blend has a different affinity for moisture. You can have two cigars next to each other and both can be at different humidities even in a uniform environment. The only way to know if your cigar is ready is by touching the cigar and listening to the crackling. I can’t tell you how many people believe exactly what you are saying, and they are dead wrong. What do I know though. I only have a degree in chemistry. 🤣
Every time you write this nonsense on my channel, I can tell you haven’t watched the video. Everyone of your questions are answered in the video. Not just in this video but in earlier videos as well. For some cigars, 65% at the foot and 65% under the cap might work depending on the climate you smoke the cigar in, but I wouldn’t say that 65% would be perfect for all cigars. Some may need higher and some may need to be lower. That’s why I rely on the feel and sound of the cigar. so Um yeah… 🤣 it seems like you are struggling with the basic concepts of this channel. Feel free to explore other channels that you agree with. 😊
It's fine to do that. I do the same at 65% most of the time, and I let the cigar dry box out for an hour or two. But to D Lov's point, this is the way to go if you want a very consistent experience. He's right that reviewers should have a uniform process.
Wrong once again. If your cigar comes to your house with a humidity level 70% under the cap, and you place that cigar in a humidor at 62%. The cigar will drop to approximately 65% under the cap. That is still a very wet cigar. I smoke all of my cigars between 59%-62%. 63% is the highest I will attempt to smoke.
If you don’t dry box, then your cigars burn like shit. Based off what you are telling me. I already know your cigars burn like shit and you lack flavor.
@@DLovWife bro I work in a cigar shop I know lol it also depends on what the climate is in the state you live in as well. Every state in every climate are different if you dry box in Colorado or out west they'll be cracked by the time you come back to them and not smokeable. Where I live in the midwest it's like walking into a humidor in the summer time. You set your cigars out they'll be more humid than they will if you keep them in a humidor
@@DLovWife just got done cutting the cap off of my FLOR DE OLIVA MADURO TORPEDO about to dry box for about 4-5 days, it felt semi firm from the middle and very firm leading up to the cap, though there was slight sponginess at the foot this also Indicates too much moisture, and the band doesn’t slide at all either which is another little tip I picked up on your channel as well. Let’s see how this goes 😅🤞
I believe in you! Hopefully cutting the cap off the cigar gives you a little more aid in opening the cigar up. As the cigar loses moisture, a lot of that swelling will go away allowing you to have a much improved draw. The combustion of the cigar will improve as well. You will also notice that flavors become more pronounced. Welcome to the world of dry boxing! 😃
It’s only been 24hrs dry boxing and the band is already sliding; talk about instant results, a few days ago I would’ve probably sat it out for and hour or two and then smoked it and be missing out on who know how many different notes wow 😀 will continue to feel it over the next day or two, can’t wait to taste this one on the weekend! 😎👌
