How Long Can I Store Cigars in My Cigar Humidor

There are a few factors to consider if you’d like your cigars to be at their best for years on end. How long you can store your cigars for optimum flavor is a matter of how much you like the tobacco to mature, what you consider the best age for a certain brand to be, what other cigars you’d like to marry them to in time, your particular storage conditions and how diligently you perform your regular check-ups.

Cigars come shrouded in a cloud of pomp and ceremony. Cutting, lighting and inhaling the cigar are matters of etiquette more than anything else, but the rituals extend far beyond the crispy tobacco leaves. Even cigar humidors are subject to some degree of decorum, and these essential cigar accessories have become symbols of status, perhaps just as much as the iconic cigar, itself.

The importance of humidors lies mainly in the delicate nature of the tobacco leaf. Cigars are made of organic matter, and are therefore prone to deterioration, but if stored appropriately, they are generally better with age, just like wine. Yet, it’s not only the perishable leaf that makes it absolutely essential to store tobacco carefully. The natural oils which keep the leaves moist, tender and fragrant, will eventually seep through the leaves or evaporate, unless a humidor is used. Not even your finest cigar will escape the dreadful fate of turning into a bitter, dry, dull hulk of tobacco rolls, if it hasn’t had the pleasure of settling inside a humidor.

Cigars will typically start yielding their best flavors after about 5 years, provided they have been stored adequately. Unless they are stored in a humidor, they can dry, rot or become infested in a matter of days, depending on the type of temperature and sunlight they are exposed to. It’s ultimately up to you to decide how long you should store your cigars, but it’s always a good idea to buy larger boxes and to take the odd cigarette every few months to sample and test for optimum flavors.

A good cigar should not be moist or dry, but somewhere in between. In other words, the essential oils shouldn’t seep from it, nor should the leaves crackle under pressure. A good rule of thumb is to press the press the cigar gently with your thumb and to check that the leaves regain their shape. A dry cigar will take weeks and considerable effort to revive, and the results are not always satisfactory.