Expert: James Yee - 4/11/2008

Question
Hi James, I just got back from Cuba and brought back a box each of Montecristo #2, Petit Edmundo, and Bolivar Royal Corona. My question is, if I want to age them, and I do for as long as I can anyway, is it better to leave them in the box or to take them out and let them sit in the humi open? Also I am wondering about how long they should sit before they are not young any more? I am not sure the dates on all of them but I do know the date on the # 2's is Oct 07, I think the others are 07 as well. Any other information you can give me on these particular cigars would be much appreciated, thanks for your time again.   Grant

Answer
Hi Grant,

Though it's optional, many cigar collectors prefer to leave their aged cigars untouched in their original boxes whenever possible.  Allowing the cigars to sit loose inside the humidor may compromise the cigars' physical condition and leave them susceptible to damage, tobacco beetles, and cigar mold.  If you're considering aging the cigars purely as an investment, it's best to leave them in their boxes so that they remain neatly packaged.  If you want to age the cigars to enjoy in the future, removing them from the boxes is perfectly fine.  

In terms of aging times, many collectors prefer to age their cigars for at least one year (especially with very young batches produced recently) or until the cigars develop a thick, healthy coat of plume/bloom.  Like a fine wine, cigars will taste better with age and cigar collectors have been known to age cigars for many years, even decades.  As cigars are aged, they will become richer in flavour - usually after a few years - until they peak and become mellow.  Aged cigars usually improve between 2-8 years and peak after 10-12 years of aging.

There's really no set schedule to aging specific cigars or brands and part of the fun and excitement of aging cigars is to let a box sit for as long as possible and see how they taste the longer they're aged.

Hope this answers your question. If you have any more questions, please feel free to just ask and I'll be happy to help.

Regards,
James