Expert: James Yee - 5/16/2008

Question
Hello,
  I have a fairly well stocked humidor but i unfortunately let the care fall to the wayside when i went away for an extended period of time.  the humidity has gone from a normal 68-72% down to like 50% for a few weeks, and then i brought it back up to normal.  this has happened with the same batch of cigars at least twice.
  now i have noticed that all of the cigars have a strange taste.  they smell normal, but when i smoke them, they all have a weird chemical flavor.  any ideas what this could be from and what i can do about it?  also, it does not smell musty, etc like you described mold as...

thanks so much,
Brett

Answer
Hi Brett,

A stale, metallic, alkaline taste in your cigars could be the result of either using stale/old propylene glycol, using water that is not 100% distilled water (such as tap, bottled drinking, filtered and boiled water), using ionized water or having prolonged intervals of high or low humidity in your humidor.  A metallic taste in your cigars could also be the result of using a poor quality cigar cutter or storing them in low quality metal cigar tubes.

If your humidification device is fairly old and you use Propylene Glycol, try replacing your humidification device and adding a fresh dose of PG.  This is usually the most common cause of metallic-tasting cigars; especially if you're using a porous aquafoam-based humidification device.   Over time, these humidification units can become dirty, brown and clogged and cause your cigars to have a stale, metallic taste.  Replacing the humidification device or thoroughly cleaning it should fix the taste of your cigars.

Also, make sure that you use 100% distilled water and properly maintain the humidity.  Using water that may contain mineral impurities can cause a metallic taste.  Too little humidity can also cause your cigars to be dry and taste stale.

If you have any more questions, please feel free to just ask and I will be happy to help.

Regards,
James