AboutJames Yee Expertise My main area of expertise is Cuban cigars but I can also assist you with cigar etiquette, humidor maintenance and troubleshooting. Unsure of a certain cigar brand? Wondering what a certain cigar tastes like? Have any questions about Cuban cigars? Just let me know! I have smoked every brand of Cuban cigars and most reputable non-Cuban cigar brands on a regular basis so I know a fair bit about taste profiles, cigar etiquette and other fine nuances to cigar smoking. (NOTE: My main focus is on premium, hand-rolled cigars and not cheap, machine made, convenience store cigars.) IMPORTANT: PLEASE NOTE THAT I DO NOT PROVIDE CIGAR OR CIGAR-RELATED APPRAISALS. If you have a vintage cigar item and you want to know if it's worth something, please contact an antique dealer that specializes in "TOBACCIANA".
Experience I currently have 15 dedicated years of cigar smoking (an average 4 cigars a day) and counting. I have smoked every brand of Cuban cigars and most reputable non-Cuban cigar brands on a regular basis so I know a fair bit about taste profiles, cigar etiquette and other fine nuances to cigar smoking. For 5 years, I studied with Cuban torcedores (rollers), catadores (taste testers) and revisadores (inspectors) on every aspect involving the production of the Cuban cigar and I am currently writing a book that will help beginners understand everything they need to know about cigars and cigar smoking.
You are here: Experts > Hobbies > Cigars > Cigars > HELP!!! MY CIGARS ARE STARTING TO TASTE LIKE AMMONIA AND PLASTIC.
Cigars - HELP!!! MY CIGARS ARE STARTING TO TASTE LIKE AMMONIA AND PLASTIC.
I recently built a Coolidor. Of course I waited until the plastic smell was gone before starting to load it with my babies. So here goes... I've purchased several boxes of my favorite cigars from 3 different merchants. I was not able to smoke one out of each box right away though. Two months ago the ones I were able to smoke tasted beautiful. Leather, spice, coco beans. Even the ones I finally got to tasted great except for some Partagas Blacks. They tasted a little like ammonia. I figured they were young and would just hold off on smoking them. Now 2 to 2-1/2 months later all my cigars in this coolidor taste like ammonia and plastic. My humidity is constant between 63-65 degrees with a temp of 69-71. I use Heartfelt humidity beads for humidification. The cigars are at the right temp. A little crinkly but not too dry. When I open this coolidor there is a slight plactic smell but no ammonia smell. The cigars are very ammonia like when smoking. I cannot finish one. My other coolidor for my Naturals is fine. It is set up the same exact way. The cigars in that coolidor taste better than when I first bought them from the same merchants at the same time. This is only happening in my Maduro coolidor. So the question is or questions are? Did my Partagas Black that tasted like ammonia ruin my other cigars? Does this cooler have a stronger plastic smell that has come back and is ruining my cigar stash? If so, what about the ammonia? Is there something else going on I'm not aware of? Mold in one box of cigars perhaps? Is my stash being slowly ruined? Can the problem be fixed or have I lost over a thousand dollars of my babies? Please let it not be the latter. Any help and guidance would be greatly appreciated.
Thank You,
Joe
ANSWER: Hi Joe,
Does your coolerdor have Spanish cedar? If not, you should line your entire humidor interior with Spanish cedar panels and this will help improve the cigars natural aroma and flavour. Your coolerdor should also not be locked shut because the air inside your cooler needs to circulate and vent. If the lid is closed tightly, the air remains trapped and takes on a plastic smell from the cooler. Try to let your coolerdor lid rest closed but not locked shut. This will allow the air to naturally vent through the small gap underneath the lid. If possible, also add a toothpick or thin stick between the lid and cooler to expand the gap and this will further improve venting.
If the plastic smell also overpowers the Spanish cedar, you will need to move your cigars to a cooler with a less pungent aroma. You can also try using an Ozone-based air purifier to remove the plastic smell from the cooler. (Be sure the air purifier is Ozone-based and not Ion-based.) Let the air-purifier sit inside the humidor (remove all your cigars first) for 48 hours and the plastic smell should be diffused.
If your Partagas Blacks originally tasted like ammonia, you should remove them from your humidor as they could be causing your other cigars to taste like ammonia. Coolerdors are almost airtight so any pungent aromas trapped in a coolerdor will usually affect everything else inside the cooler. I would remove the Partagas Blacks and store them separately in either a smaller Tupperware container or a humi-pouch. The other cigars should lose the ammonia taste after some time.
Hopes this answers your question. If you have any more questions, please feel free to just ask and I will be happy to help.
Regards,
James
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QUESTION: Hello James,
Thank you for your quick reply.
Yes I have spanish cedar trays resting on spanish cedar wood rails.
The cedar trays do not smell like plastic or ammonia. They smell well.. like cedar and cigars. I do lock it tight though. I have two oust fans to circulate the air but again since it's locked it's the same air. All they are really doing is moving the humidity around to prevent hot spots. I'll take your advice with leaving the lid rest and not locked and get the plactic smell out with an air purifier. Thousand dollar question? Will my cigars lose the plastic taste? I've heard that once they take on that flavor even if you rest them for a year they will still have a slight plastic taste and will never taste like they did before.
Thank again for all your help,
Joe
Answer Hi Joe,
Your cigars will most likely lose their plastic smell/taste but it will definitely take some time. Just let your cigars age naturally in your coolerdor and over time, the plastic smell/taste will disappear. Spanish cedar will help remove the plastic smell more quickly so line the entire interior walls of your coolerdor with Spanish cedar and this will remove the plastic smell even faster.
If the plastic smell continues to be strong in your coolerdor (even after using an Ozone air-purifier), you should switch to a less pungent cooler.
