Expert: Bill Finck Jr. - 4/16/2007

Question
Hi
I was recently given some cigars as a gift and being short of humidor space, I put them in a Tupperware with some chunks of florist foam I had saturated with distilled water. I forgot about them for a while and opened it to find soggy smokes, some I chucked immediately, others not smokeable but not split either. Is there a point to keeping them and a method for rehab or are they ruined? Thanks!

Answer
Bill,
Sorry to be late in answering you. For some reason I did not get notice of the last couple of questions that we asked of me.

Unfortunately, over-humidified cigars are worse than under-humidified cigars. Its tough to say if you can salvage them without seeing them, but if they're just soft without being soggy, you might save them. I'd try putting them in a humidor without any humidification and letting them sit. Don't just leave 'em out on your desk because the dramatic drying will cause them to dry on the outside faster than the inside, which will make the wrapper shrink faster than the filler likely causing splits/breakage. Leave them in a dry humidor out of their cellophane wrappers and not touching each other and let them dry slowly. Once you think they're close put the humidifier back in and let them sit as long as you can stand it and maybe you'll have some decent smokes back. If the cigars develop a musty/moldy smell while you're drying them you might as well give up and toss them, because if they smell that way they'll taste that way...

Hope this helps.
Bill Finck Jr.