 |
The Cigar Adviser
Published in: December 1, 1996
Published Winter 1996
The Cigar Adviser
Q: Once a week, my friends and I sit down with a couple of H. Upmann Tubos or Fonseca 2-2s and a nice glass of '85 Fonseca Port. After reading the Summer 1995 issue and its rating of the petit coronas, I noticed that you listed a Fonseca Cosacos, but with Cuba as the country of origin, not the Dominican Republic. What gives?
James Neal McComb
Los Altos, California
A: Like many other Cuban brand names, including Partagas, Montecristo, Hoyo de Monterrey, Punch and a host of others, Fonseca is a cigar that existed originally as a Cuban brand and more recently as a non-Cuban brand. The history of each dual brand name is slightly different, but they were all influenced by one event: After the Cuban Revolution, the government expropriated all the Cuban brand names. In most cases, the former owners fled the island and either sold the rights to those brands to other companies or began making the cigar in other locations.
Q: Though I understand how to store cigars properly, do you have any suggestions for storage while traveling? For instance, we are planning a two-week vacation later this summer and I would like to enjoy a cigar during the later days of our journey. How do I keep a few cigars properly?
Jeff Zogg
Indianapolis, Indiana
A: The best way is to buy a travel humidor. It will keep cigars, even without refilling the humidification device with distilled water, for up to 10 days. If you can refill it during your trip, even better.
You can also try to prepare a makeshift travel case. You can buy a Credo humidification device for small humidors. Attach a Velcro strip and adhere the Credo to the inside of a sealable plastic container (even Tupperware will do). That can serve for a short period of time, and the airtight compartment won't get musty during that time. If you can't find a small humidification device, you can rig up a plastic bag with a dampened paper towel; again, for a short period, that will keep the cigars somewhat in proper smoking condition.
Q: What are the health risks associated with cigar smoking, and can one get lung cancer from smoking cigars if one does not inhale the smoke into the lungs? I saw a warning label on a box of cigars that warned consumers of certain chemicals that may be harmful to your health if one smoked that product. What are these chemicals, and how do they affect the human body?
James Walker
Cambridge, Massachusetts
A: Cigar smoking is not risk-free. But because cigar smokers do not inhale, the risk of lung cancer is almost nil when compared with cigarette smokers. The warning label you see on cigar boxes is mandated by the state of California. It refers to pesticides used in the growing process; these are common pesticides used in many forms of agriculture.
Q: I have scheduled a trip out of the country, and I am planning on bringing some cigars back with me. An associate of mine had mentioned that cigars have to be stored properly before being taken on an airplane. He says that the high altitudes and the recycled air can make them go bad. Any suggestions?
Mark Aller
New Britain, Pennsylvania
A: The only real problem with air travel is the severe lack of moisture in the cabin, which can dry out a cigar. But if you have a travel humidor that keeps cigars in proper smoking condition, then airplanes should pose no problem.
Q: I have been buying most of my cigars from my local drugstore, which sells a brand called Tobacco Place Handmade No. 1 Dominican Republic. They're packaged just like the La Unica brand, but are they the same cigar?
Eric Komniey
Davenport, Florida
A: While La Unica is a brand-name cigar, many factories also make cigars without bands for sale in bundles. There is no way to know if bundle cigars come from the same factory or not.
Q: I am a 20-year-old college junior who, in the past year, has developed a love for fine cigars. I have experimented with many labels, but I am still searching. My problem is that while I am home during the summer, my parents do not like me to smoke in or around the house. Of course, I am anxious to get back to the privacy of my college apartment. For now, I often buy a cigar but then am not able to smoke it for several days. How long does the cellophane wrapper keep a cigar moist?
Also, I am interested in obtaining a humidor to store my cigars, but they are too expensive for me right now. I contemplated building one out of balsa wood because of its low cost and low odor. I know the odor of the wood is essential to the taste of a cigar, as well as its ability to regulate humidity. Could you possibly recommend another inexpensive wood that may be better for building a cigar case? I work for a paint company, so I am well versed as far as odorless shellacs and varnishes to finish the case with, but my knowledge of wood is lacking. Could you help me out?
Tony Hill
Castleton, New York
A: The cellophane will keep a cigar relatively moist for a couple of days, maybe even longer. But don't risk it. As for your question about humidors, the optimal wood for a humidor is Spanish cedar. Even balsa wood has a distinctive odor. And you wouldn't want to use varnish, even an odorless one. The idea is to allow some of the pleasant cedar aromas to marry with elements in the cigar. Therefore, you don't want to mask those cedary components in any way.
Q: How do I know the cigars made available to me by my tobacconist are in fact remotely similar to the ones your tasters have reviewed? For how long does your rating apply?
Robert C. Power
Orlando, Florida
A: We buy cigars for our tastings at retail outlets whenever we possibly can; in rare cases, where a cigar is unavailable, a manufacturer will make a shipment to a local retailer for us. Therefore, the cigars you buy in the ensuing months should be similar. When a cigar maker is producing millions of cigars a year, the blend he has chosen remains relatively constant throughout a given 12-month period.
But cigars are not produced the same way as wine; even some vintage dates on a cigar refer only to the filler and not to the wrapper and binder leaves.
Manufacturers strive to maintain a consistency of taste over two to three years, constantly blending each year's crop with previous years' to maintain a similar taste. That's one reason we are retasting specific cigar sizes about every two years; after two years, the majority of tobacco in a cigar blend should be different from the previous tasting. But even so, in a given year, the taste of a brand should remain relatively constant. And, in general, a manufacturer who has made a good cigar one year tends to maintain its quality over the long haul.
Q: Is there a remedy for a cigar that had a tight draw? I have thrown some away half-smoked when I found they were more work than pleasure. Are these just cheap cigars?
Ronald V. Doenges
Churchville, Maryland
A: It is very difficult to correct a bad draw. Using your fingertips, feel the entire length of the cigar; you should find a hard spot that usually indicates the source of the plug causing the tight draw. You can gently massage that spot, and sometimes, this will break it up enough to permit smoking. Otherwise, move on to the next one. You shouldn't judge the cigar brand or maker too harshly; a premium, hand-rolled cigar is a handcrafted product subject to variations in its performance. While manufacturers are extremely quality conscious, and try to eliminate all plugged cigars, it is impossible get every one.
Q: Since the tobaccos in Cohiba cigars have already been fermented three times, is it true that they do not benefit from aging in my humidor? Do Cohibas lose any of their unique characteristics if they are stored in a properly maintained humidor for any length of time?
M.T.
Blacksburg, Virginia
A: The triple fermentation does give Cohiba its unique taste. But that doesn't preclude the advantages of extra aging. Aging a cigar marries the filler blend with the binder and wrapper, and tends to smooth out any sharpness in the cigar. Cohibas benefit from that kind of extra aging, too.
Q: I have read several of your past columns in which you advise against long-term storage of different cigar types in the same humidor because the different aromas will "marry" to create cigars that are different from what each type was to begin with. My first question is, what is your definition of "long-term"? Second, does one need several humidors in order to enjoy a variety of cigars that have not been compromised by storage with cigars of another type? Finally, is there a relatively inexpensive way of accomplishing this daunting task?
Keith A. Dennis
New Albany, Ohio
A: A few days or a couple of weeks together in the same box isn't going to significantly alter the taste profile of a cigar, unless, of course, the cigar has some exotic and perfumed flavoring. In that case, a few minutes may be too long. In general, you don't want to keep cigars touching for months at a time. There are several alternatives to multiple humidors. First of all, the problem of intermingled tastes usually only occurs if the cigars actually touch each other. Therefore, you can use the dividers in the humidor itself to keep different cigar brands apart. And, although it won't be quite as effective, you can also use the cedar sheets that come in cigar boxes; they will keep the cigars separate.
Q: I have just received a box of Davidoff Don Perignons from a friend who recently visited Havana. I was told the cigars were not purchased at a Cubatabaco store. The box is marked in black ink FPG NNSE, and has the following inscriptions: Habanos S.A., Hecho en Cuba, totalmente a mano, and it has the Cuban seal (small size). The cigars seem in excellent shape, their color is perfectly matched and their aroma has kept well in the box. From what I am able to read, I gather these cigars to be previous to Davidoff's rupture with Cubatabaco, therefore made prior to 1989 (and are not supposed to be sold). If these cigars are authentic, and assuming I can store them in a good walk-in humidor, how long should they be stored? Will they keep on maturing, or is this a good time to enjoy them as any other?
Leon Roditi
Miami, Florida
A: While everything seems in order, the NNSE mark translates into 11/94, or November 1994. Furthermore, at the time the cigars were being made, there was no Habanos S.A.; the organization was known as Cubatabaco at that point.
Dom Perignons, like all Cuban-manufacturered Davidoffs, have not been made since 1990, and even if Habanos S.A., the successor organization to Cubatabaco, had stocks of them, they would not be allowed to sell them. We recently have seen a large number of counterfeit Dom Perignons with all the appropriate markings, but with everything from extremely cheap boxes to very yellow wrappers. They are not real.
Q: As I was examining my humidor, I discovered a cigar filled with holes and brown bugs running around inside. It was the only one that was affected. Does this happen very often, and what can be done to protect the rest of my treasured smokes?
S. Myron Klarfeld
San Diego, California
A: You have a tobacco beetle infestation. It is quite common for the beetles to be found in cigars. But they appear under only one condition: a temperature in excess of 74 degrees. Your humidor has apparently gotten too hot, despite being properly humidified. Perhaps you had it close to a window and it was struck for a couple of hours by sunlight.
However, your solution wasn't good enough. Without pesticides, the only way to kill the beetle larvae is to freeze them. I've put a small, but full, desk humidor that had an infestation into a freezer overnight. You must be careful to slowly bring the cigars back to room temperature, by moving the cigars from the freezer to the refrigerator first, then back into your wiped-down humidor (do not use soaps or any cleansers on the cloth). That will ensure that you don't lose the rest of the cigars in the humidor, and that there aren't bugs lurking, waiting for the next heat wave.
Q: Recently I purchased a beautiful Dunhill humidor at an antiques store. It looks to be at least 40 or 50 years old. My problem is that once humidified, it has a persistent musty smell. I have tried airing it out. Nothing seems to work. Any suggestions?
M. Burice
Santa Monica, California
A: Several things could be causing your problem. First, you may simply be overhumidifying the box. Be sure to use a proper humidification device, such as a Credo, which is available at your local tobacconist. The second thing may be the frequency with which you open the box. A humidor should not be sealed tight over a period of many weeks; it should be opened to refresh the air at least once a week, or even every couple of days.
RSS