Freezing Question

[ArtemusGordon]

Hey Gents

Thought about the fact that I should start freezing everything from my collection. Been getting some custom rolls lately and that makes me more concerned about the dreaded beetle. But I have not had any so far as I check my stuff all the time for beetles and because i love my sticks

Checked today and my freezer is set at 0 degree Farenheight. But i threw a thermometer in there this morning and it says 19 degrees Farenheight. Is this cold enough to kill off all beetles. I think I saw a post awhile ago that said at 20 degrees Farenheight they should be in freezer for 10 days.

What are you guys doin? Any thoughts?

[Pedro2486]

Have a bit of a search in old posts mate. I recall seeing a chart posted from a test run by real live science guys, it showed the temps and time required to kill 100% of beetle larva/eggs in cigars

If I recall correctly there was a drastic difference in time between 0 degrees C and -10 degrees C

[shlomo]

I don't freeze anything. I just take care of the temps in my humidor.

[nem]

After you freeze a cigar, it will take months or even a year before it will be enjoyable to smoke again. Case in point: compare the aroma of a cigar that's currently smoking particularly well with what it will smell like after you remove it from the freezer. I would especially advise against freezing aged cigars that's smoking very well right now as they may never fully recover from the procedure.

[Smallclub]

Thought about the fact that I should start freezing everything from my collection.

Why? Your collection was bought from shops in Cuba? I don't even freeze custom rolls, I keep them in a quarantine humidor... I'd probably freeze them if I bought them in quantities, but the regular production cigars, no way.

[SCgarman]

After you freeze a cigar, it will take months or even a year before it will be enjoyable to smoke again. Case in point: compare the aroma of a cigar that's currently smoking particularly well with what it will smell like after you remove it from the freezer. I would especially advise against freezing aged cigars that's smoking very well right now as they may never fully recover from the procedure.

I have to disagree with this. All my cigars have been frozen to prevent beetle infestations, and it has NO effect on cigar taste, aroma or anything detrimental in my 20 plus years of cigar smoking. You can light one up as soon as they come out of the freezer and warm up back to room temperature if you wish. A beetle outbreak is not good when you have thousands$$$ in the humidor cabinet!

[maxcjs0101]

Well im not sure what freezing will do because i only did it once so far and i have yet to taste them.

Anyway, try doing this: wet a kitchen towel in some coloured water and freeze it. Once its frozen, thaw and let it dry. The color would not be uniform across the whole sheet and based on my not very scientifically accurate test, i believe the oils in the tobacco leaf would behave in a similar fashion too, hence making the cigar taste different/weird/whatever you wanna call it.

Just my 2 cents.

[nem]

I have to disagree with this. All my cigars have been frozen to prevent beetle infestations, and it has NO effect on cigar taste, aroma or anything detrimental in my 20 plus years of cigar smoking. You can light one up as soon as they come out of the freezer and warm up back to room temperature if you wish. A beetle outbreak is not good when you have thousands$$$ in the humidor cabinet!

I'm afraid we'll have to agree to disagree given our divergent experiences concerning the matter. Though, I think ultimately the best way to prevent a beetle outbreak, and actualize the potential of congeners and tannins is to store cigars in a humidity and temperature controlled environment.

[DrunkenMonkey]

My understanding is that even if there are viable beetle eggs, they'll never hatch unless the temperature gets above 70 degrees F. This seems like a much less risky and troublesome way to protect the cigars than freezing, which sounds like a lot of hassle to me.

[asmartbull]

Actually.....I have a couple of boxes of 08 Connie 1's...same box code.

1 of the boxes was frozen another was not.

It may be fun to send out a few blind samples and see who can tell the difference (if there is one).

I was thinking it may be fun to do this on a couple boards.

My Summer is mine starting in a month...I will start a new thread to see who is interested. ...

sent while mobile....

[Diamondog]

After you freeze a cigar, it will take months or even a year before it will be enjoyable to smoke again. Case in point: compare the aroma of a cigar that's currently smoking particularly well with what it will smell like after you remove it from the freezer. I would especially advise against freezing aged cigars that's smoking very well right now as they may never fully recover from the procedure.

This is inaccurate. I routinely freeze and enjoy a cigar shortly after...Now I would agree not to freeze anything you've had around and I do not freeze anything coming from a vendor but anything custom or bought in Cuba gets frozen. Freezing is practiced on anything being EXPORTED through legit streams before it leaves Cuba anything else is not.

[UpInSmoak]

I freeze everything coming into my house. Summer temps here can lead my humidors well into the 70s. My sticks smoke amazingly well. I think proper rh is the most important aspect affecting how a cigar smokes and tastes.

I would bet money that 90% of cigar smokers could not tell the difference between a frozen vs unfrozen stick in a blind taste test.

[UpInSmoak]

And considering Cuba freezes anyways, I guess it's all a moot point.

[Smallclub]

Case in point: compare the aroma of a cigar that's currently smoking particularly well with what it will smell like after you remove it from the freezer.

Aroma comes back. What's the aroma of meat or vegetable when you remove it from the freezer?

[RagingPorkBun]

To be honest, I haven't noticed much of a difference between a frozen and an unfrozen cigar. Besides, all you need is one bad infestation to start getting paranoid about your collection.

[SaintLuis]

1) Adults die within 6 days at 4 °C, and eggs survive 5 days at 0–5 °C.

2) Quarantine isn't a great tool, as all cigars probably have beetle larva.

3) If you maintain your humidor/storage properly with regard to temp and humidity you won't have a beetle problem. Keep temperatures below 74 degrees, and humidity in the 60s, and you should be fine.

When you buy new cigars, watch them for a while. If you're paying attention to your stock, you'll be able to flag an issue early, and save the product. If you have a substantial collection, freezing is probably a better proactive option.

I'd only freeze if I think I see a problem. Otherwise, I wouldn't risk compromising the cigar. Freezing certainly would change the property of a cigar. Whether it's meaningful or not is the only question. At freezing temperatures, water molecules crystaliez into shrarp blades that would absolutely effect the properies of relatively gentle organic matter. Is it significant to the smoking experience or taste? Who knows.

That said, people have their habits, and a very large amount of people proactively freeze their cigars without issue or complaints, so make your own call!

[PigFish]

After you freeze a cigar, it will take months or even a year before it will be enjoyable to smoke again. Case in point: compare the aroma of a cigar that's currently smoking particularly well with what it will smell like after you remove it from the freezer. I would especially advise against freezing aged cigars that's smoking very well right now as they may never fully recover from the procedure.

I find it very interesting when people make statements like this.

First let me say that I am not picking on you mate, but I would like to know where this data comes from, subjective personal experience notwithstanding.

I would like to see, if you have it available, some evidence that compounds for taste in tobacco are in fact altered, distorted and or destroyed at temperatures below 0C.

-Piggy

[Rye]

I prefer the taste of my beetle eggs fresh as opposed to frozen

[BonVivant]

http://www.friendsofhabanos.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=112043&p=335328

[Croz71]

I don't freeze anything and where I live in Perth, Australia the temperature gets well over 40c (105f) in summer.

I do though, keep a very close eye on both my wineadors.

The temp inside my wineadors never gets above 68f.

The humidity is between 63%-66% pretty much all year round.

In winter I can even turn off my wineadors for a couple of months until the hot weather starts to return.

I'm not saying that this is the best way but I works for me.

[PapaDisco]

I would certainly freeze your customs. The regular production stuff gets frozen in their master cases (Nino posted pics of the process on here somewhere). It's not perfect but it's pretty darn near. Your customs, however, don't get this treatment so you should freeze them just to be safe. Alternatively, if you want to avoid freezing and you can guarantee that they will never, ever rise above 70F, then I would ziplock them in lots to minimize your risk.

I had a box (3x5) of PSD4's from Germany that hatched a lone beetle in one stick (there was also a larva in there upon inspection), but so far that's all I've seen from regular production stuff.

[nem]

Aroma comes back. What's the aroma of meat or vegetable when you remove it from the freezer?

Aroma does return, but it will take time. it's unreasonable to compare a fermented product that can age for decades with foods that can spoil within days or weeks. However, if we're to go down that line of thought, then it is worth noting that certain foods command premium prices "if never frozen."

[Ianbock]

for what its worth , i generally smoke one from every box when i get it , then freeze everything that goes into my winodores. have never noticed a difference between pre freeze and post freeze. following the directions on this link , i freeze for three days just to be sure

http://www.puff.com/forums/vb/general-cigar-discussion/324594-complete-guide-freezing-cigars.html

[Duxnutz]

I don't freeze anything and where I live in Perth, Australia the temperature gets well over 40c (105f) in summer.

I do though, keep a very close eye on both my wineadors.

The temp inside my wineadors never gets above 68f.

The humidity is between 63%-66% pretty much all year round.

In winter I can even turn off my wineadors for a couple of months until the hot weather starts to return.

I'm not saying that this is the best way but I works for me.

Living on the edge! How much do you have invested in cigars? Would you leave a classic car sitting in a car park at night unlocked with the keys in it?

[vinnyvega]

I never froze. I had a beetle outbreak. I froze. I smoked my cigars about a month after freezing and the did not taste or smell any different. I smoke 5 or 6 marcas so I feel I am familiar with their profile. That's my experience with freezing.