Aussiegoldsmith Posted October 17, 2017 Posted October 17, 2017 I’ve been reading lately about cigar sick period. You can smoke freshly rolled cigars for a few weeks then you have to wait up to or over a year before they start tasting good again. I’ve experienced some sourness in some of the custom Cuban rolls. Can any explain what happens during this period. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
JohnS Posted October 18, 2017 Posted October 18, 2017 Aah...the sick period. Well, there is conjecture about this subject, and it comes up every 12 to 24 months on our forum. It stems back to the time (and prior) that Min Ron Nee released his magnum opus, 'The Illustrated History of Post-Revolution Havana Cigars' in 2003 and discussed fermentation periods in it. Now, possibly since the mid-2000's blends have changed and cigars are a lot more approachable when youthful, however, it doesn't negate the fact that some marcas/vitolas may still go through a sick period according to their blend, although I personally have not experienced this. Below are some links to past threads on the topic... 3
PapaDisco Posted October 18, 2017 Posted October 18, 2017 9 minutes ago, Lotusguy said: Another myth like plume. I've bumped into it once, with a box of Behikes. A clear and obvious scent of ammonia. 1
Lotusguy Posted October 18, 2017 Posted October 18, 2017 I've bumped into it once, with a box of Behikes. A clear and obvious scent of ammonia. That's different from the "classic" definition of sick period which is supposed to occur some time after the fermentation freshness has worn off. Supposedly event two or three times. What a load of crock.
vladdraq Posted October 18, 2017 Posted October 18, 2017 9 minutes ago, Lotusguy said: That's different from the "classic" definition of sick period which is supposed to occur some time after the fermentation freshness has worn off. Supposedly event two or three times. What a load of crock. i went through this myself, with some young Siglo6's, after a year they turned to be bitterish&muted in flavours, almost unsmokeables. At my surprise they came back after 3 months. And no, i didn't smoked the only dud, i kept smoking on them to understand what's going on.
shaffer22 Posted October 18, 2017 Posted October 18, 2017 I have no doubt that some people have experienced this in some cigars at some point. But there are too many variables at play to say whether it was actually caused by a so-called sick period or something entirely different.
vladdraq Posted October 18, 2017 Posted October 18, 2017 37 minutes ago, shaffer22 said: I have no doubt that some people have experienced this in some cigars at some point. But there are too many variables at play to say whether it was actually caused by a so-called sick period or something entirely different. correct. but those variables were playing before, during and after too. i did not change my storage habits. Anyways, there is something i don't understand, not saying other don't do. And i'm not trying to validate any "sick period" concept either.
shaffer22 Posted October 18, 2017 Posted October 18, 2017 6 minutes ago, vladdraq said: correct. but those variables were playing before, during and after too. i did not change my storage habits. Anyways, there is something i don't understand, not saying other don't do. And i'm not trying to validate any "sick period" concept either. Without knowing what you were eating, what was going on with your humidor, what was going on with that specific group of cigars, what the weather was like, etc., it's hard to make any statistically significant conclusions. Also, the sample size is way too low. I don't mean to downplay your experience. I am certain that you experienced exactly what you describe. I just am less convinced that we can, with any certainty, attribute it to a sick period.
vladdraq Posted October 18, 2017 Posted October 18, 2017 you're right what you ate before plays a significant role and te outside weather too.It must be one of these.
PapaDisco Posted October 18, 2017 Posted October 18, 2017 1 hour ago, Lotusguy said: That's different from the "classic" definition of sick period which is supposed to occur some time after the fermentation freshness has worn off. Supposedly event two or three times. What a load of crock. Ha ha . . . touched a nerve methinks . . . So, in my limited and inadequate understanding of the subject . . . the "classic" sick period is when a freshly rolled cigar continues to modestly ferment and outgasses ammonia. This has been largely eliminated by extending the aging of tobacco prior to rolling. So now sticks like Behikes are rolled with 3 year old tobacco, sometimes 5 (?) years old. That's why this particular experience (a fresh box of Behikes smelling of ammonia) was so striking; but every pilon is going to have leaves on the edges that aren't going to get fermented and those leaves will get rolled into something and subsequently ferment in the stick itself. I think what you're referring to with the "two or three" times is what's called a "dumb" period or second/third maturation, where the cigar goes flat and then blossoms into an effervesce of flavor, bouquet and 'je nais se quoi" of enlightentend, palate charming, finger-licken' goodness. O.K., perhaps that was a bit much, but you know what I mean and you call it BS. Fine, I've had boxes go to sleep and come back to life in a big way. I've not aged things 20-30 years yet, and cannot say if the second and third maturation exists, but I have had cigars gone flat and come back, and I have had 1 box of stinky ammonia sticks turn tasty.
Danimalia Posted October 18, 2017 Posted October 18, 2017 Isn't there text on the boxes of Rafael Gonzalez that basically allude to this, suggesting you either smoke them immediately after boxing, or wait at least a year? I have no idea as to its validity, myself. I've never had the experience of having a box that tasted good, then not good, and then back to good again, which is what would indicate a sick period to me, as opposed to immature or improperly acclimatized cigars.
shaffer22 Posted October 18, 2017 Posted October 18, 2017 11 minutes ago, vladdraq said: you're right what you ate before plays a significant role and te outside weather too.It must be one of these. I'm sorry if I offended you in some way. Certainly didn't mean to. I just have a slightly different view.
BonVivant Posted October 18, 2017 Posted October 18, 2017 FWIW; never had any "sick period" with any El Laguito cigars from 2013, nor 2013 Upmann factory production, nor 2013 production from La Corona factory, etc.. I did hear that the "sick period" happens to sub par cigars from subpar harvests/vintages, though
vladdraq Posted October 18, 2017 Posted October 18, 2017 27 minutes ago, shaffer22 said: I'm sorry if I offended you in some way. Certainly didn't mean to. I just have a slightly different view. no offense taken, no worries. :-)
CrankYanker Posted October 18, 2017 Posted October 18, 2017 1 hour ago, shaffer22 said: Without knowing what you were eating, what was going on with your humidor, what was going on with that specific group of cigars, what the weather was like, etc., it's hard to make any statistically significant conclusions. Also, the sample size is way too low. I don't mean to downplay your experience. I am certain that you experienced exactly what you describe. I just am less convinced that we can, with any certainty, attribute it to a sick period. This has some validity. Some cigars I've had on an empty palete, some after food, some after drinks. Has the environment been the same after the one you enjoyed? I've hated some cigars. Let them rest and had them with an empty palete with some bourbon and they are a lot better. Good luck mate
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