Are cigars in tubos immortal?

[Li Bai]

Serious question here, a friend of mine found an Upmann tubo in a desk drawer while emptying his grandfather's house when he passed away right before COVID.

It was an 80's or maybe even 70's cigar, if I recall correctly, and it was a delightful smoke according to my friend so here's my question: 

Do you guys think a cigar in its tubo could be almost immortal, assuming the room in which it is kept is pretty stable RH-temperature wise?

[ha_banos]

Any different from those who vacuum seal or wrap boxes I wonder? Immortal? Slows down ageing if it's well sealed I guess. So could seem immortal. 

NB .. store in a cool dark place.

[laficion]

Dear Gil,

I honestly think that your friend's cigar was well stored. (In a well sealed tubo, in a drawer, far from any light or changing air and in a fairly stable RH-temperature.) For me, all the lights are green.

I once was given a" HENRY CLAY"- Corona cigar that was in the open air with no protection aside the cello, well I called a good friend who knows all about cigars and he told me all I could do was to put it under a glass dome and to call it " gandpa's old cigar". Well I put it under a good humidity for at least 2 months and the cigar was at it's best and was very smokeable. I hope this helps.

Amicalement,

Guy

[Chibearsv]

Immortal? No. I’ve had plenty of moldy cigars purchased in tubos. I always inspect them before putting them in storage. 

[Li Bai]

6 hours ago, Chibearsv said:

Immortal? No. I’ve had plenty of moldy cigars purchased in tubos. I always inspect them before putting them in storage. 

Oh, I've had some too but let's say the cigars aren't overhumidified from the start and they're kept within an acceptable RH/T° range for the sake of the argument 🤔

[BrightonCorgi]

I like the additional cedar flavor. I put something else into tubos once they are empty.  

[MrBirdman]

28 minutes ago, Li Bai said:

Oh I've had some too but let's say the cigars aren't overhumidified from the start and they're kept within an acceptable RH/T° range for the sake of the argument 🤔

They aren’t immortal but short of vacuum sealing they are by far the best format for longevity. I wish more NC came in tubes for that very reason.  

[Lucas Buck]

Great question. I’ve wondered this myself over the years. Personally the oldest Tubos I’ve had the pleasure have been around 30 years old. I don’t know about immortal but they a;most never disappoint. I wish all my cigars were Tubos. 

[BrightonCorgi]

Tubo cigars get moldy much easier, but if you're beyond that point, they should last as long as any other presentation.

[zacca]

The thing that is best for the tobacco leaf is stability. Water movement / moisture gradients physically change the cell structure, and this movement comes from temperature and RH changes. The tubo allows for a microclimate inside, so if sealed and in a stable environment, the aging/degradation process will slow way down. Immortal, no, but in theory it should “keep” cigars much longer than keeping them naked in a box. 

[Çnote]

I'd much rather find a tubo than a desktop humidor that wasn't maintained. I once kept a RyJ Churchill for several years in a desk drawer as described. As I remember it smoked superbly, but the bar was quite low back then. I did have to insist we not use it as a blunt wrap in the summer of '99.