How to Age Your Cigars

I'm Gerard from Mardo Cigars, and this week I'm sharing how to age cigars faster with a new trick I came up with. One of the biggest questions we get about storing and aging a cigar is whether to keep it in or out of the cellophane. There are a lot of opinions out there. The method below actually solves both sides of that debate and speeds things up, so let's get into it. Learning how to age cigars faster is simpler than most people make it sound.

Aging Cigars Starts With Airflow

What helps a cigar age is airflow, but there is a catch. The air has to carry moisture. If the air around your cigar has no humidity, the cigar dries out, loses its oils, and loses its flavor. So before you age anything, make sure your humidor is well calibrated and well seasoned. The air moving through your cigars needs enough relative humidity to keep them from drying.

If you have ever seen the Xikar kit, it includes a Boveda, a cutter, and a small battery-powered fan that sits inside your humidor. The fan keeps an equal amount of relative humidity on either side of the humidor. That even, moist airflow is exactly what you want when learning how to age cigars properly.

Why Air Movement Ages a Cigar

When you age a cigar, you want air moving in and out of it. A cigar ages from the foot, because that is the end exposed to open air. Think about how infused cigars work. You put a cigar in an airtight canister with a shot glass of a spirit, and the vapors slowly enter the cigar. Every time you refill that shot glass, more vapors work their way in.

Air does the same thing. As more air enters, more air has to leave. The longer you let that happen, the more the cigar ages. Along the way, ammonia works its way out of the cigar while cleaner air replaces it. So when you finally smoke it, you do not taste that ammonia, and the tobaccos have had time to marinate together.

How to Age Cigars Faster: The Cap Trick

Here is the trick, and it is the whole secret to how to age cigars faster: clip the cap. With the cap open, air is not restricted on its way out, so it can flow right through the cigar from foot to head. Just make sure your humidor is properly humidified first. This is something I came up with myself, not from any book, just from years of making cigars and experimenting at the factory.

Now, you might think putting a cigar back in cellophane blocks all that airflow. I have a fix for that. Grab a pair of scissors and clip the closed end of the cellophane. Push the cigar close to that opening so it stays protected, then clip the cap end too. Now both ends are open. The foot is already open, the cap is open, and the cellophane sleeve still protects the wrapper.

What About Cigars Without Cellophane?

If you need to dry box your Cuban cigars, they do not come with cellophane. No problem. Just clip the cap a little so the air movement flows in quicker. That is how to age cigars faster even without cellophane, alleviating the ammonia in a much quicker fashion. It really does work, so give it a try.

"This is a mind-blowing little thing I came up with, and it works. That is exactly why I love it so much."

1. Season and calibrate your humidor so the airflow stays moist and steady.
2. Clip the cap so air flows right through the cigar from foot to head.
3. For a cigar in cellophane, trim both ends so air moves through while the sleeve still protects the wrapper.
4. Give it time. The ammonia leaves, the tobaccos marry, and the smoke gets smoother.

A Few Things to Keep in Mind

Aging is patient work, so do not rush it. The cap trick speeds things up, but good aging still takes time. Keep checking that your humidor holds steady humidity the whole way through. If the air dries out, you undo all your progress. Only age cigars you actually want to rest, not ones you plan to smoke this week. And remember the goal of how to age cigars is balance: enough airflow to clear the ammonia, with enough moisture to protect the oils. Get those two working together and patience does the rest. Keep your aging cigars separate from the ones you smoke often, so you are not tempted to dip into the batch early. Label the date you started if it helps. A little organization makes the wait a lot easier.

Watch: How to Age Your Cigars

See the cellophane trick demonstrated straight from the episode on Mondays with Mardo:

Final Thoughts

That is how to age cigars faster without overthinking it: keep your humidor seasoned and humid, encourage moist airflow, and clip the cap so air moves right through the cigar. Trim the cellophane on both ends to protect the wrapper while it ages. Give it time and the ammonia leaves, the tobaccos marry, and the smoke gets better. For more storage know-how, read our cigar humidor best practices and our guide on how to use Boveda packs.

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Mardo Cigars sells premium tobacco products intended for adults 21 and older. Please enjoy responsibly.