I decided to try adding a Cognac flavor to a couple sticks. I've got a round air tight metal container with a glass top and good seal. I put some Cognac in a small glass bowl (really small!) at the bottom. Over it is a screen-like strainer I got from a loose tea thingie. I set the two cigars on top of that, put a digital hydrometer in there, and closed it up - yesterday. Now, I knew the humidity would go up, but to my distress I noticed this morning the hydrometer shows  85%! Gasp! I opened it up and blew some air in to try to reduce the humidity. I know this is folly, but what should I do about this? Obviously 85% is unacceptable, but I don't know how to reduce it given the small size of the container and the open liquid right beneath the cigars.

Any help or suggestions?  Here I thought I had this great idea....

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Cleanse the gene pool.
Stamp out warning labels.

Well I have zero experience infusing cigars so I'm just going to throw some things out there. Despite my lack of experience I felt obligated to respond rather than ignore.

You're in a bit of unknown territory as far as general cigar humidification goes. All the values we talk about for relative humidity are based on water vapor. Throwing Cognac in there is going to change things since ethanol (drinking alcohol) has a higher vapor pressure than water. That means that at the same temperature, ethanol will have a higher concentration in the vapor phase than water will.

Since the main concerns with high humidity are cigar expansion and mold, you really need to know what the relative concentrations of ethanol and water are that are making up that 85% reading. A digital hygrometer will not be able to tell the difference. All it measures is the amount of liquid condensing on some internal circuitry. So while your RH is 85%, you may not have any actual water vapor condensing out of the air which would cause you the dreaded mold. You may still be shocking the cigars with how much liquid they're taking on, but I don't see how you can avoid that as that's the intent here.

Since you're only working with 2 cigars you've got some freedome to experiment (unless they're something VERY pricey). I would say keep going with it as you were and let the humidity play out. Once the cigars are infused, turn your infusing container into a mini humidor and let them sit for awhile at proper water-only humidity. If there's no mold: Smoke em!

Just don't go putting them back into your general cigar population after the infusion process. Losing 2 cigars to mold is tolerable, but to let them get your whole collection is a tragedy.

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Happiness is a full humidor.

I'm not sure but a friend of mine picked up a couple of onyx cgars and then dipped them in a bottle of cognac. He used a long needle type thing to dip the cigar in the bottle and took it out after a second or two. he did this for a couple of weeks. After letting the cigar dry really well before the next dip. After he thought they had enough "infusing" he let them rest for about a year or so. He brought them over at a BBQ and they tasted really good. Not sure if this is a solid method but they tasted pretty good. Very strong tasting cognac, moreso than say the gurkha's.

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...Reviews

I've wanted to try this for a while

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If You Got em' Smoke em'

Wow doromath, thanks for all that info. I never even thought about the difference between alcohol and water vapor, or that there even WAS a difference. So, after my shock of seeing that much humidity, I took them out of my new metal 'vessel' and moved them to a spare humidor that I keep at 70% or so. Here in Nevada, maintaining any kind of humidity is a job. I put the two sticks and the Cognac into that box and it settled at 71% (give or take whatever the error is). I was out of town when I checked the forum here and read your treatise. I decided your idea about going for it was valid so this morning when I got home, I put the stogies BACK into my original container, put some fresh Cognac in (less than the first time) and it's so far, showing 74% - probably on its way to 85% again. One stick is a Romeo Y Julieta and the other is a Tusker (I think that's a Thompson home brand - a friend passed two of them along to me). So now I'm just going to sit back and watch what happens. Rum soaked crooks they WON'T be! Ha. Thanks again for all the good info.

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Cleanse the gene pool.
Stamp out warning labels.

Interesting idea there phobicsquirrel. I've dipped the end of a cigar into some port once, and actually enjoyed the result, except that the cigar got a bit 'swampy'. Your friend has the patience of a saint though. I can assure you there's no way I'm going to put any cigar away "for a year or so". My wine never 'ages' that long. I'm too interested in tasting them (cigars AND wine). However, I'd love to taste the result of HIS patience - ha. Thanks for the response. If this turns out ok, I'm just liable to keep doing this. It's fun to play around with the whole idea. I read somewhere about infusing cigars with strong coffee, like espresso. I wonder what THAT would be like?

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Cleanse the gene pool.
Stamp out warning labels.

Hey Cank - feel free to give it a go. One of us HAS to figure this thing out. I'm not sure how long to even TRY this for. Days, weeks, months, or (GASP!) years. Naw, forget years. There's no way I can wait that long - unless I bury the stuff out on the desert, make a waypoint in my GPS, and quad out there a year or so later to retrieve. The farther away, the more likely it is I won't be tempted to take them out "before their time".

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Cleanse the gene pool.
Stamp out warning labels.

I use to think that letting cigars sit for years wouldn't happen but alas I have cigars that have been resting for going on 3 years. Funny how things work.

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...Reviews

MrTommy:

Interesting idea there phobicsquirrel. I've dipped the end of a cigar into some port once, and actually enjoyed the result, except that the cigar got a bit 'swampy'. Your friend has the patience of a saint though. I can assure you there's no way I'm going to put any cigar away "for a year or so". My wine never 'ages' that long. I'm too interested in tasting them (cigars AND wine). However, I'd love to taste the result of HIS patience - ha. Thanks for the response. If this turns out ok, I'm just liable to keep doing this. It's fun to play around with the whole idea. I read somewhere about infusing cigars with strong coffee, like espresso. I wonder what THAT would be like?

I am not sure that coffee would work given its suspended particulate matter. i.e. when you leave a pot of coffee for a day, there is a sedement at the bottom. BUT, I am certainly no expert at infusing and have never done it. I just thought I would throw that out there. Perhaps a coffee liquor like Kahlua or something would work better for this?

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"go smoke yourself"

As far as coffee goes, that's gonna be easier than liquid. Start at the source of the coffee. I took a few Diablo cigars and put them in a small tuperware container with some beads and a bed of coffee beans. Plan on letting them rest in there for 3 - 6 months before you notice much difference. Mine have been sitting almost a year now. There's another thread on here somewhere about infusing alcohol.

If you're looking to get rid of most of the alcohol content and use the sugar base of an alcohol such as rum or cognac, you could start with a larger portion in a wide pan, set it on fire to allow most of the alcohol to burn off. What you'll be left with will be a concentrated alcohol flavor with a very low percentage of actual alcohol. Use that straight or cut with some water in place of your normal humidification device in a small tuperware container. Good luck and have patience.

As a quick aside here as I run out the door... I peeked in at my two sticks in the original metal container and noticed that the Romeo is actually drying out at the 'lighting' (I'm sure there's an official name for each end of the cigar but they escape me at the moment) end and unraveling a bit. I'm going to have to get a batch of seconds for this ongoing experiment. So, this may lend some credence to the info from the gentleman who said there may be a difference between water humidity and alcohol humidity (or lack thereof). Hmmmm. Didn't think this would be such a big deal. Just put the cigars in the Cognac laden humidor, wait for them to absorb the aromas, and smoke. Silly me!

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Cleanse the gene pool.
Stamp out warning labels.

Rob1110:

As far as coffee goes, that's gonna be easier than liquid. Start at the source of the coffee. I took a few Diablo cigars and put them in a small tuperware container with some beads and a bed of coffee beans. Plan on letting them rest in there for 3 - 6 months before you notice much difference. Mine have been sitting almost a year now. There's another thread on here somewhere about infusing alcohol.

If you're looking to get rid of most of the alcohol content and use the sugar base of an alcohol such as rum or cognac, you could start with a larger portion in a wide pan, set it on fire to allow most of the alcohol to burn off. What you'll be left with will be a concentrated alcohol flavor with a very low percentage of actual alcohol. Use that straight or cut with some water in place of your normal humidification device in a small tuperware container. Good luck and have patience.

wow, I know I liked the diablo you sent but with coffee, that will probably be very good. You'll have to let me know what you find. And from the coffee you sent me I am sure it will be really good.

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...Reviews

MrTommy:

Hey Cank - feel free to give it a go. One of us HAS to figure this thing out. I'm not sure how long to even TRY this for. Days, weeks, months, or (GASP!) years. Naw, forget years. There's no way I can wait that long - unless I bury the stuff out on the desert, make a waypoint in my GPS, and quad out there a year or so later to retrieve. The farther away, the more likely it is I won't be tempted to take them out "before their time".

Ok I have a few sticks that I can ( sacrifice ) use. I'm going to give this a shot. I'm going to do it simple. A shot glass full of whatever I decide to go with and the 7 cigars in a gallon zip lock bag. I will go from there

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If You Got em' Smoke em'

I think Clearly Suspect was working on something similar not long back, posted as "Infusing some cigars" you might look back through the pages and see what he came up with.

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"The good life is one inspired by love, guided by knowledge"--Bertrand Russell "Love without knowledge may be foolish, knowledge without love, dangerous" me

MrTommy:

As a quick aside here as I run out the door... I peeked in at my two sticks in the original metal container and noticed that the Romeo is actually drying out at the 'lighting' (I'm sure there's an official name for each end of the cigar but they escape me at the moment) end and unraveling a bit. I'm going to have to get a batch of seconds for this ongoing experiment. So, this may lend some credence to the info from the gentleman who said there may be a difference between water humidity and alcohol humidity (or lack thereof). Hmmmm. Didn't think this would be such a big deal. Just put the cigars in the Cognac laden humidor, wait for them to absorb the aromas, and smoke. Silly me!

You light the foot, and put the head in your mouth and puff on it...



Hmmm, seems to be an "insert joke here" type of moment.





Freud would be so proud.

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timb:

Oh, and after I'm done smoking, the cigar nub smells like my beard.