Remove Cellophane

Wrapped or not? Another rookie here, been smoking the leaf for a couple of months now and love it. I already have 2 humidors, a 50 and a 120 count, going and quite a few cigars I’ve been sampling. 15 different brands so far, more coming tomorrow, and I haven’t smoked one yet I didn’t enjoy. I lean toward 5 Vegas, Cohiba and anything Man o War. I was going to age some cigars in the near future and was wondering about the cellophane. The general consensus seems to be leave it on for protection. But for aging the cigar and humidor I was wondering about going commando. I can’t smell the cigar through the wrapper so it is protected but what about the humidor and other cigars’ aromas? Would it be better to let them age unwrapped so they and the humidor would share the different aromas and become part of the final taste? Is it beneficial to season the humidors aroma or just worry about aging the cigars themselves? If they were unwrapped would they lose some of their flavor or oils? Or just leave them wrapped because no matter how careful you are you can damage them? This is a great forum and I have gotten off to a good start because of the fine advice from all. Thanks and look forward to contributing myself someday.

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Comments

Mperconte

leave it on to protect them while you are digging for the smoke of the day.

j0z3r

Up to you really. I choose to leave the cello on for protection, when I was first getting into cigars I would take the cello off of all my cigars and I got a bunch of cracks and chips which led me to stop taking the cello off. If you intend to box age some cigars, taking the cello off is ok since they'll be sheltered by the box, though I don't feel it is necessary to help them age and have seen no difference with nude cigars compared to those with cello. Again, it's up to you, but bear in mind that the cello will add protection and still allow air flow to the cigars.

skweekz

In the chance you'd end up with a beetle infestation, the cello will provide a little more protection also.

jlmarta

I'm not so sure of that. If they can chew through the tobacco, they can chew through the cello. IMHO.

Marty

skweekz

Ah. I'd been told it won't stop them from infesting further but it'll at least slow the spread some. I hope to never, ever have to find out.

JCizzle

I leave mine on mostly out of laziness.

clearlysuspect

One of the best things I've seen anyone do if they weren't sure which way to go is to simply cut the ends of the cellophane off so that the cigar is still protected but allows more "breathability" if that's even a word. I leave them on for the exact same reasons Jozer stated before.

The3Stogies

Cutting the end off sounds interesting, but I think I will leave them wrapped if it makes no difference in aging. Thank you all. Now to find some cigars to age.

Heavy

I leave mine on for the reasons previously stated (mostly for protection), but I also just think it looks really cool when a nicely aged cigar gets that yellow-y looking celophane. Plus that's a pretty good indicator that the cigar has some nice age on it.

kuzi16

skweekz:
In the chance you'd end up with a beetle infestation, the cello will provide a little more protection also.

every time that i have ever seen a perfect little hole in the cigar (the tell tale sign of beetles) directly over top of the hole was a hole in the cellophane.
the cellophane that is made from organic material is treated like a leaf by the beetles.

if you choose to leave the cello on it will protect from chips and cracks from gentle handling but it will not protect from beetles and a careless hand.

Redtailhawkoz

Its like sex if you leave it wrapped less chance of Damage to the vital Contents Im just saying!

skweekz

kuzi16:
skweekz:
In the chance you'd end up with a beetle infestation, the cello will provide a little more protection also.
every time that i have ever seen a perfect little hole in the cigar (the tell tale sign of beetles) directly over top of the hole was a hole in the cellophane.
the cellophane that is made from organic material is treated like a leaf by the beetles.

if you choose to leave the cello on it will protect from chips and cracks from gentle handling but it will not protect from beetles and a careless hand.

Now I know! Thanks for setting the record strait!

ScottTDawg

clearlysuspect:
One of the best things I've seen anyone do if they weren't sure which way to go is to simply cut the ends of the cellophane off so that the cigar is still protected but allows more "breathability" if that's even a word. I leave them on for the exact same reasons Jozer stated before.

I leave mine on for the same reasons JCizzle stated before. lol

...and I can label them with month/date too.

boydmcgowan

Yeah the whole celo thing is really just personal preference here. I'm a cello off kind of guy becuase thats the way I've always done it. I like the way it smells in my humidor and have never had a problem, so I don't see a reason to change. Thats just me though.

The way I view the great celo debate though is there are pros and cons to both, and most people pick the one that makes more sense to them.

What I've noticed and/or read is that when you take the Cello off your cigars will age a bit faster and it'll make your humidor smell better. When you leave the cello on you get a bit more protection from rough handling and water splashes/drops from whatever you have in there and it doesn't impede aging much.

So do what you want, becuase there's ultimately no wrong way of doing it.

cooch36

I believe cello on also protects from sudden humidity changes allowing more protection i've found unprotected to suffer demise when cello weathered the storm. But off they are so much sexier.

skweekz

Something I just started thinking about tonight. Say you have a stick that came already without the cello, can you take a wrapper from a previous stick and place the unwrapped one in it? What would be the outcome/side effects? It's beyond my pay grade to figure out what could happen. Anyone have any thoughts on this one? Can it be done or is it best advised to just leave them unwrapped?

JCizzle

A cigar with no wrapper?? Like just the filler and binder? I've never even seen that...

kuzi16

JCizzle:
A cigar with no wrapper?? Like just the filler and binder? I've never even seen that...

i have.

of course it was in the process of being rolled so im not sure that counts.

skweekz

JCizzle:
A cigar with no wrapper?? Like just the filler and binder? I've never even seen that...

Yep, they're a total b*tch to smoke!

DSWarmack

JCizzle:
A cigar with no wrapper?? Like just the filler and binder? I've never even seen that...

You are special JCizzle.

beatnic

Some cigars still come without a cello wrapper (Tatuaje). I take mine off when I put them in the humidor. My reasons for doing so are seen clinging to the insides of the cellophane wrapper. I want those oils.

The3Stogies

Interesting. The oils are what turn the wrapper yellow not age. I was wondering if storing them unwrapped would allow more seasoning of the humi wood itself by absorbing some of these oils and essences. Would this then make the humi itself more part of the aging and flavoring of the cigar not just the receptacle that holds them?

kuzi16

take a wrapper off and put it somewhere with higher heat and humidity. forget about it.

itll turn.

... if i remember correctly.

laker1963

kuzi16:
take a wrapper off and put it somewhere with higher heat and humidity. forget about it.

itll turn.

... if i remember correctly.

I agree. The yellowing of the wrapper is indeed a sign of age, but NOT a sign that the oils from the tobacco have seeped into the cello. Just like an old newspaper, the cello degrades and turns yellow, which is a sign of age.

DSWarmack

At what point do you NEED to take the cigar out of the cello to keep it from crumbling into a mess? Will it ever reach that point, or is it something I just need to warn my son of, for the ones that get lost in my humi and he finds when he finds out I bequeathed him my waxing moon humidor (if my wife ever gets me one).

alienmisprint

skweekz:
Something I just started thinking about tonight. Say you have a stick that came already without the cello, can you take a wrapper from a previous stick and place the unwrapped one in it? What would be the outcome/side effects? It's beyond my pay grade to figure out what could happen. Anyone have any thoughts on this one? Can it be done or is it best advised to just leave them unwrapped?

I did this with a box of Prymes about two years ago, and they are aging just fine, no issues whatsoever.

beatnic

All Heche en Havana come without cello.

The3Stogies

The blog by Alex about cello vs non-cello explains it well enough. But I am Curious George. From last months order I took the cello off some Gurkhas, MOW and MOW Ruination. Seperated the MOW's and Gurkhas with some spare wooden insert panels that were in the Gurkha cigar box. Even the cello-ed ones I try and keep seperate w/ wood dividers. The only difference I've noticed so far is that the naked ones seem to smoke better, less burn issues. Of course it could be me. Anyways, see how it goes.