Good Cigar to Age

Streater

I am just finishing my coolidor and I need suggestions on a few good cigars to age.  It's a 60 qt cooler and I'm using beads to keep it humidified.  I will keep them in smaller wooden cigar boxes.  I want to try to keep it under $5 a stick.  I'm looking for something medium to strong.  I love the maduro wrapper, but i hear that aging them doesn't really improve the cigar. 

Also, approximately how long does it take to age, and improve the cigar?  Is 6-9 monthes long enough, or do I need to leave it for a year or 2?  I apologize if this question has been asked already.  All responses are appreciated.

-Streater

The Kid

Hey Streaker,, welcome and congrats on the coolidor,, Not trying to be an ass, (it just comes naturally),,lol... Anyway, May I suggest using the search function and doing a little research on this topic,, Its a great question but its been answered a few times over,, Check it out..K?
http://www.cigar.com/cs/search/SearchResults.aspx?q=aging+cigars&s=13&PageIndex=2

Whats kinda ironic is what comes up on page one of the search as this subject is also in the "things newbs should know thread" Take care..
EDIT
Just trying to help you and others who may have some of these same questions,, theres a ton of info floatin around here..please take a little time to uncover it and reuse some of the older threads if applicable.. another advantage of using an older thread is it brings alot of hidden info back to life

KingoftheCove

GH Vintage 2002
Diesel UC & Shorty
5Vegas Miami
JdN Antano Dark Corojo

IMHO these all improve dramatically after 6 months, and even more after a year.
I have heard the JdNs continue to improve beyond that.....

Streater

Thanks, Kid.  That's a big help. 

The Kid

Streater:

Thanks, Kid.  That's a big help. 

Your welcome,, I just reread this one,,great info....
http://www.cigar.com/cs/forums/2/49795/ShowThread.aspx

Rian

Try a 5 Vegas Miami with about a year on it. ROTT they are harsh but after a year they smooth out and remind me of the Cuban flavor profile.

Just a thought

RBeckom

KingoftheCove:

GH Vintage 2002
Diesel UC & Shorty
5Vegas Miami
JdN Antano Dark Corojo

IMHO these all improve dramatically after 6 months, and even more after a year.
I have heard the JdNs continue to improve beyond that.....

Good choices. I like to also age Park Avenues and Symphonies. They mellow well.

kuzi16

RBeckom:

KingoftheCove:

GH Vintage 2002
Diesel UC & Shorty
5Vegas Miami
JdN Antano Dark Corojo

IMHO these all improve dramatically after 6 months, and even more after a year.
I have heard the JdNs continue to improve beyond that.....

Good choices. I like to also age Park Avenues and Symphonies. They mellow well.

agreed. i would also say 5 vegas AAA, LFD Double Ligero Maduro, and Casa Magna Oscuro to that list.
if you venture to age more expensive stuff then OpusX ages VERY well, Avo Domaine is great after 2-3 years, and Davidoff Millennium is great after 2-3 as well.

j0z3r

+1 to the 5 Vegas Miami, with 18-24 months they're incredible. DPG Blues age very well. MoW original and Ruination. Fuente Don Carlos, age is a must on these, imo 3 years minimum.

Streater

Thank yall very much for the great responses.  I appreciate it! 

BTW I re-read the 101 for noobs thread which was most helpful.  Thanks for the reminder!

bandyt09

Along with the DPG Blues that Joe mentioned, the DPG Blacks age very well also. When the deal is right Camacho Triple Maduros can be had for around $5.00 a piece and age very well. Cubao has done good things after a year + in the humidor.

doromath

I second what Kuzi said about the 5V AAA with about 6 months on them. I don't purposefully age many sticks, but these ones I definitely do.

Heavy

All excellent suggestions, and I would second the Diesel, 5Vegas Miami and DPG Blue. Also, I think most people would consider 6-9 months to be "rest", while probably at least a year or more would be considered aging a stick. The Diesels with about 1.5 years on them are fantastic.

xmacro

Diesel Unlimited become very smooth with some months on them; I just discovered a box I forgot about 10 months ago, and now I can't stop smoking them - incredible improvement, all the harshness is gone

kevin1323

I haven't tested this theory, but I have heard that the Padron 2000 and the others in the thousands series are great to age for several years.

catfishbluezz

kevin1323:

I haven't tested this theory, but I have heard that the Padron 2000 and the others in the thousands series are great to age for several years.

Yup....all of them.... I have nto aged any for years, but i have aged for a year....and they are fantastic. Ccom has unreal pricing when they have them in stock and I always order them when they do.

BigT06

These have all been suggested... but that just proves I am right. lol...

#1 Diesel Unholy Cocktail (after 18 months, you will smoke one and wonder why you don't have 5 or 6 boxes of them, especially considering their price)

#2 DPG Blue

#3 JdN DC


these are my affordable suggestions. All can be had for $4 or under (Diesel as little as $1.75 or so on the Sprint) and are available at Ccom.

Streater

Thanks for the suggestions! I'm probably going to pick up a box of Diesel Unlimited and Diesel Unholy Cocktail, 5 Vegas Miami, Cuba Libre and I'll decide at a later date on a couple more.

The Kid

Streater:

Thanks for the suggestions! I'm probably going to pick up a box of Diesel Unlimited and Diesel Unholy Cocktail, 5 Vegas Miami, Cuba Libre and I'll decide at a later date on a couple more.

Hey streater,, I know we talked about the gurkha's,, in addition to the Cuba Libre "One", I might also suggest trying the Black Dragon and or the Blue Steel Ive heard the Blue steels are really good after a year or more,,,just trying to suggest some sticks with not so heft a price tag,, Sounds like everyone loves the UHC..

Toombes

The Kid:

Streater:

Thanks for the suggestions! I'm probably going to pick up a box of Diesel Unlimited and Diesel Unholy Cocktail, 5 Vegas Miami, Cuba Libre and I'll decide at a later date on a couple more.

Hey streater,, I know we talked about the gurkha's,, in addition to the Cuba Libre "One", I might also suggest trying the Black Dragon and or the Blue Steel Ive heard the Blue steels are really good after a year or more,,,just trying to suggest some sticks with not so heft a price tag,, Sounds like everyone loves the UHC..

^this... I had a Black Dragon robusto with roughly 18 months on it and I needed a towel when I was done. Not too shabby ROTT, but sooooo much better with some rest.

madurofan

I said this in another thread earlier but I think the most important thing is to age a cigar you already like. A dog turd is not going to miraculously turn great. Also it may be a quality stick but the flavors aren't what you like it is not going to completely change it's profile. It will bring forward new flavors and maybe make others more subtle. But you are not going to take a cigar that is earthy and coffee and turn it into spicy and black pepper. You may take a cigar that is too spicy for you and make it less spicy allowing you to notice the other flavors.

I was re-reading the old "The need for aging" article that Svenson posted on in 2009. What he refers to as Maturation 2 most of the non-tobacco professionals call "rest". When someone says a cigar needs rest they almost always mean that the maturation 2 was not properly completed at the factory. ISOMs are known for this. As were a lot of Maduros and oscuros.

ALTHOUGH another example of a cigar that needs rest but it isn't a maturation or fermentation problem are all the Kristoffs, they all leave the factory soaking wet. I remember asking Glen why they were like that. He told me, I don't care what anyone says a cigar is not humidified typically from the time it leaves a factory until it lands in the retailers humidor. So he over humidifies them before they leave the factory. I noticed when I get them they burn like a wet cigar.

The Sniper

Ive had excellent results with the following...

601 Green Label
Cubao
La Aurora 1495
Cu-Avana Intenso
DPG Cuban Classic

As to the question of how long is long enough when aging, here is my suggestion - whatever sticks you decide to experiment with this on, buy a five pack of them and put the date they go in your humidor on them somehow (little sticker labels work well for me). Start a cigar journal, and smoke one after a week or two of rest and write down your impressions. Then, smoke the remaining four at intervals you decide on (ex. 6 - 12 - 18 and 24 months). When you sit down with them each time, bust out the cigar journal you started with the first one, read up on what you thought of the first one, and note in the journal how this one has changed.

That will give you a good idea of when the aging process has a particular stick "in the zone" when you like it best, and allow you to figure it out without the expense of a box purchase. Once you figure that out - time to load up! ;-)

Hope this helped.

boydmcgowan

This has already been said before but Cubao and DPG Cuban Classics are excellent as I think most of DPGs blends do. The Diesel line also ages very well and also La Gloria Cubana Series R and the Original sumatra age very well too.

And Sniper's advice about smoking them in intervals to learn how the tastes change is really important advice. Its the best way to taste exactly what is happening in your cigars over a period of time.

Good luck man.

aeon_spiral@yahoo.com

Gurkha titan is an excellent gar to age

catfishbluezz

BigT06:

These have all been suggested... but that just proves I am right. lol...

#1 Diesel Unholy Cocktail (after 18 months, you will smoke one and wonder why you don't have 5 or 6 boxes of them, especially considering their price)

#2 DPG Blue

#3 JdN DC


these are my affordable suggestions. All can be had for $4 or under (Diesel as little as $1.75 or so on the Sprint) and are available at Ccom.

I am really curious about the uhc. I can't stand them, but aj's maddy's are hit and miss with me so I would not be surprised if it calms with age to a place I'd like it. I just can't bring myself to buy a box.

BigT06

catfishbluezz:

BigT06:

These have all been suggested... but that just proves I am right. lol...

#1 Diesel Unholy Cocktail (after 18 months, you will smoke one and wonder why you don't have 5 or 6 boxes of them, especially considering their price)

#2 DPG Blue

#3 JdN DC


these are my affordable suggestions. All can be had for $4 or under (Diesel as little as $1.75 or so on the Sprint) and are available at Ccom.

I am really curious about the uhc. I can't stand them, but aj's maddy's are hit and miss with me so I would not be surprised if it calms with age to a place I'd like it. I just can't bring myself to buy a box.

I've got a few shortys with almost 2 years on em, Ill send you one of those to try. I don't have any more UHC with that much rest yet, but when they are ready, I will have a LOT of em... and I will send you one then.

j0z3r

catfishbluezz:

BigT06:

These have all been suggested... but that just proves I am right. lol...

#1 Diesel Unholy Cocktail (after 18 months, you will smoke one and wonder why you don't have 5 or 6 boxes of them, especially considering their price)

#2 DPG Blue

#3 JdN DC


these are my affordable suggestions. All can be had for $4 or under (Diesel as little as $1.75 or so on the Sprint) and are available at Ccom.

I am really curious about the uhc. I can't stand them, but aj's maddy's are hit and miss with me so I would not be surprised if it calms with age to a place I'd like it. I just can't bring myself to buy a box.

If you don't like the UHC fresh, you're not gonna like it with rest, it doesn't really change that much except to maybe smooth out and meld a bit.

catfishbluezz

What about the lhc of? I have been on a $2 smoke search as of late and really enjoyed it

j0z3r

catfishbluezz:

What about the lhc of? I have been on a $2 smoke search as of late and really enjoyed it

While I do feel the lhcof gets better with time, I don't think it gets any better than decent. For my money, I enjoy the regular LHC much more, and it does well with time too.

catfishbluezz

j0z3r:

catfishbluezz:

What about the lhc of? I have been on a $2 smoke search as of late and really enjoyed it

While I do feel the lhcof gets better with time, I don't think it gets any better than decent. For my money, I enjoy the regular LHC much more, and it does well with time too.

I actually enjoy both, sounds like a plan

SaVas

CAO Sopranos. Over the past 6 years or so of aging, they get better and better. Also the original 5V Cask Strength, incredible with age.