Why rest cigars after they ship?
Resting is leaving newly arrived cigars in a stable humidor before you smoke them, so their moisture settles to match your storage. A box in transit can sit in a hot truck, a cold porch or dry air. Wikipedia notes that a cigar out of a humidor takes on the surrounding humidity within two to three days, so a week on the road can leave it wetter or drier than it should be.
Smokers call the result travel sickness: uneven burn, a harsh or flat taste, a soft or brittle feel. It is hobby slang, not a defined condition. The fix is time in steady air.
Boveda goes further. It suggests conditioning new cigars in a humidor bag for four to six weeks to bring them to 69%, and warns that new or dry cigars put straight into a humidor can pull moisture from the cigars already there. Its own product is the bag, so weigh that accordingly. Many smokers settle for a couple of weeks.
Aging is the long game
Aging means keeping cigars in steady storage for months or years so the flavor can change. Wikipedia says cigars stored with care can be laid down and aged for decades, ideally as close to 70°F and 70% relative humidity as possible. Whether a given cigar gets better is a matter of taste, which is why a dated log beats memory.
Smoke one at each milestone and write it up in the tasting journal. For how long cigars keep and how to spot one that has gone off, read how long cigars last.
Rest targets smokers commonly pick
These presets are common choices, not rules. Pick one per entry and the log shows how close each cigar is.
| Target | Days counted | Often used for |
|---|---|---|
| 2 weeks | 14 | A short settle after shipping. A common minimum among smokers, not a rule. |
| 1 month | 30 | Close to the start of Boveda's four to six week window for bringing new cigars to 69%. |
| 3 months | 90 | A first check on whether a box is changing. Smoke one, note it, compare later. |
| 6 months | 180 | A midpoint for anyone testing a box over a year. |
| 1 year | 365 | Longer-term aging. Steady storage matters more here than the exact date. |
Months are counted as 30 days and a year as 365 for the target. The rested figure itself uses calendar days, with months shown as an average of 30.44 days.
A dated log needs a steady box
Rest only counts if the humidor holds its level. A box that swings up and down all week is not giving cigars steady air. Check your hygrometer against a salt test with the hygrometer calibration calculator, and keep enough humidity source in the box with the humidity pack calculator.
Your log stays on this device
The log is saved in your browser's local storage, which keeps data for this site on this device between visits. No account, no server copy. If storage is blocked, as in some private windows, the log still works until you close the tab. Download your list before you go.
Download my list saves everything in a backup file you can load on another device. Download as spreadsheet gives a file that opens in Excel or Numbers. Load a saved list reads either one back in and matches entries by ID, so nothing doubles up.
Resting and aging cigars: common questions
What is cigar travel sickness?
It is smokers' slang for cigars that smoke poorly right after shipping because their moisture is off. Boxes ride through heat, cold and dry air, and a cigar takes on the humidity around it within days.
How long should cigars rest after shipping?
Two to six weeks is the usual range. Boveda suggests four to six weeks in a humidor bag to bring new cigars to 69%, and many smokers settle for a couple of weeks. There is no official standard.
Where is my aging log saved?
In this browser's local storage, on this device. Nothing is sent to Cigar Primer. Clearing site data removes it, so use Download my list now and then to keep a backup.
Can cigars be aged for years?
Yes. Wikipedia notes that cigars stored with care can be laid down and aged for decades, ideally as close to 70°F and 70% relative humidity as possible.