If there is one tragedy where a box of high-quality cigars is concerned it would be in their being ignored and going stale. While many people wrongly believe that a sealed box of cigars is impervious to many common problems, the fact of the matter is that they are not packaged to retain their best qualities. This is the reason that the best tobacconists keep their cigars in proper storage cabinets with humidifiers and hygrometers fully engaged.

Something to always consider when buying or receiving cigars is that they are extremely sensitive to environmental conditions and even when only recently removed from the store shelf they may be unsatisfactory for smoking right away. This might be due to the way they were stored in the tobacco shop, the conditions that existed during shipping, or the way your friend or family member kept them before giving them to you.

So, is there a way to improve the condition of cigars after they have been abused or neglected? Yes, with a well-balanced humidor and a few insider tips anyone can get a cigar back into excellent smoking condition. It actually begins outside of a highly controlled environment and requires the use of a plastic bag or non-humidified cigar box. The cigars should be put into the container and left in a place where overall conditions will remain steady for a period of three to four days. After that they will need to have a damp sponge, saturated by distilled water only, placed into the container for a period of seven to ten additional days. This will bring the dehydrated cigars very slowly back to life and allow the outer tobacco leaf wrapper to re-humidify without bursting.

Once the two-week period of slow hydration has come to an end, the cigars can safely be put into a humidified cedar box for permanent storage or aging. They should not yet be smoked, however, and should enjoy at least another thirty days of mellowing to allow them to reach optimal smoking condition.

The basic issue where restoring dehydrated cigars is concerned is the time issue. This is something that simply cannot be rushed, if you try to do so you will simply watch the wrappers begin to crack and burst, and see all of the cigars go quickly to waste. If you introduce too much humidity over the process in order to avoid the additional month in the cedar box, you can also see the cigars develop unpleasant and mildew flavors too. This means that patience is its own reward where cigar restoration is concerned.