Mould!

[bambini]

Yep, its one of those threads again

Woke up this morning, sunshine for breakfast, and thought "Hey, I'll check my humi, see how things are!"

Uh oh. My 3 Punch-Punches have white mould on them! It was just a little around the caps, and the surrounding cigars don't seem to be affected (from what I could see).

I wiped off the mould with my fingers and shoved them back in the humi, as I didn't have time to deal with the problem before work. I tried my best to separate out the Punch Punches from the rest of the sticks. So what do I do next? How do I salvage the smokes? What's the prognosis?

How did I get this problem in the first place and how can I prevent it in future? My (stupid analogue) hygro is reading at 70% RH (I calibrated it only a month ago so I trust it to be at least roughly correct), and I'm using a Boveda 69 and gel crystals to maintain humidity.

[Styler]

I'm certainly not an expert on the subject but one thing I would suggest is to chuck the analogue hygrometer.

I got a hair hygrometer with my Adorini humi that was supposed to have been created especially for cigar storage. I tried to calibrate it using the salt method 3 times and each time it was over or under by several percent. I ended up ordering a Xikar digital hyrgometer/thermometer which has worked like a dream, no longer am I in any doubt about the conditions of my humi

[Dencappo]

I'm sorry if I'm stating the bleedin' obvious, but it's not just harmless plume is it?

[Aussiewaz]

Let me guess, you prefer 70% RH right? Drop it to 65 or 60 and they will smoke better, you will also cure the mold problem. Smokes will be fine but get them away (ie bagged on their own) from the rest.

[68TriShield]

. So what do I do next? How do I salvage the smokes?

What's all this salvage talk? You wiped them off,now smoke them

[Aussiewaz]

I'm sorry if I'm stating the bleedin' obvious, but it's not just harmless plume is it?

Unless they are ten years old, stored in perfect conditions it is not plume.

LMAO 68, indeed!

[Puff Scotty]

Ancient question, mould or bloom ?
What you may have on the punch cigars is a localised bloom caused by more oils being present in the cap & dehydrating.
It's sometimes hard to differentiate between the two as it can be visually different from stick to stick.
I use a usb microscope to determine what is what. How old are the cigars ? Older sticks are more prevalent to bloom but mould is no respecter of youth.
Sure it's a 'white' mould ?
The fact that it's localised to the cap & is white leads me to believe it may be bloom:
But having said that I would isolate them from the rest & do at least daily checks on the rest of your humi.

If on the other hand you believe it is definately mould take the usual precaution of gently wiping down all your sticks in the humi with a solution of isopropyl alcohol & distilled water & wipe down the humi as well, try not to get either too wet, a frequently changed damp cloth will suffice.
I've heard many stories of freezing killing mold spores & have tried it personally, as far as I can see any length of freezing only retards the growth & allows for a perfect future breeding ground IMHO.
Irrespective of all the humidifying gadgets around that are supposed to be fully automatic try to a least glance at your humi daily, even if you don't smoke daily & from personal experience, never keep an unopened box anytime anywhere!
First thing I always look at back from holiday are the humis, bugger the shed roof blowing off.
Good Luck with the salvage.

[bambini]

Ok, one at a time!

@Den - No it's not plume. They are too young for plume and it definitely looks like mould to my eye

@Warren - I've heard talk of changing the RH, and I'd like to drop it, but don't know how.

@68Trishield - If I have to I'm trying to keep hold of these for a while longer though - are they gonna need smoking now, or is there a way that I can prevent mould from reforming?

[Aussiewaz]

is there a way that I can prevent mould from reforming?

Yes. Keep them on their own, keep an eye on them for a month then if no signs of mold reappear they are fine.

Freezing is done to kill beetles, not mold.

Keep Isopropyl alcohol AWAY from your wrappers!

What you may have on the punch cigars is a localised bloom caused by more oils being present in the cap & dehydrating.
It's sometimes hard to differentiate between the two as it can be visually different from stick to stick.

Sounds like what a retailer would say Scotty and total crap. Bloom will exhibit on the sides first as there are more oils in the shank of a cigar than the cap.

[tippexx]

Take them out of the humi. Give them a wipe with a cloth and Ronsonol (no other) leave them out for about 15mins for the fumes to dissipate.

Put them in a small (clean) tuppa container and put them in the fridge for two to three days.

If the mold is at the cap end then the cigars should be OK. If it's reached the foot .... chuck them.

Strangely, I've an Adorini synthetic hair analogue, and whilst it's slower it's along with my Angelo digital my most accurate hygro.

See where you've been storing the Punch, you may have them directly under the humidifier which may be slightly over-saturated, this has caused problems for me with some cigars in the past.

[Dencappo]

If it's white and can be easily bushed off, it doesn't quite sound like mould to me, which as far as I'm aware is often a 'blue-ish' colour and stains the wrapper. Moreover, I've had plume on well-stored cigars younger than 10 years old, but I'd definitely trust the man looking at it over my guesses.

[Aussiewaz]

If it's white and can be easily bushed off, it doesn't sound like mold, which is often blue and stains the wrapper.

Not true. I've never seen blue or green mold but I have seen white mold on cigars less than 6 months old. It is impossible for a 6 MO cigar to have plume as it has not even undertaken the 2nd ferment.

[Dencappo]

Fair enough mate. I think I must have been mislead about mould in the past.

As for plume on a 6 month old cigar; yes, I totally agree with you. Didn't realise it was that young.

Thanks for the info.

[Aussiewaz]

Fair enough mate. I think I must have been mislead about mould in the past.

As for plume on a 6 month old cigar; yes, I totally agree with you. Didn't realise it was that young.

Thanks for the info.

[Puff Scotty]

If it's reached the foot .... chuck them.

Had some Monty A's a while back, mold had reached or started at the foot.
I sinned... cropped of a centimetre , wiped them, left them for a month & smoked 'em... perfect smoke .