Freezing a cigars, will it taste better?

During an event with El Septimo, I heard the words I never thought I would hear. Lessons that go against everything you and I have learned when it comes to freezing cigars in the freezer.

What has been taught over the years all throughout the cigar industry is that if you freeze cigars

1. Tobacco is sensitive to moisture and temperature
The freezer quickly dries out cigars because the air there is extremely dry.

2. Taste and aroma are reduced.
Tobacco contains natural oils that give the cigar its taste and aroma. Freezing can damage these oils and cause the cigar to lose its character.

3. Condensation
When you take cigars out of the freezer, condensation forms. This leads to uneven moisture in the tobacco and can cause mold or cracks in the wrapper.

I was told during the El Septimo event held by Zaya Younan that one of the best ways to smoke a cigar is to freeze it. The cigar wouldn’t be ruined and the freezing would bring out more flavors.

My curiosity was piqued and I decided to do a test. I decided to take two edentic cigars, one I would smoke straight from the humidor and the other I would freeze in the freezer for a few days. The cigars i choose to do the test with was El Septimos Rebelde Blue.

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I was shocked by the result

The cigar had been in the freezer sealed in a resealable bag for three days and the first thing that struck me was that the cigar didn’t feel cold in the same way that frozen goods usually do. It felt almost the same as the day I put it in, the cigar had the same firmness as the one from the humidor and had no cracks or flaws in the wrapper. Now for an extra interesting thing, the oiliness took me a little by surprise. I thought the freezing would have caused the oil in the cigar to solidify, but instead I was met with a slightly sticky feeling, somehow like the oil had come out in a different way and created a completely new form of texture.

Lets light up the cigar

I don’t know if it was preconceived thoughts from grilling in winter or when lighting a fire outside to keep warm, I thought the cigar would be difficult to light considering how cold it should have been. I was quite shocked, the El Septimo Reblede blue was as easy to light as the cigar straight from the humidor. Now we get to the really interesting part – The flavors. Somehow it was like the cigar had become richer in texture and the body had grown a little in a way that is hard to explain. You felt that the blend was the same as the other one, but at the same time different. The first third was completely like another cigar but yet with similar nuances. The flavors were “fresher” in some strange way. You could say that the cigar showed more of what it had to offer compared to the cigar that had been keept in the humidor.

Freezing a quality cigar is entirely possible and the flavors change. I’m starting to belive that to get the most out of a cigar and its flavors, you should smoke one from the humidor and one from the freezer to feel all it has to offer. Freezing a cigar is something I highly recommend trying.

I had to satisfy my curiosity and asked Zaya about the freezing. The answer I got was

“Our research shows flash-freezing doesn’t damage the cigar or its oils; it preserves moisture, lowers the starting temperature, and creates a sharper temperature gradient when lit. This gradient releases the natural plant oils more efficiently, producing a denser, cooler, and more flavorful smoke. Premium cigar oils don’t freeze solid at normal freezer temperatures, so instead of becoming hard they stay pliable and release beautifully once heated.”