Cigar Humidor

"Careful construction allows this Spanish cedar lined box to create a perfect seal to keep your cigars fresh."

- By Logan Wittmer. Photos by The Jack Coyier & Chris Hennesy

Skill Level: Intermediate
Time: 2 Days
Cost: $120

If I think about some of my fondest memories with friends, it’s the “guys weekends” away in the North-woods of Minnesota. Canoe-in camping, fishing, and hanging out around the campfire. Inevitably, someone always brings a small travel humidor full of cigars.

I’ve always enjoyed those guys weekends, but I’ve also started to enjoy the occasional stogie while sitting on my deck overlooking the timber. Yes, it’s an unhealthy practice. But life’s too short, you know? After so many of these trips, I’ve started to build my own collection of cigars at home. Rocky Patels, Ashtons, and Olivas... just to name a few. So I figured it was about time to build a half-way decent humidor.

Humidor Basics

If you are a cigar aficionado, or if you have ever looked into cigar humidor construction, you know there’s some specifics that need addressed. First, a humidor is a controlled environment. It’s meant to hold a certain humidity to help retain freshness of cigars. Also, a good humidor will be lined (or made from) Spanish cedar. You can read more about Spanish cedar on page 76. A point though—you cannot use western red, aromatic, or any other cedar in place of Spanish cedar. Spanish cedar, technically a mahogany, will enhance the flavor of cigars as they reside in the humidor. Other cedars... not so much. Plus, Spanish cedar has a low affinity for expansion and contraction, meaning that once you get your humidor up to the correct humidity, the cedar will have expanded very little.