Artisan Works Ltd.

What makes a quality humidor?

A cigar that is too damp or, more often, too dry will not burn right and is guaranteed to taste bad, no matter where it was made or how much it cost. Most cigars are made with tobacco grown in the tropical areas of the world.  Since the humidity in such areas usually hovers around 70% it is no coincidence that cigars maintained at these conditions taste better than those that aren't.

Enter the humidor. A humidor is just a box that keeps cigars at a constant 70% humidity. A piece of Tupperware and a moist sponge fits this description, but the plastic would probably keep in too much moisture giving you the key ingredient for a mold and fungus farm on your cigars. Leave this home made humidor cracked open and it will dry out too quickly, turning the cigars into cracked lumps of unsmokable tobacco.

What you need in a humidor is a material that can absorb moisture and release it back slowly.  Spanish Cedar is the material of choice for this reason. It is dimensionally stable as it absorbs moisture and is slow to release it.  As an added bonus, the fragrance actually enhances the flavor of cigars. That's why I make my humidors out of solid Spanish Cedar with an additional lining of Spanish Cedar to form an almost airtight seal. Notice that I said almost airtight - a truly airtight seal would cause the humidity to rise too high.

While Spanish Cedar is a great material for humidors its not the prettiest wood in the world. That's where veneer comes in handy. All of my hand made humidors have a decorative veneer securely bonded to the exterior. This veneer is either purchased commercially or resawn from lumber on hand. Since the Spanish Cedar and the veneer are pretty soft and fragile, I add hardwood inlays and edge banding around the outside for durability and better looks.

All of the above items items, combined with a quality humidification device will keep your cigars at their best indefinitely. 

See the Custom Designs page to plan your own humidor or see the In Stock page to see what I have that's available now.