Humidor Auctions
Welcome to the humidor auctions section. We've found through years that easiest place to find a humidor is online- particular the auction sites. You can get a good deal on new items, as well have the ability to pick up rare and antique items you won't find in your local tobacco shop. Look around and have fun- if there's a category we don't carry let us know and we'll see if we can source it.
Antique Humidor
The character and beauty of an antique humidor can enhance the decor of the living room, boardroom, or bedroom. Skilled artisans created storage for the precious tobacco of the wealthy, through a variety of ingenious designs. Some were custom designed and unique- others were mass produced for marketing. You can find humidors made out of variety of materials, and in many shapes and sizes. There are antique ceramic humidors, full size end table humidors that accommodate a lamp as well has hundreds of cigars, and even fanciful creations such as miniature barrels. There is also a goodly assortment of humidor jars and glasses. Finally the metal smiths also produced some beautiful work- depending upon your budget you may sometime find a bargain on a bronze humidor, or an oak humidor with a Spanish Cedar lining. A word of caution- be sure to check the humidity with a digital hygrometer, the older cigar boxes and exotic materials do not keep the temperature and humidity as consistent as a modern box. Although the antique humidors are all different- they do share a lineage to a simpler time, where craftsmanship was prized over the mass produced items we have today.
Cabinet Humidor
There are a few different variations on the cabinet humidor theme- depending upon your space and the number of cigars you have, you can get everything from a small cube to a full bookcase sized humidor that stores over 3000 stogies. A small cabinet humidor can hold anywhere from 25 to 100 sticks, and fits nicely in a closet, or perhaps as part of a gentlemanly display on your desk. Cabinet style humidors can also function as furniture, and are frequently adorned with brass and even marble tops for use as a tabletop, storage, or even to host a wine rack. You can find models with and without legs, and bookcase style humidors that span floor to ceiling. An important consideration if you get a larger freestanding furniture type humidor is the humidification system- you're going to need a larger model, and the better humidors are build to accommodate the humidifier as well as the plumbing and electrical required to keep those precious cigars at a steady 70 degrees Fahrenheit and 70 percent relative humidity. As with the glass top humidor, if you you're going to have your cabinet humidor on display, you need to make sure you don't place it in a room that receives too much sunlight, or that you draw the curtains during the times of the day when the sun would shine into your stock.
Desktop Humidor
No gentleman's office is complete without a desktop humidor. Of course they have a practical application, but a humidor on the desk creates an image, an air of sophistication. In even today's politically correct no smoking offices, a deep mahogany humidor on the corner of the desk-or in the executive bookcase, says class and style. Desktop humidors are available in a variety of sizes and styles, with from burlwood, cherry to bubinga. I noticed one advantage of having a humidor on my desk years ago- not only are they a good conversation piece, but they're also a nice, non intrusive way to find other cigar smokers. While the cigarette smoking crowd pretty much finds each other on their hourly breaks, because a cigar takes longer we often don't take a break during the workday. It's not uncommon to take 30 or 45 minutes to finish a Churchill, and usually the boss isn't too fond of such a long break. By having a desktop humidor, I was able to find others who shared my passion for fine stogies and we'd get together after work for a glass of port and fine cigar. I also did quite a bit of business on the golf course- many a sale was closed over a cigar. Finally, another advantage of having cigars on your desk is you have a ready made gift if you happen to find another cigar afficianado. It makes a much more personal connection if instead of just giving out a card, you pull out a Monte Cristo from you desktop humidor and give it to your business contact; trust me they remember.
Display Humidor
Collecting cigars is a luxury hobby, and what better way to display your fine collection that with a display humidor? Modern precision wood working and mass production has made it not only possible, but affordable to have a beautifully crafted glass and wood humidor that garners almost as much attention and respect as the cigars it contains. In fact, for your non-smoking friends and family, it is a good way to appreciate the elegance and luxury of this gentleman's hobby. A word of caution with the mostly glass display type humidors, be care to keep them away from excessive sunlight, as you can raise the temperature and lower the humidity of your stock, and adversely affect aging and flavor. A nice feature of most display humidors is that come with one or more trays, which allows you to store your cigar accessories, such as punches, cutters, matches, and torch lighters. Some of the higher end humidors even come equipment with marble tops, and silver or gold accents. The sky (and your checkbook) is the limit. With a little effort it's possible to find actual display humidors from cigars stores online- what a great addition to a recreation room! Of course you should also have a fine bottle of port on a shelf next to that display humidor, as well as a classic large glass ashtray, big enough to accommodate all of your smoking friends!
Furniture Humidors
There are several different shapes and sizes of furniture humidors. End tables complete either the bedroom or the living room, and have the advantage of being multifunctional by allowing you to keep a lamp, magazines, etc on them. There are also freestanding cabinet humidors, which are an accent piece in and of themselves. Another interesting piece is the tower humidor, from the narrow, which have a size footprint much like a grandfather clock, to some that will take up half of your wall. Furniture humidors are usually large capacity- an end table humidor will hold 500 cigars while some of the larger bookcase style humidors can hold 5000 cigars. Of course with all that storage space, you have a lot more area to keep moist and temperature controlled, so be sure to set aside a couple of hundred dollars to buy a good commercial grade humidification system. When you are shopping, be sure to look for units that come with the correct holes or ready made wiring to accommodate that temperature and humidity control system. An advantage of a large capacity humidor is that you don't have to worry too much about intermingling the flavors of the cigars as they age. You can easily put different brands on different shelves, and the impact of having cigars of different flavors too close together is mitigated. Furniture humidors are a good choice for the serious cigar enthusiast, who is willing to put some time and money into a pleasurable hobby.
Glass Top Humidor
Just like any other natural product, cigars need proper storage conditions to guarantee that the freshness and the flavor would be preserved, which a glass top humidor can provide. Other than that, the storage environment should also facilitate its aging and further enhance its flavor. Because it is important that the temperature should be kept at 18-24C, one of the glass top humidor disadvantages include having certain limitations of where it is to be placed. Otherwise, there would be a need to provide a humidor with an air conditioning system to achieve the ideal temperature needed for storing cigars. Another one from the glass top humidor disadvantages is there is a need for the cigars to be protected from direct sunlight. It might sound simple when people only have desktop type of glass top humidors but when it comes to sizable humidors, it gets more complicated. It is not as easy as moving the humidor to another place or covering it with a book or a magazine. A curtain sounds totally ridiculous especially when people buy these humidors with the intention of showcasing their cigar collection. Fluctuations in both temperature and humidity levels simply spell bad news for cigars. A lot of people still like the idea of having glass top humidors because they are very inviting to look at. Other than that, these kinds of humidors also allow hygrometers to be checked without having to open the lid. It does not need to be so complicated. The glass top humidor disadvantages can be easily dismissed as long as it is located somewhere it would always be protected from the sun.
Pyramid Humidors and Other Styles
At it's heart, a humidor is about function over form- a pyramid humidor can keep your cigars at the correct temperature and humidity just as well as a plain box. Your choices aren't limited to just pyramids however, you have such varied choices as ceramic, pewter, and glass. I've seen cookie jar style humidors, as well as elaborate figurines, takes on the classic tobacco store Indians of old. I remember one memorable piece that was shaped like a small barrel, like the kind you saw the Saint Bernards carrying in the old movies. There are porcelain canisters emblazoned with dogs, golf clubs or sailing ships. Monte Cristo made quite a splash with their limited edition pyramids- the one I remember was hand painted blue with a black base and limited to 500 units. They were well made, with the company logo painted on a glass window on the humidor, and a nice felt lining on the bottom to prevent marring the desk or surface the humidor was sitting on. Regardless of how the humidor looks on outside, you do need to take care to make sure that it is doing its work correctly- be sure buy a good digital hygrometer and keep an eye on the temperature and humidity. Be particularly careful of the complete sealed glass or plastic humidors- since no water vapor can escape it is very easy to over humidify your sticks, and this makes them hard to light and draw. Couple high humidity with high heat and you're inviting mold or tobacco beetles- neither of which you want on your stock. Even if your pyramid humidor comes with an analog hygrometer, it's still a good idea to have a digital as well, as the analog hygrometers can be way off, and you don't want to ruin your precious cigars.
Travel Humidor
The Transportation Security Administration will not allow you to carry your cigar lighter on a plane, but you can take your cigars with you in a travel humidor and travel in style. There's nothing better than sitting out on your hotel balcony and smoking your favorite brand of cigar after a long trip. Cigars lit with wooden matches taste better- provided you wait long enough for the sulfur to burn away. Travel humidors come in a variety of sizes- from a single cigar case up to what can only be called cigar luggage- carrying up to a hundred cigars. The prices run from inexpensive to extravagant- it just depends upon your budget and cigar inventory. In a pinch you can use a ziplock bag, however it provides no crush protection, and is only good for a couple of weeks. You can purchase specially designed cigar travel bags, which come with a humidification pack which will keep your sticks fresh for months. Next up you could get away with a Tupperware container for a short time, however the plastic doesn't allow any water vapor to escape and it's easy to over-humidify your stogies. The preferred solution is a travel humidor- which is specially built to withstand the rigors of a long trip, and get your cigars to their destination intact. Many are lined with foam to cushion the cigars, as well as provide some humidification benefits as well.
