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I really never had much of a preference between aged and current. I'd take whichever one is better constructed and blended.

The distinction between a movie soundtrack and a movie score I think needs to be more clearly defined.

Unlikely. This is more related to eliminating the di minimus exception, which has resulted in greater scrutiny to all packages entering the US. The exception was created and rescinded by Congress, which has the power to regulate foreign commerce under Article I of the US Constitution. The statutory recision was done in the "Big Beautiful Bill," but Trump expedited it in executive order, which--even if itself unconstitutional--would take longer to review up to SCOTUS than the gap between the EO timeline and the statutory one.

I just did the same with all my cardboard

No question they’ll try, they just have less immediately leverage over countries like Mexico now. Nevertheless there are other levers available.

They'll just "bake the cake" with a different recipe. The blockage will remain on Cuba.

I have Esplendidos in individual cardboard. Sounds like I should pull them and put them in a cedar box.

Well done, very nice. I’m salivating!

I haven’t noticed any significant differences. The main thing I’ve noticed is how near perfect they are being so well protected. Other than that they look pretty much the same as SLB cigars.

You absolutely cannot beat Tubos for cigars on the go. I keep all my empties and use them for non Tubos when traveling, heading to a friends or a herf. The retail appeal is high and I figure the primary reason they were originally devised. The first ever cigar I bought and smoked was a macanudo Tubos at a Tinder Box in a shopping mall.

No because peak age has never been an issue for me. I love the subtle delicate rich smooth flavors long aging provides. I have put non Tubos in Tubos as an experiment. Only started doing this about 20 years ago so my experience is limited but seems to be similar results to me. I have put some of my all time favorite cigars in tubes and have just recently begun to smoke them.

I hope lol

I just remove caps, if cigars seem particularly wet I remove entire cigar, then place in humidor for a few months and recap. Ive done this for many years with only one mold incident. That one mold incident is why I will remove entire cigar if they seem particularly wet or tight in the tubo. It was a 3 pack of P2’s and they were so tight in the tubo it was a struggle to get them out and back in. I checked on them after a year and they developed a light mold.

Does this mean more packages should be getting through because inspections should drop? Let the spice flow.

My MON2800A does the same thing on the 1st (top) and 2nd shelf. I keep mine set at 70F and 64%RH. Here is a snapshot of readings I have using SensorPush sensors that are inside a box on each shelf. (I dont have one on the 4th shelf).

I have a Raching MON2800A which I bought a year ago. I kept my older (but still working) NewAir 1500 humidor and it sits unplugged and empty in storage. If the Raching fails I will just fire up the Newair and stuff all my boxes (or as many as I can fit temporarily in that unit.

Back to back is more likely than side by side

Well there’s no wrong answer in my opinion, though if you’re looking for longevity then I suggest capping them snuggly. Depending on the stick I might let tubed cigars “air out” for at least a day or two before smoking (as I do with loose sticks stored in cedar trays - I don’t care for a strong cedar note). I’ll also add here for anyone new to CC that tubed cigars are not the same as those sold in individual cardboard boxes (petacas). The latter should always be removed immediately and stored as singles in my opinion - in fact I personally avoid them entirely unless they are heavily discounted. Something about the cardboard seems to suck the life out of the cigar after a few years - it’s not clear to me why but that’s a topic for another thread. If the box date is recent then there’s much less risk.

I know get impatient to smoke some delicious cigars when I get some that need aging. I am almost always guilty of cracking into them early, because yum.

Often, as I mourn the end of a great box I'll throw a few of the last remaining cigars in a tube to slow down any further ageing as much as possible. Have you ever used a tube to hold a cigar that you've had for a while with the intent to keep the cigar from expiring or ageing past what you consider peak age too quickly?

https://www.nytimes.com/live/2026/02/20/us/trump-tariffs-supreme-court?unlocked_article_code=1.NlA.jyKg.F3le0i489XUd&smid=url-share Could have a significant impact on Trump administration’s ability to enforce a blockade on Cuba. Though there are certainly other forms of leverage at play, they lack the speed and punch of immediate tariffs without a rulemaking process. Please be mindful of the forum’s rules; I bring this news up only in the context of US policy apropos Cuba.

I didn't know it was a race. A check for mold (on a couple from the box) and wipe if there is any is as much as I would bother.

At the same time?

They'll equalize to your humidor RH faster. This said, there's a tightrope to balance on between "age/acclimatize faster" and the long term results of doing it faster. I doubt it will make that much difference if they do a few months naked to make sure the RH is consistent throughout and to make sure you aren't seeing mold, then you age them with restricted airflow for years. If tubes containing cedar are left outside the humidor, the RH of the cedar will drop to whatever your ambient is in the room. Putting the cigar back in will then cause some more push-pull to happen as the total RH in the tube equalizes between cigar and wrapping. It shouldn't be too extreme with the tiny weight of a little cedar lining, but any time you have rapid changes there is at least some risk of problems like uneven expansion causing cracks. If your tube doesn't have cedar, it won't happen. This said, I'd still keep naked tubes clean and dry and stored in a closed location to avoid any potential for condensation or cross contamination by endemic microorganisms. I do a fair bit of fermenting and charcuterie, sometimes cheese making, so there's all kinds of things endemic to my home that are benign and delicious in food, but that I -probably- don't want on my cigars. I say probably because I honestly don't know what the results would be. One of these days I'm going to take some cheap cigars and see what happens if I deliberately culture them with something like koji (Aspergillus oryzae) or Bactoferm.

I've got a BPC and a No. 2 in the drybox right now. Will report back on my thoughts after I smoke them tonight or tomorrow.