PapaDisco Posted January 28, 2014 Posted January 28, 2014 Since 2005 I can honestly say a beetle/beetle hole is an irregularity. Prior it was a common occurrence. Keep your wits about you. Actually, I think I might try a little experiment and just individually ziplock bag each box in the tuperdor, and only freeze the 3x5 box of PSD4's that had the beetle. Keep an eye on things and report back. If I see any signs in a second box then I'll panic and freeze everything.
Nino Posted January 28, 2014 Posted January 28, 2014 Actually, I think I might try a little experiment and just individually ziplock bag each box in the tuperdor, and only freeze the 3x5 box of PSD4's that had the beetle. Keep an eye on things and report back. I was going to recommend that - as you wrote earlier, it's just a single stick in a tubo, no reason to get paranoid. Even though all my stock is in a cool cellar, I have all boxes, bundles etc in plastic bags, keeps the aroma tasty
PapaDisco Posted January 28, 2014 Posted January 28, 2014 A popular paper (seems to be quoted frequently around the cigar web) on this topic is one done by the Leaf Tobacco Research Center in Japan. Their table for freeze temps and times I've quoted below. I did measure my home freezer temp and it is -18C. You'll read posts about home freezers being inadequate and not getting down low enough, but -18C is plenty low. I went back and checked my notes and the box in question arrived from Germany at Christmas time so I've only had it for 4 weeks (less than I thought), implying that the bug was already hatched and larval when it got here. I smoked another PSD4 from this pack just 10 days ago and recall it getting a very lumpy bubble in the final third as the stick burned. Maybe a kindred beetle going up in smoke! Or maybe just bad construction . . . I do recall an unusual, "meaty" flavor to that stick . . . Here's the temp/time list. As you can see, at -18C all stages of the bug are killed off in less than 4-5 hours. Of course your whole box has to get down to that temp, so it's not just time in the freezer that counts, it's time at that temperature. Egg -20 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 1 hr -15 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 4 hr -10 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 12 hr -5 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 48 hr 0 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 240 hr 5 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 336 hr Larval -20 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 1 hr -15 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 3 hr -10 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 12 hr -5 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 96 hr 0 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 288 hr 5 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 336 hr Acclimated Larval (acclimated at 15 Celsius for 3 months to determine acclimation impact if any) -20 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 1 hr -15 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 6 hr -10 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 24 hr -5 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 504 hr 0 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 1176 hr 5 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 1680 hr Pupal -20 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 1 hr -15 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 4 hr -10 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 48 hr -5 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 288 hr 0 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 840 hr Adult -20 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 1 hr -15 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 2 hr -10 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 2 hr -5 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 72 hr 0 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 288 hr 5 degrees C Time to 100% mortality 840 hr The whole paper can be found here: http://www.cubancigarwebsite.com/cigar-pests.pdf
Nino Posted January 28, 2014 Posted January 28, 2014 I went back and checked my notes and the box in question arrived from Germany at Christmas time so I've only had it for 4 weeks (less than I thought), implying that the bug was already hatched and larval when it got here. I smoked another PSD4 from this pack just 10 days ago and recall it getting a very lumpy bubble in the final third as the stick burned. Maybe a kindred beetle going up in smoke! Or maybe just bad construction . . . I do recall an unusual, "meaty" flavor to that stick . . . Hey PD, you sure you got sent PSD 4's from Germany or was it maybe Bratwurst with a red Partagas band .... Sorry, had to laugh at the "meaty" flavor. That info you post is known and good. Thanks. Will look in my files for the pics of the freezer at the Habanos warehouse in Havana and post them.
Marker Posted January 28, 2014 Posted January 28, 2014 So if my mail sits in my mailbox for 1 hour, all beetles die. Check. Btw, I would be more worried about Jay-Z. He has passed the beetles in records of infestation. 2
Nino Posted January 28, 2014 Posted January 28, 2014 Found them - some pictures from the Guanabacoa central HSA warehouse in 2008 - the freezing chambers are in the background, numbered white doors, you can see all the mastercases waiting for treatment. IIRC the time given was 4 days and ca. 16 to 20 mastercases went into one chamber ( not sure ).
PapaDisco Posted January 28, 2014 Posted January 28, 2014 Hey PD, you sure you got sent PSD 4's from Germany or was it maybe Bratwurst with a red Partagas band .... Aw crap! You're right, it was a Brat! I've got to stop drinking when I smoke! Nino, do you recall what temperature they use? I found it interesting that even above freezing (but still very low) temps would work if you do it long enough. I've been toying with the idea of cellar storage like yours, but my cellar has too much humidity (rH of 78-80%) due to the native rock in one wall.
Nino Posted January 28, 2014 Posted January 28, 2014 Sorry PD, can't recall - I know it was below zero temps for 4 days but not the exact degrees and rather than out pass wrong info I prefer to shut up. But, as Rob stated, HSA freezes exports - I can attest to that. As to your cellar storage, would be interesting to check whether the Zarges boxes let in humidity as they are water and air-tight, but I'm just a smoker, not a scientist ... N
PapaDisco Posted January 28, 2014 Posted January 28, 2014 Over a long enough period, I think just about anything is vapor permeable. And then with me opening and closing the lid every week I guess I'd let in plenty of moisture that way too. I'll check out those metal boxes though, way better than the plastic stuff I get at Container Store.
PapaDisco Posted January 30, 2014 Posted January 30, 2014 Requiem for a Cigar Beetle . . . I put the suspect PSD4 Tubo, along with the other members of this 5 x 3 pack in a ziplock and then in my fridge overnight, followed by the freezer at -18C for two days. I intended to only freeze for a day but got sidetracked. Back into the fridge for 8 hours, then overnight on the counter. I dissected the suspect cigar and sure enough, there were the beetle's munching signs: holes in the leaves by the foot, powdery tobacco dust, and another larvae (dead). None of the cigars showed any signs of harm from the freezing, you could hear a slight difference in them, but no visible effect otherwise. Cutting this thing open, I was surprised how pliable the wrapper remained. Below are some pics. The first shows the tiny hole where Herr Beetle exited at the side of the foot. Tiny spot, very easy to overlook. The last pic is of the remaining larvae that probably died in the freezer.
Nino Posted January 31, 2014 Posted January 31, 2014 Wow, good job PD !! And good to see you didn't provide a fur coat to Fräulein Larvae's brood ... :-)
PapaDisco Posted January 31, 2014 Posted January 31, 2014 I could have just smoked this stick, but I was curious to cut one open for once, and it is an informative experiment worth the sacrifice of a cigar. 1
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