FOH Mould Study

[adwinistrator]

Still not a believer in plume, but I keep coming back to the point of this study, which was to find crystalline structures on aged cigars...

Tatuaje El Triunfador from 2014.  Make sure to change the video resolution to 1080p and full screen.

I know this is a property of Conn. Broadleaf.  I haven't seen anyone explain why this would not be crystalline structures causing the sparkle.

[Asaint]

I want to send in a stick. I have looked at the plume,  yes plume under a jeweler's loop and it indeed appears to be crystalline. But I would prefer the experts here to verify this

[Zebra]

I wanted to add something to this.

I see a lot of people, definitely the majority of people posting on places like Reddit who link to this thread (without actually reading it, apparently) advising people to throw out perfectly good cigars because “it’s never plume, it’s always mould”.

It’s madness. 

Habanos themselves make it clear that it’s mould, but the solution is to brush it off:

“Prolonged wetness rots tobacco, but you are much more likely to encounter ‘bloom’. This is a white, powdery mould that occurs naturally on a Habano when it is subjected to a sudden increase in humidity. It is a sign that the cigar is alive and well and should simply be removed with a brush.”

People have been removing the mould from their cigars and smoking them for hundreds if not thousands of years. 

It seems to me that a false conclusion has been drawn in the minds of many, specifically that if what has been called plume (or bloom) is in fact mould then this means it’s certainly dangerous, and the ageing cigar with a bit of white on it is in fact trash.

Why this assumption? Have these people never seen Brie? 

The world we live in is alive, we constantly ingest all sorts of bacteria and fungus. It’s honestly everywhere at all times.

If a cigar is clearly rotten then that’s something different, but how many of us have even seen that?

I really wish people would stop throwing the baby out with the bath water (or the cigar with the mould).

Incidentally I received some 2018 Monte 4s in the post today, covered in “plume”. I brushed them off. They look great, I know they’ve been ageing well and are now in the humidor. No hazmat needed. No drama.

[oesman]

On 7/16/2021 at 5:02 PM, Zebra said:

Habanos themselves make it clear that it’s mould, but the solution is to brush it off:

It seems to me that a false conclusion has been drawn in the minds of many, specifically that if what has been called plume (or bloom) is in fact mould then this means it’s certainly dangerous, and the ageing cigar with a bit of white on it is in fact trash.

Definitely agree with you, that's the most logical conclusion and course of action. Mold spores are everywhere and if you get humidity you can easily get mold to start reproducing and eating whatever it's on. I see it all the time when I walk into any cigar shop that goes overboard with humidification and all their sticks are like 75%+ RH. Tons of boxes with mold ("plume") on them. If I really wanted a particular stick and my only choice was one that had a little "plume" on the wrapper I'd still get it and just brush it off. Would I pick another if I could? Yes.

On 7/16/2021 at 5:02 PM, Zebra said:

Have these people never seen Brie? 

I think that's a little different since specific cheese cultures are used vs. whatever random cultures growing on your cigar. I would say a good rule of thumb is avoid if you can, brush it off when it happens, and don't let it get out of hand to where it starts to rot the cigar. This is why i go through my cigars pretty regularly and don't like leaving them in boxes where I'm less likely to open and check each one.

[Zebra]

21 hours ago, oesman said:

I think that's a little different since specific cheese cultures are used vs. whatever random cultures growing on your cigar.

Sure. I was just making the point that mold doesn’t automatically equal poison or danger. And in fact there is some evidence to suggest that in the vast majority of cases the white mold or fungus we see on cigars is not poisonous or otherwise harmful.

I don’t know of a single case of someone being poisoned or harmed by a cigar with “plume”.

I agree with everything else you wrote too. I don’t think it’s optimal either and would pick the cigar without it every time. But it really doesn’t bother me if it brushes off, which it always has every time I’ve seen it.

[BuzzArd]

On 7/10/2017 at 1:23 AM, El Presidente said:

10 samples is a small sample set. Mind you we had 30 to choose from. However there was an obvious double and triple up in obvious examples of mould. 

We will continue on this. 

Ultimately how many cigars have been submitted and how many analyzed at this point?  Have still had discussion with detractors.  The latest claims this is a non scientific “case study” of a sample size of ten.  
I’m certain there have been more….

[El Presidente]

1 hour ago, BuzzArd said:

Ultimately how many cigars have been submitted and how many analyzed at this point?  Have still had discussion with detractors.  The latest claims this is a non scientific “case study” of a sample size of ten.  
I’m certain there have been more….

There are also those who also believe the earth is flat. most likely the same folks 😉

Greg oversaw 30+ testings from memory.  Showcased were those that looked physically different. 

So far, Plume appears to be one big scam. Anyone can spend their own hard earned to test however! No one does....for a reason.

[Smokemorestressless]

On 7/7/2023 at 10:37 PM, El Presidente said:

There are also those who also believe the earth is flat. most likely the same folks 😉

Greg oversaw 30+ testings from memory.  Showcased were those that looked physically different. 

So far, Plume appears to be one big scam. Anyone can spend their own hard earned to test however! No one does....for a reason.

Hello, great thread and tests. Love the science. 

I have some cigars that have what I call "ploom."  It is a distinct crystalline coating on them.  They are old Indian Tabac. Cigar Company, Cameroon Legends. Still in the cello. Some have it, some don't.  

Where should I send a cigar to?  It sparkles like the video of the Tat, El Triunfador.  

 

Thanks!

[El Presidente]

3 hours ago, Smokemorestressless said:

Hello, great thread and tests. Love the science. 

I have some cigars that have what I call "ploom."  It is a distinct crystalline coating on them.  They are old Indian Tabac. Cigar Company, Cameroon Legends. Still in the cello. Some have it, some don't.  

Where should I send a cigar to?  It sparkles like the video of the Tat, El Triunfador.  

 

Thanks!

It would be best to send the cigar to a local biocsences lab. Cost, $50-$150 for analysis. 

Feel free to post macro photos but we have tested cigars with similar descriptions. If it really piques our interest as something different from past testing, I am happy for you to send one through for testing at our cost. 

[raleighptx]

Is it possible to get access to the actual Biotech Report after all this time ?

[asudevil08]

TTT