In any case, Spanish Cedar is the wood of choice for lining humidors in this day.  Spanish Cedar also has some qualities that maybe the cigar box makers of old did not realize, and I am going to explain a couple of them for you.

Believe it or not, Spanish Cedar is not actually from the cedar family whatsoever.  In fact, it actually comes from the mahogany family, and by looking at the grain, you can tell why.

Spanish Cedar has a wonderful ability to naturally control humidity and is not only very absorbent, but also very resistant to mold, and because of the high humidity levels in humidors, this quality is much required.  The Amazon Natives actually used this tree to carve their canoes from.  

Spanish Cedar is also pleasingly aromatic, which lends itself to nicely to the natural flavors of the cigars.  I remember the first time I ever smelled a piece of high quality Spanish Cedar, and I was surprised by the unique spiciness of the aroma.  Then when I started doing some wood working with it, and the sawdust exponentiates the scents, and if you are not wearing a mask the spiciness can really be overpowering.

In any case, Spanish cedar over time impregnates a wonderful nuance into the cigar, and to the smoking experience.

Another quality about the Spanish cedar’s aroma is it is very resistant to the dreaded cigar beetle. Apparently these little guys hate the smell.  Another good quality.

Now something to note, that all grades of Spanish Cedar are not the same.  In fact sometimes if not kiln dried properly, it can leech out a sap that can stick to the wrapper of your cigars.  Though this sap can be cleaned alcohol, sometimes the sap can be relentless, almost never ending.  Most well made humidors have quality Spanish cedar, but some of your humidor deals you can get may have cheap Spanish cedar, or sometimes they don’t have any Spanish cedar at all and use less expensive woods to lower the over all cost.  Before buying one of these cheap humidors, be sure to give the sniff test and be sure you are getting a humidor with spicy aromatic Spanish Cedar.

Spanish Cedar has one quality that unless it is understood, can destroy your humidor.  Let me explain:  Because Spanish Cedar has great moisture absorption qualities, it also expands and contracts more than most hardwoods.  Unless your humidor is built to accommodate this expansion and contraction, you may find that the joints of a cheap humidor can blow out on you, or the lid could either seal shut, or be too loose and not seal at all.  This is one reason to be sure that you should be sure you are purchasing a quality humidor, or you may be replacing it sooner than you think!

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