Premium Malta Cigar Humidor - Piano Black & Walnut Burl Wood with Decorative Inlay, Spanish Cedar Tray, Glass Hygrometer & Crystal Humidifier, Lock & Key - Holds 85-135 Cigars - Perfect for Home, Office or Cigar Lounge Storage

This “Merino” model was purchased to replace an old humidor that developed hinge problems. Let me say upfront that I am not trying to cherish any Kennedy Era Cubans. I am just keeping some decent cigars from deteriorating before we destroy them by fire, so my selection criteria were modest. I found that virtually all humidors available in this price range are basically an MDF box, which is ok if done correctly. But most appeared to be finished with some type of plastic laminate. This laminate mimics everything from fake wood grain or marquetry, to Americana or Old Maps motifs, etc. In my opinion many of these plastic finishes do not look that good and may be of doubtful durability. Many also have distracting embellishments like glass panels, brass-colored handles or filigrees, tiny locks, etc. Frankly I would not have been surprised to next see LED lighting, remote controls, or MP3 speakers, so I was getting a bit discouraged. Then I came across the Merino model in this review. It looked pleasingly plain. (Yes, it does have a tiny lock, but I had abandoned any hope of avoiding that feature.) The finish uses real wood veneers instead of plastic. This is nicely rendered in walnut and teak, with some inlay to give it visual interest without being gaudy. While the seller’s photographs made the finish appear satin or matte, which I would have preferred for durability, this finish is a much higher gloss. But it well applied, so not a problem. The cedar lining and tray are also nicely done. The seal passes the dollar bill test. (Close a bill in the edge of the box and see if the box has a good grip on it). And once seasoned, the box does an acceptable job of maintaining relative humidity. The humidor was well packaged and arrived in good condition. For some reason it did not include the hygrometer mentioned in the product description, but the seller quickly sent one at my request. Overall, I like the Merino a lot. Not cheap, but it looks good and works well.