Inward burn, touch up, purge, inward burn. You get the idea. Every friggin dark wrappered cigar that I smoke does this! Undercrown, #9's, Partagas Blacks, My Fathers...you name it. It does it. Smoked an Illusione 4/2 just now, same $hit. It had been in my humidor for 3 weeks Boveda'd at 65%. Just to make sure I wasn't going crazy I lit up a 5 Vegas gold, Connecticut, and am almost to the band with a dead nuts perfect burn. WTF??? Do the liga's need to be burning hotter? Should I dry box the one I want to smoke for a few days beforehand or should I just stay the F away from really dark wrappered cigars? LOL!
Inward burn, touch up, inward burn, touch up....
- Thread starter SSimp
- Start date
javajunkie
BoM July '12
1) are you sure of the humidity? recently calibrated digital hygro?
2) how quick or slow are you smoking? i have found my success rate went WAY up when i slowed down.
2) how quick or slow are you smoking? i have found my success rate went WAY up when i slowed down.
Tobacco Giant
Conn. Broadleaf Slayer
Sounds like he may be smoking too slow!
Herfin' Harg
BoM March 2012
This goes beyond speculative, but I'd bet you that the darker flavor profile leads you to purge/spit more often...
This should probably be common sense, but it took a while for it to really sink in with me:
If you're having trouble keeping something lit, don't purge. I know everyone says "purge and relight", but that's shortsighted. When you purge, though you may well be expelling a small volume stagnant smoke, you're also forcing a hot lungful of moist air through a stick that's already having burn issues and/or staying lit. Just relight the wrapper like you were touching up the burn, then once it's glowing, blow down into the cherry (from a respectable distance), and it'll light right back up. Ta-da!
This should probably be common sense, but it took a while for it to really sink in with me:
If you're having trouble keeping something lit, don't purge. I know everyone says "purge and relight", but that's shortsighted. When you purge, though you may well be expelling a small volume stagnant smoke, you're also forcing a hot lungful of moist air through a stick that's already having burn issues and/or staying lit. Just relight the wrapper like you were touching up the burn, then once it's glowing, blow down into the cherry (from a respectable distance), and it'll light right back up. Ta-da!
njstone
BoM January 2010
Agreed. The only reason to purge a cigars is if it starts tasting nasty.
As far as keeping the wrapper lit--touch it up more often, and employ a double-puff ... Take a nice draw, and then a few seconds later (when the wrapper gets going) take another. I use this any cigars that has a thick wrapper (LPs ... Most broadleaf sticks actually). It works well for controlling burn and gets you more flavor out of the wrapper.
Humidity is spot on. I'm trying to go as slow as I can without letting it go out but I'm going the same speed with the Connecticut wrappered cigars and having no trouble. Wierd,I know.
I very rarely have excessive saliva whether it's with a maduro or Connecticut wrapper. I'll try the relighting trick next time, but man, I hate relighting.
Cigary43
Just Another Ashhole
I keep my RH at 65% for this reason alone and there is no guarantee for a perfect burn but when we get them...we measure every cigar after that one with what we experienced. A nice long leisurely draw after a first short draw usually does well for me and carrying a torch for 'touch ups' tends to keep my OCD under control for a good burn.
Tobacco Giant
Conn. Broadleaf Slayer
Excess saliva or not, your exhalation contains very moist air, it's the reason you'll fog up a mirror if you exhale all over it.
Edit - and for reference I keep my t52s at 65% and have never had an issue. Man, I love me some t52.
Double edit - but I agree, it doesn't make sense (to me, at least) why it would only happen with darker sticks.
javajunkie
BoM July '12
darker cigars frequently have both heavier and oilier wrapper tobacco. CBL for example is used on so many maduro cigars BECAUSE it is a thick ugly bastich of a leaf that can stand up to the heat generated in maduro curing without disintegrating. my guess would be that it takes more work energy or time to combust evenly. introducing more moisture from a purge would slow down the burn more than it would on, say, a thin fragile and tasty CT shade or cameroon.
/speculation
njstone
BoM January 2010
This is exactly right I think. That's why I do a double-puff on thick wrappers like CBL--the wrapper isn't burning until the end of the first puff, so you miss out if you don't take that 2nd puff!
ciggy
"TommyBoy"
I posted about my Liga's earlier and the whole burn issue. I've learned to just drybox them the day before and I know my humi is 65%. Sometimes I think maybe where I live playes a roll...like outside temp and moisture/humidity can play an adverse effect as well with these blends.
Herfin' Harg
BoM March 2012
Whereabouts in DFW are you? I'm gonna be up there a lot over the next few weeks.
I have had this issue when the humidity outside was way high, dryboxing or finding a nice place inside to smoke fixed my woes, i almost forgot to add i have(or had) this issue with some punch champions, it would do it when it started to taper off after the 60 rg
I can believe that... I notice subtle differences in burn on the same sticks under different weather conditions here, and our weather doesn't change that much; a 20 degree difference in ambient temps (70, down to 50) with a sharp increase in ambient RH has caused burn issues on a few "thick'n'oily" sticks.
Trophy Club. About 20 minutes north of Fort Worth, near Roanoke. Hit me up when you're up this way and we'll burn one!
Herfin' Harg
BoM March 2012
Ooof... I'll be over in Lower Greenville, but maybe we can split the difference and hit Elite or somesuch over in Addison.