Wow.....Amazing how the snowball effect always occurs in these threads!!
Like I said originally, I am not doubting anyone or anything here...Just wondering why this is so.
I agree that if a great cigar is from Cuba, Kansas, New Guinea, or Downtown Los Angeles; if it's a great cigar, then it's a great cigar. Period.
I have been smoking mostly Cubans for the past 21 years, and can count on one hand the number of times I have seen anything but a light to dark grey ash. I am no expert, but I am just wondering what may be causing what seems to be an anomaly.
Maybe Hiroshi is growing leaves in this blend with different methods? Maybe he is using some experimental fermentation process? I have no idea, but it's intriguing to me to find out why the ash on these are so different, that's all.
Pg 6 MRN book,
Ash:
"The Black/Grey/White color of a cigar ash has been a hot topic of many authorities on cigars. Whatever I have read or whatever explanations are offered for the different colors, I notice there is one thing in common: the writer offers no proof of what he says.
I might have a real explanation which you can test for yourself.
Try this. Thorch the black/Grey ashes. They become white. The black Grey ashes are due to incomplete combustion. The black particles might be partially burnt organic molecules, because they are too large to be combustible.
A white ash means near complete combustion. A white ash means the cigar burns better. This might be the result of the breaking down of complex molecules, by the fermentation process, or the breaking down of tannin long chained polymers with age.
A whiter ash offers a plausible explanation as to why cigars get stronger in taste in the first few years. Substances too complicated to burn remain in the ash as black particles. With time, these substances become combustible and the cigar becomes stronger. This happens most commonly with cigars which have a bitter or harsh green taste when new.
Please note that a cigar with a white ash may only be skin deep. The wrapper ash may be white but whats inside is still grey. Look vertically at the foot of the cigar and you will see clearly.
The ash of a cigar nearly always begins to turn white by 5 to 6 years of age. By 30 years old the ash of most cigars has become snow white.
It is intriguing that some young cigars have a white ash. A young cigar with a white ash nearly always taste smooth.
The meaning of a white ash means better complete combustion. It is in no way related to the long term aging process, in which complex mysterious chemical reactions take place and are practically not understood.
A cigar in a box in which others have a white ash but which has a grey ash in particular could mean two things:
The humidity of that particular cigar when smoked may not be optimal, either too dry or too moist, which hinders proper combustion.
The smoking technique might not be the best. Drawing too quickly or too frequently also results in undesirable combustion of tobacco."
Just a thought:
Maybe he used a older aged wrapper? If not aged wrapper then MRN simply states the wrapper although young is just combusting much better then the average cigar of the same time frame.
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