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I’m thinking Animal House, Apocalypse Now, Repo Man! Does ‘The Song Remains the Same’ count?

1) France / 7 tries 2) Arsenal / 4 3) Celtics / 7-10 Tie Breaker - 17

From what I understand, they're the ones leftover from rolling sessions that didnt meet wrapper shade uniformity to make full boxes.

On one hand, the tubo allows for a microclimate and should increase stability (RH swings, etc from opening/closing the humidor). Point in favor of the tubo for flavor in a young cigar. On the other hand, this stability implies less moisture gradients and volatility which should mean a smoother, more stable, but slower evolution…for a young cigar, you can see why slower evolution may not be desirable. Point against the tubo for flavor in a young cigar. All this is to say, there’s a lot of factors in play…so smoke them and hopefully enjoy them.

From what I've been told touring El Laguito and the La Corona factory, the cigars that end up in tubos are the odds n ends that didn't have enough matching wrapper shades to be in full boxes. Doesn't make them less, just this one cosmetic requirement to have each box look uniform, which makes sense.

I enjoyed the Pulp Fiction sound track. For sure guardians of the galaxy also.

Let me introduce you to my 1960/61 box of Partagas Petite Coronas Tubulares. I bought it completely sealed back around 2010/11. The seller had good provenance on it. I cracked them open not too long after purchase and smoked one. For the next few years, I'd smoke 1 or 2 per year. I'm down to maybe 4/5. To me, this stands as a great example of how a tubo can age. I inspected every single stick when I opened it. Not a speck of mold anywhere to be found. The aroma is bold and zesty, with a hint of musk, just like how it smokes. In fact, just prior to typing this out, I pulled one out of the tubo and took a whiff. Pure heaven. The wrappers are gorgeous with some toothiness. This is my only full box of tubos ever. I've had 15 RjY Short Churchill 15ct Petacas and some RyJ Churchills in tubos format dating back to 2009. And while this stands as a great example, I did not learn my lesson from it. I had it in my mind to buy more tubo boxes such and Punch Punch, RyJ Churchills (short, wide, classic) and any others I could find. But I delayed pulling the trigger and chased other boxes. If I could go back in time I'd correct that course. Besides the aformentioned, I've smoked some other cool tubos over the years. 1982 Davidoff No 2. 1980 H Upmman Naturals. Some great 2008/9 Siglo II, III, IV, VI's. A couple of same era Punch Punch. There was always something "extra" when I smoked a tubo version of a regular production smoke. If you're thinking of chasing some down. Do so.

I figured it may be subjective, or perhaps the single being somewhat isolated from the others in the humidor plays a role 🤷🏼‍♂️

My immediate answer is “no,” the blends are supposed to be the same. But it’s actually an interesting question if you think about it from a blender’s perspective. If tubos tend to impart more cedar character, you could imagine scenarios where that’s desirable for a given profile and others where it isn’t. So I’d say there’s a non-zero chance some adjustments could happen in theory. That said, it would require a lot of forward planning and consistency from blenders and factory managers, so in practice I suspect most are intended to be the same blend, even if they may age or present slightly differently because of the packaging.

I would like to think it was for some practical storage/travel purposes, but the cynic in me thinks that’s the spin, and the real story is they wanted to hide ugly looking cigars that were otherwise perfectly smokeable instead of trashing or re-wrapping.

I’ve never experienced any metallic taste, but that said, I’ve often wondered about some non-cedar / benign substitutes for cedar. It’s usually a note I don’t want more of in a cigar with certain brands.

Definitely similar. Does fresh/young cedar and a tube mellow them out quickly? The same beer tastes different in a can vs bottle. Anyone have some fresh BPCs and some old tubes want to experiment and get back to us in a decade or so? Cheers

I’d say it depends on how long you plan to age them and what your goal is. Generally speaking, a tubo should slow things down, all else equal. From some scientific studies I’ve read, tobacco behavior is dominated by internal moisture diffusion, and physical properties change when water redistributes. A tubo reduces airflow at the wrapper, buffers RH swings, and traps a small microclimate. So practically speaking, it just slows how fast the cigar responds to the outside world. One benefit is it can help preserve aromatics. So if you’re planning to age something for a long time, the thinking is you may retain more flavor over time in a tubo than with a naked cigar. On the flip side, if you’re planning to smoke sooner, that slower, more protected aging may not really matter, and naked storage is probably fine.

Give us examples please. I have refrained from tubos in recent years

Very sensible answers. No one seems to have picked option E. 😁

Likely just anecdotal TBH…I don’t think anyone’s demonstrated with data (collating reviews or blind taste test) to definitively say recent tubos are better than non tubos. Could be someone’s experience and then the power of suggestion.

I’ve done/do A, B, and C…and I’ll throw in an extra, let’s call it Aa Depends on the stick, how old it is, how long I plan to age it, and how experimental I’m feeling. Sometimes with the same box of tubos I’ll mix it up and do all 4. *Aa = after inspecting, I’ll put the cap on slightly -not enough to tighten it, so think like it’s just cracked open

H. Upmann Magnum 46 Tubo: SEM ABR 08 🔸 PRE-LIGHT • Appearance: medium brown wrapper, minor veins and seams; no soft spots • Aroma off Wrapper: mild sweet tobacco • Cold Draw Notes: creamy cocoa ⸻ 🔥 FIRST THIRD • Initial Flavors: very pleasant creamy woody and nutty cashew notes; mineral twang • Body: medium; very smooth with good smoke output • Strength: medium • Draw: perfect ⸻ 🔥 SECOND THIRD • Flavor Development / Transition: a touch richer and some mild pepper and baking spice notes appear • Balance: creamy, smooth • Construction: perfect light grey ash, even burn line, ideal rate, no touch ups or relights ⸻ 🔥 FINAL THIRD • Strength Increase: slight • Harshness or Heat: some but minor • Strength: medium+ • Final Flavor Impressions: creamy woody with intermittent nuts and an overall twangy mineral note; develops into baking spices and mild pepper and finishes with a rich leathery note ⸻ 🧮 COMPOSITE SCORE (Out of 100) 1. Appearance - minor imperfections or veins, slight color variation: 4/5 ⸻ 2. Burn & Draw - even burn, solid ash, no relights or corrections; ideal draw: 15/15 ⸻ 3. Flavor (Balance & Complexity) - rich, harmonious flavors with multiple transitions or layers: 23/25 ⸻ 4. Body & Strength Integration - strength and body are well balanced; neither overwhelms: 10/10 ⸻ 5. Finish / Aftertaste - medium finish, clean but not super flavorful: 8/10 ⸻ 6. Enjoyment / X-Factor - memorable, would smoke again soon: 13/15 ⸻ 7. Aroma (Pre-light & Retrohale) - light but enjoyable aroma; pleasant retro: 4/5 ⸻ 8. Consistency Across Thirds - flavor and burn were steady or improved throughout: 14/15 ⸻ TOTAL SCORE: 91/100 (excellent score; I’d say top 10% go 90+ for me)

I love well aged Cuban cigars. Buying young and aging myself was always my preference but as I’m up in years now I will pay the premium for aged stock if it’s not crazy money. Still I am buying young stuff because I can’t seem to help myself.

It wasn't until I joined the forum that I started to view tubos as more than just "a thing." After reading FOH review threads, there seems to be a consensus that recent cigars in tubos smoke better than their non-tubo counterparts. I currently only have two types of tubos: 2x3 CoRos '22 and 2x10 RyJ Churchills '23. I've smoked 2 CoRos which were stored naked, now the others are back in their clothes without a cap. Given that I've only been smoking Cubans for a few years, I'd like to pose a question to you all: Why are recent CCs smoking better in tubos than non-tubos? Is there a sweet science that I've yet to discuss? Educate me like I'm 5!

I use method A for small packs because they are easier to fit in the humidor. I use method D for large amounts, but the cigars go into a wood slide box, then in the humidor.

I don’t really see much similarity between them. They both have a distinct Bolivar taste, but the BPC’s are sharp and in your face, the Tubos No.2 are more balanced.

At the factory level, are cigars destined for tubos rolled or selected differently (draw, wrapper tolerance, bunching), or are standard production cigars simply diverted into tubes after rolling?

Mostly not a big difference between Tubos and SLB from my experience but definitely over DB. Still if I had the choice I would almost always choose Tubos over SLB. Tubos age best for my taste.

Guess I should get in now in case the time is screwed up! 😂 I kid, I kid.........or do I? LOL