2016 Regular Production Double Coronas and Churchills

[JohnS]

@Mattb82's recent topic on Petit Coronas got me thinking about longer cigars, especially in consideration of @earthson's reply in that topic. Whilst I don't mind the ring gauge (47 rg on a Churchill, 49rg on a Double Corona) I don't seem to smoke enough of these, I always seem to reach for the shorter and standard ring gauge cigars by preference. Do you do the same? Give me 2 hours to enjoy a cigar and I find I'll nearly always try to fit a Minuto/Perla or Petit Corona in there!

So let's have a look at current regular production of Double Coronas and Churchills...

 What cigar from this list do you tend to gravitate to and why? One common reason why cigar enthusiasts may not reach for longer cigars is due to a perceived lack of complexity for the time it takes to smoke them. Do you find this true or not? (The table above was screen captured from an advanced search at Cuban Cigar Website here)

A couple of points to consider...

• The Romeo y Julieta Churchill topped @El Presidente's 2015 poll after being 'out-of-favour' for a time
• The Bolivar Corona Gigantes is currently in @El Presidente's top 5 cigars coming out of Cuba at the moment
• The Quai d'Orsay Imperiales and Saint Luis Rey Double Corona are rumoured to be discontinued
• The H.Upmann Sir Winston is a seasonal production cigar and I have no doubt would sell out within minutes if offered for sale on an upcoming 24:24
• The San Cristobal de La Habana El Morro is currently not available amongst retailers. This doesn't mean it won't return nor it isn't available at your retailer.(Incidentally, the same applies for the El Rey del Mundo Choix Supreme, Saint Luis Rey Serie A and Diplomaticos No.2)

[Mattb82]

Great topic, following closely. My problem is I find something I really like (robusto) and don't branch out enough 

[Mattb82]

I'm very interested in the Hoyo double corona 

[David88]

I enjoy punch DCs and lusitanias but I am still waiting to appreciate the RnJ churchills. The ones I have had didn't do much for me. 

I do find though that I tend to pass them over too, even when I do have enough time for a larger cigar. I would hate for something to come up after an hour and have to pitch a DC, so I typically grab something smaller. 

With the temperature here hitting -30 today I think it's safe to say that double corona time has passed for this year but I will be looking to try the bolivar corona gigantes and RAG next summer. 

[Bohn007]

For me it's simply not having enough time to smoke a 7 1/2 inch cigar on most occasions. 

[fabes]

Big fan of the the Imperiales here. I generally enjoy all the churchill and double corona in the lineup right now. I tend to do a lot of studying or longer work sessions on the weekends so the time is there and in some circumstances I pick longer cigars because it will force me to dedicate a couple hours to that studying. Then they become contemplative cigars. And when you have other things to focus on sometimes the complexity or evolution of the cigar becomes more apparent. 

 

I tend to enjoy the VR Don Alejandro, Imperiales, recent RyC churchill, And RAG the most. The Hoyo DC is the forgotten child to me. Better suited for a lazy morning than evening closer. 

[JLFIRST]

I smoke many of the RyJ Churchills, Bolivar Corona Gigantes, El Morros and Sir Winnies. I tend to favor the longer cigars than the shorter but I smoke inside always and always what I want.

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[Danimalia]

I'm still new at this, but I've had good luck with the big cigars. The Bolivar CG and Punch DC, in particular, really impress me. I'm actually smoking my first RyJ Churchill right now, and it's also a very nice smoke. They take some time to smoke, but not IMO, comparable to similarly-sized NCs. The Bolivars were ~ 90 minute smokes, and the Punch just a hair under 2 hours. I do need to set aside time to smoke them, but not to the point where I have to re-arrange my schedule for them.

 

[JohnS]

Consider further, for those of you who have sampled some of these below, cigars of yesteryear that have been discontinued...

(The table above was screen captured from an advanced search at Cuban Cigar Website here)

Which of these do you wish could return to regular production? Of these, I wish I could have the El Rey del Mundo Tainos and the La Gloria Cubana Tainos return.

[zeedubbya]

I find myself smoking Churchills way more than DCs.  For some reason I can't explain it seems there's a vast difference in time needed between these two vitolas.  Maybe it's the ring gauge.  I would say I like the Sir Winston and Lusitania about equally as well but I have been reaching for a Winnie way more than a Lusi lately.  I smoked an SLRDC around Halloween this year while giving out candy and I felt like it took forever to get it to the nub.  Was great the whole way, but I noticed it taking forever.  Even though it's only 1/2" or so it just seems DCs go on and on and on.  Those are the 3 I favor more than any others with the BCG coming in 4th.  

[subport]

Nice thread. Well, I am like you love the pc/minutos size. I just feel almost everything is packed in those what a brand represents. Love the size and the smoking time. With two small kids (5,2) around there are always things to do. However am a regular smoker of some above. Lets see

- RyJ churchill

-Bolivar Corona Gigantes

-H.Upmann Sir Winston

-Partagas Lusitanias 

and occasonally Esplendidos and RAG. Why? All of them has a beautiful character. What I like in there is the exact opposite of the smaller cigars. Instead of the punch there is the smooth  easy start to begin with and building up from there to different levels. Because of its size there are more changes and small nuances to pick up on the way. They are just different animals. But time is an issue there...

The past summer was extremely good and easy for me. I was at home 60+ days with my kids on paternity leave. Was the best summer in my life. The weather was great. The icelandic summer can be from sh*t to ok. However this one was fantastic. Hottest, driest in the last 3 decades. Gave me lot of opportunities to smoke churchills and dc's. Went through a box of ryj ch and boli gigantes. Wonderful cigars. I am there with Rob. They were and still are the best churchills out of cuba from 14...

 

would love to see the lgc tainos, erdm tainos and partagas churchill de luxe back. smoked a sancho churchill with Mus last december and we agreed it was good smoke but not great...

[Randolph]

I'm just into the last half hour of a Vegas Robaina Don Alejandro. They've been resting in the humidor for a year. Having just moved to Melbourne, and come across a nice sunny day, I thought I'd take out the only imperfect cigar of the 25 VRDJ I have and give it a go. It had a split to the first third. Once I battled past the first third the cigar turned out to be spectacular. Full flavour, oodles of smoke, and pairing it with a thick glass of sherry. A wonderful 2 hour smoke. The pair almost creates a Christmas feeling.

 

Wishing for a Sir Winnie but never able to find them.

 

 

[Fataman]

I smoke PC and robustos more than any other sizes. The reason for this is two fold. Firstly, when it comes time to purchasing cigars I always find it easier to justify the price of the smaller vitolas and I thus tend to shy away from larger formats. Secondly, when I open my humi I tend to gravitate to smaller vitolas because of the time factor and I'm always worried I'll grab a large cigar and something will get in the way of me finishing it.

Having said that I mostly bought large size customs on my recent Cuban trip. So I guess I'll now make an effort to smoke more larger cigars. I'm also dieing to try the Boli Gigantes as I love the marca so I see this as a definite near future purchase.

[Guest Robusto 107]

six and a half inch is my limit already.

[s1911]

I love the Lusitanias and have always been a fan of RYJ Churchills.. don't know about recent production boxes though on the RYJ's but I'm looking to get some more. The Sir Winston's seem to always be excellent, and Esplendidos are fairly consistent.

I need to get a better Bolivar Gigante box because mine from 2007 are all tight, but I've had others that were incredible.

My list in order would be:

Lusitanias

Sir Winston

RYJ

Esplendido

 

I know you said 2016 but If you can find them, the Bolivar Churchills and Partagas Churchill Deluxe are both excellent.

Bolivar's from 2000:

 

 

 

Partagas Churchills De Luxe 2002

[Duxnutz]

No '16s but 2015 RyJ churchills and HDM DCs are very good. Like lusitanias and Punch with age on em usually.

[BrightonCorgi]

I split a recent box of QdO Imperiales; Okay smoke nothing special.  Flavors are muted, it could just need more time to age?  Early 2000's production was better for QdO. 

If I wanted a lighter Churchill, the LGO Tainos are my preferred.

[JohnInCleveland]

Went very deep on winnies after having my first, so I have enough to probably last me 15 years.  There's something about a large format cigar that feels made for special occasions and aging, and the fact that it's hard to find the time for them makes sure they actually get to age.

[PigFish]

On 11/18/2016 at 7:12 PM, Mattb82 said:

Great topic, following closely. My problem is I find something I really like (robusto) and don't branch out enough 

... have not picked through much of the thread before I found my first place to comment. Simple really, this is not a problem!

Perception of what is expected as a smoker could be a problem, as I see it. What is really wrong with smoking what one likes and sticking with it? Again, I don't see a problem here.

While I realize that the statement from the poster is likely of the rhetorical nature, I see this mindset of 'I must move out of my box,' as totally unnecessary. I will refrain from writing all the necessary caveats to my comments, such as experimentation is certainly a spice of life, yet having been wrangled and trapped into this mindset myself, as I was as a newer smoker, in hindsight, I now regret some of the purchase decisions that I made based on this very assumption.

To each of us this will mean something different. To @Mattb82, if this were a different thread I may very well say, try this or try that... My advice might be, step out of your box!!! -LOL Yet I do find that in my state, or stage of smoking development, I find that experimentation is of very little importance to me.

I have often postulated that smokers mature. In many ways I suspect that I could even write that as stagnate, or fall prey to their own comfort zone. In any event, I turned the comment into a think-piece, and that was my intent. Is there something wrong with knowing what you like and staying with it???

Cheers! -Piggy

[PigFish]

@JohnS

I could likely write tomes on this. It is simpler to say that much of my Churchill and larger format smoking days are over. I may have a couple hundred of these larger format cigars at most, and if I actually smoke two a year that would last me the rest of my life. As of today, I can see no reason for me to buy another box of these cigars! For the most part, I have too many now! I will make the exception of another box of Upmann SW. I have not had a box in well over a decade and it would be nice, to have another box.

From my end, perhaps I would smoker more of these if they were better. Better, is relative to what I commonly smoke as an alternative. I happen to think the day of the Churchill is largely over. They are overshadowed by limited run cigars and other larger ring formats.

The size of the cigar is one problem, the waste and time elements are important to me. Furthermore, moving into the 2K's, I have found that these cigars don't have the character that I believe that they once had. There was a reason to buy these for the price when they were great cigars. I could see buying a 50 cab, again, when they were great cigars! I would never even consider that today... The current production of 25 or 35% undefiled cigars, makes me feel that I have tossed that money in the trash... There are of course also my taste considerations which are not at all complementary to larger formats.

I will continue on my course of buying smaller formats when I buy. I am also standing by my belief that I don't want too many cigars from one time period. While I would gladly trade all my newer cigars for those from years where I thought that they were better, that is hindsight.

To sum it all up, there is no reason for me to buy Churchills today and I won't be.

Perhaps later I can add some smoking experiences with many of the cigar on the lists, but not today!!! Cheers -Piggy

[El Hoze]

I smoke alot of larger formats as I live in Miami so I smoke outdoors or with the windows open inside. Larger formats seem to be what I crave when I come home after a few days traveling and either not smoking or smoking smaller cigars wherever I can. It's more of an experience! My favorites: 

-Sir Winston, I buy as many boxes as I can find and still need to ration them a bit. 

-Upmann Monarcas, still have a few boxes and the 2003s now are great cigars. One I'd love to see brought back. 

-Esplendidos, running low on anything w more than a few years on it. Great cigar though obviously carries a premium cost. Not sure it's worth it but we only live once. 

-Lusitanias, though totally agree w @zeedubbya that the difference between the commitment on a DC and a churchill is substantial. I enjoy a prolonged experience but often times I stop short of reaching for the Lusi. I buy alot of them so hopefully I have more time on my hands later in life. 

 

[QuaiDorkay]

On 11/19/2016 at 0:40 AM, fabes said:

Big fan of the the Imperiales here. I generally enjoy all the churchill and double corona in the lineup right now. I tend to do a lot of studying or longer work sessions on the weekends so the time is there and in some circumstances I pick longer cigars because it will force me to dedicate a couple hours to that studying. Then they become contemplative cigars. And when you have other things to focus on sometimes the complexity or evolution of the cigar becomes more apparent. 

 

I tend to enjoy the VR Don Alejandro, Imperiales, recent RyC churchill, And RAG the most. The Hoyo DC is the forgotten child to me. Better suited for a lazy morning than evening closer. 

^^This^^

[MrGlass]

There is nothing quite like a Double Corona and they are one of my favourite vitolas.  Sure I could have two shorter cigars in the time it takes to smoke one, but there is just something special about a Double Corona that makes it much more satisfying, to me at least.  That being said, I have none on hand at home and have only just started putting a couple of boxes away in the OLH.  @Fataman summed up my feelings pretty well - it's easier to justify the price of the smaller vitolas (especially here in Australia), and there is always the difficulty of having sufficient time to finish one.  So how can I say such positive things about them?

For me, the Double Corona is the perfect social cigar.  For any occasion or get together with cigar enthusiasts, I think there is nothing better than a Double Corona.  Because they develop slowly, they are easily enjoyed in a passive approach.  And in these situations, they offer good value for money compared to smoking multiple smaller sticks.  I suppose this is why I look on them so favourably - when I think of a Double Corona, I think not only of the cigars themselves, but the positive and enjoyable environments I have always smoked them in.  

From the current regular production list, I gravitate to the Hoyo de Monterrey, Partagas, Ramon Allones and Vegas Robaina offerings.  I would love to get my hands on some Sir Winston's and Esplendidos as I haven't managed to try either, but the obscene price of the Esplendidos rules them out while the Sir Winston's lack of recent production has proven challenging in its own right.

[PapaDisco]

I love the ring to length ratio of corona gordas and Churchills, so when I've got the time I'm mostly reaching for a Churchill or its big brother the DC.  Of this list, within current production, that means a BCG or Punch DC.  Right behind those are my Sir Winnies, but Sir Winston isn't second place because of quality, it's mostly just because I'm trying to stretch my stock of Sir Winstons until I find more for the humi.  But BCG's and Punch DC's have been so good and so reliable that I've really been favoring them of late.

Not far behind are the R&J Churchills, Lusitanias and HdM DC's.  I find myself thinking these three benefit greatly by resting that first year or two, whereas the BCG, Punch and Sir Winnie are more ready to go (although these three would be happy with 5 years on them).  

RA Gigantes I've also enjoyed fresh, but my stock of these is so low that I've stashed them down deep for a long sleep.  If I had 10 boxes I'd be burning up a couple right now, but with only two boxes I don't want to waste these on an early burn.

[TheBaron]

When I can find the time I love sitting back and enjoying 2-plus hours of relaxation with a DC in hand. Inevitably, it'll be with an HDM DC. With a bit of age on it, it's probably my favourite 'unwind' cigar and I've recently purchased a cab from Rob that are currently having a 'sleep'.

The evolution of an HDM DC is magical. The taste varies from mild cream and coffee to medium-full espresso and toasted tobacco. That's right up my alley. If only I could find two spare hours a day, I'd be a happy piggy smoking these alone. But then again, as Piggy says, perhaps I should just stay in my alley. It's a really good alley.