Why Does This Happen

[kuma]

Not sure why or how to stop this from happening so I'm all ears from FOH

members input.  This is my issue.  It seems that everytime I start smoking Panetelas or long skinnies

after about maybe 5 or 6 puffs or almost half way through the cigar I get a tar / nicotine buildup.

This is driving me crazy.  I've stopped smoking the ones I have at home for fear of

running into this problem having to either cut down the cigar or chuck it.

Also before I smoke the cigar I dry box for about a day or two and with a panetelas it does not take

to long to get them dry.

Not sure what the problem is.  I know my humidor rh level is arounf 67 / 68 which could be

part of the problem but as I have stated I dry box these skinnies for a day or two.

And I've easied up on smoking to fast when smoking these smaller ring gauged smokes.

So if any other members have this issue and have some insight please state your

success or failure when it comes to this situation.

Thanks!

 

[dicko]

I find i need to slow right down with skinnies (i smoke fast and like robustos) but you said you have already tried this. I'd be interested to see what others suggest.

Sent from my SM-N910G using Tapatalk

[kuma]

Maybe not slow enough!

[JohnS]

@kuma, try this method to enjoy your smaller ring gauged cigars. I find I use the 'double puff' method, which is a very short draw to heat up the foot of the cigar, then I take a long draw to swill and contemplate the flavour of the cigar. This second draw is usually taken very soon after the first draw. After doing so, let the cigar rest to prevent over-heating which often results in a bitter, tarry tobacco flavour you describe.

The problem I find with skinnies or smaller ring gauged cigars is that if you let them rest without using this double puff method I described above, they'll go out and they'll require to be re-lit, which I find undesirable as there always seems to be a 'charred' flavour on the first few puffs after re-lighting. If you have these cigars too wet, then you may find that you need to take multiple short puffs to keep it alight, which may result in the cigar being bitter and tarry.

I keep these cigars at 62 rh always. If I recall correctly, @PigFish mentions this drawing method in an aged Bolivar Demi Tasse video review he did recently.

[kuma]

Thanks John I'll give it a shot in the am with a Cohiba panetela and a cup of coffee.

Funny I just received the RyJ Julietas (2012) about a week ago from the 24:24 program.

Already have gone thru about 10 of them and to my amazement have not had the problem with

these.

[JohnS]

I very much enjoyed a lazy Saturday mid-morning  with an El Rey del Mundo Demi Tasse (thanks @Luca for the recommendation), a Rafael Gonzalez Perla (recommended by @Smallclub in his posts from time to time) and a Cohiba Shorts (recommended by @Lotusguy often in 'daily smoke' posts) using this 'double puff' method today.

I'll go into greater detail about these 'go-to' cigars in one of my next 'daily smoke' posts, but put it this way, all of these were fantastic flavour-bombs and I'm still gratified from the taste of these cigars on my palate hours later! 

[Professor Twain]

For me, the thing that produces that tarry problem is smoking with a wet mouth. I have to watch that, but moisture at the head of the cigar seems to be what traps the tar. Always hold the cigar in your fingers, never just leave it in your mouth to puff.

Sometimes I take a second or even a third clip of the head, if it is moist and you use your cutter to take off a bit more, you will find that it freshens the cigar right back up. This is especially true with longer cigars.

Hope this is helpful.

[NSXCIGAR]

Not that I'm diagnosing the OP's problem as such, but I thought I'd take the opportunity to point out how common and prevalent smoking a cigar too fast is. It always surprised me how common this issue is as I'm a naturally slow smoker. And I mean very slow--average Mareva smoking time for me is over an hour. A Julieta 2 takes me 2 hours solid. PL Montecarlos are also well over an hour for me.

Smoking too fast can cause a host of issues from poor burning to hotness to generally unpleasant taste. This can be caused by both aggressively drawing the cigar or drawing too often. I'd venture to guess the majority of smokers smoke too fast. Many who think they are smoking slowly aren't. Again, if a PL Montecarlos or MdO4 isn't taking you at least an hour to smoke, you're smoking too rapidly.

[RijkdeGooier]

From the OP's post I can only conclude that he either:

1) Smokes too wet causing loss of draw at the mouth pand hence overheating or,

2) Still smokes too fast, again causing overheating.

 

[miurajus]

Wisdom above is on point.  Ever have your cigar go out due to inattention?  Try seeing how long you can go before it does and you need to relight.  You mentioned a day or two, dry boxing.  How about taking one sacrificial lamb and leaving em there for the week and see how he plays out.  Lastly just take a look every now and then at where you are drawing from.  If it's starting to get soppy, give it a little wipe off and some time to evaporate.  I think those things will help you enjoy a full smoke without your tar problems.

[kuma]

 As the saying goes; "well warned is well armed" so thanks to all who sent a reply.  I will heed

the advise!

[garbandz]

do you punch or cut your cigar?

I have heard many more people have tar buildup from punching cigars.

generally smoking too fast contributes too.

I NEVER puff and then draw,this adds unnecessary heat and can lead to tar buildup.

concerning relighting,I have heard a lot of talk about bitterness after relighting,if you are drawing while lighting you will have this problem.

I never draw while lighting, and I do not have this problem.

I enjoy cigars at work, and may relight one 5 or more times.

It is never bitter because I smoke slowly and relight with a torch, but not while drawing.

[canadianbeaver]

A bunch of us would smoke together one evening, have dinner, drink and enjoy each other's brilliant company.

One of us would some how find, and the cigar would be a random one from a random humidor, black stuff on fingers and mouth, spitting and wondering wtf. Yeccchhh. 

Bad random luck I think from an organic product.

CB

[Texwrangler]

2 hours ago, Foulhook said:

I am guilty of smoking to fast sometimes. I would recommend slowing a little and also purge when you get a build up. My favorite draws are right after a purge.

Totally agree with purging from time to time.  I do this with my smokes and can really tell the difference right after purging.  Its like its been cleaned out and ready to go again with some sweet tastes.     

[PigFish]

I have never had this problem! And I mean never... I have had customers complain about it, and I have to admit I am curious about it.

I can only draw two conclusions. It either does not exist in cigars that are consistently dry throughout, OR it is a random issue as @canadianbeaver mentions. With it being random, perhaps there is no cure as it is a tobacco construction issue. On the other hand there could be contributing factors as others have mentioned; heat, water rate of change...

A friend of mine brought this up to me before and I have to admit I was baffled. There are few experiences that I have not had with a cigar (keep it clean boys and girls... -LOL) but I had no answers for this. I know he keeps cigars dryer, he is a customer...

I don't really believe in a lot of magic hocus-pocus with cigars. For me, keeping them is simple. Problems with cigars are therefore also simple. I tend to see only two problems. One problem starts at the factory and cannot be corrected. It is a group of issues dealing with construction, referred to as a construction issue! The rest is water. Water in a cigar at the time of smoking is a humidor administration issue. You either have those problems or you don't based on you ability to store consistently at the right range of rH and temperature.

Sorry if I was no help! -the Pig

[dangolf18]

Take slow puffs...don't draw too hard and let the cigar rest for a good 1-2 minutes between puffs. Panetelas get hot much quicker compared to other vitolas. Smoking a skinny correctly is sort of an art.

[WoadyCypress]

@kuma, try this method to enjoy your smaller ring gauged cigars. I find I use the 'double puff' method, which is a very short draw to heat up the foot of the cigar, then I take a long draw to swill and contemplate the flavour of the cigar. This second draw is usually taken very soon after the first draw. After doing so, let the cigar rest to prevent over-heating which often results in a bitter, tarry tobacco flavour you describe.

The problem I find with skinnies or smaller ring gauged cigars is that if you let them rest without using this double puff method I described above, they'll go out and they'll require to be re-lit, which I find undesirable as there always seems to be a 'charred' flavour on the first few puffs after re-lighting. If you have these cigars too wet, then you may find that you need to take multiple short puffs to keep it alight, which may result in the cigar being bitter and tarry.

I keep these cigars at 62 rh always. If I recall correctly, @PigFish mentions this drawing method in an aged Bolivar Demi Tasse video review he did recently.

This is my natural draw technique. Not sure why just seems normal.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk