FOHrensics Video Experiment: Dunking A Cigar In Water

[Colt45]

5 minutes ago, Gamehawker said:

I could not see on the video, did you dunk the dried out cigar cap or foot first in the water?

Unclipped head first. I think it's somewhat important to keep in mind that rinsing a wrapper really doesn't allow for soaking / major absorption. I'm assuming (but obviously can't know) that our panel dunked versus rinsing for convenience. The cigar should certainly not become "waterlogged".

[luckme10]

Next FOHrensics experiment idea. Does being drunk improve the taste of the cigar? 3 parts, 3 levels of drunkenness.

 

[benfica_77]

Starting selling FOH cigar dunking glasses and FOH water for dunking purposes lol  

[cigaraholic]

I just lick the cigar.....why waste water?

[MoeFOH]

On 11/10/2018 at 10:42 AM, luckme10 said:

Next FOHrensics experiment idea. Does being drunk improve the taste of the cigar? 3 parts, 3 levels of drunkenness.

 

This idea appeals to me a great deal. 

[MoeFOH]

On 11/10/2018 at 6:24 AM, Colt45 said:

Unclipped head first. I think it's somewhat important to keep in mind that rinsing a wrapper really doesn't allow for soaking / major absorption. I'm assuming (but obviously can't know) that our panel dunked versus rinsing for convenience. The cigar should certainly not become "waterlogged".

Correct on all counts. Unclipped head first. Dunking was much easier to show on camera, and it brings a level of uniformity to the amount of water applied. 

[stunod]

I can’t  believe my eyes. It actually worked. Blown away.

[dimi68]

As others stated a 4th cigar perfect humidified & dunked compared to first would be very interesting.

Perhaps a two cigar retest would be beneficial? 

[Trimming]

The most romantic legend we hear about is probably the one about the virgin thighs. In the past, the selection of wrapper leaves was not made in a standing position. The ladies working in the factory were seated when they extracted the leaves from the bale for their allocation according to type, size and quality. The leaves were piled up on their thighs and pressed with a hand movement.

The wetting the cigar before smoking is a practice originated before the existence of humidors. In the 30’s, gentlemen in the English clubs used soak the head of their cigars in cognac or other spirits because the sticks were dry. Only after having left the cigars in the drink for a little while, they could proceed with the cutting. Today there are connoisseurs experimenting with the wetting of the wrapper with water as this is said to slow down the drying of the filler and to provide improved organoleptic qualities in the cigar. So for some this practice might be a legend, for other smokers not.

As to warming up the cigar body before lighting it, here is the story. In ‘800, in Spain, cigars were wrapped using a bitter glue, very different from the ones used today (which are flavorless). The bitter, heavier glue dissolved with warmth, so smokers used to move a flame along the body of the cigar multiple times to melt the glue. Some people today, especially in high-end venues, still observe this as a ceremony, they believe the cigar will be better so. Sometimes of course the wrapper can burn and that is not better for sure.

Another myth – the strength of a cigar is indicated by its color.  Until the 60’s, Cuban brands were in fact mirroring the wrapper color to the strength of the ligada. Brand characteristics were represented through the different wrapper colors and customers even just asked for a claro or a maduro and they used to get the brand and strength of their like.
Now, Zino Davidoff wrote his “The Connoisseur’s Book of The Cigar” in 1967, therefore his statement in page 36, “The strength of a cigar is indicated by its color“, followed by “a good smoker should be able to judge the strength of a cigar by the relatively dark or light color of its wrapping” needs to be read with the historical context in mind.
Since the 70’s, Cubatabaco started to respond to demand for a much wider variety of blends and the color of the wrapper no longer appeared stamped on the cigar boxes.

What is also interesting is that Davidoff further states, in page 37: “It is not true that a dark cigar has more nicotine than a light cigar (in fact, I believe the opposite is true. The inside of a green cigar is darker in order to make up for what the wrapper loses in body due to lack of aging and fermentation).” Reading this in the same chapter where he declared “The darker the cigar, the stronger the taste” or “Light smokers look askance at the heavy-bodied cigars: they find they (…) carry too much nicotine“, I personally believe that strength, taste and body might have been used in interchangeable way in the book or in its translation (unfortunately I have not yet been able to find the original French version) . This might have confused some readers. I might be right or wrong, however, in order to avoid any of such confusion, Cigar Sense does not adopt the term “body” in its cigar evaluation taxonomy.

You are very welcome to add any other legend of which you know the origin..

 

References:

Cigarsence
– La Nicotiana Tabacum, Claudio Sgroi (Mombacho Cigars), article published on Sigari! (Italian Cigar Club Association) issue 10-2012
– The Connoisseur’s Book of The Cigar, Zino Davidoff, 1967, 2nd English translation 1984, McGraw-Hill Book Company
– Avana nel Corazon, Gianfranco Plenizio, 1998, Mursia
– The Tobacconist Handbook, Jorge L. Armenteros, Tobacconist University

[yhomas]

My father in law will generally lick most of the wrapper of his cigar (keep in mind his humidor did not have anything to raise the humidity) prior to lighting.  Now I understand why.  

[blakeLA]

On 11/15/2018 at 10:09 PM, Trimming said:

The most romantic legend we hear about is probably the one about the virgin thighs. In the past, the selection of wrapper leaves was not made in a standing position. The ladies working in the factory were seated when they extracted the leaves from the bale for their allocation according to type, size and quality. The leaves were piled up on their thighs and pressed with a hand movement.

The wetting the cigar before smoking is a practice originated before the existence of humidors. In the 30’s, gentlemen in the English clubs used soak the head of their cigars in cognac or other spirits because the sticks were dry. Only after having left the cigars in the drink for a little while, they could proceed with the cutting. Today there are connoisseurs experimenting with the wetting of the wrapper with water as this is said to slow down the drying of the filler and to provide improved organoleptic qualities in the cigar. So for some this practice might be a legend, for other smokers not.

As to warming up the cigar body before lighting it, here is the story. In ‘800, in Spain, cigars were wrapped using a bitter glue, very different from the ones used today (which are flavorless). The bitter, heavier glue dissolved with warmth, so smokers used to move a flame along the body of the cigar multiple times to melt the glue. Some people today, especially in high-end venues, still observe this as a ceremony, they believe the cigar will be better so. Sometimes of course the wrapper can burn and that is not better for sure.

Another myth – the strength of a cigar is indicated by its color.  Until the 60’s, Cuban brands were in fact mirroring the wrapper color to the strength of the ligada. Brand characteristics were represented through the different wrapper colors and customers even just asked for a claro or a maduro and they used to get the brand and strength of their like.
Now, Zino Davidoff wrote his “The Connoisseur’s Book of The Cigar” in 1967, therefore his statement in page 36, “The strength of a cigar is indicated by its color“, followed by “a good smoker should be able to judge the strength of a cigar by the relatively dark or light color of its wrapping” needs to be read with the historical context in mind.
Since the 70’s, Cubatabaco started to respond to demand for a much wider variety of blends and the color of the wrapper no longer appeared stamped on the cigar boxes.

What is also interesting is that Davidoff further states, in page 37: “It is not true that a dark cigar has more nicotine than a light cigar (in fact, I believe the opposite is true. The inside of a green cigar is darker in order to make up for what the wrapper loses in body due to lack of aging and fermentation).” Reading this in the same chapter where he declared “The darker the cigar, the stronger the taste” or “Light smokers look askance at the heavy-bodied cigars: they find they (…) carry too much nicotine“, I personally believe that strength, taste and body might have been used in interchangeable way in the book or in its translation (unfortunately I have not yet been able to find the original French version) . This might have confused some readers. I might be right or wrong, however, in order to avoid any of such confusion, Cigar Sense does not adopt the term “body” in its cigar evaluation taxonomy.

You are very welcome to add any other legend of which you know the origin..

 

References:
– La Nicotiana Tabacum, Claudio Sgroi (Mombacho Cigars), article published on Sigari! (Italian Cigar Club Association) issue 10-2012
– The Connoisseur’s Book of The Cigar, Zino Davidoff, 1967, 2nd English translation 1984, McGraw-Hill Book Company
– Avana nel Corazon, Gianfranco Plenizio, 1998, Mursia
– The Tobacconist Handbook, Jorge L. Armenteros, Tobacconist University

Interesting history!  I had never heard of anyone dunking a stick in water and was initially horrified by the prospect, and then shocked by the results of the video.  As others have said, I'm curious if there is any benefit to dunking a properly humidified stick.

[ATGroom]

Several years ago I was smoking in a hot tub when I accidentally discovered the dunk technique. Have sworn by it ever since. 

[KRunch61]

What? Rob was the only one who couldn't secure a sponsor for this vid??

[Hammer Smokin']

well, people have been "christening" the joints for as long as I can remember.

it is the same principle at work.

we always moisten a joint before smoking.

makes complete sense that the same practice would work for cigars.

[BuzzArd]

I wonder, is it possible that the severely acrid taste of the dry cigar made it seem like the third cigar which dunked was extra mild and smooth, and in fact it was very like the initial “control” stick...?    Did you guys fire up the first one again or toss the remainders...?

[Ginseng]

Fascinating to see some new life in an old topic!

I certainly can't attest to any authorship of the technique, but I have tweaked up a method that is flexible and effective.

1. Run the unclipped cigar under running water (filtered is preferred if you can smell any chlorine at all in your muni water. Under 10 seconds.
2. Gently flick off the largest droplets clinging to the barrel/wrapper.
3. Roll up in a suitably-sized piece of kitchen paper towel. This is where the adaptation comes in. On an already well-humidified cigar, pat dry and unroll immediately. For a cigar with a dry wrapper especially when smoking in conditions where cigars may be prone to cracking (dry cold winter), keep it wrapped up for a minute or more. 

The last step is where you can really tune the process. As some work done years ago showed, wrappers do not take up bulk water very quickly. However, in extended contact with dampness, they can absorb significantly and broadly. For example, when smoking outdoors in 80%+ RH. 

As winter is approaching in the Mid-Atlantic, the opportunity to try this technique for yourself is here!

Cheers,

Wilkey

[PigFish]

2 hours ago, Ginseng said:

Fascinating to see some new life in an old topic!

I certainly can't attest to any authorship of the technique, but I have tweaked up a method that is flexible and effective.

1. Run the unclipped cigar under running water (filtered is preferred if you can smell any chlorine at all in your muni water. Under 10 seconds.
2. Gently flick off the largest droplets clinging to the barrel/wrapper.
3. Roll up in a suitably-sized piece of kitchen paper towel. This is where the adaptation comes in. On an already well-humidified cigar, pat dry and unroll immediately. For a cigar with a dry wrapper especially when smoking in conditions where cigars may be prone to cracking (dry cold winter), keep it wrapped up for a minute or more. 

The last step is where you can really tune the process. As some work done years ago showed, wrappers do not take up bulk water very quickly. However, in extended contact with dampness, they can absorb significantly and broadly. For example, when smoking outdoors in 80%+ RH. 

As winter is approaching in the Mid-Atlantic, the opportunity to try this technique for yourself is here!

Cheers,

Wilkey

I hope you are well my friend.

Cheers! -Ray

[Chucko8]

This is such great information and handy tips.

There would be a science experiment and debate of the effects of different water types. Being it Tap, filtered, mineral or distilled, potentially could add some subtle differences.

[CigarmanTim]

I have done this in the past and have never been disappointed. It reminds me of tubos cigars...

[Ribeye]

I've seen many old timers wet their lips and practically swallow the cigar just before lighting. Cigar fellatio?

 

[Jimmy_jack]

I used to sell tobacco and cigars at a nice shop in central Florida in the 90s. Had a manger lounge with lockers.  I always recall several of the members licking the cigar wrapper from foot to cap before lighting. We had a great walk in humidor, everything was proper. It’s just what they did. Said it was an old time thing and made it smoke with more uniform burn. Never did try it. 

[Leafmania]

Tried it with Punch Coronation ..... still a horrible cigar :(.

[Man D'olin]

Dunked myself in water, Cigar tasted like chlorine.

Dunked the match in water- what a mess.

Tried to dunk my girlfriend in water... and  that's why I have this black eye

[MD Puffer]

So the new paradigm- age at 65 % RH, dry box at  63% RH, then stick 'em under the chlorinated tap...

[FireMedic]

Very interesting