The Final Thirds

[Darkenskies]

Hey everyone.  I am fairly new to the forum and love how everyone is friendly and social here.  It's like a virtual Cheers bar for cigar enthusiasts.

I only smoke maybe 1 or 2 cigars a week.  I've only recently started smoking Cubans and my favorite has been the montecristos no 2 and petite emundo.  Another really good one was an 8 year old partagas 898 from a box i got from the locker sale a month back.  I use to smoke NCs before I realized I loved collecting cigars and only smoke 1 or 2 boxed a year. Might as well try Cubans since I will eventually end up with a nice aged stock.  I have to say I lIke Cuban profile a lot more than the spice bombs NCs.  Fuente Anejos, and tatuajes are great but so many NCs were so spicy and strong that if I tried to retro hale them, all I would taste is salt from the tears steaming down my eyes.

 

Anyways, I'm going on a tangent.  My buddy can smoke 4 to 5 NCs a day and nub them.  I might smoke half a Cuban because the last 3rd seems to go very harsh?  The flavors are not as distinct anymore to me.  I am guess it's all the buildup from the first 2 thirds and maybe the humidity increasing as I pull in air from smoking.  I dry box the cigars for a few days in a box with a 58% boveda to make sure they are dry before lighting up.  Maybe I will enjoy the last parts of the cigars more this summer when the humidity drops outside?  I also purge 2 to 3 times a session and definitely don't smoke fast.  Any other tips to enjoy the final third or just wait til my tolerance and taste profile adapts?

[NSXCIGAR]

2 minutes ago, Darkenskies said:

Anyways, I'm going on a tangent.  My buddy can smove 4 to 5 NCs a day and nub them.  I might smoke half a Cuban because the last 3rd seems to go very harsh?  The flavors are not as distinct anymore to me.  I am guess it's all the buildup from the fist 2 thirds and maybe the humidity increasing as I pull in air from smoking.  I dry box the cigars for a few days in a box with a 58% boveda to make sure they are dry before lighting up.  Maybe I will enjoy the last parts of the cigars more this summer when the humidity drops outside?  I also purge 2 to 3 times a session and definitely don't smoke fast.  Any other tips to enjoy the final third or just wait til my tolerance and taste profile adapts?

Welcome!

Based on your description of your experience, I'm not 100% sure what's happening. You may indeed not be acclimated to a more intense finish on CCs. Perhaps try a cigar with a lighter overall blend like the ERDM CS or SLR Regios and that may reduce the intensity and allow you to build up to a more full cigar. 

But it's more likely that you are smoking the cigars faster than you think you are. If you're getting some hotness or harshness in the final third, it's very likely it's coming from a cigar being smoked too rapidly. Sure, there can be a little of that in a young cigar, but it shouldn't dominate. Try smoking even slower. A Monte 2 should take 90-120 mins to smoke. A PE, 60-90 mins. If you're faster than that, you should definitely be slowing down.

[Smallclub]

^^^^^this, and the age of the cigar is important. I find very almost impossible to smoke the last 1/4 of a fresh PLPC or Super Partagas without the help of a healthy dose of rum or scotch…

[Gusmab980]

It happens to me in about 90% of the cigars I smoke, they get harsh or flavor gets bitter only a very few I get to smoke until my fingers burn.

 

[Darkenskies]

Maybe I do smoke faster than I think I do.  Also the aged 898 did seem to be not as bitter as the fresh Monte towards the end.  I will be more conscious and check how fast I'm smoking.  Sucks throwing away 1/3 of a cigar lol 

[backbone]

I find that the closer to the end of a fresh cigar I get, the slower I try to smoke it.

If its going out and I need to touch it up at the end, I only add torch flame and don't try to ignite it more with extra inhalation.

Seems to keep the good smoke going longer for me.

P.S. I am a newb however...

[rhcolbert]

Smoking cigars a while now and going too fast is still a bad habit of mine. Why I prefer them in company or while reading a book. Need something to slow me down. 

[99call]

I agree with most of the great advice on here. Once of the best tricks i find is:

1, Smoke with other smokers and chat

2, Read a paper, or book whilst smoking

Inevitably it will slow you down

[Dave001]

and this is the reason why 90% of my stock is aged/vintage I cannot finish the last third of a cigar if its not aged. I have tried a few times (a young party d4 bolivar royal corona for examples) then I smoke 15 year old versions and the difference is just wonderful nub right to the end

[planetary]

Agree with the synthesis of the above: smoke slower, smoke aged -- or otherwise be content to set down the cigar when its flavors become unfavorable.  

There are times when I go on autopilot and smoke faster than is optimal, and find that it's best to let much of the final third go unsmoked.  I try not to mentally convert the unsmoked portion into dollars, the same way I avoid dwelling upon how much money I'm tossing when I discard a severely plugged cigar.  Focus on what makes the experience good.

But yes, it's best if you can slow down, and smoke cigars which are more settled and resilient.

[archosaur]

Welcome and great topic!  I smoke a similar volume to you, and also often don't nub cigars, especially younger ones.  It is not a contest to finish...if a cigar ceases to become enjoyable to you, there is no harm in letting it go out.  I also tend to prefer an aged profile, in general.    

Cheers 

[Darkenskies]

I smoked an aged 898 and a fresh 898 and to my taste buds, the aged one was definitely more enjoyable.  The fresh one had some harshness and bitterness that got in the way of the other flavors that I enjoyed in the aged one.  Wish I started collecting Cubans years ago instead of NCs.  Makes me wonder how my aged NCs will smoke now though.   Havent tried one in over a year.

[nick-seattle]

if a cigar gets bitter for me, I usually purge them. Some cigars require a lot of purging, but that allows me to enjoy the smoke till the end - most of the time.

[BellevilleMXZ]

All very good comments here. I'm still quite new to this, and I find the best, is to slow down, esp. the last half......always seems to make it much more enjoyable. I don't have anything over a year old, as so new to it, but I'm working on it.

[maxcjs0101]

I agree with the general consensus that a young cuban cigar does get harsh when nearing the last quarter. 

Sometimes i get it before it hits half of the cigar. That's why i purge every few times i smoke.

[stogieluver]

I never get have this problem with the final third going harsh.  More intense due to the nicotine buildup, but not what I would call harsh.  I think this is due primarily to three things: one, I smoke slowly; two, I only smoke inside in my man cave where the ambient rH is usually around 55%-60%; and three, I always drink Cuba Libre's when smoking and I believe the sweet of the rum and diet coke help offset any harshness.

I think, no, I know that smoking outside when the humidity is high will make a cigar go harsh in the final third.  The larger the ring gauge and the longer the cigar, the worse the effect of the humidity on the cigar.   Also, smoking too fast is often the culprit.  It takes me about 45 minutes to smoke a petite corona, about 60-75 minutes for a robusto, about 90 minutes for a Monte 2, and about two and one-half hours to smoke a double corona.  There is at least one post from the past where members chimed in on their average smoking times, so do a search if interested. 

[CritterBuddy]

14 hours ago, nick-seattle said:

if a cigar gets bitter for me, I usually purge them. Some cigars require a lot of purging, but that allows me to enjoy the smoke till the end - most of the time.

Just starting my cc journey but agree this can help with my nc I smoke.  Also, try taking slightly smaller puffs towards the end.  If neither of these work for me then I just have to trash it.

[Mycroft]

Long, slow draws, rather than short, strong puffs seem to help for me I think.

[jwr0201]

Personally, I've never had a harsh CC.  Issue I find is a lack of flavors on a few towards the end.  Some marcas and vitolas are better than others for nubbing.

[topdiesel]

Another option would be smoking Churchill's and Double Coronas.  They tend to start off a lot milder and if you ditch the last 3rd you have still smoked longer than most of the sizes you mentioned.  Get a box of Hoyo DC.  Smoke them while you age the rest of your stock.

On another note, like the ERDM CS the Quai d'Orsay Coronas have always been too mild for my taste.  You might want to try them. 

[joeypots]

I have found that properly humidified cigars smoke smoother than wet ones. High moisture content, even in aged cigars, can make smoke bitter, especially at the end. Age is one topic, moisture control is quite another. The Pigfish is quite helpful with this topic and has generously shared his experience with RH and smoking enjoyment.

[CaptainQuintero]

There is generally a lot of truth in the old way of describing the thirds of a cigar as the hay, the divine and the slurry.

At least from my experience.

I always enjoy the first third the most, I just prefer the cleaner, fresh flavours generally.

Sometimes you get a real doozie which never gets hot, muddy or metallic towards the end. 

[jazzboypro]

On 4/7/2017 at 1:06 PM, NSXCIGAR said:

Welcome!

Based on your description of your experience, I'm not 100% sure what's happening. You may indeed not be acclimated to a more intense finish on CCs. Perhaps try a cigar with a lighter overall blend like the ERDM CS or SLR Regios and that may reduce the intensity and allow you to build up to a more full cigar. 

But it's more likely that you are smoking the cigars faster than you think you are. If you're getting some hotness or harshness in the final third, it's very likely it's coming from a cigar being smoked too rapidly. Sure, there can be a little of that in a young cigar, but it shouldn't dominate. Try smoking even slower. A Monte 2 should take 90-120 mins to smoke. A PE, 60-90 mins. If you're faster than that, you should definitely be slowing down.

One thing that made a big difference for me is when i stopped double puffing, i was always double puffing in the past but after reading a thread here during the Holidays i have completely stopped doing that and i enjoy my cigars a lot more. You might try it and see if it makes a difference for you.

Cheers