Long & Skinny

[Çnote]

Hello FoH

I see a lot of long and skinny lovers out there! Please help me out in trying to appreciate this vitola...

Due to my daily routine, I usually enjoy PC, marveas, minutos, HC/MC etc due to time constraints. As I had no time constraints yesterday, I lit up a Fonseca #1 that had been gifted to me. Draw & smoke production seemed fine,  but this was by far the least enjoyable CC I've had to the point of pitching it. Mild to the point of flavorless.

It this characteristic of the marca?

For the long & skinny lovers, what would be the currently produced cigar to try out?

[THEMISCHMAN]

These are some I really enjoy, Siglo V, Partagas 898, RyJ Cedros de Luxe No. 1, Boli Tubos No. 1, LGC MdO4, PLMC. Boli Tubos No 1 and Cedros de Luxe No. 1 are discontinued unfortunately but I think they’d be worth a try if you had the chance. PL Panatelas aren’t really long but they’re skinny and quite good. Those may be a good option if your time to smoke is limited.

 

[99call]

10 minutes ago, Çnote said:

It this characteristic of the marca?

I wouldn't really describe a Fonseca 1 as a long skinny (but thats just indicative of the current cigar market).  Largely I would describe Fonseca 1, as a comforting, vanilla ladened soft, light bodied smoke.  Occasionally you can get a mid bodied one, with a little woodiness, but it's not really a cigar you want to "go after".  By "go after" I mean, you want the cigar to sing and dance for you, and end up forcing it in a way.   Whenever I smoke a Fonseca 1, it's often a background experience whilst i'm either reading or doing something else. Calling them a yard cigar would be very very unfair, but if it makes sense, they don't benefit from focusing intensely on them, and wanting them to rock your world.

if you want a long skinny to rock your world, go for a PLMonte Carlo,  Trinidad Fundadores, Montecristo Especial, Customs,......But skinnies are counter intuitive, the softer and slower you draw, the sweeter and more fulfilling they are.

[joeypots]

My limited experience with Fonseca is that the Marca is rather mild. A good intro to the L&S world could be the MC#1, not too long and not too skinny.  Very good cigars. At 42 RG they are not quite as skinny as a true long and skinny 38RG cigar, but they are getting there.  The Lonsdale, or Cervantes, is a tried and true vitola despite the fact that It's out of style in favor of very fat cigars.

[Phillys]

1 hour ago, 99call said:

if you want a long skinny to rock your world, go for a PLMonte Carlo,  Trinidad Fundadores, Montecristo Especial, Customs,......But skinnies are counter intuitive, the softer and slower you draw, the sweeter and more fulfilling they are. 

This and would add the Especial No.2 and La Gloria Cubana MdO No.4 (mentionned above). These are the 5 main L&S regular production cigars I smoke the most. A bit on the thicker side, but Monte No.1 has been stellar for me these past few years.  

Best bet is to try a bunch, get a sampler from the carts or buy a few quarter boxes from when they come up.   

[Brian24]

I have been in love with Rafael Gonzalez Panetella Extra lately. Box is about 2 years old. One year ago, I tried 2 that were plugged. Recently I’ve had about 5 that have had zero draw issues. Maybe it’s time down loosened them up, or maybe I got 2 bad ones out of the box. Either way, I will always keep these on hand. I’m pretty sure they were formerly machine made, but I’m also pretty sure now they are hand made. Either way, wonderful little cigars.

Lots of fans here of the Por Laranga petit coronas and Monte Carlos, love the panetallas too. They split the ring gauge between the two and come in at 37ish (I think)

Finally, more like a Juan Lopez 1 or the fonseca size, so not necessarily ‘skinny’, and if budget isn’t a problem, the Siglo 3 is sublime.

[Brian24]

Bump to@themischman for also pointing out the PL panetella. I should have read the thread before posting.

[Artin]

Try to get your hands on a Cohiba Lancero, I think it’s one of the best, if not the best.


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[rabidraccoon]

Yeah that’s my experience with Fonseca #1. I just get some sweet sugar, and decent quality tobacco. Nothing mind blowing or complex, just a fair cigar.

[Tollickd]

I had my first real try of a slimmer cigar last weekend the Trinidad FUNDADORES! And wow I have to say I loved it! So much I am very tempted to get a box soon. My local shop has an open box she said they might it keep having it as singles!


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[Çnote]

@El Presidente

How about an l&s sampler?

[El Presidente]

5 minutes ago, Çnote said:

@El Presidente

How about an l&s sampler?

They never have enough out at the same time!

Right now, no lancero/Especiale/LGCMO4. 

One day when production/supply comes back to normal levels, we will be able to do it again. It was once a staple. 

[wineguy]

I love the long and skinny sticks.  My favorites are Monte 1, Fundadores,  CoLas, Monte Especial, Monte Especial 2, Cohiba Corona Especiales.  I have some Fonseca 1s and they are a pleasant everyday smoke.  I also just received some PLMCs but am letting them rest. 

[Derboesekoenig]

15 hours ago, Brian24 said:

I have been in love with Rafael Gonzalez Panetella Extra lately. Box is about 2 years old. One year ago, I tried 2 that were plugged. Recently I’ve had about 5 that have had zero draw issues. Maybe it’s time down loosened them up, or maybe I got 2 bad ones out of the box. Either way, I will always keep these on hand. I’m pretty sure they were formerly machine made, but I’m also pretty sure now they are hand made. Either way, wonderful little cigars.

Lots of fans here of the Por Laranga petit coronas and Monte Carlos, love the panetallas too. They split the ring gauge between the two and come in at 37ish (I think)

Finally, more like a Juan Lopez 1 or the fonseca size, so not necessarily ‘skinny’, and if budget isn’t a problem, the Siglo 3 is sublime.

I have several boxes of the RG PEs and while they are no RGPC or Perla, they are a great value, given that they are short filler while the latter are long filler.

[DeskSmkr]

On 4/10/2019 at 6:02 AM, Çnote said:

Mild to the point of flavorless.

It this characteristic of the marca?

For the long & skinny lovers, what would be the currently produced cigar to try out?

Maybe the mild/flavorless was a one off experience? It could have been that cigar or that particular day?  Like a corked wine. 

I’m curious to learn more about long and skinnies, because I love them.  With what I’ve learned so far, I can offer this:

Fonseca No. 1 are typically far from flavorless. As for the rest of Fonseca’s vitolas, no information.

Some slender cigars have been be mild or almost flavorless, the Cohiba Exquisitos bordered on tasteless (probably a reflection of me more than the cigar, I only tried one, and I could have had an off day) and the Coronas Especiales tended towards mild.  However, the Exquisitos left a room note that smelled like mild spiced/baked bread. It didn’t smell like a cigar at all, it was exquisite!

For truly long and skinny flavor, a few of the available options are: Montecristo Especiales No. 2, Trinidad Fundadores, Por Larrañaga Montecarlos, La Gloria Cubana Medaille D’Or No. 4. These seem to be consistently flavorful. Montecristo being the most concentrated followed closely by the Fundadores, then LGC MDO#4, and finally Montecarlos with it’s transitions.

Some of the longer cigars seem to remove or filter out flavor initially until enough of the cigar is consumed. Maximum flavors develop after this first portion of cigar; specifically thinking of the Montecarlos and Fundadores. This trait is also exhibited in the double corona format where flavor and smoke can take some time to develop and produce. I’m guessing the longer length of the cigar forces the smoke to pass through more tobacco and with this extra contact between smoke and tobacco, more flavor and smoke is deposited inside the cigar before reaching the smoker. After some of the cigar is consumed, less distance is travelled by the smoke and those flavors and aromas that were deposited inside the cigar are re-vaporized and add to the flavors presented.  None of the sizes you described in your typical regimen are long enough to demonstrate this behavior; they are all “on” immediately, or almost immediately.

Then there are outlier skinnies, for example (almost cigarillo,) Bolivar Tubos No. 3., and the larger ring Montecristo No. 1 and Romeo y Julieta Cazadores.  

Not an all inclusive list in any way here.

Let me know if there are any questions.

 

[Çnote]

1 hour ago, DeskSmkr said:

Maybe the mild/flavorless was a one off experience? It could have been that cigar or that particular day?  Like a corked wine. 

I’m curious to learn more about long and skinnies, because I love them.  With what I’ve learned so far, I can offer this:

Fonseca No. 1 are typically far from flavorless. As for the rest of Fonseca’s vitolas, no information.

Some slender cigars have been be mild or almost flavorless, the Cohiba Exquisitos bordered on tasteless (only one cigar was tasted) and the Coronas Especiales tended towards mild.  However, the Exquisitos left a room note that smelled like mild spiced/baked bread. It didn’t smell like a cigar at all, it was exquisite!

For truly long and skinny flavor, a few of the available options are: Montecristo Especiales No. 2, Trinidad Fundadores, Por Larrañaga Montecarlos, La Gloria Cubana Medaille D’Or No. 4. These seem to be consistently flavorful. Montecristo being the most concentrated followed closely by the Fundadores, then LGC MDO#4, and finally Montecarlos with it’s transitions.

Some of the longer cigars seem to remove or filter out flavor initially until enough of the cigar is consumed. Maximum flavors develop after this first portion of cigar; specifically thinking of the Montecarlos and Fundadores. This trait is also exhibited in the double corona format where flavor and smoke can take some time to develop and produce. I’m guessing the longer length of the cigar forces the smoke to pass through more tobacco and with this extra contact between smoke and tobacco, more flavor and smoke is deposited inside the cigar before reaching the smoker. After some of the cigar is consumed, less distance is travelled by the smoke and those flavors and aromas that were deposited inside the cigar are re-vaporized and add to the flavors presented.  None of the sizes you described in your typical regimen are long enough to demonstrate this behavior; they are all “on” immediately, or almost immediately.

Then there are outlier skinnies, for example (almost cigarillo,) Bolivar Tubos No. 3., and the larger ring Montecristo No. 1 and Romeo y Julieta Cazadores.  

Not an all inclusive list in any way here.

Let me know if there are any questions.

 

It could have easily been a bum stick. I had recieved it in a bomb a couple of months ago; I doubt it was faux (but anything is possible), and I'm 100% sure it wasn't FoH stock. It was also after lunch and coffee and a prelunch unbanded BHK54 looking thing which was disappointing as well, but at least nubbed down to fingertips as the last third was almost worth the journey to get there...

I have a 40m smoke time at work-lunch and two kids once I get home, so anything longer than a petite corona just isn't a daily thing. Every couple of weeks my wife and I will go to a lounge for a long lunch while the kids are in school and I'll have time to enjoy whatever is next on the kill-sheet of things to try

I totally understand your points on longer cigars. I do enjoy a couple of 6in-ish cigars a month, but usually NC or MC#2, Party E2, custom/farm rolls etc, totally different ratio of length/ring gauge. I've had a couple handfuls of cool kid NC lancero and ninfas, but as they are harder to find at a fair price, I don't tend to have them on hand when I do have the opportunity to light up something longer than usual. In this case, I got to just short of halfway before bricking the Fonseca and enjoying a HUHC before having to go to the carpool lane. 

Anywho, thank you all for the details! I'll have to post more for trading room privileges and cross my fingers HSA sends enough stock for Rob to make samplers (haha)

[DeskSmkr]

On 4/12/2019 at 8:49 PM, Çnote said:

It could have easily been a bum stick. I had recieved it in a bomb a couple of months ago; I doubt it was faux (but anything is possible), and I'm 100% sure it wasn't FoH stock. It was also after lunch and coffee and a prelunch unbanded BHK54 looking thing which was disappointing as well, but at least nubbed down to fingertips as the last third was almost worth the journey to get there...

I have a 40m smoke time at work-lunch and two kids once I get home, so anything longer than a petite corona just isn't a daily thing. Every couple of weeks my wife and I will go to a lounge for a long lunch while the kids are in school and I'll have time to enjoy whatever is next on the kill-sheet of things to try

I totally understand your points on longer cigars. I do enjoy a couple of 6in-ish cigars a month, but usually NC or MC#2, Party E2, custom/farm rolls etc, totally different ratio of length/ring gauge. I've had a couple handfuls of cool kid NC lancero and ninfas, but as they are harder to find at a fair price, I don't tend to have them on hand when I do have the opportunity to light up something longer than usual. In this case, I got to just short of halfway before bricking the Fonseca and enjoying a HUHC before having to go to the carpool lane. 

Anywho, thank you all for the details! I'll have to post more for trading room privileges and cross my fingers HSA sends enough stock for Rob to make samplers (haha)

I think you are right about what was still on your palette; the other night I had chili with beans and whatever cigar I smoked was overshadowed by cumin and beef fat!

Having a Fonseca No 1 as I type this, forgot how much I like them and I'm glad this discussion reminded me to revisit the. Toasted marshmallow right away, the length is not filtering flavor appreciably here. Halfway in a bit of pepper and chocolate (maybe I'm smoking a bit fast as well.) Pepper disappeared after only maybe three puffs, and flavor transitioned into more of a mildly sweet tobacco.  Just loving the size and experience this morning with a black coffee.

What's next on your to try list?

[Çnote]

34 minutes ago, DeskSmkr said:

 

What's next on your to try list?

Alas I have nothing new physically on deck or enroute for l&s CC. I've kinda been waiting for something to fall in my lap. Next thing to take to lounge is a 10y-ish Winston Churchill Marrakesh. I have an MCC in my pocket...

[NSXCIGAR]

On 4/10/2019 at 6:27 AM, 99call said:

I wouldn't really describe a Fonseca 1 as a long skinny (but thats just indicative of the current cigar market).

Yep, that's what we've come to. 15+ years ago 43 RG would actually have been considered above average! 

Long skinny for me would have to be at most a Dalias or Laguito No. 2. 43 is the upper RG limit and 152mm/6" is the lower length limit.

I would have said in the past 40 RG was the upper limit. So Laguito Especial would be in but Cervantes out. 

[NSXCIGAR]

I would also put up the MdO4 as a great choice for beginners and veterans alike. Medium, rich and very pleasant flavors and a great value. Can be enjoyed with very little age, but ages well nonetheless.

I would say the PLMC isn't for everyone, especially without 3-5 years. And the Laguito No. 1 & 2 of Monte and Cohiba are to me not beginner's cigars and are relatively pricey. 

[anton]

try trinidad fundatores monte especiale 1 or 2 

 

[Edward7]

Second MdO4. And I totally agree about drawing slowly. When I got this box I wrote them off as a quick little number 2 pencil I could suck down when I've got only a moment to smoke. But the slower I smoke them, the easier it was to draw smoke out of them and the flavor doesn't pass you by. I really want to try a CoLa and Fundie. I enjoyed a Cohiba Especiales single one time and really noticed how complex the flavor was for such a thin cigar. I must say I like thin RG and big RG. Any CC is better than no CC!

[TheMonk]

14 hours ago, Edward7 said:

Second MdO4. And I totally agree about drawing slowly. When I got this box I wrote them off as a quick little number 2 pencil I could suck down when I've got only a moment to smoke. But the slower I smoke them, the easier it was to draw smoke out of them and the flavor doesn't pass you by. I really want to try a CoLa and Fundie. I enjoyed a Cohiba Especiales single one time and really noticed how complex the flavor was for such a thin cigar. I must say I like thin RG and big RG. Any CC is better than no CC!

If you enjoy MdO4 and Especiales, you're gonna love Fundis and CoLas! ?

[bmf30180]

Cohiba Lanceros have been on my list to try for quite a while now.  But, I've had zero luck in sourcing them.

[thestogiewhisperer]

I know this is an old thread but the H.Upmann Majestic's are fantastic smokes. Typically last me an hour which is odd as I'm a pretty fast smoker usually. Honestly prefer the flavour profile to the Mag 46 and 54