Smell of CC vs NCs/DCs While Lit

[WalterG]

Once I started smoking more CCs, I find that the smell of them while they are lit is so much more pleasant than any NC or DC. Does anyone else notice the difference in smell when lit? Does this have to do with regions and their different soils or does it have to do with different blending and curing methods? 

[fitzy]

Not only do they smell more pleasant they taste a hell of a lot better and my clothes don’t stink after like they do with non Cubans.

 

[mwaller]

I agree with your observations.  Most non-Cuban cigars have a "burnt" smell and taste that I don't enjoy.  Even the unlit cigars have a different aroma.  When I put my nose to a Cuban cigar box, I typically get cedar, hay, and sometimes barnyard.  Most non-Cuban cigars have a more pungent earthy smell. 

I've done a bit of home rolling using commercially processed leaf from a variety of non-Cuban sources, including Nicaragua, Honduras, Dominican Republic, Indonesia, and Brazil.  I always test each leaf individually in a purito, and I've never found any that smell or taste Cuban.  I have created some interesting blends, but nothing that would be mistaken for a Cuban cigar.  

I've also grown tobacco directly from seeds sourced from Hector Luis Prieto's farm.  The tobacco doesn't smell or taste anything like a commercial cigar.  The soil in the Seattle area is obviously nothing like Cuban soil.  Also, it's impossible to pile-cure leaves when you only have a few pounds to work with...The best you can do is to force-cure the leaves in a kiln that simulates the warm, humid conditions in a "pilon."  The results aren't the same.

While curing and blending methods can vary, I believe these are transferable skills that could just as easily be performed in Nicaragua as in Cuba.  The soil, however, is not transferable.  I believe that is at the heart of why Cuban cigars smell and taste different.   

        

[djrey]

I certainly notice a difference. NC tends to be more of a charred burnt smell. That doesn't mean I find them all bad but just not the same light sweet floral bouquet of most CC. I would much rather smell the smoke of CC. 

The lingering on clothing is certainly true for me as well. In addition I notice that my palate after a CC is much cleaner. 

[WalterG]

53 minutes ago, fitzy said:

Not only do they smell more pleasant they taste a hell of a lot better and my clothes don’t stink after like they do with non Cubans.

 

I've noticed this as well and it's so interesting. I don't smell as bad after smoking a CC. The smell doesn't linger in my clothes as much as well. 

[WalterG]

45 minutes ago, mwaller said:

I agree with your observations.  Most non-Cuban cigars have a "burnt" smell and taste that I don't enjoy.  Even the unlit cigars have a different aroma.  When I put my nose to a Cuban cigar box, I typically get cedar, hay, and sometimes barnyard.  Most non-Cuban cigars have a more pungent earthy smell. 

I've done a bit of home rolling using commercially processed leaf from a variety of non-Cuban sources, including Nicaragua, Honduras, Dominican Republic, Indonesia, and Brazil.  I always test each leaf individually in a purito, and I've never found any that smell or taste Cuban.  I have created some interesting blends, but nothing that would be mistaken for a Cuban cigar.  

I've also grown tobacco directly from seeds sourced from Hector Luis Prieto's farm.  The tobacco doesn't smell or taste anything like a commercial cigar.  The soil in the Seattle area is obviously nothing like Cuban soil.  Also, it's impossible to pile-cure leaves when you only have a few pounds to work with...The best you can do is to force-cure the leaves in a kiln that simulates the warm, humid conditions in a "pilon."  The results aren't the same.

While curing and blending methods can vary, I believe these are transferable skills that could just as easily be performed in Nicaragua as in Cuba.  The soil, however, is not transferable.  I believe that is at the heart of why Cuban cigars smell and taste different.   

        

That Cuban soil is something really special. Thanks for sharing your experiences! 

[WalterG]

2 minutes ago, djrey said:

I certainly notice a difference. NC tends to be more of a charred burnt smell. That doesn't mean I find them all bad but just not the same light sweet floral bouquet of most CC. I would much rather smell the smoke of CC. 

Yeah NCs do have that burnt smell.. I love when I open a box of CCs because it smells so wonderful. NCs don't smell as good to me anymore after smoking a lot of CCs. I haven't had a NC in about a year or so. The other day me and my friend were smoking and he lit a My Father and the smell hit me right away. I was a little displeased with the smell to be honest. I guess I got used to the smell of CCs. 

[Doctorossi]

2 hours ago, Big Al said:

DC

Uh... doggie cigars? 

2 hours ago, Big Al said:

Does this have to do with regions and their different soils or does it have to do with different blending and curing methods? 

Yes. 

[djrey]

Now that my coolidor favors CC inventory far more the smell when I open it has totally changed. Its now a beautiful barnyard hay with cedar aroma. For 10 years it was the more dark spice and chocolate notes of NC. Both smell nice, but for my nose CC win for sure. 

[bassistheplace]

Absolutely tell the differences, hence my time spent on this site and my money spent w Di!

[Hammer Smokin']

my wife will always tell me my cigar stinks when I spark up a non cuban.

interestingly enough, she can usually pick out a Cohiba smell from all other Cubans.

I'd never believe it, if it wasn't for the fact that she always does it!

[madandana]

Also your mouth doesn’t taste like a dog sh*t in it the morning after smoking a Cuban like if you’re smoking a non Cuban.

[SCgarman]

The aroma of Cuban tobacco is fragrant and pleasantly floral. Most non Cuban tobacco just smells offensive. Big difference between the two. 

[Pharmacovigilant]

Apologies, but what are DCs?  Domestic cigars?

[djrey]

4 minutes ago, Pharmacovigilant said:

Apologies, but what are DCs?  Domestic cigars?

Im guessing Dominican cigars? And then NC was used for Nicaraguan? I just lump it to NC= non cuban 

[WalterG]

Just now, djrey said:

Im guessing Dominican cigars? And then NC was used for Nicaraguan? I just lump it to NC= non cuban 

 

7 minutes ago, Pharmacovigilant said:

Apologies, but what are DCs?  Domestic cigars?

Yes sorry lol. I used NC as Nicaraguan and DC as Dominican. I will from now on just lump it to NC= Non cuban as djrey said. 

[WalterG]

1 hour ago, madandana said:

Also your mouth doesn’t taste like a dog sh*t in it the morning after smoking a Cuban like if you’re smoking a non Cuban.

I completely agree with you. After I smoke an NC it feels as if my mouth has been through a war and back haha.

[TTP21]

I'll be the first detractor here and say that it really depends on the NC we're talking about.  Various boutique blends out there - Illusione, Warped, Casdagli - don't mirror the prototypical NC experiences.  I had an Illusione CG4 yesterday that was spectacular and had none of the offensive odor discussed here.  

I also think smoke output tends to be far more consistently voluminous with an NC and that might lend to the aromatic properties being more present.  

 

[MMarbs]

Yeah, I find CCs usually have a better aroma compared to NCs, though there are some NCs that give off an aroma that is rather pleasant like CCs. I've found NCs that give off the most pungent aroma are connecticut blends, strangely enough (considering that they are suppose to be mild blends). One of the reasons why I rarely smoke cigars with a connecticut wrapper. 

[Cjake75]

I do like the smell but far off. My wife hates it. Hoping the new CC help with that!!

[cfc1016]

I think synthetic fertilizers and pesticides play a large role as well. Residual phosphates do a real number. This is an issue with cannabis as well.

Though not something most people notice (even those with well trained palates), I find myself particularly sensitive to the olfactory effects of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides in smoked organic material. Like a "super smeller" is repulsed by the taste of cilantro, I find even the slightest trace of residual phosphates utterly repulsive. As in, I feel nauseous, repulsive.

As @ethernut (John could you please be so kind as to make that '@ mention' work, so he can actually see it?) and i mused one night, while pondering 'what makes Cuban tobacco so special?', the farming practices in Cuba are medieval compared to modernized countries. "Better living through chemistry", as applied to modern high-efficiency/high-ouput farming practices, tends to 'take something away' from the raw, natural character of a crop.

Combine that with all the other interrelated intangibles that come into play, and you effectively have a raw, rustic product on one hand (Cuban), and an engineered, modern product on the other (non-Cuban).

-----

I agree with all the sentiments about cold aroma, lit aroma, aftertaste, morning-after-aftertaste, and lingering odor. I think all of those things, in whatever proportions, and related to one another in whatever ways, are at the root of the observed phenomena (ncs being disgusting).

Also... H Upmanns are absolutely vilely wretchedly disgusting to me (all but noellas). The same 'poopy doo doo ashtray mouth' effect I get from ncs, I get from H Upmanns. My non-smoking counterparts all complain about the smell of h upmanns, while extolling the virtues of the second hand aroma of EVERY OTHER [Cuban] cigar I smoke around them. My clothes reek of upmann the next day. My mouth tasted like twice fermented poopy doo doo ashtray (that's the technical terminology, btw - google it) the next day, no matter how furiously i brushed and mouthwashed after. It's wretched. I don't smoke them anymore. They might as well be ncs as far as I'm concerned (again, except for the noellas)

 

[cigaraholic]

 Cuban cigars smell like heaven NC  cigars  smell like a cigar 

[WalterG]

3 hours ago, cigaraholic said:

 Cuban cigars smell like heaven NC  cigars  smell like a cigar 

Haha. Good to see another Bay Area resident on these forums! 

[WalterG]

3 hours ago, cfc1016 said:

I think synthetic fertilizers and pesticides play a large role as well. Residual phosphates do a real number. This is an issue with cannabis as well.

Though not something most people notice (even those with well trained palates), I find myself particularly sensitive to the olfactory effects of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides in smoked organic material. Like a "super smeller" is repulsed by the taste of cilantro, I find even the slightest trace of residual phosphates utterly repulsive. As in, I feel nauseous, repulsive.

As @ethernut (John could you please be so kind as to make that '@ mention' work, so he can actually see it?) and i mused one night, while pondering 'what makes Cuban tobacco so special?', the farming practices in Cuba are medieval compared to modernized countries. "Better living through chemistry", as applied to modern high-efficiency/high-ouput farming practices, tends to 'take something away' from the raw, natural character of a crop.

Combine that with all the other interrelated intangibles that come into play, and you effectively have a raw, rustic product on one hand (Cuban), and an engineered, modern product on the other (non-Cuban).

-----

I agree with all the sentiments about cold aroma, lit aroma, aftertaste, morning-after-aftertaste, and lingering odor. I think all of those things, in whatever proportions, and related to one another in whatever ways, are at the root of the observed phenomena (ncs being disgusting).

Also... H Upmanns are absolutely vilely wretchedly disgusting to me (all but noellas). The same 'poopy doo doo ashtray mouth' effect I get from ncs, I get from H Upmanns. My non-smoking counterparts all complain about the smell of h upmanns, while extolling the virtues of the second hand aroma of EVERY OTHER [Cuban] cigar I smoke around them. My clothes reek of upmann the next day. My mouth tasted like twice fermented poopy doo doo ashtray (that's the technical terminology, btw - google it) the next day, no matter how furiously i brushed and mouthwashed after. It's wretched. I don't smoke them anymore. They might as well be ncs as far as I'm concerned (again, except for the noellas)

 

Very interesting you say that about Upmanns. I don't have that issue so I'm unsure of what it may be but could it be how Upmanns are blended? Also good points on how CCs are "raw and rustic" while NCs are a more modern product that may contain different synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. I agree that that might have a huge role into how they smell. 

[GavLew79]

I always get a nagging "chemical" aroma and taste (can't pin it down, just reminds me of "processed" or "unnatural") with NC that I don't find in Cubans.