Bitter cigars are driving me crazy, please help!!

[jolietilfire]

So I dry boxed two cigars from my humidor last night and smoked them today. One was a JDN Antano which smoked fine without bitterness and seemed to burn well with very little touchups. I also lit up a Cusano 18 which was so bitter I could barely smoke it, it burned straight and perfectly with no touchups but tasted horrible. I smoked a Cusano 18 about six months ago and it was not bitter at all and this one has been sitting in the humidor for the six months and tasted like bitter crap. This makes no sense, some cigars are bitter some are ok, it is almost like a bunch of my cigars have been spoiled somehow. This really sucks!!

Dry boxing for a day may not help. Try 3-4 days. Also did u test the hygros yet with the boveda hygro kit? Also if there still bitter then after 3 -4 days of dryboxing....... it's not the humi but maybe the cigars or you.

[Talon]

Hello, sorry for reviving the month old + thread, but I didnt see if you solved your delima..

FWIW, Im just a noob,and fail in knowledge compared to others on this board,but here are some thing to consider.

*What type of cut are you using? A punch, standard Guilotine,or a v-notch (my favorite). The cut contributes to over all taste as the oils/tars/Vita N collect or move through.
* Speed and duration of draw. As others have said slow down you want cool smoke for best flavor. "Hot Boxing" a cigar is very bitter.
*Fire source Jet,Bic,Zippo,match, stave. all fuels will leave an odor trace behind some are more prevelant than others.
*Are you gently taosting the foot, or going right at it with a torch? Toasting the foot is key to a fine cigar experience.
What are you drinking with your cigar? competing flavors can cause great bitterness,also is your pallet clean when you begin to smoke?

What works for me...
1.First thing is I evenly toast the foot with stick matches (allow compound to burn off) or staves. I gently blow on the foot to assist the light.
2.I then V-Notch the cap
3.Next I blow through the cigar, I was told by doing this you exit the Oils/ Tar etc. out the foot prior to the first draw. Every exhale through the cigar after that, promotes extended cool burn when you set the cigar down. ie prevents re-lights (cuts down)
4.First couple of steady easy draws, if I did everything right, I'm rewarded with cool flavorful smoke. All I have to do then is set a slow pace,control for re-lights,and drink my favorite Port wine to complement.

[AZCigarNut]

Still sounds like you're smoking too fast or puffing too hard.

Bitterness, like you describe, is typically found under the following circumstances:

1. Too moist, causing them to burn too hot and/or you to puff too hard to fight a tight draw - you get nicotine buildup in the back and it tastes bitter.
2. Just smoking too fast or puffing too hard can cause the same buildup in #1... even if your humidity levels are fine.
3. A lousy cut (generally a cut that's too small or you're using a punch) can lead to a nicotine pile up at the head and taste bitter.
4. Sick period... but the fact that it's happening with everything you're smoking doesn't say sick... it says 1-3 above.

My solution: recalibrate your digital hygrometer... get new beads or gel or whatever you're using... let everything rest for a couple weeks to be sure that humidity is 65-69... smoke again, concentrating on slower intakes and more time between puffs... make sure you use a good cutter and you're opening up enough of the head... report back in 3 weeks. One of those first 3 is your problem... you just have to figure out which one(s).

EDIT --- didn't notice this was an old thread... just saw it after someone revived it today.....

[sleepyguy57]

I would like to try dry boxing a few sticks to see the smoking differences. I was wondering, how long should a stick be dry boxed before smoking and what is the max amount of time a stick should be be dry boxed. Currently, my sticks are kept at 65% RH but I want to experiment with lower RHs to see how it affects the stick. I would like to dry box more than one stick at a time to give me choices when I feel like lighting one up, but not so many that I end up over drying them.

[Dave]

I would like to try dry boxing a few sticks to see the smoking differences. I was wondering, how long should a stick be dry boxed before smoking and what is the max amount of time a stick should be be dry boxed. Currently, my sticks are kept at 65% RH but I want to experiment with lower RHs to see how it affects the stick. I would like to dry box more than one stick at a time to give me choices when I feel like lighting one up, but not so many that I end up over drying them.

This is a great idea. I guess it might depend on how often you enjoy a cigar. I think it would be a true learning experience to put a fiver of the same cigar (I suggest a maduro - maybe an LP?) into a small desktop humi with no humidification and a calibrated hygrometer. Smoke one each night for five nights noting current RH and jot down tasting notes. I'd love to hear your results.

I've never approached it nearly so well. I just find sticks that can be difficult at 65 and every once in a while toss one in an empty desktop for a couple days. If I'm lucky, I remember it is there, want that stick at that point in time and enjoy a perfect cigar. In the winter time, I may just set it oudside the humi for a day or two.

Depending on the ambient RH and temp, I think any cigar would be OK outside your humi for 4 or 5 days any time of the year, as long as it isn't sitting on a windowsill or next to the sauna.

One that I try to dry-box religiously lately is the JDN Dark Corojo. Couple days in a dry-box does wonders for them.

[wcintro1]

Mramex, It seems to me you're doing everything right. But a few things besides RH/Temp could be affecting your palate, so I'll try to keep it simple: Try smoking the same cigar but not the ones from your humidor. If you have the same experience, then is the cigar or you, not the RH/Temp factor. Please, don't get offended by me saying you. What I mean is that taste is subjective. So, if sometimes you smoke different or the same cigars on a daily basis, your palate could get beat up, so give it a few days to rest. It happened to me while working in a cigar shop, smoking different cigars until I couldn't tell the difference or they were just to harsh. Another thing, believe or not, could be your mood, food, drink and hopefully not, a health issue; medications can also affect taste buds. And remember, having a variety of cigars in the same humidor could affect the issue, thus the marrying of cigars. Try separating them in ziplock bags; they won't get affected.

[Simian504]

I had a similar issue a few months ago. Sucked.
I really think it was me. I thought I was over humidifying did a recal on my hygrometer & it read the same as before. Next thing I knew a week had gone by and everything tasted normal again. It was a bit frustrating thinking I'd ruined my precious babies somehow.

[sneak_a_cigar]

High temps don't increase rh but they do increase the amount of moisture in the air. So even at 65%, your cigars can be too moist because of high temp.

This happened to me at 69rh and 77temp.

Cigary helped me lower rh with kl and I've been okay since

[danthebugman]

High temps don't increase rh but they do increase the amount of moisture in the air.

Relative humidity is the percentage of moisture in the air compared to how much the air can hold. It varies with temperature. Increase in temperature increases the amount of water vapor the air can hold, but not necessarily the RH.

Dan

[Knickerbocker]

1) Start smoking CC's
2) Age them for a few years
3) Thank me later

[Cigary43]

High temps don't increase rh but they do increase the amount of moisture in the air.

Relative humidity is the percentage of moisture in the air compared to how much the air can hold. It varies with temperature. Increase in temperature increases the amount of water vapor the air can hold, but not necessarily the RH.

Dan

As good an explanation as I've read: Relative humidity generally decreases if temperature increases.
If we say that air is saturated it means that the air is holding maximum amount of water vapour it can hold.In this condition,the relative humidity will be 100 percent.
Air will become saturated if the air temperature is brought down to its dew point temperature.In other words, this means that the relative humidity goes up( to 100 percent) if the temperature is decreased.

[sneak_a_cigar]

I read the Wikipedia article on this. Very informative.

As I understand it, rh can remain the same at different temps while having varying amt of water vapor in the air. With this in mind it seems that a increase in temp will increase the Amt of water vapor in the air while not necessarily changing rh. But I could be wrong.

[ciggy]

Old thread or not...good thread for all to read!