Exploding Cigars – How to Cut a Dry Cigar (If you Have to)
As I write this I am smoking an excellent Arturo Fuente Chateau Fuente (natural) but last night there was this cigar that exploded when I cut it. No, it was not filled with TNT or Cemtex. It was just way too dry.
The cigar was part of an amazing dinner at The Cellar restaurant and, I can safely say, that cigar, a Torano The Brick, was the worst part of the dinner. (The rest of the tequila themed dinner was sublime and the company was just as good. The other cigar, a Torano 1916, was also very good). When I looked at The Brick I immediately noticed that the cap was splitting and that it was very dry. Even though I normally would not smoke a cigar like that I thought “What’s the worst that could happen?”
The worst was that, upon cutting The Brick, tobacco fragments sprayed every which way but the ash tray! I was mortified. Here I am, at this award winning French restaurant, and I was responsible for this long filler carnage on the white cloth table. To add insult to my malfeasance as the resident cigar expert at the table, the cigar was bad. Luckily, most of my table mates had not yet arrived and the ones who were there were understanding. Even John, who drove over an hour from Temecula and fell victim to the shrapnel, wasn’t annoyed.
After the dinner was over I realized there was a couple of ways I could have avoided this explosion. The best way to avoid exploding cigars is by not cutting them. Just put it in your humidor for a couple of months and then smoke it. But, if you really want to smoke a cigar that is a little too dry there may be a way to do so without letting tobacco rain.
If you gently press against the cap with your thumb while cutting it then there should be no pyrotechnics. I tried this tactic with the Fuente that I am currently smoking and, even though it was properly humidified and wouldn’t have exploded anyways, it works. The cap stayed on the cutter with the gentle application of pressure that I put on it.
While an exploding cigar is hardly something that most cigar connoisseurs will encounter with any regularity it does occasionally happen. In an effort to mitigate any more such explosions, I will continue to slightly press against every cap that I slice. It does not take any extra effort and is well worth it if it prevents any more explosions.
When to Buy a Box of Cigars
Is buying a box of cigars really that big of a deal?
Well, if you are like me and you don’t have an endless supply of cigar money, then yes, it is a big deal. I smoke a couple of cigars a week, maybe three or four once in a while. A box of cigars should last me well over half a year, if not more than a year. I’m still going to smoke other cigars so the box just goes into the rotation.
That means that I would be smoking a cigar from that box once every two weeks. Beginning to see the possible problems?
Beyond all the other concerns you might have over buying a box of cigars the biggest concern should be whether you like the cigar or not. Let me tell you a story to illustrate this point.
RULE #1: Make sure you like the cigar!
RULE #2: Have some place to store those extra cigars!
A while ago I bought a bundle, probably 15 or so cigars, of some brand I have never heard of. Actually, they might have been seconds, I can’t remember anymore. All I know is that they have this red cloth band and they look like they were dyed.
Guess what. They sucked. I just got through the last one the other night and while it does have its moments the final result is that it is just harsh, has a bad aftertaste and the draw can get tight at times. I figured this out after smoking a couple of them.
But I still had more than ten left. That means I have been smoking a cigar I don’t like for almost a year now. I absolutely dreaded opening up my humidor and seeing one of those red banded skunks on top.
All right, that means our NUMBER 1 RULE of buying a box of cigars is that you need to know you like the cigar. If you don’t like the cigar then you will make cigar smoking a chore, something I do not want to see happen to you and definitely not to me again.
Another important thing to consider, maybe just as important as the first rule, is whether or not you have a good humidor. Do you? Do you really know if your humidor is good? Is that hygrometer in there lying to you telling you the humidity level is 70 when it actually is 80 or 60?
If you have a bad humidor even if you buy a box of Petit Edmundos you will end up with bad cigars. That means the NUMBER 2 RULE of buying a box of cigars is that you need to have a good humidor. Monitor that box because it has cigars in there that are worth a lot of money.
Anything else? Not that I can think of right now. Just make sure you like the cigar and have the means to store them before you make an investment in a box of cigars.
