newbie: Is it normal to not enjoy the last 1-2'' of a cigar?

[BigCat]

It is normal for the taste to get harsh down around the end of the cigar. Some people have already mentioned the tar buildup. Also keep in mind that the heat is getting closer to you as the cigar smokes down, so combine those two things and you have hot, harsh smoke at times. One way to minimize this is to smoke more slowly, especially as the cigar burns further down. I usually start a cigar by taking two short draws and one long draw. As I get further down, I take fewer draws. When I get to the nub, I usually just take one short one. You also will want to purge the cigar every now and then by blowing out of it. This will get rid of some of the stale smoke in there. Some people do it by putting a flame in front of the cigar and blowing out. There is some debate about whether this makes any difference. I usually just blow out, although the flame thingy makes for quite a light show.

Anyway, I think if you give my advice a try, you will find more cigars enjoyable past the two inch mark. But if you don't, don't worry about that either. Cigars are made to be enjoyed. Smoke until you aren't enjoying it anymore, or idealy just before you are going to stop enjoying it, and call it a day.

[squeeze left]

Originally Posted by BigCat

Smoke until you aren't enjoying it anymore, or idealy just before you are going to stop enjoying it, and call it a day.

Can I borrow your crystal ball?

[Lotstar]

All my sticks end up less than a inch.

[alexandermorgovsky]

For me, I cut off as little as I can to get the cigar going, probably 1/16 of an inch..and I smoke it down to 1/2 inch...when my lips start to feel a bit of burning..I don't like to waste cigars, they are too expensive

[BigCat]

Originally Posted by squeeze left

Can I borrow your crystal ball?

I assume you are joking and not taking a shot at me, but it offers a good opportunity to clarify what I meant. I find I can usually tell when a cigar is about to be cashed out for my tastes and sometimes I'll set it down before it gets to that point rather than risk a puff of the harsh stuff. I'm still enjoying it at that point, but I know that any moment I won't be enjoying it anymore, so I set it down a step ahead of that point and savor the nice aftertaste and the whole experience rather than tarnish it by going further. I'm not saying I'm not crazy, but that is what I meant.

[TOB9595]

Good clarification and well said.
I also try to anticipate when the final puff SHOULD be.
I am successful most of the time.
Tom

[goldenboy1939]

My feeling is their might be a few factors at play here. I agree that some types of cigars seem to lend themselves to a smoke down to the nub (based on flavor profile and construction and maybe another quantifiable reason) but I think the care in lighting the cigar also plays a big part. For instance I ran into this a few times then I would play around w/ cutting/lighting technique.
I would make sure the cut would be enough (more than I had been doing) to make sure there was proper pull on the cigar. It seemed maybe i was pulling to hard on the flame while lighting some cigars because i was getting too much resistance due to small cut. This experiment tended to clear it up about 33 percent of the time where I would get a cooler, easier burning smoke that lasted longer into it's length.
The next thing I tried was too light the cigar by just dancing the flame on the perimeter of the foot and then the middle of the cigar - lighting it w/out taking any puffs. This coupled w/ a more conscious cut tended to improve the cigars ability to burn cooler and more evenly which tended to keep it going to the nub more regulary.

just sharing my experimental adventures. Be warned, the two methods produce 'different' flavor profiles in the same cigar, or at least that's what I have found.

And if my recollection is accurate it seems that cigars dry-boxed for a few hours at least burn better but seem to get bitter toward the end quicker than those a little fresher in the humidity.
Any thoughts on this???

[mostholycerebus]

Nice thread, with all this talk of 'nubbin' i thought I was the only one tossing sticks with an inch left. I rarely find a cigar that I enjoy longer than that, though I have had the very rare one where the last half inch was the most enjoyable. 90% of the time though, I stop with 1"-2" left.

[squeeze left]

BigCat, yeah, sorry - just joking. I forgot my ROFL!

Really, I agree about trying to guess when it's going to get bad. I'll purge; slow down, speed up; whatever - especially if I liked what came before.

Quitting a smoke early (for me) is often because of other stuff than the cigar - cold weather, etc. But if it tastes bad I'll chuck it faster than you can say "Phillie blunt".

[BigCat]

Originally Posted by squeeze left

BigCat, yeah, sorry - just joking. I forgot my ROFL!

Really, I agree about trying to guess when it's going to get bad. I'll purge; slow down, speed up; whatever - especially if I liked what came before.

Quitting a smoke early (for me) is often because of other stuff than the cigar - cold weather, etc. But if it tastes bad I'll chuck it faster than you can say "Phillie blunt".

No worries, squeeze. I figured as much, just hard to pick up tone over the internet sometimes. And believe me, living in Michigan, I know a thing or two about quitting a smoke early becauase of the cold

[mrreindeer]

Originally Posted by BigCat

I find I can usually tell when a cigar is about to be cashed out for my tastes and sometimes I'll set it down before it gets to that point rather than risk a puff of the harsh stuff. I'm still enjoying it at that point, but I know that any moment I won't be enjoying it anymore, so I set it down a step ahead of that point and savor the nice aftertaste and the whole experience rather than tarnish it by going further. I'm not saying I'm not crazy, but that is what I meant.

I've been trying to figure out this stopping point for a little bit now because the beginning & middle of the cigar is so good but then I get into that last 1/3 and it's just not the same wonderful taste. Bigcat, would you say it's at about that 1 - 2" left marker?

[Dgar]

The last 1-2 inches can often ruin an otherwise great cigar. Smoking a cigar to the "nub" is not usually my style. you gotta know when to put em' down....

[MarbleApe]

Originally Posted by Dgar

The last 1-2 inches can often ruin an otherwise great cigar. Smoking a cigar to the "nub" is not usually my style. you gotta know when to put em' down....

It's the enjoyment I'm after. When the cigar stops to be enjoyable I toss it.

[BigCat]

Originally Posted by mrreindeer

I've been trying to figure out this stopping point for a little bit now because the beginning & middle of the cigar is so good but then I get into that last 1/3 and it's just not the same wonderful taste. Bigcat, would you say it's at about that 1 - 2" left marker?

1-2 inches left is a pretty good approximation for me most of the time, although I find that where it happens depends largely on how quickly I smoke. Obviously, there are other variables at play, namely the type of cigar, but generally speaking, the slower I smoke, the further down the cigar I can smoke without it getting too hot or nasty tasting. This also requires changing the way I am smoking as the cigar is burning down as I described in my original post in this thread. On those times where I go too fast, the end comes quicker than the 1-2 inch mark.

I think if you are finding the taste to turn against you with 1/3 left, you may be smoking too fast. Although if you enjoy the first 2/3 and are alright with discarding the rest, then by all means keep it up.

[jm0307]

Originally Posted by Cigary

Oh geez no,,,the last 1/2 is where you really get into the cigar and hopefully get the complex flavors if that is the kind you like. If you start tossing them after only 1/2 way thru you might want to consider trying other cigars.

I nub all of my go to cigars. As Cigary pointed out, if a cigar is not nub-worthy, then I won't smoke it again.