Ammonia taste?

[pitbulljimmy]

So my last 2 smokes had a strong flavor of ammonia in the final 1/3. I'm just wondering if it's something I did or if they were just too young? My humidor was a bit too humid, and the one yesterday had trouble burning, but I dry-boxed tonights smoke for 24 hours, and it burned perfect. They were both smokes from a sampler from an online retailer... is it just that the stock rolls over too fast and the cigars are a bit too young? Any and all help is appreciated!

[mrsmitty]

I'd say it was to wet, a good rule of mine is let all your new gars rest for a couple of weeks, and I just started dry boxing.

[pitbulljimmy]

I dry boxed tonights smoke for 24 hours... they had been resting in the humi 2 weeks prior to smoking.

[Stench]

Have you tried purging when you get that ammonia taste?

[K Baz]

See your last cigar was a cuban - could it be the amonia taste is because they are in a "Sick Period'

http://www.puff.com/forums/vb/habano...ck-period.html

I had to go way back in my way back machine to resurect this post so reading it would be in order

[Cigar Man Andy]

Cigars are fermented and the breakdown of the sugars in the tobacco creates ammonia. They age the cigars and the ammonia evaporates. The ammonia taste is there when they are not aged enough. I used to have that problem with Camacho when they were rushing the process fermentation and aging process.


Here is a link to an article that can explain it a little better.

[pitbulljimmy]

So they were just too young then Andy? (neither was a cuban, one was an Esteban Carreras, the other was a Fonseca Cubano Limitado[NC]) Maybe I'll have to let my online orders sit for longer than a couple weeks?

[Demasoni]

Originally Posted by Stench

Have you tried purging when you get that ammonia taste?

I second that. Try purging the cigar, helps most of the time.

[pitbulljimmy]

I purged and the taste went away for a puff or 2, then right back again. The fermentation must have been off because the last couple smokes haven't had that problem. Thanks for the Info Link Andy!

[Cigary]

Originally Posted by Cigar Man Andy

Cigars are fermented and the breakdown of the sugars in the tobacco creates ammonia. They age the cigars and the ammonia evaporates. The ammonia taste is there when they are not aged enough. I used to have that problem with Camacho when they were rushing the process fermentation and aging process.


Here is a link to an article that can explain it a little better.

Right on target Andy and thx for find this link as it was a good one to go back over and refresh my memory on this. I usually age every cigar I get for an incubation period of at least 6 months. When you get that amonia taste once you don't want to often repeat it and I'd rather wait it out and let the cigar age rather than taste that awful acrid taste.

[Randy_LL]

its happend to me a few times ,,,,thanks for asking the question jimmy now i know

[Stinkdyr]

Originally Posted by pitbulljimmy

So they were just too young then Andy? (neither was a cuban, one was an Esteban Carreras, the other was a Fonseca Cubano Limitado[NC]) Maybe I'll have to let my online orders sit for longer than a couple weeks?

I got some Fonseca Cubanos from CI that needed to nap for 2 months before they came around. The first one I had ROTT was nasty. Just lay them down for a nice long nap, all will mellow in time.