Delayed Gratification vs Delayed Disappointment: Pipes vs Cigars

[Country Bladesmith]

Those of you who smoke cigars as well as pipes have all experienced how a pipe that has gone out for quite a while can be relit, with minimal, if any, negative impact on the tobacco’s taste. Yet if you try that with a cigar, you’ll almost inevitably be met with an ashy stale taste that basically ruins the rest of the stick. My question is why? What makes the difference? Anyone know? I’ve been curious about this ever since picking up pipes.

 

[pantsBoots]

I'm going to guess it has to do with the amount of tobacco in one cigar vs one pipe. This is pure conjecture, but is one of the few things that makes sense. While I have had some cigars spring back to life upon relight, I cannot reliably reproduce it.

Another thought is that the smoke between the fire and your mouth is filtered through nothing but tobacco in a cigar, vs the pipe itself. Again, could come back to the amount of burnable content in your tobacco device.

Interested to read other theories. One of the things I really like about pipes is due to increasing time constraints, there's really no loss of enjoyment by putting a pipe down for an hour or 3 to attend to life, whereas there's been more than one pricey cigar that I had to put down for a while due to pressing responsibilities only to return, relight and realize I ruined the experience by doing so.

 

[DAR]

In my experience, cigar tobacco does not do well when dry like pipe tobacco. Just like pipe tobacco doesn't benefit from being moist. That's why pipe tobacco doesn't do well in a humidor and cigars left out without a humidor don't fare well. Dry cigar tobacco just doesn't burn the way it's meant to burn when dried out after letting it sit for a while. Especially after lighting it. Most pipe tobacco does benefit from being a bit drier.
After all is said and done, I've never experienced a bad smoke from a good cigar when re-lit.

 

[Country Bladesmith]

whereas there's been more than one pricey cigar that I had to put down for a while due to pressing responsibilities only to return, relight and realize I ruined the experience by doing so.

Yeah, it really sucks when it was a nice Cuban. Had that misfortune once. ?

 

[Ebarber]

I would have to agree with pantsBoots on the amount of tobacco in a cigar vs a pipe.
I think that the amount of tars and nicotine being pulled through a cigar would be substancially higher than a pipe. When that tar and nicotine gets cold then gets relit you can't seem to shake that nasty flavor.

 

[pantsBoots]

Yeah, it really sucks when it was a nice Cuban. Had that misfortune once. ?

Eerily enough, the only successes I've really had are Havanas. Por Larrañaga Monte Carlos has worked from time to time. I smoke half, pop it in a Ziploc into the freezer, then remove, relight and about half the time it recovers after a couple nasty, ashy draws.

 

[anotherbob]

could be casing. Could have more to do with pipes being smoked slowly on purpose where cigars are more about puffing.

 

[Country Bladesmith]

Eerily enough, the only successes I've really had are Havanas. Por Larrañaga Monte Carlos has worked from time to time. I smoke half, pop it in a Ziploc into the freezer, then remove, relight and about half the time it recovers after a couple nasty, ashy draws.

I think I recall you posting this before. Mine was a Punch Habana, and I didn’t do all that. It might would’ve made a difference, I guess.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Those of you who smoke cigars as well as pipes have all experienced how a pipe that has gone out for quite a while can be relit, with minimal, if any, negative impact on the tobacco’s taste. Yet if you try that with a cigar, you’ll almost inevitably be met with an ashy stale taste that basically ruins the rest of the stick. My question is why? What makes the difference? Anyone know? I’ve been curious about this ever since picking up pipes.

If you plan on not finishing a cigar for a short period, cut it off just behind the lit portion and blow through it. This prevents vapors from burning oils from cooling in the cigar and fouling it.

 

[Jacob74]

^I'm not really a cigar guy, but that seems plausible. Thanks for the tip embers!

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

The tar and other crap gathers around the foot of the cigar. That area also gets moist. IMHO, that's why a cigar tastes for crap after it is out for half an hour. If you want to try finishing it, cut off the bottom one inch. There different beasts. Different tobacco type, different pre packaging prep, different packaging. It should be no surprise they act different.

Another thing, leave a heavy English blend sitting for awhile, its not as nice as a Virginia forward blend,

 

[Jacob74]

ah, that's sounds equally plausible. Moral of the story: finish your stogie in one sitting.

 

[Richmond B. Funkenhouser]

I'll relight a cigar sometimes... Seems like to me, It just taste rough for the first couple of puffs. It might also have to do with whether or not you were hotboxing the cigar, before it went out.

These very tasty C&D burley blends I've been smoking don't seem to benefit from the relight.

 

[tobefrank]

I always thought that delayed gratification mainly works for Virginia heavy blends, but not so much for Latakia and Burley heavy blends, so maybe it just depends on the type of tobacco used in pipe tobacco and cigars.

Something must happen when a cigar cools down, because I have always understood that it is OK to relight a cigar as long as it is still warm.

 

[rajangan]

All good answers in my opinion.

I would like to suggest that it's also a question of what exactly the buildup in an extinguished cigar or pipe is.

Most pipe tobacco has some form of flue cured and or sun cured tobacco. This tobacco has a naturally high sugar content whereas cigar tobacco has none at all. When sugar burns it produces formic acid, gradually acidifying the smoke and the rest of the pipe tobacco in the bowl. Cigar tobacco is higher in amino acids, and produces ammonia when burned, gradually increasing the pH of the smoke and the adjacent tobacco. Assuming it is vapor and liquid, it travels up the cigar as you smoke, and only some of it gets burned, but rather left in the butt in the ashtray, but if left to sit and cool, it stops traveling, solidifies, and gets burned on relight.

https://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjXzPym3tbrAhWsIDQIHZw2AwMQFjABegQIBRAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.leffingwell.com%2Fdownload%2FLeffingwell%2520-%2520Tobacco%2520production%2520chemistry%2520and%2520technology.pdf&usg=AOvVaw3Lbp501kMlNB5Rg1wWnQNa

 

[Jacob74]

 

[madox07]

Those of you who smoke cigars as well as pipes have all experienced how a pipe that has gone out for quite a while can be relit, with minimal, if any, negative impact on the tobacco’s taste. Yet if you try that with a cigar, you’ll almost inevitably be met with an ashy stale taste that basically ruins the rest of the stick. My question is why? What makes the difference? Anyone know? I’ve been curious about this ever since picking up pipes.

I remember reading this a long long time ago on a yahoo group. The guy over there stated that ammonia is the culprit. For some reason the cigar tobacco, due to the treatment it receives retains a lot of ammonia, that lets out a bad odor once lit. He reasonably advised not to leave a cigar butt indoors after it goes out, as it will stink up your room.

 

[madox07]

Oh ... my bad, Rajagan already explained it above, didn't read all the way, far better than I did, I might add.

 

[kcghost]

I guess there has to be one in every crowd but I smoke half a cigar per day. On day one when I have all I am going to I put the cigar down in the ash tray and call it a nite. The next night I will repeat the procedure except I will put the cigar in the ash tray for disposal. So despite leaving it in the ash tray for some 22 hours I don't detect any negative flavors.

 

[seanv]

I don't relight cigars unless they are out for only a few moments. I don't notice any foul smells if I let the cigar go out on its own. I never butt it out.
A pipe is different. I may let it sit for days and then finish the smoke.