Villiger Krumme

[karam]

I've been eyeing these (literal) gas station cigars in Switzerland for a while. On one hand they look really silly, on the other I am a pleb who likes, no, loves Toscanos. I think these cheroots are the Swiss codger cigars. They are dirt cheap too, around $10 for 2...or 6 smokes?! It's odd that it says "Virginia", doesn't smell like Virginia. In fact they don't smell of anything.

I won't go around smoking this braided thing, would look like a knob. I've seen many Swiss codgers, mean gentlemen with mustaches, hats with feathers and boar's teeth in the band and occasionally leather vests and lederhosen smoke weird crooked cigars while strolling or hiking. I often wondered how come the cigars they smoke are so crooked, now I assume they smoke these unbraided. There's an old thread here too A Personal New Wacky Discovery :: General Pipe Smoking Discussion - https://pipesmagazine.com/forums/threads/a-personal-new-wacky-discovery.72433/

I'll come back once I tried one.

 

[Sigmund]

They look like legs cut off an interstellar creature from an old science fiction flick.

 

[karam]

Can't unsee that now, indeed, almost Lovecraftian!

 

[Sigmund]

 

[PaulRVA]

I Love some Toscano’s but I can only imagine those tasting like shredded cardboard, osb and cedar chips.
If you can find some Fuente Exquisitos I think you’d be very pleased and have a fantastic alternative to those arachnid appendages.

 

[TheIronMonkey]

I've been eyeing these (literal) gas station cigars in Switzerland for a while. On one hand they look really silly, on the other I am a pleb who likes, no, loves Toscanos. I think these cheroots are the Swiss codger cigars. They are dirt cheap too, around $10 for 2...or 6 smokes?! It's odd that it says "Virginia", doesn't smell like Virginia. In fact they don't smell of anything.

I won't go around smoking this braided thing, would look like a knob. I've seen many Swiss codgers, mean gentlemen with mustaches, hats with feathers and boar's teeth in the band and occasionally leather vests and lederhosen smoke weird crooked cigars while strolling or hiking. I often wondered how come the cigars they smoke are so crooked, now I assume they smoke these unbraided. There's an old thread here too A Personal New Wacky Discovery :: General Pipe Smoking Discussion - https://pipesmagazine.com/forums/threads/a-personal-new-wacky-discovery.72433/

I'll come back once I tried one.

View attachment 310888

Yes, that style of cigar is more commonly known as a culebras. It is meant to be unraveled and smoke as three separate cigars. I wondered the same thing when I first came across a braided one in the early ’90s. They’re fun.

 

[TheIronMonkey]

I edited my post above to change “culebra” to “culebras” (which is how they are usually listed on boxes). The word comes from Spanish and suggests a small snake (as opposed to “serpiente,” which would suggest a medium or large snake).

 

[karam]

So I had one, mediocre at best. Would have said "reflects the cost", but Toscanos cost about the same and are just great!
There's a lot of wood which I usually like, some pepper, very little sweetness, but there's also some resiny taste that reminds me of some Oriental-heavy pipe tobaccos which I don't like much. They are not strong, it's more pepper than nicotine in them. Sort of a hollow taste, it made a lot of smoke and smoked very well, single touch with the lighter was enough to smoke to the end. The weird plastic straw at the end works very well.

I Love some Toscano’s but I can only imagine those tasting like shredded cardboard, osb and cedar chips.
If you can find some Fuente Exquisitos I think you’d be very pleased and have a fantastic alternative to those arachnid appendages.

It wasn't that bad, it had some semblance to Toscanos, didn't taste like a cigar much though. I'll smoke them but won't buy them again. I can get the cigars you suggest, they're not even particularly expensive, I'll give them a go.

 

[PaulRVA]

So I had one, mediocre at best. Would have said "reflects the cost", but Toscanos cost about the same and are just great!
There's a lot of wood which I usually like, some pepper, very little sweetness, but there's also some resiny taste that reminds me of some Oriental-heavy pipe tobaccos which I don't like much. They are not strong, it's more pepper than nicotine in them. Sort of a hollow taste, it made a lot of smoke and smoked very well, single touch with the lighter was enough to smoke to the end. The weird plastic straw at the end works very well.

It wasn't that bad, it had some semblance to Toscanos, didn't taste like a cigar much though. I'll smoke them but won't buy them again. I can get the cigars you suggest, they're not even particularly expensive, I'll give them a go.

Awesome, the Exquisito’s are my go to in between cigar for a cheap great tasting fix without the time commitment. I think enough of them to send you a replacement if you don't like them. I hope you find them enjoyable.

 

[TheIronMonkey]

You may find this interesting reading:

5 Things You Need to Know About... Culebra Cigars

Culebras: those snaky-looking cigars, entwined in a set of three. Hard to find and rarely made these days, but they sure are fun to smoke, especially with two friends. Culebra cigars also have an interesting back story. We dig into what makes these time-honored cigars so unique, and demonstrate...

www.famous-smoke.com

 

[Non-Mentholated Black Man]

I often wondered how come the cigars they smoke are so crooked, now I assume they smoke these unbraided.

Correct.


The cigars are made crooked by being twisted into braids while they are still damp/pliable and then allowed to dry. The curves/turns supposedly create a cooler smoke but the origin of this shape has nothing to do with smoking quality and everything to do with theft prevention, or so I have been told.
A tobacconist in Italy (1994/95) said that employees of cigar manufacturers were given a stipend of twisted cigars for their personal consumption, making the sight of any worker smoking a regular cigar quite noticeable.

The "cooler smoke" marketing is a good idea but the "theft prevention" truth is genius.

 

[kcghost]

I have smoked some Havana Partagas Culebras and those were very good smokes for maybe 30 minutes. Sure, they are ugly, but they are good when you make them from good Cuban tobacco. They are created this way originally so that workers could recognize them from production runs because they would allow them to be taken out of the factory by the workers at no charge. Obvious, they had to come up with a different way when they started selling them to the public.

 

[johnnyflake]

Yes, they are definitely meant to be unbraided when smoked!

 

[huntertrw]

I believe that I would studiously avoid any cigar with "Krumme" (phonetically - "crummy") in its name!

 

[anotherbob]

I've been eyeing these (literal) gas station cigars in Switzerland for a while. On one hand they look really silly, on the other I am a pleb who likes, no, loves Toscanos. I think these cheroots are the Swiss codger cigars. They are dirt cheap too, around $10 for 2...or 6 smokes?! It's odd that it says "Virginia", doesn't smell like Virginia. In fact they don't smell of anything.

I won't go around smoking this braided thing, would look like a knob. I've seen many Swiss codgers, mean gentlemen with mustaches, hats with feathers and boar's teeth in the band and occasionally leather vests and lederhosen smoke weird crooked cigars while strolling or hiking. I often wondered how come the cigars they smoke are so crooked, now I assume they smoke these unbraided. There's an old thread here too A Personal New Wacky Discovery :: General Pipe Smoking Discussion - https://pipesmagazine.com/forums/threads/a-personal-new-wacky-discovery.72433/

I'll come back once I tried one.

View attachment 310888

reminds me of the local thing here. Amish cigars. Super rough and ready. Good but not a touch of refinement to them. But frankly found them delightful. Or in other words would love to try this next time I am getting gas in Switzerland.

 

[Brendan]

Or in other words would love to try this next time I am getting gas in Switzerland.

Don't forget to leave your car in neutral..

 

[PaulRVA]

So I had one, mediocre at best. Would have said "reflects the cost", but Toscanos cost about the same and are just great!
There's a lot of wood which I usually like, some pepper, very little sweetness, but there's also some resiny taste that reminds me of some Oriental-heavy pipe tobaccos which I don't like much. They are not strong, it's more pepper than nicotine in them. Sort of a hollow taste, it made a lot of smoke and smoked very well, single touch with the lighter was enough to smoke to the end. The weird plastic straw at the end works very well.

It wasn't that bad, it had some semblance to Toscanos, didn't taste like a cigar much though. I'll smoke them but won't buy them again. I can get the cigars you suggest, they're not even particularly expensive, I'll give them a go.