Dumb question and it has probably been answered or discussed, but tonight, I noticed again that the ash on an ISOM is almost like concrete. Where as most of the cigars I have seen have had fairly "loose" ash.

Both PSD4 and Cohiba I have smoked have been like this, the ash almost needs to be chiseled off.

Anyone else ever notice this?

And yes, I think too much. LOL!

No your right on... They roll them babys tight as hell.

I've noticed that Hemingway's have a really annoying flaky ash for a nice smoke. I like the ones with an ash that hangs on for a while. Partagas hang around for a while.

ajeroth

Some of it has to do w/ the rate and strength of your puffs, part of it has to do with how it's rolled and part of it has to do w/ mysteries that I'm unaware of...(color is determined by minerals in the leaf) - but I've noticed kinda the opposite - most cubans I've had have more of a mottled grey/black color and aren't the smooth 'concrete' that I've seen in some sticks - but more of a loose ash if not exactly flaky... Of course I try to take my time on these and puff casually...

Thor, you're correct. The color of the ash is determined by the amount of Magnesium in the soil where the tobacco is grown. Cuban soil is naturally lower in Magnesium, creating a much darker ash than say, Nicaraguan tobaccos, which are grown in soils high in Magnesium content.

yup, I was just going to add that many nic sticks have the very white and smooth ash that Opatience was describing...

I smoked a Hemi SS couple nights ago. The ash never did fall off. The ash was longer than the butt when I put in down.

Off topic: for some reason I really like that shape in a cigar. But of all of them I have tried, the Short Story, WOA, WOAM, and the Enchantment, the only one I like is the Enchantment, and IMHO, they are all overpriced. Any suggestions?

BTL

sorry, couldn't help it. you like the shape but the only one you like is an enchantment? If I tried five cigars w/ that shape and only liked one of them, I don't think I'd say I liked the shape, but that's just me. I actually do like the shape also. The enchantment seems to be overpriced on a lot of sites due to supply. Tried a CAO napoleon?

Oh no, I didn't say it was smooth, I said it was hard like concrete.

This last one, the ash was dark grey that seemed to roll up black at the edge of the ash.