I pose a question, does the moistness of a cigar effect its ash? That is, if you smoke a drier cigar of the same type will it have a different ash, more flakey or white etc., than the same type cigar that is more moist, or should there be no difference?

great question. I would really like a credible source of ash qualities, and why so different among brands, wrappers...etc. Sounds crazy but an Oliva "O" Maduro has white, solid ash. The Bucanero Full Sail, has a grey, streaky ash that is very flaky. Why? I wish i knew.

I believe that the color of the ash is directly related to the mineral content in the soil where the tobacco is grown. The more white the ash the better the tobacco. The darker the worse. I've noticed that some ash stays together very nicely like with Partagas. And some is really flaky like with Hemingways from Fuente. Some ash has rings like a tree trunk when it hangs on and burns well. I have no idea if the moisture has anything to do with the ash staying on longer or sticking to itself better. I'd be interested to know as well. I hate a good cigar that gets all over you and a bad one that stays together.

ajeroth

I would agree with "The color of the ash is directly related to the mineral content in the soil where the tobacco is grown, but I would have to disagree with "The more white the ash the better the tobacco. The darker the worse". I have had darker ash cigars that were awesome.

Your right. I've had some good ones that had dark ash. But I think the taste is seperate from the quality of the tobacco. Theres so much involved in the cigar making process. Its like taking a piece of wood and making a piece of art. Any body with the right tobacco could screw up and make a bad cigar. And some could probably improve on worse tobacco and still make a good cigar. Just my 2 cents...

ajeroth

If the cigar was filled and rolled properly the cigar
should have good firm ash. How white the ash is, is secondary. The color
of the ash is determined primarily by the mineral content (magnesium,
in particular) of the soil in which the leaf was grown. Ash that burns
very dark gray to black has very low magnesium content and can often
taste bitter. It can also be a sign the cigar is under-aged. A cigar
with solid gray to white ash usually will smoke sweeter and smoother.

What al'Thor says is correct as far as I know. I don't know if low magnesium is bad in any sense, but it may be a marker for soil composition in general

I would disagree with the assement that darker ash means an inferrior or harsher smoke. Most ISOM's generally have a dark grey to blackish ash. And I wouldnt necessarliy think of a PSD4 or an HDM Double Corona has not being smooth.

Now if the jist of this post is only concerning smokes of other regions, thats a different kettle of phish.

You know this all came about because I was smoking a Gurkha Regent Churchill about a week ago and it's ash was strong and firm and not flakey. I smoked another one last night, out of the same 5 pack, and it was the opposite. However both had the same color ash. At least that's how I'm interpreting my cigar log notes. If they were from different years or selection I might infer that instead, but from the same pack?

Curiouser and couriouser...

sorry, got a tad off subject - I think I have noticed very slight differences in ashes depending on conditions - how fast it was smoked, humidity, temperature,etc. I've noticed that when some cigars burn hot, the ash holds together better, and the cooler the smoke is, the flakier it is.(NOT a hard principle for all cigars) Bear in mind that some cigars are supposed to have certain types of ash and others are supposed to have different ash - there's no right or wrong of it - but diff. ash from the same cigar tells me somethings amiss....

OK, I will weigh in with my BS.

From what I have found over the years of smoking awesome cigars is that there are two major variables in cigars.
1. Materials (the tobacco itself)
2. Construction

From my readings and my personal insight, I have found that that ash is very important.

The color does tell us about the content of the soil and the quality of the leaf used. A whiter ash usually (not always) conveys a higher quality leaf because it is not lacking in minerals needed to ensure good growth of the leaf.

The firmness of the ash can be used as a measure of construction quality of the cigar. A firm ash usually conveys that the cigar was packed properly and rolled properly. However, if the cigar is dry, it will be flaky despite how well it was built.

If the cigar is underpacked, the ash will be flaky, if the cigar is over packed, the draw will be tight and the ash will certainly be tight, too.

The color of the ash, btw, can also be impacted by the smoker. If you are power smoking your cigar (abusing it and not savoring it), it can lead to a darker ash as the leaf does not have time to burn completely through. I tried this as an experiment with a couple of friends. Don't power smoke. It also leads to throwing up. 🙂

LMAO @ These Posts....

SLIM???????? do the honors!!!!

Hog

mmmmm power smoking so that's what you call it when I herf a 52 RG torp in the 30 minute drive home. Never puked but man it makes my head spin.

I'm still trying to figure out hog's post. I just don't get it...

I'm finding this all very interesting. I devised a test with my good buddy Dale (hi Dale) we decided to both smoke the same type of cigar, we chose Gurkha Expedition toro's, and see what kind of ash we get. Although he smokes a lot faster than I do, the ash was the same. Solid, a whitish grey, and you could get a good inch, or more, as going. They even made a "thump" sound when the ash hit the ash tray.

I don't know what this proves, but at least I can rest easier knowing that maybe it wasn't just me, that I got 2 different type of ash from cigars out of the same 5 pack. You know, maybe that 5 pack of Regent's was collected out of different boxes. Which ever, great information from you guys.

Short filler does not mean tighter packed??

Packed are we talking Cigerettes?? no Cigars I have not seen any packed Cigars to this day yet.. Blunts??

Cigars are rolled.. even machine rolled are short fillers..

now back to the ash in topic.. and allot of you I know have smoked ISOM's...

Every ISOM I have ever smoked had a Dark Grey Ash some almost Black...

Nicuraguan (sp) Cigars I noticed through out my adventure with them throw off a dark/lighter grey also... as do the Honduran blends of tobacco...

these top three types cigars are one's I prefer most over the one I am going to mention next... accept for some AF and Ashtons... which I do care for Allot....

Dominican Rep. Cigars are the ones I have found with a very white ash...

IMPO.. I don't think it is a matter of the Ash that brings out the better flavors but the blend of tobacco in the leaf where it comes from is a matter also...
and something that can really change it all for the same filler in the cigar itself is the binder and wrapper... and Ohhh so many coming out any more.. it makes it hard to choose... take just the Padron line...
consistancy in almost any one you pick up... weather natural wrapper or Maduro wrapper you know what your getting... that is said for many cigar lines out there... and ISOM's are one of them... you can (if you can find them) pick up a 1996 Partagas Luci... that has been aging since 1996... Smoke it... then smoke a 2000 Part. Luci the next night and Wa la you have consistancy in the line of Tobacco...

but in allot of these posts I see short filler/long filler???

I do not power smoke a cigar... I smoke way to many cigs to have to power smoke a cigar... I try and enjoy a cigar like Cavallo does... its Meditation and a specific time and place to do just that...

but I am a lawnmower yard gar guy also... I got my buck to three buck lawn gars.. still don't power smoke em though.. it blows off the reason to enjoy them...

power smoking in terms of the ash is just as off as purging and thinking the ash is going to change colors...

just my .02 cents on this topic... good topic btw and I hope I did not upset anyone with my bluntness...

I was awaiting slim to post on this one for if anyone knows better then most it would be slim... he studies all while enjoying his Cigars!!!!!!

Hog

one more thing.. I have not noticed any flakeyness with maduro/rosado/or camaroon wrappered cigars.. just the natural or conneticate shaded wrappered ones...

Hog

I like to take my time and savor gars also. But there are those occassional times when I do the power smoke.

but tony you don't smoke cigs either... that makes a difference... I can smoke a good cigar and re-enjoy the flavor of it hours later... (I Do Mean a Good Cigar Also) with each Cig I smoke after the end of the cigar....

Hog

Too much.......LOL.

Barry