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Bolivar Royal Corona problems -- ideas? (not a fake/real thing)

highdudgeon said:
Okay, here's the thing: I live in Italy, where Cubans are quite legal, and have an extremely friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable tabacchi in town. The guy is a true afficionado -- travels to Cuba every year, hosts parties at local pizza joints (yes, smoking indoors is illegal, but this is Italy...), etc.

Anyway, I've really liked the Royal Coronas before and list them among my favorites. CA rated them top of the year for '06 or something. And, I know for a fact that my Cubans are the real deal. So, here's the problem:

Last week I bought two sticks. I brought them home, chucked them in the humidor, and immediately took one out the next day when I had some free time. It was awful. The taste was somewhat as expected -- on the medium/mild side and pleasant. However, the burn was irregular, it kept going out, and the wrapper started coming apart at the foot. The draw wasn't very good and I just chucked it. Immediately replaced with a Montecristo #5 and was all smiles for half an hour.

I talked to my guy and he said that, probably, it has sat in the humidor too long and needed to sit out for half a day or so before smoking. Mind you, it had been in his enormous walk-in humidor, which I noticed is at 75%, for a long time. So, I take it out, let it sit, and then fire up again last night. Same results. I threw it away at a bit over 1/4 of the cigar, pulled out another #5 (what an excellent little smoke!) and enjoyed the rest of the evening.

So, what gives? Were these cigars mishandled in some way? Too dry, too humid, too something? How could a great cigar be reduced to crap like this? It is highly, highly doubtful that my dealer was deceived. He's an honest guy, these cigars are expensive, and his clients are smart, affluent people. He wouldn't mess around.
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One of the reasons you always see people talking about letting your sticks rest after travel for a couple weeks minimum. Most cigar stores I know of around here, keep there cigars at 70% Humidity.. Most folks you talk to into ISOMs store there's at 60% to 65% Humidity Max. Sounds like he has his way too wet, but to each there own..
I keep my sticks at 65% to 68% Only because thats were they seem to stay.. Drop down to 65% 64% and I hydrate my beads again. They will go back up too as high as 68% at most, and I start the whole process over again..
 
Do you think too wet accounts for the problem? Thing is, I regularly buy other Cuban cigars at his store and have never had a problem. These were complete garbage, though. It does make me wonder if, somehow fakes got into his humidor. It just seems unlikely and, knowing him as I do, he's too honest and well-connected for that.
 
Sounds like the cigar was too wet and likely not the best in the bunch to start off with. If stored at 75% humidity, it would take the cigar a few weeks to acclimate (I'm not sure if 75% humidity is a good idea in the first place). In any box of cigars, I find that about 30% of the cigars are superior, 40-50% are good, and 10-20% substandard. IMO, the hand rolling/ man made process allows for the variability. I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that these were fakes from one bad experience.
 
Your uneven burn issues suggest uneven moisture in the cigar. The self-extinguishment suggests overhumidification. Was the bad draw tight or loose? How would you characterize the burn issues? Did it tunnel? Run? just not straight across the cigar diameter? What condition was your humidor set at? It doesn't sound quite as simplistic as a "great cigar being reduced to crap" rather conditions of storage and acclimation contributing to a poor experience.

I store my Havanas for near term smoking between 67-70% and I find they deliver the best balance of flavor and burn performance at this condition. More humid than that and they begin to burn poorly and get acrid. At 60%, I find their full flavor is not achieved.

Wilkey
 
Why are you questioning the authenticity? Because of a burn/construction issue?

You say your guy is honest/trustworthy and the taste was as expected. With those two stated facts I would chalk it up to a bad cigar and be done with it. Most likely a poor rolled cigar, tobbaco, wetness, or any combination of the three. It happens!
 
If they were stored at 75% plus then that could be your problem but I've experienced a number of Cuban cigar with inconsistent (better word than shitty) construction. As much as Habanos has improved, I still don't find their construction to be where it should be yet (considering the price and the fact they're suppose to be a premium product). A buddy of mine recently got a batch of Siglo IIs that have had some serious construction issues, fortunately the one he gave me burned and tasted decent :)

Edited to add: Does "la dolce far niente/dolce vita" lifestyle really exist in Italy? ???
 
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