Baby It's Cold Outside: Best Little Winter Cigars

Winter Cigar Smoking

It is getting frigid here in Florida. You know, 48-58 degrees and only 70% humidity. That there is sweater weather down here. We know a lot of the country is dealing with a lot worse and there was a blizzard that went through the Mid-Atlantic this past weekend, making smoking a large cigar much harder these days. The question you need to ask yourself is do you suffer in silence, anger the family by taking your cigar inside, or adapt with a shorter smoke?

If you are in the adapt to the cold camp, there are plenty of great options for you. If you are like me, I normally stick with cigars at least over a 50 ring gauge. My go-to smoke is a toro-sized cigar around 6 inches long and a 52-56 ring. Standing outside for the hour and a half that it takes me to smoke this size really dampens my enjoyment of the cigar. I also hate to smoke only half a cigar and re-light it later. I needed to find something smaller, and luckily I have found a couple of different choices to fit my needs.

The first option is to change your ring gauge. I used to turn my nose up at anything less than a 50-ring. It just didn't have the right "mouth feel" for me. Almost all cigars have the same blend in them no matter the size. The only difference is the ratios used in order to achieve the same taste in the smaller sizes. One of the few exceptions to this is my choice when I am going for a smaller ring-sized cigar…the Liga Undercrown Corona Viva. This 5 5/8 x 46 cigar changes the ratios of ligero used from all the other sizes in the line. What this means to you as a smoker is a much fuller and richer smoke with the Corona Viva over let's say, the Gordito for example.

The next option for all those that don’t want a skinnier cigar, is to look at the length of the cigars you are smoking. One of the most famous of the shorter, stubbier cigars is the Nub line out of Oliva and Studio Tabac. When Sam Leccia came to the heads of Oliva with his idea for the Nub line, a lot of them thought he was nuts. Who would want to smoke a 3 1/2 or 4 inch cigar, but the idea stuck and it is a great seller for them. The concept is that a lot of people really enjoy that final third of a cigar. What if the whole cigar was that final “nub” experience. My personal favorite is the Nub Habano 358. This cigar is a full-bodied and spicy stick measuring at 3 3/4 x 58 and provides the perfect 45 minute to an hour smoke.

The final option for those looking to maximize your smoking enjoyment during the cold winter months is to reduce both the ring and the length of your cigar. This is usually my plan C as it seems like I am compromising a lot to change both, but then again I am not a fan of change in almost everything in my life. There are a couple of different options in this category. First is the very small tinned cigars. There are a number of choices here, no matter what strength of cigar you like. Most of the big names in cigars make these smaller sticks, like Montecristo and Romeo y Julieta.

The other choice in these much smaller cigars are boxed smokes that are just slightly larger than their tinned cigar brethren. There are many times where I have found that I do not want a larger cigar, either due to the weather or simply time constraints, that this group of cigars has helped me. My favorite brand of cigars is Tatuaje. The 4 x 40 Tatuaje Petite Cazadores Reserva has been the perfect option for me when I still crave that taste of my go-to cigar brand. Another amazing option in this grouping is the 4 1/2 x 44 Liga Privada Unico Serie Papas Fritas. These cigars are short-filled and the blend consists of the scraps of tobacco remaining from making the much larger Liga Privada No. 9 and T52.

Whichever option you choose, you can see that there are plenty of choices for when you want to enjoy a great cigar in the colder weather. Go get your favorite hot beverage, grab a seat by a heater, and a great cigar, and enjoy your winter wonderland.

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