Your opinion: What is the "sweetest" cigar filler we carry?

[FmGrowit]

I've had this question posed a few times and i really don't know how to answer it. I don't think any of the cigar tobaccos are particularly "sweet". In your opinion, what is the sweetest cigar filler we have?...or how can a cigar be made to taste sweet?

 

[Knucklehead]

I only found one source that claims the “sweet” in Swisher Sweets comes from methyl anthranilate. The others are shrouded in mystery. That’s what I think of when you say sweet cigar.

 

[GreenDragon]

I wonder if new cigar smokers associate chocolate and/or caramel flavor notes with "sweet"?

 

[deluxestogie]

Pennsylvania Broadleaf, especially the darker primings, offers a natural sweetness. This does not seem to be true with Connecticut Broadleaf. Some commercial pipe tobacco blenders use PA Broadleaf maduro, when they claim "a portion of sweet cigar leaf" in certain blends.

Bob

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

I disagree with the entire concept. Sweet is sweet.

 

[deluxestogie]

Well, maybe "sweet" smoke isn't really about tasting a sugar. I would guess that it is a balance of sour/bitter (smoke pH), combined with some olfactory trickery. A slice of yellow cake with icing smells sweet, even though we haven't yet tasted it.

We have perfectly reasonable and knowledgeable forum members describing tobacco in terms of familiar foods. We do cerebral pattern matching, and end up with a restaurant menu.

Bob

 

[ChinaVoodoo]

Well, maybe "sweet" smoke isn't really about tasting a sugar. I would guess that it is a balance of sour/bitter (smoke pH), combined with some olfactory trickery. A slice of yellow cake with icing smells sweet, even though we haven't yet tasted it.

We have perfectly reasonable and knowledgeable forum members describing tobacco in terms of familiar foods. We do cerebral pattern matching, and end up with a restaurant menu.

Bob

Ok, ok, fiiine.

Just makes me think of being in this 80 year old plant site and being told that benzene smells sickly sweet, and I am smelling weird things in every corner, and wondering, is that 'sweet'? Maybe that's sweet! oh noooo, leukemia! but the explosive gas meter is reading 0 lels, so we're good.

I guess I just don't know what y'all mean by sweet, unless if you're referring to that kind glint in Bob's eye when he's enjoying a smoke out on the porch, talking to bunnies and skunks.

 

[tullius]

I've had this question posed a few times and i really don't know how to answer it. I don't think any of the cigar tobaccos are particularly "sweet". In your opinion, what is the sweetest cigar filler we have?...or how can a cigar be made to taste sweet?

Of the WLT cigar tobaccos I've had so far, I would say the maduro wrapper has the most sweet taste in the flavor profile, with the dominican binder coming in second, and the sumatra binder/wrapper third. Not filler I know, and not many would use expensive wrapper as filler, but I use the maduro, dominican and sumat scraps as filler for that specific reason.

I have noticed that my short scrap filler cigars are noticeably sweeter tasting, being the greater part binder and wrapper inside and out. The same effect is achieved by rolling smaller gauge (38 or less) long filler cigars bound with dominican and wrapped with sumatra.

Various casings/toppings could be used ala Swisher or FX Smith, but assume the question is how to do this with unadulterated leaf.

 

[tullius]

Totally unorthodox idea/approach: incorporate some high in sugar (16%+) flue cured virginia into the filler? Or bind or wrap with it?

I have not tried this.

 

[GreenDragon]

Totally unorthodox idea/approach: incorporate some high in sugar (16%+) flue cured virginia into the filler? Or bind or wrap with it?

I have not tried this.

I've actually done this to a few cigars where I though the blend was a little "dry", i.e. more than typical back of the throat hit. I incorporated a 1/2" wide strip of red Virginia in the middle of the bunch with pleasing results.

 

[Charly]

I disagree with the entire concept. Sweet is sweet.

When I begun smoking cigars, I used to think "sweet cigar" being the opposite of "strong cigar", that might be the case for more people than just me
In my case, the "sweet" refered to different notions :
- sweet aromas/flavors (like cocoa, caramel...)
- mellow/light strengh
- nice smell (cigar unlit or smell of the smoke)

 

[PressuredLeaf]

The Nicaraguan tobaccos carried by WLT have the most “sweetness” to me (and the Ecuador maduro wrapper), but they are also accompanied by a lot of spice and other flavors.

As with some others, I definitely associate coco, caramel etc with sweetness.

 

[Jitterbugdude]

I only found one source that claims the “sweet” in Swisher Sweets comes from methyl anthranilate. The others are shrouded in mystery. That’s what I think of when you say sweet cigar.

Well my mind is blown... I always thought Swisher Sweets had a cherry flavoring added to the wrapper..

 

[Twilliger]

I have not sampled widely, and would suggest the infusing and sweetening is a bit of a different kettle of fish (why would there be fish in a kettle?). Of the leaf I have sampled from WLT the criollo has a sweetness/creaminess on my palate at least. I do like these discussions of flavour notes. I can't relate to the "this has hints of the pick lady apple that I left in knapsack back in 3rd grade" but I do really enjoy comparing what I pick up along with what others pick up.