You’ll run into burn issues every once in a while, despite how well-preserved your cigars may be. Either the cigar doesn’t burn evenly or you notice tunneling when long, tunnel-like holes are bored through the filler. This can also happen if you’re in a windy area or there’s a fan blowing directly on your cigar — that airflow can sometimes mess with the burn. The point is, that cigar tunnels happen.
How do you deal with this and is there a way to fix it?
Cigars are packed with tobacco leaves, with chopped or long filler in the center, surrounded by a binder to hold it together and a wrapper on the outside. As cigars soak up and release humidity it can alter the shape and mass of those leaves. Sometimes, a tightly packed or rolled cigar loosens up a little leaving space inside.
But it can also happen when there are humidity issues. Such as when the inside of the cigar, or the filler is more or less humid than the wrapper. The wet or moist tobacco burns faster, causing an uneven burn rate, and if it’s the filler that combusts faster it can expose a “tunnel” or hole.
You’re puffing too much or the opposite, not often enough.
The cigar wasn’t rolled properly at the factory.
It was stored in variable humidity (RH).
The humidity where you’re smoking is much higher or lower than where the cigar was stored.
There’s a lot of airflow in the surrounding area causing the cigar to burn unevenly.
How do I tell if a cigar is tunneling?
You’ll notice almost immediately that the smoke is harder to draw and may lose most, if not all of its flavor. When you look at the foot, where the cherry is, you’ll see a long hole that resembles a tunnel right through the center of the cigar. You may also notice the cigar is hotter on your lips, or the smoke is hotter in your mouth.
The best way to deal with cigar tunnel issues is to do nothing.
Generally, the main reason a cigar tunnels is that the filler is burning faster than the rest of the cigar. So, the best thing to do in this situation is to put the cigar down on a stand or ashtray and allow the burn rates to even out. Stop puffing and let it sit. Give it about five to ten minutes.
After the rest period, check the cigar to see if it’s burning evenly again. If you notice the ash line is even and there are no cigar tunnels, you can resume smoking. If the tunnel is longer, bored through most of the cigar then it might be time to throw it away. A majority of the time the burn will even out while the cigar rests.
If the issue is not humidity-related — even though it usually is — it’s also possible you’re smoking the cigar too fast. You should be taking slow, deliberate draws every minute and a half to two minutes. Puffing too fast or too often can cause the cigar to burn hotter than it should. Depending on the type of cigar, letting it go out often can also cause burn issues later in the smoking session.
It does seem a bit odd that doing nothing is the best approach here, but it’s true. When a cigar tunnel appears there’s not much you can do. Touching the foot up with a lighter can cause it to burn hotter and faster. Some might recommend taking a cutter and cutting a half inch above the burn line, but if the tunnel goes far enough in that won’t make a difference.
The real question is whether or not to toss the cigar and chalk it up to a loss. We’ve all had to sacrifice a cigar or two from time to time. Don’t sweat it.
Briley has over 16 years in the publishing and content marketing business. He's been writing about cigars for nearly half that in various forms. What makes him a tour de force is he also smokes them.
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