Brand: Nub Cigars
Line: Connecticut
Vitola: 460 4" X 60
Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Flavor: Mild to Medium
Strength: Mild to Medium
Price: $108 (Box of 24)
I can't let Walt have all the fun over at Stogie Review, trying out the Nub Cigar so I'm burning my way through the meager supply I picked up at the recent launch event along with a couple that I got at The Party Source a few days later.
The Nub Connecticut 460 looks just as odd as the rest of the Nub line. The massive ring gauge and short length give them an almost novelty look. The Nub's are a quality cigar though and I've got no complaints about the construction.
The burn is a bit of a pain to get started on these little monsters, but once I got it burning evenly I didn't really have any trouble keeping the cigar lit or with the cigar going out. You can set these down for quite a long time and they won't go out. On one of the Nubs I smoked I walked away for about 10 minutes and came back to still find it lit.
One of the reasons I was looking forward to trying the Nub Connecticut is the Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper. Nearly all of my favorite mild to medium range cigars use this wrapper. They can range from the fuller bodied end like the 601 Black Label or the mild but flavorful Chateau Real Small Club Corona, I just really enjoy the creaminess that this wrapper lends to a cigar.
The Nub Connecticut starts off with woody note that has a faint touch of cedar. It doesn't really take long for this cigar to develop. A few puffs in I started to pick up the smooth creamy texture that was just a touch nutty, reminding me of the aroma of melting butter.
The flavors really didn't change that much throughout the cigar after that point. I didn't pick out much in addition to those flavors, but I was pairing it with my morning coffee.
Verdict: Overall the Nub Connecticut is a good mild smoke that has great some flavors. I think the size does play a factor though, and I prefer a smaller ring gauge with this wrapper.
I'd probably reach for the Chateau Real Small Club Corona before this cigar, because it seems to deliver a bit more complexity. I'd choose this cigar when I have more time as I don't think the larger Chateau Reals are as good as the Small Club Corona.
Popularity: 46% [?]
{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
I am not impressed by these cigars. Why smoke a cigar if you aren’t interested in the “foreplay”? I think shorter and smaller ring gauge cigars are a better option. Nice pic of matching cafe au lait with wrapper color.
How many more NUB reviews is this guy gonna do?
I will =not= smoke a cigar that’s larger than a 50-ring. This is just stupid and wasteful. To whom these are marketed, I can’t say, but I don’t want to be around them.
@Thomas: How is it “wasteful,” especially in the case of something like the Nub, which is such a short cigar? I tend to prefer smaller ring gauges, but I would never refuse to smoke something just because the ring gauge was “too large,” nor would I assume that the type of people who do enjoy such cigars are somehow not good people to be around.
Besides, the ring gauge can have a significant effect on both the burn time, and the flavour profile of a cigar, so it isn’t “wasteful” to make sticks with larger ring gauges.
Huxley,
While typically I would agree (though I’ll go 54-56 on a torpedo), the point of doing that with the NUb was to extend the smoking time. The cigar is kept to 4″ or so, because they only wanted to use the heart of the leaf. The theory being that a cigar gets good when there is 4″ left, why not just start there.
To keep it at an 1.5 hr smoke, they had to increase the ring size quite a bit.
While I agree that maybe they should also make some 50 ring gauges for shorter smokes, I will certainly try a NUb when I can.
–Tom
Right… that’s like saying any cigar over 5 inches is a waste of tobacco. It all depends on what you want to smoke and how much time you have.
So you are going to avoid a whole group of people just because of the type of cigar they want to smoke? I’m sure they appreciate the courtesy.
I have been smoking a few of these and I really like em! They are a very nice addition to the cigar world IMHO! A bit of humidor time without the cellophane should take away the slight tanic taste.
I smoked one of these back in August that I had got from the IPCPRA show and it was not too bad, personally a bit dry for me, but last night at the local B&M, he had just got his first delivery of them, to try one of the CONN wrapper as the first one I smoked was the maduro, I hole punched it and lit it up and YUCK what the HAY,, another puff and I almost puked, then inspecting the cigar noticed the blue coloring coming through the wrapper, went back in the HUMI and about 1/3 of the box had blued and the wrappers were spotty and stained. Make sure if you buy a box open it right away and check the contents, we went through a second box and foudn the same thing so it was not isolated to one box. Sorry but I prefer to let others know, so in my opinion they fall into the category of the CAO Sopranos cigars, lack of quality control. I tried to smoke another cigar but the lingering taste from the NUB ruined it also.
You really cannot judge a cigar with one try – there are so many variables. Sometimes cigars get mold or beetles…it happens. The construction on these is as good as any other $5 cigar. Why are so many so upset about large gauge cigars? Get over it and try something new. I’ve smoked several Connecticut Nubs and a few Cameroons and they are among the best I’ve had. Like any cigar they need some time in the humidor. If you smoke a cigar, any cigar, straight out of the shop or right on delivery it’s going to be dry or unstable.
What exactly do people have against larger ring gauges? If you prefer one size over the other than that is fine but why would you make a sweeping judgment about people based on Ring Gauge? That’s absurd. Why not hate people that drive blue cars?
I don’t like small thin cigars and I despise big Churchills as well. I like torpedoes mainly (5-6″ x 52 54 typically) and I do enjoy larger 60 cigars. They smoke cooler most of the way and typically I get a nice volume of smoke. I find that I can taste a cigar better when it doesn’t last 20 minutes and burn my face off for the last 10. But that doesn’t mean I would look down on a Churchill smoker. I mean what does it have to do with my smoking? Nothing.
So my question once again is why do people feel so strongly against a larger gauge? Is it some sort of cigar snobbery or is there some actual technical reason why larger sizes suck?
-Dave
Here is what some people do not know, as my commetns above on the quality and mold in the NUb I smoked. Torano, CAO, Oliva, and such are all made in the same place, so when it comes to quality you have to really blame it on production. CAO Sopranos have had a histoyr of being full of bugs, or eggs and especially when exposed to shipping or higher temperatures than 73 degrees the eggs hatch and they are buggy, I have experienced this in 3 different Sopranos cigars. Including the Tony Signature. The NUB is a great concept and I have smoked a Vegas 5 Miami that are stubby and they were great, no good luck with the Nub and yes it might be isolated incident but when you realize that the potential for lack of quality control all comes form the same factory, you begin to wonder. It is my understanding that thsi factoyr has been sold to some foreign entity. I am sure Jack has the details. Will it get better or worse? That si the question. I love the big ring gauges and short smokes as it provides a powerful punch as you have much more tobacco in a shorter cigar. You get alot more flavor and concentrate o nicotine.
I love the short cigar and larger ring gauge idea, it is a great smoke, but as in all cigars, production and tobacco dictates taste.
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