Sweet and/or Sweetened Tip smokes?

[shopkins82]

There are times I like to take a break from fuller bodied smokes and enjoy something basic, mild, and sweet. Examples I've found enjoyable are Diamondback by Dulce Hummo, Baccarat Natural (need to try the Maduro, haven't seen it locally) by Camacho, and even the Factory Throwout No. 59 Sweet.

Any other recommendations fo particularly sweet smokes, either with or without a sweetened tip? Preferably in the $5/stick or less price range...

[emopunker2004]

Try the Tabak Especial line by Drew Estate. You can get them for under $5 on cigarbid cigarmonster and cigarsprintsale.

[MrClean]

Flor De Oliva - the non-maduro ones are really good. They have a sweet tip but are not infused so they are not over the top sweet. And they are resonably priced, about $2 a stick.

http://www.cigarsinternational.com/proddisp.asp?item=CS-FOB

[bobarian]

Flor de Oliva do NOT have a sweetened tip. :sh

Several of the infused creations from Drew Estate have sweetened tips but most are also infused. In addition to the Tabak Especial(natural and maduro)the Java also has a sweetened tip. Not sure about the Natural or Acid lines.

Cuban Honeys are also sweetened, but not recommended by me. :2

[emopunker2004]

I would definitely say the ACID line is much more infused that it is sweetened. Although the sweet tea one is not bad at all

[BengalMan]

Flor de Oliva do NOT have a sweetened tip. :sh


Yes they do. The standard Flor de Oliva line that has a Sumatra wrapper do indeed have a sweet tip. The Maduro, Corojo, and Gold lines do NOT have a sweet tip.

[Skywalker]

I had a Nat Sherman that had a sweetened tip!:tu

[T.G]

I had a Nat Sherman that had a sweetened tip!:tu

Forgot about them, that was the "Host Series" that they did that with, right?

http://www.cigarsinternational.com/proddisp.asp?item=CS-N4A&stext=nat%20sherman%20host
http://www.jrcigars.com/jr/index.cfm/hurl/evt=itemList/catID=341

I remember smoking some of the coronas (Hamilton) back when they came out and thinking that even though I didn't care for the sweetened tip, it was an excellent mild cigar overall.

[bobarian]

Yes they do. The standard Flor de Oliva line that has a Sumatra wrapper do indeed have a sweet tip. The Maduro, Corojo, and Gold lines do NOT have a sweet tip.

My apologies. I didnt know they had a Sumatra, only tried the corojo and maduro several years ago.

[Reaver2145]

Ive found the A Fuente robusto sun grown to have a very sweet tobacco flavour that isnt artificially sweetened either.

As for the sweet tips while not my cup of fish so i cant give much of a answer iv'e found ACIDs,Ambrosia and CAO flavour lines to be all right though some are more spice than sweet.

[LigaPrivadaT84]

I've enjoyed a Baccarat before - wouldn't keep it in my regular rotation, but not bad for a change of pace; the Acids snd CAO flavors - not so much.

[andromalius]

For a short smoke with a sweetened tip try a Bandido. At 50 cents, quite a decent smoke.

[gnbikes]

The Nat Sherman Host series do have a sweetened cap. Nice mild to medium smoke, one of my regular smokes. Atlantic has the best pricing on them.
Garry-

[TJtorpedo]

When I started out, I used to smoke the little CAO Moontrance in tubos for a change of pace. I remember them being pretty good. I don't know if they have sweetened tips though.

[oooo35980]

I've enjoyed a Baccarat before - wouldn't keep it in my regular rotation, but not bad for a change of pace; the Acids snd CAO flavors - not so much.

I second that, unlike the Moontrance and Kuba Kuba Baccarat taste like tobacco and not bathroom air Freshener, while leaving a more subtle sweetness on your lips as you smoke them, they still aren't great, but not nearly as cloying as Acid or CAO.

[CigarSquid]

Try the Tabak Especial line by Drew Estate. You can get them for under $5 on cigarbid cigarmonster and cigarsprintsale.

When I have the craving for sweetness.. This is the go to stick. Real good in the AM with coffee.. I think.

[Sonic04GT]

Anything Drew Estate :)

[IlmProcess]

I am bidding on a Maroma (mixed filler) sampler pack and a couple of their sticks have sweet tips. I found one review of the dulce here: http://www.cigaradvisor.com/news/cigars/cigar-review-maroma-dulce-toro

[neoflex]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned them yet but the Drew Estate Natural Dirt Torpedo and the Natural English. Both use the sweet gum when rolling. The Dirt also has a little bit of pipe tobacco rolled in it too which also gives it some sweetness. Believe it or not this has been the number 1 selling stick for the last three years at the shop where I do some part time hours.

[schollianmj]

also try the Isla Del Sol by Drew estate. its not as infused as teh tabac especials but is a great early morning with a cup of coffe stick. runs about 4 bucks each at my B&M...

Clickey!
(http://www.cigarsinternational.com/prodDisp.asp?item=CS-DSB&cat=3)

[Bruzee]

I have access to some Dunhill seconds at my local B&M. They have a sweet tip, but are not flavored or infused. They run about $3.50 each and are very good cigars. I'm not sure if you have access to them or not, but if you don't, let's me know. I can always send some your way. :tu

[shopkins82]

So far I've tried the following, all with enjoyable results...

- Baccarat
- Baccarat Maduro
- Diamondback
- Natural by Drew Estate - Dirt
- Natural by Drew Estate - Clean Robusto
- Especial by Drew Estate - Dulce
- Kinky Friedman 'Sweet' Kinky Lady

Those I have tried and not enjoyed...

- Natural by Drew Estate - Root (not sweet, very earthy and toasty)
- Tatiana Mocha (extremely light draw, several voids)
- Tatiana Honey (extremely light draw)

Those I plan to try soon...

- Natural by Drew Estate - Dark Angel
- Isla Del Sol by Drew Estate
- CI Legends Copper Label by Drew Estate
- Oliveros Gold - Cognac
- Oliveros Platinum - Sweet
- Oliveros Platinum - Vanilla Fudge
- Piratas Pequenos (4x40, 8/tin for $5)
- Erin Go Braugh Irish Whiskey

So far my favorites are the Natural Dirt, Natural Clean Robusto, and Baccarat Maduro. I have high hopes for the Isla Del Sol and Legends Copper.

Are there any other Natural vitals (or other Drew sticks in general) I should avoid for lacking sweetness? I'm trying to avoid most fruit or otherwise aromatic infusions, sticking with just sweet, coffee, alcohol, and chocolate/caramel infusions.

[oooo35980]

Avoid Acid Nasty like the plague. Also if you are looking for uber sweetness, try the Java or Java mint.

[IlmProcess]

I used to smoke Javas pretty regularly when I first got into cigars - rather sweet. I've not had one for years, but they might be worth a shot.

I smoked a Flor de Oliva Panatela last night - slightly sweet tip with a solid, tasty tobacco flavour with a bit of nutty goin on in there too. Great price point and burned perfectly. I have a bundle of these and am going to be really happy if they all smoke as well as the first I had.

[shopkins82]

I'll probably end up with some an Acid or two since I'm bidding on an Infused Brown Bag on CBid... I'll give them a try, but I don't have high hopes for many other than maybe the Blondie, Kuba Kuba, and Deep Dish.

[Sonic04GT]

Avoid Acid Nasty like the plague. Also if you are looking for uber sweetness, try the Java or Java mint.

Great smokes. Very chocolatey.

[shopkins82]

Pirata Pequenos are a winner for everyday office break smokes. At $5 per tin of 8 they won't break the bank. Anyone know if full-size bundle Piratas are sweetened?

Another to add to my trying soon list is the C'est La Vie Robusto Sweet... $15/25 puts them at around the same price range as the Pirata Pequenos, but in a full-size stick (45 min instead of 25 min).

[shopkins82]

One note on the Pirata Pequenos, calling these a 40 ring gauge is a big stretch... these are somewhat rough-rolled and might be 40 gauge at one spot right in the middle, but are more like 32 at the tip and foot. Still, decent for a cheap sweet 20-25 min coffee-break smoke. I'm about to go have one with a cup of coffee right now.

[shopkins82]

CI Legends Copper (Drew Estates) are a winner... The hazelnut and amaretto is subtle and the sweetness is mild but lasts for most of the stick.

Oliveros Gold Cognac was a big time dud... No sweetness at all, and tasted like dried out potpourri.

[Jonathan Drew]

I just want to say hello to everyone hanging around these ways.....

Best,
JD

[lenguamor]

I just want to say hello to everyone hanging around these ways.....

Best,
JDSup JD.

Tabak Especiale Negras FTW. Awesome smoke.

[gosh]

Profesor Sila (no clue why professor is mispelled) is a cheap CI brand that is actually fairly nice in the sweetened-tip-mild department. Often suffers from cheap-stick-syndrome (one a box is rolled a hot dog, burn kind of sucks) but you can pick them up on Cbid for under a buck pretty regularly.

One of my new favorites is La Fontana. Like Baccarat, it's a Camacho stick (love me some Camacho) and it's less sweet and more medium in body than the Baccarat. It's slowly been replacing Baccarats in my humidor for my go-to morning smoke. Altho the Baccarat maddies will always have a place.

Oh and when it comes to the infused sticks, Acid Kuba Kuba all the way, but it is very much infused. And the Oliveros Vanilla Fudge on your list is not nearly as good as it sounds >.< Erin Go Braugh is pretty damn nice, and the Isle Del Sol is a Java Jr imho (not like that's a bad thing).

[maconusmile]

Phillies grape blunt!

[shopkins82]

I'll add Professor Sila to my list and keep an eye on CBid. I'll also keep my eye out for the La Fontana.

The Isla del Sol is the one I'm looking forward to the most as I can easily see it becoming a box-purchase if it's very similar to Tabak and Java. Cheaphumidors.com has boxes of robusto for $52 and I'm sitting on a $50 credit there, so it seems like a natural fit. Cigar Monster had a 5-pack for $10 over the weekend, but it wasn't free shipping and I didn't feel like adding anything else just to get the free shipping.

So far my top-5, in no particular order, are:

- Baccarat Natural & Maduro
- CI Legends Copper Label
- Diamondback
- Natural Clean Robusto
- Natural Dirt

[shopkins82]

I had an Isla del Sol Gran Corona (5 x 44) today and wasn't impressed. There was barely any coffee infusion that I could notice and the sweetness wore off within the first 1/3. I picked it up at a B&M Head Shop I stumbled across in my home town... everything in their small walk-in had a thin layer of dust on it, so you could tell Cigars were not a major part of their business. I also cut it with a V-Cut that went a bit deeper than I expected which may not have been the best for a smaller ring-gauge stick. I'm going to hold judgment until I can get my hands on a Robusto, but the one I had was not quite the TabakEspecial-Lite I was hopping for.

[gosh]

Oops I got the Isla del Sol and the Tabak Especial confused >.< Meant to say the Tabak was a Java Jr, not the Isla.

Can't say I'm a huge fan of the Isla's for the reasons you just gave Shop.

[shopkins82]

Had an Oliveros Platinum Sweet today... mediocre in general, neither displeasing or impressive. I probably won't buy these again unless I come across some extremely cheap. I'm also less inclined to try and track down a Vanilla Fudge.

I've started noticing an interesting way of gauging how much I'm enjoying a cigar in general... by how much of my drink (usually a 12oz Dr. Pepper or Root Beer) is left once the cigar is finished (usually Robusto or Corona size). If I finish my drink before the cigar, I'm not enjoying the cigar much and will pitch it at that point regardless of how much is left. If I finish the cigar and drink at roughly the same time, I'm enjoying the cigar an average amount, enough not to pitch it early. If I have a lot of drink left when I finish the cigar then I've thoroughly enjoyed the cigar. The drink acts as a gauge of how much of my positive attention the cigar is demanding as well as how frequently I feel the need to cleanse my pallet.

Obviously the above wouldn't apply directly to longer (Toro or Churchill) or much larger ring gauge (54+) sticks, but adjusting to a 16oz or 20oz drink might keep the general comparison in-line. Also, as a baseline, the drink needs to be vending-machine cold (around 38 F I think)... if it's warmer (fridge temp or room temp) then I drink much faster to begin with.

[FNA]

I've only smoked a couple of DE Naturals but I thought both of them tasted very 'pipey'.

[shopkins82]

I'm adding Pai Gow, Maroma Dulce, La Fontana Vintage Galileo, and the bundled Baccarat Sumatra to my list to-try list... all of the above will probably come up on Cigar Monster sooner or later.

[fsjonsey]

From what I've heard, cigars with sweetened caps are usually dipped in some solution of water, gum arabic, and an artificial sweetener, be it saccharin, Sucralose, or NutraSweet, as sugar would attract too many insects in shipping and storage.

It wouldn't be too hard to make your own sweetener solutions and apply them to the cap of any cigar you wanted.

[shopkins82]

I actually gave this a try using some Pectin powder mixed with a sugar/water syrup... the results weren't quite what I as hoping for... 2 cups of sugar dissolved in 2 cups of boiling water and mixed with a full pack of Pectin powder wasn't notably sweet, still had some of the tart taste of the Pectin, and never completely dried. I may give this another try with an artificial sweetener, but it seems like it will be a lot of trial-and-error to get it right when it looks like there are several inexpensive sweet sticks still worth trying.

I have a feeling one of the Famous or CI house brands (C'est La Vie, Maroma Dulce, Pai Gow, etc) will end up being a winner for me, I just have to catch a a few 5-packs on CBid and CigarMonster to try before I commit to a box/bundle.

Does anyone know if La Vieja Habana Fumas is sweetened?

[shopkins82]

Thought I'd revive a zombie thread and give some feedback over one year later...

Much to even my own surprise, I'm still smoking mainly sweet-tip sticks (both infused and not) more often than anything else. Some feedback on what I have liked and what I haven't:

Likes:

- CI Legends Copper - probably my favorite stick. Subtle infusion, subtle sweetness, very reliable
- Acid Manta - like a milder Kuba Kuba, or a full-size blondie
- Acid Blondie Belicoso - like smoking a Worther's Original candy
- Acid Kuba Kuba - flirts with the line of too much infusion, but usually doesn't cross it
- Acid (everything else) - I've liked most of those I've tried, Madre was one exception
- Naturals - I've liked everything except Root/Root Deluxe
- Tabak Especial - I've liked them all, especially the Cafe con Leche
- Isla del Sol - These are great for the price in every size except Corona
- Ambrosia Spice - Very full bodied, but offset well by a nice spicy infusion... for when I'm feeling bolder
- Dolce Vita (Thompson) - Tabak Especial knock-off... the Espresso (Maduro) and Barber Pole are very nice with hints of coffee and chocolate. The pre-light smell is pungent and almost like bubble-gum, but they smoke great.
- Nitro (Thompson) - Acid Kuba Kuba knock-off... like a Kuba-light... less infusion, less sweet, less smooth. Good infused smoke for very little money, but prone to tight draw.
- Flor de Oliva - Subtle sweetness with a pipe-like tobacco quality. The shop near my office as singles for $3, so I have these often on lunch break in the winter.
- Augusto Reyes Factory Selects Dulce - Mixed filler cheapie. Not horrible and worth $20/bundle, especially for the 6 x 58.
- Baccarat & Diamondback - My baseline sweet/mild stick, a go-to when I'm buying a single-stick locally and don't see anything else appealing or well priced

Dislikes:

- ANYTHING Liquor Infused
- Java - These haven't impressed me nearly as much as I expected... a bit harsh and extremely over-priced
- Oliveros Gold/Platinum - Mediocre, very artificial (dipped) flavor.
- C'est La Vie Sweet - Very loosely packed short filler smoke. Not horrible, but wouldn't buy again.
- Profesor Sila - Sour after taste after the first 1/3 on every single one I tried.
- Tatiana - Very artificial flavor, poor construction, loose fill.
- Pai Gow - Identical to Profesor Sila
- CAO Flavors - Similar to Tatiana. Only one I've liked was Carmelo Joe, which might be really nice in a pipe.

[MUNKY]

The Via Havana is a great smoke and from what I was told prior to rolling he must the leaf with a natural honey. Nothing overboard just a subtle hint if flavor but a dam good smoke. Well IMHO anyway.
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a359/brandonmeyer/null_zpsd1537d12.jpg

[dave]

I don't generally enjoy this genre, so I'm no authority....but I'll butt in anyway.....

Tarazona Classic has a sweetened tip. Very good cigar otherwise :)

Fiance used to enjoy infused on occassion -- two I didn't see mentioned that she really liked were Ambrosia Van Reef and Nectar.

[Porch Dweller]

The Flor de Oliva is one of my standard yard 'gars. Pretty tasty and a great price point. The maduro version is pretty decent for a cheap smoke, too, but it doesn't have the sweetened tip that the natural does.