Great tobacco has a natural combustion rate at which it must burn to convey its most delicate flavors.  If smoked “too hot”, tobacco will taste acrid and one dimensional; heat will coat the palate and the intricate blend of aroma and flavor will be lost.  To determine the proper rate of smoking, let the ash be your guide.  A cigar smoked at the proper rate will release its ash and leave a “flat” foot and ember behind.  A cigar that is “too hot” will leave behind a pointy ember after the ash has fallen.  The pronounced ember is a sign that the cigar is not burning evenly and therefore, too hot.  Cigars can burn too hot because:

• the user is smoking too fast
• the cigar is rolled too tight, or poorly
• the filler leaves were not arranged/placed  properly