Vitola
Double corona cigar
A double corona is a long, full cigar of about 7 5/8 inches by a 49 ring, the Cuban size Prominentes. Budget roughly 75 minutes, by our estimate. Clear the evening.
How long will a double corona last?
Plan on well over an hour: our estimator puts a 7 5/8 x 49 at about 75 minutes at a relaxed pace. Pace is the big lever, so the table shows three. The Churchill and corona columns give you a feel for the jump.
| Your pace | Double corona | Churchill 7 x 47 | Corona 5 5/8 x 42 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quick (0.8 times relaxed) | ~60 min | ~53 min | ~39 min |
| Relaxed (our baseline) | ~75 min | ~67 min | ~49 min |
| Slow (1.25 times relaxed) | ~94 min | ~84 min | ~62 min |
These are model numbers, not stopwatch readings. Our assumption is about 10 minutes per inch at a 50 ring, scaled by width, with the pace setting as a multiplier. Hand-rolled cigars vary, and so do you. Try your own pace in the smoke time estimator.
Is it really twice a corona?
Close, not quite: Wikipedia says the double corona is named for using twice as much tobacco as a corona, and by our cylinder math the 7 5/8 x 49 Prominentes holds about 1.8 times the volume of a 5 5/8 x 42 Cuban corona. The name rounds up. Names do.
Measured against the shorter 5 1/2 x 42 corona some general lists use, the ratio creeps nearer two. Either way, the gap to a corona is big, and you feel it in the hand: two extra inches, seven extra rings.
Prominentes and its Cuban cousins
Wikipedia's vitola table groups three Cuban factory sizes as double coronas, and Prominentes is the longest of them. All sit at a 49 or 50 ring. Cigar Aficionado's 2000 primer gave a wider standard range of 7 1/2 to 8 1/2 inches at 49 to 52 ring.
- Paco: 7 x 49
- Fabulosos No. 6: 7 x 50
- Prominentes: 7 5/8 x 49
The same primer said double coronas were growing scarcer in shops outside the Cuban brands. The Churchill is the close relative: 5/8 inch shorter and two rings slimmer.
Keeping a long cigar going
A double corona's main challenge is staying lit and staying even across 90 minutes, so pace and ash management matter more than on short sizes. A long smoke gives a cigar time to wander.
- Puff on a rhythm. One draw every minute or so keeps the ember alive without overheating it.
- Let the ash hang a while. Tap it before it drops on its own. See when to ash.
- Relight without shame. Long cigars go out. Purge, toast, carry on. The relighting steps are quick.
- Do the math on cost. A long cigar can be cheaper per hour than it looks at the counter. Check with the cost per cigar calculator.
Double corona time and size questions
How long does a double corona take to smoke?
About 75 minutes at a relaxed pace on our estimate, from roughly 60 minutes if you puff quickly to 94 if you go slow. Set aside an hour and a quarter or more.
What is the difference between a double corona and a Churchill?
A double corona is longer and slightly wider: about 7 5/8 x 49 against 7 x 47 for the Cuban Churchill size, Julieta No. 2. On our estimate that adds around eight minutes.
Why is it called a double corona?
Wikipedia says the name comes from using twice as much tobacco as a corona. By our volume math the Prominentes size holds about 1.8 times the tobacco of a 5 5/8 x 42 corona.
Double corona name and size references
- Cigar: double corona named for twice the tobacco of a corona, Wikipedia
- Vitola: Double Coronas, Prominentes 7 5/8 x 49, Wikipedia
- Cigar Shapes, Sizes and Colors, Cigar Aficionado