Cigar Aficionados?
 

Well, I'm Having one of the cuban's I brought home from mexico, I only brought three home, but I had a couple Montecristos there, and they were pretty good. I had a few Romeo y Julieta's a while back in Antigua but today is my First Cohiba.

Got to say, the build up is alittle disappointing, but overall it's still pretty good. But I've had some dominicans that are just as good. I think the Romeo was better, probably the best I've had if I recall it properly.

Anyway, Cigar smokers out there, feedback wanted, tell me your favorites and all that.......

I am so interested in hearing others opinions on this.

Well, sarcasim is certainly welcome.....

You feel better now?
I know not everyone enjoys cigars, but there are a few and I thought I would put it up to see what other experiences there might be.

You don't know me, so you don't understand that I'm NOT being sarcastic. I am truely interested in hearing about this. I love, love, love a good cigar.

sorry, I guess I'm getting preconditioned from some people here.....

so what was the last good cigar you had?

I wish I could answer this. There is a particular cigar I get every time. It cost $10. and I get the same cigar everytime because the dude in the cigar shop recommended it and so I get it, every time. I know it sounds lame, but I go to the same place in the back, and get the same cigar. I LOVE THIS CIGAR AND HAVE TRIED MANY OTHERS. I WILL GET THE BRAND AND SHARE WITH YOU ON MONDAY.

Macanudos from the Dominican.

Cool, would like to hear. I enjoy trying different ones, but there are always those "regulars" too. One of my regulars is the dominician Montecristo white label churchill, well priced and good flavor, good with a coffee, crown royal or a nice wine.

If I haven't tried your regular, I will.

a good popular, economic cigar. I think it often gets overlooked by "high browsers" but I like them. Started cigar smoking with 'em.

I read in cigar aficionado they are opening a new line of dark wrapped maduros or something like that. I don't remember exactly but they are supposed to be doing something new..... sorry I started the story without knowing for sure.

crazycoffey, please understand, there are very few things I would rather do than sit on the front porch and enjoy a good cigar with you. No sarcasm intended. Please understand, however, you must listen to my stories and act interested.

Awesome. I just really began getting into cigars a few months ago so I'm trying a new one twice a week or so with the regulars most other nights.

Recommend Cohibas if you want to spnd money.

If you're looking for a cheap starter try a Helix. The ones in the metal tubes for around $4. They pull so nice, although they do get really hot toward the end. I remember I was walking downtown between bars enjoying one of these and I had to get a steak shishkabob from a vendor, it was just such a quality smoke.

I like Dominican Cigars more than Cubans.

The key is the Cigar being fresh. there is a place right in my town that has a Dominican guy rolling the Cigars right in the store.you can buy a package of 10 freshly rolled for $26.
And the Humidor is the key also..but you can't smoke in Bars around here anymore :cuss:

www.donfranciscocigars.com

That was my starter.

Never had a cuban.

Montecristos are good, Olivas are good.

And on a day in my canoe....I prefer Backwoods Sweet Aromatic.

as long as I'm not surprised by a prison rape, or sex change story - you got it.

God gave me two ears and one mouth, so I can listen very well, and talk less.

I'm somewhat of an anthropologist, amateur of course.

My favorite Cubans are Monte Cristo #2 torpedo and the Cohiba Esplendido (churchhill)

I had them both in Aruba and the Dominican Republic.

how about Ashton? The heritage and cabinet are both good smokes.

Never smoked an Ashton before.

La Gloria is good too. I have a huge series R, I think. Ring gauge has to be close to 60, had one a few months ago and it packed a punch. Anyway have one in my humidor waiting for the first golf outing of the year.

they tried to pass that type of law here in the small suburb of st louis where mr and mrs crazy live, it didn't pass. there is a nice cigar shop downtown, big leather chairs/couches - big screen tv and fully stocked walk in humidor. They are real open to letting you bring in your flask too.

I have a humidor at home, but lots of upkeep, this winter it was hard to keep the humidity up over 65, I like trying to keep it in the low 70's. I added an element and even put a shot glass with some distilled water to help......

72 is the zone you want for your humidor..too wet and you get a sour Cigar..too dry and you get an unraveling dried out stick.

I've been to St.Louis several times..are you close to U City?

the cubans - the Romeo y Julieta was a maduro, the monty and cohiba were both petites, I just finished the cohiba, it finished pretty well, but it started very well, the middle of the smoke tightened up and it went out on me twice, but when I took it out of my humidor my hygometer read 75, so it might have been my fault.......

It's too dry..put a small sponge in a small dish and soak it with distilled water,and put a shot glass of distilled water in there.

I don't like Romeo y Julieta's..they're too strong..I like a mild Cigar with a Connecticut wrapper.

I used to smoke a couple a week, and have since given it up all together. Have a beautifult cherry-wood humidor just sitting in my office empty.... :(

When I smoked, I favored the Dominicans over anything else...including Cubans. Never really thought the Cubans lived up to the hype.

My two faves were C.A.O and H. Upman (sp?)

Good cigars, at a good price. ($5-9 a stick)

I did that a few months ago, added an element too, this damn winter weather, two elements and a shot glass in a small 50 cigar humidor.....

I'm buying a house next year and would love to have a humidor. Any chance you'd be interested in selling it?

I concur with your assessment, but you have to try the cubans to say you did, too. that's where I'm at.

both CAO and H.Upman are good, St Luis rey was a recent surprise, economical.


there's an american cigar getting good reviews, Tatjuana, or something like that, anyone know the brand or tried one? I've seen Cigar Aficionado give it a few ranking in the 90s, but haven't found it yet....

I mentioned that one too, good cigar - strong! I have a series R number 5 (or 6) the big one, 58 ring size, just waiting for the first golf outing.

If you're ever in the St. Louis area, PM me and we will have to meet up and have a stogie, alright?

I bought some Cubans in Mexico last time I was there. They, much like most of my other stuff, didn't make it back over the border. Heh.

ouch, the truck story?

If not, I know the airliners checked the suitcase pretty well, I took the rings off and put them in a bag with my carry on. I have a metal travel case that holds a few and you are allowed under 25 (without the rings they can't say they are cubans )

I will make it to a game next season (KC). I have a couple of people I plan on meeting up with when I make the trip. A High School buddy lives on the plaza. I will try to stay there. We'll talk as season grows nearer Coffey.

-SR

Yeah, I need to make a trip to KC for a game too, maybe if the planning goes well and the stars align, etc etc. and all that jazz, perhaps that will be a good day to meet ya.

Funny story Phob. Wasn't it you that went to Sandals (St. Lucia) for your honeymoon or vacation?

Anyhow. We drove to Castries and my main goal was to buy a Cuban.

Before I even made it to the curb this guy said "CUBANS!" I ended up buying several Monte Cristos from him at $5 each.

I may get a room (like I did last time) at the Marriot at the Airpt. I really like that part of KC. Seems Newer and not too far from the stadium. A few Planeteers plan on meeting up with me. I will keep you posted. We have a while...LOL

Yeah - we went for our honeymoon.

Yes, that was the same trip as the stolen Yukon except for I left the cigars at a restaurant we had eaten in. I guess that little piece of the story got lost in the excitement of the missing Yukon.

About 20% of the mexican establishments I eat in put something in their pico de gallo to which I am allergic. My throat tightens up and I become really miserable for the next 1-2 hours. Since it is so infrequent and since I enjoy Pico de gallo so much, I generally take my chances. Well, Brian and I are walking around the town and I bought a few Cubans. Then we decided to grab a bite to eat and a couple beers. Sure enough, the allergy kicks in and I'm feeling pretty rough. So I tell Brian I'm going back to the truck to sleep it off - especially since we had about 4 hours of sleep the previous evening... Somehow I left my cigars at that restaurant or somebody lifted them off my person without me knowing it... In any case, they were gone and I was out $40. Then later that night about $30k more when the Yukon went missing.

Not a great Mexico trip.

Nah - two different stories.

Married in Houston. Honeymooned in St. Lucia.

Several years later, incident in Mexico during the renovation of Brian's deck.

holy cow that sucks. Sorry to hear it, I'll buy you a stogie at my first Planet party (I won't make the april one, though I was thinking hard about it)

I can't wait for a tailgate stogie on gameday with a few planeteers, or some friends - whoever I go to the game with :p

Ahh okay. You basically took the same Sandals honeymoon all inclusive we did. You've been married for what? 4-5 years or so now?

Brian is Endealt right?

Sorry for being obtuse or insensitive or naive, I thought you were Phil, and now you say you married Brian, so is Phil short for something or - well, you know. (of course, NTTAWWT, but I didn't think Texas supported gay marriage......)

Yeah, we just celebrated our 5th anniversary in February.

Yes, Brian is ENDelt.

I think I trumped your N00b question......

After I quit tobacco I tried a pretty strong cigar and it made me sick. I haven't had one since. Of course, I haven't had enough disposable income to warrant burning $25 lately so that may be a factor as well.

I'm not actually married to Brian but I did live with him for 3 weeks a couple of years ago. Does that make your winky tingle?

congrats you two..... I'm getting close to four - May 31st. but only made it to five on marriage numeral uno.

no winky go tingly; just tired, and ready for bed and trying to keep up. I may have been here alot lately, but I have very very limited knowledge of what happened here prior to that.
guess I misunderstood.......



yeah, the disposable income hurts me too when it comes to this lavish extracurricular activity, luckily I have a humidor with a few and a sugar momma that is supporting me until I get back into the swing of things.

BTW, we did the sandels resort too, in Antigua, but very relaxing to have the trip, the drinks, the hotel, the food, etc. all paid for in advance. but in doing the math from this last trip to Mexico, you can certainly save money by not doing an all inclusive and packing a soft cooler in your suitcase to use with store bought beer, etc.

have to be more creative, but it does save a few to several hundreds of dollars......

that being said, I don't regret the sandels trip, again, nice to not have to worry about all the extra stuff......

I've never even owned a German car. I've advertised cars in the newspaper and never gotten a call. Then I put one in my mother's weekly work newsletter and sold it to a women who saw it there a couple days later. I've been advertising my truck on craigslist for 3 months and have had only one lowballer come to see it (or even call). I think if the price is right you'll find a buyer. I just don't want to drop the price on my truck yet. I don't even really want to sell the truck - I like it too much.

yeah, time for me to crash too, see you both later.

CAO Mx2 is a great smoke that is reasonably priced.

Right now, Sauza Tres Generaciones are my favorite. Reasonably priced at about $10

Upman.

We get some good
Estate (aka No name) Domincan's Robusto rejects $1.
wrapper flaw, never had one open or burn wrong.

My bro used to order cigars from Tampa..they were Cuban tobacco from Hondurus I think..Thompson Tobacco Co....

Arturo Fuente Hemingway...there is no substitute.

Dominican Cigars are just as good as the cubans. I've smoked Honduran, Dominican and Cuban and, to me, they're all pretty much the same. For the money, however, Arturo Fuente is the best of the bunch. Hard to get too.

I've had quite a few Cuban cigars -- used to have a very good friend that went to Mexico every summer. Cohibas were not even close to my favorites... hands down, the best cigar I've ever been near was H. Upmann... I would give a nut for another one of those things! The flavor was unbeatable. Every cigar since then has paled in comparison.

In retrospect, the Cohibas were good, but nothing terribly special. For the money, a good cigar shop has things that are better.

Out of curiosity, what is everyone's preferred method of cutting?

I like a good double-blade cutter, but my favorite is a Magnum .44 bullet cutter.

Agree, and H. Upmann is on my list of cubans to try, I'll bring this thread back up when I eventually get one.....



to your other question, I prefer a punch on all my cigars (I have a two flame torch with a punch on the bottom) but with torpedo cigars I have a cheapy two blade cutter.

she never smoked one........ only helped with the rolling.....

I don't care for the punches because it bunches the tobacco up in the end... that's why I like my bullet, very neatly cuts a 1/4-inch hole in the wrapper.

Are you just now getting into smoking cigars? If so, you should know that those torches wreak havoc on the flavor of your tobacco... it burns the tobacco too quickly. You want a nice roast on the end. The flame of your lighter should actually never touch the cigar (wood matches are the best, but if you can't get the matches go with a butane light over a Zippo -- the zippo lighter fluid flavors the tobacco).

The best way I've found... light your match and place the flame about 1/2-inch below the cigar. Then slowly roll the cigar in your fingers to evenly start the end roasting -- you're not puffing on the cigar yet... just rolling the cigar in the heat. It'll start to smoke a little... then you can start puffing gently, but KEEP ROLLING THE CIGAR. When the flame starts jumping from the lighter to the cigar you're just about done. Keep doing this until you've got an even burn. The key to the even burn is continually rolling and not letting the flame from the lighter touch the cigar.

Some notes about the ash... it's generally bad form to tap the ash off. You're "supposed" to let it fall off by itself. I heard someone say it helps the embers from burning too hot and making the cigar overburn. Also, I've noticed that the better the cigar the darker the ash... I don't know if that's scientific, just something I've noticed.

Sorry... just read the rest of the thread and realized you aren't new to cigars. Well, maybe this'll help those who are new!

Thanks. It has.

No sweat, good information. I use the punch to do the same thing, just get through the wrapper a small hole. With the torch I don't let the flame touch and I don't puff while it lites, just toast it up for a few seconds to get the ember started and then get a puff on it.

I heard/read somewhere that churchill would put a paper clip (straightened out) in the end of his cigars so the ash wouldn't fall off, it was also seen as a sign of social strength or "my penis is larger than yours" type macho stuff.

I love cigars.

But I'm too high to talk right now.

Padron 3000 Maduro....solid.
Ashton Maduro...special occasion, uber-awesome cuban-like power with no hard edges...mmm

http://cigars.about.com/od/reviewsra...shtoncigar.htm
Cubans are way over rated. Personally, I think most Dominican and others are better. Much of the Cigar talent left Cuba.

And I like a bullet cut.

Completely depends on the cigar, TC... like I said earlier, the Cohiba was overrated... the H. Upmann was not.

I hate cigars and pipe smoke-makes me turn green and feel sick. Hard to believe that nasty shit is legal but weed is not.

Ashton makes a darn good couple of cigars, I like their heritage and cabinets too.

no, you're right, there are still great Cuban cigars....but for me it isn't worth the price or hassle...but I would never turn one away, hint hint...

yeah, any Ashton is good...the Maduros use Connecticut grown wrappers, and they have incredible flavor....dang I'm jonesing now

Is that a stain on her dress??

yuck

One of the best budget cigars are Consuegras from JR's.

They are Villazon factory 2nds. They make Punch, ERDM, Belinda, and a few others.

Less than a buck a piece you can not beat them.

CAO Extremes are the closest legal stuff i have smoked that are close to a cuban.



Most Cuban cigar's bought by tourist at ports are fakes btw.

Most anything by CAO is outstanding.

Well, did you get the name?

I'm going to the shop to pick up a few toda after work, you have a few hours, if you can get me the name I would like to try your suggestion.

Check this...url for Cigar questions etc.

http://www.clubstogie.com/vb/archive/index.php/