Official Cigar Appreciation Thread

in this thread, express your love for this fine pastime.

post experiences, pictures, wish list...anything of relevance.

do not post if you have nothing positive to say. i don't want to hear about how "bad" they are for you, or how you hate the way they smell.



i don't get to smoke nearly as often as i'd like to, since i'm married and all now, but i suppose it makes the times i can all the more treasured.

i just ordered 50 cigars today, because i'm getting really low on supply. my humidor is filled with nothing but my "top shelf" smokes, and i don't want to smoke the best all the time...especially when some of those can't be bought any more.

today i ordered a bundle of Punch and Hoya robusto 2nds, $30 for 25.

i also got 25 Oliveros coronas for $20.

both of these are smaller sizes, because i find i rarely have enough time for a longer smoke, and there will probably be more opportunities to smoke a 45 minute to an hour cigar as opposed to an hour and a half to two hours.

i still need to get some more variety, but those will at least fill up my little humidor.

i own several meerschaum pipes, and yeah they're finicky and annoying sometimes, but still very enjoyable.

i've been smoking pipes a lot more often these dys, because the places i go where i can smoke are kinda on the smallish side, and cigar smoke irritates some people. so being the accommodating fellow that i am, i've switched to pipes. no one has a problem with pipe smoke. also, my wife isn't bothered and in fact enjoys the smell, so i don't have to immeditately take a shower upon returning home, which is nice.

but i will forever be a cigar guy. <3

i've never had the Padron's, the cost is ridiculous where i am. like $12+ for the itty bittty 1964.

i have several cuban Cohiba's in my humidor, and the ones i've smoked have been quite excellent.

and i must say, there is absolutely nothing worse to a cigar lover than discovering mold in your box. fuuuuuuuuuuuck! the pair of Fuente Fuente Opus X's i have got too close to the humidi-pack and had sprouted. after nearly having a heart attack i administered some quick medical action (wiping them off with a slightly moist paper towel). after careful monitoring, they appear to be alright.

there are hundreds of types and brands.

don't give up too quickly.

fixed.

those are damn good. i've smoked several.

i just bought some monstrosities.

7.1" by 58 ring gauge Padilla Achilles.

i'll try to get a picture when i smoke one this weekend.

unfortunately i didn't get any pictures, but those things were freaking great.

nice and easy draw, very even burning.

and for such a monster of a cigar, that's quite an accomplishment.

took me a little over two and a half hours to smoke...almost burned my fingers.

EDIT: but here's some general smoking pictures from the night.



my dad and bro smoking their pipes.



all three of us.

the sister of one of my friends recently went out of the country, and brought him a little gift set of Cohiba Esplendidos torpedoes.

they were a bit dried out, so he gave them to me to stick in my humidor for a couple weeks to try and remedy the situation.

we're going to an awesome local restaurant tonight for their awesome happy hour specials, and to enjoy this fine smoke.

i've smoked several of these before, and actually still have a couple of my own in my box that i brought back from my honeymoon.

i'm very excited, these things are gorgeous.

behold, the mecca of cigar smokers everywhere...

www.cigarsinternational.com

first off, www.cigarsinternational.com spanks thompson in almost every way.

you might be getting 100 cigars, but their quality is QUESTIONABLE.

if quantity over quality is what you're going for, then by all means. since you're pretty new to cigars, you'll most likely still enjoy the shit out of them.

but when your palette is a bit more refined, check out some of these killer deals.

http://www.cigarsinternational.com/prodDisp.asp?item=SP-CIEG13&cat=161

http://www.cigarsinternational.com/proddisp.asp?item=CS-N7A&stext=nestor

http://www.cigarsinternational.com/prodDisp.asp?item=CB-IZA5540-B&cat=145

just to name a few.

first off, welcome to the wonderful world of cigars.

here's a guide i wrote in another thread a long time ago.

hope this helps.

ok, so i'm running really low n my bargain smokes, and have been dipping my hand further into the candy jar of late, so to speak.

this weekend i smoked a monster 7" by 58" Padilla Achilles salomon, and earlier in the week i had one of my remaining Padilla 8 & 11 robustos.

they only made 5000 of the latter.

i'm torn as to how i should spend the $40 i just came in to...25 more every-day smokes...or Pokemon Platinum...>.<

arg!

i don't smoke every day.

those cigars would last me for at least a couple months!

haven't bought either yet.

broke as fuck.

that sounds like a fucking blast.

have fun man.





and i just want to make you all aware of this fucking amazing deal running at CI this week.

that cigar is fantastic, and if i had the money i'd do it in a heartbeat.

that's awesome Eric.


i just got a new shipment of cigars today, my first order in awhile!

i got 25 of those seconds again, such an amazing smoke for the price.

and then to get free shipping i got the Joe's Deal of the day, which was 10 Gurka Grand Envoy's.

that's 35 great cigars for 60$.

fantastic. xD

try these: LEGENDS: Perdoma.

excellent medium/full bodied cigar for just a tad over $2 a pop.

and these bad boys are also excellent: Nestor Reserve Maduro

very tasty, and it got an astounding 93 rating...and getting 25 of these 6.5" x 54 beauties for $2 each is nothing short of miraculous.

and then there's this one: Padilla Obsidian

this might very well be my favorite cigar ever. a little bit more at $3 a stick, but honestly, this would easily be $8-$12 in a retail shop...if you could get them in a retail shop. which i'm pretty sure you can't.


let me know what you end up picking!

holy shit i hate you.

the Espledido is a fantastic cigar.

when i was in Jamaica on my honeymoon, i paid $20 a piece for them, and still have a couple in my humidor.

it was the cigar of the year a few years back too.

they don't deliver to Mexico?

that sucks.

yeah that was probably the problem you ran in to with those, that they were under-humidified.

the great thing about cigars is, you can bring them back into smoking territory with some time in a well managed humidor.

well i just had one of the most enjoyable evenings i've had in quite some time.

the wife is at the beach for a few days, so i'm home alone.

i decided to treat myself to a "trophy case" cigar tonight, paired with a strong beer, a good book, and good music.

i was going to go for a Tornao 2004 Tribute, but while going through my humidor, i made a bone-chilling discovery...a few of my other top shelf cigars were sporting fuzzy mold on their foot.

this is just about the worst thing you can ever find. however, there's no way i'm throwing out 3 $20+ cigars just like that. the two Cohiba Esplindidos (yes, they're cubans), i was able to gently and carefully wipe away the fuzz with a slightly damp paper towel. i'll be watching them closely to make sure it doesn't re-appear.

the third cigar was worse off than those, so i made the decision to try and salvage it for the evening smoke. it was a monstrous Gurkha Genghis Khan, 7" long with a ring gauge of 52. i decided to try cutting the foot about an inch up the cigar, since the fuzzies seemed to just be sitting on the very end.

it worked like a charm. my cutter stuck, so i didn't get the cleanest cut in the world, but with careful ash management, it was exquisite all the way to about the last inch and a half, when it started to get too hot and turned bitter. after going on five years in my humidor, it was an even better smoke than when they first came out.

for the beer, i chose Guiness Extra Stout, poured into a chilled glass. the stronger the beer, the better it goes with a cigar. the smokiness compliments the bitterness really well.

for the book, i landed on Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451. been meaning to read it for...forever. in the two hours it took me to finish the cigar, i got about half-way through it. thoroughly enjoying it too.

for the music, i started out with Sunn 0))) & Boris: Altar, and got through about half of William Basinski: Disintegration Loops. excellent, excellent mood music.

all this took place on my third story porch, with soft lighting and mild weather.

it was beyond satisfying.

i am very happy right now.

fix'd.

was it the Triple Ligero chisletip? those are fucking amazing.

and if he owed you, it wasn't a gift now was it?

a humidor is a special storage box for cigars. it's made out of either spanish cedar or mahogany, because these woods have special absorbency and heating properties, optimal for keeping your cigars in perfect conditions.

which is roughly 70% humidity and 70 degrees. some people like their cigars slightly drier than that, and you can just adjust it to your needs. i like 68/68 oersonally, but anywhere from 64-72 is fine. less than that and your cigars will start to get crackly and burn hot and uneven, higher humidity than that and your cigars will be too damp and be a bitch to keep lit.

you should NEVER have your humidor hotter than 75. 78 is when the tobacco beetle eggs (if present) will hatch and you can kiss your stash goodbye.

you also need to use distilled water, tap water or drinking water has impurities in it, and will cause your cigars to mold.

it's a bit of a challenge during the winter months, but you just have to watch it closely and keep refilling the water.

you can get them in any size, from 5 to 5000. whatever you need. i'd suggest getting one to hold about 25 cigars at first, and then see how your smoking matches up with that.

you can get a fully stocked one for about $80, or empty for $25 or so. invest in a digital hygrometer aswell, completely worth the $20 or so.

no, you can. just use long slow draws, don't puff on it like a cigarette. that will get the cigar too hot, and will activate all the tars and nasty shit, and turn the cigar bitter.

it's completely unfiltered smoke for one, and there's roughly the tobacco and nicotine content of an entire pack of cigarettes in a normal size cigar. it's extremely hard on your lungs, and a really, really bad idea.

smoking cigars is not to get a buzz, it's for the relaxing atmosphere and the taste.

if it goes out for more than a few minutes, it's done. it will be bitter and turn to charcoal. once smoke has passed through the cigar, it can not be saved for later. if you don't have time to smoke it, then wait until later. it's not something to be rushed.

i'm not familiar with those.

cheap cigars are great for learning technique without worrying about fucking it up. it also allows you to be the hero of the group when you can provide smokes for everyone. cigar smoking is a very social hobby, the more the merrier.

get comfortable with your technique and developed your palette a bit, then move on to stronger and darker, find what you like.

you can get amazing deals on awesome cigars on the internet. if you're in the US anyway.

www.cigarsinternational.com is the cigar-lovers utopia.

i'm always happy to help.

this is probably one of the best introductory deals you could buy.

i can steer you in the direction of some single-brand deals that are amazing (like 20 cigar packs), but that is such a great selection for someone who doesn't really know what they like yet.

be advised that the darker the cigar, the stronger it is.

though it looks like they've taken out some of the strronger ones they used to offer.


hit me up with any other questions you might have, and i believe i posted an in-depth guide to lighting and smoking properly earlier in the thread, so be sure and do your research.

happy smoking!

holy shit. those sampler packs are fucking PRICEY. D:

the legal smoking age in the US is 18, so you're good.

i would definitely recommend something else for a beginner. i mean,those are great cigars, but something that expensive needs to wait until you know what the quark is up with your palette.

just click yes and you'll be fine.

i'm telling you man, the guy that runs CI is just insane...

smoked a Padilla 8&11 the other night.

they only made 5000 of them originally.

this one was from a later release, and has been simmering in my box for probably 2 years, and it was superb.

i still have 3 or 4 left too.

2 of them are from the original 2004 batch of 5000, and have been in there since then.

probably won't smoke those for another decade or so.

yeah you want to be careful not to scorch it, so don't hold the flame right on the cigar.

it'll take a few times to get the hang of it.

going to be puffing on a Cuban Cohiba Esplindido church hill tomorrow during the Jags game.

it's going to be amazing. <3

so awesome.

i smoked my pipe a bit tonight, but the tobacco was too damp or something, because it was a bitch to keep lit and i kept sucking loose tobacco. so i said fuck it and drove home to graba cigar.

smoked a cuban Montecristo #2, which is considered one of the top cubans to try, rated 95 by Cigar Afficianado, and has been top 10 for them several times.

needless to say, it was fantastic.

i've not had one, i'll keep my eye out though.