The Cigar Thread. Smoke em' if you got em'.

[Steel Head]

 

[ilikegunspdx]

2nd Partagas Cofientes Maduro today. This thing smokes like a tire fire. In the middle of an old growth forest! Very oily, salty, peppery at first. Then smooth oily sweet earth. Zero harshness. One dimensional flavor wise but really nice sweet maduro wrapper. I've seen this categorized as medium full but I would say Medium bodied (at least in this 54x6" size. If u like Medium bodied earthy cigars and Partagas taste this would be one to try if nothing else for the sweet oily wrapper. Nice musty earth aroma. Don't expect pepper or lots of complexity with this one. 8.7/10 score for me. Really, really slow burning and no change If leaving for a few minutes. 2 hour cigar probably. Construction and draw excellent. Taste seems to reflect tobacco used: ligero for wrapper, milder Dominican for filler. Noticeable improvement over first one I tried which had maybe one month in humidor vs this one about 3 months

 

[Joe13]

Man O' War Legend

7x58 Solomon

Well, compared to the Ruination that I got 2 hours out of and labeled 5/5 this one has been an hour and is only a 3/5 for me.

Nice smoke but not a lot of transitions just a nice medium tobacco taste to me.

 

[ilikegunspdx]

I noticed damnation and regular man o war sell for less than ruination on cigarbid so they must be less popular. Haven't noticed legend prices. Price or popularity does not necessarily mean anything though in regards to personal like/dislike. Just something I noticed. Ruination is very reasonably priced on there too fwiw and I think a real bargain for what it is. Free fall auction is cheapest for ruination I have found. I've never tried the ruination 10th anniversary but I'd like to try that one sometime.

Also I noticed this today so cigarbid is probably same company as Thompson's?

Also I noticed that cigar.com (not cigars.com) has a very similar auction to the freefall auction, with about the same time in between price resetting (about 2:45 roughly) so I wonder if they are part of the same company too or maybe they just use same auction engine or whatever.

 

[Joe13]

Talk about tire fire lol. This is at rest...

Love these Obsidians

Strong but smooth - good flavors.

 

[ilikegunspdx]

Talk about tire fire lol. This is at rest...

Love these Obsidians

Strong but smooth - good flavors.

View attachment 706812

Reminds me of a cigar advisor video I saw answering the Q "why is cigar smoke blue on one end but white when exhaling?". I think they got it wrong on the video. The comm college professor on the video said it is the moisture from your mouth that causes the smoke to reflect more light. That may be true for exhaled smoke that was never "inhaled" (I mean put in your mouth) but what about smoke from the burning end?. The reflect more light part = white color is correct I think but temperature seems to be #1 factor and also type of tobacco. Most cigars are only blue smoke but like mine today it was distinctly blue plus white on the burning end (about 1/2 and 1/2). I've had others that are blue plus tan. And still others with blue, tan, white on the burning end. I noticed on one Kristoff (I think it was) that flavors changed when smoke colors changed which makes me think tobacco in the blend is the reason (note that u can only see colors in direct sunlight really). All the above should probably be filed under "who gives a rat's a$$ about that anyway?" ha ha. It just reminded me of that video.

 

[ilikegunspdx]

Man o war damnation for me today. The most interesting thing about it is the aroma. Very distinctive aroma and closest thing I found to the early 90s Macanudo maduro in terms of aroma. And even some of the other Jamaican cigars back when Jamaica was one of the prime producers of cigars (in terms of aroma I mean). For some reason the Connecticut broadleaf wrapper plus the Nicaraguan fillers make a similar aroma.

As far as taste I would say medium-full, earthy, dry, spicy, musty. Not as sweet and chocolatey as ruination but not that far off taste wise overall. More like dry leather and musty with this one. Reminds me a bit of Ramon bueso genesis project. I was not up for a full Churchill this morning so I lopped it in half (before lighting) but still probably one hour burn on this one half cigar. I might buy this again just for the aroma alone but taste wise it's more 1 dimensional than ruination.

Comparing to similar cigars, I like it a tad less than torano exodus 50 year and ruination just cuz less sweet mainly. I like it a bit better than bueso genesis. I think I gave torano 50 year a 8.8/10 and prob same for ruination vs 8.2 for genesis. I would give this one a 8.7/10 for my preferences. My scale is sort of anything 8 and above is if I were stranded on a desert island and only had one cigar I could live with smoking it everyday. 9 or above = can't stand to see it end. Price wise these can be found for maybe 20-30% less than ruination. Burn, draw, construction all excellent.

 

[Joe13]

Gurkha Archive Torpedo 6.5x52

Had some better expectations from this but am a little disappointed.

burn, ash, draw and construction etc are all good but I just don't think I'm a Cameroon wrapper guy.

Medium finish of cooking spices, no pepper.

 

[Joe13]

Wow!

Figured I'd try something new and stronger then that Archive so grabbed a RP Super Ligero

I like strong cigars and while I doubt this will turn me green, I may not be able to taste dinner...

Talk about a punch in the face. First inch was a little hot with the pepper but it's mellowed a bit or my taste buds and sinuses are fried lol.

I am going to say this ones stronger then any of the Diesel line I've tried previously. Not as complex in flavor though.

only about 1/3 thru it and only have about 1/2 an hour till I gotta go so I'll see how far into I get.

The other 3 I have are absolutely going in the After Dinner list.

Flavors aren't bad at all so maybe a 4/5 for me.

 

[ilikegunspdx]

Rocky Patel vintage 1999 conn. 2nds for me today. Same experience as first one I had (despite an extravmonth or so in humidor). Similar flavors to the "not second" version but not nearly as strong flavors. Could be due to not enough humidor time or possibly due to the mail order company poor storage or something? Original "not seconds" were from holts vs these 2nds were from cigarbid, a company I have had tons of variability with in terms of how long cigars need to be in humidor after arriving. The Regular version of this cigar has really strong marzaipan flavor. With rhis one it's there but not nearly as strong.

Anyway the pics show why it's a factory second (tear in the wrapper). Have not unrolled one but I believe these are long filler, regular cigars with cosmetic blemishes, not mixed filler like fumas are.

I've noticed that the RP seconds can go almost as high as the regular cigars so from a value standpoint they aren't as attractive as some of the other brands seconds imo.

 

[Joe13]

Gurkha G3

Got one of these in a Churchill sampler way back.

Didn't know anything about it but after lighting it I looked into it. Short run label. Strongest Gurkha currently, 3 different Ligero fillers, Cameroon binder and Maduro wrapper.

Absolutely excellent construction and flavor. Full bodied but no pepper at all, complex flavors with transitions.

Honestly, this may be my favorite Gurkha that I've tried to date.

Ash is white and tight, held for a good inch and a half, no relights.

If I paid $5 (on sale) cigar I'd grab a box of these, not only are they good but the box appears to be leather (or similar) with a cedar shelf dividing the 2 layers.

Box aside this is a 5/5 for me

 

[ilikegunspdx]

...3 different Ligero fillers, Cameroon binder and Maduro wrapper...

Very interesting combo of tobaccos there.

 

[Joe13]

Very interesting combo of tobaccos there.

Its so smooth I've not had hardly any water - I set my expectations low on this one and was blown away.

Works for my tastes at least.

 

[teflon6string]

Okay, I get these flyers in my mailbox every week (Safeway/Albertsons coupons, duct cleaning scams, Harbor Freight, restaurant chains, commemorative coins, etc.), and I think of this thread whenever I see this cigar ad.

I don't smoke 'em, so I don't know, but I'm curious. I would assume that "8 Cigars for only $10 (a $52 value)" is dirt cheap compared to some of the exotic looking numbers I saw just now scrolling through this thread for a minute.

Are these like the worst of the worst? Any good ones in the mix?

 

[Joe13]

I like 5 of them.

2 are ok.

I won't smoke the Villizon.

It's for your first order only and there are actually a few Pricier cigars in there as well as a good range of flavors for a new to cigar person to try.

It's meant to draw you in and get you ordering more

 

[teflon6string]

I like 5 of them.

2 are ok.

I won't smoke the Villizon.

It's for your first order only and there are actually a few Pricier cigars in there as well as a good range of flavors for a new to cigar person to try.

It's meant to draw you in and get you ordering more

Thanks man! It's more of a curiosity thing. I thought I recognized a couple names.

I had a DoD civilian gig with the USMC and USN several years ago and ended up bar-hopping first night back in Australia with the top brass from 3 ships. They'd just been to some other country where they got non-embargoed Cuban cigars, and somebody offered me one. I wanted to be gracious and accepted, puffing up wit da boys. As a former cigarette smoker (and pretty damn drunk), I found myself inhaling, which made the room spin violently. Gaaawwwd I felt horrible, and I still think 20 years later that vomiting would have been a relief. I guess knowing HOW to smoke a cigar helps too.

Are Cubans still verboten here?

 

[Joe13]

Thanks man! It's more of a curiosity thing. I thought I recognized a couple names.

I had a DoD civilian gig with the USMC and USN several years ago and ended up bar-hopping first night back in Australia with the top brass from 3 ships. They'd just been to some other country where they got non-embargoed Cuban cigars, and somebody offered me one. I wanted to be gracious and accepted, puffing up wit da boys. As a former cigarette smoker (and pretty damn drunk), I found myself inhaling, which made the room spin violently. Gaaawwwd I felt horrible, and I still think 20 years later that vomiting would have been a relief. I guess knowing HOW to smoke a cigar helps too.

Are Cubans still verboten here?

If you travel outside the US you can buy Cubans and bring them back as a personal stash but still no way to buy and import them from Cuba.

Never having had one and looking into it a lot, Nicaragua, Honduras and the Dominican Republic (where we get our cigars today) are mostly families that fled Cuba with their seeds and knowledge and just picked up where they left off.

So I've seen people say that the US has access to the best cigars in the world and we consume the most as a country as well. I don't have the stats to back that up though so take it with a grain of salt.

There is a huge variety available though so I would say there is something for everyone who wants to dabble in the hobbie.

Having said that it's going to be a lot like getting into booze, your going to have to get used to it and tour going to have to try a variety to figure out what you like.

As you obviously know, inhaling is a huge no. There is an enormous amount of nicotine in a cigar but you won't absorb the vast majority of it by not inhaling (alcohol will enhance the absorption so don't drink it when your first staring out would be my recommendation).

Either casual interest or if it's a hobbie you want to dabble in there is a vast amount of information on YouTube - just type in beginner cigar into the search bar and you'll have videos for days.

 

[ilikegunspdx]

Thanks man! It's more of a curiosity thing. I thought I recognized a couple names.

I had a DoD civilian gig with the USMC and USN several years ago and ended up bar-hopping first night back in Australia with the top brass from 3 ships. They'd just been to some other country where they got non-embargoed Cuban cigars, and somebody offered me one. I wanted to be gracious and accepted, puffing up wit da boys. As a former cigarette smoker (and pretty damn drunk), I found myself inhaling, which made the room spin violently. Gaaawwwd I felt horrible, and I still think 20 years later that vomiting would have been a relief. I guess knowing HOW to smoke a cigar helps too.

Are Cubans still verboten here?

The deal with almost all lower cost samplers u find is they give u 2-3 good cigars, mostly ok ones, and 2-3 that are really trash. Think of it as 2-3 big names to suck u in, with the rest being "filler". Usually some of that "filler" is not too bad.

The second issue is shipping. So the sampler u listed is 8 cigars for $13 shipped which is a great price as long as you are aware that a couple will be trash (I assume villazon and Bahia, but have not tried either).

imo u kinda have to "overpay" a bit at first to learn what u like. By "overpay" I mean try a few singles (singles r the most expensive) and get some samplers which will undoubtedly have some u don't like and that's ok. But then once u know what u like, u can find most brands really cheap (ie $1-$3) if u know where to look and buy in a quantity that gives the best deal such as a 5 or 10 pack.

Personally I would not mess with Cubans when starting out just due to cost. If u find later that u really have a preference for certain cuban cigars and they r worth the cost to u then that would be a time to go for it on those (just my opinion).

 

[teflon6string]

Sorta like 12-pack beer samplers it would seem.

 

[ilikegunspdx]

Sorta like 12-pack beer samplers it would seem.

Holts used to have a 10 for $15 sampler where all the cigars were good quality and some exceptional imo. But they just recently changed out all the cigars in that sampler so it is no longer as good but it is still the one I recommend for good cigar range for low cost.

It is still a good deal but not like it was. Imo these r better brands overall than in the 8 for $10 deal. I wouldn't call any of these trash as they r all known good brands (U may not like some of the individual cigars of course but it's not junk).

10-Cigar Super Sampler

Get a stunning 10-cigar assortment of bestselling national brands while our introductory 86% off MSRP offer applies! Savor 10 marvelous blends from CAO, Macanudo, Alec Bradley, Oliva, Punch and many more iconic cigars worth over $110, all for only $15! Add today’s exclusive Holt’s deal to your...

www.holts.com

As I recall shipping is $8 but if u buy anything on a weekly sale then everything ships free. So if u add this $8 cutter for example, then u save $8 on shipping.

Visol Niban Cutter

The Visol Niban Cutter features a rugged, brushed metallic frame and razor-sharp, stainless steel blades. Snip the cap off your next cigar in a single motion with a double-guillotine cutter that feels heavy-duty in the hand but doesn’t cost a fortune. Visol Niban Cutters easily cut larger...

www.holts.com

Another way to get "free" shipping is if u buy a $10 gift card for future use then everything ships free. At least that is how it used to be (I assume it still is but have not checked lately).