cigar afficionados

I have in front of me, the Cigar Aficianado "Top Cigar Picks Shopping List" if anyone is interested. 22 smokes listed in 6 sizes.

The pick of the litter is the Rocky Patel Decade Torpedo, with a score of 95 out of 100. Less than 2% of cigars rated by Aficianado score over 92.

KC-10 FE out...
lane: :usa2:

 

This is so funny as my girlfriend and I had our first cigar together tonight. It was an Ashton that was recommended by a shop. She has been an almost closet smoker of cigarettes and this was her first cigar. She really enjoyed it and we decided to go with me to one of the shops with recommendations from here. What can I say. Life is good.

 

Ashton is the high end brand of Arturo Fuente. The Fuente Hemingway is an outstanding smoke. If you liked the Ashton, I believe you would like the Perdomo Edicion Silvio & Perdomo Champagne.

KC-10 FE out...
lane: :usa2:

 

Those Perdomo Champagnes are too strong for me, with regard to the nicotine. Great flavor, though. I like a lot of the Perdomos, but they all overpower me. It ain't easy being a wimp...

 

If you find a particular smoke to your liking but think the nicotine hit is too much, age them. They get mellow with age.

KC-10 FE out...
lane: :usa2:

 

Just don't let them dry up! Although you can rehydrate them... it's like. Well. Actually, yeah, I won't go with that analogy... just don't let them dry up.

 

Naturally. I should have said age them in a humidor. As a general rule, when I buy cigars, they go in the humidor & I don't touch them for at least 6 months.

My after dinner cigar this evening was Onyx Reserve Robusto (5 x 50). Great cigar at a great price.
http://www.cigarsinternational.com/prodDisp.asp?item=CS-O3A

KC-10 FE out...
lane: :usa2:

 

Hasn't worked for me. Perhaps I should live in a humidor. :smile:

Good idea. I've actually got a few cigars that are about 8 - 10 years old at this point, waiting for the right occasion. My current favorites, or the ones that seem to disappear out of the humidors the fastest anyway, are;

Rocky Patel "The Edge" maduro chisel
CAO MX2 robusto
Padron 3000 maduro (good as the 5000, lots cheaper)
Fuente Hemmingway classic (long time favorite)

Happy Smoking!

 

Yeah, they can get too old. It varies a lot, based on the combination of tobaccos used. What can really foul things up is different cigar types being stored right next to each other, particularly if they do not have cellophane wrappers. The oils and smells will blend together, which sometimes makes them taste very bizarre. Most humidors have adjustable dividers so you can keep them separated.

Typically, I try to keep maduros in one humidor, connecticuts and cameroons in another, etc. My "ancient" ones are stored about an inch apart in a top tray, and I am hoping that they age OK. But it is a crapshoot.

I remember a place that had some Dunhills that had been "laid down" in 1918 that were being sold for like $75 each, limit 1 per customer. I passed on that once-in-a-lifetime offer...

Interestingly enough, some tobacco leaves are aged an incredibly long time (many years) before they are used to produce a cigar, and then the cigars are aged for years after that. I think I used to know what governed such decisions, but I don't remember anymore.

 

So the girlfriend takes me to the cigar store tonight and we start picking out cigars based on recommendations from here. Of course I didn't write them down so I'm going from memory. Racky Patel Connecticut Vintage 1999, CAO Gold, Santa Rosa Toro and Gispert Robusto is what she picked out. The Rocky Patel was definitely almost too mild. This could get expensive.

 

What I do is try one (or two) from a local shop. If I like them, I order from the internet (about 1/2 price). Either way, by the time you get to the "premium" type of cigars, they will run about $80 to $200 a box (or more, if you can stand it). The less I pay, the happier I am.

And just like wine, beer, food, etc., there will be some you really like and others that are complete dog turds. I have tried some fairly expensive hard-to-get cigars and not cared for them. Tastes will change over time, too.

KC-10 had provided a link to Cigars International earlier in this post. I'll add it again;

http://www.cigarsinternational.com/index.asp

They very neat thing about them is that they have samplers and combinations, very reasonably priced, so you can try a large variety without having buyer's remorse. They usually have 5-packs available of the better cigars, so you do not have to buy an entire box.

 

The cigar I smoked today was a Gurka Expedition. I was very disappointed. While Gurka's are usually top shelf, this one was not so good. It didn't draw well, it popped & crackled as it burned & was very harsh. Oh well, no company can bat 1000.

I never let two cigars of different types directly touch each other in my humidor. I have few that are several years old. Not because I'm intentially aging them, just because I like to try new ones all the time. The only ones I'm aging deliberately are the 20 I've described a few posts back. I asked at my local shoppe & the owner said as long as you rotate them top to bottom every so often, aging cigars should have no ill effects.

KC-10 FE out...
lane: :usa2:

 

I picked up some more at a place in town that's a liquor store with a huge walk-in humidor. Prices are a lot better than my local cigar only store. Just had a CAO Mx2 and it was great. Since the GF is out with her mom I'm going to have to go get another for us, then order some online.
What can I expect from the Cx2 I have in comparison?

Just out of curiosity, anyone else have a wife/girlfriend/mom who they smoke with? Or am I just lucky?

 

I tried the Cx2 a couple of years back. It wasn't bad, but I seem to be on a maduro kick myself, so the Mx2 tastes better to me. The Cx2 has a full taste, but it is milder, if I remember correctly.

And KC, I bought a whole box of those damned Expeditions years back. They had a real high rating, and I could only find them by the box. Pretty lame, very weird flavor. The funny thing was, recently I was collecting a bunch of cigar boxes to give to a friend's little girl, and came across the Gurka box (really nice box, by the way). It felt heavy, so I opened it up and found 10 cigars I had forgot to put in a humidor. I think that sums it up pretty well.

 

The CX2 is a milder blend than the MX2. If you go here, it will tell you all about them: http://www.caocigars.com/

KC-10 FE out...
lane: :usa2:

 

http://www.cigarsinternational.com/prodDisp.asp?item=CS-UHA&cat=3

Tonight's cigar was a Gurka Royal Brigade. The info in the link sums it up nicely. Gurka is a very premium brand & this is a good to great smoke.

KC-10 FE out...
lane: :usa2:

 

I had a Partagas black label yesterday and it was probably one of the best I've had so far. Still somewhat new to cigars but definitely want a few more of those.

 

You're just lucky. I was lucky like that, once..