New cigar smoker needs help picking out his brand
Hello everyone,
I am looking though site after site trying to learn everything I can about cigars. Alas, I feel I will just have to try a few before I can pick out what I want to smoke. However, I am hoping you may help me not waste too much money trying to find that one special cigar. I have tried a few brands so far and here is what I have come up with on my own. I have tried three cigars as of late that I could rate easily. My favorite of the three was the Playboy Toro cigar. I liked how easy it was to smoke and how smooth it felt. Second was the Onyx Robusto which felt similar in my hand but had a bit more spicy taste to it. Over all, I wouldn't mind trying these two again. The third was a Trinidad Paradox Churchill. This was my least favorite most likely due to how long it took to smoke and how seemingly foreign to me it was. I wouldn't mind trying another Churchill once I learn a bit more down the road. So, do any of you wise veterans have a few pointers or suggestions for a newcomer like me?
Thank you
I am looking though site after site trying to learn everything I can about cigars. Alas, I feel I will just have to try a few before I can pick out what I want to smoke. However, I am hoping you may help me not waste too much money trying to find that one special cigar. I have tried a few brands so far and here is what I have come up with on my own. I have tried three cigars as of late that I could rate easily. My favorite of the three was the Playboy Toro cigar. I liked how easy it was to smoke and how smooth it felt. Second was the Onyx Robusto which felt similar in my hand but had a bit more spicy taste to it. Over all, I wouldn't mind trying these two again. The third was a Trinidad Paradox Churchill. This was my least favorite most likely due to how long it took to smoke and how seemingly foreign to me it was. I wouldn't mind trying another Churchill once I learn a bit more down the road. So, do any of you wise veterans have a few pointers or suggestions for a newcomer like me?
Thank you
0
Comments
verity is the spice of life. Every time i open the humidor i look and figure out what i am in the mood for today. sometimes its something strong and spicy, sometimes it is something smooth and creamy. sometimes it is rich and sweet and sometimes its is something coffee. The situation often aids in that decision. what time of day is it? am i alone or am i with friends? what have i had to eat?
in short, dont settle into one cigar or brand. you will miss out on tons of good things.
i have a a few blenders that i tend to like but they have more than one brand. I have a little over 300 cigars in my collection at the moment (thats low but im trying to make room for a huge order i plan on making right before the holiday pass). of these 300 i would say that the most of one cigar that i have is 25 (a box or two in long term aging storage)
dont get me wrong, you can have your favorites. just dont feel the need to stick to one brand.
if you want to learn more about things stick around this place. there is a ton of info.
you can start by clicking on the link in my signature line at the bottom of this post. there you will find everything from advice on developing your palate, to my blog, to links to the annual holiday pass that i do.
i hope good cigars find you.
i know they will.
Sweet mother of pearl, that didn't take long!!
Keep in mind also, tastes change over time. When I first started in the hobby, I leaned very hard towards maduros. A little while into it, I started craving sumatra wrappers more. More recently, I find myself drawn to habano wrappers and rarely smoke a maduro.
The easiest and best way, of course, is to have a good cigar store nearby, staffed by affable cigar geeks who know their stuff. You go in and say: "I liked that Playboy Toro. What else should I try along that line?" If you don't have a good cigar store nearby, call up cigar.com and ask them. Treat them like your sommelier; that is, let them know what you like to eat and what you drink and what you are apt to be doing when you smoke. They can put a selection together just for you.
Otherwise, follow the ingredients. Your fave is the Playboy Toro. So what's it made of? Google up Playboy Toro Cigar and you discover it's sold by the cigar giant Altadis and made by Don Diego. (http://altadisusa.com/cigars/playboy/playboy-don-diego) from Connecticut wrapper and Dominican filler and binder. There arfe scores and scores of Connecticuts to try; and Dominican fillers abound.
Then try similar ingredients. Connecticuts are nice and mild; but so are Sumatran wrappers. Or try different treatments of the same thing. A Connecticut can be natural (brown) or maduro (age blackened). Or try different twists. For instance, a CT wrapper, a Dom filler, but a touch of ligero for kick. Or different sizes, cause a corona will smoke differently from a toro of the same blend, cause it has a different proportion of filler to wrapper.
If you encounter someone who smokes cigars, go out of your way to tote him a Playboy Toro. Say: "This is what I like. Fire it up. Taste that? Now, what else should I try?" He'll prolly dig round his humidor and hand you three for every one you brought, cause he's learned the joy of handing out cigars along the way.
Keeping notes of the different sticks you try really helps a lot. Any questions along the way, ask Sensei Kuzi.
best advice i have seen so far.
take notes. great advice there. im not the end all when it comes to your cigars. smoke what you like. but if you do have a question ask the forum at large. the knowledge here is awesome.
however, if you have questions you want to ask me anyway i will always respond to a PM. usually within a 24 hour time frame.
i just want people to be happy with what they smoke. if i can help along the way i have then paid forward what others have done for me.
I chewed for about 16 years. So that may have had something to do with that. I am still trying and learning about my pallet.
... Some clerk do not know much about cigars or even smoke them, That's okay with me, I just wonder why they have the job. Most of the time cigar shop owners and sellers love what they do and will talk your ear off about what they like and lead you to what may appeal to you. I live in an area that has many cigar shops around..These guys love to have customers walk through there door, and make you want to come back.
Relighting a cigar... Mine seldom go out, because I am a fairly aggressive smoker.. If it does go out, purge it before you relight.. Blow into the cigar and you will see smoke that was in the cigar come out the end. I clip off the burnt end and start fresh.. I never relight a cigar , say, ten minutes later or the next day..
Aging cigars, changes the flavor profile by sort of taking away the harshness, or "bite" in the cigar. Once the sharpness is gone the flavors seem to come out more. It can blend the flavors together and makes them taste smoother. You have to try it for yourself.. Buy two of the same cigar and make notes of what you thought about it the first one .. Then smoke that same cigar six months or a year later.. It will be different.
A year from now you will be answering these questions for some new guy.. Welcome, by the way.
To answer your question, yes he does seem annoyed that i ask anything about cigars only telling me that i have to smoke more to figure it out and not explaining anything. I know he used to smoke cigarettes a few years back when I first tried to ask him about cigars, but because of his answer then I was delayed in smoking cigars until lately when I just had an urge one day. Now he is the only smoke shop i know of and when i returned he was yet again unhelpful and somewhat disconnected from the whole experience. I will look up others since i doubt i will return.
Thank you also for the information. your answer to my aging question makes me want to try aging that paradox or the onyx i tried to see if it helps the taste. Oh, and relighting the paradox a week later, even being kept in a box with a cup of water in it, wasn't the best idea I ever had but it sure hit the spot nonetheless lol
Thank you so much for sharing
not all cigars age well.
age wont make bad cigars good. the overall flavor profile is still there, it just smooths out and settles it down.
Good luck in school! Ill be starting next week too! Cigars are homework is the way to go.