vancouver b and m
nsezell
Posts: 294
im visiting vancouver over the weekend and i was thinking about getting an isom while im there. anyone know of a good shop in the area? same question about seattle. minus isoms...ill be there too.
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Hi Nsezell,
As far as I am concerned the only place to go in Vanouver is City Cigar. Not sure where you are going to be staying but it is located just outside downtown, just over the Cambie Street bridge. I guess a good testament to their quality is the fact that every time a certain Governor of California is in Vancouver he makes a special visit to this store and they close it while he shops. They refuse to confirm or deny whether he buys any cigars from ISOM.
It is the largest cigar shop in Western Canada and has an extensive selection of ISOM cigars and some of the most knoweldgable employees you will find. I have included the link below. My personal suggestions would be to try a Montecristo #2, Cohiba Siglo, or Romeo & Julieta Churchill or Short Churchill. Better yet, explain your ideal flavours to the staff and they will recommend the best cigar for you. I have been in numerous cigar stores throughout North American and this one is far and away the best I have found! I would be remiss if I didn't warn you the prices for ISOM cigars in Canada are steep. For one of the larger Montes or Cohibas you will be in the $25-$40 range as a minimum.
Enjoy one of the best cities you will find anywhere and let me know if you make it to City Cigar.
http://www.citycigarcompany.com/
The high prices are a combination of taxes and the simple fact that they can. Tobaccco sales in Canada are taxed at quite the high rate and with most major Canadian cities being so close to the US border they know the demand for ISOM cigars is always quite high. Back in the day when the US exchange rate was much better, it wasn't rare to see some young Americans crusing the streets smoking a nice big Cohiba Esplendido as the US dollar went very far in Canada. Now with the currencies pretty much on par it doesn't exactly work the same way.
Either way, you should definitly give a ISOM cigar a shot as it is a very unique smoking experience. If you steer clear of the marque names like Cohiba and Montecristo (which defintiely come with a premium price) you can actually get a very good ISOM cigar in the $15-$20 range. Hope it works out for you!
A lot will depend on your own, unique flavour profile and if you go in there and simply explain some of your non-Cuban favourites I can assure you they will find the perfect cigar for you. With that being said, if I had to recommend a few I would say:
1) Montecristo #2
2) R&J Short Churchill
3) Try a Trinidad which is the official roller of Fidel Castro's cigars
4) Any of the Cohiba Siglos
Let me know how it works out for you.
Glad to hear it worked out for you nsezell, great choices. Did they treat you well at City Cigar?
Definitely keep me posted on your thoughts on the cigars.
It's pretty easy, to be honest. Just don't mention the cigars. My buddy flew with a full box of ISOM Montes and a box of ISOM Monte Minis in his luggage and had zero problems.
¨Only two people walk around in this world beardless - boys and women - and I am neither one.¨
Awesome to hear nsezell. The women they have there are incredibly knowledgable and a great resource. Having been in a fair number of cigar stores, they truly are heads and shoulders above the rest. The whole experience right from the time they give you to browse, to the selection of the best cigars in the box, to the complimentary cedar on the way out to light your cigars with, it truly is all FIRST CLASS.
Enjoy your ISOM treasures nsezell, I think you will find them to be quite the treat. Especially, those Cohiba Siglos you scored, those are some of the best cigars out there and legends in their own right.
Happy Smoking!