Cigar Lovers....Show Me Some Love

[Snaggletiger]

I'm not a smoker, but I have to admit that if I'm away from the fam and having a few, I'll bum a Marlboro Light...or 7.  The other day, we were all up at Lake Eufaula and my brother in law (F-18 pilot who did the fly-by for the Iron Bowl this year....you understand that I take every opportunity to let you know how connected I really am because I basically live my entire life though the exploits of those around me) offered me a Cuban while we grilled out and quaffed fine Kentucky Bourbon.

Never the cigar smoker, I must admit I was hesitant at first but I was buzzed, which means you can talk me into just about anything.  This past April in Orlando, there was this....sorry, I digress.

Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed that cigar.  I need some input because I'm seriously considering taking up a nasty habit.  I can't get anyone to hook me up with any weed so I figured I'll see what all the fuss is about cigars.

I need input for someone starting out.  I love imported beer and straight-forward bourbon.  I'm asking for suggestions to get started.  What's the best cigar to break someone in?  What's some of the terminology? 

Feel free to opine.....

[Pell City Tiger]

Since I'm away from places that offer every type of Cuban made, I am left smoking Dominicans. There are some very good ones out there. I am a big fan of Perdomo robustos and Dominican Cohibas. Maduros are the way to go for me. Can't beat the flavor.

You'll really have to sample a lot to find the right one for you. I had some help from the guy that runs the Prattville Cigar Company. I highly recommend stopping by there and checking out this dude's selection. The man knows his cigars and can point you in the right direction, if you're ever up Montgomery way. He has the most awesome walk-in humidor I have ever seen. If he would have had a topless chick in there holding a porterhouse steak in one hand and a bottle of single malt scotch in the other, I would have thought I was in heaven.

[Snaggletiger]

Prattville, huh?  I'm originally from Montgomery and my family is still there so I'm up there all the time.  I'll check it out.  There's a new place here in Dothan that appears to be a high end humidor, wine shop establishment.  I was in there a few weeks ago after my kids baseball game and as a coach, was dressed accordingly.  They were having a wine tasting and I asked about it and was told, "Hey, you have time to go home and change into something appropriate and come back." 

I laughed and said "Fuck you."

Looks like a killer cigar joint though.  I think Stoic One  frequents that place.  He's said good things about it.

[GarMan]

I could post for hours on this.  Here's my overall recommendation.  Hit JR Cigars website and take a look at the samplers.  They have assortments and 5-cigar samplers.  I'll post more when I get a chance and give you specific recommendations, but this will help you get started.  Seriously, start light, mild or medium and grow into something darker.  Also, start with a quality brand...  Ask us before you purchase anything significant. 

[Jumbo]

I dont want to step on anyones toes in here but I am the authority on bourbon and cigars so I'll take time out of my busy schedule of smoking to give you my top 2 cigars
1. Swisher Sweets
2. Black and Milds

Smoke those 2 cigars and you will get respect in the cigar shops, and you dont even need a fancy walk in humidor they store fine in the console of your 72 pinto.

[wesfau2]

Hey, Steve, I'll just give you whatever is in Howard's mini-humidor when you get to town.

[Saniflush]

Hey, Steve, I'll just give you whatever is in Howard's mini-humidor when you get to town.

Hope you have been keeping the humidity up to snuff or they won't be worth a fuck.  If you have then Steve will have some good smokes when he gets down.

[wesfau2]

Hope you have been keeping the humidity up to snuff or they won't be worth a fuck.  If you have then Steve will have some good smokes when he gets down.

You know your boy is on top of shit.

[Saniflush]

You know your boy is on top of shit.

I figured as much.

[Catphish Tilly]

I dont want to step on anyones toes in here but I am the authority on bourbon and cigars so I'll take time out of my busy schedule of smoking to give you my top 2 cigars
1. Swisher Sweets
2. Black and Milds

Smoke those 2 cigars and you will get respect in the cigar shops, and you dont even need a fancy walk in humidor they store fine in the console of your 72 pinto.

All fine, fine choices but any credibility you appear to have on this subject vanishes when you leave  "Backwoods" off the list   

[Tarheel]

I'm not a smoker, but I have to admit that if I'm away from the fam and having a few, I'll bum a Marlboro Light...or 7.  The other day, we were all up at Lake Eufaula and my brother in law (F-18 pilot who did the fly-by for the Iron Bowl this year....you understand that I take every opportunity to let you know how connected I really am because I basically live my entire life though the exploits of those around me) offered me a Cuban while we grilled out and quaffed fine Kentucky Bourbon.

Never the cigar smoker, I must admit I was hesitant at first but I was buzzed, which means you can talk me into just about anything.  This past April in Orlando, there was this....sorry, I digress.

Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed that cigar.  I need some input because I'm seriously considering taking up a nasty habit.  I can't get anyone to hook me up with any weed so I figured I'll see what all the fuss is about cigars.

I need input for someone starting out.  I love imported beer and straight-forward bourbon.  I'm asking for suggestions to get started.  What's the best cigar to break someone in?  What's some of the terminology? 

Feel free to opine.....

Like GarMan I too could post for hours and pages on cigars.  I'd suggest that you start with a mild cigar then work your way to mediums and then the dark maduros.  Stay away from flavored cigars.  No respectable or serious cigar smoker touches that shit.

For starters I'd recommend you smoke Macanudo.  Macanudo is a great Dominican cigar and probably the most popular cigar in America.  It is a mild but exceptional smoke in my opinion.  Hampton Court or Hyde Park are good sizes for a beginner and are generally available everywhere.  Make sure to stay away from the "Macanudo Robust" and "Macanudo Maduro"; those are stronger cigars with dark wrappers; you'll progress into smoking them when you're ready.  Also for starters if you want a nicer cigar try Macanudo Gold which is another mild to medium smoke...little more pricey than regular Macanudo but worth it. 

Punch is another good brand to start with if you like; it is a Honduran made cigar and as Pell City Tiger suggested the Dominican Cohiba is a phenomenal cigar but a little pricey most of the time.  H. Uppmann is another great Dominican brand that I like.

You might want to go to a cigar shop at first to physically look at and/or sample cigars; look for "Natural" wrappers at first; these are the visibly lighter looking cigars.  I'd suggest also that you smoke Corona or Robusto sized cigars for starters...they are generally in the 4 to 5 1/2 inch length range and 42 to 50 ring guage size.

Here's a good site run by JRCigars that is packed with helpful information (see below); you might want to read "JR Cigar School" information first.

http://www.jrcigars.com/index.cfm?page=cigar_university

Lastly, don't smoke a cigar like a cigarette.  The tobacco is meant to be tasted and the smoke savored so don't breathe it into your lungs!  Bad things will happen if you do.  And please don't mash it out when you're done! Somebody made that cigar carefully by hand; treat it with respect and just lay it down in the ashtray.

[GarMan]

Speaking of cigars, I made it to Warsaw, Poland, today.  I'm staying at the Sheraton.  They actually have a real cigar shop in the lobby.  Unfortunately, it was closed by the time I arrived, but you can look into the walk-in humidor.  It's loaded with Cubans and Dominicans.  It seems that Dominicans are making some headway into Europe.  I've seen OpusX, Arturo Fuente, Diamond Crown, La Aurora and others.  Thankfully, the lobby bar had a display humidor with a collection of Cubans, so I had to smoke a Romeo y Julieta Churchill after dinner.  They charged me 90 PLN (zloty) which is around $45 US.  I presume the cigar shop will be a bit more reasonable... I hope. 

Back to sampling...  As Tarheel stated, stay away from that flavored shit.  Acid cigars are junk.  The candy-gars are garbage.  The Markers Mark cigar is just silly.  They typically take the worst quality tobacco and flavor it as a gimmick to sell to inexperienced smokers.  Don't fall for it. 

You might want to consider something like this...  http://www.jrcigars.com/index.cfm?page=itemDetails&itemcode=R12RO  You get a nice sampling of 4 types of Dominican Romeo y Julieta cigars of which to compare.  They also give you 3 of each, so you can try them again later and refine your personal rating/scale.  Just something to consider. 

Here's something else to consider...  http://www.jrcigars.com/index.cfm?page=itemDetails&itemcode=SIR  It's a broader selection for a bit less money, but it may be worth a shot. 

By the way, if you purchase these in a local shop, they're probably going to cost you $7-10 per stick.  Many of the interwebs dealers are able to sell their cigars with a much lower margin.  By all means, go to your local shop and pick up a few to sample.  I do it quite frequently, but when I'm ready to restock my humidors, I typically purchase from the interwebs. 

[Jumbo]

All fine, fine choices but any credibility you appear to have on this subject vanishes when you leave  "Backwoods" off the list   

I was going to build him up to the in your teeth goodness of Backwoods.

[Tarheel]

Speaking of cigars, I made it to Warsaw, Poland, today.  I'm staying at the Sheraton.  They actually have a real cigar shop in the lobby.  Unfortunately, it was closed by the time I arrived, but you can look into the walk-in humidor.  It's loaded with Cubans and Dominicans.  It seems that Dominicans are making some headway into Europe.  I've seen OpusX, Arturo Fuente, Diamond Crown, La Aurora and others.  Thankfully, the lobby bar had a display humidor with a collection of Cubans, so I had to smoke a Romeo y Julieta Churchill after dinner.  They charged me 90 PLN (zloty) which is around $45 US.  I presume the cigar shop will be a bit more reasonable... I hope. 

Back to sampling...  As Tarheel stated, stay away from that flavored shit.  Acid cigars are junk.  The candy-gars are garbage.  The Markers Mark cigar is just silly.  They typically take the worst quality tobacco and flavor it as a gimmick to sell to inexperienced smokers.  Don't fall for it. 

You might want to consider something like this...  http://www.jrcigars.com/index.cfm?page=itemDetails&itemcode=R12RO  You get a nice sampling of 4 types of Dominican Romeo y Julieta cigars of which to compare.  They also give you 3 of each, so you can try them again later and refine your personal rating/scale.  Just something to consider. 

Here's something else to consider...  http://www.jrcigars.com/index.cfm?page=itemDetails&itemcode=SIR  It's a broader selection for a bit less money, but it may be worth a shot. 

By the way, if you purchase these in a local shop, they're probably going to cost you $7-10 per stick.  Many of the interwebs dealers are able to sell their cigars with a much lower margin.  By all means, go to your local shop and pick up a few to sample.  I do it quite frequently, but when I'm ready to restock my humidors, I typically purchase from the interwebs. 

Glad to hear that Warsaw is more smoker friendly than "the Damn" GarMan and $45 for a Cuban RyJ Churchill isn't really too bad especially coupled with a comfortable and smoke friendly place to enjoy it.

As to sampling I have to agree with GarMan's suggestions and rationale all very good.  I usually buy my cigars by the box from JRCigars.com as they are much less expensive than a cigar shop.  I'd just suggested that you might want to visit a local tobacconist to look at the cigars, talk to them, and try two or three.

Good luck with your cigar experiences.

[GarMan]

Speaking of cigars, I made it to Warsaw, Poland, today.  I'm staying at the Sheraton.  They actually have a real cigar shop in the lobby.  Unfortunately, it was closed by the time I arrived, but you can look into the walk-in humidor.  It's loaded with Cubans and Dominicans.  It seems that Dominicans are making some headway into Europe.  I've seen OpusX, Arturo Fuente, Diamond Crown, La Aurora and others.  Thankfully, the lobby bar had a display humidor with a collection of Cubans, so I had to smoke a Romeo y Julieta Churchill after dinner.  They charged me 90 PLN (zloty) which is around $45 US.  I presume the cigar shop will be a bit more reasonable... I hope. 

So I made it back to the hotel in time after work to visit the cigar shop.  What a fuckin' mess!  Their Cuban's were unraveling, flaking and had a beetle problem.  Their prices were better than the lobby bar...  As mentioned above, I paid 90 PLN for a R&J Churchill in the lobby bar, but they were selling them for 59 PLN.  Of course, they looked like they had been through a car wash.  They're all legit, but they're just poorly maintained.  FUCKERS!  As for Dominicans, they were carrying CAO, Carlos Torano, and a few others... 

By the way, Polish chicks are fuckin' hot!  I couldn't believe it.  I was expecting 250 pound Helgas.  These bitches are tight!  I'll post some real time action shots for you in the next day or two.  I got a couple of tonight's bartendresses, but they're not very flattering.  Picture a 90 pound, 5'5" blonde with some nice curves...  and a 110 pound, 5'7" brunette in a short-short skirt and a rump you can hold onto.   They didn't speak much English...  short of "Want more?"...  "You like?"...  "Another one?"...  GaGaGaGuh!  Perfect!!!