I find that most of the sticks I smoke on a daily basis are in the $9-$11 range. For me premium would be in the $15 range. With the ultra premium coming in at the opus level at say $20 plus. Just today I was thinking about smoking a padron little hammer but at $34 I think that falls into a different category for me. .
Q: What is Ultra-Premium Price Point Level?
- Thread starter ssaka
- Start date
Sometimes I think it's best to just stay out of these threads, but I couldn't help but click on it....
If you need as many answers as possible or just more info then pm me ssaka.
But my uber premiums would be over 20 dollars for any size and unlike some here I am willing to pay much more and have had cigars well worth what I've paid.
If you need as many answers as possible or just more info then pm me ssaka.
But my uber premiums would be over 20 dollars for any size and unlike some here I am willing to pay much more and have had cigars well worth what I've paid.
Steve - As you note in your initial post, there are a lot of things that go into a cigar being a top-of-the-line premium and it can't be judged by price alone. But strictly looking at prices, I think that when you cross the $20 line you're headed into the upper ranks.
I have to agree with the general feeling of $20 being the ultra-premium range for me. I can justify the occasional great cigar entering my rotation above the 13-17 dollar range but most fall within the 8-12 range with an ever present eye looking for the truly great sub 5 dollar stick.
Love this.
njstone
BoM January 2010
I always leave my bands on too, whether i'm alone or with friends or at a herf/B&M. I like art, I like bands, and that's all there is to that. I personally like seeing other people's bands as well, makes it easier to talk about what each other is smoking and see what kind of cigars they like. I know guys who take them off, and it doesn't bother me, I just ask them what they're smoking and they tell me, lol. Obviously that's all just my preference, and I know that the old school says that everyone should take their bands off when smoking in public. I see there those guys are coming from, I guess that with people I know we just don't care one way or another.
I do understand the "band envy" idea, though. Obviously some people would want to smoke something expensive or HTF in order to impress. For me, I'm just as proud of a cheap cigar as I am of an expensive one if it preforms well. In fact, I'm probably more likely to "advertise" my budget favorites in public than show off something pricy. I think it's fun when someone says "Cool band, what is that? Man o' War Ruination? Huh, how is it. Hey, that IS pretty good! How much was it? Seriously? Whoa, cool."
I do understand the "band envy" idea, though. Obviously some people would want to smoke something expensive or HTF in order to impress. For me, I'm just as proud of a cheap cigar as I am of an expensive one if it preforms well. In fact, I'm probably more likely to "advertise" my budget favorites in public than show off something pricy. I think it's fun when someone says "Cool band, what is that? Man o' War Ruination? Huh, how is it. Hey, that IS pretty good! How much was it? Seriously? Whoa, cool."
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+a lot
Do you actually see a lot of that? Or has someone told you this is the reason they leave the bands on?
If so, you need to find a new group of people to smoke with dude.. thats some pretty serious childish behavior..
I leave the bands on just about everything I smoke.. whether its the $1 magellan petit corona I am staring at right now.. or the $12 LP #9 that I am going to fire up tonight.. or the $20+ that I smoke every now and then when I get a wild hair...
It has nothing to do with impressing other people (I could care less what others think.. you either accept me for who I am or dont.. rain on you if you are in the latter group..)... and certainly has nothing to do with impressing myself...
Honestly.. Im just lazy.. and dont want to be bothered with screwing with it until Im down to the nub and have to remove it.. at that point if the cigar is something new and I want to have something to remind myself of a positive experience, I put it in my pocket.. then deposit it into my desktop humi as a visual reminder to pick more of those up the next time I get a chance.. if its something I didnt think that much of, the band goes straight into the trash.. If its something I smoke regularly or am familiar with.. it goes into the trash as well..
doesnt matter if its a $5 smoke.. or a $25 "ultra-premium"... the process is always the same..
If you see me sitting in the corner smoking a high end stick with the band still on it and want to ASSUME that the reason I am doing it is to impress you... thats a problem you have to deal with.. its not really my concern.. (you would be wrong.. as stated above I could care less what others think...)
If some jackass is sitting in the corner telling everyone within ear shot how much he paid, how exclusive, how privledged he is, etc.. to have a smoke... thats a whole different issue.. the band is simply another display of otherwise poor behavior....
the solution there is to simply distance yourself from that person... and be done with it..
I learned a long time ago that people that talk tough.. usually arent.. people that have to affix a price tag to everything and tell you how "well" they are doing... usually arent.. etc..
If someone has to find a way to remind you every 10 minutes or so how much his stick costs.. all he is reallly telling you is he couldnt afford it in the first place... and probably made an irresponsible decision when he purchased it.. I dont get offended by those types of people.. depending on who it is I either feel sorry for them.. or laugh at them..
Actually Ghe, really wasn't a question I needed an answer for, my opinion on this matter is pretty much set, although I do really enjoy reading the thoughts and insights of my fellow BOTLs - I really just posted the query to shake the trees a little and to participate in some sort conversation that isn't just all Drew Estate or Liga Privada - gets kind of boring for me... :>
So it was my little way to try to add something to the group conversation base. In fact, I am about to post another provocative question.
BR,
Steve
You received a lot of good input from brothers who answered the initial question, Steve. I think this is a valuable thread. Thanks for throwing it out there 
. I can only imagine what the next will be.
FWIW, I leave the bands on expensive cigars only when I regret the purchase. I want to be reminded, throughout the smoke, of the cigar I won't ever again purchase
. I can only imagine what the next will be.FWIW, I leave the bands on expensive cigars only when I regret the purchase. I want to be reminded, throughout the smoke, of the cigar I won't ever again purchase
It's cool to admit it Mr. Saka...
what's coming down the pipe... rey el perro cohete ? LOL ....
I know there is a request for quantitative answers here, but I think it's rather subjective.
When I get my coffee in the morning, I may reach for a $4 stick, or a $10 stick. It doesn't really matter. In fact, by way of example, I've had two cigars today: A DPG Cuban Classic Robusto which I grabbed up cheap, and I'm finishing off an LP 9 Bellicoso right now that I ordered from an in-state merchant and probably paid (with tax and shipping) somewhere around $12 or $13 bucks for. Not the same class of cigar by a long shot, but I enjoyed both of them and don't need a special occasion for either.
I've had very, very few cigars that I think are worth more than an MSRP of about $12. Since I'm not the guy who hoards a particular cigar for that exact special occasion, it just doesn't make sense for me to seek out a $25 cigar and hold it until the next solar eclipse. Chances are, I'm going to be on my third scotch this Friday and will fish it out of the humidor and smoke it.
All that having been said, no matter how much I like a cigar, I think anything north of $15 a stick prices itself out of range for me except to "try". I buy a couple of Liberties every year, but I sure as hell don't buy an entire box. I tried a couple of Opuses (Opi?) and won't be doing it again. I've been known to run into the local by my office and buy a GOF or a Jaime Garcia LE for the ride home, though I usually regret it because traffic sucks and I don't get to enjoy it.
In a nutshell, if MSRP is above $8 I expect it to be a good smoke, regardless. A lot of that to means the construction needs to be flawless. I can work with different flavor profiles. Some are in my wheel house, and some aren't. I get it. Above $10 and it should be something I really, really enjoy, though I don't need a special occasion to do it. Above $15 and it better bring a couple girls to the party with it, or I'm probably not going to be getting another, regardless of how good it is.
When I get my coffee in the morning, I may reach for a $4 stick, or a $10 stick. It doesn't really matter. In fact, by way of example, I've had two cigars today: A DPG Cuban Classic Robusto which I grabbed up cheap, and I'm finishing off an LP 9 Bellicoso right now that I ordered from an in-state merchant and probably paid (with tax and shipping) somewhere around $12 or $13 bucks for. Not the same class of cigar by a long shot, but I enjoyed both of them and don't need a special occasion for either.
I've had very, very few cigars that I think are worth more than an MSRP of about $12. Since I'm not the guy who hoards a particular cigar for that exact special occasion, it just doesn't make sense for me to seek out a $25 cigar and hold it until the next solar eclipse. Chances are, I'm going to be on my third scotch this Friday and will fish it out of the humidor and smoke it.
All that having been said, no matter how much I like a cigar, I think anything north of $15 a stick prices itself out of range for me except to "try". I buy a couple of Liberties every year, but I sure as hell don't buy an entire box. I tried a couple of Opuses (Opi?) and won't be doing it again. I've been known to run into the local by my office and buy a GOF or a Jaime Garcia LE for the ride home, though I usually regret it because traffic sucks and I don't get to enjoy it.
In a nutshell, if MSRP is above $8 I expect it to be a good smoke, regardless. A lot of that to means the construction needs to be flawless. I can work with different flavor profiles. Some are in my wheel house, and some aren't. I get it. Above $10 and it should be something I really, really enjoy, though I don't need a special occasion to do it. Above $15 and it better bring a couple girls to the party with it, or I'm probably not going to be getting another, regardless of how good it is.
thejavaman
BoM December 2012
I pretty much agree with everything you said.
Tobacco Giant
Conn. Broadleaf Slayer
Me too.I pretty much agree with everything you said.
And just to add to it, for those that said that $20 was the uber premium price point, Opus still MSRPs starting around $9, IIRC (albeit for the petite lance), one of the sticks referred to in the original post. I'm not saying Opus is the only or be all end all uber premium, but if we're going to talk starting points, I personally feel that $20 is a bit high of a starting point.
Or maybe I'm just a cheap bastard.