I was reading some older treads last night & I ran across this post. It was in a contest tread & derailed the tread for a few post & then the tread got back on topic. Being fairy new to the hobby myself, & with a lot of new members joining that are new to it as well, I thought we could discuss it here. Thanks to a lot of overly generous members here, I’ve been introduced to many cigars that I didn’t know existed & have enjoyed them & stocked up my collection with some. I still see cigars posted daily that I was unaware of. Also before I joined the forum, I purchased several different cigars brands & blends that I enjoyed, but never hardly see them being smoked or discussed here. They show up occasionally in really older post when you search um & usually good things are said about them, but it’s like they just died out or something. I’ve also had some cigars that I’ve enjoyed, but could never justify the price to purchase more than a single or fiver as there are some that I’ve tried & enjoyed equally as much or more that could be had for less. Anyway, just looking for thoughts.Hahaha - very true on the sarcasm! There are a few of those guys on here.
I've been thinking a lot about this lately. I obviously have no scientific backing here but I wonder how many people on BOTL actually hate the cigar/brand that they say they hate or if they are just adding to the "noise" that is more than likely perpetrated by the sarcasm and/or trolls. On top of that, how many people truly hate every single cigar that a brand has because they've tried each of them and they all suck or are they ruling it out altogether because of a bad experience with a few of their cigars. For example, there are only 2 brands that I truly don't like but that has nothing to do with their cigars and more to do with their business practices. In fact, both brands have a few lines that I enjoy smoking and I assume many others do too, but instead, we flame the brands because a) it's fun, b) everyone else is hating on them, and c) many of us truly hate their business practices. But, a noob would have no idea to the back stories.
Additionally, how many people hate a brand just to be "unlike" the crowd of people who love them? For example, at one time, everyone loved Liga Privada and Tatuaje but then there was an uprising of people who started slamming the brands and they were "louder" than the so-called fanboys.
Then you have guys who truly do love and appreciate CCs more than NCs and I can appreciate that. But, I also think there are a lot of wannabes who want to appear "sophisticated" and they claim they only smoke CC's and NCs are trash. On this thought, I will say I've vHerf'd and chatted with a number of guys who are true CC purists and I seek their advice on this site.
BUT, all of the above examples and many more that I'm not thinking of are why I always recommend trying it for yourself.
Thoughts welcome
- Thread starter Yakcraz
- Start date
I think its probably a combination of everything. I think there are probably more people who are ruling out a brand because of a bad experience with a few, than people who are just joining the crowd. But certainly it's easier to say you don't like Drew Estate than a lot of other brands because it is popular to do so.
From my experience, there are so many cigar brands, that if I have one or two bad ones from a brand, I will rule out that brand, just purely because of the ratio of cigars I have time to smoke to cigars I could smoke, I need to get data from somewhere, and I can't afford to smoke 30 cigars from a brand before making a decision. Just stay open-minded enough to revisit them in the future if the opportunity presents itself.
From my experience, there are so many cigar brands, that if I have one or two bad ones from a brand, I will rule out that brand, just purely because of the ratio of cigars I have time to smoke to cigars I could smoke, I need to get data from somewhere, and I can't afford to smoke 30 cigars from a brand before making a decision. Just stay open-minded enough to revisit them in the future if the opportunity presents itself.
When I first started smoking, I think I would sometimes “try” to like a particular cigar because others had given it such high praise because it came from a certain company when the truth of the matter was, I might have actually disliked it or been neutral at best towards it. As I’ve gotten a little more experienced in the matter, I realized how silly this was. Who the hell was I trying to impress? My inner snob? I started smoking cigars as a way to unwind and have some peace and quiet so smoking cigars I knew I didn’t like was defeating the purpose. I’ll try any cigar I can but these days, if I don’t like it, I’m honest to myself about it. There are cigars I do and don’t care for from every company. Some of my favorite cigars are from lesser known companies and I’m damn proud of it.
I guess that’s what makes it so hard for me sometimes. Let’s just take DE for example. A lot of people bash um, but I enjoy several of their cigars like the Muwat, Herrera Estelí,& undercown Maduro. But, had I of based all of their cigars off of what I thought about acids & the Kentucky Fire cured I would have never bought anything else by DE. I also think that the Ligas are good but way overpriced for what they are & what can be had for the same or less.
Right. And I think some people dislike them automatically because they make Acids and the other flavored cigars, and those are for filthy casuals and not true aficionados. Any brand that would sell out like that isn't on the same level as ________. And they could be missing out on some great sticks, like the Undercrowns as you mentioned.
I too have been guilty of “trying” to like a cigar that others praise, but more so have actually been guilty of “trying” not to like a cigar, because of what others thought, that I actually enjoyed. For example, a lot of people bash Rocky Patel, but I really like their Sungron Maduro & keep a few onhand. Or, back to the DE, there are some that I really enjoy & others that I wouldn’t consider trying.
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I've smoked stuff that was so bad that I hold the company responsible for "putting out trash like that". I won't try anything else from those brands. Other things I smoked I didn't like but understand that it wasn't an awful cigar, just something not appreciated by my palate. To the other extreme there are brands that I will try anything they sell, if I can afford them.
Ok.... Im gonna come clean!! I LOVE Gurkha 15 year celler reserve! Sure they release cigars at exorbitant MSRP and then drop them to yard gar prices.... But if you know they do this and still get burned on the latest release.... Thats on you! Caveat emptor, let the buyer beware. I'm not going to skip a cigar i enjoy just because they have a bad reputation... Everyone jacks their prices through the roof! A large supreme pizza costs $17 to purchase.... All of the ingredients to make that pizza... >$3... And thats including the 2 minutes of minimum wage labor. A new Honda civic carries an MSRP of ~$30k.... That car costs about 3-4 grand to make!
@Yakcraz and @Dran
I can relate to what you both say. I’ve found good and bad cigars from nearly every company. I agree with most smokers about Gurkha cigars but their are a few Gurkhas I really like and try to keep on hand. On the opposite end of the spectrum take Fuentes for example. Some people love them and God bless them but I just don’t see it. The Lost City is the only one I cared for. The rest I smoke while mowing the lawn.
One of the reasons I enjoy BOTL so much is seeing what everyone enjoys smoking. So many of the cigars I see just aren’t available to me unless I order them as the B&Ms around here mostly stock the common popular brands. I guess I get to smoke vicariously through my brothers here by seeing what everyone else smokes.
I can relate to what you both say. I’ve found good and bad cigars from nearly every company. I agree with most smokers about Gurkha cigars but their are a few Gurkhas I really like and try to keep on hand. On the opposite end of the spectrum take Fuentes for example. Some people love them and God bless them but I just don’t see it. The Lost City is the only one I cared for. The rest I smoke while mowing the lawn.
One of the reasons I enjoy BOTL so much is seeing what everyone enjoys smoking. So many of the cigars I see just aren’t available to me unless I order them as the B&Ms around here mostly stock the common popular brands. I guess I get to smoke vicariously through my brothers here by seeing what everyone else smokes.
These are some interesting thoughts for sure. A friend gave me a Gurkha to smoke with him recently. He handed it over and I had all kinds of negative thoughts going through my head based on the flaming I've read. It wasn't anything special, and certainly not worth the MSRP, however it wasn't a bad cigar. I'm open to trying any cigar once no matter how terrible the reviews may be and I've found a few cigars I enjoy that are not generally thought of as high quality. That being said, sarcasm can be hard to detect strictly through text. It for sure takes some time to figure out who the sarcastic members are and does make you wonder how many comments/reviews/praises/flames are out there that are pure sarcasm but maybe come from someone who isn't ALWAYS sarcastic.
as a noob I'm still trying lots of cigars and lots of brands I have not had yet, but the brands I've had I've liked all of but more then others. I feel you should like the cigar if you like it who cares if your buddy hates it or wife hates it. I see punch and a funte on here alot in the daily smoke.
One thing that I've realized in this past/first year of smoking cigars is it's so easy to judge a line of cigars (and sometimes throw the whole brand under the bus) off of one bad experience. I've had a couple sticks that calling them dog rockets would be a compliment and I haven't smoked another of that particular line, let alone brand, since. It's stupid but I think it's easy to do especially as a noob. I've learned you need to smoke a few of one line to start to get an idea of what you are actually smoking. Just my two pennies worth!
redneck_toy
Fuente Fanboy
My experiences echo others that have posted.
Gurkha, for example, has a couple cigars I've tried that weren't bad at all. I refuse to buy any of their products based on their business practices alone. There are several popular brands that I have yet to find one I cared for. Oliva and Caldwell being a couple. Not that they're bad smokes, they just dont tickle my tastebuds.
I know several members here that don't care for any Dominican tobacco, regardless of brand.
I'm a huge fan of Fuente and LFD. Different strokes for different folks.
After 5 years of smoking, I've grown weary of chasing the limited releases from some brands I enjoy, and have narrowed purchases down to several readily available brands and vitolas.
As a side note, I've noticed over the past year that a LOT of NC's in the $5-8 range are starting to taste the same to me. I guess it's palette fatigue. This has pushed me to dip my toes into the CC world.
Gurkha, for example, has a couple cigars I've tried that weren't bad at all. I refuse to buy any of their products based on their business practices alone. There are several popular brands that I have yet to find one I cared for. Oliva and Caldwell being a couple. Not that they're bad smokes, they just dont tickle my tastebuds.
I know several members here that don't care for any Dominican tobacco, regardless of brand.
I'm a huge fan of Fuente and LFD. Different strokes for different folks.
After 5 years of smoking, I've grown weary of chasing the limited releases from some brands I enjoy, and have narrowed purchases down to several readily available brands and vitolas.
As a side note, I've noticed over the past year that a LOT of NC's in the $5-8 range are starting to taste the same to me. I guess it's palette fatigue. This has pushed me to dip my toes into the CC world.
Nacho Daddy
Irrepressibly Irreverent Inveterate Ignominy
- Joined
- Jul 17, 2009
- Messages
- 3,480
when I try a new cigar I do not automatically try to compare it to the database I have built of cigars.
Instead I try to enjoy what is offered.
If it is a mild ,gentle smoke,or a punch in the face type smoke,I try to let the cigar do the talking.
I am not trying to sell them,or gain points for recommending them.
I can have a memorable time with a cheap smoke , or a high dollar one.
Sometimes I just want to concentrate, with a cigar as the main attraction.
Then I will pick out something that will keep my interest, and make me wish I owned the factory.
Instead I try to enjoy what is offered.
If it is a mild ,gentle smoke,or a punch in the face type smoke,I try to let the cigar do the talking.
I am not trying to sell them,or gain points for recommending them.
I can have a memorable time with a cheap smoke , or a high dollar one.
Sometimes I just want to concentrate, with a cigar as the main attraction.
Then I will pick out something that will keep my interest, and make me wish I owned the factory.
bwhite220
Brandon | BotM Jan 2038
So much truth! Just enjoy it!
This thread reminds me of the blind passes that went on here a while back. And the reactions from members who smoked a cigar they probably never heard of or even thought of trying out to smoke.
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This sums up my outlook on cigars. It gets one shot. If it sucks, I'll never smoke it again (and also think twice about the brand). For example, Rose of Sharon
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- 248
BlasphemyIf it sucks, I'll never smoke it again (and also think twice about the brand). For example, Rose of Sharon@Glassman
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