What to do with dog rockets?

[ggiese]

I've got some cuban sandwich style cigars and I can't decide if they're dog rockets or not. They're fairly well made for the most part, with the occasional piece of loose wrapper or odd dent, and there's a bit acridity to the finish. They taste decent though, and after shipping were under a dollar a stick. I think I should just call them everyday, nothing special smokes, cause it's not like when I bought a garcia y vega at the Indian store and had to put it out after a few puffs. I can't believe I used to smoke those....

Anything that is hand made is going to be at least marginally better than something that is manufactured. I was given that lesson early on, when someone at a cigar shop opened a Garcia y Vega and showed me the garbage contained therein. I damn near puked on the spot without smoking it (bits of newspapers, bailing string, etc).

I don't think there is anyone that won't argue that if you find a sub $1 smoke that is excellent, you're well ahead of the game. The problem is - finding that diamond in the cesspool. It's far better to invest the $30+ per bundle on a coupla three good cigars, rather than buying a bunch of bundled cigars that end up clogging the humidor and lend their characteristics to all of the other cigars that are stored near them.

Speaking of which - if you've got some not so good bundled crapola in your humidor nestled next to your other treasures - you might want to consider transferring them to a tupperware container, lest you later smoke your good cigars and think they are crapola as well.

[Galvanicfish]

Well, I do feel like I got my money's worth out of the bundle, they've only been in my humidor a couple weeks and they're already more mellow on the finish. Or maybe I'm just getting used to them.

As far as the merging flavors go, I get a lot of conflicting advice on whether or not you get a lot of cross-flavoring. Though till I decide otherwise, they may go live in my travel case away from my treasures. Speaking of treasures, I'm really sad, one of them is a Hoyo de Monterrey Dark Sumatra and theres a small split just before the cap I really wished I had noticed it in the smoke shop.

[ggiese]

Well, I do feel like I got my money's worth out of the bundle, they've only been in my humidor a couple weeks and they're already more mellow on the finish. Or maybe I'm just getting used to them.

As far as the merging flavors go, I get a lot of conflicting advice on whether or not you get a lot of cross-flavoring. Though till I decide otherwise, they may go live in my travel case away from my treasures. Speaking of treasures, I'm really sad, one of them is a Hoyo de Monterrey Dark Sumatra and theres a small split just before the cap I really wished I had noticed it in the smoke shop.

Sorry - a "couple weeks" in the humidor does no more than possibly getting them acclimated to your humidor environment. I can't even begin to imagine (from all I've experienced) that they are now more "mellow on the finish". I could be wrong - but that's not within my understanding...

No matter what "conflicting advice" you've gotten on "merging flavors", you have to understand that a cigar is very much like a sponge. It soaks up the moisture around it. Whatever is contained in the moisture goes into the cigar.

Try this (as a pretty radical example) - buy a Acid Kuba Kuba. Place it into a zip loc bag with one of your bundled cigars. Wait about 2-3 months (resist the temptation to open it prior to 2-3 months). Smoke one of the unaffected bundled cigars, and then afterwards smoke the bundled cigar that was stored with the Kuba Kuba. Come back and post a review of your experience. I'm thinking you'll have a different perspective of the "merging" of flavors.