Quote Originally Posted by cigar no baka
Well I'm not relying on the opinions or statements of others, I'm judging from my own experiences. My friend gave me a dozen Cubans, and as far as I am concerned they were no better than some of the non ISOM's for my tastes.
I'm not trying to start trouble here or talk down to you but if you've only smoked a couple of dozen from what is not a reliable source, I would suggest smoking quite a few more before you draw any conclusions.

Heck, I've been smoking Cuban cigars for 13 years and yes, the first few, hell even the first few boxes, I said "WTF?, What's the BIG DEAL here?" but as time has gone on, I've grown to appreciate them for what they are. I also said the same thing about the first ten or twenty Opus X I smoked, "AH, these things are overrated and aren't worth it. " THEN I started waiting for them to dry out BEFORE I smoked them (since the friggin cigar shops keep them too wet) and now I love them.

I concur with F.T. Pulver on the humidity level. I keep mine closer to 60% for the exact reasons he mentioned.

Regarding price, MANY great Cuban cigars can be found for less than $10.00/stick and can be found easier than a Padron 1926 or an Opus X.