Cigar advise

[Mike S]

Hello cigar smokers.

I'm new to cigars. I've smoke only 2 kinds which was Romeo y Juliet deluxe No2 and Guatamera. Honestly i bloody well enjoyed it. I usually have coffee with a cigar which makes everything good happen. I was thinking buying for christmas a romeo y juliet sampler pack which seems good. I would like to try a different cigar aswell mabye something that would be different that i may enjoy as a beginner to this so any ideas guys? As well what else should i drink with a cigar, only drank coffee, i do like whisky but this friday i'm gooing to buy a good single malt (good for me i live in scotland) i dont know if it would be good with a cigar, any opinions?

Thanks

The best advice I ever received is to try everything and remember the ones you like. You can rotate them in your humidor and you don't get bored.

As far as brands, I like a mild cigar and have found that Baccarat is wonderful for a new smoker. Easy light, great taste, always stays even and good price. I've also recently found Alec Bradley Black Markets. I've always loved the AB and this is no disappointment. Cost is right about $8.

I don't drink that much alcohol so I can tell you that as far as soda goes, Dr. Pepper is the absolute best.

[ggiese]

The best advice I ever received is to try everything and remember the ones you like. You can rotate them in your humidor and you don't get bored.

As far as brands, I like a mild cigar and have found that Baccarat is wonderful for a new smoker. Easy light, great taste, always stays even and good price. I've also recently found Alec Bradley Black Markets. I've always loved the AB and this is no disappointment. Cost is right about $8.

I don't drink that much alcohol so I can tell you that as far as soda goes, Dr. Pepper is the absolute best.

Uhhh... Mike - did you read the WHOLE thread before you posted your response? Did you miss me counseling Sumatra Samurai about his response?!?


Chris is in EUROPE. EUROPE is overseas. The do not typically have access to US domestic cigars. He will have significant problems locating Baccarat and Alec Bradley at any of his local shops - and most US retailers will not ship overseas.

But I do have a solution. Now that you've made such a faux pas - it would be a very nice gesture for you to send Chris five of each cigars for him to try!

[CoventryCat86]

Yeah Mike, this guy is in Europe where I highly doubt he will be able to easily find Black Markets, etc.

I do have to say though that even though I've never smoked the Black Markets, quite a few guys at my local shop love those things.

[Mayam]

Hello Friend and welcome to the hobby as well :)! I'm a newb myself. I'd smoked a few in the past on various "special occasions" or once and again with a buddy who liked to pick a couple up now and then but I didn't really know a thing about them or maintain my own stash.

I haven't ever tried the cigar brand you refer to but the ones I recall most vividly from smoking with my buddy years ago were Garcia y Vega Crystals. They come in varieties #100, #200 and Maduro but I can't recall for the life of me which we smoked usually (it was about 15 years ago heh) but I recall enjoying them thoroughly though. I now realize that the general "cigar smoking world" considers G y V 'less than top of the line', to put it kindly heh. None the less I was able to track down some boxes of 3 for $6 bucks and placed my order for the Crystal varietals available to see if they were indeed the exact same ones I recall. For what it's worth I highly reccomend and have read others reccomend them as well for the beginner in particular.

Now a days (I've only been a cigar "hobbyist" for a couple months yet myself) I am essentially in the same boat as you I think, experimenting with diff brands, sizes, wrappers, etc. to build an experienced palate, familiarize myself with all the different flavors offered by each and so forth but most importantly, to find what I personally enjoy most.

If I may make a suggestion, if you find your self in a spot similar to mine, I have had terrific experiences with on-line tabocconists thus far and at a great savings relative to the pathetic offerings of the local "cigar shops". One of my first orders was 5 El Gordo #41s (a mild cigar) with a travel Humidor that holds five (the brand is called 'Herf-a-Dor') and a Lotus Butane lighter, a value of $100 or so for $40 (honestly I kinda just wanted the accesories most, the cigars of course i'd never heard of - they aren't bad but aren't my fav either heh). Recently I just placed an order for a box of 50 uh... half coronas (not sure of technical name) and sampler of 6 Felip Gregorios for about $40 altogether too. In all honesty the "shops" around here are little more than "head shops" that have a small humidor with a few random boxes of poorly kept cigars that are WAY overpriced relatively and some may actually be older than I am (just kidding heh).

My approach to economical discovery is purchasing various "Samplers" on line. Samplers of flavor profiles: mild, medium, medium-full, full, and Brands pretty much. Samplers, joining a cigar forum (we both appear to have picked the same one, heh), and a couple books. My copy of "The Complete Idiot's Guy to Cigars" arrived this morning and I'm about 100 pages in already.

Best of luck friend and I hope maybe you got a couple small ideas from my post. I'll be interested to read your experiences as well, as we are both roughly at the same level of experience I'm guessing. Oh and also, forgive my ignorance of international politics but, if you do in fact live outside the U.S does that not open up the whole line Cuban made cigar's for your purchase? If nothing else (as a Yank myself heh) I've learned that Cuban cigars are highly revered, at least here in America. Absence makes the heart grow fonder and all though so maybe they aren't really that much better but if I were you I'd check into those particualrly ;). Also, if you happen to inhabit certain parts of Europe you can buy Dunhill cigarettes at just your corner market, a luxury I haven't. (Dunhills are my personal favs when it comes to cigarettes though I tend to only smoke them when drinking and now a days I try to have a nice cigar on hand instead of a cigaretee ;P - might make exception on occasion for a Dunhill though).

Sincerely,

- Mayam

P.S. The site where I'm getting these "Sampler Deals" is http://www.cigarsinternational.com/. They haven't done me wrong yet in shipping and like I said their samplers are helping me to experience a broader selection economically. I'm sure there is many more such on-line shops out there but as with any other on-line shops you have your shady ones and your more respectable ones. That one appears to be in the latter to me, so far at least.

P.P.S I dearly hope you guys, the Moderators, of these forums don't take the above as an "advertising attempt" (well I guess technically it is heh). I just wanted to share with this guy, who appears to be new like me, how I've so far been persuing our new hobby and a variety of good quality cigars that won't cost him an arm and a leg like they did me at first. If this does present a problem I'll gladly delete the link immediately and you have my sincerest apology. I'm enjoying your forum and learning a lot just in my short time lurking mostly so far and would truly regret getting banned.