Proof that I am a complete Noob

**prophetic_joe** · 10-04-2005, 04:44 AM

So first some background on me. 25 years old smoked real cigars, was once a ridiculous member of the swisher crowd, off and on for the past 3 summers. I had my first real cigar to celebrate my godson's birth 3 and a half years ago. I always thought it was too expensive a hobby to get into.

Anyway, getting married and have quite a few other bills do to renovating my house so I try to trade or buy from the fine botl's of this site, thanks CC btw, and pretty much search any online site I can to get the best deals. Now I know how looked down on Thompson's is and I know I'm going to have a hard time living this down but they were the ones who got me into cigars big. You see the adds all the time 10 cigars and a humidor for $39 and as a newbie you think damn can't beat that and really it is a pretty good deal. You check the catalogue of course and do some comparison and find that anything but their samplers is way over priced.

Anyway I find this sampler from them containing quite a few cigars that I have seen reviews here as being good. 20 cigar sampler, 2 of each kind, with 2 names I didn't recognise 1 of which yielded no results in a search of the reasonably priced online vendors. so i say hell with it and buy the thing. The unknown cigar is a La Paloma Vintage Reserve, I can only guess that it is a thompson house brand.

Get the sampler in today and I hate the fact that this thompson brand POS is going to be in my humidor and want to get it out ASAP. At 3:45 am I pour myself a drink grab one of them and go outside to smoke what I am guessing is going to be the crappiest thing I have ever had in my mouth. I was wrong.

It wasn't the best cigar I have ever had. the draw was fairly loose and the wrapper wasn't pretty but, I was suprised by the nice spicy taste of it, it sorta reminded me of being next to a camp fire there was also a pleasent taste I couldn't really pinpoint. Nice thick smoke and the ash stayed on the cigar for awhile, about 2" in, which I love. The cigar also suprisingly burnt evenly. It had no time in my Humi so it was a little dry and I can only imagine after a month it would have been nicer.

Do I want this as an everyday smoke? Probably not. Is it worth the money? not sure I haven't checked it out. Would I smoke and enjoy one if offered to me? yessir I would.

So what I am saying is, and my palette isn't quite developed yet so this will probably change, is that if you have the oppurtunity give one a shot it's a decent mild smoke and unlike some of thompsons other crap it won't make you want to scrub your mouth with a toilet brush. average score

after making a short story long let the flaming begin.

**Baron Porthos** · 10-04-2005, 06:49 AM

I can not believe you would sully our pages with your crazy noobiness. Next time you order try the La Preferencia. I believe its a maduro.

**prophetic_joe** · 10-04-2005, 04:05 PM

Originally Posted by Baron Porthos

I can not believe you would sully our pages with your crazy noobiness. Next time you order try the La Preferencia. I believe its a maduro.

Yes I know, i deserve to be pelted with big rocks, have my toenails removed with pliers. I need never show my face again. oh the shame, oh the horror.

*runs away sobbing*

**Baron Porthos** · 10-04-2005, 04:58 PM

Its the same progression I made.

Step 1 Like ceegars

Step 2 Want ceegars handy

Step 3 Want ceegars handy that I can afford

Step 4 Found Thompson cheap house brands I'll try it

Step 5 Met BOTL gave me real cigar

Step 6 I can afford good 5 packs

Step 7 JR largest distributor in US

Step 8 Join Cigarsmokers and try PIF, PIF elsewhere too, met BOTL in person

Step 9 Introduced to Cbid I can sometimes get quality cigars for less than Thompsons or JR

Step 10 Toast Accross America gave me Opus X and Diamond Crown Maximus for donation

Step 11 Hoarding Exodus 1959 Double Corona lusting for Perfecto

Step 12 Going to Las Vegas to shop at Casa Fuente and Davidoff My wife says there is other stuff to do too.

I used to pick up a cigar once in a while. Brick and Mortar(B&M) guy says I have a great deal on a 40 count humidor. I laughed about what am I going to do with 40 cigars. Then I found the quality of the cigar smoking experience goes way up if you let them rest in the humidor for a few weeks between 65 and 70%. Next I had to get a small cooler from the garage and humidity crystals from B&M guy just for over flow. Then it was telling the wife for christmas you should get me the fixings for a coolerdor. Now I'm trying to talk her into just letting me take one of the old ones out of the garage and we can get a new cooler for Christmas. I want boxes of Exodus 1959 Double Corona and Perfecto, Ashton #60, Casa Fuente house brand, Some of those ISOM's everyone is talking about, El Rey del mundo Robusto Larga, ......etc.

Life is good

**prophetic_joe** · 10-04-2005, 06:56 PM

Hear Hear. Already know what I want for Christmas. couple of boxes of my favorite smokes.

**Sapper0001** · 05-20-2006, 04:25 PM

This is the same that happenend to me. A few months ago i got a Thompson cataloge in the mail and since then I have been hooked. I bought a 3 bundles of a cigar that does noth come up on a google search called V.S.O.P., and found a humidor on another site that houses 300 cigars. Since then I found a nice cigar shop that i go to as much as possible. I also went to an Ashton cigar tasting at the cigar shop and stocked up on a box of Ashton Magnums(which i really like). I know have over 100 cigars in a big humidor and I want more.
Due to the fact that I am a wounded Veteran of The Iraqi War and I am retiring soon I will have to hold off and filling the humidor any more. I am moving to Rochester Ny and have to find a job first before I can buy anymore. That is the way it goes.

Staff Seargent Gross,
US Army

**iluvmysh** · 05-20-2006, 11:53 PM

So this is the future for me as I read each day on the forums to gain knowledge to cigars? What have I done to myself?!

**Monk** · 05-21-2006, 10:13 PM

Originally Posted by iluvmysh

So this is the future for me as I read each day on the forums to gain knowledge to cigars? What have I done to myself?!

Read it and weep!

Enjoy the ride though! haha

-W.

**guado** · 06-02-2006, 02:00 PM

Originally Posted by iluvmysh

So this is the future for me as I read each day on the forums to gain knowledge to cigars? What have I done to myself?!

I am with you 100%. Started out having one every other month or so just because. Then realized I truly enjoyed a good cigar.

Started with and OLD cuban partagas box that was floating around in my house for years since I was a kid.

Then moved up to a 50 count humidor and buying bundles while in honduras. Now have a nice 200 count humi and feel the need to upgrade and start buying boxes to age. This is bad...very very bad!

But I am proud of myself in the fact that I NEVER ONCE smoked a Havatampa, Swisher sweets or the link. I did however get lured by the smell of a "black and mild" and immediately thought it was disgusting. That can be accounted for my first "cigar" experience. I remember it was in high school and I hid the "black" in a tower speaker so my parents would nice find it. IT was there for about 2 months before the I smoked it.

**Kenyth** · 06-02-2006, 02:39 PM

First off, I'd like to say there's no reason for you to fear being ridiculed for purchasing within your means. There's nothing wrong with buying from Thompson Cigars. Some of their house brands are less than stellar, but that's the story with many sellers. CI and JR have their fair share of cheapies too. There's a reason they do. You only smoke what you can afford, when you can afford to do it. If you want to smoke multiple cigars daily on a budget, you really have no other choice but to shop no-name bundles for price. I started out with a 20 count burlwood humi and a bundle of Don Kiki's for $39 bucks too. I still pretty much smoke mid-range cigars I find on special or get for a good price on Cbid. I typically pay between $2-$3 a stick for regular smokes, and I only smoke a couple times a week. I have the occasional Montecristo or such, but it's a treat. Could I buy more expensive smokes if I wanted to? Sure. But I wouldn't feel responsible putting that kind of burden on the household budget. I have a new home, a wife, a baby, and I have to set priorities. Cigar smoking is a hobby and should be treated as such.

P.S.- We do tend to ridicule gas station type cigars, but only because they're not really cigars at all.

**CgarDan** · 06-02-2006, 05:17 PM

Originally Posted by Kenyth

. I still pretty much smoke mid-range cigars I find on special or get for a good price on Cbid.

Ken,

Can you please post some links where you usually find decent deals. Please include the link for Cbid as its a first time I hear of this site

Thanks

**Kenyth** · 06-02-2006, 08:45 PM

Originally Posted by CgarDan

Ken,

Can you please post some links where you usually find decent deals. Please include the link for Cbid as its a first time I hear of this site

Thanks

Thompson cigars has the occasional good deal as you know already.

www.cigarsinternational.com- (AKA CI) check their specials, weekly specials, and daily specials. Sign up for the mailing list.

www.jrcigars.com- check their specials.

www.cigarbid.com- (AKA CBID) An auction site for CI. Dealing with auctions to get good deals and things shipped together is a bit of an art and requires a more time, restraint, and patience on your part. If you're used to ebay, you can probably handle cbid. Even when not buying, browse and keep cigars you like in your watch list to get an idea of what the going price is.

One last thing. Getting a good deal depends a lot on you being flexible on what you're willing to buy, tenacious on keeping abreast of the current specials, and patient enough to wait it out if nothing is available at the moment. You will also have to purchase in some quantity (usually 20 to 25 or more cigars) at a time to get good prices. You will also have to act quickly when the opportunity arises. Good deals are usually in limited supply and sell out quickly. You can also combine orders with friends to get better shipping prices.

**CgarDan** · 06-02-2006, 08:57 PM

thanks a lot Kev

**Bkcloud114** · 06-03-2006, 10:00 AM

Dan..... If you are going to attempt to purchase from CigarBid (The Devil) be careful. Don't get caught up in the bidding frenzy. Check prices, you can always see if you can get them cheaper somewhere else. Even check their Retail place.... Cigarsinternational.com.

Always keep n mind that you also have to pay for shipping, so make sure you calculate that into your price.

**toasty** · 06-03-2006, 10:56 AM

What's funny is I started smoking Cigars because 2 packs of cigarettes a day was getting too expensive. I found the wrong hobby to replace it with, lol. During the week I tend to smoke about 1 a day or every other. But on the weekends, I'll smoke a good 3 or maybe 4 a day. Some of the cheapies I've tried have been okay, but just that...okay. Connie's were bland, JR's Alternates were less than par. The only one that I would actually be fine with buying a bunch of again though would be the Roly's. I actually got one from my father because the humi he bought came with about 20 of them. As far as smoking others, it just doesn't make sense to me. If I can't afford to drink good Tequila, then I don't drink. There's no Discount Tequila that will do the trick. Same is coming to be true with cigars. I smoke because I enjoy the experience. Why smoke 3 dog rockets when you could smoke 1 treat? If you know the cigar that you want, search around. Google is your best friend and there are plenty of shops that have terrific deals.

**Kenyth** · 06-06-2006, 10:09 AM

Originally Posted by Bkcloud114

Dan..... If you are going to attempt to purchase from CigarBid (The Devil) be careful. Don't get caught up in the bidding frenzy. Check prices, you can always see if you can get them cheaper somewhere else. Even check their Retail place.... Cigarsinternational.com.

Always keep n mind that you also have to pay for shipping, so make sure you calculate that into your price.

Bidding more than once is unnecessary IMO. As you shop the list, put anything you're interested in, in your "watch" category. Research the going price of the item retail, and on Cbid. Go through this list and make your bids once you already know what your maximum offer will be for each item. Bid for ending auctions for that day or the next. That way, you can bid on something else if you're outbid. Make all your winning bids by Wednesday, so they process and ship together on Thursday (Saves on shipping big time!).

If you are a good bidder, you WILL lose a lot of bids. That's just the way it works, so don't set your heart on one thing and try to bid it up.