for guys who have been around Cuban cigars for some time

[sje]

Rob your are a nut indeed.

My rules/ advice

1/ always start with good storage for aging, remember the cost of your humidore is usually a fraction of the cost to fill it. So buy big and have fun filling it. The value of your stock is heavily reliant on your less expensive humidore so have a good system.

2/ buy loads of boxes in eg 2005 that you intend smoking in 2010 , buy in 2006 what you intend to smoke in 2011 etc. It does not need to be 5 years but use your own preference or formular. The buy singles before box suggestion works here also. Any boxes that no longer suit afer 5 years are always tradable. Also smoke singles from your aged stock every 6 to 12 months to find out the "box is on or off period"

3/ learn to know and trust your own palate, use these forums to get some idea of what cigars have promise, but try and decide for yourself , we are all different and a general consencus may and may not Always work. I for some reason can't stand " what should I buy or what should I smoke threads"

4/ always have a cheap mild box in your collection for the times when guests who visit and who don't have a clue a out cigars insist in smoking in your company. These folk usually but out after the first 10 puffs and should never be given access to your better stock. In my defence if a seasoned cigar person visits my cabinet and stock are always open.

5/ know and learn which cigars are morning smokes, afternoon smokes, and night time or after a heavy meal smoke, matching a cigar to time of day, meal, or even who is smoking with you is very important.

6/ don't get sucked in my habanos marketing as I have over and over again.

Regrets ,, I have a few , but I do it myyyyhhh waaaaaayyyyyy

[JoshMP]

Seems like most of the best advie I could give is up here already. Samplers and mixed boxes are a really good way to go. That and building a really good relationship with whoever it is you are buying cigars off. These guys (and girls) all have a passion for the hobby that they are willing to spend 45 hours a week or more talking about, thinking about and dealing with nothing but. They'll always be really helpful and, most of the time, they will keep a running inventory in their mind of what is smoking well, what is popular, what is aged etc.

The best thing is a lot of the time their love of the hobby gets in front of them as a sales person, they'll give you what is good, not what is expensive!

Also I second the advice on going for really decent sized humidors for a good price. 200 sticks seems like a lot when you're buying them singly but it really isn't when you get running.

Mix it up until you find what you like! Remember every person has a different palate and preference in taste.

[Smooth]

I smoked everything Cuba had to offer twice over a two year period, literally every vitola and offering from all the known brands. I recommend this approach highly, even if it takes many years and you buy boxes as you find something you like along the way. I discovered some much maligned gems this way, they just fit a mood for me.

From there I knew what I liked, how long they took to smoke etc and began building a collection with a wealth of knowledge behind me.

Only mistake I made was being too generous with my cigars with people who didnt appreciate them as anything other than a cigar. Wasted many boxes this way...

Oh, and once you find cigars you really love: BUY SHITLOADS!!!!

Thats all my advice I think

[Guest rob]

Rob your are a nut indeed.

lol... You of all people can talk

[sje]

Ok ok Rob , I am a hypocrite

but its fun to be

you missed a great 40th on Saturday (mine) 10 yo SLR churchills for all

[JoshMP]

Steering things a little more on topic:

What would I do differently? I would have worried less about other peoples opinions of cigars. When I first got going I asked every Tom, **** and Harry what they liked and didn't like and this swayed my purchases a bit too much. Because of this i missed out trying cigar I really like 'til much later.

[Rogers72]

Be overly generous with your cigars. When I first started smoking cigars (i guess about 5 years ago) I didn't have any friends that enjoyed them. 5 years later, I now have 5 or 6 best mates who I have converted and we have had some of the best times while enjoying cigars together. They now bring their own cigars of course...

[laficion]

After 40 years of Cuban cigar smoking and some infidelity with a few NC 's ,

I don't have much advice to give anyone.

I guess it's because I'm still learning myself. Like someone before me has already said,

"A cigar is only a cigar".

The important thing, for me, is everything that surrounds the passion that counts.

Do you think that you've purchased too many ? Is your collection too big ?

NO I don't think so, It's part of the game, however,

like in many passions, How much of your time was spent talking about cigars with others ?

Collections ? How many good human encounters have you made because of cigars ?

I've made some that were fantastic in those 40 years, great friends who have helped me out in difficult

times and some that I've helped out.

Also, how many A**holes or " know it all " have you disregarded because they are not worth wasting

your time or life on ?

If I have any advice to give, it would this, Live your passion to the fullest, take in as much info as you

can, but make your own decisions. Smoke and buy what you like and want,

not what others say you should like or want .

Your passion is yours, use and abuse as you like.

It's one of the few things in life today that you can do on your own and shape it the way you want .

[bassman]

I started smoking Cuban cigars in 1996. Wish I'd known about the 1995 blend change then. Would have bought as many readily available 94 boxes as I could afford.

[joeypots]

I've been at the Cuban thing for more than ten years, I started to buy boxes in '01.

I bought too many big fat vitolas in the beginning, DCs, Churchills, Piramids.

I smoked too many cigars young.

[tigger]

Not that I've ever been a huge purchaser of EL, ERs, etc, but I would have purchased fewer when they came out, and spent the money on fantastic cigars - RA coronas, 898s, Upmann SCs, etc which are no longer readily available.

[ironpeddler]

When I read the title and thought about what Rob was looking for, it wasn't quite clear in my head for a little bit of time.

As a CC smoker for over 35 years, I think I would be a little hypocritical to say I would have done something different because at the time you never thought anything would change....or I didn't have the foresight to see change on the horizon. It was considered a pastime, an indulgence, as was smoking in general. Before the Smoking Police came into being, if you smoked, it was either cigarettes or cigars and it was a way of life everywhere you went...on TV, billboards, in newspapers and magazines, and in the movies...you never thought it would change.

This is a different day and age in cigar smoking...in my opinion it's one quarter smoking and three quarters hobby, which I think prompted Rob's question. There is just as much cigar smoking in like minded groups of people, but way more collecting like in any hobby. Back in my Father and Uncle's days, you found a cigar or two you enjoyed and bought and smoked them...and that philosophy/mentality was passed down to me. I liked Monte #2s and RyJ Churchills and that's what I bought and smoked. Some of my friends smoked something different and ONCE IN A WHILE we traded a few sticks. It's not that you didn't embrace the BOTL way of life, but you smoked what you liked and that was it. You always nurtured a new smoker and as a group, would give that person our favorite cigars by the box full until they developed their own taste.

You see, what you smoked sort of became who you were in the cigar circle of smokers...I was Gary the Monte #2 guy...if you saw me smoking a cigar, that's what was in my hand 90% of the time....as were all my friends and family...you were associated with a certain cigar, like an cigar identity based on the stick.

As for the cigars themselves, they were way more consistent in the past and really didn't need all this aging to get to a smokable point. You bought a box or two and they tasted virtually the same. There were always subtle differences, but for the most part the cigar you smoked was on the money. When you bought, there was not the huge worry of them being counterfeited either because they didn't cost that much back then....who's going to counterfeit a $20 or $50 box of cigars? Being of Italian descent, living in the NY/NJ area, I had relatives in professions that afforded me the opportunity to enjoy this forbidden fruit, I never had to worry about sources.

Now I'll get to the part about being hypocritical. If I say I would have bought more Davidoffs (or any other defunct brand) to have to this day, I would be lying. Who would have thought back then that Castro was going to screw them and force their hand to leave Cuba for the DR? In this day of the Internet and news working it's way around the globe in minutes rather than days, weeks, and months, how were we to know?....and who knew back then about a country we had no diplomatic ties to? I heard about it from the Cuban community in Union City New Jersey. One day they were there, the next day they were not. Had I known MAYBE I would have bought a few extra boxes...maybe. But who knew they would become 'Iconic'?....sic...there were plenty of other brands out there...no big deal, just buy something else similar.

The biggest thing was, who knew that the Cuban cigars would change so drastically in the mid 90s and remain like that for a while to then buy older stock?...whether in content or quality of roll. You thought it would blow over like other years. Now, there were ALWAYS off years for cigars...always (early 70s, late 80's, mid 90's)...it's a crop and it's influenced by many things...but for the most part...there was ALWAYS plenty of AGED tobacco to cover the demand. Back in the day they were always rolled with properly aged tobacco and the cigars were VERY GOOD out of the box, that's why there was very little need to stock pile and long term age. Every once in a while I would come across a collector who bought large amounts of CC....but that was more due in part to the limited availability and people would grab them when they could. I was fortunate to have easy access and had little need to store large amounts....what for? I would buy 3-4 boxes at a time, throw them in my humidor, smoke them, then buy more when I was getting low. The passionate collector was few and far between...like a wine collector...a person that bought multiple boxes of many different brands....but they were out there and were great people willing to share their most prized possessions at any time.

As a long time smoker, what really lifts my soul in regard to cigars is how the newer generation (since the cigar boom) has embraced them to make it a hobby...but more importantly, to a level of social consciousness of turning like minded people into a brotherhood of sorts. The communication between people all over my country and now the World is so uplifting...the sharing of ideas and smokes at cigar events and in people's backyards is so cool to see...I wish my Father and Uncles could see this now!

So you see?...how could I look back and say I would change something when all this happened so slowly over so many years...unexpectedly. No regrets.

But, if given a second chance, what would I do differently?

1) Not trust that cocksucker Castro to **** up the one thing they had going for Cuba

2) Would have built a walk in humidor/small building and stocked it to the ceiling with better quality cigars at less cost per box to last me 50 years

3) Diversified and expanded my selection of cigars to include more sizes and brands

4) I'd like to say 'smoke more'...but if I did, I'd be dead by now at 55! God knows I smoked my share.

Cheers...

[thechenman]

When I read the title and thought about what Rob was looking for, it wasn't quite clear in my head for a little bit of time.

As a CC smoker for over 35 years, I think I would be a little hypocritical to say I would have done something different because at the time you never thought anything would change....or I didn't have the foresight to see change on the horizon. It was considered a pastime, an indulgence, as was smoking in general. Before the Smoking Police came into being, if you smoked, it was either cigarettes or cigars and it was a way of life everywhere you went...on TV, billboards, in newspapers and magazines, and in the movies...you never thought it would change.

This is a different day and age in cigar smoking...in my opinion it's one quarter smoking and three quarters hobby, which I think prompted Rob's question. There is just as much cigar smoking in like minded groups of people, but way more collecting like in any hobby. Back in my Father and Uncle's days, you found a cigar or two you enjoyed and bought and smoked them...and that philosophy/mentality was passed down to me. I liked Monte #2s and RyJ Churchills and that's what I bought and smoked. Some of my friends smoked something different and ONCE IN A WHILE we traded a few sticks. It's not that you didn't embrace the BOTL way of life, but you smoked what you liked and that was it. You always nurtured a new smoker and as a group, would give that person our favorite cigars by the box full until they developed their own taste.

You see, what you smoked sort of became who you were in the cigar circle of smokers...I was Gary the Monte #2 guy...if you saw me smoking a cigar, that's what was in my hand 90% of the time....as were all my friends and family...you were associated with a certain cigar, like an cigar identity based on the stick.

As for the cigars themselves, they were way more consistent in the past and really didn't need all this aging to get to a smokable point. You bought a box or two and they tasted virtually the same. There were always subtle differences, but for the most part the cigar you smoked was on the money. When you bought, there was not the huge worry of them being counterfeited either because they didn't cost that much back then....who's going to counterfeit a $20 or $50 box of cigars? Being of Italian descent, living in the NY/NJ area, I had relatives in professions that afforded me the opportunity to enjoy this forbidden fruit, I never had to worry about sources.

Now I'll get to the part about being hypocritical. If I say I would have bought more Davidoffs (or any other defunct brand) to have to this day, I would be lying. Who would have thought back then that Castro was going to screw them and force their hand to leave Cuba for the DR? In this day of the Internet and news working it's way around the globe in minutes rather than days, weeks, and months, how were we to know?....and who knew back then about a country we had no diplomatic ties to? I heard about it from the Cuban community in Union City New Jersey. One day they were there, the next day they were not. Had I known MAYBE I would have bought a few extra boxes...maybe. But who knew they would become 'Iconic'?....sic...there were plenty of other brands out there...no big deal, just buy something else similar.

The biggest thing was, who knew that the Cuban cigars would change so drastically in the mid 90s and remain like that for a while to then buy older stock?...whether in content or quality of roll. You thought it would blow over like other years. Now, there were ALWAYS off years for cigars...always (early 70s, late 80's, mid 90's)...it's a crop and it's influenced by many things...but for the most part...there was ALWAYS plenty of AGED tobacco to cover the demand. Back in the day they were always rolled with properly aged tobacco and the cigars were VERY GOOD out of the box, that's why there was very little need to stock pile and long term age. Every once in a while I would come across a collector who bought large amounts of CC....but that was more due in part to the limited availability and people would grab them when they could. I was fortunate to have easy access and had little need to store large amounts....what for? I would buy 3-4 boxes at a time, throw them in my humidor, smoke them, then buy more when I was getting low. The passionate collector was few and far between...like a wine collector...a person that bought multiple boxes of many different brands....but they were out there and were great people willing to share their most prized possessions at any time.

As a long time smoker, what really lifts my soul in regard to cigars is how the newer generation (since the cigar boom) has embraced them to make it a hobby...but more importantly, to a level of social consciousness of turning like minded people into a brotherhood of sorts. The communication between people all over my country and now the World is so uplifting...the sharing of ideas and smokes at cigar events and in people's backyards is so cool to see...I wish my Father and Uncles could see this now!

So you see?...how could I look back and say I would change something when all this happened so slowly over so many years...unexpectedly. No regrets.

But, if given a second chance, what would I do differently?

1) Not trust that cocksucker Castro to **** up the one thing they had going for Cuba

2) Would have built a walk in humidor/small building and stocked it to the ceiling with better quality cigars at less cost per box to last me 50 years

3) Diversified and expanded my selection of cigars to include more sizes and brands

4) I'd like to say 'smoke more'...but if I did, I'd be dead by now at 55! God knows I smoked my share.

Cheers...

ironpeddler...that was a great post. Thanks for sharing your insight. It was great reading.

[laficion]

Bravo, ironpeddler, Bravo, for everyone who has been smoking cigars for the last 30 to 40 years,

you've hit on every nail . That was exactly the atmosphere at the time.

Thanks for the reminder

[PigFish]

Jesus the list is long.

Hmmm.... Met Lisa sooner, married her and bumped off Rob. That might be first on the list!!!! -LOL

I had some very cerebral moments this morning thinking about this post while in the tub. I attempted to wash away my headache with some shampoo. I scrubbed away at my scalp and what little hair I have and my mind wondered down the path of tangents until I noticed I was composing in my head a smokers version of "War and Peace." Sometimes I get that way! Rather than list regrets I find it better to list some experiences and how I profited from them.

In general:

No one can taste for you. Like what you like, be happy about it. Reject gurus. I am not one, and neither is the company that makes or sells your cigars. It does not mean a damn thing if anyone does not like what you are smoking. Follow your tastes that is what matters. When someone says, "that's what she smokes, that's what they smoke, that's what I smoke;" implying superior tastes, just turn down the volume!

Blindly following others and the methodical collection of information are not the same. I am not saying not to listen. Information is easier to get today, much more so than when I started smoking Habanos. Listen to everyone... be open to try the untried, but follow no one; we each have our own path. Asking advice and following blindly are two completely different things. In a broad stroke that is about the best advice I can give anyone. I for one wasted many years and many dollars finding out we all don't have the same tastes. The RASS could be cancelled tomorrow and beyond that of the desire (a strong one I might add) to save the cigar for those who appreciate it; it would be no loss to me personally.

On taste:

I think that has been covered above. Don't rely on what some dope writes as a taste profile. He might like tofu and chickpea stew as well as the cigar he just opined!!! Share information and look for people who are smoking what you like now and see what else they like to help you broaden your horizons. Following me, or the guys at the brick and mortar or the editors of a magazine are as equally hazardous as potentially helpful. Do you really want people telling you what to smoke?

Understand the industry:

Partagas is sign on a building and in my opinion not much more than that now. It represents history, and unfortunately, a greater loss. I will leave this one to you imagination; something to think about.

Regarding community:

Cigars are not only cerebral and solitary they are celebratory and societal. Seeking out the society has been rewarding to me. I have met new friends who have given me collectively their lifetimes' worth of experiences and rewards. While painting Hummels may be best done alone cigars are best when enjoyed and shared with friends. It is an important and valued part of smoking if you choose to partake. I want you to partake. The rest is up to you.

Heritage:

Like life stories and myths before historical chronology you should realize that you may be part of the last generation that enjoys cigars. Tobacco is public enemy number one on many a political hit list. Expand the club, share your experiences and your cigars whenever possible. As if we were locust, special interest groups are looking to 'cleanse' us from the community. We are the enemy in the eyes of many. We represent individualism, freedom, and the roguish antiestablishment. We are now black-sheep, an underground narcissistic and dangerous society. Cigar smoking is no longer ordinary or acceptable. Picture how it has been personalized as selfish, capitalistic and exclusive. Pass on the knowledge and do what you can to support the cause when and where you can.

On vendors:

Knowing what to buy and when is part luck, some experience and always represents some risk. Vendors can help you or rip you off. Value is a polygon of facets. I have bought cigars from all corners of the world and not all vendors are created equal. While I make no effort to conceal my brotherly love for my Aussie friends who run this site, and I often am almost deriding in proffering my difference of opinion, I would like it to be known that my trust in the Czar crew as the world best tobacconists has never been in question. Buying quality, while never guarantees satisfaction, appears to go hand in hand with it. Trusting the folks that sell you cigars goes a long way to making the purchaseing and enjoying of cigars a lot easier.

On popularity:

When was the most common the best of anything? Does ice cream taste better when eaten out of a 5 gallon tub? You decide what that means to you.

On packaging and advertising:

"Sir, would you like paper of plastic?" A simple analogy... does it matter to you? What do you do with the bag when you get done putting the groceries away?

On trends:

Look at them openly. Are they doing well by you? Are you smoking better or worse cigars because of them? Are you getting more or less value for your currency? This too is not for me to answer, but for you to observe and act upon. I wish I had discovered high gauge (smaller ring) cigars many, many years earlier. I cherish my experiences with the many cigars I have experienced but focusing on what I like best sooner, would have saved me time and money and rewarded me with better smoking experiences throughout my smoking life. Single sticks were not easy for me to obtain the early years. I have wasted cigars and had them wasted on me as I discovered by preferences and prejudices. It would have been better to make discoveries based on 10 cigar than on 25 or 50 of them.

That is about all that I have to offer in this post. Thanks for reading. -Piggy

[ucla695]

A lot of it has been covered already, so I’ll just add the following:

Like many things, this thing of ours is about the journey, not the destination. Have fun with it and take your time to enjoy the process of learning what type of CCs you enjoy smoking. To me, the discovery is one of the best parts!

I also wish I would have bought a bigger cabinet. At the time I purchased mine, I could have gone bigger, but didn’t because I thought an end table would be more than enough room. Little did I know that I’d outgrow it within the first year.

Anyway, have fun and enjoy the ride!

[Habanos2000]

I find it difficult to add much to the wisdom that's already been shared. But I would like to comment that NOW is a GREAT time to be getting into cigars. Cigars of recent production have in my opinion been of the highest quality and flavor in a long time. I've never been one to buy and hold boxes of cigars, I smoke em and reorder. But now there have been several vitolas that are just so fantastic right out of the box, I don't want to miss out. I believe the days of buy a box and hold it for 5 years in order to be great are gone for the most part. My mantra is buy and hold because the cigar is so damn good you want enough to enjoy for a long time.

I'm glad to be involved in this great culture at this time in history. 10, 15 years from now people will be looking back at this age saying, man I wish I was into cigars then! Don't miss the boat.

[Colt45]

what's wrong with chickpea soup?!

[Van55]

Well said, Piggy and others!

Some of this will be merely repetive of other points already made, but I hope it will add perspective.

1. Buy a bigger humidor than you think hy you will ever need. Better yet, buy two. (Or two coolers.)

2. The reason I suggest two coolers is that, if I had it to do over, I would have split every box in half. I would have put one half in my "aging box" and the other half in my "smoke them now" box. And I would have developed the self-discipline to smoke only from the "smoke them now" box.

3. Take and keep detailed tasting notes.

4. Do not smoke a cigar right off the truck. Let it stabilize in your preferred storing conditions for a minimum of 30 days -- preferrably longer.

5. Pay it forward. Generosity is always repaid.

6. Never judge a cigar by a single sample. Cigars vary over time and from box to box and from cigar to cigar in a single box.

7. Don't be a follower of fashion. Try every cigar that remotely interests you and learn to know what YOU like. The reason Cuabas are still made is that SOME people love them. If I had been a follower, I would never have tried some of my favorites such as Fonseca #1, the Quay D'Orsay line etc.

8. Find a vendor of vendors whom you can trust. Pay a premium, if you must, to know you are actually going to get what you pay for.

9. Trade cigars only with trusted friends; beware of scammers on the various trading/selling boards. (Yes, I learned this from bitter experience long ago.)

10. Don't smoke "special" cigars outdoors. Obviously, the video reviews in this board are done outdoors, but in my experience full appreciation of and enjoyment of a cigar occurs where there is no draft or wind and where one can see and smell the "second hand" smoke as it leaves your mouth and/or nose and wafts slowly upward into the room and settles as an aromatic haze around you.

11. Learn to exhale smoke through your nose.

12. Solitary smoking is fine. But sharing the smoking experience with friends is even finer.

13. Don't fall into the trap of becoming a cigar snob. The vast majority of cigar smokers are content with inexpensive non-Cuban cigars or Jose Piedras and the like. That doesn't make them beneath you. They just have different tastes and financial priorities.

14. Never trade a cigar that you are not absolutely certain is what it purports be on the band. If you pass off a fake, even unknowingly, you will do your reputation harm.

15. Here's one I really wish I had done. Establish a cigar buying budget and stick to it.

I hope some of these ideas help.

[PigFish]

what's wrong with chickpea soup?!

It was STEW.

Ke.....n! Ross is misquoting me again. Make him stop it!!!! OR, I'll quit and sign up as a new member!

[Colt45]

It was STEW.

Ke.....n! Ross is misquoting me again. Make him stop it!!!! OR, I'll quit and sign up as a new member!

Please pardon my faux pas. But really - Ken? The high minister of misquotes, the surly sultan of spin?

As an aside, the image of you taking a tub, with shower cap and rubber ducky, leaves me a bit ill at ease, yet strangely at the same time........

[jquest63]

When I read the title and thought about what Rob was looking for, it wasn't quite clear in my head for a little bit of time.

As a CC smoker for over 35 years, I think I would be a little hypocritical to say I would have done something different because at the time you never thought anything would change....or I didn't have the foresight to see change on the horizon. It was considered a pastime, an indulgence, as was smoking in general. Before the Smoking Police came into being, if you smoked, it was either cigarettes or cigars and it was a way of life everywhere you went...on TV, billboards, in newspapers and magazines, and in the movies...you never thought it would change.

This is a different day and age in cigar smoking...in my opinion it's one quarter smoking and three quarters hobby, which I think prompted Rob's question. There is just as much cigar smoking in like minded groups of people, but way more collecting like in any hobby. Back in my Father and Uncle's days, you found a cigar or two you enjoyed and bought and smoked them...and that philosophy/mentality was passed down to me. I liked Monte #2s and RyJ Churchills and that's what I bought and smoked. Some of my friends smoked something different and ONCE IN A WHILE we traded a few sticks. It's not that you didn't embrace the BOTL way of life, but you smoked what you liked and that was it. You always nurtured a new smoker and as a group, would give that person our favorite cigars by the box full until they developed their own taste.

You see, what you smoked sort of became who you were in the cigar circle of smokers...I was Gary the Monte #2 guy...if you saw me smoking a cigar, that's what was in my hand 90% of the time....as were all my friends and family...you were associated with a certain cigar, like an cigar identity based on the stick.

As for the cigars themselves, they were way more consistent in the past and really didn't need all this aging to get to a smokable point. You bought a box or two and they tasted virtually the same. There were always subtle differences, but for the most part the cigar you smoked was on the money. When you bought, there was not the huge worry of them being counterfeited either because they didn't cost that much back then....who's going to counterfeit a $20 or $50 box of cigars? Being of Italian descent, living in the NY/NJ area, I had relatives in professions that afforded me the opportunity to enjoy this forbidden fruit, I never had to worry about sources.

Now I'll get to the part about being hypocritical. If I say I would have bought more Davidoffs (or any other defunct brand) to have to this day, I would be lying. Who would have thought back then that Castro was going to screw them and force their hand to leave Cuba for the DR? In this day of the Internet and news working it's way around the globe in minutes rather than days, weeks, and months, how were we to know?....and who knew back then about a country we had no diplomatic ties to? I heard about it from the Cuban community in Union City New Jersey. One day they were there, the next day they were not. Had I known MAYBE I would have bought a few extra boxes...maybe. But who knew they would become 'Iconic'?....sic...there were plenty of other brands out there...no big deal, just buy something else similar.

The biggest thing was, who knew that the Cuban cigars would change so drastically in the mid 90s and remain like that for a while to then buy older stock?...whether in content or quality of roll. You thought it would blow over like other years. Now, there were ALWAYS off years for cigars...always (early 70s, late 80's, mid 90's)...it's a crop and it's influenced by many things...but for the most part...there was ALWAYS plenty of AGED tobacco to cover the demand. Back in the day they were always rolled with properly aged tobacco and the cigars were VERY GOOD out of the box, that's why there was very little need to stock pile and long term age. Every once in a while I would come across a collector who bought large amounts of CC....but that was more due in part to the limited availability and people would grab them when they could. I was fortunate to have easy access and had little need to store large amounts....what for? I would buy 3-4 boxes at a time, throw them in my humidor, smoke them, then buy more when I was getting low. The passionate collector was few and far between...like a wine collector...a person that bought multiple boxes of many different brands....but they were out there and were great people willing to share their most prized possessions at any time.

As a long time smoker, what really lifts my soul in regard to cigars is how the newer generation (since the cigar boom) has embraced them to make it a hobby...but more importantly, to a level of social consciousness of turning like minded people into a brotherhood of sorts. The communication between people all over my country and now the World is so uplifting...the sharing of ideas and smokes at cigar events and in people's backyards is so cool to see...I wish my Father and Uncles could see this now!

So you see?...how could I look back and say I would change something when all this happened so slowly over so many years...unexpectedly. No regrets.

But, if given a second chance, what would I do differently?

1) Not trust that cocksucker Castro to **** up the one thing they had going for Cuba

2) Would have built a walk in humidor/small building and stocked it to the ceiling with better quality cigars at less cost per box to last me 50 years

3) Diversified and expanded my selection of cigars to include more sizes and brands

4) I'd like to say 'smoke more'...but if I did, I'd be dead by now at 55! God knows I smoked my share.

Cheers...

The break up between Davidoff and Cuba occurred in the early 1990's and although your average cigar smoker may not have known this, informed cigar enthusiasts did. In fact enough of them existed to create a sufficient demand to drive the prices up in the early 90's and make availability of cuban Davidoffs more scarce. This was not uncommon knowledge in the 90's. Davidoff product was a recognized quality product in the 90's, no different than any high quality product. So, for some folks it's not hypocritical to regret not buying them because we knew the prices were going up and availability was going down. However, if not for anything else, than because they were great smokes and were going away. Kind of like a great vintage port or wine.

[El Presidente]

Jesus the list is long.

Hmmm.... Met Lisa sooner, married her and bumped off Rob. That might be first on the list!!!! -LOL

it is great to be loved

[Wiley]

These guys gotta be careful not to put too much stock into a handful of singles. Probably not even any box either.

I can recall ordering cigars I'd decided earlier I didn't like, and I don't know if it was a difference in production or with my tastes, but they went from zero to hero. PSD4 for example.

Desktop humidors are for decoration, not cigars. Use a cooler.

Don't bring cabs to parties with lots of booze. Unless you didn't want to keep those cigars.

Order what Rob and Lisa tell you is looking good. Don't get too stuck on some specific cigar.

Don't spend all your money on expensive cigars.

Get the damned cigar bible n00b! It's awesome.

Oh yeah, cigar notes only help convince you that yes, you were an idiot back then.

[Yoruba Hacker]

Lots of good advice so far in this thread. One thing I would add is don't waste a lot of money on fancy humidors that are higher maintenance, and can really cut into your cigar buying budget. It might not be fancy and pretty, but setting up a few coolidors with beads as you need them, to age your inventory is hard to beat for quality, efficient, and easy to maintain storage, especially if you live in a climate which doesn't require climate control.

I would also stay away from buying a lot of singles as the high premium and hassle factor of storing them is too high. Focus on buying boxes and cabs if available of high quality regular production stock which will age well over the long term and you really can't go too wrong. You can always trade away high quality aged excess stock for something you like better. Don't forget that most likely your taste preferences will change over 10-15 years. I know mine did and continues to do so.

Finally, stay away from the high dollar EL's and regional editions. They will break your cigar budget much too quickly, and frankly with a few exceptions are mostly a bunch of marketing hype. Focus on high quality regular production stock which will age well over the long term. Age your own stock in high quality, relatively low cost coolidors rather than buying aged or vintage stock at a premium price stored under unknown conditions.

Most important have fun and don't take this hobby too seriously.

Well said and spot on. Of course one can argue that the cooler approach leaves more money to experiment with the high-dollar boxes and Books, but the greater point is that confidently aging your own is one of the great pleasures of this hobby.