College Collection Storyline

[CBL]

I started this glorious time and money consuming hobby in the early months of 2008, after starting my first full-time job after graduating high school. I worked as a junior account manager at a company that sold advertising space on websites. I've always had a fascination with advertising and thought I'd be able to have a little input into how the ads would be designed. Sadly that was not the case.

After a rough break-up I decided to leave The Netherlands and move to Taiwan to attend college and learn more about the industry I had just dipped my foot in: Advertising! Although my hobby had only just started, and I had very few cigars lying in my little humidor, I was convinced I would one day own a glorious selection of boxes! So right before leaving Taiwan I bought a big new humidor, and shipped my old one over to Taiwan for the occasional single cigar.

Four years, a trip to Cuba, one Bachelor of Arts, and many MANY boxes later, this is my current collection:

It's been a while since I wrote a substantial topic and as it's the end of an era, I hope you'll indulge me in showing off my boxes and whatever significance they have.

Although my Cuban Affair began with a box of Montecristo 4's, these two boxes were the first boxes I bought after the purchase of the big humidor (a month and four years ago today)

After purchasing a cab of Sir Winstons from 2002 with the bonus I got from my account manager job, my box purchases in Taiwan were pretty much non-existent, because I had bigger game in sight! Summer 2009, I came back home for the holidays after my first year in college and decided to go to Cuba with one of my best friends. After we booked our flight and hotels, we celebrated by ordering a box of Ramon Allones Small Club Coronas (reasoning: we wanted to buy something and they were cheap). Three boxes later, this little cracker has become on of my favorite go-to cigars and always has a place in my humidor, no matter where I am.

Arriving in Cuba was like coming home, everything felt like it was made for us and Cuba just waited for us to finally arrive to enjoy it!

In Club Havana I found my first box of cigars with bloom. The smell that hit me after opening the varnished box for the first time almost knocked me out and to this day I am too scared to smoke this beauty because I've built it up too much. I've finished another box ('09) that has been pretty decent and that has already welcomed new occupants (10-pack sample from Czar), but my original box from AGO 03 is one that takes bigger stones than I currently have to break it.

Another beauty I picked up from Cuba was this box of Monty Sublimes from 2008. For long it was the pride and joy of my humidor and consequently was the cigar I smoked for my graduation (with two great friends in Bangkok)

Cuba also gave me a taste for something that would soon be taken away from us: Partagas Serie Du Connaisseur.

After unsuspectedly buying a SDC No. 2 at LCDH 5th Avenue, I've been chasing that high ever since smoking it.

During a christmas trip to Hong Kong with my girlfriend in 2009 I found a cab of SDC No. 1 in a little shop, and had to pay for it with 3 different kinds of currencies (HKD, USD, & RMB) in order to get the right amount of money scraped together. I've been able to find the SDC No. 2 in 2010 and SDC No. 3 in 2011. Glad to have the family complete.

As I tend to buy cigars when I'm happy and in a celebratory mood, I went a little overboard during the summer of 2010. My girlfriend was coming to Europe with me for the summer and in my love-drunk-haze I bought the following boxes:

Which isn't that bad by itself except my enabling girlfriend talked me into buying two more boxes during our trip to Paris (both purchased at A La Civette, of Paris tread fame)

As you might have noticed, all these freaking boxes are pretty much full, that's because I was able to keep them in my humidor in The Netherlands while I was busting my ass in Taiwan, therefore I wasn't able to smoke any of these except for during summer holiday. Sadly, in 2011 I couldn't go back home due to a required internship (I chose to do it in Taiwan so I could learn more Chinese and because I had to work on my Thesis and thought Europe would be too distracting.....) During that time in Taiwan I bought and finished A LOT of boxes that never made it back to The Netherlands. Luckily my parents came to visit me that summer and were able to smuggle some boxes back for me, these are the ones that made it to the other side (many were purchased during the discontinuation scare of 2011, tell your grandkids about the angry Australian video posted in protest)

And then something incredible happened, I was invited by a friend and colleague of my mother who had dinner at my parent's place and saw my cigar collection. I had never met the guy, but apparently my mom's cooking had made an impact because before dinner he gave me a little gift: luxurious, long-forgotten, lonsdales!

Since graduating, I had to leave Taiwan. My girlfriend and I did one last 2-month long Eurotrip (Paris, Antwerp, Cologne, Venice) and although I couldn't splurge as much as I've done in previous years, I was able to pick up a box that reminds me of our best day in Paris.

I won't be able to see her for a year, but luckily almost every fond memory I have of cigars is in some way linked to her, so whatever I chose to smoke from my own humidor will be seeped in emotional baggage.

It's been a long and hard 4 years, but my cigars have kept me at a steady pace. They've accompanied me through nights where I had to burn the candle at both ends and kept me calm and collective, and they've helped me celebrate wins and academic accomplishments. Whatever the occasion, my cigars were always "by my side" reminding me that I need to work hard to keep up with this ridiculously expensive hobby of ours.

Last month I started my masters program here in The Netherlands. Who knows what the coming year will bring cigar-wise, but honestly... I don't think my humidor can take much more!

[

[Tan1801]

Great story.

Unfortunately the pics don't seem to work for me, so I'm not 100% sure about what specific cigars your referring to half the times.

[CBL]

Great story.

Unfortunately the pics don't seem to work for me, so I'm not 100% sure about what specific cigars your referring to half the times.

Yeah I think I tried to attach too many files at once, I hosted them somewhere else and reposted them, they should show now!

[Cohiba007]

Fantastic post. Thanks for sharing

[Jszeto]

Great story. It's great to be able to relate to the challenges you face. Our hobby is an uplifting and refreshing thing.

I guess I know where your academic funding went towards

[Overproof]

Great read!

[GernBlansten]

Really nice post! Thanks for sharing the stories and pictures.

[CaptainQuintero]

That's a seriously classy collection! Nice work man!

[maverickdrinker]

What a fantastic post. Congratulations on your accomplishments. Your collection is coming on nicely.

Good luck with attaining your Masters degree. Looking forward to see how your collection grows and the stories with every new acquisition.

Well done!!!.

[kidmac]

Great read! Just remember you cant take them will you smoke up! Very nice collection my friend...

[khomeinist]

Now that is the way to do a collection post. You have excellent taste. Thanks for sharing.

[Hypersomniac]

Very nice collection, and it's nice to read the story that goes along with it.

If you ever do have trouble storing boxes, I would be happy to help.

[Paul3]

CBL, fantastic story and thank you for sharing. Cigars should be for good times and better memories both of which you have covered in spades. As nice as all the cigar porn is I have to say that my favorite picture is the last one. It appears that the shelf in your humidor is giving under the weight of all those great smokes...just the way it should be!

[BatFastard]

Really enjoyed this! Thanks for posting.

[Guest rob]

Now that is the way to do a collection post. You have excellent taste. Thanks for sharing.

My thoughts entirely!

Written in a classy, modest and engaging way, Good stuff, brother!

[Michel1968]

Hi Niels,

Great post (and collection while we're at it!). Every box or single cigar has its story, I like that, it's that added value coming with 'raising cigars'. Since you're back in the 'swamp' perhaps we should have a smoke at one of the casa's? (Den Haag, Amsterdam)?

[mk05]

and not one Monte 2 in sight. High five. All your Bolivars look amazing. Thanks for the read, and I hope your next purchase will be as memorable as your first.

[ritan]

What a classy and thoughtful way to share.

Well done! I really enjoyed reading this. Look forward to more updates like this as you go on your life's journey...

謝謝你的分享。(Thank you for sharing.)

[demiurgic]

Lovely! The collection...the struggle every self respecting man goes thru to earn his stripes...the journey of love and it's tumultuous nature (sweet how your new girl encouraged you to buy cigars during the love-drunk-haze) ...along with family who will smuggle for you.

That's love right there!

[hdryder]

Great stroy & fantastic collection. Thanks for sharing

[CBL]

@Shlomo:

Yeah I wish I could smoke more! Since reuniting with my beloved collection, I've smoked all my singles and finished most of the boxes I had broken into already. I wanted to keep my full boxes full until I took some pictures. Now that I've taken the pictures and am free to smoke whatever cigar I want..... the weather has turned to crap

@kidmac:

You're right! And that was the problem I had every year I went back to Taiwan, I could only bring a small number of cigars with me to store in my humidor, so these boxes have remained untouched for up to 4 years. But rest assure, all the cigar I bought while in Taiwan, are completely gone, nothing was safe in THAT humidor. But I was lucky I had an apartment in which I could smoke indoors. I've spent many typhoon and earthquake scares locked inside my apartment smoking what could've been my last stick

@Paul3:

You might have noticed that I put my "big" cabs and boxes on the bottom shelve and the smaller/lighter boxes on the top one. It used to be the other way around, until I realized my shelf was giving into the weight.

@Michel:

Since being back I haven't been to the A'dam LCDH, but I did go to the The Hague one a couple of times (bought the Royal Robustos & a box of Monte Carlo there) I'd love to have a cigar with you at one of the Casa's, with the weather becoming what it is it'll soon be the only place I can still smoke!

@mk05:

Have to admit that after my first box of Monty 4's, I split a box of Monty 2's with a friend.... but those have been long gone. Still hope to pick up a nice HQ or PSP box of No. 4's from Czar some day for nostalgic purposes.

@ritan:

謝謝！

@demiurgic:

Yeah even though my parents and girlfriend HATE that I smoke, they've always been extremely supportive of the hobby. My dad has been the one that took care of my cigars while I was abroad and my mom sacrificed her luggage to bring my 3-drawer humidor to Taiwan for me, and my girlfriend always made her credit card available for me to purchase cigars with (my parents can see my credit card bill, and although I don't mind them knowing I bought some cigars... I'd rather not they know how much some boxes cost ) For my last birthday my gf even bought some cigars for me as a gift and even let me smoke in bed, while we were watching Harry Potter movies! That's true love right there!

It's funny that all 3 of them always complain when I smoke a cigar, yet they're also the ones that often suggest "you want to smoke a cigar?" if a good occasion arises (After a BBQ, or if the weather outside is nice, etc.)

I guess having a good support system makes having any hobby easier.

[DougB]

Thanks very much for posting. The pictures and stories behind them were truly enjoyable to read and view. Very, very well done. Thanks again.

[cottierm]

Great story and wonderful collection. Many cigars you've got are also my favorites! I suppose that many of us share more or less the same story as far as cuban cigars addiction is concerned!

All the best,

Michel

[jrb5783]

Great story Being a current college student myself I understand only being able to buy a couple of boxes a year. I hope to have a collection as nice as yours by the time I graduate.

Jace

[ramon_cojones]

Great thread it was a nice read.