How many times before you "Toss in the Towel"

[El Presidente]

" I tried a Monte 1, hated it! I have steered clear ever since."

Substitute Monte 1 for pretty much any cigar and if you have been into cigars long enough then you will have heard the above.

Now there are several cigars that I can't take to. I have tried them from different boxes and different years and they are just not for me. On the other hand there are cigars that 5 years ago fell into the above category and now they are in my rotation. The blend may have changed, my tastes may have changed, possibly a combination of the two.

There are few hard and fast rules in the realm of personal taste. For regular production the one I run with (it works for me) is:

Minimum: 5 tastings from 5 different boxes over 5 years.

It is easier for me to do this given I am in the trade. Still with the world of trades and singles it is not difficult to achieve for anyone.

What is your level of persistence?

[kwsaw63]

2 strikes and you're out. Too many cigars and not enough money and time.

[leftimatic]

Two to three tries that's it. I have a shite box of NCs that I give out to save my CCs. Everyone loves them, I had one maybe two that were decent the rest got turfed shortly after lighting or as I said now I give them away freely. it was a box of forty I got for $80 a buddy said they were awesome. My best lesson to date buy a sampler then the box.

[Shikar]

Cohiba.

Bought a bunch of boxes from the siglo 1 to the sublime many years ago and the Behikes and Maduro 5s recently.

Most have been aging over 10 years now.

I smoke one Cohiba every 2-3 months.

I have hated it every single time.

Might as well try the Behike 52 tonight and update.

I have to learn to like Cohiba since it so awesome. Not!

I am stubborn as this is a 12 year old fight and I havent given up. Yet.

Regards.

[Maplepie]

3 dog rockets - must be different box codes/years.

Or just not to my taste like a young Partagas D4 or Por Larranaga Petit Corona

[Habana Mike]

3 strikes and y'er out!

[ramon_cojones]

Whoa I was going to say 5 in 5 years is more than I can stomach but then you mentioned what I was thinking about being in the business. If it's a marca I don't like one is enough for me. Just the other day my buddy gave me a lfdc selectos fino and it was terrible. If it's things like montes I will generally try one every so often if a mate says they are good. I don't purchase unless I have two fantastic examples then I put them on my list. One cigar I was pleasantly surprised by was the regio but I had not smoked one prior. I've constantly tried plpc and I guess due to my having smoked tons of plmc they just don't do anything to me but I will occasionally punish myself by having one when offered to me only to reaffirm my feelings.

One cigar I love that I would have never purchased before 2012 is the presidente. All prior examples have tasted like p2s or in other words flavorless so I was pleasantly surprised new ones are great so I always stock them when I want that classic partagas flavor.

[dangolf18]

5 is the magic number for me.

[Smallclub]

Siglo II. Definitely not for me. Tried MANY times.

Usually I try 4 or 5 different vintages before I discard definitely.

[MIKA27]

3 Strikes from me hence why I can't stand Monte 2's unfortunately. I say it often but I don't understand what the fuss is about with those.

[PuffDaddie]

Three strikes and done.

[CaptainQuintero]

Yep, 2-3 goes normally. Unless I think there is promise (persisted with Fonseca for maybe 8 sticks from different boxes, sources over around 4 years before giving up because of construction issues.) or simply once is something truly horrified me. Recently tried a Quesada minuto or something after hearing a lot about the brand, it was as like smoking a raw chilli. Will never go back to them just on the off chance of having that experience again. Even my lips were burning from just smoking it...

[Phillys]

Rob, I like your 5:5:5 theory, gives a better representation of the profile, although I have not yet gotten to that point yet.

I would say if two or three different box codes have disappointed me, I wait a few years before I retry.

[srbbones]

I have to admit: The number of chances varies. Very expensive equals fewer chances. Ongoing raves here in the forum may mean more chances. Up to a point, of course. Just being honest

[TiminBC]

Any one cigar could suck but two in a roll means I will not buy the third. Early on I bought some boxes of NC untried and broke this rule. To my surprise they improved with age to and were more than tolerable.

[santela]

It all depends on the reputation I guess.

I had my first RASS last month, and it was god awful, tasted like detergents. However I'm not gonna give up on it just yet, probably will try a few more from different sources.

I also had a Petit Monte 2, which was also pretty bad. Considering the reputation it has, that was the only shot it's gonna get from me.

[polarbear]

3 for me

Separate boxes and codes if possible but when I order singles its hard to stick to that

[CdnLimitada]

I don't even have 5 years in this so I don't qualify to answer but will for fun anyway . There are just too many to try that if I have even a couple that I am not fond of I will move on. Sometimes even a real bad single will ruin it for me. That is not to say that I will never try it again but it will be a while before I go back. I am around 3-5% into what I have tried in the regular production sticks so a lot of fun yet to be had.

[cigarbreak]

I don't even have 5 years in this so I don't qualify to answer but will for fun anyway . There are just too many to try that if I have even a couple that I am not fond of I will move on. Sometimes even a real bad single will ruin it for me. That is not to say that I will never try it again but it will be a while before I go back. I am around 3-5% into what I have tried in the regular production sticks so a lot of fun yet to be had.

I'm pretty much in the same boat as you. There are a couple cigars i've tried though that really threw me off like the Quinteros Favoritos which i detested. But, after having the opportunity to try more marcas and exploring more, i know that more than 3/4 of those instances where i ended up hating a specific cigar, it was likely due to things like storage conditions, construction, and lack of age. I'm sure if i tried the Favoritos now i'd claw back my earlier opinion on them as i really loved the couple Petit Quinteros that I had the chance to try. And of course now i'm learning to properly smoke and look for telltale signs the single i'm buying might be bad one. I'd say recently RyJ No2 is the one i keep avoiding as my last 3-4 smokes were both boring and not too my liking.

[PapaDisco]

I'm a fairly patient cuss, but the number of bad stogies per marca expands and contracts based on what I hear from others. For instance I have yet to smoke a BRC that I like. Yet it's a popular, well regarded robusto. I've painfully worked my way through half a box and haven't enjoyed a single one. The back half of this box I"ve been giving away.

Also, if a cigar is particularly expensive, it gets less leash to do wrong.

[cooper669]

If the first one doesn't suit me, I move on........too many others to try.

[Habanos2000]

I'll give a cigar a second chance but then that's it. Too many others to enjoy.

[LeafLover]

I think more terms of 3 and a full box:

If in every three cigar in the first layer i smoke, one is great and the other two enjoyable, and this repeats for the first layer in the box, I'll buy another box before that first layer is gone.

If not, and willing to give another try, i will wait until the following year to buy a second box. If that first layer in that box is not to my satisfaction, I call it quits for that vitola in that marca.

In my stash, I have multiple boxes of two at a minimum. Some I stopped at two, others I've multiple boxes of.

Those that did not make the cut from this process:

Part shorts

El Principe

RASCC

Trini Reyes

RG Panatelas

PL Panatelas

Party Aristocrats

RAE

[Lotusguy]

On average probably 4 of (if possible) different boxes. If price prohibitive then one strike and you're out.

[Rye]

I voted for 3, but In all honesty, I have a short memory it seems, as I'll give almost anything another go sooner or later.

Like PapaDisco stated, I have yet to have a great BRC, yet every year a couple fall into my hands and I try again.