Anyone following the Cigar Journals Top 25 of 2014?

[Ginseng]

Here is the full list. Interesting how it's changed over the years. When I started reading Cigar Journal, or European Cigar Cult Journal, as it was called then many years ago it was usually 70-80% Cubans. Despite still having a majority of European tasters (I think, haven't read it lately) it shows how quickly things are changing..

I just cannot fathom it. I can't! I have occasion to smoke a variety of NC, though if given a choice, I choose Habanos. I've smoked variations of La Flor, Rocky, Perdomo, Oliva, Leon, and La Aroma over the years and none of them are of the class of even a RyJ Cazadores. While some cigars are "Cubanesque" in whatever sense they convey, I could not see myself choosing any of those over a Caz, Shorts, Mag46...

The key takeaway for me is that Nicaraguan cigars seem to be ascendant, in fact have been for some years. Still...I'm just completely nonplussed.

I know this must make me sound like I'm a total Habanos snob but I just can't wrap my mind around this list.

Wilkey

[Tino]

I can never get over how tacky the vast majority of NC bands look.

[Hunter1974]

Ok noob here only had a few authentic cubans and yes they were awesome ! Since there is not a magazine thats on target is there a book that can be ordered by Amerians?

[Ken Gargett]

I stopped reading the list when I saw gurkha...

i'd never heard of gurhkas (as cigars) but was watching a movie the other - buggered if i can remember which one but i think i enjoyed it - which had as a clue that a suspect was buying three gurhkas a week and as they were the world's best and most expensive cigars, where he got his dosh to do this was crucial. they mentioned $750 but i had no idea if that was each or for all three.

[jdo2110]

i'd never heard of gurhkas (as cigars) but was watching a movie the other - buggered if i can remember which one but i think i enjoyed it - which had as a clue that a suspect was buying three gurhkas a week and as they were the world's best and most expensive cigars, where he got his dosh to do this was crucial. they mentioned $750 but i had no idea if that was each or for all three.

Oh hell, this is gonna bug me, cause I just saw this same movie but can't think of the name. I think they were referring to the Gurkha "His Majesty's Grand Reserve," which supposedly have that asking price. Well, I know they do cause I've seen them advertised. Crazy!!

Wait, was it Stallone's "Bullet to the Head?"

[Ken Gargett]

Oh hell, this is gonna bug me, cause I just saw this same movie but can't think of the name. I think they were referring to the Gurkha "His Majesty's Grand Reserve," which supposedly have that asking price. Well, I know they do cause I've seen them advertised. Crazy!!

Wait, was it Stallone's "Bullet to the Head?"

never seen that but i think i twigged.

not a movie. i had that tv show, 'the glades' - with the aussie guy as the lead actor, not that that narrows things down these days - on in the background and when i heard them taking cigars, i focused.

that was it.

[Skyfall]

This list was put together by children!

[skarolla]

I think the whole NC vs CC debate is pointless. Different people like different things. I think the Germans make the best luxury sport cars in the world and are a dream to drive. Some people like to drive fast in a straight line so they buy american cars (cue the hate parade).

But if an article makes you pick up an NC and you end up loving it then everybody wins. Just like if a Road and Track article makes me take a corvette to a drag strip and it rocks my balls off well then sometimes it pays to be wrong.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Variant2]

Ok but what if a top 25 list makes you order a box of the #1 cigar of the year and it's total B.S.? Yes, I'm an idiot and I have done this.

In my mind there is no NC vs CC debate. But I think there has always been a debate about how a couple of these cigars of the year lists get put together. And by looking at another mag's top 25 list for 2014 there should be no doubt and no debate as to the legitimacy of them. Total joke in my opinion.

Fortunately I now know that these lists are all about business and bottom lines and not really about the love of cigars.

The thing that bothers me is that there are many new smokers like I once was who are going to waste plenty of money based on this yearly bs.

Luckily we all have a real unbiased list here to refer to that's based in reality and sincerity.

American targeted marketing at its finest. Take a barely adequate cigar, dress it up in an ornate / flashy label, tell people it's special, stick it in a cool box, over-hype the hell out of it and sell it 10x higher its worth after a 50% discount from it's ridiculously high MSRP.

It works like a charm. As long as there is a large demographic of uneducated Americans that want to be parted with their money... there will also be an abundance of Gurkhas and Fauxibas.

[cigcars]

A Brun del Re...a Vega Fina.....AND a Villa Zamorano...made a Top 25 list somewhere?????????

[cigarbreak]

I fell victim to CA's 2013 top whatever list. I even made my own shopping list of cigars I would buy if I found some at local bnm's and when I would cross the pond. I ended up picking up buying a total of about 10 + NC's from local shops (including the Flor de Las Antillas Toro - No1 in 2013 i believe on CA) but it wasn't until my 2nd trip to Cuba where I realized how different (and better) CC"s are to NC's.

I would say from my limited experience that all of the CC"s i have smoked so far are better than that FLDA Toro that CA rated no1, but that's not to say that I haven't had any decent NC's (like the Joya de Nicaragua Antano 1970) . What I do know is that given the choice I would much rather take a chance buying a CC blind of a marca and vitola i have never tried than take the chance of spending coin on any one of those 'top rated' NC.'s from any magazine.

[dangolf18]

I wonder how much Rocky Patel pays them to be in the Top 10 (or maybe they were in the top 5 this year??).

[alloy]

I wonder how much Rocky Patel pays them to be in the Top 10 (or maybe they were in the top 5 this year??).

How many ads did you see in the magazine?

I saw a movie on Syfy about a mega shark that destroyed navy ships. And the sub captain (Robert Piccardo of Star Trek and Stargate fame), that was chasing the shark, had "the world's most expensive cigar". A Gurkha Black Dragon. Just because it's expensive doesn't mean it's going to be good.

[dangolf18]

How many ads did you see in the magazine?

I saw a movie on Syfy about a mega shark that destroyed navy ships. And the sub captain (Robert Piccardo of Star Trek and Stargate fame), that was chasing the shark, had "the world's most expensive cigar". A Gurkha Black Dragon. Just because it's expensive doesn't mean it's going to be good.

Well just looked at their June 2014 issue and there are 93 pages of legit ads (not even promoted stories). World's most expensive cigar is BS...obviously an original release BHK from 2004 would probably be the world's most expensive cigar. Or some rare cuban Davidoff or Dunhill.

[gr8eman]

Ok but what if a top 25 list makes you order a box of the #1 cigar of the year and it's total B.S.? Yes, I'm an idiot and I have done this.

In my mind there is no NC vs CC debate. But I think there has always been a debate about how a couple of these cigars of the year lists get put together. And by looking at another mag's top 25 list for 2014 there should be no doubt and no debate as to the legitimacy of them. Total joke in my opinion.

Fortunately I now know that these lists are all about business and bottom lines and not really about the love of cigars.

The thing that bothers me is that there are many new smokers like I once was who are going to waste plenty of money based on this yearly bs.

Luckily we all have a real unbiased list here to refer to that's based in reality and sincerity.

Hear Hear!

I really started getting back into CCs last year (after divorce) and although I remembered the good cubans I had previously smoked, I also had some NCs that I left in my forgotten humidor for years that came good over time. I smoked a 2005 Partaga D5 last year, I believe, and it was worse than the NCs I had gotten years ago from the Canary Islands.

Without Rob giving analysis of the market and listing the better CC's coming out, and the video reviews with multiple inputs on quality, I would have no idea as to which cigars to buy or avoid.(Yes, I did buy Monte Opens at the airport)

Bogus top ten lists like David Letterman help no one, IMO, as I once bought a listed NC for nine bucks, drew on it twice and chucked it when I could have gotten a RyJ Exhibicion No4 for 6 bucks and liked it.