EAR: 898's and Dumbledick the cigar fairy

[El Presidente]

Pretty close to email of the week 

 

EAR: Email assistance required. 

Anyone else had a box that’s never,  ever, ever come good? Do I hold or trade/sell?"

 

"Right Rob, back in 2017 you sorted me out with a box of 898’s. Stuck ’em away at 65/65 like you said. Tried one at three years, meh. Five years, crap. Now, eight years on, not sure what the next leval above crap is. 

I’ve had other 898’s that were decent enough, but none that’ve blown me away. So what am I actually hangin’ about for with this box? That “magic 5–7 year change” everyone bangs on about? Yea that’s buggered off. Poof. Gone. I’m stood there like a plonker at the altar.

Do I hang on another three years hopin’ that Dumbledick the cigar fairy shows up and taps me bastard box with his magic wand? Or do I just admit they’re not for me and trade ’em away? Trouble is, I don’t want it to be like when I flogged me Nvidia shares in 2022 at sixteen quid just before they went boom. Couldn’t face that again.

Anyone else had a box that’s never,  ever, ever come good? Do I hold or trade/sell?"

 

Over to you good people 

[Ford2112]

Trade them for something you like. They are just cigars. As for dumbledicks and fairies you are on your own, lol.

[zacca]

Simple reply:

‘Have you tried turning them off and on again?’

[JohnS]

The thing about aging one's cigars is that ordinarily there's an appreciation or connection with the box during the process. One looks forward to the changes, but the cigar tends to be valued at each stage.

It's very rare indeed for a box to be an 'ugly duckling' to transform into a 'beautiful white swan'. In this case, I wouldn't hesitate selling the rest of those Partagas 8-9-8s (as the market is always there for a box like that, and besides it may suits someone else's tastes). Life is short, time to track down another box of Partagas 8-9-8s!

[zeedubbya]

It happened to me…2016 Connie 1...bad at 1 year, worse at 3, bad at 5 (maybe marginally better)…at 8, they changed, into something amazing. It’s possible, but maybe you’ve got a dud box (likely) or you just don’t like 898s (which is hard to believe). Good luck, at least they’ll be easy to get rid of especially in 2-3 more years when a fresh box of 898s are 3k USD… 🤦‍♂️ 

 

[potpest]

Sold some Mag 50's once as I thought they were duds, I kept 5 out the box for reference, 5 years later they blossomed into the most glorious cigars I'd ever had.
I vowed never to sell anything again after that. I've got a partial box of 898's and mine is the same as this, I don't get what others do, maybe it's the box, maybe it's me. I'm not selling though, I'll revisit in 5 and try again.

[Lucas Buck]

Sometimes a cigar is just not to your liking. There are several extremely popular Havanas that I have smoked from many boxes, many vintages, young, aged and just don’t care for them. This may be the case with your 898. Someone else might love them. I sold a box I didn’t care for way back in ‘05 I think. The guys that split them still talk about how they were some of the best cigars they ever smoked some 20 years later. 

[griller]

9 hours ago, Lucas Buck said:

Sometimes a cigar is just not to your liking. There are several extremely popular Havanas that I have smoked from many boxes, many vintages, young, aged and just don’t care for them. This may be the case with your 898. Someone else might love them. I sold a box I didn’t care for way back in ‘05 I think. The guys that split them still talk about how they were some of the best cigars they ever smoked some 20 years later. 

So true. We all have our unique preferences and there's no reason to hold onto something that just isn't a fit. Use the funds to go deeper on what clicks for you & don't look back.

[cnov]

On 8/16/2025 at 12:39 PM, zeedubbya said:

It happened to me…2016 Connie 1...bad at 1 year, worse at 3, bad at 5 (maybe marginally better)…at 8, they changed, into something amazing. It’s possible, but maybe you’ve got a dud box (likely) or you just don’t like 898s (which is hard to believe). Good luck, at least they’ll be easy to get rid of especially in 2-3 more years when a fresh box of 898s are 3k USD… 🤦‍♂️ 

I have a '22 box of Connie 1 that tasted of absolutely nothing. Absolutely perfect on the construction front but the last one I had just gave nothing, was my second cigar of the day after a fantastic Punch SdP. I'm not going to touch them for another couple of years in the hope they do something. 

[BrightonCorgi]

I had a box of 898 unvarnished that were totally crap. Poor combustion mostly. I think it was 2001 box. I stuffed it away and wrote it off. Out of boredom I thought I would try one around 2010 and wow; they're great. 

From cigars I did not feel comfortable selling to cigars I thought were the cat's meow. I don't ever write off a box of cigars.

[cnov]

16 hours ago, BrightonCorgi said:

I had a box of 898 unvarnished that were totally crap. Poor combustion mostly. I think it was 2001 box. I stuffed it away and wrote it off. Out of boredom I thought I would try one around 2010 and wow; they're great. 

From cigars I did not feel comfortable selling to cigars I thought were the cat's meow. I don't ever write off a box of cigars.

This is part of the allure of collecting isn't it? A 20 year gamble as to whether these dog rockets might come good in the time that some of your friends are still alive so that you can tell them it was worth the wait. 

[BrightonCorgi]

8 hours ago, cnov said:

This is part of the allure of collecting isn't it? A 20 year gamble as to whether these dog rockets might come good in the time that some of your friends are still alive so that you can tell them it was worth the wait. 

What's worse, losing it in the mix or forgetting that your ever bought them?

I've thought I owned wines that I didn't or find wines I never knew I had to my joy.  

[gormag38]

If they're anything like the 898s I have from 2016 I'd hold onto 'em. The box I have is still quite strong and can easily have another 5, 10+ years until they finally mellow down. Just this summer I had a single from 2012 that is EASILY one of the cigars of the year for me. If my 16's turn into anything like that single, I'll be ecstatic. 

[Cigar Surgeon]

I remember that time I had stacks of BGMs and just didn't care for them and sold them at cost to a good friend. It was only a year after that I discovered that they had turned on...

[El Presidente]

From our mate. 

 

'"massive thanks to all of you for your brilliant replies in the “898s and Dumbledick” thread. Really gave me something to mull over:

You lot have reminded me that cigars, and collecting them, aren’t just about the smoke, but the stories, the surprises, and the company along the way. Whether I keep waiting or decide to swap, I’m doing it with a smile and a pint in hand.

Cheers again mates, really appreciate the support and the laughs!"

[MickVanWinkle]

Though I’m late to the party, this got me thinking about my chest of wounded soldiers. I’ve got a handful of boxes that have underperformed my expectations. After a few trials over the course of a year or so, such a box will get banished to a cooler designated for winter smokes (or for friends that always are in the perennial moocher category.  

Inevitably, once a box gets sent down, rarely do I actually have the heart to bring it back up. Don’t even have the heart to force one upon the aforementioned moochers. Never really believed in fairies, but I’ll have to do a trial at some point in the future. Unfortunately, I also can’t fathom forcing these on another for sale, considering I don’t even give them away.