Tweet
I was sat in the sun earlier,dreaming of the Cohiba Robusto I am currently enjoying, and some thoughts came to me that I figured might be useful to highlight for beginners.
By no means is this as complete as the pinned guide written by @ValeTudoGuy .... make a note to yourself to read that if you haven’t already..... but more a few practical pointers.
Here we go;
Good stuff generally takes time, bad things tend to happen quite quickly.
Humidor-
season too quickly by splashing water around and you risk ruining your lovely new cigar haven. Put sticks in too soon and they will sponge up excess moisture and split.Sticks are broadly damaged faster by too much moisture than too little.
Cutter- cope with a cheap one until you know this is something you really enjoy. Then buy the best blades you can get. I have found punches to be the most fail proof- I have a lovely Victorinox knife with x3 punches of differing sizes for different gauge sticks. Colibri xikar etc are all good gear.
If it’s on eBay and branded Cohiba etc it’s probably Chinese and of varying quality , a story told by its price. Not all cheap is bad but where blades are concerned you generally get what you pay for. Get your cut wrong and you risk making your cigar hard work to enjoy.
Lighter- flame jets make life so much easier. But don’t forget long matches make life easier too.
Sticks- sample sample sample - figure out what you like, don’t like, might like sometimes. Buy those sticks. Experiment with singles - then buy boxes or partake in box splits with other BOTLs.
Good does not mean expensive and expensive doesn’t mean good. It’s very easy on social media to be consistently bombarded by slick images of super premium sticks and to be influenced into thinking that the only stick to enjoy is a limited/ regional edition from reserved tobacco. Now if that’s what you like then all good, but regular production sticks remain to be superb.
Vintage sticks are en vogue. As are custom rolls. Remember sample sample sample and go with what YOU like.
Single sticks - when you purchase single sticks they need time to rest. Take them home, smoke promptly or pop them in your humi / humi pouch / Tupperware or locknlock box (tupperdor) and let them rest and recover moisture if they’ve been in the post for example. Seems strange but they do benefit from this, generally giving a higher quality smoother smoke.
Ageing sticks- lots of stuff is written about aged or vintage sticks. Mostly because the tobacco mellows. A bit like tannins in big bold brassy red wine, time takes off the edges, giving a richer smoother taste. But ‘fresh’ or ‘green’ sticks have a beauty of their own.
In between in a period called ‘the sick period’ ammonia and harsh tastes prevail. If your sticks smell quite strongly of barnyard-like odours, give them a month and sniff again! If that’s all you can smell, leave them a while more. Good excuse to buy more.
Read lots. Think and consider your cigar choices lots. Learn sample, sample some more and generally when you know what you like you know!
These are ( esp in the U.K.) blooming expensive, so buy wisely abroad and even more wisely at home. Post on here lots, don’t be afraid of ‘daft’ questions- we have probably all asked more crushingly simple questions at some point .
Through participating over time pick up PM privileges and trade /buy from this glorious forum. It’s highly unlikely super unlikely that you will get anything other than pristine sticks from members.
Your tastes will change as you try different things. enjoy learning and sampling stuff..... we all do! And we love sharing!
Jump in! And if this is useful to just one person it’s been worth doing!
By no means is this as complete as the pinned guide written by @ValeTudoGuy .... make a note to yourself to read that if you haven’t already..... but more a few practical pointers.
Here we go;
Good stuff generally takes time, bad things tend to happen quite quickly.
Humidor-
season too quickly by splashing water around and you risk ruining your lovely new cigar haven. Put sticks in too soon and they will sponge up excess moisture and split.Sticks are broadly damaged faster by too much moisture than too little.
Cutter- cope with a cheap one until you know this is something you really enjoy. Then buy the best blades you can get. I have found punches to be the most fail proof- I have a lovely Victorinox knife with x3 punches of differing sizes for different gauge sticks. Colibri xikar etc are all good gear.
If it’s on eBay and branded Cohiba etc it’s probably Chinese and of varying quality , a story told by its price. Not all cheap is bad but where blades are concerned you generally get what you pay for. Get your cut wrong and you risk making your cigar hard work to enjoy.
Lighter- flame jets make life so much easier. But don’t forget long matches make life easier too.
Sticks- sample sample sample - figure out what you like, don’t like, might like sometimes. Buy those sticks. Experiment with singles - then buy boxes or partake in box splits with other BOTLs.
Good does not mean expensive and expensive doesn’t mean good. It’s very easy on social media to be consistently bombarded by slick images of super premium sticks and to be influenced into thinking that the only stick to enjoy is a limited/ regional edition from reserved tobacco. Now if that’s what you like then all good, but regular production sticks remain to be superb.
Vintage sticks are en vogue. As are custom rolls. Remember sample sample sample and go with what YOU like.
Single sticks - when you purchase single sticks they need time to rest. Take them home, smoke promptly or pop them in your humi / humi pouch / Tupperware or locknlock box (tupperdor) and let them rest and recover moisture if they’ve been in the post for example. Seems strange but they do benefit from this, generally giving a higher quality smoother smoke.
Ageing sticks- lots of stuff is written about aged or vintage sticks. Mostly because the tobacco mellows. A bit like tannins in big bold brassy red wine, time takes off the edges, giving a richer smoother taste. But ‘fresh’ or ‘green’ sticks have a beauty of their own.
In between in a period called ‘the sick period’ ammonia and harsh tastes prevail. If your sticks smell quite strongly of barnyard-like odours, give them a month and sniff again! If that’s all you can smell, leave them a while more. Good excuse to buy more.
Read lots. Think and consider your cigar choices lots. Learn sample, sample some more and generally when you know what you like you know!
These are ( esp in the U.K.) blooming expensive, so buy wisely abroad and even more wisely at home. Post on here lots, don’t be afraid of ‘daft’ questions- we have probably all asked more crushingly simple questions at some point .
Through participating over time pick up PM privileges and trade /buy from this glorious forum. It’s highly unlikely super unlikely that you will get anything other than pristine sticks from members.
Your tastes will change as you try different things. enjoy learning and sampling stuff..... we all do! And we love sharing!
Jump in! And if this is useful to just one person it’s been worth doing!
Comment