Cigar corner

[Tim McG]

I smoke cigars. I was in the business for a while. Let me make a couple of recommendations.

It's all a matter of taste, not science. Disregard people who think that their opinion is dogma.

Disregard people who think that every Cuban cigar is better than every non-Cuban cigar. That's like saying that every French wine is better than every wine from somewhere else.

Since the cigar boom of ten years ago, many cigar smokers are the kind of people who judge something by its price tag. Disregard them.

Many old Cuban brand names are used in the US with non-Cuban cigars, so don't be confused. I can't think of any such US cigars that are of the highest quality (to my taste).

One of my favorites is made in Miami - La Tradicion Cubana, by a guy named Louis Sanchez. If you are ever on Calle Ocho in Little Havana, look him up. He used to have a website to place orders. Probably still does, I haven't checked in a long time.

Another favorite of mine down the block from Lou's was La Luna Cigars by a guy named Gael de Courtivran. I'm not sure that he is still in business.

A third Miami manufacturer that is still going strong is El Titan de Bronze. I liked some of theirs, and didn't care much for others.

Finally, there is a Honduran brand called Puros Indios which has its US headquarters in Miami. I visited their factory in Honduras in 2000. I loved them, but again, it's been a while since I had one, and the best cigars change over time depending on what leaf is available.

In regard to Cuban cigars, my favorite is the Bolivar. The most popular (and I think the most expensive) is the Montecristo No. 2, but I never cared for it.

By the way, everywhere in the world, the primary component of the price of a cigar is the tax.

I have had a few Puros Indios over the years, too.

Very nice, but I haven't tried one a very great while.

[Niko]

Wait a minute; France has an anti-smoking law? Isn't that like Germany having an anti-sausage law or something?

[AllenLowe]

it's also like Maine having an anti-stupid law.

(gratuitous comment du jour)

[Jazzmoose]

So why don't we have a "now smoking" thread?

[Tim McG]

So why don't we have a "now smoking" thread?

Because Jazz is more important.

[Alexander]

Smoked my first cigar in almost a year today. It was a nice day, I was feeling mellow, and a good cigar sounded like a good idea.

Mistake number one: I chose a brand I wasn't familiar with just because I was in the mood for something different. I picked a BIG mother too.

Mistake number two: I smoked it too fast.

Result?

My lunch is in the toilet...

Never got sick from a cigar before. My body is trying to tell me something...

[Tim McG]

Smoked my first cigar in almost a year today. It was a nice day, I was feeling mellow, and a good cigar sounded like a good idea.

Mistake number one: I chose a brand I wasn't familiar with just because I was in the mood for something different. I picked a BIG mother too.

Mistake number two: I smoked it too fast.

Result?

My lunch is in the toilet...

Never got sick from a cigar before. My body is trying to tell me something...

Mistake number three: You probably smoked it on an empty or near empty stomach.

[Alexander]

Smoked my first cigar in almost a year today. It was a nice day, I was feeling mellow, and a good cigar sounded like a good idea.

Mistake number one: I chose a brand I wasn't familiar with just because I was in the mood for something different. I picked a BIG mother too.

Mistake number two: I smoked it too fast.

Result?

My lunch is in the toilet...

Never got sick from a cigar before. My body is trying to tell me something...

Mistake number three: You probably smoked it on an empty or near empty stomach.

The jury is out among my cigar smoking friends on whether it's best to smoke on a full stomach or not. I've heard people swear that you are MORE likely to get sick on a full stomach than an empty one.

But yes, it had been a while since I had last eaten...

[Tom Storer]

So far I've been smoking on a full stomach and haven't had any problems. Mind you, I haven't smoked anything extremely big or extremely strong, either. Continuing my cigar odyssey, I have smoked:

- Zino Classic No. 6

- Romeo y Julieta Romeo No. 3

- Partagas 160

Loved the Romeo No. 3. The Partagas turned out to be a bit dry. I realized that I had not sufficiently humidified the little humidor I bought. Those little humidifiers are tricky devils.

[Jazzmoose]

The only time my pipe smoking has hit me badly was on an empty stomach. Well, except the time I decided it was smart to smoke two bowls of Hal O' the Wynd back to back. I've never heard anyone ever say that smoking on a full stomach was worse, but then I guess there's a contrarian position to everything.

[Tom Storer]

Today I had an H. Upmann Cuban, not sure of the size but about 6 inches long. My first disappointment: it was badly constructed, I guess. Difficult draw from the start, so I had to puff more energetically than was comfortable just to keep it lit. As a result it started to smoke a little hot and the taste was adversely affected. Then towards the end of the second third, the wrapper began to unravel from the foot, making it look something like one of those exploding cigars. My cigar-smoking pal had an identical cigar; he reported that his too was hard to smoke, but at least it didn't explode.

[sonnymax]

Loved the Romeo No. 3. The Partagas turned out to be a bit dry. I realized that I had not sufficiently humidified the little humidor I bought. Those little humidifiers are tricky devils.

I am very happy with the Boveda humidipaks. Unlike the cheap foam inserts, Drymistat tubes, and other humidifers that just keep pumping out moisture, Boveda is a 2-way system that releases moisture when it's needed, and absorbs it when it's not. As a result, there's less fluctuation in the relative humidity. You don't have to fill it with water or solution, and you can lay the humidipak right on top of your cigars. Boveda offers humidipaks at different RH levels (65%, 69%, 72%, 75% and even 84% for seasoning a new humidor. I've found that two 72% humidipaks are perfect for my 25-cigar humidor - my digital hygrometer almost always reads 70% RH! They're not expensive ($3 each at Amazon with free shipping), and they last two months (maybe longer). Check them out: Boveda

[Tom Storer]

Thanks for the tip! I'll check 'em out.

[Tim McG]

Smoked my first cigar in almost a year today. It was a nice day, I was feeling mellow, and a good cigar sounded like a good idea.

Mistake number one: I chose a brand I wasn't familiar with just because I was in the mood for something different. I picked a BIG mother too.

Mistake number two: I smoked it too fast.

Result?

My lunch is in the toilet...

Never got sick from a cigar before. My body is trying to tell me something...

Mistake number three: You probably smoked it on an empty or near empty stomach.

The jury is out among my cigar smoking friends on whether it's best to smoke on a full stomach or not. I've heard people swear that you are MORE likely to get sick on a full stomach than an empty one.

But yes, it had been a while since I had last eaten...

La Flor Dominicana, for example, tells people that you need to smoke their cigars after a full meal.

Now, I limit my cigar smoking to one a week, max....which has given my palate and stomach some elevated tolerance to tobacco juices. However, my experience is...they're right. Smoking, especially the stronger cigars, on an empty stomach is just asking for trouble.

Edited September 21, 2009 by GoodSpeak

[Alexander]

Lesson learned. What would be your advice on a good mild cigar for someone who doesn't smoke too often? Something with some flavor that won't break the bank...

[Alexander]

While I'm asking for recommendations, can anyone recommend

1) A good, not too expensive pipe for a beginner and

2) A good quality (again, not too expensive) pipe tobacco?

I'm keen to learn!

[GA Russell]

Alexander, for pipe tobacco I recommend Mark Ryan at D&R Tobacco, who is a friend of mine. He was the leading independent maker of roll-your-own cigarette tobaccos until the recent change in the law forced him to switch the way his blends are cut from cigarette to pipe tobacco.

I currently enjoy Picayune, but it is probably too strong for a beginner. You might like Vengeur. Give them a call and Patsy can make a recommendation.

Here is their website:

http://www.smoke-n-chew.com/

[GA Russell]

Alexander, I might suggest that you ask your doctor or do some googling about pipe smoking and lip cancer. I don't smoke a pipe very often, and it is my impression that lip cancer is a real possibility for those who do.

[Jazzmoose]

While I'm asking for recommendations, can anyone recommend

1) A good, not too expensive pipe for a beginner and

2) A good quality (again, not too expensive) pipe tobacco?

I'm keen to learn!

The first pipe I would recommend for a beginner is a good old Missouri Meerschaum corncob pipe. Yeah, I know; every potential pipe smoker who hears that rolls their eyes and mumbles something about wanting "a real pipe", but the lowly cob has several advantages over briar. First, the obvious: it's cheap. You can get a decent cob (stick with the MM brand; the others are generally crappy junk imported from Japan) for less than $10, in some places close to $5, leaving you more cash to spend on tobacco. Secondly, the cob needs no break in. Many briars can be a bit nasty at first until a cake of carbon and tars is formed on the bowl. With a cob, you don't need the cake; it smokes fine right from the start. Finally, (and this is probably just an extension of reason one), when you start, you'll probably puff too fast and too hard, raising the possibility of damaging the pipe. It's much better to learn and possibly destroy a five dollar cob than a hundred dollar briar, right? Now, if you're stubborn and really want a briar, I'd recommend getting a Dr. Grabow. It's cheap, tough, and a good starter pipe. Yeah, neither of these suggestions are for sexy, name pipes, but we're talking starter pipes. If you decide you like it, and think you've got the hang of it, you can move up to Stanwells, Savinellis or Petersons. All three make fairly inexpensive briars (and some nice high end briars as well). But I'd seriously wait on that until you're sure you're really interested in pipe smoking. There's really no point in plunking down $100 for a decent pipe and then discovering that pipe smoking really isn't for you. The good thing with the cobs are, it's not like you've wasted your money on a crappy pipe if you're still smoking pipes a year later. Cobs are great knockaround pipes, and I've yet to meet a pipe smoker, either in 'real life' or online that ever smoked a cob and then quit smoking them.

As far as tobacco, it kind of depends on where you're coming from. If you're looking for a great smell to impress the ladies, good old Captain Black is all you need. If you're looking for taste, however, I'd skip that dreck. For some reason, pipe shops have this thing about recommending aromatic tobaccos to newbies. I have no idea why. Take you, for example, Alexander; you're coming from smoking cigars, so you already know you like the taste of tobacco, but I guarantee that if you went to a pipe shop, they'd recommend some kind of sugared up candy concoction that reeks of vanilla, or cherry, or some such; anything but tobacco.

My recommendation would be to start with either Prince Albert or Carter Hall. Yeah, another recommendation that gets the eyes rolling from new pipesters, but they're decent tobaccos, without any added flavors. A good start, I think. After that, the exploration road gets a little tricky, as you have various avenues to choose from: straight Virginias, Virginia/Perique blends, English blends...all very different from each other. I don't know if this helps at all, as I don't know what kind of cigars you smoke, but I used to love cigars with maduro wrappers, and english blends kind of remind me of that deep, smoky taste. English blends are one of those things that people either love or hate, though. Tell ya what, we pipe smokers are pretty much as evangelical as jazz fans; if you decide to go ahead and get a pipe, PM me your address, and I'll throw together a sampler package from the stuff I have. I don't have any aromatics, but the rest I can cover.

Don't forget, you also need a pipe tool, cleaners, etc. Pipes, even more than cigars, are as much about futzing around with shit as smoking...

[Tim McG]

Lesson learned. What would be your advice on a good mild cigar for someone who doesn't smoke too often? Something with some flavor that won't break the bank...

I can think of a few, but generally [not always the case, but a good easy reference] you want to go with a Natural or Connecticut Shade-type of wrapper and stay away from the Maduro and dark wrappers. Anything with a paper wrap is going to just fry the back of your throat. Always go with a long filler. Also, it has been my experience that the longer the cigar, the cooler the smoke. Dominican Republic makes some of the best, IMHO.

It has been a great long while since I have smoked a mild cigar but these might be a good start:

Nestor Reserve Connecticut [mild]

Don Diego Corona [mild]

Dunhill Peravia [mild-medium]

Macanudo Prince [medium]

La Gloria Cubana [medium]

All are well made, hand-rolled cigars.

BTW...If you feel like splurging [my personal favorite, when I have the money for it]:

Davidoff Double R [medium]

Get to know your tobacconist, too. He will be a certain wealth of information. And if you buy in box quantities...go online. I can name several trustworthy and low cost sites to visit once you get to that point. They all sell cigars in five-packs, too. Let me know, OK?

Edited September 22, 2009 by GoodSpeak

[Tim McG]

While I'm asking for recommendations, can anyone recommend

1) A good, not too expensive pipe for a beginner and

2) A good quality (again, not too expensive) pipe tobacco?

I'm keen to learn!

The first pipe I would recommend for a beginner is a good old Missouri Meerschaum corncob pipe. Yeah, I know; every potential pipe smoker who hears that rolls their eyes and mumbles something about wanting "a real pipe", but the lowly cob has several advantages over briar. First, the obvious: it's cheap. You can get a decent cob (stick with the MM brand; the others are generally crappy junk imported from Japan) for less than $10, in some places close to $5, leaving you more cash to spend on tobacco. Secondly, the cob needs no break in. Many briars can be a bit nasty at first until a cake of carbon and tars is formed on the bowl. With a cob, you don't need the cake; it smokes fine right from the start. Finally, (and this is probably just an extension of reason one), when you start, you'll probably puff too fast and too hard, raising the possibility of damaging the pipe. It's much better to learn and possibly destroy a five dollar cob than a hundred dollar briar, right? Now, if you're stubborn and really want a briar, I'd recommend getting a Dr. Grabow. It's cheap, tough, and a good starter pipe. Yeah, neither of these suggestions are for sexy, name pipes, but we're talking starter pipes. If you decide you like it, and think you've got the hang of it, you can move up to Stanwells, Savinellis or Petersons. All three make fairly inexpensive briars (and some nice high end briars as well). But I'd seriously wait on that until you're sure you're really interested in pipe smoking. There's really no point in plunking down $100 for a decent pipe and then discovering that pipe smoking really isn't for you. The good thing with the cobs are, it's not like you've wasted your money on a crappy pipe if you're still smoking pipes a year later. Cobs are great knockaround pipes, and I've yet to meet a pipe smoker, either in 'real life' or online that ever smoked a cob and then quit smoking them.

As far as tobacco, it kind of depends on where you're coming from. If you're looking for a great smell to impress the ladies, good old Captain Black is all you need. If you're looking for taste, however, I'd skip that dreck. For some reason, pipe shops have this thing about recommending aromatic tobaccos to newbies. I have no idea why. Take you, for example, Alexander; you're coming from smoking cigars, so you already know you like the taste of tobacco, but I guarantee that if you went to a pipe shop, they'd recommend some kind of sugared up candy concoction that reeks of vanilla, or cherry, or some such; anything but tobacco.

My recommendation would be to start with either Prince Albert or Carter Hall. Yeah, another recommendation that gets the eyes rolling from new pipesters, but they're decent tobaccos, without any added flavors. A good start, I think. After that, the exploration road gets a little tricky, as you have various avenues to choose from: straight Virginias, Virginia/Perique blends, English blends...all very different from each other. I don't know if this helps at all, as I don't know what kind of cigars you smoke, but I used to love cigars with maduro wrappers, and english blends kind of remind me of that deep, smoky taste. English blends are one of those things that people either love or hate, though. Tell ya what, we pipe smokers are pretty much as evangelical as jazz fans; if you decide to go ahead and get a pipe, PM me your address, and I'll throw together a sampler package from the stuff I have. I don't have any aromatics, but the rest I can cover.

Don't forget, you also need a pipe tool, cleaners, etc. Pipes, even more than cigars, are as much about futzing around with shit as smoking...

When I was smoking a pipe I was kinda partial to the Black Cavendish blends. Nice vanilla-like aroma and no bite on the tongue. And I used to take a corn cob pipe on backpacking trips because it is small and didn't burn hot.

I own several briar pipes [some straight, some curved] but my Meerschaum "bone" pipe is my favorite. BTW, the bigger the bowl the cooler the smoke. And as Jazzmoose will attest, the delicate art of packing your bowl with tobacco takes time and practice to get it right. Pack it too hard and the draw is uneven or constricted. Pack it too loose and the tobacco will just smoke out like a wad of newspaper.

Puff, don't suck...and keep plenty of matches around to fire-up the bowl. Pipe tobacco tends to be very wet and so it goes out easily. The key to success is not to smoke it all down on the first go, but to ease it down with a few puffs, relax, re-light, repeat. When the pipe is empty just gently tamp it out in an ash tray then begin the packing process again...if you so desire.

Oh and be sure to "cure" your pipe bowl, too. It will make for an enjoyable time while puffing on your favorite tobacco.

Edited September 22, 2009 by GoodSpeak

[Alexander]

Thanks for the advice guys! I had heard about corncob pipes being good "no-frills" starter pipes, so I may go that route.

And I will be careful to educate myself about lip cancer.

[sonnymax]

...Also, it has been my experience that the longer the cigar, the cooler the smoke.

While I can't argue with your personal experience, your statement isn't logical and it runs counter to my own experience. How "cool" a cigar's draw is depends on the amount of outside air contained in the smoke. The more outside air, the cooler the draw. The length of a cigar has little to do with this, but ring size is important. The larger the ring size, the more area there is to bring in outside air. Hence, a 52 will be "cooler" than a 44 (measured in 64ths of an inch). Smoking a torpedo cigar (one with a tapered end) is supposed to further enhance the coolness of the draw.

[Tim McG]

...Also, it has been my experience that the longer the cigar, the cooler the smoke.

While I can't argue with your personal experience, your statement isn't logical and it runs counter to my own experience. How "cool" a cigar's draw is depends on the amount of outside air contained in the smoke. The more outside air, the cooler the draw. The length of a cigar has little to do with this, but ring size is important. The larger the ring size, the more area there is to bring in outside air. Hence, a 52 will be "cooler" than a 44 (measured in 64ths of an inch). Smoking a torpedo cigar (one with a tapered end) is supposed to further enhance the coolness of the draw.

Good point.

I had fogotten the ring size is a part of the whole picture and really, I should have known better. I tend to smoke a lot of Robustos or Robusto Largas with a 52-54 ring. Specifically, the Punch Gran Puros and Perdomo La Tradicion Golf.

Thanks for the reminder.

Edited September 23, 2009 by GoodSpeak

[Tim McG]

Thanks for the advice guys! I had heard about corncob pipes being good "no-frills" starter pipes, so I may go that route.

And I will be careful to educate myself about lip cancer.

Just don't light up a bahzillion times a day.

Personally, I limit myself to three-four cigars a month, max.

Breathing this shitty air is far worse.

Edited September 23, 2009 by GoodSpeak