Any cigar smokers in the group?

You guys know everything so...

I quit cigarettes 6 years ago. The nicotine habit is kicked but I still love the smell of tobacco. 

I've smoked a few cigars over the past several weeks. A couple have been decent. A couple have been no better than a Marlboro. 

So, I'm looking for recommendations. Some cigars have a wonderful aroma, some of them are pretty bad. I don't know enough about them to pick the good ones and the available array is enormous. The two I have found to be decent are a Olivia Inferno Robusto and a Monticristo Relentless Robusto. Is a $20 cigar twice as good as a $10 cigar or 10 times better than a $2 one?

Discuss. Is there a preferred brand? Preferred country? I'm not looking for a every day smoke. Just something for the occasional quiet evening sitting on the porch or to take camping.

Ehh...I quit cigarettes back in college. I've always smoked a cigar now and then, but I've found I enjoy a pipe a lot more. I find the flavors a lot nicer, more diverse, and much less ashtray-mouth the next morning. Traveling with work more these days its very common for the fellas to break out cigars and whiskey at the end of the day. I pack a bowl of good pipe tobacco instead and I'm much happier.

In reply to ultraclyde :

I still have all of my pipes and a bunch of mason jars of tobacco. A cigar is a little less work than a pipe but I may have to dig some of that stuff out and see if the tobacco is still any good. 

I enjoy a stogie once in a while, but I'm not really an expert.  They're not what the "experts" say are good cigars since they add some flavoring, but I love the Acid line from Drew Estates.  The Kuba Kuba is good for couple fingers of bourbon by the fire, the 1400cc is good for watching a movie or reading a book, and the Blondie is a good lunch cigar.

a coworker turned me onto cigarsinternational.com 

Ive only really gotten into cigars in the past year or two, that site and/or the catalogs that come in the mail are great for reading descriptions about each cigar and they rank most of them on a scale of how robust they are. And the pricing is nice especially when you grab something on sale. 

Going to a cigar shop is awfully daunting as its just rows and rows of boxes with no info. 

I started out with more flavored cigars, buying various mixed packs that lasts me a few months at a time but im about ready to branch out and try something different. I am really pleased with the quality of the Tatiana cigars. I picked up the Tatiana Mega Sampler last fall, they burn and draw PERFECT, and they are on the lighter side and are not overwhelmingly smelly. (aka you dont smell like an ashtray real bad after).  Im getting a little burned out on them (see what I did there) so I always look forward to the next monthly CI catalog so I can window shop and pick out something new. 

Although usually I can only find time once or twice a month to have one so they last me forever. 

I got this and it works great for storage with the boveda  humidification packs

humidor

Cigars are the gateway back to Marlboros...

Seen it lots of times.

Canadian here.

We're spoiled with Cubans up here. I prefer Bolivar Tubos No.2, with a glass of Lagavulin 16 if possible.

My buddy likes Partagas and Macanudo, I've been pretty happy with them too.

I tried an Acid and some other thing from Nicaragua. I couldn't stand the sweetened wrapper on the Acid and the other one was kinda "meh". I guess that's why I can't remember what it was.

Stick with Cubans if you can, you won't be sorry.

My buddy CPA Mike started smoking cigars when he joined his accounting firm. He is rather fond of Fuentes from Nicaragua. I think they smell like E36 M3, but he enjoys them. 

We do have another friend who travels internationally a lot, so there have been a steady stream of Cubans around via Germany and Spain. As a non cigar smoker, I much prefer the smell of them. 

I've been thinking about taking up pipe smoking, but I'm so used to inhaling that I hurt myself when I try to smoke a pipe. I just think the tobacco smells a lot better that way than from cigarettes or cigars. 

I will chime in on the Acid/ Drew Estate brand their cigars are quit good, my go-to is the Acid Kuba kuba cigar as it has a nice taste and most people like the smell. 

Have fun exploring the cigar world, lots to choose from.

Paul B

I'm in general a Romeo Juletta fan.  A few years ago i found the Artur Fuente Curly Head.  They are the Arturo Fuente tobacco rolled by employees in training.  Yummy and cheap.

My usual go-to is a Cohiba Red Dot. Usually in the cigarillo size as I don't always want a 1+ hr smoke. 

Dutch Masters Presidents.  I estimate my dad smoked 15,000+ of these from 1953 to 2014 or so.  Smelling a cigar brings back a lot of “dad” memories.  

In order to quit Camel Lights I had to 100% walk away from anything related.  No cigars, chew, just one......

All I got is that the best cigars are rolled on the thighs of virgins.

And that I must have looked like an utter fool when I was in the army at 21 years old and wanted to look like a hardass on a ruck march and smoked $2 cigars the whole 12 miles.

KyAllroad (Jeremy) said:

All I got is that the best cigars are rolled on the thighs of virgins.

I used to hear “ on the thighs of sweaty Cuban virgins”. 

I’ve been out of it for a while, but my preference was Hondouran or Nicaraguan over Dominican. Hoya de Montaray was my favorite. Chohiba XV was one of the few DR smokes with body without “ Dominican Armpit” flavor. 

Otherwise I'm in the stay quit camp. 

Also a fan of Hoyo De Monterey.

Romeo y Julieta has some nice, full-bodied, smooth offerings, but I find they are sensitive to size.  A big, honkin' Churchill is delicious, but their Panatelas are a bit harsh.

Honestly, I keep some Swisher Cigarillos around.  I don't really enjoy smoking for long periods of time, so a Churchill is not a good idea for me.  Panatela, Petit Corona, Tubos, that's more my size.

As titillating as it sounds, I'm not so sure I'd want anything that was between the legs of some Cuban woman (virgin.... RIIIIIIIGHT) in my mouth. 

And remember, besides being a very effective insecticide, nicotine is also very addictive, but I don't need to tell you that.

In reply to Curtis : I smoked Rothschilds, a 50 ring like a Churchill, but 4.5” long, a much shorter smoke.

It’s been many years, but H. Upmans were mild, reasonable cost and not bad when fishing or hanging out by the fire. 

I also liked that they came in individual tubes so they didn’t get wet or damaged before I was ready to light one up. 

Kristoff are good and have some interesting variations.

Gurkha are Smokey bastards, but good!

Cohiba are very well crafted and my favorite. 

The smaller you go, the higher chance you have of getting too much tar out of the cigar.

C.a.o. and nub also make decent cigars that taste good.  I have never had an Oliva that I disliked.

The drew estate acid and natural and larutan lines are like the gateway into good cigars.  They have lots of flavors and taste pretty good, but they can have too much in natural flavor added. 

I have found only marginal correlation between price and enjoyment.  

Perdomo bourbon barrel aged robusto with Connecticut wrapper. 

Back in the day, I used to only smoke Fuentes, Ashton’s, or Don Tomas.

If I go to the store now, I may still grab a Fuente, but I also grab a Padron or Rocky Patel too.

In reply to Streetwiseguy :

It's important to have vices.

Reminds you that you're human.

In reply to Ranger50 :

Had a Padron 1964 Anniversary Exclusivo with my coffee this morning. It was outstanding. Probably my favorite so far. Damn they aren't cheap though.