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Discussion: What Do You Look For in a Cigar?

Discussion: What Do You Look For in a Cigar?

First of all, welcome to the first day of an awesome week!  Many of us are preparing for a short workweek and most have plans to celebrate with friends and family.  Cheers to driving safe, excellent company, making memories, and burning great cigars! 

I wanted a way to connect with you and offer some more gift cards to U.S. customers.  After some thought, I figure the best way to do it is ask you a question!  Here it is: 

What do you look for in a cigar?

This is an interesting question to me, because I can remember times when I valued completely different things than I do now.  In fact, about six weeks ago I was smoking with an Airman that said something I would’ve said in the past.  It went a little bit like this: 

“It’s just a great cigar. You don’t have to constantly relight it and it doesn’t feel like you’re sucking through a broken straw.” 

Once upon a time, construction was KING to me.  Why? Because flavor didn’t matter.  I hadn’t spent time developing my palate, didn’t take care of my cigars the way I should, and really didn’t believe that cigars could be that different anyway.

I had a humidor, some sort of humidifying device, and when all my cigars tasted the same I didn’t question it.  Rewind further and getting the best value for my dollar was more important that anything else.  I didn’t know enough about our hobby to appreciate how great it can be, and I cut corners for the better part of a decade. 

Fast forward to about 18 months ago, and I was all about the flavor.  I could forgive runaway burn lines and the like if a cigar took care of the ole taste buds.  If a cigar really pissed me off, I had plenty of time to toss it and grab another.  

Best Cigars for Traveling

And now?  My smoking time is limited and precious.  Now I’m looking for something new.  Something that I haven’t quite experienced before, something intriguing and captivating. When a cigar meets all the basic benchmarks and comes out swinging with something innovative… That’s when my eyebrows go up!

Yet at the same time, I also find myself regularly pulling cigars that I know to be consistently what I’m looking for.  When I find a cigar that piques my interest and continues to perform the same way, my hands gravitate towards it in the humidor. I’ve smoked more of the same cigars in the last twelve months than ever before because of my new schedule.  

I suppose it’s natural for your expectations and priorities to change according to what’s going on in your life.  This week, though, I’m curious about what you value right this moment.  Drop a comment below with what you look for in a cigar to be entered to win! 

Contest Details

One of the comments below will win a $25 gift card.  The gift card will automatically be sent to the email address that you login to comment with, so please use your regular sign-in.   

I’ll be randomly selecting a comment below this Sunday before sending out the Weekly Newsletter. The winner can expect a comment with his or her name in it, a congratulations email, and an email with the $25 gift card information.  The actual gift card email takes some time to generate from the system and may lag behind by a couple hours. 

Only available to U.S. customers. 

 

 

 

 

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Comments

11/19/2018 2:48 PM
For me it’s all about the wrapper and the size of the cigar.
11/19/2018 2:55 PM
Construction isn't as big an issue for me, just as long as it isn't plugged. I can deal with everything else. It's flavor, or lack of flavor, or the being releases prematurely that's a bigger issue for me.
11/19/2018 4:04 PM
I enjoy great flavor and great smoke output
11/19/2018 4:08 PM
The only construction issue that usually chaps my a$$ is if it won't stay lit.  The rest I can deal with.  Beyond that, it's value and flavor.  In the summer, I might go through 10 a week.  Hard to spend $15 on every one at that pace.
11/19/2018 4:58 PM
Information about the tobacco is important.  I want to know who, what, where, and when.  Secret factory?  Secret blend?  Nope.
11/19/2018 6:06 PM
For me, construction is key, but flavor is a must. A flat tasting cigar will get tossed after about the 1st 3rd. If a cigar is plugged I will give minimal effort if I see a stem purtruding at the top and try to pull it out with some needle nose pliers. Otherwise, it gets tossed and I move on. Lately my cigar time has been short and I want to enjoy it.
11/19/2018 6:38 PM
Size! And then trial and error. With little ones time is precious and really digging cigar to be have the little ones wake up crying and tossing it sucks. So I’ve gone lately with Coronas, petite robustos and petite Coronas when buying.
Just relaxing with a 1 hour smoke and enjoying the flavors is what I look for.
11/19/2018 8:24 PM
Consistency. Every time I torch one of my favorite smokes I expect the same flavors, draw and burn. Plugged or a tight draw (even with a draw tool) can ruin the experience. A bad burn and constant relights or touch ups is easy to deal with but can get quite annoying. Flavors being off or inconsistent will have me putting it down and going for something else if I have time.
11/19/2018 9:07 PM
Smoothness + good burn.  Doesn't matter if it's an uneven burn but if that sucker stays lit even in the worst conditions (driving, super humid, etc) it's king.  Flavors are good but smoothness is what counts for me.
11/20/2018 7:34 AM
Size, wrapper, and price.
11/20/2018 10:24 AM
An engaging experience. I smoke a diverse array of cigars and can appreciate most flavor profiles, so to me, it's all about how well  the cigar engages me and provides a memorable experience.
11/20/2018 12:22 PM
I am looking for a reason to remember and recommend a cigar. Always looking for a good value for the price. Taste wise I love cocoa/chocolate and baking spice notes. Roasted nuts are nice too.
11/20/2018 4:41 PM
A cigar must be the proper shape in order to be boofed
11/20/2018 5:02 PM
Flavor for sure - a little sweetness, some leather and pepper. Especially a cigar where the flavor changes throughout the smoke. Keeps things interesting and makes trying new cigars a great adventure. I still remember the first cigar that knocked my socks off, Oliva V.
11/20/2018 5:09 PM
The look and smell of the wrapper followed by the construction and the flavors. The ring size also plays a factor, as too big I'm less likely to try. Number one, is the consistency. Brands that I've tried that perform well, I'll keep buying!
11/21/2018 1:44 AM
Ill be honest, I'm a sucker for a fancy band. Give me that Razzle Dazzle baby!
11/21/2018 6:23 AM
I look for something different in each cigar I smoke.  Just too many variances from stick to stick to get hung up on just one thing.  I find each smoke is going to give me something that I'm going to hang onto and enjoy.  Sometimes it's flavor, sometimes it's construction (no relight issues, ect).  Sometimes it's smoke production or the retrohale.
11/21/2018 6:28 AM
The size is big for me but I do require a flavorful stick now as I am working more on my palate. Time is more limited now and I want to get the most out of a stick as I am trying more and more different sticks to find my preferences in flavor profiles. Draw is my last thing I check for, I really cant stand to have a tight draw.
11/21/2018 11:09 AM
Complexity.  I'm looking for the flavors to change from the 1st third to the last.
11/21/2018 4:24 PM
I have to say it's the flavor and the size.  I don't have hours to enjoy a smoke anymore, it needs to be a good size and tasty to earn its place with me.
11/22/2018 6:16 AM
Construction and consistency probably most important to me followed by flavor. Not much more frustrating to me than a plugged cigar, terrible canoe etc. or suddenly my old favorite budget cigar (Ortega serie d maduro) is now a completely different stick that sucks, and I already bought 2 boxes of them...other than that It’s all about what size I have time to burn and flavor profile I’m looking for... so basically everything lol...
11/22/2018 8:57 PM
In this order:

1. CONSTRUCTION is it smokable?
2. FLAVOR does it taste good?
3. CONSISTENCY Does it preform and taste the same way each time?
4. SIZE How much time do I have to smoke?
11/23/2018 8:40 PM
For me it’s flavor and strength. Burn touch-ups are just a dandy excuse to sample a bit of the wrapper flavor. I want something that brings a lot of flavor the table and leaves me with a little bit of a Vitamin N buzz without overpowering me.
11/25/2018 7:00 AM
Congrats to Chris for winning the gift card!  Thanks to everyone for participating 👊
11/25/2018 2:34 PM
You spelt my name wrong.
11/26/2018 10:27 AM
Construction, flavor, staying lit and complexity. If I’m dropping over ten (nay twenty sometimes) and it doesn’t meet these criteria- the likelihood that I’ll buy another group diminishes greatly. Especially if I buy a box of unsatisfying turds.