The Anti-Review: Why I am tiring of Cuban cigars.


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Yes, this is a typical Pigfish gripe thread. I am getting sick of this... crap! No, I don't buy the over-hyped fat rolled, expensive cigars. I like PCs, shorter cigars, and long thin cigars (for

Mate you can stop buying them.....anytime! Now you know I love you but for someone who rants against the system (Cuban Govt/Habanos/QC) you certainly smoke a lot of cuban cigars  We had a gr

This is like a guy in the street with his shirt off, screaming for a fight in front of his favourite bar, which is full of friends who just want to buy him a drink. 

1 hour ago, PigFish said:

The Pig

A question to you Ray. 

One would hope that a line such as the Du Prince would be a great deal less likely to have poor production, and I (like maybe yourself) would have greater confidence buying them blind.  But......with nearly every cigars quality being piloted like a plane in free fall, only to pull back on the controls at the last minute and soar into the upper atmosphere.  Do you accept any criticism that, the road is full of pot holes, (we all know this) if we continue to purchase, we need to use all our faculties. and seek out hot production runs wherever they may pop up.   For instance currently in terms of PC's I would only really consider Upmann PC's, Epicures, RGPC, Monte 4, BPC.    With this box of Du Prince, were you buying what you like? or was it a buy based on hearing they were 'running hot'??

No doubt the current situation is nowhere near good enough, and any potential customer, should not be forced into jumping on stock, that might not be what they want, but just happens to be high quality.  But.......there is quality out there. It's a theoretical question really. do we as customers bare any responsibility for buying poor products, if we have the some ability to avoid them?

Note: within asking this question, I'm sure you more than likely went to lots of effort to ask the right questions and select with scrutiny

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35 minutes ago, 99call said:

A question to you Ray. 

One would hope that a line such as the Du Prince would be a great deal less likely to have poor production, and I (like maybe yourself) would have greater confidence buying them blind.  But......with nearly every cigars quality being piloted like a plane in free fall, only to pull back on the controls at the last minute and soar into the upper atmosphere.  Do you accept any criticism that, the road is full of pot holes, (we all know this) if we continue to purchase, we need to use all our faculties. and seek out hot production runs wherever they may pop up.   For instance currently in terms of PC's I would only really consider Upmann PC's, Epicures, RGPC, Monte 4, BPC.    With this box of Du Prince, were you buying what you like? or was it a buy based on hearing they were 'running hot'??

No doubt the current situation is nowhere near good enough, and any potential customer, should not be forced into jumping on stock, that might not be what they want, but just happens to be high quality.  But.......there is quality out there. It's a theoretical question really. do we as customers bare any responsibility for buying poor products, if we have the some ability to avoid them?

Note: within asking this question, I'm sure you more than likely went to lots of effort to ask the right questions and select with scrutiny

you lost me with this posting...

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I'm not so impressed with Cuban cigars.  I've had quality issues with almost every brand I've had.  Granted, I've only had a box of 6 or 7 different brands to date. 

That's enough of a sampling for me to shy away from Cubans. 

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1 hour ago, 99call said:

A question to you Ray. 

One would hope that a line such as the Du Prince would be a great deal less likely to have poor production, and I (like maybe yourself) would have greater confidence buying them blind.  But......with nearly every cigars quality being piloted like a plane in free fall, only to pull back on the controls at the last minute and soar into the upper atmosphere.  Do you accept any criticism that, the road is full of pot holes, (we all know this) if we continue to purchase, we need to use all our faculties. and seek out hot production runs wherever they may pop up.   For instance currently in terms of PC's I would only really consider Upmann PC's, Epicures, RGPC, Monte 4, BPC.    With this box of Du Prince, where you buying what you like? or was it a buy based on hearing they were 'running hot'??

No doubt the current situation is nowhere near good enough, and any potential customer, should not be forced into jumping on stock, that might not be what they want, but just happens to be high quality.  But.......there is quality out there. It's a theoretical question really. do we as customers bare any responsibility for buying poor products, if we have the some ability to avoid them?

Note: within asking this question, I'm sure you more than likely went to lots of effort to ask the right questions and select with scrutiny

Steph, you likely have greater controls than I do based on physical location. But that is not where I am going with this.

I try cigars from all over... They all have the same problem. This is systemic, and not with me.

Buying Cuban cigars has always been at least some part wisdom, familiarity, experience. You may argue, but nothing defends against this! There might be good runs here and there, but that is not what I am owed... I pay good money for a box of cigars, and in that box I am 'owed' more than 50 or 60% filled and constructed properly.

You want me to crack 4 or 5 boxes of Upmann PC's and weight them? Same crap I will venture. RGPCs, same! Frankly, it is why I don't buy a lot of cigars today. I do sample... I have to. I love cigars; perhaps I will miss a 'run' as you say. But frankly that is my flaw; the fact that I am still hopeful about the Cuban cigar. Hopeful, yet stupid about them I suppose! It is a pitiful admission!!!

When I think about it, I likely pay more for a cigar (pound for pound) than I do an automobile. It is a luxury product in that it is consumable, a pure pleasure and not life giving. No other industry would survive in this fashion. Would I put up with this from an automobile? No...

To answer another question; yes, in so many ways this is customer driven. No one should buy this crap! But it is not their fault!

I have moved from buying 50 to 100 boxes of cigars a year (2006 to 2008) to buying almost nothing. That is my personal battle. It makes no difference as HSA sells out every year apparently. All the crap sells!

Me, I wish a premium NC source would sell cigars that I like. I would say the hell with this game! Unfortunately, this crap du Prince is (was) better than the last NC cigar I remember smoking. And frankly, I am too old to start looking for an alternative from that field of metallic, harsh or insipid garbage...

Like the nail-biter above, I too likely have more cigar than I need to live. Yet, I want to think that Cuban cigar remains alive and viable. The only way to know is to buy some of them. That is unless you want to send a few samples to me every month to test... -LOL

To your very last question. No I don't. I don't think anyone is going to have the ability to protect me from this. This is not the vendor's fault. They can squeeze a few cigars, protect me from mold or bugs, but no one can honestly select good a cigar from bad. No one is going to rip through 5 boxes of cigars for me to buy 25 good ones. No one will, nor do they have the ability to do that... That is not really the vendors job.

Cheers! -Ray

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5 minutes ago, PigFish said:

Steph, you likely have greater controls than I do based on physical location

Ha, I've never bought a solitary cigar in the UK, my names not Getty!.  It's definitely a first world problem, for instance recently I sent and received a total of about 25 emails, trying to get images and select a specific box of Monte Especials from Switzerland.  Box arrives, not the same box! arguments, frustrations yadda yadda yadda. 

We all know whatever we do, there are no promises. Even if we select in person, the aroma, the feel the uniformity, promises nothing really. Only in the smoking do we realise whether the fate of the cigar will be golden.....or dog dirt. 

Again the theoretical question, of "should we as the customer accept, any blame in continuing to buy, when we know the percentage of failure". My answer to the question is, in principle the same as yours.   No!, if a pay a good amount of money for a box of Du Prince, a should not be buying a 1 in 5 risk. 

But!! but!  I do accept that if the cigar community is currently saying "DO NOT! buy any SP non plus, unless you're a self harmer"  then I do comply to some sort of odd logic, that if I do buy a box of non plus, and they are terrible........then I have some part of the blame.  Not blame for the cigars being terrible, but responsibility that I chose to buy them.

 

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This is gonna' hurt my friend, but I am gonna' say it anyway!

Remember this, PRESENT COMPANY EXCLUDED... -LOL

The cigar community does not know squat! Yep, I said it. They buy crap and love it. They buy non-tested new crap and pay thousands for it. That is stupid (MHO). They bagged on 98-99-00 cigar and many are lovely... They pay extra for a shiny box, a second band and a lot of extra filler for blander taste and less quality than they get from a PC...

Need I say more?

I trust a few select people. They are not the 'community.' They are fringe outliers, just like me.

We got a guy above who thinks that cigars are better today then 10 years ago. God bless him... We strongly disagree! Want him to send me a list of his 06 and 08's and I will be happy to buy new cigars to trade him...

So who represents the "community?" You all choose... It is certainly not me!

Cheers all! -Piggy

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23 minutes ago, 99call said:

 "should we as the customer accept, any blame in continuing to buy, when we know the percentage of failure".

Who else would you blame?! Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, I'm an idiot.

7 minutes ago, PigFish said:

The cigar community does not know squat!

If I continued to go to a doctor who continually misdiagnosed what might be ailing me, or continued to to buy cars or any other products from producers who time and time again failed me, that would be on me. Nobody else.

They're cigars.

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11 minutes ago, juri said:

you think things are bad now you should of been around in the 90s when you would get an entire box of plugged cohibas

Hmmm.... I will just pass on the meat in that one!

You bring me to another subject with this post however. The community does not know how to store cigars either!!! -LOL

-Cheers!

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12 minutes ago, Colt45 said:

Who else would you blame?! Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, I'm an idiot.

If I continued to go to a doctor who continually misdiagnosed what might be ailing me, or continued to to buy cars or any other products from producers who time and time again failed me, that would be on me. Nobody else.

They're cigars.

You are right Ross, by my own admission. As I said previously, to paraphrase, a "pitiful state!"

I feel a need to stay in the game, as this is not my life I am betting with. I am taking an acceptable risk, albeit poor decisions in hindsight.

I have a heart condition. I smoke... cigars, that is. Another poor decision more than likely.

Life is about taking risks. With risk comes potential loss and potential reward. I have never been a safety seeker. With the risk taken, I have paid for the right to bitch... 

-Ray

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Burn / roll issues like that really hurt me when they  happen like that.  And it's happened quite a bit to me unfortunately.  Luckily the good ones almost make up for it.

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5 minutes ago, PigFish said:

I feel a need to stay in the game, as this is not my life I am betting with. I am taking an acceptable risk, albeit poor decisions in hindsight.

Ray, my man....

....... I typically look at them as that they should be nothing more than a way to find a little joy in life. I guess, at the base, that's what they are to me. I do understand, and have absolutely no prob with folks who consider cigars more than a simple pleasure. At times, I'm envious...

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4 minutes ago, Colt45 said:

Ray, my man....

....... I typically look at them as that they should be nothing more than a way to find a little joy in life. I guess, at the base, that's what they are to me. I do understand, and have absolutely no prob with folks who consider cigars more than a simple pleasure. At times, I'm envious...

I will remind you when they return to that... -LOL Currently, they are (the new ones) a disappointment. I will be happy to keep you abreast of updates!

I was trying to get Steph to keep me updated by sending me cigars, but  he did not volunteer so I will just have to keep buying a box or two now and again... to keep a hand in! You might call me "PIG-headed."

What the hell... I might just have to open a new box of Party SdC to wash away my sorrow... -R

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10 minutes ago, PigFish said:

I was trying to get Steph to keep me updated by sending me cigars, but  he did not volunteer

Ha, if I thought I could send you anything, that would impress you away from what you already have, Of course I would, (you only need ask) but my pride couldn't take the knocks. 

I have no pity, for the pig that stands on a mountain of discontinued cabs. 

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19 minutes ago, PigFish said:

I will remind you when they return to that...

Seeing pics of all you guys in LA, Panama, and Havana - seriously, what's better than that? But I suppose that's less about the cigars :)

But then again, that's what cigars can mean!

We all have the right to expect "value" for our money. But it is our money....

Stay healthy, MoFo!!

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25 minutes ago, Colt45 said:

Seeing pics of all you guys in LA, Panama, and Havana - seriously, what's better than that? But I suppose that's less about the cigars :)

But then again, that's what cigars can mean!

We all have the right to expect "value" for our money. But it is our money....

Stay healthy, MoFo!!

... yeah mate, I brought half a box of '03 Monte Esp's (sourced from our host 15 years ago) and gave them all away. Me, I smoked an '01 Lanceros and our gracious host gave me a '00 Party Sel Privada #1 (as well as a good time) a cigar to die for (MHO). So you are half right. I could have been smoking Red Dot Cohibas and had fun with my mates. That is a separate issue. But the cigars that night, from my perspective at least, were friggin awesome. 

I had a great heart to heart with Rob, long overdue... Damn, I love that guy! I really wish you could have been there. It was a great time.

-Cheers

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37 minutes ago, 99call said:

Ha, if I thought I could send you anything, that would impress you away from what you already have, Of course I would, (you only need ask) but my pride couldn't take the knocks. 

I have no pity, for the pig that stands on a mountain of discontinued cabs. 

Brother, I am happy to smoke cigars, from your house or mine, anytime. And no one need supply my cigars, nor feel embarrassed about what they smoke, like, have etc. I am a true proletariat cigar smoker.

I am about good, everyday cigars. I just happen to own a few, a few years old. I would trade them for the ability to ones just as good today. 

-Ray

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