Had my first semi-real cigar!

[Gunney]

Well, I had my first semi-real cigar today. After having had some of the cheapo Cheyenne, today. whilst I was at rite-aid I picked up a package of Phillies Cheroots (the only ones they had apparently..) And boy was it different.

Initially I noticed that it had a slightly sweet flavour around the wrapper. Then I lit it up, and after having first caught it on fire lol, I started to enjoy it. A bit more smoke than I was used to (smoked it in the bathroom because I didn't want to stand around looking like a dope outside, nor did I want to stink up the apartment too much..)

Overall pretty good. Different than the standard filtered variety.

One-thing I noticed, that I never had on the others was a faint burning of the mouth. Not too bad, but on the inside of the lip (not where it was contacting)... Perhaps it was just because it's not filtered?

After I was done I started to get slightly dizzy though lol... At first I thought it was because I was in the bathroom, so perhaps I got too much CO! But from my reading, apparently I sucked it down a bit fast! Not quite used to all the nicotine! Perhaps such is why you don't see too many Cigar chain-smokers lol....

All and all pretty decent! Now as I sit here writing this I can smell that cigar-odour... very different!


I have 4 more, so this will last me a few weeks lol...


The next time I get cigars however I may try something different. Any suggestions--cheap lol-- I figured that I may order some of those Euro Sticks or something else that FSS has.

 

[Commander Quan]

I think most of us started where you are at some point, however we probably weren't in the bathroom.

What's your budget? If you can spare $2-$3 a pop we can get you some better smokes.

 

[DayMan]

cigar.com has great daily deals. You can buy a premium, hand made cigar for sometimes 3 dollars per stick.

 

[the_edski]

I think most of us started where you are at some point, however we probably weren't in the bathroom.

What's your budget? If you can spare $2-$3 a pop we can get you some better smokes.

Everyone has to start somewhere. Like Derrick said, let us know how much $$$ you can spend and we can show you cigars that you won't be afraid to smoke outside!

 

[Boro62]

Ya if you give can give an idea of how much you want to spend, I'm sure we can come up with a couple of good suggestions. Don't be afraid to stand outside having a smoke, I do it all the time. I don't mind if I look dopey, as long as I'm enjoying it. If you have a park near by, its also another great place to sit back with a can of soda and some reading material to slow down your day a bit and relax. As far as the getting dizzy, that's just you not being used to the nicotine. In extreme cases where people aren't used to nicotine, it can make your stomach a bit queasy (especially some of the stronger cigars with higher more nicotine punch). A soda or some juice (something with some sugar in it) usually helps mellow out some of that nicotine side effects that your not used to as well as having some food in your stomach.

Cheers and happy smoking!

 

[Boro62]

forgot to mention that there is a good chance that the burning feeling your getting is some tongue bite. Its similar to what pipe smokers get if you huff and puff on the cigar too fast. It might also be the cigar choice that was burning really hot and fast. Try to slow down your puffing next time and see if you still get that burning feeling.

 

[Gunney]

forgot to mention that there is a good chance that the burning feeling your getting is some tongue bite. Its similar to what pipe smokers get if you huff and puff on the cigar too fast. It might also be the cigar choice that was burning really hot and fast. Try to slow down your puffing next time and see if you still get that burning feeling.

Thanks for the info.

My budget is low... extremely low... lol.. As a student I am looking at maybe $2 a stick for a special occasion lol...

 

[Commander Quan]

Flor de Oliva's can be found, and are pretty good for that price. You should also be able to find tinned cigars from most of the major players that aren't bad.

 

[Gunney]

What does tinning do? I mean apart from putting them in an aluminium container lol....

 

[Commander Quan]

Nothing. They are smaller cigars sold in tins.

 

[Tannhauser]

There are, of course, cheap cigars to choose from. There's the usual machine made brands you see behind the counter at the grocery store. The big brands often sell small cigars (almost cigarette sized) in tins. There's also the bundle cigars (Flor de Oliva has already been mentioned). If you can set aside even just $50-$75, you can get a cheap cooler or plastic container (with a good seal), a humidification system (beads, Boveda, etc.) and a bundle or box of 20-30 cigars.

 

[michiganlover]

Thanks for the info.

My budget is low... extremely low... lol.. As a student I am looking at maybe $2 a stick for a special occasion lol...

In the $1 range, try Backwoods. They are all natural tobacco, and the outer wrapper is actual tobacco too. Very likely the best you'll get without going to an actual cigar store.

Most of the non-premium/ machine made cigars have a outer wrapper made with tobacco paper, rather than actual tobacco leaves.

In the $1.50-$2.00 range are Quorum, and Nat Chicco Cuban Legends. You'll have to go to an actual cigar store to get both. Both are all natural tobacco.

 

[Boro62]

to be 100% honest, I really don't have much personal experience with anything in that price range. But I'd agree with michiganlover that you would probably want to stay with all natural tobaccos and away from Homogenized Tobacco Leaf. I'm guessing is that its going to have to be a machine rolled cigar. I'll try and hit some of the local B&M's this weekend see what I can find in that price range and pick a couple up to try and I'll report back.

 

[jrward2]

+1 for the backwoods suggestion. These really are great and cheap.

Another suggestion too for the tinned cigars. Drew Estates makes Tabak Especial Cafecita which are a smaller, but you can get a tin of 10 for $20 which would be $2 a stick. I think they are really good and suggest them to friends who don't smoke often because it has a sweet/coffee flavor which many like.

 

[Boro62]

I remember a few of our members mentioning these being a good value smoke http://www.cigarsinternational.com/specials/weekly-special/?slide=1 and also http://www.jrcigars.com/jr/index.cfm/hurl/evt=itemlist/catid=99/CONSUEGRA.html both under $2 a stick

 

[michiganlover]

that you would probably want to stay with all natural tobaccos and away from Homogenized Tobacco Leaf. I'm guessing is that its going to have to be a machine rolled cigar. I'll try and hit some of the local B&M's this weekend see what I can find in that price range and pick a couple up to try and I'll report back.

Most machine made cigars have a Homogenized Tobacco Leaf wrapper, and use it at least partially for their filler as well. Basically all sorts of undesirable tobacco scraps are ground to a pulp, and liquified. It is then sprayed onto a paper like substance. The resulting tobacco paper is then ground resulting in something sort of like tobacco. Additional additives may be added such as more nicotine.

This is the same process that most cigarettes are made by, so these low end cigars are really no better than smoking a cigarette.

 

[Gunney]

Most machine made cigars have a Homogenized Tobacco Leaf wrapper, and use it at least partially for their filler as well. Basically all sorts of undesirable tobacco scraps are ground to a pulp, and liquified. It is then sprayed onto a paper like substance. The resulting tobacco paper is then ground resulting in something sort of like tobacco. Additional additives may be added such as more nicotine.

This is the same process that most cigarettes are made by, so these low end cigars are really no better than smoking a cigarette.

I realise that these aren't all that better than cigarettes. My goal isn't necessarily to eliminate the nasties. My goal is to find something that tastes good lol, and is cheap! The process isn't very appealing, but at the same time I know I can't exactly afford Cubans!

 

[Commander Quan]

How about a corn cob pipe, and some decent tobacco? If you can spare a $20 we can get you set up for 15-20 good smokes.

 

[Gunney]

An 18 year old smoking a pipe doesn't look natural! Besides, quite frankly its a bit more work than I am keen for. Thanks for the suggestion though!

 

[jiminyshiznit]

This thread is going to make me look for some Backwoods smokes, next time I'm at the drugstore.