Side note....I let my humidor dip down to 55%, maybe even 50%, for 1-3 months this winter. I fixed it, and gave my cigars several months to recover.
Lost cause. Smoked OK, but the tasty oils were gone. They were a bit crunchy, and I ended up trashing about 15 premium cigars.
posted by gutSide note....I let my humidor dip down to 55%, maybe even 50%, for 1-3 months this winter. I fixed it, and gave my cigars several months to recover.
Lost cause. Smoked OK, but the tasty oils were gone. They were a bit crunchy, and I ended up trashing about 15 premium cigars.
Damn, that's a kick in the junk.
posted by gutF**king stoked [no pun intended].
The "Honey" add-on found a coupon that saved me $25. All said and done, I got 25 premium cigars for about $4.50 each.
It's Rocky Patel[20] seconds, so jury still out but sounds like 99.9% as good as retail. Super excited - maybe this afternoon I'll dip in.
Also, I think I finally found my favorite Partagas[5] with the silver label. I'll update how it goes.
The RP Vintage 1990 is one of my favorites.
posted by justincredibleDamn, that's a kick in the junk.
Ehhh, I didn't love them fresh, so it gave me an excuse to buy some new ones.
Half were Partagas Black, which I thought I loved but now thinking [hoping] it might be the Extra Oscuro's I just bought. The other half were RP Decades, which were pretty good but not nearly as rich as I had remembered.
Justin,
In your opinion, how consistent is the flavor profile/quality on premium labels year to year? I wouldn't think it varies very much, but maybe the RP Decades I had last year just weren't quite as good as I remembered.
I really haven’t noticed a difference but I probably don’t smoke enough to truly form a good opinion.
Speaking of decades…
posted by justincredibleThe RP Vintage 1990 is one of my favorites.
Smoked one yesterday. It was quite good.
Workimg on a Ciboba Exquistos right now.
Not awesome. But I might be able to force it down to a nub
Went with the 1990 Vintage tonight.
posted by justincredibleWent with the 1990 Vintage tonight.
Had the RP Broadleaf last night and liked it even better than the 1990 Vintage.
Actually very similar, but a bit more flavorful and smoother. But you could have fooled me they were same cigar (similar profile, apparently).
Old humidor didn't seem to be cutting it. Probably just needed re-seasoned (apparently you should do that at least once a year), but made a few purchases:
No more boveda packs for me. I had some luck recharging them for a while, but then they became too unreliable and I often let me humidity get too low. No more. This thing will pay for itself in a few years (faster if I don't ruin any more cigars), plus I think it's ideal to experiment with aging some of my favorites. Apparently there's not much to gain from aging premium cigars, but this should hold 70-80 cigars, plus I still have my old humidor which I might use as a backup, or for a handful of cigars I expect to smoke in the coming weeks.
Runs on distilled water, has a fan for active circulation, and wifi capability to alert you when temp or humidity gets out of set range. However, that feature may require a stupid subscription. Fortunately, I have a digital hygrometer that has bluetooth/wifi and an app that does the same thing (and it's nice to pull up the app to see the past week, even a year, of temp and humidity trends.
I also bought 50 premium cigars. Stupid me, without a humidor ready to go for them. They are now a bit dry, but my humidors are around 60-62%, so they'll recover. Still smoke well, mostly, but not as rich as they should be. Should come back in a few weeks.
On July 5 I will be one year smoke free. This is not a heroic venture. I succumbed to fear over a spot on My lung via a ct scan. It wasn’t a surprise because I had smoked for over 40 years. About 3 months ago I was diagnosed with stage 3 non Hodgkins lymphoma. I am currently doing chemo and various treatments to try and eek out a few more years.
I quit smoking because I had and wanted to. This is not a huge diatribe to get you all to quit smoking, it is an admission to a fact that we all know that smoking is bad for you. You are all free thinking free will individuals and if you really want to quit, you will quit. But know this…. If I go stage 4 and and there Isn’t muck chance of recovery, the 1th thing I’ll do is buy a pack of reds and a case of Cohibas.
Sorry for the drunk rant, but fuck it I’m drunk. Maybe if it’s too bad I’ll edit ✍️ n the morning
Sorry to hear this ................. hang in there and best wishes to get through it all.
Damn, DA, sorry to hear that. I like your drunken rants even if they get a bit spicy at times. I hope we’ll be reading them for a long time to come.
My current setup. The front hygrometer is always 3% low, so that 62 is actually 65ish.
Dang, I should of checked with you first. Now I hate the humidor I bought.
Although a little surprised you have them just strewn about. Since I'll have an active fan, I'm going to space them out carefully so air can flow all around, though I'll probably still rotate monthly when refilling the reservoir.
Currently trying to decide if it's possible, much less worth it, to minimize the melding of brands together (or, at least, keep the full bodied away from the lighter ones as much as possible).
I try to rotate every once in a while. Organizational skills are something I do not possess. You should see my office and dresser drawers.
I'm liking my new humidifier. It works with wifi, and will send alerts to my phone if the temp or humidity gets out of range, or it needs water.
But a bit annoyed they want a $20 annual sub for that. On the other hand, with several hundred in cigars in my humidor, probably worth it.
I'll probably just eat the $20, but it's the principle. Also, I have a digital hygrometer that runs on a AA battery, that I think costs $15 and will send temp/humidity alerts for free. The app is also a little better than the Cigar Oasis.
Box-pressed Rocky Patel old world reserve.
Not the brand/stick necessarily, but the most perfect smoke I've had. Draw is absolutely perfect. It's nice and soft, but still stays lit. New humidor and humidifier/fan is doing the job.
More mild than I usually like, but very enjoyable.
