Blind Tasting Reviews Cigar Number 4 : FOH INT 2018 Blind Tasting Comp

[ElJavi76]

Do the 4 of us who guessed right get any extra credit? We risked tossing our choice to the wind for what our noses told us. I know we're in the greatest of minorities, but where's the reward for us? $25 voucher and no reward for picking right? The grand prize is the ultimate goal. Giving folks credit for the choice retroactively would change the landscape.

Sorry for speaking on behalf of the minority, but needed to get that out there. 

 

[prodigy]

I say scrub cigar number 3. Make it a 4 cigar contest.

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[fastkiller13]

I propose that everyone mans up and take their lickings. I'm pretty sure one of the forum rules is don't be a wanker. 

We are talking about Cuba here right? The cigar being on the deleted list means that maybe it will be discontinued, maybe it won't.

The competition started in January not June - HUPC was available everywhere "in spades" as the Aussies say. For everybody whining about being cheated, grow up; do we seriously think the FOH staff is cheating us? If so go join a Facebook group and see what it's like outside of this forum.

How about using a bit of logic: for everyone that gets a selection right they spend minimum $125 US to use the credit so the reality is Rob lost money having only 4 winners. Not that I believe the competition is about FOH making a profit but cheating = affecting the bottom line. Finally there are much better ways to cheat then this e.g., just select some random cigar that nobody guessed. 

If you believe Rob made a mistake including the HUPC then he made a mistake. Holy shit El Pres is human... OMG the world is ending... Oh wait it actually isn't, this competition is about having some fun and expanding our pallets. Lets just chalk this up to stuff happens and move on with our lives. 

There are really much more important things for us to waste our time on than this.

[jmg]

i honestly dont care about the inclusion of the hupc. robs house, robs rules. we're fortunate that he puts up as many comps and events to keep the community together as it is. not to mention the service they offer.

with that being said, i think the best way to negate this is to just take #3 out of the mix for the final results. no one gets credit for it. best guesses out of 4 wins. whoever guessed #3 right, still gets their $25 usd credit but whoever didnt guess it correct is not out of the competition for best out of 4. ties are still divided equally among the final winners.

im just amazed at how many 50/50 guesses i miss. shows how valid (not very) marca characteristics really are lol . i will no longer miss hupcs since i thought they were bpcs.

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[ElJavi76]

Not to be a stickler here (tongue firmly planted in cheek), but I guessed right...I get $25 bux and a good guess wiped out? Four of us took a chance with the discontinued Cuban. Ballsy, but your guess means nothing we're now moving to best of 4?

I was salty about cigar #2 and chatted here about my "displeasure". Only 10 guys got that right. I want a recount on that one cause I got it wrong and the underfilled cigar made it misleading... He said facetiously. LOL Nobody would go for that and nobody asked for it.

How about the "honest Abe's" that were gonna guess HUPC, but ultimately didn't, reach out to Rob and he figures out how to make them feel better about themselves. I'm sure you'll be less likely to rob him than you would be to rob the 4 of us who got it right, of our third round win. No credit should be issued to the would-be guessers for the round to keep the overall competition moving. 

Here's the impact to the competition if you remove round 3:

@awkwardPause would still be perfect at 2/2 but tied with 6 others instead of alone in 1st

@Lady Slayer and @fastkiller13 would still be perfect at 0/2 (sorry guys) instead of tied with 26 others (at 1/3)

And I would go back to 1/2 (tied with 28 others) instead of being 2/3 (tied with 7 others)

If only 4 of us got it right isn't this round almost a wash by default? What are you guys worried about? Only impacts 2 of us really for the overall Win, since the best Lady Slayer and fastkiller13 can do is tie. 

@jmg I'll echo your sentiment on how generous Rob is to us. Really? Cigar competitions for submitting photos? Super generous! Every other week they're looking for ways to keep us involved and give something away.

Spilled milk kids. Nothing to see here. 

[awkwardPause]

I’d like to give the FOH team a big thank you for their efforts in putting this together. I would not want to be the one wrapping nearly 100 little PC’s with those little white bands! I personally have really enjoyed this so far and despite the perceived hiccups in this particular round, I hope to see the competition continue on in future years since it provides a unique opportunity for us to really put our money with our mouth is and see what we can actually pick out in the cigars we enjoy so much in this hobby. Rob and crew are just ridiculously generous and I’m grateful for them putting this on.

 

As far as round #3, I mentioned in the comp thread already that at least a couple of us put a lot of thought into this pick and took a risk despite knowing its formal status in Cuba. That’s why this is fun! Just happened to get lucky.

 

I’d be ok with whatever decision is made and I trust Rob will be exceedingly fair, as always.

 

Thanks all

 

-B

 

 

 

 

 

[fastkiller13]

14 minutes ago, ElJavi76 said:

Not to be a stickler here (tongue firmly planted in cheek), but I guessed right...I get $25 bux and a good guess wiped out? Four of us took a chance with the discontinued Cuban. Ballsy, but your guess means nothing we're now moving to best of 4?

I was salty about cigar #2 and chatted here about my "displeasure". Only 10 guys got that right. I want a recount on that one cause I got it wrong and the underfilled cigar made it misleading... He said facetiously. LOL Nobody would go for that and nobody asked for it.

How about the "honest Abe's" that were gonna guess HUPC, but ultimately didn't, reach out to Rob and he figures out how to make them feel better about themselves. I'm sure you'll be less likely to rob him than you would be to rob the 4 of us who got it right, of our third round win. No credit should be issued to the would-be guessers for the round to keep the overall competition moving. 

Here's the impact to the competition if you remove round 3:

@awkwardPause would still be perfect at 2/2 but tied with 6 others instead of alone in 1st

@Lady Slayer and @fastkiller13 would still be perfect at 0/2 (sorry guys) instead of tied with 26 others (at 1/3)

And I would go back to 1/2 (tied with 28 others) instead of being 2/3 (tied with 7 others)

If only 4 of us got it right isn't this round almost a wash by default? What are you guys worried about? Only impacts 2 of us really for the overall Win, since the best Lady Slayer and fastkiller13 can do is tie. 

@jmg I'll echo your sentiment on how generous Rob is to us. Really? Cigar competitions for submitting photos? Super generous! Every other week they're looking for ways to keep us involved and give something away.

Spilled milk kids. Nothing to see here. 

@ElJavi76 You’ve convinced me, throw it out. Perfect is perfect, it’s pretty damn hard to be wrong all the time just ask my wife. Pretty much takes all the effort I can muster to never be right. 

[jmg]

i retract my suggestion of throwing #3 out. let it roll and lets get on with the rest of the comp. @awkwardpause #ftw #lol #everyonetranquilo #dohashtagsworkhere

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[Westside Threat]

We should just move on.  It is what it is so lets use this as a learning experience and chalk it up to miscommunication.  I think we would all agree CCW is the authoritative fact checker for Cuban Cigars.  So when we run an advanced search with accurate ring gauge/length and choose "Current Standard Production", the cigar in the competition should show up in that list if it is indeed a current production cigar.

Something to keep in mind for next year.  

[Philc2001]

5 hours ago, fastkiller13 said:

I propose that everyone mans up and take their lickings. I'm pretty sure one of the forum rules is don't be a wanker. 

I would agree wholeheartedly if it was all just a playful competition... nothing ventured, nothing lost. But we all paid to join this competition. I've already written it off, I'm not going to lose sleep over a $100 or whatever. But it does put the onus on the organizers of any paid competition to make sure everyone, including themselves, follow the rules. If you think that makes me a wanker... then that's your opinion, you're welcome to it, I won't loose sleep over that either. 

[jackupster]

18 hours ago, El Presidente said:

 

I apologise for any confusion on this one. 

Regular production to me meant available and non specialty.  At the time the Upmann Petit Corona was available on our carts.

I certainly did not mean to mislead anybody 

Didn't mean to start a ruckus. Whatever you decide is fine with me Prez. I just didn't consider it an option so I never pulled a HUPC out of my stash to compare. I had RJPC and BPC to compare with and did try them before mystery stick #3. RGPC is on my wish list but have missed them the last couple offerings. Thanks for the fun!

[fastkiller13]

27 minutes ago, Philc2001 said:

I would agree wholeheartedly if it was all just a playful competition... nothing ventured, nothing lost. But we all paid to join this competition. I've already written it off, I'm not going to lose sleep over a $100 or whatever. But it does put the onus on the organizers of any paid competition to make sure everyone, including themselves, follow the rules. If you think that makes me a wanker... then that's your opinion, you're welcome to it, I won't loose sleep over that either. 

I don’t think this was a paid competition. Yes we bought in with a small entry fee, $86 US I believe, but I’m also sure it was mentioned several times this was about having fun and expanding our pallets. 

So far we’ve smoked ~$25.50 in cigars. The next two seem to be a robusto and a pyramid so say they’re $10 each, that’s 45.50 in cigars. Plus what it cost to have the official bands removed and replaced with 1-5 bands on over 500 cigars. Plus the cigars that got trashed in the process because some guy putting bands on went crazy with the glue. Then they had to package and ship the cigars all over the world. 

I think blood, sweat, and tears went into this out of pure love for a hobby. So did we spend some money, yes but it was nowhere near what was put into making this competition happen. 

Should Pres send 100 people free cigars? Or should we all carry some of the weight? 

[Projectal]

As someone who really enjoys a good argument for the sake of arguing, I find myself in the unusual position as being a voice of reason. I’m having a lot of fun participating in this competition and I don’t want to give @Elpresidente a reason not to do this again next year.

I see it from both sides. Unbelievable call to the four who answered right. There’s no way they should be penalized for having the guts to pick a cigar that most of us thought was out of play. At the same time, I don’t think the rest of us should be penalized for staying within our version of the rules. So here’s what I propose...make it a 4 cigar contest, but give the four guys who chose correctly a half point.

[zeedubbya]

No dog in this fight (not exactly), but why not just put an asterisk next to the cigar #3 and if it ends up making the difference between someone winning or losing the entire competition after the next two cigars then figure it out.  It only really matters in this scenario right?  I have a sneaking suspicion it won’t be as close as this..

[prodigy]

No dog in this fight (not exactly), but why not just put an asterisk next to the cigar #3 and if it ends up making the difference between someone winning or losing the entire competition after the next two cigars then figure it out.  It only really matters in this scenario right?  I have a sneaking suspicion it won’t be as close as this..

I think some people feel cheated out of the 25$ disount they would have received for guessing right, regardless of winning the whole thing. I could care less, I have yet to get one right and I'm still having fun haha. One thing is sure, this will be interesting to watch unfold...

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[Philc2001]

26 minutes ago, Projectal said:

As someone who really enjoys a good argument for the sake of arguing, I find myself in the unusual position as being a voice of reason. I’m having a lot of fun participating in this competition and I don’t want to give @Elpresidente a reason not to do this again next year.

I see it from both sides. Unbelievable call to the four who answered right. There’s no way they should be penalized for having the guts to pick a cigar that most of us thought was out of play. At the same time, I don’t think the rest of us should be penalized for staying within our version of the rules. So here’s what I propose...make it a 4 cigar contest, but give the four guys who chose correctly a half point.

Unfortunately, I don't see any way to make everyone happy. That is the sticking part. I know I would have nailed this cigar 100%, it was my first and immediate call, but ruled it out because it was discontinued. In fact I actually looked up the rules to verify that it had to be current production. So I picked a different vitola specifically because of the rule, and I am sure others did too. Nobody deserves to be penalized, not those that guessed right in spite the rule, and certainly not those that didn't because they specifically followed the rule.  so giving extra points, or stars, or any scheme you come up with will be uneven and someone loses out, or someone gains an advantage, no matter what. 

[Guest Nekhyludov]

I really don't have a vested interest in any particular outcome. I'm not at any risk at all of winning anything.

I'm 0-3 and I can't credibly claim that I was going to pick HUPC. Whatever works for those affected is fine by me.

[El Presidente]

I will make a call this evening. The 4 who picked it won't be be inconvenienced.

[ayepatz]

When I last played, in typical Scottish fashion, I was defeated 5-0.

So I never got any discounts.

But I did get the 5 cigars I paid for.

And had a good bit of fun along the way.

This cigar community is first and foremost about fun and cameraderie.

If you have a personal grievance, I would suggest that you PM Rob directly, rather than airing it publicly, and repeatedly, on his forum.

None of us would be here were it not for him.

Let us not forget that, please.

[JACDO]

Well I’d just like to get my hands on some more of those HUPC.... it was fantastic.  For me that’s the beauty of this competition in that you try cigars you may never have thought would fit your taste profile.  Truth be told all this bickering takes the fun out of this competition.  My opinion simply is that if you didn’t chose HUPC... well you chose wrong.  Better luck with cigar # 4.  It would be a different story if it had been discontinued five years ago.  

With respect, 

JACDO

P.S. Ladyslayer is my son and we live in the same house and smoked it together. I chose wrong and he didn’t.  Good for him!

[El Presidente]

For the record, I haven't seen this as a major issue or anyone in particular having a crack. 

What occurred was from left field. HUPC were readily available at the time both here and around the world and it never even crossed my mind that there would be confusion.  The reality is that there has been confusion and that is my fault and it is up to me to rectify it as best I can. 

On the list of my screw ups for 2018, this doesn't rank in the top 100 and you are taking it far harder than I am! 

Now, I haven't had a chance to give it much thought but off the top of my head.

1.  Everyone gets 0 for this round. 
2. We record an asterix against those that got it correct and they can have their voucher. 
3. On completion of the comp, If any of those 4 miss out on a win because of this faux pax , then I will put up an additional prize for them (for me to determine). 

I may have missed something but in this case the only one really out of pocket will be myself. 

I need to assess it a little further this evening when I am back. Outside of that, all good.  Tranquilo. 

 

 

[fitzy]

Hmm this thing blew up a bit. I'm fine with whatever the boss decides. No biggie. I'm in the competition just to have fun and I've been lucky enough to get 1 right so far. 

 

Don't get me wrong I'd love to have another $25 off so I can buy another PLPC cab. 

[Colt45]

I've never taken part in the blind tastings (as I could never guarantee meeting the time deadlines), so take this as you will. In reading through all of this (and not just this year) I get the impression that members use senses / facilities other than purely taste to make determinations.

Much more striking to me is that it seems to have become more important to "win the prize", than have some fun and share some camaraderie..... True, you paid your entry, you have your expectations.

I guess I just look at RA, the Czar Crew, and the forum in a slightly different light......

 

Jackie, keep running the comps - it's good for your stress levels 

 

P.S. back in the early years of the forum, Rob would randomly announce a blind tasting - first ten members to respond. One cigar, sent out free, all around the world. I was lucky enough to be able to participate in a number of these. Invariably, we'd be lucky enough to have half or so of the responding members bother to smoke the cigars, review and make their educated guesses.

2007 SLR DC five year member review....... much of the same.

Merchant to some, more to others.

[prodigy]

My response has been sent regarding cigar #4. I feel like I knew instantly and only reassured that after a couple more puffs. Hopefully I don't strike out for good. I was getting a lot of pepper, but in a good way. Not a black pepper bomb NC way.

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[fitzy]

Smoking number 4 now. Unfortunately the construction was horrible and I didn’t have much luck getting it fixed with my perfecdraw.

It tastes very familiar to me. I can’t quite put my finger on it.

I think I had a sweet and creamy taste to mine.