Are Price increases affecting your enjoyment?

[jakebarnes]

I've recently noticed a wrinkle in a lot of reviews, daily posts, and posts in other forums that seems to add a new element to the enjoyment of the hobby: the cost of the cigar. Perhaps more specifically-- the new cost of the cigar compared to what you paid (e.g., "not worth the new price" and "just burned money")

So I guess I have the following questions:

- Have the increases changed your smoking habits and what you reach for?

- Has your enjoyment of the old world cigars you have dimished due to the increases?

- Do you factor in the current market/ environment when enjoying a cigar?

I'll leave my .02 for a bit later, but curious about what others are feeling. Please note: this is not a place to whine about distributor prices--just whether it factors into your smoking experience (as opposed to 5 months ago)

[cnov]

Can't say I'm a huge fan of having to spend more money, but I'll still do it.

I have a box of Fundadores and a 10 box of Siglo VI that I might struggle to crack now though. I'd be interested to try them but I could always just sell them and buy other boxes to increase the collection.

I'm in the process of building a collection to age, the lack of supply is the biggest frustration rather than price. Would be good to be able to simply buy the cigars I'm interested in rather than hoping they come up on 24:24 when I happen to be awake.

[KCCubano]

I dont even like nc's all that much but have been smoking more of them. I have cc stock to last another 10 years. Just being choosy if and when I buy more cc down the road. Not whining as is what it is at the moment. Have plenty of Trini and Cohiba. These will no longer be smoked as often. 

[LocoM]

Not happy, but never smoked a lot of Cohiba anyways. Like others said, I have more problems with the lack of supply. Running low on staples like El Rey CS and PL Picadores. 

[Pinkbottles]

Price definitely plays a role. Thankfully I mainly smoke pc so the value is still excellent compared to nc. Not to be a fear monger, but I think prices will continue to go up. Cuba is in a very dire situation right now and there’s nothing to be seen in the near future to improve things for them. If anything it’s going to get much worse for the country. Long term I think things are setting up for regime change but I don’t think it’s out of the question that their entire cigar business collapses. The only thing I can see preventing that is major involvement by the Chinese. Traditional Cuban allies are in the worst shape since the collapse of the ussr

[cmbarton]

I've been cozying up to marcas and vitolas that I once passed over and have been learning to appreciate them more.  My EL/RE stock is gone, my PSP/HQ regular production stock is my new EL/RE, and Value brands are my new regular production.  It's all just a matter of perspective, I guess.  Put another way, I'm panning for smaller and smaller nuggets of gold in an ever-increasingly muddy riverbed.  It's there though and that's what keeps me going.

[Bijan]

There's this Iranian joke. A guy gets on an empty bus and goes and stands holding onto the handrail, and his friend says what are you doing? the bus is completely empty why don't you take a seat? And the guy says in 5 minutes I won't even be able to get this spot.

Those of us in high-tax plain-packaging countries have been expecting doomsday for a while now.

And add to that the fact that some of my favourite cigars are cigars that were discontinued 20 years ago, and that some of the best vitolas practically don't exist in the CC world anymore, and it's just more of the same. For enthusiasts over the last 20 years, the CC game has been generally downhill with some few positive developments.

[Shrimpchips]

As someone who’s smoking habits are usually dictated by available time, I’m often smoking a PC or smaller format. They’re not outrageously expensive, so for the price of less than two beers at the local watering hole, I usually get an hour of relaxation time. Cumulative cost of building up a collection over the last two years certainly factors into how much more I want to pile into storage though.  I’m not often smoking the big dogs so for me and what I’m usually smoking, cost doesn’t creep into my enjoyment in the moment.  And when I do pull out something bigger, it’s usually because I want to dedicate the time to enjoy, so the cost to replicate the experience doesn’t creep in either, I just try to enjoy the moment. I’ve already put the money down to buy these cigars for myself, I’m not going to worry myself with how much someone else might pay for what I’ve got. And when it comes time to replace them, I’ll have the experiences to look back on and evaluate if it’s worthwhile at the current price, whatever it might be, to replace those cigars.  
 

As for saving cigars now that they’re pricey, unless you’re going to sell them for sure, it’s like collecting anything.  Are you collecting for the sake of owning it, or are you collecting it to enjoy the experience of it?  I choose experience, because you never know what tomorrow brings.  

[MPhillips]

My smoking has decreased due to a change in work schedule. I’ll still buy cigars I want. Currently I’ll only have one day a week to enjoy anything over a petite corona or robusto. Luckily I have a majority of shorter time frame cigars. 
I'm hoping in the upcoming months to increase as the weather should be better and should be lighter outside later. 

[Lunettesman]

As Freud said: the more expensive a psychotherapy is, the better it works. Does it applies to the more expensive a CoRo is, the better it is? Not sure...

 

I ve always a been a big fan of Trinidad. When they announced the price hike i bought as many as i could. I will be smoking them less often unfortunately. 

 

For the rest the price won't affect much on how i smoke. I might go from one stick per day to 4-5 a week but that's it. 

 

Last but not least. When I get a plugged stick, i m more frustrated than before. 

[KCCubano]

3 minutes ago, Lunettesman said:

As Freud said: the more expensive a psychotherapy is, the better it works. Does it applies to the more expensive a CoRo is, the better it is? Not sure...

 

I ve always a been a big fan of Trinidad. When they announced the price hike i bought as many as i could. I will be smoking them less often unfortunately. 

 

For the rest the price won't affect much on how i smoke. I might go from one stick per day to 4-5 a week but that's it. 

 

Last but not least. When I get a plugged stick, i m more frustrated than before. 

Agree on plugged sticks. Didnt seem as bad on a $6 stick. Now on same cigar thats now $10 is frustrating for sure

[J-Slay]

I haven't cracked a single box of Cohiba that I've purchased since joining here.  Ten or so boxes I think.  The plan was to age them all to 5 years.  I plan on smoking every single one.

[Ites]

19 minutes ago, Shrimpchips said:

As someone who’s smoking habits are usually dictated by available time, I’m often smoking a PC or smaller format. They’re not outrageously expensive, so for the price of less than two beers at the local watering hole, I usually get an hour of relaxation time. Cumulative cost of building up a collection over the last two years certainly factors into how much more I want to pile into storage though.  I’m not often smoking the big dogs so for me and what I’m usually smoking, cost doesn’t creep into my enjoyment in the moment.  And when I do pull out something bigger, it’s usually because I want to dedicate the time to enjoy, so the cost to replicate the experience doesn’t creep in either, I just try to enjoy the moment. I’ve already put the money down to buy these cigars for myself, I’m not going to worry myself with how much someone else might pay for what I’ve got. And when it comes time to replace them, I’ll have the experiences to look back on and evaluate if it’s worthwhile at the current price, whatever it might be, to replace those cigars.  
 

As for saving cigars now that they’re pricey, unless you’re going to sell them for sure, it’s like collecting anything.  Are you collecting for the sake of owning it, or are you collecting it to enjoy the experience of it?  I choose experience, because you never know what tomorrow brings.  

This sums it up nicely for me as well. 

[BrightonCorgi]

If you follow cigar pricing as all of us on this forum do, one cannot help but think "this cigar is now $25 when I paid $8, x years ago." 

Whether that gives us pause or not is individual.  Everyone is thinking about how much it will cost to replace the cigar they're smoking.

[Nocoins]

The increases probably will affect the frequency that I smoke the cigars affected by the increases to the greatest degree.  I haven't decided whether or when to replace them, but I haven't ruled it out. 

Each time I have a cigar, I just try to be honest with myself about how much I've enjoyed the smoke, no matter what it's called, where the tobacco originated, or what it cost when I paid for it. I don't really rate cigars on any scale other than whether (and how many times) I thought to myself while smoking it, "damn, that's tasty."  If I continue to enjoy expensive cigars enough to justify paying for more of them, I guess I will.  But the most enjoyable cigar I have smoked in the last 6 weeks cost $7.12 and I don't even know where the tobacco came from.

I'll use the Reyes as an example.  I smoked one about a month ago, in the morning with coffee.  It was okay, a fine little cigar for the time, but I've never thought of them as anything super special and irreplaceable.  I paid $8 for the Reyes and $2 for the coffee I drank with it.  I'd say for $10, the value was there.  If that same combo cost $25 or more, I'd never do it again and not miss it one bit.  I don't have any reason not to burn them up, and I don't have any reason to worry about not being able to replace them.

[Ford2112]

I smoked a Reyes the other day and savored every second of it,,whereas before I might not have paid as much attention. I think I enjoyed it more due to the fact I only have a limited supply of Trinidads and Cohiba and likely will buy very few more at these prices. As for consumption I will continue to smoke like a chimney.

[Tstew75]

Just remember this all-important saying: 'It is what it is'.  If you wanna defect to NCs, or slow way down on CCs, by all means do it.

Relax. Breathe. Enjoy. Be glad you can afford to & love to smoke the luxury item that is Cuban Cigars.

Outside of Cohiba/Trinidad, my enjoyment & relationship with CCs will not change at all. I'm incredibly happy (& oh so fortunate) to have found this hobby way back when. Cigars, fine wine & the like are all just cream.

[Islandboy]

As far as enjoyment, it’s business as usual for me. Fortunately, I spent the last 5 years buying significantly more than I smoke with the goal of having an aged collection in mind, so that has worked out nicely at this point. The other shift that just happened by chance last year is I've pretty much completely switched to purchasing customs and farm rolls since October, so I’ve already accumulated a several year supply of these, and I find the flavor profiles in general to be absolutely delicious.

I’ve got a pretty good supply of Cohiba, especially considering I’m not a huge fan of the Marca. The Trinidad factor looms the largest to me, as I really fell in love with La Trova several years ago, and Esmeralda more recently. Luckily I stockpiled the latter pretty well, but I’ll be reaching for them a bit less and more as a treat going forward.

[DaBoot]

There is perceived value in all items we buy. I enjoy the cigars I enjoy. I won’t be buying ones just because they are cheaper. I won’t be buying 35$ Media Luna or 65$ CORO either. 

 

. The price tag will negatively effect the experience for me ( working class guilt ) if I paid 50$.  But not for a regular production cigar. I won’t be splitting hairs between 8$ increased to 14$

 

[Homer]

I don’t care for Cohiba. Its for hipsters who has too much money and don’t know how to spend it.

I have smoked Reyes and I like much more Party shorts or RASCC.

I only buy good value cigars anymore since I already have des deux, MdOr2, Boli Gold medal etc.

 

[Tdm_86]

For me, the cigars I love and smoke the most didn’t really get that much of a price increase. Also, I’ve got enough in the collection to hold me over for a long while. 
So I haven’t paid it any extra thought and have enjoyed them as much as I ever did. 

[Hollywood Ninja]

I smoke both CC and NC, so I always felt like I was getting a deal with CC, especially with the formats that I usually smoke (Petit Corona, Corona, Minutos, Perlas).  With the price increases over the past few years I feel that many of the CC I smoke are now in line with the more boutique NC that I smoke, so I'm OK with that.  It's really all about supply now and not being able to replenish some of my favorites.

[joeypots]

Yes, the high price for Cohiba and Trinidad will prevent me from buying more and I’ll ration what I have selectively. That said, I’ve smoked some great cigars recently have been from the other marcas. Even at 800$ US, a 50 cab of RASS looks better to me than 25 CORO for 1300$. A 50$ cigar holds no allure for me, I find such a cigar gross.  I’d rather do other things with the $$$. If the RASS are as good as the recent production has been, if one can get them,  what to purchase is a no brainer.

[Rhinoww]

It’s the cost to replace that stick that I am smoking to be able to maintain a wide and full working collection that bring tears of bitterness to my eyes. 
 

[jakebarnes]

Now that this has gotten a little legs I'll throw in my take for now. I guess I find it a little odd that there comes an existential dread to enjoying a luxury leisure product. When I purchase a cigar, it is with the idea that I will gain some level of enjoyment in the relaxation while partaking in it. If I am lucky, I even have some good company. But in the end--I was definitely going to burn the cigar and it was going to go away. The concept of worrying about the next one or hand-wringing about what the current one costs feels counterintuitive to the purpose of the exercise that I partake in with a cigar--which is to clear some headspace. 

I appreciate all the responses so far. This has definitely been an interesting discussion for sure!