Piggy's Picks

[PigFish]

I've gravitated towards smaller ringed cigars the past 4 or 5 years myself, as my tastes have changed. (I wasn't suggesting you would change Pig, I forgot to inculde the old fart exception )

Someone had just said how everyone's palate is different. While that is true, I just think sometimes we forget, especially when starting out, that what we like now will likely not be exactly the same years from now.

Anyway cheers!

This was very true for me as well. I did not start on board with narrow ring cigars, I learned to like them through exposure and an open mind. Empirically, they just taste better to me. Where you may say, "change" I prefer the term "mature." There is a confidence in the position, yours or mine, that can't really be argued for or against. No one knows the future. I cannot prove the eventuality of preferring slender cigars but it is a trend of maturity that I have noticed over the years. From my perspective, and the reason I use the term mature, I believe it to be a one way street. That is of course until such time that I can no longer buy such cigars. In that eventuality I may stop cigar smoking altogether. Larger ring cigars, like NC cigars, just don't please me. I gave up smoking NC cigars a long while ago. If the Cubans stop making cigars that I enjoy; I will give them up as well!

As a matter of having a coterie of experienced smokers as friends I have noticed that there is a broader open mindedness with them and smaller ring cigars. Many of my friends, prefer them as I do, but again, like me, they don't exclude larger ring cigars completely. They just prefer and tend to buy a bulk of their cigars in medium or smaller rings. It is a matter of preference as you stated; there is no right or wrong in it.

As a kid I preferred simpler foods. I liked American cheese! Now that I have greater experiences I tend to prefer different cheeses. I don't exclude American cheese for certain things... hamburgers and such, but as a stand alone item, I prefer a more pungent choice in cheeses.

Cheers! -Piggy

Cheers. - Piggy

[PigFish]

I was not going to smoke today but the day was so damn nice! Lady Piggy suggested that I take a cigar down to the horses and smoke and relax with "my girls." Damn... sometimes Lady Piggy has great ideas!

I chose a really nicely made Monte #3. These are out of a 5x5 pack that I bought so they reside, what is left of them, in a loose drawer in my Aristocrat. This cigar had a nice seen beyond satin and like I stated was really a nice looking sample.

Forget the cigar and feed me!

The first puffs were pleasant enough but the cigar just did not pick up any steam.

The first third the cigar was just not advancing. I experienced mild tobacco flavor with some medium tannins and a bit of an acrid finish. I thought to myself that this cigar is going to be a disappointment. Speaking of disappointments, am I the only one that thinks that most of the Monte line is overproduced and overrated? I mean I can pick up a D-3, or a Punch Corona, Party Corona and others and get a better cigar for less money than these Montes. It is a damn shame that I have been reduced to so few choices in the coronas size. What venerable cigars the coronas cigars used to be; all but lost now!

The 2/3 was about the same and it was only into the last 1/3 that cigar finally opened up and began to perform. The flavors suddenly became more robust and aromatic. I began to get a goodly amount of alspice and although monotonic, more of what a Montecristo and a Cuban cigar ought to be.

Overall I was pretty disappointed with the cigar. There are so many better cigars than these. It is unfortunate that with this being one of the last remaining coronas that they can't get them right. I guess all my bitching made MoMo a little upset.

You takin' 'bout me?

Cheers. -

[Bartolomeo]

Great thread, great pics, great guy

Bart

[PADDYWHACK121272]

Now that the thread is up and running I am enjoying it thoroughly - after all surely a good smoke is about the total experience: right time, place, event, friends, livestock etc...? Keep 'em coming PigFish...

[android]

Great post and pics Mr. Piggy! I noticed that you have some EL's in your humi, surely those must be for someone else?

[thechenman]

Nice review Piggy...nice horses...

[PigFish]

Great post and pics Mr. Piggy! I noticed that you have some EL's in your humi, surely those must be for someone else?

... I've been discovered!

The truth is I don't often buy them. The last box of EL's that I actually wanted was the '06 Cohiba Mids. I liked the first ones at the turn of the millennium, but these are crap. I have a box of the big Monte Sublimes; a vendor owed me 100 pounds and I took them in lieu of a refund. I think the box before that might have been '03 or '04. I think if a cigar is a success over time then people had better want to buy them by the box, don't you? I mean if many of these cigars were regular production, the interest would fade and the value comparison would sink in eventually making people see that they generally are a poor value for the connoisseur. On the flip side, cigar experience is a good thing. I truly want to try every new cigar made but don't want to so badly that I pursue the endeavor rigorously or spend any amount of money on the quest. I have discovered Cuban cigars! And in that discovery I have learned that a cigar is only "so" good. That good is hardly ever correlated to the price I paid!

These cigars are gifts, trades and some singles purchases. I do try some EL's. That is how I know that I don't like them (generally) and think they are a gip; they are certainly not a value to me. -Piggy

[android]

... I've been discovered!

The truth is I don't often buy them. The last box of EL's that I actually wanted was the '06 Cohiba Mids. I liked the first ones at the turn of the millennium, but these are crap. I have a box of the big Monte Sublimes; a vendor owed me 100 pounds and I took them in lieu of a refund. I think the box before that might have been '03 or '04. I think if a cigar is a success over time then people had better want to buy them by the box, don't you? I mean if many of these cigars were regular production, the interest would fade and the value comparison would sink in eventually making people see that they generally are a poor value for the connoisseur. On the flip side, cigar experience is a good thing. I truly want to try every new cigar made but don't want to so badly that I pursue the endeavor rigorously or spend any amount of money on the quest. I have discovered Cuban cigars! And in that discovery I have learned that a cigar is only "so" good. That good is hardly ever correlated to the price I paid!

These cigars are gifts, trades and some singles purchases. I do try some EL's. That is how I know that I don't like them (generally) and think they are a gip; they are certainly not a value to me. -Piggy

Busted.... I agree with your comments....I will be the first to admit that I have been "Whored Out" by HSA when it comes to EL's. Early retirement and the desire to stay that way has me being more fiscally responsible....am I getting a better smoking experience for the cost of EL's....Ahhhhh HELL NO! I know what I like when it comes to cigars....I have for nearly 20 yrs. unfortunately HSA is ******* that up for me but the good news is that maybe in 1-3 yrs. I will have all the cigars I need to last me till my departure from this world.

[PigFish]

So Tabacuba is not comprised of stupid people after all.

This is a Le Hoyo du Depute. There are so many on the list I can't remember wether they discontinued these or not. Well they should! (Tabacuba logic speaking now) Why? Because when you can buy a 3-4 buck stick and it tastes better than a 10 dollar cigar with 5 times the tobacco, they are doing something wrong with something. So they cancel the better cigar!!! I mean why cancel the more expensive cigar?

The du Depute is one of my favorite cigars. This one is from '00 I wish I owned a 1000 of these! -

[ksblazer]

I'm really enjoying this thread as well. It's nice to hear about one's smoking experience and their thoughts. Look forward to the next post(s)

[PigFish]

Thank you for the reply(s). I am trying to take a few days off of cigars. Sometimes I just need to do it to regain some perspective. I have found myself smoking 2+ cigars a day again and that exceeds my current budget and begins to make cigar smoking more of a habit than an indulgence. I like to think of cigar smoking as a hedonistic indulgence so sometimes I must break the "habit cycle" as a means to refocus on the luxury of the moments and not the desires of the moments. Cheers! -

[PigFish]

The sun had emerged just long enough to get in a little ride around Isla PigFish. So off I went with a few cigars to the local biker spot. The wind was brisk but the camaraderie was good as I recommend a couple of smokers to come here and join us. I enjoyed a wonderful Partagas Lonsdale which might have completed the last of my open box. How they could kill off this cigar... well I know how they could do it, we have the wonderful (sarcastic) P2 now instead. Funny... how I would trade the P2 off for any of the now deceased Partagas line; the PC, Coronas or the Lonsdale, not to mention the my favorite cigar the Seleccion Privada.

The bike pics are from a ride Christmas Eve. Only the names have changed to protect the innocent! Cheers! -

The well heeled bikers smokin' accessories!

A nice view from the road.

My friend and ally!

[samb]

Nice pics!

[mkz]

Love this thread!!

[android]

Great pic's Sir. Piggy.

[Bartolomeo]

Thanks for sharing Ray!

Bart

[aavkk]

Keep em coming Ray and thanks for sharing. Just out of curiosity can you be a little more mindful of the boxcodes if possible on future posts? Great pics as well!

[PigFish]

Keep em coming Ray and thanks for sharing. Just out of curiosity can you be a little more mindful of the boxcodes if possible on future posts? Great pics as well!

If I take pictures of boxes then the codes are no problem. In all honesty I am not really a box code kinda guy anymore. Most of the time when I send cigars to friends I will add the vintage year if I remember it but with recent production being so good it (arguably) does not matter much, at least to me. In a lot of cases these cigar may be out of my singles drawers and have gone long past me keeping any notes on them. Much of the time these cigars would not be readily available today at least in the same code but sometimes I have a good idea what the year was.

...But!

If you would like to know a code or a year on something that I post about please don't hesitate to ask. Just because it is of little interest to me does not mean that I won't try to find it for you if you think it worthwhile.

I am still planning on doing full reviews like all members should and I try to abide by the general full review rules like the rest when doing so. -R

[Boosted]

Thanks for the great pics and reviews Piggy. Keep up the great work!

[PigFish]

I have been in a ******* cigar dead zone. You guys ever get into a smoking funk? I am in one now. I mean until today I had not smoked a cigar that I have enjoyed for about 10 days now. I have hit all my usual boxes; the du Rois, the RG CE's even my PLPC's. I wonder when this happens if it is me or whether I am drawing bad cigars. I think it is me.

I chose and smoked a nice Siglo 3 today (07) while sitting with my horses. Man I needed it, I was getting pretty disappointed with cigars. - Cheers

-

[Habanos2000]

I have been in a ******* cigar dead zone. You guys ever get into a smoking funk? I am in one now. I mean until today I had not smoked a cigar that I have enjoyed for about 10 days now. I have hit all my usual boxes; the du Rois, the RG CE's even my PLPC's. I wonder when this happens if it is me or whether I am drawing bad cigars. I think it is me.

I chose and smoked a nice Siglo 3 today (07) while sitting with my horses. Man I needed it, I was getting pretty disappointed with cigars. - Cheers

-

I only smoke once or twice a week kinda because of the situation you state. I can't smoke them back to back, one day after the other because I just don't seem to enjoy the second one. Actually gets me VERY disinterested in cigars and I don't want that to happen.

Only thing that's worse is waiting a week and then having the cigar disappoint for whatever reason.

[PigFish]

I just thought I would add a placeholder for my Petit Edmundo Review.

[perfectform]

Here, piggy piggy piggyyyyy Out of your funk yet?

[PigFish]

Here, piggy piggy piggyyyyy Out of your funk yet?

No, not really, thanks for asking. Unfortunately I have been ill for the past couple of weeks. I am still trying to find the cause, more heart problems or otherwise. I have not smoked a cigar in what seems like an eternity. This has been a long dry spell for me. Cigars have just been making me sick! I am really hoping that I can get back to health soon and back to smoking but I admit that cigars are hard to miss when they make you want to puke!

It is why I have not been around much. I had a freind send me some really nice cigars including a 6 Reserva. I have been meaning to post about it and I want to review it but I can't until I am better. While not smoking about the only contribution that I am inclinded to make here are those regarding humidors or politics. Not wanting to raise hell I am just laying low until I am on my feet again. Hopefully some of the tests that I have undergone will be bearing fruit here in the next few days and I will have a pathway to getting better and back to my cigars.

Thanks for digging up the thread! -Ray

[Chaki]

I hope everything is going to be alright.

Get well soon!