Advice wanting to start smoking premium cigars

[Omega_guy123]

Not smoked cigs for about 15 years. Wanted to try a nice Cuban cigar for years but never got around to it.

I’m 46 and In UK

Any advice? Where to buy etc

Heard I need to start mild

 

[Omega_guy123]

 

[Karbon74]

Suggest you find a luxury hotel with a cigar bar, and ask the waiter for something. With friends even better.

Much of the cigar experience is the setting and a good drink with it.

It will be much more expensive than buying in a shop but for a first cigar, trust me

 

[starlantic]

The cigar that got me started on the path of finer sticks was an Arturo Fuente Hemingway Short Story. It's a smaller cigar, perfect size for a newer cigar smoker. About a 15-20 minute smoke. On the milder side but still flavorful.

I'd just do a search for cigars UK and you'll find plenty of online shops unless you're specifically looking for a brick and mortar. If I were you, I'd go the B&M route, grab a Short Story, and enjoy it in their lounge. Or like Karbon said, a hotel with a cigar bar.

 

[Andrew_watchlist]

Not smoked cigs for about 15 years. Wanted to try a nice Cuban cigar for years but never got around to it.

I’m 46 and In the UK

Any advice? Where to buy etc

Heard I need to start mild

Sadly, since covid, Habanos SA has equalised worldwide prices of Cubans with Hong Kong pricing (they have the highest duty in the world). So what I would have recommended is now stupidly priced.

I find milder cigars are somewhat ‘grassy’ in flavour and not at all nuanced. So, mild is not always the best start.

I am slightly toasted at mo as on holiday, will post something more useful info-wise tomorrow.

Romeo and Julieta are a safe bet i smoke the number one tubos and the wide/petit Churchill often. Attached pic of tonight's smokes.

 

[Michaelh]

I agree with the cigar bar idea, just wanted to add that unless Cubans are specifically important to you that you may be more successful just getting what is recommended to you. As a sometime cigar smoker of 20 years, I don’t think the Cubans that I’ve gotten brought up from Mexico every few years by friends are on the top ten of great cigars I’ve smoked (although that’s highly anecdotal).

 

[Kerbus]

I have the misfortune of living in the US where Cubans are illegal but I do enjoy Fuentes and Padrons. If you ever visit a good cigar like Holts in Philly or the ,former Nat Sherman in NYC, you can learn about cigars from the informative staff. I absolutely love stores like that and if I didn’t care about my health, I’d smoke much more often than I do.

 

[Michaelh]

I have the misfortune of living in the US where Cubans are illegal but I do enjoy Fuentes and Padrons. If you ever visit a good cigar like Holts in Philly or the ,former Nat Sherman in NYC, you can learn about cigars from the informative staff. I absolutely love stores like that and if I didn’t care about my health, I’d smoke much more often than I do.

It’d be so much better if I could sustain caring about my health

 

[joshhb8282]

Not Cuban but a personal fav that is a great all arounder without breaking the bank - ttps://www.bestcigarprices.com/cigar-directory/padron-anniversario-serie-1926-cigars/padron-anniversario-serie-1926-40th-anniversario-natural-19124h/

 

[Michaelh]

Not Cuban but a personal fav that is a great all arounder without breaking the bank - ttps://www.bestcigarprices.com/cigar-directory/padron-anniversario-serie-1926-cigars/padron-anniversario-serie-1926-40th-anniversario-natural-19124h/

Padron has literally never steered me wrong

 

[GingerBubba]

My advice would be not to start tbh, but hey, you're still young and stupid so these places are all good spots in you're darn sarf:

Cigar shops, sampling lounges, and terraces in London

I have compiled a list of cigar shops, sampling lounges, and terraces throughout London, complete with links to my experiences at each. I will also feature newly opened and upcoming cigar shops, lo…

londoncigarsmoker.com

 

[justaguyyy]

My advice is have a nice meal beforehand, the nicotine will probably hit pretty hard and you want to avoid feeling sick. Then, order a nice drink with the cigar, people say it helps with cooling and cleansing the palate, I personally just like to avoid a sticky/dry mouth. As for cigars - depend on how much you're willing to spend. I used to only smoke Cuban, but since the plague happened, they've been hard to find in any serious quantities and I just take what I can get, I find most modern Cubans made today to be quite mild and smooth, so you really can't go wrong with anything. A nice Robusto would have the ring size and length that will give you about 45min of pleasant smoking. Most hotel cigar lounges will have a R&J Short Churchill available, just go with that and don't be surprised if it ends up being your favorite cigar.
Enjoy!

 

[starlantic]

My advice is have a nice meal beforehand, the nicotine will probably hit pretty hard and you want to avoid feeling sick. Then, order a nice drink with the cigar, people say it helps with cooling and cleansing the palate, I personally just like to avoid a sticky/dry mouth. As for cigars - depend on how much you're willing to spend. I used to only smoke Cuban, but since the plague happened, they've been hard to find in any serious quantities and I just take what I can get, I find most modern Cubans made today to be quite mild and smooth, so you really can't go wrong with anything. A nice Robusto would have the ring size and length that will give you about 45min of pleasant smoking. Most hotel cigar lounges will have a R&J Short Churchill available, just go with that and don't be surprised if it ends up being your favorite cigar.
Enjoy!

Definitely good advice. Unless you're a seasoned smoker, never smoke on an empty stomach. That got me remembering Nick Perdomo's videos. He has lots of great info for new cigar smokers. How not to get sick, cutting, lighting, etc.

Perdomo Cigars

Perdomo Cigars was established in 1992 by Nick and Janine Perdomo in their garage. Today, The company is the 4th largest in the world and growing. To find out more about us, visit www.perdomocigars.com and follow us on Instagram and Facebook. Thank you.

www.youtube.com

 

[Michaelh]

My advice would be not to start tbh, but hey, you're still young and stupid so these places are all good spots in you're darn sarf:

Cigar shops, sampling lounges, and terraces in London

I have compiled a list of cigar shops, sampling lounges, and terraces throughout London, complete with links to my experiences at each. I will also feature newly opened and upcoming cigar shops, lo…

londoncigarsmoker.com

Hey you’re supposed to save the best advice for guys like me- old and stupid!

 

[Andrew_watchlist]

Sadly, since covid, Habanos SA has equalised worldwide prices of Cubans with Hong Kong pricing (they have the highest duty in the world). So what I would have recommended is now stupidly priced.

I find milder cigars are somewhat ‘grassy’ in flavour and not at all nuanced. So, mild is not always the best start.

I am slightly toasted at mo as on holiday, will post something more useful info-wise tomorrow.

Romeo and Julieta are a safe bet i smoke the number one tubos and the wide/petit Churchill often. Attached pic of tonight's smokes.

Just following up, the Don Tomas although not Cuban was an exceptional smoke, flavourful without being OTT strength-wise, draw was good which is hit and miss with vmcubans, (often too tight) and I got about 40mins with it. Paid 7€ for it.

 

[Omega_guy123]

Suggest you find a luxury hotel with a cigar bar, and ask the waiter for something. With friends even better.

Much of the cigar experience is the setting and a good drink with it.

It will be much more expensive than buying in a shop but for a first cigar, trust me

Thanks for the reply. I will try that

 

[Kerbus]

Live music, good booze, good cigars=good times

 

[Omega_guy123]

Thanks guys for all the reply’s.

There’s an online store who have a shop not too far from me. I’ll call in one day next week and grab something.

Think going to a cigar lounge would be best, the cutting, lighting and smoking all look complicated to a newbie

 

[Kerbus]

You’ll get cutting and lighting in no time. I cut the end of the cigar precisely now so that I only cut off the end cap. Takes practice. With lighting, I just never dip the cigar in the flame and I puff lightly, it just comes together and then its second nature

 

[Omega_guy123]

suppose it’s just a matter of practice then. As a cig smoker previously for years it seems like there’s so much more to think about lol