The Stogie Guys

With the economy still struggling and the SCHIP taxes taking effect this week, I’ve been thinking what the future might hold for the cigar industry. Here are a few of the questions I have:

1. Will General and Altadis move to increase their market shares? The two giants already control a large share of the market and have expanded their reach in recent years to include huge retailers, a magazine, distributors, and who knows what else. I would be flabbergasted if we don’t see more buyouts, especially of boutique manufacturers.

2. Will more states seek revenue by collecting sales taxes from online transactions? This, too, seems likely. Cigars are a miniscule component, but such a move would probably serve the interests of B&Ms, who’ve always had to collect the money.

3. Will Florida and Pennsylvania impose taxes on cigars and will low-tax states ratify increases? Taxes in Pennsylvania and Florida—both of which are considering taxes—would have an extraordinary impact on major online operations, as would boosts by low-tax states, such as North Carolina. Just think of how many operations are in those states (Cigars International, Famous Smoke Shop, JR Cigars, Holts, Thompson). Again, this would at least somewhat level the playing field for local shops and Internet sellers, but the end result would be higher prices for consumers.

4. Will cigar makers begin to pare back? Fancy boxes and intricate bands would be my candidates for extinction as costs go up. More limited editions could supplant introductions of new lines because of the need for less inventory.

5. Will the industry and its related organizations work to change the image of cigar smokers? The perception that cigar smokers are $10,000-watch-wearing, first-class-flying, Wall-Street-worshiping, wine-sipping snobs makes it easy to single them out for taxes. Getting out the truth about the vast majority of people who actually enjoy cigars would certainly help.

–George E

photo credit: WordPress

While I’d argue smoking cigars is more of an art than a science, over the years we’ve tried to provide you with dozens of tips to enhance your enjoyment. I hope you’ll take a moment to peruse our archives for everything from fixing an uneven burn and cigar auctions to winning the war on mold and establishing a good light.

My quick observations today, however, are far more subjective. I don’t claim to have the answer because, more than likely, there is no one good solution. If anything, I’m hoping to open a dialogue in which I would encourage you all to participate.

The topic, simply stated, is as follows: At what point do you stop smoking a cigar?

I realize this may sound like a silly question. But I ask because I’ve heard and witnessed a variety of different answers. For example, a number of enthusiasts, including at least one well-known cigar blogger, usually set down a cigar before it reaches the band. Here’s what our friend Jerry Cruz of Stogie Review told me via email yesterday:

“I normally (70% of the time) only smoke to the band. It has to do with my style of smoking…It’s not so much that I smoke too fast, but more that I keep the cigar in my mouth the whole time. I don’t put it down in an ashtray to rest. So you can imagine how saturated the end can get from my saliva. When I approach the band I know I’m coming close to the part that is just soured/harsh by my saliva and it isn’t really fair to judge a cigar at that point, due to my style of smoking. Its odd…I know.”

To each his own. Jerry employs a unique style that seems to work for him.

Still others practice the polar opposite, resolutely smoking each stick down to the nub. Smokers from this school know the best time to quit is a few minutes after your fingers start burning because they’re too close to the encroaching flame.

I, like most cigar enthusiasts, fall somewhere between these two camps, allowing the cigar and the situation to dictate when it’s best for me to set down my stogie. Some cigars, namely those that perform poorly or develop an unpleasant taste in the final third, deserve a premature death. Others merit a long, drawn-out goodbye, especially those that improve as they progress.

While the “play it by year” approach works well for me, only you can determine what’s best for you. So, before you leave today, please share your strategy with Stogie Guys readers: How low do you go?

–Patrick A

photo credit: Flickr

Last month, Patrick S wrote a most interesting article on junk science. If you haven’t read it, you should take a few minutes and do so; it’ll  get you thinking.

That commentary prompted me to wonder about the related issue of risk. I find it fascinating how we perceive risk, how we deal with it, interpret it, and how we so often disregard it. So many factors play a part it’s impossible to generalize. But I think a large part is our general mathematical ignorance and our faith in what we think we know despite the evidence.

One recent example is a study that found exposure to secondhand smoke could double the likelihood of suffering from depression. Could be. Does it matter? Maybe, maybe not. It’s impossible to tell without a reference point, such as the general rate for depression.

No stories I saw provided that, which isn’t surprising since my cursory checks indicate authorities tend to disagree on the U.S. rate. For adults, many reports put it somewhere between 5-6% during a year. That’s roughly 1 in 18. Double it you’ve got 1 in 9. Sure, it’s greater, but I’ll guarantee you that isn’t how most people react when they hear “double.” If the change was reported as going from about 1 in 20 to about 1 in 10, would that sound as alarming?

Similarly, we don’t tend to associate high risk with things we’re comfortable with. Otherwise, why would we be willing to risk consuming so much rodent hair, excretion, insect parts, mold, maggots, and other disgusting things in what we eat and drink every day? Just take a spin through the FDA’s “Food Defect Action Levels: Levels of Natural or Unavoidable Defects in Foods that Present No Health Hazards for Humans.” Commenting in the New York Times, an op-ed writer noted “you’re probably ingesting one to two pounds of flies, maggots, and mites each year without knowing it.”

The cause of the risk is also important to the way we see it. And this is where we get closer to tobacco. First, though, detour to a substance nearly everyone would agree is more dangerous: crack cocaine. It’s been viewed as so dangerous, in fact, women have been imprisoned for using it while pregnant in the belief they were subjecting their babies to extreme risk. Now scientists who’ve actually studied the children as they grew report the impact “on children’s brain development and behavior appear relatively small,” according to the Times. The director of a major study said that while there are differences, “Are they big? No.”

Some things, I guess, can’t just be risky; they’ve got to be life-threatening.

We deal with risk and chance all the time. Some exploit it, some exaggerate it, some minimize it, and many don’t really understand it. That’s why we’re often so amazed with such statements as, “The odds are nearly 200 times greater you will die from flesh-eating bacteria (1 in 1 million) than you will win the Powerball lottery (1 in 200 million).”

Me, I’m getting ready to light up a 601 Red Robusto, and I know the risk of not enjoying it is very, very small.

–George E

photo credit: Blogspot.com

What with rising cigar prices, rising cigar taxes and rising economic anxiety, most of us are looking for ways to save money. With that in mind, here are a few tips and thoughts you may not have considered, and at least one I’m sure you have.

1. If you are the sort of occasional smoker who chooses a good cigar when you have the time and place to enjoy it, it can be difficult to save money without sacrificing some pleasure. (Unless, of course, you’re routinely toasting $20-$30 cigars, in which case you probably don‘t need my advice.) I think your best bet is to try to identify what it is you like most about your current sticks and see if there is a lower-priced line that’s close. Some of the smaller brands, such as Oliva, Alec Bradley, Camacho, and Toraño, have good, cheaper offerings.

2. For those who smoke regularly, take a good look at when and how you’re smoking. Do you barely notice a stick or two a day smoked while working? Or on the golf course? Or during a poker game? If this is the case, you could look at lower-priced sticks for those occasions. My advice on where to find them is different from what you frequently hear. I recommend the cheaper lines made by giants Altadis or General rather than searching out no-name bundles. The reasons? Consistency, quality, and availability. If you can find one you like, you can be pretty sure that the next one will taste like the previous one. And the likelihood of plugs, split wrappers, or bad rolls is smaller. Finally, it’s easy to find a couple of singles to try before you commit.

3. Similarly, don’t overlook the house brands at your local B&Ms. Again, the advantage is that you can smoke a couple before committing to a box or bundle. Many house brands are moderate- to low-priced and often they’re good (or even great) smokes.

4. This one’s been said a thousand times, but it bears repeating—and remembering. Don’t go nuts on cigar auction sites. If you engage, set limits and stick to them.

In the end, don’t forget what cigar smoking is all about: individual pleasure and enjoyment. Only you can decide how much that’s worth.

–George E

photo credit: Flickr

With the economy putting a strain on disposable income, I suspect cigar makers are going to find it increasingly difficult to sell pricey sticks at the rates they’re used to. Sure, the truly magnificent cigars will always find a home. But as for the endless stream of “premium” and “ultra-premium” cigars, manufacturers are going to have to offer cigar enthusiasts more if we’re expected to dish out that much on a regular basis.

Fortunately, that model already exists. Perhaps not surprisingly (because many aspects of cigar culture are already borrowed from wine) that model is wine. The popular ratings systems we’re accustomed to were adapted from wine ratings, as was much of the terminology that we use to describe how cigars taste and smell.

Here are three ways the cigar industry, and particularly “premium” and “ultra-premium” cigar makers, would benefit from being more like the wine industry:

Embrace Vintages

When it comes to wines, particularly the best (with the exception of champagne), there is no escaping the fact that wines vary from year to year. While wineries strive to consistently make good products, changes in climate yield changes in grapes over time.

The same is true of tobacco. Yet most cigar makers pretend their creations made from tobacco from varied seasonal conditions will end up tasting identical. All this despite the fact that many consumers are sophisticated enough to realize that, like wine, the high quality tobacco that makes up premium cigars won’t be identical in taste from year to year.

Better Labeling

While far from universal, wine makers are much more forthcoming with information about their products. Vintages, origins, breakdowns of the blend—all are regularly found on bottles of wine, and making some some or all of that information available to consumers would greatly benefit the cigar industry, too.

Wine is as much identified by the varietals of grapes (such as pinot noir or shiraz) as by the region or vineyard. But the types of tobacco (and in what proportions) are rarely disclosed by cigar makers. Pulling back the curtain of cigar blending may seem like a risk, but I think the increased information will make more smokers into connoisseurs. And as they understand the complexity of today’s finest cigars, they will grow more likely to shell out money for the finest blends.

Embrace Aging

Some wines are made to drink soon after production and some need years or even decades before they are at their best. Aging cigars certainly isn’t unheard of. Many top collectors and connoisseurs patiently age their smokes despite an unspoken hostility by much of the cigar industry.

Like the difference between vintages, cigar makers often pretend that their cigars are at their best from day one. But we’ve all experienced cigars that need six months or more before they reach their peak and others that benefit from years of aging to fine-tune their subtleties and complexities. If cigars embrace the fact that not every cigar will be at its peak immediately upon release, I think they’ll find that many smokers will welcome their frankness and reward them by purchasing more of the best premium cigars for extended aging.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Flickr

While some stories are more exciting than others, it’s always interesting to learn how and when people became cigar smokers. We all share a common bond—a love of the leaf, if you will—and discovering the various paths we’ve taken to arrive at the same conclusion can help put our own experiences in perspective.

Well, maybe that’s a reach. But, at the very least, we’re bound to come across a few worthy tales from occasional smokers and full-blown cigar enthusiasts alike. In that spirit, and even though the tot in this dated photo surely has a more interesting story than any of ours, here’s how (and approximately when) each StogieGuys.com team member got their start.

Co-Founder & Editor in Chief Patrick A

I can’t remember my first cigar, but I’m fairly certain I smoked it during my high school days. Probably on the golf course or the back deck of my parent’s home in Chicago. I’m pretty positive, however, that I smoked it with my dad. He has casually enjoyed cigars for as long as I can recall and—way before I ever got to smoke one myself—wasn’t averse to taking me into tobacco shops or letting me hang around and enjoy the aroma of whatever he was smoking (back then, usually anything from Punch). Save for the summers back home, I mostly took a cigar hiatus as an undergrad, spending whatever disposable income I had at bars. It wasn’t until I moved to the nation’s capital to pursue a career and a master’s degree that I really increased my intake and, ultimately, started reading and writing about cigars whenever I could.

Co-Founder & Publisher Patrick S

I too don’t exactly remember my first cigar, but I’m reasonably certain I had it on a golf course when I was 16 or 17. I would go with a friend to a local magazine/card shop/smoke shop to peruse the cabinet humidor. Thankfully, we went for some decent handmade brands—Romeo y Julieta and Punch, at first—and they accepted my shoddy fake ID.  Before I knew it, I purchased a Cigar Aficionado and was buying cigars from a local shop based on their CA ratings, always to be smoked while golfing, sailing, or at the beach. CAO Cameroon and Maria Mancini were two of my favorites back then. A few years later, during college, I was smoking a cigar every month or two, and even smuggled my first box of Cuban cigars into the country. Once I graduated, entered the “real world,” and had a back deck, I caught the cigar bug full blast.

Tampa Bureau Chief George E

I wish I had a better story—or at least a clearer memory—of how I got interested in cigars. I suppose it goes back to cigarettes, which I smoked for 25 years or so. I quit sometime in the 1980s when it began to get more and more difficult to light up. I had my last Marlboros when it was still possible to smoke at your desk and just about everywhere else. I used to joke that I was going to start smoking again when I retired. Before that, though, we bought a small condo in Florida and on vacations there I was exposed to cigars. Like Miami, the cigar culture is pretty strong around the Tampa area. Somehow, I just fell into it. And fell for it.

So, now that we’ve shared our tales, how and when did you start smoking cigars?

–The Stogie Guys

photo credit: Flickr

It happens to me from time to time, and I’m sure it has happened to many of you too. You’re sitting at one of the increasingly rare bars that allow smoking, enjoying a cigar, and suddenly you’re being harassed by an anti-tobacco zealot.

Often they flap their hands around, pretending to cough as they wave smoke from their face. On rarer occasions they will confront you to loudly proclaim, “That stinks! Can’t you put it out?” They might even laughably suggest you are killing them or giving them lung cancer by smoking nearby.

I write “laughably,” by the way, because even government studies suggest non-smokers need to live with smokers for decades before any measurable increased risk is detected. So a few seconds, hours, or even days adds virtually zero risk. But I digress.

How to respond to such a person is not an easy question to answer. We cigar smokers are generally considerate people, so while telling them to buzz off with some choice words has its appeal, that’s not the route I usually take. Instead, I often just say sorry it offends you and go on smoking, or recommend a nearby bar that doesn’t allow smoking. If it’s not inconvienent for me I may even move to another part of the bar.

But since the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP ) is about to be funded through massive tax increases on tobacco, including roughly 40 cents per smoke for premium cigars, I’ve got a new reply to this annoying breed of anti-tobacco zealot: “I’m smoking this cigar for the children.”

After all, only with enough smoking will the government be able to pay for the SCHIP program. In fact, it is estimated that 22 million new smokers will be needed to fully fund the egregious scheme.

And that brings me to the final thing to say to the kind of person who would harass a complete stranger engaged in a perfectly legal activity. From now on, I plan on asking: “Why aren’t you smoking? Don’t you care about the children?”

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys