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Ah, makes sense, sometimes it takes me a while... :D

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Blenders create a "recipe" of sorts and they intentionally manipulate leaf placement and leaf proportion (Ligero, Seco, Volado - fillers and Capotes - Binders) along the length of a cigar to achieve a specific development in the overall flavor profile of a cigar.

They also take into account the leaf orientation (tip-stem alignment) which also provides a specific progression of flavor as well.

I also believe that capping a cigar not only indicates the blender's preferred end to smoke but also allows for oxygen to end the cigar and merry the blend over time (an unfounded claim, I admit). It would be interesting to take two identical cigars and cap both ends of one and age them to compare (which I haven't done yet).

Anyway, I hope this helps

~Mark

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Fantastic analogy!

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I was smoking a "house" cigar yesterday. It's a cigar that I've had in the past and I really liked. This one has been in my humidor (68% humidity) for about 6 months now and when I was smoking it, it tasted a little stale.
This was the first time that I have kept a "house" cigar this long and was wondering if these cheaper cigars typically don't age well? I know some wines need to be consumed sooner than later, others it gets better as you let it sit, yet others it doesn't matter. Is this the same with cigars?

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Six months should not affect a cigar adversely. That short a period is only rest, aging requires years, some say decades. Often "House" cigars are short batch cigars and the blends are very inconsistent. But I have also had cigars from the same box or bundle show totally different tastes, most recently with two Casa Magna's. Two of us lit up smokes from the same bundle at an event, one was spicy and full bodied while the other was bland and tasteless. :2

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Thats a huge difference in the casa magna! I've caught differences in flavors before, but never strength

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If they were unbanded I would have thought they were two different cigars.

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Ok, I was just wondering if i had done something wrong.
Thanks

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Would love to hear some opinions on whether to leave the individual cigars wrapped or not. I've been taking them out of their wrapper because I like the look of them in my humidor unwrapped but now I'm thinking of starting to leave them wrapped to help protect them while transporting. Any other advantages/disadvantages? What are your thoughts?

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http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showth...ighlight=cello
http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showth...ighlight=cello
http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showth...ighlight=cello
http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showth...ighlight=cello
http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showth...ighlight=cello
http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showth...ght=cellophane

Its personal preference. :tu

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I think the aging process goes a little faster without the cello, but you're right. The main reason to keep it on is for protection during transport. But if you're using a traveldor, it should never be a problem anyways.

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I'm a new smoker currently living in Kuwait and I have a few questions.
1. I've been ordering cigars online, the mail room here is a metallic connex. The temperature during the day is normally 100-120 degrees and the RH is normally around 10-20%. I been making an effort to go and collect my cigars on the same day I see my name on the mail list. Will this have a big impact on the cigars?

2. When I leave Kuwait whats the best way to ship my humidor and collection of cigars to the US? Should I try to limit my collection because shipping will have an adverse affect on my collection?

3. I've read allot of post's about using Cigar Caddy's for travel. I was thinking about using a small 20ct humidor for travel. Does anyone see an issue with this? I was planning to use it when I go on vacation to the US for about 3 weeks.

4. Does anyone have any experience with customs? I'm not going to try and smuggle in Cubans, but I'm curious what the process is and if I need to keep my receipts to show them that my cigars were shipped to my by an online retailer in the US.

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I Can Answer Some Of Your Questions, Rob.:)

Cigar Caddy's Are Great For Short term storage, Say 1 week. Most People Try To Keep Their Cigars Stored between 55-65 RH & Below 75* F. I Would Worry About Leaving Them For very long in those temperatures you mentioned. It Would seem easier to smoke everything you have while in Kuwait So you don't have to worry about customs. Good Luck!:tu

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:2

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I'm new to buying cigars online. For that matter I'm new to smoking anything but Macanudos. I've been looking and reading and I see cigars that are "rare" and "limited production". But except for one cigar which the maker says is rare because it's made from tobacco from only one year I never seem to see an explanation of why the cigar is rare or limited production.
So it occurred to me if the cigar is that good and there is no reason stated for why it is made in such small quantities, why don't they just make more? I mean there is nothing about the fact that a limited number are produced that automatically means greater quality right? Is this only a marketing decision or are these rare and limited production cigars really "better" in some way?

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There are generally a couple generic ways something is rare. It is old and therefore in limited supply. It was never made in large quantities for whatever reason; a one off that failed, never intended to be sold, etc. etc. Or it was popular and all smoked up by everyone else.

Limited production is mostly marketing and some production issues. Every harvest from every different location brings a change to the leaf. So it might be a marketing ploy or that just that the crop in the blend recipe failed that year to meet expectations.

Are all limited productions/Regionals better in some way? No. Are some? Sure.

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Thanks for the answers. I don't see myself chasing down too many rare and expensive smokes right away unless I read something here that piques my curiosity about one. I'm still being amazed by the new moderately priced and plentiful cigars I'm trying.

I have another newbie question. I received an order from Famous tuesday and all the cigars had dates on them. I'm guessing these are the dates Famous received them and put them in storage. I think that's a great idea and I don't remember my first online order (from another vendor) being dated like that. Did I just miss it? Do all the big online vendors do it or only some?

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Hi Tim,
I've ordered from Famous before and I don't recall seeing a date on any of the samplers I've purchased from them. Now boxes sometimes have date codes. Maybe someone with more insite on Famous may have the answer. You could always email Famous and ask them as well. :2

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Maybe I will. I bought a five pack and five singles. The fiver had a dated slip of paper stuck on the baggie and each single had one in its bag or stuck on the tube or wrapper.

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Huh, must be something new from them. I received an order form them a few weeks back and nothing was dated. I like it though. :tu