"The abnegation of reason is not the evidence of faith, but the confession of despair."
- J.B. Lightfoot
Sunday, August 10, 2003
Here are my favorite cigar brands, in descending order:
1. Punch -- a perennial favorite of mine. Never had a bad one.
2. Cohiba (Cuban) -- I can only mention this because [Thinkling anonymity protected] smuggled one back for me from his honeymoon in Mexico. It was as great as I had heard.
3. La Gloria Cubana
4. Joya de Nicaragua
5. Ashton
Honorable Mentions: Cohiba (Dominican), Baccarat, Casa de Nicaragua, Macanudo, Partagas
Not expecting a huge response to this. Would appreciate any sharing of special cigar/pipe smoking moments, if you have any.
Ent-Moots come to mind . . .
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Comments on "Fab Five: Cigar Brands":
2. Jared
- 08/10/2003 12:25 pm CDT
You obviously haven't read the Thinklings History. ;-)
We started just the three of us -- me, Bird, and Blo -- pretty much discussing C.S. Lewis and eschatology whilst toking on cigars.
I don't smoke cigarettes and find them disgusting.
I smoke, on average, about 4-6 cigars a year.
Do you need some smelling salts to revive?
3. Bird
- 08/10/2003 2:33 pm CDT
Rod, you're down to 4 to 6 a year? Man, I think I'm probably even with you then. Actually, I probably do about 10 to 12 a year after it's all said and done.
The best cigar I've ever had was like a double corona Punch that I smoked at your mo-in-law's house in Houston in 1995. It was our last smoke together before I moved to Waco to go to Baylor. Man, I loved that smoke.
The box of Camacho's you bought me back when you got married has also gotten a lot of good mileage. I think I finally smoked my last one at our last Entmoot.
I recently bought a five-pack of Upmann robustos from Sam's. They were "humidor sealed" in a plastic bag and they were darn fresh. I've only smoked one of them so far -- it was good.
There are thousands of blends of pipe tobacco, but my favorite is Optimum from the Briar Shoppe in Houston.
Dude, you should turn that cuban smuggler in to the proper authorities.
6. jen
- 08/10/2003 3:38 pm CDT
My uncle smokes a pipe, has since I was a little girl. He used to let us take a puff on the sly. I love, love, love the smell of pipe tobacco. For Christmas last year I spent a bit of time in a local tobaccanist, sniffing the blends and enjoying the aromas of mingled cigar and pipe smoke in the shop.
I ended up buying him six flavors because I couldn't narrow it down from there. I wonder if I could do that again this Christmas...
7. Bird
- 08/10/2003 5:27 pm CDT
Jen, I don't think he'd mind if you duplicated the gift. Heck, I'll email you my mailing address so you can send me a belated birthday gift. 
Seriously, pipe tobacco is awesome. I'm glad that most people actually enjoy the smell of tobacco burning in a pipe. For that reason, I'm usually not hestiant to bust it out in public places (parks, etc.) I get a lot of compliments on the tobacco smell when I'm out in public w/my pipe.
Cigars are another story. In our younger days, Rod and I were asked to put our cigars out when we foolishly lit them up in the smoking section of an IHOP. Personally, I love the smell of cigar smoke, but I guess most people find it offensive.
8. Jared
- 08/10/2003 5:36 pm CDT
I think I will always be a cigar guy.
Becky told me if I smoked a pipe, she would let me smoke it inside (cigars are an outside indulgence). I tried my first pipe at the last Ent-Moot and didn't really take to it. Part of it was me being a newbie, but the other thing was I think I got a defective pipe. It squeaked every time I drew.
Also, pipes are too maintenance-intensive for my taste. I don't want to always be tending to it and relighting it.
A good cigar you light, it stays lit, and you just hold and enjoy. Pipes seem like too much work to me.
I also feel a little stupid holding a pipe, like I should also be wearing bifocals, a tweed suit, and a plaid Sherlock Holmes hat. If it makes any sense, I don't feel like me holding a pipe looks natural. I think I just look like a stogie man. 
See?
9. Mac Swift
- 08/10/2003 7:00 pm CDT
I find it amasing that you can smoke only 4-6 times a year without gagging n it. I figure you'd have to buildup some tolerance via regular smoking before you could enjoy a hefty cigar. Me, Id probably pass out on the first puff.
10. Jared
- 08/10/2003 7:23 pm CDT
Well, you don't smoke cigars like cigarettes. You smoke them in a Clintonian manner -- don't inhale.
With cigars, you just savor the smoke in your mouth.
11. Bird
- 08/11/2003 3:33 am CDT
Ditto with pipe smoking. It ain't about inhaling, it's about taking into your mouth, enjoying the flavor and then releasing. Yes, there is a flavor although it's very subtle.
Rod, you looked like THE MAN at Entmoot with a pipe in your mouth. I think it probably bumped your IQ by at least 20 points. Too bad it kept whistling.
12. Becky
- 08/11/2003 4:52 am CDT
Jared, would you change your mind if you had a better pipe? I love the smell of pipe tobacco.
13. Bird
- 08/11/2003 5:02 am CDT
Becky, I'm with you on that. Having a "good pipe" can make all the difference. As I recall, the pipe Rod had at Entmoot was a little puny. I'm not sure how much that pipe was but you can get a decent pipe starting at around $35.
I will say that smoking a pipe takes some learning. It's not a passive experience but I'd liken it to driving a stick: once you get used to it you don't even think about it. Pipes are inclined to go out if you're one who likes to talk a lot, but they relight well (unlike cigars) and it's never been a problem for me.
smoking cigarettes = watching tv
smoking cigars = watching a movie
smoking a pipe = reading
14. Jared
- 08/11/2003 6:46 am CDT
As I recall, the only reason I got a cheap pipe was because a certain someone put me on a budget for my trip to the tobacconist.
smoking cigarettes = watching an infomercial on TV
smoking cigars = watching Casablanca on DVD
smoking a pipe = reading "Old Professors" Magazine
15. jen
- 08/11/2003 7:22 am CDT
Jared, you're looking a little jaundiced in comment #8 - I think I just look like a stogie man.
I know that my uncle enjoys the rituals of the pipe - the packing, tamping, lighting, smoking, relighting; repeat ad nauseum.
It's a shame my mother makes him smoke it outside, although I love when he steps back in - he brings with him the wafting aroma of whatever flavor tocacco he's just smoked. It's great.
Mac, cigars are fantastic, especially for the traditional non-smoker, because of that non-inhale factor. I love the occasional stogie.
16. Becky
- 08/11/2003 7:42 am CDT
"As I recall, the only reason I got a cheap pipe was because a certain someone put me on a budget for my trip to the tobacconist."
You poor little neglected thing. . . I'm so overbearing and hard to live with, aren't I? ;-)
As I recall, the budget you were given affected the entire evening. Had you chosen to ingest a little less meat or purchase fewer stogies, perhaps you could have afforded a better pipe.
Regardless, if you are interested in a good pipe and will promise to use it, I'm sure we can get you hooked up.
Sure wish I knew how to make those little icons. The one smoking the pipe would be quite appropriate here.
17. Bird
- 08/11/2003 8:47 am CDT
Jen,
Thankfully, my wife is totally cool with me smoking the pipe inside our house. Usually, I wait until the kids are fast asleep before I start filling our air with toxic smoke. She enjoys the aroma and for some reason pipe smoke doesn't "stick" like cigar smoke. My clothes never stink after smoking a pipe.
Jared, I think you're destined to start smoking a pipe. It might not happen until you're 70, though. Brandi says I'm well on my way to being an "old fogie": I play chess and smoke pipes.
18. Kenny
- 08/12/2003 10:33 am CDT
After Anna and I got back from our honeymoon, Phil and I smoked macanudos on his back porch. The ladies locked us out and ostracised us when we came back in. It was good fun. That was the last cigar I smoked since I have become a "man of the cloth" and have been forced to abstain.:(
19. The Rough Woodsman
- 10/21/2004 12:35 pm CDT
I have culled some worthy smoke-wafting posts from the humidor of that other manly group blog, The Thinklings . First, read Jared's "Fab Five: Cigar Brands" and take notes. Then enjoy some smoking stories recounted by the Thinklings and their...
You SMOKE??
*faints*