premium cigar 'hoarding'

I'm just wondering if anyone else has this problem. I've gotten lot's of great deals on high-end sticks through this website. Thing is... I'm to the point that half my stock is what I consider 'high end'(msrp 20 bucks or higher, not that I pay that), because I never deem the occasion important enough to burn my higher end smokes. I've had a sampler of God of Fires for 9 months now, and haven't tried one. I have a few Sol Cubano Artisans that are too pretty to smoke, etc,etc,etc.... I burn tons of AJ Fernandez and DPG's(again, thanks to Ccom for making those affordable to me), and the Ccom house labels as well, but I can't ever convince myself that now is the right time to burn my better sticks. I guess it's true; you can't have your cake and eat it too.

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Comments

j0z3r

Let me offer some help...if you can't bring yourself to smoke the GoF I'll happily smoke them for you. The SC Artisan...well, you're not missing much, they're better to look at than to smoke.

leemarshall337

j0z3r:
Let me offer some help...if you can't bring yourself to smoke the GoF I'll happily smoke them for you. The SC Artisan...well, you're not missing much, they're better to look at than to smoke.

lol, you're missing a major point. If I like them too much to smoke them myself, I dayum sure ain't giving them away. Nice try though.

Hays

Friend,

I had the same problem. Finally I realized this: you'll never find the right "occasion" to smoke them all, so just toss out the discrimination and go with what feels good to you that day. Some days that's a $5 stick for me, others it's a $20+ stick - it's just what I think sounds good, and I don't worry about the price. It's not that I can afford to 'throw the money away'...it's just that I wanted to stop putting off smoking my super-premiums. I figure this: there are thousands of cigars, and only so much time in your life...why spend time smoking the cheap standbys, especially when you have better ones?

leemarshall337

Hays:
Friend,

I figure this: there are thousands of cigars, and only so much time in your life...why spend time smoking the cheap standbys, especially when you have better ones?

I totally agree(in theory, ha ha). The problem, I think, with this hobby, is it is two faceted. I love to collect, and I love to smoke. I love that I have some rare sticks in my humi, yet I mostly enjoy more everyday cigars. I guess I'm at an impasse. I'm not sure what I enjoy more; to smoke a good stick, or have a good collection.

You are probably right. I suspect I am missing the forest for the trees. They are just so fun to collect though.

martymcg43

i've always heard cigars are meant to be smoked, not to be looked at.... however, i don't like to smoke my higher end sticks because i like having them... if that makes any sense.

martymcg43

my fiance and i went to my parents house a few days ago to pick up my baseball card collection from when i was a kid. and she compared my cigar hobby to collecting baseball cards. it really made me think. i bought tons and tons of cards so i could just have them. and when i had them they sat in a box in a protective sleeve. just sitting there collecting time.

Dark Roast

I understand your dilemma and feel this way. Given a choice of owning a 1963 split window corvette and never driving it or borrowing a friends and driving it. I'm taking it for a drive. So what if you see that cigar in a humidor and think you used to "own" it. Really it "owned" you if you never enjoyed it! Good luck with your dilemma.

lilwing88

Put it this way: If you paid $20+ for the cigar, then treat it as such. If you paid $10 for a $20+ cigar, then smoke it like it's a $10. I too have a few sticks in my humi that I'm reluctant to light up, like they're forbidden or something. I know the feeling. I need to adopt a more "Smoke 'em if you got 'em" attitude.

xmacro

Re-define what a 'special occasion' is - for me, it's accomplishing something I've been working on for a month or two; or when a day has been one of those days where everything just goes right. You'll find that you'll begin smoking that stock down, but not so fast that you won't have a good stick if a truly special occasion comes along

Diamondog

I have a 150 count humidor FULL of premiums now I like larger sizes so that means probably about 100 sticks.....I smoke far and few in between of these guys because they are high end but I am ok with that because they will only age....it will get to the point where i have many fine fine cigars with years of age on them and I don't have a problem with that. I smoke typically 5 Vegas line as my dailys...

kuzi16

leemarshall337:
I'm just wondering if anyone else has this problem. I've gotten lot's of great deals on high-end sticks through this website. Thing is... I'm to the point that half my stock is what I consider 'high end'

i fail to see the problem here. there will come a point were ALL of your cigars are high end and you will HAVE to smoke them. that is the most exciting moment in a cigar smokers career.

ironhorse

get a bigger humidor and buy more medium line sticks and more premiums!

sightunseen

Don't think about lighting up a super premium for a special occasion. Instead, light up a super premium to make your own special occasion.

Redtailhawkoz

I guess I am I am in the same boat.. although I have no what i would call true HIGH END smokes, I have cigars for some reason i wont smoke, like the collecting and when I go away on a weekend I take 3 GOOD sticks with me, end up buying a couple at some local B&M smoke those and bring them back ! LOL I have not had the Pleasure of smoking what all of you call a HIGH end Stick...... may not ever have the chance, I just dont throw around that kind of money I guess there are far to many good Sticks at reasonable prices that I Love, I may change my Mind IF I ever get to Smoke a GOF..... Missed my chance last night when i was Unwilling to Pull the trigger becuase i really dont NEED a Lighter... I WANT ONE... just dont NEED one ! I have RP TORCH that is AWESOME!

rwheelwright

I have cigars that I almost never smoke. I have a rule that I try to follow. If it is something like the Partagas 150, OpusX, GoF, Anejo, DC 30th, etc... I try to smoke one a year. This way I can enjoy them, see how they age and still have some for the future. With the Opus, I will probably wait longer than a year since they are pretty strong for me. I have some OpusX that I have had since 2005 - 2006. I did smoke one of those new sizes and a Lost City right off the truck but the rest are aging patiently. I also have been aging my ISOMs. I have a bunch that I got last year and a few this year but I have yet to smoke the ones I got in 2008.

MAJORdorMo

When I get really nice cigars, I generally give them a much longer rest period (3-6 months). After that resting period, I treat it like any other cigar.

dennisking

I tend to keep my super premiums for a while and enjoy them at certain times like when I have family in town around a holiday. I have an Opus that is resting, probably until the birth of my new child and a couple GOF's kicking around that will probably be smoked around that time. I just got rid of my last Anejo to DDog but come Christmas time, I will get more.

shamrocked

I am in the same boat with everyone else but not quite as much - I have some super premiums that I am aging for a bare minimum of a year - after I age them I'll probably enjoy them for special occasions such as my wedding anni, birthday, holiday times, etc... But, I'll probably never smoke them all away, when I get down to a single I'll buy some more to cover it and restart the process
P.S. -- I really do love collecting them as well

laker1963

When I buy a SUPER PREMIUM for the first time I always make sure to buy more then 1. Everybody wants to have some of these in the humi, kind of a part of the whole hobby.

I look at it this way, if I can't afford to enjoy the stick, I sure can't afford to buy it and let it sit for who knows how long before I convince myself that "this" occassion is the right occassion to fire one up. Soooo

I buy at least two, one for smoking (after a nice visit to my humi for a while) and the other for that all illusive day that seems to call out for a Super Premie to be smoked.

It also makes discussing what you like or don't like about a particular premium stick difficult, when all you can say is, "yeah I have a couple of those in the humi, but I haven't enjoyed one yet"

cooch36

i to am a collector but love one once in a while.

Krieg

I find myself in this boat more often than not. I usually try to get 2, that way I can smoke one aged and one fresh to compare.

cabinetmaker

I've got GOF's, Padron 1926 anniversary's, Ashton ESG's, Camacho PE's, Gurkha Titan's(not that great, btw), LFD Mysterio's, and lot's of others I'm not even going to list. I've smoked at least one of all of them, and plan on smoking all the rest of them, and have even given some of them away in trades (bonus sticks, lol)...

If I had a Ferrari and never drove it, what's the point in having it in the first place?

urbino

Two thoughts come to mind.

First, sunk cost. Smoking a super premium cigar doesn't cost $20+. Buying a super premium cigar costs $20+. Once you've bought it, it's financially just a cigar like any other cigar you own. So once they're in your humi, don't think of them as $20 cigars. They aren't, anymore. They're just cigars you own. You own them all identically. And they're only good for one thing.

(I think of sports teams the same way. I've never understood the logic behind, "Well, Superstar X isn't playing worth a damn, and there's this guy nobody's every heard of on the team who kills every time he gets a chance to play, but there's no way Mr. Owner or Ms. General Manager is going to let Superstar X sit on the bench, with all the money they're paying him." This is stupid. Superstar X's salary is a sunk cost. The whole team's salaries are one big sunk cost. Having sunk that chunk of money for a pool of talent, the thing to do now is utilize that pool in the way that fields the best possible team. If you made a bad decision by overpaying for somebody, don't compound your mistake by then fielding a bad team.)

My second thought runs somewhat in the other direction. Super premiums tend to be cigars that improve a lot with age. So it does make some sense, when you're starting out, to put some of them back and leave them alone for a while. Once you've been buying cigars for a year or two or five, you have a steady supply of nicely aged super premiums that you replenish as you smoke them.

phobicsquirrel

Good points all! Most of my cigars I have I consider premiums, GOF, Anejos, Opus X's, Liberty's, 30th's, and such though I don't smoke any right now as I'm letting them sit. Those that have a year or more I smoke from time to time. I do understand what your saying though. I too can't really figure out when to smoke my spendy smokes, though I just do it on a whim. I've found that at gatherings such as 4th of July or Xmas there is way too many distractions for me to enjoy a SP. Though when I'm home relaxing I tend to break into more SP's.

cholmes8310

leemarshall337:
Hays:
Friend,

I figure this: there are thousands of cigars, and only so much time in your life...why spend time smoking the cheap standbys, especially when you have better ones?
I totally agree(in theory, ha ha). The problem, I think, with this hobby, is it is two faceted. I love to collect, and I love to smoke. I love that I have some rare sticks in my humi, yet I mostly enjoy more everyday cigars. I guess I'm at an impasse. I'm not sure what I enjoy more; to smoke a good stick, or have a good collection.

You are probably right. I suspect I am missing the forest for the trees. They are just so fun to collect though.

Just remember this.... Until January of next year, the University of Alabama Crimson Tide is THE reigning National Champions. That's ALWAYS an occasion to fire up a premium. I've used it multiple times this year, haha. Good luck with your "problem" and Roll Tide!

Garen B

urbino:
Two thoughts come to mind.

First, sunk cost. Smoking a super premium cigar doesn't cost $20+. Buying a super premium cigar costs $20+. Once you've bought it, it's financially just a cigar like any other cigar you own. So once they're in your humi, don't think of them as $20 cigars. They aren't, anymore. They're just cigars you own. You own them all identically. And they're only good for one thing.

(I think of sports teams the same way. I've never understood the logic behind, "Well, Superstar X isn't playing worth a damn, and there's this guy nobody's every heard of on the team who kills every time he gets a chance to play, but there's no way Mr. Owner or Ms. General Manager is going to let Superstar X sit on the bench, with all the money they're paying him." This is stupid. Superstar X's salary is a sunk cost. The whole team's salaries are one big sunk cost. Having sunk that chunk of money for a pool of talent, the thing to do now is utilize that pool in the way that fields the best possible team. If you made a bad decision by overpaying for somebody, don't compound your mistake by then fielding a bad team.)

My second thought runs somewhat in the other direction. Super premiums tend to be cigars that improve a lot with age. So it does make some sense, when you're starting out, to put some of them back and leave them alone for a while. Once you've been buying cigars for a year or two or five, you have a steady supply of nicely aged super premiums that you replenish as you smoke them.

Very nice analogy Urbi, I kinda wish my old economics textbooks were written like this, I probably would have read them if they were.

To the topic at hand, I still consider myself to be a bit too green to fully enjoy super premiums, so I don't have any right now. There's too many good cigars out there to sink 20$+ into a stick when I can buy 3 to 4 cigars I still haven't tried for the same price.

urbino

Garen B:
Very nice analogy Urbi, I kinda wish my old economics textbooks were written like this, I probably would have read them if they were.

Heh. "Chapter 2: The Fungibility of Stogies."

bama3715

completely agree with cholmes!!! Roll tide!!!

illinoisgolf99

I think everyone has their own preferences as to when to smoke super premiums... For me it's like this: If I want to smoke a super premium, I will.. I'm a Live Like You Were Dyin' kind of guy, so if the moment feels right, and my heart tells me its right, but my brain is sayin "dude you paid 20 bucks for that! you cant smoke it!", screw listenin to my brain, I just go with my heart and my gut.. always works for me.. You never know if you'll be here tomorrow

ejenne87

illinoisgolf99:
I think everyone has their own preferences as to when to smoke super premiums... For me it's like this: If I want to smoke a super premium, I will.. I'm a Live Like You Were Dyin' kind of guy, so if the moment feels right, and my heart tells me its right, but my brain is sayin "dude you paid 20 bucks for that! you cant smoke it!", screw listenin to my brain, I just go with my heart and my gut.. always works for me.. You never know if you'll be here tomorrow

I agree completely. I have a couple cigars I am saving for special occasions, but I also have more of the same that I am saving for the next time I feel like smoking one of them. I picked up a Padron '64 maduro today that I plan on smoking in the very near future.