How/when/why did you start enjoying cigars.

nickiam

big chunks

My fascination started when I went to Cancun a few years ago and bought some CC from a la casa de habanos, enjoyed my first few cigars there with two of my best friends when I got home I was interested in cigars but didn't buy any until last January and haven't looked back since. A great way to relax and get lost in thoughts. Next up SCOTCH!!

0patience

jliu

In China. yup.

Smokindaddy

12 years ago, a buddy and I walked into a B&M just for fun. Thinking we were cool we bought a couple of baccarats, went back to my parents house, shoved towls under the door of my room, ordered WWF pay per view and lit up. We have come a hell of a long way since then LOL

Rhamlin

In my early 20s I smoked Swishers. Didn't even know there was such a thing as premiums. Eventually grew out of them and never have them a thought again till just over a year ago when I was buying a bottle of scotch and got to thinking how cool it looks in the movies when the men would drink and smoke cigars. So I walked in their humi and picked out the darkest sticks they had and fell in love with the combo. Now I won't hardly have a scotch unless I gots me a cegar to go with it.

Hayblet

webmost

kuzi16

my father and father-in-law were both a little into cigars. i liked the way they smelled. so i started to smoke them. this was maybe 2005. i found the old ccom forum about that time.

Toombes

A buddy got me hooked while I was in college and living in Tampa, FL. He took me to Ybor City one weekend where I paid a ridiculous amount for the most incredible cigar I've yet to have. It was a custom rolled Churchill that had been infused with Louis XIII cognac, similar to the Gurkha HMR. Pretty sure it may have been a CC, since it was being sold out of an abandoned warehouse by an old Cuban immigrant. Anyway, that's what got me started. I took a break from them for many years and started enjoying the leaf again roughly five yrs ago. The wife doesn't like it when a box shows up at the PO, but then I remind her about the money she spends on Entertainment Weekly...

WaterDemon

Started about 5 years ago(19yrs old, I know, I'm young). Friends and I were bored at my volunteer fire house when one of the guys smoked a cigar and stunk up the whole apparatus bay. So me being a smart ass drove down the street and picked up a Punch. I believe it was an uppercut. Anyway, I never smoked anything, or dipped before. I caught a buzz like no other and smoked it to the nub. My plan was to make fun of him in a joking way, but back fired after a few puffs. I still smoke with the guy every once in awhile when I can hang around at the volly house. Good times. lol

SleevePlz

My first cigar was actually a Cuban. The year was 2007. I had spent the last three weeks in Geneva, Switzerland working on my Masters Degree. On the last evening, we had a little barbeque/party to celebrate our time there. The director of the place we were staying at gifted one of the professors a handful of Cuban cigars. He didn't want to try to bring them back to the US, so he smoked one and gave the rest out to a few of us guys. The band was already removed, so I have no idea which brand it was, but it was amazing. When I got home, I still knew absolutely nothing about cigars. It literally took me a couple years to get around to reading up and discovering that you could buy them online. I, of course, made the rookie mistake of making my first purchase from "that T" site. Yeah, the service sucked so bad, I didn't need all of you to inform me of how bad they are. Eventually, I found this forum. I went from keeping less than 10 cigars at a time, to now looking into making a wineador.

jswaykos

I had my very first cigar at a friend's 18th birthday party and loved how it tasted and smelled. Didn't have another until my freshman year in college when one of the RAs sponsored a 'cigar night' and had a local B&M come to our dorm and set up a tasting and some cheap deals. Again, I was reminded of the pleasing flavors and smells! That summer, I got a job as a caddy, and a few of the caddies smoked a cigar before their rounds. Again, that smell! Now that I had some money I bought some for my self and joined the older caddies in smoking them before my round. I bought a few more, which led to a few more, and the rest is history.

jsnake

Lee.mcglynn

Got really into everything about cigar smoking around 5yrs ago after my old lady had business trips across seas and kept bringing me back Cubans. From there came the aging and hoarding lol

The3Stogies

JHewey

I started a year ago (well June 6th) saw one of my friends post on fb he was smoking a cigar, peaked my interest. Came on cigar.com ordered a couple cigars. First one I ever smoked was an illusione 68. Joined the forum and its been downhill since.

Bklyn78

Working for the post office I've seen a bunch of different cigar catalogs. After reading all the different blends I wanted to try something. My nephew for christmas got me a few cubans when I went to Canada. I got a few samples and a small humi soon after. After many mistakes and a few years later I come home my wife comes outside with my cigar and her wine and we enjoy a nice evening together

beatnic

To quit cigarettes. 2years brothers. 2 years without one of those nasty A_ss, chemical-laced, flavorless, coffin nails!

Lasabar

Luko

About 12-15 years ago, my dad was smoking cheap cigars and I wanted to get him a nice present, so I bought him a box so Ashton's without knowing anything about cigars, that's just what the guy in the shop recommended. I ended up smoking them all with my dad and loved every minute of it. But I onlyn smoked premiums intermittently for about 10or so years after that. Then I stumbled on ccom. Signed up for cotmc and really got hooked. My wife bought me a little 50 count, which is all I have and it's usually about half full, still trying new sticks every week.

allsmokedup

On the way overseas about 2 years ago I picked up a 5 pack of Cohiba Perlas to share with my relatives as my cousin was getting married. Well, all I can say is that I've been trying to find that elusive taste that I got that first time ever since.

RBeckom

A fine idea for A thread. This reading gives plenty of insight into the lives of total strangers as if they are close friends. This my friends is the definition of brotherhood.

duckshooter

I'd actually been interested in cigars for quite a while and those little samplers in magazines would always catch my eye. I never bought any because I knew nothing about them but it seemed to me respectable men should always have a decent liquor selection and a humidor near by. At least that is how a lot of tv and movies portrayed things as I was growng up. A year ago after three long years of work I achieved a Masters degree and decided for my own graduation gift I was going to get a humidor. I had done enough research to know that even if I never smoked a cigar as long as I maintained the humidor they would just continue to age. In a little over a year I haven't smoked much but continue to absorb information like a sponge.

illinoisgolf99

Great thread for the community here. I'm 23 years old and have been enjoying cigars for 5 years. At the tender age of 18 (well technically 17) a good friend of mine invited me to go on vacation with him and his family to Ft. Myers, FL. We went down there, rented a beach house, and just relaxed. I remember it vividly, we were walking down the boardwalk downtown and spotted a little B&M. We stopped in and I immediately loved the smell, so I asked the guy working there what he recommended for someone who was new to cigars and didn't smoke cigarettes or anything before. He got up and showed me a few mild-medium connies and I decided to go with a Cusano 18 connecticut churchill. My friend and I went back to the beach house, sat outside on the deck, watched the ocean, and lit up our cigars. It's been a love affair ever since, and I don't intend on stopping now.

RBeckom

JSX

Around November last year I was sitting by a fire with a good friend of mine sipping whiskey, and he offered me a cigar. I didn't even know he smoked anything at the time. I use to smoke cigs and chew tobacco but had given both up for the last 20 years. I fell in love with the first one and soon found myself trying to find cigar shops while on the road for work and I would pick one up to smoke on the way home. Like every thing I find an interest in, I started searching the net for information and soon found ccom, ordered up a sampler and have been enjoying the hobby ever since. The other half wasn't too excited about my newfound passion, but she actually bought me a humidor for my birthday in January and I have been trying to stock it ever since. I don't post a lot, but the camaraderie between the BOTL here is really cool. Thanks guys, I have learned a lot here so far.

bigfnsteve

catfishbluezz

Used to drink, used to smoke...used to smoke. I stopped a few years ago, all my buddies still do. I had always enjoyed a fine cigar, but not until I was introduced to a Padron did i really get hooked two years ago. Then it became...buy a couple, smoke 1-2 when my buddies are getting smashed to pass the time. Then I realized....hey this is awesome after sitting here for 6 months...I need more...and more...and then I found Ccom. My peak I was at 4 humi's as of....last month lol. Unfortunately, I need to get down to two and four boxes of cubans and aging smokes at Jason's house until years end. The only thing I regret, is not buying a box of UHC and shorty's immediately and starting a wineador. All of those are high on my priority list by years end.

gaberox

This is a wierd one for me even before I knew of cigar culture and before id ever had a real cigar I knew I liked em and would mention it to my fiance i wanted to try cigars. Then We moved to Tampa and it was all over from there. I discovered ybor city the Tampa humidor and the rest is history. Destiny you might say. Although I will say I was more passionate for cigars when I lived in Tampa compared to my current locale.

JZerby