What was the cigar that started it all for you?

[DonniePaul]

What was the smoke that gave you “the fever”?

My Story goes like this. I had smoked a few “gas station cigars” in my younger days but what really got me into cigars can be traced to one night in the Dominican. My wife and I were on our honeymoon and had met another couple from the same state, married at the same time, on the same day. So this couple and my wife and I ended up hanging out all week. The resort was all inclusive so we had free food, free drinks, good company AND the gift shop sold a variety of good cigars including genuine Cuban Cohibas and a slew of Dominican brands. My new buddy is a big cigar smoker and we tried to smoke at least one cigar a day during our rigorous schedule of relaxing with the wives. One night after dinner the girls went off to do their thing and I found myself at the bar with my new buddy. We lit up a couple of Cohibas and damn they were good! We sat and smoked and drank and talked about life and the world in general. It was an experience where the world seemed to slow down. Within a month I had my 200 capacity humidor and I have been doing my best to fill it with a wide Varity of tasty treats since then. I already need more storage.

The whole experience was awesome but specifically that one night and a real Cuban Cohiba was what got me into smoking cigars. .

So my question/topic is what was the cigar that turned you on to smoking cigars seriously? Which stick got you started?

[Giant & 49er Fan]

My first cigar was an Acid Kuba Kuba. I enjoyed them for a while and then began to get head aches from the aroma. I didn't truly fall in love with the traditional cigar until I smoked an RP OWR Maduro. Rich, cocoa, great draw and soooo smooth. :dr My first favorite cigar ever and before I worked for the brand too. I picked this cigar up at an old B&M not around anymore called, Famous Smoke in Clearwater, FL. I was amazed by the flavor and compexity a cigar could have. It's been downhill fast ever since. Thanks for the thread! :tu

[kelmac07]

My first was an Acid as well...the Blondie. Went on a binge of buying all kinds of flavored sticks. Then Johnnykay5 gave me a Davidoff #2 and it was over. Sampled a bit of everything over the next few months. And then again Johnnykay5 turned me onto maduros and it is over for good this time. My name is Michael and I am a full fledged maduro whore. :tu

[marge796]

I can't remember the name of the cigar but, I do remember it wasn't very good.


:ss


Chris.....

[vankleekkw]

Gas station is how I got started, but Fuente Gran Reserve is where I fell into a deep dark hole.

[Scothew]

Ashton VSG courtesy of Poe and GoldnGT. I was a noob and never smoked anything before so I ended up leaving the last 1/4 of it or so to die..... never again my ashton VSG friend!

[Smokin Gator]

I guess the one that hooked me was a Fuente 898. The first CC was a Monte #4.

[BlackDog]

Back in my post college days (early 80's) when a friend and I got together we'd smoke AF 858's. We didn't know anything about cigars, just that the guy at Tinderbox said they were good and we liked them.

If we had no money we smoked Marsh Wheelings, which I think are made from sweepings of a dairy barn. ;)

[Emjaysmash]

Gas station cigars until the day I turned 18 (I know, naughty boy!) and bought a Sancho Panza Double Maduro Quixote.

[Chemyst]

The Pro Shop at a charity golf tournament had a small display humi
with RyJ Reserva Real and Hdm Excalibur in it. On a whim, my brother
and I bought one and smoked them during the round. I kept playing
with the smoke in my mouth and got a texture of cream, which I've
been looking for ever since. IIRC, I had an RyJ. That was over 3 yrs.
ago. Now I have 600-700 smokes, a Vinotemp, some new friends,
and a relaxing hobby.

Chemyst :cool2:

[Puro Smoker]

Mine was a Macanudo Duke of Windsor. I was living in Arizona at the time. I had had a couple of other cigars and the suggestions of the guys that worked at the store where I had made my purchases.

My grandfather always smoked Antonio & Cleopatras but I knew better than to smoke those nasty smelling green sticks! :) No offense to those that like them, just not for me. Plus my grandfather usually chewed 75% of it before he lit it.:r

The guy at the store recommended the DoW to me, so I bought it. It was toasty and wonderful. It had a great finish to it and it was a truly a remarkable smoke. I was hooked from that moment forward.

[DonniePaul]

Awesome! I love hearing these stories.

Keep 'em coming!!!:banger

[kenstogie]

I always had cigars but the first one that had actual flavor was an Indian Tabac Super Fuerte Natural. I still smoke them and they are still good IMHO. As I recall the next one was the Torano Signature. Which I would still smoke today too.

[pinotguy]

The first cigar that really made an impression on me was the Avo XO Maestoso back in 1996. Took a long time off but the cigar that recently got me back on board was the Cruzado Marelas.

(Bottom line - I shouldn't have stayed away for so long.)

[Texan in Mexico]

Cool thread - basic same story as the others.

The "moment" for me came at the Texas Aggie Bonfire in '95. A couple buddies came up from Houston and brought some H. Upmanns.

Two of them got sick as dogs but I was really enjoying it - the start of a very long slide which has brought here today to learn and share from all of you!

[Kreth]

I started out with an Onyx Reserve ($10/ea. at my local B&M pre-SCHIP). Luckily, I found this place and the BOTLs here turned me on to places like CI and Famous, or this could have been a *very* expensive hobby. :ss
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[roughrider]

The cigar I recall trying first was the Famous Private Selection Presidente back in high school. Me and a buddy ordered a box our senior year. Don't remember much about the cigar, but I do remember the good times.

[Eleven]

This one, and its all my Son's fault:

http://img199.imageshack.us/img199/7306/fuentez.jpg

[Whee]

CAO Italia Piazza at the Mandalay Bay Sports book, with 3 buddies for my 40th birthday.

[rogerdodger]

first was a Helix tube.
San Luis Rey serie G got me hooked

[icehog3]

Smoked lots of cigars for many years, most of them machine made stuff "aged" behind the counter at Walgreens.

The one that really started my love for cigars was a Bolivar Royal Corona from one of only the legit places in Nassau. It was all "uphill" from there.

[Uflbassin]

Started off with the acid blondie, smoked only flavored cigars for a few months. The downhill started when a guy at the local cigar store informed me that there was a world of better cigars out there and handed me a 1999 Montecristo (Dominican).

[Jimbo14]

A Montecristo #4 started it all for me when I was 18

[TheTraveler]

For me the cigar was a Punch Deluxe Royal Coronation. That was my first good, handmade cigar and it was eye-opening for me. I still really enjoy that cigar.

I'd been a pipe smoker for years but I'd always ignored the walkin humidors (what a waste of space! think of all the pipes, accessories and tobacco they could display if it weren't for those cigars!!! :r :r :r )

A little over a year ago some friends and I had smoked a drug store cigar every Friday for a few weeks and I was really, REALLY not liking it. So I got the bright idea to try a good, handmade cigar and see what all the fuss was about.

:D My pipes languished in the corner for a couple of months because I went hog wild over cigars! How could I have been missing all this good tobacco for all these years?

Anyway, I'm on an even keel now and pay equal attention to my pipes and my cigars. I usually smoke pipes through the week and savor a cigar or two on the weekend. This thread reminds me ... I'm out of Royal Coronations and I need to pick some up.

[JJG]

Padron 3000 5 pk

I had smoked a handful of good cigars before and enjoyed them but the Padrons were definitely the ones that got me collecting and obsessing over cigars.

[Red]

first cigar i really remember liking was the punch rare corojo

[FretSpot]

Awesome thread! This should be a sticky!

I started because my best friend for the last 25 years called me up and wanted me to join him and a few of his buddies for a fishing trip. I decided that a guys weekend like that called for some good whiskey and cigars, although I'd never smoked ANYTHING my entire life up until that point.

I went to my local tobacconist, and they suggested four different cigars for me (don't remember exactly what they were, but there was at least a Fonseca and a Punch in the mix). We got so caught up in drinking the whiskey that we never made it to the cigars. So when I got home from the trip I sat on my back porch and lit one up. I've been hooked ever since.

[Bubba - NJ]

I started dabbling with some original Royal Jamaica's about 15 years ago . Then once I found the Fuente Château natural I was hooked . To bad they don't still make the original Royal Jamaica line , I have 2 Churchill's left I bought a few years ago and one is gonna burn soon . :tu

[cle_smoker]

First cigar was a Macanudo Hyde Park back in college. The cigar that pushed me over the edge was an AF 898 Sungrown. At the time I had no idea they were that rare. The local B&M had a box of them and I kept coming back buying singles until they were all gone. Have never looked back since. :)

[eboniknight]

Cusano M1 Robusto on the golf course started it all.....surprisingly though, I have never smoked another.

[Mr B]

About 3 years ago a customer of mine sent me a Macanudo Hampton Court Tubo that I liked very much. However he also included an unbanded CC that was out of this world.
I started getting samplers form JR until I found ones I liked. My first box was a 10pk of the MAC Hampton Courts. Then the Don Diego Privada No1 Maduros, then the Mac Gold Shakespears. I thought I was in love w/ Mild Dominicans and Maduros. That is until I started branching out.
Oh, the Nic's, oh the Hondurans Oh the CC's oh oh oh etc.
Then I found all the sites to buy from, OMG I need a bigger Humi.
Now its Screw the Humi's, get more Tupperdores. More, more more :r
I Love it.

[cricky101]

Not my first cigar, but the first one I smoked that made me think "oooh, I could get used to this," was a Padron 2000 maduro.

[Barteur]

I remember that it was R&J (can`t remember the exact size) and I smoked it at my graduation night. This is when all started for me.
BTW not only the size of my cigar I can't recall on my graduation night:al;)

Thanks for this cool thread.

Frenchie

[mcmoyer]

Smoked a Padilla 1932 Robusto that I'd been holding on to for almost a year. Finished that puppy & thought, "man, I'd like to do that again!"

:ss

That really started the ball a-rollin downhill fast. That's when I started searching out forums, online dealers, etc. Went from a little baggie in the fridge to a couple of 48 quart & one 25 quart coolers, six humis of varying sizes, snaplock boxes out the wazoo & a little baggie in the fridge...all FULL.

:D

And all in a years time...

:eek:

[sikk50]

Kahlua, then a Perdomo Lot 23

[M1903A1]

A Fidalo (?) Nero that somebody had been pushing on me for months. I decided to just smoke it and "get it over with"...then I decided maybe this cigar thing wasn't so bad after all.

[yourchoice]

I smoked a variety of Macanudos that were available at liquor stores and convenient stores in the area. But I believe the first cigar that really "wowed" me was a Sosa Pyramid I picked up at (what I now affectionately call) a B&M. That was 10+ years ago and I kind of got away from cigars for several years thereafter (constant issues with RH that I didn't want to deal with).

Then, I bought a few sticks while in North Carolina at JR's about 3-4 years ago and started back up. I remember grabbing a Rothschild size NC Partagas and loving it. That trip to NC drove me to the internet for mucho research where I ultimately found the old jungle.

Now I have an end table humidor and several hundred cigars (and I don't think I have one NC Partagas! :r).

Crazy but tons of fun. :ss

[jaycarla]

I was tired of cigarettes and quit. Then a few months after I quit cigarettes a friend was smoking a Kuba Kuba. Boom, I was hooked. With the Acids, I was like most others, got sick of them fast.

The first moment when I knew I was in trouble was sitting out back on a lounge chair with a fire going and I was listening to the Fergie. It was a warm night, but not uncomfortable. A slight breeze from the west........damnit, I am drifting.

I was out back and I was listening to Fergie though, smoked a Cohiba Black and had an awesome Irish Coffee with it. Done, boom, pow, game over.

Tastes have changed ALOT since then. Acids are a distant memory and a Maduro that isn't named Padron doesn't even really happen anymore.

Started with big and dark, and now I like 'em thin and light.

[gbum]

smoke a gas station cigar for about 5 years... then one day i decide to get into walk in humidor at a shopping complex...

http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-snc1/v2728/217/92/1040650095/n1040650095_1974324_1822179.jpg
my first purchase was don diego robusto,padron 3000 maduro and monte no 4...

the money started to burn since then... :ss

[Poronico]

Me and my bro were sitting in his garage and he hands be a PSD #4 and tells me to enjoy... never smoking or even thinking about smoking cigars I now realize this was completely wasted on me as far as the enjoyment aspect of it goes. On the other hand here it is 5 years later and I am still enjoy the hell out of the great cigars and the better company :)

[Poronico]

These are by far my favorite day to day smokes 2000 Maddy FTW! :dr

Not my first cigar, but the first one I smoked that made me think "oooh, I could get used to this," was a Padron 2000 maduro.

[htown]

My buddy used to bring cheap cigars to poker games for anyone to smoke. After he noticed I had actually smoked a whole one and seemed to enjoy it, he brought me a Padron Aniversario '64 Principe the next time. I bought a humidor the same week.

[Bax]

The first NC that started my fall was an HUpmann Monarch tubo. I got a deal on an open box from my work and then the humidor a'la Strozier was born. The ***** was the '02 Monte #4 that sent me over the CC cliff. That's the one that put a hurtin' om my credit cards:D

[Langod]

About a year and a half ago my brother in law gave me a small cigarillo sized flavored cigar (a decent one, not a White Owl type) and it was OK. Then I tried a Macanudo Gold Court cigarillo. That was better. Still wasn't hooked or anything, just seemed like something interesting to do while having a beer.
Then a friend found out I had started smoking cigars. He was horrified at what I considered "a decent cigar" and gave me a La Aurora 1903 Platinum. WOW. That did it!
The first one I bought for myself was an Oliva G.

[Cigar_Noob]

about...well almost a month ago..it was the Garcia Y Vega Green Game (sucked) my first hand rolled cigar was a La Flor De Cano Habana..didn't taste like much..but I think I got me some leather taste.

[alfbacca]

Started smoking Macanudo Portofinos about 7 years ago. Enjoyed one about every 3 months. 3 years ago, a Padron 2000 maduro caught my eye and I fell down the slope.

[Lucky_Hippo]

The first handmades that really caught my attention were Macanudo Portofinos. They were easy to find and easy to carry with you. From there I went to Fuente 8-9-8's and couldn't get enough of them. I pretty much stayed with Fuente products for years since it's what my B&M carried and what CA magazine pushed.

Back in the late 90's there just wasn't a whole lot of information readily available for the average cigar guy passed your local B&M and CA Magazine.

I'm very glad things have changed! This place is a a real blessing!!!

[pmwz]

tried some pre cut longfiller cigars that sucked. my mom went to cuba and got me a handfull of sticks. one of them was a monte 2 that got me reallly started.

[longknocker]

My first was an Acid as well...the Blondie. Went on a binge of buying all kinds of flavored sticks. Then Johnnykay5 gave me a Davidoff #2 and it was over. Sampled a bit of everything over the next few months. And then again Johnnykay5 turned me onto maduros and it is over for good this time. My name is Michael and I am a full fledged maduro whore. :tu

DejaVu, Mac!:D Except My First "Special Smoke" Was a Davidoff Special R. I Can Still Taste It In My Memories! After Don Fernando's Problems With Davidoff, Though, I'll Probably Never Smoke Another!:mad: I'll Also Agree With You On The Maduro Whore Part!:tu

[kayaker]

Monte #4. I was given one by a friend on a couple of occasions. Then when he quit he gifted me 10-12 of the ones he had left.

Haven't had one in a while but it will always have a special place in my heart.

[Addiction]

I'd been near cigars off and on due to client relationships but I was slow to adopt the habit myself. When I finally started smoking a parade of CAOs, Ghurkas and other lesser smokes almost completely put me off the hobby. Then I found a Padon 1964 Imperial that taught me that cigars can be a tasty and meaningful experience. Then I had a BBF that expanded that concept 1,000,000,000 fold.

[Tredegar]

Back in '06 I was getting married and I wanted to have some smokes for my wedding. I knew nothing about cigars so I had my dad tasked to get the cigars. He knew about JRCigars and always went there to get some pipe tobacco. Since he's retired and mobile he was also going to visit my sister, who lived in the Durham, NC area, and also pick up some other relatives flying into the states from Europe. Now mind you the wedding was in going to be in Wisconsin, where my bride to be lived. So they were all going to make a grand trek from North Carolina to Wisconsin for the wedding. No problems there, this was all planned out. The one thing that was not planned was that my sisters husband would die in a fishing accident two weeks before the wedding. I talked with my sister and she was upset and I volunteered to fly up there if she needed me to. She accepted. I flew up there and during some downtime my father and I went to the JRCigar store in Burlington, NC. I was amazed at all the different smokes available. My father picked up the wedding smokes, some JR bundles, and a I picked up a few loose sticks for myself. I had a Casa Blanca, a Punch Rothschild Maduro and an H. Upmann. The Casa Blanca was sort of nasty, the Punch was wonderful and the H. Upmann was meh. You can guess which one started it for me.

[Kreth]

I'm surprised we haven't heard from some of the FOGs about how they used to punch their Pleistocene maddies with the tip of a mammoth tusk to celebrate a successful hunt. :r
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[coastietech]

I'm surprised we haven't heard from some of the FOGs about how they used to punch their Pleistocene maddies with the tip of a mammoth tusk to celebrate a successful hunt. :r
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Bwhahahahahaha!!!:r:r:banger

[icehog3]

I'm surprised we haven't heard from some of the FOGs about how they used to punch their Pleistocene maddies with the tip of a mammoth tusk to celebrate a successful hunt. :r
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We are far too busy reading your reviews of Gurkhas and Perdomos, Steve. ;)

[Kreth]

We are far too busy reading your reviews of Gurkhas and Perdomos, Steve. ;)
Steve? :confused:
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[Zanaspus]

Mine was Padron! I refer you to my intro thread. :ss

[Mr.Maduro]

After I quit smoking 5 years ago, I started with some grocery store cigars that most people only buy for the wrappers...;) I tried a few samplers from different magazines and really enjoyed a Padron 2000 maduro.

I was telling a friend about how much I liked the Padron and he told me to try a PAM...I got a 1964 Torpedo and...well it was all over from there.

[Chemyst]

I went to a charity golf tournament and the pro
shop had RyJ 1875s and HdM Excaliburs. On a whim
I bought an Excalibur and found it very enjoyable.

I revisited a well-aged HdM Excalibur found buried in
my humi after a couple of years, just this past summer.
They are(still) an excellent smoke for the coin.

There are just so many other xlnt smokes out there,
that some very good smokes get sidelined(aged).

Chemyst :cool2:

[Veritas]

I don’t remember my first cigar; just that it was some gas station variety. I would have one on rare occasions with some friends or at a poker game. When I decided to look for something better I went to the only B&M that I knew about at the time and got a recommendation from the staff. He pointed me toward an Arturo Fuente Flora Fina 8-5-8 Sungrown. It absolutely blew me away. I kept going back to that shop picking up singles until the box was gone. At the time I thought that stick was one that would always be on the shelf, now I know better. Since his advice was spot-on with the 8-5-8, I followed his recommendations for quite a while. Although that shop is on the other side of town from where I live and is not my normal B&M, I still drop by on occasion just because of their influence on my trip to the slope.

My first box purchase was the Montecristo Serie V No. 4.

My first CC was a RyJ Cedros De Luxe No. 2.