Log in

View Full Version : Are you a collector or are you a smoker?


CRIMPS
03-22-2011, 11:33 AM
Sure! You can be both!

I opened the humidor last night and pulled half my cigars out trying to find the right stick for the evening.

There are a couple of thoughts that run through my head each time I open my humidor.


That is a special stick... for a special occasion.
I only have one of those. I don't want to smoke it now.
Holding on to this stick, I want to share it with a friend.
This cigar needs a little more time.


But, most of all, it seems like I am starting to become a collector as there is a good percentage of cigars I am not smoking just because... Not exactly sure why that is... Maybe I just want to show off my stash. Sounds completely douchey... Ironically, the cigars I think about smoking the most are the cigars I am NOT smoking. :sl

Those of you that purchase Limited Releases... did you make the purchase to smoke them? Or, are you collecting? Maybe you want to show off the box?

Anyway, I wanted to get your thoughts. Are you a collector as much as you are a smoker? If so, why do you collect? What are the common reasons why you pass on a cigar?

HollywoodQue
03-22-2011, 11:40 AM
I think that I am more of a collector. I have several different brands,and usually like anything that's TAT. I sometimes force myself to smoke something different, which when I do, I enjoy it. If I am gifted or traded with something that I didn't have in my humi, I usally make an excuse to myself not to smoke it because it's the only one, ie Skull & Bones. Well, that's the truth and I am sticking with it.

Dukeuni
03-22-2011, 11:41 AM
I think I have come to the point were I am more of a collector and gifter of cigars then a smoker. With my job, baby at home, etc., I am lucky to smoke 1 cigar a week. I have a huge cooler full of cigars, and who knows when I will smoke them all.

The one thing I do like is that the cigars will last as long as I do. I can keep those cigars in great condition and be fine smoking them in 30 years when I may have more time to smoke ;-)

N2 GOLD
03-22-2011, 11:42 AM
Smoke them if you got them. They always have something big & better comming out. Sometimes a $2 sick is better then a $25 sick. Smoke them all the same & enjoy each one.

Thats just me...

HK3-
03-22-2011, 11:43 AM
smoker

guitar4001
03-22-2011, 11:49 AM
i have a select few cigars that i do not intend to smoke unless a special occasion strikes. One is a cedar wrapped stick from 1935 while 2 others are the original release La Vieja Habana from the late 90's. Other than those, everything else is up for grabs.

BlindedByScience
03-22-2011, 11:50 AM
Both. While there are sticks "...I'm saving...." nothing is free from risk of fire damage at some point.....:tu

Stevez
03-22-2011, 11:51 AM
I postd this very same question several years ago on another board and the results were very interesting. I don't remember percentages, but it was good research. I smoke everything I buy and I'm not very good about aging things I really like. Usually the ones I keep the longest are the ones that disappointed me for some reason. Everything's smokable in my humi. Steve

Lucky_Hippo
03-22-2011, 11:55 AM
I'm a joker
I'm a smoker
I'm a midnight toker
I sure don't want to hurt no one

MajorCaptSilly
03-22-2011, 11:56 AM
Both, really. I have some special cigars that will wait for an appropriate time to smoke. All the rest air fair game. I intend to smoke all of them someday.

MCS

klipsch
03-22-2011, 11:58 AM
Both. While there are sticks "...I'm saving...." nothing is free from risk of fire damage at some point.....:tu

:r

BigCat
03-22-2011, 12:00 PM
I have a decent sized stash, though perhaps modest by the standards of some around here, but I intend to see every one smoked, either by me or a friend. I get no pleasure out of just having something rare - they are intended to be smoked.

Blueface
03-22-2011, 12:01 PM
That is a special stick... for a special occasion. I only have one of those. I don't want to smoke it now. Holding on to this stick, I want to share it with a friend.
This cigar needs a little more time.


But, most of all, it seems like I am starting to become a collector as there is a good percentage of cigars I am not smoking just because... Not exactly sure why that is... Maybe I just want to show off my stash. Sounds completely douchey... Ironically, the cigars I think about smoking the most are the cigars I am NOT smoking. :sl


Never, ever save them for the sake of saving them.
Three and four on your list make sense to me. One and two would never apply for me.
Tomorrow may never come and someone else may enjoy them rather than you and who knows if they will be wishing you were still around to enjoy it.

Both, really. I have some special cigars that will wait for an appropriate time to smoke. All the rest air fair game. I intend to smoke all of them someday.

MCS

:tpd:
Except I try to make that "appropriate time" hurry up and arrive.;)

kickerb
03-22-2011, 12:02 PM
more of a smoker, i feel like i paid good money and there is no point to keep 'em just sittin' around -unless of course my goal is to age them.

pektel
03-22-2011, 12:10 PM
Anything is up on the chopping block. Mostly there are no sticks that I intend to save for years. Although, some of the larger sticks (Opus X RDC) are less likely to be smoked, only because I need to have enough time, and I hear those are better with age anyways.

Well, that's mostly true. I have a few cc's that I will age. I will save a few of the 05 PLPC's, an 01 CoLa, a 98 Charlotte, and maybe the one esplendido. In actuality though, I'm waiting for it to be nice enough for me to go outside and spark up that CoLa.

Da Klugs
03-22-2011, 12:16 PM
Initially you explore... buying things to try.
You find things you like and buy more.
If this trend continues long enough... buying more than you smoke;
You have become a collector.



I collect them to have the opportunity to smoke them over my forseable life/smoking career.


In the movie Bicentennial man, Andrew was finally granted acknowledgment that he was human and thus the oldest recorded living human being at 200 years old.

My plan also seems to incorporate breaking that record. :D

kelmac07
03-22-2011, 12:27 PM
Both...as Dave stated above, I have bought so much of what I like that I cannot smoke them fast enough. Nice knowing I will have some sticks to last me for awhile. And that means I get to "collect" them until they are torched.

pektel
03-22-2011, 12:27 PM
How well do Maduros age? :p

Seriously though. Honest question.

Volusianator
03-22-2011, 12:28 PM
Smoker

audio1der
03-22-2011, 12:30 PM
I consider myself more of a collector, BUT, because my opportunities to enjoy a cigar are few and far between, not because I hesitate to smoke anything I own. My worst-case scenario would involve laying on the road after being hit by a bus, wondering what any number of my 'special' smokes would have been like. Plus, who will get them if I die? My son? What would he and his buddies do with boxes of ERDM Slenderellas, aside from treat them like cigarettes?
I smoke them all, at every opporunity.

kelmac07
03-22-2011, 12:32 PM
How well do Maduros age? :p

Seriously though. Honest question.

Some better than others Peter. Great example...the Cain Maduros have lost their "bite" in only a year and the Oliva Blue Oles have aged wonderfully in the 5-6 years they have been sitting. All depends on the stick. :2

icehog3
03-22-2011, 12:34 PM
Initially you explore... buying things to try.
You find things you like and buy more.
If this trend continues long enough... buying more than you smoke;
You have become a collector.



I collect them to have the opportunity to smoke them over my forseable life/smoking career.





Quoted because Dave said it better than I ever could.

And good luck with that 2160 New Years celebration, Dave. :)

pektel
03-22-2011, 12:38 PM
Some better than others Peter. Great example...the Cain Maduros have lost their "bite" in only a year and the Oliva Blue Oles have aged wonderfully in the 5-6 years they have been sitting. All depends on the stick. :2

That's what I was wondering about. If they mellow out too much over time.

Thanks for the info. :tu

68TriShield
03-22-2011, 12:44 PM
Not a collector at all.

qsalinas
03-22-2011, 12:50 PM
As a noob I am smoking everything I can get my hands on. I figure that I have plenty of time to start collecting so for now they all go up in smoke.
All except for the BHK 52's I have. :r

jledou
03-22-2011, 12:54 PM
I collect cigars to smoke? yeah I might get ahead in the next lifetime...not that I have that many on hand right now, let's just saying I am still losing the material balance war.

Bill86
03-22-2011, 12:56 PM
IMO I am definitely a smoker. Nothing is off limits in my humidor. I have probably ~400 or so cigars and the only reason I wouldn't smoke them is if they needed some rest. I do often set aside maybe my best 5'er and only smoke them for special occasions if I cannot afford more of them. But that would be about it. Or maybe ration out cigars I won't be able to get again. But they all get smoked.

dvickery
03-22-2011, 12:58 PM
well...insomuch as i have more cigars than i will ever smoke...a collector.

i have no special cigars tho...usually i just pick a "new" box from my oldest cigars...a smoker

same as klugs...just did it a bit slower. all i have ever done(and continue to do)is buy a few more boxes per year than i smoke. slowly but surely this adds up.

derrek :hm

Da Klugs
03-22-2011, 01:08 PM
There are extremes as well. Within any group of people there are obsessive compulsives who represent a small percentage of the group. Within the same overall group there are people who have extreme incomes.

There is a small overlap of these two subgroups whos combination of the aforementioned conditions create shifts in the market availability, pricing and the types of cars preferred cigar vendors drive. :D

Ashcan Bill
03-22-2011, 01:16 PM
I collect them to have the opportunity to smoke them over my forseable life/smoking career.




Pretty much what Dave said. I buy 'em to smoke 'em, but in some cases I lay them down for a bit of a nap.

By the time the game is done, I plan to leave an empty humidor behind. ;)

guitar4001
03-22-2011, 01:17 PM
My worst-case scenario would involve laying on the road after being hit by a bus, wondering what any number of my 'special' smokes would have been like. Plus, who will get them if I die? My son? What would he and his buddies do with boxes of ERDM Slenderellas, aside from treat them like cigarettes? I smoke them all, at every opporunity.

I never thought of it like that before...good point!

tsolomon
03-22-2011, 01:24 PM
I buy them to smoke and my favorites get smoked first. :D

Devanmc
03-22-2011, 01:27 PM
seeing as over the past 6months did half a cooler plus 4 trays of singles. Im a collector but with college around the corner, im soon to be a smoker.

Bax
03-22-2011, 01:34 PM
I really enjoy the aspect of collecting but not to the point I wouldn't toast a single cigar that I have :D

bigdankcloud
03-22-2011, 01:40 PM
While it takes me some time since this cigar smoking thing has been pissing off the female unit more and more lately, I still think of myself as a smoker.

Average Joe
03-22-2011, 01:50 PM
Smoker.

The only ones that don't get smoked are the ones I buy to try and don't like. Those go to people who bum cigars -(P

shilala
03-22-2011, 01:51 PM
I haven't smoked much at all since last summer. Hopefully that'll change as the weather gets better, because I love my cigars.
I'm definately not a collector, but I'd admit to being a gatherer.
I do "keep" some cigars, but only so much as "I'm not going to smoke them, but I'll find someone who likes them".
I don't have nearly as many cigars as I used to, and I'd like to have lots less. I try to keep a box of each of the cigars I like, and I keep a bunch of stuff other people like so I can give them away.
I guess that'd put me in a low-level smoker/distributor/pusher class.
I do still enjoy keeping my eye out for really good deals, and I have a lot of fun finding unfindable stuff, so that "collector" part of me still exists.

smelly4tay
03-22-2011, 02:00 PM
85% collector when I started in 03. Part of the collector in me was to see how well they would age. 100% smoker now (except 1 cigar). Part of the obsessive researcher in me satifies the craving to buy that next LE.....

pektel
03-22-2011, 02:02 PM
What's the one cigar?

smelly4tay
03-22-2011, 02:18 PM
Taboada Salamone 03 gifted to me at my first herf ever by Turnberry, who i don't see on any boards anymore. Just couldn't bring myself to smoke it, and have smoked enough Taboada stuff since to make that my precious unicorn. :xxx

Party Pyramid 2000 EL the day my son was born was the cigar that changed it all. So tightly rolled that it got clipped and poked/clipped then pitched for a simple Royal Salute SG which was delicious. EL's and HTF's are cool, but there's always that chance they won't perform.

OHRD
03-22-2011, 02:30 PM
Great thread Zach.

I'm a bit of both, but more than anything I'm a smoker. I have my smokes organized and of the eight sections designated for singles, only one of those is untouchable. And in that bin, most are being saved b/c I really LOVE them and I only have one left...not b/c they are super expensive, etc.

Isom-niac2
03-22-2011, 02:38 PM
Ima smoker, but I told my wife Ima collector and my stash is an investment that I can always sell and get my money back...She bought it and supports my "collecting."

68TriShield
03-22-2011, 02:39 PM
While it takes me some time since this cigar smoking thing has been pissing off the female unit more and more lately, I still think of myself as a smoker.

Any chance of bringing her into the fold Chris? It has happened before.

MurphysLaw
03-22-2011, 02:39 PM
I'm a smoker, there are maybe 3 or 4 cigars in my humidor that I'm holding on to so I can share them with a friend, but otherwise any stick I have is ready to go up in flames at any time.

BlackIrish
03-22-2011, 02:55 PM
There are a couple of thoughts that run through my head each time I open my humidor.


That is a special stick... for a special occasion.
I only have one of those. I don't want to smoke it now.
Holding on to this stick, I want to share it with a friend.
This cigar needs a little more time.


But, most of all, it seems like I am starting to become a collector as there is a good percentage of cigars I am not smoking just because... Not exactly sure why that is...

I've often found myself thinking like this in the past, and there are still times when I say "that's a special cigar and I'm not going to have the time and circumstances to give this smoke the attention I want to give it," or "I've been wanting to smoke this one, but it's too mild for me tonight." But I'm finding more and more that *now* is the time to smoke those sticks that I've been saving.

CRIMPS
03-22-2011, 02:55 PM
Thoroughly enjoying all responses to this. :tu

I guess the better question is how each of us values the cigars we have.

From an analytical standpoint, each of us assigns some value to Cigar X when we receive the cigar into our Inventory. For Cigar X to be selected to be smoked/gifted, the value of that cigar will offset the occasion/emotional feeling/etc. Your everyday smoke for the evening on the porch vs that special stick (special to you) for special times (marriage/birth/etc).

Dukeuni
03-22-2011, 02:58 PM
Initially you explore... buying things to try.
You find things you like and buy more.
If this trend continues long enough... buying more than you smoke;
You have become a collector.



A lot of the discussion so far as been "I will smoke anything in my humidor, nothing is too special." I agree with this statement. I guess I like what was stated above- I have gotten to the point that I have so many cigars, I may never be able to smoke them all, so I think of myself now as a collector.

NeuRon
03-22-2011, 03:00 PM
Smoker all the way.. What good are they just sitting there?

Nathan King
03-22-2011, 03:03 PM
I don't smoke very much compared to many on the forums, so I consider myself a bit of a collector. That said, I have no hesitation lighting an uber-premium just for the heck of it.

FelonyRuckus
03-22-2011, 03:08 PM
I'm definitely a smoker but, i do have a few I'm collecting. I smoke at least 1 or 2 cigars a day. I am letting my Drew Estates Flying Pig, AVO LE10s, Padron no. 44, 45, 46s, and my BHK 52, 54, and 56s age and waiting for special occasions.

cobra03
03-22-2011, 03:09 PM
I really enjoy the aspect of collecting but not to the point I wouldn't toast a single cigar that I have :D
:tpd: Like my high school bus driver always said "Smoke em if you got em boys, smoke em if you got em...."

MiamiE
03-22-2011, 03:13 PM
I am a smoker, but I am smoking less these days and buying more. I guess this makes me a collector.

dwoodward
03-22-2011, 03:30 PM
I think I am a smoker... For a while I was totally a collector, but I eventually grew past that stage. now I just grab whatever looks good. The thoughts of "oh that's my only/last one" cross my mind often, but then I tell myself "perfect reason to smoke it".

The way I see it, if it's my only one, chances are I got it in a sampler and I haven't tried it yet. No sense not trying it if it has the potential to be a favorite.

sam a
03-22-2011, 03:46 PM
smoker with a few quirks that force me to buy a few to many of everything

Smokin Gator
03-22-2011, 03:58 PM
Like Scott said... I do enjoy the rare find, but I am definitely a smoker. I have a plan for aging some of my stuff, but I smoke anything when the mood strikes.

Steve
03-22-2011, 04:05 PM
Smoker...

Trent0341
03-22-2011, 04:07 PM
I don't smoke very much compared to many on the forums, so I consider myself a bit of a collector. That said, I have no hesitation lighting an uber-premium just for the heck of it.

I'm pretty much the same way. I do have quite a few that I'm putting away for aging (well quite a few for me anyway) but like Ron White said:

"I've got a great cigar collection - it's actually not a collection, because that would imply I wasn't going to smoke every last one of 'em."

pektel
03-22-2011, 04:08 PM
"I've got a great cigar collection - it's actually not a collection, because that would imply I wasn't going to smoke every last one of 'em."

I like that. :D

N2 GOLD
03-22-2011, 04:13 PM
Like Scott said... I do enjoy the rare find, but I am definitely a smoker. I have a plan for aging some of my stuff, but I smoke anything when the mood strikes.

Spoken like a true smoker... :tu

CoreyD
03-22-2011, 04:26 PM
I am a smoker , as stated previous the very tasty sticks have a hard time aging in the humi cause they get grabbed, and as stated previous if you purchase a new taste you like and grab that some of the others start collecting. I often wonder if the sticks I have will make it of a year humi time because even the October, November and December sticks I purchase are getting low to under 7 and such and summer has yet to even hit and we're only 5 months into my new found hobby.I do have some sitting hoping I have strength to let them rest to see the so called aging effect but all my sticks taste so damn good.

zemekone
03-22-2011, 04:27 PM
smoker...

Skywalker
03-22-2011, 04:48 PM
I collect them to have the opportunity to smoke them over my forseable life/smoking career.


In the movie Bicentennial man, Andrew was finally granted acknowledgment that he was human and thus the oldest recorded living human being at 200 years old.

My plan also seems to incorporate breaking that record. :D


Dave, I grant you the acknowledgment that you are indeed human! :D

There! Way before 200 years! You broke the record!:r

Now, go smoke something nice!!!:tu

oooo35980
03-22-2011, 06:11 PM
Smoker, no collection to speak of yet, I buy a couple, smoke em, buy a couple more.

kgoings
03-22-2011, 06:23 PM
Smoker I dont have anything 'Special' enough to just sit in my humidor. But when I get a new box I do have a difficult time smoking the first one...something beautiful about a full box.

Retiredguy
03-23-2011, 08:37 AM
Smoker,
I'd like to try aging cigars, but, everything I buy seems to be gone in just a few months. The only ones that seem to get any age are an occasional single that I lose track of or a few that I've lost interest in.

rizzle
03-23-2011, 08:55 AM
I'm an acquirer in order to be a smoker. That has provided me with my collection of cigars on hand waiting to be smoked.

See, makes perfect sense. -(P

Skywalker
03-23-2011, 10:07 AM
I seriously have trouble getting to any singles that were gifts! I usually save them for a special occasion or a herf, where I can express my appreciation.

I enjoy an average of five cigars per week. I find collecting boxes difficult. Once they are open, they're gone.

craiggory
03-23-2011, 10:38 AM
I'm not sure. I love to smoke 'em, but I agree with Darrell--I have a hard time smoking a cigar single. If it's a box or a five-pack, I don't have trouble smoking them. Something about the idea that "when it's gone it's gone" bothers me.

Apoco
03-23-2011, 11:02 AM
Collector. Especially as of late.

However, it isn't because I mark any given stick as not to be touched, but because I saw white in my cooler and had to fill it (note: no more white to be seen. Can I tape the cigars to the lid somehow?) :D
Posted via Mobile Device

CasaDooley
03-23-2011, 11:03 AM
I'm a collector that smokes...alot. I try to buy multiple boxes of what I like in the hopes of getting some age on them, but the reality is nothing is safe from my lighter. :ss

pektel
03-23-2011, 11:53 AM
I like buying aged smokes (that have been properly cared for). Then I don't have to wait. Just picked up a little over a half cab of 05 PLPC's, a few 05 Cohiba coronas especiales, an 01 CoLa, and a couple 98 HU Monarcas. Can't wait until it warms up so I can enjoy them.

ylo2na
03-23-2011, 02:58 PM
collector and smoker.... I find it difficult to buy a 5 pak, it usually is the full box even if I havent tried the "stick", except for the reading of reviews and CL recommendations from fellow BOTL.
I must admit I am a sucker for a sale even if I have a few boxes of the sale cigar...cant pass that up.
ylo2na

Goldie
03-23-2011, 03:42 PM
I like to think I am a smoker, but until we start seeing consistent warm temps, I'm stuck as a collector. I don't really smoke in my house, so my options are limited.

Chemyst
03-23-2011, 07:42 PM
I collect State Quarters and golden Presidential Dollars.
I smoke cigars.

Chemyst :cool2:

pektel
03-23-2011, 07:54 PM
I like to think I am a smoker, but until we start seeing consistent warm temps, I'm stuck as a collector. I don't really smoke in my house, so my options are limited.

I hear that. Right now i'm in acquisition mode.
Posted via Mobile Device

whodeeni
03-30-2011, 02:25 PM
I'm a recovering "collector" who's slowly but surely amending his ways
and becoming a smoker! :tu

CRIMPS
03-30-2011, 02:35 PM
I'm a recovering "collector" who's slowly but surely amending his ways
and becoming a smoker! :tu

One day at a time...

Tredegar
03-30-2011, 04:40 PM
I am a smoker, but do feel sort of a sense of loss when I smoke the last cigar from from an irreplaceable box.

Da Klugs
04-12-2011, 10:16 AM
If you get into the "aging thing" and stay interested in the hobby long enough, it's only natural to "put some away" to experience the natual evolution of a particular cigar/cigars as they age.

It's been 6 years since I bought my first NC. Have spent bank on vintage cigars but the vast majority of cigars I own were fresh on purchase.

My evolving theory is that there is a crossover point where the purchased vintage that I more than not smoke now evolves to smoking cigars that I have personally aged.

I guess what I'm saying is my goal is to become Derrek. :)

icehog3
04-12-2011, 11:16 AM
I guess what I'm saying is my goal is to become Derrek. :)

A worthy goal indeed. :)

Noodles
04-12-2011, 12:09 PM
Probably a little bit of both.

I amass, I mean collect so I will have cheap smokes later on.

Stephen
04-12-2011, 12:42 PM
Smoker
If you were a smoker, you wouldn't need a humidor big enough to bury Gilbert Brown in!:r

Thammy
04-12-2011, 05:35 PM
Smoker. As a University student with an infant I can't afford to collect much anyways haha. My humi is filled with various singles.

htown
04-12-2011, 07:08 PM
I was a collector, but now I am seeing how long I can go before buying anymore cigars. I am shooting for 18 months. With three little ones and living on one income with my wife in school and me about to go to graduate school, I can't justify spending any cash on cigars.

cort
04-12-2011, 07:15 PM
I collect cigars to smoke.:tu

forgop
04-12-2011, 07:46 PM
Considering I have enough cigars to last me 10+ years at my current pace without buying a single cigar in the meantime, I'd say I'm a collector.

I think this hobby has confirmed that I'm much like my dad. He'd start in on a new hobby and go apesh!t buying stuff in it. Maybe that's why I still have a huge collection of books/records/pocket watches of his. I would like to unload a lot of the books and vinyl though.

Cornrow_Wallis
04-12-2011, 11:11 PM
Smoker, but unfortunately I find myself justifying not smoking a specific cigar sometimes. More so when I only have one of them.

roddy rod
04-13-2011, 03:09 AM
I'm a lil of both! I have only been smoking for a couple of years and have been fortunate enuf to come across what I think are a few good sticks that I cannot readily get again so I save instead of smoking. Waiting on that special occassion that never seems to come....lol:r

mfarre03
04-20-2011, 03:38 AM
I am definitley a smoker. Most of what I buy I end up smoking. I had around 200 or so sticks last spring and then I started smoking one a day...it didn't take long to go through them..lol. I stopped for a few months, now I just buy three or four every couple weeks. I think I'm due for a little online shopping spree...muahahahaha

longknocker
04-20-2011, 03:51 AM
Considering I have enough cigars to last me 10+ years at my current pace without buying a single cigar in the meantime, I'd say I'm a collector.

I think this hobby has confirmed that I'm much like my dad. He'd start in on a new hobby and go apesh!t buying stuff in it. Maybe that's why I still have a huge collection of books/records/pocket watches of his. I would like to unload a lot of the books and vinyl though.

Sounds Like Me!:D Collector Of Cigars, Knives, Pens, & Golf Balls! I Do "Use" Them, But I Like Looking At Them!:tu

bishjd123
04-20-2011, 09:23 AM
I'm a smoker, but you wouldn't know that by looking at my humidors; They're all full.

CRIMPS
04-20-2011, 11:21 AM
I'm a smoker, but you wouldn't know that by looking at my humidors; They're all full.

Bragger :)

mfarre03
04-20-2011, 02:11 PM
I'm a smoker, but you wouldn't know that by looking at my humidors; They're all full.

Well, your only about a 7 hr drive from me, I can gladly come down and take care of that for you...-(P