The Arizona Cardinals remark made me LOL.
Well done, Eric. I don't think I could have been blessed with two better reviewers than you and Wayne.
I'm not sure if the jar/review experiment showed me anything that was really quantitive. If anything, it supported my personal thoughts that aging cigars sucks for my intents and purposes. After a time, they just go blah, and that's that. I do feel that the jars slowed the aging on this value tobacco, as they'd have gone south and been completely dull in a year to 18 months time in the humi. I can say that because I've tested and watched it happen many, many times. I just wanted to find a way to keep a nice, strong, flavorful, full-bodied cigar from suffering the sands of time. The jars help, but they aren't the fountain of youth I was looking for. Unfortunately, they may be the only option.
I know cc's have special magical powers that make them super better with age, but in my experience, just as many of them suffer from the aging blahs as do nc's. I'll always respect "smoke what you like...", and being an objective/subjective argument, it's all unwinnable and senseless. I wouldn't want to tear down anything that gives anyone joy, that's for sure.
I absolutely believe that the quality of the tobacco that's used to roll any cigar, cc or nc, makes all the difference in the world as to how it will age. A good plant grown in stellar soil, then prepared with great care is going to yield that nuance that a good nc or cc will gain with age. By the same token, they'll lose the strength and flavors they began with while they travel to nuance-ville.
It's hard to make the call. Do I smoke it now while it's awesome, or do I wait ten years and see what happens on the chance it may even be a better but very different cigar?
If I like a cigar but it's too strong and overpowering, time is going to soften it and make it "better" for me. I just have never found a cigar that needed calmed down strength-wise. It's a great tool for guys who would enjoy a milder cigar, for sure.
The longer I go and the older I get and the more I fuss and study, the more I am on board with the old cc and nc producers/rollers who say "these are best RIGHT NOW". I'm not so sure they even mean right now as opposed to letting them sit around for a long time. I think they simply mean it's best to be smoking any cigar RIGHT NOW than not smoking a cigar.
I can live with that.
