Who's the Best?

[TheNinja]

[quote author=Charles link=topic=49894.msg207261#msg207261 date=1644106020]
Steer clear IMO of Promocigar...

They were once a great source known as Keep Lighting, but long ago they started shipping fakes and word got around so they changed their name to Promocigar.

They one time suddenly had in stock 1998 Fundedores that were sold out for many years.  I was suckered into getting a box and they were quite literally the worst smoke I've ever had.  I kid you not, like a rubber tire!  Rough, super dark wrappers.   So so bad.  I threw them out, all 23 and a 3/4 of them.

I haven't used them since then but that was 15 years ago so who knows, MAYBE they've changed?  I just won't take the chance myself.
[/quote]

Wait. You’re basing this one 1/4 of a cigar? From a box you didn’t try any others from?

I don’t have a horse in this race but that seems mildly unreasonable.

[jrfoxx]

[quote author=StogieNinja link=topic=49894.msg207362#msg207362 date=1644384761]
Wait. You’re basing this one 1/4 of a cigar? From a box you didn’t try any others from?

I don’t have a horse in this race but that seems mildly unreasonable.
[/quote]Agreed.

Everyone makes the occasional dud,  so you really can't base a cigar on a single one,  especially 1/4  of a single one.  Really need to fully smoke at least 2 to be able to judge a cigar, with 3+  being even better.

Plus, if it was rott or close to it, its not really a good judge of a smoke as they really need a month at least to rest and acclimate from several weeks of overseas shipping,  especially if the box isn't in some type of airtight bag or shrink wrapping, which Promo doesn't seem to do, and they spend 10+ days, unsealed, traveling thru the hot, dry, middle east.

Tested a few cigars from the order I recently received with my Humidimeter,  and they all read 60% tested through the cap,  and I'm sure they store them at a higher RH than that, so obviously they lost a fair bit of rh in transit and need some time to come up to my preferred storage rh of 65%.

I'm sure the opposite can happen with European vendors that dont seal them in any way. They could easily be too over humidified due to their storage rh and/or rh in the countries they again spend 10+ days traveling through. 

Will test some of the next ones I receive from Europe that arrive completely unsealed and see what I get for rh of a sampling of the cigars to compare.

I friggin' LOVE cigars

[jrfoxx]

Anyone who knows Rony better have an idea on how he will let U.S. residents know that shipping has resumed?

Obviously wont be posting it on the website since they state they don't sell or ship to U.S. residents to cover their ass, and wouldn't want to blow their cover, and not sure if they would be willing to do it in one of the sales emails they send out every so often for the same reason.

Dont want to be emailing them every couple weeks asking the same question over and over,  as thats just not a good way to treat a vendor imho, but do want to know asap when they resume so I can place my planned order.

Thanks,
Sean

I friggin' LOVE cigars

[Charles]

[quote author=StogieNinja link=topic=49894.msg207362#msg207362 date=1644384761]
Wait. You’re basing this one 1/4 of a cigar? From a box you didn’t try any others from?

I don’t have a horse in this race but that seems mildly unreasonable.
[/quote]

FWIW, I have a box of 1998 Fundedores so I KNOW exactly what they should look like and how they should smoke.  What I received from Rony was absolute garbage.  I knew the moment I opened the box that they were fake.  I only tried one to see if they were okay to smoke.  They were not.

Throwing them away was not unreasonable in my mind.  Unreasonable (in my mind) would have been to sell the garbage sticks here at OLH to get my $$ back by passing them on to some poor sap.  But my position is, having bought garbage sticks here in the past, from unscrupulous persons, I know how it feels to get ripped off so I will never do that to someone.  I'd rather take the loss.

I kind of wish I had kept that box of fake 1998 Fundedores, so I could send them to people who doubt me and then they too could see just how terrible they were, by smoking them at their own risk.

Just one more time I will say that I have not purchased from Rony in over 15 years, so if he's selling great sticks now then good for him and good for you, but for me it's Buyer Beware.  Also, just out of principle I try to stick to the policy of "If someone rips me off, I will never support that person again. Period."

[nick2021]

[quote author=jrfoxx link=topic=49894.msg207365#msg207365 date=1644415720]
Anyone who knows Rony better have an idea on how he will let U.S. residents know that shipping has resumed?

Obviously wont be posting it on the website since they state they don't sell or ship to U.S. residents to cover their ass, and wouldn't want to blow their cover, and not sure if they would be willing to do it in one of the sales emails they send out every so often for the same reason.

Dont want to be emailing them every couple weeks asking the same question over and over,  as thats just not a good way to treat a vendor imho, but do want to know asap when they resume so I can place my planned order.

Thanks,
Sean

I friggin' LOVE cigars


[/quote]

Lol not trying to be rude, but this isn’t rocket science  :rotf:

[jrfoxx]

[quote author=nick2021 link=topic=49894.msg207374#msg207374 date=1644431265]
Lol not trying to be rude, but this isn’t rocket science :rotf:
[/quote]
No offense taken. I'm not always the smartest when it comes to cc vendors. I only know what I see on their site or have heard from others with more experience with a particular vendor

I honestly can't think of any other way besides emailing all of those who have provided their email address.

If I'm missing something else obvious, please fill me in, as there doesn't appear to have been any kind of notification when he suspended U.S. shipments, so wondering how, or if, there will be any indication that shipping has resumed aside from periodically emailing him or simply placing an order and see if it gets canceled

I friggin' LOVE cigars

[Diplomatico]

[quote author=jrfoxx link=topic=49894.msg207375#msg207375 date=1644432578]

 <snip>

If I'm missing something else obvious,  please fill me in, as there doesn't appear to have been any kind of notification when he suspended U.S. shipments,  so wondering how, or if, there will be any indication that shipping has resumed aside from periodically emailing him or simply placing an order and see if it gets canceled

I friggin' LOVE cigars
[/quote]

 Put a product into the cart, go to checkout, when you get to the final page - if it's US bound - you'll get a pop-up telling you "not so fast, we aren't shipping there right now".

 Edit to add: presumably, when the pop-up goes away, that's your indication that they'll ship to the US again.

 

[jrfoxx]

Thanks.
Didn't know there was a popup message at checkout.
Had only heard that orders got canceled starting last month

[TheNinja]

[quote author=Charles link=topic=49894.msg207372#msg207372 date=1644428952]
FWIW, I have a box of 1998 Fundedores so I KNOW exactly what they should look like and how they should smoke.  What I received from Rony was absolute garbage.  I knew the moment I opened the box that they were fake.  I only tried one to see if they were okay to smoke.  They were not.

Throwing them away was not unreasonable in my mind.  Unreasonable (in my mind) would have been to sell the garbage sticks here at OLH to get my $$ back by passing them on to some poor sap.  But my position is, having bought garbage sticks here in the past, from unscrupulous persons, I know how it feels to get ripped off so I will never do that to someone.  I'd rather take the loss.
[/quote]
Fair enough!

[Charles]

[quote author=StogieNinja link=topic=49894.msg207387#msg207387 date=1644472132]
Fair enough!
[/quote]

Cool.    Not trying to be a dick here.  To quote Sergeant Joe Friday in the classic crime show Dragnet:    "Just the facts Mam.  Just the facts."