Hi Favorite non Cuban Cigars!

[Kdot]

i'm more of a cuban fanboy, just seem to suit my tastes better.
However after trying about 100 different non cubans ive got a shortlist that i would purchase...the thing i hate about NCs is having to trail through so many before finding something great. I smoke 1 cigar a day and I want it to be nothing less than complete bliss, average is not good enough.

RyJ Real Reserva
Oliva V
RP The Edge maduro (hate every other smoke by RP, decade, sungrown, etc)
Diesel Unholy Cocktail
Padilla 1948

and the 601 green was decent but I dont see me buying a box

[EricF]

It's becoming clearer and clearer to me that the question isn't about nc's vs. cc's, but about building your stash such that you have the right cigar to fit your mood.

I agree, Mood definetely has something to do with the cigar you choose and how well you enjoy it. So having a variety is a plus.

I tend to smoke Padrons, Man O Wars, Diesels and believe it or not GrayCliff Double Espressos from the Bahamas. These are great on my way to work with my morning coffee.

Just my $.02

[bopmachine]

The U was me typing too fast lol. b&m = brick and mortar.

[davidruddell]

U b&m?

apols for noob query, but whats U b&m?

Im really enoying chinchalero Novillo cigars at the moment. Very good construction with a great draw and a nice mild flavor. Perfect after dinner cigar. Can usually find them in a U b&m for under ?4

[davidruddell]

Rocky Patel Vintage 1990

Bloody lovely smoke, but as been said here by wiser than I, is as much price wise as many CC's in the UK, specially when you're dumb enough to be tempted while in your local store like I was!

[Soulmanure]

Love quite a bit of the Tatuaje line; the Havanas, Miamis, La Riquezas, El Triunfadors, etc. I also quite enjoy, when in a mellow mood, the Arturo Fuente Hemingways, or, when in a less mellow mood, an occasional Oliva V.

It's becoming clearer and clearer to me that the question isn't about nc's vs. cc's, but about building your stash such that you have the right cigar to fit your mood.

[bopmachine]

Im really enoying chinchalero Novillo cigars at the moment. Very good construction with a great draw and a nice mild flavor. Perfect after dinner cigar. Can usually find them in a U b&m for under ?4

[Eyesack]

Old Henry's are great smokes! I've been really digging Nicaraguan smokes lately, nothing beats their spicy, satisfying texture/flavor of smoke. NC's that I've come to love are the RP Vintage 90, most Fuente products, and similar stuff. I honestly have to admit I've been smoking a lot of De Noblis lately. They're fire-cured cheroot cigars that many people look at as shit-sticks, but they taste like buttered popcorn! lol!

I bought various CC's lately, but realized that they need much more time to enjoy than NC's so now I'm back to smoking through the massive bombs that Smelvis has hit me with lol.

[Lou3]

To be honest I'd never even heard of Holts Cigars' Old Henry.

Holt's Cigars of Philadelphia is one of the US' most well known cigar shops. They had a brand called Old Henry made by Pepin Garcia, and it is apparently one of their best sellers. Here's a link to the Old Henry page:

http://www.holts.com/category.html?id=198762

[Esoteric]

This is a great thread as it is very interesting to see the different brands indicated. I actually found one I am going to try now, the Perdomo Cuban Cafe (didn't know it existed LOL).

[tippexx]

There's a lot I haven't tried though.

I think that's all of us Lou. To be honest I'd never even heard of Holts Cigars' Old Henry.

[Lou3]

Padron's Anniversary lines, Oliva, and Holts Cigars' Old Henry are my favorite NC brands for the moment. I like their complex flavor that has just the right intensity for me. There's a lot I haven't tried though.

[tmajer15]

I prefer non cubans to cubans,I do have cubans, but Nc's seem to suit my palette more. I'm a fan of lots of them, Nubs,cains,perdomo,padilla,caos,pepins,tatuaje,roc ky patels,arganese,romeo y julieta etc etc

My collection is getting better and better

If you know were to look, you can get pretty much any your after here

Lee, I was going to guess you'd say Nub.. I just had a feeling, those are great cigars. My favorite NC is strangely enough a Cohiba Puro Dominicana. Gifted to me by none other that the man Smelvis himself. Thanks again Dave, and some retailers are very thankful to you too.

[G-man]

What Embargo

It is quite strange really that in the UK the range of NCs compared to Cubans is limited and actually the reverse of what it is in terms of production levels in the two different sectors.

I think one of the reasons is because the UK taxes on tobacco are so high traditiionally (and getting ever higher) that all hand rolled cigars are priced to be premium luxury products. In the US obviously there is the political issue of the embargo that artificially puts prices up on Cubans as essentially they need to be smuggled, but as I understand it the general level of tobacco taxation is lower so even when you have legitimate taxed NCs from cigar stores they can still be very cheap (compared to the UK market at least).

Therefore for us in the UK I guess that if both Cubans and NCs are premium products you do tend to stick to what is widely considered the best anyway (the Cubans) and so the NC cigars become more of a niche product in some ways and are usually sold as a 'value' alternative.

Also, while it is wrong to generalise, in my limited experience I usually find dominicans to be very mild. Of course there will be exceptions, but if you have the general idea that they will be then you may be put off trying ones you don't know in a situation where the Cuban varieties are so much better known and that usually have a better reputation in terms of taste.

Anyway, after all that I've liked the Padillas I've tried, although they are not particularly cheap for NCs, and also the La Rica brand (which definately are cheap), but I do often look at US online cigar sites are get blown away by both the vareity and the low prices, so can't help think that we are missing out on something (but I'm damn glad we don't have the embargo to worry about!)

LMFAOROTF
Who's worried?

[Gary]

Fortunately I've tried loads of NC over the last four years, primarily as a result of visit the U.S. on several occasions for various reasons.

Anyway, my favourite NC for the last while is the Tatuaje Noellas, really like the size and slimmer ring gauge. Additionally love the El Triunfador lancero (original release).

Other NC that keep finding their way into the humidor include various Pepin Garcia brands as well as the Illusion brand.

Personally I think the quality of NC have been improving year on year recently.