Cigar Aficionado Top 25
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"TommyBoy"
I said it once I'll say it again...The Top 10 should have...and not really in any order...Pepin, tatuaje, DE Liga's, and Padrons. I don't really see how any other boutique cigar beats these guys out. It's just my opinion but I think most would agree with me.
Nope.. List should be Anejos, Opus, Liga, Padron Anny, and Habanos only!
The list is bs bro... 90% of the list sucks! The companies that advertise the most In the CA magazine make the list! They could care less if dog rockets make the list! Btw, CA only smokes the first 1/2" of each stick before trashing it.
javajunkie
BoM July '12
i would like to step back and THANK CA for doing their list annually.
1) it's january. it is cold as balls, OR you are paying off christmas. or both. and they generate a lot of interest in smoking when a lot of folks might put it on the back burner.
2) it encourages people to step out of their norms and try things. CA has more street level awareness that any other source, and it is most likely to get someone to cross the threshold into actually thinking about this hobby.
3) it makes for a lively thread each year. o)
1) it's january. it is cold as balls, OR you are paying off christmas. or both. and they generate a lot of interest in smoking when a lot of folks might put it on the back burner.
2) it encourages people to step out of their norms and try things. CA has more street level awareness that any other source, and it is most likely to get someone to cross the threshold into actually thinking about this hobby.
3) it makes for a lively thread each year. o)
njstone
BoM January 2010
Well said.
As for the Top 25 being a sham for advertising dollars, I doubt it. The 700, however, (I.e. which cigars they decide to review in a given year), that's IS determined by ad dollars. And you have to get reviewed in the allotted time to have a shot.
The thing I cannot respect, though, is that they only smoke an inch of the cigars. That's just insane. An inch can tell you if something is crap or really good, but the difference between a 92 and a 95 is largely determined by how the entire smoking experience plays out. We've all had cigars that started great and then died, and some that started slower and then took off. What if their 94 cigar always gets bitter and nasty in the final third? CA would never know, they've "reviewed" 2 more cigars by that point.
njstone
BoM January 2010
Yep, they've tried to justify it here and there, but it's just ridiculous. Especially with all the money that's involved with this mag, they can certainly get more tasters if that's what's needed.
Seriously????
The thing I cannot respect, though, is that they only smoke an inch of the cigars. That's just insane. An inch can tell you if something is crap or really good, but the difference between a 92 and a 95 is largely determined by how the entire smoking experience plays out. We've all had cigars that started great and then died, and some that started slower and then took off. What if their 94 cigar always gets bitter and nasty in the final third? CA would never know, they've "reviewed" 2 more cigars by that point.
Wow! That's it? Just curious to see how you know this. I haven't seen anything on their website that says that. But if it's true, their "list" is pretty much BS.
Wow! That's it? Just curious to see how you know this. I haven't seen anything on their website that says that. But if it's true, their "list" is pretty much BS.
Was waiting for someone to mention the "inch" thing; totally agree, BS
I didn't know they only smoked the first inch! If this is true, then I now understand why some of their ratings are so strange, with some rather mediocre cigars getting good ratings, and some great ones consistently underrated.
I guess a truly great and complex cigar will never get its due, as they never even get to the best part of the cigar! Amazing.
I guess a truly great and complex cigar will never get its due, as they never even get to the best part of the cigar! Amazing.
More CA Top 25 predictions from us. What sticks do you expect to see in tomorrow's 10am ET announcement?
http://leafandgrape.com/2013/01/take-5-great-cigars-expected-to-make-ca-top-25/
Cheers!
Stace
http://leafandgrape.com/2013/01/take-5-great-cigars-expected-to-make-ca-top-25/
Cheers!
Stace
Reference? I've seen that posted on BBs countless times, although not by anyone affiliated with CA. Curious as to the origin of this claim.
I have been told by people close to CA (actually I think one is an employee of CA, cant remember for sure though) that the one inch thing is not true. Does anyone have a source for these accusations? I would really like to see it. The only place I have ever heard anyone say they only smoke the first inch is on forums.
11-25 will be posted up in 10 minutes
11-25 will be posted up in 10 minutes
Prior to November of last year Gordon had a video on the site that clearly said it was "one inch", since then it has been taken down and be has changed his answer to one of three things; 20 mins, one quarter of the cigar, or one half of the cigar. Gordon has said repeatedly that it takes one quarter of an inch (1/4) for a cigar to "develop" or "get going" which is why they don't smoke the whole stick.
The following is an excerpt from the CA forum from after November 2011, link will be posted to the whole page as well.
"I've also spoken with knowledgeable folks in the cigar business to re-affirm one of my core beliefs--that a cigar reaches a "running" state about a quarter to one half inch into the cigar. That's when the tobacco has warmed up and a taster or smoker gets a nearly complete profile of the blend and how the cigar is going to smoke. For me that reality also undermines the contention that you have to smoke a cigar more than halfway before you get to the good part...there's not a consumer product on the market anywhere that's going to be successful if you have to suffer to get to the good part. I won't dispute that cigars change as they are smoked, but I still would argue that not many people, me included, are going to hang in there through a long stretch of bad smoking.
So, how much of a cigar do I smoke. I've come up with a different answer than I gave about six months ago, and it is based on consistent observations of my smoking patterns. I spend at least 20 minutes per cigar...sometimes that's only a quarter of a cigar, sometimes it is half a cigar. I never take one or two puffs and rate a cigar. Every cigar gets a chance to show its stuff before I give a final impression."
He even refers to the fact they used to hold firm to the "one inch" policy in the 2nd paragraph. To me if a cigar get mushy and hot, and I smoke it again and it's still mushy or hot/ get butter at the end, it's a negative thing. Smoking a quarter into the cigar doesn't give you the whole picture of a smoke JMHO
http://forums.cigaraficionado.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/3696075/m/6097081032