What in the world motivated you to start smoking cigars, anyways???

[shilala]

I started smoking cigars when I was a teenager because they were on a rack right next to the Galaga machine.
Middleton Cherries. I loved them.
Later on, I always made a point to stop and get some cherries whenever I was headed to a party. That party lasted for about 20 years, so I smoked a mess of cherries.
Whenever there were no cherries, I'd get Backwoods smokes.
I wasn't even aware there were other kinds of cigars until around 2001 when I picked up a Thompson's catalog in the lunch trailer at work.
A couple of my buds would collect the copper scrap, cash it in, and order a fistful of singles, smoking a different one every lunch.
I had a lot of fun jabbing at the goofy names, but the trailer and the cigars smelled so awful I never even considered trying one. Plus they were HUGE, especially when my only frame of reference were the little girl cigars I was used to.
Last year I was on vacation and picked up a tourist magazine. It was an "All The Best" magazine. I was doing a lot of sitting and bs'ing, and I thought a cigar might be nice. So I hunted up the 90+ rated world famous highly touted box of cigars and dragged them around with me sharing all the way. They were brutal, but I persevered and quickly grew to really like them.
It's all been uphill since then.

What's your story? How'd you get dragged onto the slope?

[BostonMark]

Honestly, it all started with an Al Capone.

The rest, as they say - is history.

[Thumper2672]

Honestly? I started when I was twenty-five because I thought sophisticated gentlemen smoked cigars.

[TripleF]

Started smoking Black & Milds with my future son in-law on his wedding weekend which led to a friend of my daughter's, who was in the wedding party, buying me a cigar a week later and saying........try this, it's a REAL cigar.

It was a COHIBA toro and I loved every pufff!!! That was the beginning of the end!!!

[cbsmokin]

Sitting around drinking with some friends and it just sort of sounded like a fun thing to do.

[awsmith4]

Great story, I grew up with both my father and stepfather (different households) smoking handmades so I would try them here and there. My uncle also used to work for a tobacco broker and would bring back boxes from various factories he sold tobacco to. After I went to college I started buying my own and keeping a small desktop and would enjoy them sporadically, special occasions and such, but being a broke college student I had to limit it. I tended to spend my money on cigarettes and another leaf that is popular to smoke (gave that up though). After college I moved home (mom and stepdad's house) for a spell and would smoke cigars with him a little more regularly. I still partied quite a bit, but after I met my wife and calmed down a little I stopped spending my money on stupid things and started spending it on her and cigars. About 4 years ago I bought a second humi, then i found the online supliers of cigars via JRs which I had been to many times on trips to NC to visit family. After I found the other sites (CI, CCOM, etc.) it was downhill fast. Then last year I found CS and went from a regular cigar smoker to an informed regular smoker and have found a new appreciation of this great pastime.

[Kwilkinson]

Originally Posted by Thumper2672

Honestly? I started when I was twenty-five because I thought sophisticated gentlemen smoked cigars.

Same for me, honestly. I was at dinner with my girlfriend and her dad and stepmom. Her dad and I got to talking about drinks and I told him I saw myself doing the whole high quality liquor and cigar lifestyle thing, so he gifted me 2 of em. They were great! That was about 5 weeks ago and i'm hooked now.

[ja3480]

I started when I lived in Naples Florida at a local B&M that a buddie of mine brought me in... Walked in to there walk-in Humi... The great smell of cigars blew me away!!!
Got out of it for a bit...
Moved back to NY. Started a new job. Working for Chico57 and there I go again smoken CIGARS !!!
Boy did I miss it...
So for my second slope it's all blamed on CHICO57!!!
Thanks CHICO!! I missed it. I just didn't know how much until a couple years ago!!!

That's my story !!! In a nut shell!!

[CigarGal]

Cigars? This forum is about cigars?









Sheesh!




Seriously now...I smoked my first cigar about two years ago yesterday in Mexico. I had two cigars the whole week I was there. Then a month later I went to Vegas and walked into the Davidoff store and it was bye bye baby-haven't stopped since.

[vstrommark]

I was handed a cigar after marching band practice when I was 16. Been on the slope a looooooong time.

[dwhitacre]

[SIZE=5]Seemed like a cool thing to do!!![/SIZE]

[Smoked]

I bought 2 cigars for my dad for Christmas and forgot to give them to him. I wound up smoking one about a month later just to see what it was like. After tasting it with a Bourbon I knew that I was doomed.

[taltos]

During college I would smoke a cigar with my dad when I was home on breaks, otherwise I smoked a pipe. In the Marines I worked for a Major and a Master Guns who were both cigar smokers and they got me back into it on a small but continuous scale. About three years ago I got much more serious about cigars after giving up pipe smoking.

[Todd W]

I started smoking them occassionally at weddings and other events when I was a teenager. Then, I think when the cigar craze really hit my dad and his friends, I learned what Fuente, R y J, Cohiba, and some of the other household name brands were. I always smoked them, but was so into cigarettes for so long, that I never even gave them a thought as my primary "go-to" for tobacco.

So fast forward to about 6 months ago, when I decided I didn't want my single Punch or Macanudo to go dry after a weekend fishing trip with the boys. I hopped online and ordered me up a cute little humidor from cuban crafters that was my pride and joy... for about 3 weeks. See, for some, it's not so much a slope, but a muddy sink hole that buries you before you can even mutter "Habanos!"

[SilverFox]

29 Years ago it started with cigarettes and for the next 12 years it would progress to a 2 pack a day habit of Players Plain (for my US BOTL's that would be consistent with unfiltered Lucky's) When fishing or playing cards it was dipped cigars like Old Ports, Colts etc. After 12 years I decided that my lungs couldn't take my cigarette intake so I quit. Just one day threw the smokes in the garbage. Shortly after quitting I started with turkish cheroots (al la Clint Eastwood) but at a far lesser consumption level than cigarettes but even that I started inhale those too............tough on the lungs. So I gave them up and just went with Cigars when fishing or playing cards that sort of thing. Either backwoods or cheap whatevers. About 9 years ago I went to the Dominican and did a couple of tours (Insert start of slope here) as a result purchased a box to bring home, didn't have a humi but smoked everyone of em and thought at least half were good the other have got a bit harsh.

Fast forward 5 more years, my with and I went to Florida and I went into a B&M and picked up a box of Fuente Don Carlos robustos and a little humi to store them in. The box lasted about 4 months, then a friend to Cuba here a friend to the Dominican there and always had between 20 and 50 cigars around to be had, my good friend Dave also enjoyed the odd cigar with me and in fact ended up with a Humidor of his own as a gift from a job he was leaving. Fast forward to 2 1/2 years ago................Dave goes to Cuba (the slope steepens) now we have a few (3) boxes of cubans some Romeo y Julietta's (don't remember what) H Upmann Coronos Major Tubos (still a sentimental favorite) and a box of Guantanemero Decimos (still smoked them all) 75 sticks only lasted about 4 months then it was visiting local B&M's here in Canada and choking on the prices but putting a few sticks in the box whenever an opportunity came. Still getting the odd Dominican box (3 of the Don Thomas Special Coronas when I was down there) in October last year bought a bigger Humi 150 count to go with my 50 count and did my first online order...........(slope steepens further) fast forward to February of 2008 I joint Club Stogie which contrary to general belief is the true Devil Site next thing you know 3 months later I have 2 wine fridges and have bombed over 200 sticks..............(insert slope steeping to vertical here)

What can I say, I love my cigars, I love my cigar accessories, I love playing cigars, I love sending you all cigars, and I am a post whore and a split/group buy whore. Could