So I stopped into a B&M that's just blocks away from where I work a couple a days a week. They carry Tatuaje and the Hemmingway Work of Art, so I figured I'd poke in, ask about Wolfman, see if they have Tatuaje Black, and maybe pick up a short story and Work of Art.

While I was poking around there, I saw they had some Opus X Lost City. Expensive, but it's nice to know they were there...so I open up the tubo, only to find it spotted with mold. I tried to brush it off to see if it was just "bloom" from the oils, and no, it was a white mold. I found several other sticks around there looking the same way. That's disappointing, especially on such nice sticks..

So on my way out, I'm asking about Tatuaje stuff, and was flat out told that nobody really wants the Wolfman stuff, so he didn't even bother asking for it. As he's telling me this, he's "repairing" several sticks that clearly have beetle holes in them, by gluing bits of wrapper over the holes using a typical vegi glue used on cigar bands.

So I inquire, "these aren't for sale, are they?". He says "No, I'm repairing these for a customer". Then I'm like, "but they have beetles", and he says, "all cigars have beetles, you've probably been smoking them for years". I say "any cigar can have beetle's eggs, but if they hatch, you're smoking beetle crap!" and he pauses...shrugs and says "more protein".

So, this reputable local shop, I think just lost my business. :-)
[Reply]

:-) WOW!!!!!!!
That is a horror story for sure!
[Reply]

I find it more surprising that it sounds like the customer asked him to FIX his cigars with beetle holes. I mean once a beetle gets in there the pack and draw can go to ****, regardless of if the beetle is still there, so I'd think you'd want just a whole new cigar
[Reply]

Wow sounds like a disaster!
Pics?
[Reply]

Damn that is a shame.
[Reply]

I was so very tempted to take photos...but I didn't want to be thrown out (which they can since it's privately owned property and not public space).
[Reply]

I love me some beetle dung goes great with me coffee :-) :-):-):-)
[Reply]

It could have been a blessing in disguise:-)
[Reply]

Yeah, I guess I just didn't want any confrontation. I don't like burning bridges.
[Reply]

CA spelling...gotta love it :-) :-)

Seriously though, that is an interesting story. I normally let a B&M slide on things such as mold. I dont expect them to inspect their inventory that much. It does happen. I know it shouldn't, but it does.

Now the other bit of the story, thats just nuts.
[Reply]

Yeah, sorry about the spelling. I realized that too late.
[Reply]

No worries, just giving you a hard time. :-) :-)
[Reply]

Sad but true....there are more than a few B&M's like this one.

If the shop blows off customer requests, tries to pass off mold as "bloom" or "plume" or WTF ever, and would go so far as to paste wrapper scraps over beetle holes while telling a customer "all cigars have beetles", there's only one thing to do....vote with your feet and your pocketbook.

No need for a confrontation, just don't go back. Simple as that.
[Reply]

That's my plan exactly. It's too bad too, because their prices on Nubs and Hemmingways is about $1 less then any other shop in the area. But then, at this point I think I'll just have to order everything online or work out great trades with the folks here.
[Reply]

ROFL. That's amazing. And terrible.

It looks like it's time to find a new B&M. Sounds like he doesn't care about his customers OR his cigars.
[Reply]

I would have sent him a link here for the thread about the Wolfman or any other Cigar BB for that matter. Nobody wants them. :-)
Sounds like they have all the right accounts but know nothing about the product or how to care for the product that they are selling. That's just sad and I would be just like you and leave probably to never return. It could have been some clueless employee so I honestly would probably go back one more time to see if anyone else was working and pick their brain a bit. If the results were the same I would definitely never return. Sometimes you just get clueless employees and every shop has them. Most just regurgitate information they hear people say whether it's right or wrong. I had an employee at a very reputable shop here when I questioned why the humidor was so hot and humid to the point where the parking garage adjacent to the store was cooler(mid summer nonetheless) reply with "Well to keep cigars fresh the humidity and temperature need to marry at 80.":-) Granted he had just finished spending some time pushing smokes I had no interest in without even asking me what I smoke regularly or if I liked mild, medium or full bodied smokes so he was already on my nerves so I responded with "So your not worried that Cigar Beetles can hatch at 75 degrees." He said they never had any issues with beetles but granted that was the first time I went there and witnessed the humidor so hot and humid. It was at that point he finally left me alone and tried pushing those Warlocks on the next guy who walked in as he probably got the hint I wasn't going to buy what he was told to push that week. I've been back a few times since and have not seen this guy so maybe they got rid of him due to lack of knowledge.
[Reply]

That sucks Eric. Who is the guy? I mean is he the week day guy or a manager? That is definitely the first time I have heard of a shop even entertaining the idea of hiding/patching beetle holes like it's a damn shoe shop. You could always go back when you know the owner/manager is there and tell him about it, how bad would it suck to own a place and have high standards only to find during the day some asshat is ruining your name.
[Reply]

The manager was busy assisting some guys who were buying 1000 smokes for some event...so this was the *owner* I believe.

I did tell him there was some interest in the Wolfman online, and then he went into this mini-rant, "well Tatuaje is at the mercy of Don Pepin and has to do what they say" and "I'd have to order hundreds of boxes of stuff I don't want in order to get one box of limited editions...it's just not worth the trouble"
[Reply]

If what he said is true I don't blame him:-)
[Reply]

Meh. I'd be more concerned with the humidor issues than anything else.

What they do, by request, with cigars that a customer already owns, isn't my concern.

Slight misinformation by a B&M employee or owner? Oh noes! Say it's not so!

If he feels that his customer base doesn't want the Wolfman, fine, there are plenty of other places out there to get them. I won't assume I know more than he does about what his clientele want.
[Reply]