I know pepin has started dating some of his boxes but why doesn't say padron, fuente, La Flor, Oliva ect throw a date stamp on their boxes. It would be more important to premium say 8+ dollar smokes. It would be nice to know that the Nester Miranda special selects I just bought where rolled in 2010 or 2000 whatever so that five years from now I now how much age they have on them.

It would also enable to rate cigars like wine based on vintage instead just assuming that the blend has never changed and that the quality is the same. I think it would help keep cigar manufacturers in check. Nothing is worse than loving a cigar and all of the sudden something changes and you have know way to quantify why. VSGs are a great example. I feel they are different than they used to be but can't put a finger on when things went wrong. Oliva V is another stick that seems to have changed about 2 years ago. Fuente anejos and opus would be great products to date.

Rant over
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More rant
Just imagine how this could aid in collecting like it does with wine. A 2004 Opus power ranger could be as saught after as a 1961 Chevel Blanc.

Imagine reviews including aging info like
Best smoked between 2010 an 2020.
Or will develop nicely over the next 5 years best between 2015 and 2030 that kinda ****.

I think most people overlook the value of aging and it would be a great aid to the cigar community or at least some of us cigar geeks.

ok rant really over I think.
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I'd be interested to know the number of NC smokers who age their boxes. From my observations, the *average* NC smoker probably does not collect boxes and has a smaller humidor. Most I know, again this is my experience, keep a small to medium desktop humidor and buy only enough for their regular consumption. I know very few primarily NC smokers who collect on a scale as most Habanos smokers. This may be a reason that most NC co's don't date stamp their boxes.

Most habanos smokers I know collect multiple boxes for aging and keep enough cigars on hand to handle their daily smoking needs.

Not arguing the validity of aging NC's at all, I believe they will benefit from aging as well. Just saying that it may be a non-issue in the NC world.
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I can tell you that I had NEVER heard of aging until I ended up on here with some CC smokers... before then it was run into the B&M jump on what ever sounded tasty... smoke! Or buy a couple to last you a few days, throw them in a small humidor and go on... now that I'm off the cliff and free falling, I can see myself easily aging some sticks to see how the evolve with time.
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I wish NC's would have date stamps on them.
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Tyr,

Lot of variables at play there. Ease and convenience of availability (or lack thereof at times for CC) and use of aged tobacco in the construction of NCs are big factors.

I'm not so sure that the "average" consumer here is that much different than the "average" consumer in a country where Cuban cigars are legal and readily available. At one time I watched plenty of people walk into B&M's in Europe, grab a few Cuban cigars or a box, never look at the date code, pay for them, and walk out, basically no different than the average consumer here.

Because we have to jump through hoops to get Cuban cigars here, hoarding is only natural.

Addressing the other point I raised, some Cuban cigars are good to smoke fresh, while some need years of age, and others, while they might not "need" it, definitely benefit from it. This makes the date code a valuable piece of info to place a frame of reference on the cigars. The use of aged tobacco in the NC cigars lessens the importance of the date code significantly, since, at least with a significant percentage of the cigars available, they are ready to smoke when you receive them.

Do I feel that NCs would benefit from a date code on the box? I'm mixed on that. It could just as easily backfire and cause a perception of old = "stale" with some masses.
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Not just dates, I wish they would publish the blends for each cigar as well...Wouldn't it be cool to know what the Wrapper, Binder, and filler was, and have it stamped on the bottom of the box?

~brooks
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I'm with T.G. the average cigar smoker doesn't really age long if at all. I know that here in Miami that the general consensus is that fresher cigars > aged cigars. To be honest, I didn't learn about aging cigars till I found my way into CS and read a magazine of Cigar Aficionado.
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I age NCs and it would be nice to have dates...

Luckily most of the NCs I smoke are DPGs and since he does date most of his boxes it makes it a bit easier. Other than that, I just date from the day I bought them.
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I agree, I think it would be pretty awesome. Dates, blends, all that stuff. Good way to remember what boxes you like.....
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If they did, then you would know how long they have been sitting in the warehouse! :-):-)

Seriously, based on all the claims of "aged tobacco" what date would they stamp on the box? The date of rolling, the date of boxing, the date they left the factory?

As for stating the blend, that's kind of like putting the ingredients on a menu. There are some secrets best left alone. Most state the wrapper type and that is more than 50% of a cigars flavor. :-)
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Very good points bro. My experience with Habanos smokers is limited to my CA fam so its probably not a good representation of the cigar smoking public as we're all completely nuts here. And I must admit that even I have a few NC's tucked away to test their aging potential. In fact I smoked a Custom Rolled NC in March that was rolled at the RTDA show 5 years ago that I had been storing in an airtight tube since that time. It had come a long way in that time and the flavors had changed. In fact, some very seasoned cigar smokers were fooled by the origin of the smoke :-)

And as to your second point on aging of Habanos, I agree completely.
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I think they should put the roller's name and vital statistics on there too.
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Padron does that
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I only want Padrons rolled by ladies with certain attributes.
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As does DE with the Liga Privadas.

Ha! I just looked at a few of my Liga Privada boxes, every one of them lists the roller as a woman.

Now we just need to get a list of their attributes for you.
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Toot sweet, if you please. :-)
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Well, not even close, imo...I want to know where the tobacco comes from, so that If I like the flavors, I can pick up more of that specific tobacco...

~brooks
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I didn't read all the posts, but most NC's in the range you're talking about use aged tobacco. It'd take a stamp that reads "rolled in 2010 from filler harvested in 02, binder from 03, and wrapper from 08" or something like that.

I keep lots of NC's, and as far as "benefit from aging" goes, I think a good 8 months to get the wet out of them is great. That makes them smoke really nice.
After that, flavors just start to diminish.
If I keep them in plastic or keep them in humi jars, they seem to stay at that "point I like" a lot longer, without getting overly mild.
Mind you, that's me. Someone else could do what I do and not like the results at all. Especially if they want their cigars to "mellow". I don't. I like them to stay nice and strong. :-)
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Maybe they should print the farmers name and how he grows the tobacco so you can just grow your own? Blender's secrets are just that secret. Only a fool would give you the exact blend of his cigars. I think Coca Cola should print the recipe on the can and the Colonel should list his 13 herbs and spices so I can make his chicken at home too. :-)
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