Hey guys,
Stopped by my favorite cigar shop today and saw that as always they had a whole shelf of Opus X cigars. I've always been under the impression that they were hard to find? The shop doesn't gouge on pricing as far as I could tell ($12.50 for a Belicoso)

My question is, should I go back tomorrow and grab a few more while I can? Also, I know they need some age on them to really come into their prime zone, how long are we talking? A year? 3?

Thanks fellas!
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Opus are becoming easier to find. My B&M always has some. Usually the Angel Share goes quickly. I find they need at least a year.
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Opus X usually arrive twice a year around Father's Day and Christmas. They are rare by design. The price you mention seems fair. Why not grab a few, let them rest for a while and see for yourself?:-)
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Zane and Jeff are both dead on. Fuente releases them twice a year. Since the cigar craze and the fad smokers have died down a little the Opus X line has become more accessible and Fuente has started to relax the purchasing restrictions. Many retailers will have almost year round stocks of a few of these and yes it has been my experience that between 1 and 3 years age is best for them to really grow and become what their true potential is.
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Have you ever had an Opus? If It's your first, smoke it on an extremely full stomach and keep a bag of sugar handy!

I believe the Angel's Share is a milder version. .. I've never had one. If you can find one, it might be a good one too start.
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I don't know how to let a cigar sit for a year!!!! I need to show better restraint.:-)
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That's a very good price for a belicoso. Don't pass up the chance, get as many as you can afford. Give the Petite Lancero a try if they have any.
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Just buy some more cigars for your humidor, that way you can occupy your time with other sticks :-)

...that's what I keep telling myself at least :-)
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That's the Anejo. A much better cigar than Opus, imo, and less expensive.

Opus are distributed 4 times per year, once each quarter.
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Anejo is only at Christmas. Some retailers will hide away a box or two to do a "Christmas in June/July," but they're only shipped once a year(excluding the No. 888 size this year). Opus used to be ~4 times a year, but anymore its only guaranteed to ship twice, though a third shipment is randomly thrown in there(typically after the show, but before Thanksgiving). That said, they can have a long shipping window so we often see them once right around Thanksgiving Day and then one more time just before Christmas. This doesn't include "special" Opus, like the Angel's Share or As, which tend to either be incorporated with show specials, like 8-5-8 SGs or SSMs, or with the Christmas Anejo shipment.
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It really depends on how much white pepper to can handle. The fresher the Opus the more white pepper you get. I have found that the smaller sizes tend to calm down more quickly than the bigger ones.
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I've work at a relatively small shop that gets 4 shipments each year of opus, and two anjeo and have for many, many years including this year. :-)
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Well I ended up picking up another belicoso and a robusto. I'll probably let them all sit for a while, at least through the winter, and then give one of the belicosos a shot.
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>jack on

Sorry for the interruption, but hallelujah, Greg is in the house!!

>jack off

Yes, and others have said, get a few. Smoke one in 6-8 month increments and judge for yourself. It's a great experiment to try.
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I really enjoy an Opus. I keep about two dozen around. I like to let them age for at least two years. Down my way they are tough to come by. I know of only one B&M that gets them and the owner hides them for his close friends. I stopped in one day and saw one of the employees smoking one. When she asked if she could help me I asked for some Opus. She couldn't hide it fast enough!
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Man, you just hit the nail on the head, as to why I hate B&Ms. If your not in the owners or managers personal click, you never get a chance, at the hard to find sticks! And for some unknown reason, they don't think anyone knows whats going on! What A--H----s!
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Man, yall have got to find a good B&M! Back home in Michigan (where I got the Opus) they are awesome, never feed me any lines, totally tolerant of me bring a bunch of noobies in to use the lounge (I buy cigars to make up for the ones I brought of course)

Here in Chicago I know there are two places I can go that will give me hands down amazing service. While the one closest to me is full of pricks.
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I have to disagree. The owner of a shop is patronized by particular individuals on a regular basis, which thereby puts the patron in the good graces of the owner (or in the owner's personal click). They take care of those regular patrons which provide the steady income to keep the B&M open throughout the year, as good business practices. If you have a loyal, regular customer that desires a hard to find stick, and you have a once a year customer that wants the same stick, save it for the loyal customer. That's exactly what I would do if I owned a B&M.

Why do you think airlines offer frequent flyer miles and upgrades for their regular customers? Do you expect to be bumped up to first class on a flight when you fly once per year, and expect to be treated the same as an elite status flyer who travels thousands of miles per month?
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Now, I must disagree with you! You do not earn your way into the "Click" by simply being a faithful customer, it's far more complicated than that.
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I don't know what you heard but it was college and it was only once, maybe three times, but that was it!


Seriously though my local B&M will let me know when they have 'special' items coming in or a heads up on events before they are advertised, I'm not in there every day but I am friendly with the owner and guys that work there, I always make sure to buy a couple sticks when I'm in or I'll bring them a CC now and then, surprisingly they don't have a lot of access to those (at least not these guys) so they are always greatly appreciated. So I agree with the disagreement there are many different variables to take into account.

I'll even give an example, when the FFPs were the "in" stick, I asked about them and was told they didn't have any left but their other store might have a couple and was told he would check when he was there the next day. I didn't really think much of it, I didn't expect him to remember because again I'm not an every day or every other day customer, yet a few days later when I went back he had one behind the counter for me and even gifted it to me.

Oh and if you all find yourselves in the San Diego area, might I suggest Churchill's Cigar Lounge :-) :-)
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