Re: Are figurados more enjoyable?

On Tue, 11 Jan 2011 15:43:13 -0600, Mickey wrote:

Ed Fnord <ed@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

I've heard that figurados are more difficult to hand-roll
than parejos, hence the higher prices, even for the same
quality of materials.

True

.... but odd, nonetheless. Historically speaking, cigars used to
be almost exclusively figurados. Almost all the old cigar moulds
and cases I have seen were specifically designed for small
perfectos. This begs the question whether it really is harder to
roll figurados rather than perfectly straight parejos, or whether
we are simply taught to pay a premium for an unusual shape.




Anyone want to share an opinion on whether they're more
enjoyable to smoke and whether the price is worth it?

Ehhh.... It depends. Among Cuban cigars, different vitolas in the same
line are markedly different cigars, so a R&J pyramid is different from
a R&J Churchill. SO to experience the flavor of a R&J pyramid, you
need to get one. Is it worth it? That's up to you. How much do you
enjoy the pyramid over the churchill?

Just to confuse us Capitalist parasites living off the sweat of
the honest working classes, the Cubans sometimes produce the same
size in the same brand but with markedly different flavours. At
one time, Punch offered the Punch Punch, the Black Prince, Club
Selection #1, Nectares #2, Royal Selection #11, Selection De Luxe
#1, and the Super Selection #2 -- all coronas gordas at 46x5.6".
Or they pull the reverse: the Partagas 8-9-8 are two entirely
different sizes depending on varnished or unvarnished boxes.



Among domestics, a line's flavor pretty much is the same from cigar to
cigar in that line. In that case, the difference is much less
pronounced, so it becomes a question of "Do you enjoy smoking a
figuardo enough to pay the difference for essentially the same cigar
as the cheaper model?" Once again, personal preference.

That actually sort of answers the question, does it not? After
all, if the blend is the same across the entire line, differences
in flavour must largely be down to size and/or shape. So if a
Fuente Don Carlos robusto tastes very similar to the Fuente Don
Carlos belicoso, at a size difference of only 1/8", then shape
matters little.
.