1) Nice. Our cabinets will be very similar in size, though you got me by 8 inches and your goes deeper (lulz). @Doog_de_Jour is now your biggest fan
2) I usually get my various Opus singles through those Fox deals, and they always have a Black Friday special where they release 500 dollar kits that actually feature the REALLY hard to get Opus like Purple Rain and Big Bad Mother Fuckers (BBMFs). I bought it last year. I also found a place that sells boxes of Opus, including the rares (I mean let's face it ALL Opus are rare, but even within Opus they have what I call the ULTRA RARES). So, if you are ever interested PM me directly and I will send you to my secret hideout. I just bought an entire box of Opus Perfection #4s from them. 42 Opus! But, a buddy wanted to split it with me so I will have 21 from this score, which triples my Opus stash in one go. VICTORY! This place even has crazy rare shit like God's Whisper (1200 bucks for a box of 10) and BBMFs (around 1000 bucks for a box of 10). It is almost impossible to find full Opus boxes, so if interested in going big for a smoke one a year Uber cigar, ping me.
3) Speaking of ULTRA rares, I just found a place that had a Liga Privada sampler pack with one H99 in it. The H99 is an event only smoke and they are fucking hard to get your hands on. Super hard. I had to pay 75 bucks for the sampler, which features a bunch of cigars I didn't want to get the one fucking H99 I did want, but it isn't terrible. Comes with a Tabak and Deadwood infused, which I will give away, but also has an Undercrown Dogma and Shady XX whish I like. A Herrera Esteli Lonsdale which I really like, and a Joya de Nicaragua that I have never tried. I bought two samplers to get two of those gloriuos H99s. This place (Tobacco Locker) also has some of the best Padron Sampler deals I've found, so I picked up a Padron Cigar of the Year Sampler while I was there.
4) I did a little reading on your Caldwell recommendation. That may enter my small batch exploration in the future. Look to be great smokes. Appreciate the heads up. I'll add Caldwell to ADVentura as small batch to try.
5) Cubans. I will let you know. I bought from multiple sources (all came recommended) to get the mondo order together. Cuban Lou's always ships with Boveda, and that is the only one I have experience with to this point. But, one of the outfits I bought from (EGM) actually let's you add a Boveda pack during checkout (costs like 2 bucks). I have orders coming from three other places and I will let you know when I receive it all how it turned out - iHavana, Cigars of Habanos and Friends of Habano (Australian outfit). I know you can trust Cuban Lou's, they just didn't have all I wanted. Had to shop around to put the order together as I was buying 7 boxes of Cubans and three of those were stupid expensive limited release, so nobody had it all in one place. I got the 50th Anniversary Cohiba Humidor featuring two Behike! Also picked up the Trinidad La Trova LCDH and the Cohiba 2017 LE Talismans! Then 4 regular boxes of Cohiba and Trinidad (2 each). Oh, one of the outfits had a special going on tins (5 cigars) of Partagas Capitols so I grabbed that as well. Assload of Cubans coming. Cuban Lous usually takes a couple of weeks. Most of the others say expect 18-22 business days when you order. Most of the places have a delivery guarantee so if they get impounded by customs they will either send you your money back or send more cigars - but not all of them do that, so check. If you want total security use iHavana great prices and I personally know a guy who got reimbursed for a Customs snag. Cuban Lou's also has a delivery guarantee. I'd look at those two places hard if you want to get your feet wet with Cubans. Ping me with any questions.
Temecula has a warm Mediterranean climate (Köppen:Csa).[32] August is typically the hottest month of the year with December being the coldest month. Most precipitation occurs from November to March with February being the wettest month. Winter storms generally bring moderate precipitation, but strong winter storms are not uncommon especially during "El Niño" years. The driest month is June. Annual precipitation is 14.14 inches. Morning marine layer is common during May and June. From July to September, Temecula experiences hot, dry weather with the occasional North American monsoonal flow that increases the humidity and brings isolated thunderstorms. Most of the storms tend to be short-lived with little rainfall. During late fall into winter, Temecula experiences dry, windy northeastern Santa Ana winds. Snowfall is rare, but Temecula has experienced traces of snowfall on occasion,[33] some as recently as December 2014.[34] A rare F1 tornado touched down in a Temecula neighborhood on February 19, 2005.[35]
I should also point out that the cigar places for Cubans I referenced above are regarded by the cigar community as legit places to buy real Cubans from. Cuban cigars are one of the most faked things on the planet. It is estimated that a quarter of all the "Cubans" in this country are fake. Do not just go best price shopping online. You will most likely buy shitty Mexican tobacco with really convincing wrappers and boxes and have wasted good money for shitty smokes.
50th Anniversary Humidor (including two Behike 56!!!) in and in great shape from Cigars of Habanos.
And a box of Siglo II (on sale for 300 bucks I might add) from iHavana. I REALLY dig this place as they shipped in vacuum sealed bag with Boveda. They are highly recommended and I will use them again.
Still have lots more coming but I think Cuban Lou's, iHavana and Cigars of Habanos all get the stamp of approval at this point.
50th Anniversary Humidor (including two Behike 56!!!) in and in great shape from Cigars of Habanos.
And a box of Siglo II (on sale for 300 bucks I might add) from iHavana. I REALLY dig this place as they shipped in vacuum sealed bag with Boveda. They are highly recommended and I will use them again.
Still have lots more coming but I think Cuban Lou's, iHavana and Cigars of Habanos all get the stamp of approval at this point.
That ... is beautiful. Damn. Thanks for sharing ... can't wait to see the rest!
That 50th Anniversary travel humidor from Cohiba is tough to beat, but I have a 2007 vintage LCDH coming from Trinidad that will numb your brain, and a travel humidor special edition set of Robustos from Trinidad that makes my dong tingle. Much more goodness to come. Take that Customs! VICTORY!
I keep looking at the cigars positioned in that humidor and it looks so pristine that I wouldn't want to mess up the look and take any out to smoke them.
And ... I have an undying respect for the craftsmen of Cuba who had to custom cut the specific shapes for each slot, for each cigar, using nothing but nail clippers and miscellaneous items that wash up on the beach after hurricane season because ... you know ... communism. You and your western hand tools have nothing on a people who can still make 57 Chevys run like new.
Very cool set ups you guys have. I’ve never really liked cigars tho. It’s hard to smoke something and not inhale. I don’t get the point.
I was given a Cuban a year or two ago. The cigar aficionado I was with didn’t look thrilled when I put it out to light a Camel.
Not gonna lie, we probably would have had fisticuffs over that. In related news, never give 25 dollar Cubans you had to smuggle into the country in your ass to anyone unless you KNOW they are big cigar fans.
I keep looking at the cigars positioned in that humidor and it looks so pristine that I wouldn't want to mess up the look and take any out to smoke them.
And ... I have an undying respect for the craftsmen of Cuba who had to custom cut the specific shapes for each slot, for each cigar, using nothing but nail clippers and miscellaneous items that wash up on the beach after hurricane season because ... you know ... communism. You and your western hand tools have nothing on a people who can still make 57 Chevys run like new.
Another order in. The sampler bag with the H99 was from a US place. Just happened to come in on the same day.
The Cohiba Talisman 2017 EL is a very limited edition Cuban. That means stupid expensive. I hate money, but love good cigars. Came in no issues from Cigars of Habanos.
The Trinidad Coloniales are a standard issue Cuban, but supposed to be delicious. Picked these up from Cigars of Habanos as well.
Last up is the very rare Trinidad La Trova LCDH (means they are low number top shelf tobacco made specifically for Casa del Habano distribution - in essence they are special and rare). Got these from EGM. EGM I'd rate as "if I can't find it anywhere else I'll buy from them." You had to request and pay for Boveda (that should be standard on international shipping), the communications were shoddy, never received a shipping notification or tracking number, and they didn't ship the cigars for TWELVE FUCKING DAYS after I ordered them.
So yeah, iHavana, Cuban Lou's and Cigars del Habanos in that order, with iHavana and Cuban Lou's basically being 1A and 1B and CoH lagging a tad behind those two. EGM a distant 4th.
The Drew Estate Year of the Pig sampler was just a splurge from CoH since I was already putting in a big order. The sampler pack was just to get one Liga Privada H99. Again, I hate money.
Still have four boxes of Cubans to come in. I do not fuck around with Cubans.
Another order in. The sampler bag with the H99 was from a US place. Just happened to come in on the same day.
The Cohiba Talisman 2017 EL is a very limited edition Cuban. That means stupid expensive. I hate money, but love good cigars. Came in no issues from Cigars of Habanos.
The Trinidad Coloniales are a standard issue Cuban, but supposed to be delicious. Picked these up from Cigars of Habanos as well.
Last up is the very rare Trinidad La Trova LCDH (means they are low number top shelf tobacco made specifically for Casa del Habano distribution - in essence they are special and rare). Got these from EGM. EGM I'd rate as "if I can't find it anywhere else I'll buy from them." You had to request and pay for Boveda (that should be standard on international shipping), the communications were shoddy, never received a shipping notification or tracking number, and they didn't ship the cigars for TWELVE FUCKING DAYS after I ordered them.
So yeah, iHavana, Cuban Lou's and Cigars del Habanos in that order, with iHavana and Cuban Lou's basically being 1A and 1B and CoH lagging a tad behind those two. EGM a distant 4th.
The Drew Estate Year of the Pig sampler was just a splurge from CoH since I was already putting in a big order. The sampler pack was just to get one Liga Privada H99. Again, I hate money.
Still have four boxes of Cubans to come in. I do not fuck around with Cubans.
Glad you spending all your $$$, given you got that trust fund to fallback on to
Another order in. The sampler bag with the H99 was from a US place. Just happened to come in on the same day.
The Cohiba Talisman 2017 EL is a very limited edition Cuban. That means stupid expensive. I hate money, but love good cigars. Came in no issues from Cigars of Habanos.
The Trinidad Coloniales are a standard issue Cuban, but supposed to be delicious. Picked these up from Cigars of Habanos as well.
Last up is the very rare Trinidad La Trova LCDH (means they are low number top shelf tobacco made specifically for Casa del Habano distribution - in essence they are special and rare). Got these from EGM. EGM I'd rate as "if I can't find it anywhere else I'll buy from them." You had to request and pay for Boveda (that should be standard on international shipping), the communications were shoddy, never received a shipping notification or tracking number, and they didn't ship the cigars for TWELVE FUCKING DAYS after I ordered them.
So yeah, iHavana, Cuban Lou's and Cigars del Habanos in that order, with iHavana and Cuban Lou's basically being 1A and 1B and CoH lagging a tad behind those two. EGM a distant 4th.
The Drew Estate Year of the Pig sampler was just a splurge from CoH since I was already putting in a big order. The sampler pack was just to get one Liga Privada H99. Again, I hate money.
Still have four boxes of Cubans to come in. I do not fuck around with Cubans.
Glad you spending all your $$$, given you got that trust fund to fallback on to
You haven't even seen my knife thread yet. @Doogles had to show me a knife, which reminded me I used to collect knives for years, and of course prompted me to go spend huge amounts of money on new knives. Thanks Doogles. You really fucked me on that one.
Ok! So, bespoke humidor hand delivered by XXXX yesterday. PM if you want to know who built this work of art - he is starting to get commissioned to build super high dollar humidors for mega fancy hotels in Australia and super on point London cigar bars so get your order in soon before none of us can afford this dude - also, he is actually signing his work now, and you know what that means....
I cannot say enough good stuff about this humidor. Work of art does not begin to cover it. The goddamn door, which is a huge glass heavy thing begins vacuum and magnet assist closing when it gets within 4 inches of the case...but it closes slowly, like a slow close drawer....and this thing seals like a frogs asshole. Water tight. The quality of the woodwork probably doesn't come out in my shitty photos but it is next level. Every single piece of this was well thought out, designed, tested, and hand cut, glued and finished by one guy who oh by the way works in a 63%rh shop so the spanish cedar arrives to you ready to go with no seasoning required. The ENTIRE interior is hand cut spanish cedar. It's insane. This thing was hand rubbed, stained AND lacquered on the exterior for shits sake. Quarter sewn oak (you know what that shit costs during Covid? Little FRANNY wont go to college but oh well I got this bitch). Next level. No visible brads, nails or screws anywhere. Almost fully friction fit. It's fucking amazing. All the shelves are adjustable and customized perfectly to my request.
Came with a complete LED lighting system, completely hidden in recessed edges on the inner edge of the front. Dimmer, strobe (why?), the works. All the electrics are accessible from a service panel below the humidor. Again, this dude thought of everything. Not one visible wire anywhere except the small USB plug in to provide power from the humidifier to the full digital touch pad controller (which is epic by itself I might add).
Runs on a completely hidden and hand baffled Oasis humidification system (hidden behind the UF-13 Liga Privada box below. You can't see any of it. He insets the system on the middle shelf (cutout with half below and half above and easy access to add DI water which he swears you only need to fill up every 6 months or so) and then builds a shroud out of Spanish cedar to hide it all...has special baffles cut into the shroud to direct humidified airflow around the entire space. Do not mind the digital readouts in some of the photos, that was with the door open for quite some time to fill the humidor. When I woke up this morning I had sensors around the entire humidor - rh was 67 on the top shelf, 66 between the middle and bottom shelf (system setpoint was set at 66.0), and 65 at the very bottom dead center. That is amazing. This thing is absolutely no muss no fuss turn it on and walk the fuck away. The damn sensor pad even warns you when your water is low, so you don't have to worry about remembering 6 months ago when you filled it. I am blown the fuck away. So worth the money I paid for it (they are more now because our guy is starting to really get known). He promised two months, and it was done in two months. He even brought me two handmade and epic ashtrays as gifts. I cannot say enough good about him so seriously PM me if anyone is interested.
Okay in the photos below we have the cabinet (couple views), some of my collectible goodies and my bad ass Daniel Marshall Treasure box desktop humidor on top (still full just doing the boveda thing in it). Then photos of the contents (detailed below) and one night picture to get a sense of the LED system.
Top shelf (L to R) - Drew Estate Nirvana limited run from 2014 (got these at a DE release party I went to a few weeks ago in the uber rare section - I think I may have had to beg for them). Aging Room Quattro Nicaraguan Espressivo in front and the number 1 cigar of 2019. My Father La Opulencia Petit Robusto in the center (number 2 cigar of 2018) with 3 Padron 50th anniversary singles out, 3 Montecristo Platinums and 10 Montecristo Espado Obscuros. Far right back is Cubano Trinidad Ingenious Limited Edition from 2007 (don't ask what I paid), and Padron 1926 Series No. 6 Natural (#2 cigar of 2018) in the front.
Middle shelf (L to R) - Liga Privada Unico UF-13 Darks (super rare limited release long sold out everywhere), Warped Serie Gran Reserva 1988 Robusto (#3 cigar of 2018) obscuring some Cubano Cohiba Magicos Maduro #5s (truly a special smoke and exceedingly hard to come by). 4 Liga Privada H99 singles (event only smokes detailed in the thread above), famed Cubano Trinidad Coloniales right back, with La Flor Dominicana Double Ligero Lancero (#12 cigar of 2018) up front.
Bottom shelf (L to R) - Cubano Cohiba 50th Anniversary LE humidor w 2 Behike 56 (detailed above), 10 loose EP Carrillo Pledge Prequel up front (#1 cigar of 2020), (can't see it but there is a tin with 5 Cubano Partagas Capitols on the far left front), Cubano Cohiba Siglo II box of 25 (back), Cubano ultra limited Cohiba Talisman EL 2017 up front, super limited Cubano Trinidad Extra Robusto Travel Humidor set on right, 20 single Cubano Ramon Allones Small Clubs up front.
Bottom of humidor (long term storage) - Liga Privada T-52 Cut Stalk Toro (rare limited), Padron 1964 Anniversary Monarcha Maduro (#3 of 2020), San Cristobal Quintessence Corona Gorda (#21 of 2018), Liga Privada Year of the Rat (extremely limited), Cubano Cohiba Robustos, Liga Privada Unico Serie L40 Lancero (extremely limited and in demand) sitting under Herrera Esteli Habano Special Edition Lancero (93 rated), and Cubano Trinidad La Trova Limited Edition Regional Release (stupid hard to get).
Still have about 12-15 boxes upstairs in the Wineador doing the long term storage thing. Hope you enjoyed the tour. @Doogles@UW_Doog_Bot@PurpleBaze@YellowSnow@DHD and all my other Stick DWAGS!
Ok! So, bespoke humidor hand delivered by XXXX yesterday. PM if you want to know who built this work of art - he is starting to get commissioned to build super high dollar humidors for mega fancy hotels in Australia and super on point London cigar bars so get your order in soon before none of us can afford this dude - also, he is actually signing his work now, and you know what that means....
I cannot say enough good stuff about this humidor. Work of art does not begin to cover it. The goddamn door, which is a huge glass heavy thing begins vacuum and magnet assist closing when it gets within 4 inches of the case...but it closes slowly, like a slow close drawer....and this thing seals like a frogs asshole. Water tight. The quality of the woodwork probably doesn't come out in my shitty photos but it is next level. Every single piece of this was well thought out, designed, tested, and hand cut, glued and finished by one guy who oh by the way works in a 63%rh shop so the spanish cedar arrives to you ready to go with no seasoning required. The ENTIRE interior is hand cut spanish cedar. It's insane. This thing was hand rubbed, stained AND lacquered on the exterior for shits sake. Quarter sewn oak (you know what that shit costs during Covid? Little FRANNY wont go to college but oh well I got this bitch). Next level. No visible brads, nails or screws anywhere. Almost fully friction fit. It's fucking amazing. All the shelves are adjustable and customized perfectly to my request.
Came with a complete LED lighting system, completely hidden in recessed edges on the inner edge of the front. Dimmer, strobe (why?), the works. All the electrics are accessible from a service panel below the humidor. Again, this dude thought of everything. Not one visible wire anywhere except the small USB plug in to provide power from the humidifier to the full digital touch pad controller (which is epic by itself I might add).
Runs on a completely hidden and hand baffled Oasis humidification system (hidden behind the UF-13 Liga Privada box below. You can't see any of it. He insets the system on the middle shelf (cutout with half below and half above and easy access to add DI water which he swears you only need to fill up every 6 months or so) and then builds a shroud out of Spanish cedar to hide it all...has special baffles cut into the shroud to direct humidified airflow around the entire space. Do not mind the digital readouts in some of the photos, that was with the door open for quite some time to fill the humidor. When I woke up this morning I had sensors around the entire humidor - rh was 67 on the top shelf, 66 between the middle and bottom shelf (system setpoint was set at 66.0), and 65 at the very bottom dead center. That is amazing. This thing is absolutely no muss no fuss turn it on and walk the fuck away. The damn sensor pad even warns you when your water is low, so you don't have to worry about remembering 6 months ago when you filled it. I am blown the fuck away. So worth the money I paid for it (they are more now because our guy is starting to really get known). He promised two months, and it was done in two months. He even brought me two handmade and epic ashtrays as gifts. I cannot say enough good about him so seriously PM me if anyone is interested.
Okay in the photos below we have the cabinet (couple views), some of my collectible goodies and my bad ass Daniel Marshall Treasure box desktop humidor on top (still full just doing the boveda thing in it). Then photos of the contents (detailed below) and one night picture to get a sense of the LED system.
Top shelf (L to R) - Drew Estate Nirvana limited run from 2014 (got these at a DE release party I went to a few weeks ago in the uber rare section - I think I may have had to beg for them). Aging Room Quattro Nicaraguan Espressivo in front and the number 1 cigar of 2019. My Father La Opulencia Petit Robusto in the center (number 2 cigar of 2018) with 3 Padron 50th anniversary singles out, 3 Montecristo Platinums and 10 Montecristo Espado Obscuros. Far right back is Cubano Trinidad Ingenious Limited Edition from 2007 (don't ask what I paid), and Padron 1926 Series No. 6 Natural (#2 cigar of 2018) in the front.
Middle shelf (L to R) - Liga Privada Unico UF-13 Darks (super rare limited release long sold out everywhere), Warped Serie Gran Reserva 1988 Robusto (#3 cigar of 2018) obscuring some Cubano Cohiba Magicos Maduro #5s (truly a special smoke and exceedingly hard to come by). 4 Liga Privada H99 singles (event only smokes detailed in the thread above), famed Cubano Trinidad Coloniales right back, with La Flor Dominicana Double Ligero Lancero (#12 cigar of 2018) up front.
Bottom shelf (L to R) - Cubano Cohiba 50th Anniversary LE humidor w 2 Behike 56 (detailed above), 10 loose EP Carrillo Pledge Prequel up front (#1 cigar of 2020), (can't see it but there is a tin with 5 Cubano Partagas Capitols on the far left front), Cubano Cohiba Siglo II box of 25 (back), Cubano ultra limited Cohiba Talisman EL 2017 up front, super limited Cubano Trinidad Extra Robusto Travel Humidor set on right, 20 single Cubano Ramon Allones Small Clubs up front.
Bottom of humidor (long term storage) - Liga Privada T-52 Cut Stalk Toro (rare limited), Padron 1964 Anniversary Monarcha Maduro (#3 of 2020), San Cristobal Quintessence Corona Gorda (#21 of 2018), Liga Privada Year of the Rat (extremely limited), Cubano Cohiba Robustos, Liga Privada Unico Serie L40 Lancero (extremely limited and in demand) sitting under Herrera Esteli Habano Special Edition Lancero (93 rated), and Cubano Trinidad La Trova Limited Edition Regional Release (stupid hard to get).
Still have about 12-15 boxes upstairs in the Wineador doing the long term storage thing. Hope you enjoyed the tour. @Doogles@UW_Doog_Bot@PurpleBaze@YellowSnow@DHD and all my other Stick DWAGS!
I went to the CC this AM to whack some balls and feel better about being a pour, loser.
Comments
1) Nice. Our cabinets will be very similar in size, though you got me by 8 inches and your goes deeper (lulz). @Doog_de_Jour is now your biggest fan
2) I usually get my various Opus singles through those Fox deals, and they always have a Black Friday special where they release 500 dollar kits that actually feature the REALLY hard to get Opus like Purple Rain and Big Bad Mother Fuckers (BBMFs). I bought it last year. I also found a place that sells boxes of Opus, including the rares (I mean let's face it ALL Opus are rare, but even within Opus they have what I call the ULTRA RARES). So, if you are ever interested PM me directly and I will send you to my secret hideout. I just bought an entire box of Opus Perfection #4s from them. 42 Opus! But, a buddy wanted to split it with me so I will have 21 from this score, which triples my Opus stash in one go. VICTORY! This place even has crazy rare shit like God's Whisper (1200 bucks for a box of 10) and BBMFs (around 1000 bucks for a box of 10). It is almost impossible to find full Opus boxes, so if interested in going big for a smoke one a year Uber cigar, ping me.
3) Speaking of ULTRA rares, I just found a place that had a Liga Privada sampler pack with one H99 in it. The H99 is an event only smoke and they are fucking hard to get your hands on. Super hard. I had to pay 75 bucks for the sampler, which features a bunch of cigars I didn't want to get the one fucking H99 I did want, but it isn't terrible. Comes with a Tabak and Deadwood infused, which I will give away, but also has an Undercrown Dogma and Shady XX whish I like. A Herrera Esteli Lonsdale which I really like, and a Joya de Nicaragua that I have never tried. I bought two samplers to get two of those gloriuos H99s. This place (Tobacco Locker) also has some of the best Padron Sampler deals I've found, so I picked up a Padron Cigar of the Year Sampler while I was there.
4) I did a little reading on your Caldwell recommendation. That may enter my small batch exploration in the future. Look to be great smokes. Appreciate the heads up. I'll add Caldwell to ADVentura as small batch to try.
5) Cubans. I will let you know. I bought from multiple sources (all came recommended) to get the mondo order together. Cuban Lou's always ships with Boveda, and that is the only one I have experience with to this point. But, one of the outfits I bought from (EGM) actually let's you add a Boveda pack during checkout (costs like 2 bucks). I have orders coming from three other places and I will let you know when I receive it all how it turned out - iHavana, Cigars of Habanos and Friends of Habano (Australian outfit). I know you can trust Cuban Lou's, they just didn't have all I wanted. Had to shop around to put the order together as I was buying 7 boxes of Cubans and three of those were stupid expensive limited release, so nobody had it all in one place. I got the 50th Anniversary Cohiba Humidor featuring two Behike! Also picked up the Trinidad La Trova LCDH and the Cohiba 2017 LE Talismans! Then 4 regular boxes of Cohiba and Trinidad (2 each). Oh, one of the outfits had a special going on tins (5 cigars) of Partagas Capitols so I grabbed that as well. Assload of Cubans coming. Cuban Lous usually takes a couple of weeks. Most of the others say expect 18-22 business days when you order. Most of the places have a delivery guarantee so if they get impounded by customs they will either send you your money back or send more cigars - but not all of them do that, so check. If you want total security use iHavana great prices and I personally know a guy who got reimbursed for a Customs snag. Cuban Lou's also has a delivery guarantee. I'd look at those two places hard if you want to get your feet wet with Cubans. Ping me with any questions.
Way too many chapters and verses.
50th Anniversary Humidor (including two Behike 56!!!) in and in great shape from Cigars of Habanos.
And a box of Siglo II (on sale for 300 bucks I might add) from iHavana. I REALLY dig this place as they shipped in vacuum sealed bag with Boveda. They are highly recommended and I will use them again.
Still have lots more coming but I think Cuban Lou's, iHavana and Cigars of Habanos all get the stamp of approval at this point.
And ... I have an undying respect for the craftsmen of Cuba who had to custom cut the specific shapes for each slot, for each cigar, using nothing but nail clippers and miscellaneous items that wash up on the beach after hurricane season because ... you know ... communism. You and your western hand tools have nothing on a people who can still make 57 Chevys run like new.
I was given a Cuban a year or two ago. The cigar aficionado I was with didn’t look thrilled when I put it out to light a Camel.
The Cohiba Talisman 2017 EL is a very limited edition Cuban. That means stupid expensive. I hate money, but love good cigars. Came in no issues from Cigars of Habanos.
The Trinidad Coloniales are a standard issue Cuban, but supposed to be delicious. Picked these up from Cigars of Habanos as well.
Last up is the very rare Trinidad La Trova LCDH (means they are low number top shelf tobacco made specifically for Casa del Habano distribution - in essence they are special and rare). Got these from EGM. EGM I'd rate as "if I can't find it anywhere else I'll buy from them." You had to request and pay for Boveda (that should be standard on international shipping), the communications were shoddy, never received a shipping notification or tracking number, and they didn't ship the cigars for TWELVE FUCKING DAYS after I ordered them.
So yeah, iHavana, Cuban Lou's and Cigars del Habanos in that order, with iHavana and Cuban Lou's basically being 1A and 1B and CoH lagging a tad behind those two. EGM a distant 4th.
The Drew Estate Year of the Pig sampler was just a splurge from CoH since I was already putting in a big order. The sampler pack was just to get one Liga Privada H99. Again, I hate money.
Still have four boxes of Cubans to come in. I do not fuck around with Cubans.
I cannot say enough good stuff about this humidor. Work of art does not begin to cover it. The goddamn door, which is a huge glass heavy thing begins vacuum and magnet assist closing when it gets within 4 inches of the case...but it closes slowly, like a slow close drawer....and this thing seals like a frogs asshole. Water tight. The quality of the woodwork probably doesn't come out in my shitty photos but it is next level. Every single piece of this was well thought out, designed, tested, and hand cut, glued and finished by one guy who oh by the way works in a 63%rh shop so the spanish cedar arrives to you ready to go with no seasoning required. The ENTIRE interior is hand cut spanish cedar. It's insane. This thing was hand rubbed, stained AND lacquered on the exterior for shits sake. Quarter sewn oak (you know what that shit costs during Covid? Little FRANNY wont go to college but oh well I got this bitch). Next level. No visible brads, nails or screws anywhere. Almost fully friction fit. It's fucking amazing. All the shelves are adjustable and customized perfectly to my request.
Came with a complete LED lighting system, completely hidden in recessed edges on the inner edge of the front. Dimmer, strobe (why?), the works. All the electrics are accessible from a service panel below the humidor. Again, this dude thought of everything. Not one visible wire anywhere except the small USB plug in to provide power from the humidifier to the full digital touch pad controller (which is epic by itself I might add).
Runs on a completely hidden and hand baffled Oasis humidification system (hidden behind the UF-13 Liga Privada box below. You can't see any of it. He insets the system on the middle shelf (cutout with half below and half above and easy access to add DI water which he swears you only need to fill up every 6 months or so) and then builds a shroud out of Spanish cedar to hide it all...has special baffles cut into the shroud to direct humidified airflow around the entire space. Do not mind the digital readouts in some of the photos, that was with the door open for quite some time to fill the humidor. When I woke up this morning I had sensors around the entire humidor - rh was 67 on the top shelf, 66 between the middle and bottom shelf (system setpoint was set at 66.0), and 65 at the very bottom dead center. That is amazing. This thing is absolutely no muss no fuss turn it on and walk the fuck away. The damn sensor pad even warns you when your water is low, so you don't have to worry about remembering 6 months ago when you filled it. I am blown the fuck away. So worth the money I paid for it (they are more now because our guy is starting to really get known). He promised two months, and it was done in two months. He even brought me two handmade and epic ashtrays as gifts. I cannot say enough good about him so seriously PM me if anyone is interested.
Okay in the photos below we have the cabinet (couple views), some of my collectible goodies and my bad ass Daniel Marshall Treasure box desktop humidor on top (still full just doing the boveda thing in it). Then photos of the contents (detailed below) and one night picture to get a sense of the LED system.
Top shelf (L to R) - Drew Estate Nirvana limited run from 2014 (got these at a DE release party I went to a few weeks ago in the uber rare section - I think I may have had to beg for them). Aging Room Quattro Nicaraguan Espressivo in front and the number 1 cigar of 2019. My Father La Opulencia Petit Robusto in the center (number 2 cigar of 2018) with 3 Padron 50th anniversary singles out, 3 Montecristo Platinums and 10 Montecristo Espado Obscuros. Far right back is Cubano Trinidad Ingenious Limited Edition from 2007 (don't ask what I paid), and Padron 1926 Series No. 6 Natural (#2 cigar of 2018) in the front.
Middle shelf (L to R) - Liga Privada Unico UF-13 Darks (super rare limited release long sold out everywhere), Warped Serie Gran Reserva 1988 Robusto (#3 cigar of 2018) obscuring some Cubano Cohiba Magicos Maduro #5s (truly a special smoke and exceedingly hard to come by). 4 Liga Privada H99 singles (event only smokes detailed in the thread above), famed Cubano Trinidad Coloniales right back, with La Flor Dominicana Double Ligero Lancero (#12 cigar of 2018) up front.
Bottom shelf (L to R) - Cubano Cohiba 50th Anniversary LE humidor w 2 Behike 56 (detailed above), 10 loose EP Carrillo Pledge Prequel up front (#1 cigar of 2020), (can't see it but there is a tin with 5 Cubano Partagas Capitols on the far left front), Cubano Cohiba Siglo II box of 25 (back), Cubano ultra limited Cohiba Talisman EL 2017 up front, super limited Cubano Trinidad Extra Robusto Travel Humidor set on right, 20 single Cubano Ramon Allones Small Clubs up front.
Bottom of humidor (long term storage) - Liga Privada T-52 Cut Stalk Toro (rare limited), Padron 1964 Anniversary Monarcha Maduro (#3 of 2020), San Cristobal Quintessence Corona Gorda (#21 of 2018), Liga Privada Year of the Rat (extremely limited), Cubano Cohiba Robustos, Liga Privada Unico Serie L40 Lancero (extremely limited and in demand) sitting under Herrera Esteli Habano Special Edition Lancero (93 rated), and Cubano Trinidad La Trova Limited Edition Regional Release (stupid hard to get).
Still have about 12-15 boxes upstairs in the Wineador doing the long term storage thing. Hope you enjoyed the tour. @Doogles @UW_Doog_Bot @PurpleBaze @YellowSnow @DHD and all my other Stick DWAGS!
Is Orkin done with my background check? They won't return my calls.
#priorities
Still cool as fuck setups.