Don’t Judge A Wrapper By Its Cover

How I let my good buddy down (A story with its own moral!)

On a recent weekend, my good buddy Brian and I decided to grab a smoke before we settled down to watch some football. It was pretty chilly out, so we drove over to one of the local cigar shops to steal away for an hour and enjoy a fine cigar.

I would say Brian is a casual cigar smoker. He has always admired my personal collection of cigars, and we’ve enjoyed quite a few on the golf course. But he really doesn’t have the stomach for full-bodied smokes. And he relies on me to help him find good light-bodied cigars with decent character. This particular time, I let him down.

When we arrived at the shop we took a beeline to the walk-in humidor. It’s always a great place for the cigar fan! You get to look at all the full boxes of cigars, all the great sizes, all the great wrappers and all the great packaging. It’s the cigar-lover’s candy store, and I don’t know anyone who smokes cigars who doesn’t relish this part of our beloved ritual.

I was describing the different varieties of smokes, and the cigars that may best suit Brian’s palate when the owner of the store walked in and, to be frank, took over the conversation. He was a buzz killer. After all, recommending brands to a friend is like recommending a good movie. It’s fun and it’s personal. I know that the guy meant well, but he took the pleasure out of the experience. What’s worse: He was wrong.

He began to explain that you could gauge the strength of a cigar by the color of its wrapper. He also said that almost all dark-colored cigars were fuller-bodied than their light-wrappered counterparts. Okay, when you look at the entire universe of cigars he’s probably nailed a trend. But it’s an oversimplification, and it’s no way to avoid strong smokes. Hasn’t he tried the latest La Flor Dominicana Coronado, or Don Pepin’s 601?

Once I heard the owner’s generalizations, I should’ve stepped in and pointed Brian to the right brand. That was the tipping point. But my boy Brian and I wanted to give the owner the benefit of the doubt. We were in his store, and the lion’s share of tobacconists I’ve met over the years really know their stuff. We both came to regret that instinct.

Brian originally wanted to go for the Macanudo Café, Prince of Wales. But the owner suggested that he light up the Davidoff Double “R”. It’s a light- to medium-bodied smoke, but it was too much for Brian. I chose a Padron 3000 robusto. We had a good time for a while. We hung out in the cozy leather chairs and drank some coffee along with our smokes. But before long, my friend put out his cigar and sat silent. He looked pale. He wanted to leave.

On the way home we had to stop and pull over to the side of the road so Brian could empty his guts. He’s a trooper, and he rebounded in time to catch the kickoff and enjoy the game. But he told me he learned a few valuable lessons from this experience (here comes the moral!): One, you can’t judge a cigar by its wrapper. And, two, take the time for more cigar breaks so you are always ready for even the biggest smokes.

I’ll add one more: If you aren’t ready, sit by the window on the way home!

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John von Brachel

1/28/08

1 COMMENTS

Posted by Chris Shamburg - Feb 21 2008 @ 9:05 AM
Re: Don’t Judge A Wrapper By Its Cover Your friend should stick to the red wrappers--the ones that cover lollipops. Just kidding...we've all been there. CS

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