CI "Fake" Cigars?

[Billb1960]

They seem to have some decent reviews:

http://kohnhed.com/2013/11/10/kismet...-cigar-review/

http://www.blindmanspuff.com/blind-c...d-kismet-fate/

http://cigarfederation.com/profiles/...kismet-destiny

[MattyMatt]

[wabashcr]

Oh look. Katman declared it a flavor bomb. He said the same thing in the Los Blancos Premiere Selection review I linked to earlier in this thread. I actually enjoy his reviews, but he likes a lot of stuff I would never touch. I guess that's kinda my issue with CI buying brands and contracting them out at lower quality. There are reviews out there that make people think they're good cigars, and people may think they're getting a great deal, only to find out they've paid for crap.

I just bought a box of Ave Marias on cbid last night for $60. That's $3 a stick, and even though I believe these have been CI smokes from the get go, if I get my box and find out they're not the same as all the others I've come to enjoy, I'll be pretty pissed off. I think they're fantastic morning smokes, and at $3 each, they're an incredible value.

[Skeat5353]

They seem to have some decent reviews:

http://kohnhed.com/2013/11/10/kismet...-cigar-review/

http://www.blindmanspuff.com/blind-c...d-kismet-fate/

http://cigarfederation.com/profiles/...kismet-destiny

For the sake of honesty, I actually just bought the sampler. LOL! They look pretty decent. I never admitted anywhere that I was not a sucker.

[Billb1960]

Oh look. Katman declared it a flavor bomb. He said the same thing in the Los Blancos Premiere Selection review I linked to earlier in this thread. I actually enjoy his reviews, but he likes a lot of stuff I would never touch. I guess that's kinda my issue with CI buying brands and contracting them out at lower quality. There are reviews out there that make people think they're good cigars, and people may think they're getting a great deal, only to find out they've paid for crap.

I just bought a box of Ave Marias on cbid last night for $60. That's $3 a stick, and even though I believe these have been CI smokes from the get go, if I get my box and find out they're not the same as all the others I've come to enjoy, I'll be pretty pissed off. I think they're fantastic morning smokes, and at $3 each, they're an incredible value.

Well first of all Katman wasn't the only one who liked it which is why I posted links to 2 other reviews. That aside we've drifted off into apples & oranges comparisons here.

AFAIK Kismet is still made by Royal Gold and isn't some no name stick rebranded because CI bought the stock of leftover bands & boxes. The same scenario applies to Ave Maria, they're made by AJF so I don't think you have anything to worry about unless you've heard something different.

The Los Blanco cigar that he reviewed was made by the company owned by David Blanco as opposed to the unnamed DR factory pumping out the dogrockets.

[Lynn]

looks Premium to me..except for that Churchill Id have to cut in half

[wabashcr]

The Los Blanco cigar that he reviewed was made by the company owned by David Blanco as opposed to the unnamed DR factory pumping out the dogrockets.

It would appear that way, since I believe Blanco actually sent him the cigar. His review is just a year old, so I'm sure some unsuspecting people have bought the CI version, since it has the exact same name and band.

As for Ave Maria, yes, it's an AJF stick, but I believe it's a CI exclusive. So I'm not sure what's stopping them from building a decent reputation, and then pulling the old bait and switch again. if AJ has any stake in it, they could easily buy him out and move to a cheaper product. I hope they don't, because I love those smokes.

Contrary to what I've posted in this thread, I don't dislike CI. Actually quite the opposite, I've had nothing but good experiences buying from them. One particular business practice of theirs (that I'm sure isn't unique to CI in the industry) seems really unethical to me. But I don't think that makes them a bad company. To me it's just a bit of a black eye. Overall I think CI is a good outfit.

[Lynn]

anybody that gives a old guy discount I'll buy from..

[Deke]

images.jpg

[Skeat5353]

looks Premium to me..except for that Churchill Id have to cut in half

anybody that gives a old guy discount I'll buy from..

LOLOLOLOLOLO!!! Now I know this thread has come to its bitter end. At least we were able to carry on a decent discussion until Mr. Troll Non Sequitur showed up!!! I'm sure you're a big fan of premium Dog Rockets, Lynn. Especially after you dust them up nice.

I hope you're the old man you say you are. And if you are, then I apologize for my recent tirades directed towards you. But something tells me you are here to cause trouble. Incite anger. Upset the balance of the community. Typical trolling behavior. You know, Lynn, because of you I face being banned from this forum. Which would suck, because my real interest is trying to be a productive member of this community.

I've accepted my punishment for my expletive-filled tirade directed towards you. I just happen to descend from a family of mean Sicilians and tough Irish bastards. Our tolerance from BS is zero. I lost my cool. And there's no place for that kind of interaction here in a peaceful community of cigar smokers. Never, in fact, have I ever erupted at someone in a forum in the way I erupted at you. If you are who you say you are, then accept my apology.

But if you are not that person (a harmless old Marine who just likes to disrupt every productive thread with non-sequitur, contrarian one-liners) then my comments directed towards you are justified. You constantly seem to turn up in every constructive thread and then offer nothing but inflammatory, irrelevant interjections, which only seem meant to incite resentment and acrimony.

In your introduction to people here, you stated that you are the peg that doesn't fit the hole. No. You are a United States Marine. You stated that you have no real interest in being a productive community member, and that one forum is the same as another. You also stated that your only real interest here is to eventually be the first one banned, because you've been banned from all the other forums you've ever been a part of.

So why is it that every thread I've seen you in, you are constantly trying to subvert and controvert what people are saying? I tell you that Thompson Cigar Co. ripped me off and didn't refund my money, you then chime in to say how wonderful they are and you order from them all the time and have never been burned. When the whole time, the thread was about a member here getting burned by them. All I was trying to do was prevent unsuspecting suckers like me from being swindled into a $150 pitfall.

We then have an interesting discussion in the Habanos section about revealing vendor names and practices. Some say it's a good idea, others say it's not. But you tell us we're all fools and then reveal the name of a vendor in Mexico, not only jeopardizing the vendor's livelihood but at the same time undermining the credibility of this fledgling forum altogether. You know, Lynn, maybe not in the coal mines of West Virginia, but here in the real world, in the streets, there's lawyers, cops, crooks, pimps, rats, and scum everywhere. And they're all looking to make a name for themselves, one way or another. I was glad to see the moderators removed your awful rotten post.

I've been an editor for years. Worked in film, television, for newspapers, magazines, and websites. I never had great success at it. But I have learned one thing along the way. A successful magazine, website, movie, television production, newspaper, whatever...its success always depends on two things: the people who are attracted to it, and every single individual involved in making it. You put one bad egg in the mix and the whole thing falls apart eventually. Look at what Don King did for heavy weight boxing. People like you, who come to these forums to be disruptive, unproductive, antagonistic, really just undermine the whole effort of those who wish its success.

Now I'd like to believe you're some harmless old veteran wiling away your idle hours by stirring up bad blood, resentment, and acrimony. But my past experience with forums tells me otherwise. My real feeling is that you are a disgruntled former member of Puff.com with a grudge against our moderators here. That's why everything you say and do here stinks of vindictiveness. I now work in the investigation field, with lawyers and cops. I know the smell of shit after I've stepped in it.

I've done a search of your user name at other prominent cigar forums. Nothing turns up. You also joined Cigarbum just a few days after the disappearance of the old site. Hmmmmmm, really? Most of your contributions here in the threads I've been involved in have been downright confrontational, disruptive, and unproductive. It almost seems as if you are here to settle a grudge by trying--completely and purposefully--to undermine the legitimacy of this forum. Hmmm, one forum is as good as another, so you claim. You've been banned from all your previous forums. Hmmmmm, were you banned from Puff? Hmmmmmm, I wonder......