Thread: Any fellow brother of the leaf in here?

Are there any of you guys that are also cigar guys ?

Yes, there are some here who even roll, yes and even grow their own tobacco.

Check out this thread...

https://sharprazorpalace.com/finer-t...today-269.html

I grow, I roll, I smoke. I haven't bought a cigar in over a year now.

Just rolling my own allowed me to have my cigars for about $1.50 each instead of the more typical $8 to $15 per stick. Then I thought maybe I should just grow my leaf instead of buying it. I like to say they are free now, but between fertilizer, pesticides, hand labor, and with inevitable losses it still probably costs me about the same, but now I am master of the entire process from seed to smoke.

Last year was my first grow year. Last year's crop seems to be quite good, and the few cigars I have rolled from it and allowed to age a bit are pretty good. This year I will have more nice wrapper and binder leaves. Last year's crop is mostly filler, as the hornworms systematically destroyed most of my big beautiful leaves, and improper hanging for color cure caused a lot of mold and a lot of failed curing. I still have about 16 lbs of tobacco from last year's crop. I have already almost finished harvesting this year but I will plant a second crop.

You don't have to get into it in a big way. You can grow just three or four plants and make it worth your trouble. There are forums where this is discussed and there are youtube videos, related to growing and to rolling. Welcome to the information age. You can now learn to do literally anything.

Crescent city razors, What seed varietals are you growing , corojo , criollo, habano, or broadleaf? That's amazing you got into it that far!

Last year I grew Connecticut Shade, Connecticut Broadleaf, Criollo 98, and Habano 2000. This year, first planting was Piloto Cubano, Big Gem, Yellow Leaf, Monte Calme Yellow, Golden Burley, and Moldovan 456. Oh yeah, and some Connecticut Broadleaf. Best showing was wow a three way tie, for wrapper leaf: the Monte Calme, Golden Burley, and Moldovan. Maybe a slight edge to the Monte Calme on size and texture, and points for the high yellow color of the Moldovan when picked fully mature and already yellow on the stalk. The Piloto was the obligatory Cuban style filler. I think it did better than last year's Criollo 98 or the H2k but of course I haven't smoked it yet. The Big Gem and Yellow Leaf are old school heirloom varieties and gave me meh results. I won't be planting them again. The CTBL didn't show me much this year, either, though last year it did okay. The thing is, the Monte Calme, Golden Burley, and Moldovan 456 gave me leaves of superior conformity to what I want in a wrapper leaf. I still have to taste them, but they give me beautiful big and bright leaves.

When I replant this year, and I do intend to double crop as I am almost completely done harvesting and it is still May, I will be planting only Moldovan, Monte Calme, Piloto, and maybe Golden Burley. But no more than a half dozen plants each.

The Criollo and H2K filler from last year is quite good, and the Piloto still untested, but based on the yield I have high hopes for it. Next year if this year's Piloto isn't as good or better, I will go back to the H2K I think, for filler. I do want to get down to two wrapper varieties so I may end up dropping the Golden Burley. I am really excited to try the Moldovan, both as wrapper (beautiful stuff) and as filler. I can't find anyone who has used the Moldovan in cigars. Pretty sure that the Monte Calme has been used as cigar wrapper, and the Golden Burley has been used for every smoking, dipping, and chewing product known to man, a jack of all trades tobacco, including cigar wrappers and binders.

In addition to cigars, I am planning to make my own shisha, too. I suspect the Moldovan Ligero or Corona, well washed, will be excellent in the hookah.