Are Opus X's REALLY that good?

[Bsneed51]

They don't do it for me so like freenerd, I don't go out of my way to look for them. Now Hemi Maduros and a couple of Anejo sizes are another story..

While I enjoy Opus, they are down my list of favorite Fuentes. Definitely behind Anejo and WOAM for me, but this is why people say taste is subjective.

 

[MadMonk]

Opus X is an excellent cigar imo. I.e., if I take all the brands and lines of the world, the Opus X lands in
the excellent category for me. I like them enough to spend a retail, or a tad above for them, when they become available in their limited fashion.

That said, there are a lot of cigars that I like quite a bit more. Some made by Fuente, some made by Pepin, Padron, and Giolitto.

To me, a developed palate should be able to recognize a good, or great cigar, even if the flavor profile doesn't rock your world.

 

[xerais]

I'll probably get flamed for this, but so be it. I've been smoking cigars in earnest since February of this year. So I'm still green, but I feel comfortable saying I've begun to develop my palate, and getting the hang of tasting the nuances, figuring out what I like and what I don't like. Honestly, the most expensive cigars I've tried are probably AF Hemingways, a few Montecristos, something at that level. I just don't have a ton of money to spend on it.

So yeah, I've searched on here and read numerous glowing reviews of the Opus X, but I can't justify in my mind shelling out the cash for one cigar. So honestly, is it worth splurging and blowing my cigar budget just to try it out?

PM me your address. I'll mail you a Opus X #5 this weekend when I get home from school. It is a small guy but I really enjoy them.

Are you serious? Wow, this forum -- and its members! -- are just awesome. Many heartfelt thanks!!! :thumbs:

Not a problem, I hope you enjoy it.

I just got this in the mail today:

I've only tried the El Triunfador's but I absolutely loved them. Looking forward to trying them all out.

 

[Bsneed51]

I just got this in the mail today:

Next time mark this Not Safe for Work as I just let out a moan and creamed myself a little at my desk. :laugh:

 

[robbiex0r]

I find it really depend on the time and environment when it comes to Opus. For example, 4:57 EST is a horrible time for Opus while 4:57 CST is ideal. 7:30-7:56 AM is never optimal regardless of time zone. Also, as I said, setting really matters. Some people can enjoy a smoke wherever but the process by which Opus are rolled (far too complicated to go into here) really forces you into smoking them only in certain situations to maximize enjoyment. For example smoking one on a NYC Subway car would be good, as long as you are on the upper east side and nowhere else. On the other hand smoking one on your porch (between 7:30 and 7:56 AM) is likely to result in immediate paralysis. Basically when you smoke Opus you are putting your life on the line.

I have to disagree. First off, your 'timing' theory is inconceivably incorrect. While smoking with Carlito, we discussed this at length, before retiring for the evening to our separate communes. The original intent of the Fuente family was that their fabled Opus brand be run on Greenwich Mean Time, as a herald to the great Dunhill flagship. Opus are supposed to be smoked in the early to mid-afternoon, and only following a strong coffee or dark west Indian tea. Smoking one with your father is a significant sign of respect, while offering a Forbidden X to your Bishop is considered taboo. Your NYC subway line is also misleading, as it too is misconstrued because of time differentials. The whole story needs to be shifted.

 

[jayro75]

I'll probably get flamed for this, but so be it. I've been smoking cigars in earnest since February of this year. So I'm still green, but I feel comfortable saying I've begun to develop my palate, and getting the hang of tasting the nuances, figuring out what I like and what I don't like. Honestly, the most expensive cigars I've tried are probably AF Hemingways, a few Montecristos, something at that level. I just don't have a ton of money to spend on it.

So yeah, I've searched on here and read numerous glowing reviews of the Opus X, but I can't justify in my mind shelling out the cash for one cigar. So honestly, is it worth splurging and blowing my cigar budget just to try it out?

PM me your address. I'll mail you a Opus X #5 this weekend when I get home from school. It is a small guy but I really enjoy them.

Are you serious? Wow, this forum -- and its members! -- are just awesome. Many heartfelt thanks!!! :thumbs:

Not a problem, I hope you enjoy it.

I just got this in the mail today:

I've only tried the El Triunfador's but I absolutely loved them. Looking forward to trying them all out.

The Tats and La Riqueza's are great smokes. I have stashed away boxes of the El Triunfadors and Guapos RX which to my palette are the best of the bunch. I wasn't lucky enough to bundle up on the Tat Blacks. You're a lucky man!

 

[xerais]

The Tats and La Riqueza's are great smokes. I have stashed away boxes of the El Triunfadors and Guapos RX which to my palette are the best of the bunch. I wasn't lucky enough to bundle up on the Tat Blacks. You're a lucky man!

I was the most excited about two more Triunfador's. I really like them... I have an unopened box in the humidor, but I ran out of both the 5 packs I had bought, and my willpower was beginning to wane!
I've heard a lot of good things about the blacks, figure I'll take them to my finance's brothers wedding that is coming up.

Next time mark this Not Safe for Work as I just let out a moan and creamed myself a little at my desk. :laugh:

Hahaha, well you'll have to smoke something on the way home then eh?

 

[jayro75]

The Tats and La Riqueza's are great smokes. I have stashed away boxes of the El Triunfadors and Guapos RX which to my palette are the best of the bunch. I wasn't lucky enough to bundle up on the Tat Blacks. You're a lucky man!

I was the most excited about two more Triunfador's. I really like them... I have an unopened box in the humidor, but I ran out of both the 5 packs I had bought, and my willpower was beginning to wane!
I've heard a lot of good things about the blacks, figure I'll take them to my finance's brothers wedding that is coming up.

If you think she's expensive as your fiance what are you going to call her as your wife? :laugh:

I kinow what your saying about the El Triunfadors. I've smoked one and given one away in a contest and am now afraid if I smoke another I'll kill the box off in a few weeks.

The Tat blacks are a perfect smoke for a family wedding!

 

[BlindedByScience]

First of all, your average Opus shouldn't cost much more than your average Montecristo. The fact that there are scumbags that mark up the price by a few hundred percentage points, doesn't mean that this is the price of the cigar. While some people love the Opus X, I know of many that can't smoke one. My suggestion is to pick one up from an honest retailer and try it for yourself. A good cigar is one that YOU like....not anyone else.

Israel hits this one on the head. Taste is a very subjective quantity. Also, as your interests in the leaf progress, so will your tastes and the ability to discern more and more subtle differences. An Opie might not be "worth it" to a newcomer, but well worth it to a more experienced smoker.

Or, you may dislike them. That's why folks recommend trying one; then, pen a review and you tell us.

PM me your address. I'll mail you a Opus X #5 this weekend when I get home from school. It is a small guy but I really enjoy them.

That's why this is the best cigar forum on the net....the generosity of the BOTL's is outstanding. Great play....nicely done..... :thumbs:

Remember to return the favor by hooking up another new guy, someday.....

Best Regards - B.B.S.

 

[SiShong]

Ok, well, I was in the same boat, reading all the gushing that was being done by the members here about the Opus' and I hadn't tried one.

Well, I had a BOTL SamuraiJack hand me one last week, and I will say it was a good cigar.

Was it something I enjoyed . . . Yes.
Would I smoke one again . . . Yes.
Was it the best I'd ever had . . . No.
Was it something I would horde for special occasions only . . . No.
Was it something I would kill my family for . . . No.
Was it something I would ever pay more than the retail for . . . No.
Did it live up to the constant hype it recieves on this board . . . No.

Now I may not be an aficionado, but I have a decent idea of taste and can normally pick out the nuances of flavor in a cigar, especially when I sit down with a clean pallete and focus on nothing but the cigar, like I do when I want to review something.
Now I smoked the Opus while playing poker with my buddy's only one of which I would consider a real BOTL and he's the one who gave it to me, and primarily a CC smoker.
I wasn't paying as much attention to the cigar as I could have been, but I did nub it.
Now, I liked it, I truly did. But it did not live up to the constant creaming of the pants that goes on here in regards to the Opus.
It is rare, and people seem to be in love with them, and if that is what you prefer . . . great, but I still say it's largely psychosomatic, based on the hype, you read over and over again about how it is such an amazing cigar, and then you buy into it and you smoke it, with the foreknowledge that "this is what a great cigar should be" well, self fullfilling prophecy and all that, and you have, what has, in your mind, become the best cigar. And there is nothing wrong with that, what is wrong is assuming that anyone who doesn't like it is stupid, or just doesn't know what is good. Taste is subjective. While I would never pick up a macanudo from walgreens and claim it is a good cigar, that is not because of it's price, or because of the stigma around it, it is because the taste doesn't appeal to me. It's the same thing with more pricey cigars, I will try it, before I make my opinion on whether or not it is a good cigar.

This, to me is how you can really get to enjoy cigars to the fullest, don't trick yourself into loving a stick because of the hype, figure out what you like, and enjoy that to it's fullest!

Don't get me wrong, I did enjoy the Opus, and if another one comes my way or crosses my path, I will smoke it, but I'm not planning on hunting any down, and I certainly won't pay the exhorbinant prices that some people (not on this board) would consider charging for one simply because of the rarity and the hype.

Disclaimer: this next comment is in NO WAY meant to be connected with the Opus, but IS connected with the idea of HYPE!
A piece of Leonardo DaVinci's feces would certainly be a rare find, and of incredible value to someone, and I'm sure if the rumor was out that it existed, people would be hunting it down and willing to pay anything for it, but that doesn't mean I have any desire to pick it up and smoke it!

*edited to add . . .

First of all, your average Opus shouldn't cost much more than your average Montecristo. The fact that there are scumbags that mark up the price by a few hundred percentage points, doesn't mean that this is the price of the cigar. While some people love the Opus X, I know of many that can't smoke one. My suggestion is to pick one up from an honest retailer and try it for yourself. A good cigar is one that YOU like....not anyone else.

Israel hits this one on the head. Taste is a very subjective quantity. Also, as your interests in the leaf progress, so will your tastes and the ability to discern more and more subtle differences. An Opie might not be "worth it" to a newcomer, but well worth it to a more experienced smoker. Or, you may dislike them.

I understand the idea here, but the implication is that you are saying, if you are a real smoker, you will like the Opus. I assume that is not your intention, because you do leave it open for dislike, but I just had to point that out, as I really hate that sentiment of discounting someone's preferences because they haven't "developed" into your own, taste is subjective, no matter how long you have been smoking.

I mean no ill will or provocation towards anyone with any of these comments, just had to put my thoughts out there. Please understand.

 

[JHolmes763]

I love the little #5s, but the rest have been so so for me. Try 'em by all means.

Nice play on the offer to send one out, too. :thumbs:

 

[Unclebillybonz]

I'll probably get flamed for this, but so be it. I've been smoking cigars in earnest since February of this year. So I'm still green, but I feel comfortable saying I've begun to develop my palate, and getting the hang of tasting the nuances, figuring out what I like and what I don't like. Honestly, the most expensive cigars I've tried are probably AF Hemingways, a few Montecristos, something at that level. I just don't have a ton of money to spend on it.

So yeah, I've searched on here and read numerous glowing reviews of the Opus X, but I can't justify in my mind shelling out the cash for one cigar. So honestly, is it worth splurging and blowing my cigar budget just to try it out?

PM me your address. I'll mail you a Opus X #5 this weekend when I get home from school. It is a small guy but I really enjoy them.

Awesome gesture xerais! :thumbs:

 

[Charley]

To echo what everyone else has said, yes they are a fine cigar. One of my favorites, part of the allure is from the fact that they are hard to find.

With only approx. 750,000 produced each year the seeming rarity is where they derive most of their value. If Opus was at every B&M with no mark-up would people still rave over them? Honestly, probably not, yes they would still be an excellent cigar, but since there was very little involved in the aquiring it the mystique is some what diminished.

By all means try one or more, try different sizes. You might find you like one and not the other. Is a marked up Opus X Perfexcion #5 really 5 times better than DPG? Can an Opus Marked up XxX be 10 times better than a Sancho Panza DM to you?

It all really depends what you want and are willing to spend.

Yeah and since Stinki smokes about 700,000 every year that leaves even less for the rest of us! :laugh:

 

[Not A Nice Person]

Good? Yes, absolutely. "That good" depends on what you mean by "that" and what you're comparing it with and what you had for dinner and what you're drinking and . . . well, just like any cigar.

Here's the thing: I've smoked about a box or so of Opus X, in about 4-5 different vitolas. And nothing else tastes like an Opus X. Really, it's a uniquely, deeply leathery flavor profile. So if THAT flavor is what you want, crave, gravitate toward, or just happen to be in the mood for, well . . . Opus X is what you want, and as long as you're not getting gouged too badly, it'll be worth the price.

But the same can be said of a lot of other cigars, too. Nothing else tastes quite like a Don Lino Africa Kifaro to me, or a San Cristobal Fabuloso, or a PAN 64 Torpedo, or an Illusione ~88~ . . . and several of those are about half the price of an Opus, and somewhat easier to come by.

It's like food. Sometimes I just gotta have a Whattaburger #5, hold the pickles and onions, add jalapenos. Other times . . . not so much.

~Boar

 

[Gregg]

For me personally, the Anejo line blows the Opus line away. The 3 or 4 different ones I have had, didn't really blow me away. I have around 10 different ones resting in the humi with a few years on them, and I will give them another tasting this fall. I sort of buy them when I see them at MSRP, just to have around in case my tastes do change. So I guess the hype bug bit me a little bit

 

[BlindedByScience]

I understand the idea here, but the implication is that you are saying, if you are a real smoker, you will like the Opus. I assume that is not your intention, because you do leave it open for dislike, but I just had to point that out, as I really hate that sentiment of discounting someone's preferences because they haven't "developed" into your own, taste is subjective, no matter how long you have been smoking.

Implying? Maybe you should re-read the post. I'm not implying anything. You completely missed the point. What I'm saying is that while a new guy may find a (insert any premium cigar here) cigar "OK" he may be able to appreciate it more as his palate develops.

I'm not discounting anyone's preferences, only their ability to discern subtle difference in taste that may not be readily apparent to a new guy. It's the same for fine wine, scotch, food, whatever involves "taste"; your ability to taste, discern and appreciate same improves and refines with time.

I could give a flying rip if someone's preferences have or have not "developed" into my own.....and I wouldn't expect them to. What an absurd thing to say. But tastes do refine, change, and develop as time goes on, and they do improve with practice. That's what makes the pursuit interesting.

B.B.S.

 

[lordlister]

With a few years of age, most of the Opus vitolas smoke very well and nothing compares. Out the box, I think they're top notch cigars, but not the end all and be all of smoking experiences. The different vitolas are quite different smokes. You may enjoy certain sizes but not others. I'm quite partial to the XXX's, robusto's, beli's, Reserve's and DC's. I'm not that fond of the #4's, 5's and PL's (although other people go nuts for these). On a side note, I do appreciate them more for their rarity factor, but so be it. The main thing is that you enjoy what you smoke.

 

[sxfn4lf]

Well, me myself Im not too too big on them. Every now and then I say to myself... Hey, I would really like an Opus. It happens maybe 3 times a year. I dont go out of my way to pick these up like I do with some other sticks. Enjoy your #5 coming to you!!!

 

[pembroke3355]

A fine BOTL from this site gifted me a few. And I now admit I am a Opus whore :blush:


Anyone who has Stinki's addy and when he goes on vacation pm me I am willing to share the bounty :laugh:

 

[moki]

Is it the allure of the Opus or that some say they are a good smoke?

I don't like the so called cheaper vitola's like Opus Fuente Fuente, xxx, etc. However, I do like the more expensive vitola's such as, d'Chateau, Royal 8, Forbidden x, especially with age.

Your palate is young so beware the xxx and others, they kick ass, especially on an empty stomach.

The point is, YOU need to smoke these cigars at some point to form your own opinion.

Brian

What the father of my future mistress-in-law said.