BT,
On the question of whether or not these ratings confuse me, I dont' know that I see it in quite that way. I think that two things are at play.
1. Do the given manufaturer's ratings of strength correspond with my smoking experience? This has to be considered on a maker-by-maker basis. Smoking a few cigars from a few of their lines will tell me whether this is true.
2. Does seeing a wide spread of reported "strengths" confuse me as to the true nature of the cigar? No. Rather, it intrigues me even more to go and try it myself.
I still don't know that that gets to your question, but perhaps we're getting incrementally closer?
Wilkey
BTW, Quai D'Orsay is one of the mildest, smoothest cigars I've ever smoked, but it is very flavorful. Accidentally inhaling smoke from it would cause me cough and choke, but I suspect my throat would recover quickly. This would almost certainly not be the case with JdN Antaño. And I know for damn sure that it is not the case with Backwoods. An accidental inhale of these yard gars is always extremely unpleasant.
On the question of whether or not these ratings confuse me, I dont' know that I see it in quite that way. I think that two things are at play.
1. Do the given manufaturer's ratings of strength correspond with my smoking experience? This has to be considered on a maker-by-maker basis. Smoking a few cigars from a few of their lines will tell me whether this is true.
2. Does seeing a wide spread of reported "strengths" confuse me as to the true nature of the cigar? No. Rather, it intrigues me even more to go and try it myself.
I still don't know that that gets to your question, but perhaps we're getting incrementally closer?
Wilkey
BTW, Quai D'Orsay is one of the mildest, smoothest cigars I've ever smoked, but it is very flavorful. Accidentally inhaling smoke from it would cause me cough and choke, but I suspect my throat would recover quickly. This would almost certainly not be the case with JdN Antaño. And I know for damn sure that it is not the case with Backwoods. An accidental inhale of these yard gars is always extremely unpleasant.