Apparently Steve got pissed at somebody for mentioning the high cost of Dunbarton cigars. This is from his personal FB account, and I guess it's the edited more pc version:
"If you as consumer can not tell the difference between our cigars and their cigars which cost less, then there is absolutely no reason for you to buy our cigars.
Save your money, buy those cigars instead.
Our blends and puros are intended for the discerning and experienced cigar smokers who can not only recognize the difference, but appreciate the difference.
For them our cigars are an excellent value."
I read the comments and this is the only guy who challenged him:
"Without knowing the full context this seems a little douchey…there are plenty of cigar makers that I think you would even consider your peers, who have cigars on par with yours at a lower price point, maybe only slightly lower but lower. Saying that someone should move on to the cheaper of the two because they don’t have the palate to discern enough of a difference which warrants a costlier cigar is lame. There’s plenty of us out here that have a good palate, wish we could afford your $18+ sticks but need to opt for the comparable $10-12 stick and it has nothing to do with our palates. That said, I also have no idea how often you get **** emails, etc complaining just to complain, so again, context...[L]et’s look at Charter Oak from Foundation at about $6-6.50, their budget stick is super solid, personally never had an issue and comes in a couple bucks cheaper than the Umbagog. Again, without knowing the full context, this is a counter-argument where to many, those dollars add up. If someone were to say “I hear you that you’d like our stick to come in at that price point, but it doesn’t because ours is for a higher developed palate than those who appreciate Charter Oak and therefore we charge $2 more” sounds dickish."
I think I'm done buying Dunbarton Cigars. You guys mentioned the high prices of their cigars about a year ago--they're even more expensive now. So price is the first reason I'm done.
Secondly, there isn't anything in their portfolio that I want to try (or would even consider paying for) that I haven't already... I loved the Todos Las Dias line and he discontinued that. To me the cost of a Mi Querida Blue isn't worth it if I can get an Umbagog cheaper. Like King pointed out, Umbagog isn't the same blend as Mi Querida Blue, but they're really close... So I'm only left with Umbagog, and I'm stocked up on those.
Lastly, I thought some of his blends were disappointing. Did not like the Sobremesa--it's mild and uneventful imo. Had the toro. The Mi Querida Red 6x48 wasn't anywhere near as good as the Blue or Umbagog. It's for sure not a "firecracker" or a "Nicaraguan powerhouse" blend. It wasn't worth it at 8 bucks per--no way I'm paying 12 to 15.
Not sure what he's thinking--because I can get Padron xooo series, My Father, Drew Estate, Foundation, RoMa Craft, Oliva etc at cheaper prices, and with same or better quality.
Side note: All of these "exclusive" small batch releases aren't going to help him in the long run either. You need people to buy your bread and butter standard lineup. There's only so many people that are going to continuously buy the next small batch 25 to 100 dollar cigar. He has mentioned that in several interviews that I've watched. He should take his own advice on that.
All that said, I like the guy. He does make some quality cigars. Plus he's a good guy, and a fellow Smallmouth Bass fisherman... I've learned a lot by watching his interviews on FB and Youtube. He's funny, and a wealth of knowledge and information. I'd like to see him succeed. After all he, and Nick Melillo, made Drew Estate what they are today.
