Happy St. Paddy's Day

So, what to pair with a good cigar? McSorley's Irish Black Lager, or Jameson's?

Decisions, decisions....

. Continue Reading

Cigar Deal Alert

Cigars International is running a special on selected Rocky Patel cigars.

Notably, 10 Rocky Patel Vintage 1990 or 1992 torpedoes for $34.50. That's a steal.

. Continue Reading

Weekend Cigar Blogging

Gonna talk about Cameroon wrappers here for a minute.

One thing that sets Cameroon wrappers apart is their origin - while most everything cigar originates from Central America (at least here in the Cuba-embargoing US), the Cameroon comes from West Africa. It brings a lot more to the table flavor wise, introducing spicy notes I usually don't run across in other cigars.

I'm really beginning to love these things. I first tried one when I began this adventure called cigar smoking last year, and I first liked one when I smoked an Arturo Fuente Hemingway Short Story some time later. What I like about these cigars is their flavor profile changes over the length of the smoke, building into a crescendo of spice, cedar and tobacco. You have to slow down a tad toward the end (hard to do), or it'll get hot on ya.

I've now reached the point where the Short Story is a tad too short, so I've moved up to the Best Seller. We'll see how that goes.

Another Cameroon I like is the CAO L’Anniversaire Cameroon. It's a lighter smoke than the Hemingways, but nice nevertheless. It goes through some changes as well, but overall, it's milder than the others. Like the link review mentions, it's a bit spendy, for what you get. I got mine in a sampler, so the price wasn't apparent.

That's all till next week!

. Continue Reading

Weekend Cigar Blogging

I just ran across an extensive list of questions and answers regarding everything cigar at CigarAdvisor.com.

Here's a couple:

Should you use the top tray in your cigar humidor?

They say generally, no. I use my top tray, but I don't fill it up. I just put a few there for a quick grab n go.

Mixing cigars in your humidor.

They say no biggie, unless you have scented/flavored cigars. They don't play well with others.

I try to keep like-wrappered cigars together, which means maduros on one side, everything else on the other. =)

And, the most important question of all:

What was Sir Winston Churchill's favorite cigar?

Go check it out.

. Continue Reading

Weekend Cigar Blogging

This just in from Thompson Cigars - the CAO America "Four for the Fourth" box and an additional three "Bottle rockets" (Churchill).

This is one of my favorite cigars, being a medium-full smoke with lots of flavor.

I've had my eye on this deal for a while, now that I got my income tax refund, I went ahead and jumped on it.




You see that third one over in the box of four? It's being saved for a special occasion.

.

Continue Reading

Weekend Cigar Blogging

As I close in on my first year of cigar appreciation, I'd like to revisit a few smokes I tried early on, before I knew squat* about cigars.

CAO Italia, Rocky Patel Vintage 1992 - First, I've grown to like the Italia a lot more than the first time I tried it. I still get spicy notes, more white pepper than anything else, but those notes come across in a good way. Had me craving a big bowl of pasta after smoking it. =)

I have a few in the humidor these days. Like my beer fridge, my humidor is prepared for just about anything.

Before, I said I liked the Vintage 1990 over the '92, but recently, I've come to enjoy the '92 at least as much, if not more, than the '90. The '92 is a little bigger tasting than the '90, and has earned a spot in the humidor along side the '90's

CAO MX2 - Here we go, round three with this puppy. I've had bad luck with this smoke in the past, but a recent CAO sampler I got had three box pressed MX2's in it, so I'll give it another go.

The thing about this smoke - it's a "double maduro", meaning that both the wrapper (outer cover) and the binder (inner cover) are of the maduro variety. Maduro, I've come to find out, isn't a type of leaf, but the curing process.

It's pretty strong (I'm smoking it now), and the first third is peppery and leathery. The draw is a little tight, but not enough to hamper anything. Sailorcurt is right, the finish (aftertaste) doesn't last long.

Moving through the cigar, the leather gives way to dark chocolate. The black pepper is still there, but it has moved to the background. The draw has loosened up, providing plenty of smoke. It's a lot better now.

It's strong, too. I'm getting a bit buzzy. Not much, but this is one to smoke after a good meal, not a light lunch.

I have to mention, the construction is impeccable. Not a hole, tear or soft spot throughout.

Final verdict: a keeper, but definitely not for beginners.

One thing I've learned about my way of getting to know a cigar: I can't just sit and think about it. If I do that, I'm too busy thinking about it and not trying to enjoy it. Once I occupy myself, in this case doing some light work in the back yard, the cigar presents itself better, and I can let it come to me, rather than trying to pull out whatever it is I'm looking for.

* At this point, I'm pretty comfortable saying I do know squat about cigars, but not much more than that.

Continue Reading

Memphis Cigar Event

Via email:

Rocky Patel Event at Havana Mix
Monday, October 5th, 4-9pm
Join Havana Mix as they welcome Rocky Patel
to their store for a special one-night only
event NEXT MONDAY from 4-9pm

Havana Mix will be featuring:

:::SPECIALS ON ROCKY CIGARS:::
:::LOTS OF PRIZES:::
:::SUPER GIVE-AWAY ITEMS:::

PLUS

:::A VERY SPECIAL RUM & AGED COGNAC TASTING:::

Havana Mix is open late, has a great selection of cigars,
comfy surroundings and big screens. Stop in for this
very special event. No reservation required

Havana Mix is on Second Street downtown
directly across from the Peabody Hotel

Sounds like fun.

. Continue Reading

I Did Not Know This

CAO, the makers of some damn fine cigars (I'm partial to the America) is headquartered in Nashville.

I'll be there in a couple weeks. Wonder if they give tours? Free samples?

I will find out.

. Continue Reading

Memphis Cigar Event

Via email, we learn this:

Smoking Up High at the Madison Hotel!

This is a NEW event for downtown
on the rooftop at the beautiful Madison Hotel!

Enjoy great smokes from our friends at
Havana Mix Cigar Emporium
Super drink specials and small plate menu
and the best riverfront view in Memphis!

5:30 - 7:30 PM, Monday, August 17th

NO COVER CHARGE!
Parking nearby on Front or Second Street

RSVP IS REQUIRED
Please make your reservation as soon as possible!
CALL 901-333-1224 to RSVP

Sounds interesting.

. Continue Reading

Weekend Cigar Blogging: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (but not in that order)

I've tried a few cigars over the last couple weeks, thought I'd post a rundown.

Oliva Serie V (The Ugly)- While not too bad (a bit strong for my taste), it does win the "Ugliest Ash" award. This was a result of a rough patch I encountered about halfway through the smoke. It tried its best to go out on me. I nursed it through the rough spot to finish, but the ash speaks for itself

CAO MX2 (The Bad) - I seem to have no luck when it comes to this smoke. I managed to tear half the cap off when cutting. I thought it might have been the result of a cheapo cutter, but after getting through two thirds of the smoke, the thing canoed on me and then the wrapper started to split.

It's too bad, because the taste was great.

Oh, and the cutter worked fine on the other smokes later in the week.

Rocky Patel Edge Lite Battalion (The Good) - This is a big, fat Connecticut wrappered smoke. I mean 60 ring gauge fat. Having been smacked around by the Edge before, I was a bit leery of this one. Sure, it said "Lite", but that can be a relative term.

This is one great smoke. I've heard the term "creamy" used in some cigar reviews, but I've never had it presented so effectively as it was with this baby. It looked good, burned good, and the taste was great.

I'm tellin ya, I may be needing a second humidor, one for my 1990's and one for these. Too bad they don't have them as seconds.

Speaking of 1990's, they were a big hit at the party last weekend. I passed them out after popping the question, and everyone seemed to enjoy them. Of course, that means I have to order another bundle, but that's OK. This time I'll go with the Churchills.

That's the great thing about buying seconds - it lets the miser in me treat others to fine smokes without having a fit.

.

Continue Reading

Weekend Cigar Blogging

This weekend entry will probably start fading out, as I've pretty much settled on "my smoke", but I still have some odd sticks in the humidor, so it won't be going away completely.

- Wednesday - Rocky Patel Summer Collection 2008 Lancero - This was a pretty good smoke, but it got mushy on me about halfway down. It had an Ecuadoran wrapper, which was new to me. Like I said, it was pretty good, but I preferred the Spring 2009 to this one.


And here is the rest of it. Continue Reading

Cigar Blogging - Rocky Patel Vintage 1990 Torpedo (seconds)

So, I finally carved out a nice block of time to devote strictly to this cigar. Good idea, as it took me an hour and a half to smoke it. That was intentional, though. I really took it slow, to make sure I got everything I could out of the cigar.

It certainly delivered.

Just like the last time I had a 1990, the first third of the cigar was fairly mellow, and it steadily built in flavor over time. This time, however, the notes were more coffee and cocoa powder, rather than chocolate and cherries. Not unusual, as from what I've read and experienced, different shapes tend to have different flavor profiles.

Will I buy more?

Let me put it to you this way, I'm seriously considering buying a second humidor and stocking up, these sticks were that good. That, and these being seconds, the price was unbelievable.

.

Continue Reading

Weekend Cigar Blogging

- Sunday - Conuco Robusto - This one is made by Rocky Patel, is offered as a more affordable smoke, and is only available online at Famous. Reviews were all across the spectrum on this one, some were calling is the best cigar for the price anywhere, others saying is was a "dog rocket"*.

I figured at fifteen bucks for five, it was worth a try. I have to say, for the price, those are some pretty good smokes. The wrapper had a sweetness to it that I assume is a naturally occurring thing. Although they are not maduros (habano wrapper), they were somewhat similar. Fairly smooth and not disagreeable at all.

- Speaking of Rocky Patel, the Vintage 1990 "seconds" showed up this week. They're spending a few days in the humidor to get acclimated, but my initial inspection showed them to be a nice cigar, not blemished or faulty. They are box pressed, and are not loose or squishy in any way. I opted for the "torpedo" shape this time around, as robustos are too short, and I sometimes don't have time for a Churchill. I'll probably fire one up Friday night, so this posting should have my review, such as it is.

- Wednesday - CAO Criollo - I bought this one because I read somewhere that a criollo is "corojo light", and I'll have to agree with that assertion. If you're having difficulty getting into a corojo, then this cigar is for you. Of course, I'm a fan of maduros and, to a lesser extent, natural wrappers, so while I can see its appeal, it's not for me. I do have to say, in my brief exposure to the cigar world, CAO has the best-burning cigars I've seen so far.

Update - Didn't get to the Patel yesterday like I thought. I'll do another post once I do.



* that's cigar speak for "poop". Continue Reading

Humidor Review

Amazon isn't the only place where ridiculous items get a fisk/review. Behold the Davidoff Pyramid Humidor:

FSS Price: $2,921.99
Retail Price: $3,075.00

Of course, the point of this post are the reviews:

I saw this on Famous, and thought to myself "Well Self; you've already lost $125k in equity on your home. "What's one more poor purchase decision gonna hurt?" "And besides, you'll just take it out of you're dead grandfather's social security checks you forge every month anyways." So if any of you fellow cigar smokers are in my position, I say "GO FOR IT!" :)

Then, there's this:

NOTE: If you purchase this humidor, ALL items in your order will ship UPS Ground for a flat $24.99 S&H charge. Free shipping is NOT available when purchasing a humidor.

I think I might have me a couple single malts tonight and see what I can come up with....

.

Continue Reading

Weekend Cigar Blogging

Oliva "Serie O" Petit Perfecto - this one is a Nicaraguan "puro", meaning all components came from Nicaragua. It wasn't a maduro, so, like all the other non-maduro types, it wasn't for me. Mostly notes of cedar, although I got a little bit of menthol in the middle. I'm beginning to understand these types a little better, And I can see where these would be an excellent choice, depending on the circumstances.

Rocky Patel Edge Maduro Torpedo - I should have done some research on this one first. If I had, I would have taken note of the various ways of saying "This cigar is not for beginners". It's most definitely a cigar for advanced smokers. The first half was manageable, but then it became overwhelming and, for me, unsmokable.

Padron 2000 Maduro Robusto- this was a nice smoke, definitely worth a second look. The last third didn't impress me like the CAO or Patel 1990, but I can see instances where I wouldn't really want it to.

All in all, a pretty good week. I've taken a bit of a gamble and sprung for a bundle of Patel 1990 "seconds", meaning for whatever reason, they were unworthy of being called a 1990. The web site said it was mainly due to cosmetic imperfections. If that's the case, I've found the ideal smoke, as looks don't matter much to me. Price does, though, and these will run me about half of what a 1990 usually costs.

We'll see....

.

Continue Reading

Weekend Cigar Blogging

Only one cigar of note this week, the Perdomo Reserve 10th Anniversary Maduro.

This one's a keeper, not too strong and more complex than I'm able to decipher at the present time.

I'll have more next week, as I ramp up to the Memphis Blog Meet, Father's Day, and other reasons for celebration.

.

Continue Reading

Weekend Cigar Blogging

I've been scouring the city, checking the cigar shops, and have run across some interesting offerings.

I've also found that the Tinder Box stores are considerably higher than the Memphis Tobacco Bowl, which is downtown. That place is nice, lets you smoke there and has a good selection. To the Tinder Box's credit, they had a much wider selection, especially at the store down where the rich folks live. But two buck more per cigar? No thanks.

Saturday - CAO Maduro - This was one of the best smokes I've had. At first I thought it was CAO's "basic" offering, but I've found it called "L'Anniversaire", so I assume it's an anniversary thing. The second half of this smoke was delicious, on par with anything I've tried so far.

Sunday - Rocky Patel Spring Collection 2009 - This was another winner. A lot of different things going on. My palette isn't developed enough to describe it all, but I liked it.

Tuesday - CAO Brazilia - Yet another winner, this one I would put right between the two above, with the Maduro being first and the Spring being third. This is a maduro as well, a bit stronger than Saturday's smoke, complex, but didn't come on quite as well at the end.

Thursday - Rocky Patel Decade - It has notes mostly of cedar and maybe some nuttiness to it. It was a pleasant enough smoke, but just not my style.




. Continue Reading

Weekend Cigar Blogging

Cigar report from throughout the week:

Saturday: Rocky Patel Olde World Reserve Toro - Nice one, provided a big nicotine kick. Had burniing issues because it was kinda mushy - not tight like most cigars I've had.

Sunday - La Perla Habana Black Pearl Corona Gorda (?) - Ok, I'm gonna say it - the black pepper on the back of the throat thing? It's unpleasant and annoying.

Ghurka Vulcan Churchill - Really nice, although this one, too, was a bit mushy. Burned well, had to even it up once about halfway through, but all in all a nice smoke.

I don't understand why they were mushy like that. I admit, the humidity around here has been high, but the inside of the humidor hasn't been above 74%, usually 72%, and the others are still tight.

Tuesday - Alec Bradley Retreat Churchill - Didn't care much for it. I'm writing this two days after smoking it and can't recall a thing about it.

Thursday - A cheapie maduro called "Prima de Cuba". It was kinda lightweight, but had some interesting spice notes around the middle of the cigar. Not up on my spices, but allspice comes to mind. Different, interesting.


. Continue Reading

Weekend Cigar Blogging

Well, alllrighty, then. While this will post up on Saturday morning, it is a work in progress throughout the week. It will, hopefully, be somewhat coherent by the date of posting.

Saturday - Ghurka Masterblender - Started off similar to a Rocky Patel 1990, but never blossomed into anything more. Kinda "steady as she goes" with this one. I'd smoke it again, but it could have been better.

Sunday - CAO Gold Maduro - Slow start because I can't light a cigar worth a shit yet, but after I evened it up, it was nice. Unlike SailorCurt, I like a little aftertaste. This one was good. Better than the MX2? To be determined....

Monday - Perdomo Habano Corojo Robusto - I think I can safely say I don't care for the Corojo. It's the second one from a good cigar maker that I didn't like.

Patargas Black Label - I picked this one up the other day at the Cigar shop in the Mall. Like LB said "Partagas Blacks are an excellent smoke, but will leave you quite light headed if you aren't prepared for it." Indeed, it was stout. The taste was great, but wow! That was a strong one, for sure. At least I now have something to work toward.

Lesson learned: if cigar goes out on you and you let it sit for a while, lighting it back up is not a Good Thing, unless you like the taste of ashtray.

Wednesday - Cohiba Lonsdale (?) - This is a nice smoke. Really even and mellow, nothing to detract from smoking it. The first non-maduro type I really liked. Pricey, though.

All in all, it was a good week

.

Continue Reading

Weekend Cigar Blogging

Well, the stash II arrived. Actually, it's from two seperate orders. The first was a sampler from Thompson. It contained:

CAO Italia Robusto
CAO Gold Maduro Torpedo
Ghurka Vulcan Churchill
Ghurka Masterblender Churchill
Perdomo Habano Corojo Robusto
Black Pearl Corona Gorda (?)
Cohiba Lonsdale (?)
Alec Bradley Retreat Churchill
Rocky Patel Vintage 1992 Churchill
Rocky Patel Olde World Reserve Toro

I'm not 100% sure on all the sizes, me being a rookie and all.

The second order was from the Famous Smoke Shop. It was five Conuco Maduro robustos.

I'm letting them hang out in the humidor for a while, as I've heard FSS smokes come on the dry side.

So, here's the CAO Italia. It's a bit strong for my taste, and I'm getting pepper on the back of the throat about 1/3 of the way in. Just because I can, I opened a Liefmans Goudenband Flemish Brown Ale to accompany it. Yeah, I know I'll be gouty this weekend, but I have to get rid of that fridge full of beer somehow.

The sour notes of the beer offsets the cigar nicely. This one's going down to the finish.

A couple of quick notes on the previous stash - a couple Rocky Patel offerings.

The Sun Grown is a nicotine bomb. I literally caught a buzz off of it. The 1992 was good, but I really liked the 1990 better.

.

Continue Reading