No (Smoking) Jacket Required: Iggy's Cigar Thread

[IggytheBorg]

Smoked a Gurkha Black Rose last night. Really, really good smoke. It had a dark, oily maduro wrapper, & was a hefty 6 x 60 super toro size. It burned really slowly (albeit a bit unevenly) and took about 2 hours to moke. An earthy tobacco core with strong notes of sweet spice, particularly on the opening & for the 1st half. So much so, I thought it might have been infused for a moment. Boomed out big clouds of smoke, too. A genuine pleasure.

[IggytheBorg]

Just finishing off a Paul Garmirian Artisan's Pride. Another superior quality smoke from this brand. An earthy tobacco core with strong top notes of sweet & hearty spice. Had some notes of dried fruit to it as well. Complex & enjoyable start to finish.

[IggytheBorg]

I know this is going to come as a shock to all of you, but I'm smoking a vouple new cigars this X-mas break in MB. The first such was a Gurkha Rogue. A fine smoke. Medium to full bodied, with a nice level of sweet spice going on, and a toasty tobacco core. Another winner from Gurkha.

Also smoked a GUrkha Warpig. This was exceptional. Very full bodied, but tamed by notes of cream & cedar. Notes of black pepper gave it a little bite, particularly toward the end of the smoke. Multi layered and complex, this is definitely worth a repeat buy.

Currently smoking a La Gloria Cubana Serie R Black. This is on par with the Warpig. Black pepper notable on the finish, but never to an unpleasant level (as with the Black Crown & similar), followed by a mellow coating of sweetness (the blurb says "honey"; I'm not sure that's what I'm getting, but it is damned pleasant). A damp earth core is also noted in the center of the smoke. Another outstanding smoke from LGC. Recommended, but it may be hard to find. I scored this one at The Tinder Box, that brick and mortar store I like to hit up in SC, & I've seen it at the Tobacco Barn in Piscataway, but CI's catalog warns "You won't find this in your local cigar store". As an aside, the Tinder Box has added a small but pleasant looking smoking lounge, and the humidor seems larger or roomier somehow following the revamp. Good for them.

[Timothy225]

Saw this, thought of Iggy...

[IggytheBorg]

SECURED: 4 mid tier CIgarfest tickets! My pals both got tix as well, so we actually have a surplus this year! May make some $$ on E-bay. . .

[IggytheBorg]

Forgot to mention that I have smoked several Gurkha Prize Fighter robustos. A very pleasant mild bodied smoke, along the lines of a Don Diego. Mild notes of sweetness and sweet spices, with a pleasant tobacco core. Probably not on par with Gurkha's finest mild smokes, like the Widow Maker Connecticut or the Royal Challenge, but certainly a good cigar.

[IggytheBorg]

Also, I attended Cigarfest 2014 on Saturday. I didn't enjoy this one as much as those I attended in years past. My friends I normally drive in with all either cancelled out on me, or scored early admission tickets and got in ahead of me. So the amount of time I got to hang with my friends was minimized. The 'Fest itself was very cool. I think there were something approaching 80 cigars handed out. The swag bag, ashtray and humidor were larger than usual as well. On the down side, there was only 1 hard liquor booth, and there seemed to be many more people there than usual. It was uncomfortably crowded by the time the bottom tier folks came in at 2:30. There were 6 microbreweries in attendance, all with fine stuff to be sampled, but there seemed to be less of this as well. Probably the one I've enjoyed the least, but not due to any fault on CI's part. The co-worker I sold my extra tickets to had a realy good time. Maybe we'll drive in together and hang more next year. Who knows.

[IggytheBorg]

Smoked a 601 La Bomba on the way into court this morning. This is a Don Pepin Garcia creation, and in true Don Pepin fashion, was very full bodied. It had a mostly wood and tobacco flavor profile, with perhaps the vaguest hints of hearty spice and a suggestion sweetness peeking in from time to time. Not overwhelming by any means, and pretty enjoyable for what it was. But not something I'd see myself buying again any time soon, as there was little, if any, nuance of the kind I find myself attracted to in evidence here.

[IggytheBorg]

Over the weekend I smoked a My Uzi Weighs a Ton. Very interesting and somewhat complex. A core of toasty, medium to full bodied wood and tobacco flavors complimented by hearty spices and notes of dark chocolate. Not destined to become a favorite, but pretty damned good.

[IggytheBorg]

Smoked a Romeo y Juliet RyJ the other night. Phenomenal. Nice mild to medium body with a core of toasty tobacco and cedar, with top notes of sweet spice. Probably better than the original, and at least as good as (albeit different from) the Vieja blends. Highly recommended.

Also smoked a Black Crown Sons of Anarchy. This was just OK. It had a solid core of charred wood as its main flavor component. Some faint notes of cedary sweetness peeked in now and again, but were not frequent or present enough to make this a more interesting smoke. You can definitely tell it was a Black Crown product by the black pepper that lingers on the palate with the aftertaste, which is not a preferred nuance for me.

[IggytheBorg]

Smoked a Gurkha Cellar Reserve Maduro this evening. Not among Gurkha's best, IMO, but pretty damned good. Much better than the regular Cellar Reserve. It had some of the fruity, raisin-like flavors of the original, but they were toned down considerably, which was a definite improvement, I think. Notes of wood, toast and even some cocoa for a bit rounded it out. The band advertises the tobaccos are aged 15 years, and it shows. Full in body, but smooth as can be, it never got overpowering. Pricey, but worth a try. The Tinder Box in MB strikes again!

[IggytheBorg]

Smoked a CAO Extreme the other day. Very full bodied, as the name implies. But had lots of toast going on in the core, and top notes of sweet spice to balance it out. Very enjoyable, but not destined to become a favorite.

Also smoked a Montecristo "Monte". This was exceptional. A toasty, cedary wood core, with a hint of hearty tobacco, it had very noticeable notes of sweet spice, particularly on the opening (though they remained throughout the smoke, they did fade a bit toward the end). It was full bodies, but you wouldn't even know it, it's so well balanced. Much better than even the Cuban Monte's I've had. This may warrant a repeat buy.

Last but not least, an Alec Bradley Nica Libre maduro. This was pretty damned great, too. It kind of reminded me of a mellower, toastier Maxx. It had the sweet spice that so appeals to me from the former, but they were more muted. with less of a bite. Notes of cocoa and leather accompanied the spice, and it had a cedary, woodsy core. Probably the high end of medium in body. Damned tasty, I could see me buying more of these if I couldn't get my hands on a Maxx.

[IggytheBorg]

Ending my last night of July bachelorhood in style, I smoked a Partagas Extra Oscuro last night. This was really good. Full bodied but extremely smooth. The rum barrel aging showed through with notes of cocoa like sweetness over a woodsy, earthy core. The best thing Partagas has done yet, IMO.

[IggytheBorg]

Smoked a Punch Bareknuckle yesterday. I've never been a big fan of Punch, finding their smokes to be overly strong for my taste. This one, while I bit smoother than I remember the standard blend being, had no pleasant nuances to speak of. The flavor profile was hearty tobacco and woodsmoke all the way through. Nothing to really recommend it, IMP. I guess if you like strong, powerful cigars, it might be for you. But it didn't impress me.

[IggytheBorg]

last night's Casa Magna Dominican was a good smoke. I didn't have very high hopes for this one initially considering how much I didn't like the oscuro version. But reading the blurb in the CI catalog, promising a honey like sweetness, had me intrigued. It was present throguhout most of the burn, and made the wood and coffee flavors that made up the core much smoother and more enjoyable than they'd have been without it. Recommended.