Catching Up

I've neglected to post for a while.  No excuse.  Just haven't done it.

I mentioned the problematic Gran Habano 3SLS last time around.  I'm sorry to say the rest of the pack hasn't gotten any better.  Two more with the same, spongy feel, awful draw, and no flavor.  The two remaining also have that spongy feel.  Not much hope left for those.

November Herf featured the El Mejor Emerald from the Samourai.  I've been wanting to try one of these for awhile.  A smooth and mild flavor with a hint of spice and wood to it.  It won't knock your socks off, but it was a nice change of pace from the full-bodied maduros and corojos I've been smoking lately.

Speaking of full-bodied, I tried another of the My Uzi Weighs a Ton by Jonathon Drew.  Still not impressed.  Heavy, full-bodied with copious amounts of leather, earth, and pepper.  I can see why some might like it, but it isn't for me.

I also got around to trying Genesis the Project finally.  I've been hearing so much about this one and had to give it a try.  It looks gorgeous with a super-dark wrapper that glistens with oils.  A bit nutty and highly earthy with a slight sweetness to it.  That said, I wasn't all that impressed with it.  I'll reserve final opinion until I've had a couple more, but my hopes aren't as high as they were.

Alec Bradley Fine and Rare is a yearly release that differs year to year and sells out fairly quickly when it comes out.  All I can tell you about this one was that it was very good.  Unfortunately, I wasn't able to note specific flavors (actually, I didn't write them down).  All I clearly remember about this cigar is that I wish the one I grabbed hadn't been the last.

Rocky Patel Sun Grown and the Rocky Patel Decade were two I tried out as a possible Commie Herf cigars. Neither was bad but neither really impressed me all that much.  Due to time and lack of notes on them, I don't have much else I can say about either.

Finally, the Commie Herf!  The pic above is one of the tables we took up and included some smokes for guests that we brought as well.  I brought the Black Crown I mentioned last time.  In fact, I still like it enough that I bought a box and kept the leftovers for myself.  Flappin brough AKA- American Kick Ass - Solace (which I haven't smoked yet).  Bakerware brought the Rocky Patel Vintage 1990 and while I liked the '03 a bit more, this was a good medium smoke with a smooth flavor (as expected from RP).  Jared brought the Rocky Patel Edge, a good, heavy smoke with a bit more of a woody and spicy bite than the Vintage line.  The Green Monster brought Casa Magna, another I've been wanting to try for a while.  It was CA's top cigar for 2008 and I can see why.  Full bodied with a slight earthy sweetness, it looks and tastes like my vision of what a traditional cigar should be.  It also gets my nod as the top cigar of the Commie Herf this year.

Then of course, there's the Arturo Fuente Anejo.  I've talked about this one before, but since it's been a year since I last had one, I found myself wondering if I'd enjoy them as much as I remember.  I'm sorry to say I did not.  I enjoyed them about ten times as much as I remember!  In fact, I bought five on my first trip the day they came in and haven't smoked one.  Because each time I go back to Elite, I end up buying more and smoking those rather than the ones I've got already.  I will definitely be spacing those out over the course of the year.

October Herf

The October Herf (take two) happened over the weekend.  Bongwater dropped the Padron Maduro 3000 on us.  I've had this one before (but neglected to write it up) and was not disappointed when I saw him whip these out.  They have a great, earthy and nutty flavor that ended up being a finger-burner at the herf.

Black Crown.  Another fine smoke from Raices Cubanas (maker of the Padilla Signature 1932 I gushed about recently).  A dark, slightly-oily wrapper and a whopping 7 different fillers makes this a very interesting smoke.  Lots of flavors (slightly nutty, a little woody, and a touch of sweetness are the stand-outs) that start off a bit on the medium side but build up to a very full flavor by the halfway point.  It burned slow and lasted a lot longer than most of the robustos I smoke.  And they're priced well at around $4 a stick.  A definite finger-burner.

Gran Habano Vintage 2002.  Another great smoke from Gran Habano.  A gorgeous, dark and oily wrapper with loads of flavor, including some earthiness, a little nuttiness, and a very light sweetness.  A very good cigar.

Gran Habano 3 Siglos (or 3 SLS). The Old Man seemed to like these, so I split an order with another of the herfers.  Unfortunately, the two I've had so far have both been awful with a terrible draw, very little smoke, and seemed way too fresh (even after a month in the humidor).  What little flavor I've gotten makes it seem quite promising and since every other Gran Habano I've smoked has been excellent, I can only conclude I got a bad batch.  Hopefully at least one of the remaining few I have left will end up working out.