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.

September Herf (A Little Late)

I know, I'm a bit late with the September herf results but in my defense, I'm quite forgetful.  Anyway, September's offering was from new member Flappin and consisted of the Rocky Patel Vintage 2003 Cameroon.  The same smoke Mike brought to the commie herf, but was so good that no one cared that it was a rerun.  However, there have been plenty of other new smokes the past month, so here we go...

Quesada Oktoberfest.  I split a box of these with a couple of guys at work and I'm wishing I'd kept it to myself since it turned out so good and is produced in such limited qualities.  The gorgeous, dark brown wrapper looks as good as it tastes.  There is a slight woodiness and a slight leathery quality to it with just a little bit of sweetness and creaminess hanging on the tastebuds.  It was blended to be paired with an Oktoberfest-style beer and the two go great together with each complimenting the other nicely.  Definitely a finger-burner but a tinge of disappointment that at the limited run.

Padilla Miami.  I've been wanting to try this one since the old man sent me a Padilla '68 a few months back.  The Miami's wrapper is dark and glistening with oils.  It produced a ton of smoke with loads of flavor including a bit of woodiness, spice, and a slight earthy sweetness.  Definitely worth the price of admission (especially since I found it in the bargain bin at a local shop) and one I'll be looking for again.

Padilla Signtaure 1932.  Yet another hit from Padilla.  Another dark and oily wrapper that produced smoke with a slightly sweet creamy flavor with a little spice and a hint of vanilla on the exhale that was smelled more than tasted.  A very tasty smoke.

Partagas Cifuentes and Partagas 1845.  I've been wanting to try the other offerings from Partagas since I like the Black Label so much (and used to smoke the original Partagas way back).  The Cifuentes and 1845 aren't nearly as good as their predecessors, though.  They both taste heavily of leather and wood with the Cifuentes being a degree or two stronger than the 1845.  Both were a bit disappointing.

June Herf

Rocky Patel 15th Anniversary was the June Herf selection.  A good, smooth smoke with a lot of flavor, but other than a subtle sweetness, I couldn't name any specific flavors.  A very complex and tasty smoke but at the price, not something I'd get very often.

Macanudo Cru Royale was one I got from Farnk. I could taste the basic profile of the Macanudo Cafe blend but turned up a few notches.  I would have liked it a lot more if I had smoked it 9 months ago when I was first moving from mild to more full-bodied cigars.  Its a good stepping stone from the mild smokes like the Cafe to the heavier flavors I've been enjoying for a while now.  It wasn't bad, and I'd recommend it to new smokers who are looking to move up from the mild stuff, but not something I'll seek out for myself again.

La Aurora is one I've had before but didn't think much of it.  I gave it another try recently and found it much more to my liking this time.  The 43-ring Lonsdale burned a little hot, but provided a mild to medium flavor with hints of wood, spice, and a subtle nuttiness to it.  Definitely good for those times I want something other than the typical maduros I smoke.

Alec Bradley American Classic Blend was a very good mild smoke with a lot of flavor to it.  Slightly sweet and woody with a good nutty flavor.  A good smoke for a mild and at a price that see it gaining a regular spot in the humidor.  The folks at Alec Bradley have another hit.

March Herf & More

Today we held the March herf and Jared brought a great budget smoke, the Rocky Patel Cargo.  The taste won't blow you away but you'll be hard-pressed to find another low-priced smoke with flavor this good.  I can see this one making it into the everyday rotation for a lot of smokers.

Also during the week, I had a My Father from the folks at Pepin.  CA gave this one a 94, but I didn't get quite that much from it.  Another highly-rated smoke I had recently was the La Armoa Di Cuba Mi Amore.  This was actually CA's number 2 for last year.  Both of these are slotted into the medium-full range, but both felt more like flat medium to me.  Both were a bit woody-tasting with a subtle sweetness with a little bit of leather on the My Father.  I can see why they'd be rated so highly, but they may be a bit too refined for my tastes.

Commie Herf

The December Herf, dubbed the Commie Herf was this past weekend.  Here's a run-down of what the gang brought:

Alec Bradley Black Market from Jape.  This one was fan-freakin'-tastic.  A slow-burning, full-bodied maduro was packed with flavor and a wonderful aroma.  It lasted me a good two hours and I was still disappointed when it was gone.  It definitely earned the finger-burner distinction.  Great choice, Jape!

From Baker, we got the Oliva Serie 'V'.  The narrow gauge of the 7 by 38 Lancero took a little work to enough smoke out of, but it seemed to concentrate the flavor a bit more.  I haven't been impressed with the flat flavor of the other Oliva's I've smoked, but this one was much better.

Greenie brought the Rocky Patel Vintage 2003 Cameroon.  The RP started off a little on the 'meh' side but after about half an inch, it got really good.  The smoke was dense and smooth but still quite flavorful.

Jared brought the Ashton Aged Maduro, another great choice.  A great, oily wrapper with so much flavor, I wanted to eat it like a candy bar.  The smoke was smooth and medium in body with a hint of chocolate that made it great for after dinner.

Finally, Bong supplied a Fuente Anejo.  I've already gushed over this one, so I'll spare you the repeat.  Nice one, Bong!

No offense to the rest of the gang, but Jape won the day.  I liked the Anejo better, but since I'd already discovered that one, I gotta give the nod to the Black Market for being so damn good.