May Smokes

No pictures this time...just a short list of smokes I've enjoyed this month so far.

Montecristo (white label): I was given this as a gift by a coworker and smoked it last Sunday morning...good stuff. I'd call it mild to medium. The burn was perfect and it paired well with my Costa Rican coffee. I'd rate it a "2" (pretty good)-it doesn't get any higher just because it's not quite as flavorful as I've been enjoying lately.

Alec Bradley Tempus Creo (Lancero): I picked this up at Wichita at the Cigar Chateau. It is an elegant, double banded stick (one band at the foot). Man, this is a really great smoke. I have enjoyed some Alec Bradleys before but this is truly a premium. I'd rate it a 3 or maybe 4...need to try another to decide. It's a full and flavorful experience that I'm sure is duplicated in the shorter, chubbier sticks of the line.

I'm in Wichita now, doing some web training. Tonight is the big Clutch concert and I'm sure Ry and I will find time for a small smoke before we hit the Big Event.

Tatuaje Especiales (7.5 x 38)

Tatuaje Especiales (7.5 x 38)

It was a beautiful night last night...no wind, perfect temperature...so I grabbed a stogie I bought in KC at the Tatuaje event a few months ago when I was on my lancero kick.

I used my trusty Cuban Crafter cutter and my Blazer lighter/welding torch. I backed it up with some midrange scotch that wasn't too great.





Here's the lancero before I cut and lit it up!

And here are my tools.

This stogie was pretty damn fine. It had a great "tart" Pepinesque teste but not as much pepper as his often have. At several times I tasted (I am not shitting you) cinnamon rolls or something very similar. That's a first for me but I swear that's what it tasted like.

It's a potent cigar-it's strength started to hit me about 1/4 of the way in.

The plumage was solid and the taste really great. It needed a few touch ups but I left it alone for too long, I think, when I was called in for emergency tech support for the wife's internet class. I rate it a solid 3 on a 4 point scale-it's a great smoke and I really liked it but it's not one of the best.

Lancero Kick

Well...I went on a major lancero kick a month ago or so and I bought a box of El Triunfador (really good lanceros!). I also tried to sample as many lanceros as possible. I read all the articles about how good they were and how the flavor is better and I gave it a real try...

...and it is true. The flavors are much more distinguishable and interesting...however the downside is social stigma (when your amigos laugh at you while you smoke it hurts, friends, it just hurts!)...increased cost (in most cases) and the missing "boom". The thinness of the lanceros loses that depth and richness that the thicker ring gauges have (even though the thicker ones seem to muddle the flavors more).

I think I'll keep picking up the lanceros now and then but I don't think I can live on them alone.

No Review-just updates

Man, it's been busy. Not that long ago, I dreaded the time period between Halloween and Christmas because it required nonstop planning, travel, and craziness. Now it seems like every week is like that. Yuck!

I still found time to enjoy several stogies this week...didn't do full blown reviews but I thought I'd mention them in case any of other "Stogie Homies" had encountered them. Plus someone complained that I was only reviewing Don Pepin Garcia smokes so here's some goodies for you bastards that don't share my passion for the "Don"'s work!

Blue label Graycliff: this stogie was nutty and mild to medium in strength. Flavors were medium. I picked this up as part of a sample about two years ago, where it has sit happily in my humidor, waiting for it's time to shine! It had several flavors going on and was "clean"-not much aftertaste. Still, it was too mild for me these deays. Graycliff is a pricey brand and I don't think I'll have another. If you like most Gurkha's you've had, I'll bet you'd like this .

Oliva O (natural): I had only experienced the Oliva maduros so this was a new thing for me. I got it in a free sampler six months ago. The cigar was rich and buttery...and noticably stronger than I expected it to be. I wouldn't smoke these all the time but I think it's a really good cigar-nothing truly outrageous but no faults either...a solid 2 for me (probably a 3 on my 4 point scale if you like medium cigars (I lean towards medium to full most of the time).

This weekend I hope to have a (Nestor) Miranda SS lancero...it's a beat up looking lancero that I got for a steal. If I hit the Outlaw in KC, I may seek out an Illusione Holy Lancero, a great stick that I'd like to review from Eric's Smoke Shack at his new house!

Padilla Series '68 Corojo

Robusto, smoked on the porch after a good but long week. One of my finest cigars, and an early birthday present.

• Appearance 9 \ very cool label, nice wrapper
• Burn 9 \ one touch-up but that was in some wind. Largely self-correcting even under those conditions.
• Draw 10 \ superb... perfect draw.
• Plumage 8.5 \ solid and richly aromatic despite strong breezes.
• Flavor 10 \ My second one of these, just as good as the first. Woody and rich flavor, but not sweet.
• Overall 10
• RT score 4

Here it is on top of my windblown yellow pad, where I was storyboarding for the Flash wedding site I'm working on for me and Kells.


Here you can see a bit of the serial number, the very cool band, and the rich and oily sheen of the corojo wrapper.


And here's me enjoying the bad boy!

Kudos on a terrific gift! Great way to kick off the weekend.

Padilla Signature 1932 (Toro)

Padilla Signature 1932 (Toro 6 x 50)


Wow. Great cigar. It used to be made by Don Pepin Garcia (for Padilla) at Garcia's factory in Miami...now, I'm not so sure. I guess a year or so ago Garcia and Padilla parted ways so I'm unsure if Pepin is involved...if I had to guess, though, I'd say "yes" because it tastes like many of his other blends, only better.

It's won lots of awards, was smooth as butter, but still managed to keep my attention with strong and changing flavors. It's a great cigar folks.

Padilla made it to celebrate some special anniversary (those Latino cigar makers are ALWAYS honoring some special year). It has a Nicaraguan Corojo wrapper and the filler and binder are Nicaraguan Criollo.

It stars off with some pepper (which comes and goes throughout the cigar) and has a very rich "Pepinesque" tartness...it has a certain sweetness to it as well. The cigar's wrapper is smooth and attractive and the burn line was perfect. The smoke is smooth but bold. It creates good plumage, has great odor. I really can't say much more about this stogie other than "outstanding".

They run around $13 online (for a single) which is a little high for me...but I caught a deal and paid closer to $5 a stick. Even for $13 it's a pretty decent smoke for a special occasion. At what I paid...it's a steal and I feel guilty with each delicious puff!




Here's the stogie 1/5 way in.


And here it is five minutes before I nubbed it.

This cigar is a solid 4-outstanding, super premium. I've had two of them and both performed flawlessly. Try one.

Cubao No. 1

Yesterday, before the parents arrived for a little sojourn at our new house in KC, I enjoyed a Cubao while prepping a Flash class. It was a Cubao No. 1, and the sticker on the plastic wrapper noted the dimensions as 7 1/8 length by 49 ring gauge. I quite enjoyed it in the solace of the smoke shack, where I was protected from the blustery winds out here on the suburban plains of Olathe, KS.

The stats:

• Appearance - 5 \ Intimidating length, plain band.
• Burn - 9 \ fine -- especially considering the length
• Draw - 7 \ no problems.
• Plumage - 7.5 \ moderate plumage, with occasional clouds... solid tasty smell
• Flavor - 8.5 \ solid and likable. A fairly heavy smoke, with the flavor getting richer as it progressed.
• Overall - 8.5 \ Good stuff, if you have the time and atmosphere to enjoy it.
• RT Scale (1-4) - 2.5 \ Just on the cusp of greatness. I'd never turn one of the babies away!

I have some pix, but may just have to add them later as time allows. Been crazy busy lately!

Pix Addendum… 4/24/09
Here are of few of me and the Cubao… As well some guest shots of Mom and Dad checking out some wedding locations.

Padron 6000 (Maduro)

Padron 6000 Maduro

It's a beautiful Spring day...wind is tolerable, sun is out, and (of course) they're forecasting rain and low 40's tomorrow...so I figured I'd enjoy today while it lasts, and I broke out this Padron 6000 Maduro (torpedo). I've got the "baby" laptop rocking out some Pandora radio and it's time to smoke!





Michelle got me five of the maduros and five of the naturals for my birthday a year and a half ago. At the time, they were okay but I certainly expected a little more. I smoked one or so every couple of months and started to see big time improvement after six months or so. Since this is one of the last cigars of the batch (and my blog is starting to sound like a Don Pepin Garcia fanboy machine) I figured I'd let you all know how this stick is.


Here's the Pardon with my cutter choice-my Swiss Army knife /w cigar scissors. Good stuff.


Like all Padrons I've seen, the appearance is mixed. The band is minimal and understated and the cigar is kind of rough looking-I see veins and it just seems kind of rough and maybe a little dry. But the color is great-deep brown and very attractive. Prelight smells like barnyard (that smell that, I suppose, mixes horses, hay, and other such odors into a unique odor.





Upon light, the stogie gives up some deep nutty and chocolately/coffee type flavors-very rich and very deep with a lot of sweetness. It reminds me of the sensation I get when I bite into a chocolate cake that is "too rich" but I somehow manage to eat a few more bites...head spinning all the way.

I paired the stogie with a small glass of Macallan 10 Year scotch...this Macallan is one of those bottles I buy when I try to explore something different beyond my favorite, Laphroaig. It's decent and pairs well with the Padron-and at $40 a bottle, it's not too hard on the pocket book, as far as single malt scotches go.

The Padron is delicious. The age really helped the flavors "pop". At $5 or $6 a stogie, I think it's a pretty good deal, especially if you enjoy chocolate-richness and sweet maduros in general. It seemed to burn a little fast though so if you're a "rapid smoker" (You know who you are, Eric and Ry!) then you might pass this over.

The aroma and plummage on this cigar are first rate-great odor and volume. Very rich and leathery...

Overall, I'd rate this as a solid 3, maybe a 3.5 depending upon your tastes (on the new 4 point RTR scale). It's a premium cigar-perhaps not the best but real damn fine.





I'm stealing (and butchering) this quote but I think it's safe to say that "if you don't like this cigar, you don't like cigars".

RTR'S LIFE BONUS FEATURE
I really enjoyed the Watchmen movie. I had never read the graphic novel and found myself wondering about the various characters and such several times, days after watching it. Michelle bought me the graphic novel compilation and I immediately put away my Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 books to devour the Watchmen...

It's a great movie and a great novel-especially if you've enjoyed comic books (or fantasy role playing) like I have. It has some great characters and really challenged the genre (and me, as a reader). The characters of The Comedian, Ozymandias, Dr. Manhattan, and (especially) Rorschach really interest me. I think any of them would make great pc type characters/personalities...and the Watchmen really made an impact on me. If you haven't experienced it, I really suggest you do so.

I've also been really enjoying the Warhammer Omnibus books. They're big, they're violent, and they're pretty darn good. One in particular I think would appeal to just about any of the folks who might read this, Gotrek and Felix...which follows a very bad ass dwarf on a death mission and his human friend who has sworn to chronicle the Dwarf's "epic death". Reading it takes me back to some good D&D gaming...particularly those campaigns that had super cool dwarfs or bard like characters (I'm talking to you, Eric, Seth and Craig!).

My orange Fit is finally fixed, I've got a Clutch concert coming up, and a trip to KC for a little gaming... and the future looks bright!


Here's a guest shot of my swinging' wife and daughter, enjoying the nice evening weather!