Remote post test

Well, with this being a largely cigar-oriented blog, I'll start by saying that I'm finishing off a strong but solid Joya de Nicaragua at a new-to-me watering hole named 'Grumpys' near the house.

But to the point, I'm really just testing the very cumbersome posting process of my phone and blogger. Over and out, soldiers.

La Gloria Cubana (well-aged)

ejr postback: 2010.02.04

Likely-years-aged La Gloria Cubana (from 2009 kc aficionados holiday party raffle).

• Appearance - 8 \ nice but length makes (robusto?) thickness seem thinner. Dark brown wrapper. Looks like maybe a hint of blume? Funny sweet cloying aroma before lit.
• Burn - 10 \ perfectly even.
• Draw - 6 \ a little tight, but if it was too much looser, it would have smoked too fast.
• Plumage - 9 \ above average, plus the aroma was also thick with the flavor described below, which added to it.
• Flavor - 10 \ initial flavor really caught my attention... It had a whole different layer of flavor on top of the normal cigar flavor. Good. Different. Sort of more 'herbal' or 'dusty' or 'deep'. In a way the normal flavor-adjectives often fail me and with this especially, these words capture the whisp of recognition better than food or wood flavors. It did have something of an aftertaste of mild old pepper, that's the only way I can describe it. It really tasted very much like it had been blended with another type of plant than tobacco entirely. Having very limited experience with bloom, I wondered if it was related. The spicy undertones built slowly but progressively, providing variation and an extremely satisfying rhythm that built to a peppery powerhouse crescendo.
• Overall - 10 \
• Rt scale - 4 \

Smoked while reading technical manual on an Adobe product at Mulligan's. The picture doesn't do the gray spots of suspected bloom justice, and I know it's not really replicable, but definitely a worthy smoke worth mentioning. Possibly one of the best cigars I've ever smoked, though certainly different than most other greats.

HL Illusione - "Holy Lancero"

20100312 HL Illusione

I pulled a little background info (see bullets below) off this fellow's fine review at InTheHumdior.com, as well as one of his pictures of the band, which I had a hard time capturing with the little camera I was using.

• Wrapper:Nicaraguan Puro
• Binder:Nicaraguan Puro
• Filler:Nicaraguan Puro
• Size: 7 1/2″ x 40

Appearance - 6 \ just too thin (lancero) for my taste, and although the HL and illusione on the label were a cool dan-brown-illuminati style, it wasn't as cool with the rest of its plainness.
Burn - 8 \ quite good. It was a little off but never had to touch it up.
Draw - 9 \ great. Bordering on a little tight, but it made the stick last alittle longer, which was enjoyable.
Plumage - 9 \ fantastic, especially for a thinner cigar like this. Dense orbs of amoke with a rich and spicy aroma.
Flavor - 10 \ Excellent. See below. Much more flavor and strength than I expected.
Overall - 10 \ Just an awesome cigar.
Rt scale - 4 \ This makes it into that "top of the top" category of cigars for me.

Spicy, bold and full-flavored, especially for a lancero. A hint of edginess and bite that I actually liked because it didn't go too far and become bitterness. Somehow, with all that I might have detected a hint of caramel in it, but maybe that was the coffee residue in my mouth - though I wasn't drinking flavored joe or anything. It was raining and dark, with the temperature dropping as I watched the concrete ramp glisten before the open doors. Smoked while watching Chuck season 3 in the smokeshack until the battery died. I'm gonna need to work on that problem...

Various Other stuff from 2/26/2010 weekend in KC

ejr postback Date - 2/26-27/2010 - Part 2.
I wanted to give a nod to a few other great smokes we had that weekend as well. The Ashton VSG lancero I had Friday night was a tasty treat, despite not normally being a lancero man, myself.


And here I wanted to give a brief nod to continued use of my Valentine's Day gift, the Cigar Stub accessory (not to be confused with a cigar roach clip!!!)... Fuller review and notes on it coming soon.

Here's one of the first baddies T-Bone enjoyed, a La Flor Dominicana with brandished scimitars and red dunes on the band:

Liga Privada No. 9 by Drew Estates

ejr postback Date - 2/26/2010
I have promised some flashback reviews, and here's the first... Comes from a fun weekend where the bro came into town after a harrowing few months of broken dog bones and disheartening blizzards. Good to see him and enjoy some smokes, some great meals, a little Hendricks' Gin, and watching Philip Seymour Hoffman in Charlie Wilson's War.

Here we are enjoying the Outlaw.

Here's RT enjoying one of the many countless wise gems I passed along to him over the course of the weekend.

Mmmm... Coffee AND cigars... Heaven.

The following cigar was one we said we'd do a "dual review" of, as he picked one up for me and himself and we smoked them at the new Kansas Outlaw Cigar location.

Liga Privada No. 9 by Drew Estates
Here are my ratings:

• App 9 \ striking, cool simple black pen signature on white, dark wrapper, nice blunted torpedo
• Burn 8 \ very solid
• Draw 8 \ fine
• Plumage 10 \ great! Wonderful rich, peppery aroma
• Flavor 9 \ was arresting in its pepperyness, very good, but so full-bodied it may have gotten in its own way... Seemed that there were some creamier layers that may have been too hard to discern that could have been better 'married'. But by far a small complaint because the base flavor was great.
• Overall 9 \ just a great, pleasurable smoke.
• Rt scale 4 \ Although I can complain about the cost (even though I didn't pay for mine!) and maybe that there was some nuance I thought I was missing -- I really, really enjoyed this bad boy. Just won't run out and buy another.

Final analysis: Great smoke, cool appearance and band especially, but value is tough at $15 per stick retail at outlaw. Very compelling taste, aroma and experience.
And here's RT enjoying a smoke earlier in the day.

Oliva V Belicoso (5" x 54)

Oliva V Belicoso

This little torpedo is from one favorite lines: the Oliva V. Though it is not my favorite from the line, it is a damn good smoke!

The dark wrapper was flawless. The band is attractive and easy to remove (something I really appreciate given my recent experiences with the Arturo Fuente King B cigar).  The prelight was rich and a little sweet.

I really don't know where to go with this review...the cigar is just damn good. I've sampled every size in the Oliva V line and gone through at least two boxes in the last year or two (my favorite being the figurado). The cigar never disappoints.

The smoking experience can best be described as "smooth power". Several times I have enjoyed the rich tobacco flavors to the nub, never once experiencing hardshness, surrounded by a haze of fragrant smoke...and stood up to realize that I needed to sit back down again. These are fullest bodies smokes I've had that manage to pack that power in a refined package-literally it's a steel fist in a velvet glove. Though this stick doesn't really have that many subtle flavors that I can pick out, the flavor is outstanding, as is the value (I think this stick cost me around $5).

This Nicaraguan puro is a solid 4 on my 4 point scale and may be my favorite cigar of all...when cost is factored in, the Oliva V has no competition at all.

 

Here I am enjoying this sweet stick on the way to Wright Park.

 

Here is my bonus cigar review guest: all played out!

La Gloria Cubana (robusto) (unique smoke)

La Gloria Cubana

This was a special smoke...the kind that was both a gift and a rare cigar that I can probably never get another of. This particular L.G.C. was given to me by my bro and was an aged stick-unsure of how old it was but I'm guessing five to ten years. Rico told me he had won it in some kind of cigar raffle and that it was a "very aged stogie" from some dude's collection.

I got a glimmer of a nice day and I jumped on it-grabbed up this robusto, microwaved up some coffee and I was out smoking my Lunch hour away...

Here's the layout-I was ready to go!

This stogie had been through several hands before it got to me...the wrapper had some small nicks and bumps. Overall it looked like it had outlasted whatever elements had stood against it but it hadn't gotten away unscathed.

Here's a close up of the label. I think that the modern versions of this cigar have a similar but more polished label.



The stogie almost ended up in the trash can-I spent about two minutes trying to light it-thought it was fire proof! After I got it lit, it started giving off these strange almost fungal flavors and odors and I was (again!) about to toss it...when I remembered how excited Rico had been the one he had smoked so I stuck it out.

I'm glad I did.

The stogie was all over the map-in a good way. After about four or five puffs, it kicked in an intense and powerful aroma that really satisfied. The flavors alternated between traditional maduro flavors, a leathery flavor, and even some strange vegetal/earthy/fungul  notes that (believe it!) were satisfying.

I give this cigar a solid "4"-it was one of the best cigars I've had and certainly my favorite "aged" cigar. Wish I could get more!