Montecristo Cigars

I was lucky enough to spend some time in the mountains near Canmore this past weekend for golf, Cuban cigars, some Rum and other adult beverages, but more than anything, spending time with good friends … If you ever get the opportunity to golf at two courses in particular; Silver Tip and the Stuart Creek Golf and Country Club, you’ll experience incredible views, be challenged to the breaking point and ask yourself how it could be possible that any other course could ever give you more… Our friend Sid, was our host and invited us to participate in this experience that we’ll remember as one of the greatest golf weekends we’ll probably ever be a part of…

Scenes like the one in the picture above with the 18th fairway and green at Silvertip lets you know that keeping your ball in the fairway would be a very good idea, for all of the obvious reasons, but every hole had something to offer as far as the view was concerned… Sid loves cigars and thought that a good idea would be to smoke a Cuban stogie on the course with his buddies so out of his golf bag appeared a supply of Cuban cigars which he passed around… I’m a big fan of Romeo y Julieta so I opted for the No. 1 Tubos… This is a spicy cigar with a 40 ring gauge and 5 1/2 inches of length which gave me nothing but an even burn, over an hour of smoking time and flavors that ranged from white pepper and cedar to strong espresso as the cigar burned down to the nub… I love the small sheet of Spanish Cedar veneer that lines the inside of every tube which helps the cigar to age with cedar notes building in the cigar’s flavor profile… Tearing this veneer in little strips also helps when lighting the cigar itself, without any sort of petroleum gasses coming from an everyday cigarette lighter… The Tubes also protect the cigar from any breaks in the wrapper as it is being transported in a golf bag… A perfect golf cigar !!  Yesterday morning as we left the underground parking lot underneath out incredible condo, we notice that Sid had left us a couple more of these Romeos on our windshield wipers as a bit of a parting gift.. Wow, they tasted great in the car after breakfast… Thanks Sid!

This “Corona” from Arturo Fuente, although not a Cuban cigar, has a quality that keeps me coming back because of the complexity of flavors that I get out of it and makes me wonder how many other non-Cubans exist that would give me this much pleasure… I’ll admit that I first started smoking Cuban cigars years ago and became a Cuban cigar snob but am now seeing that there is a whole big world of cigars out there that could be giving me as much pleasure….. I just don’t know what they all are yet.. I DO know that the Opus X series from Arturo Fuente is a line that is beautiful tasting and deserves even more of the attention that it is presently getting, but as time goes on, more and more Cuban cigar smokers will “Get It”… My buddy Rick and I bought a few boxes of cigars together this spring, his were these Fuentes and I picked up a box of Carlos Torano Exodus 1959… I love the maduro wrapper on the Torano and the billowy clouds of smoke that the cigars produce.. We traded a few back and forth and as the months go by, these coronas of his are starting to mellow and taste amazing… A dark coffee and chocolate with a hint of caramel come through as the cigar starts off the first inch or so… I find that the flavors intensify as the cigars burns but it isn’t a roller-coaster of evolving and ever-changing flavors that some Cubans can deliver.. .But… If you want something that will take up an hour of so of your time and show you some real beauty, this 5 1/4 inch, 45 ring gauge cigar is one you should reach for.

Sitting on top of the painting, “The Pursuit Of Happiness” by Ulrike Ebeling is one of my favorite Cuban cigars, the Choix Supreme by El Rel Del Mundo… This Robusto has seen a few years in the humidor and the slight amount of plume that shows on the wrapper lets you know that my humidor is in good shape and this cigar is aging gracefully…The box is from ’08 so you can see that this is a 3 year old cigar… Aficionados who love this Cuban are smaller in number than, lets say, those who enjoy the more popular brands from Montecristo, Cohiba or Romeo y Julieta, but they are a devoted lot and will defend this cigar’s honor to the death… There is a bit of a gingerbread, nutmeg and cinnamon slant to this cigar’s profile that is balanced and very robust without ever being harsh… I love the full strength that Montecristos will give you and always have them in my humidor but from time to time I love a cigar that takes you in a completely different flavor direction… So many Cuban cigars in many different sizes can give you different smoking experiences at different times of the day, try them all and get to know all of their qualities.

Vancouver is littered with coffee shops down almost every block, supplying us with that most beautiful beverage that pairs so well with Cuban cigars.  This elixir also assists in waking us up, perfectly compliments moments of quiet contemplation and for some, helps fuel the driver’s rage you sometimes witness on our streets… At that moment we sometimes wish there were less establishments catering to those, madly propelling rolling projectiles weighing into the tons, who believe.. no.. know for a fact, that they were sent down from the heavens to instruct the rest of the world on how to drive… And they firmly believe that it doesn’t need to be done with any concern for the feelings or resulting state of mind of the supposed mobile student… A few of our neighborhoods are perfect for observing and even photographing some of the more unpredictable drivers on our streets.. Sit back, grab a coffee, light a Cuban and try to identify all of the cigar’s subtle flavors as it burns down.  I’m a lover of sugar with coffee in this situation, I feel that it rounds out a cigar’s more edgy flavors as it enters it’s final third… Set the cigar down and maybe turn your attention back on to the street and take a picture (video) or two, you never know, you may be needed as a witness in court…After taking the above picture, well during if you need to know, I thought of the coffee bean’s oils permeating the cigar’s wrapper and then wondered how good of an idea this all was….. Will this cigar go back into the humidor?? Don’t think so .. It will be set aside and enjoyed with an espresso after dinner.

Everyone likes a good gangster movie whether its from the 40′s or present day, the dark side in our mental make-up wants the bad guy to get away with all kinds of crime and live happily ever after in the Caribbean, smoking cigars in tropical bliss.  When I stop and think about it, I want to get away with all kinds of crimes and live happily ever after…..but……. I think I’ll keep it to simply living vicariously through the lives of fictional movie characters as they punch information into their subordinates, in the literal sense, or blast holes into the walls of bank vaults then load the loot into tiny little cars for a fast getaway.  Modern day crimes are now getting to be of a high tech nature, involving the internet and either malicious interference in everyday life or white collar crimes where you can often see a stressed and sweating, cigar smoking executive furiously shredding documents that simply cannot get into the wrong hands… Today’s big shout out is for that moment when the cigar in the scene is making as big a statement as the act of the villain.

I’m thinking that the most appropriate Greek goddess to include with a Cuban Vegueros Especiales No. 2 would be “Demeter”, the harvest goddess… The Cuban brand, started at the Francisco Donatien factory in 1962, where they produced cigars mostly for domestic consumption, diplomatic dinners and special occasions.  The factory also made cigarettes but it was their cigars, spotted by tourists as they would visit the Cuban tobacco plantations and see workers smoking them in the fields, that made a big splash.. Next thing you know, 1997 rolls around and Habanos SA launches a new brand world wide called Vegueros… I’ve run into a few Vegueros in the past that have given me draw issues, the Especiales No. 1 at 7 1/2 inches long and a 38 ring gauge, was the culprit but it has to be very difficult to roll that cigar without any problems… I actually really liked the taste of the few No 1′s I  smoked but had a very difficult time getting any draw at all… Not so with this No. 2, although a bit of resistance, the draw seems fine and the flavors, into the second half, are starting to build in intensity… A real cedar and herbs cigar with slight notes of ginger and citrus, but as I keep the flame cool and puff infrequently I’m tasting subtle ginger throughout… This is a cigar that all Cuban lovers should try.. It is interesting, different, tasty and, from what I’m seeing today, well constructed..

The phrase in the medallion is, “Honi Soit Mal Pense” which translated means, “Shamed be he who thinks evil of it”… This is a great phrase to keep in mind when you run into those who look down on and berate someone who is smoking a cigar outdoors, out of the way of anyone and downwind of anyone walking by… Ya wanna get me going, just show me an individual who fits this category… Before I start, I better simply stick with the original topic I had in mind when I took this picture and opened up this blog entry… I want to start by saying that the one thing that really bugs me about how people treat cigars is, in my opinion, the worst offense you can commit… Putting cigars in your refrigerator…….. Aaaaaarrrrgggggh!!!!! Why????!?!?!?!?!  Well, maybe the ones who believe that this is the right thing to do are the ones who aren’t really cigar smokers in the first place… I can cut them a bit of slack and rather than losing my mind, the better thing to do is to try to help out by passing on a bit of advice about cigar storage… A refrigerator is, for all intents and purposes, a de-humidifier and your cigars will dry out.. What a waste of close to 200 Cuban cigar producer’s efforts…A humidor with a Spanish cedar interior is the very best item to own if you want to keep beautiful cigars in an environment where they will age without any problems… If you do NOT have a humidor and only have a few cigars that you plan on smoking soon then put them inside a ziplock bag and they’ll be fine for a week or so… If you plan on keeping them a bit longer, then a plastic container with a lid that keeps a good seal should be your next step… Cut a small hole, about the size of your small fingernail in the lid of this plastic container so fresh oxygen can circulate, otherwise your cigars could become moldy…You’ll need to have moisture in this environment and a puck humidifier can be cheaply purchased at any quality smoke shop… Buy a digital hygrometer and keep the moisture level at anywhere between 68 to 71…. OK, now to my opinion of Zino Davidoff’s rules which he felt were imperative concerning what NOT to do with a cigar…. He believed that you shouldn’t make a big deal about lighting a cigar when in public… I have to agree with this one since we’ve ALL seen the type of arrogant idiot that has to pull out strips of spanish cedar, in a public place, and take way too long to, ever so slightly, singe the foot of the cigar and then take an eternity to light it…. Way too ostentatious for my liking… Zino felt that the band of the cigar should be removed after the first few puffs.. I say that if you’re ashamed about what you’re smoking, take the darn thing off… He also said that a cigar should be set down and finished after 50% has been smoked…… Huh???….. Hey, not only did  I pay for it but I love the taste of cigars down to the nub and I’m going to smoke it until my fingers blister….. Tune in tomorrow for more ranting from yours truly…

From time to time I go online and see if people are selling cigars that they’ve brought back from Cuba or other parts of the world…This can be a fun thing to do and, believe me, there are great great deals out there.. The little Romeo in the picture was part of a 50 or so cigar purchase I made about a month back and after I lit it just now I was knocked on my butt by the perfect balance and great aged taste… A few years back I used to pick up Romeo y Julieta Exibicion No. 4′s from “The Vancouver Cigar Company” when they had this cabinet of 50 that had a few years on it…I couldn’t believe how wonderful these cigars tasted and seemed to give me all that I ever wanted in a cigar.. Chocolate, coffee and a slightly spicy finish used to thrill me whenever I lit one and tonight’s little Romeo is performing the same way.. I have no idea how old this cigar is and I’m not sure the person who sold these to me would remember, so there ya go… One of life’s mysteries that makes us very happy that we occasionally roll the dice and take a chance on a purchase from a stranger… Make sure you are able to identify cigar’s wrappers, bands, boxes and if you’re really lucky, the bar code on the Cuban green seal.. Its a risky business but if you have faith in your abilities to recognize a fake from the real thing, you can do very well…

I guess the subject of today’s entry is whether or not you’re interested in going on a holiday to a country where finding a place to have a cigar is a pain… I’ll be the first to raise my hand and say that I’ll travel elsewhere, since cigars (and golf) are a huge part of my life and when I want to feel comfortable lighting up a cigar after dinner, on the street or in a riotous pub with live music and cigar smoke in the air… Really, isn’t that what we all want?  For some, absolutely NOT, because the thought of walking into an art gallery and examining the brush strokes used by Van Gogh when he painted the Sunflowers and then stopping for tea and scones is far more appealing… Hey, I’ve had some memorable moments at the Tate gallery in London and actually HAVE seen most of Van Gogh’s work in Amsterdam when the Van Gogh museum, in that amazing city, held a show that had private collectors all over the world send their paintings, by the genius artist, to the gallery in his name so they could all be in one setting…Did I love that?? Oh yeah, but I also can remember a holiday where golf in Veradero, with the course’s beauty that was simply stunning, was part of the activities and cigars could be smoked in almost every room of that country.. It is a glorious place to visit, with the kindest most educated people you’ll ever meet and you’re at the birthplace of cigar smoking.. For me its really a no-brainer!

Cuff links, bowler hats, top hats, bow and straight ties, smoking jackets, tuxedos and anything formal have seen generations of cigars and cigar smoke as gentlemen have sat in libraries and cigar smoking parlors after dinner in elegant homes and mansions… Our and their fathers have enjoyed the activity of cigar smoking after a meal as discussions about world affairs or even affairs of the heart were mulled over with cognacs, brandies, wines, scotch or rums as a pairing… As I watch old movies from the 30′s and 40′s, I notice that men on the street were dressed in a considerably more fashionable style then we see today but times have changed and we’ve become more and more casual in our approach to fashion… Vancouver is a city that is rainy and damp so a lot of us, regardless of income or stature in life, tend to dress in a way that is ever ready for the next big downpour so, in my opinion, we resemble a city of drab and boring people that have umbrellas in hand and gortex over the majority of our bodies… I guess I just long for a different time when we could smoke cigars in a restaurant or bar, reach for our Fedora hat and topcoat and off we go………