Montecristo Cigars

If you know anything at all about Cuban cigars then you know that the Montecristo pictured above is one of the world’s most popular cigars… I’ve smoked literally hundreds of these fine piramides and I can honestly say that I’ve never had one that tasted poorly… Sure, from time to time you may run into one that had draw issues or maybe burn issues, thats the way it is with a handmade product but my point is that the tobacco used is as good as it gets and this is the reason why this was a cigar that was rolled in almost every cigar factory in Cuba until the government stepped in and cut back production for quality reasons… That was a few years back and now they taste better than ever… I have some neighbors who sit on their deck and jam bluegrass music sometimes into the night… That never really bothers me because I’m a music lover but I can’t say that these guys are the world’s finest pickers… No matter, they love what they do and I encourage anyone that has something to say artistically… I think the next time they show up I might just take my banjo over there and show their banjo guy MY banjo… Ha !!!

The Reinheitsgebot, or the Bavarian Purity Law that Germans adhered to since 1497, when making beer, is a law that requires beer be made from only hops, water and barley, which gives it a classic taste that leaves any North American beer drinker dazed and enchanted with it’s pure, simple and clean taste.  The creaminess of the beer that is slowly ( very slowly ) poured and served to your table is remarkable and you’re left wondering exactly how it is possible to create that kind of illusion with just those simple ingredients.  I’m faced with that exact sense of awe whenever I have a puff from a cigar that was produced in Havana.  The hard to believe creamy flavors that you find in a quality cigar, as well, make you wonder about the odds of this occurring simply by the combustion of tobacco leaves that have been treated with only water and time left alone packed in bales which allows fermentation to take place.  The formula involved in the production of Cuban cigars hasn’t really changed and continues to be incredibly simple, resulting in a product that stands alone in the world market.

I wanted to give a bit of attention to the sad news about two of the Arturo Fuente Warehouses going up in flames a few days ago.. By the sounds of it, a lot of aged and aging tobacco was destroyed and it must be a terrible loss to the company which produces some of the most sought after cigars in the world… No one who has ever tasted one of these fine Opus X Double Coronas has a bad thing to say about them, there’s a reason why they are rare and hard to find… Cigars like these from Arturo Fuente constantly reshape people’s opinions of the cigars that they smoke and then the price comes into play, which then makes one reevaluate what should be spent on a passion… It’s an expensive game but the best and hard to find can sometimes set you back a few dollars… All cigar talk aside, I just want to say that I feel a lot of sadness for the Fuente family and can hope that they can move forward and continue to give us the world’s finest Non-Cuban cigar !!

I’ve never been a big fan of cigar boxes used for musical instruments… Well there’s a great way to start a blog entry!!  Musical instruments sound pretty good if you spend enough money to buy one with any sort of quality so I see no reason to make something out of a cigar box just because you can.. Wait a minute, maybe there is a good reason to use a cigar box to make music…..  Ummmmmm, nope!  The blues originated in the South and a lot of people will credit Robert Johnson as one of the first blues guitar players and maybe consider him to be the best of that art form.. He was fine but there were others that also were great at playing a 6 string guitar.. Now, why is this mentioned in a cigar blog?? Well, I started thinking about the blues this morning and just before I leave for the Squamish in search of a few pink salmon I was thinking about happily puffing away on a cigar as I listen to the blues…. These days you’ll only be able to have a cigar and listen to the music you love in your own home.. Chances are if you are in a blues bar and there’s a guy on stage playing a National Steel, you won’t see a cigar or cigarette in the room.. Gone are the days of smelling cigar smoke in a public place.. Now when you hear blues music the only thing you’ll be smelling is chicken wings…… A sad world!

It comes every second year, doesn’t last too long and provides you with some of the best entertainment in the Pacific Northwest.. That is, if you are a fly fisher… The Pink Salmon are here again and with some of the simplest pink flies you can tie, like the ones in the picture I tied a few years back, you can have the greatest time catching these fish and letting them go… I’ll be driving up to Squamish tomorrow and I’ll try fishing on the banks of the Squamish River and with any luck I’ll have as much fun as I’ve had in years gone by… On a good day you can hook into hundreds of fish but there’s no way you’ll land that many… They’re jumpy, aerobatic and test your skills as an angler with all of the energy they have… Will I bring any home?? Probably not since they’re not really the best salmon you can catch in BC… Chinook, Coho and Sockeye are the really good eating fish but I HAVE had some luck smoking Pinks… They’re meat is a bit oily and that actually lends itself to a good smoked fish but I think that’s it.  Stores sell Pink salmon very cheaply and some folks like them, I think its more fun to catch them and then let them go!

In Canada we have a club for Armed forces people and veterans that are located in every city and small center across the country… These are the places to go, drink very affordable alcohol, listen to music from another era and maybe dance a bit, buy tickets on the “Meat Draw”, and enjoy a cigar on the outdoor patio any time of year… Sit there in your usual chair and hold court with anyone who’s willing to listen to your stories about everything you’ve done that ever meant anything to anyone or stories about how the guy on the dance floor and that he’s there hitting on all of the old ladies every night… This is a place that your parents, uncles and aunts would go if they were considering a “Night Out”… There’s always a band playing country music or something that your parents would like to dance to… These Legions are all private clubs and you need to know a member inside who’ll sign his name alongside yours in a book at the door and then you’re buzzed in… What is a real feather in your hat is getting your own membership with signing privileges… All of the trouble is worth while because as soon as you’re in you are amazed at the amount of change you’re getting back from the bartender after your first drink… Cigars are welcome and that’s all I need to know.

Montecristo’s Open Series Eagle is a cigar that I haven’t smoked as much as the Regata in the same family and it being the biggest brother in the series may lead you to believe that it is the one with all of the strength and power but not really so….. This cigar tends to be a bit on the mild side but reveals a lot of Montecristo’s great quality tobacco flavor with notes of cedar, milk chocolate and flavors of cedar… As the cigar burns, a bit of strength builds and becomes somewhat more medium in power but still keeps it’s mellow profile as more and more cedar comes into the picture.  A bit of pepper can hit your taste buds from time to time and you’ll be amazed at the balance this cigar has.. I’ve enjoyed these on the golf course since the name lends itself to that activity but I’ll never be hitting balls with the pros at the Master’s so this is as close as I’m going to get.. I’m a big fan of the older established Montecristos like the No 2, No 4 and the Edmundo but from time to time I believe that these Open series cigars are perfect during the day.

Here is a pic of yours truly fishing at a lake in central British Columbia called Decca Lake… At the time the picture was taken I had a green dragon fly on my sinking line and I’m pulling in about a five pound Lake trout… These fish will tear after a fly and hit it with great conviction so the initial strike is always magnificent.. Hang on… This was in June and a wonderful day out on the water… It was also a Montecristo No 2 kind of day as well.. I decided to pull out a nice ligar that would give me a few hours of fun as I sat, drank coffee and fought fish as I smoked it… Yes, life can be grand!!!  I’m wearing the hat that I just retired and although I can’t wait to have a dry head when I fish, I’m thinking that maybe I should hang on to the old companion for a short while yet and pull it out on sunny days like the one above…

Any real guy worth his salt would never consider that the appearance of a hat that is worn out on an adventure in the wild would count for anything and I have to agree…. This old Filson has accompanied me on many a fishing outing and a part of me wonders why I would consider ever putting the hat out to pasture but another part of me wonders what it would be like to go fishing in the Pacific Northwest and have a hat that doesn’t leak… The top of the hat is full of holes and I seem to fish in the rain all of the time… This time of year sees millions of different species of Pacific salmon come into our rivers, spawn and then die… Our bald eagle count goes through the roof since there is a lot of food around for them dying and rotting on the beaches and river sides… The 2008 Edicion Limitada Cuaba Piramides will be the cigar I smoke next week when hitting the Squamish River in search for Pink salmon, not the best eating salmon available but they show up in droves… It is a cigar that is very woody with notes of dark chocolate throughout… I’ve found that these cigars age beautifully and if you’re lucky enough to get one these days, you’ll taste the quintessential Cuaba profile at it’s finest… See you on the river!

All of the flavors of a Cuban Montecristo are present in this 42 ring gauge, 4 inch Perla ( factory name…the rest of us call it a Montecristo No 5 ) from Havana…  Summer, being finally on us, now affords us the opportunities to enjoy a cigar on the deck with a coffee after breakfast… If all you have is a half an hour then this is the one for you… In pure Cuban Montecristo fashion this cigar starts out a bit potent but mellows nicely to reveal beautiful toasted tobacco flavors that include a lot of Montecristo dark chocolate but the subtle hint of honey is never really that far behind to sweeten the experience for you… With summer also comes the onslaught of activities and my summer is very very busy with golf and some Salmon fishing in the near future, both which go so nicely with Cuban cigars… I never leave the house on an excursion like that without even a small cigar to smoke… Golf shoes, check….. Fishing tackle, check….. You know how it goes!