thechenman

Wow...now that's impressive. I wasn't expecting to actually see a life size bat. That's a true memento.

Beautiful. Thanks for sharing the experience with us. Hopefully Punch Joe puts up a review. Would love to read his thoughts on this HTF gem of a cigar.

John is a nice and straight up kinda guy. I know there has been much debate as to whether he cigars are Cuban or not, I lean towards the side that believes they are. But is that really important? Cuban tobacco, or no Cuban tobacco, the cigars are a bargain so as long as you enjoy the smoke...that's all that matters. I will also be the first to say that John's cigars can be inconsistent from batch to batch. As pointed out earlier, the quality of the tobacco he gets can vary. Some of the cigars I've had like John said, would have scored in the low 90s, others not so much. And I've had draw issues before as well, but only with the thinner rg cigars. the larger rg cigars have always been fine. I've not had a Johnny-O with more than 3 years of age on it...I tend to smoke most of the cigars I get fresh, within a few months of purchase, or after a year or so. The cigars do change...age does take some of the edge off of them, but the profile is still quite similar. My suggestion would be to give them a try. Pick up a sampler and judge for yourself.

And Che was a medical doctor.

My top 3 from this list would be... 1. PLPC 2. Partagas Shorts 3. Cohiba Siglo II

Lisa...saw that you enjoyed a nice quiet birthday celebration w/Dom & Frank. What could be finer? Again...happy birthday to you.

Nino...thanks for sharing the stories and pics. Sorry to hear about Frank's travel issues. Like you said though...I'm sure the two of you will more than make up for lost time.

On the Double Corona front I voted for the Partagas Lusitania. On the Churchill front, I voted for the Cohiba Esplendido.

I used to be a huge Palio fan. For years they were pretty much my goto cutter. I must have 4 of them. This past year though I've found them lacking and have gone back to Xikar. Xikar was what I started with in the beginning, but I hated that tear drop shape. For some reason now I love it. Easy to use, and I find them much better in build quality than the Palios. Then again, what do I know...I still smoke NC cigars.

This has never let me down...I use it to light all my cigars.

I for one love going to Mexico. From driving down to TJ when I was a teenager to taking my family to Cabo or Cancun, it's always been fantastic. There is so much culture there. The people are great, the food is astounding. Sure there are problems in parts of Mexico, but I've been to places in the states like: New York City, Los Angeles, Detroit, New Orleans, Baltimore, Philadelphia, to name a few...where I've encountered problems as well. It's not the place so much as a handful of people in these places. It's the same anywhere. When traveling, always exercise precaution...whether you are in Mexico or Monte Carlo...it never hurts to be cautious.

I'm in. Looking forward to it.

Sad news...this is the end of an era. Best of luck to you Smithy.

Well...hopefully you have the cigars in your OLH listed among your assets, or someone you know (friend/family/acquaintance) can claim them on your behalf. With proof of death of course...

Partagas Shorts.

Horrific...

Yes...because the minimum number of boxes needed to keep an OLH is 3. Also, any boxes placed in your OLH must remain there for a minimum of 6 months before you can request for them to be shipped. I believe that is to that member use the OLH for longer term storage rather than a personal offsite humidor.

@thechenman

I think it's as Rob stated...the Partagas 8-9-8s in the 10ct clasped cabinets (don't know why these aren't called 3-4-3s) are not as profitable for HSA. The cost of the packaging I'm sure seriously eats into any profits they may garner from the 10ct format for this cigar.

TEB is probably one of the best box codes from 08. I have to say also that I agree with Shlomo...my TEB 08 RAGs are smoking beautifully.

Truly a fantastic day. Thanks for sharing it with us. I'm envious...

Truly impressive champers line up you drank through. Thanks for sharing the MRN update. Eagerly anticipating the finished product. Will no doubt be impressive.

Can't say I'm surprised about the Des Dieux. It was the first CC I ever smoked, and I really enjoy its woody profile. That said, there are tons of HdM DD sitting around. The '03 cabs were readily available for years after production - until recently where they are more difficult to come across. Still sad to see them go. Seeing the 50cabs go isn't surprising either. Most people don't spring for the 50cabs. Smaller format boxes are far more popular due to the lower price point, so the product moves faster. When you need money as badly as Cuba does, you can't have cigars sitting in inventory for long. The faster the turnover, they better off they are.

I taste crushed ants...

You've go me drooling...