FOH'ers Daily Smoke

[zepp69]

Quai D Orsay Imperiale.

[Tave1225]

[Akela3rd]

Hope you had a good one brother, 25 right? I always enjoy your scout and cigar excerpts, I can see myself doing the same in a few.

Thanks A! Good solid 51 actually. Get involved, it's fun and keeps you feeling young - or acting like a kid. Another camp with the older scouts this weekend...

 

Thunder & Lightening '75-'15

 

 

 

 

 

[Bsonwine]

On 9/29/2017 at 6:06 PM, Buck14 said:

Bottom:

Party Shorts RAE ABR 15 (25)

Acclimatized 60 days in humi

Top:

Party Shorts RAE ABR 15 (25) - DIFFERENT box than above

Recieved 2.5 MINUTES AGO ROTT

TIME TO COMPARE

 

I am curious what the results were?

[Buck14]

15 minutes ago, Bsonwine said:

I am curious what the results were?

ROTT Party Short was terrible.  We have had record high temperatures in the midwest portion of the US while these were being shipped and for the last half of the shipping journey we had normal Fall weather with high temp days mixed in.  I can’t imagine what these smokes went through on their travels to my humi.

The entire wrapper came apart IN ONE PIECE, it didn’t unravel or tear, it was as if the wrapper came apart whole from the binder and filler.  The moisture content on these shorts must have been off the charts.  They will sit in the humi for 3x my normal interval before trying again (90 days).

The party short that had been in my humi for awhile from the same box code but NOT the same box was very nice, perhaps a 93 of 100.

[Lotusguy]

Cracked the LGC Platinum Edition RE (another winner, that name...).

One word: Meh.

More words: tastes decent, but nothing at all like LGC.

[Fugu]

And my Perlas again.... Did someone say "marzipan"? - marzipan!!!

Cinnamon, clove and a hint of vanilla, even The Missus noticed and made a positive remark.

[Bartolomeo]

Did a trade w/ a buddy for some smokes and he sent me some cigars older than me, these were a treat to partake in 

 

RA from 1932-aged tobacco with some anise/black licorice

Partagas Panatella from 1980's- dough bread

Punch Petit Punch from 1970's-pure Juicy Fruit gum flavor

Monte #4 from 1970's-herbal/minty start, syrup sweet finish

RyJ #3 from 1980's- peanut butter to start than quickly into expired tobacco, dud overall

Punch was my favorite, see toothpick pic ?

[zepp69]

Connie A.

[dozer996]

My first Party Short out of a recent 24:24, really good cigar.

[BellevilleMXZ]

Picadores to the flame tonight. First cigar I have had to jab with the modus.....very tight draw....fixed it right up. Not perfect but much better.

[ElJavi76]

Here with @Squidstro whacking down some PLPC. Smaller vitola but big flavor. 

Cheers men!

 

[RazorbackFan]

2014 Partagas Short. Last one from a good box. A couple of years of down time really improved an initially mediocre box. Time to source a good cab now for the long haul. 

[havanaclub]

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[retrofail]

First Party E2 (AMO MAR 17). May just smoke it’s way on the favorites list! 

[Bartolomeo]

2017 Sir Winnie GR...superb for a fresh cigar, really enjoyed this for 2.5 hours today, a real treat

[Jauwels]

13 hours ago, Fugu said:

And my Perlas again.... Did someone say "marzipan"? - marzipan!!!

Cinnamon, clove and a hint of vanilla, even The Missus noticed and made a positive remark.

Like this one!What boxcode buddy?

[Raskol]

C&C Time. RASS [sOM MAR 16] - 24:24

Sent from my SM-G955F using Tapatalk

[JohnS]

One of the best things about our FriendsofHabanos community are the regular competitions our host runs for the benefit of our community. It was one such competition in June this year, the Sublime Selfie Weekend Competition that, thanks to you, enabled me to win a prize of 5 regular production cigars. The timing of that competition was impeccable. I was coming to the end of a hectic June work period and looking forward to a well-earned holiday break, and this competition was coincidentally on the winter solstice so I made sure to get away as soon as I could to enjoy a cigar in the sunset. After acclimatising the cigars to my humidor for 90 days, I decided to review them in appreciation of their reception, and so give back a benefit to our members in sharing how these cigars smoked. The cigars in the image below are, from left-to-right; H.Upmann Magnum 46, Romeo y Julieta Wide Churchills, Saint Luis Rey Regios, Cohiba Siglo II and the Montecristo No.2.

Below are the cigars I smoked in order...

Saint Luis Rey Regios

Vitola: Hermosos No.4 - 48 ring gauge x 127 mm or 5.0 inches

I started this review series with the Saint Luis Rey Regios. Why? I had an aged Saint Luis Rey Serie A the week before so I figured that it would be great to compare notes. Plus, with the Double Corona and Serie A in a current production hiatus or possibly deleted, it gave me a chance to see what Saint Luis Rey currently represents. The Regios has been in consistent supply in the last year, going by how often it comes up on 24:24 listings. Our host, El Pres, recommends smoking these sooner than later, and after researching the topic, I deduced that the Regios is indeed not a cigar that benefits greatly from aging, unlike the Serie A. This cigar was medium-strength, light toast and hay, with elements of a honey sweetness at times and a cocoa edge. The thing about this cigar is, it needed to be smoked slowly to prevent acridity, as that toast, hay and tobacco flavour was dominant, but when smoked slowly and allowed to remain cool, this Regios rewarded me with elements of those sweeter flavours.

I wonder with marcas such as Saint Luis Rey and Trinidad, whether there is a 'fine line' between complexity and muddled blandness, you know, when it seems all the flavours roll-into-one. They can reward you and they can punish you, bring you joy and make you weep in frustration, yet you still feel inclined to persist because they can be so good.

Cohiba Siglo II

Vitola: Marevas - 42 ring gauge x 129 mm or 5.1 inches

Cohiba is a marca that polarises cigar enthusiasts. Firstly, there's the marked-up price, which in the past 12 months was increased 10%, in comparison to most other marcas increasing by an average of 3% and then secondly, there's the flavour profile that leaves some people wondering where's the appeal (to them). I must admit, that the great majority of my friends who I share this noble hobby with, enjoy Cohiba (and Montecristo) just as much as I do, which is saying something when you factor in Australian taxes on cigars. So what was it like to smoke this Siglo II fresh? The grassiness was the dominant flavour, with espresso coffee just a little behind. There was a little honey, but not much and spice through the nose, but no cream texture to be found. It was distinctly Cohiba, but I admit I do like them rested at least 3 to 5 years.

Romeo y Julieta Wide Churchills

Vitola: Montesco - 55 ring gauge x 130 mm or 5.1 inches

If Cohiba and Montecristo represent two marcas I find great comfort in, than Romeo y Julieta and Bolivar alternatively represent two marcas which I find tend to make me suffer. If given a modern context, I wonder if Jesus would revise his famous saying in Matthew 11; "Come to me all who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest, except if you've had a Romeo y Julieta cigar that is all toasted tobacco, then you are on your own!" Well, this Romeo y Julieta Wide Churchills was such a pleasant surprise. In fact, of all these cigars, I'd consider this one to have been the best in light of their comparative youthfulness. It had excellent construction, great amounts of smoke per draw, the aroma at cold was a wonderful barnyard cocoa that instantly appeals to many an experienced cigar aficionado and it delivered. A touch under medium, this is not the type of cigar that obviates simplicity, it's not complex and that's not why you'd smoke this. Its combination of toast, tobacco and a cream cherry edge all throughout made it quite satisfying for me. Mind you, don't fret, I have Bolivar and Romeo y Julieta in my humidor, and it's cigars such as this one which make me re-visit the marca from time-to-time, even if the 55 ring gauge made me 'sip' it from the head. Then again, the larger ring gauge made me slow down and really savour this cigar.

H.Upmann Magnum 46

Vitola: Coronas Gordas - 46 ring gauge x 143 mm or 5.6 inches

I was reading over @ATGroom's excellent blog, (A Harem of) Dusky Beauties tonight, and apart from being elated that it's back online (I was only remarking to a few Sydney FoH members last night that it down since Cuban Cigar Website crashed in December 2016 - it's nice to be corrected in this instance), I was intrigued to learn that the H.Upmann Magnum 46 was the 9th most common vitola in Cuban Cigar Website members' inventories (the H.Upmann Half Corona was 8th). This Magnum 46 showed me how young it was. It had its H.Upmann espresso coffee and shortbread, but it had its toasted tobacco too, which made it a little over medium in strength. Perhaps some slight licorice redeemed this for me somewhat, as I did enjoy it well into its last third, yet my preference for Magnum 46's is a milder coffee, shortbread, cedar and hay expression, with a touch of spice. Then again, I think that this Magnum 46 was the type that @Chickenlassi enjoyed when he wrote this review a few years ago, you know, the kind of cigar that Chuck Norris, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone would digest for breakfast, lunch and dinner without blinking!

Montecristo No.2

Vitola: Piramides - 52 ring gauge x 156 mm or 6.1 inches

I consider myself very fortunate to have had a great run of Montecristo No.2's this year, perhaps the last 8 to 10 have been all consistently superb. What can I say? I just love them, when they are 'on' that is. This cigar was exactly 'off' in comparison, it had excellent construction, a great draw and smoked well. So what was this issue? The wrapper shade! Yes, I prefer a lighter wrapper shade on my Montecristo No.2's, the type that give a lovely milk coffee, nut and cream combination. I find darker wrappers on Montecristo No.2's can make the cigar more intense, with more emphasised flavours of toasted tobacco and dark cocoa or chocolate, as this cigar was. But as cigars are a subjective experience, there's nothing wrong if you enjoy your Montecristo No.2's to be more intense in strength and flavour. If so, then this Monte 2 is for you!

[jerrybrowne]

 

2007 and this 898 still has kick. Tons of nicotine in this stick.

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[ElJavi76]

9 hours ago, Bartolomeo said:

2017 Sir Winnie GR...superb for a fresh cigar, really enjoyed this for 2.5 hours today, a real treat

Holy Cannoli Batman...

When are these things hitting the market? Price? 10 piece dress boxes or just 25s? 

It looks majestic!

[Bartolomeo]

11 minutes ago, ElJavi76 said:

Holy Cannoli Batman...

When are these things hitting the market? Price? 10 piece dress boxes or just 25s? 

It looks majestic!

No idea on price, box of 15

[ElJavi76]

1 hour ago, Bartolomeo said:

No idea on price, box of 15

Do you know when they hit retail? Overseas LCdH's or distributors since I don't know when I'll go to Havana myself. 

[zepp69]

Power Ranger...Scrumptious!

[TheMonk]

A flavourful Oliva Serie V Double Robusto: