Sunday afternoon I was remembering a year ago walking into my room at Drew Estate Cigar Safari and seeing the news coverage of the terrible earthquake and tsunami in Japan.  I decided that the lone Para Japon I had in my humidor was the appropriate cigar to smoke.  I think nearly year’s age has done this cigar well, I enjoyed it quite a bit.  Thanks to Tony at CasasFumando.com for the opportunity to try these (and check out their contests currently under way to celebrate the 3rd anniversary of the site.  Keep up the good work, Tony and Daniel!).  The Para Japon was made by La Aurora with the proceeds benefiting the relief efforts in Japan.  I remember seeing a few boxes of these at Cigar-ette City in Newark, DE the last time I was there, so there may be some still in the marketplace. (late addition: Bonita Smoke Shop has them)
Monday I decided to walk to the shop to retrieve my car from it’s annual state inspection.  For those unfamiliar with the process, many states requite safety and emissions inspections every year in an effort to produce revenue for the state and the shops that are approved by the state to perform these inspections.  I manage to ease the financial impact a bit by having my cars inspected at the local Monro, which is attached to my local BJ’s Wholesale Club, where I work part time and get a healthy discount!  Ha! Anyway, the place is nearly three miles away, so a substantial cigar is in order for the walk.  I selected a Gurkha Cellar Reserve  Churchill, at 7″ x 54, due in part to it’s size, and the fact that my brother-in-law said that it was the best cigar he’d smoked out of a handful I had given him.  I had smoked one previously and it was pretty good, and this one was pretty good as well.  It certainly lasted to the shop, then back home for a good thirty minutes on the porch.  Burn was perfect, it could have been a little freer in the draw, but gave me nearly two hours of smoking time.  It was in the 60s and a beautiful evening for early March in PA.
Tuesday night I was visited by a high school buddy of mine and introduced him to taking a cigar for a walk.  Greg is a fellow cigar nut so I opened the box of La Gloria Cubana Artesanos Retro Especiale Cubano that I brought back from my visit to the DR and we fired them up.  This is another large cigar, 6½” x 58, with a golden Honduras/Connecticut wrapper.  These are a recent favorite and bring back a lot of fond memories of the trip where I smoked a fair amount of these.  It had been over a year since Greg and I last met up for a smoke, so we got caught up and enjoyed another terrific evening with temps around 70.  My wife teased me that it was a play date, but we just talked about mutual interests, cigars, drums, cycles, stuff like that.
As I’ve been typing this, I’ve been smoking a cigar that I picked up at Cigars International on Saturday. Â I don’t think I’ve ever had a Padilla cigar, and the Habano Artisano intrigued me when I saw it on the shelf. Â I have a hard time spending $8 on a cigar, what can I say…I’m cheap. Â When I saw this cigar priced at $8 I wondered aloud how that can possibly make this for that price. Â This perfecto shaped cigar starts out like any “barber pole” cigar, but they take it a step farther and adorn it with additional stripes of tobacco. Â This has to be time consuming to do, and makes for a stunning presentation. Â Much to my delight, it’s a delicious cigar! Â It’s smooth, tasty and surprisingly even burning. Â It’s nice, cool looking cigar, a fun smoke that’s tasty and satisfying! Â The only complaint is that the ash is a little flakey.
In the News
Milestone Alert: IPCPR/CRA team achieves 160th co-sponsor for Traditional Cigar Manufacturing Small Business Jobs Preservation Act as Rep Jim Costa [CA-20] joins us!!
Sincerely,
Bill Spann, Chief Executive Officer, IPCPR
Please use the “Write to Congress” widget on the top left of this page and keep asking your elected officials to get behind these bills. Â Our enjoyment of cigars depends upon the FDA not having regulatory control of premium cigars!
On a related note, I received this press release today:
Midwest Smoke Out partners with Cigar Rights of America for exceptional evening
March 13, 2012—Hammond, Ind.–Midwest Smoke Out and Cigar Rights of America (CRA) are partnering for an evening of luxury, gourmet foods, live entertainment—and of course, cigars— Thursday, April 19 from 5-10 p.m., minutes from Chicago at The Venue at Horseshoe Casino, in Hammond, Ind.Since Illinois legislation banned smoking in Chicago, Midwest Smoke Out (MSO) is the only exposition to give cigar aficionados an evening of cigars and indoor smoking. Every year, MSO provides a free one-year CRA membership or renewal with every ticket, meaning that in only a few hours, CRA gains over 1,000 members whose average income is more than $160,000. These new members are often opinion leaders in their communities.“We at Midwest Smoke Out are privileged to partner with Cigar Rights of America,†said Andrea Pearman, Creative Commander of Diversified Marketing Strategies, Inc., which organizes the event. “At a time when so many cigar smokers have to gather—literally—out in the cold, we’re happy not only to welcome them inside but also provide them with the luxury experience of the year.â€With FDA regulation looming and states still legislating, MSO is a key event for CRA membership growth, though the evening isn’t all business. It’s pleasure, too, with ticket-holders having the opportunity to meet Lou Rodriguez of the eponymous cigars, Tony Gomez of La Flor Dominicana, Cigar Master Alejandro Turrent, Victor Vitale of the Cigar Agency and Clay Roberts of A.J. Fernandez. Cigar god Carlito Fuentes is scheduled to greet all ticketholders. MSO is for everyone who enjoys luxury, with attendees receiving deluxe giveaways, complimentary massages, experiencing the latest in gaming, being dazzled by live entertainment, and enjoying gourmet food, wine, beer and spirits.
For tickets (and your paid membership to CRA) contact event director Jo Sutton at jo@3dms.com or 1-888-226-0330. For more information, visitwww.midwestsmokeout.com, like on Facebook, connect on LinkedIn, or follow on Twitter at @MidwestSmokeOut
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Join the Cigar Rights of America, write to your elected officials, and save the cigars!
That’s all I got, until the next time,
CigarCraig
It appears you lucked out with the Padilla Artisanos, as it seems not to be available online anymore. Guess I should have picked some up on CBid when I had the chance.
I’ll have to give the La Gloria Retro another shot. The one I had (which coincidentally also came from Tony) seemed somewhat disjointed. Maybe I should have let it sit a bit longer.
The contests at Casas Fumando are awesome, and Tony and Daniel are really great guys.
How could you not try that Padilla!? It’s beautiful!
Terrific cigar. Was surprised that it burned so well and tasted so good. Sweet stick. I should have bought 2!
That Habano Artisano does look pretty cool, but as you noted, us cheapos can’t be dropping $8 on a cigar just because it looks good. Wish I had grabbed a few now, though.
I bought a fiver of the La Aurora Para Japon a month ago, from @BonitaSmokeShop (thanks Jackie!). I’ve had one so far and it was great! Letting the others rest a bit, but getting the itch to light one soon!
And I also like the La Gloria Cubana Artesanos Retros. Will have to get some more of those soon.
Thanks for the heads up on Bonita Smoke Shop, I added a link into the post.
Regarding the Padilla, it was a terrific smoke, creamy and smooth. My wife actually talked me into buying it after I commented on what I figure to be a fairly reasonable price for such artistry. I’ve watched that sort of wrapper work done, and it’s laborious. I have a hard time paying $8 for a cigar, but I’d buy that one again. Tasty, I wish I had grabbed a couple more!
if you’re looking to try another good padilla, you may want to try the 1932 robusto.