It’s been a long week and it’ll be Thursday before I get another day off. This will be a short one as I have to work today. Tuesday was my last day off, and I had to pick my son up at Philly airport, so I decided I should kill some time at a cigar shop close to there, but I decided too late (it was snowing/raining and took longer than I thought to get there), so I just stopped in Jacoubs Cigar Shop in Ridley Park and picked up a few cigars. This place is four miles from PHL, so a little better planning in the future is in order. Had I thought of this an hour earlier I would have easily been able to have a relaxing smoke in the spacious lounge at the shop after selecting a cigar from the walk-
in humidor. Jacoub, the owner, is a welcoming gent, and gave me a dime for the parking meter (bring change, the rates are fair). He said that the Gurkha Ghosts sold well for him, so I bought a couple of the Phantom and Spook sizes, because they are newer and I like perfectos and hadn’t smoked them yet. I smoked a Phantom later and really enjoyed it. The Phantom is a 5″ x 58 perfecto with a curly bun on the cap which pinches off easily, but a snip with a cutter opens it up better. The Brazillian Arapiraca wrapper is dark and oily and has a nice look, and has the dark cocoa flavor I like. In truth, when these first came out five or so years ago, it took me a while to warm to the blend, there was something I didn’t like a about the first several I smoked, and I wanted to like this cigar. Now I like it, and it’s one of my favorites in the Gurkha range. The prismy band is pretty spiffy too.
Which kinda leads into my rant, only because Gurkha seems to be a frequent target of this topic. Too often I see people on social media, and to a lesser extent in shops, stating as fact, that cigar X is “crap”, “garbage”, or some other word that states definitively that the cigars is sub-standard and unworthy of the title of cigar, as if that person was an expert on such things. This irritates me to no end. This is actually why I don’t review cigars per se, and don’t use a rating scale on my site, even though it would probably benefit me as manufacturers like ratings and would publicize my site more if I were to go that route. Here’s the thing: taste is subjective. Sure, there are objective qualities of cigars, construction, draw, combustion, but there are very few cigars that make it far with long-term problems in these areas. If a cigar tastes bad to me, that’s my problem, not the cigar’s problem, so the cigar isn’t a bad cigar. An example I like to use is this: I don’t like Lima beans, the flavor is disgusting to me, I can’t imagine how anyone would put sometime so vile in their mouths, but people eat them, and, presumably, like them! By that logic, obviously, Lima beans aren’t crap, they just aren’t for me. Let’s apply that to cigars, if we have a cigar and the flavor doesn’t appeal to us, let’s not go on social media and declare that brand Y, which, by the way, may have a huge, loyal following and has been in business for 20 years, is “crap”, but accept that maybe their cigars aren’t for us and move to the hundreds of other brands out there that may suit us better!
Now that I got that off my chest, which is a little congested this morning, lets circle back to a few nights past, when I cracked open a ten-count box of Room 101 Uncle Lees that I almost forgot I had and came across while rummaging around the humidor. Not complaining, misplacing a box of cigars in the humidor isn’t a bad problem to have. I bought this box after smoking an Uncle Lee at one of Matt Booth’s last events before he left Davidoff, so it’s been a few years. This cigar is presented in the 6½” x 50 Ranfla perfecto size, wrapped in tissue paper with a paper sleeve, much like the Chief Cool arrow and Johnny Tabacconaut series were. I love this blend, it has an Ecuador Habano wrapper, and Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers, but is has a flavor unlike any other cigar I’ve smoked. There’s an almost floral flavor that’s light and refreshing. It’s an interesting change of pace, and if I thought I would ever be able to replace these cigars, I’d probably smoke the other 9 cigars in the box pretty quick. I’ll ration them out as it is. Uncle Lee should be proud.
That’s all for this Sunday, until the next time,
CigarCraig
I agree with your rant, Craig. Here is an example of what you are talking about – a friend and I were buying Cigars at a VERY well known retailer in Philly. My friend asked the salesperson, if, they carried Gurhka. The reaction is one, we will never forget, as the salesmen replied, “we don’t carry that crap”.
That was about 6 years ago, and NOW, this retailer does carry Gurhka, and the salesperson is still working there, the last time I checked. Its too bad he now has too sell cigars he once deemed inferior.
The point is, just because you don’t make commission of a brand that someone inquires about, it doesn’t give you the right, as a professional, to put a brand down. For the sake of the industry, as you pointed out, everyone has different tastes, and there is a way to discuss and share individual palate preferences.
I understand and completely concur with your rant Craig. I have been the tasting room manager at a winery on the Niagara Escarpment In Niagara County , New York for the past four and a half years. (Not a bad retirement gig, eh?) I often am pouring for patrons who do not like a wine who proceed to tell me that the wine is not good. They don’t say ,”It’s not for me” or “I’m not a fan of this kind of wine,” they feel justified in telling me that it’s not a good wine. I appreciate that they don’t like it, but it always interests me that they feel no qualms about basically insulting the winemaker about his product. I usually smile and remind them that everyone has their own tastes and many people enjoy that same wine. People are always interesting…
Ummmmmmmmmm! Lima Beans!
I’ve tried them like some better than others but wouldn’t bad mouth a company that might not be to my liking. Still smoke the one I enjoy
I agree with scott, mmmm Lima beans
As far as your rant, I don’t like it when anyone says or writes that so and so sucks. But I just register them as a stupid human and ignore them.
Amen on the rant Craig!!
Okay, sure. I admit, however, I do avoid much Gurkha, although have smoked a few Ghosts. I have a similar approach with RP, where only a rare few seem to work out.