Tag Archives: Flyers

A Padilla, an Alec Bradley, a Hockey Game and Some Cigar News

A little snow here and there isn’t enough to deter me from enjoying a fine cigar! That’s what I did on Sunday. We’ve been getting off easy with little snow showers here and there, which is just fine with me. Sunday I took an afternoon walk with a Padilla Reserva. This is a 6” x 50 Toro with what looks like a nice Habano wrapper. I enjoyed the heck out of this cigar, although not quite as much as it’s maduro sibling. It had nice, smooth flavors that I found appealing. It performed flawlessly and was quite enjoyable. I think if I were to come across this cigar in a shop I’d pick a few up, provided they were out of the tasty maduro! Thanks again to Mike Staiber of Oliva for turning me on to these!

 

Monday evening I picked out a nice Alec Bradley American Sungrown robusto. I picked this up on a visit to the Cigars International store in Hamburg, PA I think, I probably picked up a couple another place too. Maybe I buy too many cigars? Anyway, I really like this cigar, and I like the American Classic with the Ecuador Connecticut Shade wrapper quite a bit too. I think the Sungrown has that extra little pop I need in the winter months. These have the added advantage of being very well priced, usually under $5. This is a great anytime cigar that is probably a cigar a broad range of people can appreciate. This is a great cigar to have around to share or smoke those days you have trouble deciding what to smoke and you just want a good cigar.

 

Tuesday night my youngest son and I went to the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia for the Flyers game. It was a great game with the Flyers winning over the Tampa Bay Lightning. After the game we stopped in the Cigar Bar in the center. This used to be Holt’s Cigar Lounge many years ago, and I don’t think it would be a bad assumption on my part that they still get their cigars from Holt’s, given the Holt’s cutter and matches that came with the cigars I purchased. I’m sure many wouldn’t be shocked by an $11 price tag on a Fuente Hemingway Short Story, especially in a cigar tax free state like PA. I rationalized it to myself figuring I was in on a free pass, and didn’t pay the membership fee that would come to something along the lines of $16 per game. We smoked out Short Stories while the 19,000 people outside were sitting in traffic and got to chat with Bernie Parent for a while. Of course, you may recall that Bernie has a cigar out, the BSB #1 Bernie Parent by Rocky Patel. He mentioned that they are going to add a Round Toro and a Box Pressed Torpedo to the line and use a band design featuring his crest. I am surprised that the Cigar Bar didn’t have the BSB #1 on their menu, but Bernie said they are working on it. It seems like an appropriate place to carry the cigar!

 

A Joke

 

A doctor on his morning walk, noticed the old lady pictured above:,

She was sitting on her front step smoking a cigar, so he walked up to her and said,

“I couldn’t help but notice how happy you look! What is your secret?”

“I smoke ten cigars a day,” she said. “Before I go to bed, I smoke a nice big joint.

Apart from that, I drink a whole bottle of Jack Daniels every week, and eat only junk food.

On weekends, I pop pills, have sex, and I don’t exercise at all.

“That is absolutely amazing! How old are you?”

“Forty,” she replied

Contest Winner!

The winner of the ScrewPop Punch and the 5-pack of My Uzi Weighs a Ton Baitfish and a MUWAT cap is MattRoss81!  The Random Number Generator spit out the number 6, and The Commish had won a prize in the 12SDOCG’s (12 Spectacular Days of Cigar Giveaways) so he was disqualified!  Matt, please send me your address! Thanks again to Drew Estate and ScrewPop for sponsoring this contest!

That’s all for now, until the next time,

CigarCraig

 

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Cigars and Hockey – Alec Bradley Connecticut and Tempus and a Merlion

Screwpop_PunchThe last time I mentioned the cool match holder/striker that was brought to my attention, so this time take a look at this new cigar punch from ScrewPop, who makes a variety of tools that have integrated clips that double as a bottle opener.  This is an aluminum body with a stainless steel punch blade and the cover screws on with an o-ring to keep out the crud.  Next time I stop by Cigars International I may pick one of these up to see how it works!  ScrewPop also has clip-able screwdrivers, knives, flashlights and mini-Bic lighter holders.  Pretty nifty stuff.  Please note that this is not a paid endorsement, just something that came to my attention that looked pretty cool.

 

Alec Bradley_Connecticut Robusto Thursday evening I finally decided to smoke the Alec Bradley Connecticut that Jon Lipson gave me at an event a while back.  This is another cigar that bucks the trend of mild Connecticut cigars.  While not a particularly powerful smoke, it had loads of flavor and was solidly medium bodied.  It had the signature Ecuador Connecticut wrapper flavor, with some real depth and body.  I liked this smoke, it was different enough from the similarly wrapped American Classic Blend (which I really like).  I almost thought it was kind-of like a Tempus with a shade wrapper, not that that’s a bad thing.  Very nice smoke.

 

Merlion_ToroFriday evening I went out to dinner with my wife and her father and had a delicious flounder stuffed with crab.  I probably would have made another cigar choice afterward if I had chosen steak, but I naturally gravitated to a Merlion Robusto for some reason (aside: did anyone pick up my series of puns in my last post?).  I don’t know what I’d have selected if I had eaten duck.  Anyway, the Merlion is the sequel to the La Sirena, which is a cigar I really like, but haven’t really smoked enough of.  The Merlion is made by La Aurora in the Dominican Republic and is a bit milder than it predecessor  with an Ecuador Corojo wrapper and a generous smattering of tobacco from Brazil.  I enjoyed this on a post dinner walk and it was a nice cigar to follow an excellent meal.  I can’t remember if this is one I bought at the Delaware Cigar Festival or was an IPCPR show sample, but it was missing one of the ornate bands, not a big deal to me as it’s one fewer band to remove, but the double banded presentation is quite nice, much like the impressive bands on the La Sirena line.  Another nice job by the folks at Miami Cigar and Co.

 

Alec Bradley_Tempus RobustoI’m a big Philadelphia Flyers fan, and the last several months has been frustrating without hockey to watch.  Hockey is really the only sport I like, to be honest.  I had the good fortune to attend the opening game of the season yesterday.  Unfortunately they didn’t really start playing until the end of the first period and couldn’t manage a comeback over a pretty defensively solid Penguins team.  I really don’t like the Penguins much, and I kinda wish the fans would chant “Penguins Suck” instead of “Crosby Sucks”, because Crosby is a skilled player, he’s just a whiny little bi…..sorry, I’m straying from my point.  When I got home I decided I’d smoke an Alec Bradley Tempus to see how far off I was on my thoughts about the Connecticut.  I can’t really make a judgement on the similarities between the two except that they are both very nice cigars.  The Tempus is a bit fuller bodied and was a very nice smoke. I don’t know if there are any cigars in the Alec Bradley line that I really don’t enjoy.  There seems to be something for everyone in their portfolio.  Even though the Flyers didn’t win, this Tempus was a winner.  The Wells Fargo Center, where the Flyers play, does have a Cigar Bar, and I’m trying to get a tour to feature in a future post.  Holt’s used to have the cigar concession in both the private club area and adjacent to one of the bar areas.  I have been to a couple games many years ago where we could enjoy cigars before going to our seats. Sadly, the indoor smoking regulations put an end to that.

 

I’m afraid that’s all I have today.  The TV will be on at 12:30 to see if the Flyers look better against the Sabres today, and I’ll find something to smoke afterward no doubt.  Until the next time,

 

CigarCraig

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CigarCraig’s Celebrity Cigar Chat with Brian Propp

I haven’t done a Celebrity Cigar Chat in a while, and what better way to launch the new and improved CigarCraig.com.  Brian Propp has been a fixture on the Smoke Magazine tasting panel for a while and I figured I’d reach out to him with a couple questions.  For those of you who don’t know, here’s a bio from his website:

 

Brian Propp was drafted by the Philadelphia Flyers in the first round in 1979, and launched an outstanding career in the National Hockey League that spanned three decades. The first round pick joined the Flyers team in 1979 and made an immediate impact on a line with Bobby Clarke and Reggie Leach. The Flyer’s recorded a record 35 games without a defeat that season. A complete player in all aspects of the game, Propp put up his best scoring totals during the 1984-85 and 1985-86 seasons, accumulating 97 points in each season. Propp was elected to the Flyers Hall of Fame in 1999.

He is currently the Vice President of Strategic Account Management at The Judge Group.  The Judge Group specializes in technology consulting, enterprise-wide staffing, corporate training and unified communications.

1. When did you start enjoying premium cigars?

“I started smoking cigars after my daughter’s birth in 1996. I usually have them when I am playing golf.”

2. What are some of your favorite cigars?

” My two favorite cigars are Hoyo de Monterrey double coronas and Montecristo # 2’s.”

3.  What do you find most interesting or challenging about being on the Smoke Magazine tasting panel?

“I believe that it is interesting to be on a Smoke Magazine tasting panel because of the different tastes and types of cigars. The challenging part is that most countries have improved their product so it is tough to rate the different cigars.”

4.  If you blended your own cigar, what traits and flavors would you try to achieve?

“I would like to have a cigar that was consistently well rolled with mild-medium taste with earthy yet chocolate flavor.”

5. How do you like the Flyers Cup chances this year?

“I have seen the Flyer’s this year score a lot of goals. They are very fast and have a nice mix of veterans and young players. If they get great goaltending down the stretch they will have a chance to win the Stanley Cup this year.”

 

Thanks, Propper, for taking the time to answer my questions.  I always enjoyed watching you play, then listening to you on the radio when you did the color commentary for the Flyers games.   I hope everyone enjoyed this brief glimpse into the cigar life of a celebrity!

 

Until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Mid-Week Cigars: Punch Rare Corojo and Partagas Cifuentes Julio – Wednesday May 19, 2010

I started out the week grilling some pork chops and felt compelled to smoke one of the cigars out of the Punch Grill box.  I selected the Punch Rare Corojo, since I’ve had these in the past and enjoyed them.  This example was no different.  This one was the 5¼” x 54 Magnum.  The pork chops were good, and the cigar capped off a busy day very nicely.  The Ecuador Sumatra wrapper was nice and tasty and the cigar burned quite well.

I’ve been “theme smoking” lately, so I grabbed a Partagas Cifuentes Julio (also from General Cigars) out of the humidor and went for a nice long walk.  These are apparently seasonal blends, and I jumped the gun a little smoking a July cigar in May.  Sorry about that.  It still was a nice cigar.  It was medium bodied with a long finish, tongue coating in a not unpleasant way.  I had to correct the burn a few times and it wanted to tunnel a little, but both are forgivable considering how much I enjoyed the flavor.  These are fairly beefy cigars in a 6″ x 54 format.  This was a single that was amongst the goodies sent by my buddy Jason at Rock’s Smoke Shop.  Thanks!  Another winner from that collection.

I received a very nice delivery today from Vegas de Santiago.  You may recall one of my loyal readers, DJ, kindly sent me a couple of these to smoke and I enjoyed them quite a bit.  Rudy and Lani in Costa Rica are making some very nice cigars in beautiful presentations.  One of these weeks real soon will be Vegas de Santiago week and I’ll smoke and review (and I use that term loosely, I’m a crappy reviewer!) some of them.  I have a cigar from an event that they sponsored back in 2004 that I will finally smoke to compare and contrast. The wooden tubes are really cool and almost too cool to open.

Here’s another site for the blog junkies:  Cigar TopSite.  This is a simple listing of some of the more popular sites.  CigarCraig.com has been listed there since the beginning.  I’d LOVE to see it climb up the rankings, so if you wouldn’t mind spreading the word, I’d appreciate it.  I’m almost as bad at self-promotion as I am at cigar reviews.  I know what you’re thinking: “if more people follow the CigarCraig.com blog then there will be less chances for me to win some of the great stuff Craig gives away!”  I understand, but the more readers I have, the better my chances of mooching quality goodies to give to you, my loyal readers (there will be a new contest soon!).

Well, that’s about enough from me, until the next time,

CigarCraig

Oh yeah…..GO FLYERS!

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Sunday Cigar: CAO Black Bengal and a Contest! – Sunday April 4, 2010

It’s been a strange couple of days.  Friday morning the transmission on my 2002 Connecticut Shade PT Cruiser went out while my wife was driving it, so Saturday we went out and bought a brand new Toyota Yaris.  The PT has been a good car, but after it was involved in it’s second accident and probably got wet, once the weather warmed up it developed a mildew odor that we couldn’t get rid of, I even tried multiple cigars and the smell wouldn’t go away!  It stank!  The Yaris gets much better gas mileage than the PT, and using less gas is something that’s important to me.  I only use the car when the weather is bad as I prefer to ride my Yamaha Majesty to go to work or if I have to go someplace by myself.  The PT is being donated to the Purple Heart Car Donation Program, which benefits wounded and disabled veterans.

After we got home from a great Flyers game today, I lit up a CAO Black Bengal (6″ x 50) and took a short walk and finished up on my front porch listening to the latest  Stogiefresh podcast.  The cigar was pretty nice, however there were a couple of wrapper defects at the head that, while not effecting the performance of the cigar, the splitting wrapper detracted slightly from the experience.  It was a smooth cigar, with what I would call a woody flavor.  Certainly a decent cigar that burned well and tasted nice, despite the wrapper flaws.

Contest time!

I’ll return to having the cats choose the next winner, but this time we’ll place the cards with the names face down because I think some of the cats can actually read.  I want to make every effort to have the selection of the winner as fair and impartial as possible.  The winner will be selected from those who leave a comment on this blog post.  This months prize is a really cool Drew Estate Hat and a Liga Privada cutter, courtesy of my friends at Drew Estate.  So leave some comments and win some stuff!

**Late note:  it occurred to me that I forgot to set an end date for for this month’s contest.  The cut off is midnight on Saturday, April 17.  I’ll put the cats to work the following day and post the winner in my Sunday post.**

That’s all for now, until the next cigar,

CigarCraig

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