Rocky Patel Vintage 1999

This little beauty is the definition of mild!

What a wonderful smoke from beginning to end. Cool, even burn, long ash, mild taste.
I enjoyed this late afternoon, before dinner on the beach.
Life is good!

John

ACID Old Infusion

I have to admit that I have not cared for infused cigars in the past. It has always seemed that the flavor infused into the wrapper had a way of over powering the taste of the cigar. Now I would say that I had never had a properly infused cigar.

I am really enjoying the ACID sampler that I got from Thompson Cigar!

Today's Old Infusion was a very mild smoke with a pleasant, but subtle flavor from the infusion. It wasn't even strong enough to really identify the taste. It was just a hint of flavor on the tongue and then gone. So far, this one has been my favorite.

There are a few in the sampler tin that have darker wrappers and I expect to have a much bolder flavor. I am looking forward to them and will let you know about them when the time comes. But I will definitely consider these babies for a future purchase. A very good smoking experience!

John

ACID Sampler

It has been a little while since posting here about my cigar sampling.
The truth is that I generally smoke a decent, everyday cigar and smoke much less often in the colder weather. I smoke when I am able to sit outside and enjoy a long smoke or when I'm up for a smoke as I walk three of four miles.

Recently I purchased a Rocky vs Romeo sampler (Rocky Patel and Romeo y Julieta) and a ACID sampler tin.

I'm getting ready for a beach vacation and want to have a few good cigars and enough to share with a friend. Knowing that I won't be smoking all of these on the beach, I've started sampling the ACID cigars. So far I've had the Blondie and the ACID 1 as well as one of the little cigarillos.

The Blondie was a nice surprise. The subtle flavor in the wrapper was a nice accent to the otherwise mild smoking cigar. It burned cool and even and held a nice ash for a small cigar.

The ACID 1 was also a very pleasant smoke, as was the little cigarillo.

I am looking forward to enjoying the rest of them and to break out the Rocky and Romeo smokes once I hit the beach!

At one point I was posting reviews on the Thompson Cigar site and they were automatically posting here on my blog. For some reason, that stopped happening and so I just post here. I wish my cigar budget allowed me to sample better cigars more often, but I am happy to just enjoy a good smoke as life allows and will share those here on a more regular basis.

John

A Fuente's Hemingway

It's been a little while since I've posted anything here -- that's not to say that I haven't enjoyed a few cigars over the summer. I've just neglected to post about them.

I thought that maybe I'd get back to it.

The truth is, although I really do enjoy a fine cigar, for the most part I smoke cigars that are good (to me) and affordable enough to smoke on a pretty regular basis.

Recently, I was given this little gem by my new favorite cousin.

I had everything that you would expect a Fuente's cigar to have. It was a very enjoyable smoke. I'd say mild to medium and an easy burn. I was surprised at how long this little smoke lasted. It was an enjoyable treat and I sat in the November sun reading a good book.

John

PDR-VLR Connecticut

This afternoon's smoke is another from my Thompson Cigar Churchill sampler. This Connecticut leaf wrap is a nice mild smoke.

This cigar lights easily and burns evenly. There are no real distinct flavors, just a very light earthy taste and an easy aroma.

If this is offered in a bundle deal, it would make for a nice daily cigar.

John

Don Rafael Sun Grown

So I've been posting pics over on Instagram of my daily smokes and thought that I ought to be writing something about them. I'd post reviews on the Thompson Cigar site, but they have stopped linking to this blog, so I'll just post them here.

I recently purchased a forty cigar sampler (two each of twenty different Churchills) and have been enjoying them a great deal. It's unfortunate that I didn't get around to reviewing them earlier as I have worked through several of them already.

I'll begin by saying that these are (for the most part) not great cigars. They are, however, very good everyday, all occasion smokes and very much worth the $1+/smoke price.

Today's selection is a Don Raphael Sun Grown Dominican.
It is a very mild, easy burning cigar. I can't say that it has any distinguishing flavor characteristics, but would certainly purchase this cigar to fill my humidor for a good daily smoke. I'm about 40 minutes into this smoke and it is still as mild as it was when I started. I often grab a cigar when I'm out for a walk and this would be nicely suited to an easy three mile stroll or to enjoy on the deck while I'm typing away on the computer (as I am now!).

A decent cigar, a shady deck, a cool drink, a nice breeze ... life is good!

John

Gurka Prestige

I received two of these gems as a part of a sampler package just before Christmas. They have mild written all over them.

That was my first impression as I took my first deep draw...very mild.

It lit easily and is burning very nicely. It builds a nice, long ash and has absolutely no bitterness.
At about an inch of ash I started to notice a very subtle coffee like taste that slowly vanished as it reached the halfway point. From there, it was more of a softly tanned leather-like taste and aroma with a little bit of clove like smell added in.

This is a very fine smoke and will go on my list of cigars for special occasions.

As a rule, I like to smoke good, inexpensive cigars. This is a very nice treat. I haven't checked the pricing on buying a bundle of them, but know that Gurkas are usually above my everyday price range. I will have to save the other one for a time when I will be able to sit and enjoy a nice, long smoke,

John