A Couple of Cigar Recommendations

I've always enjoyed a cigar at the intervals dictated by special occasions, but having sampled a properly-humidified stick at a smoker a couple of months ago, I decided I might want to invest in a humidor to ensure a ready supply of good smokes when WG and I entertain.

Thompson Cigar Company produces some beautiful humidors, and with WG's consent, I purchased one.

But what to fill it with?

I'd never really smoked enough cigars to have much of a brand preference, so a subscription to Cigar Aficionado and some experimentation seemed to be in order before buying a couple of boxes of cigars I might not enjoy.

Suitably armed, I ventured forth to my local tobacconist and asked him to recommend some individual cigars to try. I'd take 'em home, let them age in the humidor at least a couple of weeks, and give each a try in turn, applying Cigar Aficionado's rating system (15 pts Appearance/Construction, 25 pts Flavor, 25 pts Smoking Characteristics, and 35 pts Overall Impression). This system yields results whereby a 95+ rating is Outstanding, 90-94 is Excellent, 80-89 is Good, and anything less not worth your time or money.

Since cigars are a very individual taste, much like wine, you're better off rating your own than taking magazine ratings at face value.

Several months into this experience, I was ready to buy a couple of boxes. JR Cigars I found to have a wide selection and excellent pricing and service. Cigar.com is pricier but has a wider selection.

Here are my tasting notes for my Top 3 cigars:

Hoyo de Monterrey Excalibur No 1 (7 1/8" 54) - Veiny Connecticut shade-grown wrapper around Dominican and Honduran long filler. Easy draw, lots of cool smoke with a clear nutty flavor. Produces long, firm ash. Rating: 92

CAO Brazilia Piranha (4 7/8" 46) - Beautifully constructed. Dark and oily Brazilian wrapper surrounds Nicaraguan long filler. Smokes perfectly, with a clean, spicy, full-bodied flavor. Rating: 92

Onyx Reserve No 4 Maduro (5" 44) - Veiny, dark and oily Connecticut wrapper around a blend of Dominican, Nicaraguan, and Peruvian long filler. Medium draw, warm smoke. Medium-bodied with a hint of cocoa flavor. Rating: 90

I'm not an everyday smoker. In order to keep this a special ritual, I smoke only on weekends, and then no more than 3 or 4 cigars any given day. Like most cigar smokers, I don't inhale, I simply taste the smoke and blow it out. More often than not, I pair the cigar with port wine after lunch or dinner.

For her part, WG contents herself with the occasional puff off a cigar I'm trying or with an even more occasional cigarillo.

Needless to say, we're both hoping the monstrous Fidel Castro is replaced with a Cuban leader committed to democracy, thus liberating the oppressed and enslaved Cuban people (and potentially allowing the Cuban cigar industry to return to pre-Castro heights, particularly in the U.S.) I think we can all smoke to that.