“Smoked Up” No.40

Posted by Shawn

October 8, 2013

The threat of Hurricane/Tropical storm/ Tropical depression/ rain shower Karen has come and gone. At one point, my hometown was in the bull’s eye of her path. Later on the path drifted to the east, the next thing I know, its about a 2hour hard rain shower. So much for that! The good thing is a cold front moved in and it has been absolutely beautiful weather here the last few days. Mid to high 70s in the day and upper 60s lower 50s at night. Cooler weather for me means, more outdoor time, hunting, football, and more cigar time!

Although the cooler weather was a plus for the week, I have sad news to relay to you. Our friend “Uncle Bob” passed away Tuesday evening. We all knew it was coming soon, but it still hit us hard. I guess it was better that it came sooner than later. His quality of life was dismal and I hate to see anybody in that shape, let alone a great friend. We gathered up new and old friends on Friday evening and had a “Memorial Bonfire” in “Uncle Bob’s” honor. That’s the way he would have wanted it to be. There was beer, shine, cigars, jokes, stories and lies at the bonfire…. all the manly stuff we enjoyed together. Bob wasn’t there physically, but he was there with us laughing at and telling jokes all night. He will be missed deeply.

Robert McGrath
“Uncle Bob”
12/7/1936 – 10/1/2013

Cigar Views

Rodrigo La Fortaleza “Forte”: This cigar had a smooth & leathery flavor profile. There was some nice salted caramel notes as well. Had a thicker draw than I usually like. A good burn let loose some flaky ashes. About half to three-quarters into it, the cigar turned on me. I am not sure if the high humidity and heat from TS Karen had started to effect it, or what. I wasn’t in the mood to be fighting with a cigar flavor wise, so I laid it to rest there. But the first half or so wasn’t all that bad. Nothing fancy smancy, but something I will try again.

Quesada Heisenburg Project Corona: I have found a fondness for many Quesada Cigars. This one is one of them and is in my top 5 Quesadas. I had this at “Uncle Bob’s Memorial Bonfire” with a healthy dosage of “adult beverages”. I didn’t pay much attention to the flavors, but I smoked it to a nub. For being a corona and the activities I was involved it during the night, it held one heck of an ash! Worth the $5.50 price, most definitely! I will be adding a 5pk to my cigar short list. Luckily, the local B&M is getting them in soon, and I can’t wait to get more of these and the Octoberfest in my humidor.

Hoyo De Monterey Reposado En Cedro “Sueno”: I have been resting this cigar since I was gave it at the 2010 IPCPR Trade Show. When I first had a few of them, they were really, really cedary. The way they age the tobacco in cedar shavings gives the Sumatra wrapper a nice cedar kick to go along with the sweetness of the wrapper. This one was still a cedar flavor bomb; but not as potent asÂ when it was fresh.Â Thick clouds of smoke that went along withÂ nice amounts of cedar. Along with the cedar is a faint creamy vannila flavor. I also go some floral tones on the back half of the smoke. Worth the price of about $7.50 (online)… I would say so, I really enjoyed this cigar.

Oliva V Melanio Maduro: You ever set aside cigars that you have had good experiences in aging? Or set aside cigars you think will do good with aging? Well, this was the case for this particular cigar. I had wanted to let it rest and age for a year or more like I try to do with the yearly V Maduros (which will be released in November this year). But, I grabbed it and didn’t realize it was my “aging experiment”. So, needless to say, I am going to grab a few more to age and smoke. This cigar wasn’t as good as a fresh (or aged) V Maduro, but I did enjoy it. Although, I will spend my money on V Maduros more that these.

Gurkha Cellar Reserve: Along with a few Terrapin Wake N Bake Beers, this was the cigar I had after hearing of Uncle Bob’s passing. I wasn’t all that into remembering the smoke, more remembering the times we had with Bob. I can say, I did enjoy the smoke. Its was fairly dark and woody if my memory serves me right. Had a slightly thick draw and a so-so burn. But other than that, I would buy it again. Even thought the $10 cost, it was good enough for me to try it again. There are a handful of Gurkha cigars I care for, this is one of them.

ToraÃ±o Vault Blend A-008: Recently, the local B&M acquired some of the ToraÃ±o lines(with Leccia Tobacco). I grabbed a Vault last time I was in as I couldn’t remember ever having one or not. The smoke was limited from a thick draw from the firm feeling cigar. I did get some notes of espresso, dark chocolate & a very faint cinnamon. It ended with the chocolate & a healthy dose of coffee. This cigar would have been a lot better if the draw wasn’t so tight. If I didn’t like the flavors, I would have pitched it way soonerÂ due to the tight draw. A cigar I will try again, but not anytime soon.

Ventura Project 805R: This was the cigar of my weekly review. I won’t go into too much detail; you will have to read the review. But all I will say, that it was a very good cigar with a few experiences I have never came across with a cigar.