I’m back!

So as you can see, I’m back…

In order to keep things a little more focused, I am going to concentrate on reviews and any important cigar news I come across.   Posting Cigars of the Day was getting too time consuming - plus I am in grad school and have lots of other things going on right now.

One thing you can depend on from my reviews is 100% honesty.  There will be some cigars that I love and hate, no matter the source.  (Meaning donations for review, though greatly appreciated, will receive the same honest review just like every other cigar on this blog.

Please let people know about my little blog…   and even leave a comment or two if you are so inclined.

Thanks!

berris
“MaytagMan”

Arganese CL3 Robusto

Arganese CL3 Robusto
5 x 50
Wrapper: Dominican Republic
Binder: Dominican Republic
Filler: Dominican Republic
Date: 07.20.08
Smoke Time: incomplete

Prelight:
The wrapper is a nice deep-brown color with some darker mottling.  There is a visible oily sheen.  There is one significant vein from the head to about 1/3 towards the foot.  The construction is solid and even, with a couple of small bumps near the top of the band.  I won’t make any negative comments about the band on this one as it is a temporary band only.  I have seen the production bands, and they are much nicer.  Prelight aroma had a spicy overtone with subtle scents of dried cherries and hay.  Prelight taste had a soil-like earthiness and dried fruit.  There was a slight tingle on my lips and tongue already.

1/3:
It started off right away with spicy flavors at the forefront.  The interesting thing is that it was all at the front of my mouth and not anywhere deeper on my palate.  The draw was a little bit tight, but not enough to be distracting.  The ash was solid and medium gray in color.  My sample definitely needs some more age…  there was an amonia undertone to the flavor that was distracting.

2/3:
Raw strength dominates the cigar with spicy flavors that were powerful and a bit on-dimensional.  The amonia flavors were not subsiding -  they started to coem to the forefront to the point that they were objectionable.  I had to pitch the cigar at about the halfway point.

3/3:
n/a

Overall:
From my brief intro, this seems like it was all “in your face” power with no real backing flavors or complexity.  This is a pre-release version, so I wonder if regular production versions will be aged further and have a more refined profile?

Kinky Friedman “The Governeor”

Kinky Friedman “The Governor”
5-3/4 x 60
Wrapper: Honduras
Binder: Costa Rica
Filler: Honduras & Nicaragua
Date: 07.12.08
Smoke Time: 80 minutes

Prelight:
The cigar has a nice and smooth deep-brown wrapper with no major veins or defects at all.  The cigar was springy to the touch, with no bumps or soft spots.  The prelight aroma consisted of spice, a touch of must, and toasted hay.  The prelight taste had interesting oak elements along with wet leather and a slight spiciness.

1/3:
The cigar started off immediately with a nice thick volume of smoke.  There was a pleasant spiciness mixed with a deep earthiness and cedar flavors.  There was a slight runner of about ½ inch that I had to correct as the first third progressed.

2/3:
The spiciness continued and intensified with hay flavors adding mixing with the cedar and earthiness of the first third.. The balance here is great.

3/3:
The flavors continued to develop and evolve together.  They mixed and mellowed a little bit, which made for a nice complexity.  There was also a spicy tingle that started on my lips and on the tip of my tongue.

Overall:
Let me start off by admitting that I am not a fan of ridiculously large ring gauge cigars in general.  The good news is this is probably the best 60ish ring gauge cigar that I have had.  The blend was great, and kept my interest with spiciness and a good evolution of flavors as the cigar progressed.  Of the three Kinky Friedman cigars I have tried, my order of preference is The Willie, The Texas Jewboy, and The Governor.  I am looking forward to trying the Kinkycristo and the Utopian in the future as well.  Kinky did a good job with these!

Bottom line… did I like it?

Hiatus

Hey all…   okay, in this case “all” really refers to the 2-3 people that actually read this…

Juast a quick post to inform you that I will be taking a break from posting for a little bit.  The blog really hasn’t really been what I expected so far, and I need to wait until I have more time to dedicate to my writing for it to work at all.   I had wanted to include all sorts of my random ramblings and thoughts, but time is not on my side at the moment.

Plus, with 2 or so comments and no subscribers, its not like I think anyone is going to give a rusty fuck anyway.

 I still subscribe to several blogs, and will continue to enjoy them.  I also encourage you to visit all of the cigar sites I have linked for you to the right.

Thanks and take care for now!

~berris

Cigars of the Day: 08/07 - 08/12

COTD: 08-07-07 - Oliva Series V Double Toro…  good cigar, but 60 ring gauge?  Damn….    Too damn big and distracting, but great flavor - I look forward to trying another in a more reasonable size…

COTD: 08-08-07 - Had an Hoyo Epicure No. 1 with PO in the afternoon - good as always.  Finished the evening with a 2003 Hoyo du Prince… now THAT was an amazing little stick!

COTD: 08-09-07 - Had a Padrón 1926 #35 Maduro…   mmmmm…. good….

COTD: 08-11-07 - Enjoyed a Tatuaje Havana VI Victorias….  I am loving these!

COTD: 08-12-07 - Had an Epi 2 in the evening…  my last night before school starts!

Cigars of the Day: 08/01 - 08/06

Lots of great cigars this week…  if only there was more time!

COTD: 08-01-07 - Okay, today didn’t start great… in fact it started out pretty awful.  Started off the afternoon with a really old Cuba Aliados Robusto-ish thing…    blech.  Fortunately, I was able to finish the evening with an Hoyo de Monterey Epicure No. 2….    now THAT is a cigar!

COTD: 08-02-07 - A couple of quickies today.  Had a WOAM (Work of Art Maduro) in the afternoon and a Partagás Short in the early evening.  Both were very nice.

COTD: 08-03-07 - Another great cigar day!  The afternoon was brightened by a Tatuaje Havana VI Lancero - a great smoke!  I ended the evening with a Litto Gomez Lusitano…   wow…  strong….   but in a good way, with a subtle sweetness on the palate as well.

COTD: 08-04-07 - My first smoke at a party was a RASS (Ramón Allones Specially Selected), and this was followed shortly by a La Gloria Cubana Series R #4 Maduro…  a couple of great smokes!

COTD: 08-05-07 - Enjoyed a Padilla Miama Lancer today…   what a fantastic smoke…  I am really liking the Lancero size lately!

COTD: 08-06-07 - Smoked an ‘04 BBF while I was out roasting coffee…  The Bolívar Belicosos Finos is wonderful with a little age!

Cigars of the Day: 07/25 - 07/31

Well, it seems that I am already becoming rather lazy about getting my COTD entries in…  The days just seem to slip by and I don’t get shit done.  As a result, I think I am going to try doing the updates on an approximately weekly basis.  So here we go!

COTD: 07-25-07 - Started off the day with a PSD4 from ‘04…   a nice way to enjoy lunch.  Next was a Don Francisco Robusto in the early evening.  I finished off the evening with an El Cobre torp - a definite winner!

COTD: 07-26-07 - My only cigar today was a Ramón Allones Specially Selected…   Great as usual!

COTD: 07-29-07 - After a busy day in San Francisco (including a nice bit of flesh torn from my ankle… thanks Dave!  :-))  I had a La Aurora Preferidos (Gold Tube).   Not bad.

COTD: 07-30-07 - Started off with someting new… an Illusione 68 (their PC-sized smoke).  Pretty good - I will hold on passing judgment until I try some other sizes.  In the evening, had a great Boliva Petite Corona from ‘05.

COTD: 07-31-70 - After a nice day in Santa Cruz celebrating our anniversary (and despite me suffering some kind of ridiculous fucking headache), I enjoyed a Cohiba Maduro 5 Magicos to celebrate another great year with my wonderful wife…   (awwwwwww……)