Due to an overwhelming consensus of praise for these "You know who" cigars originating from the community, I just had to try one. What I had in my hands were these massive Churchill sized culebras bundled together with twine. No pictures this time, as my camera quality is on par with Helen Keller's eyesight, so this will be a narrative.
It is a massive monster measuring 7x47, although 8 months ago I would have considered this a normal sized cigar, now I am edging towards smaller formats due to several factors including time, mandible strain, and of course flavor. These are fresh from the source (2007) no considerable aging was noted, no humidor time applied, straight out of the ziplock bag. The color is a medium brown, natural color, perhaps similar to the Vermont Maple Syrup Grade A medium amber. The smells coming from the bundle are hard to describe, perhaps raw tobacco, a little bit of a fruit medley usually noticed in the produce aisle of the neighborhood grocer.
Firm spongy feel as I groped this serpentine cigar, and reflect back on how phallic this really looks. Everyone got that image in their heads? You dirty minded people... :laugh: I proceed with my mohel skills slobber all over the head, in preparation for tearing the foreskin off the top. A pre-light draw, tight, tighter than I would prefer. Maybe it is the humidity as these sticks traveled from one high humid climate to another. The tastes are pleasant, nothing pungent, a mild mix of earthy flavors, some coffee, and a bit of salt. I presume the roller was sweating profusely under the pressure of attempting to roll this fine addition to my collection knowing it was just for me. I might have to ask Elliot for the box code, the gender of the roller, and what was the exact time this particular cigar was rolled.
Several deep breaths to clear my air, I bring the torch to the foot, give it a good rim job, and blaze away. Twang!!! The flavors!!! OH MY!!! Dominant Coffee flavors, nuttiness and vanilla essences bathe my tongue in this majestic battle for a good draw. The pull tells me no, but my aggressive nature refuses to give up and I ravage this stick for all its worth. It cries trail smoke smelling of honey, the experience felt so dirty, but onward I go.
Only until the midway does the cigar give in slightly, and the draw becomes a bit looser. Perhaps it is enjoying it as much as I? NO!!! It teases me and tightens up again, occasionally the fires dwindle, but my zippo torch perseveres. My head is in a slight spin, I don't know if from the lack of oxygen or the flavors I am experiencing, but... I LIKE IT!! Coffee, nutty, earthy, creamy, ah... flavor country. Towards the end all of the cigar's inhibitions are let loose, and I can now draw with optimal pleasure eventually nubbing this little bugger.
Overall, this is one of the better cigars I have smoked, and it smoked great young. I would say some time in the humidor would eventually mature this stick into a monster of a smoke. Maybe I'll revisit these again around Christmas time, that is if I can keep my hands off these things. Then with the storage in a lower RH would possibly loosen up the initial draw a bit and allow me a better "O!" experience from the start.
It is a massive monster measuring 7x47, although 8 months ago I would have considered this a normal sized cigar, now I am edging towards smaller formats due to several factors including time, mandible strain, and of course flavor. These are fresh from the source (2007) no considerable aging was noted, no humidor time applied, straight out of the ziplock bag. The color is a medium brown, natural color, perhaps similar to the Vermont Maple Syrup Grade A medium amber. The smells coming from the bundle are hard to describe, perhaps raw tobacco, a little bit of a fruit medley usually noticed in the produce aisle of the neighborhood grocer.
Firm spongy feel as I groped this serpentine cigar, and reflect back on how phallic this really looks. Everyone got that image in their heads? You dirty minded people... :laugh: I proceed with my mohel skills slobber all over the head, in preparation for tearing the foreskin off the top. A pre-light draw, tight, tighter than I would prefer. Maybe it is the humidity as these sticks traveled from one high humid climate to another. The tastes are pleasant, nothing pungent, a mild mix of earthy flavors, some coffee, and a bit of salt. I presume the roller was sweating profusely under the pressure of attempting to roll this fine addition to my collection knowing it was just for me. I might have to ask Elliot for the box code, the gender of the roller, and what was the exact time this particular cigar was rolled.
Several deep breaths to clear my air, I bring the torch to the foot, give it a good rim job, and blaze away. Twang!!! The flavors!!! OH MY!!! Dominant Coffee flavors, nuttiness and vanilla essences bathe my tongue in this majestic battle for a good draw. The pull tells me no, but my aggressive nature refuses to give up and I ravage this stick for all its worth. It cries trail smoke smelling of honey, the experience felt so dirty, but onward I go.
Only until the midway does the cigar give in slightly, and the draw becomes a bit looser. Perhaps it is enjoying it as much as I? NO!!! It teases me and tightens up again, occasionally the fires dwindle, but my zippo torch perseveres. My head is in a slight spin, I don't know if from the lack of oxygen or the flavors I am experiencing, but... I LIKE IT!! Coffee, nutty, earthy, creamy, ah... flavor country. Towards the end all of the cigar's inhibitions are let loose, and I can now draw with optimal pleasure eventually nubbing this little bugger.
Overall, this is one of the better cigars I have smoked, and it smoked great young. I would say some time in the humidor would eventually mature this stick into a monster of a smoke. Maybe I'll revisit these again around Christmas time, that is if I can keep my hands off these things. Then with the storage in a lower RH would possibly loosen up the initial draw a bit and allow me a better "O!" experience from the start.
No, Tim, I don't mind. Pictures are always appreciated.