quote:

Originally posted by GA Gator:
Cmr that is at lot of opuses it's rare that I see that many in a retail store.

That's not in the store! That's my "guy" I was talking about earliers most recent haul. I had one of the "power rangers" while shooting sporting clays sunday.. I guess I should have gone with a longer stick as it only lasted half the course. Next time!

Exchanged gifts with my wife last night and amongst my hoard was a bottle of Macallan 12 and a Victor Sinclair 10 cigar sampler. Woooooo!

ETA: Smoking the Cafe Latte from the sampler. Just as good as any Tabak I've tried.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Leemur,

Christmas gift exchange at work, my manager got me a Gurkha Ghost, which I did not like at all! It had this weird flavor at the forefront that just ruined it for me. I smoked about half of it hoping it would get better, it didn't. He also got me a Gurkha cellar reserve 15 year, I'm leary of it since i havent met a Gurkha i like yet. Anyone here have good experience with gurkha?

quote:

Originally posted by Jaywendland1981:
Christmas gift exchange at work, my manager got me a Gurkha Ghost, which I did not like at all! It had this weird flavor at the forefront that just ruined it for me. I smoked about half of it hoping it would get better, it didn't. He also got me a Gurkha cellar reserve 15 year, I'm leary of it since i havent met a Gurkha i like yet. Anyone here have good experience with gurkha?

A few pages back I asked a similar question, it seemed the overwhelming conscious was to stay away from Gurkha until they get their house in order.

The Cellar Reserve is not a horrible stick...just plain with no transitions and over priced. Since it was free though, smoke it up and give us your take on it.

I really enjoyed the ghost I tried. The Beauty has been inconsistent. I had five and every other one was decent.

I just lit up a Victor Sinclair Vintage Select torpedo. Pre-light aroma was wonderful and the draw had a bit of pepper. So far it is a smooth smoke with a slight hintvof pepper but no real flavor yet. I need to let it warm up to start releasing flavors.

quote:

Originally posted by Leemur:
I really enjoyed the ghost I tried. The Beauty has been inconsistent. I had five and every other one was decent.

Did the ghost have distinct weird (weird to me) flavor? I couldnt place it but it ruined it for me, I liked everything else about it.

The last few Gurkha's I've tried have had a taste I can only describe as "chemicals".

quote:

Originally posted by Ronin1069:

quote:

Originally posted by Jaywendland1981:
Christmas gift exchange at work, my manager got me a Gurkha Ghost, which I did not like at all! It had this weird flavor at the forefront that just ruined it for me. I smoked about half of it hoping it would get better, it didn't. He also got me a Gurkha cellar reserve 15 year, I'm leary of it since i havent met a Gurkha i like yet. Anyone here have good experience with gurkha?

A few pages back I asked a similar question, it seemed the overwhelming conscious was to stay away from Gurkha until they get their house in order.

I also commented that Ive tried several of their offerings with nothing good to report. The black beauty was decent, not enough spice but had a good flavor.

quote:

Originally posted by Ronin1069:
The last few Gurkha's I've tried have had a taste I can only describe as "chemicals".

That is why you always see them on sale or bundled with a better cigar.

Article on the Cuban cigar changes in the US. Discusses the author's top 5 or so to seek out.

I've tried a few of them, the Monte 2 is still my favorite.

http://nypost.com/2014/12/23/t...tm_medium=SocialFlow

quote:

Originally posted by Ronin1069:
Article on the Cuban cigar changes in the US. Discusses the author's top 5 or so to seek out.

I've tried a few of them, the Monte 2 is still my favorite.

[url=http://nypost.com/2014/12/23/the-forbidden-cuban-cigars-you-need-to-get-your-hands-on/?utm_campaign=SocialFlow&utm_source=NYPFacebo
ok&utm_medium=SocialFlow]http://nypost.com/2014/12/23/t...tm_medium=SocialFlow[/url]

The Monte #2 is the #1 selling cuban cigar. It is a victim of its own success. Since so many are produced they are made in several factories and that affects consistency of the cigar. Your box of 25 can be made by 25 different rollers in 5 different factories.

When you get a good one it will be the best cigar you've ever smoked. Unfortunately finding a good one is luck of the draw.

I prefer to smoke the less popular cuban cigars. Fewer are produced with better consistency, usually by few rollers in one factory.

The Diplomat #2 is always good if you like the Monte #2. They are a bit harder to find but its worth the effort.

My favorite Cubans are the Ramon Allones Specially Selected, the Por Larrenaga Petite Corona and the Ramon Allones Small Club Corona. I've never had a bad one of any of these.

I am not digging this Victor Sinclair. It's not horrible but I have had much better. The burn is good but it doesn't have much flavor. I am also getting quite a bit of tar build up and need to clear the cigar every few puffs. I have had more than one and was not too impressed with them.

quote:

Your box of 25 can be made by 25 different rollers in 5 different factories.

Wow Jeff, I didn't know that. I'm going to seek out the Diplomat that you recommended.

Punch 'punch' is one of my favorites, along with monte #4, and the RASS .

Halfway in to the Cellar Reserve 15 year(Gurkha) and it was good until now, its started to develop that weird(chemical) flavor. Other than that it had some nice smooth mellow characteristics. I probably wont finish it if this flavor keeps up though. After work im heading to the lounge for a Liga and their 10% off sale.

My box of Tatoo 10th Anniversary arrived today...yeah!

Ronin if you haven't found newhavanacigars.com they are the place to order Tatuaje from. I am not sure the connection to Tatuaje but they have the best selection. They have the RCs which I have never seen in a B&M. The also have their own line NHC which is blended by Pete Johnson and made by the Garcia's. Another must try are the La Verite which are out of production.

http://www.newhavanacigars.com...ntage-sampler-13.htm

http://www.newhavanacigars.com...at-brw-rc184-box.htm

Hey all, I've been away for a bit and I see you've kept the thread alive! I've had a couple of interesting smokes while working on a very large project with my brother (the project has kept me away from the thread, but he's one of my smoking partners so we were able to burn some gars..). We both like the Kentucky fire cured enough that I got a couple more of the Hammock size and tried some of Spectres. They both have a similar pre light aroma (smokey almost barbecueish), but as I suspected the Drew Estate cigar was superior. The taste is more concentrated, and it seems to be more consistent. However, I picked up the Spectres for $2.80 a stick (on cbid) so they were worth trying and are a good putzing cigar..

You all keep tempting me with your Tatuaje reviews and comments!! I think it's probably a good thing the 10th anniversary seem to be out most online places I usually shop at. I think my wife is going to kill me if I spend any more on sticks. I haven't checked my local B&M to see if they carry the Tatuaje line, but if I can get in there maybe I can spend some cash on some to keep it under the table.. I almost bought the pudgy monster sampler the other day (CI had a 20% the entire site for a couple of days) but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. Mostly because I'd have to buy 2 samplers so I could enjoy the gars with someone else to get the most out of the experience.

Merry Christmas all, and enjoy a good gar with family or friends!