November Cigar of the Month: Thank you!!! And we have a winner (or two)! (But you're going to have to work for it.)

And the winner of the Norteno cigars is...

First let me say, I was thinking the other, um, minute? That maybe I should shut the eff up because I was bitching in the last post about not being able to attend a few cigar events because I had to work. In honor of the season, I fully acknowledge that of course I am thankful I have an awesomely cool job and my students, for the most part, are fantasticly, or at least fantasticishly, awesomesauce.

Get it? Oh, I am dying of laughter! [source]

And then I decided I should not listen to myself complaining about bitching because:

1. I like the sound of my own voice (even the ones in my head)
2. Any sane person is going to have the sad if their partner-in-crime, er, cigars gets to cigar without their partner.*

The position has been filled!
Thanks, Valentino! Best. Partner. Ever. (Too mushy for the blog?)

I know you slogged through all that in order to get what you came for:**

The winner of the Nortenos is...

By the way, sorry I made you wait a few extra days. Since I missed five days of school recently because of the saddest of sadnesses, I've been trying the play catch-up and failing miserably. And then there was some badass food to be eaten. And then there's this deadline to revise a manuscript to perfection*** before sending it out, time crunched because of that lost week. And then the Christmas shopping that must be done and wrapped two weeks before Christmas... Zoiks.

So I'm a few days late. Since it's my thing and this is my blog, I can't even get in trouble.****

Evil laugh, of course! [source]

Also, by the way, thank you all so much for participating in the giveaway.  This was our most successful to date by a kazillion percent, so we are very very grateful that you shared your awesomeness with us.

Thanks for reading our blog! It really is a labor of love.*****

So without further...

Oh. Hold on. While we're talking about random things, I have to beg you to follow our friend Will the Travelling Owl on Facebook.****** If you like what we're giving away here, you'll totally dig what we have coming up at the beginning of the year over there!! Plus, he's pretty fun and has a ton of adventures, some of which we talked about here!

Okay, for realz this time. Except I'm stalling. I want to send you all something, but I suspect Valentino will be super pissed if he comes home to find the cupboard (humidor) bare.

So I'm choosing two of you. And he can't stop me because he isn't here. Insert that evil laugh here, too.

The winners are:

Denee Salazar and  JCarrier02 <<~~I'm assuming that's not his/her real name!!

Hahahaah. [source]

What's the December Cigar of the Month?

We're glad you asked!! A collection of cigars plus some swag from the amazing folks at Alec Bradley. Go here for contest details!!

Upon his return, Valentino will take a much better photo.
But yeah, you get this!!

*For heaven's sake, like I tell my students, although they don't believe me, I'm not a monster!!

**I was going to make a funny--very funny (in my head)--joke about it being similar to suffering through a fabulous dinner while on a date in order to have delicious sex with that devastatingly attractive and funny companion. But I didn't want to offend anyone. So there you go!

***Some might call this writing, but I call it revising with style.

****Because Valentino is away and doesn't know I haven't done it yet.  What? Oh.

*****Why am I so sappy today? Grrr. Buck up, soldier!

******No, it is not weird that we just called a stuffed owl our friend.  Check out the Facebook page and you'll see why it's not crazy at all!!

The Litto (Gomez) Shuffle

Valentino and I had to run out of town today, and that journey just happened to take us in the direction of Old Firehouse Smoke Shop in Fall River, MA (and lunch with my parents--Hi Mom! Hi Dad!) and we just happened to stop in to say "Howdy!" to Wyatt.

Hi Wyatt!

Oh, and shop proprietor John Brandt! (Although one of us may or may not have greeted the dog first. That person may or may not have been me.)

Okay, full disclosure. John had something we wanted and as far as we have been able to figure, he's the only one who has them. I guess you could say he's our supplier.

Now, lots of folks have the Small Batch Litto Gomez. But John, John has the 2010 batch. (That's Batch #3, if you're keeping track.) We had picked up a couple (one to smoke and one for the humidor) a while ago just on a whim (okay, and a recommendation). Valentino smoked it at an event at the Connecticut Valley Tobacco Museum and swooned. (I'd like to pretend he was swooning over my awesomeness, but we all know it was Litto.)

Let's back up a second. In case you didn't know, Litto owns this little cigar brand called La Flor Dominicana. Hahaha--not little. One of our most super favorites!* I love all their cigars. Even the ones I haven't met yet! You may remember this gem. Oh! And guess what! One of our favoritest cigar friends is John Gallogly, our LFD rep!** Hi John!

According to Traveling Stogie, "Production of this cigar is limited to 30,000 packed in crates of 104 cigars which limits distribution to about 285 crates... [T]he plants used for this production cigar are grown on a blocked off section on farm where only the premium leaves are used."

 

Just now, before he lit it, Valentino tested the draw and said, "This is something. This is something that I can't place." Naturally, I asked the internets for help because you can get anything on the mighty mighty internets. And there it was. "Was it sourdough?" I asked, pretending I knew what I was talking about, but really, the genius belongs to the folks at Traveling Stogie. (Thank you!)

 

With Dominican filler and binder all nestled together with Dominican Sumatra, our new toro love*** has a gorgeous reddish hue on its shapely 6.75 x 52 self.

 

Hello, my pretties.

I'll admit, when I first saw them, I was perplexed. The tobacco leaf veins stood out and left the texture bumpy and craggy. This was completely different from the traditional smoothness of the cigars I'd encountered thus far. But it had personality. And charm. And a beauty I couldn't quite describe. Kind of like Ray Liotta. (Don't judge. Use your imagination.)

 

And now, as I sit here at Habanos with the gang (Hi Lauren! Hi Brian! Hi Nathalie! Hi Dave! Hi Sarah!**** Hi Mike! Hi Lexxie! Hi Doc! Hi Doc's cousin whose name I've already forgotten!*****) (Oh, Hi Valentino! XOXO), I get to second-hand smoke all its deliciousness. Its primary taste is leather, reminiscent of its look, accompanied by cedar and an underlying sweetness of molasses and cocoa.

 

When we picked up six today, I looked at the remaining dozen or so (maybe 18? Math is dumb.), and I'm still thinking I need to go back and get the rest. You guys know how I get about limited editions and "When they're gone, they're gone."

 

I mean, how can I not want him to be this happy for as long as possible?

 

Again, I'd like to say it's my awesomeness, but it's all you, Litto!

Mom and Dad! We'll be shuffling over there for dinner soon!

 

 

 

 

*I came, I bought, I'm actually wearing the t-shirt right this second!

**Technically, he's not OUR rep, but...well, you know. He exudes awesome. And he takes a hell of a selfie!

***Yes, yes, we know we are fickle. But we have so much love to give the cigar world. There's plenty for everyone! Don't worry!

****I'm going to post this before you get here. You'd better come or...I don't even know what will happen to the internets. They may be permanently broken. And then Brian and I will have the sad. Probably other people too.

*****Sorry! Lauren makes a hell of a drink!

The Crux of the Matter* <--Note the first sparkle!

We're sitting at the Mr.J's Havana cigar dinner in that seekrit location and the featured cigars are those by Crux.

"Who?" you ask, and rightfully so, because if you happened to spend the summer smoking old favorites, you might have missed this newcomer to the cigar scene. This past June, they launched the Passport, Ninfamaniac, and Skeeterz, followed quickly in July with Classic and the Bull and Bear.

At the dinner, we were given the first three and we jumped right in! We're nice like that!

First up? Passport, which comes in three sizes: the toro (6 x 48,which Valentino happens to be smoking right this second**), 5.5 x 44, and 7 x 40. The wrapper is Ecuadorean, the binder and filler from Nicaragua, which perked Valentino up before he even lit it. After all, as you must know by now, my guy is the #1 fan of Nicaraguan tobacco. 

True story.

When Valentino first toasted and lit the Passport, I waited patiently, slowly slipping the sangria that accidentally wound up in front of me. (That happens a lot at cigar dinners, for some reason.) He didn't make the "This is effing good," face that occasionally occurs upon the first puffs. But because this was something brand-spanking new, he took the time to savor over a third of the cigar (and I waited patiently, savoring one half of the sangria) before making the proclamation that it was pretty darned good.  Definitely worthy of some quality time.

I wasn't sitting directly next to him, poking him and annoying the crap out of him, like I usually am, not unlike a pesky mosquito (or should I say "skeeter"<--see what I did there?) and because there were so many guys smoking different cigars from Crux, I didn't get a chance to enjoy a good second hand smoke, although I did manage to capture and rein in an occasional chocolate and tobacco taste as friends stopped by our table to chat. Sangria makes me chatty.

Valentino said the Passport was hovering on the high-end of medium/low end of full.*** He also said he was getting a variety of flavors as he progressed through the tasty stick. The chocolate was an actual thing--not just my subliminal cry for dessert. He also picked up some cedar and citrus, along with pepper and leather. I continued drinking and accidentally stopped listening.

As the dinner portion of the evening ended, the raffle began and this happened:

Valentino won a travel humidor loaded with Crux cigars, compliments of the company. Thanks, guys! Our hero, along with the three other winners, and (L-R) Cigar Rep Mike Ferraro, Mr. J's Havana's Mark Feeley, Mr. J himself [Paul Joyal], and Tom, son of Mr. J! Huzzah! Congratulations! And if you must know, I also won--a table-top lighter offered by Mike! Thanks, Mike! Thanks all you super awesome guys! Signed, the token girl at the cigar dinners! XOXO

 

When the festivities wound down, we headed home, but then accidentally wound up at Habanos, where Valentino tried out the 7 x 33 Ninfamaniac, which comes in natural and maduro, although we only had a natural handy. The Esteli, Nicaragua filler and Indonesian binder are lovingly wrapped in Habana Jalapa.

 

Halfwheel.com had this to say about the Ninfamaniac's unique shape and taste: "There isn’t much problem burning through the closed foot of the cigar and establishing a somewhat firm but certainly acceptable flow of air that produces more than enough smoke. I do find myself adjusting how much of the cap to clip off in an attempt to preserve some of the pointed head while also ensuring there is enough of an opening to enable adequate air flow. There are touches of sweetness on the palate in the early going, along with some dry soil notes and a certain tangy zing that I’m inclined to think is coming from the Indonesian binder."

He finished that one, smoking it right down to the finger-burning nubbin and we didn't really feel like ending the evening (even though someone had an 8:00 class and had no right even being awake at that time!), so he fired up the third of the evening, the 4 x 32 Skeeterz--perfect for when you want quick and delicious. (Heh heh)  It has the same filler, binder, wrapper elements as the Ninfamaniac, although because of its unique size and shape, offered up a completely different smoke and experience.

Let's go to Halfwheel for the info about this one, because 1. I know he smoked it; I saw it happen, but I have no memory of any other sensory information about it other than seeing the smoke; 2. I forgot to ask Valentino to tell me descriptive words about it, and he's smoked umpity gajillion cigars since then. I've been a bad blogger.****

"Starting into the first third I’m immediately greeted with notes of fresh hay, a little licorice, a touch of light black pepper and some spice. Despite the earlier soft spots the draw is a little on the open end but still well within the ideal range. The smoke production from this little cigar is billowing and plentiful when drawing and drops down to almost no smoke coming off the foot a few seconds after setting it down. Less than an inch into the cigar and the black pepper has ramped up, coming more to the forefront to join the hay and the overall sweet spice while the licorice from the beginning has completely disappeared."

Yeah. What they said. If I were a really good blogger/reporter, I'd get him to smoke another so I could take in the experience and give you a first-hand report. But hahahahahaha. No. (He's out doing man things right now, so I couldn't ask even if I were so inclined.)

ANYWAY! You're probably dying to know who makes all these dandies.

Say "Hello!" to Jeff Haugen and Joel Rogers, co-owners of Tobacco Grove in Maple Grove, Minnesota!

Hello, Gentlemen! You've made our list of favorites! Welcome to the party!

"We have been retailers of premium cigars for over 20 years and have been truly blessed to be involved in selling a product that has done so much good for so many people. Cigars build friendships and community, uniting people from all walks of life. Cigars allow people to relax from the stressors of life, which allows us to sort out the challenges we face. Cigars allow us to celebrate the moments that matter most. Cigars reward us for our successes and help us accept our failures."

I know exactly what you're thinking: Penny***** needs cupcakes.  Ha ha ha. No.******

You were thinking, Sheesh! That's what Penny has been saying all along! The community! The friends! The culture! They're all favorites!

So...the moral(s) of the very very long-winded story:

1. The cigars? They are good! Super good! And...
2. The three we've had so far? Perfect for three different occasions: The "I want to leisurely hang out with friends" (Passport), the "I need to relax but I don't have a shit-ton of time" (Nimfamaniac), and the "Penny doesn't want to leave yet but the place is going to close and I don't want to fire up a cigar that I'm going to have to let die" (Skeeterz). Also...
3. These guys? They're super cool and you definitely want to support them and their new lines of fab cigars. So...
4. It's crucial that you try all the cigars in the Crux line.*******

 

*Sometimes these things just write themselves.

**And by "right this second," I mean this past Monday when I started this blog post. Sometimes, like a good cigar, they need to age a bit before they're released out into the wild.

***Glass half full, half empty. Whatevs.

****Yeah. Like it's the first time.

*****That's me, by the way, in case you haven't been paying attention--ever.

******I mean yes, I always need cupcakes, but that's not what you should have been thinking at that very moment!

*******See what I did there? Crux meaning the crucial point? Plus it's Latin for cross.********

********Yes, I studied Latin in school. And yes, I know my nerd-level just rose exponentially. Yay!

In which I am Solely Responsible for my Son's Corruption (Part the First)

The other day I received this picture via text:

Yeah, he's going to need a better cutter.
I already got him a lighter because matches...too much work.

Along with the message "Well...am I cigar-ing correctly?"

I called him immediately, mainly because I was driving to work and the audio book* I had been listening to just finished. Starting a new one right away is like ending a relationship and starting a new one moments later. A small period of mourning must be observed.

Anyway, the other day he said he stopped by a cigar shop in his West Virginia town only to find them closed. Like, closed forever, not "Back in 5 minutes" closed or "On vacation" closed. Closed closed. Apparently he was all "Yay!" on his way there and "Boo!" upon his discovery.**

Then he found another humidor, which happened to be tucked into a liquor store. After a couple of misses (read: cigars that fell in the no-way-again category) he hit upon this Romeo y Julieta Vintage, which he loved.

He only recently started his cigar adventures because "Your blog makes me want to smoke cigars." Yay! Wait. Boo! No smoking! But then again, Yay!

His liking this RyJ makes sense. With an Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade wrapper, Mexican binder and Dominican filler, the Vintage is a "mild-to-medium bodied smoke," according to the company website. "The discerning*** smoker will never tire of this superlative cigar that is 'truly a cigar for special occasions.'"****

According to CI, "Introduced in 1993, the Vintage series is a luxury cigar, mild with a very round flavor and made in extremely limited supply."

Since I wasn't around while he smoked--well, on the phone, but obviously that's not helpful!--I went in search of a flavor profile descriptors, because I'm nice like that. "The cigar had a creamy, almost cappuccino flavor, with hints of cocoa that are just delicious," said the Stogie Guys. "I’ve found that in the past it seems as though mild cigars tend to burn a little hot, but this stogie also bucked that trend with it’s [sic] cool, easy pull. Combined with its flawless even burn and steady ash, this cigar was a true joy to smoke."

Don't tell him, but maybe, just maybe, a certain mom might be purchasing a certain box (or at least a shit-ton) of a certain cigar for a certain offspring. I'm not naming any names, though. Shhhhhh!

"Good night, good night. Parting is such sweet sorrow,
That I shall say good night till it be morrow."
--Juliet (and me)



*The Book of Life by Deborah Harkness, the third book in the All Souls trilogy. Yes, you must read them in order. No, you will not be disappointed. Yes, I recommend the audio books. No, you will not fall asleep listening to an audiobook while you drive. Yes, I think that's a dumb statement when people say it.

**The apple doesn't fall too far from the tree.

***Well of course he is. See the sparkles above.**

****You know, like coming home to Mass for the first time in a year and a half.  If that ain't special, I don't know what is!

(BR)AVO!!

I'm one of those annoying people who puts XOXO at the bottom of emails and text messages--but not business correspondence.  You make that mistake only once. Or twice.

Just thought you should know.

Yesterday evening, as we bided (bode? boded?  wasted?) our time walking around Federal Hill, waiting for a couple of friends (Hi Brian! Hi Michael!) to meet us for dinner, Valentino pulled out an AVO XO Presto. Swoon.

I'll admit I'm a sucker for a classy logo and/or band and, as a result, I've been a long-time fan of the AVO brand.

The moment he started toasting the XO's foot, I wanted to take it from him and whisk it off to Vegas and marry it. It reminded me of a fine, creamy dessert, one you could only get at Del Posto in NYC, one of my all-time favorite restaurants.

More, please.

At 3 3/4 x 43, it was the perfect before-dinner smoke, taking exactly as much time as a person (me) needs to drink two sangrias as we sat in front of the restaurant, watching people, a favorite pastime (drinking and watching people simultaneously).

The wrapper of this mild cigar is Ecuadorian-grown Connecticut seed, with Dominican binder and filler. (There may also be a mildly-spicy crème brulee tucked into that wrapper. That's some good camouflage. Well played, gentlemen.)

I asked him to smoke another today as we sit outside loving the weather, but he only had the one! Whaaa? Who let this happen?!?!

Anyway, here's some cool info about the company's jefe*: "Avo Uvezian is a cosmopolitan who began his career as a musician and went on to become a composer, cigar aficionado and even a creator of fine cigars. Avo, who lent his name to AVO Cigars, has nurtured all these talents in his quest for perfection. In both music and the creation of cigars, passion is the driving force that spurs him to find perfect harmony."

Okay! Time to run. I have to get ready to go out for another cigar adventure.  In the meantime, I leave you with...

XOXO


*Spanish for chief or boss