People will talk at length about the right drink for a particular occasion, and even longer about the right food. But what about the right cigar? Now, for a situation where you’re relaxed an really able to enjoy the complexity, you’d feel no compunction about smoking something complex and expensive. Maybe a Cuban someone gave you, or a Cohiba or whatever.
But what about when the usual vagarities of the office have you frustrated? What then? Punch?
I spent Saturday building a fence with and old friend, and it was a very hard day’s labor. We got all of the posts in place, and called it quits. After a little barbeque we settled in for some cigars.
First was a Punch, double corona. These had been splitting on me in the past, but they’ve finally dried out enough to be perfectly smokable.
Second were Fonseca Robusto, which was significantly milder than the Punch. These were really just filling in a little time - we were sitting in the driveway admiring our handiwork along with glasses of Bushmills, but they were very enjoyable all the same.
Last came Montecristo #3, which was the best of the bunch. I taste much more spice than in the previous cigars. Even my friend commented that it was very good.
It was a very late night, but very enjoyable.
Last night I finally got a chance to sit down with a cigar after several days of being either sick, busy, or it raining hard enough that porch-sitting was not an option. After so long, I decided not to experiment but to have a known quantity - and I chose a Punch in double corona (or thereabouts) size.
Now, the first Punch I had was quite good and burned pretty well. The second basically exploded on me due to some over-humidification, although the flavor was still great.
The third was a mix. The foot was already split, but not too much. I didn’t notice until I was outside and by that time I wasn’t about to waste another moment. The cigar lit fine, burned fairly even and was tasty. After a few moments it split. Not a major pop like last time - like the cigar had dried out a bit, just not enough.
Anyway, it was a nice enjoyable smoke, split and all. I decided to sketch some upcoming woodworking projects while I was at it. I plan to make a small cigar case, about the site of a hardcover book, out of cherry or maple. It will hold 12 to 20 cigars, and will be lined with spanish cedar.
I actually had a cigar explode today. Seriously.
Ok, it didn’t actually crack like a gunshot but it did burst.
It started when I decided that the local block party might require some cigars. I didn’t have enough of anything on hand (other than the Fonsecas, which I’m keeping) to both smoke and hand out to a half-doze guys who might be asking. So I bought seven double corona Punch at the local shop, along with a Traveldor.
Now, here’s the thing about Traveldors - they use that green florist foam along with water and poly glycol to maintain a proper 70% relative humidity. I know this, but I didn’t have any poly glycol so I just used water. I suspect this had the humidity much higher. But, for a few hours at a part what’s the diff?
Nothing, but I didn’t smoke any at the party. Instead I smoked one today and while I was smoking it I heard this strange popping sound - it turns out the wrapper was cracking and the cigar was exploding out the wrapper.
It makes sense - over-moist cigar meets very hot air, which causes the water to vaporize and the cigar can’t breath fast enough to release it. But it kinda sucks to see a $5 cigar tearing itself apart.
I decided to check out a local cigar store, and while I was there ended up getting several things:
The lighter is one of those torch jobbies - it was $25 - and it works pretty well. The cutter is a $3 special, which I’ve since learned I probably would have gotten for free by buying a whole box of cigars. I’m not sure the cutter is better than the pocketknive I was using, but it’s more “correct” ;-)
I haven’t yet tried the Padron, but the Punch cigar was really quite tasty. It was about as strong as the Consuegra, but much smoother and more refined. I’d use the word “creamy”, but I’m not sure that’s right. It had a bit of spice that grew as I smoked it. The burn was uneven, but that could be the poor storage it’s suffered for a few days. The draw was very good. So far, I think it’s my favorite.