What cigar (or pipe) did you smoke today?

[RedPop4]

LCdH=La Casa del Habano. It's the only "official" shop of Habanos S. A. the company that produces all the fine Habanos brands of cigars. You have a better than even chance of getting counterfeit Cuban cigars unless you're in an La Casa del Habano. One must even be critical in hotels.

Stay AWAY from anything in a box with a glass lid. Habanos S. A. and Cubatobacco don't make ANYTHING with a glass lid. Rule of thumb, as in all business transactions--if it sounds to good to be true, it is. Know, too, that the Cohiba, especially the Cohiba Esplendido is one of the three or four most counterfeited cigars in the world, along with the rest of their line. Be careful, too, with Montecristo #2, Hoyo de Monterrey Double Corona, Romeo y Julieta Churchill. These are THE benchmark brands and sizes, known to many non-smokers. If you stray off to a less well-known brand, you have less of a chance of being ripped off.

Enjoy your trip, and only smoke the best.

 

[jamespowers]

They have other scotches too.

Well there is that too.

 

[BobC]

LCdH=La Casa del Habano. It's the only "official" shop of Habanos S. A. the company that produces all the fine Habanos brands of cigars. You have a better than even chance of getting counterfeit Cuban cigars unless you're in an La Casa del Habano. One must even be critical in hotels.

Stay AWAY from anything in a box with a glass lid. Habanos S. A. and Cubatobacco don't make ANYTHING with a glass lid. Rule of thumb, as in all business transactions--if it sounds to good to be true, it is. Know, too, that the Cohiba, especially the Cohiba Esplendido is one of the three or four most counterfeited cigars in the world, along with the rest of their line. Be careful, too, with Montecristo #2, Hoyo de Monterrey Double Corona, Romeo y Julieta Churchill. These are THE benchmark brands and sizes, known to many non-smokers. If you stray off to a less well-known brand, you have less of a chance of being ripped off.

Enjoy your trip, and only smoke the best.

Thanks for the info. I will definitely keep it in mind.

 

[jamespowers]

Thanks for the info. I will definitely keep it in mind.

And remember to bring back plenty for your friends.

 

[BobC]

And remember to bring back plenty for your friends.

lol lol lol If I only knew....

 

[indycop]

Tonight was a 5 Vegas Series A.

Have fun Bob !

 

[jamespowers]

Last night was a Por Larranaga Double Corona Maduro.

 

[indycop]

Last night was a Por Larranaga Double Corona Maduro.

Not all gone yet huh?lol

 

[Kermez]

Arturo Fuente Hemmingway Signature Maduro

 

[ET]

Tonight's cigar comes with a story. My sister called last week and told me she was coming to Minneapolis on business. Hadn't seen her for a year so my first wife and I rearranged life to go visit her. My departure from work got delayed so I called her and asked her to pack the essentials for our 3 day trip.

Got home 3 hours behind schedule and threw the bags and booze in the car in a hurry. About an hour into the trip I asked her if she had packed any shoes for me as I was still in my dress shoes from work. No, I thought you would change into some casual clothes and throw the dress shoes in for evenings. The 3 hour delay nixed that, so I moved on. Given a choice of dress shoes or casual shoes I guess I would rather be overdressed than under. Got to the hotel at about 1030 in time for drinks and Cigars and various snack activities. No cigars. Didn't pack em. To be continued

 

[Fletch]

Macanudo Hampton Court (just 1 1/2" of it) on the 4 o'clock walk today. This is a $7 cigar, smoother than those $4-5 jobs. Comes in its own tin tube, I guess so you can put it out and keep it for later. Anyway, that's what I did. Call me a Philistine if you like.

 

[ET]

So the next day, cigars became a priority. I don't get over to the West side of the Mississippi much, preferring the eastern of the Twin Cities, so I didn't know my way around. I asked the prince of concierges, the Yellow Pages, and found the closest shop to be 11 blocks away. I figured it would be a nice walk. Well the city buildings conspired to block all the sun at street level but not the 35 mph winds from the north. I resembled an ice cube within 4 blocks.

I did see the familiar Starbucks sign of defrost juice and managed to drag myself inside. A wonderful sight arose. I had seen the skyway bridges between buildings and assumed they were for local traffic only and were not meant to be travelled if you didn't have business in those buildings. Not so! There were retail spaces along the inner corridor on the second level of all the buildings, and hundreds of people travelled along the wide corridors. Banks, Restaurants, bars, clothing stores, department stores, gift shops. To be continued.

 

[ET]

Ah, the first wife was now in heaven. Recreational shopping at its best in comfort and warmth. We strolled along instead of trying to beat the wind. I finally got to where the Yellow Pages had told me to go. Lewis Tobacconist. It is a hole in the wall in an ancient art deco building. Literally crammed with cigars and pipe tobacco and implements of mass smoking at their best. The really cool part is that he makes and repairs his own pipes in a tiny little workshop beside the service counter. I think I was in there 45 minutes with the first wife, who does not smoke but talks to everyone to get their life story.

Thanks for the forum and go on your own adventure. I learned something about Minnesota I never knew. Must have had some Univ of Wisconsin grad come and design these skyways as they were genius.

Cigar: Hemingway Reserve

 

[HarpPlayerGene]

Today I enjoyed an Hoyo De Monterrey - my favorite stick. Comparable to Ashtons, in my opinion, but significanlty le$$.

 

[RedPop4]

ET, that's a tremendous story, thank you for sharing. In fact, you'll have a PM your way, soon.

That $7 Macanudo....well, among cigar snobs, to some extent, the Macanudo is a beginner cigar, they're mild, yet have a nice enough flavor that they draw in the newbies. That said, Macanudo is what every smoker aspires too...consistently good. The construction of Macanudo is simply fantastic, one rarely hears of plugged Macanudos; in fact if anyone has a burn issue, I'd be willing to bet they were improperly stored or smoked in a VERY unfriendly environment.

That Connecticut shade wrapper that General Cigars grows for the Macanudo is simply one of the most beautiful capas you'll find in the world of cigars. They're simply lovely, smooth and of a pretty hue. Glad you enjoyed it.

 

[Mr. Paladin]

Last night I enjoyed a Camacho Triple Maduro Belicoso. I work night-shift and have mine around 0200 hrs. on most nights; heavier cigars are my favorites.

 

[BobC]

I am pleased to say that I have enjoyed several Partagas Series D No IV's the last couple of days, each with thoughts of my fellow lounge members who requested that I have one for them. I have also had two robustos rolled on the premises of Cuban leaf tobacco that were on par with the Partagas. For today, I selected another robusto and a fine looking torpedo. Regards to everyone from Freeport.

 

[RedPop4]

Excellent.

 

[indycop]

early this morning a CAO Brazilia

 

[RedPop4]

I'm hoping to have a smoke escorting our T or T phalanx at my in-laws' party. I have in my 3 finger case a Dea Churchill, Chateau Real corona and a Vegas Cubanas by Don Pepin Garcia. I just got the Vegas Cubanas this week in a bomb from an old friend on Cigar Weekly. He sent me a tenner of these, a couple little Diplomaticos, a small Party PC among the stash.