GP012

Nice of CA to ignore Urs & Marc in the photo at the end. 😒

In other automotive references, the PL Robusto Superior from Andorra in 2009 (released in 2011) was a pretty clear ripoff homage of the Audi RS line.

AUL was explained above, but the Cubatabaco leaf looks relatively crisp and there's no Totalmente A Mano, so it's 1985 through 1988.

Guessing very early Cubatabaco stamp, so mid 80s (June 1985?) Monte No 1's.

This question was spurred a bit by the threads on plugged cigar lounge etiquette and Tampa lounge shotgunning, and I don't recall a similar thread recently. Here's the patio where you'll find me from ~March to ~Oct/Nov depending on when the snow flies in New England. During the winter months, I'll sometimes smoke in my garage, but the quantity of cigars drops considerably. The closest lounges are 50+ minutes away, so I don't get there too often. What's your smoking setup?

Sounds like the perfect first episode conversation for Chef's After Hours spinoff pod.

Well that was fun to follow along with a similar box code from our host. This particular box has been a bit of jekyll & hyde experience over the last year, but I agree with the cream & honey/sweet notes. There was a marked increase in savory/salty in the second and final thirds. Mega smoke. Nine ... plus! Now to find another box, or three. Edit: I missed the hooker chat (thread title?) but did enjoy scone chat.

Shouldn't the 2003 Upmann factory be ECA, not LCA?

Alex is a gentleman and always pleasant to talk to. He's not as active on instagram now, but his collection is as impressive as you'd think it would be: https://www.instagram.com/awong.this_is_life/

Affordable Hidden Gems in the HSA portfolio you say?

My initial reaction to the once a month discussion: After thinking about it some more, I can understand the concerns with sourcing, but it's worth reaching out to the listeners for help. I don't think it would be construed as begging and you're not expecting all the cigars to be gifted, it doesn't hurt exploring before a drastic change. Maybe every third week would be a reasonable compromise? Personally, I smoke 95% CC's and prefer those episodes because I relate closer to their flavor notes. I'm not chasing a particular CC based on a rating from any one specific source, but that's not the case for pod's liquor ratings as I've probably purchased 8-10 bottles. You're also not smoking baller (Gran Reservas, Cohiba EL's) or unobtanium cigars (70's, 80's vintage, Davidoff, Dunhill, etc) that are impossible to find. For the most part, recent production CC's can be sourced within the US with some patience, effort and of course $. I believe there will be listener interest in continuing to revisit CC's reviewed in the early episodes - here's a short list of ideas to consider: - H Upmann No 2 - a recent code that wasn't from the LUB 14 run reviewed on episode 40 in 2022 - H Upmann Sir Winston - Christmas/NYE? - H Upmann Coronas Major - This may fall too much into the "cheap/budget" CC realm like the Partagas Mille Fleurs/Habaneros, but for a while they were smoking very well for the cost - LGC Turquinos - we're at 2 years since these were reviewed on episode 84 in June 2023. They were part of that new wave of releases that smoked excellent fresh, how are they now after 2 years? What about a recent box code, are they just as good as the original release? Maybe this sort of situation is on a three year cycle, so summer 2026? - PSD4 from 2021 NYE episode, ERDM Choix 2022 episode, etc - how are the recent codes? - Monte No 3 or 4, or Especial No 1 - I don't recall these being reviewed yet Revisiting cigars would add to the argument about including the box code/year on CC's for the rating database. You're all well aware of variations across year, month, factory or even within a box. We've all ruminated about changes in blending style and/or tobacco from the late teens to newer 22/23/24's and how fresh boxes are ready to smoke right away, nothing like previous years where they needed to sit and lose the ammonia. It may also be worth revisiting cigars that only had 4 or 5 lizards rating them to get a more accurate composite score. QdO Coronas Claros (5), PSP 2 (5), RA Small Club Coronas (4), QdO Senadores (4 - although not ideal due to sourcing issues), etc. I did find an ironic sourcing issue when looking for the current episodes' sparkling. All of the top Google results redirect to one store, Bottle King near the lizards in NJ... and there are no results on wine-searcher. Maybe CC's aren't that hard to source after all, eh?

I'm happy to help and have a wee bit of experience with BR

1, 6 & 7 AINEC.

We New Englanders - as intellectual superior beings - have already solved that complex mathematical conundrum. 🤣

I feel like I listened to a Cigar Sense podcast that had an interesting tidbit about the 25ct dress boxes in the last year or so, I'd have to go back and see if I can find it.