tdlfoto Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 Went down to Grand Cayman Island for a vacay with my family and some extended family as well. Got to try out the Xikar Travel Humidor and packed it with a handful of cigars, mainly acquired through the Live From The Humidors here at FoH. Weather was perfect, kids kept each other busy, wifey (mostly) stayed out of my hair, and all was good. Had some fantastic dinners (namely Calypso Grill and Pappagallo) and plenty of good times and drinks at our favourite little spot on Seven Mile Beach Road, ‘Deckers’. I didn’t take notes but here is a summary of what I recall from the cigars I did partake in… Montecristo #2 This was 09 PE stock from the Czar and was simply outstanding! Nice sheen on the wrapper, consistent feel as I rolled it through my fingers, really rich aroma on the foot. Lit up and greeted by tons of cocoa and mouthfuls of smoke. Over the course of the cigar it picked up in intensity bringing in some leather and spice in the second half. Still smooth though, and a lot of smoke right up to the end. Burn was good with the odd small run that was easily correctible. Can’t wait till the weather gets better here so I can enjoy the balance of these on the front porch. Juan Lopez Seleccion #2 Picked this up from the cigar shop adjacent to the bar we attended faithfully every night. Though I had brought down a dozen cigars I just wanted to try something new to me so I simply reached for something that was in the robusto size since it was my brother-in-laws favourite vitola and I was buying for him also. Well, what an absolute gem this smoke turned out to be!! Aside from watching my son swim with stingrays this may very well have been the highlight of time in the Cayman Islands. Construction was great – very even feel in my fingers as I rolled it around, nice darkish wrapper, and really strong aroma up front at cold. Constant underpinnings of toasted tobacco with some honey, and roasted nut flavours in there as well. The burn was perfect, even with a slight cross wind through the covered but open bar we sat in. My brother-in-law (a long time smoker) kept remarking how fantastic he thought this smoke was, and I couldn’t have agreed more. I would say its’ replaced Cohiba as my favourite robusto but I’ve only smoked the one JL2 so that might be jumping to conclusions. I’ll be looking for a quality box on Live From the Humidor. San Cristobal de la Habana Mercaderes Purchased 8 singles from one the promos run by the Czar and next to the JL#2 this was my favourite smoke of the trip and I’m stoked I have 7 more in the humidor. Beautiful wrapper free from large veins. Aroma at cold had sweet notes mixed in with classic tobacco. Draw was bang on, and burn absolutely perfect end to end. More of a nutty/cocoa medium flavoured smoked vs punch pepper which, to me, made it seem all the more refined and, if you will, regal. Tons of rich creamy smoke made me want to just start chewing on this thing. Delish!! A smoke I’ll reserve for special friends or my dad. San Cristobal de la Habana El Principe My staple regular/small cigar (along with Bolivar PC). Didn’t disappoint, didn’t bring anything new to the table either. Medium dark flavour of tobacco with some chocolate, some dough. A great morning smoke as I sat in my lounge chari on the beach and watched the kid play. I’m into my third box since July and I’m impressed with the consistency. Cohiba Robusto Always a treat, perfect constructed, and pleasantly full of toasted tobacco and some honey/sweet flavours coming through as well. I always find myself wanting another inch or so and this was no exception. Partagas Mille Fleurs Another morning smoke I had while on the beach. Perhaps that exacerbated the draw and burn problems. There was a real tight bunch of tobacco I could see when I cut the cap off that never really allowed for a proper draw. Wind also played havoc and I was canoeing most of the time. When I could taste it, it was quite punchy and flavourful. I’ve enjoyed several of these at home. I’ll chalk this one up to iffy construction and poor smoking conditions. Tossed it 2/3rds the way in. Bolivar Petite Corona Along with the San Cristobal Principe, this is my staple cigar. Nice wrapper and fairly consistently filled (couple spongy spots maybe). Draw was slightly fast. True to form this one was packed with coffee and toasted tobacco and some coffee flavours. Burn was fine until I got out of the hammock and the wind played havoc. As noted in the photo below, I needed to pay attention to the burn. Hoyo de Monterrey Des Dieux Picked up an HQ box from a LFTH a few months back and only smoked one prior to this. Simply fabulous! Great construction, aroma at cold, and the burn was perfect. Dominated by chocolate flavour throughout but also showed some nice sweetness (perhaps honey and/or vanilla). Draw was excellent, and the only issue was I couldn’t put it down, thus burned my fingertip a little. Overriding Thoughts/Gratitude I brought along a number of cigars which tend to fly under the radar (Des Dieux, Marcedes, Principe, JL2) but which are truly fantastic smokes. These were the perfect compliment to my vacation “me time”. I’d be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge the czar crew for highlighting some of the great cigars in their video reviews, and the forum members who’ve also turned me on to some great smokes. My son in front of the LCDH in Georgetown Missing a few labels...forgot them at the bar I guess Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatFastard Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 Great shots! Thanks for sharing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elfort Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 Great smokes, great pictures and great reviews! Looks like You had a nice vacation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thechenman Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 Nice...very nice. Thanks for sharing your pictures and your reviews. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Puros Y Vino Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 Very cool rundown of smokes. Great photos too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZAZ Posted January 17, 2011 Share Posted January 17, 2011 Great sticks AND photos! Thanks for sharing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bartolomeo Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 Great reviews and pics, thanks for sharing! Bart Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El Presidente Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 I love a holiday! You appear to have the formulae nailed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CUBANO Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 Thanks for the reviews. Wanting to try the JL#2 and the SCdLH Mercaderes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanuckSARTech Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 Well done, Tony. Great photos as always, and an awesome selection you had to enjoy. Sounds like a heck of a time - I'm completely envious of your swim with your son and the stingrays! Very cool. Thanks for sharing - a nice vacation indeed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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