my recent CC adventures

[IcedCanuck]

A couple weeks ago I was in Toronto and was meeting up with someone to burn a few sticks at the Hyatt Park rooftop. I had some time to kill so I strolled into the LCDH that was right around the corner. It was my first time in an LCDH and I was impressed by the selection they had available in their walk-in humidor. The suit behind the counter was a little too professional for my personal tastes but I guess that's just the scene. I couldn't resist picking up a few CCs so I grabbed a Montecristo Edmundo, Partagas Serie E No.2, and a Vegas Robaina Unicos (none of which I have ever had). After my trip to the LCDH I strolled over to the Hyatt hotel where I parked my arse, smoked four of five sticks, and drank some really nice scotch. My impressions of the place were that Torontonians are lucky to have such places! Fantastic view from the roof, heaters to keep you warm on cool nights, the service was REALLY good, the drink list was killer, and did I mention the stunning view of the city?

Last Saturday, back home in Ottawa, myself and a friend checked out the Bachhus cigar lounge found on the lobby floor of the Lac Leamy Casino Hilton. It was a tad bit smaller than I thought it would be but has a good atmosphere. Their drink list does not come even close to matching the selection found at the Hyatt rooftop but I gotta say being able to smoke indoors was very nice. The place is ventilated very well. Towards the end of the night I'd say the place was about 2/3 full and the room never got smokey. I ended up smoking my first Montecristo Edmundo that night. I had pretty much written Montecristo off as a lost cause by that point because the majority of Monte's I've smoked recently have been complete crap but this Edmundo changed my mind. It had the flavour profile that I always expect out of every Monte. This Edmundo was on its game and it will not be the last I smoke. I also used a punch on my cigars all night. I never had any draw problems or burn problems and each cigar I used the punch on never went out so all in all a good experience with the punch. I did notice that towards the end of the larger sized CCs I smoked that night there was a bit of tar buildup starting to form just inside the punched out hole. It never got really bad so nothing to worry about but I do remember seeing a few threads on that subject over the past few weeks. I think I might experiment a bit with different sized punches for different ring gauges perhaps.

[riazp]

Great post Phil, looking foward to checking out the bacchaus next month with you ottawa folks. As for your punch comment, I do punch my robusto sized cigars and bigger and do notice a nice difference....I enjoy the petit edmundo alot and its far better when its punched than when its cut...the flavors are more concetrated.

[mikec]

Yes the Hyatt rooftop is a hidden gem to smoke a cigar, not many people know about it. It's one of the last nice places to enjoy a cigar in Toronto. Cigar friendly in Toronto...whood a thunk it.

[kiwiman911]

nice! I gotta check the bacchus out soon...

x2 let me know if you decide to go might be able to make the trip...

[dicko]

Nice post, these two venues sound very nice. Would love a place like that in Perth.