El Titan De Bronze Redemption Lancero - (Circa) November 2017 - Weekend Review Competition

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It's been a real winter in the Northeastern USA this year...plenty of snow, but even worse, consistently very cold temperatures...



My favorite travel buddy - the one who was dumb enough to marry me a few years back - and I decided a few months ago that we would get away to Fort Lauderdale, FL this week for some of this:

And a bit of this:

And whatever else might come our way.

Yesterday, which was the last full day of our trip, it was a little cool outside for a beach day, so we drove down to Miami to visit Calle Ocho for a Cafe Cubano, and a locally-rolled cigar. I smoke far less than I used to, and almost never smoke NCs, but when in Rome...

On the advice of some knowledgeable friends, we ended up here, at the El Titan de Bronze factory:

We were treated to a quick tour of the factory:


Before I settled on a handful of these:




We took them up the street to find our Cafe, and a place to sit and take in the sights and sounds of Little Havana.

The coffee was sweet and bitter, and the Son music and Spanish voices in the air made me smile.

The cigar:

The construction was near perfect...it drew with just the right amount of resistance.

The prelight aroma was very pleasant, with some caramel and tea notes to it.

The first third was...tannic, and confused and young.

But as I smoked it down further it mellowed, taking on a creamy character that, while not complex, went nicely with the coffee, and beautifully with the surroundings. It didn't really change much, but I didn't need it to.

I was relaxed, and warm, and happy.





This was miles from being the best cigar I've ever smoked. But the setting, its origin and the contentment it brought made it a great one. 

At times, a cigar is a story unto itself. At other times, it is but one element in a larger narrative.

I look forward trying another one of these when they've had some more down time. At worst, it will bring back a wonderful memory.

At best, it may tell a tale all its own...