La Estrella Cubana Gordo: Review

This posting is in preparation of The March Matching (March 6 – 12)

March Matching is where I pair six different cigars against one BEER!  Which one will be the best pairing.

Wrapper: triple-fermented Costa Rican Maduro

Fillers: Dominican and Nicaraguan

Size: 5 x 56

Dark roasted coffee notes right off the light.  Many have described this cigar with an espresso like quality and I have to agree.  Overall this Gordo has a soil earthy profile, dark roasted coffee notes, burnt toast, and deep roasted tobacco flavors for a medium bodied robust smoking experience.  With these roasted flavor notes I am going to give this cigar a 6.5 on my strength scale.  I believe the texture has a wool like feel.  I have seen the flavors and the mouthfeel described as, ‘buttery-smooth and creamy.’  Must have been a politician writing the tasting notes there. 

5:1 odds

The last two cigars will be posted next Saturday in preparation of March Matching.

Cain Nub 464 Torpedo Maduro: Review

Wrapper: Maduro

Fillers: Nicaraguan ligeros

Size: 4” x 64

The other five cigars came in a sampler pack and I needed one more cigar to have six in order to make my brackets for the March Matching.

The cigar starts off smooth with some nice earthy notes.  The coffee notes seem to have a smooth medium roast style.  There is a pleasing zesty spice that is not overpowering.  In one word smooth and toasty.  Okay, two words.  I’m a teacher what do you expect. 

The earthy notes have a rich soil and alder wood like taste.  The coffee stays at the medium roast level throughout the cigar.  The spice is more on the back of the palate and on the aftertaste. 

This cigar is billed as full-bodied.  I can’t go there.  I’ll have to give it a 6 on my strength rating.  It has a good medium to medium-full on the body and very pleasing flavor on the medium-full scale. 

1:1 odds

This posting is in preparation of The March Matching (March 6 – 12)

March Matching is where I pair six different cigars against one BEER!  Which one will be the best pairing.

A Cigar and Wine Review: La Gloria Cubana Serie R No. 7 and Catena Malbec 2008

Wino Wednesday Cigar Pairing

The Cigar

La Gloria Cubana Serie R No. 7

From the 3 pack tin
Wrapper: Ecuadoran Maduro
Binder: Nicaraguan
Fillers: Dominican and Nicaraguan

(as stated on the tin)
Size: 7 x 58

My Strength Rating: 7.5

I have always enjoyed this line since it came out and that has been a good long friendship. I have found the wrapper to be inconsistent at times. Sometimes it can be jet black then, another stick can be black and brown. I have learned to skip the ones with some brown in them. I like the black sticks. Now, the one that came in the tin is the black with brown spots. My favorite size is the No. 6, or six inch cigar, and my friend Ford Steve (Now, GE Steve) likes this 7 inch big boy. I sure miss my cigar smoking buddy but, he is doing well in Atlanta now.

On to the smoke: The foot didn’t light the best but, that was due to the size and I didn’t get one spot. This created an airy flow on the first few puffs till the cigar was well lit. The No. 7 does not start off as spicy as the other smaller sizes. The cigar has a smorgasbord of earthy notes and a leathery texture on the start.

After the first inch or so, I start to notice a bit of fine grind black pepper on the tongue. There is a good touch of dark coffee bitterness. The earthy style has settled to a rich soil, portabella mushroom, and hardwood. The amount of smoke can be vast at times. I guess that should be expected from a cigar this big.

I am just past the halfway point and the cigar is just as smooth as can be. The rich earthy notes are so tasty. The hardwood notes seem to dominate at this point. There is still a fine grind black pepper that plays on the palate. The bitter bite seems to have faded and it is more of a dark roast coffee taste now.


The Wine

Catena Malbec 2008
13.9% abv
Bodega Catena Zapata Estate
Mendoza, Argentina
My Strength Rating: 8 on the first glass; second glass a 7.

This family has been growing grape vines since 1902.

This Malbec is a blend of ‘becs’ from four of the family’s vineyards. Maipu 20%, Lujande Cuyo 10%, Tupungato 40%, and San Carlos 30%.

First glass without decanting: My first sip is a luscious black fruit explosion and the blackberries seem to be leading the way. There seems to be a dark chocolate bite swirling around on the palate that has a slight creamy feel on the palate.

Between the blackberry bite and a high % dark chocolate bitter style the mouthfeel/texture sure is intense during this first glass.

This is no lightweight Malbec. This is heavyweight stuff. If you like mild-medium bodied Malbecs you better sit on the sidelines or this linebacker will knock you down.

The aftertaste starts with an alcohol warmth on the back of the palate and then I feel a jammy feel that coats the whole mouth.

The second glass is a little more relaxed once the wine had some time to breathe. There are more black fruits to choose from on the taste: Blackberry, black cherry, mulberry, and/or boysenberry. Take your pick on the berry profile but, it sure is tasty. The earthy notes are more noticeable. Earthy notes: mineral soil and tobacco. The mocha flavor is pleasing and there seems to an undertone of vanilla. The bitter dark chocolate and sharp blackberry bite is not as noticeable as it was on the first glass. The finish is smoother than the first glass.

I don’t know if I like the first glass or the second glass. I do know that I sure liked the intensity of the first glass.

Overall, this is one tasty Malbec. The complexity is there. The dark fruits are plentiful. The aftertaste is pleasing.

Must buy.

The Pairing
I planned this pairing for the full-bodied style that these two exhibit. I also really like both of these products so, I hope they get along.

This is one great pairing. The earthy notes mix well. The dark roast coffee profile of the cigar mingled with the berries and mocha notes of the wine. The palate never felt overwhelming during this pairing, which was a concern at first.

I think I’ll just sit back and enjoy the rest of this experience.

Recommendation: If you appreciate intensity in a wine then, open this bottle of Malbec and pour that first glass and just sit back and enjoy the ride.

La Perla Habana Black Pearl Gordo: Review

This posing is in preparation of The March Matching (March 6 – 12)

March Matching is where I pair six different cigars against one BEER!  Which one will be the best pairing.

Wrapper: Brazilian Arapiraca Maduro

Fillers: Nicaragua, Mexico, and Dominican

Size: 5 x 56

Off the light some smooth toasted and earthy notes.  Flavors of toasted wheat and rye bread, dried raisins and fig, a slight nutty note, and a forest floor earthiness peaks my interest.  Mild to medium in body. 

The overall mouthfeel seems delicate and smooth but, the overall taste profile seems uninteresting to me.   I’ll have to give it a 4 on My Strength Rating.

Not the most interesting stick around but, nice for a mild-medium maduro smoke.  Some of the sweet maduro tobacco notes came through on the final third of the cigar.  

9:1 odds

Another two cigars to be reviewed in preparation of March Matching next Saturday.

5 Vegas A Gordo: Review

This posting is in preparation of The March Matching (March 6 – 12)

March Matching is where I pair six different cigars against one BEER!  Which one will be the best pairing.

Wrapper: Costa Rica Maduro

Fillers: Dominican, Honduran, and Nicaraguan

Size: 5 x 56

Off the light: I like the medium-dark roasted coffee notes on the first few puffs.  Then I start to get a feel for a dry cocoa powder taste on the palate. 

As I approach the mid-point of the cigar the flavors are still medium-dark roasted coffee and cocoa powder with a nice toasted pumpernickel bread note and a white peppercorn spice added to the mix along with a good soil earthiness.  The mouthfeel is robust in style and the texture is a bit wool like, so I would not call it smooth, because it has a little bite to it.  The roasted flavors linger on the palate for a meaty aftertaste. The cigar finishes with a solid robust style.  Good earthy notes, white pepper spice, and dark roasted coffee notes.  I’ll have to give it a 6 on my strength scale.  4:1 odds

March Matching Maduro’s and A Beer TBA

I have selected these 6 cigars for this year’s March Matching.

The first five are 5” x 56 Gordo’s

5 Vegas A Gordo

La Perla Habana Black Pearl Gordo

La Estrella Cubana Gordo

Oliveros LTD Gordo

Bahia Maduro Gordo

And the add-in is the 464 Torpedo Maduro Cain Nub 4” x 64

I will be pairing up the cigars in three brackets and then smoking the two cigars at a time with the beer to be announced.  Then, the winner of each bracket, three cigars, will be going head to head to see which cigar is the best pairing with the beer.  I will be giving the odds for each cigar as to what I think will be the best pairing with the beer. 

I have not smoked any of these in this size and I have only smoked the Vegas, LEC, and the Cain in other sizes.  So, this should be an interesting March Matching.  Since, I have not smoked these before I am going to smoke each of these cigars one at a time, with Bell’s Winter White Ale, to get the flavor profile of each stick. 

I selected the Bell’s Winter White because it should not have too much to interfere with the actual flavor profile of each cigar.  Also, it is only a 5% abv so, I should be able to review two cigars a day with a beer or two and not get hammered along the way.  I almost grabbed a 10.5% triple. 

I have always enjoyed this Winter White because of its tasty wheat flavor, light lemon, hint of banana, and a soft touch of clove spice.  I like the aroma from the bottle neck.  Just take that bottle and inhale.  Banana, bubble gum, wheat, a hint of citrus – it is just tasty on the nose.

Bellsbeer.com

Tomorrow I’ll be posting two of the cigars with their flavor profile and odds to win the March Matching Beer Pairing.  On February 26 I’ll post another two cigars and then post the last two cigars on March 5.  The week of March 6 -12 will be March Matching Week.  This is when I’ll pair the two cigars in each bracket with the selected beer.  

Visit last year’s March Matching

The Set-up
The Contest
The Finals - Analysis
The Finals

Chronic Cellars 2009 Purple Paradise and Indian Tabac Limited Reserve Bison: Review

The Wine

Chronic Cellars 2009 Purple Paradise

14.5% abv

Chronic Cellars

Paso Robles, California, USA

95% Zinfandel, 5% Petite Sirah

Chroniccellars.com

My Strength Rating: 4

This wine pours an attractive ruby color, deep ruby with big lighter ruby highlights.

As the wine smoothly glides across the tongue I detect sweet summertime red berries with a twist of vanilla.  Right now I am thinking of a big bowl of vanilla ice cream with big ripe strawberries for some reason. 

As I pour myself a second glass of this tasty little treat the wine starts to open.  The strawberry presence is still tasty with that nice vanilla twist.  But, now I start to notice a bit of a spice note.  I continue my research with a few more sips of the wine and I think I am going to call it a mild pink peppercorn taste and this taste is on the back of the palate. 

The Cigar

Indian Tabac Limited Reserve Bison

Wrapper: Conn. Seed Ecuadorian
Filler: Honduran

Size: 6.5 x 54 Pyramid shape

My Strength Rating: 2

The Limited Reserve line-up is truly velvety smooth in its delivery and this size is just that; it is a smooth and mild smoke with a slight cedar profile.  While I enjoy the big bold flavored cigars I have to admit that I always like to come back to this cigar for a good quality mild cigar. 

This cigar always burns perfectly with a good looking salt and pepper colored ash that holds well.  The mouthfeel is always velvety smooth. 

Since this is my last one I think I’ll get online to order some more.

The Pairing

This is a smooth and mellow pairing.  I was ready to pick up a big bold stogie out of the humidor but I saw this and said, ‘it is time to smoke this last stick.’  I am sure glad I did.  I have never had this wine before and I did not know it was on the mild side of medium and this made it the perfect fit for this cigar.  A bolder cigar would have interfered with the supple red berry flavors of this tasty wine. 

The mild cedar wood taste of the cigar is a good complement to the red berries and vanilla profile of this Zinfandel.

A Cigar and Beer Review: Carlos Torano Exodus 1959 Silver Edition Robusto and Leinenkugel’s Fireside Nut Brown

The Beer
Leinenkugel’s Fireside Nut Brown

4.9% abv
12 oz bottle
$7.50 a six pack
Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co.
Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, USA
My Strength Rating: 4

This Nut Brown pours an attractive clear copper color with a fine off-white head. It sure is hard to even pour a one finger head with this beer. The aroma is very clean on this brew.

The notes are sweet caramel like with a pecan nutty and woodsy flavor. There are some hops mixed in to add a little bitter note. Unfortunately there is a big watery style. It is this watery profile that makes this an easy beer to drink.

This beer is always a puzzle to me. Sometimes it comes across too sweet and grassy and then other times it just goes down just fine. I have to admit that I buy this beer every winter and enjoy drinking it now and then. But, it is not what I would call a good Nut Brown. If I was into grading beers I would give it a C. But, I still comeback to it for some reason.

The Cigar
Carlos Torano Exodus 1959 Silver Edition Robusto
Wrapper: Criollo ‘98’
Fillers: Costa Rica, Honduran, and Mexican
Size: 4.7 x 52 Robusto Corto
My Strength Rating: 4.5

I was thinking that a good Cameroon wrapped cigar would be nice with this beer but, I saw this cigar sitting front and center. This cigar does have a nutty like trait with some coffee so let’s give it a try.

Off the light I notice the smooth style of the mouthfeel. The flavor has a mild-medium coffee presence on the first couple of inches. At this point I start to notice a nutty and woody character.

That mild-medium coffee has changed to an earthy style at this point. Overall, the taste seems muted. If you are not thinking about the flavors it would be easy to overlook them. To me it comes across pretty simple. The flavors just don’t seem to stand out. As I continue to smoke the cigar I think the main profile is earthy. Earthy notes of: dusty soil and forest floor. The cigar is just an easy smoking medium bodied smoke. Nothing special.

The Pairing
This is the ‘Nothing Special’ pairing. The cigar seems to control the sweet style of the beer. Other than that, I think I can say, “It is a boring pairing.” I wish I chose a Cameroon cigar with a better nutty taste.

Oliva Serie G Maduro and La Granja Espresso Stout: Review

The Stout

La Granja Espresso Stout

Stout Brewed with Coffee

7.5% abv

1pt 4.3oz bottle

$15.00 a bottle

Sale price $10.00

My Strength Rating: 6

Bottled by: Norrebro Bryghus

Copenhagen, Denmark

Near black body with a fine tan head on top of this stout.  Coffee for sure with a touch of dark chocolate on the nose.  The flavors follow the nose with a bit of roasted grains and a touch of malty sweetness to give some good balance.  Overall, simple and tasty.  This is a good after dinner stout to be paired with a nice slice of cheese cake or other dessert. 

The Cigar

Oliva Serie G Maduro

Wrapper: Maduro

Binder:

Filler: Habano seed Nicaraguan

Size: 7 x 50

My Strength Rating: 4

We can get right to the point with this cigar – it has a wheat bread toastiness with a mild-medium roast coffee profile.  The mouthfeel is semi-dry with a light aftertaste of dry coffee.  This maduro to me is a bit boring.  It is too one dimensional throughout the whole smoking experience. 

The Pairing

This should be a good pairing or extremely boring.  COFFEE is the key word here of course.  I am going with good because I love coffee.  This is not a complex pairing because both products are very simple.  This would make a great morning pairing with the only problem being ... I don’t drink beer in the morning.

Nica Libre 1990 Imperial Cigar: Review

Wrapper: San Andres Maduro
Binder: Habano
Filler: Nicaraguan
Size: 6 x 54 box press
My Strength Rating: 5

I am smoking this cigar as my morning stick with a cup (pot) of Biggby French Roast Coffee.  This morning I am smoking, on the grill, some Sockeye and Atlantic salmon with some apple wood in preparation of the Super Bowl today.    

Out of the Nica Libre line-up so far I have dis-liked the Principe (4.5x46) and the Torpedo (6x52) and I enjoyed the Diplomatico (7x50). 

Off the light: A good mild roasted coffee greets the palate.  Soon a nice soil earthiness swirls around the tongue and leaves a black peppery spice aftertaste.  Interesting here, I never noticed a peppery spice in the other sizes.  I also get a milk chocolate note here on the first third. 

Mid-point: The peppery note has disappeared.  I like the mild coffee and earthy profile of this cigar.  I like this toasted rye bread quality that has settled in at this point.  There is a nice spice quality I just can’t call it black pepper. 

This has been my favorite size out of this line up.  I would buy this stick again. 

Down the Stretch: The soil earthy note and the toasted rye bread seem to dominate the flavor profile.  The mild coffee has picked up to a medium roast. 

The cigar holds a solid salt and pepper colored ash.  The burn has been good all the way with only one minor correction. 

By the way, the salmon is very tasty!

CEV Reserve Cabernet Franc 2007 and Padilla Signature 1932 Cigar: Review

The Wine

CEV Reserve Cabernet Franc 2007

Niagara Peninsula

13% abv

$20.75 Canadian

Colio Estate Wines

Harrow, Ontario, Canada

Coliowines.com

My Strength Rating: 4.5/5

If you live in the Detroit Metro area this makes a nice day trip to visit the winery.  You can get there in less than an hour.  I will be at the winery next weekend for their Ice Wine Festival.  I’ll be posting the pictures then.

This wine has a deep ruby color with some ruby highlights.  The nose is dark berries and spice.

The flavors are pleasing.  Tart cherries, a blackberry bite, touch of oak and vanilla, a nice sweet cedar and spice to make things interesting, a mushroom earthiness, and I am going to have to say a plum note on the edges. 

The mouthfeel seems a bit thin at times.  The plum and mushroom like qualities gives the wine some softness.  The tart cherry and blackberry bite gives some structure. 

The Cigar

Padilla Signature 1932

Edicion Limitada 2009

Wrapper: Oscuro

Binder: Nicaraguan

Filler: Nic.

Size: 7.2 x 59

My Strength Rating: 7.5/8

Off the Light: Nice spice and earthy qualities.

After the first few puffs the main profile seems to be a rich soil earthy note.  The spice is still present along with a bitter dark chocolate (85% dark) note starting to develop.  The smoking experience presents a good roasty and toasty tobacco style. 

There also seems to be a good green peppercorn like quality mingled in with that spice profile. 

The burn has been perfect from the get go.  Usually, you’ll need to do some correcting of the burn on these big figurados. 

The mouthfeel is robust and zesty with a lingering earthy quality.  This seems to be a good medium-full bodied smoke to this point.

Mid-point: The spice profile is very pleasing.  There is a toasty herbal spice at the moment (toasted mint?).  The green peppercorn is still in the mix.  The earthy notes are taking a backseat to the spice right now. 

Down the Stretch:  the toasted herbal note is gone.  The spice and earthy mix is playing well.  The toasted tobacco note is a little more of a burnt style at this point.  The texture is a bit fuller as the cigar approaches the end. 

The Pairing

Not a bad pairing.  The cigar is a bit strong for this wine.  The robust style of the cigar starts to cover up some of the nice flavors of the wine.  When I am taking a few puffs of the cigar and then taking a drink of the wine the tart cherry and blackberry is not as noticeable.  But, the wine does seem to control the robust nature of this cigar. 

The reason this is happening is because of the ‘strength rating’ issue.  I rated the wine as a 4.5 and I rated the cigar a 7.5, this is more than the two points that I recommend in movement. 

For the wine I would recommend a mild to medium bodied cigar and for the cigar I would recommend a fuller bodied wine. 

A Cigar and Beer Review: Padilla 68 Golden Bear Cigar and Oro de Calabaza

The Beer
Oro de Calabaza
Artisan Golden Ale
Ale Aged in Oak Barrels
8% abv
1pt. 9.4 oz bottle
$11.00 for the bottle
Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales LLC
Dexter, Michigan, USA
Jollypumpkin.com
My Strength Rating: 6

Appearance: bright yellow with the whites foam I have ever seen.

Aroma: Lemon zip with a zesty lime, throw in a tart apple and then a little spice and floral notes. Overall bouquet has a pleasing zippiness. The sour note picks up as the ale warms up.

Flavors: The citrus notes of lemon and lime rind steal the show. There is a tart and/or sour note probably coming from the oak ageing process. There is a nice green peppercorn like quality on the back of the palate. Green apple tartness along with a sour mash mingles with a little sweet malty note. Good complexity to the overall taste. This is like white wine with hops. Now, if white wine could only be so good.

Mouthfeel: This ale if very crisp, zippy, zesty, fizzy, and refreshing. The body seems light to medium. The carbonation gives it its fizzy feel. There is an aftertaste on the gums of lemon wedge.

Damn this is good. Must try. Worth every penny.

The Cigar
Padilla 68 Golden Bear
Wrapper: Corojo
Fillers: Jalapa and Condega, Nicaragua
Size: 6 x 60
No ring band on the stick.
My Strength Rating: 5

This cigar has an easy-going oaky presence that is followed by solid spice, whiffs of white pepper, a mild coffee note, a mixture of moss and soil earthiness, along with some sweet tobacco. The mouthfeel is smooth yet rich. It is delicate yet robust, truly flavorful. There is ample smoke coming from this big boy.

This cigar is a must try. I like it. How about you? Please leave a comment.

The Pairing
I planned this cigar for this ale. Based on my taste of the soft oaky profile of the cigar I thought this cigar would be good with this oak barrel aged ale.

This is a winner! After drinking the ale I thought maybe this was not going to work because of the citrus profile of the ale. I thought maybe the sour and tart notes would be too much for this cigar and bring out some bitter notes. But, it did not. This is a very pleasing pairing. The spicy notes of the cigar worked well with the spice from the ale. The citrus notes of the ale mingled with the sweet tobacco of the cigar. The earthy notes from the cigar seemed to control the sour mash notes of this delicious ale. The oaky notes complemented each other: with a delicate oak from the Bear and a medium oaky presence in the Ora de Calabaza.

I give this pairing a Top Hat rating. I will be doing this again.

Nica Libre Diplomatico Cigar and Detroit Brewing Chocolate Stout: Review

The Cigar

Nica Libre Diplomatico

Wrapper: San Andres Maduro
Binder: Habano
Filler: Nicaraguan
Size: 7 x 50 box press
My Strength Rating: 4.5

I have not smoked this size yet but, the two sizes I have tried I have not been impressed.  See Nica Libre Torpedo posting.

Off the light I detect a dusting of dry cocoa powder and mild coffee. 

By mid-point the flavor profile is still the same.  I could throw in a dry soil earthiness.  Actually, I have to admit I kind of like this one.  The overall taste profile of the Torpedo came across boring to me.  I’ll do another review on that one soon. 

Down the finish: All the same.  This cigar is consistent. 

To the Point: This is a nice consistent medium bodied smoke with a touch of cocoa powder, mild coffee, and a soil earthiness.  The texture is dry yet smooth in its delivery. 

The Stout

Detroit Brewing Chocolate Stout

Sanders fine chocolate

Brewed and Bottle for Detroit Brewing Company

By: Detroit Rivertown Brewing Company

7.8% abv

My Strength Rating:4.5

There is a bite of roasted coffee and a touch of chocolate on the nose.

The body is black with some cola highlights.  There is a good looking tan head.

The overall taste is okay to good.  A nice touch of dark chocolate greets the palate.  As the stout warms there is a roasted mild-medium coffee note but not that strong.  There seems to be a good balance between the bitter and sweet notes. 

Not a strong stout. Not a creamy stout. A good introductory chocolate stout.

There is a lingering aftertaste of bitter dark chocolate. 

Overall an average, at best, stout.  I have never had this stout before and I was hoping for more from the stout. 

To the Point: A good introductory chocolate stout. 



Damn, this is one long cigar



The Pairing

These two seem to help one another.  The mild coffee notes of the cigar help the coffee flavors of the stout.  The dry cocoa powder note of the cigar mixes well with the dark chocolate profile of the stout.  Each of these products by themselves seemed okay to good.  Together I say this is a good pairing.  

I have five more of these beers left and I think I’ll pair them with the rest of the Nica Libre’s I have left.