Gurkha Spec Ops Cigar Review

I recently went to the Gurkha Special Ops Event at Corona Cigar Company in Orlando, FL at their Dr. Phillips Location. There has been alot of buzz about this cigar and the combo kit that it came with, so I had to check it out.

Sadly, I was coming down with a sinus cold/infection and didn't get to fully enjoy the cigar. Thankfully I picked up one of the combos and have been able to enjoy a few of these cigars over the past week. There's not a lot of information out about the cigar, so I hope this information is helpful for anyone thinking of purchasing the combo or at least just to try the cigar. 

Cigar Stats & info: Medium to Full Body

7 1/4 x 54 - I guess it would be classified as a Presidente size
Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro
Binder: Nicaraguan Dominican

Filler: Nicaraguan Dominican

Price: $10.00

First impression: The cigar is very sturdy. For its size, you would almost think it would be heavy. It's longer than most of the cigars in my humidor and makes my churchills look almost small. Not really, but you get the jist of it. The coloring was very dark & has a slight oily sheen to it.

Lighting: This was a very easy cigar to light. Sometimes longer cigars can be tricky, but that's not the case here. It isn't too packed that the inital draw was difficult but at the same time it isn't so loose that you feel like it's all air either. It's kind of like the poorage in the childhood story....just right. Many people prefer a straight cut on cigars of this style but since I do enjoy the punch, that's what I did for this one.

First Half: The maduro wrapper is very dark and has a slight "oily" texture to it. It's not like the habano wrapper, but definately more oily than many other maduros that I've tried. The draw was very easy, almost seemless. Of the few I've tried, I've only had problems with relighting on 1 of them. Overall it is a very good & even burn that holds a nice ash. The flavor is very deep & steady. There's no mixed in "bite" either. Sometimes a maduro will have a bite at the end of it, but this one remains smooth. There are flavors of almost coffee & mocca in each draw.

Second Half: The flavor stays consistent with the first half. I did start to notice a bit of a sweet flavor the further I got into the cigar. The nice thing is that it stays steady with the flavors. Still deep & flavorful with the coffee-ish & sweet kick in it. I have no need to relight or correct the burn through the entire cigar. It makes the time smoking it even more enjoyable.

Average Guy's Prospective: I've never hid the fact that I'm a huge fan of Gurkha. The branding is second to none in the industry & the cigars always leave me wanting 4 more each time. With that said, The Spec Ops cigar is no different. It's a great smooth, flavorful cigar that lasts almost 2 hours. This is a perfect cigar with a nice dark beer that can be enjoyed while playing golf. I never got a cigar buzz from it, which many of the Gurkhas I've tried have done. Because of this, the cigar is now one of my newer favorites. I give this one 2 thumbs up!

Beginners Corner: Finally I reviewed a cigar that I can recommend to beginners. This cigar isn't overpowering like other similar cigars. The best part is that it is a great flavorful maduro cigar that tastes great with no bite at the end. From the light, first draw and down to the last puff, it's a smooth and easy drawing cigar that even the newest nubie can enjoy. This cigar would turn any novice into a huge fan of Gurkha.

Gran Habano Corojo #5 Gran Robusto (2010) Review

Rather than just aimlessly choosing cigars to review, I've decided to do ones that I have been sampling more than others. This one I tried at a local cigar event sponsored by George Rico himself. He was showing off his possible record breaking world's largest cigar. During the event I picked up a box of the cigars because: 1.) I enjoyed the cigar 2.)They were having killer specials on the boxes.

Since the event, I have been enjoying on average one of these cigars per week. I've been doing research on other reviews and I will say the reviews are all over the place. Here's my take on the cigar.

Cigar Stats & info:

Medium to Full Body

Gran Robusto, 6 x 54

Wrapper: Nicaragua Habano

Binder: Nicaragua Habano

Filler: Nicaragua, Mexico, Costa Rica
Price: $5.50






Lighting: This was not the easiest light in the world. Most of the time I use a punch on this cigar, but this time I tried a straight cut. I still had the same problem with getting it lit. The draw is very difficult in the beginning, but eased up after the first third or so.

First Half: I really like the texture of this cigar. The habano wrapper has the signature "oily" feel to it. It's a nice texture especially in the humidity of Central Florida. There is no "dry" feeling on my lips while smoking. The first few puffs of this cigar are pretty awesome. The leathery taste is the predominant feature. It burns evenly & has a nice steady smoke. On top of the leathery taste is a nice light spice of the corojo wrapper. It doesn't hit the lips. It actually hits the back of the mouth & throat. The spice is not overpowering which makes it a nice bonus. As I got closer to the 2nd half, I noticed a bit of a nutty flavor. Some call it an almond flavor, but I eat almonds all the time & that wasn't it.

Second Half: The second half turned this cigar into a smoke making machine. The smoke became thicker & more plentiful.  The spice increased and the leathery taste remained strong. The spice was not as strong on my lips as it was in the back of my mouth & throat. I did notice that the burn on the last couple cigars was moving fast along the thick veins on the cigar. It didn't mess up the evenness of the cigar, but was something that I haven't seen a lot of in other cigars.

Average Guy's Prospective: This was my first experience with the Gran Habano boutique line. I'm glad I didn't start with the #1 or #3. I enjoyed this cigar thoroughly. The price point makes this cigar a "must" for most people's humidor. The even flavors & smooth smoke(other than the initial hard draw) make this a good all around cigar. The first half was pretty mild but the spice picked up in the 2nd half which made it more enjoyable.

Beginners Corner: Not sure I can give this a "thumbs up" for beginners. The tough draw of the cigar would frustrate many beginners. However, if you can get past that, this is a cigar you can try to move up from medium to a near-full bodied cigar. The cigar's simple but enjoyable tastes would not overpower the beginner's palate. It's a good cigar to try out a cigar with spice that isn't overpowering.

Rocky Patel 15th Anniversary Torpedo Review

Before I start the review I want to disclose 2 things. First, I didn't receive free samples of this cigar nor am I getting paid to do this review. Second, I hate to admit it, but I'm not a huge Rocky Patel fan. I have tried many of the RP cigars that are out, however, none have made me go "wow" as of yet.

With that said, lets start this party.

Cigar Stats & info:
Torpedo, 6 1/8 x 52
Wrapper: Habano Ecuador
Binder: Jalapa(Nicaragua)
Filler: Nicaragua
Price: $8.50

Lighting: The light on this cigar was very easy. Sometimes with a torpedo cigar there can be some issues, but I found this one to be pretty easy. I also didn't find myself needing to relight this cigar.

First Half: From the start I was intrigued by this cigar. The first thing I noticed was the mocha flavor with a twist of spice. Granted, it's not the strongest spice I've ever encountered, however, it was a different combination that I found nice. Usually you find sweet & spice with snacks, not cigars. I did enjoy it and also noticed some leathery hints in the cigar.

Second Half: The second half was more of the same as the first. I found that the spice dissipated, however it was still present. The leathery hints were still there & they were accompanied by a woody flavor. I've heard people say it was a cedar taste, however, when I think cedar, I think hamster cages. The sweetness of the cigar was the predominant flavor. The cigar began to build a heavier smoke in the 2nd half than in the first. I was at a wide open cigar bar, so it didn't really bother me much.

Average Guy's Prospective: As I stated in the beginning, I am not a huge fan of Rocky Patel cigars. However, this is one I would put back into my humidor. Many of the RP's I've sampled are good cigars but nothing that has "wow'd" me. This cigar was different. The unique combination of sweet & spice was enough to make me go back & buy another for my humidor & one for my buddy's birthday smoke. The total time of this cigar to smoke was around 50 minutes or so.

Beginners Corner: Beginners---this is not a cigar for you. The complex flavors of this full bodied cigar is something that would turn many beginners off of the Rocky Patel brand. The spice is strong enough to tingle the lips but mixed with the sweet would most definitely not be something I would recommend for beginners.

Rocky Patel Event

Well the Rocky Patel 15th Anniversary Cigar hit the streets this past Friday. Did you go out and try it yet? You might be surprised by the smoke. I'll post my review of it soon.

I tried the new cigar at the much publicized event at Corona Cigar Company in Downtown Orlando two weeks ago. The event was pretty cool. They had live music, free Jack Daniels Single Barrel if you bought a Rocky Patel cigar. It didn't hurt that they had attractive ladies handing the samples out either! They also were giving away Rocky Patel Vintage if you bought 3 of the new 15th Anniversary Cigars. Twist my arm already!

Did I mention that Rocky was going around and talking to everyone too? He was a great guy and very graciously took a picture with myself and a couple of the members of The Cigar Aficionados of Central Florida.

All in all it was a great event. When we do our meetups we always seem to have a great time, but it's even better when you get to enjoy a new cigar before the general public with the very guy who is putting it on the streets. Always a great time!

Just for the Record - I was first

I just want to ensure that everyone pays attention to a simple timeline.

I watched the local news today like I always do before work. I watched for over an hour and no news broke that I was about to break. I left my house in Osceola County around 8:15 am.

At 8:59 am this morning, I took the following picture & posted it on Facebook & Twitter:

So I come home and catch the 5 pm news on the same tv channel and within 15 minutes Fox 35 reports about the new Amway Center sign on the building.

Just for fun I checked my Twitter feed on the good 'ol Backflip phone and found out that The Orlando Magic posted about the sign on their Twitter account at around 4 PM.

Am I saying I broke the news? Maybe I did. It definately does pose the question of wether or not I was setting a trend. I'm just sayin'.

QR Code or Microsoft Tag?

So tonight instead of getting caught up on my blogging that I promised myself I would do, I found myself thumbing through the August 2010 issue of Cigar Aficionado. I don't normally read it but a co-worker gave me her copy that she got at a local shop.

While thumbing through it I noticed a couple of the new age bar codes. Not until tonight did I know they were called QR codes. So being the man of action that I passively like to be, I decided to do some research. Much to my surprise, my blan bar code scanner app on my Droid actually reads these.

So I tried 2. 1 didn't work(we won't bash you) but the other did. This one linked me to Alec Bradley's Facebook fanpage. I now "Like" Alec Bradley Cigars.

I want to go on record that I do love the new technologies that make print "smarter". The best thing about it is the people who say print is dead are the ones who rave about technologies like this.

Now to build up to my question for the techies out there. I am familiar with the Microsoft Tag. I was introduced to it a few months ago and my company actually launched it this month into our print publication to bring the tech savvy people into our mobile site from the front cover of our magazine. I personally have been using this technology for a couple of months for my Meetup Group - The Cigar Aficionados of Central Florida.

Both technologies seem to do the same thing, but I wonder if there is an advantage to either of them. I use them on promotional ideas for my Meetup group: flyers, postcards, business cards,etc. I've seen both in magazines. They both can be personalized with a graphic, which makes them awesome. So is there an advantage to one over the other or is this going to be another Apple vs Microsoft, Pepsi vs Coke, Playstation vs Xbox debate?

So anyone that has a decent idea on the answer, comment, tweet, or email me.

Thanks!!

CAO America Monument Review

Well it's the 4th of July and raining in Central Florida. This is no surprise to any of us who have lived here for awhile. Since my child was suffering from a double ear infection, I was able to enjoy my stogie at home and watch the fireworks from the city of St. Cloud from my driveway. Not to mention that everyone in a 2 mile radius was setting off fireworks. It made it really easy for me to just sit & relax & enjoy this cigar.

I've had this cigar before, but since I've started blogging, I haven't had a chance to review The CAO America Monument Torpedo. From the 1st time I ever saw this sitting on the shelf, I thought it was one of the "cooler" looking cigars. It's 2 toned wrapper makes it look so much different than most you find. The dark color of the Maduro wrapper twisted in with the Connecticut wrapper gives this cigar an eye-popping advantage over other brands. Not to mention that the entire line has some great names : Potomac-5 x 56, Monument-6 1/2 x 54, Landmark-6 x 60, Constitution-6 x 50, Bottle Rocket-7 x 50. Throw in the fact that it's labeled "America" and has American grown tobacco in it, it makes a perfect Independence Day cigar!

At first, it was hard to light this cigar. It might have been because it only sat in my humidor for 3 days, but once it was lit, it was smooth sailing from there.

FIRST HALF: The cigar had a nice easy draw and was very smooth. The smoke wasn't as thick as many Maduro cigars I've tried. Many people I talked to say it's because of the lighter Connecticut wrapper blended in with it, even though you can't really taste the lighter side of it. The overall taste is enjoyable. It has a slight hint of nuttiness towards the end of the first half, but it has a strong almost leathery taste. Since it is a Maduro cigar, it does have that "bite" that many Maduros possess. CAO's website says this is a "full" flavored cigar. It definitely is more towards the full end of the spectrum, but I think it is more of a high medium to low full flavored. The CAO Brazilia would be more of a full flavored cigar.
SECOND HALF: The second half of the cigar really evened out. The "bite" of the Maduro faded and made way for a more intense flavor. The nuttiness taste faded out but I started to pick up a slight cocoa & coffee flavor in it's place.
 

I thoroughly enjoyed this cigar. It's a great cigar if you aren't a huge fan of the stronger Maduro cigars. It was an easy to draw cigar with an even burn that required no relights during the 90 or so minutes of smoking. I was only drinking water but this would go great with a nice red beer or a lighter stout. You could even pair this with a mild red wine or a lighter scotch.