Happy DMs. This is the first post for all of April 2007–what can I say, we’ve been busy. Uncle Moneybags is completing his move to South OC; indeed, this is his last week of working at the job he’s been bitching about since before we even started this website. That’s not to say that we haven’t been having our regular DM calls. In fact, we’ve made every weekend (sometimes at alternate times), smoked some fine gars, discussed many home improvement projects and some other things. For example, this weekend, Brother Dicksbain refinished his decks and bought a pressure washer to boot. And Uncle Moneybags “bic-ed” his head for the first time ever–loving it.

On a more important note, this coming Saturday marks the one-year anniversary of Leafytimes.com. Considering the success of our last blog, which only lasted five months, I never thought this one stood a chance to make it a year. But it did. Because gars are great. To the many memories to come.

Cigars Smoked (among others):
Oliva Serie O Toro
Don Pepin Garcia (Standard) Toro
La Aurora Preferido Robusto
Gurhka Napolese Warrior
Gurkha Black Puro
Montecristo Serie V Mini Churchill (the last of a box purchased in 2005!)
Don Pepin Garcia Serie JJ (fantastic smoke)

Topics Discussed:
Xbox 360 Elite purchase (with Gears of War AND Dead Rising!!!)
Satellite vs. Cable
Uncle Moneybags’ Mo-money mega Automatic Outdoor Lights
Hudgar 2.0 (sponsored by Caesar’s Palace, June 19-20, 2007)
Lawn care = full time job
Napster vs. XM
Stone Brews & Leffes
Furniture Delivery - no show
Uncle Moneybags Mo-Money Vacation Extravaganza!
Garage Floor Epoxy — where Uncle Moneybags’ Home Improvement Project Begins
(Note: we did NOT discuss work woes–who cares anymore?)

God Bless America

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A solid smoke. Medium bodied with floral and nutmeg notes. The draw is good, and the box-pressed wrapper is flawless. These are an excellent buy if you get them in a bundle from www.cigarinternational.com, where they average just $3-$4 per stick. Otherwise, they are $13-$15 per stick—not worth it.

LT Rating: 7.5/10

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Like the Fonesca “Habana” line (see my previous post on that misguided foray), this cigar doesn’t measure up to its own hype. Unlike the Fonseca, however, this cigar has no redeeming qualities. The burn is uneven, the draw is too loose, and the taste is bitter. I had high hopes that Don Pepin could make an above-average cigar other than the Serie JJ until I tried these. I thought the first one was just a fluke, so I tried another. Big mistake. Easily two of the worst cigars I’ve had all year. To compare these to Cuban cigars is a joke. Hell, to call them cigars at all is a stretch. What happened?

LT Rating: 3.5 / 10
Purchase Here

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This is it: the final Arturo Fuente. The biggest, baddest of them all, with a congac maduro wrapper and a toothy filler, I’ve been looking forward to this cigar for a while. I acquired two of these, separately, over a year ago, which I’ve been saving for Uncle Moneybags Mo Money Mega Wedding Extravaganza. BUT, now that Brother Dicksbain has secured a trip to Vegas, and given that Casa de la Fuente has an ample supply of these gars, I figured, why the hell not? Good move. Salty and smooth, this is a great gar. Although the first third is “meh,” the latter half is astonishing. Not as good as a cuban, but utterly unique, and better than an ESV. While I wouldn’t recommend paying $34.95 for them from cigar.com, they are easily worth the 20 bucks that Casa de la Fuente charges. Viva Fuente!

LT Rating: 9/10

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For years, many cigar makers have had a “cuban” line of cigars that tastes nothing like the real thing. Last year, the good people at Fonseca finally caught on to this annoying trend, asking “hey, why not us too?” To be fair, this cigar does have some good qualities. It burns well, the draw is firm but not tight. The taste is acceptable–mostly nutty with strong cedar notes and a papery aftertaste. But when you hold yourself out to be a heritage cuban cigar, the bar is raised, and this gar, like most imitators, just doesn’t live up to its own hype.

LT Rating: 6.5 / 10
Purchase Here

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Cigar Aficionado’s senior editors have started a video blog. Their first installment explains their logical rating system. As long as they keep these videos free, I recommend you check them out. I like to believe they’re starting to offer more online services to compete with the growing number of independent, free, and unbiased cigar blogs.

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Special thanks to Mike over at tinderbox for sending each of The Brothers a few sample gars to try out. In the small package were 2 Tinder Box La Reserva No. 2 which I braved the freezing cold Cleveland weather to smoke.

The outside construction on this cigar was a bit rough. The cap was loosely attached and thus extreme care had to be made while making the cut. Judging by the ‘larger than normal’ cut our friends at stogieguys.com made, I’m not the only one that had this problem.

I was pleasantly surprised that burn and draw were good on this bargain stick. Almost every bargain cigar I’ve ever had suffers from one if not both of these issues.

Taste was where this cigar fell short and showed it’s true color. It was very simple and lacked any complexity or depth. It also left that tell-tale ‘bargain bitter’ after taste. Because of the fridge temperatures this weekend, this is probably the only cigar I’ll smoke. And that makes this cigar a disappointment.

Still, this cigar has a place. It would be great to give to friends at a backyard BBQ or as a 3rd+ cigar of the day, it would fit the bill.

Bottom line; It’s one of the best bargain cigars, but it’s still a bargain cigar.

These can be had for a mere $32 a box of 25

LT Rating: 4 / 10

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The Brothers are huge CAO fans, if you couldn’t tell by all the rave reviews we give the majority of their sticks. Any new cigar from CAO gets our attention. While Moneybag$ is not a huge maduro fan, I find a good maduro to be better than a good natural cigar and can’t wait to try one of these.

CAO Gold Maduro is a new blend that combines a Brazilian Maduro wrapper with the binder and filler tobaccos of the CAO Gold line. It’s listed as a medium-bodied cigar that “exhibits a smooth and buttery character, top-noted by hints of spice and espresso beans. ” 20 cigars per box, six shapes: Corona (5.5″ x 42), Robusto (5″ x 50), Corona Gorda (6.5″ x 50), Churchill (7″ x 48), Torpedo (6.25″ 52), and Double Corona (7.5″ x 54).

Though not yet available, when they are you’ll find them here.

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From CNN.com:

HAVANA, Cuba (CNN) — Synonymous with Cuba, just like Castro and Che Guevara, cigars are revered by connoisseurs and part of the country’s political landscape.

Since the U.S. trade embargo was imposed more than 40 years ago as part of President Kennedy’s stand against the communist government, Americans have been banned from buying cigars from Cuba.

Read the Full Article

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I’ve been waiting to try the Padilla Miami series ever since the Padilla brand became hot last year. The hybrid being above-average, I had high expectations for this cigar. The Padilla brand was created by José “Pepin” Garcia (the maker of the excellent Don Pepin Garcia Serie JJ) and is manufactured in the Little Havana section of Miami, Florida. The name “8/11″ refers to the location of the factory, which is near the corner of 8th Street & 11th Avenue in Miami.

I won’t be visiting anytime soon, however. While this gar started off strong–almost as good as a Montecristo No. 2, with hints of spice and a sweet aroma–it was all down hill from there. The flavor became bland an uninspired after about ten puffs. The draw was tight and the burn was uneven. By the end, the cigar had flared out like a trumpet, and it was unsmokeable for the last three inches or so. All-in-all a major disappointment. I received four of these in Cigar.com’s deal from last week. I hope the remaining three are better. One thing’s for sure, they will have a chance to age, as I do not see myself reaching for one of these again anytime soon.

LT Rating: 6.5/10
Purchase Here

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Happy Dominican Mornings. The brothers are doing relatively well. Uncle Moneybags spent most of the weekend at his mo-money-mega mansion, complete with a stop along the way at the Classic Del Taco and Circle-K. Bought a power drill, installed a door lock, fixed some other door handles, and only broke a continuous loop on his blinds in the process–doh! Meanwhile, Brother Dicksbain enjoyed the warmer weather in Cleveland while painting his house and enjoying some fine ESV Perdomo Maduros. Good times.

Topics Discussed:

Work Woes
Xbox 360 Elite Edition
Eve Online: no gaming going on
28 days/weeks/years later and alternate endings
Washing the Rx-8
Baseball–Cleveland Indians vs. Angels
Hudgar 2.0 - the return
Wedding Plans for Uncle Moneybags–vegas trip in the works
Cuban cigars - truly the best
Drinking Stone Ale as a starter beer

Gars Smoked:

Padron 1926 Serie No. 26 Maduro (only one left)
Montecristo No. 2 (cuban) - still one of the best gars ever
Perdomo ESV 1991 Maduro (x2)
La Aurora Preferido Robusto
Perdomo Champaign Corona (x3)
1997 Cusano Robusto
Bolivar Toro

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