One of the greatest collections of Sir Winston Churchill memorabilia recently went under the hammer at Christie’s of London.  The collection was offered by the esteemed auction house on behalf of the Forbes family (yes the magazine) and was the first of three auctions.  The second auction will be held in December in New York and the third is scheduled for next summer in London.  I haven’t heard mention of what the other two auctions will offer, but it’s safe to say this was/is probably the best collection of Churchill items we’ll ever see offered.

Of course there were your standard items such as letters and wartime diary entries, but what had every cigar aficionado interested was the offering of a Cuban Camacho that Churchill himself gifted someone while vacationing in Monte Carlo in 1963.  The cigar was expected to fetch between $1,600 to $2,300, but when the hammer fell the final price was well over what they had estimated.  The cigar sold to an anonymous bidder for $3,126, probably one of the highest prices ever paid for a single cigar.  But considering it belonged to arguably the greatest cigar lover in history it was no surprise.

Since hearing of the cigar being auctioned I’ve been pondering a couple of thoughts.  One, the whole culture of passing cigars to fellow brothers of the leaf has definitely been in effect for a very long time.  Two, how did this cigar manage to change hands several times over the span of 47 years and never get smoked?  I guess one will never know, but I can safely say had it been gifted to me it would have met Mr. Flame a long time ago.  One can only hope that one day it is enjoyed as Sir Winston intended.

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• Cigar - Paul Garmirian Gourmet Series
• Filler – Dominican
• Binder – Dominican
• Wrapper - Connecticut Shade
• Price – $11.00
• Shape- Corona Grande (6.5 x 46)

Without further ado I present the first review on the newly revamped (still in process) Cigarblog.net.  Today I’m reviewing the Paul Garmirian Gourmet Series corona grande courtesy of our fine friends at P.G. Cigars.  The Gourmet Series was introduced in 1990 and quickly garnered everyones attention for it’s rich, spicy, and deliciously smooth flavors and aromas.  This cigar is considered to be medium bodied and is very balanced.  It is made in the Dominican Republic and boasts an Ecuadorian grown Connecticut Shade wrapper.

I’m pretty sure I need to preface this review with the fact that Connecticut Shade wrapped cigars are not usually what I run to in the evening after a long day at the office.  However, I must say, I was very excited to introduce this stick to flame.  I’ve smoked a few of Paul Garmirian’s offerings in my 15 years of cigar smoking and have always been impressed with the end result.  I must say this one did not disappoint.

The construction on this cigar is flawless, sure there are a few veins but nothing that takes away from the beautiful construction it boasts.  The cigar has a good weight in my hands, there are no soft spots, and the wrapper maintains a consistent color, absolutely flawless.  Pre-light the cigar smells of earth, hay, honey, aged tobacco and roasted nuts, and the pre-light draw provides more of the same flavors.  The draw on both samples I smoked was perfect, thus it took very little effort to get the cigar lit.

The first third of the cigar offered up more of the same great flavors of honey, roasted nut and hay.  The burn was straight and the ash held well with no flaking.  Roasted nuts continue to be the predominate flavor followed by honey and a really nice aged tobacco flavor.  With each draw the cigar provided large amounts of nice creamy smoke.  Near the end of the first third I start to pick up a slight spice that reminded me of nutmeg.

Midway the cigar is just as good as the first 1/4 inch.  The flavors continue to play off of one another with roasted nuts and honey being the main focus.  The creaminess remains between puffs and coats the palate with nice aged tobacco flavors.  The burn remains spot on and the ash continues to hold for around two inches before I tapped it off to avoid any unpleasant experiences.

The last bit of the cigar provided the same palate pleasing flavors as the first and I can definitely say it made me a Connecticut convert.  I’ve never managed to nub a Connecticut wrapped cigar due to the bitterness that most develop toward the end.  Not with this cigar, I smoked both I sampled for this review until I nearly burnt my fingers.  P.G.’s secret has to be their aging.  I’ve been told that some of their tobaccos age up to 7 years before they even see the torcedor’s table, and that after they’re rolled they can box age several years before they see your retailers’ shelves.  All of this combined with the Garmirians’ passion for their product makes for one great smoking experience.  I would definitely buy more to put back for special occasions and gladly advise anyone looking for a true smoking experience to pick these up without hesitation.

I don’t like to do the whole 1-100 “rating” thing on a cigar for a number of reasons,  however I do like to “score” them.  I like to score cigars on the old tried and true “on a scale of 1-10″ method and place a number on it based on my opinion of the cigar, because at the end of the day that’s what it is, an opinion.  Every smoker is different and each of us need to look at these opinions and decide for ourselves what we like and what we don’t.  Based on that basic explanation I would gladly give this beauty a 9.5 out of 10.

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As you can see we’re in the process of completely revamping the site.  Tom and I are very excited about the changes and cannot wait to get new content up for your viewing pleasure.  We will mainly be focusing on cigar reviews and the podcast that is recorded each month with our friends at the Nashville Cigar Club.

The first review that I will be posting is on the Paul Garmirian Gourmet Series corona grande.  Please stop back by and if you have a moment check out the review.  Please share your comments with us as we’re always looking for your feedback.  I’m very excited about the changes and look forward to what the future has to offer.

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Every tobacco enthusiasts needs a great quality cigar humidor to store, age, and protect his or her stogie collection. Designed to maintain the ideal storing conditions, a humidor is definitely an investment that is definitely worth spending a few extra bucks on. The following are just a couple of things to look out for when purchasing a quality humidor.

Style
High gloss matte or veneer finish? Free standing or desktop? Don Salvatore or Davidoff? With so many different brands and designs available, finding the right humidor can often times be a daunting task. Make sure that the one you choose complements your style preferences and enhances your living space. If a humidor doesn’t appeal to you visually, than don’t buy it. For those looking for a customized approach, there are also a number of sites that offer personalized and engraved humidors– I know Famous Smoke and a couple other online retailers do this.

Hygrometer
You want to a humidor to have a very good hygrometer so that you can control the temperature and humidity level of your cigars to maintain optimum taste. It is very important that the temperature of your humidor stays below 70°F (21.1°C) and relative interior humidity be between 65-74% (ideal humidity condition is frequently cited at 70%). If under or above this range the cigars in your humidor can dry out, form mold or fungus, and/or hatch Tobacco beetles that can permanently alter the taste and irrevocably damage your cigars.

Hardware
All hinges, handles, corners and locks on the humidor should be well-bolted and durable. You don’t want one with hardware that can be easily broken or damaged for obvious reasons.

Construction
For your humidor’s outside construction, you want the sidewalls to be ½ inch thick or more and made from at least furniture-grade solid wood. The thicker the sidewalls of a humidor the more resistant it will be to changes in external temperature and physical damage.

As for the interior, you want the inside of your humidor to be lined with either Spanish cedar or Honduran Mahogany. These woods are pretty much the industry standard and are both very porous- which is needed to absorb and release moisture inside of a humidor. These woods in addition, support cigar aging, ward off tobacco beetles, and prevent mold and mildew growth.

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Well, I did it. I swore that I never would, but curiosity got the best of me. I finally sat down and did a conservative estimate on how many cigars I smoke, and how much I spend on them, on a monthly basis. Let’s just say that I should be ashamed of myself.

I typically smoke one, sometimes two a day, on Monday through Thursday. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, I smoke typically 3 – 5 a day. My conservative estimate was 13 a week, which comes to 56 a month. My average cigar purchases are usually $11.00 a stick. After some basic math, it wouldn’t take a 5^th grader long to figure this out.

My dilemma is that I really enjoy cigars, and the cigar culture that goes with it. Hell, I am the president of the cigar club, so that should say something about how much I love cigars.

This estimate doesn’t even include the trips, accessories, gas and time I commit to this lifestyle. This also doesn’t include the cigars I give away, or the one’s I purchased and they are still resting comfortably in their make shift apartment in my home.

I had a cigar rep from General Cigar tell me once, that the “average” cigar smoker smokes 2 cigars a week. I can finally say that I am above average in that category.

I’m not sharing this to sway anyone from smoking cigars, nor is this my “dear John” letter to the herfing lifestyle. I’m just venting a little, and now trying to find a way to finance my cigar hobby, if that’s what it is. I am not addicted, and I can stop at any time. I just don’t wish to quite yet.

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