I was out of town for awhile this month, so Ed and I filmed this installment of The Ed & Tom show early. We originally wanted to review this cigar with Stew, but time and scheduling force us to postpone that for another day (soon).
In the mean time, see what we thought of the Casa Magna Colorado. And don’t forget to visit the ultimate cigar review site, The Stogie Review!
This video runs for around 22 minutes.
Some might label us die-hard sports fans as passionate. We bleed our team’s colors. If you dare make fun of our teams, or one of our star players, we become ornery and engage in flame wars at our favorite internet chat site. We gloat with glee when victory is ours, making it difficult to sleep as we can’t contain our smiles, rolling back and forth in bed. We seethe with anger when 
we suffer defeat making it difficult to sleep as we can’t contain our displeasure, rolling back and forth in bed.
Yes some might label us as passionate, but I believe we’re really friggin idiots who act like dumb-ass children, while our happiness and will to live depends solely on how a bunch of multimillionaires in colorful uniforms perform in a game that truly has no bearing on our everyday lives. Come on, admit it people, the truth will set you free.
Yes, admittedly, I am one of those dumb-ass children. And there wasn’t a bigger moron child in the world last night after the New York Football Giants defeated the Dallas Cowboys, 33 – 30 on a last second, Lawrence Tynes field goal. I watched nervously as Eli Manning put on a masterful drive to bring the G-men the length of the field in the final minute. You’d have sworn I had a spot on the bench. As the kick went through the uprights, I screamed and jumped for joy, only to see that Dallas coach (and man with an obvious healthy appetite) Wade Phillips called a timeout at the last possible second, nullifying the kick. I was furious, swearing at the tv while throwing an empty bag of beef jerky around in a hissy-fit of rage. My kids thought I should calm down, but since they don’t speak ‘cement’, I didn’t hear a word they were saying. But, as the story goes, Tynes succeeded on his second attempt to bury the ball between the neon yellow posts, as justice was served and the universe was righted once more. And yes, I danced like a giddy fool, the dance of self-righteous victory, the dance of a jackass with little redeeming value. Praise Jesus.
There are a handful of teams in this world where if you are not there fan, then you hate them more than Satan, Osama, Bin Laden, and a three hour Back Street Boys tv special all in one. The New York Yankees have to be the number one hated team in the world, without question. Like I said, if you’re not a fan of the Bronx Bombers, then it’s a good bet that the disdain you have for them is rampant. The person who was single-handedly responsible for that hate was the Boss of the Evil Empire, himself, General George Steinbrenner – a man with an ego ten times the size of Rosie O’donnell’s lunch box, with grotesque temper tantrums to match. He owned shipyards and who knows what else (thanks to his daddy), and he had money to burn, spending ridiculous amounts on star players, turning the Yankees into a venerable all-star line up. Smaller markets could never compete as the team in pinstripes hoisted one championship after another, infuriating baseball fans around the world. Btw… nice move on Randy Johnson, Georgie…NOT.
But a close second on the list is without question, the mucho hated and despised Dallas Cowboys. When I grew up in north Jersey in the early to mid-seventies, more kids wore Cowboys hats and jackets than Giants gear. New York was a crap team for a number of years and listening to all the little braggarts talk of Roger Staubach made me insane. And to this day, 
attend a Giants or Jets home game and you won’t believe the number of brazen slugs decked out in their silver and blue Cow-garb. Very disturbing.
And the city of Dallas certainly has the NFL’s very own version of Mr. Steinbrenner, who goes by the name of Jerry Jones. Jones is disgustingly, filthy rich and much like George, has no patience for being on the losing end of the final score. Money is no object, and neither is attitude and conduct, apparently as JJ brought in the likes of Terrell Owens and Pacman Jones, a couple of highly talented athletes with the all the endearing qualities head lice on a man with no arms. Jones is often seen parading the sidelines during a game, yuking it up with the players, and taking credit for a Sunday afternoon victory.
The biggest testament to Mr. Jerry Jones herculean ego is the newly built, Cowboys Stadium. It is the modern marvel of the sporting world and no expense was spared in creating the palace in Dallas. Some facts… It is the largest domed stadium in the world, with a retractable roof and can seat up to 111,000 people. It also has the world’s largest video screen, hanging from 20 yard line to 20 yard line, weighing one million, two-hundred thousand pounds. And if you watched last night, he even has painted hotties called ‘cage dancers’ to entertain the pigskin loving throng. As they say, everything really is bigger in Texas. Oh… and the construction price of Jerry World, you ask?… One point three billion dollars. And Mr. Jones was there last night, celebrating the stadium’s inaugural match-up of his beloved Cowboys against MY beloved New York Giants. And just wouldn’t you know it, that the junior Manning and his boys in blue spoiled the grand opening party for jolly Jerry – jiggling tarts in cages and all – by beating his boys in the final seconds. Oh… and may I please add how bad Tony Romo really did suck with his 29.6 passing rating. Boo f’n hoo, Jerry. (God, I am such an ass, and it is uncontrollable.)
And I must say, hats off to the New York Jets, who took down the New England Patriots, yesterday. The Pats have become the NFL’s scourge over the past few seasons as they were caught illegally filming opposing team’s signals. Coach Bill Belechick scoffed at the NFL’s fines and penalties by running up the score in games against lesser opponents and not really giving a damn what anyone thought. And when they faced the NY Giants in the Super Bowl two seasons ago, the hate grew high for New England and it truly seemed that if you weren’t a Patriots fan, you became a Giants fan in that game. And gosh… we all remember how that one turned out…don’t we?
So today I bask, and in my head, I am a happy soul. I have already littered the web forums with my childish bragging and taunting of Cowgirl fans everywhere. (Oops, silly me, I just did it again.) And if you are a Dallas fan, you hate my guts with an evil fervor, and perhaps wish to smack my Polak punk-ass around at the very moment. But I’m okay with that. It’s all a part of our wacky world of being a die-hard sports fan. I have been on the receiving end of this bragging torture many, many times and I can honestly say it is so much better when your team kicks some ass.
I might just decide to grow up one day… but just not today.
Have a great week, peeps,
Tommy Z
JR Cigars Blog With the Zman
The cigar up for review today was sent to me by Mike. Some of you may know of him as @KnightRid on Twitter. The package contained a few cigars that he wanted my opinion on. Included in his care package was two GAR’s. I smoked them both for this review. I paired up with water and got to it.
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Corojo
Binder: Ecuadorian Connecticut
Filler: Honduras
Size: Robusto Grande 5.5 x 52
Price: Around $8.00
Pre-Smoke & Construction:
The Corojo wrapper was shiny with a few mid sized veins. Sitting atop was a nicely placed triple cap. Squeezing the length of the cigar revealed no soft spots, and the wrapper smelled of sweet wood and earth. The foot smelled similar, but had more woody notes and a bit of a peppery zing. The pre-light draw was a little stiff, but I could live with it. The pre-smoke draw had an interesting sweet taste of earth and something else I couldn’t pin down.
The burn was great, requiring no touch up’s. The ash held for well over an inch and took effort to knock off. Construction overall was great.
Flavor:
The first third began with a smooth earthy, almost woody flavor. A very slight pepper was noticed when passing through the sinus. There wasn’t anything more to it then that.
The second third began with a smooth textured smoke feel. There was a peppery component when exhaling through the nose. Literally about two times, I thought I noticed a sweet caramel. Unfortunately, that sweetness didn’t stick around. An earthy flavor lingered slightly, but transformed into nothingness. The pepper went away and became an annoying sensation in the nose.
The last third mainly had no flavor. Some draws had a sweet caramely flavor, others had nothing. At times I could pick out a bitterness that wasn’t good or bad. It was just there. When I passed the smoke through the nose, it was a somewhat harsh experience. But again, the main flavor was nothing.
Conclusion:
The first third was almost an OK medium bodied cigar. The rest of the cigar did nothing for me. The irritating smoke feel just got on my nerves after awhile. I try to focus on the positive aspects of a cigar when doing a review, but I had a hard time doing that. In all honesty this cigar was one of the most annoying reviews I’ve done in awhile. I could have written the review in a much more condensed format. “This cigar was mediocre at best.”
I’ve really been digging deep into the bottom of my humidor lately. I didn’t even know I had the cigar up for review tonight. I’ve been holding on to this smoke for at least two years. There is a back story about where this cigar got the name “Excalibur.” But you didn’t come here to read that did you? Instead of researching all of that useless info, I grabbed a glass of water and got to the review.
Wrapper: Connecticut broadleaf maduro
Binder: Connecticut broadleaf
Filler: Honduran, Nicaraguan, Dominican
Size: 6 3/4 x 47
Price: Around $5.00
Pre-light & Construction:
The first thing I noticed about this cigar was the oily wrapper. It looked great with minimal veins and only a few bumps here and there. The wrapper smelled cedary and earthy, while the foot had a slight peppery component. I found the cigar was pretty hard when squeezing the entire length. The pre-light draw was good, with a dark earthy taste. I let the ash go for about an inch, but I think it would have lasted two. The burn required no corrections. Construction was great.
Flavor:
The first third greeted me with a simple smooth earthy taste. About an inch in, a definite strong coffee or espresso kicked in. The coffee and earthy notes took turns being the dominant flavor. All the while, I found a very subtle peppery spice when passing the smoke through the nose.
The second third opened up a little bit. Coffee notes mixed with earthy flavors that remained dominant. Next in line was a slight pepper, and a very subtle sweetness came into the flavor profile. As I got towards the end of this third, the sweetness developed into a mocha flavor.
The last third was my favorite part of this cigar. The smoke turned to a thick and creamy feel. Strong coffee was the main flavor, and it caused the earthy flavors to go away. The peppery spice changed into a sweet spice that was very much like mocha and cinnamon.
Conclusion:
This was a good medium to upper medium bodied cigar. A lot of the flavors were what I consider “Standard maduro.” But still, overall I enjoyed the entire cigar. I won’t be running out to find more, but I wouldn’t discourage anyone from at least giving the Excalibur a try.
Ode to the Low-Rent POS
Actors, musicians, and athletes have been put on a pedestal since the beginning of time. Some are modest, humble, gracious, and so very thankful and polite to everyone that they meet. But those aren’t the ones who make the headlines. The headlines are for the Ass-Hats – the haughty low-rent turds who believe that they are better than the rest – the one’s who believe that it’s ALL about them, ALL of the time. Their egos are mammoth, their heads are swelled, yet the world continues to embrace their most egregious stupidity.
The beautiful people have been making jerks out of themselves for eons, and in recent days, they did not disappoint.
“If I could, I would take this (expletive) ball and shove it down your (expletive) throat. You better be (expletive) right! You don’t (expletive) know me!”
Ah…the sweet and loving words of tennis star Ms. Serena Williams, as she verbally abused and threatened an official during a match in this week’s US Open. Williams was called for a foot fault at a most crucial point in the match and launched a verbal tirade against a timid woman line judge who looked as if she thought Serena was about to get medieval on her ass. The official quickly ran to the dude in the lifeguard chair and the next thing you know, Williams is sent to the showers.
Australian tennis veteran Renae Stubbs said, “I don’t think people realize the amount of stress players are under.” What a bullshit comment, one that I personally took offense to. Can we imagine the stress the likes of Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretzky, Derek Jeter, and Eli Manning, have been under? All have acted like class acts and perfect gentlemen while performing on the biggest stage, at the highest levels humanly possibly. And of course US Open announcer John McEnroe, the biggest spoiled brat of them all, defended Williams, claiming that you can’t make a call of that nature in that situation. Johnny Mac may have been the biggest ass-hat of them all as he threw little-rich-boy temper tantrums during his hey day, and abused officials beyond reproach. The guy couldn’t stand losing and it turned my stomach to watch his infantile rants during high profile matches.
And now we turn to last night’s MTV Video Music awards where the ass-hattery was in high gear.
“Yo, Taylor, I’m really happy for you, I’ll let you finish, but Beyoncé has one of the best videos of all time. One of the best videos of all time!”
Those were the poignant words of one Kanye West who grabbed the mic from Taylor Swift’s hands while she was about to give her heartfelt thanks to the audience, as she won the award for Best Female Performance. The young star looked in shock as West acted like what Sanford and Son’s Aunt Esther used to refer to as a “Fool’s idea of a fool.” I personally wish Esther was there to bitch-slap that ingrate upside the head as he so rudely made a bigger jackass of himself than Johnny Knoxville ever could.
“I was excited to be onstage because I just won the award. And then I was excited that Kanye West was onstage. Then, I wasn’t excited anymore,” Swift said, afterwards. Thankfully, Radio City Music Hall security escorted the boisterous West out of the building where he walked 7th Ave looking for a place that served some “fishsticks.” (South Park reference for those in the know.)
Low-rent multi-millionaires have forever been making a mockery of themselves for as long as I remember, yet we still attend their movies, listen to their music, and watch their ball games. Kid Rock likes to mix it up whenever he frequents his favorite Waffle House. Tommy Lee has been known to assault a person or two. Denis Rodman has performed 
his freak show antics. Melissa Rivers showed her obnoxious, spoiled little rich-bitch side on the Apprentice. Rosie O’donnell has waved her man-hands in irate disgust. Terrell Owns, is well, he’s Terrell Owens, dammit. And Britney Spears has so eloquently proven that you can take the hillbilly trash from the trailer, but…
They are world famous, have zillions of dollars, and they are better than all of us. Yes they are, so they think. In reality, they are low-rent personalities who live in a high-rent economic client. They think their shit don’t stink, they travel in posses, they love their bling, and they truly believe that they are ‘all that.’
Ass-hats, every last one of ‘em.
Peace, out.
Word.
Later my smokey friends of the blogosphere,
Tommy Z,
JR Cigars Blog With the Zman
This is the final installment of my Xikar HC Series reviews. As you saw before in the reviews of the Criollo and Habano Colorado, I really enjoyed them. This line is touted as the milder of the 3 blends, although Xikar says it is slightly stronger then your typical Connecticut wrapped cigar. For more info, make sure to visit their website. Although I tend to gravitate to fuller bodied cigars, I still often enjoy a good mild cigar. I looked forward to trying the Connecticut shade. With my usual glass of water, I got to smoking.
Once again, I’d like to thank Xikar for sending me these cigars to review. I’m glad they were confident and took a chance. Let’s see what I thought of the Xikar HC Series Connecticut Shade.
Wrapper: Connecticut shade – Ecuador
Binder: Sumatra
Filler: Costa Rica, Mexico, Nicaragua
Size: Robusto 5 x 50
Price: $8.50
Pre-smoke & Construction:
Giving the cigar the ol once over, I found it visually appealing. The tan wrapper had a few medium veins running throughout, but most were small. The wrapper and foot had almost no odor. I could only pick up a slight woodiness. The pre-light draw had a little resistance, and had very mild natural tobacco and earthy notes. Inspecting the cigar further, I found it was somewhat tightly packed with no soft or hard spots. This probably accounts for the resistance in the draw. Keep in mind, the draw wasn’t bad, just a little tight.
The burn required no corrections at all, and the ash held for well over an inch. After lighting up, I found that the draw was fine despite being a tad bit tight.
Flavor:
The first third began with easy earthy notes. I detected a nice peppery spice when passing through the sinus. The pepper was very smooth and on the milder side, but it did have a small punch to it. As I dug further in, the smoke feel became a little creamy with a toasty finish.
The second third kept those earthy undertones I spoke of before. Layered on top of that was a creamy smoke feel with buttery notes. That peppery punch remained but really calmed down to a much smoother sensation. I noticed a toasty finish at the end of the exhale. The smoke itself seemed to coat my mouth but wasn’t lip smacking.
The last third didn’t offer too much change. The earthy undertones remained with smooth, mild peppery spice. The creamy smoke feel became a little thicker and coated the mouth. A slight sweetness entered the flavor profile to round things out. The dry toasty finish remained and had me craving water. This didn’t detract from the overall experience.
Conclusion:
This was a good mild to medium cigar. It packs enough punch to satisfy a seasoned smoker, but is simple and mild enough for perhaps a beginner to try. All in all, I really enjoyed this cigar. I think this would go great with morning coffee, and even makes a good after lunch smoke. Although some aspects were typical, this isn’t your average Connecticut wrapped cigar. I say give it a try.
It’s that time of year when I hit the road to the Carolinas. I’ve banked a few reviews and put them in the hopper while I’m away. The site will be on auto-pilot for a little while. There will be no interruption in reviews, the Ed & Tom show or A Quick Smoke with Ed & Tom. The only change will be I won’t be replying to emails or comments for a bit.
As you’ve seen, the Don Gonzalez raffle from Duque is going great. We already have quite a few entries. If you haven’t entered yet, go HERE and enter now.
It is a busy time for the site. Monthly clicks keep going up at a steady rate. 2008 saw about 14,000 visitors for the entire year. As it sits today, around 56,000 people have clicked here so far in 2009. Before you say “Wow that is impressive!” Let me assure you that is nothing compared to some of the other sits out there. The Stogie Review, AKA my other home, sees that traffic in a very short amount of time. But still, considering this place is literally just a record keeping database of cigars I smoke, I think it is doing well.
I just locked in a very cool giveaway for October. It is a tool I use every day, and you’ve seen me use it in many reviews. I’m sure with those hints you can pretty much figure out what it is. Stay tuned on how to win one.
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