Monday, October 31, 2016

Happy Halloween!!!

It's a bissell like goyim Purim.

Neya Classic - Blind Cigar Review

B"H
Project X
Offering #14 Serie III
(All praise to Mr. Darryl Martin)

THE CIGAR
Duran Cigars
Neya Classic
Canonazo 6 x 52 Toro
w. Ecuadorian Habano
b./f. Nicaraguan

THE KVELL
Packed solid and even, just the right bit of spring-back.
Complex cold draw, ridiculously so --
Creamy cedar, spiced cocoa, mixed nuts
Huge up-front spiced zetz...
coupled with a firm sweet cream accompaniment.
Draw tension eases to a mid-medium+ resistance.
So. Many. Peppers and spices. Complexities, there.
Smooth decadent creams and titillating spices.
BIG body and flavors.
Slow and verily even all-round burn.
Oak joins cedar. Complexities.
Deep and high nuances.
Fruity coffee.
Hot sauce.
Great smoke out-put off each end.
Long and sweetly spiced finish.
Chicken fat?
Sweet heavy citrus.
I need to lay down with this stick.
Not a lotta notes, but insanely deep and nuanced.

THE KVETCH
High-side of medium+ cold draw tension.
If ya don't like spice, brace thouself.
Game 5 and the Cubbies are all loose, don't matter now --
methinks I know an over-rated manager, gentlepersons.
Won't hold ash to an inch.
Slight cardboard under-belly (verily fleeting).
Palate fatigue, thy name is (whatever this stick is).
The kinda stick I just wanna be alone with --
but here I am writing at you.

THE KIBBITZ
Grandiose transitions. Deeply nuanced complexities and quite high notes. Perfect line and very nicely paced. Construction offered no opportunity for complaint, which is personally imperfect, as I like to complain. -Full profile. Superb balance of spices by brutish creams. Surprisingly bare and mellow tobacco room-note off big cloudy bursts from each end.
SMOKE TIME
75mins

FINAL GRADE
****A-****

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Catch the #JSKvirus today. Boutique as pardon my French.

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Sunday, October 30, 2016

Cigars City Podcast - Caldwell Reserva Sevillana

B"H

On this week's Cigars City Podcast, we smoke a Caldwell Reserva Sevillana. We also chat about boxing's sad journalistic state, the Blanco family's big move, horse racing's Breeders' Cup, and upcoming projects!

Please press play below to listen:

Gentlepersons, thanks as always for the loaning of yer fine attentions.
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Great smokes. Great prices. Great customer service. What’s not to like?

Check out www.JasSumKral.com
Catch the #JSKvirus today. Boutique as pardon my French.

Anytime. Anywhere. (541) 343-0167 #GoTaxi

Stop by www.ManoloEstate.com
Cuban Heritage | Inspired innovation #SmokeManolo #CubanCrown

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L'shalom

Saturday, October 29, 2016

CAO Flathead V554 Camshaft - Cigar Review

B"H
THE CIGAR
CAO Flathead V554 Camshaft
5 1/2 x 54 Robusto Box-press
w. Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro
b. Ecuadorian Connecticut
f. Nicaraguan
THE KVELL
Pretty stick, all 'round.
Great sweet chocolate and spice on cold draw.
Heavy outta the gate chew and straight thru.
Nice pale Nicaraguan ash on a sheath build.
Black pepper cleanses dessert dishes (build-up of sweetness)*.
Very deep, dark leathery compost.
Peanut butter? Not Jif, frou-frou stuff. Somewhat fleeting.
Notes are very deep and nuanced*
Chocolate is wonderfully complex and rich.
Nigh brilliant French roasted java, mon ami.
Leisurely pace of combustion.
Verily smokey-smoke.
Simple but robust and enjoyable profile.

THE KVETCH
Couple a' crimped veins.
Draw seems to fluctuate insofar as satiation, not tension.
*Not an awful lotta notes.
Burn fails at finding even-Steven.
I'm rolling Ship, Captain, & Crew solo and can't score 12. (Dice game.)
Black pepper only on r/h post 1/3.
Retro-hale is a tick throaty.
Tunnel threat at start of 2/3. Averted by letting sit.
Fairly linear.

THE KIBBITZ
Nary a transition to be found. Deep notes holding lush nuances, but not nigh an abundance of complexities. No burn issues beyond an imperfect line which requires zero (0) re-touching. Very excellent pacing. Construction is admirable, including a mostly-held press. Quite purdy burnt offerings. Medium+ profile, well rounded and deep -- though too, somewhat linear in delivery. Excellent balance, albeit easily accomplished via a lack of loads a' notes. Big smoke off each end with a somewhat one-dimensional darkly sweet room-note.

SMOKE TIME
75mins
FINAL GRADE
****B+****
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L'shalom

18 Sabbaths - My Father Le Bijou 1922 14th Sabbath

B"H
THE CIGAR
My Father Cigars
Le Bijou 1922
6 1/8 x 52 torpedo box-press
w. Nicaraguan Habano Oscuro (Pelo De Oro)
b./f. Nicaraguan

A full review of this offering can be read HERE.
A K A P L O W I T Z Scale review can be read HERE.
All 18 Sabbaths (& more re: the project) can be read HERE.

This offering and the remaining are courtesy of Cigars City and my mad March Madness skills.
I
Leathery oils cushion black pepper and then a delayed sweet cream sets in. Sugary sweet. A plum raisin fruitiness comes into the cream then expands outward. Sugar... have I said that? Sweetest Sabbath yet. Some dark honey. Fruits seem to be rehydrating into grapes and plums. Construction begins a bit unevenly packed at pre-light, but finds a lit even at -medium firmness. Draw is a medium tension and very satiatingly so. Very smooth if not soft mouth-feel with a definite black pepper and tobacco tingle. Burnt offerings are a nigh luminous whiteness with a tick of flakiness in their texture. Burn-line ain't even, but darn close.

A meaty note in a soy sauce marinade; verily umami. Ash lilts and cracks slightly and I roll it off in my $0.99 Walmart ashtray. Dry coarse outer failed sheath, with a dense oily core. Cool to the finger finaglings. I have a lot of time on my hands, gentlepersons. So do you and thanks for spending some of that here at www.kaplowitz.xyz: yer home on the web for this sorta thing. Chocolate comes in BIG. Hits the finish first in a baking way -- then onto the draw in a creamy dark chocolate. Interesting delivery.

Pace of smoke seems mayhaps a tick quick as suddenly I find me in --

II
Blast of cedar with a butterscotch under-belly. Espresso beans. Burn ain't even, but not hath it further strayed. Tonight is Halloween! Or, more perfectly stated, tonight is the celebration of Halloween! (Since it falls on a Monday this trip 'round the sun.) A Boo Barn and a school party for my kid are on my itinerary. I like Halloween -- it's a lot like goy Purim. I love Purim. I was BORN on Purim; but not last Purim. Meaning ya can't fool me. Unless I want you to.

Loads of chocolate. Spices come in red and led by a cumin. Meaty and dessert-y. Fruits flex [image of Nathan Lane and NPH in a gym]. Leather dials back to cover the profile's compost under-belly. Medium+ across-the-board. I'm on an empty gut, so I might need a teaspoon of sugar. Sugar in the stick is now the brown varietal and caramelized. Buttery. Verily, the upper echelon of these Sabbath offerings thus far. Verily Longfellow's Little Girl with a Curl, these Le Bijous. Heavy dark and deep tobacconess. Inky black night...

Smoke out-put goes from a tick beyond average to cumulus plumes. A bit of top-leaf ducks ahead of line and a seam doth loosen. An orange vibe sets into the finish's end. Said finish is -long and nicely bitter sweet woodsy earth. On the immediate draw is sarsaparilla, pardnah. Burnt offerings fugly up a bit. Pack density ain't so dense, read: nigh spongy. Flavors are a treat, a sweet and savory treat. I see no real trick as of yet. Quite enjoyable, this.

III
Fruits juice. Espresso pulls. I haven't been watching the clock, nor did I note a start-time, but this My Father seems to be smoking fast. Press rounded in II and now, is flattening. Seems teeny-tiny twixt my fingers and in my smoke-hole. There's a bit of flowering of ash. Grains come in and I get a sense of Cocoa Pebbles. A kid awkwardly dribbles a basketball past my house whilst hunting Pokemon on his phone.

Profile sees its body thin a tick, but still stays in a medium+ realm. Strength dips a hair. Mouth-feel is a bit spitty. I remove the primary band, having already removed the secondary one a few minutes, tops, prior. Soft shaft, but draw and remainder of seams each hold well. Lots of woods now, the cedar flexes and a new seasoned oak finds the spice and pepper notes. Chocolate mixes with that thar sarsaparilla. Brown sugar laces. Leather covered compost rises up from underneath. Dark fruit juices come and go on the finish. Retro-hale is a sweetly scorched earth. Citrus is an influence on the mouth-feel. Tobacco tobacco pipe tobacco. Dense room-note of pipe-tobacco -- even out here on my porch.

What's this? Chocolate soda hurriedly shows me the door on a somewhat heated note. Hold on! I was mid-sentenc--
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Great smokes. Great prices. Great customer service. What’s not to like?

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Catch the #JSKvirus today. Boutique as pardon my French.

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EDITOR'S NOTE
Written prior to the Sabbath, automatically posted during. Gut Shabbos and Shabbot Shalom, gentlepersons... happy Saturday, goyim.

L'shalom

Friday, October 28, 2016

Perla del Mar - Cigar Review

B"H
THE CIGAR
J.C. Newman Cigars
Perla del Mar
Perla TJ (Gordo) 6 x 60 Pressed
Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper
Nicaraguan binder/fillers
K A P L O W I T Z SCALE
K least, Z most
Construction I
Combustion I
Flavors O
Body O
Strength P
&
Sweet W
Sour O
Salty A
Bitter O
Umami A
&
Complexity L
Nuance L
Transition L
Balance I
Smoothness I
&
Animal K
Spicy P
Woody W
Vegetal O
Earthy O
Chemical K
SUMMATION
Pairs quite well with Saltines and tater tots... so I hear. Mildly and sweetly acidic. I'm fairly certain 'twas the saltines which was salty. Nicely bitter and plenty sweet. Zilch bite. See aforementioned acidity re: sour. Smooth as a bochik's tuchus. Heavy? Like a wiry mench. Rich yet mellow and balanced verily. Classically medium smoker; just stick it in yer smoke-hole.

Pepper, white. Cream. Wood, sweet oak. Spices, white. Lemon zest. Brown paper bag (fleeting). Earth, light & sunny barnyard. Fruit, apple w/ pale melon vibe. Cocoa butter. Cedar, sweet 'n' creamy. Toast. Orange blossom honey, thin. Pale grains. Graham flour. Caramel. Coffee, blonde. Nuts, cashew/macadamia melange.

Construction and combustion are notable insofar as nothing is note-worthy. Nice. No retouches and an even 'nuff burn. Easy smooth medium tension'd draw. Satiating but not in an intense manner. Plenty of dense white smoke with a sweet and inviting room-note. I'll have another, and another... great everyday offering.

SMOKE TIME
105mins
FINAL GRADE
****B+****

EDITOR'S NOTE
I reviewed the Perla del Mar months ago, as well. Hence the "Redux," gentleperson. You can read the 'riginal 'un HERE.
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Please visit www.CigarsCity.com
Great smokes. Great prices. Great customer service. What’s not to like?

Check out www.JasSumKral.com
Catch the #JSKvirus today. Boutique as pardon my French.

Anytime. Anywhere. (541) 343-0167 #GoTaxi

Stop by www.ManoloEstate.com
Cuban Heritage | Inspired innovation #SmokeManolo #CubanCrown

Like me on Facebook: Have you Kaplowitz’d today?

L'shalom

Wednesday, October 26, 2016

East India Classic Havana - Cigar Review

B"H
THE CIGAR
East India Co. Ltd (Gurkha)
Classic Cigar Havana Blend
5 1/2 x 52 Robusto Box-press
w. San Andres
b. Proprietary
f. Nicaraguan
I
The shoulder comes undone in my smoke-hole as I light the thing. Wonderful. Spiced earth forefront followed by a baking chocolate addition. Woods. Sweet toasted cream after another couple static pulls. Smoke out-put is admirable off each end and offers a sweetly spiced room-note... not earth, not tobacco... just sweet spices. Hollow, almost. Head softens a good couple ticks, and that coupled with the shoulder issue just feels precarious. Actually, and to be quite fair, the whole shaft on down hath softened noticeably. Oval, not squared, and in a hurries fshion. Medium tension'd draw is unaffected, seams holdeth.

Combustion-wise, we're burning even insofar as top-leaf, binder, filler -- but we are on a well-wobble'd line. Fast side of medium pace which seems to be slowing or at least not hastening further. Ash is a pale grey marbling with some aeration and flaking both visible. Leathery notes pour in meow. Thick and soft and oily. A pecan vibe is on the start of finish. That finish is of medium length and is mainly a sweet earth based thing. Mouth-feel is a slight tingly with a neat moisture level.

Well rounded medium body with a nice heft. Medium in terms of flavors. Strength is a low+. Cocoa is buttering up to a nice chocolate with a slight malt attachment spins off from the earth-cum-barnyard bits. Slight toasted caramel. Throat dries a tick. Leather dries some. Opening act ends in a toasty transitioning.

II
Cinnamon hits chocolate and gentlepersons, is fiesta no? Ay ay ay. Burnt offering cracks and is more visibly toothy. Line is less wonk'd but still un-even. Verily a smoky-smoke, which is to say there is an amazing volume o' smoke out-put. Walnuts join pecans and push ahead. I would now say the leather is crisp -- unless I already said that. If I already have, I would now say the leather is very crisp. Nigh dried brittle. Some far-away molasses. Nutty spiced earth upfront. Chocolate and molasses caboose. Malt and leather twirls about. Medium profile across-the-board.

Packing is super soft, and press is Gonesville. Burn is at its most even, but still un-even. Whenst dangling from my smoke-hole I doth detect floral bits, dark and dry. A vague passion fruit is a vibe on the immediate draw. Smooth effortless and satiating draw. Tickles at medium+ body on a bissell mo' creamery butter in a hot fry-pan.

I'm checking in on Game 2 every so often. The game is on inside and I'm on my porch. Cubs are up 5-1 in the 7th; all is unfurling as I foresaw. Cubbies win straight through now, gentlepersons. Barnyard. Lotsa it.

III
Chocolate bids adieu and all notes fall back lest spiced barn and an underneath nuttiness. Maybe some slight under-roasted coffee beans. Pack is flattened under its own under-packing. Under. Yeah. A bit throaty again and my tongue is somewhat parched. Mouth-tingle up-ticks. A new and distinct black pepper is on the retro-hale with a potpourri vibe.

Today was my first full day at dispatching cabs. I used the bathroom and afterward accidentally squirted hand sanitizer all over the front of my pants. I am reminded of this whenst just now, the ash dumps dry and flaky and warm in my Levi's lap. Dapper as the day is long, gentlepersons.

Smoke stays somewhat surprisingly cool to the flat nub and I'm 'a try to toothpick this thing.
SMOKE TIME
60mins

FINAL GRADE
****B****
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Great smokes. Great prices. Great customer service. What’s not to like?

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Catch the #JSKvirus today. Boutique as pardon my French.

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L'shalom

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

Xiphos CR Habano - Cigar Review

B"H
THE CIGAR
Xiphos CR Habano
5 x 50 Robusto
w. Ecuadorian Hybrid Habano
b. Peruvian
f. Peruvian & Dominican
THE KVELL
Pretty top-leaf.
Spiced caramel latte cold draw continues once hot.
Big smoke out-put off each end.
Very smooth easy draw.
Exceptionally well rounded and rich notes...
...Heavy white spice, black pepper, caramel, coffee and cream...
Cashew, orange blossom honey, pale fruit syrup, cushy leather...
... etc. ...
Ash builds to an inch+.
Flavors are just special, gentlepersons.
Raisin bread yum.
Final act is a syrupy spiced desert with tons a' cream.
Flat-out the tastiest stick I've had in some time.

THE KVETCH
Packing density softens a few good ticks off lighting.
Burn is uneven at onset and through 1/3.
Burn is a tick conical.
Ash is darker than I like and cracked in a spot.
Burn-line never hits even. Tho only a single re-touch is mandated.
Cap is very squishy as early as the second-half onset.
Pace is fast.
Seams loosen but doth hold, in the 3/3.

THE KIBBITZ
Many and very nice germane-to-the-plot transitions. Fantastic complexities built via them transitions and nuances therein the notes. Slight+ burn by way of imperfect line and somewhat quick pace. Construction was nicely OK but soft, verily. Medium profile, robustly. Superb balance delivered on clouds o' cream. Desert stick room-note off big, big out-put.
SMOKE TIME
60mins

FINAL GRADE
****A-****
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Catch the #JSKvirus today. Boutique as pardon my French.

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L'shalom

A Review of Recent Grade A Cigar Offerings

B"H

"Sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didn’t commit, these men promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles underground. Today, still wanted by the government, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem - If no one else can help - and if you can find them - maybe you can hire the A-Team."

Or, gentlepersons, save some schlepping and tsuris and just get a hold of some of this particular A-Team by visiting my dear pals at CIGARS CITY.
THE A TEAM

HONORABLE MENTION
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Great smokes. Great prices. Great customer service. What’s not to like?

Check out www.JasSumKral.com
Catch the #JSKvirus today. Boutique as pardon my French.

Stop by www.ManoloEstate.com
Cuban Heritage | Inspired innovation #SmokeManolo #CubanCrown

Like me on Facebook: Have you Kaplowitz’d today?

L'shalom

Monday, October 24, 2016

La Herencia Cubana Oscura Fuerte - Blind Cigar Review

B"H
Project X
Offering #13 Serie III
(All praise to Mr. Darryl Martin)

THE CIGAR
La Herencia Cubana Oscura Fuerte
5 x 56 Belicoso
w. Pennsylvania Broadleaf
b./f. Nicaraguan
K A P L O W I T Z SCALE
K least, Z most
Construction O
Combustion W
Flavors I
Body W
Strength W
&
Sweet O
Sour P
Salty L
Bitter I
Umami W
&
Complexity L
Nuance O
Transition P
Balance P
Smoothness L
&
Animal O
Spicy W
Woody W
Vegetal L
Earthy O
Chemical A
SUMMATION
No acidic tics. Roasted saltiness, sparingly so. Quite bitter, with not 'nuff sweet to match. Some bite under tongue particularly in second half and in spite of purging. Lacking in sour bits. Smooth but mainly by default and when notes thin some. Hefty weighty weight for the most of it, though in a smoked more than rich sense. Could have shown far better balance.

Pepper, red and black. Wood, hard and seasoned. Leather, crisp. Coffee, espresso beans. Salt, roasted. Meat, smoked. Toasty-roasty, addition to all notes. Peppers, dried chile. Wood, cedar and hickory. Molasses. Grains, dark and toasted. Nuts, almonds. Diesely bits. Scorched compost.

Combustion goes off hot, but slower paced than that heat would indicate. Only a slight and singular re-touch is mandate at the 2/3's onset. Although the burn was somewhat ragged throughout. Smoke heated up considerably in 3/3. Ash was medium grey and oily dense. Construction softened steadily as the cigar hotly burned. Seams and draw (medium+ tension each held. Some cracking of top-leaf in the final third. Above average smoke out-put yielding a woody earthen note with some rigid dark spice. My main gripe other than imbalance, is that each time a true fullness seemed to be coming on, the attempt ended in a rather hollow way.
SMOKE TIME
70mins

FINAL GRADE
****B****
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Great smokes. Great prices. Great customer service. What’s not to like?

Check out www.JasSumKral.com
Catch the #JSKvirus today. Boutique as pardon my French.

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L'shalom

Sunday, October 23, 2016

Cigars City Podcast - La Flor Dominicana Ligero

B"H

On this week's Cigars City Podcast we smoke an LFD Ligero whilst chatting about baseball, religion, and marijuana. Also, as a reminder, please be aware that while it might be fifteen degrees outside -- it is 46,798 degrees in yer vehicle. Be kind to yer fur-babies, gentlepersons.
Please press play below to listen:


Thanks, as always, for the kindly loaning of yer attentions.
If you enjoyed this post, please consider sharing it via the buttons below.
Sharing is a quick, easy, and free way to help me grow my audience.

If you’ve enjoyed a buncha these posts, please consider donating.
PayPal: paypal.me/Kaplowitz
Venmo: @KapKaplowitz

Questions/comments/concerns? Contact me HERE.

Please visit www.CigarsCity.com
Great smokes, great prices, great customer service. What’s not to like?

Check out www.JasSumKral.com
Catch the #JSKvirus today. Boutique as pardon my French.

Stop by www.ManoloEstate.com
Cuban Heritage | Inspired innovation #SmokeManolo #CubanCrown

Like me on Facebook: Have you Kaplowitz’d today?
L'shalom

Saturday, October 22, 2016

18 Sabbaths - My Father Le Bijou 1922 13th Sabbath

B"H
THE CIGAR
My Father Cigars
Le Bijou 1922
6 1/8 x 52 torpedo box-press
w. Nicaraguan Habano Oscuro (Pelo De Oro)
b./f. Nicaraguan
A full review of this offering can be read HERE.
A K A P L O W I T Z Scale review can be read HERE.
All 18 Sabbaths (& more re: the project) can be read HERE.

This offering and the remaining are courtesy of Cigars City and my mad March Madness skills.

Please press play below to listen:
As always, gentlepersons, I thank ya kindly for the kind loaning of yer attns.
K A P L O W I T Z SCALE
K least, Z most
Construction L
Combustion L
Flavors O
Body O
Strength W
Feel quite free to circulate.
(Click to enlarge.)
EDITOR'S NOTE
Written prior to the Sabbath, automatically posted during. Gut Shabbos and Shabbot Shalom, gentlepersons... happy Saturday, goyim.

L'shalom


Xiphos NR Maduro - Cigar Review

B"H
THE CIGAR
Xiphos NR Maduro
5 x 50 Robusto
w. Connecticut Broadleaf
b. Indonesian
f. Nicaraguan Criollo/Corojo
I
Lettuce begin, gentlepersons, with a brief bio of [Curly] The Super Stooge [more will be revealed in a few ticks]: "Curly Howard’s real name was Jerome Lester Horwitz. He was born to Jenny and Solomon Horwitz on October 22, 1903 in Bath Beach, a summer resort in a section of Brooklyn. He was the fifth and youngest of the five Horwitz brothers. Curly’s interest in show business grew as he watched his brothers, Shemp and Moe perform as stooges in Ted Healy’s act. After Shemp left the Healy act, Moe suggested to Healy that his kid brother Jerome was available and would make an excellent replacement for Shemp." - threestooges.com

Black pepper, hardwoods, espresso beans. Tongue tingle. Hot dang, gentlepersons -- one hot pull in and the legs on finish ain't stopping. Spices are ghosting my nasal cavities and I didn't retro-hale. Another pull. I was trying to outlast the finish before pulling again, but it weren't quitting. Heavy butterscotch and cream additions with a purple fruit in the under-belly compost. Tons of smokey-smoke. Stiff leather and sweet hardwoods room-note. Palate is a-tingle.

Today, gentlepersons, is the birthday of one Mr. Jerome Lester Horwitz. Known to his mishpucha as Babe; known to you and I as Curly. That Curly? Soitenly! Being so, I shall be sprinkling this Xiphos Maduro cigar review with some Super Stooge factoids (all previously published at www.kaplowitz.xyz and used herein with my expressed written consent). More dark toasted cream. Some black bread. Espresso is ground and pulled and poured.

Line is a tick wavy-gravy, but nothing egregious and ash is pale pale grey. Some flaking there, some tooth from the top-leaf, somewhat loosely build in ladder-rung fashion. Construction is a tick softened about 3/4" off of char. Burn-line itself is razor-thin. Draw is a medium+ tension and verily satiating to ye olde smoke-hole. Cedar. Edible flowers from the top of a fancy cake with a tick of icing or frosting left on them -- according to yer geographical linguistics. I like Twinkies. Have ya tried the chocolate ones? Finish sweetens. A real power stick, this. Medium+ easily insofar as body/flavor. Medium strength and climbing.

"If we wrote a scene and needed a little something extra, I'd say to Curly, 'Look, we've got a gap to fill this in with a 'woob-woob' or some other bit of business.' And he never disappointed us." Jules White (Ted Okuda; Edward Watz (1986). The Columbia Comedy Shorts)

"If we were going through a scene and he'd forget his words for a moment, you know, rather than stand, get pale and stop, you never knew what he was going to do. On one occasion he'd get down to the floor and spin around like a top until he remembered what he had to say." (Moe Howard on A&E Network's Biography)

II
"When Curly was 12, he accidentally shot himself in the left ankle while cleaning a rifle. Moe rushed him to the hospital and saved his life. The wound resulted in a noticeably thinner left leg and a slight limp. He was so frightened of surgery that he never had the limp corrected. While with the Stooges, he developed his famous exaggerated walk to mask the limp on screen." (Joan Howard Maurer; Jeff Lenburg; Greg Lenburg (1982). The Three Stooges Scrapbook)

Pace seems a bissell quick, we shall see. Burn is evening out on its lonesome. Draw is a medium+ tension and smooth. Seams are quite tight. Nice construction, especially in light of packing re-firming. More sweet flavors now -- all is dark and heavy. Texture is smooth and of great moisture on a tingly mouth-feel. Extraordinarily long bittersweet finish sans any chemical tendencies.

Curly was quite the athlete. An accomplished ballroom dancer and basketball player. I know that at 5'5", it's hard to imagine Curly on the b-ball courts, but it was a different game then. One generation+ later, my dad was a touted center at 6'1" tall who played with his back to the basket. Some tidbits put you in a real sense of an historical moment, huh? As to his dancing chops, when you look at his physical comedy -- it's all there.

Black Forest cake. A separate dose of cocoa butter. Some root beer candies. -Full profile and strength to match doth hath me schvitzing, gentlepersons. Burn is even and draw smooth. A bit of an Almond Joy vibe. Mainly, the new player is death by chocolate. Finish lasts at nigh full-strength between pulls. Flavor monster. Smoke out-put flows massively. Definitely a stick that'll sit ya back via all yer senses.

Mouth-feel is on the wet side, but not toward spitty. "Tingle" don't do the tingle justice... that said, it ain't throaty nor palate-grating. Cream comes on mo', all roasty-toasty. Espresso dials up. Woods dial up an are fairly interesting: hardwoods, seasoned and riding on a creamy sweet cedar cloud. Heavy, heavy stick.

Curly was an introvert in his personal life, who came to life when on-stage, when drunk, and in the presence of big bro Shemp. He felt free to be himself around him, unlike his other big bro, Moe -- who oft wagged a quasi-paternal finger at Curly. Moe went as far as filing Curly's taxes and handling his finances and business affiars, for fear (well-placed) that Curly could not. It is worth noting that Shemp was a Hall of Fame neurotic, so judgement of Curly's own bugaboos was most likely scant. I picture a camaraderie therein. All notes to construction/combustion hold, and nicely so. As the final third looms nigh, black pepper zetzes with a red spice under-belly, led by cumin and cayenne.

III
Curly had thick, wavy chestnut brown hair and an impeccable handlebar moustache, prior to Ted Healy insisting he shave it all off. Curly was quite self-conscious about his cue-ball scalp, and usually wore a hat when he was in public. He especially felt it when around the fairer sex, but to be blunt, he'd have been better off if it turned their gaze away a bit more often. A bit less "In demand socially," as Moe put it, might have worked a wonder or two.

"I had to shave it off right down to the skin." Curly lamented (Maurer, Joan Howard; Jeff Lenburg; Greg Lenburg (1982). The Three Stooges Scrapbook)

Butterscotch, verily. Red sweet syrupy wine -- Manischewitz? Yup, Blackberry... but 'nuff 'bout pairings. The flavors are all in a mosh pit. Compost under-belly takes up more real estate. Floral notes and fruity bits goeth there. So much smoke. So much flavors. Somehow not over-bearing, though. Humsoever, I do remember taking a phone call a bit ago... can't remember from whom... or what was said. Is it hot in here? I'm outside? Schvitzing. Autumn. Coconut. Merlot. Verily, Act III is all about leather and leathery oils and how they play with the rich black compost -- sandwiching the other flavors 'twixt 'em.

Curly Howard: Canoodler Extraordinaire. Perhaps it's more apt to say women were amongst his favorite forms of self-ruination, having been married four times. Throughout his life, Curly had a weakness for wine, women and song, and his wild life eventually did him in.

"Moe urged Curly to find himself a wife, hoping it would persuade his brother to finally settle down and allow his health to improve somewhat. After a two-week courtship, he married Marion Buxbaum on October 17, 1945, a union which lasted approximately three months. The divorce proceeding was a bitter one, exacerbated by exploitation in the local media. After the divorce, his health fell into rapid and devastating decline." (Joan Howard Maurer, Jeff Lenburg, Greg Lenburg; The Three Stooges Scrapbook 1982.)

For all the notes, the landscape is quite compressed. A very active and focused delivery of quite heady flavors and strength. Body acts to cushion this in a heavy cream. This Xiphos is really a heckuvan experience. Construction/combustion mainly hold lest shaft and nub smoke heat up a half tick. It's as germaine to the plot as a smoking gun after a shot fired. A full profile shows me the door. BOOM.
SMOKE TIME
60mins

FINAL GRADE
****A-****

EDITOR'S NOTES
Please to read my full list of Ten Things You Mightn't Have Known About Curly HERE. I left off numbers seven through ten here.
[11/23] I review the Toro format of this blend HERE]
L'shalom

Friday, October 21, 2016

Lucky Leaf Ignoto - Cigar Review

B"H
THE CIGAR
Lucky Leaf Ignoto
5 x 52 Robusto (flavored)
w. Ecuadorian Connecticut
b./f. Dominican
K A P L O W I T Z SCALE
K least, Z most
Construction P
Combustion O
Flavors O
Body O
Strength L
&
Sweet I
Sour O
Salty A
Bitter O
Umami A
&
Complexity L
Nuance L
Transition W
Balance O
Smoothness W
&
Animal K
Spicy P
Woody L
Vegetal L
Earthy W
Chemical P
SUMMATION
Sweetly and lively acidic. Only a very bissell salty. Quite sour and almost as bitter. Mainly sweet with some surprise bite. Softly rich and subtley balanced. Fairly complex and nuanced, but reliant in those respects upon its flavored nature. Some fun transitions, and a fun all-'round and somehow old-fashioned stogie.

Coffee drink, blonde caramel latte. Pepper, white. Wasabi vibe. Chocolate, white. Cream, cream as far as the eye can see and cow can milk. Floral, white. Sugar. Earth/dirt, sweet and creamy w/ hay attachment. Wood, soft. Pine stuffs. Grains, light -- sifted, even. Alfalfa. Nougat. Salt, Himalayan hint. Macadamia nuts. Lemonhead candy. 

Combustion features an occasionally lilted and oft aerated ash. Burnt offerings are pretty as far as DR guts go -- crystals and silver bits; clings on to an inch. Burn-line is even 'nuff tho ne'er perfected. Draw is a -tight tense tension, mayhaps which causes the top-leaf to split at 'round the band. Seams aren't tight, but they is even and doth hold. Pack holds its medium+ density. At the end of 2/3, draw loosens noticeably. Decent and then a tick more smoke-out-put giving the aroma of that coffee drink. Smoke heats up a tick at band.
SMOKE TIME
70mins.

FINAL GRADE
****I don't grade flavored sticks****
L'shalom