Summer Coffee and Smoke

This week, I finally got around to planting a couple of trees we acquired about a month ago. They should have been put in the ground right away but I had to wait for a back issue to be (mostly) mitigated. They are finally in the ground, in the midst of an extreme heat wave. Time will tell how well they do.  

After that morning chore, I retired to the screen porch, with a Caldwell Lost & Found Cream Machine. Despite the heat, I also had a cup of cappuccino. We often enjoy a cappuccino in the afternoon. It's a faux pas to order cappuccino in the afternoon in Italy, but in this house, the rules don't apply. 

The Cream Machine had been hiding in the humidor since July of 2023. The light brown 6 1/4 x 52 Toro is wrapped with Ecuadoran Brazilian-seed Arapiraca tobacco. The rest of the blend is Dominican, consisting of a Dominican Piloto binder, with Dominican Piloto, Dominican HVA and Dominican Habano fillers. The cigar is hefty but has an open draw when cut. As suspected, the flavor profile started off mild, with creamy peanut and graham cracker notes. There's a hint of white pepper and cheddar. Through most of the smoke the flavor was consistent and the cigar burned well. I was enjoying the pairing with the creamy cappuccino.

In the last third of the Cream Machine, it started developing a bitter note. Interestingly the ash became very flaky at the same time, and started leaving a bit of a mess in my lap and chair. Could be I was smoking too fast or perhaps just the nature of that particular stick. The flavor was not unpleasant, but also a significant twist that I did not find as enjoyable. Overall the experience, coupled with the relaxation, made for a delightful afternoon repast. 

Cheers!

Caldwell Eastern Standard Cream Crush

It was a cool and breezy Sunday afternoon, but the sun was shining. The Caldwell Eastern Standard Cream Crush seemed a good choice to enjoy while sipping a cup of coffee and listening to acoustic blues on the radio.  

Caldwell Eastern Standard Cream Crush is a 7 x48 Lancero with an Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade wrapper. The wrapper is said to be a hybrid seed offering a fuller bodied smoke than a typical Connecticut Shade cigar. The binder is Indonesian with Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers. The light brown wrapper glistens in the sunlight.

Upon light up, I get surprisingly robust citrus and pepper notes. As the cigar processed, the flavor became more creamy, with hints of leather, nuts, and cedar. The cigar is indeed more flavorful than I expected. The cigar was part of a Lancero sampler pack I purchased in August 2023. Not typically one to enjoy many Connecticut Shade cigars, I was curious if I would enjoy this one. But I did. The burn was even but I needed to give it a boost with my torch a few times to keep up the smoke output.

The issue I had with the Cream Crush was the problem removing the smaller band. The overlap was glued so tightly that I had trouble getting a fingernail under the edge. When I could raise a small corner, the tiny bit tore off without unwrapping the band. I could see the wrapper starting a small crack as I worked on the band removal. I finally used the tip of my pocket knife to get a cut in the band to tear it off. As a result of these struggles the wrapper was cracked and lifting off in a couple places. Upon removing the larger band, I could flakes of extra glue hanging off the edges of it. After employing the extra skill needed to roll a Lancero cigar, it's a shame to have a careless bland application detract from the final product.

My coffee had a bit of caramel vanilla flavoring in it. The sweet and bitter flavor profile of the coffee matched well with the cigar. I am also looking forward to the coming, and more consistent, warm weather so the deck time is even more abundant.

Cheers!

Afternoons Are For Coffee & Cigars

At least the ones during vacation. Friday afternoon, during the midst of a week of eating and drinking celebrations, it was time to relax for a creamy coffee with my cigar. Whipping up a quick cappuccino, I grabbed a Caldwell Lost and Found Paradise Lost and headed to the deck while the family continued to binge on the College Bowl games. 

The Paradise Lost Robusto was part of the October Luxury Cigar Club package. As with many of the monthly selections, it was an unfamiliar stick, and I needed to do some research. The Lost and Found line stems from a collaboration between Robert Caldwell, of Caldwell Cigars, and Tony Bellatto from La Barba Cigars. The pair searches cigar warehouses for forgotten blends from various manufacturers and brings them back in limited releases. As a result, the cigars already have some age on them, although the original blenders and exact components may be unstated or unknown. The Paradise Lost seems to be a rerelease of an older find. Of course that may all be speculation on my part, put together from a few quick internet searches. The important point is the smoking experience.

The Lost and Found Paradise is a 5 1/4 x 52 Mexican San Andrés wrapped robusto. The binder is Dominican, with Nicaraguan and Dominican tobaccos making up the filler. It's a smooth chocolate brown stick. The band graphic, at first hard to make out, is said to be the a silhouette of the partners walking on a beach.

Initially the flavor profile was on the mild side. Sweet, nutty, and charred butter notes come to mind. The flavor profile slowly built to include toasted bread and grains. The burn was even, excepting one point where a "woodpecker hole" burned open about 3/8" down from the burn line. However the burn progressed past that point easily with no further issues.

As I got down to the last quarter of the cigar, the flavor profile changed significantly. Black pepper and tobacco notes came in. The bitterness also built. I found the experience less enjoyable and ended the smoke at about 65 minutes.

On the whole, the Lost and Found Paradise Lost provided an enjoyable smoke and, while the coffee lasted, made for a pleasant pairing. And now I was refreshed and ready to take on the rest of the weekend.

Cheers!