Was last night a special occasion?? Nope!! Not really !! So I felt the best thing I could have done after dinner (prime rib) was to go to the humidor and select a Cohiba Robusto…. It was an evening that needed a boost and so I did what I felt was the most appropriate action.

Sitting on the deck and staring into the rainy night with a beautiful Cohiba and a glass of port really mellowed an already mellow evening even more.  The cigar had 4 years of age and it was one of the robustos from Cohiba that had that real sweet quality that I don’t get all the time.  Sure, it started out being grassy and peppery but instead of moving into the cedar notes I started getting the dried fruit flavors that stayed with me until the final inch or so.

I’m a real sucker for the types of cigars that give me fruit and wish that I could taste it in every one I light but I guess this is what keeps Cuban cigars so interesting.  Then the power went out in our neighborhood.. Yup, interesting is what i got!!!!!

My wife tells me that her favorite uncle used to smell like peppermints and cigars.  She loved him and would sit on his knee as he’d tell her stories and joke around.  We all have memories of our youth where cigar smoke was present and I think that’s why the smell of a good cigar brings back great feelings that will stay with us for a lifetime.

I remember one instance in my youth where cigar smoke was present and it doesn’t bring back any warm fuzzy feelings at all.  I was 16, just got my driver’s license and was driving around with a few friends at night on gravel roads around the small town I grew up in.  There’s something about youth, bravado and speed that will get you into trouble….Every Time!!!

My father had a new Plymouth Fury II that went pretty fast and this was one of these moments where I think I needed to find out how it handled at high speeds on loose gravel…… All of you fathers out there may want to take notice of how the young mind works here.  As I was driving that night I remember some of the guys in the car telling me to slow down because they were feeling a bit uncomfortable with the speeds I was hitting…. Think I cared what they felt???? You already know the answer to that.  There were a few cars that were following me at one point, shining their lights in the rear view mirror, and the beer and the madness in my mind told me to stay waaaaay ahead of them.  At one point going around a corner I noticed I was doing about 90 MPH when I hit an ocean of fresh gravel…. Now the car is swerving side to side and I’m fighting with the steering wheel… Not fun… NOT FUN at all!!

After getting the vehicle under control I slowed down to about 70 and drove back to town to drop a few buddies ( cowards ) off at home… I sped through a few stop signs ( no one else on the roads at night except for a few pesky cars behind me ) and then I saw the flashing red lights.

From the back of the police car I could smell cigar smoke as the tickets were being written up.  Speeding….. Going through stop signs without stopping……

I think maybe my wife’s memories of her uncle’s odors bring back warmer memories than I feel whenever I remember that night!

I went to see an old friend last night and some friends were gathering for a bit of a birthday celebration.  This guy has been smoking cigars for a great number of years and I felt that a couple of Siglo VI’s, 2 Genios and a Piramides LE 2001 would be a good contribution to his humidor.  That last cigar was hard to part with but this is a really good friend and has been there every time I needed him.

Since I’ve been on a bit of a Siglo run these days I lit up a Siglo IV last night and the fun began.  Before long the cards came out and not long after that we were laughing, arguing, yelling and….. well,…fighting.. You see, thats what happens when good friends get together and hard liquor is at hand.

A lot of talk was about hockey, golf and fishing and a lot of plans were made to get together for tee times, visits to the river and play-off parties at all of our rumpus rooms but I have to be a bit realistic, hard liquor was at hand!!!! I feel terribly hung-over this morning as I write this but I think it was all worth it.. I know that at some point today the phone will start to ring and guys will be asking me exactly who said what and if I felt that they really meant what they were saying….. I think I’ll play dumb and say I don’t remember a thing!!!!

After finishing yet another Cohiba Robusto I’m reminded how happy I am that I developed a passion for many other brands from Cuba before I even tried my first Cohiba.  The important fact here is that all of the brands out of Cuba have something to offer.  Hoyo de Monterrey is a full bodied cigar that has a lot to offer and their flavors will surely give you all that you need.  Trinidad, which is rolled at El Laguito as well as Cohiba, if a fine but slightly milder cigar that is pure class. There was a good reason why Castro used to give them out as gifts.

Partagas and Bolivar touches on the stronger full flavored cigars and they have to be tasted and appreciated as well.  Also too, those two cigars are rolled at the same factory in Havana.  Montecristo is one of the most popular cigars in the world. The Monte 2 was so popular that, for a few years, they had to be rolled at almost all of the Cuban factories to keep up with world demand.

But……….

As soon as you develop a taste for Cuban cigars and can see the beauty in a romeo y Julieta or a Cuaba, you’ll be able to see why Cohiba is the one that true cigar aficionados come back to time and again!!!