I didn’t expect this in my week of cigar smoking…

Have you ever had a week that has just spiraled off into all sorts of directions? The first week of November has been like that for me. I had my cigar smoking for the week all planned out right down to what I’d be pairing with each of my cigars, especially my good friend Sarah Saunders who was celebrating a landmark birthday on Wednesday. Alas, life got in the way. Big time. Ah well, if nothing else I can say it was a memorable start to the month.

1st November 2021 – Vegas de Santiago D8 Corto

The Vegas de Santiago D8 Corto was the first on my cigar smoking list this week. I was introduced to this as September’s Cigar of the month through Cigar Club LDN. Having Marc Niehaus as special guest on my weekly Instagram Live show, it seemed fitting to smoke this amazing cigar again with him as we chatted about how he left the teaching profession and moved into the cigar making business – a story that is close to my heart.

Once again, I thoroughly enjoyed this perfectly crafted cigar, although this time it took me nearly two hours to smoke – I guess I’m just a chatterbox.

5th November 2021 – Rebellion Rockstar Paradise City

This cigar had been on my cigar smoking list for Thursday, but with the building of a bed and the inevitable tidy up that ensued afterwards, Thursday afternoon became Friday evening. It was worth the wait through. Not usually one for Connecticut wrappers, I wasn’t expecting to enjoy this cigar as much as I did. Click here to read my full review, or head over to my YouTube channel to watch me smoke and talk about this cigar.

7th November 2021 – Oliva Cain Daytona

My cigar smoking plan went out of the window again on Saturday and the Oliva Cain Daytona was delayed until Sunday. I’d like to say that this was worth the wait as well, and had I only smoked the first half of the cigar it would have been.

It was beautifully smooth and felt like it had been coated in olive oil. The cold draw was very easy and filled my mouth with cashew nuts whilst toffee, coffee and sweet hay tantalised my nose. The first draws tasted like a freshly baked coffee and walnut cake with the smoke being a light and fluffy buttercream icing on the top. Towards the middle, I got a hit of creamy pepper and cedar and it was pairing perfectly with the Godfather cocktail that I’d mixed myself using a lightly peated blended scotch.

As I went over the halfway line, the cigar started to get a bit bitter. A blow through allowed some damp coal notes to come through. It was at this point thought I noticed that there were a couple of hard prickles scratching my tongue. Upon inspection, I pulled out not one, not two, but five (!!) hard veins that had made their way into the head of the cigar. No wonder it was tasting bitter. Unfortunately this rendered the cigar unsmokeable so I left the last inch in disgust, which was a shame because it had started so well.

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