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Released every Tuesday, the LOUNGE LIZARDS podcast helps listeners navigate the experience of finding and enjoying premium cigars (both Cuban and non-Cuban) and quality spirits. Episodes are normally around 90 minutes long and feature a variety of different topics including food, travel, life, sports and work.
The podcast features eight members: Rooster, Poobah, Gizmo, Senator, Pagoda, Chef Ricky, Grinder and Bam Bam.
This is not your typical cigar podcast. We’re a group of friends who love sharing cigars, whiskey and a good laugh.
Join us and become a card-carrying lounge lizard yourself! Email us at hello@loungelizardspod.com to join the conversation and be featured on an upcoming episode!
Welcome to the Lounge Lizards podcast presented by Fabrica five. It's so good to have you here. It's a leisure and lifestyle podcast founded on our love of premium cigars as well as whiskey travel, food, work, and whatever else we feel like getting into. My name is Gizmo. Tonight, I'm joined by Rooster, Senator, Pagoda, chef Ricky, and Bam Bam.
Gizmo:And our plan is to smoke a cigar, drink some rye whiskey, talk about life, and, of course, have some laughs. So take this as your two hundred forty seventh official invitation to join us and become a card carrying lounge lizard. Plan to meet us here once a week. We're gonna smoke a Nicaraguan cigar tonight, share our thoughts on it, and give you our formal lizard rating. We share the cigars that every cigar smoker must try.
Gizmo:We discuss the recent cigar import numbers, and we answer how price can affect our ratings, all among a variety of other things for the next two hours. So sit back, get your favorite drink, bite up a cigar, enjoy as we pair a Midwinter Night's Dram limited engagement with the Montecristo nineteen thirty five anniversary Edicion Diamante in Toro. A Nicaraguan puro on the pod tonight, boys, from the non Cuban Montecristo. Correct. It's the Montecristo nineteen thirty five anniversary Edicien Diamante in Toro, and it's a 55 ring gauge cigar by six inches long.
Gizmo:And boys, we have not done a non Cuban Montecristo, I think, since episode four.
Bam Bam:Is that true?
Gizmo:The other nineteen thirty five anniversary, remember the black and gold band we did? Actually rated fairly well, I think better than we all expected.
Bam Bam:Is that the Lizard Obey special?
Gizmo:It is, I think. It is, right?
Bam Bam:Yes.
Gizmo:Yeah. And we are back to Montecristo. Boys, these smell great, don't they?
Bam Bam:It's chocolatey.
Gizmo:They do. Yeah. Honestly Bam has had that cigar up his nose for the last twenty minutes.
Chef Ricky:It's salted chocolate.
Bam Bam:Exactly. Yeah. Fantastic.
Gizmo:So this has been a surprising entrant, I would say, into several of the Lizard rotations in this room, namely senator and I.
Bam Bam:You guys have been raving about this.
Gizmo:Been obsessed with this cigar for quite some time. We've we discovered it at PCA. Yep. And, man, it's excellent. So I guess we'll see, how it does tonight on the pod boys.
Gizmo:Let's cut this thing. See what we're getting on the cold draw and the wrapper.
Bam Bam:Draw is wide open. Same. That wrapper aroma does translate to the cold draw for me.
Chef Ricky:Doesn't always happen either.
Bam Bam:No. A little salt, a little chocolate. It's cocoa y.
Chef Ricky:A little bit of berry there too. Agreed.
Bam Bam:Yeah, if you take a deep draw. A little fig. And it's wide
Chef Ricky:open. Fig, yep.
Rooster:A blueberry.
Bam Bam:You guys have smoked many, many of these. I've only had one at PCA, or a week after PCA. It was outstanding. It was delicious. Have you had any performance issues ever with this?
Bam Bam:Maybe burn issues. I've just had a few that have
Senator:had a flaky ash that I haven't been happy with, but other than that, flavor wise, they've been really consistent.
Gizmo:The performance has been great. It's just for me, it's been like the the burn line, like he's saying, ash
Bam Bam:Okay. Flakiness. The one I had was extraordinary, and it makes me wanna buy a box.
Gizmo:Alright, boys. Let's light this thing. The Montecristo nineteen thirty five Anniversary Edici on Diamante in Toro. And again, it's a 55 ring gauge cigar by six inches long.
Rooster:It's got a nice box press.
Bam Bam:Yeah. The presentation's beautiful and I love the band design and color.
Gizmo:It's very elegant. This is the sister to the very famous Montecristo series, the black and gold 1935 anniversary. Talk about the origin of this in a little bit.
Senator:And isn't this, I guess, somehow the little brother to the Doube Diamante, that, like, $150?
Gizmo:$150 per hour? It is. Yes.
Bam Bam:But it's not a double Toro. Correct. Okay.
Senator:Sadly. I did, by the way, bring that cigar with me tonight.
Gizmo:Oh, you did? You should
Bam Bam:have told us. I would have brought mine. I would have
Gizmo:brought mine too. Wish you told me.
Senator:I fucked up. I should have.
Bam Bam:You're gonna actually smoke it?
Senator:I might. But I might save it because I also brought a Kellner 80. So, you know,
Bam Bam:save it for patio.
Senator:That's a good idea. I'll save it so we can all light that. Nice. I'll probably go to Kellner tonight then.
Bam Bam:What's that? A $150 cigar?
Gizmo:Yeah. Yeah. Tell you, man, every time I have one of these cigars, it really is awesome on the light. Great combustion. Love the flavor profile.
Bam Bam:Delicious flavor.
Gizmo:And I think it's very unique. I don't think we'll get into it. But even on the light here, it doesn't taste like other Nicaraguan cigars that I've had. It's true. Like, would you say that this tastes like anything else that you've had from
Bam Bam:Nicaragua? It's cocoa y and a touch of cinnamon for me.
Senator:Only thing that
Bam Bam:it Very unusual.
Senator:The only thing it kind of reminds me of is a natural Padron.
Gizmo:It's a good call. Interesting. Like a more earthy yeah.
Senator:Well, not just earth. No. It's it's like the cinnamon that you were talking
Gizmo:about. Forward.
Senator:Yeah. Cocoa. Like, you're not getting the, like, earth and, like, the dark chocolate that you normally get on the Maduro. It's like a lighter
Bam Bam:Got a point. Yeah. Yeah. You got a point. It's true though.
Bam Bam:It's a very good call out. Kind of like the natural exquisite, I think, Yeah. For
Gizmo:I can't tell you the last time I had a natural
Senator:exquisite, man. I lived BC.
Gizmo:Oh, PCA. That's right. We did have one.
Rooster:Oh, And it was great. It
Senator:was delicious.
Rooster:We were shocked.
Gizmo:Did George give us that one?
Senator:Oh, he gave every remember last minute they had to get boxes from a retailer?
Bam Bam:That's right.
Senator:Because they were doing the presentation. That one? Okay.
Gizmo:Yeah. Okay.
Bam Bam:Yeah. A lot of similarities to this, actually.
Gizmo:So this cigar line is made by AJ Fernandez. It was launched in the middle of twenty twenty three, and it is a collaboration between AJ Fernandez and our friend Rafael Nadal.
Bam Bam:The Maestro.
Gizmo:The Maestro.
Senator:Explain
Gizmo:so much. They were working on the original Montecristo 1935 anniversary. This was the blend, and they decided it needed more time. The tobacco needed more rest. So they pivoted and did the other blend and released that.
Gizmo:I guess that was in 2020, 2021, something like that. And then this one came as the sister to that in middle of twenty twenty three. So the tobacco in this, the wrapper is a hybrid seed grown in Jalapa. The binder is Criollo grown in Ometepe, and there are three fillers all from Esteli.
Senator:Nice to see a disclosure of what's in the cigar.
Gizmo:Yeah. We haven't done that in a while.
Bam Bam:Very true. How much did you pay for these?
Gizmo:So that's an interesting question there, Ben. Mhmm. The MSRP on this cigar is $24. Yowza. I purchased the ones that we're smoking tonight for 16 in that box.
Gizmo:You can get them outside of the box without the box for $8 apiece.
Bam Bam:Now you're talking.
Gizmo:I don't understand why or how, but there are places you could find this exact cigar on the internet for $8
Bam Bam:What does that usually mean? That's a huge margin.
Rooster:Don't know if
Gizmo:it The belts means are
Bam Bam:spent. That delta's ridiculous.
Gizmo:Yeah, I mean, I don't know if it means that they're just not moving them. I can't see
Rooster:that I don't know being why more the manufacturers don't do that.
Gizmo:Just pull the box out
Rooster:of the equation? I mean, everybody who buys a box has a box, so once the box is empty, can't you You should be able to buy refills at a lesser price.
Bam Bam:The MSRP is 24?
Gizmo:$24.20. Yeah. Box of $10.02 42. Wow. So this 10 count so I did buy one ten count with the box, and then I've just been quote unquote buying refills, I guess, without the box.
Gizmo:Smart. But yeah, and even you were commenting, Bam, talk about the box for a second.
Bam Bam:It's very nice, handsome. It's got kind of a walnut top and a very light creamy beige bottom.
Gizmo:There's actually not Felt. Yeah, felt on the bottom
Bam Bam:of That's the bottom surface, but that bottom part of the box is cream and it's got, do you see the walnut streaks at the top? It's very nice. Simple, beautiful presentation, but that's quite expensive.
Rooster:But for $8?
Gizmo:Oh no, of course. For a refill? I mean,
Senator:that's great. Think it's
Gizmo:the only
Bam Bam:At $24
Rooster:For a Toro?
Bam Bam:Would you think twice before buying the cigar $24
Gizmo:I'd have a difficult time paying over 20 for this.
Senator:Yeah. I think the only case though that it might make sense is if I'm in a retailer and I have to buy, if they have like Padrons at $35 for an ex Cosevo, and they have this at 24, I'm gonna take this. Definitely.
Gizmo:And I think this is one Certainly, I've brought it down in humidity a little bit, but everyone I've had in any humidity condition right off the truck, a little bit drier than this. I accidentally left them, you know, left one out one time. They're pretty resilient to changes in humidity. So I think this is a safe one for the golf course, for the boat Nice. For, you know, sitting outside by a fire.
Gizmo:Whatever your situation may be, I think this is an appropriate cigar for that. And at $8, if you could find it for that price or somewhere around there
Bam Bam:It's a home run.
Gizmo:I mean, even if you can only smoke half of it, who cares? I mean, it's it's
Rooster:But is it available at that price at most retailers or it's only a couple maybe?
Gizmo:I think it's only at 1. I think it's only at a couple. I've seen no. I've seen it more than one. Have you?
Gizmo:Yeah. I've seen it in a couple, but it's not everywhere at that price.
Rooster:I would love to get loose exclusivos at $8. That would be awesome.
Pagoda:Oh, you don't get those?
Rooster:I don't have your connection.
Gizmo:So let's talk about the line here. It's offered in six Vitola, the Diamante icon 48 by four and three quarters, the Robusto, which is a Robusto extra kind. It's 54 by five. The Toro we have in our hands, 55 by six. The Diamante number two, fifty six by six and a half.
Gizmo:The Grande, which is a Gordo 60 by six, and the Churchill, which is a, again, a weird size for a Churchill 54 by seven. So most of these are kind of reaching a little bit higher in ring gauge, you know, compared to what you'd normally expect from a Robusto at Toro, a Churchill. They're a little bit bigger than those, but all ranging in price from somewhere around 16 MSRP to upwards of 27 MSRP. Chef, how are doing with it?
Chef Ricky:I'm enjoying it very much. Right now, I'm getting some cocoa, bit of nuttiness. The fruit notes that were present in the cold draw, I'm not getting them at all here now. But I'm getting a much earthier
Bam Bam:cocoa. Yeah, definitely cocoa.
Chef Ricky:Coco forward. Yeah.
Rooster:No brown paperback?
Chef Ricky:Thankfully, no. Thankfully, no. I was afraid since we got the $8 version, there might
Gizmo:be some brown paperback notes. I do like this flavor profile compared to the much more full black and gold version that we smoked many moons ago. This is kind of like the little sister in flavor to that. But I find it to be incredibly flavorful.
Bam Bam:Agreed.
Gizmo:And I think for a Nicaraguan, I think it's very, very approachable. Smooth? I agree.
Senator:It's very smooth. It's even a little creamy. You can taste that there is some age on the tobacco.
Gizmo:Correct. And I think if you gave this to someone who's kinda new to the game, I don't think from a Nicaraguan standpoint that this is going to be a cigar that knocks anybody around. I think this is very easy to smoke. Yeah. Especially at $8 too.
Gizmo:Who cares if they throw it away?
Bam Bam:Correct. And I love the burn line.
Gizmo:Yeah. They're doing well so far.
Bam Bam:Almost perfectly horizontal.
Gizmo:Bam, for the folks who don't have one in their hands, can you describe the bands for them as you do so well?
Bam Bam:I think it's beautiful. I love the burgundy against this pale gold. I wish I could read what's on it, but I can't. Don't feel bad. I need my old man readers.
Gizmo:It says Montecristo, Nicaragua series, nineteen thirty five anniversary. There's the diamond, which is cool. It kinda glows in the light
Bam Bam:a little And that traditional Montecristo logo above.
Gizmo:Yep. And it says Edicien Diamante below that. It's beautiful.
Senator:I agree. It's very catchy. Even from far away, like how it has a shine and luster to it with the diamond, it's really cool.
Bam Bam:That burgundy is unique. I don't see that often on a band.
Gizmo:Yeah. It's a nice choice. Yeah. So when this was put together, Rafael Nadal said, quote, when AJ Fernandez and I completed the blend of the original Montecristo nineteen thirty five anniversary in 2020, we knew we had something special. But we also knew that during that process, we had created other blends that also deserved to be introduced.
Gizmo:Many projects start as a marketing idea, but the Montecristo nineteen thirty five anniversary of this on Diamante was born out of our admiration for this iconic brand and our passion for creativity. So like I said, this blend was the original for that release in 2020, 2021, And they shelved it because they did like the blend, but it needed some more time. So pretty cool made in the AJ Fernandez factory in Nicaragua. We talked about this coming off a PCA this year in New Orleans. I do like, you know, we talked about that Montecristo event that we went to, which I think was that the first place that we smoked these?
Senator:Oh,
Gizmo:yeah. Was that Montecristo event they were handing these out, which was the launch of the new $150 Montecristo, which is now the second one that they've done at that price. But we commented on how cool it was to see AJ Fernandez getting up and with Rafael Nadal celebrating the blend and the launch and, you know, AJ had his daughter there translating for him. It seemed like for how big Altidus is and Montecristo and how many cigars they sell, it seemed like a very family affair. It didn't feel like a big corporate presentation.
Gizmo:There were no scripts, there were no teleprompters, no production. They just killed it.
Bam Bam:The setting was beautiful. The building, the grounds, even where we had the meal inside, was just fantastic. Beautifully done.
Senator:I think to your point, the cigar industry has always talked about as a a family kinda business. And even when you're not family by blood, you know, it's not like Nadal and AJ are related, but they operate exactly like a family run business. And it's just cool to see even all the collaboration that happens. I mean, those two are colleagues, and so they they have to collaborate, they work together. But, you know, Nadal has been collaborating even with Placentia on some stuff, and we talked about Christian Iroha collaborating with Altidus on what's
Gizmo:the Saint Louis Ray, thirtieth anniversary of him originally blending that.
Bam Bam:Can't wait to try Came
Gizmo:back and did another one.
Senator:You just see how big that family really is in this space, which is cool.
Bam Bam:Do we know when that's coming out?
Gizmo:I think it's already out.
Bam Bam:Really?
Gizmo:Yeah. I think they're heavily promoting it right now. I saw Christian Herrera and Rafael Nadal posting some videos together and stuff.
Bam Bam:Let's review it.
Gizmo:Yeah. Think it's a good one to try.
Rooster:What's also funny is that all of these guys came from Cuba. Nadal, so did AJ, I think. Don't know Nadal,
Gizmo:but so many
Rooster:of the guys
Gizmo:in the industry.
Senator:I thought
Bam Bam:AJ was born in Spain. Maybe he has lineage into Cuba lately, possibly.
Rooster:They have that heritage. They have that background. They have that culture. They have, you know, that know how in their family, which is, you
Senator:know, AJ it's very Fernandez was born in Cuba. There you go. San
Chef Ricky:Luis, Cuba.
Senator:Wow. Cool. In Preno Del Rio. Wow.
Bam Bam:Old boy's on point tonight.
Gizmo:It's been a while since you dropped an old boy.
Bam Bam:Well, you know, it's a couple weeks. Nobody wants to hear it anymore.
Gizmo:I do get emails like, please tell me
Rooster:I'm kidding. I love to hear that.
Bam Bam:Pagoda, how you doing?
Pagoda:I'm doing good.
Bam Bam:Your cigar looks fantastic. He's got the brightest dash in the room, I think.
Rooster:I think he looks fantastic.
Bam Bam:Oh, also always How can I Always very dapper?
Gizmo:He loves the attention, look at him.
Bam Bam:What the fuck? You just woke me up.
Pagoda:Alright. So where were we?
Gizmo:Alright, boys. Let's go do some news now. Got a bunch of stuff to talk about. Right. Things to share.
Gizmo:Yeah. News already. Well, you want me to slow it down? Not enjoying the pace tonight?
Rooster:It is so good.
Gizmo:The cigar is so good.
Rooster:Slow it down. Yeah.
Gizmo:So first up, this is one that a senator sent over. He found. They have released the numbers for the import figures of cigars showing that things have flattened a little bit, at least as of now, especially for a few countries. And there's one that's not very notably. So apparently imports through May of this year were down 2% over the same period in 2025, according to the Cigar Association of America.
Gizmo:Nicaragua, the number one producer of cigars in the world, shipped 97,600,000 premium cigars to The United States for the first five months of '26, 4% fewer than the 102,200,000 shipped in the same period last year. The Dominican Republic shipments were down 11% to 28,400,000 cigars. I do have a comment on that I want to talk about in a second. Honduras, however, had shipments of 30,700,000 cigars through May, up 16%.
Bam Bam:Now we talking.
Rooster:That's all fabrica.
Gizmo:It's all through Reserva. From the same period last year. United States has, in total, imported 158,400,000 premium cigars through May compared to 162,200,000 last year. So with all that being said, boys, what is your take on that data
Rooster:and that news? Well, gasoline is $8 a gallon. Maybe that's why. People are smoking less. Could be.
Rooster:Inflation? I mean,
Bam Bam:prices like $42.
Pagoda:I thought I thought you were gonna say one point.
Gizmo:It's certainly good to see Honduras being up 16%, but, you know, you compare even even at these numbers, 30,000,000 coming out of Honduras compared to Nicaragua shipping almost a 100,000,000. Mean Yeah. Mean Crazy numbers.
Senator:Yeah. I think there's something to what Rooster is saying in the sense, obviously, the economy is what it is, so it's not surprising that people are more budget conscious in that environment. But you look at the numbers out of Honduras, I mean, sure, part of it is people are becoming more aware of the great tobacco that's coming out of there, so they're certainly buying more of it. But at the same time,
Gizmo:if you look at the price point on a
Senator:lot of Honduran cigars, they're very affordable.
Rooster:That's right.
Senator:I mean, from Fabrica Five to Aladino, those are all 10 to 14
Gizmo:My and $15 father blew a great cigar, about $10.12 bucks.
Rooster:Yeah. Delicious. I mean, compare that to the Opuses and the Davidoffs and the other brands. Mean, you know?
Senator:Even what we're smoking right now.
Gizmo:It is nice to see Honduras rising. Listen, it's such great tobacco.
Rooster:But do you think these numbers are fairly accurate? I think
Gizmo:they're pretty accurate. For sure. This is legitimate information, would think.
Bam Bam:It's shocking to see Honduran cigars outsurpass the cigars coming out of Dominican Republic from the point of view of export.
Gizmo:Yeah. So I'm assuming this might be one of the first periods that happened. Honduras at 30,700,000. Dominican Republic down to 28.4. Wow.
Bam Bam:It's crazy.
Gizmo:Honduras has clipped Dude. The Doctor.
Bam Bam:That is that is quite a statement.
Gizmo:So I want to hold I want to hold that Doctor thing for for a little bit. It's going go to another news story.
Bam Bam:I know why. They don't disclose their blends.
Gizmo:I think there's more to it than that.
Bam Bam:Alright.
Gizmo:But So we'll hold on that. Let's go to our next one now. So this news story might affect the future of Nicaraguan cigars. So president Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua's Sandinista revolution announced that Nicaragua will no longer have elections. Now why are we talking about Nicaraguan elections on this podcast?
Rooster:We're taking over Nicaragua. He
Gizmo:said there will never be elections here again. We will work with the National Assembly and the relevant institution on laws because we need laws that build a wall, a barrier against the coup plotters and the traders who sell out their country. Of course, calling out The United States among others. So, again, why are we talking about this? Is what does this mean for premium cigars coming out of Nicaragua?
Gizmo:Is is there an embargo It's
Bam Bam:embargo time.
Gizmo:Is there an embargo coming? Senator, what's your take
Senator:on all this? That would be tragic. Think about how many Nicaraguan cigars we love.
Gizmo:Better stuff. Better stuff. Better
Pagoda:This, Better
Senator:I I that would be tragic. It'd be devastating. And also, I As tragic as the Cuban environment.
Bam Bam:Yeah. You got, like, 8,000 exclusivos right now in your house. You're good.
Gizmo:But still, I mean, you think about, like, how much of a potential reality that is with them saying that. I mean, why would he say that? Because he wants to be a dictator.
Chef Ricky:That's correct. Can't wait to see what Jorge Podron could do with Honduran tobacco. Yeah.
Gizmo:Yeah. Well, you have seen a lot of Nicaraguan manufacturers hedging and building factories elsewhere. Drew Estate just did. My father just did. They're in Honduras now.
Gizmo:There's a lot of activity happening where manufacturers are kind of seeing writing on the wall potentially.
Bam Bam:Didn't Padron, not too long ago, buy 125 acre parcel somewhere Tons of land,
Gizmo:of course, Nicaragua.
Bam Bam:Yeah, that's what I'm saying. So They've spent their expenditures. Right?
Chef Ricky:I doubt that cost very That's
Bam Bam:quite an investment. I don't know.
Gizmo:All I know is that if if this comes to be and this sticks, it's gonna be a real problem. Yeah. Seeing as they as we just discussed in the previous news story, they're bringing in almost 100,000,000 cigars just through almost the first half of this year. So you're talking several 100,000,000 cigars a year coming in from Nicaragua. That would be a huge problem for cigar smokers here.
Senator:I mean,
Rooster:they're the
Senator:largest exporter of cigars
Gizmo:In the world.
Senator:In the world. Yeah. Mean, huge.
Rooster:Should we be loading up?
Gizmo:It's a good question. I mean, I know there's new tariffs that have happened on both
Bam Bam:Well, Senator can open a store and charge triple.
Rooster:No, he doesn't sell.
Chef Ricky:Do you guys think when something like that happens or there's a fear of that happening that a Nicaragua manufacturer would take their tobacco and bring it to another country for use later, continue the aging.
Senator:I mean, they can do that, but the problem is the soil that know, that's
Chef Ricky:for future crops. Just saying if you have
Bam Bam:Rick is commenting on inventory that they have now that they'll take out of the country.
Gizmo:I mean, yeah, if I were them, I'd be trying to get as much of it out and stockpile it here in The States before anything were to happen. You just never know, right?
Rooster:Is It's going not good for the future of that company. For sure, yeah.
Senator:Yeah, but the problem is not their ability to do anything in Nicaragua. The problem is them being able to sell here in The United States. So I'm not sure there's a race to get the tobacco anywhere other than where it is, or they could easily move it to Doctor anywhere. It's just more they'll be closed off to this entire market from a sales perspective.
Gizmo:That's true. Sure.
Rooster:But doesn't Ortega realize that? Like how much money the country would be losing on revenue and taxes and whatnot?
Gizmo:Mean, does Cuba care? Does any country What's Cuba, man?
Bam Bam:Dictator's ego knows no bounds. Correct.
Chef Ricky:Bam, I'm getting citrus on this cigar. Are you fighting that at all?
Gizmo:No. I think his palate is immune to that now.
Chef Ricky:I'm definitely getting some citrus here.
Bam Bam:Firmly cocoa, and you know that froth on top of espresso, I'm getting that. I just had espresso earlier. Crema. Crema. Crema.
Bam Bam:Cocoa and maybe still just a touch of cinnamon way in the back, or some baking spice. Agree. It's an outstanding cigar. I'm shocked how good this is.
Rooster:I think cocoa and baking spice are spot on.
Bam Bam:Very nice. And it's a little creamy. Oh yeah.
Rooster:But I'm not getting citrus per se.
Bam Bam:I will say the retrohale for me is okay. It's okay.
Chef Ricky:Retrohale's a little dry.
Rooster:Yeah. It's a little harsh on the back of your throat.
Bam Bam:That I'm not getting, I but
Gizmo:kinda like it though.
Pagoda:It's a little bit of your right.
Chef Ricky:It's in the retro hill,
Bam Bam:and the way it
Chef Ricky:hits my middle palate that I'm finding citrus. That's where I'm getting
Bam Bam:it.
Pagoda:I'm not getting citrus, but I'm like a little hesitant to say that I'm getting a little bit of the cayenne. Glucose
Rooster:biscuit. No,
Pagoda:cayenne kind of
Bam Bam:So peppery type.
Gizmo:Yeah, it's a little peppery, yeah. No, I'm with you on that. There's definitely something there, but I do like the retro kind of every eight or 10 draws I'm I'm putting it through the nose. I I like it. Not me.
Rooster:You find finish to be a little dry?
Senator:I do. I agree with that.
Pagoda:Yeah. The finish is a little dry.
Chef Ricky:You
Bam Bam:know, I don't mind it because I'm getting so much delicious flavor here. I'm really enjoying this. I'm good.
Chef Ricky:I can't wait for the pairing. Yeah.
Senator:Chef's thirsty.
Bam Bam:That's a hint.
Gizmo:Let's go on to the next news story, boys. Alright. Tying to
Pagoda:I think chef did it properly.
Rooster:Should be an amount
Gizmo:to the pairing. Tying into the first story, these all kinda tie together tonight. Apparently, the pig butchering legend himself, friend of the program,
Bam Bam:Chen
Gizmo:Zhi, passed away. Wow. Is facing the death penalty in China. I thought they Shocker.
Bam Bam:I thought they dismembered him by now.
Pagoda:Congratulations. Congratulations.
Bam Bam:No. I that should not be
Pagoda:played. I
Bam Bam:love that, man.
Gizmo:So very seriously, Chen Zhi has been formally arrested in China now and is facing new charges, most notably causing this is an interesting charge. Intentional injury by cruel means. If found guilty on that charge, it carries a punishment of between ten years and death.
Senator:So It's a big
Bam Bam:He was There's a big delta there. Like, the cost of retail in the cigar.
Rooster:Holy smokes. Do you wanna be put in the box
Gizmo:or else?
Senator:Oh, jeez. Holy
Gizmo:cow. Just put him in the like this. Look at
Rooster:him in a big brown bag.
Gizmo:So he was formally charged on July 6. Of course, we know he's been in Chinese custody since January when Cambodian officials arrested him and then turned him over to the Chinese. He's also facing an added charge of copyright infringement, but I don't think that one matters as much as the other one. As we know, for folks who are unfamiliar Since when does China care about copyright
Senator:infringement? Correct.
Bam Bam:A 100% correct.
Gizmo:Last fall, the Eastern District Of New York unsealed an indictment against him who said that he was the head of a massive criminal enterprise that engaged in pig butchering scams, the multistep process of scamming people out of cryptocurrency and other cash. US government says that at its peak, his enterprise was generating as much as $30,000,000 from these scams daily. The United States government seized almost a 130,000 Bitcoins at the time were valued at 14,700,000,000, one of the largest seizures in the history of the United States Department of Justice. So why is this important? Well, this guy is the largest or was, I guess, or we'll see what happens.
Gizmo:The largest shareholder in Habanos S. A. At 28% outside of the Cuban government, which owns 50%. So he was this is the guy who pretty much was solely responsible for the pricing Armageddon that happened, you know, Cigar Mageddon that happened a few years ago where we saw boxes of Cuban cigars triple in price, you know, nearly overnight. And since then, of course, it's only gone up from there.
Gizmo:What's interesting about this guy, and this is going back to our first news story, don't forget that he also acquired Imperial Brands, which included all of Tabaclera USA, which includes Altidas and JR Cigars. We have in our hands
Bam Bam:Mhmm.
Gizmo:A cigar made by Altidas at the AJ Fernandez factory. So what's interesting about that first story, the Dominican cigar imports being down as much as they are, I think a large piece of that is tied directly to Chen Zhi and his owning the Tabaclera Garcia in The Dominican Republic, which is the largest cigar factory in the world, which was effectively shut down and not able to import cigars into The United States until May of this year. So I do think that a significant piece of that number being down, probably several million cigars were supposed to be coming out of that factory that this guy owned. The United States then, I guess, after this was kind of all settled, the Chinese had this guy in custody. They unsealed everything.
Gizmo:I guess in May, The United States and some other countries made some exceptions to allow the products of, you know, the factory that he owned and these companies that he was a part of to bring those cigars into The United States. So certainly it was a huge disruption for Altidus, which includes Montecristo and a lot of other brands that we've talked about tonight. But, you know, this guy had a massive impact on this industry and still has a massive impact on this industry. And I would not be surprised if he is the reason that those Dominican imports are down quite a bit.
Rooster:So what happens to his share now that he's in custody?
Gizmo:It's a great question. I mean, I would think the Chinese are going to confiscate it. That would be my thinking. Government
Bam Bam:I think he has to be found guilty. So he's indicted, he's gonna go through trial and be found guilty. Once you're found guilty, then I don't think you have right to anything that you own contractually with anyone, depending on how the terms of the agreement are structured, I would think.
Senator:Yeah. I mean, would depend on the terms.
Bam Bam:Yeah. Like every partnership I knew of a sign, there's a ton of terms.
Gizmo:So let's not forget, he was also booted. You know, there were several European and Nordic countries that started freaking out that, you know, as we talked about many times, Habanos forcing themselves into ownership of the distribution in all of the various markets, effectively forcing themselves into a 50% holding of the distributorships. So he then was an owner in the distributorships and, you know, Sweden and Norway and Spain, all these other places. So these countries were saying this guy is a partner in this massive cigar tobacco, which is already a problem for so many countries importing business. So they already have booted him out.
Gizmo:A couple of countries have already booted him out of the ownership position so that those, you know, importers can continue doing business. Now, Cuba, of course, being in the shit show that it is, isn't even giving these folks cigars to import. So again, his impact on this business, plus what's going on in Cuba, it's crazy what has happened in the last twelve months in the cigar industry and what continues to happen here as we've talked about. What happens with Cuban cigars? What happens with Cuban tobacco?
Gizmo:What happens with this guy and his ownership position? So a lot of interesting stuff going on. So we'll see what happens. We'll keep you updated on Chenji. I find this story fascinating.
Gizmo:I cannot wait for the Netflix documentary on it. I think it's going be great. Know, this guy did some real damage and hurt a lot of people.
Bam Bam:Can you narrate it?
Gizmo:I would love to.
Bam Bam:All right.
Gizmo:I hope Netflix calls me. Alright, boys. Let's do one more news story now before we get to our pairing. This one you're gonna love. Nearly eighteen months after it was announced, the Opus X Gold and Bullet has shipped.
Gizmo:The Golden Bullet is the second cigar release for the Fuente, the Opus X Society, which is a collaboration between Arturo Fuente and Manny Irriarte. I can't pronounce that. Ben's got a box already. Manny Irriarte Enterprises. It's a 50 ring gauge cigar by six and three quarter inches long.
Gizmo:So How much? That's what I wanted to get to. So apparently, retailers who have ordered this cigar have said that the MSRP is gonna be between $125 and $150 per cigar. That's not bad. A total of 2,500 boxes of 12 cigars will be produced each year.
Pagoda:That's for one cigar, by the way.
Gizmo:So this is gonna be very, very expensive. I don't understand what the Opus X Society is. I guess it's a group of retailers or No.
Rooster:Ask Ben. Ben, what does that What is that?
Bam Bam:It's a bunch of nerds that can't get girlfriends. Alright.
Gizmo:Also offer
Pagoda:smokers. Come
Bam Bam:on. Alright.
Gizmo:They also offer very high end collaborative pieces with folks like Elli Blue. You can get a Golden Bullet LE Blue c five cutter for $380. You can get a Golden Bullet LE Blue j 12 lighter for 400.
Rooster:You know, I just I just ordered an LE Blue scissors. Did you really? How much? I think you're right. $3.80.
Gizmo:You paid $380 for Eli Blue scissors.
Rooster:What? They're awesome.
Bam Bam:Oh, I think they did.
Rooster:I didn't get them yet.
Bam Bam:You're gonna be demoted.
Gizmo:Talk about needing to go on a pig.
Senator:Oh, yeah. Rooster got in Rooster got into pig butchering.
Bam Bam:That's correct.
Gizmo:You you did go to Cambodia a couple weeks ago.
Pagoda:What was that all about? How many scams are you running
Bam Bam:right now?
Rooster:I I took over his chase.
Gizmo:Rooster's running upon us now. And with that, boys, I think it's time for a drink. Let's go to our pairing now. We have an interesting one tonight. Another actually very expensive spirit from what I understand.
Bam Bam:Yes, it is.
Gizmo:We have the Midwinter Night's Dram, the limited engagement from the High West Company. I believe this is a rye. Correct, ma'am?
Bam Bam:Yes. It's a rye whiskey finished in port barrels, I believe.
Gizmo:Yes. Tawny port. Yeah. Cheers, boys. Cheers.
Pagoda:Good to
Gizmo:see you. Senator, we're celebrating tonight. Yeah, man.
Pagoda:Cheers.
Gizmo:Big day for senator. Big personal Correct. Achievement day. That's right. I guess I'd say.
Senator:I was liberated from North Korea.
Bam Bam:There you go.
Gizmo:Your own North Korea. Cheers, boys.
Chef Ricky:Cheers. Cheers.
Gizmo:Okay. I like that. I like that a lot. I don't mind it. You don't like it?
Bam Bam:No. I've had a few glasses of this in the past. That's why I brought it in.
Gizmo:Yeah, this has come from the Bam Bam private collection.
Bam Bam:Well, not really, but off the shelf.
Gizmo:So thanks for bringing it in, I really like that. A little bit of heat on it, but I think it's very well rounded.
Senator:The nose is great. Just smell the spirit.
Bam Bam:It'll take time to adjust because it does punch you in the face.
Chef Ricky:It's awry, so it's hot.
Rooster:Who's there?
Gizmo:I don't mean to hit that, sorry.
Bam Bam:Sorry, Mike. Sorry, Mike.
Gizmo:So how is the spirit pairing for you guys with the cigar? What do you guys think?
Bam Bam:I think it overpowers it initially right now, but I've had this before. Give it six sips. I think it'll adjust nicely.
Senator:Yeah, I think we've got to wait.
Bam Bam:Yeah. Now, this bottle costs $145.
Gizmo:Yeah. Yeah. MSRP, 150, but a lot of folks, unfortunately, BAM, are getting it on the secondary
Bam Bam:At a lot higher.
Gizmo:For between $2.50 and $350 a bottle.
Senator:Yeah. Alright. So I have to ask. None of us drink rye often.
Bam Bam:I like rye. Rye. In a cocktail. In a cocktail.
Senator:I'm saying none of us drink rye often neat.
Bam Bam:Never.
Pagoda:Maybe Angels Envy, that's the only one.
Bam Bam:What Right,
Senator:prompted you to spend that on a bottle of spirit that you don't often really ever drink?
Bam Bam:I wanna get into it. Lizard Charlie introduced this to me a year ago, and I've had a few of this on his front porch, and By my second glass, I'm feeling great. I'm floating around the clouds, and the flavor actually gets really quite nice once your palate adjusts.
Gizmo:So I do think it's important to note on this specific release, I'm gonna talk about this whole limited engagement, this release from Hi West, but this is 49.3% ABV, so almost 50%. Yeah. 98.6 proof.
Bam Bam:Yeah. On this. Pass punch.
Gizmo:Think, know, I don't know if the Glencairn is helping it, but I find the experience did not feel Mhmm. Like a crazy hot spirit. I I agree with you. I do think it is a little overpowering on the cigar because I do think this is a little bit of a lighter
Bam Bam:Correct.
Gizmo:Nicaraguan, but it's good, man.
Bam Bam:Yeah. I think it'll adjust nicely, I hope.
Pagoda:Yeah. I hope so too. My chest is heavy.
Gizmo:You? You feeling the heat?
Bam Bam:I thought you had whiskey in the morning.
Pagoda:All my acid reflux, everything's all like,
Bam Bam:all active again. The medical segment's next week. Okay.
Chef Ricky:I think some of the port notes that come through go really well with the cigar.
Gizmo:It's kind
Chef Ricky:of pulling back those berry notes that I was missing from the cold draw.
Bam Bam:I do like a sip and a draw. A draw right after a sip is quite nice.
Gizmo:Do think as the palate adjusts, I think the heat and I think the I think it's actually gonna really round out. Yeah. Once you're three, four, five sips in, I think it's gonna work.
Bam Bam:I I I think the whole bourbon, rye, whiskey, whatever you wanna call it, gray market.
Gizmo:It's ridiculous.
Bam Bam:It's so stupid. So stupid.
Pagoda:I think I need ice.
Bam Bam:So I've had the Sonorox. It's okay.
Pagoda:Yeah. I would think so.
Senator:I added a little bit of water to mine. It's definitely helping. I don't think it in any way messes up the flavor because there's so much strength. But I will say what works well pairing wise is there's a sweetness in this.
Bam Bam:Oh, yeah.
Senator:And with the dry finish on the cigar, I actually think the sweetness helps. So bourbons, this type of rye that has lean sweeter, all I think pair well with the cigar. Yeah.
Bam Bam:And definitely not a gulping spirit. This is something to let linger in your mouth a little bit, small sips, curl down around the tongue and take it down. It's great.
Pagoda:I don't find it spicy at all. Like, typically with rye, you'll get a little bit of spice.
Gizmo:Oh, wow. I don't know. It's probably because of the finish in those port barrels. This whiskey, this limited engagement is apparently one of the most sought after annual American whiskey releases. Produced by High West in Park City, Utah, it is released once each fall in limited quantities.
Gizmo:At its core, it's a rye whiskey based on High West Rendezvous Rye, which is then finished in ruby and tawny port barrels with the more recent releases like this one also incorporating French oak in the finishing process. The port casks transform an already spicy rye into something rich, fruity, and dessert like like we're experiencing tonight. So there's no age statement on this. It's a blend of High West distilled rye and sourced rye from other places. And, again, the MSRP, like you said, BAM, is a $150.
Gizmo:So why is it called the limited engagement? So this is a an homage, a liquid homage to William Shakespeare. Each annual release is called an act, and the individual bottling runs are labeled as scenes. So this one, I believe, is acts 13 scene what? 10.
Gizmo:Scene 10. So the limited engagement, obviously, you would hear that a lot when you're thinking about musicals or Broadway or something like that. You know, it's a theatrical way of saying that it's seasonal limited edition, not permanent. So this bottle has developed an almost cult like status. The earliest acts are especially revered.
Gizmo:That's acts one through five, one through six because they've relied heavily on older stocks of sourced MGP and Barton rye. Many of the whiskey enthusiasts feel that those early releases had greater richness and complexity as they transition toward using more of their own distillate beginning around Act seven, opinion became a little bit more divided. So I guess what we're drinking tonight, the original releases years ago were a little bit more celebrated, but I'm guessing they wanted to move to their own distillates. So it generally arrives each September through October. So it's appropriate that we're doing this now here in August.
Gizmo:So this is going to be coming out, I guess, in probably a month or two at the latest. It'll obviously sell out very quickly. And as we discussed, command secondary market premiums. The Saloon Society, which is high west secret society, I guess, they receive early access before general release.
Chef Ricky:Another group of nerds.
Bam Bam:Correct. We're everywhere.
Pagoda:Is this new society with
Gizmo:open society?
Rooster:So which I think they pair with open society? Which Shakespearean play is this? A Midsummer's Night Dream? Midsummer's Night.
Gizmo:Yeah. Would say so, right? Yeah. Guess so. This is that's dream.
Gizmo:This is dream. Mhmm. So some flavor profiles that I picked up here that they said we should be expecting on this rye tonight. Branded cherries, fig jam, raisins, orange peel, cinnamon, baking spice, vanilla caramel, molasses, leather, toasted oak. What do you think?
Bam Bam:A lot
Rooster:of that's there.
Chef Ricky:A lot of it is
Rooster:there. Yeah.
Senator:I like the description on the back of the bottle better. It says because it breaks down where it's coming from. Please read
Gizmo:it in Shakespearean English if you don't mind.
Senator:Alright. So This limited release whiskey is a sumptuous marriage of rye whiskeys finished in port barrels. The rye forms a beautiful base of vanilla, caramel, and cinnamon, while the port barrels provide notes of plum, dried fruit, and spice. I think that's pretty accurate.
Gizmo:It's on the money.
Chef Ricky:Agree? The nose reminds me of like a true maraschino cherry that you'll see in a Manhattan.
Bam Bam:Yeah. I do That's get a great call out. Ton of cherry
Gizmo:on that run up. Yeah. I like the pairing right now,
Bam Bam:Yeah. It's settling in.
Gizmo:So what do you guys think? Let's say forget the secondary. Know, everybody knows our opinions on the secondary market for this these these whiskey products. But what do you think of this the $150 price point that you're getting from the from the retailer?
Chef Ricky:I think if you're a Rye enthusiast, this presents unique and the the aging process is special. So if you're a Rye enthusiast or a collector, I think you've you'll find it worth it. But for an everyday drinker that's looking for something or looking to get into rye, it's a little expensive for sure.
Senator:I completely agree with Chef. You've got to really love rye to be spending $150 a bottle on rye. I like the flavor profile, I like what it's delivering, I just can't possibly see myself spending a $150 on any spirit to drink regularly, let alone a rye that I didn't know rye came at this price point.
Pagoda:Yeah, me neither.
Gizmo:What do you think? I know you like rye. I know, Bam, you do as well. What do you guys think? How does this compare to other ryes that you like to drink or mix in your whiskeys?
Gizmo:Obviously, this is not a mixing
Bam Bam:No.
Gizmo:Rye, but what do you think of this comparison?
Pagoda:To I drink the Angel's Zen Bay, the rye, on the rocks, and I really, really enjoyed it. It's half the price.
Bam Bam:It's also much, it's milder
Gizmo:than it in the sixties?
Pagoda:70
Bam Bam:It's five, also milder than this, I think, in both flavor and body.
Pagoda:No, very flavorful, though, Angel's Envy rye. Yeah, I think from a flavor perspective, this is excellent. Like I'm just wondering whether I'd be spending 150, like that's the first thing that comes into my mind.
Bam Bam:Yeah, you gotta love
Pagoda:it. But on the aroma, this is fantastic.
Gizmo:Yeah, nose is amazing.
Pagoda:And then once again, when you let
Gizmo:it just warm on your,
Pagoda:your palate, it's excellent.
Rooster:You know, Lizard O is a huge bourbon drink. He ever mentioned this?
Gizmo:I'm not sure if he's ever mentioned He this drinks specific a lot of high Yeah, he likes high proof bourbons. I don't know about rye so much, but he's never mentioned this one from my understanding. But I think it's also probably because this was a little harder to get. Obviously, we're coming up into the period where this is going be released. So hopefully some listeners out there, if they're really into rye Yeah.
Gizmo:Will be able to get their hands on a bottle.
Senator:Yep.
Gizmo:And boys, with that, we are coming to the end of the first third now on the Montecristo nineteen thirty five anniversary, Edicien Diamante and Toro paired with this high west of Midsummer's Night Dram, limited engagement. What's everybody thinking of the
Rooster:pairing and the cigar? Great smoke output, I must say.
Senator:This is a smoky room. The draw is wide open. Tons of combustion. Delicious cigar.
Gizmo:I love the flavor. It's very consistent from the light.
Bam Bam:Well, you two know it very well.
Gizmo:Yeah, it hasn't changed very much,
Rooster:but I'm
Gizmo:not complaining. Think as we get a little further down into the halfway point into the last third, think it'll pick up a little bit, but I'm loving it so far. How does this stack to all the other ones that you've had, Center?
Senator:So I'll say flavor wise, I think this is definitely one of the better ones I've had. Dry. The flaky ash I mentioned though has happened to me once I've gotten about a third of the way through the cigar. Like, the initial inch of ash structurally was perfect. And then after that, I'm being very purposeful about ashing and not trying to have it hold on too long because it's it's coming apart and you can tell it's not on that strong.
Senator:But other than that, I I really like it. You know, the funny thing is with the dry finish, I suspect their decision to let this age a bit longer. Like, if there's anything I want more of, I wish the finish were a bit creamier than it is. And I think that it's somewhat creamy right now and age had to produce that. And I think with even more age and more time, I would imagine this gets even better.
Rooster:I think that harshness would dissipate over time, and that would make this
Bam Bam:You're getting harshness?
Rooster:The the I'm calling the harshness because of the dry finish. On the back of your Yeah.
Gizmo:I think I'm getting that when I throw it through the nose.
Bam Bam:Very sensitive.
Gizmo:I really like the cigar, though.
Bam Bam:I love the cigar.
Gizmo:I think if you're getting it for $8.12, $15,
Bam Bam:I Honestly, think it's the pairing, I'm taking deliberately very small sips as I go. It's very tasty, that back and forth dance between these two.
Gizmo:Alright, boys. Let's do another news story now. Going back to what we were talking about before, very quickly on the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua. At the end of July, The United States imposed increased tariffs on Dominican Republic and Nicaraguan imports. So both of them have risen from 10% to 12 and a half percent.
Gizmo:So another two and a half percent increase on all of those cigars coming in from those two countries, which is not great. Honduras, notably, again, oddly compared, you know, going back to our first news story tonight, is staying at 10%. No increase there. So Nicaragua, Dominican Republic and Costa Rica are all at 12 and a half percent import tariff on all of those products coming in. So I do believe that we'll probably see unless manufacturers choose to eat it.
Gizmo:I'm assuming we're going see another little bump in price probably before the end of the year on cigars coming in from those countries. So that's unfortunate. But hopefully they'll come down at some point in the future. One more now, boys. This one coming out of Cuba.
Gizmo:Very exciting. The Cosecha has been announced. The Trinidad Vigia Reserva Cosecha 2022 has been announced. So this cigar is 54 ring gauge petite robusto by four and three eighths inches long. Normally, the normal version
Bam Bam:Of the okay. The Vidya, the regular Vidya.
Gizmo:The the regular Vidya is currently priced at around $60 a cigar. $60, 54 ring gauge petite robusto, four and three eighths inches long. So what do you think it's gonna be
Bam Bam:100
Gizmo:and the Reserva Cosecha twenty twenty two?
Bam Bam:I say three times that.
Gizmo:I would say it's gonna be way more than that. I would bet that you It would
Rooster:be around 300.
Gizmo:I would say 3 to 500.
Bam Bam:Excuse me?
Gizmo:Yeah. It's a Reserva. Reserva Cosecha.
Bam Bam:It's just a video with an extra band on it. Yeah, Yeah, but
Rooster:Seven years of aged tobacco.
Gizmo:These Reserva's have tobaccos aged, as they say,
Senator:for at least three years. Oh, three years.
Gizmo:So Reserva releases are limited to $5,100
Rooster:dollars per year.
Gizmo:So I'm curious what what these will come out at. I'm I'm wondering if we'll even see them. I mean, like we've talked about with these new releases out of Cuba. This is a, you know, the newest in a long line of Reserva series releases. They started doing this in Cuba in 2003, the first one being the Cohiba Selection Reserva, which included five different releases according to half wheel.
Gizmo:Shout out to those guys for making this easier for me to share with everybody. In 2005, Senator, they had the Partigue series D number four Reserva, which was the first one that set the stage for how they do it now. So of course, there's Reserva. Like I said, tobacco's aging for at least three years. And then there's the Grand Reserva, which are generally more expensive, come in the black box.
Gizmo:Those are aged for at least five years. So this is not to be confused with the other program that we talked about with the Trinidad Fundadores. Remember the ten years vintage, the vintage program? God only knows what they're doing down there, but they're putting out very expensive cigars. Good luck trying to find Montecristo or Partigue Series D number fours.
Rooster:Like the Padron Garand Reserva's. Yeah, they're good. They're already seven years.
Gizmo:They're already aged five years or seven years. So that's it for news tonight, boys. A lot of stuff going on. I wanted to ask you guys something. My father has a buddy who's been smoking cigars for thirty years.
Gizmo:And this guy, I think if we were to consider someone who's been smoking for that long, I would say we wouldn't consider this guy a cigar smoker. I think this is a guy who smoke cigars. And what I mean by that is he's been smoking cigars for thirty years, has no idea what cigars he's smoking, what's in them, has pretty much had no curiosity about them. So I guess my dad got to talking to him at their fishing club. And my dad told him about the podcast and then he showed it to him and he put it on his phone.
Gizmo:I guess the guy came back and said, listen, I really I would love for your son to put together a, know, like a sampler pack. Cool. So as I was thinking about this and I was thinking about us and the way we think. I was debating which cigars to include, right? So this guy's been smoking cigars for almost thirty years, really has had no curiosity in what he's smoking or growing his knowledge of it.
Gizmo:He just goes to J. R, I guess, and buys his cigars and smokes it. Right. So with that being said. What is a cigar or two or five that every cigar smoker or person who smokes cigars needs to smoke at least once in their lifetime to successfully, quote unquote, complete the cigar journey in your eyes.
Rooster:The two that come to my mind is Gurka and Excalibur.
Senator:Don't forget Rocky Patel. Rocky Patel
Rooster:is on the top of the list. A little
Pagoda:bit of asylum.
Bam Bam:Well done, chef. Asylum.
Gizmo:The big ones. So like, you know, I was thinking about it. Is it a cigar that's rare? Is it a cigar that's aged super long? Is it a cigar that's expensive?
Gizmo:Is it a cigar, like you're saying, you can get anywhere at a low price? Like, I really have no idea what to put in the sampler pack.
Rooster:But do you have any idea what he what he smokes?
Gizmo:He's just smoking like the factory smokes that he's buying for $4. You know, by the way, this guy is a very successful guy, retired probably twenty, twenty five years now, has oodles of money, and is smoking like Factory Seconds.
Bam Bam:That's crazy.
Rooster:I mean,
Gizmo:he opens the Cigar International magazine, finds the Factory Seconds, and just orders them.
Rooster:Wow. And smokes. Wow.
Pagoda:Wait, let me put Lizard down, and I'll find out.
Gizmo:Yeah. Who's Danny here in the club might be able to help.
Rooster:Look, I think the cigar sampler pack from small batch cigars is a good start.
Chef Ricky:Correct. Oh, yeah.
Gizmo:You bet it's sold out, but
Rooster:once we probably have it, we can put one together and maybe even include a Padron exclusive. Think
Gizmo:that would
Rooster:absolutely blow anybody away who, no matter what they've been smoking. And once you smoke that, I mean, who knows? Some people, at that, if they've been smoking for that many years, they're kind of set in their ways. It might be hard to change his But he's the one
Gizmo:prompting this after listening to the podcast. So I think he listened to us sit here and chat and dig in a little bit, and I think he was inspired to kind of understand a little bit more what he spent so much time and money over the years, you know, sitting with, and he's never dug in. I think that he was inspired to do that.
Senator:So Yeah. I I agree. I I don't think this type of person is at all hard to change their habits. I think they're so aimless right now that anything good you put in front of them, they're gonna immediately gravitate toward. I mean, there's a guy in our lounge that this exactly reminds me of.
Senator:Everybody knows Chuck. I mean, older guy.
Bam Bam:Oh, yeah.
Senator:Smoking cigars for decades. He has no idea what he's smoking. Literally, I think when he joined the lounge, he started asking people, what should I smoke? What do you like to smoke? I don't know.
Senator:I just pick stuff up and I smoke it.
Bam Bam:But it's a great question.
Senator:And this guy, like, as people have told him, try this cigar. Try that cigar. Go buy this. Go buy that. He just does what they tell him, and then he says, wow.
Senator:These are all incredible. So I think this guy's in kind of the same boat. Once he tries the stuff that we smoke, I think it'll be easy for him to gravitate toward it. But just figuring out like what those staples are, you know, which brands you kind of must try to start to complete that journey, think is the key.
Gizmo:So do you think it's like, should I put, you know, kind of one of the standard issue, like required cigars from each country? You know, should I put a Trinity Robusto? Should I put a a D four? Should I put a
Rooster:no no Cubans?
Gizmo:Yeah. So you don't think that having a Cuban cigar in your lifetime is a necessary part of the successful cigar drink.
Senator:If you haven't even figured out the new world space at all, I don't think you're in a position to appreciate
Bam Bam:Maybe give them some time.
Senator:Yeah, that's like
Bam Bam:With what we've been smoking maybe for about six months to a year, possibly, and then introduce that Cuban, I think that'd be a great idea.
Pagoda:I don't know, I would pick up a Trinity Robusto. Yeah. I would pick up an aging room. Everything we smoke. A Davidoff, a Padron.
Chef Ricky:Eladino.
Pagoda:And for the fifth one, could choose. Eladino. You know, that'd be a good five setter because it goes to a wide range, Honduran all the way to Nicaraguan, Dominican, at the same time, two really prominent brands, and, you know, different flavor profiles. And then he can figure out what flavor profile he gravitate towards.
Rooster:But I bet he loves a big ring gauge cigar.
Gizmo:No, I think he's actually a Churchill guy. A robusto and some big cigar. Yeah, but not a not a ring. Yeah, not a fat cigar, but
Bam Bam:you know, Robusto as well. It's what we smoke.
Gizmo:Yeah. So let's say the one that pagoda we've kind of thrown out there, right? Let's say he comes back and says, I love this and I bought them and I'm loving them. What else you got? What would be the next step?
Chef Ricky:I think if you create a five pack, you a few different five packs that are categorized according to price. So there's an entry level, there's maybe a mid range and then there's a celebratory five pack tier where if he's looking for a special occasion cigar or something to give to someone, you know, I imagine thirty years of smoking, you've you've shared a cigar or two with someone else and maybe whoever he shared it with, they never went on to continue smoking. But yeah, I think if he has that type of direction and he knows when to pull what, and maybe that'll help set an expectation for what he should experience.
Senator:I kind of look at it as the standard production stuff Pagoda mentioned that's New World, think, is like step one. I think step two is then some of the more special New World smokes that are a bit higher in price point. Right, like a Padron eightieth, an Aladino eighty fifth anniversary, like just some of the nicer releases that we really enjoy. And then I think when you can start to appreciate the complexities and the nuance and the differences from the standard stuff to the more aged special stuff, I think that's like a key step in your journey. And I think only then, are you ready to then explore Cuban cigars and things that are gonna be very different that you need to be able to appreciate the nuances and differences.
Bam Bam:Yeah. After you go through that trajectory, you'll really appreciate, I think, a Cuban, the nuances and how subtle they are in a Cuban cigar. Cigar.
Rooster:LUB 14.
Gizmo:So aside from Cuban cigars, what cigars would you absolutely not put in this pack? I think
Bam Bam:the two that Rooster mentioned. The two or three. No Gurkhas.
Gizmo:No Gurkhas?
Rooster:Nope. Sure he's more Excalibur.
Bam Bam:No Excalibur.
Rooster:No La Fincas.
Bam Bam:No Ashtons. I don't know. I'd stay away from all those. No diesels. No CAOs.
Bam Bam:I don't know. The Brasilia is actually very nice.
Senator:But Brazil would be good.
Bam Bam:Yeah, that's actually a good one.
Gizmo:I don't have most of that stuff in my humidor.
Bam Bam:I know.
Gizmo:You know, I would probably stay away from Family Reserve, Padron, just from a strength standpoint.
Bam Bam:I think after his I think he can graduate to that.
Rooster:Yeah, would start him on the thousands series.
Bam Bam:Oh, yeah. The two thousand's fantastic. Seven thousand's nice. Slickback Steve loves that.
Rooster:I mean, you gotta graduate from, you know, what he's smoking now to you can't just give him a grown sixtieth. Not going to appreciate
Gizmo:that comment. All right. Well, I would love to hear from listeners on this as well. I'm going to put this up on. I want to hear what other folks have to say.
Gizmo:I'm sure F. O. H. Are going to be heavily focused on Cuban cigars. Of course, that's what goes on over there.
Gizmo:They love their Cubans. But, yeah, I would love to hear what you think or if you've done this for a friend or a friend of a friend, what cigars would you put in this starter pack for someone who's been smoking as long as this guy has? Or just in general, what cigar do you think that everyone should smoke at least one time in their life?
Rooster:I'm just surprised that somebody who's been smoking for thirty years.
Gizmo:Just imagine the time, dude.
Rooster:Going to cigar stores and not even asking about cigars, just picking up random custom, know, Factory it So is it the price
Gizmo:of the No, dude. When I say this guy has plenty of money, this guy has plenty of money. Like, this guy flies private exclusively. Like, it's crazy. Like, he's very well off.
Gizmo:And he goes and buys factory seconds.
Bam Bam:Yeah, it's strange. The question is,
Gizmo:do they enjoy them? Of course. He enjoys cigars smoking, yes. But I don't think I think now he's kind of realizing, like, wait a second, there's a whole another level of depth to this whole thing that I've not even
Rooster:discovered. Not smoking a cigar for flavor, he's just smoking for it for the sake of smoking. He's a guy
Senator:who smokes
Pagoda:cigars. Does he chew on them?
Gizmo:He does not chew on them. I did ask that.
Bam Bam:Well, look, he's in the hobby. That's a great thing. I think he'll just graduate
Gizmo:over time. A nice opportunity and I'm actually proud that he listened to us. Correct. I don't know if it was one or three episodes, whatever it may be, or half an episode and got to the point after thirty years of saying, you know what? I want to dig a little deeper.
Rooster:Yeah. I mean, especially if he asked you to put something together, I think that's that's great.
Gizmo:That's a Agreed. Step forward. Alright. So I'll I'll come back to this next week or the week after, see what the listeners and FOHers put together on their list, and we'll come back to this. Alright, boys.
Gizmo:Let's move on now to some listener email. And we have a lot to get to tonight. Hopefully, we get through a bunch of these. Let's start with this one from our friend Lizard Rob. He says, hey, Giz.
Gizmo:I don't think I've heard you guys talk about palate fatigue so far. So I'm assuming it's not really an issue y'all have to deal with. But I thought I would share some things that have worked for me. I smoke three to five cigars a day pretty regularly, and for a while there, I kept having issues where I couldn't taste my cigars. What I found to work really well was strong mint gum.
Gizmo:The ones I use are the polar ice peppermint gum sticks.
Bam Bam:In between cigars?
Gizmo:I think just having a fatigue palate, maybe just,
Bam Bam:you know, take some flavor.
Gizmo:Yeah. I see. I noticed a big improvement after I started chewing that gum. I kept having to take a day or two off to restore my palate, And I had a day where I smoked a couple of cigars in the morning and couldn't taste them at all, which was disappointing as usual. I bought some gum on a whim and after chewing it and having a meal, my cigars tasted like when I first started smoking.
Gizmo:And then recently I learned that lemon juice in combination with the gum helps restore my palate to 100%. I rarely drink lemonade, but I ended up having some recently and I realized that I could pick up flavors that I wasn't getting before, even with the gum. So now I have lemon juice and the gum every night before bed.
Bam Bam:Okay.
Gizmo:So you got to throw the Navajo in there too.
Bam Bam:That's right.
Gizmo:I don't have them right before I smoke. Usually I give it a couple hours. Otherwise, either one can overwhelm my palate. But after a smoking session, I'll usually chew some gum to refresh my palate for when I have another session later in the day. Just thought it might be helpful for some lizards out there who don't have iron palates like you guys do.
Gizmo:Anyway, I look forward to hearing the next podcast and hoping to attend whenever you guys have your meetup. It'd be nice to finally see the faces behind the personalities I listen to every week. Take care, Lizard Rob. So my first thought on this is that I don't think I've ever had a fatigued palate. I've probably had, like, a fatigue, like, not boredom, but I need to just step away from cigars for a day or two and get excited about them again and come back, right?
Gizmo:But my feeling on folks who have fatigued palates is like, do you think they're smoking too fast and it's getting hot and quite literally burning the tongue?
Chef Ricky:Possibly. 100%. That's definitely part of it. Yeah.
Gizmo:And I'm not, you know, being critical of Lizard Rob here. I don't know what his situation is or how he smokes, but have any of you guys experienced what he's describing here as far as palate fatigue?
Chef Ricky:With cigars, no. Obviously, as a chef, do experience it in food or, you know, maybe you're having a super long tasting that's not really well put together. You know, I I think every long tasting usually has periods of palate cleansers. But, you know, he's onto something there with the mint and the lemon juice. Obviously, you know, citrus as a whole is a great palate cleanser.
Chef Ricky:Mint is a is a good one, but I think the gum could be overpowering. So him leaving it for the evening or before bed is a good move. Parsley is a great palate cleanser, fresh parsley. Chew it on that a bit.
Bam Bam:Like just grab it?
Chef Ricky:Yeah. Yeah. You don't even need that much. Just a couple of leaves, a couple of stems.
Gizmo:Senator, you don't do that?
Senator:No. I don't know if
Rooster:you have ever noticed when you go to a if you ever been to a fragrance counter when you buy colognes and perfumes or whatever. I've never done that. They always have a bottle of coffee beans. So they make you smell coffee beans in between smelling different scents. Coffee
Chef Ricky:beans are also a well known palate cleanser or When
Gizmo:you go to a cigar tasting, there's often you know, coffee beans to use in between to kinda cleanse your nose like you're saying. And then there's often lemon seltzer water to
Bam Bam:So I have to I say sparkling. The lemon the seltzer with lemon is incredible for me.
Gizmo:Yeah, me too. I drink it all the time.
Bam Bam:I haven't had it very often, but when I do and I'm having more and more of it, it's fantastic.
Rooster:Yeah, another thing that really works is Bouchard chocolate.
Gizmo:Son of a bitch.
Rooster:That's a great palate.
Gizmo:Hey, you're a newbie it is. I We're new to the game.
Bam Bam:I do believe pace of smoke affects your palate. I think if you're
Rooster:a I agree.
Gizmo:I think you can't smoke too fast. That might be what's happening.
Bam Bam:You can't plow through a cigar and then do that again and again in a night and enjoy your cigar.
Senator:I think that's the biggest thing. I think anyone who has ever, while smoking, experienced palate fatigue where suddenly they're not able to taste their cigars
Gizmo:Shut off, yeah.
Senator:I think they've been smoking way too fast, the cigar is too hot, and it is like frying your palate.
Bam Bam:Mhmm.
Gizmo:Gotta slow it down. So in your expeditions of ten, eleven, 12 cigars, have you ever experienced even a touch of palate fatigue? Has there ever been any sort of I don't wanna use the word numbing, but I don't know.
Rooster:It's got an iron palate.
Gizmo:I know that. But I don't know another word, but like a muting. Is there ever Does the volume ever go down on your palate?
Senator:I've expected that to be the case at some point, but it's honestly never happened.
Bam Bam:Not yet, yeah.
Senator:But I think it goes to the pace. I'm intentional, even just if you're having one cigar. You know sometimes if you're smoking too fast, you start to lose the flavor that you're getting.
Bam Bam:Definitely.
Senator:And it's the wrong conclusion to think, oh, my palate's not working. No, you've overheated the cigar, you just got to slow down, and you're going to get that flavor back. I think
Rooster:a cigar after a meal is also a great idea.
Bam Bam:That's great idea.
Rooster:Smoking a cigar one after breakfast, one after lunch, and one after dinner. You crave a cigar after
Chef Ricky:I a agree. Meal,
Bam Bam:I think what you're drinking while you're smoking is important. A seltzer with lemon, a great cup of coffee, or any spirit, for me, keeps my palate lively. Rum? Yeah, anything. It just keeps me anxious for the next draw.
Gizmo:So thanks to Lizard Rob for writing in. And by the way, Bam, we have to tell everyone, we had a phenomenal night last night. Incredible. Which brings me to, like, wanting to
Bam Bam:have a cigar after dinner. Oh, yeah. I'm still feeling the effects, but it was awesome.
Gizmo:Bam and I decided to go see the return of the band Rush. Okay? Off for your hundred and fortieth time? I've seen them, like, 18 times over the years.
Bam Bam:Oh, just these Off the charts. Off the charts.
Gizmo:It was unbelievable. So so this is at Madison Square Garden. So let me just lay this story out about Rush. So Rush retired in 2015. Okay.
Gizmo:And their drummer, Neil Peart, who is widely regarded as probably one of the top three or five drummers of all time, up there with John Bonham and Keith Moon and Buddy Rich. And he's in that conversation very consistently. He died of glioblastoma right before COVID, January 2020. So he died six years ago. So the band obviously has been idle now eleven years.
Gizmo:They found a drummer that's worked out and they're back on the road and they're doing four nights sold out at MSG. She's incredible. Incredible drummer. She not Eastern. No, it's a woman named Annika Niles from Germany.
Gizmo:She was in Jeff Bexban, phenomenal player.
Bam Bam:She's incredible.
Gizmo:And she was endorsed by, you know, Neil Peart's wife and daughter. You know, we're thrilled to have her, you know, and it's amazing. So I'm so happy they're back. So Bam and I decided to get tickets when they went on sale. Don't if it was six or eight months ago or whatever.
Gizmo:And so we set up a dinner reservation. We drove in first. Correct. In the truck. We had cigars.
Bam Bam:That's right.
Gizmo:Which there's no better way to drive in the city.
Bam Bam:Cigue six, baby.
Gizmo:Cigue six.
Bam Bam:It was fantastic.
Gizmo:Fantastic Cigue six.
Bam Bam:Very, very good.
Gizmo:So we drove in, we had the Cigue sixes, and then we found street parking, was a miracle. Walked over and had a phenomenal meal at this place called Wolfgang's. Fantastic. Which was on 41st. Phenomenal steakhouse.
Gizmo:Can you describe the, so you kinda walk down into it.
Rooster:It's not the glass building that
Gizmo:you could solve. Right next to the New York Times building.
Bam Bam:Yeah, you're walking in a street level, you're going down one story. It's a huge, beautiful, big dining area. Great seating, beautiful tables, excellent place to go. I'll go back.
Gizmo:The food and drink were phenomenal.
Bam Bam:12 ounce fillet, medium rare, Sauteed broccoli and asparagus, just fantastic.
Pagoda:Oh, you went to the one around 38? 41st. 41st.
Gizmo:Between 7th And 8th. It's the New York Times building. It's right there.
Bam Bam:Off the chain.
Senator:No rare plus?
Bam Bam:No rare plus.
Gizmo:I did medium rare.
Bam Bam:Me
Gizmo:too. Didn't want to
Bam Bam:have rare
Gizmo:plus brought up on the podcast. I was gonna
Chef Ricky:say is just rare plus.
Senator:In front of Correct.
Gizmo:So then we zipped down to MSG. Yep. And saw the show. Phenomenal three hour show. Got back up to the car and smokes cigars again.
Bam Bam:That's correct.
Gizmo:There's no better way to enjoy a night out in the city than book ending it. How much was parking? $13.45 for my I
Bam Bam:found street parking.
Gizmo:I found street parking. Terrible.
Bam Bam:Yeah.
Gizmo:Yeah. $13 for all night. And that's my, you know, my massive truck. And then we got back to my house and had more cigars and some old fashioneds
Bam Bam:watching Ocean's 11.
Gizmo:We watched Ocean's 11
Bam Bam:and then 13.
Rooster:It's awesome.
Gizmo:Be a good time.
Bam Bam:Was fucking great,
Gizmo:But yeah, I encourage everybody to check out Wolfgang and if you can have a cigar in your truck.
Bam Bam:Go see Rush if you can.
Gizmo:Yeah. Go see Rush. I'm going two more times.
Bam Bam:I'm going Monday with
Gizmo:I'm going tomorrow and I'm going Saturday. And you're going Monday.
Bam Bam:With Bam Junior. Yeah. That's his favorite event. One of my favorite bands. Senator thinks we're nuts.
Senator:Well, grew up- I'm looking at Rooster. He's thinking the same.
Bam Bam:Well, I grew up listening to Rush, and I listened to them all through college. I know a lot of their songs, not all of them, but a lot. I sang to most of it. The musicianship was off the chain. Was just so accurate and crisp.
Bam Bam:It's awesome. The show was cool.
Rooster:How Sold old are these guys now?
Gizmo:Geddy Lee turns 73 today.
Bam Bam:Wow. And his voice? I didn't know what to expect. Yeah. It was on point.
Bam Bam:Amazing. Really surprising.
Gizmo:Yeah. They're my favorite band of all time. Yeah. And have been for many years.
Bam Bam:Alex Lifeson playing guitar.
Gizmo:Like Yeah.
Bam Bam:Stuff. He's like 25 years old.
Rooster:They're British, right?
Gizmo:They are not. They're Canadian. They're from Toronto. Wildfires.
Pagoda:That's hilarious by the way.
Bam Bam:Relax, old boy.
Gizmo:Alright. Let's go to another email now. This one's from our friend Lizard Buzz. It says, hi, Giz. I wanna thank you guys for the box of Bon Robert LaDalia I grabbed for winning Lizard of the Week last year.
Gizmo:Hope I made the right choice based on what I felt was the consensus of the Lizards. Question for the best podcast that I absolutely love. What is the Lizard's opinion on Nicaragua's president canceling all future elections? Pretty much establishing a dictatorship for the country, which, in my opinion, has the best overall cigars. Will that country be compared to the North Korean lounge you guys previously frequented?
Gizmo:I'm sure our government will lay down the hammer on them. I found it funny that Ortega's wife is the vice president of the country. I only get to dabble with Cuban cigars when vacationing in spots with the Casa del Habano shops, and it would kill me if Nicaraguan cigars went the same way Cubans have over the past few years. By the way, it took me a few episodes to figure out what a Ras was. And along with the d four, they are top my top Cubans I've ever smoked.
Gizmo:Never was willing to spend a fortune on a Cohiba. I'm sure you will probably address this issue anyway, but if not, I would love to hear your thoughts on how this will affect the country's cigar exports in the future. So, actually, we discussed that before. It's terrible and a little scary, the idea that a Padron cigar might not be available at your local retailer. Although Honduras and The Dominican Republic make great cigars, it would be hard not being able to buy Padrons, Podomos, My Father's, AJ Fernandez, and all the other great blends most of these companies create for other companies.
Gizmo:Example would be Tatawaji, he says here. Also, when you guys refer to the Padron Exclusivo, which I also love, which lizards prefer the Maduro over the natural as I do? The lizards never seem to specify which blend they have in their rotation. Thanks for giving me the best two hours of weekly entertainment and information. Lizard buzz.
Bam Bam:Well, that's an obvious answer.
Gizmo:So Great email.
Chef Ricky:Always the Maduro.
Gizmo:We always go Maduro.
Bam Bam:Yeah.
Pagoda:Yeah. Clearly, you haven't heard all the episodes.
Gizmo:So with Padron, most of the time, we are going Maduro. So my recommendation for you is to go to the ratings guide on the website, type in Padron. Every Padron we've ever reviewed will come up. I think now we've probably done two or three naturals.
Chef Ricky:I think we did the number 35 in natural. I remember that. No. Did we only do the Maduro?
Gizmo:No, we did the number forty fifty.
Chef Ricky:Grinder brought up.
Senator:Yeah, we brought the That's grinder.
Gizmo:The little hammer. We did that in natural. We also did the 1964 Torpedo in natural because that one, think, cigar of
Bam Bam:the year
Gizmo:was up there. But most of the others that we smoke from Padron are the Maduro. Now, like we said earlier in this episode, we did have the Exquisite Natural at PCA, and it was phenomenal.
Bam Bam:Lights out.
Gizmo:Could you describe that flavor profile again for Lizard Buzz here? If you remember. I I just remember it being like milk chocolate.
Bam Bam:I remember. Yeah. Was like
Senator:milk chocolate, coffee. It was creamy.
Chef Ricky:Very creamy.
Senator:It was delicious. Honestly, that was unlike any natural Exclusivo I had had prior.
Gizmo:I wonder if it was the age on it.
Senator:I mean, he said he got it from a retailer last minute. It's not like he brought some special boxes down there that.
Gizmo:I have a
Bam Bam:lot of respect for that natural Exclusivo. I would like to get a few of those boxes because I love that change of pace between the Maduro and the natural. It's it's a delicious cigar.
Pagoda:It's your Palate Clanta.
Gizmo:Think I
Rooster:think the 19
Bam Bam:Need some mint. Some parsley.
Gizmo:Even better.
Rooster:I think the 1926 series can be a bit heavier in Maduro. If you try one of those in natural, I think it's a good change of pace.
Senator:I don't know. I found the 26 line in natural to be harsh.
Gizmo:Really? Really?
Rooster:I know I had the Bellicoso in I forget what number that is, but in natural, it was delicious.
Senator:If you remember, I had bought this is when we were at our former lounge. The the 1926, number six, which is a Robusto, was, like, in the top five or top 10 of Cigar Aficionado, that year. I bought a 10 count box. I maybe smoked three or four of them. It was super harsh, and I I literally I knew you liked that cigar, so I said, do you wanna take the rest of these?
Senator:And you were like, what's wrong with them? I said, nothing. I just
Bam Bam:Oh, I remember that. I remember that.
Senator:And I just gave you the rest of the box It's like, honestly, for me, I just I I find a harshness with the 26 line.
Rooster:I didn't pay you, did I? No. No. Okay. Thank god.
Gizmo:You're welcome. Correct. So thanks to Lizard Buzz for writing in. We really appreciate that. And let's move on now, boys, to another one.
Gizmo:This is from our friend Lizard Alexandros, who's the guy who helped us. Bam is floating. I can see that.
Chef Ricky:Oh, yeah.
Gizmo:It's like Prince floating through the room on
Bam Bam:the clouds. I float on the clouds with this stuff, man. Watch out in about three hours.
Gizmo:So Lizard Alexandros is the guy who helped us put up the ratings guy, the new ratings guy. So we really appreciate his help. He says, hello, Lizard Nation. I wanna say that the Bon Robert cigars I tried were brilliant. I can't wait to now try the Dahlia and the Phenomeno if I ever get my hands on them as I haven't yet seen them anywhere in Europe.
Gizmo:I wanna take you back a few episodes to when you were talking about your smoking sequence and try to pivot you all to a different perspective. As far as I understood, and correct me if I'm wrong, you guys have a specific list of cigars you smoke each day, and every once in a while, you'll smoke a random stick. You mainly try new sticks when you record the podcast. Now I probably don't smoke as many cigars as you guys do, but let me explain why I don't choose to do the same as you do. Every cigar is an experience.
Gizmo:Smoking a specific cigar at a specific time of day before or after another specific cigar gives you very, very similar experiences each time. Would you go to the same restaurant and order the same food every day? Would you drink the same four whiskeys one after another in the same order of strength, age, and finish every single day? I know I wouldn't, and that's why the way you smoke surprises me. Of course, I have favorite sticks that I reach for more often during the week.
Gizmo:But for me, working through a fixed daily list would just make the whole thing feel mundane. Again, I'm sure if I were smoking four or five sticks a day like you guys, things would be different. But budget aside, I'm based in a country where you can't smoke almost anywhere. So it's also a matter of time. How often, for how long can a man really sit in his lounge?
Gizmo:Senator, do you want to answer that specific question?
Senator:A lifetime.
Gizmo:And maybe that's the whole point. We're just optimizing for different things. I can see the case for a rotation. Consistency is how you build a reference point and really learn a cigar. You can't judge how a stick ages or how it performs in different conditions if you never smoke it more than once.
Gizmo:So you guys are building expertise, a baseline you can trust. I'm chasing the experience, the surprise of it all. Neither is wrong, but when smoking time is scarce, I'd rather every session count for something different. Now I wanna get to a hot take. I finally managed to try one of the Abuelo rums you guys are raving about.
Gizmo:M, I think you hyped it so much for so long that I was expecting an experience like the first time I had a four square rum. I tried the 15 year old, and in my opinion, it was slightly unbalanced with cinnamon taking over the whole liquid. I'd probably order it again if I saw it in a bar, but I don't think I'd buy a bottle.
Bam Bam:He tried the wrong one.
Senator:Yeah, he
Gizmo:tried the wrong one. I knew you were gonna say
Bam Bam:that. Correct.
Gizmo:Let me finish this up and we'll If get these I can offer a few suggestions to you guys. Give the Four Square Distillery Rums a go, the 2,008, for example. Try something from the Diamond Distillery, like the That Boutique y Rum Co, Diamond Versailles sixteen year, or Hamden Estate, for example, the Hamden Estate twenty ten El Rock. Now all of those come down to availability and price, so be aware. I've seen rums from Diamond Distillery especially reaching 250 plus US dollars, and I'm not sure you guys would enjoy them enough to justify it.
Gizmo:Regards, Lizard Alexandros. Great email. So let's start with what he's saying here about his perception of what we were talking about the way that we smoke, lining up our rotation and our sits and kind of repeating cigars here and there. He says, would you go to the same restaurant and order the same food every day? Would you drink the same four whiskeys one after another in the same order of strength, age, and finish every single day?
Gizmo:I know I wouldn't, and that's why the way you guys smoke surprises me. So
Senator:what's So take on first thing on that, it's a rotation. So you're not having the same thing necessarily every single day. Some days you may smoke one cigar, some days two, some days five. The idea is you have a rotation, and of the times that you have a chance to have a cigar, you are rotating through those. No different than food.
Senator:I mean, there's only so many different types of food and proteins. It's like, you know, if you like chicken, steak, and seafood, guess what? You're gonna rotate through those throughout your week. There's only so many different types of protein that you're gonna be able to get. So I don't think cigars are really any different in that regard.
Senator:I think like anything, we all have a limited number of things that we have fallen in love with that we want to have so regularly.
Gizmo:That's right.
Senator:Whether it's a spirit, you you talk to someone, they say, you know, I love at the end of the day, when I can have a a cocktail or drink, you know, I love a a bourbon. I love a cognac. Whatever that that person's jam is, they're drinking that often, regularly, because that grabs them more than any other available option. So I don't I don't view it the same way.
Bam Bam:No. I I completely agree with you. In fact, there are days where I haven't had an Exclusivo in four or five days. I have to have that cigar. Or the Aladino eighty fifth.
Bam Bam:And honestly, I've done the 80 in a Cameroon back to back, and it's an exclusive You did that
Gizmo:last night.
Bam Bam:Yeah. And it's a fantastic backup. So I'm really not in agreement with his comment about the consistency. We have a repertoire of cigars.
Senator:Right. Rotation we know.
Gizmo:The rotation.
Bam Bam:What I like, as I said on the set, you can pick and choose. If I know I'm only doing three cigars, I know exactly what they are. I don't want to guess.
Rooster:Right. And our rotation is not five cigars. It's probably like 20 cigars.
Gizmo:That's right.
Rooster:So we go through a lot of cigars, and each week we're not smoking the same exact cigars. Each week might vary, so you have like twenty, twenty five different cigars. That's your rotation.
Senator:But you also In fairness, our rotation is much smaller than that. It's probably like 10.
Gizmo:10 or 15.
Rooster:But I'm saying we do dabble with may smoke
Bam Bam:that only
Rooster:once cigar. Might be a Cuban cigar. You might do a D4 maybe once every other week, maybe a Ras, maybe a maybe a Coyote.
Bam Bam:Whatever it may be.
Rooster:Yeah. Yeah. So it changes.
Gizmo:But I also think there's an an element of craving that comes into it.
Bam Bam:Well, that's what I said.
Gizmo:Yeah. Like, when I'm looking at what I'm gonna smoke last night when when we came you know, when we went into the city, I packed the Trinity Robusto, a Ciglo six, an aging room Concerto in Toro. Yes. And a Padron Exclusivo. Right?
Gizmo:Why did I choose those four? Because I was craving those four cigars.
Bam Bam:That's right.
Gizmo:And I was hoping that I was going to be able to get to all of So it's not so much that I'm in a rut where I'm I'm stuck in some sort of routine. Far from it. I'm actually I wake up in the morning thinking about, like, oh my gosh, what cigars do I want today? And that's what I pull. And it just so happens that there's a lot of repeat offenders because they're great cigars.
Senator:And and because they're our favorite. Right? Like, if you have favorite songs, is there something wrong with
Bam Bam:No.
Senator:On Wednesday, you hear your favorite song and you wanna listen to it, and Saturday rolls around, you wanna hear the exact same song again. Like, how can
Gizmo:do a
Rooster:little rush concert three days
Bam Bam:in a row? Well, you have to.
Gizmo:And I'm going to.
Bam Bam:I know. But I think there's also value in what we're doing. Why would I experiment beyond what we're doing now? Of course.
Gizmo:I mean, the podcast helps that we don't have to
Bam Bam:We're very fortunate.
Gizmo:We don't have to experiment much if we don't want to
Bam Bam:That's correct.
Gizmo:Because we're doing it 52 times a year.
Senator:Yeah. But we always are experimenting, and my point is, of the things that we experiment with, only a small fraction of them are so special to our palate that it actually cracks into our rotation
Bam Bam:That's right.
Senator:And we smoke it regularly. There are other cigars that we've given a good rating to. Would we smoke it again? Sure. But did it grab us enough to crave it, like your favorite song, your favorite flavor of ice cream, any of those things that, like, you routinely end up going back to?
Pagoda:Yeah.
Senator:They don't, and that's why they're not part of the regular rotation. That might be a cigar that we have once every two months.
Gizmo:Yeah. And I'll give you an example. The Ciglo six that I pulled for Bam and I, I reached for that about a week ago when I when I was in Pennsylvania for a couple of days and I enjoyed it so much that I've been craving it like every day now. So I can't smoke that cigar every day, but I've been waking up like, I really want to have that cigar. And you understand why it
Bam Bam:was phenomenal. It was really, really unique.
Gizmo:How It's it just my brain going, I really just wanna have that experience again.
Bam Bam:Yeah. They're polarizing cigars in all of our collections that we just have to keep going to.
Gizmo:And I think the other thing too is if each of us can only smoke one cigar a day or two cigars a week, obviously it's not going to be as repetitive as if we're smoking three or four cigars a day. Right? If you're smoking, you know, twenty, twenty five cigars a week versus two, I mean, of course, if you're only smoking two, there's gonna be a lot more variety and things are not gonna, you know, make repeat appearances as often. But, yeah, I'm not speak for all of us. Like, we're not stuck in some sort of rotten routine.
Gizmo:We're craving what we crave when we smoke it.
Bam Bam:That's right.
Senator:And the only other thing I would add, things do fall in and out of our rotation. Correct. So it's not like for, you know, a decade or decades that the rotation has looked the same. I mean, we talk about how we used to all smoke the Davidoff late hour a ton. Yeah.
Senator:Now we rarely reach for that cigar.
Bam Bam:Do you remember how much we loved the Oliva v Lancero for a while?
Senator:Yeah. Now it's just
Bam Bam:a few. Smoke it.
Gizmo:Yeah. Well, I think also that one, kind of like the Davidoff, there's been a
Bam Bam:Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Gizmo:Change in Blend and Quality control.
Bam Bam:That's what
Gizmo:you call it. Yeah. Good question here from Lizard Alexandros. And to clarify now on the Abuelo thing, he reached for the wrong one. He grabbed the 15.
Gizmo:Have we even had that?
Senator:Yeah. We have.
Gizmo:And we we think it's Did we review it?
Senator:No. I'm not sure if we reviewed it, but we've we've definitely tried it.
Bam Bam:Yeah.
Senator:And it's too sweet. It is not balanced. So like his commentary, I agree with wholeheartedly. He needs to try the Abuelo seven. That's their best stuff.
Gizmo:And how much is that one?
Bam Bam:That's like
Senator:$25 a bottle.
Bam Bam:It's nectar.
Gizmo:Yeah. So and to your point here, Lizard Alexandros on Foursquare, we actually have done a couple Foursquares. We did one a long time ago, Pooba brought in, then we did it again. We did a different one with Rabbi Alla and Hamlet Paredes on our conversation with them, like a little over a year ago now. And, you know, the reason why we don't reach for that, it is extremely hot.
Gizmo:It is a a barrel strength spirit. It's excellent, but it is hot. And I think a lot of the time overwhelms cigar. A
Senator:100%.
Bam Bam:Hamlet did that with a Cabernet Chaser. Yes, did. Yes. You couldn't even tell.
Senator:No. And the problem with that, I think all of us reach for rum because there are many, if not most rums, that are smooth, easy drinking, easy to complement so many different cigars. We don't reach for rum because we're looking for a punch in the face because rum is a category of high proof spirits. It's not. I think, you know, there are many bourbons that fit that bill.
Senator:The rye that we're drinking fits that bill.
Pagoda:Mhmm.
Senator:But when we're reaching for a rum, we're actually looking for the opposite experience of a high proof bourbon. So I think that's why Foursquare doesn't really ring our bells. We're not looking for rum that is that high in proof.
Gizmo:Great answer and a great question from Lizard Alexandra. So thanks for writing in. And, of course, like I said, thanks again to him for helping us with the new Lounge Lizards rating guide. And, boys, I think I'm coming late to the party on this, but we are well into the last third here on the Montecristo nineteen thirty five anniversary Edici on Diamante in Toro.
Pagoda:Pagoda's done.
Gizmo:Pagoda's done. Chef is done. I still have a third of my cigar left.
Bam Bam:Yeah. Well, good. But an inch I
Gizmo:don't know why. I I was actually gonna say I feel like mine's smoking slowly.
Bam Bam:Okay.
Gizmo:I know I've been talking a lot. So where are you guys out on the cigar? I know you guys are, you know, wrapping up here, but what's everybody else thinking on the flavor in the last third?
Rooster:Love the cigar. The cigar hasn't picked up in strength much. It's kind of stayed about the same for me.
Bam Bam:Are you looking for an increase in strength?
Rooster:I'm looking for a little bit of a change, which I'm not getting. That dry finish is still there, but it's still delicious. Mean, you get that cocoa. It's creamy. It's cocoa.
Rooster:Those are the two predominant notes so far on the cigar.
Bam Bam:Sounds awful.
Gizmo:No, I said it's delicious.
Senator:So I'll say this. I like that it stays medium all the way through. I think there are a lot of medium full cigars that we smoke, so to have something firmly medium, there's a place for that in our rotations. For me, what I do like in the final third, I actually found the second third to be the driest, and the final third is actually not as dry. Like, I'm getting more sweetness now than I was in that second third, so I really like how this is finishing out.
Bam Bam:I do agree with that. Yeah.
Chef Ricky:I agree a 100%. My second third got a little I I did enjoy it was there was some minerality with it that was present that I enjoyed a lot, and I think that's maybe where the citrus note was kind of peeking into as well. But then it started the cocoa started to return on the final third. So I enjoyed it. I did wish it was just a tad bit sweeter and creamier.
Gizmo:I agree with that. I gotta tell you, I love the blend. I
Bam Bam:do too.
Gizmo:I think that this is, you know, obviously, is something that's entered my rotation pretty regularly. Good reason, as we just talked about answering Lizard Alexandros's email. I I just this is a cigar that really works for my palate. And obviously, you know, discuss that more in the ratings. But where it's at right now in the last third, I think your point is is spot on, Senator.
Gizmo:I think it kind of opens up the saliva a little bit more in the last third. I'm getting a little bit more saltiness now. I'm actually not craving the sweetness thing. I think I look for that in other cigars. I don't look for it here.
Gizmo:But what this delivers for the price, for the experience, like I said, I'm yeah, we're an hour and a half in and I'm only at this point in the cigar. Think there's a lot of value here. It's great cigar.
Rooster:It's also very easy smoking.
Gizmo:True. Easy stuff to kiss it.
Bam Bam:I think the concentration of cocoa right now is fantastic for me. Yeah.
Gizmo:Alright, boys. Let's go back to some emails. We got a trio of first time writers that I wanna share with you guys. Love to hear from Lizards. If you are a lizard out there, you've not written us, or you have, please send us an email or a voice memo.
Gizmo:We will get to it. A lot of great questions tonight. Chef is opening his bag very discreetly. Thank you for that, Chef.
Bam Bam:As he looks up like a guilty little boy
Pagoda:from the corner.
Bam Bam:I'm sorry.
Gizmo:Pulling out a bonn Robert's dahlia.
Bam Bam:There you go.
Gizmo:It's allowed. Alright. Let's go to this one from our friend Lizard Nick, first time writer. Hello, Lizards. Longtime listener, first time caller.
Gizmo:Apologies for the long email, but I wanted to share some context. I started smoking cigars about four years ago to deal with some serious stress going on in my life at the time. I've never enjoyed smoking anything prior to that time, cigarettes, weed, etcetera, but I'd always been intrigued by cigars. And once I started, I was hooked. I discovered your podcast shortly thereafter, and I found that listening to you guys while I smoked made me feel like I was in a lounge hanging with friends rather than just a guy sitting on my patio hoping for decent weather to be able to smoke a cigar.
Gizmo:I live in the suburbs of Chicago, so the smoking season is very short, and the wild swings in temperature and humidity create less than ideal environments for smoking a nice cigar. I only smoke outside because I don't wanna stink up my house, rooster. What's And it wrong helps reduce the smell that sticks to my clothing even though I change right after I smoke. I fancy myself a cigar smoker versus someone who smokes cigars, using your terminology from recent pods. That said, I only smoke one to two per week, only on weekends in the morning, and I only smoke from roughly April through October, and even that is inconsistent.
Gizmo:I'd like to smoke more regularly and in a climate controlled environment. There's a cigar lounge close to me, but the, quote, free seating area is not great and the ventilation is not great. They have a members only area that charges $300 per month, of which $200 goes towards product and 100 is for the operation of the lounge.
Bam Bam:That's fantastic.
Gizmo:It basically locks you into buying from them. My question is this. Is that price within the normal range, or should I just keep looking? How do you deal with the smell that sticks to your clothes from being in a lounge? I don't want to transfer that to my car, but I guess that's the price you pay for being a cigar smoker.
Gizmo:I love listening to you guys, and I really appreciate having you to listen to while I smoke on my patio. Sincerely, Lizard Nick. So great email from Lizard Nick. I'm a little upset that he started listening to us four years ago, and this is the first email he sent. We're going to get past that.
Gizmo:We're going to get past it. But two great questions here. So number one, he has a lounge that he's looking at potentially joining $300 per month is the fee of which 200 goes towards cigars, 100 for the lounge. I think that's a win win win.
Bam Bam:I agree.
Gizmo:If you're there every day, it's $3 a day. If you're there a couple of times a week, it's 5 or $6 every time you go. Support the lounge and buy $200 worth of cigars.
Bam Bam:And it solves for his issue of smoking outdoors with swings in temperature and humidity. Join
Rooster:Depending the on what cigars they actually sell at that lounge has a little bit of a factor. But the fact that if he's getting a $200 credit, I think that's his
Pagoda:And he'll be a part of a community if it's
Rooster:in That's his
Gizmo:exactly it. He'll take what he's doing on his patio with us, and he'll turn that into a real world environment.
Bam Bam:And his smoking frequency will increase.
Gizmo:And his enjoyment of it will increase. Correct.
Rooster:But I'm sure there's other lounges in Chicago.
Gizmo:There's a bunch in Chicago. What's the one that you Do you love, Biggs? I think it's
Senator:Yeah, Biggs Mansion.
Gizmo:Do you know what the fees are there or no? I'm assuming it's a little more than this.
Senator:I don't, but it's probably not cheap. A day pass there is like a $100, so Wow.
Bam Bam:Yowza.
Senator:But it's a great place, and kinda like the setup that we have here. They don't serve alcohol, it's bring your own, You can order food in there. Like, you have so much flexibility where other places, right, that really adds up your costs. Like, if they have food there and you can't bring in outside food, if you must purchase alcohol there. That
Gizmo:gets a little pricey. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I think for $100, $1,200 a year to have access to a lounge and like you said, Pagoda, a community of of potential friends to sit with and smoke with and learn from. And I mean, think about I think about the people that I hang out with now versus ten years ago.
Gizmo:Mostly everybody I hang out with are cigar smokers. This is my world now, right? This is our world. Like, think that it's a win win. And again, to support a brick and mortar store, which we wholly support, you know, doing for $200 a month to get some cigars, even if it's a little bit more than you'd pay online at an online retailer, it's worth it.
Gizmo:Like, we want to keep these places open. So put your money where your mouth is, where your passion is, and join a lounge. And I think that $200 is not a crazy amount.
Bam Bam:No, I think the hours are important. If they're an early closing type place like North Korea that we left
Senator:Well, that most of us left.
Bam Bam:Yeah. Well, I still visit once in
Lizard Al:a while.
Bam Bam:That's a place you don't want to spend any time. I lost my train of I
Pagoda:did. He's a vital element.
Bam Bam:Why? It was PTSD. That's correct.
Gizmo:All right. Question number two. How do you deal with the smell that sticks to your clothes from being in a lounge? I don't think he's so much worried about that. He says, I don't want to transfer that to my car, but I guess that's the price you pay for being a cigar smoker.
Gizmo:I think you're overthinking this, Lizard Nick. I mean, if you smoke in your car, your car is gonna smell like smoke. If you get in your car after smoking cigars in a lounge, I don't think that it's gonna stick to your seats.
Bam Bam:That's right. It's not like the Seinfeld episode with the odor in a car. Remember that?
Pagoda:Oh, yeah. I do remember that.
Gizmo:He is our Seinfeld expert.
Pagoda:He is. I'm looking I do remember that.
Gizmo:Yeah. Do. Am I crazy? I know I smoke in my car. I know you don't, Senator.
Gizmo:You don't Pagoda. You don't, Bam. And Chef does.
Bam Bam:Although I loved smoking in that truck on the way into that. That was great. Was great.
Gizmo:Nice setup, right?
Senator:Oh yeah. Are you gonna start smoking in yours?
Gizmo:No. I gave BAM the A plus treatment.
Bam Bam:You did.
Gizmo:So does your car stink?
Senator:No, I mean, think one, having leather seats helps a ton.
Gizmo:That does help, yeah.
Senator:I haven't had cloth seats while I'm a cigar smoker, so I can't speak firsthand. But I would imagine if you're regularly smoking and you're in smoky clothes that with cloth seats, yeah, it it probably over time will, and it'd be important that, you know, you get that car, like, cleaned or detailed every so often. But if you have leather seats, I don't really think that's a concern. The clothes thing, though, general, I I think is a legitimate concern for me. It bothers me.
Senator:I'm strange where, like, I literally have smoking clothes. I keep a separate wardrobe in my garage.
Gizmo:You do the mister Rogers thing. You start singing a little song. You walk in, you change your shoes, you change your shirt.
Pagoda:It's my neighborhood. It's my
Gizmo:It's senator's neighborhood. No. Just for
Senator:me, honestly, I want the smell of cigar really in my house at all. It just makes sense.
Rooster:Me neither.
Gizmo:Yeah. I mean, I think again, I smoke in my truck, but, you know, I think, you know, if you do have cloth seats, here's what I'll say. Here's a solution. You have two options, I think. Number one, you can get an ozone generator from Amazon, very inexpensive.
Chef Ricky:I have one for my car. I was going to suggest it, but I was a little hesitant just because you have to be careful.
Gizmo:We have to be very careful. Yeah. You can't expose yourself to what the ozone generator does. You run it for a little while, you open the windows, you open the doors.
Bam Bam:Yeah, don't drive
Senator:But with the ozone don't
Gizmo:smoke with the ozone generator running. Obviously, follow the instructions that they give you, but that absolutely helps. And then I believe you could put charcoal. They have like these charcoal things you could put under your seats which absorb odor. I don't know how well those work.
Chef Ricky:I don't think those really I've tried a couple. They don't they don't work too well. I found they don't work too well. The ozone generator works.
Rooster:I think that's for more if you are smoking in the car. For what But his concern
Pagoda:if it
Chef Ricky:works and you smoke in the car, it's definitely going to work for his issue, which is just getting in there with smoky clothes.
Gizmo:I think the ozone generator is the way to go if you have concerns. Have you ever tried that, Senator, no?
Senator:No, but again, I don't smoke in my car, so this is not a challenge for me. There is also this product, it's like a spray that is like super powerful in like neutralizing odors. So if you do have that issue in your car, I mean, you literally just give like one spray and a few hours later, I mean, it's completely gone. You can find it on Amazon. It's like ten, fifteen bucks.
Senator:I'll I'll send you
Gizmo:the I'll put it in the episode description.
Chef Ricky:Oh, I think I think it has ozone in the name as well.
Senator:It could. I'm not sure. I have
Gizmo:to look at my history. Didn't know that existed. That's cool. I might I might get that from my truck. Even though missus Gizmo doesn't complain like she was in the truck today after we smoked all night last night, I just leave the windows cracked.
Gizmo:Yeah. Because I have the weather guards. Yep. And there's just air movement.
Bam Bam:When I first got in, there was not a single cigar aroma.
Gizmo:And I was smoking there the day before.
Chef Ricky:Yeah. You don't smell it with leather. Leather helps. And it really complements, know. No, I'm serious.
Rooster:The smell
Chef Ricky:of cigar smoke and leather
Pagoda:together I disagree with you.
Chef Ricky:Think it's a very masculine smell. Smells great. It's a sophisticated smell.
Gizmo:Alright. Here's another one. Lizard Adman.
Chef Ricky:No comment.
Gizmo:It says, hi, Lounge Lizards. First of all, I wanted to thank you for all your content. I've learned a lot from your reviews, and I really appreciate the depth of your analysis. I wanted to get some further insight into one of your ratings in particular, the Cohiba Esplendidos. You gave it a perfect 10, making it the highest rated Cohiba you've ever reviewed.
Gizmo:I'd be really interested to hear what set it apart from every other Cohiba you've smoked. What specific qualities made it deserving of a perfect score? Was it the flavor complexity, balance, construction, consistency, aging potential? Or was there something more intangible about the experience? And how close did the Cohiba Lancero's come to matching that standard in your opinion?
Gizmo:Thanks again for everything that you do and I really look forward to hearing your thoughts. Thanks, Lizard Adnan. So my answer to that is we smoked, I believe at the time it was a five or six year aged esplenty dose box that I had. Great box, really well constructed. Of course, as you remember, I weighed them all in my scale to make sure that there was, you know, I was bringing consistent cigars in.
Gizmo:But I think what set that apart is that X factor that happens with aged Cuban tobacco. When you're sitting in a room smoking a cigar and having that kind of unbelievable, like mind blowing experience under the microscope, which we do here, that's hard to get, especially at that level for that kind of cigar. So I think what set that apart is that it was just a perfect cigar. It was delicious. Mean, it couldn't be beat.
Bam Bam:I mean How long ago? That was quite a while ago. Two years maybe?
Gizmo:Yeah. Something like that?
Bam Bam:I mean, remember it being very creamy, velvety, and always for me graham cracker and a touch of
Gizmo:salt. And that honey grassy thing.
Bam Bam:Yes. So
Gizmo:very present to And off
Bam Bam:it burned perfectly.
Gizmo:And I think we've smoked other Cohiba at different age points. I think that one was just at its maturation point. When we smoked it, it was really of really peaking, I thought.
Rooster:Although we didn't rate the cigar, but the Behique, I think it was a 54 that we had in Cuba at Danilo's house
Bam Bam:That was delicious.
Gizmo:We
Rooster:didn't rate that cigar, but that also a 10.
Gizmo:Yeah. It was a very good cigar. But I also think, though, I wonder, you know, the environment that we're sitting in his backyard in Cuba. Like, there is an element of that that I think environment plays into it, you know, which I think the rating, if we did give that a 10, might be a little unfair. But here under the microscope with the Asplendidose, I mean, it was just the perfect cigar.
Gizmo:Know, so, you know, if you listen to the Lancero's episode, I mean, there's a reason that it didn't rate a 10 like the Esplendidos did. It didn't quite hit that God level of cigar that I think the Esplendidos did when we smoked it. But, you know, listen, every palate is different. You know, every every person who smokes these cigars has a different experience. So for us, in that moment with those cigars that night, it was an excellent, excellent esplenty dose.
Gizmo:So thanks to Lizard Adnan for writing us. We really appreciate it. And please keep them coming. And now, boys, we're going to go to our lizard of the week presented by our friends at Bond Roberts. And our lizard of the week this week is our friend Lizard Al from Pittsburgh.
Gizmo:And Lizard Al sent us a photo wearing the Lounge Lizards t shirt.
Rooster:Here we go.
Gizmo:Nice. Sitting in his lounge smoking a cigar in Pittsburgh. Wait a minute. And What
Bam Bam:what can I see that again?
Chef Ricky:Yes. Ben doesn't like
Senator:graphic tee. Trying to figure out where he he at Bam
Bam Bam:by Davidoff, I wonder?
Gizmo:It's a nice spot. You know there's lockers there. I don't know if they have membership.
Bam Bam:They don't have lockers there.
Gizmo:So there's lockers that I see in the photos. So he must be somewhere around Pittsburgh. They have lockers there.
Bam Bam:I don't remember seeing any.
Gizmo:It's not the Davidoff? Isn't there a Davidoff lounge?
Bam Bam:They definitely do.
Senator:Yeah. They definitely do.
Bam Bam:It could be there or it could be a suburban location.
Gizmo:So Lizard Al says, giz and crew, thanks for the pod. I've attached a voice memo. I appreciate all your hard work and the hours of entertainment you provide as well as the solid recommendations. If you're ever in Pittsburgh, bam, I have a great outdoor kitchen patio set up for a cigar. So here's the voice memo from our friend Lizard Al.
Lizard Al:Giz and the Lizard crew, greetings from Pittsburgh from Lizards Al and Amy. First of all, thanks for the pod and the, quote, friendships. Even with the cigar lounges we're fortunate to have access to in Pennsylvania, it's not the same as the easy camaraderie you guys obviously have, and it's a pleasure to take part in that vicariously. The information, the laughs, and the exchanges you guys have is a real treat every Tuesday and not only makes my drive time tolerable, but has led to a bunch discoveries of cigar and alcohols I wouldn't otherwise have tried and have really ended up enjoying. For example, right now, I'm having a Trinidad Robusto, which is fantastic.
Lizard Al:On to one sharing and three questions. My wife and I are middle aged, and a year or so ago, after looking at vacation photos and having what was frankly a pretty painful discussion, realized we needed to lose weight, get healthier, reassess our priorities, and basically make happiness and wellness focuses that they hadn't been for a really long time. So it became meal preps, exercise, job changes, and in my case, a significant increase in cigar smoking. To some who would say, man, what are you doing differently? You look amazing.
Lizard Al:The cigars seem counterintuitive, but I'd posit the opposite. Sitting out on the porch with my wife in a cigar for a bunch of nights while we talk about life, the universe, everything, or maybe nothing, has been such a huge plus for our relationship and mental health overall. The friends that I've made from visiting the lounges more often span groups I might never have interacted with otherwise. And genuinely broadened me and made me a better, kinder human from gaining those other perspectives. As an aside, I'm ex military and a trauma surgeon.
Lizard Al:I did four tours in Iraq and Afghanistan back in the day, and my wife's an intense Supernatural! Career in emergency Wow!
Senator:COVID-nineteen provider.
Lizard Al:And that was back when all of us in healthcare thought we were gonna die. So I feel like we know a little bit about risk and benefits. And for cigar smoking, it's overwhelmingly positive. So onto the questions for BAM. Regarding flip flops, does this include sandals?
Lizard Al:Some of the sandals are exceedingly well made, and I realize that doesn't make them classy, but it probably does separate them from the rubber shoes you'd wear on the beach. Is flip flop versus sandal a meaningful distinction for lounge attire when you're in a warmer climate? Next. I'm a wine guy No. And wonder if there's a point at which the lines cross for the QPR on reviews versus an absolute rating.
Lizard Al:You guys mention it frequently, meaning cost is a factor in ratings, but it seems to vary in the impact on the former Lizard rating. Is there some lower price point at which you'd say a decent stick gets a plus one or a higher point at which it's a minus one or is it all by gestalt? Finally, I'd be interested in your desert island cigar. The one where if you're stuck with just one selection long term, what would it be? This is the best for all times of day or an occasion with or without food and drink, etcetera.
Lizard Al:Let's assume for the sake of argument that price is a factor, but not overly restrictive. Meaning not unlimited $85 sticks, but something you could justify buying several boxes of without pissing the spouse off too much. So thanks again for the pod. It's a highlight of my week, and I've acquired a bunch of cigars and liquors based on your advice, and to date, I've never regretted a purchase. Keep up the great work.
Lizard Al:Best to all the group, Lizards, Al, and Amy.
Gizmo:Cool. Congratulations to our friend Lizards, Al, and Amy, winning Lizard of the Week. A 10 count box of cigars from Bon Roberts will be on their way to you, and anyone out there can win Lizard of the Week. All you have to do is send us a voice memo like Al and Amy did or send us an email like so many other folks did. Everyone can win Lizard of the Week.
Gizmo:Just keep them coming. Your chances are high. There's no doubt about that. So first, I wanna say, number one, I think it's hilarious that a four time ex mill like four tours
Bam Bam:Trauma surgeon.
Gizmo:Trauma surgeon is writing us asking about flip flops and sandals. Correct.
Bam Bam:That's hilarious.
Gizmo:What is your answer to that?
Bam Bam:I already said it.
Gizmo:No. Correct. That's your whole answer.
Bam Bam:No sandals. I don't care how hot it is outside.
Senator:For this lizard, Bam's issue is feet being exposed Men's
Bam Bam:In his cigar lounge.
Senator:Oh, yes. We know he has no problems Doctor. With
Gizmo:Scholes has no problems with women's feet.
Bam Bam:Men should not wear sandals or flip flops out in public unless you're on vacation.
Rooster:It's okay for Amy though.
Gizmo:Yes. Yeah. Lizard Al can't. Lizard Amy can't.
Bam Bam:Of course.
Gizmo:Alright. Number two. The ratings as it relates to the expense of the cigar we're talking about, or the wine, or the whiskey, or whatever it is. He asked, you know, when we're thinking about factoring in price into our ratings, how do you guys or how do we generally factor that in, you know, as far as value and how it impacts your personal ratings?
Senator:Yeah. So I mean, I'll start. There's no question it impacts the rating. If you have a cigar that's a $100 a stick, the bar for that cigar is absolutely higher than for a $10 cigar. I think it's impossible for it not to be.
Senator:And so for that $100 stick, it has to be absolutely perfect to hit a 10. Yeah. Now if there's a cigar that delivers just as much satisfaction, and I, let's say, gave the $100 cigar a nine, and the $100 cigar was incredibly satisfying, but it wasn't perfect. But I find a $10 cigar that delivers as much satisfaction as that $100 stick at a nine, for me, that's a 10. I'm sorry, because I'm gonna buy that and smoke that every single day, so I think it's always plus or minus a point the impact that it can have, but it absolutely plays a role.
Gizmo:I honestly think I will add more if I like this cigar. Let's say this is an $8 MSRP cigar. That to me is going to impact the rating more positively than if this was a $25 cigar and it didn't perform well. I'm probably not going to factor in money so much there. I think I'm going to give it the plus side, kind of like for me, I compare it to the retrohale.
Gizmo:Like, I don't knock a cigar too much if I don't like the retrohale. But if I love the retrohale and it adds to the experience, I'm going to bump the points up. That's kind of my general perspective on it.
Rooster:There are so many times that we smoke an $8 or $10 cigars, they overdeliver. And there's so many times it's $100 cigar, dollars 80 to 100 cigars that under deliver. So when it's a $10 cigar and it's performing the way it is and the way it's hitting all the notes and the flavor that we're getting, of course, it's going to get a very high score. But $100 cigar, it's got to be damn good to get a high rating.
Gizmo:And if I think about most of the cigars we've given poor ratings, right? I actually don't think in most cases that money is a factor in that. I think most of the time it's just the cigar was not good. Like, think about A good example of a recent one we didn't love was the Porro de Minocano from Davodoff. We didn't rate that poorly because of its price.
Gizmo:We rated it poorly based on how it performed, despite the fact that it's a very expensive cigar.
Senator:Yeah, that's a great example because that cigar at any price point would At price point would have been It would been
Bam Bam:the same rate. That's correct.
Gizmo:Yeah, so like even if we if that was a like you're saying, a $10 cigar, would any of us have felt No.
Pagoda:No. So that brings us to this cigar. Do we rate it as $8 or 24, which is the MSRP?
Gizmo:I think you rate it at what you're going to get it at, like we do most of the time. I mean, most of the time we talk about what we get a cigar for is spirit. It's never MSRP. I mean, MSRP is suggested. Some brick and mortars might go with that because of tax or other needs.
Gizmo:But most of the time we're getting cigars at a discount based on the MSRP. So I'm always rating on what we pay for the cigar personally. Does anybody else have a take on this? How does
Chef Ricky:I agree.
Gizmo:Money affects your rates agree, man. The same
Bam Bam:Totally agreed.
Gizmo:And finally here, from Lizards Al and Amy, what is your Desert Island cigar with price in mind within reason? He said something that if you bought a box or two or three, maybe it wouldn't upset the spouse. But what is that desert island cigar? Senator, go ahead. I know what yours is.
Senator:It's easy. Pedron ex Lucivo. In Maduro. In Maduro. That's right.
Senator:And especially because it's a desert island, so it needs to be able to withstand the elements, outdoors, wind, things like because for me, it's between that and a Partagas d four.
Bam Bam:Got a point.
Senator:But
Gizmo:I gotta clip that.
Senator:So definitely the the ex Cosebo.
Gizmo:All right, let's go around the room. Chef.
Chef Ricky:Right now I'm smoking this Bon Roberts Dahlias and I can't I'm having a hard time wanting anything else. This thing is hitting every note. Everything that I was missing from the cigar prior. I'm loving it. And I think I'd be very happy with this on a desert island without a doubt.
Chef Ricky:Rooster. I mean, me, I'll go a Cuban.
Rooster:I think a rasp
Bam Bam:was Well, said absolutely was in a reason.
Gizmo:Yeah.
Rooster:So I have some reasonably priced ras.
Bam Bam:From what, ten years ago?
Gizmo:Pre Chenji. Correct.
Rooster:Yeah. A ras absolutely is in my flavor that I love the flavor out of a ras. So for me, I think that would suffice. Bam.
Bam Bam:Yeah, I would If I can get my hands on Schoie Super. No, the Davidoff Millennium Pyramid from five, six, seven years ago, for me, that would be my island cigar. They were always just for me exquisite, perfectly nutty, little cedar, not too sweet, always performed beautifully in humid weather, cold weather, never a problem. But since I can't get that anymore because we don't know what they put in a damn cigar, I'm gonna go with the Trinidad Robusto.
Gizmo:Oh, great choice.
Bam Bam:I could have that every single day, multiple times a day. It's just so easy to smoke and truly delicious.
Gizmo:Excellent choice. Pagoda, what's yours? For me, it'd be the Dominicana.
Bam Bam:Of That's a good one. That's a great choice too.
Pagoda:If available, right, Meny?
Gizmo:Yeah, it's a $20.14, right, exclusive. I was going to say either Pedronix Cusivo, I knew you were going to take that. I was going say Robusto Trinity and Cusivo.
Bam Bam:I know you were to say that.
Gizmo:So I'm gonna go to my third choice, which is the Cohiba Cigue O Five from Cuba.
Bam Bam:Not the Cigue O Six.
Gizmo:No, I'd go Cigue O Five. Okay. I've had a lot of joy from the Cigue O Five. I love that cigar.
Chef Ricky:But his wife would kill him.
Bam Bam:It's not within reason.
Rooster:No, that is
Gizmo:a good point. You got a point.
Pagoda:You got a point. I
Senator:mean, on a Desert Island, survival of the fittest.
Gizmo:Correct. It's true. I would go with Cigar five, even if my wife would yell a little bit, but that would be my
Bam Bam:Before we let this go, I'm curious if Lizard Amy also smokes cigars. Yes. Does. She'll shake it. Yeah.
Gizmo:Sounds like it. I'm curious though. Here's what I wanna know from Lizards, Al, and Amy when they hopefully follow-up on this, you know, post this conversation. I'd love to know what they're smoking.
Bam Bam:Yeah.
Gizmo:Right. And are they smoking the same thing together?
Bam Bam:Correct.
Gizmo:Are they smoking different cigars?
Senator:Great questions.
Gizmo:Like, how how different is Lizard Al's palate from Lizard Amy's? Like, I'm very curious about that. So please write us. And again, congratulations to them for winning Lizard of the Week. A 10 count box of cigars from our friends at Bon Roberts will be on their way to them.
Gizmo:And boys
Senator:And sorry, it just needs to be said. That was an out standing voice memo. Outstanding.
Gizmo:I agree.
Senator:Thank you for your service and Yeah. Just really awesome questions that I think produce a great discussion. Definitely.
Gizmo:Alright, boys. We've come to the end of our evening with the Midwinter's Night's Dram, the limited engagement, and the Montecristo nineteen thirty five anniversary, Edicien Diamante in Toro. Any final thoughts on the pairing before we get to our ratings? Please do not forget to text me your ratings before we go to it. But I gotta say, I am very, very happy with both entrants tonight.
Gizmo:I think this ride from High West is excellent. I thought the cigar performed as I expected, which was excellent. I'm curious to see how these ratings will go, but very, very happy with the pairing tonight. How do
Bam Bam:you feel, Bam? Delicious. I enjoyed it. Honestly, the spirit starts off a little rough.
Gizmo:I think it's just an adjustment needed.
Bam Bam:I'm on my second glass. I'm actually finishing my second glass. It is, for me, just really quite delicious. Yes, expensive, but that is some delicious juice. Great with this cigar tonight for me, in my opinion.
Gizmo:I agree. Alright, boys. It's time now to move into the formal liquorating tonight on a Midwinter Night's Dram. The limited engagement from High West. Bam bam, you're up.
Bam Bam:I'm at a nine. I was toying with an eight because of how tough it does start off, but once my palate settled in, I got almost every single note that they described on the bottle and the packaging. Just delicious for me. No water, no ice. I've had this before and I've always enjoyed it, so for me it's a strong nine.
Gizmo:All right, chef.
Chef Ricky:I'm right there with you, Ben. I'm at a nine. I enjoyed the heat. I enjoyed the brightness, the intensity of flavor that it offered. The nose was intoxicating.
Chef Ricky:I love the cherry notes. After a few sips, your palate adjusts and the spice, the spiciness kind of
Bam Bam:Disappears.
Chef Ricky:Tapers a bit. So I think for me, this is a nine. The price point is high, so I wouldn't buy it, but I really did enjoy this a lot.
Gizmo:Alright. Pagoda?
Pagoda:Yeah. It's a nine for me as well. I was actually toying with an eight as well. But for me, it was delicious. Like, the aroma was fantastic.
Pagoda:And I think when I let let it linger on my palate for a bit, it became warm and very, I think, caramelistic sweet. I don't know. Was just excellent. It was very, very delicious. I thought it was a bit harsh for me.
Pagoda:Obviously, I don't like a lot of very high proof liquors. And if I do, then I'll have it with a Cubify's
Bam Bam:Sploosh. Yeah.
Pagoda:And I was debating whether it should be an eight or nine considering the price point as well. But this is really remarkably delicious. It's excellent. Definitely, you know, for somebody who can withstand a high proof liquor and all the bourbon drinkers, I think they would really, really enjoy this. It's an excellent, excellent rye.
Gizmo:So for me, it's a nine. I thought this was an excellent rye. Thought it paired very well. I think the price is crazy.
Bam Bam:I agree.
Gizmo:It just even, you know, from a retailer at a 150, forget secondary 250, 300, you know, those people are crazy. I thought it was really nice. I loved, you know, how smooth it was. I felt from the initial sip while it was there was a little bit of heat there. I think we needed to adjust to.
Gizmo:I thought it was a really well rounded rye, which in the past I've been very critical of rye. I thought this one paired very, very well with cigars. I loved it coming out of the Glencairn with nothing else in it, even coming close to 50%. Again, I think the price is crazy. I think the whole thing with this, you know, this this this bourbon and rye thing with the money is is is insane.
Gizmo:But I really enjoyed the spirit tonight. So for me, it's a nine. Senator.
Senator:So I'm at an eight. I really enjoyed the flavor profile. That was a standout. I'm in full agreement there. For me, the problem was just the delivery of that flavor at at that price point.
Senator:It's too harsh. It packs too much of a punch for me to pair this with most cigars that I smoke. There's only some cigars that I think this would truly be a perfect pairing. No Cubans. No Cubans for sure.
Senator:I mean, none of them. That that's, you know, a demerit for what we do. And then you just look at the price point, and at a $150, I'm sorry. I just think that there are many other spirits at and even below that price point that I would put well ahead of this. And so for me, that's why I had to round down to the 8.
Senator:I think it's very good. I think anyone who loves high proof spirits will love this. I think after a meal, even if I wasn't having a cigar like this, definitely fits the bill, but this is a very rare time that one glass was enough for me.
Chef Ricky:Yeah. It's true. Yeah.
Bam Bam:No. It's all very valid. I just love that it's a rye. It's something we haven't done very often. There's some uniqueness there.
Gizmo:Oh, I'm
Senator:glad we tried it.
Bam Bam:Yeah. And the way it's finished in the port barrels, I think that really gave it the touch that it needed.
Gizmo:Alright, boys. The formal lizard rating tonight on a Midwinter Night's Dram, the limited engagement from High West is an 8.8.
Bam Bam:Yeah. That's a nice I
Gizmo:think that's perfect
Bam Bam:score. Score.
Gizmo:Yeah. Alright, boys. And now it's time to move into the formal lizard rating tonight on Montecristo nineteen thirty five anniversary. Edicien Diamante in Toro, Rooster, you're up.
Rooster:For me, the cigar, it started out like the first third of the cigar was a nine. The last third of the cigar was a 10.
Senator:There you go.
Rooster:Got better. It got sweeter. It got less drier. The middle of the cigar was the driest part, where it really hit the back of my throat. I mean, I'm not pairing it with anything.
Rooster:I'm just drinking a glass of water. So it is a delicious cigar. It's well blended. And if you can get these at a decent price for like $8 $10 $12 I think it's a home run. The blend is fantastic.
Rooster:It's Nicaraguan, but it's not super heavy. It's a medium bodied smoke. It's creamy. It has notes of cocoa. It has baking spice in it.
Rooster:So all of these notes that we love in a cigar. So I think the blend is blend just works on the cigar. The size is great. The cigar was well constructed. There was a little bit of flakiness after the midway point.
Rooster:That was a slight issue, but it's not anything that it's a demerit on the score, but I'm giving it a solid nine.
Gizmo:All right, Senator. I don't
Senator:know that anyone has ever perfectly summarized my commentary as Rooster did there. Our experience with this cigar was literally identical.
Bam Bam:That's centuries of experience right there. Shining through.
Gizmo:I mean, the last
Rooster:was absolutely delicious Yeah. Like you
Senator:The first third definitely a nine like you said. The second third is where I felt it was too dry. I would have given that an eight, and that last third was definitely a 10. It was absolutely perfect. The flakiness is funny you mentioned.
Senator:That's exactly where it happened, the midway point. The first third, the ash was okay. That second third is where it started crumbling. It was getting frustrating. I had to keep knocking it off because it was going all over, and then it just perfectly corrected in the final third.
Senator:So those were really the only demerits in the cigar, the mid the construction in the middle and the dryness in the middle where I felt it wasn't balanced anymore. It needed some more sweetness. I think this cigar's gotta have great aging potential. I mean, the fact that they intentionally held it back, there is a creaminess in this that you only get usually with age. So I would love to see as I buy some more of these how these perform even over time.
Senator:I think maybe it could be a 10. Maybe that
Gizmo:Mhmm.
Senator:You know, second third of the cigar perfectly rounds out. But right now, for what it is, it's a strong nine. I already smoke this often, and I'll continue to. I think it delivers a really unique Nicaraguan experience. Like Rooster said, that's not heavy.
Senator:It's not intimidating. It's super approachable. And for a medium bodied Nicaraguan, I think, like, that there's a lot of space for a cigar like that in our rotation, so strong nine for me. So I'm at a 10.
Gizmo:This cigar was perfect for me tonight. It often is. This one was especially good. And under the microscope, which obviously there's like a little bit of an intensity that comes on a cigar when we sit here in this room and do what we do, This performed brilliantly for me tonight. I have no complaints about the second third as you guys do.
Gizmo:There was a little bit of flakiness on the ash, but I'm not gonna knock it for that. The performance was great. The flavor was excellent. It gave me exactly what I was looking for. And honestly, if I was going to go home right after this and we weren't going to go over there and have another cigar, I'd be totally satisfied.
Gizmo:I think that the fact that this has entered my rotation at the level at which it has is not only shocking to me, but is just brilliant for how reasonably priced these cigars can be found for. I think there's such value here. I, you know, obviously, was talking a lot tonight, but I got a lot of value out of the cigar. I almost went two hours on this Toro tonight for $8. $8?
Gizmo:Every draw was great. Perfectly constructed. Only had to touch it up when I was talking a lot to keep it moving. But, man, this cigar is brilliant. I'm very, very happy with it.
Gizmo:It's one of my favorite cigars that Rafael Nadal has been a part of the blend on. I'm just ecstatic with this, and I can't wait to smoke more. I'm gonna buy more after this. It was perfect for me tonight, an absolute 10. Pagoda?
Pagoda:It's a nine for me. You know, there's something about Rafael Nadal and the way he construct cigars. They're very, very
Rooster:easy It's the Midas touch.
Pagoda:They're very easy to smoke. You know how some cigars, you draw on very hard.
Gizmo:No punishment there with this.
Pagoda:It's excellent. You know, these are the cigars, you know, you don't mind handing out to people who are experimenting or occasional cigar smokers, because you know at an average, they're going to have a pleasant experience. I think just overall, you know, the flavor profile was excellent. I did get a little bit of salt, a little bit of cayenne, which was in addition to the cocoa, which I kind of really enjoyed. The construction was fantastic.
Pagoda:The smoke output was really good. I like a cigar, which is, you know, feels like a cigar when you're smoking, and it's a
Gizmo:very strong line for me. All right, chef.
Chef Ricky:Yeah, Pagoda, think that cayenne call out is genius on your part, man. Know, cayenne's very unique in that it offers spice, but there's also that very faint, like bell pepper note, like a faint sweetness that follows through. And when he said cayenne, I knew exactly what you were talking about. So great call out there. For me, the cigar, the aroma was intoxicating on the wrapper.
Chef Ricky:The first third was great. Second, third, I started to get some of that minerality and it was followed by citrus, but it did dry out a bit. And then the final third, think like everyone else here, got a little bit sweeter, got more in my wheelhouse, but the cigar never really got in that sweet spot for me that I really enjoy. But with that being said, it's an amazing price point at $8.25 which is what I just picked up to ten ten packs for because I am looking forward to putting them in my humidor and letting them sit for a bit and see if they kind of get closer to where I think they could get. So for me, it's a nine.
Gizmo:Awesome. Bam.
Bam Bam:I love this cigar.
Gizmo:So this is the second one
Bam Bam:you had, Palate? Only the second one I've ever had. I the aroma the cocoa aroma on the wrapper carried through into the cigar for me from beginning to end. And it did as you said, rooster, that final third, the whole thing was for me delicious, but that last third, the concentration of cocoa was unusual. And my baking spice that I got on this cigar was just a touch of cinnamon on the finish for me.
Bam Bam:Very unique. And for $8 the value, and I didn't have a single flake on my cigar. It was not ashy at all. Pagoda's lap is perfectly clean.
Pagoda:Yeah, mine was not ashy at all. I can tell.
Bam Bam:I can't find a single flaw in this cigar, so for me, it is a perfect 10.
Pagoda:Did it get a bit of the dryness or no? No. Think it was dry for me.
Bam Bam:No, for me that wasn't a factor. Now I will say that spirit likely helped that, because that's a great way of keeping your palate kind of moist and continuing that saliva. It was just fantastic, that cigar.
Rooster:Yeah, I mean, to compensate the dryness, you need something with this cigar. But the dryness also, it wasn't so much that it would make you disinterested in the cigar.
Senator:Yeah. Right? Agreed.
Rooster:So whether it's coffee, whether it's a whiskey, or whatever the pairing is, it definitely does help
Bam Bam:with the cigar. That cocoa experience is so unique. It's something that I definitely chase. Great cigar.
Gizmo:Alright, boys. The formal listed rating tonight on the Montecristo nineteen thirty five Anniversary Edici on Diamante and Toro is a 9.3. Nice. Perfect rating for this cigar. Yeah.
Gizmo:Great score. Let's compare that to the only other New World Montecristo we've done. The sister to this, the Montecristo nineteen thirty five Anniversary Nicaragua, number two. I said we did it on episode four. I was wrong.
Gizmo:It was episode 21 rated a seven. Way off.
Bam Bam:Big delta on that too.
Gizmo:It rated a seven.
Bam Bam:A seven.
Gizmo:So that did not do well, but this one tonight at a 93. For some reason, I remember that doing better.
Bam Bam:I wouldn't mind revisiting that.
Senator:Yeah. I agree. Right? Because I I've had ones recently that have been much better than I remembered.
Bam Bam:I haven't had one since. I'd love to try another one. Yeah. On the pod.
Gizmo:I I feel like I remember that rating being higher than that. Yeah. Clearly, it wasn't. We all rated it a seven. Alright, boys.
Gizmo:A great night tonight. We have to congratulate again Lizards Al and Amy for winning Lizard of the Week presented by our friends at Bon Roberts. They're gonna win a 10 count box of cigars from them. And, of course, all of the other lizards that we shared their contributions tonight, we really, really love emails, voice memos, and everything that the listeners throw at us. You guys are so crucial to the show, so please keep your comments and emails and everything else coming.
Gizmo:We we really, really appreciate it. Of course, we have to thank Bon Roberts. Check out their cigars at vabrica005.com. And boys, small batch cigar.
Bam Bam:Correct.
Gizmo:The preferred retail partner of the Lounge Lizards Podcast. Use our code lizard 15 for 15% off your entire order, plus 5% back in rewards, plus free shipping, plus great customer service. Plus you could call them and talk to a tobacconist and get some advice if you want something. They're fantastic. Check out smallbatchcigar.com.
Gizmo:Use our code lizard 15. And finally, boys, our presenting sponsor, Fabrica five. They are the best. Use our code lizard pod for 10% off the entire store. You can also find all the Bon Robert stuff there.
Gizmo:Incredible stuff. They have new samplers there. They have three new samplers. If you're new to it, you want to try some of the cigars, you can get a couple of, you know, each of the porra desnudos. You can get some of the mofo stuff.
Gizmo:They have great samplers over there. So check it out at fabrica005.com. And boys, one more time tonight, a Midwinter's Night's Dram. The limited engagement from High West scored an 8.8, and the Montecristo nineteen thirty five anniversary, Ediciall and Diamante in Toro scored a 9.3.
Bam Bam:Don't forget, we did another High West product long ago. Which one? The Campfire Bourbon. I think it got an 8.4.
Gizmo:Bam's right. Yep. I'm impressed. I don't remember ever doing High West.
Bam Bam:I just followed his brand, I just remembered. I think it was an eight point eight point six, just under this one. So pretty consistent, I think.
Gizmo:Good call, Bam. Let me find it here for you. Alright. So Bam Bam, you are correct.
Bam Bam:Was it an
Gizmo:eight Episode point 80, we did the High West double rye whiskey. Double rye whiskey.
Bam Bam:Squared an eight.
Gizmo:Scored an eight.
Bam Bam:Not even a a double rye, it was. Wow.
Senator:And some Some delta there.
Bam Bam:Oh, big delta. That's true.
Gizmo:Oddly, we paired that with a Cuban Montecristo Edmundo. Which also scored an
Bam Bam:eight. Interesting.
Gizmo:That's an interesting pairing to do a double rye with the
Bam Bam:It did well.
Gizmo:Yeah. Eight score score.
Bam Bam:So Nice.
Gizmo:Yeah. A great night tonight, boys. A great pairing. Looking forward to, having some more of this, rye and getting like you did, chef, a bunch of 10 packs of this cigar. Alright.
Gizmo:$8 apiece. Alright, boys. A great night, and, we'll see everybody next Hope you enjoyed this episode. Thanks for joining us. You could find our merch store and ratings archive at our brand new website, loungelizardspod.com.
Gizmo:That's loungelizardspod.com. Don't forget to leave us a rating and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform. If you have any comments, questions, if you wanna reach out, say hello, tell us what you're smoking, email us. Hello at loungelizardspod.com. You can also find us on Instagram at Lounge Lizards Pod.
Gizmo:We really appreciate your time, and we'll, we'll see you next week.