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 5. 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 Brewster, Senator, Pagoda, Chef Ricky, and Bam Bam.
Gizmo:And our plan is to smoke a cigar, drink some rum, talk about life, and of course, have some laughs. So take this as your 154th official invitation to join us and become a card carrying lounge lizard. Plan to be just here once a week. We're gonna smoke a new world cigar tonight, share our thoughts on it, and give you one form of lizard rating. La Aurora makes its pod debut tonight, and we share the brand's long history.
Gizmo:We discuss old cigar favorites that have fallen out of favor, and we launch a new lizard rotation segment, all among a variety of other things for the next 90 minutes. So sit back, get your favorite drink, light up a cigar and enjoy as we pair y Leon Jimenez 100 and 10th anniversary rum with the La Aurora 100 and 20th anniversary in Robusto. A Robusto tonight on the pod from the Dominican Republic, It's the La Aurora 100 and 20th anniversary in Robusto. It's a 50 ring gauge cigar by 5 inches long. And boys, tonight is taking me right back to Las Vegas.
Bam Bam:Correct.
Gizmo:And if you remember, we spoke quite highly of this cigar We did. Because we had smoked it at the first seminar of PCA 2024, and we really loved it. And we have finally acquired some to do on the podcast. They've been in the tower for about 3 months now. Mhmm.
Gizmo:And we are going back to PCA tonight.
Bam Bam:Because these feel great. Perfectly conditioned.
Gizmo:Yeah. I'm looking forward to smoking these. I I really as we talked about, we loved the one we did
Bam Bam:It's been a while.
Gizmo:In Vegas. Yeah. I mean, it's been since March. Right? Yeah.
Gizmo:So or April. Excuse me.
Chef Ricky:Since I didn't go, this is my first time. I'm pretty stoked about it, especially after airing that episode.
Gizmo:And roosters too.
Rooster:I got a box actually when you guys got back because you guys talked about it. And, I think I smoked it too quick. Like, the box was kinda fresh.
Gizmo:Mhmm.
Rooster:So I'm gonna go back and revisit it now that it's
Bam Bam:You're gonna revisit it right now.
Gizmo:Right when I get home. Let's cut this thing, boys. See, we're getting on the cold draw on the wrapper. Oh.
Chef Ricky:I like it. Lots of nuts. Some, like, good toasted kacharoo here.
Gizmo:I think toasted is the right one.
Chef Ricky:It's like yeah. Just very developed toasted.
Bam Bam:I'm getting more almond and plum. Plum? In the background, like a raisin plum type thing.
Chef Ricky:What would drive fruit?
Bam Bam:Yep. Glad you said it.
Pagoda:I'm sorry.
Gizmo:I'm getting a lot of cedar on the foot of the cigar, but it's obviously, I think, because maybe it was wrapped in cedar.
Bam Bam:It's it's
Gizmo:wrapped in a little cedar.
Bam Bam:Yeah.
Gizmo:Thing inside cellophane.
Bam Bam:You're not getting a hint of sweetness at all.
Senator:There is there is
Rooster:a there is a sweet note on
Bam Bam:the whole
Senator:I get, like, vanilla. Absolutely. Sweet note.
Bam Bam:Yeah. That's possible.
Gizmo:Cold draw is really nice.
Bam Bam:It's nice. I have
Gizmo:a I have just a touch of resistance. Like, it's not a robusto that's wide, wide open. Like, just a little bit of resistance, which I like.
Rooster:So Yeah.
Gizmo:We'll see how it does tonight. Alright, boys. Let's light this thing. The La Aurora 100 20th anniversary Robusto. Again, it's out of the Dominican Republic.
Gizmo:It's a 50 ring gauge cigar by 5 inches long. Got the cigar pretty cheap, boys. $6 each. Wow. Incredible.
Gizmo:So we talk about cigars, new world cigars especially, that you can get very reasonably. I already like it. This is this is in that category for sure at $6.
Chef Ricky:And this is a limited release. Right? So not a whole lot of these made?
Gizmo:Or No. There's gonna be
Bam Bam:a lot
Gizmo:of these. This is gonna be a regular release from Lava. Okay.
Bam Bam:Delicious off the light.
Senator:This takes a lot of fuel to light for some reason. It does.
Bam Bam:This is identical to the experience that I had at PCA.
Gizmo:Very good. Totally agree.
Senator:I will say, though, construction wise, this is as rustic a constructed cigar as I've seen in a long time. I mean, this has, like Visible scenes. In the leaf that are as visible as, like what are those called on, like, older people's legs, like varicose veins?
Bam Bam:Oh my lord, dude. Like, that's what it looks like. How how politically uncorrect.
Chef Ricky:The vascularity of
Senator:this thing. Tell us more.
Rooster:Oh, the coating I'm wearing
Gizmo:pants. Correct.
Chef Ricky:No. The cigar does have some impressive vascularity.
Bam Bam:Seriously, though? The everything we got on that cold draw is enhanced here. That plummy vanilla thing I'm getting, almond is there for me.
Chef Ricky:Yeah. I'm really you know, the toasted notes is super pronounced. I'm getting a little, I'm getting I'm getting almond almost in the form of amaretto Yeah. Without it being super sweet. I'm not getting much sweetness like dried fruit or anything like that.
Chef Ricky:I get vanilla, you know, like, if you're smelling vanilla beans. So, yeah, it it's a little bit dry on the finish. Not not nothing bad. Just, you know, not that, like, explosive wet fruit.
Rooster:Yeah. And the wrapper itself is very dry. Yes. Not has no sheen on it.
Bam Bam:Now at PCA, the cigars we had were on a wet side. Just a touch.
Senator:A little bit, but not bad.
Gizmo:No. I mean We were surprised
Senator:at Yeah.
Bam Bam:How good it was.
Senator:Yeah. Everything we smoked I mean, I feel like anytime someone handed us a cigar that the intent was for us to smoke right there, we all kinda look nervously at each other, not wanting to do it. And I think we were pleasantly surprised that none of them were overly wet.
Gizmo:Yeah. Which to me points to you know, when we talk about buying cigars at B&M Fresh New World Cigars, a lot of the time you get them wet. Even when I order them from, you know, big box retailers, they come in really, really humid, and you have to dry them out, which tells me that it's not the manufacturer doing that per se. It's a lot of brick and mortar stores and a lot of retailers are over humidifying these cigars.
Pagoda:But but do you think it preserves them? Because if everybody's doing it everywhere, you know, they are typically between 69 and 72, I would imagine.
Gizmo:I think so. I I think that I I think that it's set like that because that's typically what people know to be the quote, unquote correct humidity. But I think we've shown through our experience collecting old Cuban cigars, smoking old Cuban cigars, and other you know, smoking old Davidoff, smoking old Padrones. You know, those being stored in in the mid sixties Yeah. For years.
Gizmo:60s for years, they perform brilliantly. So I I just think it's a little bit of a misnomer that 70 degrees, 70 percent humidity is the right right humidity because Yeah. I just don't think it it translates to a good experience smoking wise for me.
Senator:You know as soon as you walk into a retailer. I mean, I feel like there's so many times you walk in a retailer's humidor, and it almost feels like you're entering a steam room where, like, the humidity is so excessive in there. Absolutely. You look at cigars that are wrapped in any form of cellophane, and there's, like, condensation inside Inside the wrap. Not be the case.
Senator:Yeah.
Gizmo:When you see
Bam Bam:when you
Gizmo:see the moisture in the cellophane, it's a problem.
Bam Bam:That's a pass.
Gizmo:That's a problem.
Senator:Yeah. Well, then you go to, like, some other shops. Like, I remember it just popping into the, like, Davidoff store in Midtown. Like, they're humidor. Like, you know, it's very pleasant to be in there.
Senator:Like, there's there's nothing that's overly humidified. Like, they probably keep it at maybe 65 where a lot of retailers will do 70, 72. It's just way too high.
Bam Bam:I have a theory. I think in general, most retailers aren't and I won't say most, but a lot probably aren't avid cigar smokers. They don't dive in. They don't do their research, and they may bump up that humidity due to fear factor. They've got a $1,000,000 worth of inventory.
Bam Bam:The last thing they wanna see is to get it dried out, lose the essential oils, all that. Yeah.
Rooster:Also the cost of equipment that they have. It's a nice store. It's gonna have nice,
Gizmo:you know, quite nice. Research.
Bam Bam:Yeah. Yeah.
Senator:When you walk in and you see a Vicks like vapor, a humidifier, and that's what they're
Gizmo:used when you were a kid when you were sick.
Bam Bam:Gives you a good note.
Senator:For the record, we've seen this at a retailer
Gizmo:in New York. Yes. We have.
Senator:Not our home clubhouse, but another retailer in the area.
Bam Bam:Yeah. How's it?
Pagoda:It's like, when you go to J and R, like, on 17, they have this. It's literally like a It's a sauna. Sauna.
Gizmo:Yeah. Yes. It's a steam room.
Pagoda:It's awful. With it yeah. It's it's, hilarious.
Gizmo:And it drives me crazy because, you you know, you're you're walking around looking at really expensive cigars. The wide range of cigars. Of course, we have a $6 cigar in our our hand up to the highest price Davidoff's and Fuentes and Opus and Padron. And thinking about someone plopping down hard money, buying you know, hard earned money, buying one of those cigars, walking into the lounge right next door to smoke it, and smoking a cigar that's giving them tar blast and just over humidification. I mean, it's just it's unfortunate that, they're sold like that, but it's a pretty common thing worldwide.
Gizmo:So what are you guys thinking about the cigar on the
Rooster:light here? Pretty good, man. I think it's you definitely get a cedar note. You get some kind of a sweetness. I think, chef Ricky said, like a vanilla.
Rooster:I do get a little bit of some kind of like a I don't know if it's plum or some kind of a dried fruit note.
Bam Bam:Yeah. Reason to pick.
Rooster:There is something.
Bam Bam:Yeah. I agree.
Rooster:But cedar cedar does come through and, like a little bit of, like, a nutty flavor.
Bam Bam:I
Gizmo:feel like I'm getting a little bit of and we've you guys, especially Pagoda and Rooster have called this out. I feel like I'm getting a little bit of a black tea note. Like, no milk in in it, but just, like, just black tea, like, what I would think of, like, Lipton black tea.
Bam Bam:I'm getting that kind of on the back of my tongue right now.
Chef Ricky:It's like a satanic quality.
Bam Bam:Yes. Yeah. Very tail end of the finish.
Chef Ricky:I'm sorry.
Bam Bam:Get that.
Chef Ricky:It's one of the reasons why I never understood everyone always tells you, oh, have some tea when, you know, you have a a sore throat or you had a dry throat. For me, tea just dries my throat out.
Rooster:Well, we're probably talking about tea with honey. Sure. Sure.
Chef Ricky:But, yeah, I just find tea to You you don't have a dry skin.
Senator:Careful. Rooster is a big tea guy.
Pagoda:Oh, yeah. We have tea with ginger and carbon.
Chef Ricky:Do you drink all your do you drink all your tea as chai?
Rooster:Tea is chai.
Pagoda:It's chai. Oh, I thought it was
Chef Ricky:tea with milk chai.
Rooster:Just a, you know, word in Hindi for tea.
Chef Ricky:So it doesn't
Gizmo:need milk.
Rooster:So when I when I walk into a Starbucks and somebody's ordering, I'll have a chai tea. I'm like, oh, you want tea tea?
Pagoda:They all want titties. They want titties. Alright. I don't know whether that's kosher or not.
Gizmo:Bowl of coffee coffee.
Chef Ricky:Yeah. So on the cigar, I do get that chai that chai tea note.
Gizmo:Chai
Rooster:would be like, some black tea would have a little bit of milk
Chef Ricky:in it. Oh, okay. So that's that's what I thought. Yeah. Okay.
Chef Ricky:Thanks for dragging me around there for a little bit.
Bam Bam:Yeah. So I'm getting that tannic
Chef Ricky:effect that in my throat, that's a little bit drying. I if I do want anything more in this cigar right now, it's more dried fruit. I do want more
Bam Bam:Something more
Chef Ricky:of a baking
Bam Bam:spice would be nice.
Chef Ricky:Yeah. This isn't a cigar that this is a this is a new flavor profile for me on this spot with you guys. I wouldn't say that this is There
Bam Bam:is a richness to this. There's a little savory, a tiny bit of sweetness. It's it's it's a good experience right now. Yeah.
Chef Ricky:It's it's like giving you a little bit of everything, but not Mhmm. Picking a lane yet just yet.
Senator:I mean, I like it. It it kinda reminds me of it's like a it's like a French Bordeaux in the sense that, like, it's much drier.
Bam Bam:Oh, that's a good that's a very good comparison.
Senator:New world, like, American wine.
Gizmo:I like that.
Bam Bam:I do too.
Senator:I think there's something unique about that because we're so used to with new world tobacco, especially, like, really getting these punchy, intense flavors, a lot of cocoa and, nuttiness and fresh fruit, dried fruit. Like, they're really rich, obvious flavors. And I think here, they're, like, more subtle, still rich in their own way, but, like, complex notes where we're talking about, like, black tea and vanilla and, smoked cashews. And those are just not as common. I feel like new world tobacco notes, and I really like that.
Senator:I think it's something very unique.
Chef Ricky:Yeah. It's definitely delivering the notes. Performing beautifully right now.
Gizmo:Yeah. It is. I think Yeah. Like we talked about, I think drying it out a little bit.
Bam Bam:Oh, sure.
Gizmo:My my burn is fantastic. The output on the smoke is great. Yep. That that a little bit of resistance in the draw is working really, really well. I'm very happy with it so far for $6.
Gizmo:I mean, come on.
Rooster:Can you talk a little bit about the, the tobacco that's in it? Yeah.
Gizmo:So there's it's a pretty pretty wild construction here. There's a lot of tobacco, a lot of different kind of tobacco from the Dominican Republic. So like I said, this is a Dominican puro. It's from the new farm in Sabau Valley. The wrapper is Dominican Habano 92.
Gizmo:The binder is Olor Binder, and the filler is a blend of 3 different tobaccos, piloto cubano, Olor, and Corojo. So those are the 5 different tobaccos in the cigar, but they are all Dominican. Interesting. I'm curious because I feel like I feel like I am tasting some age on this tobacco. Are you guys tasting any mustiness?
Gizmo:Like, I feel like I'm getting a little bit of, like, it doesn't taste like fresh tobacco to me, quote, unquote. Not saying that it isn't.
Bam Bam:No. That's true.
Gizmo:But it it feels like it has a few years on it.
Senator:I agree. Yeah. This doesn't taste fresh at all. No.
Bam Bam:Honestly, the freshness is when I'm getting deep minerality or bitterness. I don't get any of that here.
Gizmo:And I think maybe if when you smoke the cigar young, you may get that if it was rolled
Bam Bam:yesterday. Absolutely.
Gizmo:But I feel like that is translating to me in this kind of chewiness in the smoke. Like, I feel like the smoke is a little grainy to me, and I'm kinda wanting to chew it, which I'm enjoying. Like, it's kind of like It's satisfying. It's, yeah, it's delicious.
Bam Bam:Of course.
Gizmo:You know?
Rooster:Have you guys had any La Aurora Cigars? I have. Ever? Yes. Yes.
Rooster:You have? Yes.
Gizmo:I have I've had a few of the lower end ones that come in the metal cases. They're Perfectos.
Bam Bam:Recently or back in the day?
Gizmo:Back in the day. Yeah.
Bam Bam:So I've had a bunch of those. So And those weird little tubos. Remember you sent photos. Yeah.
Rooster:Did you ever have one it had, like, a a lion on it.
Chef Ricky:It was gold. It was
Rooster:a 14 it was called the 1495 How color was
Bam Bam:the case?
Rooster:I don't even know if it came in a tube or if it if it just came without a tube.
Pagoda:Okay.
Bam Bam:It was
Rooster:like a 14.90. And it wasn't that cheap. It it was their higher end.
Bam Bam:That's one of their older school
Rooster:Yeah. Flattery cigars. Yeah. Very smooth cigar, and it it was really good.
Bam Bam:Yeah. Those tubos were cool. Yeah. Honestly, the cigars back then were not that good.
Gizmo:I agree. I think that they've I think the brand and and what we took away from PCA
Bam Bam:They have totally changed their game.
Gizmo:Really pivoted their their brand, and they're really aiming for a more premium smoker. And I remember even, you know, we'll talk about this. These cigars, the MSRP on these is $14. Obviously, we got a great deal getting them for $6. But at $14, they're aiming for that kind of mid range
Bam Bam:Yeah.
Gizmo:To higher range, really, in in in new world robustos. Like, you think about what a, you know, Cabotoff Robusto would be or a Padron. You're kind of in that range.
Bam Bam:Do you remember the incredibly beautiful presentation that they had at PCA?
Gizmo:It was awesome.
Bam Bam:It was spectacular. So they're investing a ton in their branding, their imagery, and, I think they're trying to get their cigars to follow suit. It's working.
Gizmo:It's working here.
Bam Bam:Have you had the 107th? That red The red one. Yes. That's a good cigar.
Gizmo:That's a very good cigar.
Bam Bam:Different than this, but good.
Gizmo:I think this one, based on my experience as a PCA, edged the out the red one will do that at some point on the pot. I'm sure
Bam Bam:it's tastier.
Gizmo:Yeah. This is this is just a tasty smoke. Mhmm.
Chef Ricky:You ever had a some like, shelled sunflower seeds that weren't salted? That's what this reminds me of. Just, yeah. I love it. I'm getting shelled sunflower seeds.
Chef Ricky:I'm getting grassy I'm getting grassy notes. You know, I'm reading the description, and it says
Bam Bam:Dakota, have you ever tasted the shrimp shell?
Chef Ricky:Shrimp shrimp shells are delicious.
Bam Bam:You know, when I shell a shrimp, it kinda reminds me of the I'm joking.
Rooster:Actually, it's used for to make a fish stock.
Bam Bam:That's right.
Chef Ricky:Yeah. Right?
Bam Bam:That's right.
Chef Ricky:It's oftentimes used
Bam Bam:to shrimp head as well.
Chef Ricky:It's oftentimes used to extend lobster flavor when you don't have enough lobster.
Gizmo:Oh. This is one of 6 vittolas in the 100 20th anniversary line from La Aurora. The others are the Toro, which is 54 by 5 3 quarters, the Gran Toro, 58 by 6, the Churchill, 47 by 7. Those range in price from this one being in the lower end from 14 MSRP up to 16. Then they have a limited edition perfecto, which is 58 by 6.
Gizmo:So 58 at its thickest all the way down, I would assume, somewhere in the forties. The price on that cigar is $40 each.
Bam Bam:Holy cow.
Gizmo:Comes in a box of 10. The rest come in boxes of 20. And there's also apparently and I haven't seen any pictures of it. I've heard about it, that there's a limited edition Lancero that was designed for Europe, which was 40 by 6. So I don't have my hands on those.
Gizmo:I haven't seen any of those, but, apparently, that's out there as well.
Bam Bam:I'd be afraid of the Churchill, the Toro. I probably wouldn't go anywhere near those, but that Lancero sounds extremely interesting.
Rooster:A 47 by 7. Yeah. The 47 by 7
Gizmo:is the Churchill. The Lancero is
Bam Bam:4 by 6. With a 10 foot pole. Why? I don't know.
Rooster:47 is
Bam Bam:I feel like
Gizmo:I love a Churchill.
Bam Bam:This Vitoll is perfect with this blend. If it gets any bigger to me, I think it may not be enjoyable. But the Lancero, that could be great. And the Perfecto maybe.
Rooster:We're not doing Lancero's anymore.
Bam Bam:They're banned.
Gizmo:So, boys, I I wanna go to a lizard email because it ties into the discussion we were just having about humidity. And this comes from a lizard who asked to be anonymous. He says, hey, Giz and the lizards. Great pod as always. I have a question for you guys.
Gizmo:I just purchased some cigars from a an unnamed big box retailer. The cigars showed up to my house covered in mold. I contacted the retailer, and they replied that it was plume and it could be wiped off and not to worry about it, and then sent a description of what Plume was, being this development of cigars over time with humidity, etcetera. What would the lizards do in this situation?
Bam Bam:I'm gonna let the consummate procurement master answer that question.
Senator:I mean, I I would say give me a refund. I'm sorry.
Bam Bam:Absolutely. Either
Senator:you're gonna send me cigars without Plume, which if they arrive with Plume, my confidence in them is all is gonna be low. And I would say I want a refund. It's mold. Period.
Bam Bam:Exactly. Agree.
Senator:And any good retailer is gonna, you know, say, like, I'm happy to, you know, replace them with another box. Or if they want you if they don't, you know, ideally wanna give a refund, sweeten it in some way. Like, I'm happy to replace that box, and I'd love to send you something additional. You know, apologies for the inconvenience. That would go a long way.
Senator:I would be very happy then to obviously still take something from them. But if a retailer is really a jerk about it and saying, no. I'm not gonna refund you, then dispute the credit card charge.
Rooster:And you mentioned it's a big box retailer.
Gizmo:It's one of the big boys. Right. I'm not gonna say which one, but it's one of the big ones.
Rooster:I mean, they're not selling a house that you're gonna buy once in your lifetime. You're buying cigars that you're gonna buy, you know, frequently. Yeah. And it's in their best interest to replace those cigars at the slightest complaint of the customer, and then you have the customer for a long time.
Bam Bam:Correct.
Senator:I'll also say this. I had this happen with one of the biggest, like, big box retailers, JR Cigars. To their credit, I got the same spiel. Oh, no. That's a sign of a age box we send you.
Senator:You should be
Bam Bam:you should be happy to receive that. To just be in the same room when that happened?
Gizmo:I'd love to hear that phone call.
Bam Bam:I wanna see the facial expression.
Senator:And, of course, I was like, no. It's not. I'm not happy to receive this box. So either replace it with something or just give me my money back, and they actually replaced it. What they sent me back did not have Plume, and I think they sent me something additional for the inconvenience.
Senator:And that was the right way to handle it.
Gizmo:So I'll be honest. Even in in the room here, I hate hearing the word Plume because Plume does not exist. It is 100% mold. There was a study done. I think Rob Ilo was the one that did it on FOH many years ago, and I think he put up a reward.
Gizmo:Doctor Rob. Like a bounty
Bam Bam:Mhmm.
Gizmo:That if someone could prove that Plume was not mold scientifically, that there was some sort of monetary or cigar reward, it still stands open. And they, you know, had some scientists on there that put it under a microscope, and plume is mold Mhmm. 100% of the time. There is no difference. Now the reality is if you end up at home in your personal humidor and you find a situation let's say you go on vacation or you have a weather issue and the power goes out, you go back to your tower, you find some mold on your cigars.
Gizmo:If it's not on the foot of the cigar, the cigars are salvageable.
Pagoda:Correct.
Gizmo:You can wipe them off, isolate them, dry them out, and then when they're ready to go, put them back in your humidor.
Bam Bam:Mhmm.
Gizmo:If you have mold on the foot of the cigar, unfortunately, no matter what it is, if it's a $6 cigar or if it's a $106 cigar, it needs to go in the trash.
Bam Bam:Yeah. Agreed.
Gizmo:You know, you don't wanna be smoking that. So what bums me out is that there's still retailers out there
Bam Bam:who are
Gizmo:perpetuating this lie.
Bam Bam:There is such a misunderstanding.
Gizmo:It's a lie.
Bam Bam:It's unbelievable.
Gizmo:You know, it's and and like Rooster said, you're talking about, you know, I mean, we're all in customer facing businesses. Some of us more than others. Right? Where, you know, if if someone is complaining about their the product or service they've received from you, what are you gonna do?
Bam Bam:I'm thinking I'll renovate a building and there's mold in it.
Gizmo:Just tell them it's blue.
Pagoda:It's it's an air freshener. It's natural. You're lucky you have it.
Gizmo:Yeah. Well,
Bam Bam:it's it's
Rooster:no extra charge.
Chef Ricky:It's a plus. It goes back to the earlier conversation of how every retailer has their
Rooster:High humidity.
Chef Ricky:Has high humidity in their humidors, you know, and and they do it out of fear of losing the stock and things drying out. But then there's the opposite of that where they've convinced most people and themselves that what they're selling is a better cigar because it has this slight film of mode on it. But, yeah, I mean, that's what happens when you're at 70
Bam Bam:I mean,
Gizmo:there's there's a bottle king near me where I live, very close to where we're recording right here. And when you walk up to their humidor, there's a piece of tape with a description, like a cutout from a magazine saying this is Plume. You know, here's what Plume is. If you see Plume, it's not a big deal. And it's like it's a may they have that taped on the thing, which is just like It is.
Gizmo:Sign of we are lazy. It's cringe worthy to take care of our cigars. Awful.
Pagoda:No. The cigars over here have not been sold for a really long time.
Bam Bam:Yep. Yeah.
Gizmo:Yep. And we don't we don't, you know, monitor the humidity of of the cigars that we're selling Wow. Which is totally crazy. So, yeah, I agree with senator. I mean, I would tell the retailer to take it back.
Gizmo:If they push back for me, if that happened to me and they push back and they're arguing about it, I would just move my business elsewhere. That's what I would do.
Chef Ricky:Agreed.
Gizmo:So that's the advice. There is no such thing as plume. Plume is mold 100% of the time. If you have it, you're fine, unless it's on the foot of the cigar, then you have a bigger problem.
Pagoda:But So plume it right back.
Gizmo:Plume it right back.
Bam Bam:Great public service announcement there.
Pagoda:I'm a say the smoke output is fantastic.
Gizmo:Oops. I just asked all over myself by accident.
Senator:Where is the cigar babe when we need it?
Gizmo:I left mine at home.
Bam Bam:Do you have the WWF thing on the middle of it?
Gizmo:I'm finding this cigar to be delicious.
Bam Bam:I was about to say how good it is. It's just so delightful. Very, very tasty.
Chef Ricky:It's turning for me now. It's getting a little bit sweeter. Now it's it's reminding me of a Caribbean candy that's not coming to mind, but I'll look it up, Bam Bam, just so you could
Bam Bam:Oh, please.
Pagoda:Pindell tea, Caribbean candy. Damn. You're going global.
Bam Bam:Ricky's searching. He's going deep, man.
Senator:Deep in the repertoire tonight.
Gizmo:I am really, really surprised. You know, we know that this is a $14 MSRP cigar, but getting this cigar that we have in our hand for $6 and the performance so far into this first 3rd, it's really kinda surprising.
Bam Bam:It's funny. When we came back from the show, we were hyping it up at the club. A lot of guys went out and bought it, and a lot of there was a good mix of guys that weren't enjoying it. I I think it just goes back to what we said earlier. You've gotta let your cigars sit for a couple of weeks before you smoke them.
Gizmo:And I think too, I think judging cigars right off the truck. That's Pulling a cigar out
Bam Bam:of the box
Gizmo:when UPS drops it off and
Bam Bam:Yeah.
Gizmo:And smoking one right off the truck. Like, to me, that it you could do that. I don't have a problem.
Rooster:Some some sometimes you just can't help it.
Gizmo:No. I don't have a problem with someone doing that, but I think judging the cigar on that
Bam Bam:Yeah.
Gizmo:Experience, I don't think it's fair.
Bam Bam:Yeah.
Senator:I I agree, but I will say the reality is there are some cigars that perform okay at a higher humidity level and others that just absolutely suck at a higher humidity level. It just they're not even smokeable. So I think, you know, it's hard sometimes, like perfect example, like, Pedrones. I I've been in situations where I walked in a retailer and I had to buy a cigar there, and that Pedrone is definitely wet and over humidified. And I smoke it, and I'm like, it's still actually very enjoyable.
Gizmo:Yeah.
Senator:Would it benefit from coming down? Sure. But am I unhappy with the experience? No. Other cigars like the one we're smoking and, you know, having this too wet, you will lose the flavor.
Bam Bam:Mhmm. You can't say that this is as robust as any Robusto, I'm sorry, as any Padron. And I think that's why. Yeah.
Pagoda:What are you guys thinking? Like, it's like, for me, I, you know, I I do think for me, the flavor profile is not very like, it's like, for somebody who likes smoking stronger, bolder, more flavorful cigars, I could see that if somebody handed this to me in a very busy day. Although I remember the PCA did kind of enjoy it, so I don't know that it could be something You're answering your own question. Yeah. I know.
Pagoda:But it's contradicting it. It's contradicting it.
Bam Bam:But, you
Pagoda:know, but
Bam Bam:you know what it is? Ambiguously.
Pagoda:No. But you know what it is is that, like, I would say, yeah. It's a good cigar. You know, that would be my first reaction. It wouldn't be more like, oh, oh, this is fantastic.
Pagoda:I think we take the time over here to really sit down, analyze, and think about it.
Rooster:So Was that before the beers or after?
Pagoda:Yeah. No. That was the first cigar in the morning, I think.
Rooster:Oh, so after the beers? No.
Pagoda:No. We we had just a little bit of rum.
Bam Bam:No. It was early, early today.
Gizmo:He hadn't found the beer cart yet because the show wasn't open. That was It's true. He found that beer cart about 2 hours later.
Senator:So every open seat, Pagoda saw, he said, oh, I've got 2 more people sitting here. More rum for them. Pagoda was doubting him.
Pagoda:Yeah. Yeah. The rum was delicious.
Bam Bam:This cigar did take me by, I think, all of us by surprise at that show. Absolutely. It was surprising.
Rooster:I think maybe you guys didn't know what to expect.
Bam Bam:Absolutely.
Pagoda:Yeah. Because we've never really reached out for a La Aurora. Right. Yeah.
Senator:I can't remember ever smoking La Aurora. This was my first introduction to the brand, and I was very pleasantly surprised.
Gizmo:Surprised.
Senator:And I say that because, you know, La Aurora, I think, certainly in the past, was never known as, like, a higher end premium brand that, you know, you wanted to treat yourself for an occasion. You'd go reach for, La Aurora in a retailer. So, it was never something I was that curious about trying. Like, if I'm gonna try random things, it's usually something that, you know, might be a treat and out of my normal rotation that I just pursue regularly. So I I was very pleasantly surprised.
Senator:The note that we got a lot of there that I didn't get here on the light, but now about an inch of the way in, now is starting to become prominent, is some baking spice and cinnamon. Do you remember when we had this at PCA? It was like a cinnamon bomb. Bomb. Yeah.
Senator:Like, right on the light. This round, this time around, I'm not getting that until Mhmm.
Bam Bam:I'm
Senator:at least an inch of the way through
Bam Bam:the It's gotta be his tower.
Chef Ricky:100%.
Gizmo:My tower pulled the cinnamon out.
Senator:The kid, you better pull the cinnamon out. Correct.
Gizmo:They pulled the cinnamon out, and it put it on the h up and we had last week. Correct. Remember, you guys were talking about the the
Bam Bam:Oh, yeah.
Gizmo:The wrapper tasted like it had been paint you know, covered in cinnamon.
Chef Ricky:That was good. Alright. So, Ben, just if you guys ever get out to Doctor or Puerto Rico, I think Mexico has their version of it. It's a powder it's a toasted corn powder that they add sugar, sometimes cinnamon to, and they sell them in little paper cones, and it's called gofio. That's what this is.
Chef Ricky:Especially now that it's turning after that inch like senator saying,
Bam Bam:it's turning powder that you ingest? Yeah. It's a powder. Yeah. And you can't take
Chef Ricky:too much of it because it's
Bam Bam:cooking. Right?
Gizmo:No. No. No.
Chef Ricky:It's not.
Bam Bam:It's not.
Gizmo:I mean, it's always in the gutter.
Bam Bam:Kinda. Jeez. No. It comes in
Chef Ricky:a small paper cone. It's a few cents, and it's a it's toasted corn, and it's it's ground into a fine powder. They add sugar and flavorings to it, sometimes vanilla or cinnamon. That's what this is reminding me of, especially now after that inch.
Pagoda:And what's the powder used for? You just have it
Chef Ricky:It's a candy.
Pagoda:Oh, it's a candy. Yeah.
Chef Ricky:It's given out at birthday parties or whatnot.
Gizmo:So, boys, since this is the debut of La Aurora Cigars on the pod tonight, let's talk a little bit about their history. The brand was established in 1903 by Eduardo Leon Jimenez, so remember that name, in Santiago de los Caballeros in Dominican Republic. Started with just 5 employees. He came from a family of tobacco growers, and La Aurora was his vision to move from just growing tobacco to crafting premium cigars. This is one of the most well known facts in the cigar industry, of course.
Gizmo:La Aurora is the oldest cigar factory in the Dominican Republic, marking the beginning of the country's premium cigar industry. So that's pretty cool. Wow. Oldest factory in the Dominican. In the 19 sixties, the company diversified, entering other industries, but remained very committed to cigar production.
Gizmo:The 1903 series from La Aurora, which is kind of, I guess, their mainstay line, was created in tribute to the company's founding year. They're known for such popular lines as the 14 95 series, which Rooster was referencing before, the Preferitos and the Cameroon wrapper cigars. They export to over 60 countries worldwide. What I've learned when I've talked to some other cigar smokers who I wouldn't qualify as being, like, really deeply curious lizards, La Aurora is a a popular brand among cigar smokers. I think it's easy to find.
Gizmo:You can find it anywhere. It's consistent, and, you know, I think the thing that Pagoda was pointing out and we're experiencing tonight, I think most of them have a mild to medium profile. Obviously, a lot of Dominican cigars do. Davidoff skews a little bit more, you know, in in strength when they they choose to, but I think that they're mild you know, because they're mild and or medium, I think they're really, really accessible to people. It's still a family run business.
Gizmo:It's now managed by the Leon family's 3rd generation. And what's cool is, e Leon Jimenez's son, Fernando Leon Asencio, was a pivotal figure in the history of La Aurora and the family business. He played a crucial role in expanding the family business and overseeing the growth during the mid 20th century. He led La Aurora Cigars for several decades, ensuring the company's continued success in maintaining its reputation for quality. His leadership took La Aurora from being a Dominican Republic based brand to a globally recognized brand.
Gizmo:He was the master blender as alongside running the company and developed some of the most iconic cigars. His personal blend, Fernando Leon Family Reserve, became a highly acclaimed cigar line for the brand. And during his leadership, as we talked about before, the Leon family diversified their business interests, expanding into other industries such as beer, rum, and banking. The La Aurora Cigars remained a central focus. Now the other thing that we have to talk about, boys, of course, is our pairing tonight
Bam Bam:correct.
Gizmo:Which is a La Aurora product. So we did this on purpose. This is the rum that we tried at PCA that they were pairing during their seminar. This is the 110th anniversary celebration rum that they've produced, which I believe Ricky said looks like it has about 10 years of age on it. Yep.
Gizmo:We tried this at PCA, and it paired very well with cigars. So let's take a sip of e Leon Jimenez 100 and 10th anniversary rum.
Pagoda:You know, I kept thinking I've heard of Ilione Jimenez before to to the rum. Alright. Yeah.
Rooster:The rum is so dark. Like, the color is so rich.
Senator:It is.
Chef Ricky:This is like much. Surahogany. Yeah. It's 8 years in virgin oak, American oak, and then it spends its last 2 years in virgin French oak. Wow.
Chef Ricky:Super sweet.
Bam Bam:It tastes
Rooster:very sweet.
Bam Bam:Yeah. I
Senator:mean, the color of this and the viscosity and even a little bit of the some of the flavor, it it's very reminiscent of an XO cognac.
Pagoda:Alright. It is. Yeah.
Chef Ricky:Yeah. I mean, you could pour this directly over pancakes, vanilla ice cream
Bam Bam:Vanilla ice cream. Ice cream.
Gizmo:Both of those would actually be good. I mean
Senator:Pagoda, have you tried that yet?
Pagoda:I think I'm gonna try it tonight. Some vanilla ice cream over a waffle and then throw some rum
Bam Bam:on it. So, Giz, are you not are you not enjoying it?
Gizmo:I love it. Oh, I think it's fantastic.
Pagoda:It did reminiscent of the conda. Meaning, if if you wouldn't have told if you wouldn't have suggested it's rum, like, it would be one could easily mistake it.
Bam Bam:It's incredibly delicious. It's the viscosity is there. It's sweet. There's a lot of body. It pairs beautifully with the cigar.
Chef Ricky:It's probably the sweetest spirit I've drank in 5 plus years.
Gizmo:It's very, very sweet.
Chef Ricky:Yeah. It's super sweet.
Bam Bam:But not I don't think it's overtly syrupy for me. It's not
Chef Ricky:too sweet. It's not syrupy, but it's sweet. But I I think it's interesting that they made this specifically to pair with their cigars. And if there's you know, I haven't smoked many La Aurora's, but if their cigars smoke like this one does, then it makes perfect sense.
Senator:Yeah. I think we were all shocked when we had this rum. I I think, like almost forget the cigar at first. I think we had the rum, and, obviously, you know, we've done some, great rum on the podcast. Our trips to Cuba have really kinda created a a greater or stronger love and appreciation for the spirit.
Senator:There's no other cigar manufacturer that's in the spirit business, period. So I think we were really skeptical that this was more a marketing play, and I I think we were really shocked and surprised.
Bam Bam:We were at the show waving them in to bring more glasses for us.
Pagoda:No. It was a great way to start the morning. I remember that. Dude, it
Bam Bam:was awesome. They were speaking up there. We didn't care what the hell they were saying.
Pagoda:I need more rum. Bring
Bam Bam:it on over.
Chef Ricky:So if you if if you take a a draw of the cigar, retrohale it with a sip of the rum, that's the flavor of Golfio.
Pagoda:Oh, really? Which is the powdered stuff
Chef Ricky:you Powdered can
Bam Bam:You gotta get me some powdered corn with sugar.
Gizmo:I really like the rum pairing with the cigar.
Bam Bam:It's delicious.
Gizmo:It it like, it really is taking me back to that seminar presentation, that first day of PCA. It's really nice.
Bam Bam:Yeah. This spirit's also for me, it's it's starting to feel like a holiday spirit between Thanksgiving and Christmas and New Year's. I think it'll fit perfectly in those areas.
Senator:And I think, like like Ricky was saying, you know, given the cigar is drier, it pairs so well. I think it helps bring out the, like, fainter sweet notes that do exist in the cigar. So I think it's really balanced. If this were a very sweet new world cigar to begin with, I think it would be overkill with the spirit.
Bam Bam:Mhmm.
Rooster:But I
Senator:think it works because it's not.
Gizmo:What's interesting about this, and it might be obvious, is that this rum is manufactured in the Dominican Republic. And what was the, what was the other Dominican rum we did?
Bam Bam:Brugal.
Gizmo:Brugal. The extra Viejo. Correct. That was
Senator:very high.
Gizmo:That was a very good rum as well. Very different than this, though, I would say.
Chef Ricky:This one is done in partnership with Ronboisello, and this this really does follow their sort of, flavor profile, if you will. I feel regale is a little bit hotter, a little bit,
Bam Bam:It's lighter in color? Yeah. It's light. Yeah.
Chef Ricky:Yeah. So it's all of that, and barcello is a little bit in the sweeter spectrum.
Gizmo:So what Ricky was saying before as well, as it was aged in oak barrels, those barrels are often barrels that once aged La Aurora Cigars. So the rum does have a family a direct family tie to the cigars that they're manufactured.
Bam Bam:That's in no. That's amazing. I had no idea.
Pagoda:It's funny. It it it would be interesting if they did it the other way around too. They took the rum barrels and put,
Bam Bam:you know, some of the cigars in there.
Rooster:Or aged the tobacco.
Pagoda:Yeah. Aged the tobacco in it like the Cubans. Right?
Chef Ricky:They had a little pechuga, but with tobacco leaves. Oh, man.
Senator:I mean, aging tobacco in in spirit barrels is great. I mean, we love the Davidoff late hour. That was aged in Scotch barrels.
Bam Bam:That's right.
Senator:I'd sent on the our group the other, our group chat the other day, Cohiba, New World Cohiba Mhmm. Has a cigar that was aged in x Weller. Weller. Right?
Gizmo:Yeah. That's right. Whether it's good
Senator:or not, who knows? But brilliant marketing because there's a huge Weller
Bam Bam:following out there. Now And and listen. There's a weller
Gizmo:following in this room.
Senator:That's right.
Bam Bam:When we were at in in Illeguido, the barrels that Danilo showed us, weren't they those were sherry.
Senator:Ex bourbon
Bam Bam:American bourbon barrels. Yeah. So there you go. Yeah. Fascinating.
Gizmo:Those barrels traveled a lot around the world, but they were definitely ex bourbon barrels
Bam Bam:to store. Very valuable.
Chef Ricky:Probably went from Kentucky to Mexico to Cuba.
Gizmo:It was all over the I think it was I it they might have been in port, like I
Senator:believe Scotland.
Gizmo:Scotland. I they were bounced all over. I think the barrels at Elaguito that aged Cuban tobacco or ferment Cuban tobacco there for that last part of the process. I think they're 30 years old, I think, we said on that episode. Any keen listener would know this better than we do right now from listening to that episode, but, we did talk to Danilo about that.
Bam Bam:That's right. Yep.
Gizmo:Very, very old barrels that they have.
Chef Ricky:This room has absolutely no bite.
Bam Bam:Oh, no. It is super
Pagoda:It it actually doesn't need any ice.
Gizmo:Yeah. Now if you
Chef Ricky:you put ice in this, it'll be like
Bam Bam:It's a revelation, folks.
Chef Ricky:Simple as hell. Yeah.
Gizmo:So, boys, we're at the end of the first 3rd here on the La Aurora 100 20th anniversary in Robusto. What's everybody thinking?
Rooster:I mean, it's a bargain at, you know, at the at the price that you paid for this. It's fantastic.
Bam Bam:It's getting better and better.
Pagoda:By the way, you know how much of a bargain it is? Because I was at a lounge in New York City, and I ended up buying a cigar from there. And that by the way, I bought an exclusive, which was, I think, priced at 14.90 or something. But by the time I ended up paying for it, I paid $22 for that exclusive, though, because there was $7 just in New York taxes. Wow.
Pagoda:This is lesser than the taxes.
Rooster:That is a bargain.
Pagoda:For a value man, maybe this is great.
Bam Bam:Absolutely.
Senator:I'll also say at $14, the MSRP, I also think that that's a reasonable price point for this. I say that because That's true. Not one rough edge, this entire smoke, the aftertaste is like it's really nice.
Pagoda:Like It's very nice.
Senator:Yeah. When I think of, like, a bargain cigar, like, a lot of the time, there's, like, some flavor notes you appreciate, but it it it never leaves a particularly great aftertaste. And, this smokes like a premium cigar.
Bam Bam:Yeah. It does. It does.
Gizmo:Alright, boys. Let's go to a listener email. This is from lizard John from Boise. He writes this a lot. Always a good email from lizard John.
Gizmo:He says, hi, Giz. A random question for the lizard panel. Is there a cigar that you, upon first smoked, didn't enjoy, but tried again later and it became a favorite? And vice versa, is there a cigar that you used to love, but now it just doesn't hit the mark for you anymore? For me, I'd say the Liga 9 for the former.
Gizmo:It's now a staple in my humidor. And the Oliva v Milano for the latter, not a bad cigar by any means, but it just doesn't excite my palate like it once did. I would be interested in your responses. Much love, and cheers to you all. Lizard John from Boise.
Gizmo:That's a great question. Oh, yeah. Because, you know, I think all of us and I think maybe as a product of the podcast and how many new cigars we try each year. I mean, we're trying at least 5052 cigars a year, most of which we've not had before in both Cuban and New World, non Cuban.
Rooster:I think your palate kinda changes a bit Yeah. Or a lot. I mean, I used to smoke a lot of, the Fuentes, the Hemingway series, the short story out of the Hemingway.
Bam Bam:Mhmm.
Rooster:Even the Don Carlos line, I used to smoke that quite a bit.
Bam Bam:They're still good, though.
Rooster:They're still good, but I don't
Bam Bam:Have a taste for it.
Rooster:Yeah. I don't I don't quite enjoy them. I feel them a little bit on the drier side.
Pagoda:Well, you've evolved.
Rooster:Is kinda dry. So that's what I'm saying. Your palate has evolved. And then you look for you know, like the Padrons have taken so much space in the in the towers for each one of us that you don't really reach for for the Fuentes that much. I mean, not a bad cigar.
Rooster:A lot of people, I mean, they love that cigar. Same thing with the Opuses. I think when the Opus x series when they first came out, it was a totally different cigar. And now the new ones that come out
Bam Bam:I think what we should do is revisit the nightmare before Christmas and see how that's smoking now.
Senator:I'll be out that day
Gizmo:with COVID. We might have
Rooster:to have that special guest today. Oh, the last calaveras. The last calaveras.
Bam Bam:You never know.
Gizmo:Yeah. That was a rough cigar. So, you know, as I was thinking about what lizard John asked here, I would say the one cigar that has fallen out of my rotation, seriously has fallen out, is probably the Davidoff late hour in Churchill. I used to smoke a lot of those cigars.
Bam Bam:That's not because you don't like it. It's not
Gizmo:because I don't like it, but it's just falling out of flavor with favor with my palate.
Rooster:Like, to me, that's a fall cigar for some reason. Buy the fire pit, but it's cooler out. You want that you know, those flavor notes kinda hit you, like That's
Bam Bam:seasonal on it. Seems like a seasonal. Yeah.
Rooster:Yeah. But It's not a summer smoke.
Senator:I agree with that. But to Gizmo's point, I mean, we were we were tearing through those during the summer.
Pagoda:Summer too. Yeah.
Senator:I mean, I that's a great example because I think I'm in the same boat with that. I mean, when we were at our former lounge for the bingo card, you know, we would have to use our monthly allotment, and I would buy those all the time and just smoke them through the summer.
Bam Bam:Same.
Senator:Every day, I'd light 1, you know, just as much as I'd light a Padron. And now to Gizmo's point, I probably smoke maybe 3 or 4 a year.
Gizmo:That's exactly where I'm at. And what's funny is I had one about 2 or 3 months ago.
Pagoda:And it didn't taste the same.
Gizmo:And it didn't ring my bell. Really? It did not ring my bell. And and and what's funny is, talking about tasting the same, it's from the batch that I've had forever. It's not it's not a new cigar.
Gizmo:Like, it's not like a it's on a bad run. I don't wanna I don't wanna make it seem like that for me. It's from the same box that I've been pulling from for a year and a half, and I pulled 1 and it just did not do it for me.
Pagoda:No. But do you think that, like, having aged it for that long has probably made it a lot more milder? The flavor profile hasn't really
Gizmo:No. It I think it for me, it tasted as I remembered. Yeah. It just didn't ring the bell Ring
Pagoda:the bell for another time.
Gizmo:Way that it used to for me. And I think that's just as a product of my palate changing a little bit or adapting to my newer preferences that that cigar just has fallen out. And what I'm interested in is we do have the next Davidoff we have coming up is gonna be the late hour in Robusto, which I haven't smoked in quite some time. We're gonna do that later this year. I'm curious how that's gonna perform on the pod.
Gizmo:You know? We're gonna do that during the cold weather months here in the, you know, Northeast United States, but we'll see how it does.
Pagoda:Yeah. No. Because I felt the same. I think mine might have been a new box, which I'd got, I think, earlier this year. But even, lizard chai did not enjoy it as much.
Pagoda:I did not enjoy it as much. And that's why I think when we had the Maduro, it was such a pleasant experience because it kind of really gave me the same feeling I had when I had late hour a few years ago. And, but you're right. Yeah. That late hour was, just not as compelling as it was before.
Pagoda:I'm now that, you know, we're discussing it, I I think I'm gonna try again, try it again this week.
Gizmo:Are there any other cigars that you guys have that have have are that are not ringing your bell the way they once did?
Bam Bam:My the gears are turning. I'm trying to recollect.
Pagoda:The ALR? Yeah. Hippie Carrillo Encore, I think. No. I used to have a lot of that.
Bam Bam:Yes. That's true. You did.
Chef Ricky:I can't say it's something I smoked a lot, but I early on, one of the cigars that really shocked me maybe 7 6, 7 years ago, it was a Andalusian bull. I'm sorry, guys.
Gizmo:Yeah. Let's see. Listen. We we were hoping for great things. We were hoping for that cigar.
Gizmo:We
Bam Bam:were hoping for part of your regular rotation?
Chef Ricky:It wasn't my regular rotation, but it was one of those first cigars that I had that I was like, holy shit. This is amazing. Then I bought it every time, you know, over the next couple of years. I kept buying it whenever I saw it hit Fox Cigars or you know, because it's not that readily available. And everything was different about it.
Chef Ricky:The wrapper the color on the wrapper was different. It wasn't as delicious or as deep in flavor as I remembered it. It was you know? And it it just kinda left me like, oh, that's not it doesn't feel like the same cigar anymore. Almost like whatever made it great went to shit once it got popular.
Chef Ricky:And then this a cigar that is now part of my regular rotation or when I bought my first box and I'm probably now 7 boxes in was the Sonata. When I first got the Sonata after you guys reviewed it,
Bam Bam:yes, I was like, I don't get it. I don't get it.
Chef Ricky:But, you know, I was
Gizmo:That's that's a humidity. I that's where I was going
Bam Bam:to, Jennie. Exactly.
Gizmo:That cigar wet does not smoke as good as it does a little bit more dry.
Chef Ricky:And that's exactly what it was. I was so excited to get my hands on it that I maybe smoked it a day or 2 after I I have received it. And it just it took a while. And then I kinda just left it alone because I I wasn't having great experiences with it. And I went back to that first box a few months later, and it was an a holy shit experience.
Chef Ricky:And I was like, oh, okay. Alright. The it just needed to sit. So now every box that I buy, I just kinda let sit for a few weeks before I even touch.
Bam Bam:You know a cigar that I loved a lot, but I just haven't gone to is a Don Carlo shark.
Gizmo:That's a good one, man. I have two boxes,
Bam Bam:a little bit more, and I used to love it. Alright. Calm down.
Senator:2. 2. Not 1. 2. You've known that.
Bam Bam:That's known information. I think
Gizmo:we need to get over to the house and finally do an inventory.
Senator:We should check that inventory document I sent again.
Bam Bam:I will we
Gizmo:we need to buy your end.
Bam Bam:So just for the sake
Chef Ricky:of stretchy goal.
Bam Bam:Comedic material, I'll update the list. Okay? I'll do that. But that's something I haven't craved. I haven't wanted to go for.
Bam Bam:And, honestly, the league of 9, I'm not really I got a few of those. I'm not looking to smoke those forever maybe.
Rooster:Few boxes?
Bam Bam:No. I have 3 sticks of those left.
Pagoda:You know what's really interesting with league of 9? He says he's gone into it. Other one. He's gone out of it because the new league of nines just don't taste the same. You know, you go back I think we discussed this in one of these, pods earlier.
Pagoda:I think for the Liga nines, which I loved
Gizmo:Oh, yeah.
Pagoda:Just doesn't taste the same. It's, an I don't know. Maybe it's just, you know, going back to, I think, Rob Aiello saying that there could be good runs or bad runs. I I'll definitely give it a try later, but it's just not. Recently, it's been a poor experience.
Senator:In addition to runs, there's no soccer there anymore.
Bam Bam:That's true too. Yeah.
Gizmo:And Nick Balolo. Correct. Yeah.
Pagoda:And Nick either.
Gizmo:Yeah. Nick has gone too.
Bam Bam:So for me, it's that Don Carlos shark.
Gizmo:See, now what's interesting about you saying the Don Carlos shark from Fuente, for me, is I almost wonder if my brain is, like, programmed to only think about that on special occasions because Maybe. You'd I just don't see them come up.
Bam Bam:They don't ever come up.
Gizmo:Replacing them at any price. Right? Like, putting price aside, I haven't seen any sort of quantity. I'm talking a 5 pack, a 3 pack, half a box. I haven't seen any of them in probably 2 years.
Senator:And and when they do, the prices have skyrocketed.
Pagoda:It is.
Gizmo:Yeah. They're ridiculous.
Senator:Totally different than what we were paying.
Gizmo:We were paying 28, maybe 25.
Bam Bam:For me, not so much scarcity or cost. It's just that flavor profile. We're just into so many different cigars that are really performing beautifully. I don't think of it.
Pagoda:Yeah. But it's really interesting. You know, you you talk about, you know, the taste buds and the palate having evolved. Like, mine has evolved so much. Because I've gone from really bold, strong cigars towards, you know, even Cubans and, you know, like, middle you know, like, in terms of flavor profile, not very bold.
Pagoda:Right? Like a medium flavor profile as
Rooster:well. Like Zeno's.
Pagoda:Like Zeno's. Yeah. I mean, I haven't evolved as much as a Buelo out here, but but I think I'm in the process. Yeah. But, you know, to the listener, I think, what's really interesting and I think even, Steve Saka said it, right, that, the flavor profiles keep you know, you go towards the whole robust profile and then you come back a bit, when you can't go any further.
Pagoda:And I think, it's it's just a matter of evolution, and the most cigars you're trying, you find different flavors at different times and and you pursue them. Yeah.
Gizmo:Alright, boys. We're gonna table that for a second because I wanna talk about Cuban cigars because I have 2 that I wanna throw at you with that, and I'm sure you guys have some that come to mind. But first, we're at the halfway point now on the La Aurora 100 and 20th anniversary in Robusto. What's everybody thinking?
Bam Bam:You know, I think all the notes for me carry through, but there's a really nice settling earthiness to this now that I'm really enjoying, and a little bit of, like, a deep, deep, deep espresso, tight slightly bitter, which I happen to love. I'm getting a bit of that now.
Gizmo:I think mine is definitely skewed more savory now than it was
Bam Bam:at the same time. And earthy.
Gizmo:And it's really working for me, especially paired with this rum. Like, I'm I'm very happy with the pairing right now.
Chef Ricky:Isn't it crazy how it it turned savory after this hyper sweet rum that we're drinking? And and, you know, Ben, just to piggyback on what you're saying, because what I'm thinking is I I don't know that there's been a tobacco that I've smoked here on the pod with you guys or ever that I feel like I could taste the what else is being grown in the soil Mhmm. Alongside this tobacco. Right? I'm getting banana.
Chef Ricky:I'm getting coffee. These are things that, you know, Dominican Republic, you know, they're very well known for for having. And I just I it's getting super earthy, very savory, and I and I'm getting, you know, just if you the the banana leaf, you know, it's kind of, not ripe banana, but, like, a fresh sort of undeveloped banana, if you will, a green banana. Green banana. Yeah.
Chef Ricky:Exactly. And it's it's very intriguing for me.
Bam Bam:Yeah.
Chef Ricky:Just, you know So oftentimes, we could call out baking spice, and we could call out so many other things, and these are things that aren't growing in that soil. Mhmm. But here, I
Rooster:feel like we're really tostones.
Senator:I was gonna say the same. If you're gonna call out green bananas, you gotta whip up some tostones with this group.
Chef Ricky:Some tostones and salami and dubeqa and, yeah, every other,
Rooster:tomato Fried salami. Yep.
Bam Bam:Yep. Solomindovenca.
Chef Ricky:I like it.
Gizmo:So, boys, let's go back to the discussion of cigars that have fallen out of favor and other cigars that have come back into favor after some time. And let's talk about Cuban cigars now because I have a couple that I'm that I'm thinking about. Does anybody else have any,
Bam Bam:issues? Favor?
Gizmo:Both. I have one on on on both sides.
Senator:I've got one, definitely back into favor. I mean, the the Kanye comes to mind where, you know, I I think my experience with this has been with certain Cuban cigars not realizing just how much age they need. I've had a bad experience with them younger, and the Kanye was 1. I mean, I had bought some Kanye's because Puba loves the Kanye. And You
Gizmo:don't say. Yeah. Has he mentioned that
Bam Bam:on the podcast before? Yeah. He's got He does remember tattooed on his back.
Senator:And I bought some of these, and they just I I really didn't love them. And I tucked them away in the back of my humidor for years and finally revisited it probably earlier this year. And it was a completely different experience. I mean, one of the best 54 ring gauge cigars I'd had in a long time. So that jumps out to me as just a cigar that needs time.
Senator:And that's not true of everything Upman makes. That's why, like, I didn't initially assume it needed, you know, many years, but that cigar, I think, really benefits a lot from age. True.
Pagoda:And what about the p 2 from last week?
Senator:So the p 2 is tough for me because years ago when I started smoking the p 2, I actually really like the p 2.
Bam Bam:Yeah.
Senator:And then I feel like there was a bad run for a few years that I just didn't love that cigar. And, ironically, like, this box I had that I did not enjoy, and they used to smoke well young. That that was my frustration. That's most of Partagas. Most of Partagas, a d 4 Young is good, even an e 2 is still good Young.
Senator:And a p 2, I used to always say the same about, but I tucked away this box also for a few years that I really fell out of favor with. And it was I lit that, Sunpod episode we did recently where I finished the cigar and I enjoyed it so much. I did
Gizmo:the chutman Royal Robusto,
Senator:l c d h. Wow. The first l c d h that, like, really excited me.
Bam Bam:That's incredible. And
Senator:I was just craving another Cuban cigar, so I lit up this p 2 that I hadn't touched in god knows how long.
Bam Bam:Mhmm.
Senator:It was excellent.
Bam Bam:Yeah.
Senator:That's another one that time definitely really helps with the flavors.
Gizmo:So I'll tell you one that's fallen out of favor for me, and I'm curious how this resonates in the room. I have completely fallen out of love with the Trinidad Fundadores.
Bam Bam:Oh, that's a great point. We mentioned this a few times in passing, but I had one a few months ago. It was okay. Yeah. It used to blow my doors off.
Gizmo:It's I don't know what it is
Bam Bam:about this. I did mention that, but I'd like to revisit and see what it's like.
Gizmo:I I have just I've had a cue from a varying number of years. We I think I have because we did this box split when we were still recording in, Casa Senador at at senator's house years ago. We did a box split of, like, 16, 17, 18, 19. Yeah. And we split up 4 boxes, and each each of us got 4 or 6 or whatever it was.
Gizmo:And trying just one of each of those from the different years, it's just, again, it's not ringing my bell anymore like it used to. Like, that used to be a cigar I'd sit down Very good point. And I really, really loved and, like, thought about and woke up the next morning, like, I wanna have another one. I just couldn't care less right now about the Trinidad Fundadores. And maybe the price factors into that as well.
Gizmo:The price going to the bonkers level with those, but there's also other cigars that that are at a similar price that I do wake up like, man, I would love to have a Cohiba Esplendidos or a, you know, a a Cohiba, you know, Sigalos 6 or something that are just astronomically priced. I don't reach for them like I would like to because of the price. But, you know, the Fundadoras has just left my left my my brain.
Senator:I mean, I'll say this on on the Fundy. I'm with you in the sense that the price is so egregious for the experience that it delivers. Like, there are some very high priced cigars that you sit there and say, I don't wanna pay that, but it's a damn good cigar. You don't have that dilemma with the Fundadores. You say it's a very good cigar, but it's not worth anywhere near what they're charging for it now.
Senator:I will say on my birthday this year, I revisited the 20 11 cigars. Go ahead. I'm sorry. Correct. 11 cigars.
Senator:But one of my first my actually, I think it was my first cigar of the day. I pulled a 2016 Fundy. It was very good.
Gizmo:Yeah.
Senator:Well, I would say some of the older ones we have are worth revisiting.
Bam Bam:So maybe worth holding on to then? I would. Yeah.
Gizmo:I wonder if maybe the the ones that we have or the ones that I have are just in a down period in their maturation. You know? Minh Ronny has talked about these peaks and valleys that cigars go through in their maturation process. Like Yeah. Maybe I'm just at a down point, and I need to be patient with them.
Gizmo:But the ones that I've had recently over the last 6 or 8 months are just not doing it for me.
Rooster:I mean, I think the Fundies, when we used to get the boxes for, I don't know, like 700, 750,
Bam Bam:less than honestly exciting to get a box
Senator:like that at that price.
Rooster:It was a great cigar. It was also something new for us. We had not had Fundadores before that. So it it was really unique. It was new.
Rooster:The flavor profile was different. We had not had a lot of experience with the Mhmm. Trinidad line itself. But then as you go deeper into the Trinidad markup, you know, you get into the colonials, the esmeraldas, even the reyes and the vegias. So fundadores kinda took a backdoor, and then the prices just went skyrocketed, you know, like, triple or maybe 4 times, 5 times what we paid for.
Rooster:Yeah. I mean, it went crazy. And then at that point, you're like, is this cigar worth a $100 when you paid so much less before? So that kinda does come into my equation. You know, if I'm smoking that cigar, it's like, is this thing really worth
Bam Bam:Mhmm.
Rooster:What it's being sold for now? It's not.
Bam Bam:You know? I'm kinda not worth half that.
Rooster:It's not worth half that.
Bam Bam:To say I'm guilty that I haven't revisited cigars that I didn't enjoy. So I I can't speak to a cigar that I would go back to
Chef Ricky:just yet.
Bam Bam:I gotta think I gotta think about that.
Gizmo:So I have another negative, and then I have a positive. My other negative, not that it's a bad cigar, but I think my palate has just changed since I really load it up.
Bam Bam:The La Punta. Well, no.
Pagoda:It's Lucy's.
Gizmo:It's Particus Lusitania. Yeah. You know, I I loaded up on those, you know, during the pandemic, Creed Price Armageddon.
Bam Bam:Oh, did you load up, really?
Gizmo:And I just the the they the box that I have smokes very well, but it just doesn't do it for me. Like, construction, you know, combustion, all that stuff, it's really good, but they're just not doing it for me. Like, I just don't reach for them anymore. Mhmm. I would much rather have a punch double corona in that same size than I would our Particus Lusitania right now.
Rooster:Mhmm. Lusitania is one cigar that I have not had good luck with.
Bam Bam:I have never had an incredible experience with this.
Rooster:12 or 15 I've smoked. There's been maybe 2 that have been that have been really good. I mean, there's some, like, older Lucy's that I had to literally just chuck them. You know? I mean, perfect draw to the end
Bam Bam:and just
Rooster:poke them the lake. Poke them With
Senator:the TV.
Gizmo:Through yeah. Really.
Rooster:It was horrible, horrible experience with the Lucy's. Wow.
Bam Bam:Yeah. Not good. You have to
Senator:get lucky with those. I mean, I I just feel really lucky. The the 50 cab I bought years ago, it's excellent. And I because of that and seeing the other experiences you guys have had, like, I pulled for them sparingly because I know if I try to replace that, the odds I can find that experience again are clearly low.
Rooster:Mhmm. I remember being at your house and you well, you took us down to your tower.
Senator:I gave you one of those.
Rooster:And, he said, you know, pick pick 1, and I think I picked the Lucy. And that
Gizmo:was probably the better
Rooster:better Lucy.
Senator:Yeah. And that was years ago. I mean, imagine now.
Rooster:Yeah. I don't know what year that was. Maybe 2018, 7, something like that. Maybe 19. 19, maybe.
Rooster:Yeah. And I got a box of 20 19ths. They were horrible. Really? Wow.
Rooster:Horrible.
Gizmo:So let's go positive now. I have a positive rebirth with Cuban cigars for me, which is a big one, which is the Bolivar Belacosas Finos.
Bam Bam:Oh, it's a big one for you.
Senator:Thank you.
Gizmo:Alright. I'm vindicated. You're vindicated. That was a cigar that really the group fell in love with, and I mean, fell in love with hard. Yeah.
Gizmo:I This entire group. And I was kind of stuttering behind. I was never having experiences that were holy shit moments. It just wasn't happening. And I have a that same box that I have from all those years ago when we first bought them, and I've pulled a couple out of there, and, man, they are great.
Gizmo:Yep.
Bam Bam:Yep. Yep.
Gizmo:So that is one that has turned the page for me in a positive direction. I'm really loving the bellicose sphinos.
Senator:I mean, on Bolivar, one example that comes to mind for me, the Royal Corona, I hated Young. Hated. Categorically, had no I had to box them, had no interest in smoking them, and I remember and I wish I would have bought these, a source that we all had. Gizmo bought, they had these 2014 boxes that came up, and they were spectacular. Some of the best Cuban tobacco.
Gizmo:By the way, I think we reviewed that box on the podcast.
Bam Bam:We did.
Gizmo:It was out of my box We did. That's right. Those. I think they're 20 15.
Senator:Yeah. Okay.
Gizmo:They're 20 15. I still have some of those. I haven't gone back to them in
Bam Bam:the middle of the week.
Gizmo:Mid 8s. Perform well.
Bam Bam:Yeah. Mid 8s, I think.
Rooster:That was again. 2014 2015 boxes of Cuban cigars are some of the Delicious. Some of the best tobacco that
Bam Bam:was Delicious.
Gizmo:Oh, yeah.
Rooster:I don't know if there was a hurricane in 2013 or what, but those have smoked beautiful. Great. Good very good tobacco.
Senator:No. So just I mean, on that box, I think that's another cigar that really benefits from age. That had I not had that box, I would have never had any hope for that cigar. And the Royal Coronas that I had that were younger that I hated, I let those sit for years and then revisit it. I was like, wow.
Senator:They're starting to develop nicely. So I think that's another candidate for just store those for years, and they really develop into something special.
Rooster:When the royal coronas are good, it's an excellent spoke. Yep. I would say it's better than a BBF sometimes.
Bam Bam:I don't know about that.
Rooster:I mean, when I
Senator:go after
Rooster:a for 2014, 2015, Royal Coronas are incredible.
Senator:They are. They are. But, I mean, a great BBB is spectacular. Yeah.
Gizmo:You know what's funny to, you know, to kinda wrap this up, what wizard John asked us, is I think about New World Cigars that have turned the page in a positive direction for me. It's I can't really think of any that I've didn't enjoy and then gone back to because we review so many great New World on the podcast. We've had a really good run of New Worlds.
Bam Bam:And And they've become part of our rotation.
Gizmo:They've cracked the rotation in such a meaningful way that, you know, I I can't think of any that have reentered by product of the podcast or otherwise that that I'm really enjoying because I just don't have room for it
Bam Bam:Yeah.
Gizmo:You know, in my rotation. So It's a great question. Interesting thing to think about.
Bam Bam:The question's outstanding.
Gizmo:Yeah. So thanks to, lizard John on that. And, boys, we're coming into the last 3rd now on the La Aurora 100 20th anniversary in Robusto. Any thoughts on how it's developing?
Bam Bam:So I'm a bit faster than you guys, and I'm really enjoying this. I'm having a hard time putting it down. It's very, very good.
Gizmo:I I think this is one of these new worlds. And, again, I'm shocked at the price Mhmm.
Bam Bam:That
Gizmo:we got it for, even at $14. But as it's developed, I don't necessarily think it's changed as far as a 2 or 3 act play aside from adding, like, an undertone of savory or earthiness, whatever we wanna call it. But it's gotten better for me as it's heated up, and I've smoked it down.
Bam Bam:Like Agreed.
Gizmo:As we've gone you know, a lot of cigars that we smoke start great, and then they totally tail off. And and the blend just doesn't keep up with how it started, but this is really working for me.
Chef Ricky:Yeah. Yeah. I think what's picked up mostly I think now that it's getting hotter and it we're getting closer to it here at the end, I think just the flavor in general is picking up. And for me, it, at the start, it was very light in flavor. So now everything's just sort of intensifying a
Rooster:little bit. It's a bit like a RAS right now for me.
Bam Bam:That's a not a bad
Gizmo:a bad call out.
Rooster:The savory of a RAS is kinda coming through. Right?
Gizmo:For the listener, Rooster's referencing the Ramon Aionis specially selected Yeah. Which is a Cuban cigar that we talk about quite a bit. Good
Bam Bam:call out.
Gizmo:Quite a bit.
Bam Bam:Oh, we do.
Gizmo:That's cigar that has that's a cigar that has not fallen out of favor in this room.
Bam Bam:Someone may get yelled at. Someone will get yelled at if it falls out of favor.
Pagoda:I have had some bad. Although I had a really good, RAS the other day. It was fantastic. Fantastic. When it's good, it's really good.
Senator:It is. So for me, the final 3rd, I think, picks up a little bit in strength, which I really like. I think, like, to Ricky's point, it starts out, like, mild medium then firmly medium and maybe is trying to touch medium full at the end, like, just trying to get there. And I also think to Gizmo's point, it's not a 2 or 3 act play, but what I do like about it, it's not like you just have the exact same experience flavor note wise all the way through. I just think at different points, it dials up certain flavor notes and dials down certain ones.
Senator:They're all present the whole way through, but there's a little bit of variation in that. They're it's accentuating different notes at different points in the cigar, and I do like that.
Gizmo:I agree. To me, the way I would describe it, it's like whack a mole almost. It's like one note comes up, the other goes down. Like Mhmm. Yep.
Gizmo:And it's kinda doing this interesting Dance. Dance of flavor that I think really elevates the complexity in the cigar. You know? And, again, you go back. I can't dismiss the value, and we're gonna obviously get to that when we do our ratings.
Gizmo:But the value having that experience at this price is just really, really shocking to me, actually. And, you know, under the microscope here versus at PCA, when we're in a room and and and smoking with a 1,000 other people or whatever it was, I'm happy that it's elevated in this way. So we'll see how it finishes. Alright, boys. Let's do lizard of the week.
Gizmo:Our winner this week is lizard Enrique. And he writes, during the podcast, it would be great if one of the lizards could review what they smoked in a particular day or week so the listeners could get some other ideas on what might be good to try in the future. Keep up the great work. I went through the entire catalog in the last 3 months. By the way, I mean, that being a common theme of so many of these emails of listening to a 150 plus episode in 3 months.
Bam Bam:I mean,
Gizmo:just a crazy amount of time that they're listening to us bust each other's balls every day. True medication. It was really fun and somewhat therapeutic as I transitioned from a high stress, high impact job in public service into the private sector working as my own boss. Cool. I mean, that's that's really awesome.
Bam Bam:Congratulations.
Gizmo:Yeah. Congrats on being your own boss now. The show feels like the best times of Howard Stern were those early years of the Howard Stern wrap up show on SiriusXM. It's a great listen, and it's a true service to the listeners. Lizard Enrique.
Chef Ricky:Baa baa boy.
Gizmo:Listen. I'm a big Stern fan. I have been for a long time. These these kind of comments, you know, Lizard Enrique and the other listeners who've sent similar things, I mean, really make this so rewarding for us to hear that because for us, I mean, whether the mics are on or not, this is who we are, and this is what we do when we're in the lounge. And to have that kind of comment or that kind of feeling from listeners, call it therapeutic like he says here, or celebrating us like he does some other shows that he listens to, that's really awesome to hear.
Bam Bam:That's true validation for what we're doing.
Gizmo:There's a great question in here from lizard Enrique that we can't dismiss. Could we review some of the cigars that we smoked in a particular day or week so the listeners could get some other ideas on what might be good to try in the future.
Pagoda:Are we gonna begin with senators 11? That's just one day, by the way.
Senator:I don't
Gizmo:know if the listeners
Pagoda:that week. That's I can't get over that. Like, 25.
Gizmo:So I I mean, you know, I would love to to to go around the room and list, you know, a rotation of a few cigars that you've done in the last few weeks
Bam Bam:Yeah.
Gizmo:You know, like, in a row
Bam Bam:That's fine.
Gizmo:Of of what you've done.
Senator:So I'll happily start. I just this is my daily rotation right now. Usually, fabric of 5, robusto, trinity. I'm obsessed with that cigar. The Bon Roberts petite 109, I'm really coming around on.
Senator:I love that cigar. The aging room Sonata daily driver, I smoke probably 5 of those a week. The Padrone exclusive, obviously, always. That's, like, probably the core rotation right now that, like, almost every day I'm hitting those 4 cigars at one point or another. And then I think, you know, short smokes, we all love the Davidoff Belicoso.
Senator:That always makes it in there if I have need if I've only got a half hour and I need something to smoke. But, yeah, that's probably the the core rotation.
Gizmo:Oh, that's mine. Go ahead. Yeah. So I'll I'll give you one of the days last week for me. So I started with the Cohiba Sigla 5.
Gizmo:I then went to a Fabrica 5 Robusto Trinity from the mofo program. I then went to a Bond Roberts petite 109. I then did a Padron exclusivo, and then I finished with the Davidoff Belicoso. Nice. That was my 5.
Gizmo:Cool. That was a day.
Bam Bam:The other day, I had a Cohiba Siglo 5 starting with that, then I went right to a p 2.
Gizmo:Partagus p 2?
Bam Bam:Yep. Then, my Davidoff Millennium Pyramid, and then I had the little bellicoso. Now, usually, if I go a longer session, I'll definitely hit an exosiva toward the end of the day and then the bellicoso before I go home.
Senator:Where's the Opus Dubai?
Bam Bam:Opus Dubai. You all smoked them on
Gizmo:me. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Pagoda, what's a day like for you?
Gizmo:Give us a just give us a random day.
Pagoda:Typically, I start off with, I think, in the unbanded ones, probably, you know, one of the unbanded, Cubans that I have. Then definitely the Sonata.
Bam Bam:Aging room?
Pagoda:Aging room. Do either the Pathega shot, or the Belicoso. Always have an exclusive. This week, actually, the last month, I've been loan exclusive. I've had them just, sporadically, and I've had 2 Sonata sometimes.
Pagoda:So
Bam Bam:back to back?
Chef Ricky:Yeah. You know, unfortunately, I think a lot of us, we all kinda smoke very similar cigars. But, yeah, I I just, wrapped up some Bond Roberts petite one zero nines. So that was great. I did some of the, the Ninfas as well, the Davidoff, Belacoso Churchill, and then I recently added the little hammer.
Chef Ricky:You put your own little
Bam Bam:hammer down.
Gizmo:Family reserve number 50. Yep. But you you you've purchased the box of the Maduros, not the naturals.
Chef Ricky:The Maduros.
Gizmo:So for the listener out there, just briefly, what has been your impression of the Maduro versus the natural that we reviewed?
Chef Ricky:So for me, the natural was
Senator:Tell tell Grindr what you thought
Gizmo:about it. Yeah. I'll clip this and send it to him.
Chef Ricky:No. No. So so I I did. In fact, we had a little text chain going back and forth about that, and, and I also gave him some, a maduro to try, and even he admitted that he enjoyed it more than the natural. I just think it edges it out a little bit.
Bam Bam:Can you say that again?
Pagoda:Yeah. It's gonna be an accountability hour for grinder now.
Bam Bam:Holy moly.
Chef Ricky:So yeah. No. I mean, it was delicious. It just kinda gave me that rounded finish that I was looking for in the natural wrapper that it wasn't getting, and just a little bit more of a of a dried sort of ripe fruit happening, that I really enjoyed. But, yeah, I'd say in in in no particular order because it it could just go from you know, maybe sometimes I commit to sitting on my deck, and I'm like, oh, I have 2 cigars, and then it turns to 3 or something like that.
Chef Ricky:But, usually, I'll start off with a larger or a a larger stick in case it's the only stick I get to do. And then I work my way to some of the shorter smokes. So that's where the the Bellicosa Churchill's work in or the Little Hammer works in.
Pagoda:Oh, by the way, I forgot to say the other 2 cigars that go on and off every alternate day or something is the Ras and the Maduro. I finished the Davidoff Maduro box, by the way. I need another one.
Chef Ricky:Oh, I believe it.
Pagoda:So yeah. Meaning
Senator:He's he's the reason that the Davidoff Domenicana is sold out, and they're never gonna make again.
Bam Bam:Oh, yeah.
Gizmo:Yeah. Meaning, I it's it's a fantastic cigar. So, Rooster, give us a sample of one of the days in your last 2 weeks, let's say, of cigar each month.
Rooster:Last week, I was on vacation, so I, you know, smoke more than I usually do. Normally, it's
Gizmo:like So
Rooster:2 a day?
Gizmo:Usually, usually 2 a day.
Rooster:But, last week, it was, you know, one of the days I did have 4.
Chef Ricky:Oh. Oh. Are you
Gizmo:feeling okay?
Bam Bam:Yeah. Right.
Pagoda:Did you get your permission to do so?
Gizmo:Check his blood pressure.
Rooster:So I did start off with a QD, corona sclaro in the morning.
Bam Bam:Oh, good.
Rooster:And, then by afternoon, right after lunch, I had a a punch punch 2014, which was delicious. Then I davit off Maduro. Actually, I had 5 that day. And it's amazing how much these Fabrica 5 cigars have come into our rotation. I think every single one of you has mentioned that.
Pagoda:Mhmm.
Rooster:And for me, one of my favorites is the Bond Roberts petite 109. The
Pagoda:109 square.
Rooster:I've been smoking a lot of those. And then I ended the night with the, I think it was the Padron, the 85th family reserve.
Pagoda:You know the 90th? Alright.
Rooster:Yeah. The 90th, I had it the next morning.
Pagoda:Oh, did he? Yeah.
Senator:He he skipped breakfast that day.
Gizmo:And you smoked the 85th Family Reserve. That was in Maduro. Right?
Rooster:Yes. Only the Maduro. Yeah.
Gizmo:I will say that, you know, you we we a bunch of us mentioned the petite 109 from Bon Roberts. I have smoked one of those every day for, like, the last 3 weeks. I I went through a box. I gave a bunch out. I I smoked a bunch of them.
Gizmo:Now I'm into my second box. I have to order another one like this.
Bam Bam:To get my hands on those.
Rooster:Yeah. I must say, I mean, that cigar is also very reminiscent of, Rass. Really? It has a lot of, like, savoriness that you get out of the Rass. Wow.
Rooster:So delicious smoke. I think all lot of the fabric are fives, like the ninfas. Love the ninfas. Love the petite 109, the Robusto.
Senator:Damn. You may be off the hook with dried fruit. Everything tastes like a wrasse. That's a rooster.
Rooster:Lately.
Bam Bam:I didn't say that.
Gizmo:So, you know, I I will you know, again, he's lizard of the week, Enrique here. I I love this kind of Yeah. You know, pop in segment every few episodes talk about what everybody's smoking because you look at the room here and and what everybody said, if I were to have guessed what everybody was gonna say, it definitely was a little divergent from what I would have guessed. So, I mean, even inside the room for how much we all smoke together, it's a little bit different than I would have. Yeah.
Bam Bam:But a lot of what we're smoking, we're kind of smoking as well. Right? Sure. Yeah. So they're interchangeable in this group.
Senator:And I'll also say for myself, I mean, if you notice, I didn't name a single Cuban cigar.
Gizmo:Yes. That's
Senator:true. This has been a huge revelation for me and and why I'm I'm thrilled, you know, fabric of 5 is a sponsor here because I hadn't found any new world cigar that meaningfully could replace a Cuban cigar and my desire for those that flavor profile in my rotation. The trainer boost on the petite 109, for me, they do that. So this is the first time, like, you know, I've heard we've had this debate before where guys would say, I wanna conserve Cuban cigars. The prices are insane.
Senator:I'm not looking to pay today's pricing to replace them. And I've said, I there's nothing to replace them in my desire to enjoy that flavor profile, so I really don't care. I mean, you live once. I'm gonna enjoy them now. I have found those 2 cigars, they truly deliver similar notes and a similar experience that now I don't feel like I'm sacrificing something by not lighting up a Cuban cigar every single day.
Senator:So for me, that's been a huge revelation and probably the only point in my entire life that I don't have to have a Cuban cigar in a day or in a sitting to satisfy what I'm looking for.
Rooster:I was shocked that you did not mention a d four.
Gizmo:That's true. Yeah.
Rooster:I know. So that's that's that's my thing. Like, I I consider the fabric a 5 lineup or the entire market, not as a new world. I almost feel like they're Cuban cigars. Yeah.
Bam Bam:They're Cuban esque for sure.
Rooster:Cuban esque for sure.
Gizmo:Yeah. Yeah. I mean, that was probably the biggest, quote, unquote, omission from what I would have guessed for your rotation. Right? But it's true.
Gizmo:I haven't seen you pulling as many d fours or as many e twos or RAS or whatever it is.
Senator:And that's recent.
Gizmo:And it's recent. You know? So Before fabric of 5 or before
Senator:I had really tried that Trinity Robusto in particular that, like, made me fall in love with what they're doing and then venture into the petite 109, you'd see me show it. You know, I'd light a d four all the time. I I needed that flavor profile. And now, I found these alternatives that are so satisfying that I still love a d four, but I don't have to have it every day to get that satisfaction I'm looking for from Cuban tobacco.
Rooster:I mean, these Fabrica 5 cigars, I'm not saying that because they sponsor our part, but they really do satisfy your Cuban Sure. You know, the if you if you if your palate wants that Cuban experience, the Fabrica 5 delivers that.
Bam Bam:Yeah. The Honduran tobacco.
Rooster:Yeah. It's the closest thing to Cuban tobacco.
Gizmo:Yeah. And you're talking about, you know, a d four right now at retail is probably what between $24.29 depending on
Bam Bam:That's right.
Gizmo:The configuration of where you get it.
Bam Bam:Mhmm.
Gizmo:And you're looking at the the trinity with our code, I mean, that's like a sub $10 cigar That's insane. That will boost them.
Bam Bam:Insane.
Gizmo:I mean, that's nearly a third of the price. Yeah. So, yeah, it's it's good to hear that Sure.
Bam Bam:You know,
Gizmo:folks and we're hearing that from the listeners too.
Bam Bam:And when you intermingle other new worlds that we reviewed, it gives you a great spectrum of experience.
Gizmo:Definitely. Yeah. So, yeah, I I like this segment. We're gonna keep this up. I'm gonna keep bringing this up every couple of episodes, talk about, you know, kind of a spot day in in in one of your last two weeks about what we're doing, and, we'll keep the listeners in formed of what the, lizards are smoking on a regular basis.
Gizmo:Alright, boys. We're coming to the end of our evening here with the Elione Jimenez, 110th anniversary rum, and the La Aurora 100 and 20th anniversary. And Robusto, any final thoughts here before we move into the ratings tonight?
Bam Bam:Just so tasty.
Gizmo:Great pairing. Yeah. I think they nailed it.
Senator:I think for both, good to the last drop
Bam Bam:and to the last draw.
Gizmo:Alright, boys. Let's do our formal rating now on the El Leon Jimenez 100 and 10th anniversary rum. Bam, bam, you're up.
Bam Bam:What's the, alcohol content on this? 40% 80 proof. Okay. Not too
Gizmo:Not too hot. No. Standard.
Bam Bam:Yeah. And a 130, $140 a bottle?
Gizmo:So I think this retails for about a 120. We got it for a 110.
Bam Bam:That's a great price. You know, this is kind of akin to the spirit that we had not too long ago. And because it's so rich and expensive, I'm gonna lean back to a similar rating that I gave that guy. I'm gonna go with 9. It's hard to give it a 9 because I happen to love this so much.
Bam Bam:It was just so delicious and rich. That's I I didn't find it overtly sweet. I think it complimented the cigar beautifully, at a 9.
Gizmo:Okay. Pagoda. There was
Senator:a lot of enthusiasm out of you
Pagoda:I I during this episode.
Gizmo:I was waiting for it.
Bam Bam:I'm still enthusiastic about this.
Rooster:I'm kinda shocked at your score. I mean I mean, I I thought you were going for a, like, a 10 plus.
Bam Bam:Yeah. I I but I can't drink this I can't drink this every day. I'm I have a drink in my hand almost every day if I come to the club. I I'd rather do other things, but this is a great spirit for special occasions during the holiday. I think it's incredible.
Senator:So question. If the price point were lower, would this crack a 10
Bam Bam:for you? Probably. That's fair. Probably. Because then I'd I'd buy it more often, but, honestly, it's so rich.
Bam Bam:Two glasses, and I'm done. I don't need any more than that. Alright. We're gonna hold him to that. Well, I've already this I finished my second glass.
Bam Bam:He's already contradicting himself.
Gizmo:That's twice tonight. Correct.
Pagoda:Alright, Pagoda. So I'm in lockstep with, Bam over here. I think, this is exactly like the, other rum. Like, was it a rum the other day? Or
Bam Bam:Konyak. It was a cognac.
Pagoda:It was a cognac. Yeah. And I think, you know, this like, it it gives me the same kind of experience in terms of it being very, like, rich for me, for me to be able to go and take a lot of, classes. And considering the price point, I'm at a 9 as well.
Gizmo:So just for the listener out there, I think Bam Bam and Pagoda have both referenced the Remy Martin Turset
Bam Bam:Correct.
Gizmo:Cognac that we've done. That's the the
Bam Bam:rum that you're wearing. Incredible. I think
Gizmo:we did that, what, 2 weeks ago, a week ago? I don't remember.
Pagoda:No. I'll definitely get a bottle of this, and I'll have it in my, you know, rotation once in a while and towards the end of the night, especially as it gets colder. It's fantastic. It it is really excellent.
Gizmo:Alright. Chef Ricky.
Chef Ricky:Yeah. I'm so it's a very good rum, but it is too sweet for me. It's not you know, it's it's hard. Right? So I I need to be able to understand what I'm drinking, and I need my mentally, I have to be able to shift.
Chef Ricky:Right? Usually, I'm super against additives and then and all of these other things now. Obviously, it's when it comes to rum or you know, I don't know what the standard is for those things.
Senator:I mean, rum is as sweet of a spirit as Yeah. Is made.
Chef Ricky:Yeah. Yeah. For sure. But this is, for me, so sweet. So sweet.
Chef Ricky:It's not bad, you know, and I appreciate it. I think the pairing was amazing, but I think it's a drink on its own. It is extremely rich. I do think it's worth the price point because it's not something you're gonna sit there and sort of kill a bottle, in a sitting or and and you can if it's your jam, but, it's not mine. So with that, I'm I'm a give it an 8.
Chef Ricky:Now I'll give it a strong 8. I think it's worth getting. I don't think 8 is a bad score, and I've wish I was sitting further from senator. I'm not upset.
Gizmo:So for me, it's a 9. I I really love this rum. I I loved it the first time we had it. Is it a rum that I'm gonna run out and buy and drink every day? No.
Gizmo:But I think similar you know, in line with what Bam said about its place, I think it has a very specific place in in where I would where I would reach for it. I think the holidays are a perfect time for it. I think with a specific cigar that kinda leans more savory, I think this is perfect for that. I think a new world cigar, somebody touched on it, a a sweet new world cigar. I don't think it would work as well.
Gizmo:I think it'd be overwhelming, but I really love the rum. I really enjoyed it, so I'm very happy at a 9. Senator.
Senator:So I'm also at a 9. I have no dispute with the the nines in the room and and even Ricky with the 8. I understand exactly where he's coming from. For me, my dispute is more about the the reasoning I have a hard time with, and I say that because, you know, we'd we've done we did a vintage bottle of Paul Roger that no one's drank a single vintage bottle of Paul Roger since, but that probably got as close to a 10 as any champagne we've done. So for me, it's not a factor of, like, well, can I pound this?
Senator:Can I drink this all the time daily if I'm gonna give it a 10? Like, either it is a really premium, superior spirit that even if it's so rich, I'm just gonna enjoy it in smaller quantities. If it deserves a 10, I'm gonna give it a 10. I do think this is a premium rum. I think the price point, it's not cheap.
Senator:But it's fitting. It's a sipping rum. It's smooth. It's got great rich flavor to it. For me, why it's a 9.
Senator:I'm with Ricky here. You know, I like a drier rum for my normal consumption. And so if this were drier, this could get a 10 for me. The only reason it's not is just I do agree that it it's a sweet rum, and that's a lot of Dominican rum. So I'm not surprised to see that.
Senator:But, that's the only reason it doesn't check every single box, but it gets pretty close with a 9. And I would recommend this. I mean, anybody who loves rum, if you love Dominican rum, it's impossible that you wouldn't enjoy this. And I think to everybody's point, how it paired with this cigar was fantastic.
Pagoda:The other thing I do wanna say is that, you know, for, like, you mentioned the Paul Roger, there's an excitement. You have that. We all become really vibrant. You know, it brings something to everybody. And it's like, you know, essentially, like, it just improves the overall experience to such an extent where that it is a 10.
Pagoda:There's no way out of it. You know, with this, this was excellent, but it didn't give me that little extra, you know, like, you know, we're looking for the point of, the differentiation.
Senator:Bam Bam level enthusiasm. Yeah.
Pagoda:I didn't get the Bam Bam level of enthusiasm.
Gizmo:With your pagoda. I I didn't knock the score because I'm not gonna run out and buy it.
Senator:Yeah. I
Gizmo:didn't knock the score because it's a higher end priced rum versus what we normally drink. Mhmm. I've just had better rum. Yeah. And plain and simple.
Gizmo:I've had better rum. And I think, generally, this rum versus some of the others that we drink isn't going to universally pair as well with cigars as some of the others Yeah. That I've given tens. So, you you know, not in dispute of what you're saying, but I I want my 9 has nothing to do with me running out and buying in quantity or drinking it in quantity. It's just it is what it is.
Gizmo:It it drank very well.
Bam Bam:There's a time.
Gizmo:Not the best rum I've
Bam Bam:had put in place
Rooster:for this. Exactly.
Bam Bam:There is a time and place for this.
Senator:Exactly. I I think we
Bam Bam:agree. Yeah.
Gizmo:100%. So, boys, the formal liquor rating tonight on the El Leon Jimenez 110th anniversary rum is an 8.8. Very good. Great score. It's time now to move into our formal lizard rating on the La Aurora 100 and 20th anniversary in Robusto.
Gizmo:Rooster, you're up.
Rooster:I really enjoyed the cigar. It was, the size is perfect in a Robusto. I always I I love a Robusto. The the creamy cedar and the nutty notes that I got out of the cigar were very pleasant. They kinda you know, it was like throughout the cigar.
Rooster:And then later on, like, maybe after the halfway point, the the cigar actually got a little savory. I really did enjoy that. And, at this price point, if you can get this any anywhere between $6.14, I think it's a it's a home run. It's a it's a definitely buy, you know, and try this cigar. So I'm gonna give this a 9.
Rooster:Okay? Senator.
Senator:I'm also at a 9. I enjoyed this from the light all the way down to the end. Not one rough edge. There has to be aged tobacco in this. I think the flavor profile had complexity, which at that price point is crazy.
Senator:I mean, when I think of cigars between $6.14 that have as many notes as we pulled out, I mean, things I've never even heard of, like, you know, Ricky's going deep into the well with certain Caribbean candies. Like, that is a premium cigar to even have that conversation. So, for me, the flavor profile and the blend was really, really good. The only reason for me, it wasn't a 10. You know, a 10 cigar ought to look like a 10 cigar, and I think the construction is very rustic.
Senator:I mean, like I said, I've there there's a lot of veins in that wrapper, that I think would benefit. Even if they charge a little bit more, I'd I'd just be happier to see a a more pristine constructed, wrapper. And for me, it was funny because I looked in the room. A lot of you your cigars burned really, really well. For me, I had some flaky ash at times that was annoying to, you know, wipe off and some unevenness in the burn line that I did have to touch up throughout it.
Senator:But the flavor was the star of the show, and I'm always gonna score most aggressively on flavor. And so for that reason, it's a strong 9.
Rooster:Yeah. I do wanna go back and add one more thing if I can. I think the finish is a little on the drier side.
Pagoda:In fact, yeah, very yeah. It's very dry.
Senator:I like that. For me, it was a merit.
Bam Bam:And I think the rum helped balance that if you had it.
Pagoda:Yeah. The rum did. Absolutely.
Gizmo:So for me, it's also a 9. I I really enjoyed this cigar. I think there's a good chance that it it's gonna enter a semi regular rotation for me if that's once a week or once every other week, a couple cigars a month. Is this the best Dominican cigar I've ever had? No.
Gizmo:It it it it got very, very close for me. I was debating between a 9 and a 10, but it did have moments. There were a few draws in there that it was a little bland for me, and then I'd come back to it, and it was great again. It had these kind of up and down moments. I think we were talking about the whack a mole thing.
Gizmo:I think that was, like, the best description of flavor and performance for me tonight. It did very, very well, but it just wasn't perfect. So I can't give it a 10, but it was a really, really good cigar. So I'm happy at a 9, and I'm gonna buy another box of these, see how they perform. It's gonna probably last me a little while, but, you know, it it was a very good cigar.
Gizmo:So it's for me, it's a 9. Ricky.
Chef Ricky:So I'm at an 8 here as well.
Senator:Your fingers are burning, but
Gizmo:They are.
Bam Bam:You know, he took
Chef Ricky:that down. So I I and I I knew this was gonna be the reaction.
Senator:By the way,
Bam Bam:your fingers are burning.
Chef Ricky:So, look, an 8 and I've listened to every single episode.
Pagoda:Strong recommend.
Chef Ricky:For me, an 8 is a strong recommend. It's a good cigar. Right? That a great cigar even. A 9 is a near perfect cigar, and a 10 is a perfect cigar.
Chef Ricky:Alright? So this this wasn't near perfect for me, so it can't be a 9. But it was a good to great cigar for me. You know, I think, Kat, if it were giving me more of what I wanted in the first half, then it probably would have got that 9, but it really didn't pick up for me in flavor or start delivering the flavor notes that I enjoy. And I think that's what's important here that, you know, there's price point.
Chef Ricky:There's appearance. But I think, you know, overall, like, we have very similar palates, but there's differences within our palate and within our likes. And this just isn't my favorite cigar. Right? Like, I wish there was a little bit more dried fruit.
Chef Ricky:I wish there was a little bit more roundness. I wish the finish wasn't quite as dry. I had a little bit of burn issues in the final third, but, you know, it smoked really good, you know, prior to that. So, yeah, I'm giving it a strong 8.
Gizmo:Okay. Pagoda. It's a strong 8
Pagoda:for me. You know, from the very beginning, I think, for me, it was, I thought, on the milder side, milder to medium. It did and I do think that as soon as they got the rum, it really enhanced the cigar for me. And I felt that it really needed, you know, something to drink with. Right?
Pagoda:That's like one of the cigars, at least for me, that I can't just smoke this without a drink.
Chef Ricky:Yeah. That's a good point.
Gizmo:You can
Chef Ricky:have this with seltzer water or
Pagoda:something. Yeah. You need like, for me. And and so for me, I felt that, you know, it was it was a bit dry. Short finish, I felt it was a lot of the flavor profile was right in the front of my palate.
Pagoda:It was really good. In terms of, the construction, yeah, it may be veiny, but overall, you know, the smoke output was great. It burned reasonably well. I did have to touch it up a few times. It's a strong eight for me.
Pagoda:Alright. Bam bam.
Bam Bam:This is a very, very strong nine for me. Very strong nine. It started off beautifully sweet with a little vanilla and plum for me. And as it got deeper into that that second third, the earthiness came through. But and there which I happen to love from time to time.
Bam Bam:And this cigar, I think it did great. And I took it down to where you are, chef, about 3 quarters of an inch to a half an inch down to the end. I got a deep molasses, and it's a that is a very acquired taste. Right? It's very it's a little sweet.
Bam Bam:It's a little sour. That came through really strong, and that was, for me, the mark of a sophisticated cigar where it takes you kind of on that journey. For a 6 to $14 cigar, it's unheard of. Very strong nine for me.
Gizmo:Alright, boys. That puts the formal lizard rating tonight on the La Aurora 100 20th anniversary in Robusto at an 8.7. That's a nice score.
Bam Bam:That's a
Rooster:great score.
Bam Bam:It's a very nice score.
Gizmo:Yeah. And I think it was an excellent pairing tonight, boys.
Pagoda:Agreed. Delishing the pairing was fantastic. Delicious.
Gizmo:I agree. So we have to congratulate lizard Enrique for winning lizard of the week. Of course, any lizard out there can win lizard of the week. Send us a great email, a voice memo, a comment on YouTube, a DM on Instagram, whatever you choose. Send a carrier pigeon, we don't care, send us a comment, send us a question, send us an email, whatever it is, and you can win lizard of the week.
Gizmo:So Enrique is gonna win a little package from our humanor. Of course, we'd like to thank all of our listeners for writing in. We really appreciate it. Let's go through our ratings tonight. Both of these were debuts on our program, so we don't have any comparison ratings.
Gizmo:But the Helione Jimenez, 110th anniversary rum, scored an 8.8, and the La Aurora, 120th anniversary, and Robusto scored an 8 point 7. A great pairing tonight, boys. We have to thank our sponsor Fabrica 5. We really appreciate them. Thanks to all our listeners, of course, and, we'll see everybody next week.
Gizmo:Hope you enjoyed this episode. Thanks for joining us. You can find our merch store and ratings archive at our brand new website, loungelizardspod.com. That's loungelizardspod.com. Don't forget to leave us a rating and subscribe on your favorite podcast platform.
Gizmo:If you have any comments, questions, you wanna reach out, say hello, tell us what you're smoking, email us hello@loungelizardspod.com. You can also find us on Instagram at loungelizardspod. We really appreciate your time, and we'll, we'll see you next week.