You may remember not too long ago when I posted about the renewal of my membership in the J.C. Newman Cigar Connoisseurs Club, a club I joined a few years ago. This year J.C. Newman kicked their membership benefits up to "notches previously unknown" (thank you, Emeril) by gracing us with four cigars and the usual nicely designed, high quality t-shirt, which will give years of wear. This t-shirt will go nicely as the first layer in the wintertime, since it's a heavy cotton.
But this was about my first try at one of the new cigars, the Cuesta Rey Centro Fino with a sun grown wrapper.
I kept these in my humidors to stabilize them after receiving the shipment about a month ago, placing the smallest one, a nice robusto, in my Havana Pocket Humidor knowing I'd test smoke one soon.
Tonight was the night. After arriving at Grand Central Terminal and exiting just after midnight, I went out the Lexington Avenue and 43rd Street entrance and noticed that it was a chilly night in the city, despite the summer-like conditions during many of the recent day time periods. There was plenty of time and the mood was right for a nice cigar before going in to work.
I chose the perfectly constructed Cuesta Rey Centro Fino Sungrown from the humidor, cut it and lit it at 0003 hours. The draw was also perfect, and as is usually the case with cigars made with a sun grown wrapper, the first few puffs were accompanied by a nice blast of strong flavors.
As I walked up Lexington Avenue toward one of my smoking spots across from work, I realized that wearing my dashiki on this chilly night had been a mistake. Hopefully the morning will warm up quickly after I leave here. Nonetheless, I had a cigar to smoke, and it's not like it's winter any more around here, so I decided to brave it, and hope for a less windy spot when I reached my "designated smoking area." You have to be formal about those things in NYC these days. :wink:
Throughout this wonderful 45 minute smoke a symphony of rum cake, currants, raisins, black coffee and Upstate New York camp fire wood played upon my palate. I think this is a cigar even a regular Cuban cigar smoker might find rather nice on a rare occasion. It appears that the after-boom complaints about too much strength, not enough flavor might be in the process of being addressed slowly but surely as manufacturers seek to please the true, long term cigar smokers, the sincere cigar smokers, and not the faddists.
Folks, I think that J.C. Newman has a winner here in the Cuesta Rey Centro Fino Sungrown, and if you haven't joined the club yet, $15 gets you four of these cigars, the one I smoked, three larger than that, and a really, really nice t-shirt.
I'm going to let two of the other three rest for a while, at least until about halfway through the football season, then I'll let you know what a little age has done to them. I'm thinking that it can only do good things, judging from this first experience. And as for the other one, that'll go to my friend DocBarry when I see him next. He loves those sun grown wrappers.
But this was about my first try at one of the new cigars, the Cuesta Rey Centro Fino with a sun grown wrapper.
I kept these in my humidors to stabilize them after receiving the shipment about a month ago, placing the smallest one, a nice robusto, in my Havana Pocket Humidor knowing I'd test smoke one soon.
Tonight was the night. After arriving at Grand Central Terminal and exiting just after midnight, I went out the Lexington Avenue and 43rd Street entrance and noticed that it was a chilly night in the city, despite the summer-like conditions during many of the recent day time periods. There was plenty of time and the mood was right for a nice cigar before going in to work.
I chose the perfectly constructed Cuesta Rey Centro Fino Sungrown from the humidor, cut it and lit it at 0003 hours. The draw was also perfect, and as is usually the case with cigars made with a sun grown wrapper, the first few puffs were accompanied by a nice blast of strong flavors.
As I walked up Lexington Avenue toward one of my smoking spots across from work, I realized that wearing my dashiki on this chilly night had been a mistake. Hopefully the morning will warm up quickly after I leave here. Nonetheless, I had a cigar to smoke, and it's not like it's winter any more around here, so I decided to brave it, and hope for a less windy spot when I reached my "designated smoking area." You have to be formal about those things in NYC these days. :wink:
Throughout this wonderful 45 minute smoke a symphony of rum cake, currants, raisins, black coffee and Upstate New York camp fire wood played upon my palate. I think this is a cigar even a regular Cuban cigar smoker might find rather nice on a rare occasion. It appears that the after-boom complaints about too much strength, not enough flavor might be in the process of being addressed slowly but surely as manufacturers seek to please the true, long term cigar smokers, the sincere cigar smokers, and not the faddists.
Folks, I think that J.C. Newman has a winner here in the Cuesta Rey Centro Fino Sungrown, and if you haven't joined the club yet, $15 gets you four of these cigars, the one I smoked, three larger than that, and a really, really nice t-shirt.
I'm going to let two of the other three rest for a while, at least until about halfway through the football season, then I'll let you know what a little age has done to them. I'm thinking that it can only do good things, judging from this first experience. And as for the other one, that'll go to my friend DocBarry when I see him next. He loves those sun grown wrappers.
