A Few Good Links for this week includes a cigar company that’s transitioning into limited edition cigars only, a rapper (Or is he a hip hop artist? I’m too white to know for sure.) and the end of a favorite TV show of mine.

1. Viaje has announced that they’re only going to do limited editions of their cigars from this point on. From Cigar Aficionado: “Viaje recently announced that, from this point on, the company will only be producing small-batch production runs. Lines like the Oro and Platino that were previously regular-production brands will now be made in limited quantities only.” Honestly, I think this is a dangerous move for the company. If you don’t have regular production lines then you aren’t going to have regular customers.

Take Tatuaje as an example. They have a number of production lines that people like and smoke regularly, thus keeping the brand on their customers’ minds. With this entrenched customer base they have the ability to do a lot of limited edition cigars and, since there are already a good number of people smoking their production line cigars, there are more people who will take a chance on a limited edition cigar that costs more than twice as much as a decent premium cigar.

On the other hand, producing a handful of limited edition cigar brands is an exciting proposition. For starters, Viaje will have more control over the taste of their cigars. Instead of having to worry about producing a ton of cigars they can use what little leaf is available to make exactly what they want. Another plus about this approach is that the fact that every cigar is a “limited edition” may end up creating more demand than otherwise would be there just because of the customers’ perceived quality of these cigars. “Well, it’s a limited edition cigar so that means it’s rare and that must mean that it is better than this tawdry regular production cigar that I was going to smoke so I’m going to buy the Viaje,” or something like that line of reasoning may go on in a number of BOTL’s heads when buying their cigars.

Anyways, it’s an interesting gambit and I hope it works out for them.

2. Snoop Dogg (I remember when I was younger, probably over a decade ago, my local sports guy, Fred Roggin, tried to say Snoop’s name and it came out “Snoopy Dog Doggy.” Just a funny anecdote, that’s all.) has decided to take the cigar industry by storm! He’s created a cigar brand (read this if you want to waste a minute of your time) that will sell for about $0.50 a cigar… and he claims they’ll taste great. Sure.

Seriously, I just don’t get it. There have to be hordes of liquor companies, clothing companies, alternative lifestyle concerns and others clamoring to get him to affix his name onto their product; so why cheap cigars? Cheap flavored cigars at that. Well, I guess if Congress or the socialists in CA decide to ban flavored cigars the fact that Snoop will no longer be the new dogg in the cigar industry would be a slight silver lining.

3. Chuck, which I’ll admit isn’t an amazing show, is a show that I love to watch. It’s hokey and has some awfully dumb story lines but it also has this irresistible quality to it that isn’t hard to explain. Lots of action, a couple of pretty girls, bad guys that have to be defeated (and always are) and the geeky, down-on-his-luck lead character, Chuck, has blossomed into the hero with the girl of his dreams. I guess the main reason I like this show so much is because it is escapism at its nerdy best. I usually gravitate to shows that have a darkness about them (Dexter, Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad, Nip/Tuck, Deadwood, Hell on Wheels and, holy crap, I watch too much television) but Chuck has carved out a position on my personal favorite TV show list of all time. I’ll miss it when it’s gone in a week.

Related posts:

1. AFGL: List of Lists, King, Fielder
2. AFGL: Dinner & Movie
3. AFGL: Towers, Thrones and Heavenly Views

A Few Good Links this week is going to focus on a list of the lists of top cigars, some news about Stephen King’s Dark Tower series and an update on the (so far) sad tail of a slugging first baseman without a bag.

• The Consensus: 2011 Awards via halfwheel: Ever wanted a Metacritic-esque survey of the cigar world? (Incidentally, I think that would be a good idea. It would need constant updating and there would have to be some kind of resolution as far as scoring goes, should certain sites be weighted more heavily, what about vitola… I digress.) Well, halfwheel has come out with a survey of what the cigar blogging world thought were their favorite cigars of 2011. I will only tell you that Undercrown was the consensus top pick according to them. If you want to see the rest of this amazing post (like top brand, factory, country and some trends) you’re going to have to click on through.

• Stephen King wrote one of my favorite fantasy series of all time in The Dark Tower. In late April there will be a new addition to this series with The Wind Through the Keyhole, which will basically shed some light on the main character’s past. I think it’s kind of like Godfather 2 in that there are some elements that take place during the natural progression of the story and there are some prequel elements as well. This will be mostly prequel though. With the movie/tv-ification of this series in peril the new book is at least something to look forward to.

• While Prince Fielder’s normal pace is slower than most his current pace is maddeningly slow. I’m guessing his agent, Scott Boras, is playing a game of chicken with all of his client’s potential suitors but there comes a time when you have to wonder whether or not this was a bad move. And then I see a little piece of news like this and I’m thinking the AL West is where the real arms race is.

Related posts:

1. AFGL: OSOK, Fielder & Maryland Sucks
2. AFGL: Orange, Krauss and Lists
3. AFGL: Towers, Thrones and Heavenly Views

A Few Good Links this week will cover how Camacho/Davidoff got screwed out of a sponsorship deal with the Orange Bowl, Alison Kruass and Union Station’s new album and a few of the top cigars of the year lists I saw.

• Patrick S. over at Stogie Review has a really good post about how the Orange Bowl reneged on their sponsorship deal with Camacho Cigars. It’s a travesty, for sure. What I’m really hoping for is that one of these days when the smoke Nazis (or whatever pejorative for these national hall monitors you prefer) have beaten us in a battle we will turn around and use that loss as our Alamo. I would be ecstatic if the Orange Bowl were our Alamo but it probably isn’t. One of these days though….

• This last week I’ve been blaring the newest album from Alison Krauss and Union Station: Paper Airplane in my car and at home. I don’t know how to describe why it is that I like her music so much, whether it is with Union Station or with Robert Plant or whoever, other than to say that she is an amazing talent. And so are all the musicians in Union Station. They’re the whole package. If you can pick up the special CD from Target with the extra tracks.

• Finally, a few lists: Stogie Review, Stogie Review, Stogie Review, Stogie Review (did I miss any?), Tiki Bar, Tiki Bar, Tiki Bar, Tiki Bar (did I miss any?), Chief’s, Cigarfan, CigarCraig, A Cigar Smoker’s Journal (is this Barry’s last one?), Tom’s Cigars, Casa Fumado, Smoking Stogie (they have other lists to but this list is beginning to get a little long already), Cigar Explorer, Nice Tight Ash, ditto and THE BEST LIST OF ALL!!!

Some observations regarding those lists: 1. I didn’t smoke nearly enough cigars last year, 2. I have to find that Grimalkin I have somewhere and 3. I still have to do my list (yeah!). I figure that as long as I get a list out before Cigar Aficionado is done unveiling theirs then I am okay.

Related posts:

1. AFGL: List of Lists, King, Fielder
2. AFGL: WARNING!, Sosa, LFD Factory Press & Trout
3. The Cigar Station

Smoking and gambling, it use to go together like love and marriage, but probably not for much longer. In order to smoke one of your favorite cigars and go to a casino you will probably have to go to a casino online. Now, if you are like me, that actually might be preferable. You sit comfortably at home with a drink that is much cheaper than it would be at a blackjack table and you can smoke a cigar.

Another benefit of gambling at home is that you do not have all those other pesky distractions. There isn’t that guy sitting next to you at the slot machines cursing God for his misfortune, which is ironic because I don’t think God is all that accommodating when it comes to gambling. Maybe things would be different if God saw that you were playing something cooler than slots: maybe roulette. Could God curse you for playing a game that James Bond played?

Ah, but that doesn’t really matter anymore. The thrill of gambling is the gambling part and not all the chaff that Las Vegas casinos throw at you whenever you darken their doorstep – “Oh, I know you are here to gamble but wouldn’t you just love to see a Cher concert?” Not that there’s anything wrong with that, it’s just not for me.

Playing cards is fun, I use to do it all the time with my friends before I started smoking cigars. Then I started smoking cigars and they didn’t, which led to an illicit gaming impasse. If I’m going to sit around for three hours at night playing a game I’m going to want to smoke a cigar. Even if that game is slots, I’m going to want to smoke a cigar.

If you are like me and you like your gambling to be about gambling and not about superfluous crap then you might as well stay at home and strike up a cigar. At least that is will still be legal, for a while at least.

Related posts:

1. Smoking Cigars at CSUF
2. Smoking Ban Threatened in Virginia
3. Anti-Smoking Marketing

I talk about cigars and other stuff I like. My brother knows a lot about music. That is why nearly every word that follows is his. Here is my brother Josh’s review of the Jazz Album SoHo Suite by Anders Holst. I hope you enjoy.

Anders Holst, a Swedish native based in New York City, is one of the newer sensations to hit the genres of Adult Contemporary and Jazz. He released his first EP called “Five” (2005), and his debut album in 2009, called “Romantika.” These two efforts formed the basis for The American Smooth Jazz Awards nominating him for International Male Vocalist. Fellow nominees included Seal and Michael Bublé. His successes are putting him near the top. He has received many accolades, including a statement from Quincy Jones, who said, “His (Anders’) honest and original love songs can give romantic music a brand new chance. Do your heart a favor and check him out.”

On top of this success, Anders is releasing his second studio album, called “SoHo Suite”, a nod to the neighborhood he currently resides. “How Many Times Do You Fall In Love” starts the album on a bright note about finding a true love, and is a wonderful way to start the album. You don’t have to wait long to hear one of the highlights of the album in “I Will Pray.” This song touches on the faith showcased throughout his past releases, and is a touching song about his desire to save someone he loves. It is also the most contemporary sounding, without any real shadow of Jazz.

While Anders has been categorized as a Jazz singer songwriter, he transcends any particular genre and creates his own style drenched in romance and love. “I Keep Forgettin’” is the sole cover song on SoHo Suite. By Michael McDonald and recorded after his stint with The Doobie Brothers, the original is a 1980’s classic characterized by rhythm. What Anders’ version lacks in rhythm, he makes up with a smooth melody that captures the soulfulness and vocal styling of McDonald. His cover of McDonald’s hit, and Billy Joel’s “All About Soul” on his debut album “Romantika” do more to represent his influences than the rest of the songs on his albums. Both McDonald and Joel had their greatest successes in the 1970s, but Anders has focused on their latter day hits, showing his affinity for the 1980s and 90s.

Anders continues to write lyrics that focus on mature love, and it is best expressed on “What Your Love Has Done To Me.” Perhaps the best song on the album, it is full of love and romance. He has managed to take old-fashioned lyrics and make them feel contemporary.

While none of the songs quite reach the level of “Love Me Like A River”, from his EP “Five”, “SoHo Suite” features a solid list of songs that will grow on you after each repeated play.

SoHo Suite Tracklist

1. How Many Times Do You Fall In Love?
2. Love Surrender
3. I Will Pray
4. Time is Not Waiting
5. Almost Forgotten
6. To Forgive Is Divine
7. I Keep Forgettin’ (Every Time You Are Near)
8. What Your Love Has Done To Me
9. Sometimes The Light
10. As Far As My Eye Can See

If you are interested in purchasing this album you can check it out here. I’m going to listen to the album today and I’ll probably say a word or two in tomorrow’s A Few Good Links post.

Related posts:

1. AFGL: A Cutter, Deals & A Couple of Reviews

In this edition of A Few Good Links we will cover a couple of epic book series that have been and will be made into television series and/or movies and some awesome pictures.

• Stephen King’s Dark Tower Series is his magnum opus. It follows the last Gunslinger around in his search for the Dark Tower, which is basically the answer to everything. Without giving away the biggest spoiler about the series I do have something to say. I hope that the coming movie/television series about the Dark Tower Series has a different ending than the books. Actually, I think that this deserves a much more in depth explanation and I’ll be giving one later this week. However, if you are one of those people who loves an epic tale then this is a good place to start.

• I have not read George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Fire and Ice Series but I am watching the television series that is based off the books: Game of Thrones. Like King’s series, Martin’s series is about a mythical world that is facing very troubling times. There is evil afoot and competing claims to the crown. I’m seriously thinking about purchasing the first four books from this series; any of you who have read it think that it is worth the while?

• The last thing I want to share with you this Sunday is a link to 100 pictures that were taken from planes. They are gorgeous pictures of different places all over the globe. A few of these things I have seen, most I haven’t. Take a gander if you get the time. Here’s one of the more striking images, which comes from Cargill Salt Ponds in San Francisco Bay.

Related posts:

1. AFGL: List of Lists, King, Fielder
2. AFGL: A Launch, Punch Rare Corojo 10th Anniversary Reviews & Two New TV Shows
3. AFGL: Viaje, Snoop & Chuck

In this edition of A Few Good Links we will cover a couple of things about cigars and a couple of new shows.

• Smoke Inn has unveiled its most recent 15th Anniversary cigar: the Padron 1964 Anniversary SI-15. I’ve reviewed both the natural and maduro wrapped versions of this cigar. Both are great cigars and they are also very exclusive.
• The Punch Rare Corojo 10th Anniversary has been released and there are some reviews in from A Cigar Smoker’s Journal, Tom’s Cigar Reviews and from Cigar Rants. My review of this cigar will be out shortly.
• The Borgias is shaping up to be a great show. It chronicles the life of the Borgia family during the renaissance. If you know nothing of them this should help: the dad is the Pope, one son is a Cardinal, another son is a military leader (a bad one), the daughter is going to be married off for political reasons and the family has a personal assassin named Micheletto. There will be twists and very twisted turns during the course of this series. My first encounter with the Borgia family came a couple of years ago when I read Mario Puzo’s The Family, which is a novel about the Borgia family. Mario Puzo, who wrote The Godfather, along with his co-writer were able to make interesting and informative fiction about one of history’s most unique families.
• Game of Thrones promises to be another great series. The first episode is going to air tonight and I will definitely be watching what I think should be a dark and dreary bloodbath of conniving individuals all vying for power. Many of the actors in this HBO series hail from roles in fantasy movies including the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Hopefully it turns out to be as good a show as I am hoping.

Related posts:

1. Punch Rare Corojo 10th Anniversary Cigar Review
2. AFGL: A Cutter, Deals & A Couple of Reviews
3. AFGL: Sickness, Cigar Reviews & Sidecars

When I started smoking cigars I was content sitting out in the Southern Californian night as long as there was some bourbon to fill my cup. Cigars and bourbon are a great way to unwind after a long day but, after a while, it became a bore. Cigars and bourbon are wonderful but a man needs more than libations and smoke.

That is when I realized I have a treasure box filled with gems. Westerns, action flicks, science fiction and oh so much more all in my laptop just waiting for me.

Instead of whiling away the early mornings with Padron and Patel I now had something for those unused synapses. I watched movies that I knew I should have watched by now. Full Metal Jacket was great, Eyes Wide Shut was odd but it was a decent movie and that one with the modern version of vampires in that Alaskan town wasn’t worth the two hours. C’est la vie.

Then I took a tour through a post-apocalyptic America with Jeremiah and Kurdy. If you have not watched the science fiction TV series Jeremiah then you should do yourself a favor and watch it. Unfortunately, it only lasted two seasons because, I’m guessing, the budget on that show must have been astronomical and it aired during the earliest parts of this new millennium. If it aired now I’m sure it would have lasted as long as Battlestar Galactica. Even though it is a step down from Battlestar Galactica, which was a post-apocalyptic romp through space, it did have a lot of redeeming qualities.

Now I am puffing away to the stylings of J. J. Abrams’ Lost. I’m almost through the third season of Lost as of this writing and it is at least as wonderfully convoluted as I had been told. Who would have thought crashing a smattering of misfits on an island would be allegorical gold? Wait, wasn’t there a book….

Yes, there was a book but it wasn’t as rich as Lost. With a preponderance of exposition and a never ending back story that is as intricate as any Opus X, Lost is one of the most addictive shows I have ever watched. Even if it didn’t have all that intrigue I still would watch it because any show that creates a fake whiskey, McCutcheon, is worth watching.

So, thank you Netflix for giving me another reason to stay up late. Cigars, bourbon and Netflix are a great combination.

Related posts:

1. I Drink Wild Turkey and Coca Cola with my Cigars
2. Have an Open Mind when Smoking Cigars
3. Four Roses Single Barrel

It was a great night full of amazing food, out-of-this-world bourbon and surprisingly good cigars (I like Punch cigars but they just seemed significantly better Thursday night. I’m sure it had something to do with the setting.). Here is what I had at The Cellar:

The Bourbon
Evan Williams Single Barrel – The world’s only vintage-dated Single Barrel Bourbon and is one of the world’s most acclaimed whiskeys. The first American Whiskey ever to win The Spirit Journal’s Whiskey of the Year award.
Elijah Craig 18 yr. old – The oldest Single Barrel Bourbon in the world at 18 years, Elijah Craig Single Barrel is a rare marvel of whiskey-making.
Parker’s Heritage 27 yr. old – Simply one of the oldest bourbons on the market. This smooth spirit features silky and sweet nose with hints of caramel and vanilla. The taste is amazingly balanced and smooth…sweet without being too sweet…and dry without being too dry!

Dinner – By Executive Chef David Kelser
Seared Ahi Tuna served under a spicy Mango salsa and fresh micro greens
Ratatouille veloute with Pesto croutons and crème fraiche
Slow roasted Short Ribs over herbed Polenta and Shallot-Thyme Jus
Chocolate-Espresso soup with Vanilla Ice cream, Fresh Berries and Pistachio crisp

I was lucky enough to have a man from Heaven Hill’s Distillery at my table – an entertaining fellow who I am extremely jealous of. Wouldn’t it be great to have a job selling such amazing libations as the ones we had? Of course it would!

My favorite cigar was the Punch Champion Natural. It’s a perfecto with a good amount of kick to it. My only regret is that I smoked it first because I am certain it would have mixed much better with the older bourbons. As far as regrets go this is but a pittance. The cigar definitely belongs in the 91-93 point range.

Everyone at the table was great. They were all extremely accomplished men and the stories and jokes they told were a lot of fun. Before I continue with my Saturday I need to thank my professor, John Jackson, for inviting me. That cigar dinner was a great way to cap off my birthday. Thanks JJ!

Related posts:

1. Four Roses Single Barrel
2. Happy Birthday to Me!
3. Baker’s Bourbon

Just got my new issue of Cigar Aficionado today and on the cover is Jay-Z. As a younger guy I’m somewhat aware of who this guy is. Rapper, music mogul, with Beyonce, and an all-around cool dude. Basically, I just know what his image is – so the part about him probably won’t be all that interesting of a read. Oh well.

The top cigar of this issue is the Padron 1964 Anniversary Series “A” with a score of 95 points. That’s an impressive score indeed and one that I would most likely agree with. My New Year’s Day cigar was a Padron 1964 Anniversary Monarca and I gave it 95 points. Since then I have had a couple of cigars I would rank higher and I will be putting those reviews up in the future.

Then I come to the Editors’ Note. It’s always one of the more enjoyable parts of the magazine for me because it’s not just an advertisement for the rest of the magazine like so many other Editors’ Notes tend to be. It starts out with a nod to the current economic problems and how the fear of today is analogous to the fear from the Depression even if the current circumstances do not arguably warrant as much trepidation. Then they talk about S-CHIP and how the increase in taxes doesn’t seem like it’s going to put a damper on premium cigar sales anytime soon (that’s just what the tax-happy Senators and Congressmen wanted to hear).

And then, oddly, they say that more taxes usually leads to a drop-off in sales for the taxed items. This I completely agree with and, ironically, may explain why premium cigar sales didn’t slack off during the first quarter. When the government tells the people that they are going to raise taxes on a product on a certain date the people will act rationally and start stockpiling those products up to the date when the tax increases. Here’s an example of that and here’s another example.

Go to page four of this report and see the affect that stockpiling could be having on premium cigars. This report is mainly about a tax on cigarettes but I think that we’ll see a lot of the same things happening with cigars during the next couple of months. Maybe the taxes on cigars will have less of an impact due to its premium status but once you couple the new taxes with a soft economy I don’t know how we will see cigar sales increase for the next few months.

Alright, that’s it. I’m going to go and read the magazine and find a better cigar to enjoy (Hoyo de Monterreys are not my favorites by any stretch of the imagination). Have a great day!!!

Related posts:

1. Cuban Cigar Outlook for 2009
2. New Cigar Tax in Pennsylvania
3. Top 10 Cigars 2009