AFGL: OSOK, Fielder & Maryland Sucks
A Few Good Links today will cover the new cigar from Room 101, why I am happy Prince Fielder is a Tiger and why Maryland sucks.
1. Jewelry craftsman and cigar maker Matt Booth has teamed up with his photographer to come out with a new blend of cigars called OSOK, One Shot One Kill. Now, if you are thinking that name is provocative let me just fill you in on the meaning: by “shot” they mean “photograph” and by “kill” they mean “killer photo.” The photographer, whose name is Edgar Hoill, is nicknamed OSOK and that’s where that comes from. If the cigar is as good as its marketing it should be great.
I like the name and it’s more understandable than one of Booth’s other cigar creations – Namakubi, which has something to do with severed heads and Samurai. I don’t have any definite plans on reviewing either of these cigars but I wouldn’t rule it out.
2. Prince Fielder did not sign with the Rangers (woohoo) but has decided to sign on as part of the one-two punch that is Prince-Cabrera. I guess if you wanted to strangle a joke out of this you could say that Prince, Cabrera and Verlander are now “Detroit’s New Big Three.” (Note to Tigers’ marketing team: I came up with the slogan so you owe me royalties if you decide to use it.)
The reason why I like this is because it puts Prince in the AL Central. The Tigers should be strong enough to manhandle their division counterparts and suppress wins enough so that none of the teams from the Central will seriously compete for the Wild Card. If baseball goes to a two Wild Card format for 2012 that means there will be five teams (Angels, Rangers, Yankees, Red Sox and Rays) battling for four playoff spots (AL West and East champs and the two Wild Card spots).
Anything can happen over 162 games but that really isn’t true. I just can’t envision a world where the Orioles or the Mariners figure out how to win enough ballgames to make it to the playoffs.
3. I’ve driven through Maryland before, it looked nice. But now I’m going to have to say that Maryland sucks because it has decided to increase cigar taxes. The size of the tax increase is a sideshow to the rationale:
“I imagine everyone’s here because of the public health side of the story,” Maryland’s Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown said. “It’s also a revenue generating story but that wouldn’t be why you’re here, but rather to focus on the benefits to health of what we’re proposing.”
Saying that the reason they are raising taxes on cigars is for health reasons is as laughable as a guy saying he has a subscription to Playboy so that he can read the articles. States who tax tobacco use want the extra revenue and the politicians who support these onerous taxes want the goodwill they engender amongst the busybody anti-smoking groups.
Room 101 Cigar Review
I must admit that I am a big fan of Camacho cigars. They are full bodied and extremely tasty – basically what I am looking for in a cigar. So, when I found out that they were releasing a new line in collaboration with a Los Angeles jewelery maker, I knew I had to try a couple. (And if I liked those couple I would definitely be going back out to find some more!)
The Room 101 cigars that I smoked were the 305 (robusto) series. It looks good with a slight sheen of oils. Well packed, although on the verge of being too tightly packed. The pre-light draw is actually a little loose and there is a slight sweet taste to this draw as well. I just hope that this fusion of tobacco and style leads to a great cigar.
Cigar Stats
Robusto
Length: 5″
Ring Gauge: 50
Wrapper: Semilla 101 (Honduras)
Binder: Honduras
Filler: Honduras, Dominican Republic
Price: around $7.00
Tricked Flame!
An effortless draw reveals what could turn out to be a very good cigar; even though, right now, it’s merely above average. There are a group of deep, dark flavors that add a certain grittiness to this cigar that I like. Chocolate and some spice add some of the accent flavors to what is an extremely earthy cigar. And, by earthy, I mean dirt – good dirt though. As was the case with the other cigar I have smoked it starts out really well after a brief lull in the beginning.
As the cigar progresses that “dirt” flavor only increases. Now, as a flavor in a cigar, I like dirt but this is a new frontier of earthiness for me and I’m not liking it all that much. Sure, the flavors are pure but is that really a good thing when that flavor is dirt? Luckily, the final couple inches of this cigar has a change in the flavor profile that I like.
Spice really starts to come through and it becomes a more robust, full bodied cigar. In addition to the reinvigorated spiciness there is an oak flavor. The draw, which started out effortless, has become a little too loose and, as a result, the cigar is burning too quickly. The burn itself is even. There is also a slight hint of an herbal flavor at this time.
As the final puffs of this cigar leave my mouth I am finding myself loving this cigar. But then I start to think of the dirt, which lasted for more than half of the cigar, and I realize that this cigar isn’t a great cigar for me. It was just too much dirt – rich, kind of tasty dirt, but dirt nonetheless.
If only the second one-third-plus of this cigar had been the flavor from start to finish I would have loved this cigar. The spice, with a little bit of dirt, and some oak really mixed well together. It was a dark, complex cigar nearer the end and that is what I liked about this cigar. Maybe I’ll pick up a few more if the price drops a little.
88 points
