Samuel Adams Infinium

For the past couple of years, the Boston Beer Company and Germany’s Weihenstephan Brewery have joined forces to create what they characterized as an entirely new style of beer, a champagne-like ale called Infinium. Infinium comes in a 750 ml champagne bottle, complete with foil, wire and cork.

The beer (champagne?) poured a medium amber with a small, lacy head. There was no significant nose, only a very slight dry, citrus smell.

The mouthfeel was very light like champagne, and dry to the point that you feel your teeth touching. The taste is very interesting, with a definite impression of a beer/champagne combination. The sense of grapes is there to be sure (even though there are no grapes in the process), but you also sense the hops and taste the malt.

Infinium is quite unique, and I really liked it. I seldom drink champagne, and I can’t imagine ever going to the fridge to pull out a bottle of champagne to enjoy with a cigar on the Lido Deck. But I can see pulling one of these out if I wanted something really light that wouldn’t compete with a mild cigar.

It’s hard to stack this up against anything else since it is so different, but for the taste and unique drinking experience, I’ll give it a 93 on The Morris Scale.

From the Samuel Adams website:

Our brewers worked for two years with the world’s oldest brewery, Germany’s Weihenstephan, to create this unique new beer style. A groundbreaking brew, made with only the four traditional ingredients: malted barley, hops, water and yeast, Infinium™ is a crisp champagne-like beer with fine bubbles and a fruity, spicy aroma. The crisp clean malt character and delicate fruit notes in this beer are complemented by a slight citrus flavor from dry hopping with Bavarian Noble hops. Bottle conditioning adds another layer of complexity and light spice notes.

Flavor: Light and dry with a crisp clean malt character, and delicate fruit and spice notes
Color: Pale golden with a sparkling effervescence, 8 SRM
Original Gravity: 20.5° Plato
Alcohol by Vol/Wt: 10.3%ABV – 8.1%ABW
Calories/12 oz.: 278
IBUs: 10
Malt Varieties: Custom blend of two-row malted barley, malted spring white wheat, and malted oats
Hop Varieties: Hallertau Mittlefrueh, Spalt Spalter, Tettnang Tettnanger and Hersbrucker Noble Hops
Yeast Strain: Samuel Adams ale yeast, Belgian yeast

CAO OSA Sol

The OSA Sol is available in three sizes, the Lot 50 (5×50), Lot 54 (6×54), and Lot 58 (6 ½ x 58). I decided to pick a cigar at random from my humidor, and came out with the monster 58 ring size.

The cigar had a nice look with good construction. The cut with a guillotine was a little ragged, but with a little picking at the filler I was able to make things right. The burn was perfect for the life of the cigar.

My initial impression as to taste was that the cigar was a little harsh with no complexity. As the cigar progressed, the harshness disappeared but the taste never surfaced. There’s really nothing else to say. There was just never any there there. I’ve had some great CAO cigars, but this isn’t one of them. A sad 71 on The Morris Scale.

From the Cigars International website:

The secret between CAO OSA Sol is the wrapper. This exquisite leaf is grown in Olancho, San Agustin, a fertile valley of Honduras surrounded by tree covered mountains. This field is hugged by a crystal clear river, feeding the sun-nurtured tobaccos with pure spring waters and producing a uniquely robust and earth wrapper leaf. A sun-grown leaf, hence CAO OSA Sol.

CAO OSA Sol marks the first use of this rare, proprietary tobacco variety. A glorious presentation to see and burn, each cigar contains a flavorful OSA sun-grown wrapper chock full of Nicaraguan and Honduran long-fillers inside a hearty Connecticut Broadleaf binder. Medium in body, CAO OSA Sol gushes with rustic tobacco flavors enhanced by earthy undertones, subtle spices, and a touch of leather. Aromatic is an understatement, as each OSA Sol fills the air above with thick clouds of smoke and a lovely, rich, earthy scent.

Yeah, not so much.

Believe it or not, there are some health benefits to tobacco use, as set forth in an article published today on Cigar Advisor.  Incredibly, tobacco use can be healthy for your heart.

Read the article for some context. A pack a day smoker is going to suffer far more health detriment than improvement. But limited infusion of tobacco, say like you get from an occasional cigar, can improve your health.

So, the next time you light up and get grief from someone in the area about the smoke, just say, “Sorry, Doctor’s orders.”

Come 2018, you (and Larry Bird) won’t be able to enjoy a cigar at any cigar lounge in Boston or likely anywhere else in Massachusetts. Governor Deval Patrick vetoed a second attempt by legislators to preserve cigar bars in communities of more than 150,000 residents.

The debate followed the typical government methodology for infringing on the rights of citizens. Unless our government has become completely paternalistic, then no one can seriously argue that citizens should not be free to gather and enjoy their cigars. So in these cases, the government looks for an innocent third party that allegedly will be harmed by the activity. In order to eliminate cigarettes in restaurants, they pointed to the poor patrons who will be subjected to the second-hand smoke of others. That argument was fallacious because the free market takes care of that problem. Don’t want to be subjected to secondhand smoke? There will be a thriving selection of smoke free restaurants who want to cater to you. But, okay, an argument can be made that you are possibly depriving nonsmoking citizens of the ability to go to their favorite pizza hangout if you allow the owner to decide whether it is a smoking establishment.

However, even that weak argument fails in the case of a cigar bar. The only people that go there are people that want to be surrounded by smokers. So how do we demonize a cigar lounge? Who is the innocent victim?

The employees. You see, the employees of a cigar lounge had no choice but to work anywhere other than that cigar lounge. Thus, you are forcing the employees to sacrifice their health in order to work, or so the argument goes.

I don’t need to explain to you that this is a ridiculous argument on many levels. The most obvious is that this is not the only job the employees could have, and if it is, you are dooming them to a life of unemployment if you do away with the cigar lounge. Similarly, let’s assume that working in a cigar lounge is a really undesirable job because of the smoke, and that only 1 out of 10,000 workers would even consider working there. Well, you’ve just created a job that will enable people that might be having difficulty finding work to find a job because there is far less competition, just like, I would imagine, coal miners, crab fishers, and public defenders.

Here are some sample quotes from the government boneheads, taken from an article on Boston.com.

“Anybody working in a bar of any kind shouldn’t have to breathe in secondhand smoke in order to make a living,’’ said Michael Siegel, a tobacco control specialist at Boston University School of Public Health.

Patrons can choose to smoke, but employees, who may have only taken a cigar bar job because they had no other options, should not be subjected to secondhand smoke, said Marc Hymovitz, director of government relations at the New England division of the American Cancer Society. Cigar smoke is as or more dangerous than cigarette smoke, he said.

“It comes down to we shouldn’t make people choose between their health and a job,’’ said Hymovitz, adding that state governments should not be able to preemptively set local health standards. “This was not the Worcester City Council saying, hey, we want to allow cigar bars. This was the state saying you have to allow cigar bars, whether you want to or not.’’

C.E.O. Red Label Cigar (5 x 50)

This is a real mystery cigar.  I think I actually bought a five-pack of C.E.O. cigars, based on a vague memory that I exclaimed, “what the hell are C.E.O. cigars?” when the package came in the mail.  I think they were an impulse buy on Cigar Monster, ordered so quickly and without investigation that I thought I was buying CAO cigars.  Since receiving them, I have used them in my humidor to place behind other “real” cigars so they don’t slide backwards when I open certain drawers.  Quite the ignominious existence for a cigar.  Today on a whim I decided to smoke one of these drawer-stops in case it turned out to be a surprise find.

I was unable to find anything about the cigar on the Internet, and that’s why I’m going to go into some extra detail here, to assist anyone in the future trying to track these down.  CigarAdvisor.com had a little squib on it’s site, stating: “C.E.O. are impeccably constructed cigars with a diverse blend of longfiller tobaccos and wrappers spanning five nations, all aged from three to five years. Made by Arganese Cigars, we bought these cigars as a closeout and are passing the savings on to you. You get five unique cigars in all, spanning the entire range of strengths and rich tobacco flavors. Blue and Green are full; Red and Orange: medium; Yellow: mild.”

With a little more investigation, I think I found why Famous Smoke Shop (the company behind Cigar Monster and Cigar Advisor) was able to buy these cigars on closeout.  Inside the cigar band is the non-functioning web address www.ceoMLM.com.  It appears that these cigars were intended to be part of some strange multi-level marketing plan; the cigar smoker’s answer to Amway.  That also explains why the cigar band says Connoisseur Entrepreneurs Organization.

There is nothing on the Arganese Cigar site about these cigars, so it appears they are no longer manufactured.  My four remaining sticks may be real collector’s items.  Drop me a note if you want them.  Opening bid, $1,000 per.

So how was the cigar?  Actually, pretty good.  I guess if you’re going to sell a cigar at a multi-level price, and call it a connoisseur’s cigar, it had better be decent.  I could tell from the moment I cut it that it was a well constructed cigar.  The CEO red label had some real complexity, without ever becoming harsh.  Tastes of spice and chocolate, and mellow to the end.  A strong 86 on The Morris Scale.  If you ever come across one, give it a try.  I’m looking forward to trying the blue and green labels, which are supposed to be more full bodied.  I know I’ll be moving these drawer stops to a more accessible location.

Shipyard Imperial Porter – Pugsley’s Signature Series

The CEO cigar looked pretty light, so I thought I’d balance it with a porter.  The Imperial Porter I selected is brewed by Shipyard Brewing Company in Portland, Maine.  Here is the company’s description of the Imperial Porter:

“Imperial Porter is a full bodied, very dark, malty beer with a good roasted character coming from the Crystal, Chocolate and Black Patent Malts used in the mash. Warrior, English Fuggles, and East Kent Goldings Hops balance the malts with a good hop bite. The beer has an OG* of 1.070, rounding out after fermentation with just a slight residual sweetness and cutting dry at the finish.”

This description discloses that Shipyard has misnamed the beer, because an “Imperial” porter should have an OG exceeding 1.090.**  But I pick nits.

I like this beer.  The beer pours so thick and dark that you anticipate something heavy, but you are met with a very nice, malty beer.  The mouth feel is thinner than I anticipated, but not in a bad way and I think that will greatly enhance the drinkability.  The description of “a good hop bite” is accurate, to the point that a hop head would probably find this beer a good choice.  Not my favorite porter, but a very worthy companion to a cigar.  I give it an 84.

FOOTNOTES:

* OG = Original Gravity

Everything you ever wanted to know about OG:

Gravity, in the context of fermenting alcoholic beverages, refers to the specific gravity of the wort or must at various stages in the fermentation. This article focuses primarily on the brewing industry. The concepts and equations are basically the same in the wine making industry.

Gravity (specific gravity) measurements are used to determine the “size” of the beer, its alcoholic strength and how much of the available sugar the yeast were able to consume (a given strain can be expected, under proper conditions, to ferment a wort of a particular composition to within a range of attenuation, that is, they should be able to consume a known percentage of the extract).

At various stages in alcohol fermentation, the density of the wort varies. Depending upon the depth that the hydrometer falls into the wort, the percentage of alcohol can be determined.

Initially (before alcohol production by the yeast commences) the specific gravity of a wort is dependent mostly on the amount of sugar present and, therefore, specific gravity readings can be used to determine sugar content by the use of formulae or tables. This sugar content is expressed in units of grams of sugar per 100 grams of wort equivalent to % w/w and called, in the brewing industry, “degrees Plato” (abbreviated °P) and in the wine industry “degrees Brix”. Even when specified in terms of °P it is not uncommon to refer to the pre-fermentation reading as the “Original Gravity”, (abbreviated OG) though it is more correct to term it the “Original Extract” (abbreviated OE). It is, of course, correct to refer to the original specific gravity reading as the OG. By considering the original sugar content the brewer or vintner obtains an indication as to the probable ultimate alcoholic content of his product. The OE is often referred to as the “size” of the beer and is, in Europe, often printed on the label as Stammwürze or sometimes just as a percent. In the Czech Republic, for example, they speak of “10 degree beers”, “12 degree beers” and so on.

As fermentation progresses the yeast convert sugars to carbon dioxide, ethanol, more yeast and flavor producing compounds. The decline in the sugar content and the presence of ethanol (which is appreciably less dense than water) both contribute to a lowering in the specific gravity of the wort so that the formulae relating sugar content and specific gravity no longer apply. Nevertheless, by monitoring the decline in SG over time the brewer obtains information about the health and progress of the fermentation and determines that it is complete when gravity stops declining. A gravity measurement taken at this time compared to the original gravity reading can be used to estimate the amount of sugar consumed and thus the amount of ethanol produced. Specific gravity is measured by a hydrometer, pycnometer or oscillating U-tube electronic meter.

** Everything you ever wanted to know about porters and “Imperial” porters.

Before 1700, London brewers sent out their beer very young and any aging was either performed by the publican or a dealer. Porter was the first beer to be aged at the brewery and despatched in a condition fit to be drunk immediately. It was the first beer that could be made on any large scale, and the London porter brewers, such as Whitbread, Truman, Parsons and Thrale, achieved great success financially.

Early London porters were strong beers by modern standards. Early trials with the hydrometer in the 1770s recorded porter as having an OG (original gravity) of 1.071° and 6.6% ABV. Increased taxation during the Napoleonic Wars pushed its gravity down to around 1.055°, where it remained for the rest of the 19th century. The huge popularity of the style prompted brewers to produce porters in a wide variety of strengths. These started with Single Stout Porter at around 1.066°, Double Stout Porter (such as Guinness) at 1.072°, Triple Stout Porter at 1.078° and Imperial Stout Porter at 1.095° and more. As the 19th century progressed the porter suffix was gradually dropped. British brewers, however, continued to use porter as the generic term for both porters and stouts.  Thank you Wikipedia.

Cigars were already present in the Americas when Columbus arrived, and were immediately returned to Europe. No doubt, when the first husband fired up his first cigar at home, the arguments began. Here is the take by Rudyard Kipling, written more than 100 years ago.

The Betrothed

“You must choose between me and your cigar.”
– BREACH OF PROMISE CASE, CIRCA 1885.

Open the old cigar-box, get me a Cuba stout,
For things are running crossways, and Maggie and I are out.

We quarrelled about Havanas — we fought o’er a good cheroot,
And I knew she is exacting, and she says I am a brute.

Open the old cigar-box — let me consider a space;
In the soft blue veil of the vapour musing on Maggie’s face.

Maggie is pretty to look at — Maggie’s a loving lass,
But the prettiest cheeks must wrinkle, the truest of loves must pass.

There’s peace in a Larranaga, there’s calm in a Henry Clay;
But the best cigar in an hour is finished and thrown away –

Thrown away for another as perfect and ripe and brown –
But I could not throw away Maggie for fear o’ the talk o’ the town!

Maggie, my wife at fifty — grey and dour and old –
With never another Maggie to purchase for love or gold!

And the light of Days that have Been the dark of the Days that Are,
And Love’s torch stinking and stale, like the butt of a dead cigar –

The butt of a dead cigar you are bound to keep in your pocket –
With never a new one to light tho’ it’s charred and black to the socket!

Open the old cigar-box — let me consider a while.
Here is a mild Manila — there is a wifely smile.

Which is the better portion — bondage bought with a ring,
Or a harem of dusky beauties, fifty tied in a string?

Counsellors cunning and silent — comforters true and tried,
And never a one of the fifty to sneer at a rival bride?

Thought in the early morning, solace in time of woes,
Peace in the hush of the twilight, balm ere my eyelids close,

This will the fifty give me, asking nought in return,
With only a Suttee’s passion — to do their duty and burn.

This will the fifty give me. When they are spent and dead,
Five times other fifties shall be my servants instead.

The furrows of far-off Java, the isles of the Spanish Main,
When they hear my harem is empty will send me my brides again.

I will take no heed to their raiment, nor food for their mouths withal,
So long as the gulls are nesting, so long as the showers fall.

I will scent ‘em with best vanilla, with tea will I temper their hides,
And the Moor and the Mormon shall envy who read of the tale of my brides.

For Maggie has written a letter to give me my choice between
The wee little whimpering Love and the great god Nick o’ Teen.

And I have been servant of Love for barely a twelvemonth clear,
But I have been Priest of Cabanas a matter of seven year;

And the gloom of my bachelor days is flecked with the cheery light
Of stumps that I burned to Friendship and Pleasure and Work and Fight.

And I turn my eyes to the future that Maggie and I must prove,
But the only light on the marshes is the Will-o’-the-Wisp of Love.

Will it see me safe through my journey or leave me bogged in the mire?
Since a puff of tobacco can cloud it, shall I follow the fitful fire?

Open the old cigar-box — let me consider anew –
Old friends, and who is Maggie that I should abandon you?

A million surplus Maggies are willing to bear the yoke;
And a woman is only a woman, but a good Cigar is a Smoke.

Light me another Cuba — I hold to my first-sworn vows.
If Maggie will have no rival, I’ll have no Maggie for Spouse!

So, to that end, I checked around for the best price on one of my favorite glass tubo cigars – the Maker’s Mark 10th Anniversary Bourbon Cigar – and found a great price on a box of 25 at Famous Smoke Shop.*

The cigars arrived well packed, but nonetheless one glass tube was broken and the cigar trashed, and another was cracked. I shot a quick email to Famous, asking only for a replacement of the one dead soldier. To their credit, the fine customer service people at Famous responded that they would issue me a credit for the price of two of the cigars on a future order.

Good job Famous Smoke Shop.  This makes up a little for your insidious CigarMonster.com that repeatedly causes me to buy cigars I don’t really need.　

* Lest you think I am shilling for Famous Smoke Shop, I have since found a much better price for the Maker’s Mark cigars at a site called Bonita Smoke Shop. I’ve never ordered from them so I can’t make any recommendations, but their advertised price for this particular cigar is amazing.

 

Saison Rue Belgian-Style Ale, made with Rye and Brettanomyces

What a find in my own backyard.  Just a month ago I discovered and wrote about the wonders of a yeast called Brettanomyces, or “Brett” for short, that is normally viewed as a contaminant.  As the Orval beer I was drinking demonstrated, this “contaminant” can be used to add distinctive flavors to beer.  I sadly reported, however, that few breweries are courageous enough to take on the Brett challenge and that Orval is the last Trappist monastery that uses Brett in its the beer making process.

But tonight I selected a beer I have never tried from The Bruery, which is located right here in So Cal, in the City of Placentia.  Right there in black and white (actually more of a maroon and yellow), the label says it is made with brettanomyces and rye.  I feel like such a noob for not knowing a local brewery offered a Brett beer, but in my defense the label also says that it is offered only occasionally.  (Pretty brilliant actually.  When a vat gets contaminated with Brett, you bottle the stuff and call it a seasonal.)

But enough background; to the beer!  This is great stuff.  I am really becoming a fan of Brett if these two beers are illustrative.  The Brett provides a earthy taste that is unlike any beer you have likely tasted.  I didn’t like this Saison Rue as much as the Orval, but it is still very good in its own right, and the Orval is much more expensive.  You’d do well to give this one a try.  I give it an 89.

Cain F Straight Ligero (6 x 60)

I don’t often crave a specific cigar, but this one has been calling to me since I spotted it in my humidor.  It’s a dark, massive beauty, and the Ligero is the slowest burning part of the tobacco leaf, so I had to wait for sufficient time to devote to this stick.

Ligero refers to the leaves from the top section of the tobacco plant. Exposure to the sun creates a stronger, robust flavor, while producing an oily texture.  The Cain F (by Oliva) is made of three different Nicaraguan Ligeros, in a dark Nicaraguan wrapper.

The cigar presents with a perfect construction, with no soft spots and minimal veins and seams.  Upon lighting, it produces copious smoke with a strong spice/pepper and a slightly sweet taste.  Given the content, I anticipated some harshness, but it was very smooth.  Indeed, the strength can be deceiving, because the taste is medium in strength but it soon hits you right between the eyes.  By midpoint, the strength of the cigar is more evident. 

I was right about needing time for this monster; it was a two hour commitment.  But it was time well spent.  A very good cigar, earning it a 90 on The Morris Scale.

So the series just ended, and in the final episode Grace finally opens the box and finds that it contains Gurkha cigars.  Then in a final battle with evil, Grace is talking to some evil guy, who may or may not be the devil but who is responsible for the Oklahoma City bombing, and he comments that Gurkha cigars are the best you can get.

There you have it.  God smokes Gurkhas.  All I could think of is how much did Gurkha pay for that bit of product placement?  I think God could do better, but I did give the Gurkha Titan a 92 back in September of 2008, so I thought I would check to see if I still like them. 

Gurkha Titan 6.2” x 56

The Gurkha Titan is a 6.2 x 56 Honduran cigar with a Maduro wrapper.  The Titan debuted at the 2005 Retail Tobacco Dealers tradeshow, and with only 1,000 boxes made, it was only available to a small number of suppliers. The cigar begins with a combination of five year old Nicaraguan, Honduran, and Columbian fillers that are secured in a five year Nicaraguan binder. It is then finished with a dark 1996 Vintage Costa Rican wrapper.

The Gurkha Titan had a perfect burn and draw and yielded a long ash. Medium to strong the entire length, with lots of flavorful smoke tasting of spice.  The 92 I gave it last time was spot on; I still really like the Titan.  A very tasty smoke.

They run around $30 a stick individually from the discounters when you can find them.  CigarsDirect has them for $24 each in quantities of 16, which is $48 less than what Cigars.com charges for the same quantity.  I don’t like to commit to 16 of any cigar, so I watch for cigar bundle specials that include a Titan.  Cigars International recently offered a Gurkha “Top-Ten Sampler” for 30 bucks that included a Titan.  [Update:  On February 18, 2011, Cigars International was offering a combo called the "Gurkha Cigarnivore III" which includes three Titan cigars and 15 others for less than $70.  That's less than you'd pay for the three Titans alone most any other time.]

Old Scratch Amber Lager

I continue to be a real fan of the Flying Dog Brewery in Frederick, Maryland, and its Old Scratch Amber Lager did not disappoint.

Old Scratch pours deep golden amber with a large, off-white head.  The nose is interesting, with a smell of toasted malts; almost like oatmeal.  The taste is malt and citrus, with a hint of bread and caramel.  The mouthfeel is perfect for a lager, and not at all watery.  Outstanding drinkability.  It’s not my all time favorite from the Flying Dog Brewery, but it warrants a strong 90 on The Morris Scale.

Joya de Nicaragua Fuerte Serie B, Corona Gorda (5.0" x 46)

From what I read, Nicaragua is the fastest growing cigar manufacturing country in the world, and for good reason.  I’ve never met a Nicaraguan puro I didn’t like, and supposedly Joya de Nicaragua started it all.  This stick was no exception.  Many cigars start slow and turn into something special as you smoke, but a precious few invoke an immediate “oh yeah” from the first draw.  That was my reaction to this small, unassuming beauty.

The taste was strong with a mix of spice and leather, but without a hint of harshness.  The smoke was thick, voluminous and dark, as though to confirm the complex taste I was experiencing.  The construction and burn were perfect.  This is one great cigar, earning a 95 on The Morris Scale.

If you are interested, BestCigarPrices.com provides a detailed history of Joya de Nicaragua here.  But that site does not offer the Fuerte Serie B, which proved a little elusive.  The going price on the sites were I was able to find it was around $63 for a box of 20, which is a great price for such a quality cigar, but at the time I am writing this, Cigars International has them on sale for $40.  At $2 a stick, this may be the best cigar value I have ever found.

Orval Trappist Ale

You may not give much thought to the yeast used to make your beer, but it can make a huge difference in the taste.  If you have ever made your own beer, you may be familiar with a yeast called Brettanomyces, or “Brett” for short, that is normally viewed as a contaminant.  This yeast comes from wood, and can feed on wood, which can be a problem for breweries that ferment in casks.

But in the proper hands, Brett can be used to add distinctive flavors to beer, and is used in some sour beer styles.  If you want to experience a Brett beer (not in a sour style), Orval is the only Trappist monastery that uses Brett in its the beer making process.

The taste of the Orval Trappist Ale is amazing, especially if you take the time to really smell the beer before you take your first taste.  The aroma of Brett beer is sometimes described as damp wool.  The Orval smell is slightly citrus as well, but very distinctive, and totally belies what you are about to experience. 

This Belgium Trappist ale pours a golden brown with a frothy tan head so thick you could suspend a cherry on top if you were so inclined.  The wild Brett yeast brings an earthy taste, that is at the same time sweet, dry and citrusy.  The yeast taste was oddly reminiscent of the horrible yeasty beer I created during my first home brewing attempts, but in this case it is a perfectly balanced addition.

You need to experience this beer.  It’s a little pricey at $4.79 for an 11.2 ounce bottle, but this is a true experience.  Draft magazine rightfully rated this beer at 98.

Partagas Black Label Pronto (4 3/16″ x 36)

The impulsive purchase in question was a box of Partagas Black Label Prontos.  You need to understand that I don’t buy boxes of cigars.  There are just too many great cigars out there (and sitting in my humidors) for me to commit to an entire box of anything, no matter how much I might like it.  

But the demonic laugh sang from my computer, signaling the hourly deal from CigarMonster.com.  (I really need to sign them up as an advertiser if I’m going to keep pimping for them.)  It was a box of 25 small Partagas cigars for $49.99.

“No, you don’t need more cigars damn it,” I said to myself (I should probably talk to someone about these conversations.)

“But it would be nice to have some small cigars, for the many times I can’t commit to a two hour smoke.”

“No, it’s 50 bucks, man.”

“But that’s only $2 a stick.”

“Paypal or credit card?”

Famous Smoke Shop (the bastards behind CigarMonster.com) claims these are made exclusively for them, which I will take as true.  The small sticks are made from Nicaraguan and Piloto Cubano Ligero tobaccos capped in a black, and one of the oiliest Habano wrappers I have seen, but I say that in a good way.  I didn’t allow this to mellow in my humidor, smoking it the day after the box arrived, and for that reason I think it was a little too moist.  For that reason, the burn was a little ragged at first, and I had to relight a few times, but setting these minor issues aside, this was an amazing smoke.  I never would have anticipated the rich, spicy taste and copious smoke from such a small contender.  Equally surprising, despite my intention to use these as quick smokes, it took about 35 minutes to finish this cigar.

I’ll give the Partagas Black Label Pronto a 91 on The Morris Scale.  Put a few in your travel humidor for those times when you can’t commit to a Churchill.

Spezial Pilsner by Einhorn Beer Company

The Einhorn Beer Company claims to be a California Central Coast transplant of a German beer company.  If you examine the label on the beer, there is nothing to indicate this is a domestic beer (and notice the Spezial spelling).  The company wants you to think this is a German beer, and proudly proclaims that all of their beers are brewed according to the German Purity Law (Reinheitsgebot) which was established in 1516.  That’s a bizarre claim to make, when you think about it, because I can just imagine what constituted purity in the 1500s.  Mankind didn’t discover bacteria until the 1660s, and it took us another 200 years to figure out the link between germs and disease.  Oh yeah, I really want to drink beer that adheres to a Purity Law that was written before we knew what germs were.

But ignoring the hype, the Spezial Pilsner is a North German style, where pilsners are traditionally more bitter than in the rest of the country.  It is a full-bodied, golden-colored craft beer and has only 5% ABV.   It contains high-quality aroma hops from the Tettnang region in Germany, a small town near Lake Constance on the Austrian border.

The beer certainly pours like a German beer, with a huge foam head.  The nose was citrus, and the mouthfeel was thicker than you would expect from a pilsner.  The taste was grapefruit and very refreshing.  Great beer.  I give it another 91.