While many of my brethren are toiling away in Las Vegas at the PCA show, I’m hanging out here at home happily smoking cigars. I decided to free myself of the stress and expense of travel and some of the expectations set by others in the “cigar media”. Short rant: I’m irritated by some bloggers/podcasters who take themselves quite seriously. I’ve heard comments like people who use cell phones to shoot their content shouldn’t be taken seriously as cigar media, or people should cover certain booths. When I have attended the show it’s been on my time and at my expense, so I’m doing it my way. Do my video interviews look any different than those done by people using more expensive or professional looking rigs? Do people care that much? Whatever. From the beginning I said I was going to do things my way and I have. I recently thought to myself that maybe I’m being a sucker for not asking for sponsorship to go to the show, but, ya know, that would interfere with me doing things my way. So I’ll keep doing what I do, the way I want to do it. If you don’t like it, nobody is forcing you to read! That wasn’t as short a rant as I’d have liked, on to some cigars!
Of course on the Fourth of July I smoked a United Cigars Firecracker, the newest one from E.P. Carrillo, the Pledge Firecracker. This might be hard to find, but if you run across them anywhere, buy as many as you can 
manage. This might be a bold statement, but I think this is my favorite Firecracker to date. Considering some of the exceptional Firecrackers that have come before it, the Mi Querida (which is the only one to my knowledge that spun off it own line, the Triqui Traca) is exceptional, the CroMagnon was exceptional, the Fratello was an under-rated treat, but the Pledge takes it up a notch. It’s funny, because I don’t remember enjoying the regular Pledge line as much, perhaps whatever Ernesto did to punch this one up made the difference for me. The Connecticut Habano wrapper is dark and oily (what made me think it was grown in Massachusetts?), rich and full of flavor. It’s meaty and sweet and I really dug it. It’s my custom to buy five of the firecrackers, I should have sprung for a box, had I known. Super-yummy.
After a heavy lunch and a nap, I treated myself to an American by J.C. Newman. This was a special size, a Lonsdale, that Drew Newman handed out when I toured the factory last December. It’s not a regular production, I don’t think there were more than a few hundred in existence, so it was a special cigar. Of course, the American is 100% American tobaccos, rolled at the El Reloj factory in Tampa, everything that touches the cigar is made in the USA (except, ironically, the folks who roll them maybe!). This is a tasty cigar, it has a unique bready, spicy flavor that’s unlike any other cigar out there. It was a special cigar, in a special size. It was very good. I’ve only smoked a few of the Americans in the larger ring gauges, and the smaller size definitely makes a big difference, as in any smaller ring, it’s a little sharper because it burns a little hotter.
Finally, I’m still working through the Rebellion samples, and smoked the Ace of Spades in the Toro size. This is one of the Maduro offerings in the Rockstar Range, taking its name from the Motörhead song. The wrapper is Honduran, binder is Indonesian with fillers from Jamastran in Honduras and Condega and Jalapa in Nicaragua. My plan was to smoke this while watching a movie on the porch. Big mistake updating the Firestick first, which took nearly half the cigar. Oh well, I had a good tasting cigar to keep me company. This is a pretty full bodied smoke, as one would imagine a cigar named after a Motörhead some would be. It had some earthiness and spice and a different sort of sweet taste, very intriguing. This company is making cigars that aren’t like a lot of other cigars on the market. I hope they are having success at the PCA show, from what I’ve read, they seem to be drawing some attention with the pink branding.
That’s all for today, until the next time,
CigarCraig
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