StogieCast.com - on the 2000 Bloggers List

So as you probably know… per my last post that I have started a new cigar related blog.
I have some geeky news on that front.
Since it’s not really cigar related… I thought I’d post it here.

I put Stogiecast.com on the “2000 bloggers” list.
Which, if you can believe it, is a list of 2000 bloggers.

And it’s in there.
They have a cool little app that shows a picture for each of the 2000 sites.. but that takes to damn long to load so here’s a text version. :)

REMOVED… turns out this cool little project is a pretty bad idea from an SEO standpoint.



StogieCast.com - Cigar Blog

Hi folks…

Some news worth reporting for anyone that follows the cigar related posts here.

I have started a new blog specific to cigars.
It’s called “Stogie Cast” and you can find it at stogiecast.com

From now on I’ll be posting my cigar related posts there.
Occasionally I’ll post a link to one of them here.
Here’s the first such occasion.
This post is pretty interesting pertaining to a very high profile cigar company.
CAO Bought out?!

Cigar Aficionado is reporting that CAO cigars has been bought out!

For better or worse CAO is a very strong brand in the cigar world and I find this news a little discomforting.
Even if you’re not a fan of their cigars (I happen to be pretty big fan myself) you have to admit that the company’s hip marketing has elevated the industry to some degree.

People often talk about the cigar boon in the mid 1990s as a mixed blessing.
It brought new life to the industry, but also strained supplies.
Manufactures rushed to meet demand and thus quality of the cigars fell as tobacco was used before it would normally have been.
(or so goes the story)
Waves of “no name” brands entered the market… and were dead and gone by 1998.

Click HERE for the whole story…



The weekend at last!

 

 

 

Available Formats: [wmv] [mov]

** Note: **
Sorry folks- the audio on this one is pretty rough, so headphones in - volume up!
Happy Friday everyone.
Hope your weekend is as relaxing as this…Related Links:
Brew your own beer! , Camacho Liberty Amendment XII

 

Happy Friday everyone.Hope your weekend is as relaxing as this…



Rocky Patel Vintage 1992

Hello everyone… long time no Blog.

Sorry bout that.

Still spending a lot of time preparing for the upcoming Video Blogs!!

Yeah yeah I know we’re taking our time but we’re doing all we can to ensure these are easy to do.

That way we can keep doing them.

Anyway lets move on to more current things.

A new cigar shop has opened right in my neighborhood.

One one hand I LOVE IT!!!

It’s got an incredible selection and a very cozy lounge to smoke in.

On the other hand I’m upset.

My area of town has needed one for a long time.

Kevin and I have been talking about the perfect shop and location on-and-off for some time.

Now it looks like we may have a VERY capable shop right where we wanted to put ours. Sad

I’d hate to run them out of business… but what can you do?

(Kevin next time you are up I’ll have to show you.)

I had a STELLAR cigar from that shop the other night.

The weather has been so great that the other night I lit the Tiki Torches, sat on my deck after sun down and enjoyed a nice cigar.

The cigar was a Rocky Patel Vintage 1992.

A VERY nice smoke indeed.

“Vintage cigars” (or cigars wherein all the tobacco used is from the same year) are relatively rare. Making such a cigar obviously limits the production, as well as the variety of tobacco you can use to create the blend.

This particular cigar though got it right.

Rocky Patel founder of the “Indian Tabac” cigar company chose to put his name on this cigar, and I don’t blame him.

The cigar is BEAUTIFUL.

Dark, gorgeous, somewhat toothy wrapper, with a little bloom.

Constructed VERY VERY well, and smelled very nice.

The cigar is a very mellow, but medium bodied smoke.

As expected it started a bit mild and worked its way up.

It never got “hot” or overpowering.

It was consistently mellow, even as the cigars “power” amped up.

Very herbal in taste to my palette with a hint of woodsy… cedar like notes.

The ratio of which began to shift to the other side as the cigar neared it’s end.

Very well done.

It’s no wonder Cigar Aficionado Magazine gave this cigar an amazing 92 rating.

I can’t wait to try the Rocky Patel Sun Grown.

I hear it’s a real powerhouse.



Cheap Cappuccino

Well I’m generally not a coffee person.

As a caffeine addict (and probably the worst the western world has ever known) I try to keep an open mind for any form of caffeine delivery system.

But even though some of them have interesting and complex flavors coffees, for me, are always more trouble than they are worth.

Let’s look at the reasons why:

1) You have MAKE coffee.

Cola can be grabbed and instantly ingested. No waiting for that sweet sweet caffeine to hit. Who wants to work that hard anyway?

2) You have to wait for coffee to cool down.

I have NEVER burned my tongue so badly on cola that I had to stop drinking for any amount of time. Sadly this happens all the time with coffee because, as you can see with reason number 1, I can’t afford to wait around for caffeine to become ready for me. I need it now.

3) You get about 6.5 oz for the same price as 135 oz of Cola

It’s simple math here people. Visit any gas station soda fountain and the value proposition becomes clear.

4) You kind of have to LEARN to appreciate coffee.

Meanwhile a 3 year old can easily testify to the inherent yumminess of Cola based beverages.

I don’t mind acquired tastes. I’m a big fan of Cigars and Bourbons… but again this takes precious precious time with which I could just as easily be getting “my fix”.

All that’s why I’ve always taken my caffeine cold.

(save a period of my college years that involved coffee as a prime study aid)

Enter my new boss.

He’s constantly asking me if I would like to join him on a trip to the coffee machine.

While I appreciate the thought I’ve constantly explained the above rant to him in an effort to stop this temptation.

He apparently finds pleasure in asking because it hasn’t dissuaded him.

And his coffee always smells so good.

The other day was too much….

In mid sentence of our product road map meeting he stopped.

Smiled a bit sarcastically at me and said “Do you want to go get a cup of coffee?”

I knew he was expecting a re-hash of the 4 reasons coffee is a waste of my time and my addiction… but instead I said “Sure that’s a great idea.”

It’s a coffee vending machine.

You know, the kind that drops the cup and pours what ever selections you made into it.

The same kind I sat next too during those college years.

I hit “Cappuccino” and the machine obediently started whirling away.

Something familiar about that sound… that smell. I looked around a bit to make sure I wasn’t actually in the LAEB basement at Purdue, and my entire post-collegiate career was some Arabica induced dream.

It was wonderful.

This Low-Grade Cappuccino-ish drink hit me like a piping hot glass of DejaVu.

So here I sit one day later.

My tongue is so badly burned I sound like the lady from “Throw Momma from the Train, but I’m drinking the stuff anyway. I’m on my second cup.

(hey after you’ve burned all the nerves the temp doesn’t really matter anymore)

Hooked once again to the cubical workers Cappuccino.

At least I didn’t have to make it…



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