I love this time of the year. The leaves haven't fallen yet, but the locusts have eaten all the Hack-berry leaves, so the trees seem to be as barren as autumn. The cool breeze started in the early morning, and now seems to have metastasized along with the rain to bring cool damp evenings, and refreshing dew. The barren summer was so dry, but remnants of dry soil have remained as the grass attempts to catch up with the Weesatche, Mesquite, and Parkinsonia bushes. It is such a relief after our long trek through the summer heat. Reminds me of dewberry pie, such an excellent rejoicing. Even the barnyard smells seems pleasant as the wind has died down. The coyote's howling was particularly strong in celebration. This is the season for a fine cigar - as relaxation, for dessert, or just for the sake of taste. The Winter can be so cold as to drive us indoors and the Summer so hot, but the cool of Autumn greatly exceeds the value of the joy of Spring.
I remembered an old song that always caught my fancy "Forever Autumn" and linked a youtube version.
Choosing a cigar to match this aromatic season - I chose the Sabroso Nicaraguan robusto..
It is a Nicaraguan puro with an EMS wrapper. Having been aged 10 years, it has an excellent hay and leathery barnyard flavor, it almost has a Dominican feel and taste. If I didn't know, then I would say it was a Dominican cigar. It was 4.75x50 in size, and well made. It lit and burned well. The flavor persisted throughout with many wonderful fall-like flavors and smells, including nutty and almond flavors. I would say it have a medium complex pleasantness. This was especially remarkable for a bundled cigar, especially at clearance prices. Nestor Plasencia is a cigar making wizard genius.
Via JR Cigars
"In sheer numbers, Swisher International is one of the two largest cigar producers in the World. Prior to, and during the “Cigar Boom” years, they also jumped into the premium cigar business in a big way through acquisitions and by opening their own factories.
However, their true expertise is in the Mass Market business with brands like Swisher, King Edward, and Blackstone. In partnership with Nestor Plasencia, one of the brands they made was Sabrosos – a 100% long filler handmade from Esteli, Nicaragua.
About six or seven years ago they decided to exit the premium segment and concentrate on what they knew best – high speed machine made cigars. However, they continued to sell their handmade cigars to liquidate the tremendous inventories that accumulated after the Cigar Boom years went Ka-Boom.
Last month we were made “an offer we couldn’t refuse” on these Sabroso bundles that have been stored under perfect conditions at their gigantic Jacksonville, Florida warehouse for damned near TEN years since the last Sabroso was rolled!"
This is an excellent cigar season, and an excellent smoke accentuates that.
Monday, September 28, 2009
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Roy P Benavidez - The Lindenau Ancient Warrior
Lindenau is almost a has-been place, with only a small Lutheran church and a "Rifle Club" dance and meeting hall. Its so flat along the Texas Gulf Coast, but Lindenau reminds me of the Austrian hills in "The Sound of Music". Gone are the train and the tracks, as well as the Post Office, the store, and the school. My neighbor was born there, and his childhood home in the center of Lindenau burned down more than 70 years ago. There is no hospital, so when one was born there it was by midwife or such. I hadn't met anyone else who was born there. Most babies today are born in Cuero Hospital 6 miles away. Some of the things that are still seen in Lindenau include Texas Horny Toads, Red foxes, Wolves, Coyotes, wild Turkeys, as well as Raccoons, Skunks, and Armadillos. Rarely a cougar has been seen. The animals far outnumber the people.
Searching for Lindenites, I ran into a name of a famous person born in the area -Roy P. Benavidez . There were several Elementary Schools in Houston named after him. Part of Highway 59 was also called the Roy P. Benavidez Highway (? or the George Bush / Lloyd Bentsen Highway). He served in Vietnam and was finally awarded the Medal of Honor for his valor by President Reagan in 1981. He was a daring warrior in the face of injury and incredibly difficult odds. He was born there - August 5, 1935 - of immigrant parents (Mexican and Yaqui Indian descent) and grew up in El Campo, Texas. He finally succumbed to the effects of Diabetes in 1998. [The Yaqui Indians have there own warrior history.]
"Roy enjoyed his life in the rural community of El Campo, Texas. Although he is physically gone from this earth, he left a lasting impression on countless individuals from all walks of life. His message continues to be echoed to our nation's youth who are the future leaders of America." - via Wikipedia
Benavidez died Nov. 28, 1998, in San Antonio, Texas. Three elementary schools in Texas, a park in Colorado and the naval ship USNS Benavidez have been all named in his honor. In 2001, the Texas legislature honored Benavidez with the Texas Legislative Medal of Honor, and the Hasbro toy company released the Roy P. Benavidez G.I. Joe action figure, the first G.I. Joe to portray a soldier of Hispanic heritage.
Seems like heroism today is in the movies, false accomplishments, and false successes. His story is one of true success and true valor. We know what he did and would do in the face of crisis and death.
The cigar I dedicate to this honored hero is the Gurkha Ancient Warrior robusto. It is a short dark and stubby little 41/2 x 50 stogie with a Brazilian wrapper, a Nicaraguan binder, and Dominican and Honduran filler. It is an attractive dark maduro or oscuro cigar with the Ancient Warrior having shed its maroon bands and opting for a more seemly one. The taste was slightly tart/sweet on the pre-light and lit well with pleasant smoke and good draw. The toasty/woody/cedary taste seemed to overtake the initial taste, and then mellowed to a moderate woody spiciness. The finish was medium to long.
May we all leave such a legacy!
Searching for Lindenites, I ran into a name of a famous person born in the area -Roy P. Benavidez . There were several Elementary Schools in Houston named after him. Part of Highway 59 was also called the Roy P. Benavidez Highway (? or the George Bush / Lloyd Bentsen Highway). He served in Vietnam and was finally awarded the Medal of Honor for his valor by President Reagan in 1981. He was a daring warrior in the face of injury and incredibly difficult odds. He was born there - August 5, 1935 - of immigrant parents (Mexican and Yaqui Indian descent) and grew up in El Campo, Texas. He finally succumbed to the effects of Diabetes in 1998. [The Yaqui Indians have there own warrior history.]
"Roy enjoyed his life in the rural community of El Campo, Texas. Although he is physically gone from this earth, he left a lasting impression on countless individuals from all walks of life. His message continues to be echoed to our nation's youth who are the future leaders of America." - via Wikipedia
Benavidez died Nov. 28, 1998, in San Antonio, Texas. Three elementary schools in Texas, a park in Colorado and the naval ship USNS Benavidez have been all named in his honor. In 2001, the Texas legislature honored Benavidez with the Texas Legislative Medal of Honor, and the Hasbro toy company released the Roy P. Benavidez G.I. Joe action figure, the first G.I. Joe to portray a soldier of Hispanic heritage.
Seems like heroism today is in the movies, false accomplishments, and false successes. His story is one of true success and true valor. We know what he did and would do in the face of crisis and death.
The cigar I dedicate to this honored hero is the Gurkha Ancient Warrior robusto. It is a short dark and stubby little 41/2 x 50 stogie with a Brazilian wrapper, a Nicaraguan binder, and Dominican and Honduran filler. It is an attractive dark maduro or oscuro cigar with the Ancient Warrior having shed its maroon bands and opting for a more seemly one. The taste was slightly tart/sweet on the pre-light and lit well with pleasant smoke and good draw. The toasty/woody/cedary taste seemed to overtake the initial taste, and then mellowed to a moderate woody spiciness. The finish was medium to long.
May we all leave such a legacy!
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Driving across Hell's Gate
Been Driving my yellow Jeep over Hell's Gate Bridge at the Guadalupe River bottom with the sun in my eyes and the windshield fogged while listening to The Swirling Eddies sing "God went Bowling". Love the Saturday morning calming coolness, except it was punctuated by shotguns opening dove season. Mornings are so calm.
The Texas Department of Corrections TDC has a unit near the bridge (The Stevenson Unit - built 1994), but I am not sure who named the bridge.
It's not the famous Hell Gate Bridge in NY, but the area has some notoriety.
Somebody in the August 1973, specifically named Jerry Lane Jurek [this link is via The Victoria Advocate], killed a 10 yo girl (Wendy Adams) there - after kidnapping her from a public swimming pool in Cuero. It is an appalling story, and very sad - I'm sure it stunned the town of Cuero and challenged everyone's view of the bridge. The young girl was a child of a local police officer. She had been seen screaming for help in Jurek's truck as it sped through Cuero, and that was witnessed by several people. He was arrested and tried and found guilty (Feb 1974 - the February 6, 1974 court story was in the paper at the time of the Patty Hearst kidnapping) - He was sentenced to death in the Electric Chair. I believe, based on the Supreme Court decision, that he was executed (but haven't been able to confirm that).
Aspects of the case even made it to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals in March 30, 1976 --- Decided: July 2, 1976. It made it to The US Supreme Court in 1976 with Justice Stevens and the US Supreme Court even remembering it in April 2008. This case was important enough to be referred to by the NY Times in 2008.
The Bridge was already named Hell's Gate before the murder- as Atty Gen John L. Hill noted in his memoirs related to this case.
This case was one of several landmark cases which reinstated the death penalty in Texas, and reversed a previous decision - after an 18 year hiatus - (in which The previous US Supreme Court had found the death penalty to be "cruel and unusual punishment")- based on the 8th Amendment.
The verdict of Jurek v. Texas confirmed that the death penalty could be invoked without the disruption of an individual's Eighth and Fourteenth Amendment rights. The most important consequence of this pertained to the amount of evidence presented to a jury. It was recognized that there was a significant difference between the death penalty and all other punishments--and therefore "a corresponding difference in the need for reliability in determining whether the death sentence is appropriately imposed in a particular case." This case maintained that the jury must be made aware of all relevant information concerning the defendant whose life is on the line; therefore all mitigating circumstances must be considered in capital-sentencing cases.
from -------http://law.jrank.org/pages/12838/Jurek-v-Texas.html#ixzz0Ra97CKU4
Such an incredible story, stumbled upon by accident.
I ordered some Villar y Villar natural robusto No. 5050 bundled cigars via JR cigars. They are Nicaraguan with a Ecuadoran Sumatra wrapper. They were sturdy and dense, with a pleasant aroma. It lit well, and burned with a thick pleasant smoke. I don't think specifics or a recommendation is appropriate give the historical tie - but I did stumble upon them by chance.
The Texas Department of Corrections TDC has a unit near the bridge (The Stevenson Unit - built 1994), but I am not sure who named the bridge.
It's not the famous Hell Gate Bridge in NY, but the area has some notoriety.
Somebody in the August 1973, specifically named Jerry Lane Jurek [this link is via The Victoria Advocate], killed a 10 yo girl (Wendy Adams) there - after kidnapping her from a public swimming pool in Cuero. It is an appalling story, and very sad - I'm sure it stunned the town of Cuero and challenged everyone's view of the bridge. The young girl was a child of a local police officer. She had been seen screaming for help in Jurek's truck as it sped through Cuero, and that was witnessed by several people. He was arrested and tried and found guilty (Feb 1974 - the February 6, 1974 court story was in the paper at the time of the Patty Hearst kidnapping) - He was sentenced to death in the Electric Chair. I believe, based on the Supreme Court decision, that he was executed (but haven't been able to confirm that).
Aspects of the case even made it to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals in March 30, 1976 --- Decided: July 2, 1976. It made it to The US Supreme Court in 1976 with Justice Stevens and the US Supreme Court even remembering it in April 2008. This case was important enough to be referred to by the NY Times in 2008.
The Bridge was already named Hell's Gate before the murder- as Atty Gen John L. Hill noted in his memoirs related to this case.
This case was one of several landmark cases which reinstated the death penalty in Texas, and reversed a previous decision - after an 18 year hiatus - (in which The previous US Supreme Court had found the death penalty to be "cruel and unusual punishment")- based on the 8th Amendment.
The verdict of Jurek v. Texas confirmed that the death penalty could be invoked without the disruption of an individual's Eighth and Fourteenth Amendment rights. The most important consequence of this pertained to the amount of evidence presented to a jury. It was recognized that there was a significant difference between the death penalty and all other punishments--and therefore "a corresponding difference in the need for reliability in determining whether the death sentence is appropriately imposed in a particular case." This case maintained that the jury must be made aware of all relevant information concerning the defendant whose life is on the line; therefore all mitigating circumstances must be considered in capital-sentencing cases.
from -------http://law.jrank.org/pages/12838/Jurek-v-Texas.html#ixzz0Ra97CKU4
Such an incredible story, stumbled upon by accident.
I ordered some Villar y Villar natural robusto No. 5050 bundled cigars via JR cigars. They are Nicaraguan with a Ecuadoran Sumatra wrapper. They were sturdy and dense, with a pleasant aroma. It lit well, and burned with a thick pleasant smoke. I don't think specifics or a recommendation is appropriate give the historical tie - but I did stumble upon them by chance.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Freedom's light
Freedom, such a wonderful taste of cool fresh air. Like a galloping horse freed for the first time to run unfettered. When the wind blows continuously on an otherwise stifling day or the smell of the first rain on steaming concrete. Fresh orange tree leaves in the spring giving such a pleasant aroma that one can even taste the Texas oranges without touching them. Joys of a smile by a toothless infant or stoic old codger. Jumping up and down without the fear of gravity. No fear in speaking around those who truly love you. Such incredible refreshment and mind boggling liberty, that frees us from oppression - imagined or otherwise. When countries are liberated we are likewise excited celebrating the uninhibited relief from oppressive Government. Here's a story of liberation and release that I haven't heard before:
The picnic that brought down the Berlin Wall
In one of history's hidden turning points, a gambit by Hungarian officials opened the door to the collapse of the Eastern Bloc.
By Michael Meyer
Finding a cigar to match freedoms light - is quite a difficult task. Finding a match to light a cigar is much easier. The cigar I would choose is the Saint Luis Rey Serie G Maduro in the churchill size. It is a beauty which provokes your nasal and visual senses, even before it is lit. I comes in a nice black wooden box with a sliding brown lid. The double red labels are pleasing as well. It is a tad spongy for the size, but mine had a very nice earthy woody odor with a fine plume. The taste was mildly sweet and tasted of mild coffee and woody mild spice. The cigar burned well and was quite a pleasant smoke for a late summer's evening while dreaming of autumns approaching cooling. Set my mind free.
The picnic that brought down the Berlin Wall
In one of history's hidden turning points, a gambit by Hungarian officials opened the door to the collapse of the Eastern Bloc.
By Michael Meyer
Finding a cigar to match freedoms light - is quite a difficult task. Finding a match to light a cigar is much easier. The cigar I would choose is the Saint Luis Rey Serie G Maduro in the churchill size. It is a beauty which provokes your nasal and visual senses, even before it is lit. I comes in a nice black wooden box with a sliding brown lid. The double red labels are pleasing as well. It is a tad spongy for the size, but mine had a very nice earthy woody odor with a fine plume. The taste was mildly sweet and tasted of mild coffee and woody mild spice. The cigar burned well and was quite a pleasant smoke for a late summer's evening while dreaming of autumns approaching cooling. Set my mind free.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Donkey bombs and the mark of The Beast
Life is indeed very short and often humor imitates life. I first thought this was about the things you almost step on in the pasture. I had to chuckle, especially with all the talk of CO2 emissions. Got to cut down on those, but I am not sure what they are going to do about it. Then there was the joke about methane...
You would have thought that this is the age of technology and computer craft. At least you would have imagined that roadside bombs, missiles, and unmanned drone aircraft would be the murderous vehicle of choice. Peta would be inflamed about eating cows and chickens, I wonder if they have a comment about the death of the beast of burden. Those wonderful equines that bay and holler and chase the coyotes away. The Palestinians have a knack for sending their mentally challenged and their children to die, but I haven't heard of them sending their donkeys. We hear all the fuss, but will they fuss when narco-enforcers and soldiers are killed? Do they value human life? Do any of them value the unborn child? What about the lives of those lost to cut the US cocaine supply, maybe even sparing some of our own lives lost here!
Colombian "Donkey Bombs" Kill Drug Crop Eradicators
By REUTERS Published: September 11, 2009
Reporting by Patrick Markey
How could I find a cigar to match this event. I had to dig deep, in an old Gurkha humidor, and I found a not-so-old wonder.I found a Gurkha Special Edition Beast. The Beast is a 6 1/2x 58 toro cedar wrapped with a dark oily 1996 Costa Rican Maduro wrapper, Nicaraguan binder, and Dominican/Honduran filler. In comes nicely dressed in an elegant double band.
My cigar was very oily and cut and lit well without complications. The burn was slow and sure as well. An initial smooth coffee mild spicy sweetness predominated after a nice barnyard aroma.There was a leathery sense to the taste at 1/2 way or so. There were cocoa hints as well. It had a long finish and was very smooth. I would say that this is one of the better stogies I have experienced, and would highly recommend it.
This is dedicated to the donkeys that lost their lives in this homicide method.
You would have thought that this is the age of technology and computer craft. At least you would have imagined that roadside bombs, missiles, and unmanned drone aircraft would be the murderous vehicle of choice. Peta would be inflamed about eating cows and chickens, I wonder if they have a comment about the death of the beast of burden. Those wonderful equines that bay and holler and chase the coyotes away. The Palestinians have a knack for sending their mentally challenged and their children to die, but I haven't heard of them sending their donkeys. We hear all the fuss, but will they fuss when narco-enforcers and soldiers are killed? Do they value human life? Do any of them value the unborn child? What about the lives of those lost to cut the US cocaine supply, maybe even sparing some of our own lives lost here!
Colombian "Donkey Bombs" Kill Drug Crop Eradicators
By REUTERS Published: September 11, 2009
Reporting by Patrick Markey
How could I find a cigar to match this event. I had to dig deep, in an old Gurkha humidor, and I found a not-so-old wonder.I found a Gurkha Special Edition Beast. The Beast is a 6 1/2x 58 toro cedar wrapped with a dark oily 1996 Costa Rican Maduro wrapper, Nicaraguan binder, and Dominican/Honduran filler. In comes nicely dressed in an elegant double band.
My cigar was very oily and cut and lit well without complications. The burn was slow and sure as well. An initial smooth coffee mild spicy sweetness predominated after a nice barnyard aroma.There was a leathery sense to the taste at 1/2 way or so. There were cocoa hints as well. It had a long finish and was very smooth. I would say that this is one of the better stogies I have experienced, and would highly recommend it.
This is dedicated to the donkeys that lost their lives in this homicide method.
Friday, September 11, 2009
nine eleven
Remembering 9/11 I am astounded by the lack of our convictions. Muslim terrorists, in the name of Allah, attacked. We pretend that they were just upset and not drawn by religious fervor. We decided that what they thought was ok, but what they did was wrong. We declared "The War on Terror". Terror didn't attack us, men did. I always felt that one couldn't fight a battle unless they knew their enemy. We don't know who our enemies are, though they know us well. They might as well have the advantage of invisibility, as we remain in denial. When Saddam and the Palestinians cheered 9/11, we sent the financial aid. We have set ourselves against our allies, loving our enemies (Saudi Arabia). Even George Bush had it wrong. He believed they needed Democracy. That's not what they needed. They needed The Bill of Rights. Freedom is what they needed. They needed protection from the democratic mobs. Scares me that we have not learned the real lesson of 9/11, so we are doomed to fight on blindly...
New York suffered loss at 9/11 of many EMS workers and fire fighters. I pray that those lost there, in the planes, and at The Pentagon were not lost in vain. May we be vigilant and see our enemy for who he is.
In remembrance of those brave emergency workers who gave their lives - I smoked a Martinez of New York Almirante 7x48 churchill. It had an EMS looking wrapper (European Market Selection) but was actually Ecuadoran Sumatra. Filler was Dominican, Nicaraguan, and Honduran with a Nicaraguan binder. The cigar was dense for a churchill, and had a rugged wrapper, with a pleasant aged odor. The taste was very woody, after an initial leather taste. It remained so until the last 1/3 when a slight peppery taste could be appreciated. It had a nice medium finish. The band and box were elegant, as was the cigar.
God Bless America
addendum:
great article by Ralph Peters in The New York Post
Betraying our dead
Forgetting the vows we made
amen
New York suffered loss at 9/11 of many EMS workers and fire fighters. I pray that those lost there, in the planes, and at The Pentagon were not lost in vain. May we be vigilant and see our enemy for who he is.
In remembrance of those brave emergency workers who gave their lives - I smoked a Martinez of New York Almirante 7x48 churchill. It had an EMS looking wrapper (European Market Selection) but was actually Ecuadoran Sumatra. Filler was Dominican, Nicaraguan, and Honduran with a Nicaraguan binder. The cigar was dense for a churchill, and had a rugged wrapper, with a pleasant aged odor. The taste was very woody, after an initial leather taste. It remained so until the last 1/3 when a slight peppery taste could be appreciated. It had a nice medium finish. The band and box were elegant, as was the cigar.
God Bless America
addendum:
great article by Ralph Peters in The New York Post
Betraying our dead
Forgetting the vows we made
amen
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Goodbye
Couldn't resist saying goodbye, but I thought they did that weeks ago. Another Pop King dead - he happens to share my first name-, some kind of anesthetic overdosing? Somebody reported him already being seen getting out of a van. Now they are burying him. I miss the innocent little guy who stole the show, but all of our innocence must fade as we hug Father Time. Sooner or later Elvis will age and die... even if he really did survive. Our dreams have been bleached, scarred, and surgically modified to meet our consumer expectations. Its good to say goodbye to the tabloid trash. The truth... only God knows that. Sometimes its good to finally put him in the ground.
All are like actors on a stage, some have one part and some another, death is still busy amongst us; here drops one of the players, we bury him with and to our scene again then falls another, yea all, one after another, till death be left upon the stage.Death is that damp which puts out all the dim lights of vanity.Yet man is easier to believe that all the world shall die, than to suspect himself.
Thomas Adams
Picking a cigar for the event seems to lead us to celebrate the innocent part of his life or the sadness of his death, or the loss of another man-demon. In it all we do not know, but suspect a grave problem affected him. We can all mourn for that. We mourn his depravity and deterioration. When considered all this brings us to our own mortality. That leads us to the "better to smoke now, than in the hereafter" statement that lines the blog.
Several years ago I purchased some Five Star Dominican cigars in boxes of 50 on clearance from JR cigars. Over the years they have aged, and have acquired some pleasant nuances. The specific one I dedicate for this event is the toro maduro. The wrapper is a dark black maduro, and was very well rolled, with the veins being small. It was a CBLM. As I smoked it, it started off well, and lit and burned well. But then, halfway through it started to tunnel. Needless-to-say it became unsmokable, and I had to discard it. The taste was good, with a medium finish. It had a slight woody and hay/barnyard taste. Too bad we couldn't enjoy the whole thing...
All are like actors on a stage, some have one part and some another, death is still busy amongst us; here drops one of the players, we bury him with and to our scene again then falls another, yea all, one after another, till death be left upon the stage.Death is that damp which puts out all the dim lights of vanity.Yet man is easier to believe that all the world shall die, than to suspect himself.
Thomas Adams
Picking a cigar for the event seems to lead us to celebrate the innocent part of his life or the sadness of his death, or the loss of another man-demon. In it all we do not know, but suspect a grave problem affected him. We can all mourn for that. We mourn his depravity and deterioration. When considered all this brings us to our own mortality. That leads us to the "better to smoke now, than in the hereafter" statement that lines the blog.
Several years ago I purchased some Five Star Dominican cigars in boxes of 50 on clearance from JR cigars. Over the years they have aged, and have acquired some pleasant nuances. The specific one I dedicate for this event is the toro maduro. The wrapper is a dark black maduro, and was very well rolled, with the veins being small. It was a CBLM. As I smoked it, it started off well, and lit and burned well. But then, halfway through it started to tunnel. Needless-to-say it became unsmokable, and I had to discard it. The taste was good, with a medium finish. It had a slight woody and hay/barnyard taste. Too bad we couldn't enjoy the whole thing...
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