50th Birthday Party! (weekend review 8/2 and 8/3)

My actual birthday isn't until Wednesday, August 6th, but Connie wanted to do something on the weekend before. She kept it very small, only inviting the kids and their dates, and Jim and Ginger. We also decided to have it on Sunday afternoon since that was the only time everyone could make it. More on the birthday party later, first the weekend cigar lineup and Saturday's reviews.

Cigars reviewed this weekend:

• CAO CX2 Toro
• Joya De Nicaragua Celebracion
• Griffin Maduro Piramides
• San Cristobal Punta
• Cohiba Esplendido

Saturday, August 2nd, 2008

Hot, hot day in the yard! I wanted to get it nice looking for our company coming over Sunday afternoon! Man, it was hot out there, though! The first cigar reviewed was the CAO CX2. I've had this cigar before but wanted to give it another shot.

CAO CX2 Toro (6x54)

This is a double cameroon cigar. I'm a huge fan of cameroon flavor and had high hopes for any cigar that is DOUBLE cameroon! At first, it has the typical caramel tones as well as some vanilla notes. Average abount of spice. Nice finish but not very long. I've had much better cameroon cigars. At halfway point the spice is very nice. Stayed pretty consistent. This is a decent cigar but way overpriced. Cigars International has them at $155 for a box of 20.

Score: 85

Joya De Nicaragua Celebracion Consul (4 1/2 x 52)

Nice spice. Caramel sweetness. Slight pepper notes. The finish is nice and long. Not as powerful as the Antono 1970 but this cigar had a great flavor! Medium bodied. Solid cigar-dense. This is a very nice cigar.

Score: 92

Griffin's maduro Piramides (5.5x52)

Very nice dark chocolate maduro flavor. Tons of spice. Long finish. Hints of pepper. Ash was not tight; one of the few drawbacks to this cigar. Very nice tasting cigar, though. Any maduro lover will love this cigar. Even burn.

Score: 93

Sunday, August 3rd, 2008

Birthday Celebration!

Everyone started arriving around 5:30. It was still pretty hot outside so we hung around inside. Jim and Ginger got there first. They gave me some nice presents. First, they brought the cake. It was "the cigar cake"! Jim had one for his birthday last year and they got me one this year! Notice in the pics below that the baker spent time detailing it.

Notice the "punch" in the cap:

The ash. Look closely...

See the red spots (fire)?

Those are red candies that sparkled to give the effect of a burning cigar.

After steaks (which I practically burned the house down cooking), it was time for cake:

Notice the cake, uh...I mean cigar getting shorter? It's burning!

Everyone gave me cigar related birthday presents. Jim and Ginger, along with the cake, gave me a very nice torch lighter with a built-in punch, and a Habano Nub! I have not tried the Nub's yet so this was a nice present!

Ty gave me 3 cigars he picked up while on his Florida trip (for his office). They were an Ashton VSG, Tatuaje, and a Litto Gomez.

A few pics of the family and friends:

Jim and Ginger:

The kids and their dates:

L-R, Jason, Chelsea, Ty, and Meghan

Connie made it in one pic!

My cigars I had during the party;

• San Cristobal Punta
• Cohiba Esplendido

San Cristobal Punta (5.5x52)

This is a torpedo shaped cigar. It was given to me by Melissa, aka Cigar Chic when she was in Charleston in January of this year. The first tastes you have when lighting this cigar are almond overtones with tons of spice! Nice, tight ash. Very consistent flavors throughout. This is a wonderfully spicey cigar! Very, very nice.

Score: 93

Cohiba Esplendido (7x47)

Probably the most counterfitted cigar in the world. This was the real deal, though. It had nice spice. Hints of pepper. Moderate amounts of earthiness and leather. Very nice cigar but also VERY expensive.

Score: 92

It was a very nice birthday! Happy Birthday to me!