Perdomo event, weekend review; 3/19-21, 2010

Jeff Godfrey of Perdomo Cigars was on hand Friday night promoting the new Grand Cru and Patriarch line of cigars. I have found these cigars to be very flavorful and have previously reviewed several of them, all receiving high marks!
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"Captain" Grier Mangum* was on hand with his faithful sidekick, Casey, to assist with all cigar purchases! By the way, Casey is a beer-ologist! You have a beer question? Just ask Casey!
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* Grier is not really a superhero, he just plays one on TV!
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Here Jeff helps a customer.

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Jeff and I at the front counter.

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Jordan and Mark

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Before I go any further I must announce that...
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THE TOBACCO MERCHANT NOW HAS 2 NEW SMOKE-EATERS!
A NEW ONE UPFRONT AND A NEW ONE IN THE BACK SITTING ROOM!
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This is very welcome news and everyone who has been asking for a smoke-eater in the back sitting room now has one! It works great too! I personally put it through a test Friday night! : )
Here it is!
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It is in the center of the ceiling. You can see it as soon as you walk in.
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The bar was hopping, as usual!

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Darryl Smalls, aka "da lawya"

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Mark relaxes in the backroom.

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Mr. Bob was on hand!

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Thomas!

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And of course, there was a Twig sighting!

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Now, on to the weekend reviews.
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I am reviewing 2 cigars this weekend, neither of which blew me away but both were good cigars.
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• H. Upmann Cabinet Seleccion robusto
• Gran H abano 3 Siglos churchill

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Saturday, March 20th 2010

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H. Upmann Cabinet Seleccion (5x52)

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A Connecticut wrapper. The filler and binder are Nicaraguan, which explains why I liked this cigar. Very dense feeling. The spice was a mix of citrus and vanilla notes. There was a decent amount of pepper. The finish had fairly sweet vanilla custard notes. (yes, really) I'd put this cigar at medium bodied. There were hints of almonds on the finish. Good cigar, not overpowering but good medium bodied flavor.

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Score: 88

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Sunday, March 21, 2010

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Gran Habano 3 Siglos churchill (7x50)

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Rich, vanilla/cinnamon spice with good pepper. All Gran Habano cigars that I've tried have a floral cinnamon spice and this one is no exception but it also has a richness that works well! The finish is long with raw almond notes. Very flavorful. Full bodied. After 1/3 the cigar settled into a rich cinnamon spice. The pepper is very balanced and not overpowering. I have a feeling this cigar would be better in a robusto size. Still, a good cigar as a churchill.

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Score: 89.

Finally, I want to pay tribute to a cigar friend that we lost this week. Chuck Vaughan-Lloyd passed away on Wednesday night of last week. He had just attended a cigar event with Charlie Ruffalo on Monday night. I got to meet Chuck on New Year's Day at Charlie's house in Rock Hill. Chuck was a very nice guy who was a true cigar-guy. Rest in peace, Chuck.