Bullsh*t Reviews

[Cigar Penguin]

If you want to try it yourself some time, find a peaceful moment, and really focus on what you're tasting as you enjoy your cigar or wine. Let it curl around your tongue, and focus on the tastes, you might be surprised

Exactly!
This is when I can pick out flavors.Flavors as complex as the ones Moki described are flavors that sometimes and usually only appear for a split tenth of a second or quicker.A good complex cigar will have flavor memories and profiles change or be slightly different as the cigar burns down from first third to half down on to last third or nubbed.Very complex cigars will give off different flavor profiles on every puff comeing back to a past flavor maybe never returning the same flavor.

It IS very much like wine and I have to be in proper state of mind,body,and health generally,to have my pallette sensitive enough to taste and pick out variopus flavors with cigars,wine,beer,and liquor,even with complex food dishes.It's all about the flavors.You will find food,beer,wine,and condiments that compliment each other.Not saying you should smoke while eating...takeing a puff between chewing,sipping wine,and what-not but there are some cigar restraunts that offer big 7 course gourmet complex dishes that encourage a break between course to have a cigar that compliments the drink served which also compliments the meal you just ate.The dinner is very complex in that whoever arranges the meal,must take the time to think carefully from experiance and a great pallette what goes with what.Every course has a different 1/3rd of a glass of wine that compliments the meal's course beaing served.Try attending once in your life,its all about the flavors,not snobs.Very interesting.

I developed my pallette from various wine and food tasteing events and then when cigars became a regular for me,I understood how it worked on the pallette,sinus',and tastebuds in general.I was able to pick out flavor profiles more easily than others.

It is,for me,a must to be relaxed,thinking of nothing more than the cigar,the flavors,the way it burns,controlling my puffs and general smokeing technique to be able to pick out intricate flavor profiles.As said above,it doesnt mean the cigar tastes like cardimum or evergreen shrubs and acorn nuts,it just means these flavors are the first thing the mind recognises off the bat,instantly,for a split second while takeing your puff,swirl,slow exhale,etc etc.Then some cigars remind you of certain flavors quite different,sometimes,from the flavors one was reminded off during the initial puff,on the finish.The finish being the long time or short,depending how long between puffs you wait.Some cigars with a long finish enables one to sit and take your time between puffs to pick out different flavor profiles as the finish lasts on the pallette.Its quite fun to do this.
What non smokers and some smokers dont understand is,THIS is what makes cigar smokeing relaxing.The whole process,or ritual of the above mentioned plus your technique when smokeing cause one to be so relaxed in body,mind,and spirit that you will want to savor your cigar and do it after a strenuous day of work.

For myself,I dont always get to enjoy my cigars like this and I also dont always do the above with complex expensive smokes,or rare smokes.Same relaxing enjoyment ritual can be satisfingly had with cheaper cigars.

I also get different profiles when I smoke in a atmosphere like working or cutting the lawn while smokeing a churchill.I even get different flavor profiles with the same cigar if smoked in a very speedy social situation or working mode,or relaxed sitting down mode.Sometimes even weather will make one cigar taste different than how it was the day before.Humid days to dry days are perfect examples how the same cigar tastes different and can give off different flavor profiles.

If I lay around,on those rare days I am sick,or burnt out,I get raw pallette and absolutely no flavors at all...just raw tobacco,all cigars taste the same.I get the samething when sick or if I get a day where I am depressed and lagging around the house for the weekend.It happens.Usually a couple days of not smokeing helps.Or I go for a long hard bike ride,then a walk at the park for few hours with dogs on the trails then swim...something to get my blood flowing again and wake my ass up.Then the pallette comes back for me and flavors are shooting from my taste buds.

Sounds wierd but most never stop long enough in there fast pace world to try different smokeing techniques or be aware of diffewrent days.
One way to learn is keep a log.Log down the day,weather,how you feel,what ya did,what you are doing,how you are smokeing,what you are smokeing,the flavors etc etc you get the idea.Later,after a few weeks of doing this ya can read back and assess your smokeing technique and what not.Note the things that happend or new experiances that occured or if more flavors were present during what days and how your technique was that day.
After time,you wont need a log.


Ok,I am done ranting and raveing and blogging.
Hope some understand a tad more now or learned something.
Cigar smokeing is a ritual that relaxes one in all,mind,body,& spirit!


Enjoy!