I had a wonderful cigar on Saturday. My friend came over. I served cappuccino and salads (Avatini). An Avatini is a dry shaken gin or vodka martini with avocado and olives for garnishment. The avocado is bland and creamy, the olives are a little astringent and strong, the martini is alcohol and sweet. The flavors together are very nice. The cappuccino was normal. I learned to make it in Italy. I have Gaggia machine. The trick is to properly froth the milk--that is a real skill. The other point is good pressure based espresso. A Gaggia cappuccino maker is the one I recommend. I've used many different types, but this makes the best consistent cappuccino and is well automated (it grinds the beans for each cup). I make cappuccino in mugs and put in 1.5 shots of espresso for each.
The preliminaries were complete with the cappuccino and Avatinis. They were the setting for the cigars. The cigars were Diamond Crown Churchills--a very large cigar. I got them in a humidor package at the September Fuentes event. The Fuentes event is a cigar charity event put on by the Cigar Chateau locally. The Fuentes Family Charity is the beneficiary of the event. I have gone to every Fuentes Event since they started. The second largest (as I understand it) is in Wichita, Kansas. The event has been at Flint Hills for the last few years. An auction is one of the main parts of the event, but cigars, great drink, and good food are all supplied. I'll write about it when it comes up next September.
At this event, I won the auction of a beautiful red enameled table top humidor (I didn't need one, I have two floor standing humidors with automatic humidity controls in them). I wanted the contents of the humidor. It had over 20 great cigars in pairs, a large box of Coco Dolche chocolates, a scissors cigar cutter, a cigar lighter, and a bunch of gift certificates to local restaurants. It was a great deal. The Diamond Crown Churchills came in the humidor.
I usually smoke Partagas number 10s, but I like to try something new and the Diamond Crowns are a great cigar. They smoked very well. I like to punch a cigar, and I have an extra large punch (about 3/8 inch). That was the right size for this cigar. I use wooden matches to light my cigars. I lite it until I get a red glow and then take the first triple puff. My Diamond Crown started a little uneven, but quickly corrected itself. I didn't have to light it again once it started. It matched the cauppachino well and the Avatini nicely. The cigar was a long smoke, so I ran out of drink before the cigar was done. It lasted about 2.5 hours.
The taste was gentle spice with a typical Cohiba aroma. That is a warm leather and silk. It wasn't really similar to a Partagas. The cigar burned nicely and only got a little stronger at the end. Otherwise it was very consistent in burn and flavor.
My wife didn't like the aroma it left in my mouth. She usually can handle the Partagas, but she thought the after smell of the Diamond Crown was strong. It didn't particularly leave a strong flavor and dissipated in an evening.
Overall rating was that I liked it and it was a great cigar for conversation.
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