Review - Perdomo Slow-Aged No. 826 Glorioso Maduro (toro)

According to the Cigars International page, "This complex blend results in a deliciously smooth, robust and vivacious flavor with creaminess and coffee-like notes".
They usually don't steer me wrong, but this time, unfortunately, they did in a big way.
The smoke DID light well..Nice and evenly, and burned and ashed nicely too, but that's about all the good stuff I can say about it.
It started out almost straight pepper! Now, I like strong and spicy cigars, but too many cigar manufacturers seem to think that "ton of pepper all by itself" = "spicy". Not so people!!  There are more spices on the rack; Or, at least, there ought to be.
As I had hoped, the full on pepper soon toned down several notches. Sadly, that's all that happened. It just became a decent, but pretty bland, strong cigar, and only that until a little over halfway through, when it just started to taste bad and I had to abandon it. No complexities, none of the promised flavours, no creaminess. I guess it was smooth, if, by "smooth", we mean blah. It wasn't harsh after the first 5 minutes or so. All in all, rather a disappointment and I won't be buying more of these! Luckily, it was in a sampler, so there was only one of them. I really expected more from Perdomo!

Oh well. That's what samplers are for... To sample. I'll hope for better luck next time.

A finished story (Finally!) and a sneak peek at photos

Hello again my dears,

Just a quick note to let you know that I seem to have overcome my terribly extended bout of writer's block, and the first thing I did was finish Jose's Introduction. I am absolutely certain that we will be seeing more of Jose, as well as the lovely Lady M. before too long.

Also, I've been spending an inordinate amount of time editing photos and web code, and the new pics are not up yet, but I will share a few of them here for the time being.

The handsome smoke slut in the photos with me is FireSeeker... And you will see why he is called that in due time. Suffice it to say that he is ready and more than willing to go to extreme lengths to serve my smoky and sadistic whims.

News, new photos, new ideas, new cigars!

Hello to all my friends and fans from the land of the lost!

I know I haven't been around in quite some time and I apologise. Life is busy and it is more and more difficult to arrange for good photo shoots with all the anti smoking legislation here in Washington state!

That said, I DO have lots of things to report!

First off - New photo and video sets!
I have some new pictures that I am editing and preparing to upload to the Smokey Kisses Website within the next couple of days.

Eight new very extreme sets will be posted in the Members Only adult section, featuring the hard core smoke slut, FireSeeker, and two of my lovely lady friends, in addition to myself.

I'll post a few shots from those sets in the regular gallery, just to give you a little peek, but most of them are too extreme for casual viewing!

I'll also be uploading a mini set that consists of stills taken from a recent smoke on cam, for those of you who missed the live feed.

I've found a couple of old filterless cigarette  videos as well, which I had forgotten about, and those are going up too.

New Site Features and repairs!
I'm working on revamping the inner workings of the site a bit, including a new contact page , remodelled Members Only section, and fixing lots of outdated code, so if you run across broken links or other strange glitches, please be sure to let me know, and be patient while I work out the bugs. I have recovered the missing videos from the main gallery, and those are already back up and ready to view.

Ideas
I may have mentioned this sometime in the past, but I've been thinking again about auctioning off some of my personal garments. Each item would come with photos of me wearing it as well, of course, so you will know they are the real deal, and not just some random clothing items. I'm not positive exactly how I will work the auctioning, or if I will just list a flat amount for each item yet. I'm definitely open to suggestions! 

New Cigars!
I arrived at my "second home" today to find a Royal Mail package, containing, not just "a few", as he said he was sending, but ten cigars and a very nice letter from one of my favourite gentlemen, Cibarboy, showing that he is, indeed, a truly devoted fan! There will definitely be a couple of photo sets dedicated to him going up in the not too distant future, and when they do, you will have him to thank for it!

Here is what was in the box (one each): 

• Don Corazza Special Edition by Brun Del Ré
• Padron Series - either a 2000 or a Delicias - The sizes are nearly identical and I'm not positive which it is without actually measuring.
• San Lotano by AJ Fernandez - a nice looking, box pressed robusto
• Cusano 59 Rare Cameroon - also robusto
• Kristoff Kristania Toro
• Oliva Serie O - I've had the V and G, both of which are QUITE to my liking! I bet this will be too.
• Macanudo 1968 Trompeta
• Daniel Marshall Red Label - "Scarface Edition" Robusto
• Paul Stulac Phantom (torpedo) - I've never heard of these, but am definitely curious.
• Alec Bradley Black Market - which happens to be one I have been especially wanting to try for a while now!
•  

I've read the reviews and/or descriptions on all of them, and am greatly looking forward to trying them all! Several of them smell so divine that it's hard to resist lighting them up right now, but I know they will be better after a nice rest from their long journey across the pond.

That's all for now folks.. Now it's time for me to get back to my website and photo editing.
Stay tuned!

~ Khaos

Review - Joya de Havana - Robusto - 2011.01.17

This is another stick made by Cuban Stock, formerly known as Crown David.

Well constructed. Dark, shiny, smooth wrapper - almost velvety in appearance. Delicately veined.
Very complex aroma, even before lighting.. earthy, dark, and something almost floral. The best way I was able to describe the scent at the time was with the remark, "It's kind of like composting flowers, but in a good way" I still can;t come up with anything better.

Light & cut method used.
Even, very easy light.

First puff was extremely smooth and subtle. It quickly grew bolder though, with quite the collection of strange flavours. Not bad.. Not at all! Just very different and difficult to describe.
Definitely the floral hints noted in the pre light smelling, and something like very strongly brewed black tea.
A bit of pepper - mostly felt at the back of the tongue/throat.
There was a mellow, earthy flavour that I couldn't quite place...

Very solid and well formed ash, unshakable at 2" and the veining clearly visible in the ash. Very light grey colour.


Still couldn't place that one flavour at halfway down - It seemed alkaline, and like it would be unpleasant if tasted alone or out of context, but in this cigar, was very good.

Great taste down to 2". Max ash 2.5".

Good smoke. I'll have to try another to decide if I want more of them.

Even burn throughout - NO unravelling or runs AT ALL - No tobacco bits in my mouth (yay!).
The construction on this baby was good and solid through and through.

7/10

Review - Cuban Stock Classic - Robusto - 2011.01.17

I've been meaning to try these out for a couple years now, but never could find them in a sampler or a five pack, and didn't want to buy an entire box, so I was pleased when they were one of the featured smokes at the most recent Tulalip Cigar Meetup this past Monday.

As has been my habit of late, when I remember, I used the "light and cut" method.

A pretty mild smoke to start out with. Nice, even, moderately easy light.

No flavours really stood out, but still a nice enough tasting cigar. Got a bit bolder as I smoked it, with more hints of spice toward the end.

Not a very solid ash - only about 1 inch max.

It did stay lit well, and the flavour was good all the way down to about the last 1.5 inches.

I was a bit disappointed in the filler, as I was constantly ending up having to spit out little pieces of tobacco throughout, and for that I took off a point.

All in all, a decent... Even good smoke, but I probably won't ever be buying a whole box, and will reserve these for a "breakfast cigar".

5/10

Review - Alec Bradly Tempus - 08.April.2010

This is the second Alec Bradly I've tried.
Superb construction and beautiful to look at.
Again, used the light & cut method.

HUGE punch for such a small stick!
Same "stealth" factor as with the Prensado, but I was prepared this time.
It didn't want to stay lit, but that could have been due to inattention on my part, as I was caught up in multiple conversations.
Slightly more distinctive flavours in this one than the Prensado... some woody accents and definitely more pepper, but not too much.
Great little smoke and seems like a perfect "go to" stick for when I've little time to devote to a smoke. Probably won't make it to my top 10 list, but that certainly doesn't speak ill of it!
It has to pretty much be 11+/10 to make my top list.
This one gets 8/10

Review -TTT Trinidad, Natural, Robusto - 06.April.2010

Tried the "light, then cut", method, introduced to me by my new smoking friend, Harlan. He was right about it! Great method. I think I'm a convert!
It made for a very mellow start... Even more than usual for this stick.
These are very mild to me, with just a hint of "bite" some of the time.

Fair amount of smoke.
Probably won't buy more of these, but will smoke if on hand.. Or maybe give them away to someone who prefers a milder smoke.
They aren't bad at all, just fairly unremarkable.

This one was only good about halfway down.

6/10

Review - Alec Bradly Prensado, Maduro, Box Pressed - 05.April.2010

I was introduced to this gem at the first Tulalip Cigar Meetup I attended, and it is a great smoke!

Beautifully constructed, firm and springy, smooth leaves, smelled great!

Nice light, despite some "lighter issues" that caused an uneven light. It quickly evened itself out without extra help until about 2/3 through, at which point it had some trouble staying lit. I had to relight it twice.

Cap didn't try to fall apart when chomped on, like many seem to, which is nice.

Bold and smooth from the first puff!
Not at all as spicy as I expected, but that was not a detractor.
Interestingly, there seemed to be no distinctive flavours.. or anything that really stood out, which would normally turn me off of a cigar, but it didn't. Truly an expert blend!

This cigar was deceptively strong! It seemed to taste milder as it progressed, but it packed a MAJOR punch! It hit me hard and damn near knocked me on my arse! I was pretty buzzed; That's for sure!

Definitely should have a good meal with plenty of red meat prior to smoking one of these.

Nice, firm, long ash. Medium to dark grey.

I smoked it down just a tad too far and the taste suffered for it. Should have stopped at right about 2", but went a bit past that.

Not my "perfect" cigar, but excellent, nonetheless.

8/10

Cigar meetups, photo shoots, new forum, and general musings.

Obviously, the planned photo shoot for January didn't happen. There were no donations whatsoever, so I will have to assume for now that there just isn't as much interest in new shoots as people keep telling me.
Then, there was not even one scheduled for March, cause I broke my back on March 7th and have been recuperating. The healing is coming along, and I have been able to get out a bit, as long as I am very careful, and have also been FINALLY able to start enjoying some good sticks more often as well!
So.. I'm probably going to make a tentative date for an April shoot. Again, dependent on donations.

I have discovered a couple of (kinda) local cigar meetups just recently, and am happy to be able to have a gathering place to smoke and chat and such with people of like mind again. Such has been very difficult to find around Seattle since I-901 passed several years ago. (Washington's "clean indoor air act"). Luckily, Tribal land is exempt from the law, so we still have at least SOME options!
I went to the first meetup at the Tulalip Casino on Monday, April 5th. It was great! Met several really cool people. It's a nice, laid back and friendly crowd. Amazingly, I WASN'T the only woman there!! And at least one of the other couple of women there was obviously a serious cigar smoker, like myself.. not just some groupie, so that was really cool.
Was introduced to a couple new (to me) cigars there from Alec Bradly. VERY impressed!! (Reviews forthcoming in later posts), in addition to coming away with a new Blue Rhino lighter and really nice cutter from Cuban Crafters. Cuban Crafters has a lifetime guarantee too, so if anything ever goes wrong with it, all I have to do is send it back to them and they'll replace it for free! ...Which is awesome. :D

The group meets at the Tulalip Casino on the 1st and 3rd Monday of each month, and I definitely plan on being there for as many of them as I can!

There is also a cigar night ever Tuesday night at the Snoqualmie Casino's Lit Cigar Lounge, which I have not yet been to, but am looking forward to checking out! It sounds very nice, from everything I have been told by people who have been there.

I might go tomorrow (well, technically, that would be today). We'll see.

I have created a new online forum for cigar enthusiasts in and around Seattle.

Here is the link: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PNWcigars

Review - Montecristo #2 Torpedo, Natural - 01.April.2010

This smoke is supposedly the "second most sought after non-Cuban cigar in the world", and "a full bodied cigar" so, naturally, I had high hopes.

It was difficult to get a good light, but, once lit, burned nicely and evenly.

It started out extremely mild... FAR more than the description let on. It did get better by almost midway through, but then quickly became arid and harsh to my tastes.

Thick, abundant smoke.
Firm, light grey ash.
"Good" (as in, maintained its taste without getting nasty - quotes cause I didn't like the taste to begin with) down to just under 2".


These are probably fine for those who like a milder cigar with a bit of a "punch", but not for me.
All in all, a big disappointment, especially after all the hype.

5/10