Casa Disappointment

The cigar of the year, 2008 that is, was the Casa Magna Colorado. First, I was a huge fan, not only of the cigar itself, but of the fact that the same cigars (specifically, the same manufacturers) weren't constantly winning. After all, this blog was partially born out of the disdain of constant accolades given to a certain 2 or 3 non-Cuban cigar makers, by Cigar Aficionado. Any reasonable person reading CA with any regularity knows what I'm talking about. More over, anyone picking up three consecutive copies might jump to the conclusion that the Padrons, the Fuentes and Pepin Garcia aren't capable of producing anything less than a masterpiece. Again, don't get me wrong, these are indeed some of the finest cigar makers out there. Add to that the heavy hitters of the boutique world like Rocky Patel, Litto Gomez, and Jesus Fuego, and you've got a fairly formidable group. What of the Davidoffs of the world? If I were to pick up any given Cigar Aficionado, and go strictly by rating, I'm not sure I'd ever try a Davidoff or an Avo, as they typically round out the bottom of the ratings.

But I digress; I have had the pleasure of smoking about a dozen Casa Magnas in the past 12 months. Typically I go for a robusto, but that isn't always the case. Wednesday, while enjoying cigars, cocktails and dinner at Churchill Bar with a good friend, I jumped into a Casa Magna robusto with fevered anticipation. I typically smoke fairly spicy cigars, usually Dominicans, so the rich and more subtle flavors of this Nicaraguan Puro was going to be a well deserved change. In fact, I had smoked a La Flor Dominicana Ligero earlier, and had almost second guessed my following it with less-spicy Casa Magna.

I know what a good Casa Magna is supposed to taste like. I know what qualities are going to flood my palate; leather, cocoa, cream and coffee. It's every bit possible that those flavors were there, but I wouldn't know. Not that night. Instead, I experienced one of my favorite verb descriptors for smoking this type of cigar; it was like sucking a golf ball through a garden hose! Think about it, and you've got the mental image. Fortunately for me, our waitress gifted me with one of my favorite cigars - a Camacho Diploma - and all was good with the world again.