a Supremely well-Chosen cigar

This one will give your pinkies a rise.

Last Sunday afternoon, i was taken... by The Mood.

I had just gone all out following the cooking muse and satisfying the very specific desires of my stomach, and successfully so, i am pleased to say... when i thought i might follow this up with another perfect conjunction of the mind's eye meeting the taste buds' soul to the heart's content. Cigar time.

Following up a tangy mustard dish ... il n'y a que Maille qui m'aille!... required some kind of zesty puro. A Diplomaticos #4 might do if i still had one... but then again it was a bit small for such a nice day and a bit too dry a smoke... i wanted something soft and creamy as well ... Finally, i settled on a El Rey del Mundo Choix Supreme, with some hope and plenty of fear and trembling. Hope - as the first singles we had almost 2 years ago were delicious; fear - as the last time i had one from this new box of 2009 vintage it had "gone to sleep", tasting dull and sickly.        

This was one of those rare occasions where the stars align. The wrapper had a lovely sheen, and a light shade of colorado. I had long been suspicious of this as my stellar '07 singles had a much lighter, thinner wrapper, and the sickly smoke episode made me question whether the '09s darker wrapper leaf was taking away from the quirky Choix Supreme blend of filler. Oh Me of Little Faith. Straight from the get go i was greeted by the tangy citrus that i had often pined for, but never encountered in any cigar since that first one almost two years ago. To my even greater astonishment, it was preceded on the palate by a buttery mouthfeel that i had wished for that very afternoon, but never experienced in a Choix Supreme. I think that this is the contribution of the nicely oiled up wrapper leaf .This was a midwinter's afternoon dream come true.

The smoke flowed freely, but not loosely, from this perfectly constructed beast, and every mouthful was a layer of buttery silkiness with a hint of sauted mushroom, followed by a powerful cedar kick unleashing the tang of citrus - zest, flesh and aroma of a well-ripened lemon - finished off with an edge of white pepper. Simply divine. It did not change all of the way through, and i was glad of it.

My cigar experience of the year so far. If you haven't smoked yours yet, wait for a time when these sorts of flavours appeal... it is not strong, so perhaps after lunch on a sunny afternoon... and for heaven's sake, don't spoil it by eating a vindaloo beforehand, or by smoking it with a peaty whisky, or a red grape based drink. Get something light and pinky-raising made from white grape like a dessert wine, muscat, or martini bianco. You won't regret it.