A quiet night at work allowed for a non-yard gar experience. This time, I chose an Aurora 1495 series, one that I got with my powerhouse 16 sampler.

I settled in with a cup of fresh coffee, and performed my pre-light inspection. The natural wrapper beared a fair amount of veins, but not too much. The hardness of the cigar was consistent throughout and I could find no visual defects of any kind. After cutting and lighting, I noticed the draw was rather loose.

As for the taste, I decided that this cigar was decent and nothing jumped out at me as for flavor and early on, it seemed as though it lacked smoothness. The burn was even and the ash was very uniform. I had no trouble at all. This is a very well constructed cigar.

After an hour, I was finished with it. This cigar, in my opinion is better than a cheap-o yard gar, but not one I would run out and buy a box of. If the price was right, I might buy again. I’m scoring the Aurora 1945 series a B-

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The remnants of Hurricane Ike made it to my home Sunday, and the winds destroyed the neighborhood and left us without power for five days. I had nothing more than yard gars and warm beer during a week of cleanup. Tonight, after I put the canopy back on the Tasting Booth I settled down with a mug of Folgers coffee and a Man O War Cigar.

The natural wrapper appeared to be very well crafted with no obvious defects. I gave this beauty my typical pre-light squeeze test, and revealed that the cigar was not consistent in density. It felt a bit lumpy in areas. This lumpiness did not translate to problems as I found out.

After lighting and I began to enjoy this cigar, the flavor seemed a bit stronger than I was expecting (Not that it was a bad thing). The flavor was good, and I even made note that the aftertaste was pleasant. It didn’t carry a stale aftertaste at all.

The burn was even and required no touch ups or relights during the whole session, and I dumped it after about an hour. It was truly a good smoke. I must have inhaled too much because I felt a bit nauseated afterward, even while composing this review.

I’m giving this cigar a solid B+. It was a great cigar, but didn’t impress me enough to warrant an A.

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I was reading the September issue of Market Watch magazineand came across several items I found interesting and might be worth posting.

I saw an ad for Corona Light - in a can. Corona is known to go with a slice of lime, but in a can what are you supposed to do? I guess you can crack the can open, and shove it in but isn’t eye appeal part of the drinking experience? I can’t imagine Corona in a can.

I’ve seen a commercial for Budweiser’s new American Ale coming out. I haven’t tried it yet, nor have I seen it in the stores. There was an article introducing this beer. It sounds like a darker, hoppier version of the American Lager. Mr. Porch and I discussed this on a porch session earlier this week, and was also discussed in another article in the magazine. Over the last several years, the big brewers have been feeling the rise of the micro brews and I would expect for Budweiser to start rolling out more craft beers, maybe a Bud Pale Ale or a Bud Stout?

Warsteiner rolled out a light beer called Warsteiner Premium HiLight that is a Pilsner style lager that promises a refreshing taste with only 87 calories per bottle.

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This masterpiece from Arturo Fuente was provided compliments of CigarsDirect.com and has been waiting patiently in my humidor for about two months. Last night was the night.

Mr. Porch and I got off work late, then headed to his porch. We poured a cold beer, then both got down to “Cigar Work”.

After removing the cellophane, I took note about how well crafted this cigar was. It was solid, and had a chocolate colored wrapper. Inspecting this cigar revealed no defects worth noting, and had a consistent, firm feel throughout.

We cut and lit the cigars, and it was my experience that as the smoke progressed, the more flavorful it became. I was a bit surprised with the flavor. The dark colored wrapper gave the cigar a full flavored look, but flavor was actually medium bodied and smooth. I failed to mark the start/stop times but I would guess this lasted about an hour and a half. Mr. Porch and I were both impressed with this cigar and have yet to be let down by the Arturo Fuente brand.

I am looking forward to smoking more Arturo Fuente cigars in the future, and the 8-5-8 is one truly worthy of trying. I’m giving this one an “A-”. You can pick some of these up from our sponsor, CigarsDirect.com

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While at the Edgewood Cheerleaders Golf Outing, I was fortunate enough to win tickets to a Cincinnati Reds game. Last night my wife and I went to the game, and decided it would be a good time to try a new beer.

It was an evening game, and the air had begun to cool and the one beer at the concession stand I hadn’t tried yet was Tire Bite Golden Ale, brewed by the Flying Dog Brewery.

I had been hitting the salted peanuts pretty hard, and had a plate of nachos and jalepenos so my palate was not exactly clear.

The color of this beer was dark amber, and clear. I drank it slowly and enjoyed the taste. There was a hoppy aftertaste that I’ve been noticing with a lot of the micro brews I’ve tried of late. The beer was good, but nothing to write home about. I would buy it again but probably wouldn’t be my first choice.

I also should note, the image makes the beer look a little cloudy but it really isn’t That’s condensation from the cold beer in the warmer air. I’m giving this beer a B-.

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My father, who has become a big time Rolling Rock fan (and I’ve posted regarding this previously) decided he’s giving up his kegorator in exchange for a healthier workout regiment and diet. Fortunately for me, he unloaded the kegorator onto his third born son for a very fair price.

Included in the deal was the kegorator, the CO2 tank, and whatever was left of the Rolling Rock 1/2 barrel. I was thrilled, and it didn’t take me long to finish off what was left of the 1/2 barrel.

The next big question was what to replace the Rolling Rock with. Sure, I’ve grown to like the Rolling Rock somewhat, but I wanted something a little more. There are plenty of beers out there I like better. My initial thought was that I wanted to get Smithwick’s, but after looking into pricing, I decided that Smithwick’s and Sam Adams were a bit steep for my “Keg beer”.

After contemplating local distributors, gas prices and the price of beer I decided to go with Michelob Amber Bock. Mr. Porch joined me on my journey across town to pick up my new beverage of choice, and shortly after we tapped the new keg, we pulled one off and enjoyed a tall Amber Bock in the tasting booth with a 5 Vegas Shorty.

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