September 30, 2011 at Molly's

Last night the cigar club met sans its leader Fr. Farfaglia at Molly's, although he promises to join us after an absence of two weeks.  Unfortunately, a number of members backed out at the last minute, citing familial and other obligations, but we all know that the cigar club is never first on any man's list: family comes first.  There were, as it turned out, only four of us: Jorge, Victor, Alberto, and yours truly.  While the absence of any one member is felt as a defect to any meeting, there is the other side of the coin: less competition for the cigars.  The meeting was hosted by Victor Medina, and he brought some delightful Rocky Patels Autumn Collection 2008.  This cigar was superlative and smooth: there were no dissents about its marvelous quality.  This cigar is a three-year-aged blend of very small batch esoteric tobaccos all from the Dominican Republic, Honduras, and Nicaragua.  It is capped with a caramel colored Ecuadoran grown Connecticut Shade wrapper, which gives it a nice feel and a pleasant look. This is a medium not quite full-bodied smoke, but it bursts forth with a veritable delight of subtle flavors.  Kudos to Victor for his selection!  Our condolences to those who could not make it, but, worry not, we reserved a few (I mean a few) for the club's humidor whose location is a closely-guarded secret known only to initiates of the club.  We departed a bit from our recent Latin prejudices and had simple sandwiches and chips.  The chips actually tasted quite good when blended with the smoke of this cigar.

The conversation was good, but as the unwritten rule goes, nothing will be disclosed in the public annals of this club.  All conversation, unless agreed, is to be held in pectore.  One interesting story which I think we have permission to relate was Jorge's encounter with the "cigar-lady" in Havana, Cuba, whom he met outside of the authentic Bodeguita del Medio in Havana, and who through back his three dollars which he offered her when she demanded that she get paid for the courtesy of posing in one of his pictures.  (We happened to write about her in a prior posting: See "Some things don't go well together."  We all agreed that this woman acted against the punctilio of honor most sensitive, which is part of the cigar code, in treating one of our members so poorly.  

Victor's "are you finished" joke did not make it past the censors of the club.  Sorry, Victor.  Good joke, but too off-color.  If you want to know it, you must approach him personally.  It is a joke that is only told sub rosa, under-the-table so-to-speak.