Blind Cigar Tasting

Normally I would never agree to this, but a classmate and fellow UT blawger offered me the challenge. A blind tasting of a cigar.

The reason I would never agree to this was because I’ve seen it blow up in other people’s faces. A few years ago, on a cigar BB that I frequent, a few guys were spouting off about how they were great cigars aficionados and how so many cigar smokers didn’t know what they were smoking and couldn’t tell a good one from a bad one. They claimed that people smoked expensive cigars only for their reputation. They then made the broad assumption that most smokers could not tell a Cuban from a non-Cuban cigar, an assumption that I share.

As typically happens once someone gets behind a keyboard, bold statements were made and three people were called out. A VERY knowledgeable member, one who’s credentials and reputation were unquestionable offered to send each of the three a pack of several cigars of varying quality and origin. They were all sent the same cigars and they were numbered and packaged by a third party. The three blowhards were then to taste the cigars and post brief reviews on the BB. The reviews were simply for fun, the challenge was simply to say whether the cigars were Cuban or not.

Needless to say the results were hilarious. I don’t think a singe one got more than 50% right. The one that got me the most was that two of the three agreed one cigar was Cuban when it was really a Travis Club Senator, a ~$1 machine made cigar that can be bought in almost any gas station in the country, and uh… not Cuban.

So, with this in my mind, I still accepted this challenge. I am not expected to guess the origin of the cigar or it’s brand, I am simply to post here my thoughts and opinion on the cigar. I have also warned the challenger that I will not be posting a Cigar Aficionado-type review. I planned on posting my response in this entry, but seeing how long-winded I’ve already made this, I’ll do it in my next post. (I’m still smoking it and gathering my thoughts).

By the way, I unknowingly accepted this challenge by two people, but the other doesn’t know about this blog and therefore has no expectation of publicly humiliating me.