Greetings from my outpost in Hamburg :-)

Greetings from my outpost in Hamburg πŸ™‚

 

My La Casa del Habano has to be one of the finest cigar friendly places in the world….OK I know I am biased:-) but with our enormous walk in humidor and splendid cigar lounge serving the best Cuban coffee and some excellent wine who could ask for more? It’s always a pleasure to welcome friends from Hamburg and overseas to herf with us at LCDH Hamburg:-)

 

Sifting through the cigars ( and testing them for quality of course) I have put together some mouth watering combo offers for C.Gars Ltd overseas clients.

 

As ever whilst stocks last so please don’t delay as these won’t stay around for too long!

 

Shipping by next day courier service anywhere in the world outside the EU…..N.America no problem!

 

COMBO DEALS AT BLOWOUT PRICES !

 

-Ramon Allones specially selected box of 25 POS NOV 06 colorado maduro golden brown wrappers and La Gloria Cubana Tainos box of 10 POS Mar 07 with gorgeous chocolate brown wrappers 35 cigars in total shipped overnight at just Β£229

 

-Romeo untubed churchills box of 25 TMO SEP 06 dark wrapper leaf and an intoxicating pre light bouquet and H Upmann Majestics ( hand made/good daytime smoke) box of 25 ROA MAY 07…50 cigars in total shipped overnight at just Β£229

 

-Partagas SD no.4 box of 25 dark oily colorado maduro wrapper TBS ABR 07 and Flor De Cano petit coronas ( hand made/cedar wrap) box of 25 EMA AGO 07 50 cigars in total shipped overnight at just Β£219

 

-Cohiba piramides limited edition maduro box of 10 POS NOV 06 silky smooth maduro wrapper and 2 year aged wrapper and Romeo Short Churchills box of 10  SOA JUN 07 (currently my favourite robusto) 20 cigars in total shipped overnight at just Β£259

 

Guaranteed finest quality Havanas money can buy,supplied by the official importers only.

 

Overnight shipping free of charge and always”intact”…in original boxes with bands on,guaranteed for safe delivery anywhere in the world ( outside EU)

 

Order today and you’ll be smoking them before the weekend:-)

 

OK …I’m off to smoke another Romeo untubed churchill to check if the blend is as good as the last one….could be a long day πŸ™‚

 

Peaceful puffing

 

 

Mitchell

 

The Lanesborough Hotel

In my continuing quest to find perfect spots for herfing in London I can happily confirm that the Lanesborough Hotel is now highly recommended:-)

 


 

I met the F&B manager in Havana a few years back when Hunters and Frankau were kind enough to take us both to the Festival for a week and Ajaz and I got on famously.

 

Ajaz mentioned that I should stop by and checkout the new smoking area which I can confirm is quite delightful,with comfortable furniture,enormous canopy umbrellas and enough heaters to keep the cold out. The service was also very impressive.

 

The Lanesborogh has an excellent selection of Havana cigars and I even spotted some dark and oily Davidoff Dom Perignon in the humidor!

 

I took a few clients there last night and we paired up a Merlot from Chile with some Diplomaticos no.2…..heavenly combo πŸ™‚

 

Peaceful puffing

 

 

Mitchell

Boisdale of Bishopsgate

One of my regular cigar friendly hang outs has for many years been Boisdale of Bishopsgate.

 

Great food,wine list and service and pre smoking ban….very cigar friendly.

 

Perfect for meeting clients in the City but what now with the smoking ban? well it may not be as good as before the ban but Boisdale have very cleverly created a small outdoor smoking area. Complete with awning ( to stay dry) and heaters. Not as comfortable at the fabulous smoking terrace at the Belgravia Boisdale but nonetheless a great place to have a smoke and very highly recommended.

 


 

I met with clients at Boisdale yesterday and enjoyed a couple of Hoyo Piramides (limited edition) which had matured into a splendid smoking experience.

 

Needless to say the smoking area was very busy indeed.

 

Hunters and Frankau advise that there are over 400 locations for outdoor smoking already with more springing up all the time.Email me if you would like the list

 

Peaceful puffing:-)

 

Mitchell

Zurich herfing :-)

I was invited to the offices and warehouse of Fifth Avenue Importers in Germany and was quite amazed and impressed by the scale of the operation.

 

Fifth Avenue are the official Habanos importer and distributor for Germany (same as Hunters and Frankau are in the UK)

 

The operation is different  to the UK as only 10% of the Havana’s are quality checked ( the other 90% are quality checked in my Hamburg store!) but they have to attach the tax labels to each box which looked to be quite laborious task. In the UK Hunters and Frankau check 100% of the Havanas for quality control.

 

The quality of Havanas generally in Germany is first rate and I am not certain whether this is indicative of quality in General for Havanas in Europe or if Habanos S.A. select certain cigars for this market as I believe they do for the UK market.

 

It’s quite intoxicating being surrounded by more Havanas than I have ever seen in my life …and very pleasant! I was hoping they would just close the doors and forget about me…for a few years πŸ™‚ I could have herfed my way through quite a bit of the inventory!

 

We enjoyed Siglo VI and Edmundos with some schnapps at a local restaurant which my colleague Cristobal tried to persuade me was good for the health…who am I to argue ?!

 

Thanks to Fifth Avenue for such kind hospitality,they really are a pleasure to work with.

 

I headed back to Zurich airport and have to say I have never found a more smoker friendly airport anywhere in the world ! I must have counted at leas 4 dedicated and comfortable smokers lounges. No one batted an eyelid when I lit up my Partagas P2 πŸ™‚ How terribly politically incorrect in the current anti smoking climate….splendid πŸ™‚

 

The airport has a delightful Davidoff shop ( they are always my favourite cigars shops) with an excellent range of Havanas in the walk in humidor.

 

I was stopped at security as they spotted my herf cutter and lighter but the officer was polite beyond belief and when I explained I was a cigar merchant was happy to allow me through with said items…..Somehow I can’t imagine getting the same polite treatment in the UK but I could be wrong πŸ˜‰

 

It’s been a good day…started off with a Por Larranaga Magnificos….. and continued with another 3… it really doesn’t get much better πŸ™‚ …now if only I could be patient and leave these cigars alone for another year or two:-)

 

Peaceful puffing

 

Mitchell

Por Larranaga Magnifico

The cigar that has impressed me more than any in the last year has to be the Por Larranaga Magnificos.

 

It’s unique in so many ways and you may have well read the full story already http://www.cgarsltd.co.uk/document.php?id=porlarranagamagnifico.htm

 

The size for me at least, is quite perfect,as is the appearance,construction and most important the blend.

 

The blend reminds me of Davidoff Dom Perignon  in the 1980’s but with perhaps just a little more oooomph!

 

The slide lid cabinets are simple but the bands are elegant beyond compare.

 

I have smoked quite a few of these delightful cigars but decided to do a full days taste testing yesterday which started at around 10 in the morning and ended around midnight. I tested 6 cigars from 6 different boxes to see how consistent the blend was ( all in a days work of course!) and can very happily ( if not smokily!) confirm that each cigars blending was absolutely identical….incredible consistency and each cigar had a perfect draw.

 

These cigars are young and if I would have a criticism it is that they are fresh and will improve tremendously with time and patience.They will need another year in the humidor to really show their complexity but the balance is good and I believe this will become one of the greatest Havanas of all times.

 

1400 odd boxes made only which is a tiny production and I am guessing they are more or less sold out in the UK. already.I certainly can’t remember the last time a limited edition was made exclusively for the UK market so my experience of the vintage cigar market suggests that this could become one hell of a collectible cigar ….rather fast πŸ™‚

 

In fact the Por Larranaga Magnum which this cigar was modelled on is one of the most collectible and valuable Havanas in the world.It would not surprise me if the Magnificos goes the same way.

 

Now if I could just stay away from smoking any more for a year or more…………..:-)

 

Peaceful puffing from rainy London.

 

MItchell