Cigar of the Month Club: #1

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

Have you ever wondered if the monthly cigar clubs are worth it? Well I have too, until now. I just received my first shipment with six cigars and I’m very pleased with this month’s haul.

A Cigar of the Month Club is a monthly service where a cigar retailer will automatically send you five or six different cigars. Though prices and available cigars differ by platform, monthly clubs generally cost about $25 a month.

Last week I was starting to run low in my humidor. I don’t smoke often, especially in the winter, but as the weather gets warmer, so too does my desire to relax outside. As of today I have one cigar left (out of an original five) that I was given for my birthday in 2016.

The timing couldn’t be better!

Let’s dig into the box from JR Cigars, and I’ll tell you what they gave me.

April’s Cigars

Okay, the shipment took a couple of days. They arrived more quickly than I had expected especially considering the current pandemic we are having with the COVID-19 outbreak. I’m sure we’ll look back on this virus like we already do with Ebola, the Bird Flu, and even the Spanish Influenza.

But, I digress.

The cigars came in a brown box with plastic bags of air cushioning the cigars. There was a black coupon card inviting me to buy wine at nakedwines.com and a flyer telling me how to buy gold coins! I’m sure this is something that I’ll be getting with every shipment.  We’ll see.

In the Box

Here are the five cigars that I got this month:

• Oscar Maduro - 2012, Torpedo 6.5 x 52
• Romeo y Julieta - 1875, Bully 5 x 50
• Hirochi Robaina - 1845, Toro 6 x 52
• Drew Estate - Herrera Esteli, Box Pressed 6.5 x 44
• La Gloria Cubana - Esteli, Robusto 4.5 x 52

Might i say, they all smell delicious. What is it that makes the smell of a cigar so intoxicating? I for one don’t know, but I’m not complaining either.

I’ve smoked a couple of these before, the Romeo y Julieta and La Gloria Cubana. They are both good cigars, and I see them often at golf courses. So, I’ll save those for golf this season.

The others will be smoked in my usual spot on my back deck at sunset with a glass of whiskey in my hand. I’m looking forward to it and I’ll write more about all of them in future posts.

Bonus Cigar

When I joined the Cigar of the Month club, I also decided to become a member with JR Cigars. According to their website and a couple of forums I visited, if you are a member you get free shipping on future orders, and you get a BONUS cigar every month!

Well, the bonus cigar sold me, and I decided to give it a try.

This month, I actually received TWO bonus cigars.  Go figure. Either someone screwed up in packaging or they were welcoming me to the club.

Thanks JR Cigars!

Here are the two BONUS Cigars they sent me:

• George Rico - Black Dahlia, Corona Gorda 5.63 x 46
• Esteban Carreras - Chupacabra Hellcat, Toro Grande 6.5 x 54

The Chupacabra Hellcat has got a wicked name and the Black Dahlia isn’t a cheap cigar by any means. JR is selling a box of 20 of them now for $146.

However, that wasn’t the most expensive cigar in the box, and perhaps the bonus was meant to be Oscar Maduro or the Drew Estate.

Many of these cigars are pretty pricey and I can’t say that I would pick them out of a line up. I may enjoy this cigar of the month club!

I may need to buy a bigger humidor!

Ending Remarks from the Sage

Have you ever heard of the Chinese Yin and Yang and/or it’s role in their culture and philosophy?
Well, today Yin and Yang was prevalent in my life.

In Chinese, Yin and Yang can actually be used to describe the weather, and doing so makes it easier to remember which is black and which is white.

In weather terms, Yang represents a beautiful sunny day without a cloud in the sky. Yin is the polar opposite.

Yep, you guessed it, Yang is the white swirl and dot in the circle and Yin is the black. The symbol teaches us many things. It teaches us about life’s balance, and that where there is good there is bad. I suppose you could call these things opposites.

Summer and winter (hot and cold)
Love and hate
Light and Dark

Et Cetera…

Interestingly, even in the large swirl of white, there is a little black, and in the large swirl of black, there is a little white. Things may not be as they seem. Things may not be black and white.

Do you remember what Sean Connery said in a movie about loving someone? He said, “One can’t love people in slices. You have to take the good with the bad.” Well yin and yang also reminds me of that.

Anyway, here is how I saw it applied to my life today. At least, I was reminded of it today. :)

I love the spring and summer because of the warmer weather. That’s the Yang. The Yin? I can’t stand all of the bugs.  Ugh, the no-see-ems, the wasps, the flies, and the mosquitoes especially.

It’s the opposite in the winter. I like not having any of the insects, but it's too cold for my old bones.

There you go, kind of lame way to introduce Yin and Yang by comparing it to the weather. It’s a fascinating part of eastern philosophy though and has shaped their culture greatly.

Until next time,

~ Daft Sage