In attendance were Fernand, Robert, Pat, John, Aaron, Eric, and Dave.The cuban pork dinner served by John, our host, was very tasty. Mojitos flowed and John & Rebeca's back deck glowed in the warmth of a picturesque Puget Sound sunset.
As usual, we were there to enjoy a good cigar and give our opinion on it by holding a 'group tasting' following dinner.
The selection for this Herf was an Arturo Fuente "Short Story" from their Hemingway line. It's a beautiful little perfecto measuring 4 1/2 inches long with a taper from 46 to 49. It's the little brother to the "Best Seller", Cigar of the Week back on July 16th which received a 93 from Cigar Aficionado's expert tasting panel. Our cigar, the Short Story, had previously received a 91 from CA.
Following Cigar Aficionado's 4-part rating system (Appearance & Construction, Flavor, Smoking Characteristics, and Overall Impression) we began the tastng.
We did enjoy it, just not quite to the level that the pros did.
After averaging our scores, the Cohiba Club's official rating for the A.Fuente Hemingway Short Story is 88. Very good indeed.
Here's the points breakdown:
I. Appearance & Construction: 15 pts (100% of the points possible)
II. Flavor: 22 pts (88% of the points possible)
III. Smoking Characteristics: 22 pts (88% of the points possible)
IV. Overall Impression: 29 pts (83% of the points possible)
The perfection of the Appearance & Construction was clearly expressed in our scoring. The Flavor and Smoking Characteristics of this Dominican cigar also fared quite well.
John capped off the evening with chocolates and espresso. Each of us in turn remarked how a more perfect evening would be hard to come by.
