by club co-founder John
In attendance were Robert, Joe, John, Patrick (in AZ), Bruce, and Erik. As usual, we gathered to enjoy a recently recommended cigar and give our opinion on it by holding a 'group-tasting' following dinner.
The March herf found us at Jak’s Grill in Issaquah, the site of our obligatory pre-herf steak dinner on the way our annual Cohiba Club visit to the Lit Cigar Lounge in Snoqualmie. Jak’s, as usual, met our high expectations with good drinks and succulent steaks. I have to mention one of the special menu items, a mouth watering Beef Wellington made with prosciutto and gruyere… it was out of this world and the perfect intro to the upcoming cigar. 
After dinner we headed down the road to the nearby Snoqulamie Casino, home of Lit Cigar Lounge. As a group, we make an annual pilgrimage to Lit, shortly after the New Year, and have never been disappointed with their great cigar selection, friendly hosts, nice bar, and comfortable, relaxed, but nicely appointed lounge. We met our friend Narong there, the manager that night, who we knew from previous herfs, both at Lit and The Vertigo Club. Narong, always a font of information about any cigar you could imagine, set us up with our selection of the month, the Padron 1964 Anniversary Series Exclusivo Maduro.Origin: NicarauaFollowing CA's 4-part rating system (Appearance & Construction, Flavor, Smoking Characteristics, and Overall Impression) we gathered in Fernand’s outdoor smoking room for this long awaited, special herf.
Shape: Robusto
Size: 5/12 x 50
Price: ~11.00
Appearance: This was a well built cigar: smooth, slightly oily, rich, dark , and box pressed, no defects.
Flavor: Strong start, pepper at the beginning, later leather and molasses, mellowing soon, but remaining a flavorful full-bodied smoke.
Smoking Characteristics: Perfect draw, consistent burn with only two relights among the group of us, good volume of smooth rich smoke.
Overall Impression: All in all, we all thought this was a great cigar, well built with good smoking characteristics, strong start and mellowing nicely later, rich and flavorful. This was one of the best cigars we have sampled this year.
After throwing out the highest and lowest, then averaging the remaining scores, The Cohiba Club's official rating for the Padron 1964 Anniiversary Series Exclusivo Maduro is 94. An ‘outstanding’ cigar.
Here's the points breakdown:
I. Appearance & Construction: 15 pts (100% of the points possible)
II. Flavor: 24 pts (96% of the points possible)
III. Smoking Characteristics: 23 pts (92% of the points possible)
IV. Overall Impression: 33 pts (94% of the points possible)
See you at the next herf, April 1st.
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