Category: Blog

Cumpay Corona Cigar Review.

Have a Cigar: Cumpay Corona

Chris KhatschLeave a comment

Name: Cumpay Corona

Country: Nicaragua

Shape: Parejo

Size: Corona (5 1/2 inches x 42)

Strength: Mild

I turn my back on the sun and light a cigar.
The sunset and the sea mean nothing to me.

I am overwhelmed with thoughts.
There’s always so much work to do,
always so much work left
for me to do.

It’s like my mind can never leave
the workplace.
My mind can never punch out.

I’m on standby all the time,
forever ready to receive an email
outside working hours.

No matter how efficient I am,
I will never accomplish enough
to deserve a good break.

I draw and blow white smoke
as businesses live and die.

Ghosts of CEOs and COOs slither out of my mouth,
and they all look like the man
in Edvard Munch’s The Scream.
They all look the same to me.

I want to scream, too,
but the neighbors may think I’m crazy.
So,
I turn my back on the sun and light a cigar.

Have a Cigar: AVO Regional North Edition Perfecto

Chris Khatsch2 Comments

Name: AVO Regional North Edition Perfecto

Country: Dominican Republic

Shape: Perfecto

Size: (6 5/8 inches x 50)

Strength: Medium

The AVO Regional North Edition Perfecto is a magnificent cigar, flavorsome and good-looking. Beautiful combustion, too. I got notes of cedar, black pepper, coffee, chocolate, hazelnut, and cinnamon…

I paired it with Glenfiddich 15, and the combination was very successful.

That night I partied under a clear night sky
in Deir al-Qamar.
With good friends, close friends, best friends.
We drank, we danced,
and we smoked.
And I had my lover in my arms.

It was a great night.

Hoyo de Monterry Epicure Especial Cigar Review. Beirut, Lebanon.

Have a Cigar: Hoyo de Monterrey Epicure Especial

Chris KhatschLeave a comment

Name: Hoyo de Monterrey Epicure Especial

Country: Cuba

Shape: Parejo

Size: Robusto (5 1/2 inches x 50)

Strength: Medium to Full

Here I am smoking an excellent Cuban cigar on a balcony overlooking Beirut and the Mediterranean Sea. It is 11:15 AM on a weekday in September. The sky is clear, and my panoramic view tinted by the rays of a cheerful sun does not lack splendor or beauty.

I can see the Beirut port from here, the same one that exploded last year. And I can see large cargo ships patiently waiting to deliver the goods they carry. The sea looks calm and serene.

Briefly, I let my eyes focus on the narrow line that separates the land from the sea. I see tiny cars on the highway flowing towards Beirut. Like blood cells, the cars go in and out of Beirut. “The heart still beats,” I say to myself. “This broken heart, despite everything, still beats.”

Everything looks alright in this picture. From a distance, everything looks just fine. But I know that what I’m looking at is, in fact, a place that can only be described as hell. I cannot see the suffering from here, yet I know it’s there.

I smoke my cigar and take notes in my notebook.

When I am done smoking, my eyes let go of Beirut and the sea. And I go inside to make some coffee.