Don Pepin Garcia Series JJ

54 x 6.5 $8.75

I am down in the shop enjoying another great smoke from The Don. Tonight is the white label Series JJ. I am guessing it is named after the Garcia kids Jaime and Janny. There is a great article in the December C.A. about the Garcia family. Pepin got his start in Miami and is rolling them there still. I haven't been to his shop but I was across the street last December at another roller. Guess I have a reason to visit Little Havana again...

This is a great smoke! It is spicey on the tongue to start but calms down quickly and the flavor becomes more complex. It really is not like other smokes I have enjoyed and I like the new experience. Full bodied like the Cubans (Ramone) and powerful. It makes my head spin just a bit. Easy to draw and lots of creamy smoke. I can only imagine this smoke will get better with age in the humidor. It burns even and you can see and feel the quality of this smoke. I cannot see how you would not like this smoke. Buy it and enjoy.

Koa Box for Lisa

Here is a box I made for Lisa. It is made from Koa brought in from Hawaii. The top is made from five stripes that were glued together. There is some curl to the wood. The grain all goes in different directions. The sides of the box have been mitered and are of Koa. The grain appears to wrap around the sides. It did turn out pretty nice. The top is hindged with brass on the back. The inside is covered with felt. This box will surely hold her treasures. She seemed excited to have it.

The box is about 4" tall by 8" wide and 6" deep.

The next challenge will be a box with a spanish cedar lining to hold my treasures. Of course it will be a little bigger.

Don Pepin Garcia Blue Label

54 x 6 $8.00

Hope you had a great Christmas!

Enjoyed a Don Pepin Blue label today. It is a medium bodied smoke that gets better as I smoked it. It had tastes of coffee and slight cocoa. This is a great cigar and will be purchasing more. It was a $8.00 smoke that reminded me of a Rocky Patel Olde World that sells for 50% more. Very tastey smoke worth trying. Think this would be a good smoke to enjoy deckside. I also purchased a couple Pepin White label series JJ. More to come.

Weather

It is a day like today that makes me long for Megan's Bay. Sand between my toes and salt water on my face. How many smokes did we enjoy that day? I could go back tomorrow...one way ticket?

Pen Turning

Here is the pen on the lathe. It sanded and ready for the finish.

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Finished Pen

Here is the pen once it has been put together. This one is made out Signature that was brought in from Hawaii. The wood reminds me of hickory in how hard it is and how it looks.

Xikar

Look at what I got for my birthday. This is is a really nice lighter from Xikar. Lisa got it for me. This is a butane torch that produces a flame like burn vs. the normal type burn. This is going to be a welcomed tool for enjoying smokes. Thank you Lisa!

Bolivar

Our newest addition: Bolivar

Ramone Allones

Enjoyed this Cuban cigar on the deck during the cruise. We picked these up at the smoke shop in St. Martin. This smoke ranks in the top 10 on my list of smokes. It was creamy and medium in flavor. The quality was in the roll. It was a fine cigar and recommend it when you have the chance.

Beautiful Sint. Maarten

Here is a picture overlooking the Great Bay at Philipsburg in Dutch Sint. Maarten. This is where the ship docked and we were able to go explore and find a nice smoke shop that had some great Cuban cigars.

Here is the smoke shop we stopped by...more to come! My next posts will be about the smokes we picked up there.

The Smokes were Mighty Fine!

Just got back from a 7 night cruise in the Caribbean. Had a great time with my buddy Rob! Here we are with a '26 Padron and a Fuente Short Story. The smokes tasted better in the Caribbean---it might have been the salt in the air! How many smokes did we enjoy on the trip? I think the equation looked like:

(7 days X 50 cigars)/2 Xikar Cutters = [A Hell'ava Good Time]

Here is the pack of "Rum Runners" on the French side of St. Martin. Rob, Dianna, Lisa and Dan. It was an awesome trip and we had a great time seeing some beautiful islands. There will be more to come in the next couple days.

Happy Anniversary to my Lisa!

Lisa, Happy 6th anniversary. We were married 6 years ago and they have been the greatest years of my life. I have enjoyed many travels with you and am the luckiest man because I have found you. You are a great friend and am glad that you have enjoyed many, I mean countless smokes with me. We enjoyed a great smoke tonight on our anniversary, the Rocky Patel Old World Reserve along with a great steak and great wine.... You are the greatest and I celebrate our wonderful wedding this day!

Long Ashes To My Buddy Rob!

A huge "Congratulations" goes out to my best bud Rob! He got a huge promotion at his job and deserves a cigar celebration! Awesome job Rob and keep up the great work! You made it Man!

Thinking of Key West

The weather is rainy and cold and instead of thinking about it, I caught myself daydreaming about Key West. We went down in December and it is a great place to visit. Had a lot of fun and even some sun! Something we aren't seeing a lot of lately!

A Wonderful Thing

A Padron Principe being enjoyed. Almost looks like it could be a plug for Diebel's Sportsmans Gallery.

End Tables

Here is a picture of the table completed. There is a pair, one for each side of the bed. I used a water based dye to get that golden color. There are 4 coats of clear and a hand rubbed finish. You can see the curls in the table top.

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They turned out very nice and there is enough room for a small lamp.

Plane Crazy

I have been busy purchasing hand planes. I have purchased some old Stanley Planes from Ebay. I have a 4, a couple 5's and a 6. The one pictured above is a 4 type 18. The plan is to get them all tuned up and start making some shavings.

Tables in the glue!

This is what I spent my day off working on. They are a pair of end tables for Lisa. Made of Curly Maple and Cherry. I spent all day chopping mortises and cutting tenons! The one on the left just got glued up. There is still a ton of sanding that needs to go into these and the tops have not been attached, the one the right is just sitting on top to show what the table will look like.

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I think that the Cherry will look great against the Maple! You can see a couple of the curls on the maple and there isn't any finish on it yet! The curls are all over the maple! The tables are about 25" tall and will take up about a 11"x14" spot of carpet.

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I have put a couple of projects on this blog and haven't shared in any of the in progress pieces. Anyway, you'll see when it is completed sometime this month!

Weather Station

This weather station displays the Barometer, Humidity and Temperature. It is made from curly maple that is 1 1/2" thick. It is pretty hefty and joined together without a nail or screw. You can see the joint I cut from the angle.

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I dyed the maple with a light brown stain to give it that old world look. I think Dad will be able to tell the weather with this!

Plans on a humidor....

Purchased this book and it has given me some great ideas on the construction of a humidor. I have started gathering the materials for my box and look forward to sharing the construction.

El Titan De Bronze #2

Just working in the shop and thought I would enjoy a smoke I acquired from Miami. This is the El Titan De Bronze #2. It is 36 - 48 X 4.0.

For those that smoke the Fuente persuasion, you might think it looks like a Hemingway Shortstory. It does have a similar roll to it however these are a much less production smoke. This smoke is a mild to medium body and a real treat. This is a great smoke when you are pressed for time, only about a 30 minute smoke at most.

This smoke is a great treat while the clear coat is drying on more wood projects.

Wooden Box

Here is a wooden box I made in the shop for a gift. It is made out of Walnut, Maghony, Cherry, Brazilian Cherry, Maple, and Lyptus. The box is about 6" long x 4" deep and 3" tall. There isn't a straight line on the box. After all of the pieces were glued up like a solid block I used the band-saw to cut away the details. It has a waxed finish to show off all that grain!

Enjoyed several cigars while working on this project.

Cigar Pens

I am exercising the 'and more' part of the blog to show some of my woodworking projects. I have turned some pens as gifts for Christmas. These are a few that I made. The wood portions are turned on my lathe and the metal parts assembled from a kit. Left to right the woods are Milo, Koa, and Silk Oak-all from Hawaii.

I have actually been working on several projects in the shop and will add them soon. What has been great is the ability to enjoy a great cigar while working in the shop! More to come!

El Titan De Bronze in Little Havana

While on a trip to Miami in December, we stopped in Little Havana. We wanted to see some cigars being rolled and enjoy the local flavor. One factory we wondered into was El Titan De Bronze Cigar Company. Once we walked in we seated to observe the rolling happening. They are a small production company only producing around 125 smokes a day.

El Titans website says, "Located on the famous Calle Ocho (8th street) in the heart of Little Havana , the cigar factory(El Titan de Bronze) recalls the spirit of Havana, Cuba . From their doorsteps, the sounds of clanking dominos, Cuban gossip, and the aroma of premium, hand-made cigars fill the air. In nearby Domino Park, the local aficionados puff on the freshest cigars...cigars created by master rollers from Cuba...the same cigars they manufacture and ship out every day. Enjoy!!"

Each hand crafted El Titan de Bronze Cigar is rolled by Master rollers, using only the finest long premium filler tobacco. Then stored in a cedar temperature controlled aging room. Each blend is aged properly, to offer it’s unmatched quality and unsurpassed taste. Creating a unique and complex aromatic smoke that will arouse the most demanding cigar connoisseur.

The smokes produced at El Titan are wonderful. They range from medium bodied to full. The quality and attention to detail is great and worth checking out. Next time you find yourself in Little Havana, stop by El Titan and ask for Willy, he will take great care of you!