Garo Habano Aniversario X

I had high hopes for this cigar since it had the highest price point of the 5 samples sent to us and the Sun Grown Corojo wrapper with some Ligero filler sounded like a tasty and strong cigar. Unfortunately, my samples were plagued with wrapper issues and the body barely passed medium. The flavors were very enjoyable but didn’t change throughout the cigar. Once again, I’m braving the cold Canadian climate with the help of my propane heater to bring this review to our loyal readers.

Cigar: Garo Habano Aniversario X
Drink: Chateauneuf Du Pape French wine
Vitola: Bellicoso (6.25 x 54)
Wrapper: Sun-Grown Corojo
Binder: Indonesian
Filler: Seco Cubano/Lijero Peru, Nicaragua, Criollo 98 & Cubano
Price: $8.40 from the Garo Habano web site
Burn Time: 2 – 2.25 Hours

Construction:
• Light Brown in color
• Slightly tapered head, not quite a typical Belicoso
• Small curly tail finish on top of a triple cap
• 2 prominent veins but not large enough to cause problems
• Tightly packed foot
• Good consistent firmness with a slight spring throughout
• On one sample, tight draw after two cuts, didn’t want to cut any further
• Still needed a third cut after lighting, past the tapered head now so it’s design seems kinds wasted, draw still tight but manageable
• Other samples had good draw
• At about halfway the wrapper split from the cap to the band in a straight and deep line, ruined the draw even more (see picture)
• Cigar kept expanding so the wrapper was barely burning
• Another sample split near the foot just after lighting…

Burn:
• Toasting was nice and even
• The bad draw sample felt like it was going out so I had to give it a lot of extra draws
• Burn is a little wavy but no touch ups needed through the first half
• The sample that didn’t split at the end never needed any corrections until I put it down

Smoke:
• Good amount of smoke
• Slight resting smoke that is nicely aromatic

Ash:
• Very nice light grey/white ash
• Ash is tight with no flaking
• Strong ash stuck on for about 1.5inches before I knocked it off

Tasting Notes:
• Not much aroma on the wrapper, just a slight hay/barnyard scent
• Foot has a stronger barnyard aroma and a bit of spice on the nose
• Very spicy on the lips after cutting
• Initial retrohale has a bite of spiciness that lingers
• Initial puffs are woodsy and earthy, very smooth with a great finish
• I was expecting this to be a strong smoke but it’s been consistently mild-medium bodied
• Approaching the halfway point and no flavor changes. They are good flavors but a little change would be nice
• As the wrapper expanded and stopped burning the flavors disappeared and was left with just bitter tobacco, was enjoying it until that happened…
• The sample that I was able to smoke to the nub was good to the end with only some minor bitterness

Final Thoughts:
• On the sample with the tight draw, the extra draws it needed made me feel like I was smoking it fast and I usually like to take it slow. Took away from my enjoyment of this cigar
• The flavors were tasty and very smooth but never changed. Some people may like a good consistent cigar but I prefer a little more dimension
• Cracking/exploding wrappers plagued all my samples
• The flavors were good and worth trying but they didn’t jump out at me. If they would have developed a bit or added a bit of complexity this would have been an excellent smoke minue the construction issues…

Mill Street Brewing Coffee Porter

The Brewery: Mill Street Brewery

The Beer: Coffee Porter

The Brewers Home: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

The Situation: Relaxing on the couch

Mill Street Brewing Coffee Porter

The Story:

Mill Street Brewery was one of Toronto’s first commercial breweries and has been open for over 100 years.  The company does make a few mass produced beers and also satisfies the beer enthusiast with some small-batch craft beers.  They have earned many awards and currently have 13 brews in their inventory.  You can read more about them at http://www.millstreetbrewery.com or follow them on twitter @MillStreetBrew.

 The Bottle:

This slim dark brown bottle is slightly on the small side, holding 341ml(11.5oz).  The bottle design is quite appealing, having an embossed front and back.  The embossing on the front states “MILL STREET BREWERY” in black text and the rear embossing containing a circular logo, initials and a line stating “Quality Brewing”.  There is also some text on the front:

“Beer Brewed with Coffee”

And some on the back:

“Mill Street Porter is a wonderfully sinful blend of Balzac’s own dark roasted coffee, brewed to perfection with a full-bodied traditional porter.  We know you’ll be pleasantly surprised by this delicious and satisfying combination.”

Mill Street Brewing Coffee Porter

 The Eyes:

The porter is dark with a moderate amount of froth.  The glass is completely opaque and filled with a dark golden-ruby color.  Even holding it up to a light, it barely penetrates the liquid I’m about to enjoy.

 The Nose:

A refreshing aroma comes off this dark porter.  The nose picks up scents of malt and a sweet yet mild coffee tone.  It’s very a pleasing aroma that begs you to drink it and enjoy.

 The Tongue:

As expected, the first sips give a strong taste of coffee with an added sweetness.  The malt flavor also shines through.  The coffee flavor is more akin to something along the lines of espresso or a very strong brewed coffee.

The taste is till refreshing despite it’s fully flavored brew.  The flavor lingers on the palate after swallowing and leaves a pleasant after taste with little to no bitterness.

Mill Street Brewing Coffee Porter

 The Final Drop:

This is a great beer.  Whether you enjoy a full bodied porter or a beer infused with the flavor of a great coffee you will enjoy this.  This brew will also appeal to those not used to drinking a dark beer since it has a great tasting and refreshing finish.  The Coffee Porter would also make a great pairing for nearly any cigar although I would probably recommend it with a medium or full bodied cigar since the full flavor of the beer may drown out a mild cigar.