It was a long week at work, er, at home, no, it's work, at home. Anyway, when Friday finally came, my phone became a little quieter, and I could relax and rejuvenate. After dinner, I grabbed a smoke I've been eyeballing in the humidor, along with one of my favorite bourbons, and retired to the back porch to unwind.
The cigar for the evening was Perdomo Reserve 10th Anniversary Maduro. The drink was the Henry McKenna 10 Year Bottled-in-Bond selection.
The Perdomo Reserve 10th Anniversary was created to celebrate the 20-year history of the brand. (Yeah, I'm confused too.) The cigar is a Nicaraguan puro featuring a six-year-old Cuban seed wrapper which was aged in bourbon barrels for 14 months. The binder and fillers are described simply as more six-year-old Nicaraguan gown Cuban seed tobaccos.
I had selected the 4¾" x 56 box-pressed figurado when I shopped. I was drawn in by the unique shape and the attractive, dark, slightly shiny maduro wrapper. This is a medium, bordering on full, bodied smoke. Rich earth and cocoa is balanced with a touch of sweetness. Despite the strong flavor, the smoke is smooth with an added hint of spice.
It wasn't until I was sipping the Henry McKenna, that I realized I was drinking a 10-year aged bourbon to go with the 10-year anniversary cigar. The caramel and vanilla sweetness, and oak flavors of the whiskey made a perfect accompaniment to the cigar. The 100 proof bourbon is smooth and goes down easily. Like the Buffalo Trace mentioned previously, this is another once ubiquitous bottle that has surged in popularity and is now hard to find on store shelves.
The small cigar gave me a good 90 minutes of enjoyment. The temperature outside was quite mild, thanks to yet another storm passing by. I held on to the nub to the very end, squeezing out every bit of joy from the smoke that I could.
I got introduced to McKenna's last year and loved it... since then, it picked up an award or two and become difficult to find. I grab a bottle when I see it, usually $50ish in my part of the world. One of the more unique bits about this particular one - they don't blend barrels for consistency, so every bottle is a new experience with different subtleties depending on where it lived in the rickhouse.
ReplyDeleteWe can still get the McKenna for $40, WHEN we can find it. I'm finishing off the last of my stash grabbed when the 2019 San Francisco World Spirits Competition result was announced. Sometimes I wish I hadn't been such a good citizen when I left some on the shelf for others. :-)
DeleteCheers!
Years ago, Henry McKenna used to come in little brown jugs. Happy to see it is still around.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting. And now a collector's item I see.
DeleteCheers!