Ep. #175: Padrón 60th Anniversary Maduro (w/ Cade Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2018, Senator’s Wine Deep Dive, Why Howell Mountain is Special, Bill Murray on Rogan & Lizards on Cigar Lingo)

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Gizmo (02:47):
Welcome to the Lounge Lizards podcast presented by
Fabrica five. It's so good tohave you here. It's a leisure
and lifestyle podcast founded onour love of premium cigars as
well as whiskey travel, food,work, and whatever else we feel
like getting into. My name isGizmo. Tonight, I'm joined by
Rooster, Pooba, Senator, Pagoda,chef Ricky, and Bam Bam, a full
house of lizards.
And our plan is to smoke acigar, drink some wine, talk

(03:09):
about life, and, of course, havesome laughs. So take this as
your one hundred and seventyfifth official invitation to
join us and become a cardcarrying lounge lizard. Playing
to meet us here once a week.We're gonna smoke a new world
cigar tonight, share ourthoughts on it, and give you our
formal lizard rating. We spokelatest release from Padron.
We answer an email on cigarlingo, and senator does a

(03:29):
listener request to deep dive onwine, all among a variety of
other things for the next twohours. So sit back, get your
favorite drink, light up acigar, enjoy as we parricade
Howell Mountain CabernetSauvignon 2018 with Padron
sixtieth anniversary in Maduro.A Nicaraguan perfecto on the pod
tonight from Padron. It's calledthe sixtieth anniversary, and we

(03:51):
chose the Maduro version of it.And it's a very, very unique
size, boys.
Six and a half inches long by 56ring gauge at its largest, and
at its smallest, it's 48 ringgauge. So it goes from 48 at the
head of the cigar up to 56.

Bam Bam (04:06):
Correct.

Gizmo (04:07):
Tapers up at the foot of the cigar and then it has a
perfecto on both ends. Yeah. Andboys, this is a very special
cigar for our 70 episodetonight.

Bam Bam (04:17):
Great choice.

Chef (04:17):
It's Awesome.

Bam Bam (04:18):
Smells. Yeah. On the nose, it's extremely pleasant.
It's a little bit of asweetness, almost a little bit
of fruit again. Yeah.

Gizmo (04:28):
It smells great. It does smell like a Padron to me. You
know, what I would think ofsmelling an eightieth or a 50
year.

Bam Bam (04:35):
The wrapper is glistening for me, but not
handsome. It's very rugged, butvery glistening.

Gizmo (04:42):
Alright, boys. Let's cut this thing. See what we're
getting on the cold draw and thewrapper. This one's a unique one
for the listeners out there asthe closed foot puts you in a
precarious position if you arenot patient. I'm sure most of us
won't have much of a drawinitially because the foot is
closed.

(05:02):
You have to allow it to open up.It's a very tight perfecto tip
on the foot of the cigar, whichtakes about ten minutes

Rooster (05:10):
to open up. How much are you cutting off?

Gizmo (05:13):
I cut a very little bit my first I did two.

Bam Bam (05:16):
So my first cut I took maybe an eighth, but I took
another eighth off. Woah. A bitmore than most,

Chef (05:23):
I think.

Pagoda (05:23):
That looks like a good cut.

Bam Bam (05:25):
A bit more than what Senator's taken off.

Chef (05:28):
I think I took off about a quarter or so. You go.

Gizmo (05:31):
I took a little bit off on my first. I might take a
second if I'm feeling itnecessary, but See what happens.

Chef (05:37):
Just a little taper. Mean, when you feel the cigar, it's
got

Bam Bam (05:40):
some weight to it. Yes, does. It'll be tight regardless.
It will.

Rooster (05:43):
Well, it's deceiving because the end is closed
almost.

Senator (05:47):
Yeah. Yeah. I think the

Rooster (05:47):
thing So you're not gonna get a draw.

Bam Bam (05:49):
I think the

Senator (05:49):
thing to keep in mind with this, I mean, the the foot
is even more closed than theeightieth is. It is. Right. So
it's gonna be super resistant atfirst, and you just gotta be
really, really patient, and thenit's just gonna explode.

Rooster (06:01):
That's why I asked because if you cut a little bit
and you do a cold draw, you'relike, oh, I'm not getting any.
Let me cut a little bit morebecause you

Gizmo (06:07):
don't wanna it's not gonna make a difference. You
don't wanna do that. Yeah. Andthat's the thing for listeners
out there. Number one, you don'twanna take too much off.
And number two, you do not wannapanic if you're not getting a
lot of draw here on the cut.It's okay. So Gotta be patient.

Bam Bam (06:19):
First time I had this, I was panicking like crazy.

Gizmo (06:22):
That doesn't surprise me, Ben.

Bam Bam (06:23):
I considered the perfect draw. I didn't do
anything.

Senator (06:25):
So so was someone else I know the first time we smoked
this together.

Gizmo (06:28):
I was a little nervous. Alright. But I didn't think he
was gonna call me on it, he'stotally right.

Bam Bam (06:34):
Y'all were texting saying, just give it time, give
it time, and honestly, it justopened up beautifully, all
natural on its own. It'sincredible.

Gizmo (06:41):
Once it hits the crown, like where the taper kinda It's
magical. Off there. Once it hitsthat, it opens right up and
turns into a brilliant,brilliant cigar. So let's get
started here, boys.

Senator (06:51):
And the wait is honestly fun. There's something
exciting about you're not surewhat you're gonna get out of the
cigar because you're not gettingas much combustion yet, and then
all of a sudden, you can'tpredict exactly when And it's
just boom. You are blasted withflavor, and it's just such a
great feeling.

Gizmo (07:08):
What's like this thing, boys? The Padron sixtieth
anniversary in Maduro. Again,it's a Perfecto six and a half
inches long by 56 ring gauge atthe foot, tapers down into a
closed Perfecto. And then at thehead of the cigar, it's more
like a Corona Extra in size 48ring gauge. So we're gonna be

(07:32):
very patient.
We're only gonna light the tip.And then The extreme tip. The
extreme tip. And then we'regonna let it do its thing for
about ten minutes here. Correct.

Chef (07:41):
Just the tip.

Gizmo (07:42):
Just the tip.

Senator (07:43):
And this is a perfect example where, like, I'm
literally getting zero straw.

Gizmo (07:47):
Zero draw.

Senator (07:47):
And okay. Normal. That's how it should be, and you
just have to be super, superpatient with it.

Gizmo (07:52):
You know what's interesting is this cigar
actually plays into Pooba's longheld theory on this podcast that
lighting the cigar with thetorch as we just did, you need
to give it a little while todevelop and breathe. That it's
almost like the cigar isdesigned to do that without even
letting you start the experiencewith it running too hot. So it's
almost like this cigar isdesigned for all that time
you've talked about, the firstten minutes being inappropriate

(08:17):
to really comment on the flavor.It's like, we're not going to be
able to because it doesn't drop.

Chef (08:20):
Right. Right. It'll develop up nice, so slowly.
The first one that I had, I was worried and senator was
there next to me and he told me,just give it time. And I didn't
realize that upon the light thatit was such a close foot. And
then it hit me and it opened upbeautifully. But this time
around, it's pretty open for me.I'm actually surprised.

Pagoda (08:43):
I'm getting there. Feasibly open.

Chef (08:44):
Yeah. Yeah. And I'm looking I'm looking up at Pagoda
and his smoke output is alsoshowing me that it's pretty
open. So

Gizmo (08:50):
Mine's very tight. Yeah. But it'll get there.

Rooster (08:53):
Mhmm. So who has had the cigar in this room? Bam, you
have had it?

Gizmo (08:57):
Yes. Bam, Senator, and me. You. Oh, Ricky too?

Chef (09:02):
Wow. Okay.

Gizmo (09:03):
I thought

Chef (09:03):
only you two had it. I have not had it.

Rooster (09:05):
Yeah. Haven't had it.

Gizmo (09:06):
Just over half the room has had it. Me neither. So these
cigars were announced at PCAtwenty twenty four when we were
there. We were very excitedabout the launch, and then they
were released into the retailchain in September. And I
believe, Rooster, you got thisboxed water around Thanksgiving
time, right?

Rooster (09:23):
I think I've had it for about four months.

Gizmo (09:25):
Okay. Months. Okay.

Bam Bam (09:26):
At a deep discount, I hope.

Rooster (09:28):
No. You'll see it tomorrow on Splitwise, by the
way. Actually, maybe tonight.

Bam Bam (09:34):
I was afraid

Rooster (09:34):
of that.

Bam Bam (09:36):
I don't know, for

Pagoda (09:38):
some reason my app's not uploading at all.

Bam Bam (09:41):
I'm sure that's intentional.

Gizmo (09:45):
I will say, if you do try, you know, for those of us
in the room that don't have alot of draw, if you try to make
a draw, it is unpleasant. It's afight. If you're trying to

Bam Bam (09:53):
Meant to. Yeah.

Gizmo (09:54):
Work it too much, it's gonna fight it.

Rooster (09:56):
Fight it.

Gizmo (09:56):
Yeah. Just let it open it.

Senator (09:58):
And my only advice, this is kind of different than a
typical cigar. If it's taking areally long time to make
progress in opening up the draw,you can touch up and just light
more of the wrapper because it'sreally the faster that wrapper
burns to open up Yep. Thequicker you're gonna get that
draw. So don't get insanelyaggressive with it, but you can

(10:21):
help it along to speed that up alittle

Chef (10:22):
bit.

Bam Bam (10:23):
Pagoda, you attempting to retrohale back there?

Pagoda (10:25):
I just tried once, and what a bad idea. Oh, yeah.

Chef (10:28):
Yeah. It's way too early in this regard. This thing
starts off super peppery.Absolutely. Yeah.
If you try to retro that.

Pagoda (10:34):
I didn't know, I've just been looking for that apple ever
since.

Bam Bam (10:36):
You're not gonna get it tonight. No, I know. Yeah, it
very peppery. Very, very Youknow, as tough as the retro is,
the traditional draw isactually, for me, quite good.

Rooster (10:48):
Yeah. It's opening up too.

Bam Bam (10:50):
It's a little sweetness. Mine is

Gizmo (10:52):
slowly starting to open.

Bam Bam (10:53):
Yeah. Very nice. Very balanced right now.

Senator (10:55):
There's also a ton of tobacco in this. I mean, it's
not a cheap cigar, but you'redefinitely getting a lot of
tobacco, and and this will be along smoke.

Gizmo (11:05):
And it's like it like you said about the weight and the
weight, you know, the unbalanced

Chef (11:10):
weight distribution.

Gizmo (11:11):
It's almost like a baseball bat in the way the
weight is distributed. Mhmm. I'mnot saying it looks like that.
It's a very elegant cigar.

Senator (11:17):
It's like a traditional car. Yeah. Right? The engine's
in the front. Yep.
In most.

Bam Bam (11:21):
What what are these retailing for now?

Gizmo (11:23):
So, Bam, good question. Mhmm. So if you remember last
week on the pod, we did theCohiba Sigla six as the Cuban
component

Bam Bam (11:30):
Correct.

Gizmo (11:31):
Of our one hundred and seventy fifth episode
celebration.

Bam Bam (11:34):
It's about the same price.

Gizmo (11:35):
No. That one was a hundred bucks.

Bam Bam (11:37):
No. Not for what you bought it for.

Gizmo (11:38):
Well, now it is. Yeah. That cigar is a hundred dollars
retail. This cigar is $75retail, so there's no
coincidences. The two cigarswe're celebrating one seventy
five

Bam Bam (11:48):
There you go.

Gizmo (11:48):
Cost us a hundred and $75.

Rooster (11:50):
So that's at a discount.

Bam Bam (11:52):
Is it? Because I think the boxes

Senator (11:54):
go a thousand,

Bam Bam (11:55):
don't they? Is it?

Gizmo (11:56):
No. The boxes are going for 7 hundred Yeah. The cigar is
$75 So let's talk about thepackaging for a minute. So these
cigars come in a very ornate boxof 10 individually packaged
coffins. The cigars are each incellophane inside the coffin.
Each little coffin is sealed,and then they sit in this ornate

(12:20):
box, you know, kinda like thatWeller by Cohiba we did a few
weeks ago. It is definitely anoversized ornate box for how
many cigars you have in there

Bam Bam (12:28):
for sure. So these are lacquer finished. Yes. And that
box is also lacquer finished.It's an exquisite presentation.

Chef (12:35):
Absolutely. I mean,

Bam Bam (12:36):
the ink work is razor sharp.

Gizmo (12:38):
And isn't there felt on the bottom?

Bam Bam (12:39):
Felt on the bottom.

Gizmo (12:41):
Yeah, it's

Bam Bam (12:41):
pretty cool. Cool.

Chef (12:43):
I love the push button clasp on the

Rooster (12:45):
There's felt on the bottom of the box.

Bam Bam (12:47):
That's right.

Rooster (12:48):
And there's actually an outer box that comes, a
cardboard box with the foamlined. It almost looks like a
fancy humidor.

Bam Bam (12:57):
So we saw that for the first time at PCA. Was a crowd
stunner. That thing wasunveiled. It was incredible.

Rooster (13:05):
And they also introduced some lighters. Right?
A lighter and a cutter?

Gizmo (13:08):
Yeah. The SD DuPont series, which are very
expensive. I think they did aline too, and then they did that
one that goes from a soft flame,and if you push it again, it
goes to a jet. Yeah. There's afew different designs.
There's one that's very ornate,several thousand dollars. And
then there's a more simpler onethat's kind of a lacquer, almost
identical in lacquer finish tothe box that you were just

(13:29):
describing, Bam. And it was abig

Senator (13:30):
deal because that was Padron's first collaboration
with SD collaboration with SDDuPont.

Gizmo (13:33):
That's right. That's correct. I wonder how that's
selling. Mean, you think abouthow much a DuPont is and how
passionate people are aboutPadron. I wonder if it's brought
more people into SD DuPont or,the Padron smoker buying their
first DuPont.
I'm curious how it's selling.

Bam Bam (13:49):
Well, the first lizard lighter by DuPont, that's gonna
be 2 and a half grand. It'sgonna have emeralds. Green for
the lizard shape.

Senator (13:58):
I mean, it doesn't even need emeralds. That seems to be
standard fare

Bam Bam (14:01):
these days. Yeah, they're

Chef (14:02):
not cheap.

Senator (14:03):
Mean, those Padron accessories, they're

Gizmo (14:04):
a couple grand. I think the one might be 4 or 5,000.
You're joking. Crazy. Yeah, I'mserious.

Bam Bam (14:09):
But you know what, a

Pagoda (14:10):
lot of these are meant for collectors. Right? Of
course.

Gizmo (14:12):
And they're limited. I think they might be limited and
released to 60 pieces, you know?Like this cigar that we have in
our hand, we should note, is thesixtieth anniversary celebration
cigar of Padron being around forsixty years as a company
founded, of course, in 1964.

Chef (14:28):
Pagoda, let me know when you buy the lighter. I'll start
taking the train.

Bam Bam (14:33):
Yeah. Just make sure you sit right behind him.

Chef (14:37):
Well, you know, I I I I'm trying to

Bam Bam (14:39):
think that Very well played. Yes. Very well played.

Chef (14:43):
The sometimes the finish on I'm trying to remember. Like,
I really love the blue SDToupon, you know, that's got
that kind of black, the blue.

Gizmo (14:52):
Royal blue. Right?

Chef (14:54):
You guys know the rules? Your pants almost.

Gizmo (14:56):
Yeah. It's a cool lacquer.

Bam Bam (14:57):
It's a

Chef (14:58):
very cool cool lacquer finish, but what they say is,
you know you know, the famousping. Yes. Like, you don't like
like, with the all eitherprecious metal or or or
stainless steel versions ofthose, you get you get a more
distinct

Gizmo (15:14):
Uh-huh. More defined ping. A more defined Well, the
more you pay, the more thebetter the ping is,

Chef (15:18):
of course. Well, no. But the lacquer ones are expensive.
I mean, they're they're notcheap. I mean, they're not,
like, discounted because ofthat, but it's just I've you
know, online, I've seen a lot ofreviews, but I I I I'm gonna get
one of those.
I think that the the the linetwo is is pretty cool.

Bam Bam (15:36):
Yeah. The more you pay, the better the ping. I've heard
that many times.

Gizmo (15:42):
There's no

Chef (15:43):
doubt about

Rooster (15:44):
there's no no

Chef (15:44):
no doubt about that,

Gizmo (15:46):
Bam. You know, Bam, I will say over 175 episodes, you
are consistent.

Pagoda (15:51):
Correct. That's a Bam approved activity.

Bam Bam (15:54):
Oh, yes.

Gizmo (15:55):
So boys, I feel like we're all kinda getting to the
point where we can start talkingabout flavor. My cigar,
certainly from a drawstandpoint, has opened up. And
let me start by saying this isdefinitely a full bodied Sure.
Oh, yeah. Oomph of anexperience.
Yeah.

Chef (16:12):
But not in a bad way.

Rooster (16:14):
Mm-mm. No. The delivery is smooth.

Bam Bam (16:18):
The aroma on the foot is The delivery

Chef (16:21):
is smooth.

Bam Bam (16:22):
It's almost like a cocoa for me.

Senator (16:24):
Yeah, you've got to smell the

Bam Bam (16:25):
burn line. It's a cocoa.

Senator (16:26):
It is even that much more satisfying than the actual
draw itself.

Bam Bam (16:30):
It's crazy.

Chef (16:31):
Wow. Yeah, for me, from what I remember, the flavor on
the palate really didn't startdeveloping almost until the end
of the first third of the cigarbecause there's so much tobacco
up front. You're just gettinghit with strength and some
spice, but I'm not getting muchof sweet or dried fruit here
just yet, but I know it doescome. Yeah. It's just

(16:53):
interesting the way thatdevelops.
Purging, I find with these vitolas, just purging them a
little bit.
Helps a little bit.
Yeah. It helps a little

Bam Bam (16:59):
bit as well. The first time I had this, I'll admit I
smoked it very, very quickly.And the first two thirds were
delicious, and I had someserious issues on that final
third. Yeah. It was hot.
Yeah.

Gizmo (17:12):
If you're pulling too hard on it, you're drawing too
much, it's gonna fight you.

Bam Bam (17:16):
I was excited about it. It was delicious, so I kept
going and going and going. Bigmistake.

Gizmo (17:19):
I will say, contrary to how you're describing your first
experience, senator and I smokedthem together for the first time
when we when we got them.

Senator (17:26):
Can we can we set up for the listener the occasion?

Gizmo (17:29):
It was serious, by the way.

Bam Bam (17:30):
Oh, really?

Senator (17:31):
Oh, yeah. We lit this up on New Year's Eve at our
lounge here. I told Gizmo I wasgonna bring a little surprise. I
came in with a dozen ShuckedOysters, some Paul Roger. Yes.
We started with some oysters andchampagne, then we dove in

Gizmo (17:48):
on this cigar. Thanks for the invite.

Bam Bam (17:51):
I'm glad you said it.

Chef (17:52):
Yeah. Appreciate the looks, Samuel.

Senator (17:57):
And I think we paired some high rare VSOP you had.

Gizmo (18:01):
Yes, did. And I will say, we had almost the opposite
experience of what you justdescribed, Ben. We smoked it
slowly. Yeah. Thankfully,through with senators coaching,

Bam Bam (18:10):
he That's a key. I mean

Gizmo (18:11):
He caused me to not panic like I was planning to with the

Senator (18:14):
early draw. But for us Xanax was on standby.

Gizmo (18:20):
He had a drip for me. No, for us, we were smoking it
slowly and kind of pacingourselves, enjoying it, and
every draw, even through thelast third, kept getting better
and better. So what I'm curiousabout tonight, the reason why
I'm talking about this so earlyis I'm curious if the seven of
us have identical experienceswith the last third, divergent

(18:42):
experience? Like, I'm curioushow this is gonna play out in
the same box in the same room.

Bam Bam (18:47):
Who supplied that cigar that night for the two of you?
Did you have those?

Senator (18:50):
Did. Senator.

Bam Bam (18:51):
How long did you have it in your tower?

Senator (18:52):
Wasn't long. Wasn't long? Maybe

Bam Bam (18:56):
two weeks? Two weeks, and who's had these, rooster?
Roosters have I've had these forthree months. Yeah. I would
expect a different experiencetonight, from what I had the
first time around.

Chef (19:05):
You think they're so secure in the claw. I don't
know.

Bam Bam (19:08):
Maybe, maybe he's not.

Senator (19:09):
They are. I mean, for only two weeks, when Giz and I
even took it out for the firsttime, we thought it felt great.
I had not one issue constructionwise really throughout,

Bam Bam (19:18):
or

Senator (19:18):
felt like it was too wet and muddling the flavor. It
was spectacular.

Rooster (19:22):
Look, this is their flagship cigar, and I'm sure the
amount of age that's in thistobacco, that it's ready to go.
It's ready to

Chef (19:30):
strong. It's not a box. It comes in special packaging,
within special packaging.Exactly. It's probably

Rooster (19:44):
Only thing is

Gizmo (19:46):
No, what I was going to say too is that what's different
about this box, to your pointhere, versus all the other stuff
that Padron sells, this none ofthese boxes that anybody has
purchased, if you've been ableto get your hands on cigars or
boxes, they've not had theopportunity to sit in a high
humidity retail situation.

Chef (20:04):
That's my point.

Gizmo (20:04):
It's a quick sell

Bam Bam (20:06):
through.

Gizmo (20:06):
They're almost probably sold at these retail shops
before they even get them.

Chef (20:10):
That's a great point too. Plus

Gizmo (20:13):
Plus they're packaged well.

Chef (20:14):
They're well.

Bam Bam (20:14):
So then it's really pace of smoke.

Gizmo (20:17):
Yeah, exactly. I think if you are sitting down to smoke
the cigar like we are tonight

Chef (20:22):
You gotta take the time.

Gizmo (20:23):
You need to set the time aside. Because if you're trying
to squeeze this in and rush it,I mean, number one, you're gonna
burn a good portion of $75. Notgonna have a great experience.
Correct. The last third's gonnabite you, and then you're not
gonna wanna reach for it again.

Chef (20:35):
Correct. So we gotta talk about other stuff like these
boots. So like so senator's gotthese boots on. I haven't seen
them before. I think they'renew.

Bam Bam (20:45):
I've had these for, like, five, six years. Have you
really?

Senator (20:48):
Yeah. Like, literally since the Davittoff

Chef (20:50):
days. I I kinda like them.

Bam Bam (20:51):
Eddie Bauer. Yeah. Eddie Bauer.

Chef (20:56):
Because it's kinda like a cow it's like a it's not a
cowboy boot, but it's like, whatkind of a boot is that? Bam.

Senator (21:03):
Bam, you're the

Bam Bam (21:04):
That's a three quarter. It's a three quarter boot.

Chef (21:07):
It's like a is it a Is

Bam Bam (21:08):
that a That's a very typical traditional boot. Yeah.

Chef (21:10):
Yeah. Is that a

Senator (21:11):
chop had these for ages.

Chef (21:13):
Oh, you have? It's a

Bam Bam (21:14):
slip on. Those are great.

Gizmo (21:15):
Chop sleeve?

Chef (21:15):
Slip ons.

Gizmo (21:16):
Like, I like to allow. I like to announce to the
listeners now that at episode175, we're now getting into
fashion. Well,

Chef (21:23):
got to give a long cigar to smoke. So I'm I'm trying to
just, like, pump in some contentthat,

Bam Bam (21:28):
you know, what colors the paint in the room?

Chef (21:31):
It's an it's an arm wheel lifestyle podcast as well.

Gizmo (21:34):
We are. I know.

Rooster (21:36):
I think the shape is called

Gizmo (21:37):
a chukka. Is it is

Chef (21:39):
it a chukka?

Bam Bam (21:39):
I think so.

Rooster (21:40):
I think it's a chukka.

Chef (21:40):
Because I thought this was a chukka.

Senator (21:42):
No. No. No. That's a chukka.

Rooster (21:43):
Oh, that's a chukka.

Chef (21:44):
This is a chukka. That's something else.

Bam Bam (21:46):
You have those too, Rooster.

Chef (21:47):
I like those.

Bam Bam (21:48):
Yeah. But I've seen you wear boots.

Rooster (21:49):
Not as nice.

Bam Bam (21:51):
Okay.

Rooster (21:54):
Mine or not, Eddie Bauer.

Chef (21:57):
Eddie Bauer.

Gizmo (21:58):
You know they're These are Kirkland. You know they're
Kirkland.

Bam Bam (22:00):
Are they are they the moose? Are roosted the rubber?

Senator (22:02):
The only ones I do have that are new, so these I've had
for a long time. The the ones Ijust got, they're like a lace
version of this by Thursday BootCompany.

Bam Bam (22:11):
Have you

Gizmo (22:11):
heard these guys?

Bam Bam (22:12):
Oh, dude.

Gizmo (22:13):
They're running they're running heavy ads right now.

Bam Bam (22:15):
Are they making boots?

Chef (22:16):
Instagram kind of Yes.

Senator (22:18):
I think so.

Bam Bam (22:18):
So I found Thursday Boot Company on Facebook.

Chef (22:21):
Oh, I gotta look at this.

Bam Bam (22:22):
And I bought a pair of their brown sneakers and their
white sneakers. Both identicalstyle, but they're laced. Once
you lace them up, I slip them onand off. The quality, dude?
Yeah.
Impeccable, and they're veryaffordable. Yeah. Very
affordable. Yeah. Thursday BootCompany.
Not a sponsor,

Gizmo (22:39):
but just Yeah.

Bam Bam (22:40):
It's good stuff. It's really good stuff.

Gizmo (22:42):
But they're doing a heavy push on social media ads right
now, so you definitely areseeing it. If you're on Facebook
and Instagram and Facebook knowsyou're a guy, they're definitely
pushing those ads to

Chef (22:51):
the I think Rooster is as well. I'm a big Olakai guy. You
guys like Olakai? You know thatbrand?

Bam Bam (23:00):
I do. I don't know the brand,

Senator (23:01):
but I like them. But But

Bam Bam (23:02):
your wine.

Gizmo (23:02):
Yeah. Don't push that through the wine.

Chef (23:03):
I'm not pushing it through the wine.

Bam Bam (23:05):
Everybody Look how annoyed he gets.

Rooster (23:07):
Pretty calm down.

Chef (23:09):
He just wants to show off his mobility.
I see.

Bam Bam (23:11):
I know.

Senator (23:12):
It's been

Pagoda (23:12):
a question.

Bam Bam (23:13):
He's kicking.

Pagoda (23:15):
I did think that was

Bam Bam (23:16):
a form of karate. This is Kobra

Chef (23:19):
Kobra Kai never die.

Bam Bam (23:20):
There you go.

Chef (23:21):
But you have those

Rooster (23:22):
Ole Kais are awesome. Ole Kais. It's kind of a

Chef (23:24):
good brand. Right?

Rooster (23:25):
Yeah. I don't have the lace ups like you have. I have
more of

Chef (23:29):
the slip ons. The slip ons are great.

Senator (23:31):
You could

Bam Bam (23:31):
say you geriatrics.

Chef (23:34):
They're they're like they're they're like rock ports
for the for for, like, themiddle aged man.
Well, I'll have you guys know that I have on fleece lined
joggers that happen to be EddieBauer from Kirkland.

Pagoda (23:46):
Eddie Bauer.

Chef (23:47):
Wow. Is Eddie Bauer

Rooster (23:49):
on the band?

Bam Bam (23:50):
He hit all three.

Rooster (23:52):
Tick. Tick. Tick. Man

Senator (23:54):
after rooster's heart.

Gizmo (23:55):
Bingo. Bingo. I gotta say, boys, the flavor on this
cigar is outstanding.

Chef (24:02):
I'm getting intense chocolate right now.

Gizmo (24:05):
Intense chocolate, a little bit of spice. Dark
chocolate with spice.

Chef (24:08):
Yes. Bouchard.

Bam Bam (24:10):
Is anyone retro ing it?

Chef (24:11):
Tough. Literally just got there with this draw. With this
draw, I just
got there.

Bam Bam (24:16):
I'm enjoying it. I'm getting that German chocolate
thing in the retro with just alittle bit of pepper. Bouchard?
No. Standard milk chocolate, buton the traditional draw, it's
kind of like a biscuit chocolatechip thing.

Gizmo (24:30):
It's very good. Yeah. And I agree with Senator, the smell
at the burn line is outstanding.It's incredible. It's fierce,
it's intense, but it's really,really good.

Rooster (24:41):
Take it in slow. On the light, the cigar kind of
reminded me of like a ninetieth,like how powerful it is.

Bam Bam (24:48):
It's your breakfast cigar.

Rooster (24:49):
But that's kind of, I mean, it's not as strong
anymore. Yeah. You know? Likethe ninetieth has throughout.

Bam Bam (24:55):
This is evolving.

Chef (24:56):
Yeah. So I overstated. It wasn't the end of the first
third, but rather the firstquarter where the flavor starts
changing and getting a littlebit sweeter and a little bit

Bam Bam (25:06):
Oh, you should be getting it now. Noted. Yeah.
Right here. Right

Gizmo (25:08):
here. Noted on the list.

Bam Bam (25:10):
Noted. Be nice.

Senator (25:12):
I'm nice.

Gizmo (25:13):
So boys, this is not a huge celebratory episode
tonight, but we are celebrating175 episodes of the podcast.

Chef (25:22):
That's fucking massive.

Gizmo (25:23):
It's crazy. We're in, you know, three and a half years
now. We're coming up on Correct.Episode 200, which, of course,
is gonna be a banger, I'm sure,with some wild champagne and a
great cigar. But 75 episodes, Iwas thinking about it today, how
quickly the time has flown by,you know, and how many great
cigars we've discovered over thejourney and the listenership and

(25:44):
the volume of emails and thewizard nation out there.
And really for me, the biggestthing is the worldwide
conversations that we're havingwith people everywhere,

Chef (25:55):
from

Gizmo (25:55):
every walk of life, every country you can think of. It's
pretty amazing. I mean, somebodyposted the other day a photo
sitting in Havana listening tothe podcast, the podcast was up
on the screen of their laptop,sitting in Havana

Chef (26:11):
having
a

Gizmo (26:10):
Really?

Chef (26:11):
That was really cool.

Gizmo (26:13):
And it's just amazing to see this stuff.

Bam Bam (26:15):
That's awesome.

Gizmo (26:16):
So I just wanna shout out the listeners out there, whether
you joined us today, you know,wanting to hear about the Padron
sixtieth or if you've been heresince day one, we're so glad to
have you with us. And I alwayssay this on every Milestone
episode is that we always viewthat there's an empty chair in
the room next to us that thelistener's sitting in, and
that's how we approach this.

Rooster (26:37):
We're so glad to have you with us. Absolutely.

Chef (26:39):
Where do you pod?

Rooster (26:41):
Where's your favorite

Chef (26:42):
place to listen to podcasts?

Rooster (26:44):
In the car.

Bam Bam (26:45):
Oh, the car for sure.

Chef (26:46):
Yeah. Same.

Bam Bam (26:47):
No doubt.

Chef (26:47):
The car. I saw a good podcast the other day. What's
that? It was Joe Rogan and BillMurray.

Gizmo (26:54):
Oh, that was good.

Chef (26:54):
I was listening to it.

Gizmo (26:55):
You know, it's the first podcast Bill Murray's ever done.
Yep. Ever. Yeah. And I love hedidn't know who Joe Rogan was.

Chef (27:01):
Yeah. He

Gizmo (27:02):
said, showed up, and I said, are you Joe? I mean, the
guy has more eyes on him thanany media

Chef (27:08):
in the But he what amazed me was about what was kinda cool
is that you think of Bill Murrayas all these various characters
that he plays that are wild andzany and etcetera. And he's
funny by nature. I've actuallymet him a couple of times, like
like, really quickly andformally at Madison Square
Garden. I won't go into thestory because he, like, goes out

(27:30):
in the public and stuff likethat, by the way, and, like,
interacts with, like, thepublic. He's not afraid to do
that.
But I thought it wasn't like, hewas very articulate. He was very
bright on the podcast. You'repicking up and I'm putting down.
Yeah.

Gizmo (27:45):
I I was He was

Chef (27:46):
really, like, on it, like, thoughtful. Yeah. And, like, it
was like the real Bill Murray,you know, without the because he
doesn't do many, like, long he Idon't I don't think he's done
any long form interviews in along, long time.
I I was gonna the Joe Rogan format is perfect for that
because it really allows youthat time to come out and have

(28:07):
the open conversation. And, Imean, you're talking three,
three and a half hours. That youhave to sit with people. That's
why it's a great gauge forseeing what people are about
sometimes because you really getto know them on a somewhat of an
extended level.

Rooster (28:20):
We should have them on the pod.

Gizmo (28:23):
This cigar, by the way, tonight might be a three and a
half hour episode.

Chef (28:26):
So we're

Gizmo (28:26):
we're gonna really get to know each other tonight.

Chef (28:28):
Well, the yeah. But it's a real it was a really good one
because it was it gave youinsight kind of into because
he's done so many differenttypes of roles. You know? And he
mentioned something I thoughtthat was cool. He was like,
there's only he said, there'sonly three three directors that
and writers that I'll work withwhere if you say, do you wanna

(28:52):
be in this movie?
And I just don't even read thescript. And one of them, of
course, was Wes Anderson. Andthen the other one was Sofia
Coppola. And then there was onemore, which I'm forgetting the
name of. Yeah.
I don't remember who it was.

Gizmo (29:02):
I always saw pieces of it.

Chef (29:04):
But he said, you know, yeah, if Wes Anderson calls me
you know what I mean?
And and

Bam Bam (29:08):
I love his films. I love his movies. They're very
touching and funny. Andcreative. Very creative and
uniquely very witty in a veryunique way.

Chef (29:20):
In a unique way. And there's all this level of An
almost innocent wittiness. Itcaptures his style. He pays
attention to every piece oftopography. He pays attention to
all the details with thecostumes and the set design and

Gizmo (29:35):
And he's notorious for symmetry. He's notorious for
symmetry in his films. There'sit's always squared off. So if
if there's a shot of a building,it's perfectly squared in the
frame. I see.
Very symmetrical witheverything.

Bam Bam (29:48):
So he did a somewhat animated film called The
Fantastic Mr. Fox, which Iwatched with my son. It's
hilarious and really well done.He did one. It's a hotel in
India.
I don't remember the name of themovie, one of my favorite films.

Chef (30:03):
Oh, that's a great one.

Rooster (30:04):
Is that the Marigold

Bam Bam (30:05):
Marigold something? No. It's The Something Hotel. I just
don't remember the name of thedamn Yeah.

Gizmo (30:11):
That's one of his more recent ones.

Chef (30:12):
Among the excellent. How many more Indians in the room do
we need to figure out the nameof this hotel?

Pagoda (30:17):
I've been watching this movie.

Chef (30:20):
That was really good. Mean, all the

Gizmo (30:21):
makes were excellent.

Chef (30:22):
All of

Bam Bam (30:22):
his films were excellent.

Chef (30:24):
Absolutely terrific.

Pagoda (30:25):
You know, it's loss in translation. That's all.

Bam Bam (30:27):
There's a few others. Well, yeah,

Chef (30:29):
but then there's like the loss in translation character
too. Oh You know, like he's soflexible in terms of being able
to be Did he do that? Totallyhilarious.

Bam Bam (30:36):
That's his movie, Lost in Translation.

Chef (30:37):
Well, he didn't write it. Okay. He didn't write it. But I
mean That's a great movie. Buthe like he talks about in the
podcast too, he's like, I'mhappy to enhance a script.
Like, I can enhance a script.Yeah. But he's like, if I get
through the first five pages andit's shit, I just put it down.
Yep.

Pagoda (30:53):
I think the funniest was What About Bob?

Chef (30:56):
Oh my god.

Pagoda (30:57):
God. Did you remember that? Baby

Chef (30:59):
steps. I'm sailing. I'm sailing. But baby steps, you
gotta you gotta take Bob, I'mgonna write you a prescription
for happiness.

Bam Bam (31:07):
Are you ready? It's

Gizmo (31:08):
the Grand Budapest Hotel.

Bam Bam (31:10):
The Grand Budapest Hotel.

Chef (31:11):
Oh, I just remembered that.

Bam Bam (31:12):
What a good movie. If you guys haven't seen it, it's a
must.

Rooster (31:14):
I've seen it. Yeah.

Bam Bam (31:15):
Asteroid City's cool and The Fantastic Mr. Fox. Like
if you have kids that are kindof like- Rushmore. Rushmore was

Chef (31:22):
incredible. Know, really interesting characters.

Bam Bam (31:26):
Yeah. Oh, Isle of Dogs.

Rooster (31:29):
Isle of Dogs?

Chef (31:29):
I I haven't think I've

Bam Bam (31:31):
ever seen that It's another animated film. It's not
a cartoon, but it's certaintechnology that they use.

Chef (31:36):
Interesting.

Bam Bam (31:37):
Such a good movie.

Gizmo (31:38):
Alright, boys. I gotta tell you, I'm parched.

Bam Bam (31:39):
Alright.

Gizmo (31:40):
It is time now to move in. What I'm being told, because
I haven't tried it, is afantastic Howl Mountain Cabernet
Sauvignon from Cade, the 2018vintage that Senator was kind
enough to pull out of his cellarfor our one hundred and seventy
fifth episode tonight.

Chef (31:58):
I'm looking forward to this.

Gizmo (31:59):
Senator, thank you for bringing this, and, boys, cheers

Bam Bam (32:02):
to you.

Senator (32:03):
Cheers, boys.

Gizmo (32:03):
Cheers to lizard nation out there to a 75 episodes.

Bam Bam (32:07):
Before you sip, though, take it in.

Gizmo (32:08):
Go to your nose.

Chef (32:10):
The nose is fantastic. Cheers. Cheers. Cheers. Oh,

Bam Bam (32:14):
the nose is rich. It's fruity and earthy.

Chef (32:17):
It's exactly what the cigar needs, just on the nose of
them.

Senator (32:21):
This is truly one of my favorite cabs.

Chef (32:26):
Retail price?

Senator (32:27):
Wow. Wow. $1.50.

Gizmo (32:29):
Wow. That is a

Chef (32:31):
great wine, man. I gotta tell you.

Bam Bam (32:32):
You know, I can easily take a bottle down myself.

Chef (32:34):
Oh my goodness gracious.

Bam Bam (32:35):
There's no doubt about

Senator (32:36):
it. Wow.

Gizmo (32:38):
That's fantastic. Thank you. Senator, that's good.

Bam Bam (32:40):
Pagoda, come on.

Chef (32:40):
That's very good.

Bam Bam (32:42):
You can take that bottle down alone. I can.

Gizmo (32:44):
The microphone's over He's

Rooster (32:46):
talking he's throwing the liquor. He's talking into
the glass.

Gizmo (32:50):
One hundred and seventy five episodes later. By the way,

Bam Bam (32:53):
this is gonna

Chef (32:55):
cost me. This is gonna cost me because this is good.
Wow is that good.

Gizmo (33:02):
So we have been teeing up a wine deep dive prompted by a
listener email, and I'll readthat in a moment. But I wanna
ask Senator specific to thiswine in this moment with this
cigar, why did you choose first,you were you really wanted to do
a Cabernet with the Padronsixtieth. What was the impetus
for that decision, and then thespecific choice of the Cade?

Senator (33:24):
Yeah. So I I the Padron this cigar is like a meal.
Right? Like, it's so rich andflavorful and full bodied. And
so I remember when we first litthis together, I immediately
thought of, man, a great richred wine would pair perfectly
with this cigar.
And as I was thinking about, youknow, what would be an

(33:46):
appropriate choice, I reallylove Howell Mountain cabs from
California. Howell Mountain is avery high altitude, like,
growing area in Napa, and thehigh altitude I mean, one, it's
closer to the sun, so when it ishot at, like, peak sunlight
during the day, that sun justconcentrates the flavor in those

(34:09):
grapes more and more. That's whycabs grow really well in Napa
because that hot sun during theday gets that concentrated
flavor. A cooler growing regionwon't produce the same rich kind
of full bodied wine. But what'salso unique about that mountain
altitude is actually thetemperature variation is much
greater where at night, itactually gets way cooler at the

(34:29):
higher altitude than it does forwine that's made lower in the
valley.
So that kind of extreme variancein temperature leads to, like, a
really just rich, complex,flavorful wine, and I think for
whatever reason, that thatparticular region, I can't think
of any California wines thatdeliver as much flavor as

(34:52):
smoothly as Howell Mountain redsdo. You'll remember we did, and
this is one of my favoritebudget Howell Mountain wines,
and budget and Howell Mountainare never used in the same
sentence. Like, the entry pointto Howell Mountain wine is like
a hundred something plus abottle. We did the Robert Craig
Howell Mountain Couvet. Exactly.

Bam Bam (35:11):
That was delicious.

Senator (35:12):
Which was a blend from Howell Mountain, which you don't
normally see, And that was atlike a $40 price point, which is
outstanding for the value thatthat delivers. And, you know,
you get some of that kind ofsimilar character. What I also
like is the the wine at HowellMountain is not overly sweet.
It's like very balanced. It can,like, start, like, fruit

(35:33):
forward, finish a little bitdry, like, it's really well
balanced, which is just mypersonal preference.
So for all those reasons, with acigar like Padron that I think
you get sweet yet earthy notesin, it that has that same
balance that I think a lot ofHowell Mountain reds have. So
that's why Kay just immediatelypopped to mind, and it's a
vineyard that I really, reallylove, and we haven't had a

(35:55):
chance to do on the pod. Andit's not like we break a 50
bottle of wine every day. SoMhmm. With a cigar at this price
point, that's an occasionspecial occasion type cigar, you
know, I think the winedefinitely fits the bill for,
like, a really nice dinner outat a steakhouse.
Yeah.

Chef (36:09):
It seems a little versatile too. Yeah. Like, it it
it feels versatile to me. Like,if you were to it's full bodied,
but it doesn't hit in the facewith a two by four.

Senator (36:23):
Exactly. Easy Yeah.

Gizmo (36:25):
For the listener out there, I wanna reference this
now because I'm not gonna bringthis one out as a comparison
point for the rating later, soI'll share it now. On episode
23, which is crazy to think thatit's almost a hundred and more
than a 50 episodes ago, we didthe Robert Craig Howell Mountain
Couve. On episode 23, we gavethat an 8.4.

Bam Bam (36:44):
Oh, boy.

Gizmo (36:44):
So obviously at a budget, a different

Senator (36:47):
kind of Yeah. Can make the comparison later. Mean, I
think it's actually like that.That's a very fair score for
that wine, and I think you'llsee the difference in

Gizmo (36:55):
You'll definitely see the difference. Yeah. Yeah. This
being a Cab though, a little,you know, different than

Bam Bam (36:59):
the It's an exclusive wine for the price. Not easy to
find, right?

Gizmo (37:02):
Yeah. So senator, what's with the 2018 vintage
specifically on this wine? Whyis that one so celebrated as you
found?

Senator (37:10):
Yeah. So funnily enough, I mean, all pretty much
every Kate is a newer vineyardat number one, so they haven't
been around actually very long,but they just have really made
their mark quickly where theirwines are super highly regarded,
very, very popular. I've had thetwenty seventeen, 20 18, and
2019 vintage. And the 2017 and2018, had intentionally. The

(37:34):
2019, I was at a steakhouse.
The wine list said they hadtwenty eighteen. I was thrilled
because I'm in love with thisvintage. And they brought the
bottle out and it was 2019. Isaid, Woah, woah, wait a minute.
You know, it said 2018.
Oh, we're sorry, we should haveupdated that. We just recently
ran out of our last bottle ofthe 2018 vintage. And the 2019

(37:54):
vintage I had actually drankhot. So how we're saying this is
so smooth and boo boo yoo isversatile, which I agree with,
that wine needed more time. AndI think whatever the growing
conditions were in 2019 at thatvineyard, it needs more time
than maybe the '18 certainlydid.

(38:15):
So I had stocked up on, youknow, this is years ago, as much
of this 2018 as I could. I'mdown to my last two bottles at
this point, so we're doing onehere, and I'm saving one more
that I'll probably open uparound the holidays this year.

Gizmo (38:27):
Or later tonight after we're done recording,

Bam Bam (38:29):
you can go get it. We'll go over his house. Yeah.

Gizmo (38:31):
That's totally fine. I'm good with that.

Senator (38:34):
But my personal preference, I think the twenty
eighteen is like the perfectexpression of the Cade style of
making Cabernet. The twentynineteen, I'd be interested to
try it's been a few years, somaybe now it's ready just
certainly a few years ago. Itwas aggressive. I was just
shocked because what I loveabout Kate is like, it's like

(38:56):
Padron, it's like it delivers somuch flavor, but so smoothly and
in such a balanced way, And Iwas a little surprised by at
least the twenty nineteen I had.

Chef (39:05):
That's interesting.

Bam Bam (39:06):
You know, I think this is probably the most balanced
wine I've ever had.

Chef (39:10):
It's very, very good.

Bam Bam (39:11):
Usually, a lot of cabs are either way too sweet or not
sweet enough and they aren'tearthy enough or way too earthy.
This is a great balance.Upfront, get kind of like a
berry.

Senator (39:22):
I can't

Bam Bam (39:22):
put my finger on Or a currant. If you've had those
tiny little blueberries, I getit on the But as I let it curl
in my mouth and take it down,it's kind of buttery to me on
the finish.

Chef (39:36):
I get a very interesting, almost blueberry, cola, cocoa
happening all at the same time.And it goes amazingly well with
this cigar.
It does. It it it a little bit of viscosity to it.
Yeah. There's almost weight to it.
Yeah. Yeah. That kind of coach your palate. Yeah. And
it's got a longer finish thanyou'd expect and a smoother,

(40:00):
longer finish than you expect.
And I think that that's a realmerit here in this particular
vintage by this by thiswinemaker. I I I've quite
frankly, I mean, I love wine.I'm not a wine aficionado, but I
know what's good and I know whatsucks. I've drank enough wine in

(40:21):
my life. This is this isfantastic.
I mean, in every way.

Gizmo (40:27):
And to find a wine, I think, to stand up to the
powerhouse cigar that we have inour hands, which is delivering
so much flavor, such viscoussmoke, such a rich experience,
to have a pairing like this thatlines up so well in parallel is
it's actually kinda shocking tome how well

Bam Bam (40:48):
it's doing well.

Chef (40:49):
Yes. Because it's like coating your mouth. The finish
is long enough and pleasurableenough, and it pairs well with
the long finish of this cigar.It holds up. It marries up quite
well.
It's unexpected. Yes.

Bam Bam (41:07):
It's unexpected.

Chef (41:08):
This is way better than anything that I was expecting,
this this wine. I agree. Sosenator, thank you.

Bam Bam (41:14):
So It's really delicious. Where can we find
this?

Senator (41:17):
So you can find it at a a lot of places. I just say, I
mean, you know, wine's at thehundred and something dollar
price point. You can't find itat liquor store. Right? You
know, a simple liquor store thatcarries some wine isn't gonna
have wine red wine really above,like, a $50.60 dollar price
point.
But total wine should definitelyhave it.

Bam Bam (41:35):
You know, my AI character's gonna ask a
question. Go for it.

Chef (41:39):
Why are you interrupting the man? He's giving you
insight.

Bam Bam (41:42):
Go for it. I have a joke. Can I get it at seven
Eleven?

Chef (41:52):
Okay. You would find Kool Aid. Lehman.

Bam Bam (41:54):
A lot of Kool Aid of flow.

Senator (41:56):
Yeah. Aster wine in the city, Sherry Lehman would
definitely have it, althoughdon't buy wine at Sherry Lehman,
I'll never support that placeagain. Have I told my Sherry
Lehman story on the No.

Gizmo (42:05):
Oh, man.

Senator (42:06):
Oh man. So I used to live in Manhattan before I moved
out here, and Astra I hadpurchased from for years.
They're outstanding.

Chef (42:14):
Astra's a great source also for agave destinations.

Rooster (42:16):
For sure.

Chef (42:17):
Their selection is better than anyone's.

Bam Bam (42:19):
A beautiful and a beautiful destination too.

Chef (42:21):
For

Senator (42:21):
sure. I remember even when we had some mezcals with
you, the easiest spot to find itwas Aster, and I had it shipped
to my house. They're great.

Chef (42:28):
Oh, yeah.

Senator (42:28):
So Sherry Lehman, very, you know, kind of a historic,
you know, almost wine shop inthe city. And I remember I was
so excited to I had been inthere before, but this was like
once I was living in the cityand I buy in quantity. And so,
you know, it's very fun to go toa place and, you know, you
anticipate you're gonna build arelationship and and buy a lot
of wine for a long time fromthem. And I walked in there and

(42:52):
there was an Italian wine. Andthis is when I was still in my
frustrated state with Italianwine.
I hadn't really loved a lot ofwhat I had tried. Wine Spectator
that year had this Chianti thatwas very highly rated, and I
tried it somewhere and Iactually loved it, and I was
like shocked. It was like thefirst Italian wine that like

(43:14):
really grabbed me and said like,this this fits your palate. I
see Sherry Lehman allegedlycarries it. So I walk in there,
I tell them, again, a wine shoplike Sherry Lehman, I shouldn't
have to explain that vintagesmatter or are important.
I go in there looking for aparticular vintage, this one

(43:35):
that had scored really high. Itwas by far their best vintage,
the best yield for that winethey have ever produced. And the
guy tells me like, oh, yeah.Yeah. Sure.
We have that wine. I tell himthe vintage everything. I say,
you know, I'll take a case, andhe brings out a case, and I I
look in it, and it's totally thewrong year, wrong vintage. So

(43:55):
I'm just assuming it's just anhonest mistake, and I say to
guy, hey. You know, I told you Iwanted the, like, 2016 vintage.
This is like the 2018. And he'slike, oh, well, it's $10
cheaper, who cares? What's thedifference?

Rooster (44:08):
And

Senator (44:09):
I'm looking around like, this is what I expect in a
seven eleven. This is a highly

Gizmo (44:15):
regarded Hey.

Bam Bam (44:16):
My AI guy just walked out. Alright? It's me now.

Chef (44:19):
It's it's what you expect from a minimum minimum wage
worker who's stocking shelves atTotal Wine anywhere.

Senator (44:24):
Like, I mean, it's just outrageous in a place that's
regarded in the way that SherryLehman is that a guy is telling
me, like, who cares what vintageI brought out? It's cheaper. You
know, shouldn't you be happywith that? And I said, I asked
for this specific vintagebecause that's the one that I
wanna leave here with. I don'tcare that it's $10 more.
And the guy just lookedcompletely confused, like, why

(44:47):
would this matter so much? Andit turned me off, and that was
my first bad experience withthem. And then like an idiot, I
gave them a second chance, and Iordered wine and had them
deliver it to my apartment. Andit was again a specific vintage,
and you can check substitutionsif they don't have the vintage

(45:07):
or no substitutions, they willcancel the order because that's
the bottle you're looking todrink. They deliver it.
I put no substitutions. It'sagain the wrong vintage. The
wildest thing happens. I takethis back to their store. I tell
them this is the vintage Iordered.
This is what I received. I Ineed it replaced. They say,
okay. Sorry about the mistake.They go back.

(45:29):
They don't have the vintage Iordered. And I say, okay, then I
wanna be refunded. They say,there's no refunds. I said,
what? I ordered a vintage.
I put no substitutions. What doyou mean there's no refunds? I
mean, that's the most ridiculousthing. This is their error. They
never should have sent me thewine, and I have it right there.

(45:49):
And I had a whole argument withthem, and I said, I will never
shop in your store again, and Ithink I even had to charge back
the wine. I mean Oh, jeez. Oh mygod. That's All they had to do,
first of all, RefundMe. Worstcase, which still wouldn't have
been okay

Chef (46:03):
It was store credit. Is give

Senator (46:04):
you store credit. And they're telling me, nope. You
are stuck with this wine. Icouldn't believe it. Haven't
bought a single thing there

Chef (46:11):
since By the way, that would be great for judge Judy.
You'd win that. Oh, for sure. Imean, that's a slam dunk. She'd
be

Gizmo (46:20):
like Absolutely. You'd you'd win all the money. And you
might win damages too. Yeah.Emotional distress.
Correct. She'll hit you with thecap of 5,000. You're good. So,
boys, we're coming to the end ofthe first third here on the
Padron sixtieth anniversary inMaduro, the limited edition,
newer newest release fromPadron. What's everybody

(46:40):
thinking right now?

Bam Bam (46:41):
I'm looking at chef's ash. Look at that thing.

Gizmo (46:43):
Yeah. He's got about two and a half inches of ash on his
cigar right now. Looks great. SoI did a second cut of mine
because I wanted a little bitmore draw. Same.
And I knocked the ash off, youknow, intentionally. But Senator
and I, the first time, I thinkwe took our ashes down almost
into the last third of the WestCoast.

Bam Bam (47:01):
Pagoda, senator, and chef still are working on nice
long ash.

Gizmo (47:04):
Yeah. Nice. Well constructed cigar.

Senator (47:07):
Just stay on the cut. I wanted to let everybody do their
own thing, but I I do have atleast a strong preference or
recommendation as far as thiscigar and what you should take
off. I actually think you need ahealthy cut on this cigar.

Chef (47:19):
Correct.

Gizmo (47:20):
Are we in giz cut territory?

Senator (47:21):
No. No. Not giz cut. Not even a cold You'll kinda
what I took off.

Chef (47:26):
Just at the taper.

Senator (47:27):
Yeah. And the reason I say that is like a cigar that is
so flavorful, you want likevoluminous smoke output. You
really want to be able to justenvelop yourself in everything
that that's delivering. So forme, you know, taking a little
bit off and having itaggressively tapered at the head

(47:47):
of the cigar, you're justgetting a fraction of what the
experience

Bam Bam (47:50):
can be.

Senator (47:51):
And once you get to the widest part of the cigar when it
starts to burn, and that'sreally what for every listener,
you know, I guarantee any of yousmoking this for the first time,
like I remember my first timewith this, initially, you're
gonna get not a whole lot offlavor. You're gonna be
confused, probably disappointedthinking this is gonna be the

(48:12):
experience all the way through.Wait until you hit the widest
part of the cigar, which is justmaybe half an inch from the end
of it.

Bam Bam (48:20):
That's where we are now.

Senator (48:21):
That's when it just explodes in flavor and is a
completely different experience,And then the combustion when
you've taken enough off the headof the cigar is just off the
charts.

Gizmo (48:31):
Yeah. It's such a pleasure to smoke this cigar. It
really is.

Chef (48:33):
No. It's so pleasurable. It really is. And and I I think
pace I'm pacing myself at a pacethat I'm comfortable with. I
think that whatever you'recomfortable with, do it do it.
But it's it's delivering in away, but you gotta you gotta
kinda take it slow.

Rooster (48:49):
It's it's

Chef (48:50):
it's a it's powerhouse. There's a lot of tobacco in
here. So I think to reiteratesenator's point is, you know, do
a decent a healthy cut at thetaper because you want it opened
up because there's a lot of Imean, it's it's not tightly
packed, but there's a lot oftobacco in here.

Senator (49:10):
Yes? Oh, for sure. I'll also say flavor wise, I mean,
this cigar really kinda takesyou on a bit of a journey in the
sense that I think everyone wastalking about on the light
getting a lot of spice and somepepper. And I think once you get
about half an inch in, you startto get some sweet notes. I mean,
I was getting like figs, somedried fruit, then you start

(49:33):
getting a little bit of cocoa.
And now about a little more thanmaybe an inch in, I get a
saltiness Yes. That I reallylove that kinda adds this
complexity to the fruit notesthat I was getting, the cocoa,
the earth, so it's just a reallyrounded experience.

Chef (49:53):
It really is a little minerality.

Pagoda (49:54):
Yeah. Yep.

Rooster (49:55):
It's also unlike any other Padron. It's very
different.

Gizmo (49:59):
It is. Yeah.

Rooster (50:00):
And I was trying to think, what can I compare this
to? I want to say the shape islike the eightieth, but it
smokes not like the eightieth.

Bam Bam (50:10):
It's much fuller.

Rooster (50:11):
It's much fuller, much more complex, much more
balanced. Well, eightieth isvery balanced.

Bam Bam (50:16):
Yes, it is.

Rooster (50:18):
Eightieth has a it's a little sweeter note. This has a
little bit more it's apowerhouse. It's like in between
an eightieth and the ninetiethalmost.

Senator (50:26):
I agree with that. Yeah. I'd call it an eightieth
on steroids.

Bam Bam (50:29):
Yeah. Yeah. I agree with that.

Gizmo (50:30):
I'd call it an 80 plus.

Bam Bam (50:31):
Alright. Oh, yeah.

Chef (50:34):
Well, it doesn't it doesn't it doesn't have Mute his
mic. The eightieth tends to havea little bit more forward
chocolate maybe in it. Cocoa.

Bam Bam (50:46):
I'll be with that.

Rooster (50:47):
This has more spice. It's balance of spice and
chocolate

Gizmo (50:50):
and What

Bam Bam (50:51):
distinguishes this is that fruit and berry experience.
With that, I don't get in anyother Padron.

Gizmo (50:56):
True. And the salt too. Minerality That's unique to
this, I think.

Rooster (51:00):
I don't know what they did to blend this because this

Gizmo (51:02):
is And what's crazy, Rooster, is we don't even know
there's no age statements.There's no definition of the
different kinds of tobacco inthis. You know? I think Padron
is just betting on the fact thatthey're so trusted with the
lines of their cigars, that thisbeing their premier limited
offering, that they know thatthey've put something great
together here. I'd obviouslylove to ask George Padron what

(51:23):
the blend is, what the age is,you know, what some of the
components are.

Bam Bam (51:27):
Well, gonna have lunch with him next week.

Chef (51:28):
I am,

Gizmo (51:28):
yes, exactly. All right. But I would love to know. So,
you know, at some point, we'llhave to sit down and answer.

Rooster (51:33):
I would say this has at least seven years of age on
tobacco.

Gizmo (51:37):
I would think so. Probably closer to 10. We have
to talk about the bands, boys.Because these bands are unique
in that, first off, this is, youknow, one of the newer padrons.
They're starting to do this onthe '64 line, I believe the
1926, where the serial numberband is actually integrated

Bam Bam (51:54):
Mhmm.

Gizmo (51:54):
Into the the main Padron band, and then there's a what
looks like a third, but actuallya second band that has sixtieth
on it. But what's cool is on themain Padron band is a image of
the island of Cuba. It sayshandcrafted, Padron, of course,
above it, but the island of Cubahere paying tribute to Jose

(52:16):
Padron's, you know, early lifeand and birth in in Cuba before
he eventually came to TheStates. But definitely a unique
band on this cigar.

Pagoda (52:26):
Beautiful. It's a beautiful band. Yeah. Beautiful.
And glossy as a glossy.

Gizmo (52:29):
It's very classy. Of course, everything Padron is
class, but

Bam Bam (52:32):
%.

Gizmo (52:32):
This just is it's elevated. Alright, boy. So I
wanna go to this listener email.We have a bunch of stuff to get
to tonight, but I do wanna go tothis listener email from
December that prompted this wineconversation from Lizard Chris.
And I'll read it again to youguys.
He says, hey, Lizards. It'sLizard Chris again. Love the new
episode with the wine pairing.This is back in late November or
December. I thought it was veryrefreshing.

(52:54):
I had an idea for a futureepisode, which brings us here. I
would love to hear senator do adeep dive on his favorite wines
of different categories atvarying price points. It would
also be interesting to hearabout the history of said wines.
Of course, I don't know if wecan get into all that, but
certainly naming some of yourfavorites and the price is
definitely very doable. Aquestion I have for senator is
if you are having multiple winesin a night, so different wines

(53:17):
in a night, is there similarityto the cigars in how you
structure the different flavorprofiles and which ones you have
first and in what order you havethem?

Chef (53:26):
Well, that's a good calculus.

Gizmo (53:28):
With cigars, you obviously start more mild to
medium than finish with a fullersmoke as you guys have detailed
many times. I would love to hearsenator's expertise so I can try
it out myself. Wow. Well, Imean, thank God he's Ivy League.

Senator (53:46):
No. It's a it's a great question. I mean, I think
fortunately the answer is isprobably more straightforward
than than maybe the the listenerthinks. Wine is no different
than cigars in terms of if youwere to want to sample or try,
you know, a number of differentwines in a sitting or with
multiple courses of a meal ordinner, you would want to start

(54:11):
with and pair, you know,initially, if we're talking red
wines, lighter reds and end witha fuller red. So very similar to
a cigar we always talk aboutstarting with something Cuban,
Honduran, lighter, milder,medium, and working our way up
to, you know, new world, fuller,Nicaraguan, Dominican tobacco.
Very similar in wine. You'dstart with like, you know, a

(54:33):
Pinot Noir, something verylight, easy drinking, you know,
a Merlot, something a littlemore body, but still on the
lighter medium side. And then,you know, toward the fuller end,
a Cabernet Sauvignon, a CabFranc, a Malbec, all fuller
bodied reds that, you know, justwould pair with a fuller

(54:58):
Nicaraguan cigar like we'resmoking tonight. So I think as
far as pairings go, very, verysimilar to cigars, and you just
wanna kinda work your way up.And, you know, this is a great
example of this is a very fullbodied red.
If we were to, you know, wannadrink another bottle of wine
after this and open up a pinotnoir, I mean, everyone would

(55:20):
laugh at it, and you wouldn'teven your palate would be so
shot. You couldn't appreciatethe subtlety and nuance of a
pinot noir. You'd be sittingthere so unsatisfied because
your pal is craving a fullexperience like you just had. So
the order is really important.

Gizmo (55:35):
And it would be like if we put this cigar down tonight
when we're done and then lit avery light Cuban cigar. Yeah.
It's it's identical to thatfeeling.

Chef (55:44):
It's like trying to shoo in like a Beaujolais Nouveau. Do
you know what I'm saying?

Gizmo (55:48):
I have no idea what that is.

Chef (55:49):
At the end of the night.

Senator (55:51):
Bourgeois is basically like a French Pinot Noir,
essentially. It's very light.It's like a lot of people drink
it with a turkey onThanksgiving.

Gizmo (55:58):
I thought

Chef (55:58):
it was a French hooker

Bam Bam (55:59):
or something.

Chef (55:59):
Well, it's it's it's like a preview of what maybe the
maybe maybe what the vintagecould be like.

Rooster (56:07):
So what's a fuller what's fuller than a Cab?

Senator (56:10):
I mean, I'll say this. There's nothing fuller than a
Cab in the sense that Italianwines, like for their fuller
bodied stuff and Super Tuscans,they're using Cab grapes to pack
the punch that's in those. Sofrom a, you know, a grape
perspective, like, a Cab is asfull as it gets. Cabernet
Sauvignon grape or Cab Francgrape, very full body in terms
of what that delivers, andyou'll see that in really any

(56:32):
full Italian, French. I mean,you know, a Bordeaux, the the
five noble grapes that that makeup a Bordeaux, Camernaise
Sauvignon, Cab Franc, Merlot,Petite Verdot, and Malbec.
And of those, like, the fullestare Cab Sauv, Cab Franc, and
Malbec. So it's all in how youblend it, no different than

(56:54):
tobacco basically, but that'sdefinitely at the fullest end of
the spectrum.

Pagoda (56:58):
Senator, a quick question. Yeah. So just to, you
know, carry on thatconversation, would you start
with white wine or champagne andthen move into reds?

Senator (57:09):
For sure. Great question. So the one
Thanksgiving that, like anidiot, I

Gizmo (57:13):
did I like, by the way, how many times on this episode
you've called yourself an idiot.No. On this this was this was
truly third time.

Bam Bam (57:18):
Well, we've gotta listen to counting.

Senator (57:20):
This is truly a stupid move on my part where I hosted
Thanksgiving, and I did, like,tasting menu style, like, all
these courses with differentwine pairings for every single
course. It's just a lot of work,and it's like the amount of
stemware. You know, I'm not aperson that, like, you could
just reuse your wine glass forall these different like, there
were there were specific glassesfor every single pairing. It was

(57:43):
and and then the glass have tobe washed by hand. You know, I
don't put crystal in adishwasher.
There it it was honestly brutal.

Chef (57:51):
But Thanksgiving is tough too because it revolves mostly
around side dishes and

Senator (57:56):
I know. But I classed it up aggressively, and it was
coarsed, it was That's a lot.Was great.

Gizmo (58:03):
I mean There was a printed menu.

Senator (58:04):
There was a printed menu.

Chef (58:05):
That's right. True.

Senator (58:07):
It's ambitious But to Pagoda's point, I mean, I
started with some champagne withcaviar, some shrimp cocktails,
stuff like that. I remember thenthere was a lobster bisque with
a French Sauvignon Blanc, sothat was a white wine that

(58:28):
really held up well with, youknow, kind of a seafood based
type soup, but also still hadenough structure to hold up to
like the, you know, a fullersoup and like a bisque.

Chef (58:39):
No. And the sweetness and the sauvignon with the lobster,
I'm sure went amazingly well.

Senator (58:43):
Exactly. Exactly. And then I forget all the rest of
the courses, but I know in termsof reds, it was then just
building up from there to, like,I think a miritage. I had a
blend and then, like, probablyended with something, like, much
fuller. So, you know, evenwhites, I I love if I'm, you

(59:05):
know, having some seafood to asas appetizers.
I'm out at dinner, and I wantsome champagne or a white wine,
and then I order, you know, a aheartier main and Mhmm. I want a
glass of red wine with that.Totally, you know, acceptable. I
I think anybody should feel freeto do it, and I think it's fun
to kinda work your way up. Also,in between there, you know, you
can do a rose in between a whitewine and a red wine.

(59:28):
So there's lots of options,which I think makes it a lot of
fun.

Gizmo (59:31):
And the point is just like cigars, you gotta go in one
direction.

Bam Bam (59:33):
Correct. Correct. That's correct.

Poobah (59:35):
Yeah. In

Gizmo (59:35):
body and in flavor.

Chef (59:37):
Rose doesn't get a gonna get enough attention.

Senator (59:40):
I agree with that. I really do.

Chef (59:42):
I I think when it comes to anything dealing with the
palate, you have to build up toget to that. If you're going to
go backwards, you have to do afull reset. You almost need a
course where, you know, maybethere's a mineral water that
stands out or something likethat to just kind of really
champagne to reset your paletteor champagne. Sure. Because it's
yeah, once those heavier tanninsand heavier flavors get on the

(01:00:06):
palate, it really cloudswhatever.
You know, you don't want to gobackwards without cleansing your
palate or resetting your palate,if you will. I think with
anything, as you guys aresaying, with cigars, with food,
with with wines, I think it'sreally important.
And I think with wine, there's like a lot of traps out
there. Like, it's a confusinglandscape to kind of navigate,

(01:00:28):
In some ways, confusing thancigars. It's it's it's like you
can't it's like you have toreally read up on it and kinda,
like, do your research and relyon referrals and rely on
You have to understand the blend. Right? Because to what
Senator's saying, just theconcentration of cap grapes or
whatever grapes are in thoseblends specifically, it's gonna

(01:00:50):
increase Correct.
Correct. And money for value, like, you know, like you
talk about a standard bottle ofSilver Oak, for example. Like,
it's okay. Like, it's okay. It'sserviceable, but is it really
worth a hundred bucks?
I don't know. I don't think so.No. It's not. It's not.

(01:01:11):
Like but this is a hundred and50. So the cost delta versus
what you're like, the productyou're getting, like, it's
definitely more than 50% better.Do you know what I'm saying? So
navigating and then there'sthis, like, weird and and,
senator, I'll defer to you, butthere's this weird, like, price

(01:01:32):
point gap where it's like youcan't really find anything that
I know of or, like, it's veryhard to to to hunt down. You
gotta really do your research tofind something that's, like,
under, let's say, $30.
Find a bottle of wine for $30that's worth a shit. Very

(01:01:52):
difficult to to to to to find.You gotta, like, get over that.
You gotta get to, like, thatstag's leap level as, like,
table wine almost. And I'm nottrying to sound like like a
Bougie?
Bougie. Toady. Yeah. Sure. Doyou know what I'm saying?
Yeah. Like, we're we're youknow, you gotta get to that 60
to $80 level to get, like, adecent wine. Now if I can find

(01:02:16):
stuff in between that's cheaperthan that, like, that would be
great to explore. But, like, itit's like and I'll defer to you,
senator. It's like kinda findinga needle in a haystack.
Am I wrong?

Senator (01:02:29):
No. No. You're you're

Chef (01:02:30):
to navigate.

Senator (01:02:32):
I mean, I've said this before, and I think for any
listener that enjoys wine, yougo in a wine shop. Like, if you
wanna know if a wine shop isreally worth anything, go in
there and say, what's a great$20.30 dollar bottle of red? If
they can actually recommendsomething that you buy and drink
and would purchase again, do allyour business there. It's the

(01:02:54):
toughest thing to find, and goodwine shops are actually able to
recommend solid red wine at a$20.30 something dollar price
point, where for most, theyeither look totally lost or they
recommend something that's awfulthat, you know, they just have
sitting there and that they'venever really drank or or clearly

(01:03:15):
don't know much about wine.That's the hardest question.
Like, I hate when you're in awine shop. Anybody can pick out
a good $50.60, $70.80 dollarbottle of red wine. Everybody.
There's so many good options atthat price point. It's so much
harder to find at like a $30price point a great bottle of
red that you would actually becomfortable serving to people
that you get together with.
And then, you know, the theprice delta, like, where you

(01:03:38):
start to get crazy is, you know,I think I've said with cigars,
my philosophy is no cigar shouldbe over $40, and the few that
are above that price point thatare the ones that are above that
price point that are spectacularare few and far between.

Chef (01:03:53):
Mhmm.

Senator (01:03:53):
Right? I've broken my own rule a handful of times. Not
often. Tonight.

Rooster (01:03:58):
For

Senator (01:03:58):
sure. Disqualifies. Yeah. I'm happy to

Chef (01:04:01):
know Disqualifies for $150.

Gizmo (01:04:04):
I'm I'm saying about cigars. Oh, the cigars.

Senator (01:04:07):
Sorry. Cigars usually say nothing over $40 sometimes
break that rule. Now with wine,I truly don't think I think you
can count on your hands thenumber of bottles that are above
a $200 price point a bottle thatare actually worth that, like,
big delta from other greatwines. And that's where, like, I

(01:04:29):
think, like, the poster childfor me, like, Opus is very
ironic. You know, in cigars, wekinda have the same frustration.
Yeah. Opus in wine is regardedas some of the best wine money
can buy, and they average 300something bucks a bottle for a
bottle of Opus.

Chef (01:04:44):
Yeah. Right.

Senator (01:04:45):
I've been lucky to try plenty of Opus. I haven't had a
single Opus bottle that I thinkis worth $300 plus.

Chef (01:04:51):
No. It does not blow your hair back at all.

Senator (01:04:53):
Not one. I think it's a status symbol. Think very
similar to some Opus cigarsthat, you know, things just come
at a higher price point.Everyone is so quick to just
assume that that must meanhigher quality, must be better.

Gizmo (01:05:05):
Yep.

Senator (01:05:06):
You know, what I love about Kade, depending on the
vintage, I mean, you can findthis between $1.20 and $1.60 for
pretty much any vintage thatthey put out of their their cab.
And I put this up againstcountless $250 bottles that I've
had that I think that thisactually drinks better than. Now
that's not to say there aren'tsome bottles. I think, you know,

(01:05:26):
maybe I've said this on a priorepisode. For me, Schaeffer
Hillside Select, that's a 300something dollar bottle.
It's the best bottle of red I'vehad in that class. I'd put it up
against almost anything. Yeah.It's actually worth that price
point. I can't replicate thatexperience.

Bam Bam (01:05:43):
Make a note. But

Gizmo (01:05:45):
Schaeffer Hillside Select. Select.

Senator (01:05:47):
2016 vintage.

Gizmo (01:05:49):
We might have to do that episode 200.

Pagoda (01:05:51):
Just don't put

Bam Bam (01:05:51):
it on split wise.

Gizmo (01:05:55):
Well, it's a good point, and I think it's really
important for the listeners. Andwill say, to answer Lizard
Chris's question here about someof our favorite wines in
different categories at varyingprice points, we've done quite a
few wines in a 75 episodes. So Ithink that, you know, going to
our ratings guide and seeingsome of the wines we've done,
seeing how we've rated them,we've kind of hit a gamut of

(01:06:16):
varying priced wines, you know,as low as Oberon or Bonanza.
Bonanza, all the way up to, youknow, some of the higher priced
stuff we've done. You can lookthrough that, including
champagne and get a good, youknow, look at how these things
not only drink, but also howthey pair with cigars, which of
course is what we're doing here.

Chef (01:06:35):
I mean, like, least Oberon by Madhavi is like at least like
kind of like a serviceable tail,you know, table wine with a bowl
of spaghetti and meatballs. YouYou can kind of do

Bam Bam (01:06:47):
you know

Chef (01:06:47):
what I mean? It's it's it's it's good enough for the
money.

Bam Bam (01:06:51):
I

Chef (01:06:51):
agree. It's almost too sweet for me.
The overall Yeah. You know, you're not wrong. You know

Gizmo (01:06:56):
you're not

Senator (01:06:56):
jammy

Chef (01:06:57):
and Yeah. You're not wrong. But I mean, what are you
gonna find at that price point?You know, it's kinda like

Senator (01:07:02):
I will say, also at that price point, you know,
where you get a ton of value area lot of, like, Spanish wines
and wines out of Argentina,Chile. We randomly you know, we
were in Havana at a restaurantand, you know, it's slim
pickings when you're looking ata wine list there, but I I try

(01:07:22):
I've gotta get creative. And sowent to Chile and we tried this
Marquez Casa Concha.

Gizmo (01:07:27):
Yes. Cabernet. Yeah.

Senator (01:07:28):
Yeah. And it was delicious. Everybody liked it.

Bam Bam (01:07:31):
It's I

Senator (01:07:31):
bought bottles when we got back home, and that's like
$20 a bottle. Yeah. And I'mtelling you, you'd serve that to
anybody. It's a totallyserviceable, great table wine,
versatile. So you find goodvalues in South America and
Spain in a way that Californiawines are just priced much more.

Gizmo (01:07:49):
For the listener out there, we did that on episode 78
with the Cohiba Lancero. TheMarques de Casa Concha Cabernet
Sauvignon rated in 9.3.

Bam Bam (01:07:57):
That wine was very balanced. Wasn't overtly sweet.

Chef (01:08:00):
Very mixed.

Gizmo (01:08:01):
It paired brilliantly with the cigar. Yeah. You know,
which is obviously what we'redoing here. Yeah. Again, for
Lizard Chris or any listenersout there who wanna ask us about
wine, feel free to email us, ofcourse, but also refer to the
ratings guide.
We've done quite a bit of wine.

Chef (01:08:14):
Yeah. I'm I'm interested in diving a little bit deeper
into the vortex. Yeah. To behonest. I I because I I really
do like red wine.
But, again, it's like if ittakes a lot of work to kind of
to navigate the space. Do youknow what I mean?

Bam Bam (01:08:31):
Or I could just make a phone call.

Rooster (01:08:33):
Yeah. Yeah.

Chef (01:08:35):
So you can make a phone call.

Pagoda (01:08:36):
Correct. Senator knows how many times I've

Chef (01:08:38):
called him.

Bam Bam (01:08:38):
And and we him from we all said.

Chef (01:08:40):
Well, I've texted him from restaurants. Yeah. It's the
list. Like like, I'm inWashington DC. I need a butt
this is the this is thechampagne list.

Bam Bam (01:08:48):
Hey, senator.

Rooster (01:08:49):
Can you

Chef (01:08:50):
please tell me what to get?

Senator (01:08:51):
That's how that's how you had The bolognese

Rooster (01:08:53):
for the first

Senator (01:08:54):
time. Yeah. Yeah.

Bam Bam (01:08:54):
Yeah. What's a good shower But

Senator (01:08:59):
I I will say one one watch out for any listener. When
you find a wine that you love,you find a vineyard that you
love, you can assume that you'realways gonna love that wine.
It's gonna drink the same. And Isay this because there are
countless vineyards. Californiais a great example of this.

(01:09:21):
You know, these vineyards startreally small. They're like
family operated a lot of them,and then they get big, and they
get sold, and things change.Private equity comes in or
whoever. For sure. And there's alot of examples of this where,
you know, Silver Oak years agoactually used to make excellent
wine.
I think the stuff they put outnow is way too aggressive. I

(01:09:43):
mean, you ought to aerate it forlike ten hours until it like
seems like it tame enough toenjoy a glass of it. I I just
they've gone in a very odddirection for me. Caymus is
another great example. I mean,Caymus used to make outstanding
wine.
Outstanding wine. And now Ithink, not that is terrible, I'm

(01:10:03):
not saying I wouldn't drink aglass of Caymus, I'm not in any
way suggesting that's the case.It's just that I think like
their cab is very sweet, verystraightforward and simple, and
not really deserving of a of ahigher price point. Mean, now
Caymus Go is like as high aslike $80 a Yeah. And I'm like,
it it doesn't drink like an $80bottle.

(01:10:24):
Like, that drinks like a $40bottle. So there's a lot of
these vineyards that, like, theyhave their heyday, and if they
get sold, if their operationgets too big and they need to
find ways to cut costs andincrease volume, you don't
necessarily get the same. Sokinda like we talk about cigars
going on runs Yep. I reallythink wine is the same. And, you

(01:10:45):
know, it's funny.
Oberon was mentioned. I hadOberon for the first time over
ten years ago. It was whenMichael Mondavi of the famed
Mondavi family kinda went out onhis own and wanted to create
like an accessible wine thatwould kinda put him on the map,
And the first stuff that theywere making was really good.
Like for 20 something bucks,probably the one of the better

(01:11:06):
$20 bottles of wine you couldfind. And then everyone started
catching on.
Everyone was buying their wine.They ramped up production. They
rebranded the labels, and thatwas like when everything kind of
got different for me. It's stilla totally drinkable bottle of
wine, but it lacks the bit ofcomplexity that it used to have

(01:11:27):
where you would say like, thiscan hold up to some more
substantial meals. This issomething that someone can try
and have to say a thing or twoabout, and now you drink it and
you're like, it's drinkable.
It's good enough, but you're notgonna have a deep conversation
about Oberon anymore. And so allthese things go on runs, and
you've really gotta get it whenit's good. And the single most

(01:11:47):
fun part of wine is the whole isvintages. Right? Any spirit you
can buy today is gonna tastealmost identical ten years from
now.
That's the whole point ofblending. Wine doesn't have that
luxury. They have to put a yearon it, and the the climate, the
soil, natural disasters. I mean,when there were wildfires in

(01:12:09):
California that hit Napa, mean,you drink any of the wines from
those years, there's a smokinessin those wines unlike any other
vintages that you wouldAbsolutely. And so when you find
a vintage that's good, the crazypart about it is it's produced
in a finite quantity, you willnever ever be able to replicate
that exact experience again.
Right. It's impossible, and it'sfrustrating because when you run

(01:12:30):
out of a vintage that you love,you can't have it again, but
there's also something reallybeautiful and special about how
natural and subject to theelements this this product is
that you gotta appreciate whenyou have it. I mean, these are
my last two bottles of this.We're all enjoying this. I'll be
very sad when that last bottle'sgone, and that's it.
I'll never be able to replicatethis exact experience again.

(01:12:54):
Yep. The other vintages will besimilar. There are many that are
enjoyable, but you'll never haveverbatim what you're having in
the glass again outside of thatvintage.

Chef (01:13:01):
That's correct. Yeah. I mean, a % correct. The
quintessential year was what?Twenty fifteen?
Sixteen. Sixteen. Thank you.

Senator (01:13:09):
It's because it was one of the hottest years in Napa.

Chef (01:13:11):
Yeah. I mean, like, anything from that year out of
Napa was great. I mean, notanything, but a lot of it For
sure. Was great. Alright,

Gizmo (01:13:23):
gents. A great deep dive on wine. Thank you for that. And
I hope, Lizard Chris, I hope weanswered your questions. You got
some good insight there.
Any listeners out there, ofcourse, who want some more info
on wine, feel free to email us,of course. Tell us some of your
favorite wines out there, ofcourse, in line with what we're
talking about, especially withcigars, and we'd

Senator (01:13:39):
be happy to review them on the pod. Can I say a quick
fun fact on Cade? Yes. So I'llbe honest. I I did not know much
about the vineyard itself.
I haven't visited Cade. I'vejust I've discovered their wine
years ago. I love it. I've drankplenty of it. The thing I was
shocked to learn is actually whoowns Cade.

(01:14:00):
This is really bizarre. So Cadestarted in 02/2005. I mentioned
they're not an old vineyard. Andthree guys partnered to start
this vineyard, a guy named JohnConover, Gordon Getty, and the
third name I was stunned tolearn is Gavin Newsom.

Gizmo (01:14:18):
Oh, wow. What? The governor of California. Governor
of California. That's crazy.
How interesting. Wild.

Chef (01:14:23):
Goodness.

Pagoda (01:14:26):
Let's vote him for president.

Bam Bam (01:14:29):
Hey. They

Gizmo (01:14:30):
make a good wine. No.

Bam Bam (01:14:32):
I'm I'm sure I know. I know you are.

Chef (01:14:34):
I'm sure I'm sure all of their licenses and regulatory

Gizmo (01:14:39):
Oh, yeah.

Chef (01:14:40):
Paperwork went through like clockwork very quickly.
Very quickly.

Senator (01:14:44):
They they started Kay. They have a sister winery, Plump
Jack, which I've heard of. I'venever had their wine. I'm
actually now kinda curious totry it. All the stuff at Kade is
made in Howell Mountain.
And the thing I'll mention aboutHowell Mountain, so there's just
a handful of vineyards in HowellMountain, and what a lot of
other producers in other partsof Napa do is they'll buy Howell

(01:15:09):
Mountain grapes, and they'llmake like a Howell Mountain
Maripage. Or a Howell MountainCab, like kind of a special
release. So like Dunn, some oflike the big names in Napa,
you'll find a Howell Mountainbottle that they'll put out, and
it's because the grapes thereare so sought after. Even if
their vineyard itself is notlocated in Howell Mountain,

(01:15:30):
they'll buy grapes and actuallyproduce a cab with all product
from there. So that's kind ofthe, you know, the special sauce
of of Howell Mountain.
You see it even in vineyardsthat aren't located there.

Gizmo (01:15:40):
Very cool.

Chef (01:15:41):
So even if it's from there, would it even if they're
sourcing grapes from that sameregion, it would still be, I
guess, technically a miritage,or did they not classify it as
No.

Senator (01:15:52):
No. If it's all cab a miritage is just a blend. So if
it's a blend of a bunch ofdifferent grapes, they'll call
it Meritage. But if you'rebuying all Cabernet grapes from
Howell Mountain and bottling it

Chef (01:16:03):
Okay.

Senator (01:16:04):
It would be. Now what they can't say is estate grown,
and that it is not grown ontheir So like a single estate
grown, you know, bottle likeCade, this is all from their
their vineyard there. Right. Andthey've got a huge property
there. It's 50 something acresthey have.
And the cool thing about it, soit's a 54 acre estate. 21 acres

(01:16:24):
are dedicated to cultivatingCabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and
Petit Verdot, three of the fivenoble grapes I mentioned. Five
of the acres are for productionand hospitality on the property,
and the remaining 28 acres arepart of a land trust that will
forever be preserved as openspace and they won't develop or
use. So Very

Gizmo (01:16:43):
cool.

Senator (01:16:43):
They've got a cool property there.

Gizmo (01:16:44):
Very cool.

Bam Bam (01:16:45):
It's awesome.

Gizmo (01:16:45):
Awesome. Great deep dive on wine tonight, boys. And we're
coming into the last third hereon the Padron Sixtieth
Anniversary in Maduro. This hasbeen such a journey through
these first two thirds. I can'twait to see where it gets to at
the end here.

Bam Bam (01:16:59):
It's I'm getting words.

Pagoda (01:17:02):
So I'm

Rooster (01:17:03):
It's unbelievable.

Bam Bam (01:17:04):
So I'm still getting berry, but it's very faint, but
I'm getting more molasses, atouch of molasses, and a very
smooth delivery. No harsh edgesat all. I actually like the
traditional draw better than theretrohale.

Gizmo (01:17:16):
I agree with you on that.

Bam Bam (01:17:18):
Not that the retro is rough in any way, but I'm
getting more from the draw.

Chef (01:17:22):
I think I'm a little ahead than most, but I right now, it's
it's dried out for me a littlebit in a pleasant way. And what
I'm really getting here is Ikinda wanna say cayenne pepper,
but I think when you hear that,you think spicy. I'm getting
more

Bam Bam (01:17:37):
of a Yeah.

Chef (01:17:38):
I'm getting more of paprika.

Rooster (01:17:40):
Would you say Hungarian paprika? A %.

Pagoda (01:17:43):
It's it's like the red it's like the red chili I was
thinking in my mind, but thepaprika. Correct. Yeah. In fact,
if you

Chef (01:17:49):
Even if you just, yeah, flavor of it is like the aroma
of red chilies.

Pagoda (01:17:55):
Yeah. In fact, if you just bring the cigar to your
nose.

Rooster (01:17:58):
Yeah. The paprika has like a smokiness to it.

Gizmo (01:18:00):
Yep. Pagoda, how's your cigar?

Pagoda (01:18:02):
Excellent. You know, it's, I've been enjoying this.
You know, obviously I lovePadron's, and just having it in
the hand is fantastic. You know,I was holding the cigar like
just towards my nose from whereI'm actually.

Gizmo (01:18:18):
Where you're drawing from?

Pagoda (01:18:19):
From where I'm drawing from. And I found the aroma
change over the period of thecigar. And I, at one point, was
getting deep espresso from theback, and then now it's become
paprika. It's reallyinteresting. And I think it's
kind of really, you know, justadding to the flavor.

Bam Bam (01:18:40):
Yeah, awesome. Not getting paprika, but I think
everything else is there

Gizmo (01:18:43):
for me.

Chef (01:18:44):
I think Pagoda and I are kind of in similar places with
our cigar. Okay. I think it'sgonna come for you guys.

Bam Bam (01:18:51):
Looking forward to the Hungarian paprika.

Chef (01:18:53):
Yeah. It's It has a very, like, forward presentation, but
it's absent of some of those,like, I guess, kinda traditional
dessert flavors you kinda get,like, maybe from an exquisite,
but that's not a demerit. It'sit's it's different. It's it's

(01:19:16):
different. It's got a littleit's got some spice, and it's
got there's baking spices, but,like, a little bit more on the
spicy side.
Yep. So where you're at where you're at, I was getting I
was getting that. Now where Iam, that's, for me, it's almost
all gone. Now it's it's almostvegetal and earthy. And and

(01:19:38):
yeah, I propose that for thenext pod studio, it's somewhere
of a mashup between a choppedkitchen where we have all these
ingredients in mason jars, andthen when we call out these
flavor notes, we have An intern?
An intern that goes and grabswhat we're calling out.

Bam Bam (01:19:57):
And brings it to your nose.

Gizmo (01:19:59):
No. But we don't want to interrupt the recording.

Bam Bam (01:20:01):
Well, they'll tiptoe. Yeah. Yeah.

Chef (01:20:03):
No, because I think this way, it'll kind of help us all
in our journey, you know. Imean, obviously, I'm kind of
joking because that's sort of abig production, but at the same
time, I think it'll bebeneficial, you know. Mean, just
hearing the notes that Pagoda'scalling out, it's pretty
awesome, and, you know, this isgreat.

Gizmo (01:20:22):
This has been a hell of a journey of a cigar so far. And
I'm curious, I don't want todiscuss it now, but when we get
closer to the ratings, I want totalk about how many acts of a
play this has taken us throughbecause I'm curious what kind of
number we're gonna get tobecause it's really been a
dynamic and ever changing cigarthe whole way through.

Bam Bam (01:20:38):
Yeah. You can't question a combustion. The room
is full of smoke.

Gizmo (01:20:40):
Yes. Very smoky.

Bam Bam (01:20:41):
Very productive.

Rooster (01:20:42):
Can imagine if Davidoff came out with this cigar, with
this presentation, with thiskind of box

Gizmo (01:20:49):
At this price? With these coffins.

Rooster (01:20:51):
It would be like double the price.

Bam Bam (01:20:53):
More than triple. Exactly.

Gizmo (01:20:54):
Exactly. Exactly. Correct. They're putting out
cigars that are a hundred bucksin a normal box.

Chef (01:21:00):
Oh, yeah.

Gizmo (01:21:01):
Alright, boys. Let's do some other listener emails. So
first up, I thought this was areally important one, and I
wanted to share this going backto our conversation about
prostate screenings. So LizardSean sent us a note and said,
after the episode from the otherweek where you guys did a deep
dive on getting a prostatescreening, I'm gonna be 55 this

(01:21:23):
summer, so I decided to get minedone. I was going for blood work
anyway for other concerns, so Ifigured I'd kill two birds with
one stone.
I got the results back today,and the PSA levels are within
range. And honestly, I wouldhave never even thought about it
had you guys not brought it upon the pod. That's great. I love
hearing that and I hope itinspires other listeners out

(01:21:44):
there to go and get yourselfchecked out. Very important
stuff, so I'm happy to see that.
All right. Let's go to one fromLizard Grizzly. We really cover
it all. Yes, we do.

Rooster (01:21:55):
Oh, yeah.

Gizmo (01:21:56):
From boots to prostate exams to wine.

Bam Bam (01:21:58):
That was a great episode.

Gizmo (01:21:59):
It was. Health

Chef (01:22:01):
screening to, you know, strong Nicaraguan cigars. We
cover the spectrum.

Gizmo (01:22:07):
So Lizard Grizzly writes, hello, lizards. I hesitate to
read this one. After listeningto all the Lanceros you have
reviewed, I finally took a deepdive into trying that Vitola. I
went with an Aleva Series V.What a great stick.
The former lizard rating ratedit a nine seven overall.
Considering how cheap I got themon a bidding site, I'd probably

(01:22:28):
give it a solid 11. Wow. I'dalso love to give a
recommendation on a valuefriendly whiskey, Woodford
Reserve Kentucky straight maltwhiskey. It's fantastic whiskey
at about $44 from my localretailer, and it's great neat
with one chip of ice.

Chef (01:22:46):
That's not neat.

Pagoda (01:22:49):
But I like the one chip of ice.

Gizmo (01:22:51):
That's just that's

Pagoda (01:22:51):
one of

Bam Bam (01:22:52):
the
you

Pagoda (01:22:52):
Did

Gizmo (01:22:52):
like

Bam Bam (01:22:52):
the to write this email?

Chef (01:22:54):
What the fuck is this rare plus? Exactly.
That's neat plus, neat rice.
That's in chef Ricky gets the ticket for the for the skirt
steak, and they're like they'relike, yeah. I like it I like it
rare plus. And he's like, whatthe fuck is this?

Bam Bam (01:23:12):
Gizmo must be here.

Senator (01:23:13):
Yeah. Tell that guy I can eat it in the bathroom. Get
him out

Chef (01:23:16):
of my restaurant. So this one's a

Gizmo (01:23:18):
great note on YouTube actually from Lizard Edmond. He
said, I'd like to thank youLounge Lizzards for great and
informative podcasts I catchhere on YouTube. There are not
many channels I enjoy in such acomprehensive manner. In fact, I
can go back to the Doctor JoeShow, which was my go to
channel, and still I will runthem back again despite their
length. Your podcasts aresimilar, and I do not mind the

(01:23:40):
length and the area of the broadinformative nature I would like
to see more of, an experience inManhattan along my brothers of
the leaf and sisters of theleaf.
I recently gathered about adozen people at the Casa De
Monte Cristo in Manhattan for abourbon night where everyone
brought a bottle of bourbon sopeople could try different
spirits.

Senator (01:23:58):
Thanks for the invite.

Gizmo (01:23:59):
But remained within the same genre of spirit to not
suffer the consequences the nextday. I trust it will catch on,
and we will continually repeatacross many genres. As an aside,
I too have recently caught thebrandy bug and find it a
challenge to leave the Armagnacsand Cognacs for the other
spirits, particularly the formerfor value to age. I also have

(01:24:19):
kept my cigars and wine adoresfor at least seven years after
watching Doctor Joe on thesubject and aging cigars
properly. I also share youragony over the steep uptick in
Cuban cigar prices.
It's been greatly curtailing mypurchase of the same or at least
making me highly selective. Wehear that a lot from listeners.
Keep up the good work, and youhave people who are enjoying
your format and would enjoysipping and smoking with you

(01:24:43):
whenever and wherever isopportune. Cheers, gents. Lizard
Edmond.
What a great a great email.

Chef (01:24:50):
Can we just raise a glass to doctor Joe? Can we because he
was he not He's the greatest.Here's doctor Joe. Doctor Joe,
wherever you are

Rooster (01:25:00):
To doctor Joe.

Gizmo (01:25:01):
Wherever he's gone

Chef (01:25:02):
Wherever he's gone.

Gizmo (01:25:03):
He's somewhere. He's not on the Internet anymore.

Chef (01:25:05):
But boy, oh, boy. What a what a what a great Great
resource on you. What a greatresource that was that early on
in our cigar journey and earlyon in my cigar journey, I mean,
I watched every single episodeof the Doctor. Joe show multiple
times. He was really that good,and he influenced people, by the

(01:25:29):
way, within our group big time.

Gizmo (01:25:33):
Oh, yeah.

Chef (01:25:33):
Big

Gizmo (01:25:34):
time. Was like was he was so early in the cigar content on
YouTube. Unfortunately, hedoesn't make content anymore.
There was a rumor he died. Hedidn't die, but he just left the
genre.
He's doing other things. But hiscontent is amazing. Go out and
check it out.

Chef (01:25:49):
Yeah. Yeah. Mean, he worked at Barclays Rex. I mean,
you know, like, he was veryknowledgeable on, like,
different fatalities, you know,how to identify fake boxes,
like, all that stuff. Like, hereally put good content out
there with with, I think, a lotof positive intent.

(01:26:11):
And I enjoyed his podcast very,very much. For any listeners
that are out there, search upDoctor. Joe. He's still up he's
still up on YouTube.

Rooster (01:26:21):
Yeah. You

Gizmo (01:26:21):
can still watch everything.

Chef (01:26:22):
You can still watch everything. It's dated at this
point. It's got some vintage onit, but I enjoyed him very much.
I had no
idea we were on YouTube.

Gizmo (01:26:32):
We are on YouTube. We're not a video podcast, but the
podcast does live on YouTube.Not a lot of attention there
because if you don't pay forYouTube premium and you lock
your screen, it pauses. Sothat's why for an audio podcast,
most folks are going elsewherebecause unless you pay that $15
a YouTube premium, once you lockyour once your screen locks, the
audio stops playing. So Makessense.
That's most folks go elsewhere.Alright, boys. It's time now to

(01:26:55):
do our lizard of the week. Thisis lizard Maddie, and he writes
an email with the subject linecigar lingo. I don't know if
we've ever approached this.
I'm excited to hear Bam's takeon some of these. Greetings,
lizards. I'm a huge fan, and atthis point, I believe I've
listened to all of yourepisodes. I was curious if there
was any cigar lingo that madeyou roll your eyes and why. For

(01:27:18):
example, Styx, Stogies, StackingDimes, etcetera.

Bam Bam (01:27:23):
Well, we've used all those.

Gizmo (01:27:25):
It's been awesome to see your palettes develop from some
of you liking the judge early inthe pod to absolutely hating it
more recently. It was adifferent Vitola. We didn't
really love either of them, butthe latest one was really rough.
For a recommendation, try theSaum Rioja, which which I'll
slot in sometime. Lizard Matti.
Mhmm. So congratulations to him.He's gonna be our lizard of the

(01:27:46):
week. So what do you guys thinkof cigar lingo?

Bam Bam (01:27:49):
I cringe at the word stogie. Stogie, me too. I don't
like that.

Rooster (01:27:52):
I use sticks a lot.

Bam Bam (01:27:54):
Stick? I'll take a stick. Sure. That's fine.

Gizmo (01:27:57):
Stacking dimes, we don't really say that. I've said it a
few times.

Bam Bam (01:28:00):
And you know what? I've regretted it every time.
Alright?

Chef (01:28:05):
You have more regrets than that.

Bam Bam (01:28:07):
I'm gonna edit that out.

Senator (01:28:12):
I'll tell you who loves the term stogie.

Poobah (01:28:15):
Stogies.

Bam Bam (01:28:17):
Yeah. Arnold.

Poobah (01:28:18):
It's very simple.

Chef (01:28:18):
Correct.

Poobah (01:28:19):
I went home with Maria in 1977 when I met her at the
tennis tournament. I went homewith her to meet her parents in
Hyannisport. And there, herfather, after dinner, pulled out
a cigar, lit it up, then he gaveone to his son, then to the

(01:28:41):
other son, and to some otherpeople. And he said to me, do
you want a cigar? And I said, Idon't know how to smoke a cigar.
He says, well, try it becauseafter dinner, everyone ought to
have a cigar. So I tried it.Well, the rest is history. I'm
still smoking Stogis. I love it.
And he introduced me tosomething really good.

Chef (01:29:02):
Oh, gosh.

Gizmo (01:29:04):
That's a nice story, but I agree with you.

Bam Bam (01:29:06):
Well, the one gift from the in laws. That's great.

Chef (01:29:08):
Correct. And he paints the wrapper of his cigars with
tequila.

Gizmo (01:29:14):
Yes, he does. He dips them. So, yeah, I mean, you can
listen to the lingo we use onthe pod here. I mean, don't, you
know, stogies, I don't know ifwe've ever said that. Sticks, we
say very infrequently.
Stacking dimes comes up everyonce in a while, really only
when we see a cigar thatactually looks like that, which
is, I guess, kind of rare. Butis there any other lingo that
drives you guys crazy?

Rooster (01:29:34):
I think George Burns used to call them stogies.

Senator (01:29:38):
Yeah. It's a very old school term.

Bam Bam (01:29:39):
It is.

Senator (01:29:39):
Yeah. I'm surprised BAM doesn't use it. Well, Brewster's
let's just carry carries he's

Bam Bam (01:29:45):
the only lizard

Senator (01:29:46):
that carries a handkerchief.

Bam Bam (01:29:47):
Correct. I love handkerchief.

Senator (01:29:48):
He uses terms like cans. Wow.

Gizmo (01:29:51):
For his headphones, mean.

Bam Bam (01:29:55):
Broads. What did

Gizmo (01:29:56):
that say?

Bam Bam (01:29:57):
My two by fours and a two by eights on job sites,
they're broads. They're

Rooster (01:30:01):
broads. They're broads.

Chef (01:30:03):
And let's be let's be on let's be honest. Rooster uses
the term stick.

Rooster (01:30:08):
Good stick. Good stick.

Chef (01:30:10):
Yeah. It's a good It's fine.

Gizmo (01:30:11):
Says But he's smoking longer than

Bam Bam (01:30:13):
anybody. 1927. That's right.

Chef (01:30:15):
Well, yeah.

Rooster (01:30:15):
It was a good vintage.

Bam Bam (01:30:16):
Correct. Was a good vintage.

Chef (01:30:17):
I mean, he smoked his way through the Great Depression,
the best thing, and World WarII.

Bam Bam (01:30:22):
He's a vampire. Look at him. He doesn't age.

Gizmo (01:30:25):
Alright. So congratulations to Lizard Matti
winning lizard of the week thisweek. Anybody out there can win.
All you have to do is send us agreat comment, email, YouTube,
Instagram, whatever you choose.And we'd really love some more
voice memos.
We have a lot of fun with those.So please do share, and you'll
win a little gift package fromus. Alright. Let's go now to our
final listener email tonight.This one's from Lizard Jules

(01:30:47):
from France.
He says, hello there, lizards. Ijust discovered your podcast,
and I'm enjoying to learn how tobetter appreciate the smoking
experience by following youresteemed footsteps. As a keen
collector of whiskey, McAllen,Lefroy, Nika, La Gavulin,
etcetera, I love the fact thatyou review pairings. I'm feeling

(01:31:07):
very lucky that I have a longlist of playlist to work my way
through. I'm relatively new tosmoking cigars, but luckily, I'm
in my early thirties, so it'sfar more financially accessible
now than it used to be.
My first question. While I keepTubos for possible future
transport and just remove thecap, do you have a rule of thumb

(01:31:27):
for cellophane wrappers? I'mcurrently finding my taste, so I
tend to buy a lot of singles,which of course sometimes come
in cellophane. Any thoughts oncellophane, boys? I generally
remove it.

Rooster (01:31:39):
Yeah. I think if you're to age the cigars, I think you
should remove the cellophanewrappers.

Senator (01:31:45):
I've never done that. I completely disagree.

Gizmo (01:31:48):
Never done it either. Yeah.

Senator (01:31:49):
And I forget who we talked to about this, but I feel
like someone in the industrylike, if the cellophane's on
there, it's on there for areason. Mhmm. I have I mean, we
talk about yellow cello, andlike the sign of a great aged
cigar. Totally. Mean Yeah.
Perfect example, that Idiot. ThePadron eightieth that I brought
after, you know, my son wasborn.

Gizmo (01:32:08):
For our one year anniversary episode, which was
episode, I think, 53 orsomething like that. Long time
ago.

Senator (01:32:14):
Oh yeah. And I mean, those aged in cello, in my
tower. I mean, I think it scoreda perfect 10, it's one of the
best cigars we've ever had.

Gizmo (01:32:22):
Yep.

Senator (01:32:22):
My experience has been anything in cellophane, I've
always left in it, and I've beenincredibly happy with the aging
process and the performance overtime. So I've never felt
compelled to take it off, And Ifeel like even early on, I was
kind of averse, and I would takeit off. And I don't know if it's
psychological, the experiencehas always been so perfect with

(01:32:45):
it, I see no reason to removeit, and I feel like the
manufacturers put it there for areason, and I haven't found a
reason to disagree

Bam Bam (01:32:52):
with it. I'm gonna cite one example. That EP Carrillo El
Senador cigar, I've had a you'vehad them, senator? I've had I
have four left. I have a boxthat's kind of been in my
humidor for a year.

Chef (01:33:07):
Where is she there?

Bam Bam (01:33:08):
Oh, it's almost gone. But they have gotten smoother.
They've gotten sweeter. They'reincredibly delicious, and
they're all in cellophane.

Rooster (01:33:17):
But would not have happened had you removed the
cellophane?

Bam Bam (01:33:20):
Don't know if it would have made a difference. What's
the point?

Senator (01:33:22):
I don't know. For me, the thing I've noticed is a lot
of cigars in cellophane, they'renaturally New World, and they
tend to be fuller flavored orbodied cigars with like a Maduro
wrapper or like a an oily typeof wrapper that I think ages

(01:33:43):
better at like 65 and notnecessarily, like, 60 or 62 like
a lot of Cubans. And I feel likethe cellophane just keeps a
slightly higher RH that forwhatever reason like, I've taken
them out, left them in my tower,and it loses kinda that sheen
that some of them should have onthe wrapper. So I think for

(01:34:05):
cigars with like a thicker newworld wrapper

Bam Bam (01:34:08):
Yeah.

Senator (01:34:08):
The cellophane actually helps

Chef (01:34:10):
kinda I totally agree.

Bam Bam (01:34:11):
Yeah. I agree too. I think it's difficult to know
what the chemistry is, butthere's a crystallization that
forms maybe because of thecellophane.

Chef (01:34:20):
Well, I'm not sure about that or not from a technical
perspective.

Bam Bam (01:34:25):
I don't know.

Chef (01:34:26):
But but but but I but I but what I do do, and I've
mentioned this before, is if Ihave, like, like, some loose
singles of, like, stuff thatbecause I don't keep my humbler
is not as organized asSenator's. Okay? Like, where
every band is lined up and it's,you know Pre

Gizmo (01:34:45):
pre child's? Was like a

Chef (01:34:50):
looks like a library. Mine mine mine doesn't look like
that. It's like he's got hisorganized by the Dewey decimal
system, and mine's just fuckingin there. But what I do do,
though, like, with certainCubans, like like, I have Joyos,
like some some epicure your Epitwos, you know, or something

(01:35:11):
like that. And let's say I'vegot five of them.
Like, I'll take a ribbon fromany box, Juan Lopez box,
whatever it is. I'll take aribbon, and I'll just tie them
together and put them in abundle. And I think those I
think that kinda helps to, like,maybe marry them up. Do you know
what I mean? If you gotta makemore space in your humidor, just
put them just tie a littleribbon about it.

(01:35:32):
Or if you've got nine cigars,you're just like, alright, I
need to make more room.

Gizmo (01:35:37):
You make your own little mini bundle or something.

Chef (01:35:39):
Like you make your own mini bundle with Cubans, and you

Gizmo (01:35:42):
put them in Have any of you guys done that with New
Worlds? Because I've never donethat with New Worlds. No. No.
I've never done it with Worlds.
Yeah. So it's like, it'sinteresting. I mean, the Cuban
thing, you know, obviously theycome a lot of times wrapped in
in the ribbon sitting in a slidelid box. But the New Worlds,
first off, Cuban cigars don'tcome in cellophane, number one.
Number two, the New Worlds do,and they're generally in a

(01:36:03):
pretty tight, concise packagethat's pretty easy to slide in
your tower.
So it's, you know, like, I'veonly pulled the cello off of New
Worlds when I'm getting ready tosmoke them or if I just wanna
put them in, like, a singlestray or something.

Chef (01:36:17):
Right.

Gizmo (01:36:17):
But otherwise, I'll leave them in the box in the cello and
let them marry up that way.Yeah. You know what mean? Yeah.
And some of the Cubans, ofcourse, they they're kind of
loose, if you don't wanna keep awhole cab for nine cigars, you
take the ribbon and bundle themand

Chef (01:36:30):
marry them like that. Mean, that would be my
recommendation. Just bundle themup. I mean, like, it's not
hurting the process. Do you knowwhat I mean?
Like, I don't know how much ithelps the process. I can't say
that quantitatively. Like, oh mygod. Like, it's such a
difference because of that. It'snot a bad practice.

Rooster (01:36:48):
I mean, take the single Cuban cigars that are like you
know, if you have a box andyou're almost done, you have a
couple of cigars left, put themin five finger bags. That kind
of protects the cigars, and I'llleave them in there.

Bam Bam (01:37:00):
When I'm down to two or three in any box

Chef (01:37:03):
doesn't like plastic.

Bam Bam (01:37:04):
No, if they're New World, I keep them in the
plastic. But Cubans, if there'sfour left in the box, I'll put
them at the top of my tower.

Senator (01:37:11):
Same thing.

Chef (01:37:11):
Yeah. Yeah. Same. Same. I ordered those.
See your But if I have like nineor 10, I'll bundle them up.

Bam Bam (01:37:16):
That's different. Where I think

Chef (01:37:18):
I need to rest them. Yeah. Yeah. Like some of those Joyos,
I'm like, let me see whathappens with those.

Pagoda (01:37:23):
That's a good idea.

Chef (01:37:24):
Like, I'm not smoking them now. Let me just bundle them up,
and I'll touch them in two yearsand see

Rooster (01:37:29):
what I think the listener had a question about
the tubes. About the tube.

Gizmo (01:37:32):
No, he was saying that we've recommended in the past
keeping tubos for futuretransport, which I do.

Bam Bam (01:37:37):
They're great.

Gizmo (01:37:38):
I love keeping a tubo, but he was asking specifically
about the cellophane. Mhmm. Youknow? Because I don't think
we've actually ever discussedtaking the cellophane off or or
keeping it on.

Chef (01:37:46):
Yeah. I think it's tough. When you buy cigars at the
volume that Bam Bam does, couldyou imagine how long it would
take him to unwrap each cigar?

Gizmo (01:37:55):
Thank you, Chef Ricky.

Bam Bam (01:37:57):
Go there?

Chef (01:37:59):
Hashtag accountability. So Rooster, you

Bam Bam (01:38:02):
actually believe in taking the cello off the new
worlds?

Rooster (01:38:05):
Not particularly, but I just wanted to hear everybody
else's opinion.

Senator (01:38:09):
You did

Rooster (01:38:09):
just say

Pagoda (01:38:10):
you take

Gizmo (01:38:10):
the cello off.

Bam Bam (01:38:10):
Yeah. That's a lot of work for what we all have in our
collection.

Senator (01:38:14):
You're the drone Aeneas? You take the cello off?

Rooster (01:38:17):
No. I have not. I really only have half a box of
the 80 eight's left, so I leavethem in there. I don't take
those.

Senator (01:38:24):
So what cigars do you take to sell off? Because you
said you'd

Rooster (01:38:26):
In the past, I have taken some because I read
somewhere that you should takethem off because they age
better, or at least open theend. You know how they're folded
and taped? So open them up sothey breathe a little better.

Senator (01:38:44):
My experience has been completely different.

Gizmo (01:38:46):
Know. I only take the subtle off, like I said, when
I'm getting ready smoke them,throw them in single straight.
You know?

Bam Bam (01:38:50):
Yeah. I don't even do that.

Senator (01:38:51):
But Yeah. Know. Me neither. Yeah.

Gizmo (01:38:53):
Alright. So thanks to LizardJules for writing us from
France. We love hearing from ourinternational listeners. And
boys, we are coming to the endof our one hundred and seventy
fifth episode tonight with theCade Howell Mountain Cabernet
Sauvignon 2018 vintage and thePadron sixtieth anniversary in
Maduro. What is everybody'sthoughts

Rooster (01:39:13):
right now? Almost don't want the cigar to end.

Chef (01:39:16):
I know.
Well, I wish we had more wine.

Bam Bam (01:39:18):
Me too. I wish we had more cigar. I've been saving my
last sip for a half hour.

Pagoda (01:39:23):
Same here. I haven't haven't savored anything like
this before. I know.

Bam Bam (01:39:27):
It's true.

Pagoda (01:39:28):
It's patience.

Gizmo (01:39:29):
I must say, what an excellent pairing tonight. I
know we're getting into theratings, but as the the two, you
know, entrants to our pairingtonight match up in on your
palate with the experience, theflavor match. It was a home run,
I think, as far as pairing goes.Really, really stellar.
Absolutely.
A great night tonight. So first,boys, it's time to move into our

(01:39:51):
formal liquor rating on the CadeHowell Mountain Cabernet
Sauvignon, the 2018 vintage. Bambam, you're up.

Bam Bam (01:39:57):
Alright. I will say this is probably the most
balanced experience that I'vehad with you guys in the room.
From the cigar and the wine, thebalance between savory and sweet
and how it married perfectly, Idon't think I've ever had that
experience here. Putting priceaside on this wine, it's really

(01:40:20):
easy to give this a 10, so I'mat a 10. I want to buy this.
I want to find it. It'sexpensive, but if any listener
listens, I don't always ratebased on price. I rate it based
on if I like it or not. This isdelicious. Again, I said it
earlier.
What I love about this wine, thetannins on it. Usually, I'm not

(01:40:42):
a wine guy, but the tannins on atypical wine create this almost
astringent finish.

Chef (01:40:49):
It's like a mustiness that No,
it's more

Bam Bam (01:40:51):
astringent and a little bitterness, which you get in a
lot of wine. The tannins on thisare very muted or very

Senator (01:40:58):
subdued. They're subdued.

Bam Bam (01:41:01):
For me, for all those reasons, I'm in a 10.

Gizmo (01:41:03):
All right. Chef Ricky.

Chef (01:41:04):
Yeah, this is great. This is a 10. Price point aside.
Know, I mean, even with theprice point, it's such a
satisfying wine. Just how itdrinks, it's super rich, very
concentrated, but in the mostdelightful way.
You know, Senator very expertlypoured six glasses here, and

(01:41:24):
that was probably the slowest Iever drank something, but, you
know, sure, you could have drankthis fast if

Bam Bam (01:41:31):
you could have brought a second bottle.

Chef (01:41:34):
But you didn't need to because it was so satisfying.

Bam Bam (01:41:37):
Yes, he

Chef (01:41:37):
needed sip delivered and every sip lingered and carried
itself and it just held up sowell to the richness of the
cigar and delivered on everyfreaking level. So yeah, this is
a 10.

Gizmo (01:41:50):
All right. Pagoda.

Pagoda (01:41:52):
It's a 10 for me as well. Pagoda, have some even
though I'm a bad boy, no,

Gizmo (01:41:57):
I've been

Senator (01:41:58):
savoring this.

Bam Bam (01:41:58):
He's got a lot in there. I've been taking really
small sips. I'm not gulping atall. Thank you. It has been a
while.

Chef (01:42:06):
By the way, that's a behavioral change.

Rooster (01:42:09):
That's right.

Bam Bam (01:42:10):
It's also pet peeve number four, so well done.

Chef (01:42:12):
You're hashtag growing.

Bam Bam (01:42:14):
Ever

Pagoda (01:42:15):
since the It is. It is a journey, and you know, the thing
is, I don't particularly reachout for wines. Thank you,
Senator, for always introducingus to wines and talking about
it. And you know, the little bitof knowledge I'm gaining is
through this experience with thepod. So I really appreciate it.
In terms of just overall, thedrinking experience, wow, this

(01:42:36):
is fantastic. It was delightfulat the nose, delicious
throughout, you know, the berryfruitiness. It was just
wonderful. And I, you know, tooka little of the sip and let it
linger in my tongue for a whileand long finish even after that,
and it paired excellent withthis cigar. And I don't know

(01:42:57):
whether the berries werematching up or something, it
just complemented it so well.
It was just fantastic. Know,savored it. Meaning, and you
know, to chef Ricky, how he saidit was complete in the sense
that, you know, it was very wellbalanced and complete. You felt
satiated by having just this oneglass of wine. That experience,

(01:43:18):
you know, I, in particular,haven't had it because I don't
think I've had such expensivewine anyway.
But it's been fantastic. It's a10.

Gizmo (01:43:30):
All right. So for me it's also a 10. I actually think that
the price point is perfectlyappropriate for how this drinks.
I have no complaint about theprice. So even factoring that
in, it is still a 10 for me.
I think it actually drinksbetter than its price at $150
which is actually kind of crazyfor me to say. Guesslation. I'm
not a wine guy that runs out andbuys bottles like this. Even on

(01:43:53):
special occasions, I just don'thave the prowess that that
Senator does and even Pooba. ButI think the price point is
appropriate on this one forsure.
It's one of the best cabs I'veever had. It might be the best.
It was amazing with this cigar.I I can't get over having such a
rich, full, flavorful cigar,which we'll get to in a minute,

(01:44:14):
how well this paired in thepalate. It cleansed the palate
but enriched the experience.
It matched up with the viscosityof the smoke, the richness of
the flavor. Really, reallyimpressed. And I think that if
you didn't have a cigar and youhad a great meal in front of
you, a great steak, you know,some sort of really, really
wonderful experience with food,I think this is a brilliant

(01:44:34):
pairing alongside food. I thinkit would enrich anything thing
that's gonna touch your palatefor sure. And I just think it's
such a well rounded cab, such arich and full experience
tonight, elegant to the finalsip for me, and I wish I had
more.
Absolutely brilliant CabernetSauvignon tonight, a 10 for me.
Senator.

Senator (01:44:56):
Well, I love hearing this just because we haven't
done, you know, wine in a while,and I think this is just a great
reminder of what an awesomepairing wine can be with cigars.
And I think fuller reds, with afuller new world cigar like
we're having. You know, this isfunny for me because there are
there are a few ways I can lookat this. There's I can rate the

(01:45:18):
wine solely for the wine itself,which we don't do decimals, so
I'd be at a nine pointsomething.

Bam Bam (01:45:26):
Pagoda? Pagoda, you wanna chime

Rooster (01:45:27):
in on Wanna

Bam Bam (01:45:28):
police this?

Pagoda (01:45:29):
Not allowed.

Senator (01:45:30):
So I I can't do that. And then there's a temptation
of, well, should I give it thenine? Because then it's gonna
the composite score is gonnareflect the wine. But we rate
spirits, wines, whatever we'reenjoying for its pairing with
cigars. And I think with fullbodied, complex, refined New

(01:45:52):
World sticks, you're hardpressed to find a red that would
pair better.
And for that reason, I amrounding up to the 10. I do
agree. I've had countless otherwines at a even higher price
point that I don't think drinkas as well as this does. I don't
think that they're as balanced.I don't think that they're as

(01:46:13):
refined.
And I think for California cabs,you know, there's so many that
just punch you in the face, andthat's not my style. I really
love that. Clearly, everyoneshares a similar palette to mine
in that my ideal red is abalanced you get some sweetness,

(01:46:35):
some dryness, kinda somewhere inbetween. I don't love
aggressively fruit forward jammyreds, and this is like the
perfect expression of of thatbalance that I always seek out
and pursue. And the balance thatHowell Mountain is so famous for
producing, which is why I alwayssay, like, if you see anything
with Howell Mountain on it andit's at a price point that is in

(01:46:58):
within your budget, your oddsare pretty damn good, and you
ought to pick it up and try it.

Bam Bam (01:47:03):
And

Senator (01:47:04):
I've only scratched the surface on trying Howell
Mountain wine, so there'scountless others that I I
definitely want to experience.But this one is is definitely,
you know, one of the best. Ithink Kay does a really, really
excellent job. So, a 10, astrong recommend, for the wine
itself, but also really for itsability to pair with such a

(01:47:25):
refined, cigar that it feelslike a meal unto itself. I mean,
I've ordered this many timeswith a steak and just a really
full, rich dinner, and and thiscigar feels, you know, just like
that.

Chef (01:47:37):
Yeah. This one would even go great with game.

Bam Bam (01:47:40):
For sure.

Chef (01:47:40):
Like, this is a fantastic wine. And and someone said
earlier how versatile it was.

Senator (01:47:45):
Pooba dish, which is

Rooster (01:47:46):
spot on.

Gizmo (01:47:47):
Yeah. Alright, Pooba.

Bam Bam (01:47:49):
You're up.

Chef (01:47:49):
Yeah. It it I I think it does have versatility. I mean,
I'm not one of these like, Iwould drink this if I was in the
mood for a glass of red winewith, like, a salmon Dijon or
something like that. Like, Icould do that. Like, not that
that's traditional.
But I agree. But you know what Imean? Like, I could eat it with

(01:48:12):
something like that. I could eatit with a lot of so there's a
versatility that's built in itbecause it's rounded and because
it's it's got this body to itand and and there's there's a
level of of of viscosity to itthat I thought was just right,
like, not too viscous, It wasperfect. And and it really I

(01:48:41):
have to say there there'sthere's few red wines out there
that that kind of blow my hairback a little bit.
Do you know what I mean? And,like, this one did it. You know,
I have some experience withwine. I'm certainly not, you
know, a sommelier or an expert,but I've been to Napa. You know,
I've been to the I've been toBurgundy.

(01:49:04):
You know? I've done wine tours.I'm not I'm no expert. But but
but I will say this wine really,really blew my hair back in in
in in many ways because it'sbecause of all the points that
everyone made. I give it a 10.
Yeah.

Gizmo (01:49:19):
Alright. Very nice. So, boys, the formal liquor rating
obviously tonight on thisbrilliant Cade Howell Mountain
Cabernet Sauvignon of a 2018vintage is a 10.

Chef (01:49:32):
Deserves it. Excellent.
It deserves it. It's it's really a a great wine.

Senator (01:49:37):
Garson is still employed.

Bam Bam (01:49:39):
Well, still employed. Garson is going for not bringing
us up believe

Chef (01:49:42):
you guys.

Rooster (01:49:43):
The renew that compart.

Chef (01:49:44):
Too verbose. I mean, everyone else gets a chance to
comment, and then all mycomments are gone. I gotta try
and create something.
You're brilliant. No. No. I was drum roll.
Oh. It's just me.

Gizmo (01:49:53):
Was playing the timpani. Okay. Alright, boys. It's now
time to move into the formallizard rating tonight on the
Padron sixtieth anniversarylimited edition in Maduro
Rooster Europe. What what anexperience this cigar was.
I mean, I I have had this boxfor about four months, and I was
very tempted to try it, but Iwanted to try

Rooster (01:50:14):
it with everyone on the pod.

Senator (01:50:17):
That's a first.

Gizmo (01:50:19):
That's a shot, too. It was

Rooster (01:50:21):
a shot. It was difficult. It wasn't easy, but I
did it. This was an amazing,such a rich experience. This
cigar, I mean, it's the bestexpression of Padron there is.
This is, I think, better thanany other Padron that's out
there. The size of this, theamount of tobacco that's in

(01:50:42):
this, the flavor notes that youget out of this cigar, it's
complex, it's balanced. It's alot like this wine that you guys
the compliments that were givenon this wine. Correct. I mean,
it's an amazing, amazing cigar.
I would definitely I just wishthe price wasn't what it is, but
I wish maybe Padron in thefuture might consider making

(01:51:06):
this regular production and notin these ornate boxes, and maybe
come down on the price point alittle bit.

Bam Bam (01:51:12):
Never going to happen.

Rooster (01:51:13):
But yeah, it is what it is. I mean, this is not an
everyday smoke. This isdefinitely for special occasion
smoke. So for that reason, I'mat

Gizmo (01:51:22):
a 10. All right. Awesome. Pooba. I'm at I'm at a

Chef (01:51:27):
10 as well. I I really enjoyed this cigar, and it's
actually not in my power alley,this kind of a a more powerful
Nicaraguan cigar. I think I tendto lean the other in the in kind
of the opposite direction.However, this delivered and is

(01:51:48):
continuing continuing to, in asmooth, complex delivery. It
changed over the course of, youknow, over the course of the
journey.
I think it was kind of a threeact play where it was kind of a
little bit, okay. Where's thisgonna go? And then it, like,

(01:52:08):
settles in. And then now in thisthis very last third, it's it's
rounding out for me, like, alittle bit more, and I'm
enjoying it even more, which isgreat. It like, that's that's
super.
You know? You get towards downto the end, and you go, wow.
This is actually this isactually getting better. It's

(01:52:30):
pretty special. And and and sofor me, it's a 10.

Gizmo (01:52:34):
Awesome. Senator.

Senator (01:52:36):
So I'm I'm in lockstep with all the the lizards before
me. It it is definitely a 10. Ithink it is the the single
greatest cigar I've ever had outof Padron. I think it it just
takes the Padron DNA, that kindof traditional sweet and savory
notes that you get in Padron,and they're just on steroids. I

(01:52:58):
mean, it is such a rich, full,enveloping experience, but it's
never aggressive.
It never goes too far in any onedirection. Nope. It maintains
its balance all the way through.And the sign of any truly
outstanding cigar is, like hasbeen said, it it gets better and
better as you're smoking it. Youknow, the the last third is as

(01:53:21):
satisfying, if not moresatisfying than any point in the
cigar.
And the the, you know, the theprice point obviously is high,
but the thing I really give themcredit for, there's a lot of
tobacco in this cigar.

Chef (01:53:37):
A lot.

Senator (01:53:37):
It's a lengthy smoking experience. I mean, for $75, the
amount of tobacco and how longit can take you to really get
through this, and you do needpatience with this. I'm actually
grateful that we happen to bedoing wine with this, and so I
did a lot of talking, and itforced me to be so patient with

Bam Bam (01:53:53):
this CR.

Senator (01:53:54):
Oh, yeah. For sure. And I think, you know, when this
overheats, I think that's whenyou can, you know, get some
harshness and even I think youlose some of the sweet notes. I
mean, for me, in the last third,it's not as sweet as some other
parts in the cigar, but I'mstill getting like some espresso
and, like, some just faintsweetness that I like with the

(01:54:15):
earthiness that you get out ofthis cigar. The minerality that
just suddenly appeared midwaythrough was an awesome
transition for me.
I think, you know, this is atwo, maybe even three act play.
I can't recommend this enough,and it totally violates my $40
rule, but this is one of thoseexceptions that for a special

(01:54:36):
occasion, you know, it's hardfor me to think of a more
fitting cigar to to really justenjoy and something, you know,
you don't necessarily wannalight up with a ton of people in
a loud place. Like, it commandsattention. It commands time. It
commands appreciation.

(01:54:57):
And what an outstanding treat byPadrona. I'm so glad that they
came out with this and theperfect way to celebrate their
sixtieth anniversary.

Chef (01:55:04):
I think that's a really good insight about the cigar
that you mentioned just toreinforce that. I think that
that that like, this this youhave to sit with this and say,
I'm gonna take my time with it.And you're gonna get the most
out of it if you just take yourtime with it. Don't rush it.

(01:55:26):
Like, as great as it tastes,don't suck it down too fast.
You're not gonna get the most,you know, satisfaction out of
it. And if you smoke it, I thinkI think if you pace it, I think
it it you know, the benefitsthere.

Gizmo (01:55:45):
Really good. Really, really solid. So for me, it's a
10 as well. I think that'sobvious. I'd be shocked if it
wasn't tonight coming in, and iteven delivered more than the
first one I had, and the secondone I had at home by myself a
few weeks ago.
This just is a brilliant,brilliant demonstration of the

(01:56:06):
greatness of Padron. I thinkthat we've talked about Padron,
and we'll go through thoseratings in a little bit. We've
talked about Padron so much onthis podcast, and this is a
perfect headliner example as towhy. The experience we had in
this room tonight, the seven ofus having brilliant cigars, none
of us touched them up. I saw notouch ups, no relights.

(01:56:30):
It was perfectly constructed.The combustion was great, and I
loved the design in it enforcingyou to be patient in the open
and setting up the tone for therest of the cigar. I thought
that was a really reallybrilliant decision by Padron and
it's forcing every cigar smokerwho picks this up to give it the
time that Senator and Pooba havebeen talking about. I think it's

(01:56:53):
excellent. I found it to be afull sensory experience, almost
in ways that I think othercigars, even for the greatness
that they've been, haven't givenus.
I mean, even in that last halfof an inch, the burn line in the
last half of an inch might havebeen one of the best sensory
experiences I had Yeah. In theentire two hours of smoking this

(01:57:14):
cigar.

Bam Bam (01:57:15):
Mhmm.

Gizmo (01:57:15):
The burn line was great. The retro was great. The
traditional draw was great.Pagoda was talking about the
smell at the head of the cigarwhere you're drawing from being
great. I mean, it was anoverwhelmingly strong sensory
experience, and I don't thinkyou're getting that out of a lot
of cigars.
I would argue this is probably afour act play for me. I think it

(01:57:37):
does eclipse three act play, andI think we've talked about and
senator specifically has talkedabout a lot of Padrons that he
loves are very linear. You lightit, you get the experience, and
it carries through. Exclusivo.Exclusivo is a perfect example
of that.
This is not that. This isanother level and another, like
I said, excellent demonstrationof Padron. Very unique and
different. And finally, theprice is hard for me to accept

(01:58:00):
at this you know, at $75 It is aspecial occasion cigar. It's a
cigar you have maybe three, fourtimes a year at the most.
Right. However, I do think, likethe wine, it does deliver value.
It gave us two great hours ofsmoking. It was effortless. It
was delicious.
It was perfect. Can't sayenough. It was a 10. Brilliant

(01:58:20):
cigar. Brilliant.
Brilliant. Brilliant. Pagoda.

Pagoda (01:58:23):
It's a 10. It's, there's no question about it. You know,
it's, so what

Bam Bam (01:58:29):
I really enjoyed about it, firstly, it is, you know,
you talk about

Pagoda (01:58:33):
the Padron DNA. You know, we talk about the Davidoff
DNA. You get this in your hand,and you know it's a Padron.
Straight through. For me, theexperience was just fantastic.

Bam Bam (01:58:45):
Firstly, I was smoking this, probably one of

Pagoda (01:58:48):
the slowest cigars I've ever had, I think, you know,
nearly completing two hours onthis. The burn line, look at
this, is straight. The edge isstraight.

Bam Bam (01:58:56):
All the way down to the last half an inch. Yeah. And the
construction was flawless. Youknow, what I really enjoy

Pagoda (01:59:02):
in a cigar is when it's really easy to smoke with a
great smoke output, you put itin your mouth and you just let
it go and you get a huge puff ofsmoke. You feel like you're
smoking something excellent. Youknow, my recommendation is if
you want to splurge or you'recelebrating an event, get this
wine, get this cigar, and justenjoy a couple of hours just

(01:59:23):
taking your time, savoring themoment, and really, really
enjoying it. If, you know, froma little bit of the espresso,
the cayenne pepper, the theinitially, it was a little more
spicy in the beginning. Youknow, the cocoa notes, you know,
the dark chocolate cocoa notes,it was just fantastic.

(01:59:45):
Loved it and would recommendthis. I know I'm a value guy,
but, you know, sometimes you gotto splurge and celebrate. So
thank you once again for awonderful experience, Dan.

Gizmo (01:59:55):
Well said, Pagoda. Chef Ricky?

Chef (01:59:59):
If there's ever a cigar that epitomizes this hobby, this
is it. This is why we do this.You know, we sat here for two
hours effortlessly, not onetouch up, not one relight, not
a, not a perfect draw plunge,nothing, nothing. I mean, the
cigar was just perfect. Know,for me, four acts easily,

(02:00:23):
little, little bit of a pepperblast in the front, which was
expected because of the Figueroashape.
But then it just kind of turnedinto some baking spice, some
cocoa. The burn line was Germanchocolate cake all day long. You
know, band called that outearlier.

Bam Bam (02:00:40):
That was an act number two for Yeah.

Chef (02:00:42):
And then, you know, getting to the end there, you
just started getting a littleminer You know, you got
minerality at the midway point.You know, towards the end, I
started getting the aroma ofdried chilies, and it just
presented itself in such abeautiful manner, and it was
almost like eating a meal. Youknow, it was such a full
experience. You know, at onepoint, I was rocking a foreign

(02:01:05):
chash on this thing. I mean, theconstruction was flawless, just
all around a wonderful cigar,you know, price being a little
bit higher.
I think for this, you know, ourhundred seventy fifth episode,
any special occasion, it's wellworth it. It's not something
you're going to go for everyday. But every once in a while,
need to reach for you need toreach for that banger, and this

(02:01:27):
is it. And, you know, many timeswe've had cigars that have been
at this price point. They're notgoing to give you that two hour
experience.
They're not going to give youthis delivery. This cigar did it
all. It's a 10.

Gizmo (02:01:38):
Alright. Bam bam.

Bam Bam (02:01:39):
Yeah. I said it earlier. I haven't had a
balanced experience as I've hadtonight from the wine to the
cigars, so they marriedbeautifully. It's a firmly a
three act play for me. And thefinal inch and a half, I can see
why lizard Idiav would havecould have a a challenging time

(02:01:59):
with it.
I found that as I got closer tothe end, I started slowing down
even further because I smoked itquickly as I got down to that
final inch and a half, and itwas getting really bitter and
difficult to smoke. So Istopped. I slowed down, and I
got the notes that I was gettingin that final third. And for me,
I didn't get paprikas oranything like that. It was the

(02:02:20):
continuation of the molasses.
I get dates and minerality. Andthat balance, again, that's the
key for the cigar. So I'm firmlyat a 10.

Gizmo (02:02:30):
That's an easy one, boys. The formal lizard rating tonight
and the Padron sixtiethanniversary in Maduro is a
perfect 10 lining up exactlywith the wine pairing tonight.
Excellent. Excellent. Bothentrants to our pairing.
Let's go through the other eightPadrons we've done on the
podcast. On episode three, veryearly on, we did the 1964 series

(02:02:53):
Exclusivo in Maduro scored a9.6. On episode 17, we did the
1964 Torpedo in natural scoredan 8.7. We did the budget Padron
2,000 Maduro on episode 25,scored a 7.5. Then we went to
the 1926 series, the eightyyears in Maduro, the one Senator

(02:03:13):
was referencing on episode 53.
That was our one yearanniversary. Episode scored a
perfect 10 alongside this one.We did the Padron fifty years
Maduro, the hammer, the otherlimited edition from them on
episode 100, scored a 9.9. Thenwe went into Family Reserve. We
did the number 85 in Maduro onepisode 85, scored a 9.2.

(02:03:34):
The Family Reserve number 50 inNatural on episode 152 scored a
9.5. And finally, on a ShortSmoke special, we did the
nineteen twenty six seriesnumber 35 in Maduro episode 161,
scored a nine point zero. SoPadron, obviously, as we know,

Bam Bam (02:03:53):
boys Yeah. We don't like Padron.

Gizmo (02:03:54):
Yeah. It performs very, very well on the program, and
this one tonight is noexception. And I would argue is
the headliner cigar for Padron,and it has taken its rightful
throne at the top of theirproduct offering. And I would
recommend, and we wouldrecommend, of course, at this
10, that anyone goes out thereand picks this cigar up, give it

(02:04:16):
the time, give it the patience,and have a phenomenal smoking
experience thanks to Yeah.

Chef (02:04:22):
Take your time, and what a special cigar.

Rooster (02:04:25):
I kinda wanna get the Estee DuPont lighter now.

Gizmo (02:04:30):
Just get seven of them.

Chef (02:04:32):
Just convinced himself he's gonna have one next week.

Bam Bam (02:04:35):
Yeah. Spell my name correctly. B a m when you when
you get it engraved.

Gizmo (02:04:41):
You got it. Alright, boys. What a great night and two
perfect entrants to our pairingtonight. Again, the Cade Howell
Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon, thevintage 2018, and the Padron
sixtieth anniversary limitededition of Maduro, both scoring
perfect 10 zeros. We have tothank lizard nation for sticking
with us and, enjoying thecontent that we put out and,

(02:05:04):
writing us emails and listeningevery week.
We really appreciate it.Congratulations again to lizard
Maddie, our lizard of the week.We always give a lizard of the
week out. You can win. All youhave to do is write in and tell
us what you're thinking.
Tell us what you're smoking.We'd love to hear from you. And,
of course, we have to thank oursponsor, Fabrica Five, for being
with us for as long as they haveand continuing to stay with us.

(02:05:24):
We really, really appreciatethem.

Senator (02:05:26):
And my last call to action for Lizard Nation, we get
a lot of recommendations fromLizard Nation around spirits.
Yes, we do. I would love to hearfrom some lizards
recommendations around wine. Imean, there's so many.

Gizmo (02:05:40):
Yeah. I would say out of all the spirits we do, including
Armagnac and Cognac, out of allthe pairings, wine is probably
the one that we get the leastrecommendations from lizards on.
So please, as Senator is saying,send us some of your favorites,
varying price points. If youlove a $20 bottle, if you love a
hundred dollar bottle, we'llfind a way to slot it. We wanna
do some more wine and continueto expand our pairing experience

(02:06:04):
here on the pod.

Chef (02:06:05):
It's a super suggestion.

Gizmo (02:06:07):
Alright, boys. A great night tonight. Congratulations
to us and lizard nation again ona 75 episodes, and, we'll see
everybody next week. Keepsmoking. Hope you enjoyed this
episode.
Thanks for joining us. You couldfind our merch store and ratings
archive at our brand newwebsite, loungelizardspod.com.
That's loungelizardsp0d.com.Don't forget to leave us a

(02:06:31):
rating and subscribe on yourfavorite podcast platform. If
you have any comments,questions, do you wanna reach
out, say hello, tell us whatyou're smoking?
Email us. Hello atLoungeLizardsPod.com. You can
also find us on Instagram atLounge Lizards Pod. We really
appreciate your time, and we'll,we'll see you next week.

All Episodes

Episode Transcript

Popular Podcasts

24/7 News: The Latest

Therapy Gecko

The Joe Rogan Experience

.css-15opob5{left:0;position:absolute;top:0.8rem;} All Episodes

Episode Transcript

Popular Podcasts

.css-r6mb8g{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:1;overflow:hidden;}24/7 News: The Latest

Therapy Gecko

The Joe Rogan Experience

All Episodes

24/7 News: The Latest