A beautifully elegant room, the more so for its simplicity; very inviting indeed, especially where it's located. Christmas-coloured too....how very festive!
I love this room- in many ways it flies in the face of my personal taste-but in my typical flights of fancy- I kinda love it all, my continuing internal struggle with a nun's cloister and a courtesan's divan. and more Xmas today! what must one think?
I think its a great room - perhaps I would change the colors but overall it would suit me. Yeah, I know. As I said today, I'd given up on Christmas but it had not given up on me.
As a cigar smoker, there’s a lot to like about living in the Tampa Bay area. You can walk down Ybor City’s 7th Avenue and see dozens of cigars you simply can’t get anywhere else. Every shop has a house brand. Some sell only their own wares. And many shopkeepers offer you a fresh, complimentary Cuban coffee before you’ve even made it to the walk-in. For the stogie-obsessed, it’s Disneyland.
One of the must-stops is El Sol Cigars. An Ybor City mainstay since 1929, El Sol is the oldest smoke shop in the city. It is operated by Bob Saitta, grandson of El Sol founder Guy Saitta. After decades of small-scale production in Ybor City, the company now owns factories in Nicaragua, the D.R., and Honduras. The Nicaraguan Maduro Reserve is a standout among many blends under the El Sol banner.
The Parejo 5X is an average looking 5″ x 50 robusto. The CT Broadleaf wrapper is toothy and dark, but a little dull.
It’s anything but dull upon lighting, however. This is a quick starter, flavorful up front with the spicy-sweet zip typical of the wrapper type. Mr. Saitta is cryptic about the content of his blends, but it’s impossible to miss the tangy, rich backbone of corojo in this one. The finish is long and woody. It will immediately remind you of the original release Padilla Obsidian, but with a little something extra.
After a half-inch, there are lip-smacking chocolate notes which intensify toward the halfway mark. The smoke is dense, chewy. I would characterize the first half as medium-strength, as pepper takes a back seat to sweet wood and chocolate. It’s not terrifically complex, but I love the profile. At this point, it also reminds me of a well-aged El Rey del Mundo maduro.
Just past halfway, the pepper begins a move to the forefront and eventually dominates the finish. Chocolate fades slightly to make way for earth. Meanwhile, the burn is as straight as any I’ve seen.
It gets stronger on the final third, but also loses a bit of its charm. Not enough to make you want to pitch it, mind you, but the last 10 minutes are an anti-climax after an excellent opening half-hour. It picks up astringent notes with an inch to go, signifying the end of the road.
CONCLUSION: If you enjoy a maduro on the sweet side, you’ll be impressed all the way around with the El Sol Nicaraguan Primeros Maduro Reserve. Burn and draw are first rate, the flavor is good (outstanding on the first half), and the value is excellent at $83.75/box (25), or $3.35/stick. When you’re in the neighborhood, this should be near the top of your list of must-try house brands.
That is one yummy looking maduro. I will definitely have to put Tampa on my list of places to vacation.
You’ll love it, Lisa. On a five or six block stretch of 7th Avenue alone, there are something like a dozen shops/storefront factories. IMO, it’s every bit as cool as Little Havana if you know where to go. Not that you can go wrong puttering around Calle Ocho for a few hours either, of course. Come for the Cigar Heritage Festival (usually in November).
[…] of excellent CTBL-wrapped sticks out there at a fraction of the price. For example, the $3.35 El Sol Nicaraguan Maduro is comparable to the LP No. 9. Not as complex, but without the Liga’s downsides, […]
[…] a curious chain of events, I recently had the opportunity to shoot this El Sol Nicaraguan Primeros Reserve Maduro for a local business journal. Having never shot for real publication before, […]
When a kindergartner begins attending a Catholic school, his or her first concern is not likely to be the graduation rate for seniors of Catholic high schools — which, by the way, is a whopping 99 percent reported by the National Catholic Education Association (NCEA). The little student’s first worries are much more apt to be about making friends, just why all of his/her shirts should be white and what Mom packed for lunch.
Meanwhile, most parents of Catholic school children are well aware of successful graduation rates and that is just one reason why they chose to send their children to Catholic school. Even though nation-wide non-Catholic enrollment is approximately 15 percent, Catholic parents are still grateful to send their children to school where the goal is an education infused with Gospel teaching.
The U.S. Catholic bishops issued “Renewing Our Commitment to Catholic Elementary and Secondary Schools in the Third Millennium” at their June 2005 meeting. They reaffirmed their commitment to support Catholic schools while realizing the challenges facing parents — economic, cultural and societal challenges.
“Catholic schools provide young people with sound Church teaching through a broad-based curriculum, where faith and culture are intertwined in all areas of a school’s life. By equipping our young people with a sound education, rooted in the Gospel message, the Person of Jesus Christ, and rich in the cherished traditions and liturgical practices of our faith, we ensure that they have the foundation to live morally and uprightly in our complex modern world.”
Not only are Catholic school students likely to graduate and go on to become “successful” by today’s standards, but they are also assumed to measure their success not by money or accolades, but by how they treat the least among them. A quick measure of this concept could be taken by looking at the amount of community service performed by Catholic school students. Visiting the aged sisters at the St. Anthony Motherhouse or collecting school supplies to send to an impoverished village in El Salvador is as much a part of the curriculum as spelling tests and times tables.
Sheila and Dave Martin have five children enrolled in Catholic schools in the Southern Tier, and even though it means fewer vacations and missing out on owning the latest model car, they are glad to make the necessary sacrifices to send their children to Catholic schools.
“I went through the Catholic school system here and it’s our priority that our kids do too,” Sheila Martin said. “It’s important to us that our kids can go to a school where they can pray — before school and after school and go to the school liturgies.”
Martin pointed out that when the April 2009 shootings took place at the American Civic Association in Binghamton, she knew her children would be in prayer at school and they would be surrounded with support.
“There are crazy things happening in our world and it helps us as parents when we know our children are praying when they do happen. We know the school staff will be talking to them and explaining things as best they can.”
Besides the benefit of compassionate understanding, Catholic schools also offer a sound academic model. The Martins’ teenagers attend Seton Catholic Central High School where they participate in advanced placement courses, sports and chorus.
“They are all doing very well,” Sheila Martin said. “There is extra support if they need it and the teachers are great.”
Martin said that her children have developed friendships that she thinks they will keep for a lifetime.
“They have great friends and that is really important. They are friends with kids whose families are making the same sacrifice we are to keep their kids in Catholic schools,” she said.
Jennifer and Keith Redmore actually made the choice to send their children to Catholic schools before they were even born — in fact before the couple were even married.
“We decided when we went through marriage prep,” Jennifer said. “Our commitment to them as parents is to help them grow up in a faith-filled home and Catholic schools reinforce what we do at home.”
Their children attend St. Thomas Aquinas School in Binghamton. Jennifer cited an example of the encouraging atmosphere there.
“The kids had an assembly at the end of the year with a talent show. Any child in grade k through third could participate. Kids that age have a varying amount of talent,” Jennifer said. “I was so impressed when all the students clapped and cheered for each student who participated no matter what talent they exhibited. There were no snickers or giggles. They just really respected and encouraged each other.”
The Redmore’s goal is to keep supporting Catholic schools so that all of their children — numbering four and counting with another one on the way just about when the school year begins — are able to attend Catholic schools through their high school graduation.
Today was day 3 of MFWK. We are really enjoying the creation unit! I am so grateful to all the other families on the MFW forum, and for all the wonderful ideas I've gotten from there.
In other news, third time is a charm- an intact bulletin board arrived today! I gave up on trying to get it up for the creation unit, but it will be up in time for S-s-sun.
Hi Kai, I'm Nikky! I found your blog by way of the MFW Blogroll. I'm loving what you're doing. My boys started this week as well and will be completing Day 4 today. I'll continue to follow your blog and show my boys what other kids are doing that they are doing also. Keep it up!