It has been a while since I have had a chance to sit down and let loose with another rant – what better time and place then with a great cigar, couple fingers of fantastic scotch and loud music. First, I want to thank you all for taking the time to sit down (some perhaps a bit more excited than others) and read over my latest rant. We all know that at times – hell who am I kidding – a lot, I tend to turn off my filter and release a bit more truth (in my opinion) than some would like me to or I purposely say or hint towards something simply in hopes to get the blood pressure of some to rise, so I present this as more a discussion I would like for you all to comment on than rather a full fledged ‘rant’ – I promise though, I will do my best to get ticked off about something and let loose soon!

That being said, I have to put a big preface that I’m not going to be mother fucking or ball busting too much but rather stating some observations and requesting those who are more knowledgeable (hell, I’ve only been smoking cigars for 3-4 years so my experience is still very limited) to give me a bit of an education. What I want to learn about, is the different methods that ‘could’ be used or ‘are’ being used to ‘cut corners’ while within the manufacturing process – I’m talking all the way from the seed stock to the quality of wood used during aging.

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Kansas City, Missouri 09/18/2010

I can�t tell you guys how excited I was to learn about the 1^st Annual Kansas City Cigar Fest and that was before I even saw the sponsor list. As a cigar lover you dream of having one of these large scale cigar events close enough so you can attend without having to beg the wife for permission or forking over a ton of cash for travel. I knew without a doubt this was something I wanted to support and attend. David was invited to the event but could not attend so my wife accompanied me and this was her first cigar related event and she loved it.

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Well, the achievements have been taking off a lot more than I had originally expected. Always a good problem to have. I have already sent out 6 packages, Jacob will be sending out a couple here soon so please keep the completed achievements coming in! I also want to apologize for not updating the scoreboard and pages right away, Jen and I are down to 12 days before the wedding and it seems like all the last minute things happen at the same time! I’m still here, your still getting points and I am keeping a record – I’m just a little slow in updates!

Now that I got that out of the way, I have to give major props to Brian Burt who not only did the ‘Its a Trap!’ AND ‘Mental Illness’ achievements at once, he made a youtube video of it! Yes, there will be bonus points given – just have to get with Jacob and figure out what videos will ‘add’. Again Brian, thanks again and continue to beat these achievements!

Thanks again to everyone! I will keep you all updated as much as I can!

The Bowery Robusto by Velvet Cigars by Jacob Krell

Size: 5.25 X 50 Box-pressed
Wrapper: Habano Ecuadorian
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan and Honduran
Price: $195 for a box of 20

Behind The Stick:

Velvet Cigars Lounge of New York City is a family owned cigar lounge that has seen three generations at work. Affluence.org has named Velvet Cigars Lounge one of the top 5 cigar hang outs in the world. The good press and accolades do not stop there. They have created their own cigar lines that are named for locations in New York City�s East Village neighborhood. I am not one to run out and smoke what I would consider house blends so this is a new experience for me. Before you decide you agree with that statement and have no interest in reading on I ask that you do not make such a mistake. I was introduced to and became familiar with Velvet Cigars through Twitter.

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~Smoke 3 three different 601 Cigars or 3 different EO Brands in 1 day

This challenge gives you two options to earn this achievement. You can choose to smoke 3 different blends of the EO Brands 601 Cigars � Black, Red, Blue, or Green. Your second choice would be to smoke 3 different EO Brands Cigars � Mi Barrio, Murcielago, Cubao, Cubao Maduro, 601 Black, 601 Red, 601 Blue, or 601 Green.

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Boutique Cigar Challenge

~Smoke 2 boutique cigars in one day

We want you to go out and find and smoke 2 boutique brand cigars in one day. When we say boutique brand we mean a small cigar company that is not in every cigar shop and online catalog across the country. They make limited production quantities of cigars that are often hard to find. This would include Velvet, 13th Floor Cigars, K.A. Kendall�s 7-20-4, Illusione, Viaje, Jameson, and 262 Cigars as examples. This achievement is not limited to these brands by any means. No large manufacturer�s micro batches please. Smoke 2 boutique brands and send in your before and after pics to complete this achievement.

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