How would you like to attend a cigar dinner sponsored by Cigar Aficionado’s Marvin Shanken? Well, as I listened to this year’s co-host, Rush Limbaugh, give his account of this year’s 14th annual dinner benefiting prostate cancer, I couldn’t help but let my imagination run wild. The dinner was held at New York’s Four Seasons restaurant, and managed to raise 1.2 million dollars for the prostate cancer foundation. But hold on… isn’t New York smoke free?

According to Rush, in past years the restaurant informed the hosts of the cigar dinner that there was to be no cigar smoking until after desert. Of course the whole point of the dinner, Rush continued, was to smoke cigars. That’s what we come here for, he continued, we expect to smoke five cigars during dinner, and five more after dinner! What to do? Very simple, they simply decided to start the event with desert.

At any rate the story got me thinking about what constitutes a great pre-dinner cigar: Ahh, yes… not too full so as not to overpower the taste buds before savoring your four star meal, not too strong to avoid a stomach ache right before eating, not too high profile in order to avoid overshadowing the after dinner cigar that will seal the event with a bang; but rather a fine and solid little cigar that shows that you are a true connoisseur, able to pick out a good cigar other than the big brands even non-smokers know; a cigar that will burn a good half hour, just enough to finish a couple of dry Martinis before heading to the dinner table.

With these criteria in mind, in Part I of this series, I suggest four excellent Habanos to smoke in thirty minutes (or less):

Hoyo de Monterrey Petit Robusto (Cuba)
The most recent format of Hoyo de Monterrey, is a great Habano, that despite its small size has a very satisfying body that could perhaps even rival that of its larger brothers.

Cuaba Tradicionales (Cuba)
A double figurado that is quite mild yet does not lack roundness and body. It is 12 cm long and easy to smoke due to a perfect draw. This one can be a bit more than half an hour of pleasure.

Juan Lopez Petit Corona (Cuba)
Even the most active aficionados forget about this little cigar, but it is perhaps the tastiest Cuban cigar in this category. A good amount of strength and richness accompany it.

Ramon Allones Small Club Coronas (Cuba)
Quite the minute cigar, but with the ring gauge of a corona. It is a bit less powerful than the Partagas Short, but one that is eager to please with a good dose of aroma.

Bon apetit!

Linked to: Cigar Intelligence Agency