Today's world is filled with annoyances

As this column appears every two weeks, I, obviously have two weeks in which to write each column. No…it doesn’t take two weeks to write! I do, however; write it as things occur to me to put in the column. So, I ask myself why I am sitting here at 0633 on Sunday morning (14 February) writing the column that will be posted tomorrow. There have certainly been plenty of things I’ve seen, heard, smoked that are worth writing about. I just can’t figure why I waited to the last moment to put this on paper.

What I should be doing is packing for my trip to the Dominican Republic to attend ProCigar Festival 2010. This is the third annual ProCigar Festival, and I have attended them all. The first one, in 2008, really was a shakedown cruise…but it was spectacular. It was an extraordinary mix of tobacco, cigars and Dominican culture.

The 2009 edition was the result of tweaking the formula. So, I truly have been looking forward to the 2010 version, particularly because the Quesada sisters, Pachy and Raquel have been deeply involved in the planning!

I will be trying to send back some short video reports from the Festival that will be posted each day. I say “…trying,” because, as I told Bob McDuffee when we discussed it, I have the mechanical aptitude of a Carmelite nun; and the manual for the camera has gone missing. Worst case scenario, a few still shots and a short commentary will have to suffice.

Today’s world is filled with annoyances, serious ones and petty ones. When I say ‘annoyances’, I’m really referring to the tedious stupidities that we encounter today. Now, I may encounter more of it than you do…I live in Miami.

But, I want to talk about a couple of things, from the sublime to the ridiculous, that have bothered me recently, and for a long time.

Swedish Match and Scandinavian Tobacco Group is not merging! We all read, I suppose, the same Press Release and yet everyone is writing, in their blogs, and talking about “the merger.” Not so; they have formed a Joint Venture. The companies remain independent; they each retain some product lines and a third entity, the JV, has come into existence.

The only thing they failed to mention, in the Press Release, is the intended duration of the Joint Venture. Most have a limited life; or, they lead to an actual merger, which I think will be the result here.

Read the bloody Press Release again…Swedish Match and STG have not merged.

Yes, all that annoyed me. It annoyed me because it exemplifies the stupidity that exists and thrusts itself into my life, your life, every day. And let me tell you, if you do not object to it…you are part of the problem. 

And this is one reason why cigars, like marijuana, are sometimes for medicinal use. After being assaulted by ignorance and stupidity, almost from the moment I leave home; the only respite I get is to sit down and light a nice cigar. Usually I seek the refuge of one of my favourite tobacco shops and as I enter, say the requisite “Hellos,” sit down and fire up a good cigar. Serenity washes over me like a shower.

One of the things that has bothered me for years are people, young people mostly, wearing tee shirts with the image of Ché Guevara on the front. Actually, the tee shirts have a certain elegant simplicity about them. They are usually red and the image is in black. BUT the man is still a mass murderer!

I haven’t seen Hitler on a tee shirt, nor John Wayne Gayce. Not Stalin, not Pol Pot…so why is this criminal’s image displayed on tee shirts like he was some sort of Robin Hood? Why don’t parents say to their kids, “You’re not going to wear that!”

That’s a major upset to me, and I am not even Cuban! Image how Cubans feel when they see that. I have always wondered why Elie Bleu makes that humidor with the same silhouette of Ché on the lid; and who the hell buys them. One might as well have Himmler’s image on their humidor.

So, imagine my consternation when I heard, a couple of years ago, that Jerry Dear, the vice president of sales at Xikar, frequently shows off a photo of himself with Fidel Castro! The photo is from an earlier period in Dear’s life, when he was, I believe, in Cuba flogging some agricultural commodity. So, why wave it around in an industry heavily peopled with Cubans and first generation Cuban Americans? Can he be so obtuse as to not realize it is offensive?

Is it another example of an America awash in ignorance?

These are the type of things that make it necessary for me to seek the comfort and serenity of a fine tobacconist. And, so it was, not so long ago, that I found myself in Midlothian, VA, entering Winston’s Humidor (13817 Village Place Drive, Midlothian, VA 23114 – 804.380.9941 – www.winstonshumidor.com). Winston’s was founded by Kevin Edmiston, CRT. Yes, Kevin is a Certified Retail Tobacconist, having taken the course at Tobacconist University while in the planning stages with his shop.

The Winston being referenced is, obviously, Winston Churchill – as the logo of Winston’s is a bull dog! Elementary, my dear Watson.

Winston’s is a recent addition to a long list of fine tobacconists that have opened in the past couple of years. And, I was not there by accident.

I had met Winston’s founder and owner, Kevin Edmiston, at Cuban Crafters in Miami, when I attended the little ‘meet and greet’ put on by Bob McDuffee and Colin Ganley for the group they were taking to Estelí, Nicaragua on a Cigar Safari. At that time, I promised Kevin and his wife that I would visit Winston’s. 

The opportunity arose when I was in Richmond, VA, having met with Glynn Loope, Executive Director of Cigar Rights of America. 

When I strode into Winston’s that feeling of serenity and comfort washed over me as I saw a classic tobacconist and cigar lounge (See photos). Comfortable leather chairs and sofas; a selection of newspapers and magazines; a domino table (I was surprised to see that so far north), two flat screen TVs and a clientele that seemed to me to be eminently satisfied with their surroundings and Winston’s service. There is, of course, a superb selection of the finest cigars – which Kevin assured me was growing. 

In my conversation with some of the regulars, I learned about a weekly card game, as well as Winston’s complimentary Saturday morning pastries and coffee. There’s a nice touch that other tobacconists might pick up on.

Winston’s uses two slogans, “Escape with a cigar,” and “A departure from the ordinary.” Both are accurate descriptions of a visit to Winston’s Humidor and I heartily recommend it if you are in the area.

One of my most memorable visits to a tobacconist was a 1960 visit to Davidoff’s in Geneva. It was my first visit there, on my own; my father having introduced me to the shop and to Zino Davidoff in 1959.

It was an occasion on which I met Orson Welles and the former King Farouk of Egypt in the shop. Farouk was attired in his standard black suit, white shirt, black tie and red fez and dark glasses. He was nearing the end of his life (He died in 1965), but was robust and an engaging conversationalist. He smoked large salomons, as I recall.

Orson Welles, not yet the corpulent version of himself that most people remember from television, was extraordinarily friendly and was extremely knowledgeable about cigars. I was to find out later, that Orson was knowledgeable about every element of fine living. He knew the best restaurants everywhere; the best tailors and the best haberdashers. It was he that introduced me, a very young man at the time, to Hermes (back when you had to go to Paris to buy their ties) and Charvet – which broke my bank each time I had shirts made. My salvation, regarding bespoke shirts, was discovering Ascot Chang when I lived in Hong Kong (more on that, perhaps, another time).

I mention this encounter because it serves to make the point that cigars and cigar shops are the great equalizer. Here we were…a tobacconist, who was an émigré Russian in Geneva; a former King and a highly respected writer/director/actor and a young American college student. All bond by a love of the leaf; and carrying on as if we were long time friends.

My only encounters, after that, with Farouk, were a few times in Monaco. While, I did maintain a social relationship with Orson Welles…seeing him occasionally in New York and Los Angeles. You couldn’t help but be enthralled by his conversation.

It’s that that makes cigars an important part of my life…in addition to the pleasure derived from smoking.

My friend Jesus Fuego doesn’t get enough attention from cigar aficionados, and yet, every smoker that I have introduced to his cigars has always come back for more. It must be about three years now, that Jesus is producing his J. Fuego cigars. From his early Corojo line to the Delirium maduros, the 777s which in addition to being terrific smokes have a great price point (especially in these times)

Jesus’ new Origens are also excellent.

I highly recommend them all to you and suggest you give them a try. I do so, as always, without a rating!

Well, I’ve got to get out of bed; pack for the trip and meet Thorsten Wolfertz (Wolfe cutters) for lunch on South beach.

I look forward to reporting on Pro Cigar Festival 2010 during the week.

“Tell me who your friends are and I’ll tell you who you are,” is an old quote, of unknown origin. I think the version that states, “Tell me what you smoke and I’ll tell you who you are,” is equally valid.