Vitola: Belicoso Gordo- 5.5” x 56 ring gauge
- Included in SnS 2018 Kit, total value $150
Background
If I’m going to make this a tradition, I have to get to it. The 2019 signup period for Saints & Sinners is almost here and I haven’t done a “Cigar Extra” run-through of the 2018 member cigars! One thing I’m not doing is making a tradition of running through them in order…the main reason being that I brought home a beer from Monkey Town Brewing Company that I thought would be very well with a Tat Broadleaf Maduro…and there are really only two candidates in this pack. I decided to start at the wrong end…S&S Member Exclusive 2018 #5.
The #5 is a fat (I measured 56 ring) torpedo or belicoso. I don’t particularly care for this ring gauge…or this shape…but with the Broadleaf wrapper, it can’t be too bad. No information was readily available on these, but it’s a pretty safe bet to say “Nicaragua filler and binder” since it’s a Tatuaje…also safe to say “made in Nicaragua at the My Father factory”…and my personal experience and knowledge leads me to believe that this is a Broadleaf wrapper.
The beer is called “Like Shooting Hoffs in a Barrel.” Kirby at Monkey Town started with his Imperial German Chocolate Cake Milk Stout (say that 5 times fast…not easy to do after you’ve drunk a couple of them!). I believe this is similar to the Bismarck’s Birthday Cake Stout I had a couple months back…paired with another Tatuaje product, as a matter of fact! This expression has been aged in a 15 gallon rye whiskey barrel, then further aged on vanilla beans and toasted coconut. As for the name? Maybe some obscure reference to the singer from the 80s band The Bangles? Maybe an offhand reference to David Hasselhoff, since he’s big in Germany? Whatever…this Imperial Milk Stout is 9.2% ABV.
Prelight
I took a sip of the beer right after pouring it and taking the photos I needed. Holy crap, it was sweet. Though honestly dialed down a bit from the sweetness of the Nutter Butter cookie stout from a few weeks ago…and that’s a good thing. Right up front, I got plenty of chocolate and vanilla flavor. The aroma from the beer was a mix of stout coffee aroma with oak whiskey barrel and subsequent sips did bring out more of the boozy whiskey notes. I really liked this beer…I needed to get the cigar burning quickly so I wouldn’t drink the whole pint by itself.
The SnS 2018 #5 fired up with a tremendous earthiness, an overlaying sweet chocolate note, and a not-inconsiderable amount of pepper spice. Adding the stout after taking a puff brought up the sweetness quite a bit without really putting a dent in the spicy heat.
The SnS 2018 #5 turned out to be a pretty good cigar despite the larger ring gauge. The torpedo shape didn’t present me with any draw problems and it was earthy and spicy and slightly sweet from beginning to end. The beer was an awesome accompaniment, although like most things “Monkey Town” it’s a very small batch that will probably be gone before you read this. On the other hand, that means you will have something new and interesting to try if you show up in downtown Dayton, Tennessee, looking for amazing beers.
