I had the pleasure today of attending The Cigar Dave Show live broadcast on location in Charlotte, NC.  This was his 10th anniversary broadcast from the Charlotte location.  It was a fun show, with lots of great food offered, and great drinks available.  Everyone was given a free cigar, the premier of the H. Upmann Reserve Maduro.  It was a terrific cigar.  I would say medium to full, lots of flavor.  I saw two people there that I know from the site here, and I know one for sure had a good time.  I can't wait for next years show.      

Wow, right back from the beach and already attending cigar events.  That's some dedication!  I'm sure it helps that you return on at the beginning of the weekend, too.

I attended also.  Yes, it does take dedication to keep going to cigar events, because this one was actually outside, in 90+ degree weather.  The Sunset Club - inside!  Cigar Dave - outside!   They should have brought a bigger tent.  Everybody not under the tent or under a tree was burning up. Maybe I should have gotten there earlier.   Whatever.  

Afterwards I was swearing "never again, unless I'm seated in the VIP section, with a complimentary meal and all the free beer I can drink".  Or, we can round that down to $500, straight cash.  I'm not greedy.

All of this took place outside, next to The Lodge at Ballantyne Resort.  Wrap your mind around this.  We were there, next to this rustic outpost, this paragon of architectural manhood, but not INSIDE the building.  I went into The Lodge before leaving, just to see the place.  It was not in use, but it WAS fully air-conditioned.  Two stories of empty building, fully air-conditioned.  Big screen TV, lots of tables, chairs, big open spaces, a place for the bar ... 2 pool tables in the upstairs loft, overlooking the main hall .... and outside there was Cigar Dave and 200+ event attendees, caterers, etc. BAKING.  I cannot fully articulate the suckness of this arrangement.  This was probably the result of 'no smoking' laws, forcing the event outside.  After an hour you could have stuck a fork in me, because I was DONE.

The almighty NEW 'H. Upmann Reserve Maduro' burned quite unevenly, and went out halfway through.  So much for that.  Like one's virginity, it was quickly gone and not missed.  I did buy the 'Cigar Dave - Assault Pack'.   I've had my first one out of there ... the 'H. Upmann Cameroon Toro'.  Actually ... that one was OK.  The difference being it was night-time, the weather much cooler, and I was able to concentrate on the experience.  Seemed a bit dried out, but an OK smoke for 5 bucks.  The jury is still out whether it needs to be renamed the 'Cigar Dave - Ass-Assault Pack'.  If they want to avoid this title, it better be worth the money spent.  5 more to go.

Having a bad day,

Mikel

Yeah, the wife and I actually came back a day early so that we could attend the show.

Wow!  Well, there you go.  That is why it is so important to have different reviews on an event or cigar, in order to get the whole picture.  As you can see, Mike's experience and mine were polar oposites!  At the same event.  Probably the truth was somewhere in between.  I would love to hear other's opinions, as I know I saw some other Cigar Geek faces there, too.

QuoteTurboknat - 6/15/2008  1:39 PM

Wow!  Well, there you go.  That is why it is so important to have different reviews on an event or cigar, in order to get the whole picture.  As you can see, Mike's experience and mine were polar oposites!  At the same event.  Probably the truth was somewhere in between.  I would love to hear other's opinions, as I know I saw some other Cigar Geek faces there, too.

Yes I too was there as you know. The weather was HOT, the event was fantastic. Cigar Dave was very entertaining and ensightful on a few occasions. I thought the H. Upman Maduro was a great choice of cigar for this particular event. Like everyone said, it was hot, so the full bodied flavor of the cigar blended well with the heat and cold martinis. The food that was served was prepared with the cigar enthusiest in mind. Lots of different flavors and choices. I will definetly attend Cigar Dave next year. I think everyone should keep their ears open for him and try to attend one of his broadcast's. He does raise a few good points now and then.