Wrapper: Vintage African Cameroon
Binder: Undisclosed
Filler: Undisclosed
Size: 7 x 47 Churchill
Strength: Full
Price: $50.80
I’ve had my cigars running wild in the streets for nearly two months. And yes, I realize that I am once again reviewing a cigar out of reach for most smokers…including me. Why am I reviewing it? Because it’s there.
BACKGROUND:
Regular Production
Released October 2022
The release is limited to 613 boxes of 25 cigars for each size per year…except for the Double Robusto which comes in a 10-count format.
The Meerapfel Cigar Meir Master Blend is the second release for the company that released the “Richard” last year. The Meir refers to Meir Meerapfel who was the founder of the company in 1846. I was just 4 years old.
There are four sizes to choose from: Robusto 4 7/8 x 50, Double Robusto 5 3/4 x 52, Pyramid 6 1/8 x 52, and the Churchill 7 x 47.
THE WHOLE MEGILLAH:
The cigar feels like a kishka in my hand. Nice to touch and firmly packed.
The draw is wide open. No need for my PerfecDraw draw adjustment tool…this time.
Bang. First puffs lay me out like a punch from Ali. Instant complexity. Instant karma. Instant Wheatena. Instant cup of espresso…with the dunker covered in black pepper chunks.
Sweet creamy notes. Dark cocoa with marshmallows and hunks of tuna fish coated in ferret breadcrumbs.
Sister Mary Gonzalez-Gonzales hits me on the back of the head with a ruler insisting that I genuflect correctly because this baby is going to take me on a wild ride of full strength-iosity. My head spins. My knuckles hurt. I beg to differ as I won’t allow a powerful full-strength cigar to take me down without a warrant and subpoena. I learned this during anti-Vietnam protests in college.
And then two minutes in, the cigar mellows. I should just erase the previous paragraph, but I never do that. Once it is written, it stays regardless of how stupid it makes me look.
The tobacco leaves taste extremely aged. This horse was bucking in its stall to be released.
The burn is a slow roll. You know I haven’t eaten a Tootsie Roll in 43 years? Probably why I still have my teeth.
The blend releases a denseness that is jam packed with flavors: espresso, creaminess, dark malt, hops, dark chocolate, homemade French fries, a tinge of tomato ketchup, caramel, burnt cedar, and light teriyaki.
The transitions waste no time. Marching into Berlin.
I was 24 and asleep on a train the first time I went from Amsterdam to Switzerland. The first German station was dark except for the klieg lights and announced: “Achtung! Achtung!…” I woke up with a start. My eyes were like saucers…and breathing hard. I laid back down and calmed myself. After that first encounter, Germany didn’t bother me.
“Can’t Find My Way Home.” Blind Faith. One of my all-time favorites. You go Amazon Music.
Gingerbread makes a huge entrance. The full strength tames itself. The brutal start was just there to get my attention.
Mission accomplished. The blend begins a smooth journey that allows my head to stay on a swivel without sudden jerks. I’ve known a lot of sudden jerks that came out of nowhere. As a septuagenarian, I now have jerk-radar. Don’t die before you get to be my age and you’ll know exactly what I’m rambling about.
1-1/2” burned in just under 20 minutes and the first sweet spot sticks the landing.
I see colors. A sip of water and my palate is flooded by nuances that cause involuntary laughter. Yeah, it’s that good. Holy shit.
It’s rare that a $50 cigar is great. I’m still not sure it’s worth the dough. But this cigar stands tall amongst its peers.
Watched “Guardians of the Galaxy 2” again. The Jay and The Americans’ song, “Come a Little Bit Closer” reminded me that in 1966, I saw them at Melodyland Theater in Anaheim across the street from Disneyland. When they broke into “Cara Mia,” it blew the wax off my mustache.
Oh man…I wish we lived in a time 50 years from now when we have Taste-O-Vision and you can experience the elegance of this blend along with me. Once again, holy shit.
I love that the cigar just takes its time like Sting having tantra sex with Trudy. Of course, at their age, I’m sure that their tantric non-genital engagements are more like when Charlotte and I have oral sex…We pass each other in the hall and say: “Fuck you!”
Flavors are compressed tightly but my palate is so overloaded with subtleties that I’m verklempt.
Man, I wish I had Dr. Rod’s money. I’d buy a box and draw a secret Templar map so no one could find them but me. Which means it would end up as a reality show on the National Geographic channel. They’d dig up the east side of Milwaukee for 7 seasons.
I cannot tell if the strength is full tilt or a melodic medium/full strength. This cigar has evil powers.
Flavors: The kitchen sink.
The finish is devastating. My tongue moves around my mouth like an eel in captivity.
I drop the entire lit cigar in my lap wearing only boxers. I’m wearing boxers, not the cigar. Ouch.
2-1/2” burned. 40 minutes. Yeah, baby.
If this cigar was a fast mover, I’d eviscerate the thing.
Thankfully, the rollers were super pros. Beautiful construction with a dead nuts char line.
I didn’t have the opportunity to smoke their first release last year. But this second release is stunner. I feel like Detective Larry has tased the shit out of me.
Perfect music accompaniment…” The Weight” by The Band. A 1968 song that has passed the test of time.
I’m overcome by this cigar. With 3” burned, the strength ratchets up to newbie killer. I have an exorcist on speed dial.
I can’t wait to see other reviews of this cigar. The spectrum of flavors is up for grabs. Everyone is going to taste different nuances and subtleties. Each palate will discover something new. The sheer intensity of this blend is unbelievable.
I should be explaining what I taste from the cigar. But this blend is truly a composite of its marvelous tobacco making the profile a flavor bomb. You name it, I tasted it.
It is a continuous sweet spot that deepens with every puff. Fucking amazing.
Damn. Couldn’t they have made this cigar more affordable? Every smoker deserves a taste.
Halfway point. 50 minutes. A perfect cigar. My hand is on the bible and I swear it.
Oh crap. This is going to be a 15,000-word manifesto of ramblings and incognito shaded nonsense.
So, I now kick back and enjoy. Be back soon.
Smarter reviewers than I will more aptly describe the experience. God bless them.
In college, I took a throwaway class: Music Appreciation. To snag an ‘A’, I brought in my Hofner bass guitar and Fender Bassman rig and used the blackboard to write out the notes for the “Whole Lotta Love” riff as well as the riff for “The Beat Goes On.” And then hammered away at my bass causing the instructor’s ears to bleed. Got an A.
The myriad of flavors seems to be perfectly canonized at this point. But it is the complexity, intensity, transitions, subtleties, nuances, and finish that shine underneath the spotlight. I am not close to the finish of this wonderous combination of tobaccos and am confident of the rating I will bestow.
Each sip of water and earwax flies from my ears. Thankfully, Sammy the Cat is here with a mini vac.
One more break keeping my fingers away from the keyboard. You’re welcome.
Sweetly singing sirens make time stop. I’m in a blissful state. Nothing remotely like the state of Wisconsin. Of all the places we’ve lived, I can’t believe that this is our elephant burial ground.
“Do You Believe In Magic” by The Lovin’ Spoonful. 1965. I would babysit my kid sister and we’d sing this song. A lovely memory. She’ll be gone for 5 years next week. I miss her.
I don’t have the proper words for describing this masterpiece of passionate blending. I’m ashamed that this blend overwhelms my reviewer skills. This is a 2-point infraction that will be added to my professional reviewer union status.
The last two inches are so intense that I am paralyzed with admiration. Man, the folks that blended this cigar are not of this planet.
OK. Settle down. My rating does not imply that this is the best cigar in the world. It indicates that the experience was mind blowing and I cannot come up with a single criticism. My palate deems it perfect for my floating body.
My hands are literally shaking at the conclusion of this 2-hour voyage.
Once again, you deserve at least a stick or two. Well worth the outrageous price.
You can purchase these cigars from sponsors: Small Batch Cigar (10% off with promo code ‘katman’), Luxury Cigar Club (15% off with promo code ‘katman’), and Atlantic Cigar.
RATING: 100
Categories: CIGAR REVIEWS
Cigar Reviews by Phil 'Katman' Kohn 
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