Technology. When it works, it’s awesome and makes your life easier. And when it doesn’t? Well, you have to rise to the challenge. This episode came with a lot of challenges… and we mean A LOT! But in the end, we overcame and have a great show with special guest Mark Mormar the Eastern US Sales Manager for Laudisi Distribution Group (aka LDG), the parent company of Cornell and Diehl who makes the pipe tobacco we reviewed.
We start off by lighting up the newly released Triqui Traca, the latest release from Steve Saka and the second blend to join his Mi Querida line. This blend is based off the Mi Querida Firecracker which was a limited release for Two Guys Smoke Shop last year.
7-20-4 Lounge barman, Sam Van Winkle, paired this with a cocktail he made up THAT NIGHT just to pair with our cigar! It is Jeremiah Weeds Saspirilla Bourbon, Pie Hole Apple Pie Bourbon, Bullet Rye, Rum Chadah, Half and Half, and root beer, with a sprinkle of cinnamon. It tasted like… victory… Sam certainly went all in with this cocktail!
Everything was going according to plan until we entered the pipe tobacco review. Due to technical snafus that attacked out of nowhere, we had to make multiple recordings of this segment, hence the title Ground Hog Day.
Our guest, Mark Mormar, introduced us to one of his favorite blends from Cornell and Diehl–Speak Easy, a navy flake made with a rare Virginia leaf only used in 3 blends (C&D produces over 400). Kendra brought her own award winning Patina Fashioned cocktail to pair with it. Her spin on the classic Old Fashioned was 7-20-4 Single Barrel Jack Daniels, Grand Marnier, Orange Tea, and brown sugar simple syrup, with a burnt orange garnish. She went the extra mile too, buying a pipe and smoking some Speak Easy herself to settle on her cocktail of choice. Kudos to Kendra!
Is the Triqui Traca the big bang the Firecracker was? Is Speak Easy a blend worth mentioning or just another navy blend? Does Kendra continue to hold on to the title of Potion Master or does Sam Van Winkle wrest it from her pretty little hands? Listen here or click the link below and find out!
NOT JUST BLOWING SMOKE 