rob300c
The Big Noobowski
I just returned from a trip to Halifax with my dad.
Our first trip just the two of us, in about 20 years.
What a great little city. Everything is pretty much walkable.
There is quite a bit of history (naval disasters primarily).
The people are very friendly too.
Day 1
I was prepared and brought 15 sticks with me (5 ISOM, 10 NC). The ridiculous tax situation up in Canada is out of control. One Short Story for $24.95! Ashton maduros for about the same price (it was coated in bloom though). A Opus X #5 for $70! NCs were waaay more pricey then Cubans. If you want to pay a pretty penny for aged NCs go to Canada!
That day I smoked a Padron 6000 maddie on the waterfront. The draw was loose but the flavor was great.
Next after a dinner of spicy Thai food I went to the place I spent every evening. It was called Tom's Little Havana. It is decorated with murals, old and new cigar boxes, and old and new liquor packaging (Scotch primarily). This is one of the few cigar friendly establishments in the city. Unfortuantely the laws may change in six months... There's hope that they will allow cigar smoking only and not cigarettes. Cigarette smokers were definately the majority there. I ordered my first taste of Havana Club 7 year rum and sparked up a Party Short (great cigar!) at the side bar inside. I am not too much of a rum drinker and I found it to be very good. Unfortunately liquor pours are generally a measured shot so this did not last too long. I switched to Dalwhinnie when I bellied up to the actual bar and sparked an Anejo 50. The otterbox I borrowed for the trip (mine is waay too large) from slevy gathered quite a few comments including my favorite (heard twice), "Is that battery powered?". With a nice buzz going I sampled some Keith's IPA a local brew with an PAM Principe. I was chatting with some lady and she was dismayed they did not sell Backwoods cigars there! She was fun and friendly anyways! Her co-worker was smoking hot too... So I'll forgive her smoking choices!
Day two
After another day walking and exploring we settled on dinner at a Greek restaurant. I had a stuffed Halibut that was quite nice with a Greek salad on the side. Walked back up the hill to Tom's. The bar was full so I commandeered a easy chair and sparked a Punch del Punch EAR Sep 01. Thanks Allen, this was an awesome smoke! I followed it up with an Avo LE05 from cigardawg's G/B. Its flavors shone through even though I had just smoked a little powerhouse! I left to check out the other cigar bar around the corner called Jon Allen's. I walked right by it because it was empty and headed right back to Tom's. Finished the evening with Boli PC and then a WOAM. Both of these cigars have been my go to sticks and they definately did not dissapoint!
Day three
On this Saturday it was intended for Dad and I to go on a overnight sea kayaking trip. The chance of thunderstorms killed that. So off we went to the northern part of the Bay of Fundy. This was quite a ride with gorgeous vistas of mist enshrouded islands enhanced by a OR King B I smoked after a meal of local mussels and a bacon cheeseburger. Returning to Halifax we settled in for dinner at The Pressgang. I feasted on a 1/2 dozen Malpeque oysters followed by a strip steak with foie gras and a red wine demi glace. I capped off the evening back at Tom's with Vegas Robaina Famosa and a Fuente Cuban Beli Sun Grown. The King B I enjoyed much more then the CBSG. The VRF was mmmm mmmm good!
Day 4 our last day.
Sea kayaking was on for the day. We paddled Terrence Bay... in the rain. Checked out some coves and then it was time for lunch. I sparked a WOAM while the guides scrambled to erect a tarp to keep us dry even though we were all soaked! The WOAM was delicious and we feasted on salmon and fresh salad with a bottle of Pinot Grigio. Our guides were friendly and knowledgable and I would highly recommend their outfit Sea Sun Kayaking to anyone. After lunch we paddled around for a few hours. Breathtaking scenery and to be the only ones on the water that day added to the experience. After making it back to the hotel safely we took long showers and headed off in search of dinner. We settled on Tom's! The food was not only good but reasonably priced. After dinner I sparked a PSD4(Thanks Elliot!), Ashton VSG (Thanks Josh!) and a Padron 1926 #6 Maduro.
A great time!
It was nice spending some real quality time with my Dad!
I can recommend exploring this city and its surroundings!
I'll be back with or without the impending smoking ban!
-Rob
Our first trip just the two of us, in about 20 years.
What a great little city. Everything is pretty much walkable.
There is quite a bit of history (naval disasters primarily).
The people are very friendly too.
Day 1
I was prepared and brought 15 sticks with me (5 ISOM, 10 NC). The ridiculous tax situation up in Canada is out of control. One Short Story for $24.95! Ashton maduros for about the same price (it was coated in bloom though). A Opus X #5 for $70! NCs were waaay more pricey then Cubans. If you want to pay a pretty penny for aged NCs go to Canada!
That day I smoked a Padron 6000 maddie on the waterfront. The draw was loose but the flavor was great.
Next after a dinner of spicy Thai food I went to the place I spent every evening. It was called Tom's Little Havana. It is decorated with murals, old and new cigar boxes, and old and new liquor packaging (Scotch primarily). This is one of the few cigar friendly establishments in the city. Unfortuantely the laws may change in six months... There's hope that they will allow cigar smoking only and not cigarettes. Cigarette smokers were definately the majority there. I ordered my first taste of Havana Club 7 year rum and sparked up a Party Short (great cigar!) at the side bar inside. I am not too much of a rum drinker and I found it to be very good. Unfortunately liquor pours are generally a measured shot so this did not last too long. I switched to Dalwhinnie when I bellied up to the actual bar and sparked an Anejo 50. The otterbox I borrowed for the trip (mine is waay too large) from slevy gathered quite a few comments including my favorite (heard twice), "Is that battery powered?". With a nice buzz going I sampled some Keith's IPA a local brew with an PAM Principe. I was chatting with some lady and she was dismayed they did not sell Backwoods cigars there! She was fun and friendly anyways! Her co-worker was smoking hot too... So I'll forgive her smoking choices!
Day two
After another day walking and exploring we settled on dinner at a Greek restaurant. I had a stuffed Halibut that was quite nice with a Greek salad on the side. Walked back up the hill to Tom's. The bar was full so I commandeered a easy chair and sparked a Punch del Punch EAR Sep 01. Thanks Allen, this was an awesome smoke! I followed it up with an Avo LE05 from cigardawg's G/B. Its flavors shone through even though I had just smoked a little powerhouse! I left to check out the other cigar bar around the corner called Jon Allen's. I walked right by it because it was empty and headed right back to Tom's. Finished the evening with Boli PC and then a WOAM. Both of these cigars have been my go to sticks and they definately did not dissapoint!
Day three
On this Saturday it was intended for Dad and I to go on a overnight sea kayaking trip. The chance of thunderstorms killed that. So off we went to the northern part of the Bay of Fundy. This was quite a ride with gorgeous vistas of mist enshrouded islands enhanced by a OR King B I smoked after a meal of local mussels and a bacon cheeseburger. Returning to Halifax we settled in for dinner at The Pressgang. I feasted on a 1/2 dozen Malpeque oysters followed by a strip steak with foie gras and a red wine demi glace. I capped off the evening back at Tom's with Vegas Robaina Famosa and a Fuente Cuban Beli Sun Grown. The King B I enjoyed much more then the CBSG. The VRF was mmmm mmmm good!
Day 4 our last day.
Sea kayaking was on for the day. We paddled Terrence Bay... in the rain. Checked out some coves and then it was time for lunch. I sparked a WOAM while the guides scrambled to erect a tarp to keep us dry even though we were all soaked! The WOAM was delicious and we feasted on salmon and fresh salad with a bottle of Pinot Grigio. Our guides were friendly and knowledgable and I would highly recommend their outfit Sea Sun Kayaking to anyone. After lunch we paddled around for a few hours. Breathtaking scenery and to be the only ones on the water that day added to the experience. After making it back to the hotel safely we took long showers and headed off in search of dinner. We settled on Tom's! The food was not only good but reasonably priced. After dinner I sparked a PSD4(Thanks Elliot!), Ashton VSG (Thanks Josh!) and a Padron 1926 #6 Maduro.
A great time!
It was nice spending some real quality time with my Dad!
I can recommend exploring this city and its surroundings!
I'll be back with or without the impending smoking ban!
-Rob
