Robusto
07-04-2010, 02:43 PM
Sometimes I am allowed out. Sometimes that means London, and the outing usually centres on moving my son up from my quiet town on the Kent Coast to another flat or dwelling in the capital city.
You have to understand how impoverished NO-CIGAR life is on the South-East Kent coast. Sure I cuddle my humidor a lot and keep her adequately stuffed. However, if I step out of my house to seek a good cigar - and if I discount supermarket tubos - I have to drive in my car for about an hour to reach the Dickens Wine Emporium in Rochester. Here, behind glass humidor doors, you can claw at Cohibas in a frenzied state.
And that is just about it for cigar stores in Kent. Maybe there are places in 'posh' Kent like Tunbridge Wells and Sevenoaks. They are quite a way North from me, so I don't know.
Which brings me to the near sexual frenzy of being able to see and sense a well-stocked humidor. That nice Nic Wing tipped me off about BURLINGTON BERTIE'S in Houndsditch. This happens to be less than half a mile's walk from where my son now lives so it will be a good stroll out for smoking thrills whenever I am in Whitechapel.
This is NOT exclusively a sit-down cigar parlour but it is worth knowing it's on the map if you ever go sight-seeing around in the Swiss Tower / Gherkin / City of London area. On all of these days in London, I ALWAYS have a bulging pocket of three of my finest cigars in a leather case... but I ALWAYS want to sniff out a different cigar if there is one to be found.
The humidor at Burlington Bertie's is well stocked with a good range of various sizes of BEST OF Havanas, and beyond. (I reiterate - I would be BESIDE MYSELF to have a store with such stock within an hour of where I live).
I chose a Juan Lopez Seleccion Suprema (2009 UK Regional Edition) because I love Juan Lopez, and because this was a sizeable monster of a cigar to enjoy after a copious, inexpensive and beautifully prepared Pakistani curry lunch at the end of my son's street. TAYYAB's - I strongly recommend! (http://www.tayyabs.co.uk/)
I do like a big chomper of a cigar when the occasion presents itself, and walking around the financial district and posing for prattish pictures underneath the Gherkin is reason enough to set me off. :)
The cigar shop / tobacconnists has a lot of other pass-by shop goods in it. There were many large pots of pipe tobacco. (A mystery world to me). I struck up a conversation with the owner and we were interrupted by quite a lot of people passing through the shop. I didn't ask the chap's name because of these interruptions (rude of me) but he knows Mitch and the other named cigar places across the city to Teddington.
The owner explained that trade was not as it was before the smoking restrictions were put in place. He had set up the first cigar lounge in the UK, having smoked one off himself in a lounge at Dubai Airport and been completely transfixed in the luxurious surroundings. What was the cigar lounge is now a sandwich and coffee bar. He regretted very much that in the past he would set up a bottle of Port for Friday 4.00pm and that the office guys into cigars would come down and smoke in the store til 7.00pm as an absolute ritual. That cannot happen now because of the indoor smoking restrictions.
When I think about that story, I get really annoyed about the adverse effects of the smoking restrictions. How can that cigar-smoker-consenting camaraderie ever be brought back? :mad:
I had been wondering about whether a vibrant Cigar Life goes on in the City with many folk around whom I'd presume to have plenty of money to burn (ho ho) on this passion. I don't know the area or commerces here at all so cannot comment on that.
If anybody reading this knows this shop or the area, it would be great to learn more.
What I did appreciate is that on those occasions when I drive up to Whitechapel, I know there is a local cigar store that I can take a walk to and find a monster that I don't have amongst my usuals.
A selection of photos of the day is below for your viewing delight.
TAYYAB'S RESTAURANT
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h304/elton1984/Gherkin%20Day%20Tue%2006%20Apr%202010/DSC01000.jpg?t=1270649808
BURLINGTON BERTIE'S - EXTERIOR
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h304/elton1984/Gherkin%20Day%20Tue%2006%20Apr%202010/DSC01010.jpg?t=1270650012
BURLINGTON BERTIE'S - THE HUMIDOR
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h304/elton1984/Gherkin%20Day%20Tue%2006%20Apr%202010/DSC01012.jpg?t=1270650123
VIEW OF THE GHERKIN / THE SWISS TOWER FROM HOUNDSDITCH
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h304/elton1984/Gherkin%20Day%20Tue%2006%20Apr%202010/DSC01009.jpg?t=1270650230
CIGAR SMOKER AND GREENHOUSE
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h304/elton1984/Gherkin%20Day%20Tue%2006%20Apr%202010/DSC01022.jpg?t=1270650318
FEELING CONTENT OUTSIDE A LITTLE JAPANESE PLACE BELOW THE GHERKIN
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h304/elton1984/Gherkin%20Day%20Tue%2006%20Apr%202010/DSC01021.jpg?t=1270650392
You have to understand how impoverished NO-CIGAR life is on the South-East Kent coast. Sure I cuddle my humidor a lot and keep her adequately stuffed. However, if I step out of my house to seek a good cigar - and if I discount supermarket tubos - I have to drive in my car for about an hour to reach the Dickens Wine Emporium in Rochester. Here, behind glass humidor doors, you can claw at Cohibas in a frenzied state.
And that is just about it for cigar stores in Kent. Maybe there are places in 'posh' Kent like Tunbridge Wells and Sevenoaks. They are quite a way North from me, so I don't know.
Which brings me to the near sexual frenzy of being able to see and sense a well-stocked humidor. That nice Nic Wing tipped me off about BURLINGTON BERTIE'S in Houndsditch. This happens to be less than half a mile's walk from where my son now lives so it will be a good stroll out for smoking thrills whenever I am in Whitechapel.
This is NOT exclusively a sit-down cigar parlour but it is worth knowing it's on the map if you ever go sight-seeing around in the Swiss Tower / Gherkin / City of London area. On all of these days in London, I ALWAYS have a bulging pocket of three of my finest cigars in a leather case... but I ALWAYS want to sniff out a different cigar if there is one to be found.
The humidor at Burlington Bertie's is well stocked with a good range of various sizes of BEST OF Havanas, and beyond. (I reiterate - I would be BESIDE MYSELF to have a store with such stock within an hour of where I live).
I chose a Juan Lopez Seleccion Suprema (2009 UK Regional Edition) because I love Juan Lopez, and because this was a sizeable monster of a cigar to enjoy after a copious, inexpensive and beautifully prepared Pakistani curry lunch at the end of my son's street. TAYYAB's - I strongly recommend! (http://www.tayyabs.co.uk/)
I do like a big chomper of a cigar when the occasion presents itself, and walking around the financial district and posing for prattish pictures underneath the Gherkin is reason enough to set me off. :)
The cigar shop / tobacconnists has a lot of other pass-by shop goods in it. There were many large pots of pipe tobacco. (A mystery world to me). I struck up a conversation with the owner and we were interrupted by quite a lot of people passing through the shop. I didn't ask the chap's name because of these interruptions (rude of me) but he knows Mitch and the other named cigar places across the city to Teddington.
The owner explained that trade was not as it was before the smoking restrictions were put in place. He had set up the first cigar lounge in the UK, having smoked one off himself in a lounge at Dubai Airport and been completely transfixed in the luxurious surroundings. What was the cigar lounge is now a sandwich and coffee bar. He regretted very much that in the past he would set up a bottle of Port for Friday 4.00pm and that the office guys into cigars would come down and smoke in the store til 7.00pm as an absolute ritual. That cannot happen now because of the indoor smoking restrictions.
When I think about that story, I get really annoyed about the adverse effects of the smoking restrictions. How can that cigar-smoker-consenting camaraderie ever be brought back? :mad:
I had been wondering about whether a vibrant Cigar Life goes on in the City with many folk around whom I'd presume to have plenty of money to burn (ho ho) on this passion. I don't know the area or commerces here at all so cannot comment on that.
If anybody reading this knows this shop or the area, it would be great to learn more.
What I did appreciate is that on those occasions when I drive up to Whitechapel, I know there is a local cigar store that I can take a walk to and find a monster that I don't have amongst my usuals.
A selection of photos of the day is below for your viewing delight.
TAYYAB'S RESTAURANT
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h304/elton1984/Gherkin%20Day%20Tue%2006%20Apr%202010/DSC01000.jpg?t=1270649808
BURLINGTON BERTIE'S - EXTERIOR
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h304/elton1984/Gherkin%20Day%20Tue%2006%20Apr%202010/DSC01010.jpg?t=1270650012
BURLINGTON BERTIE'S - THE HUMIDOR
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h304/elton1984/Gherkin%20Day%20Tue%2006%20Apr%202010/DSC01012.jpg?t=1270650123
VIEW OF THE GHERKIN / THE SWISS TOWER FROM HOUNDSDITCH
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h304/elton1984/Gherkin%20Day%20Tue%2006%20Apr%202010/DSC01009.jpg?t=1270650230
CIGAR SMOKER AND GREENHOUSE
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h304/elton1984/Gherkin%20Day%20Tue%2006%20Apr%202010/DSC01022.jpg?t=1270650318
FEELING CONTENT OUTSIDE A LITTLE JAPANESE PLACE BELOW THE GHERKIN
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h304/elton1984/Gherkin%20Day%20Tue%2006%20Apr%202010/DSC01021.jpg?t=1270650392