At the desk with a La Palina Kill Bill

Recently, my family suffered the loss of a loved one. It has been a very trying time, but with God’s help you always make it. After the funeral was over, cam the task of clearing out things and moving articles that belonged to her. One thing in particular was a very old desk that she had for years. My wife said that she can remember her and her brother being told to never go near that desk for some unknown reason. I can remember her mother sitting at that desk writing in pads and composing letters. We moved the desk carefully to our home and placed it in our living room, all the drawers were still full of unknown items that were a mystery. This past weekend it was time to clean it out and go through everything, but my wife could not bring herself to open it nor go near it and asked if I would as she went to town. After she left with my daughter to go take care of things in town, I put a large box near the desk to place all the articles I remove. Before starting, wanting something special to smoke, I selected from the humidor a La Palina Kill Bill. It’s a gorgeous 4.25x40 cigar, with a stunningly perfect Corojo Rosado wrapper that is so wonderfully rolled that you have to hunt to locate any seems. Veins are few and small, and the pre lit aroma gives hints of spice, wood and dark earth. As with all La Palina cigars the band is beautiful and goes well with the shade of the wrapper. After using my Xikar to carefully clip the triple cap I set torch to work, and the first flavors to appear were those of spice and wood. The spice that I received reminds me of a spice blend used in south Louisiana, rich in pepper, zesty, yet with a very slight hint of sweetness. Shortly after the first quarter of an inch, the flavors began to emerge that was to show the essence of the cigar. Spice and wood with succulent hints of cocoa and dark earth quickly made their presence known; also the strength of the cigar was beginning to show. Now thoroughly enjoy my cigar, I sat on the chair at the desk and started going through each drawer, and I must say several surprises were in store. In the first drawer, I found a stack of envelopes that dated back to the late 50’s. Carefully opening a few, I found that they were letters from my wife’s mother and father to each other while he was on duty in the navy. I saw only a few words as they were love letters and that was for their eyes only and with respect, neatly put the letters back together and placed them in the box. Other envelopes were found, lawyers, properties, old friends and relatives, even old air mail letters as well. Placing more letters in the box, I had reached the middle of a very delectable cigar. The cigar had come to its fullness, providing a bounty of tantalizing flavors that coat the palate in delight. Dried fruit and hints of coca combining in a magnificent manner, with the spice still present and making you aware that it was still a main player, and that dark earth from the start still working perfectly. The smoke was very aromatic and gave a pleasant reminder in the air of the beauty of the blend. I had finally gone through most of everything and had made it to the last drawer. Hidden in one corner was a hand sized turquoise zipper purse that had weight to it. I picked it up out of the drawer and sat it on the desk, opening it carefully. Inside were over twenty buffalo head nickels and twenty five silver half dollars dating back to 1962. I placed the purse to one side so that my wife could decide what she wanted to do with them. Another small box contained her father’s captain’s insignias as well as metals, flight log, and various other small books from his time in service. It’s amazing what we keep in life, what we hold dear and never let go of. So much of her mother’s history was in that desk, events throughout her life. As I was coming to the close of my cigar, I placed the box to one side and closed it so my wife could do with it what she chose, sat back and took a deep breath. They say time heals all things and that is true, but for now my heart goes out to my wife who, for now, can’t bear to look through a desk that she has seen all her life. Walking outside, I took the last puffs from what has been a magnificent cigar. Flavors that were present at the midpoint were still in progress, with the addition of coffee coming through as well as hints of leather in the last draw. The La Palina Kill Bill is a must try, as it is absolutely delightful. Try a few and see what flavors you receive.




G.C.