by 
Hey guys,
Sometimes, when searching for the right product, you just have to own up to the fact that you’re a sucker for packaging. Brands exist to sell you something. As the customer who is in need of a cigar, or a new car, or a different kind of salad dressing because ranch is getting old, I am alright with this exchange. I only ask the marketers, the hacks, the boardrooms and the bullshitters do two things:
- refrain from cynicism or condescension in the delivery of your message, and
- have at least a little quality in your product to back up what might be stellar bows and ribbons.
That’s how I feel, anyway.
As a Texan, I am at particular risk of being pandered to by companies, organizations and other rackets. Citizens of the state have a peculiar amount and sort of pride (and for good reason). So, some marketers know how to play on our heartstrings. The H.E.B. grocery store chain down here does an excellent job of making their product Texas-specific (What’s up San Antonio?! Va Spurs Va!). So do the fast food chains like Whataburger, Dairy Queen, even though the connection can get pretty tenuous between our history as a republic and a Dude Chicken Sandwich (“That’s what I like about Texas!”)
So Crowned Heads put out this Yellow Rose of Texas line, which arrived in Texas stores only after the company put out the Tennessee Waltz and the Paniolo Especial (Hawaii). Didn’t know that the Yellow Rose was a part of a greater strategy at the time, but I doubt it would have made a difference. The Yellow Rose is both a popular song and motif in our state based (unfortunately) upon Fussball hallenschuhe a minstrel song from the 1850s. It was brought into wider acceptance after Gene Autry revised the lyrics and transformed it into a cowboy campfire song in the 1930s. The song is playing during Rock Hudson’s diner fight in “Giant,” and Elvis famously covered it in “Viva Las Vegas.” It was a touchstone of LBJ’s vice presidential campaign in 1960, and it’s one of those songs that every Texas kid probably sings at at least one point in his basketball trikots günstig or her life. Point being, there is a strong history behind the Yellow Rose of Texas. Did this Crowned Heads line live up to the legacy?
I’ll be honest and won’t B.S. you. I smoked this cigar a month and a half ago, took no notes, confident that the experience would leave its own mark upon my memory. I can’t remember much at all. I know that the wrapper was dark and promising; the band itself was a simple yellow ribbon, charming in its simplicity. I wondered if Crowned Heads drew upon some kind of influences or traditions regarding the kind of cigars original Texans smoked (the wrapper is a Connecticut broadleaf, with the filler and fussball trikots kaufen binders Nicaraguan.) The stick only comes in torpedo form, and the tapered end tends to lead to fraying, which I remember well. Maintenance was a pain. But the flavor? Whether it changed, tasted smoky, rich, flat or stale? Did it engage me, pull me in, affect my senses? Was there even a decent buzz? Did it taste, somehow, like Texas? I just couldn’t tell you. But I am $10 shorter a month and a half later.
Paired with: Mexican Coca Cola
