This particular issue is being offered with much anticipation as they were made in October 2007 using our one and only crop of Habano, a seed that has not been grown since and only yielded enough for a small amount of cigars.

The blend is rich and complex and the body is medium to full. However, with this kind of flavor, the strength is secondary!

Only 40,000 Camacho Liberty 2009 cigars were made, all of which are packed in their own individual coffins.

The NEW 2009 Camacho Liberty comes in boxes of 20 cigars and is now available at select retailers.

Hey Gabbagool…yeah, I’m talkin’ to you. I got a rib recipe that’ll knock your freakin’ head into the next room. These sons of bitches are so sweet, so tender, so juicy and tasty that I had to whack my neighbor just to get the secret recipe from him. But since you came all the way to Jersey just to see me, I’ll let ya take a look – but don’t tell nobody…capeesh?

All right, I’m full of it. It’s actually my neighbor’s Sal & Carol’s own recipe. You see, we’ve been going to parties at their house for years and when they serve these ribs, everyone goes absolutely insane over them. A platter the size of Rosie Odonnell’s housecoat will disappear in minutes with the crowd begging for more. I’ve never tasted a sauce like this, anywhere, and could never put my finger on it. The flavor is intoxicating and I just had to get the lowdown. So last July fourth we had them over the house, they brought the ribs, and Carol was in a sharing mood and divulged her deep secret recipe to me. And since I am a hell of a guy, I’ll be a real mamaluke and share it with youz guys, too.

The Recipe…
I’ll start by letting you know that it’s not a traditional bbq sauce we use, but a base of molasses and brown sugar. You’re going to slow-cook these bad boys, using both the oven and your grill. Yeah, it’s a little bit of work, but I’d like to consider it a labor of love. Trust me, ya chooch.

Start with a nice rack of baby back ribs. (The Zman is always partial to a nice rack.)
Then we make a rub – Paprika, garlic powder, salt & pepper, cumin, and oregano.
Then we make the sauce –
Molasses – 1/4 cup
Brown sugar – 2 1/2 cups
Ketchup – 1/2 cup
Mustard – 1 tablespoon
Chinese Sweet and Sour Sauce – 2 packets (Go rip ‘em off from Chan’s up the Street)
Soy Sauce – 1 tablespoon
Worcestershire Sauce – 1 tablespoon
Fresh Garlic – 3 – 5 (cloves depending on your love for garlic) thinly sliced
Red Pepper Flakes – 1/2 teaspoon

Place the ingredients into a pot and onto the stove top, stir and bring it to a boil. Turn down the heat and just let it simmer.

Take your rub and coat both sides of the meat evenly.
Place the rack on a cookie sheet, uncovered – and put it in the oven for one hour set at 225.
After an hour, cover it with foil and pop it back in for another  2 hours. This lets it get all steamy in there as it slow-cooks in it’s own juices.

Ok, brutha, you’re ready for the grill. Set it to a medium flame and let the grill top heat up.

Place the rack on the grill top for a few minutes on each side until they get golden brown.

Now it’s time to brush on that sauce with a nice consistency.

Place the ribs back onto the grill again for only a couple of minutes, both sides – until the sauce starts to bubble and caramelize. The outside should get slightly charred and nice and crispy.

After you cut them up, you can pour the remainder of the sauce over the meat while it’s still hot.

And that’s it, my brother. North Jersey Style Killer Ribs to impress the hell out of Paulie, Christopher, Silvio, and Tony. And if Johnny Sacks and Phil Leotardo want some, don’t act like a douche bag – just give ‘em their cut. We don’t want no trouble over here.

Oofah! – Z

You know what else most chicks won’t do? No, not that you hormonal dirtbag – I’m talking about the great American pastime of barbequing. Almost all chicks rely on the male of the species to char the carcass on an open flame. Give them an oven and one of those little pop-up rectal thermometers and they do a nifty job with a turkey or roast. But when it comes to red meat and savory pork nothing but nothing beats the blackened stripes delivered by a red-hot grill top. When the juices flow and the fat hits those flames there’s nothing that gets the testosterone pumping more than the sweet smell of searing animal flesh. (I’m making grunting noises as I type.)

We Americans seem to live for a good barbeque cook out. All through the year, no matter the weather, guys are gassing the Webers and firing up the Kingsford. My son’s baseball team recently had a doubleheader and we decided it was time to get the grill going – sizzling burgers, crispy dogs, and juicy sausages put us all in a good mood making everyone forget about the ass-kicking the opposition was laying on the boys. I don’t know what it is about a sunny day and a blue sky that makes a barbeque so great, but I’m sure we all agree that it feeds the spirit every bit as much as the stomach.

Real barbeque purists will only cook with charcoal briquets or seasoned wood, claiming the heat and smoke make for the best flavor for any meat. You always see in the barbeque cooking contests on TV that they never use a gas grill, but instead briquets or certain types of wood that give meat like ribs, brisket, chicken or pulled pork that unmistakable smokey flavor. To those in the southern parts of the US, the word barbecue is a noun, where in the north it is a verb. These elitists of barbequdom turn their noses up at those of us who purge the propane tank. But we men of suburbia with little time for anything enjoy the convenient click of the gas grill and the flavor that a nice piece of metallic hardware brings. And you don’t have to spend a fortune to have some of the finer names in grilling either. There’s a good number of high quality gas grills for under $500, including the top names like Weber, Ducane, Fiesta, Char Broil, and Broil King. I personally love my Weber Silver. The neat thing about the Weber design is that by lighting the two outside burners and leaving the middle one off, the grill takes on the effect of a convection oven and the heat circulates around the meat cooking it slower and retaining all the juices. That method is amazing for something like a marinated pork loin. I even do it with thicker steaks like a porterhouse where I first sear both sides on super high heat, then turn the middle burner off and let them continue to cook without burning or drying them out whatsoever. Holy God, I don’t know about you, but I could eat my goddamned foot right now I’m so hungry.

And I ask you – what on this earthly plain is better – and more manly – than lighting up a great cigar while tending the grill and tossing back some ice-cold brews on a beautiful autumn evening? Now we’re talking about one of the greatest pleasures known to mankind. Something about this ritual, this rite of passage that brings the body, mind, and soul to a place of existential bliss. Under these conditions, nervous breakdowns, heart failure, and acts of war could never exist. Fresh air, red meat, and aged cigars are the recipe for a long and healthy life if you ask me.

Again, I really have to thank Prometheus for his contribution to mankind, and the most bogus price he paid because of it. Can you imagine no tailgating, bonfire pep rallies, singing around the campfire, or that damned burning hunk of Yule Tide log at Christmas? And what kind of horrid bore would summertime be without the smell of searing meat wafting throughout the neighborhood? And fer crissakes, how would we light our puros? God bless you, Prometheus – and don’t worry, I’m really not a big fan of liver.