Kimfessions: Montecristo No. 1 and Audiophile Cigar Lounge

[Connoisseur Kim]

Since the cold windy weather has finally faded away, I decided to review the last remaining CC Montecristo No. 1 in beer and cigar pub Led Zeppelin. The reason why I picked Montecristo No. 1 is not only because Lonsdale is one of the cigar sizes I'd like to try but also a fond memory of La Gloria Cubana Medaille d'Or No. 4 review during herf with @Raskol made me a passionate skinnies fan.

Lonsdale is a cigar size which is named after Hugh Lowther, 5th Earl of Lonsdale. The first Lonsdale (42 RG x 165 mm, Cervantes) was created by Rafael González in the 1930's and soon became one of the popular cigar sizes among cigar aficionados as evening cigars. However, its popularity has seriously eroded due to the rise of thick RG cigars and major drop in quality control after the Cigar Boom which led to massive discontinuation of the skinnies. Its derivatives are Cazadores (43 RG x 162 mm), Dalias (43 RG x 170 mm), and Laguito Especial (40 RG x 192 mm).

As I arrived at Led Zeppelin, I could notice the owner of this bar must be a passionate audiophile and Guinness lover, since it was not only named after a 1970’s famous English rock band Led Zeppelin but also famous for serving the perfect Guinness beer and playing customers’ song requests with the best HiFi setup. Inside, there were cigar box wall art; certification from Guinness; several desktop humidors filled with over humidified CCs; famous Mcintosh amplifiers and JBL speakers; wall mounted TV showing Led Zeppelin concerts and cigar commercials.

For drink pairing, I picked a pint of Guinness Draught, since I got interested in Stouts after reviewing Guinness Original and Draught cans. Then, an owner explained the proper way to drink Guinness and the facts about Guinness Draught. I was totally surprised that the colour of Guinness was not actually black but rather ruby red like coffee. Also, I was impressed that the colour of Guinness Draught slowly changed from light brown to signature ruby red as hourglass flowed by. It was definitely creamier; smokier; richer; toastier than canned one, so I could not stop myself from enjoying this addictive stout.

For Montecristo No. 1, it began with Montecristo’s signature coffee and bitter chocolate; dominant cocoa and mocha; toasty almond and nut; strong leather and wood notes. After that, it transitioned into cream and spice; twang and cedar; hay and tobacco bomb with a slight hint of earth. Overall, its flavour profile was quite similar to Montecristo No. 4, but more complex and refined than famous No. 4. I really enjoyed this long and slender cigar, since it was a lovely evening cigar without being harsh until nubbing like La Gloria Cubana Medaille d'Or No. 4 due to five months of rest. 96 points worthy Lonsdale.

During the review, I picked Judas Priest’s Painkiller while my mum chose Korean songs as song requests to be played. As soon as Painkiller played, the sound was so vivid that resembled the moments of Eric Clapton concert when I was an early teen. I had always wondered how the best audio gears Mcintosh and JBL combination sounded like and this cigar lounge gave me a definite answer. What an eargasm! However, only @Sir Diggamus popped in the Virtual Herf, as others were busy at work. I felt I should have done it on weekends, so everyone can pop in easily. Silly me!

After reviewing Montecristo No. 1, its owner gave an empty box of Romeo y Julieta Belvederes as a gift before I left the B&M. I took a cab and returned home as soon as possible, because I spent 2+ hours for Montecristo No. 1 Virtual Herf. I absolutely liked this B&M’s retro Hi-Fi setup and authentic Guinness Draught beer experience. I highly recommend Led Zeppelin if you are looking for a cigar lounge with badass Hi-Fi settings, legit Guinness Draught, and retro vibe in Korea!

Address: 30 Wiryeseong-daero 18-gil Songpa-gu, Seoul
Hours: Mon-Sat 19:00-03:00 (7:00 p.m.-3:00 a.m.)
Phone: 02-558-3031
Cigar Corkage: 10000 KRW/cigar
Cover Charge: Free of charge
Blog: https://blog.naver.com/bara3031
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ledzeppelin_bar

Note.

1. I reviewed Montecristo No. 1 on 10th of July.
2. It has freebie travel carrier bag lucky draw on 23:00 and I ended up being lost the draw LOL.
3. You can request up to any genre of 4-5 songs you would like to listen. I am sure you will enjoy it for sure!
4. It plays music even louder from 21:00 to 23:30.
5. You only can puff cigars in this B&M.
6. Guinness Draught and Montecristo No. 1 are surprisingly pair well for those who enjoys ales such as Hefeweizens and Stouts IMHO.

[CaptainQuintero]

Stand out bit of writing Kim!

  I love the inception (Supposedly) of Porter ales; they were brought in/chosen as the quick pit-stop drink of choice for porters in London who needed a calorie heavy drink to keep them going on their long foot trogs around the city hand delivering crates etc. Beer powered work days are something that needs to be brought back!

  Looking forward to the next piece 

[Connoisseur Kim]

1 minute ago, CaptainQuintero said:

Stand out bit of writing Kim!

  I love the inception (Supposedly) of Porter ales; they were brought in/chosen as the quick pit-stop drink of choice for porters in London who needed a calorie heavy drink to keep them going on their long foot trogs around the city hand delivering crates etc. Beer powered work days are something that needs to be brought back!

  Looking forward to the next piece 

I also like DunkelWeizen, HefeWeizen, and Belgan Ale too! I'm surprised that I also love Stouts too except my mum although she said it was way better than any other Guinness she tried hehe.

Rob and Javi encouraged me to try to write reviews in Kenfession style. Thank you for reading my first lengthy review and I'll post even more as soon as CCs have enough rest like 90 days. ???

[Goodfortune]

Very nice review Kim! Sounds like a fun evening at a cool bar with a great cigar!
Cheers ?

[Connoisseur Kim]

4 minutes ago, Goodfortune said:

Very nice review Kim! Sounds like a fun evening at a cool bar with a great cigar!
Cheers ?

It was great evening indeed! Too bad that only one BOTL popped in session ?

Cheers buddy ?

[Joeyjojo]

Great write up of a truly unique place. 

As drinks like draught Guinness and ales require a skilled bar staff/cellarman to keep in good nick,  I think it really distinguishes the great bars/pubs from the corporate run chains. 

 

[JohnS]

Great write-up Kim. I really enjoyed reading this too! ?

[McBeardface]

Very nice write-up. Wish there were lounges/bars like this here in NYC - I’d be there constantly. Nothing I’d enjoy more than the combination of audiophile quality music, draft Guinness, and cigars. Damn!


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[Shatner's Bassoon]

Great review! Guinness and Monte 1 can’t be bad, and the venue sounds well worth a visit as well!

[StogieSteve23]

Kimfessions! Monte 1 Review is alive and real!  Great review and looks like Led Zeppelin was a great spot! Well done, Kim. 

[MMarbs]

Great review, Kim! Hope you continue with this series. Ken now has a review competitor for cigars and drinks.

And yes, good drink pairing with that cigar. I find Montes pair well with stouts and porters due to the cocoa and cream notes. If I'm going to have a Monte, and if I have a stout in the fridge, that's usually the drink I'm going to have with it.

[GVan]

Great review, I spent a lot of time in Seoul several years ago when I worked with KEPCO.  Wish I knew this was there while I was visiting.  Doubt I'll have a chance to get back there - sounds like a lot of fun!  Thanks

[Connoisseur Kim]

11 hours ago, Joeyjojo said:

Great write up of a truly unique place. 

As drinks like draught Guinness and ales require a skilled bar staff/cellarman to keep in good nick,  I think it really distinguishes the great bars/pubs from the corporate run chains. 

Much agreed! Guinness tastes different when I straight away drink it from can and draught too. The owner is definitely skilled and I really enjoyed to see the colour change of Guinness.

9 hours ago, JohnS said:

Great write-up Kim. I really enjoyed reading this too! ?

Thanks John! It would be much better if you popped in that day, since it's cool audiophile cigar lounge ?. Hope that I can see ya on next Virtual Herf review mate!

8 hours ago, McBeardface said:

Very nice write-up. Wish there were lounges/bars like this here in NYC - I’d be there constantly. Nothing I’d enjoy more than the combination of audiophile quality music, draft Guinness, and cigars. Damn!

I agree that it's rare to see cigar lounges/bars with authentic Guinness and cool audiophile gears. I've always wanted to visit such a a place like this B&M. I'm sure you'll enjoy it when you visit Korea buddy ?

8 hours ago, Shatner's Bassoon said:

Great review! Guinness and Monte 1 can’t be bad, and the venue sounds well worth a visit as well!

It's worth a visit dude! Monte 1 performed great as well. Excellent evening cigar ?I

7 hours ago, StogieSteve23 said:

Kimfessions! Monte 1 Review is alive and real!  Great review and looks like Led Zeppelin was a great spot! Well done, Kim. 

I'll post more Kimfession articles, since it's way better than just posting cigar reviews. It was jovial place indeed! If you're interested in Virtual Herf review, pop in next time! Thank you for reading first Kimfession article!

5 hours ago, MMarbs said:

Great review, Kim! Hope you continue with this series. Ken now has a review competitor for cigars and drinks.

And yes, good drink pairing with that cigar. I find Montes pair well with stouts and porters due to the cocoa and cream notes. If I'm going to have a Monte, and if I have a stout in the fridge, that's usually the drink I'm going to have with it.

A challenger has arrived! I really wonder how Ken would feel when he sees Kimfession articles hehe ?. I agree that Monte's signature cocoa and cream notes matched well with Guinness ?

5 hours ago, GVan said:

Great review, I spent a lot of time in Seoul several years ago when I worked with KEPCO.  Wish I knew this was there while I was visiting.  Doubt I'll have a chance to get back there - sounds like a lot of fun!  Thanks

It's a funny lounge if you like Guinness and audiophile gears ?. Lots of customers were there for Guinness and music despite of its remote location. My mum told me it reminded music cafes in her time ?

[El Presidente]

KIMFESSIONS

Love it  

 

[Connoisseur Kim]

2 hours ago, El Presidente said:

KIMFESSIONS

Love it  

Thanks Rob! I really like Kimfession as well! It would be even better if you and other FOH members popped in Virtual Zoom Cigar Lounge on that day ??

Hope that we can pop in next session ?

[ElJavi76]

I think @Connoisseur Kim is gonna give @Ken Gargetta run for his money. You're going to need more cigars Kim... If you play your cards right you might get a "Kimfessions" subforum. 

Cheers!

[Connoisseur Kim]

2 minutes ago, ElJavi76 said:

I think @Connoisseur Kim is gonna give @Ken Gargetta run for his money. You're going to need more cigars Kim... If you play your cards right you might get a "Kimfessions" subforum. 

Cheers!

Thanks @ElJavi76! More cigars are needed, so that I can post more Kimfession Series with Kimfession subform ?. Cheers too buddy!

[Sir Diggamus]

Great review Kim! I was happy to get to see you FINALLY light that Monte no 1 up and check out the spot. The cigar lounge looked like a REALLY cool place to enjoy some music, a cigar, and a glass of Guinness.


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[inter4alia]

I love the look and sound of this Audiophile lounge! Thanks for posting. 

[Connoisseur Kim]

1 hour ago, Sir Diggamus said:

Great review Kim! I was happy to get to see you FINALLY light that Monte no 1 up and check out the spot. The cigar lounge looked like a REALLY cool place to enjoy some music, a cigar, and a glass of Guinness.

It was absolutely cool place indeed! The price was quite steep, but worth to visit ?. I surprised that many customers were there despite of its remote place. The owner of this B&M liked my IG post too ?.

1 hour ago, inter4alia said:

I love the look and sound of this Audiophile lounge! Thanks for posting. 

I really loved this audiophile cigar lounge! Guinness draught tasted really good compare to canned version ?. Can't beat the sound of Mcintosh and JBL combo as well. Thank you for reading my first Kimfessions review buddy ?!

[mrmessy]

Great review. Next time I'm in seoul visiting family, I'll have to stop by.

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[Connoisseur Kim]

1 hour ago, mrmessy said:

Great review. Next time I'm in seoul visiting family, I'll have to stop by.

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I'm sure you'll have a great time in that cigar lounge ?