September Week 4 Winner!

Thanks to all who participated in this month's weekly 5-pack giveaway. The winner for week 4 is...

Nick Holloway aka @SlappyMcDougal

Congratulations! The 5-pack for this week consists of...Camacho Liberty 2009, Nestor Miranda Art Deco, Cain Daytona,La Caridad del Cobre Maduro and a La Gloria Artesanos de Tabaqueros. Enjoy! Either send me an email or DM me on Twitter.

Thinking about California...Smoking a Miami...

Almost two weeks back I published an article collecting a few thoughts from a recent trip while I smoked a cigar...and the reaction was positive, so I am committing to write more of that type of article...when I have something to write about...and I have time...so, maybe once or twice a month...maybe... :)

I arrived back at home late in the evening yesterday after a whirlwind weekend. I smoked a cigar while I drove home from the shuttle service that took me to the Nashville airport, but the bottom line is this is my first “sit back and relax” stogie since I got home. For that, I chose a Casa Fernandez Miami Reserva that I picked up at Maxamar Ultimate Cigars in Southern California. And I decided to pair it with some Maker’s Mark Bourbon that I brought back from California...more on that later.

The Miami Reserva was one of the early IPCPR samples that really impressed me and Keith gave it a fantastic review last week. For a cigar that ships sans cello, this one is impressive...it features a hardy, tough wrapper that has stood up to a bit of abuse on the trip home and is rich with oils to the eye and the finger. I got a sweet hay and molasses aroma from the wrapper and a rich, sweet tobacco aroma on the foot. The cigar lit up easily with just a single flame torch and started off intensely peppery through the nose and with sweet tobacco, cedar and leather on the palate.

Saturday about 2:30 a.m. my wife and I left for California; for me it was a long-planned business trip and a way to catch up with some good friends there. For her it was a time to spend with her family, who she does not get to see as much since we moved back east. An hour trip to Chattanooga led to two hours in a shuttle on the way to Nashville Airport, a couple hours waiting for our flight, a few hours in the air, an hour on the ground in Denver, another couple hours in flight, and an hour after de-planing to get baggage and our rental car and drive to In-N-Out, home of some of the best fast food burgers in the country.

I’ve had 5 Guys...I’ve eaten at Sonic, Wendy’s, McDonalds, Burger King, Carl’s Jr., Hardee’s (really, those last two are NOT the same)...and I still keep coming back to In-N-Out whenever I go to SoCal...it’s an institution, it has to happen every time. Oh, and Carl’s Jr.’s Santa Fe Chicken Sandwich...I have to have that every time I’m in SoCal, too. I got both my “Fast Food Fixes” last weekend.

In the middle of the first third, the Casa Fernandez Miami Reserva was smoking great. There was a little ash sprinkled on my laptop...I would have to keep an eye on that. The flavor was fantastic,though...a rich mix of natural tobacco, molasses, earth, leather and pepper spice.

I met Keith and Vernon at Maxamar in Orange to start the Saturday herfing period. I got to try my first Tatuaje TAA Blend...and have to say I was not all that impressed. It was good, but rather harsh at the beginning; it got better in the second half, but I just expect better for $10 a stick. They might age well, I guess. If you want to find out, give Amar a call at 714-633-3000...he had a few boxes left when we were there and his pricing is excellent. I also found out while we were there that the long-anticipated sponsorship by Maxamar was finally going to happen...that one was about a year in the works.

Later at Keith’s house, we were joined by Vern’s brother, Ray; my old friend, Paul; and someone I had never met before, Dale...aka @MrHallmark. We ate pizza, enjoyed some fine spirits (except Ray, who insisted on drinking cheap gin...but then again, I’ve never had a gin I’ve liked), and had some rousing conversation while the cigars burned.

This Miami Reserva keep pumping out great flavor, though the body seems to have increased a bit from about medium in the beginning to a more medium-full by the end of the first third. The Maker’s Mark was smooth and sweet...it’s been far too long since I’ve had any.

In the liquor store I frequent in Chattanooga, Maker’s Mark retails for about $30 for a 750mL bottle. I am used to paying a little more for spirits in Tennessee because of “sin” taxes, but that is just a huge markup...I’m guessing whoever the distributor is doesn’t buy enough to get a great discount on it, because 2,500 miles from the source, the same bottle was $21. So I bought a bottle and stuffed it in my suitcase.

In my short trip to California, I saw two Honda CRZs and it made me think...some Californians are much more concerned with “eco-image” than anything else...to the extent that they would actually pay money for such a hideous car. I know...beauty is in the eye of the beholder...but Honda has had some serious styling abominations in the last few years in both regular and Acura divisions (besides the CRZ, I would cite the ZDX, TL, Pilot and CrossTour...you are free to disagree with me, but if you do, just realize that you're wrong on this one).

In the second third, the Reserva Miami got smoother...the harsher edges rounded off and the earthiness dissipated. I got more sweet tobacco and leather, combining very well with the mellow wheaty finish of the Maker’s Mark.

I found out that Starbucks had banned smoking at all locations as of last November...not having a local shop, that was news to me. Luckily, one shop has “commons” areas with other nearby shops and smoking is allowed there. I got to start off my Monday with a strong Americano and a CAO OSA Sol in the open, drizzily air. It’s probably a good thing they don’t have a local shop, actually, as their prices have gone through the roof on the coffee drinks.

We ended the herfing extravaganza Monday evening at Taps on the corner of Brea and Imperial. In a state that makes it difficult to enjoy a good cigar, Taps is an oasis...good happy hour food and beer deals combined with a smoker-friendly environment. Once again, Keith, Vern and Ray were in attendance; this time we were joined by our old friend, Thomas...he’s not actually “old”...but we’ve been friends for quite a few years. He told us about his summer trip to Costa Rica and that he might have a more-or-less full-time job opening up this week...a difficult thing in California these days.

In the last third the Casa Fernandez Miami Reserva got even more mellow and smooth...good in one way, but it felt kind of like it was “creaming out” to borrow a phrase from “Blowin’ Smoke.” While undeniably creamy and smooth, there was still some earthiness to the cigar and a decent amount of good flavor...just not as much as I would have thought from all the great reviews it’s been getting. Overall, a very good smoke and a good value, but not the best thing in the Casa Fernandez catalog for me. Still...I feel the need to try this one again...I can't help but feel I was missing something...do they make this in a smaller ring gauge?

Tuesday I was up early and flying quick...Ontario to Phoenix to Nashville...then back on the shuttle to Chattanooga and then the car back home...and then to work for four hours. Grueling day, really. The bright spot was that I had tons of FourSquare check-ins and topped 350 points for the first time ever...maybe the last time, too. :)

Now I have just over two weeks at home before heading back out again...two weeks ago I got an invite from General Cigar to an “blogger’s trip” to the Dominican Republic. Really, this is not something you turn down unless there is simply no way to make it work. My employer was flexible and I’m going...along with Jerry Cruz (Stogie Review), Doc Diaz (Stogie Fresh), Barry Stein (A Cigar Smoker’s Journal), Ben Lee (Nice Tight Ash), and about a dozen others. I feel like I should know what to expect after the La Aurora trip earlier this year, but...really, when a trip includes a blogger marrying a, uh, “nice young lady” on the beach, how can you use that as your benchmark? I’m sure this trip will have its surprises, though...that’s a story for later this month.

Cigar Review: EP Carrillo Short Run 2011

Bombones (Robusto), 4.875" x 50 ring gauge / approx. $6, Buckhead Cigar
In 2010, EP Carrillo's cigar company released the original Short Run before their Core Line was even ready to release. The result was a limited release cigar in various sizes that was reasonably priced and a huge hit. In 2011, the Short Run came out slightly before the latest addition to the regular lineup, the Core Maduro, and it turns out the rest of the release recipe is the same, too: 1,500 boxes of each size, very accessible price points, and great reviews so far. The blend is different from last year, although I have smoked four of this year's so far and find them similar in some ways to the 2010 model. Reports are that these use Nicaraguan and Dominican fillers, a Nicaraguan binder, and an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper.

The smooth oiliness of the Ecuadorian wrapper really makes this cigar stand out beautifully. The veins are mostly small and the coloration is a fairly even dark tan. The wrapper had a nice aroma of sweet hay and a scent I would call almost-honey. On the foot I got notes of brown pepper and earth. I did not mention the banding because I wanted to say something good first....simply put, the banding scheme for EPC cigars is getting inscrutable. This year's Short Run is identical to last year's as far as packaging goes and the wrappers are close enough in appearance to make it impossible to tell when you are getting unless you buy an unopened box (which does have the date on it). Besides the possibility of being lied to by unethical or unthinking tobacconists, keeping them straight in your own humidor will be difficult should you have both 2010 and 2011 models in stock at the same time...which I did at one point. The secondary band needs to change to denote the year. Given a clean cut by my Xikar, I got a very smooth prelight draw that had flavors of sweet natural tobacco, earth, hay and a touch of honey. There was also a spicy tingle left on my lips.

Right off the bat, the Short Run 2011 hits with a heavy cedar flavor on the palate and a ton of spice on the nose. The more subtle notes you might expect after sniffing the wrapper and foot as well as performing the traditional prelight draw are subsumed somewhere in the mix as this cigar wants to show some raw power up front. It is sort of amazing then when the thunderous roar of this cigar's opening settles down and mellows out five minutes later. There is still cedar and spice, but they have been balanced by earth, honey, and natural tobacco.

In the second third, the cedar flavor came back to an extent, but it was almost evenly mixed with earthiness. There was still some sweetness but it was not so much honey anymore. The construction of all the samples of this cigar I have smoked has been great...this one displayed a very even burn line and a fine draw.

As I got into the final third I noticed that the flavors hadn't changed much, although the body had increased a bit from medium to a more medium to full place. I also had the wrapper split wide open, which I suspect to be a result of the low humidity weather we were experiencing at the time. Since Habano wrappers typically are not all that prone to breaking like this, it made me wonder about the exact nature of this one. At any rate, this is the only time in five smokes that it did happen to me, so I won't be marking off points as a result. Many people have remarked that they like the 2011 edition of the Short Run more than the 2010; for myself, I still just don't know. I really enjoyed both, but I have to give an edge to last year's release at this point. This is probably not a great cigar for novices, but anyone smoking for longer than a couple months should be able to handle the body and strength that it has.

Body: 7/10
Strength: 6/10
Complexity: 7/10

AFP Scale
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9/10

Cigar Review: A. J. Fernandez San Lotano Oval

Robusto, 5.5" x 54 ring gauge/ $7.25, Buckhead

Today I will be reviewing the latest release from A. J. Fernandez cigars, the Oval. The cigar is comprised of a secret blend of Honduran and Nicaraguan fillers, with a Nicaraguan binder all covered with 4+ year aged Habano 2000 wrapper. It comes in 6 different sizes. According to their website: "The prestigious San Lotano Oval from AJ Fernandez presents in a highly unique oval shape. The key to an enhanced smoking experience: ultra-premium aged tobacco. The new Oval affords a truly distinguished balance like no other." I've smoked at least 10 of these prior to this review.

When I picked up this cigar I was impressed by the looks of it. The wrapper is a nice ruddy brown in color, with slight veins. It has some tooth and oils to it as well. The band is quite good looking and is very similar to the rest of the San Lotano line, except that instead of a second band declaring the blend, it is right on the main band. As the name says the cigar has an oval cross section. It almost looks as though the cigar was squished between two boards. The top and bottom are flat, while the sides are rounded. This cigar shape fits quite naturally in my hand. When I gave the cigar a squeeze I couldn't detect any soft spots with only a slight amount of give. Once I put my nose to the wrapper I got the aroma of barnyard with the same from the foot. After clipping it with my MTX and taking a cold draw on it I tasted notes of maple sweetness with a good draw.

As soon as I lit up the cigar the tastes of leather, maple, and red pepper spice, with a sweet finish blasted my tongue. After taking a few more puffs and retrohaling the smoke my nasal passages burned like I had eaten a large dab of wasabi. The flavors of cinnamon and cola started to come through as I progressed through the first third. The draw was pretty much perfect and it produced a large volume of smoke. The burn was slightly wavy, but nothing that needed correcting. The light grey ash had a stacked look to it and held on for about three quarters of a inch before needing to be tapped off. At this point I would classify it at the upper end of medium in body and strength.

Once I started into the second third of the cigar I started getting more of the maple sweetness. Other than I didn't really notice much change in the flavors. That definitely wasn't a bad thing as I was thoroughly enjoying the cigar. I also started getting a slight nicotine hit as well. The spice was still there, although not as strong as the first third. The burn had pretty much evened itself out. At the end of this third I started getting a sweet creamy finish.

The final third saw this cigar finish off strong. The flavors were of leather, earth, cinnamon, maple and cream with a sweet finish. The one thing I like about all of the San Lotanos I've smoked is the bands come off easily and in one piece. I would say that this cigar moved into the bottom end of full by the end of the cigar.

This is definitely an excellent cigar! I thoroughly enjoyed all of the Oval's I've had. It is just too bad that it is purportedly a cigar that is a limited run. I can highly recommend it to anyone out there! If you are sensitive to nicotine you might want to eat before smoking it, but since it has such great flavors I recommend you do so.

Body: 8/10
Strength: 8/10
Complexity: 6/10

AFP Scale
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4.5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9.5/10

Cigar Review: EP Carrillo Maduro

No. 4, 5.5" x 42 ring gauge/ $5.55, Burns
The E.P. Carrillo company elected to expand its core line of cigars this summer with a traditional Maduro. "What is traditional?" you might ask...well, Maduro does not mean "dark" or "powerful"...it means "ripe." It refers to the process of maturing and ripening the leaves through a hotter, longer fermentation process which results in sweeter tobacco. Only thick, supple and strong leaves are put through this kind of process because others just will not stand up to it. Traditional Maduros may be slightly darker than their natural counterparts, but will not normally be a very dark brown unless coloration has been encouraged or artificially enhanced. Traditional Maduros might be slightly stronger than some natural tobaccos, but often they just are not...most of the best Maduros I've had were decidedly medium-bodied. These E.P. Carrillo Maduros have the same kind of leaves used in their Core line for filler--Dominican and Nicaraguan--but the percentages were adjusted for this wrapper. They opted for an Ecuadorian Sumatra binder for this cigar and finished it off with a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper grown in 2008/2009. I had my first one of these less than a week before this review stick and knew I had to hit it up for review as soon as possible.

Before getting to the good stuff, there is a bit of "bad" to get through with this cigar...well, relatively bad, anyway. First, once again the regular EPC band is used with no secondary or explanatory bands. So picking this stick out at a glance in your humidor will not be easy as it does share the same basic band as the Core line, Short Run and Edicion Limitada. Yes, two of those three have secondary bands, but what if they fall off? This isn't exactly something that shouldn't be considered because these ship without cellophane and bumping around in the humidor has caused far worse than bands falling off in my experience. This being a traditional Maduro, as explained above, the wrapper is not that much darker than that of the natural Core line. Put them side by side and you will tell the difference. Look at them alone, in isolation, and you may not be so lucky...especially since I noticed a wide range of color variation in the box I pulled my samples from. Some were very light...I photographed one of the darker ones. And speaking of photographing, I was taken by just how unattractive looking this stick is when I was shooting it...uneven in color, mottled, crooked cap...very, very rustic.

But here's the thing...all that criticism won't amount to much when it comes to smoking it. Before we get there, though...the cigar was oily to the touch, though not so much to the eye. And while it looked rough, the aroma rising from the EPC Maduro was lovely...a mix of dried fruit, earth and chocolate on the wrapper, with a barnyard aroma coming from the foot. The prelight draw was very good, featuring flavors of raisin, anise and chocolate as well as just good, sweet tobacco.

Raisin and licorice made another appearance on the first few puffs of this cigar; the retrohale had roasted nuts and a little spice, but not too much. Before long the profile was more or less dominated by sweet natural tobacco, with plentiful notes of cocoa powder and coffee. This continued through the first third while the body was just a tick over medium.

In the second third, I got a little more earthiness, especially on the finish, but overall it was still sweet and chocolatey. Construction was very good for the most part; the burn line started off wavering and crooked, but evened up with a little help. The draw was nothing short of perfect.

Earthiness continued to increase during the final third, but I the EPC Maduro never lost that sweetness that should accompany all real...uh...Maduros. Simply put this is a great cigar for a great price in a year when I've already had two other great Maduros--Tatuaje's La Casita Criolla and Berger & Argenti's Entubar QUAD Maduro. I have to admit I like this the least of the three, but when I've already used the word "great" to describe it, you have to know that this is definitely one you will want to try so you can make up your own mind. The body did creep up into the medium to full range and there was a bit of a nicotine hit, but nothing experienced smokers should fine troublesome. Newer smokers may want to wait on this one a while.

Body: 7/10
Strength: 7/10
Complexity: 8/10

AFP Scale
Prelight: 1.5/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4.5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9/10

Welcome to our New Sponsor

Keith and I would like to welcome BuyMoreCigars.com as our new sponsor. BuyMoreCigars is the online arm of Maxamar Ultimate Cigars in Orange, California, Keith's "home store" and the shop I always make a point of visiting when I'm in Southern California. When you are in SoCal, drop by and say "Hi"...and let them know you heard about them on the Tiki Bar.

You'll find a link to BuyMoreCigars.com in the right column of each page of the blog.

In coming months, we plan on featuring reviews sponsored by Maxamar/BuyMoreCigars that will have tie-ins to special offers as well, so be on the look out for those. Thank you to Amar and the crew!

Cigar Extra: Angelenos

I'm on vacation...or something like it, anyway. I'm visiting some family and friends in Southern California this weekend and wanted very much to get something written about Saturday evening's herf by this morning, but...I'm on vacation! It didn't happen, so I'm substituting the post that was scheduled to run this coming Friday...and it works because it's about a cigar made to celebrate a city very close to where I'm sitting now. A recap of this weekend will be posted Friday...maybe... :)

Toro, 6" x 50 ring gauge / MSRP $9.95
Keith Park created the Angelenos to celebrate a city not where cigars are made but where they are enjoyed...Los Angeles. Of course, with ever stronger smoking bans and proponents of banning public smoking in the City of Angels, that celebration may not be long-lived, but I'll take it for what it is right now. From what I can gather, it features Dominican filler and binder with an Ecuadorian wrapper. With that makeup I expect a fairly mild smoking experience, but there is always room for surprise. I would like to thank The Doc from Stogie Fresh for sending this one my way.

The wrapper was very nice overall with an even color and an aroma of hay and sweet tobacco. The foot had a slight chocolate note with more of the hay aroma. The prelight draw was easy and did nothing to dissuade me from the notion that this would be a mild smoke...light natural tobacco and grassy notes prevailed. I took this cigar out on the front porch with one of my all-time favorite cigar accompanying beverages...unsweetened iced tea...on a summer afternoon that had started off very hot before the clouds rolled in and cooled things down to the low to mid 80s. How long until the rain starts?

Upon lighting, I got a strongly grassy flavor with a minimal amount of sweetness that you might normally anticipate in a mild Shade wrapper. Through the first two third I have to honestly say that the Angelenos was pretty much exactly what it appeared to be--a mild bodied cigar that would be great for the occasional or newer smoker. It had great construction and a consistent flavor that had no "off" aspects, but it did not particularly impress me as full flavored, either. Good, but not great. By the end, I had not changed that assessment at all. While this cigar had great construction and good flavor, the $10 price tag it carries really demands more than that, especially for the experienced cigar enthusiast and especially in this day when so many other milder smokes bring such rich flavor experiences.

September Week 3 Winner!

Thanks to all who are participating in this month's weekly 5-pack giveaway. The winner for week 3 is...

Dyieldin

Congratulations! The 5-pack for this week consists of...CAO America, Man O War Virtue, The Brick by Toraño, Guillermo Leon Signature, and Perdomo Habano Corojo. Enjoy!

There is one more week left and one more 5-pack to give away. Full details on how to enter can be found HERE.

Cigar Extra: Nub San Andres

4" x 64 ring gauge / part of Studio Tobac event-only sampler
My curiosity takes me south of the border once again to see how a Mexican San Andres Maduro wrapper tastes when applied to a Nub blend in a cigar available only in the special six-pack sampler when you buy a box at this year's Stud Tobac tour. This cigar was a dark chocolate hue and very even in coloration. It had a tooth look but not a rough feel. It had a sweet earthy aroma on the wrapper and a chocolatey note on the foot.

One thing I don't expect with a Nub is a tight draw...it's just hard to accomplish that with large ring gauge sticks! They did so with this one, though...not letting a full inch get in the way of making it nearly too tight to smoke. Nearly. While the prelight draw had that normal Mexican bitter earthiness, when I actually lit the cigar, most bitterness went away. Then I realized that because I'm not a big fan of Mexican wrapper, this large ring gauge stick might just be the best way to experience it for me...minimizing the wrapper's flavor!

Through the first half, I got copious amounts of earth and cocoa powder flavors along with just enough Maduro sweetness and Mexican bitterness to make me remember what I was smoking. The biggest complaint I had was that of the draw, which was still tighter than it should have been...and it reminded me of the Nub Perfecto I also got in the sampler which was so tight it was literally unsmokable...I ended up tossing it after about five minutes. This was better than that, but still not great. Draw aside, though. I enjoyed this San Andres wrapped cigar more than most of the ones that have been hitting the market during the current fad...there was enough "other" flavor to balance the elements of Mexican leaf that I do not favor.

Cigar Review: Viaje Summerfest

Toro, 6" x 50 ring gauge / $9.95, Burns
Another summer exits the building today...or at least it will on the day you read this...as usual, I'm working on this review well in advance, so the full mid-90 temps of summer are upon me when I write and smoke. Before us today we have another of the Viaje limited editions, one of many, many that were released this year...which I guess makes them not quite so limited, except in the fact that each different release was limited to a relatively small batch. I'm on the record as saying that in most cases "the smaller the batch the better" as many of the recent LEs released by Viaje have failed to make me want more, especially at the asking prices. But I digress...last year, a Summerfest brush foot torpedo was the first Viaje I ever smoked. I liked it but can't say it blew me away. The brush was loose and unsmokable on last year's cigar, but this year they have said it is actually meant to be smoked...we will see. Like most Viaje products this is a Nicaraguan Puro; according to The Cigar Feed (because Viaje doesn't post info about their LEs) the wrapper is Corojo 99 (Cafe Rosado). The review is based on my first 2011  sample of this blend.

Seems like someone last year made the mistake of calling the brush foot "gimmicky"...but the fact is, I totally agreed with him. It was not tight enough to draw through so after trying to smoke it, I had to take my scissors and lop it off...what a waste. This year looks no less gimmicky, to be honest. Perhaps the brush is bunched a little tight overall, but it still just a ridiculously long shaggy foot that tends to get nicked and pulled apart by the other cigars it touches, even those in the box it came in. Other than that, the wrapper is nice-looking and plenty oily, with medium to large veins in some places. It appeared to be well made with the standard triple-cap and tight seams. Sniffing the wrapper, I picked up a leathery aroma with a bit of barnyard; the foot gave off notes of chocolate, earth and cedar. The cold draw had just the right amount of resistance and featured flavors of cedar and natural tobacco.

Amazingly, the brush foot was actually smokeable! I got it lit quickly and easily with a single flame torch and it burned fairly evenly. So instead of gimmicky the brush actually made for a way to taste the filler and binder without the wrapper...then see what the flavor is like when the wrapper starts to burn. I got a light cedar flavor as well as plenty of natural tobacco at first, along with some mildly sweet graham cracker and just a little peppery burn. When the wrapper actually did start burning, the flavor intensified almost immediately...it was practically like night and day. There was more earthiness and the pepper increased on the retrohale; the body also deepens from medium to close to full in a period of just a minute or two.

Through the first third and into the second, construction proved excellent...the burn was even enough, the draw was exceptional, and the ash was strong, even during the filler/binder only segment. As the second third got going, I noticed that the spice had died down considerably, leaving more cedar and natural tobacco flavors than anything else, although there was some hard-to-define sweetness hanging on, too. That same profile continued throughout this third.

In the last third the Summerfest pretty much stayed the same...more woody and earthy notes and a little sweetness...plenty of natural tobacco goodness. I have to conclude that this is a very good cigar, but it does miss the mark of greatness, at least for me. While there was nothing bad about it, there was nothing showstopping, either, and that is a bit of a letdown when you pay $10 for a Limited Edition cigar. After the wrapper started burning, the body became medium to full and ever wavered from there and the was not a large nicotine hit, either, so this may be a good cigar for those wanting to step up from milder smokes. In the end, it's a good smoke to try, but not one I would go out of my way to get again.

Body: 7/10
Strength: 6/10
Complexity: 5/10

AFP Scale
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4/5
Value: .5/10
Total: 8.5/10
 

Dual Review: CAO OSA Sol

Lot 54, 6" x 54 ring gauge / MSRP $6.25
Since the time that I gave my "preview" look at CAO's first offering under General Cigar management, the company has been kind enough to send us samples for review (thank you) and the cigar has actually gone on sale nationwide, with the OSA Nation roll-out tour hitting a shop near you soon. The OSA (pronounced "Oh-Suh") is named for the location where the wrapper was sourced, Olancha San Agustin, and this particular leaf was taken from the 2008 crop. Along with this Honduran Sungrown wrapper, Rick Rodriguez and the development team used a Connecticut Broadleaf binder and a blend of tobaccos from Nicaragua and Honduras for the filler.

DAVE SAID:
The banding and packaging on the OSA Sol is creative and attractive, pretty much unlike anything else on the shelves, including older CAO cigars. The wrapper leaf was a little toothy, but had a nice oiliness under the fingers and mostly very small, delicate veins. The color was a dark tan with a minimal amount of red, which just did not strike me as particularly "sun grown" in appearance. To be fair, though, the term "sun" did not appear in the press release except as "Sol" (the Spanish translation) which is part of the name of the cigar. It just stands to reason, though, that if Sol is in the name, it just might be a sun grown wrapper. I'll have to ask specifically when the tour comes to my town. (Note: it was confirmed at the recent event that this is a Sungrown wrapper, however since the Olancha Valley has a partial tree canopy, it tends to be only partially Sungrown, which does explain a bit of why it does not have the characteristics of a typical leaf grown in this way.) Giving the cigar a good sniff, I got some leather and hay from the wrapper, as well as earth and a bit of chocolate on the foot. I used my Xikar VX in this particular review sample (I had smoked three of this vitola prior to this one) and got a very good draw that had flavors of natural tobacco and hay.

After lighting up, the first impressions I got were all wood: cedar, oak, and even some maple. A few puffs later, I got more of the natural tobacco and grassiness that came through on the prelight. The retrohale exhibited just a bit of pepper spice, and overall this started off as a medium bodied cigar with a somewhat interesting flavor profile. Through the rest of the first third, the flavor remained good. It did not really move out of the "woody" or "medium" categories, though. So far it was just good and consistent without much else to report.

In the second third the OSA Sol had more of a straight cedar flavor on the palate with some maple notes on the retrohale. The construction was as close to perfect as you could ask, featuring a very straight burn line, fantastic draw, and an ash that held on for up to three-quarters of an inch.

If there were only two-thirds to this cigar (which would require a new understanding of math), this would qualify as a good, but fairly uneventful stogie. Unfortunately, in the last third, the flavor of this Lot 54 sized OSA Sol just kind of got up and left the building. I really don't know how to describe it fully...the flavor did not suddenly turn bad, but it did get quite dull very quickly, which was unexpected. Having smoked the smaller (robusto) sized version previously (as a show sample), I felt like that had a more interesting flavor profile overall and provided a more enjoyable experience. Body and strength were totally middle of the road on this cigar, making it easily accessible to all but the newest of smokers; the price is very easy on the wallet, too. I really wanted to like this cigar...but the fact is that it just didn't do much for me, at least not in this size. With a Sungrown wrapper, I expect more spice and fuller flavor, and that just is not what I got.

Body: 5/10
Strength: 4/10
Complexity: 4/10

AFP Scale
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 3/5
Value: .5/1
Total: 7.5/10




KEITH SAID:

I’d also like to thank General Cigars for sending us these samples to review.  I smoked four of this size prior to this review.

The packaging and banding while it may be innovative and new, doesn’t really do much for me.  To me the neon lime green in both kind of cheapens the look.  The wrapper was a nice medium milk chocolate brown.  There were medium veins and a slight amount of lumpiness to it.  When I gave the cigar a squeeze I couldn’t detect any soft spots and there was a slight amount of give.  Putting my nose to the wrapper I got a slightly nutty aroma with barnyard coming from the foot.  After clipping it with my MTX and taking a cold draw on it I only got a slight sweetness with an ok draw.

Once I lit the cigar up the first taste I got was leather with a mapley sweet finish.  After a few puffs I did get some spice, especially on the retrohale.  As I progressed into the first third I did get tastes of earthiness and wood with a slight Davidoff like mustiness.  The draw was very good and the burn line was pretty straight.  The grey ash held on for about three quarters of an inch before needing to be tapped off.

The second third was more of the same for me.  The main flavors were still of leather, earth, and wood with a sweet finish.  The draw and burn continued to be great.  One thing about construction, this was the only sample out of the 5 that didn’t have any construction issues.  All of the others at least had burn issues, and one wouldn’t draw. 

The final third was a bit different that Dave’s experience.  I got a slight amount of change in the flavors.  They were now leather and cinnamon still with a sweet finish.  I also felt like the spice and strength built a bit.  It is still definitely a medium bodied and strength cigar though.

I’m like Dave, I was looking forward to giving this cigar a try.  Unfortunately it really didn’t do much for me.  There wasn’t anything bad about it at all, just nothing that grabbed me and held my attention.  I would say that you should definitely give this one a try, especially at this price point, and make your own decision about it.


Body: 6/10
Strength: 6/10
Complexity: 5/10

AFP Scale
Prelight: 1.5/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 3/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 7.5/10

Cigar Review: Room 101 Connecticut

213, 5.5" x 44 ring gauge / $6.25, Burns
Room 101 Cigars joined the wave of Connecticut wrapped cigars that debuted at this year's IPCPR trade show, and with the Namakubi unveiled at the same time, this brought the number of 101 lines up to four (the Conjura, which was originally described as a limited one-time release has now been declared to be a limited regular release...only a certain number per year). In this cigar we have Dominican and Honduran fillers, a Honduran Corojo binder and an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper. I bought two of these, deciding that my first would be with some coffee for this review, and the second would be with water for a "extra note" at the end of the review.

The wrapper of this cigar was a golden blonde wrapper that is a reminder of what great leaf can be obtained through a connection to the Davidoff people. It was evenly colored and flawless....and just an almost perfect color when so many other recent Connys have trended toward just slightly darker and even mottled in some instances. The banding is perfect 101 style with the Fu in black and silver. The aroma from the wrapper was sweet tobacco with a molasses edge, while the foot was earthy and manurey. The Prelight draw was easy and had notes of hay and a touch of honey.

On initial light, the Room 101 Conny displayed flavors of hay and natural tobacco, along with a bit of sweetness and an even smaller amount of spice. The retrohale was mostly nutty with a little more spice. Although the flavor was very good right at the outset, the body was quite mild, which I had not really expected. I was barely a quarter of inch into this cigar when I realized just how good it was with my coffee, though. Creamy texture and earthy flavors were only enhanced by the sweetened black coffee I was swilling. I also noticed the spice increasing a bit and resolving into a more black pepper flavor on the tongue.

As I cruised into the second third I noticed a couple things that were not so good. First, I got a metallic, coppery flavor that I did not care for. Second, the ash was coming off the end in flakes instead of whole chunks...a recipe for having a lapful of ash if you're not careful. These were fairly minor, though, as the cigar was still good overall, with flavors of natural tobacco combined with a little sweetness. There was also a nice burn building up on my lips and tongue.

In the final third the metallic taste faded then disappeared, leaving a more earthy flavor profile that still retained some of the creaminess and sweetness that you should get in a fine Connecticut. The ash behaved better, too, coming off in larger chunks. The body increased slightly to a mild to medium level. Overall, this is an interesting entry into the Connecticut cigar field...mostly mild, but with earthier aspects; very good flavor for the most part, but with some stranger notes at times. I have to admit it's not my favorite of the so-called New Breed of Connecticuts, but it is very good so I will certainly give it a try in other sizes when the opportunity arises. And now it's time to give it a try with just water, so as not to contaminate (or enhance) the flavor experience...

ON FURTHER REVIEW...
The second 101 Conny I selected had a good cold draw and I again got creamy hay and honey notes, along with just a touch of spiciness. I took a swig of soda water (possibly the best palate cleanser in the world) and lit up my stogie. On the palate I got grassy, hay-like flavors along with just a touch of caramel sweetness; the retrohale was smooth and nutty with just a little pepper spice. Without the influence of the coffee, I picked up on the metallic flavor much earlier...about halfway through the first third, in fact.

The coppery notes went away in the middle of the second third, leaving a nicer overall flavor of earth, coffee and hay, but I have to admit that this Connecticut just did not blow me away like some of the other recent ones have. It tends to be on the milder side for the most part with a flavor profile that just did not make me long for more. As noted at the end of the first part of this review, though, I will try one or two different sizes and see if they work better for this blend. Maybe it's just a case of this vitola not being the best showcase.

Body: 4/10
Strength: 4/10
Complexity: 6/10

AFP Scale
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 1.5/2
Flavor: 3.5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 8/10

Collected Thoughts while Smoking a Four Kicks

I originally intended to write a different article for today, but when the time came, it became clear it just was not going to work out how I intended. I started to think about how busy everything has been the last few weeks...and how busy the next few weeks promises to be...and I decided to write about that instead...essentially mulling over where I’ve been and where I’m going while talking about the cigar I’m smoking at the time. We’ll start with the story behind that cigar.

Last weekend, my wife and I took a trip to Nashville. We had tickets to see John Hiatt perform at the Ryman Auditorium, but I also was invited to drop by Crowned Heads’ offices on Friday afternoon...so I did. Jon Huber very graciously showed me around once again. When I toured the offices earlier this year, they had just moved in. At the time, they were working off folding tables and everything was still very “un-adorned” for lack of a better word. The folding tables are still there, but the walls have been decorated with enormous photographic prints on metal...Johnny Cash, Roger McGuinn and others looking down on you as you stroll through the front hallway and up to the bar...a functioning relic of a past business that gets used frequently for bouts with “marketing juice.” We sat down in the conference room, home of the famous national map with the flags planted in the shops where their first release will be carried, and then he broke out the official Crowned Heads humidor, purchased recently at UPtown’s Smoke Shop...”What size do you like?” I picked out a Corona Gorda, which eventually was followed up with a Robusto before I left. We talked about the map (Four Kicks will be initially released to about 100 locations before the end of the year, expanding next year), the philosophy for the Four Kick cigar (medium-body, but a full flavor), and about the process of selecting the final blend (someone tasted “pineapple syrup”...really?). When I left Jon gave me another complete set of Four Kicks (all four sizes), so I could give him some feedback on them. These sticks were all rolled about two weeks previous (three weeks now) and the batch that is now being rolled won’t be on sale until mid-November. The Robusto was the best of the batch so far...dead-on flavor-wise with no qualifiers or compromises. The Corona Gorda and Pyramide (Belicoso/Torpedo) were both very good and showed signs of greatness...perhaps just needing that extra couple months of resting and marrying time before the release date to achieve greatness. You might ask “Will two months really change it all that much?” Having smoked other pre-release cigars from the same batch a couple months apart, I can unequivocally say...Absolutely.

I’ll walk you through the final size from the batch a little as I talk about a few other items. Please note: this is not an official review. I will not give a “point” rating or make a final judgement on it since it’s still technically not a released cigar. Call it a “preview of coming attractions.”

Today I’m lighting up a Sublime, which is basically a Toro at 6” x 54 ring gauge. The wrapper is medium brown and very oily...a treat for the eyes, the fingers, and the nose. Lifting it to my nose, I got a scent of molasses and sweet hay. The foot was more subtle in aroma, but mostly earthy. The construction and weight of this cigar were just about perfect in every aspect, speaking to the hard work put in at Ernesto Perez-Carrillo’s factory in the Dominican Republic. When lit, the Four Kicks gave up a creamy smoke with cedary flavors on the tongue at the outset. Before long, woody notes gave way to natural tobacco and a remarkable sweetness...I wouldn’t call it “pineapple syrup” but it was almost molassesy and not at all like gun-metal. By the time the first third was halfway over, the flavor had settled down a bit, reminding me of the pre-final version a bit with its remarkable smoothness and creaminess, as well as its abundant flavor.

Saturday, September 10, my wife and I visited Downtown Nashville’s Antique Archeology location. If you haven’t heard of it, you probably haven’t watched the show American Pickers on History. This is the expansion of their original shop and quite a few items from the show are actually on display in the shop. I got to hang out a bit at UPtown’s Smoke Shop that afternoon, then Saturday night it was off to the world-famous Ryman Auditorium, former home of the Grand Ole Opry. I have been a fan of John Hiatt for about 17 or 18 years, but have had no opportunity to actually see him perform before now. Lucky me, I got to see him and The Combo play at what could be the best concert venue in the world. We were in the back row of the balcony, but even that is close enough in this venue to afford great viewing and the acoustics in the auditorium are fantastic. Hiatt’s band was stellar, playing great renditions of everything from the old (“Slow Turning,” “Riding With the King,” and “Paper Thin”) to the new (“Damn This Town,” “Down Around My Place,” and “Adios to California”) and even the obscure album track (“Dust Down a Country Road”). If I have one complaint...and it’s a thin one...it’s that they did not play anything from the last 10 years or so, except for songs from the new album. Nothing from last year’s The Open Road, nothing from Master of Disaster or Crossing Muddy Waters...and most disappointing for me, no “The Tiki Bar is Open.” I know, maybe a petty thing to complain about when every song they played was a great one anyway.

As the second third of my Four Kicks Sublime burned, I noticed the woody flavors picking up again. With its Nicaraguan filler, it’s no surprise that there is a bit of pepper spice, too, especially through the nose. The cigar continued to be well-balanced and extremely flavorful, with almost perfect construction attributes: a wonderful draw, very even burn line with an extremely thin carbon ring, and a strong, solid ash. Toward the end of the second third, the flavors started to get more earthy.

Last Thursday night, the new management of CAO Cigars kicked off their “OSA Nation” tour in the old home of CAO--Nashville. The crowd at UPtowns responded well from what I’ve been told. Friday night they brought the traveling show to my neck of the woods--Chattanooga and Burns Tobacconist. They hosted an open bar and a buffet including BBQ meatballs, chicken fingers and prime rib, while Ricky Rodriguez talked with everyone about the creation of the newest CAO blend. Ricky talked about how the OSA Sol features a wrapper he discovered three years ago while he was with Team La Gloria and how it just did not work well within the flavor family of La Gloria Cubana, but he was genuinely thrilled to be able to use it for this new cigar. We chatted about his time in the cigar industry and how he has been the beneficiary of an education in blending by none other than Benji Menendez. I have to say that I was impressed by his passion and commitment to keeping the past CAO blends intact while trying to move the brand forward without being lost in the numerous brands that make up General Cigars. I wish him all the luck in the world...and our review of the OSA Sol should be posted later this week.

The final third of the Four Kicks continued to be earthy with touches of sweetness. Truly a unique smoke from the hands of Ernesto Perez-Carrillo and one that should actually be even better when it shows up on store shelves in a couple months...and continue to improve over months and possibly years of aging. Something for everyone to look forward to.

So that’s where I’ve been, but the next month promises to be busy and entertaining, too. I leave this Saturday for a long weekend in California. It’s officially “work-related,” but I’ve managed to secure plenty of time to hang out with the “Original Tiki Bar” herfing group for our annual gathering, which I’ve taken to calling the “Tiki Bar Reunion Herf.” The group has actually gotten a bit bigger since last year’s gathering...I can’t say how much I’m looking forward to this. And Friday night I received another invitation to travel a bit. I will hold off on talking about that until I get the details finalized and I am 100 percent sure I am going, but let’s just say October could be an educational month.

Cigar Preview: Xikar HC Salomon

Regular readers might notice the missing "info" line before the first paragraph of this post. Simply put, there was no info to give...it's a Salomon made by Xikar in their HC line, specifically the Habano Colorado blend. I don't know the size or how much it will cost, so I skipped that step. This cigar was gifted to me by Xikar's Vice President of Marketing, Jerry Dear, a few weeks ago when he stopped by Burns with the local area rep. Jerry and I talked a bit about social media and blogs in general, then he gave me this stogie which he says smokes quite a bit different than the previous vitolas in this blend. They are slated to hit the market in November.

The look is not unlike others in this line...dry to the eye, but oily to the touch...it is simply a well-made Salomon with great proportions and the secondary band on the fat part of the cigar instead of the very foot since it would just fall off there. I got an aroma of earth and leather from the wrapper and not much aroma at all from the tiny tip.I lopped the end off with my Xikar Xi cutter (naturally) and got a very good draw that had plenty of earth and cocoa powder flavor...and some subtle sweetness that I almost missed at first...raisin or dried berries, maybe.

I lit up the tip with my Xikar Executive (notice a trend?) and immediately got those sweet fruity notes in the smoke that resulted. Subsequent puffs revealed an underlying earthiness and chocolate to round out the flavor profile. So far, I was enjoying this much more than the last time I smoked this blend. Through the first third the flavor profile was rich and complex, displaying notes of leather and earth, berries and chocolate.

In the second third I got some very nice licorice/anise flavor that complemented the other flavors very well. I got well into the last third before I noticed that I was getting my butt fairly kicked by the nicotine content...the result of smoking this large cigar for close to two hours immediately after finishing off my first cigar of the day...probably not a good idea in hindsight. Anyway, what I took away from this experience is that this cigar tasted much better to me than any of the HC Habano Colorado blends I have had before. It could be my own palate, it could be the specific reblending that took place for this vitola...I don't know. I do know that I will be picking up some more of these when they hit the shelves later this year.

Week Two's Winner....

After a week of entries, we have our second winner for our September Contest and it is...

Corey, also known as @czerbe on Twitter

Get me your addy and I'll get 5-Pack #1 out to you early next week. 5-Pack #2 consists of a Cain Daytona, CAO Sopranos, Graycliff Professionale, Nestor Miranda Art Deco, and a Camacho Liberty 2009.

Either DM me your address on Twitter or contact the blond and send it through that email.

For those that did not win...keep trying...we have 2 more 5-packs to give away! And the game starts...Now!

Note...if you are just now hearing about this contest, check out THIS PAGE for details on how to enter.

Cigar Review: Pedro Martin Cigars Ruby, Lancero

Lancero, 7.25" x 38 ring gauge / $6.30, Burns
What I am doing today is unusual. Normally when a cigar is introduced, as the Pedro Martin lines were a couple months ago, I give them a fair review and let it go...move on to other things. After all, it's not like there aren't tons of new smokes hitting the market these days...lots of new stuff that is practically begging for press time...my palate longing to try almost every new item that comes to my attention. And a different size of something already given the full review treatment would just show up as a "Cigar Extra"...but this is different. The Martin Family of Cigars is bucking tradition, which is that you bring out a line or two and leave them alone for six to eight months before adding anything. Instead, they introduced three lines all at once, then added the Lancero line extension to all three less than two months later (and they are adding two additional new lines soon, too). Since the Ruby was my favorite blend of the three initial cigars and the Lancero is my favorite size, I decided to publish another full review of this size. This is the third of this blend and size that I've fired up, all of which I bought myself...yes, I do like these a lot.

The Ruby is a Nicaraguan Puro with a Corojo wrapper. The band of the Lancero is a bit higher than I am used to seeing, and close to close enough to the head to get in your mouth when smoking, but that really depends on how each individual smokes. The wrapper was oily to the touch and to the eye. The wrapper had wood and tobacco aromas along with a touch of sweetness; the foot was sweet and chocolatey. The cold draw was good on every one of the Ruby Lanceros I've smoked so far...this one had flavors of cedar and sweet tobacco and it left a spicy tingle on my lips.

On first light, the Ruby gave up cedar and dried fruit flavors on the palate along with a significant amount of spice through the nose. Soon I noticed sweet bready graham cracker notes as well. The nicest thing about this blend in this vitola is how the flavors come through sharply and distinctly. Semi-sweet flavors led the charge through the first third, backed up by plenty of cedar and spice notes.

Cruising into the second third, I as really enjoying this cigar and the construction was as near perfect as you could ask for: very even burn line, perfect draw and solid ash that fell off in chunks, even if it didn't hang on for more than half an inch at a time (not unusual for a thin cigar such as this). The overriding flavor at this point was a sweet tobacco; a peppery burn built up on my tip of my tongue, too.

The flavor of sweet premium tobacco continued through the final third, with notes of wood, earth, chili pepper and leather coming through from time to time as well. I've said it before, Ruby is my favorite blend from Pedro Martin...and this vitola is easily my favorite to enjoy it in. While the robusto is very good, this is just fantastic and...dare I say it?...this could be a contender for cigar of the year. It is that good! Now someone recently accused me of having "so many" cigar of the year possibilities, but I'll tell you right now, there are really probably only about five or six in serious contention, all but one of which has come out in the last two months or so, though, so I can see why it seems like I have a lot to choose from all of a sudden. The other thing this points out is that there have been a lot of really great cigars that have come out of this year's IPCPR show. What will December's final analysis bring? Hard to say at this time...I am still undecided at this point, but there will be only one.

Body: 7/10
Strength: 6/10
Complexity: 7/10

AFP Scale
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 10/10

Cigar Review: Casa Fernandez Miami Reserva

Toro 6" x 54 ring gauge / $9, approx.

I have seen a couple people posting that they were smoking this cigar on Twitter but I forgot about it until I walked into my regular cigar shop this weekend and saw that they had gotten them in. I decided to give this cigar a try and review it this week. You can read Dave's preview of it here. According to the Casa Fernandez website this cigar is comprised of "Medio Tempo Maduro, Ligero, and Viso, from specific Aganorsa Leaf farms in Jalapa Valley, Condega Valley, and Esteli in Nicaragua". So as you can see it is a Nicaraguan puro. The Reserva only comes in the toro size but the regular Miami comes in a robusto, toro, and torpedo. They are all packed in 15 count boxes. The cigar I smoked for review was the second one I've smoked.

The first thing that I noticed was the bands on this cigar. While they are fairly large I think they are very nice looking, with the top band almost having an Art Deco look to it. The wrapper was a milk chocolate brown with some veins and a good amount of oil to it. The cigar felt heavy in my hand. Normally that means a tight draw but I'll just have to wait and see. Giving the cigar a squeeze I'm not able to detect any soft spots and the cigar is fairly firm to the touch. Putting the cigar to my nose I get a sweet leather from the wrapper with cedar coming from the foot. After clipping and taking a cold draw on it I get the taste of sweet cinnamon with a good draw.

As soon as I light this cigar up I get a very intense blast of spice on the tongue and retrohale. After taking a few puffs and retrohaling the smoke I notice that my nasal passages are still tingling long after the smoke is gone. Once I got a short way into it the flavors of leather and earth with a creamy finish started to come through. The draw was absolutely perfect and it produced a large volume of smoke. The whitish ash held on for about three quarters of a inch before needing to be tapped off. Towards the end of the first third I started getting a slight herbal note with some cinnamon thrown in.

The second third saw the spice start to tone down a bit, but by no means did it go away. I also started getting a slight nicotine hit, much earlier than I usually get in a cigar. The flavors can best be described as cinnamon roll with leather and earth thrown in. I know that sounds kind of odd but it worked together and I was really enjoying this cigar. The draw continued to be perfect and the burn was slightly wavy. The wavy burn was probably due to the slight breeze that was going on while I was smoking this cigar.

The final third saw this cigar finish off strong. The flavors settled leather, earth and a slight saltiness, with a sweet finish. The strength of this cigar built until it was definitely full bodied. The construction continued to be almost perfect as I finished off this cigar.

Overall this was an awesome cigar. I will definitely be picking up more, and probably a box. I highly recommend that you try this cigar, however I will warn you that it is very strong. So if you are sensitive to that don't blame me if it throws you for a loop.

Body: 8/10
Strength: 9/10
Complexity: 7/10

AFP Scale
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 10/10

Cigar Review: La Caridad del Cobre Javelin

7.35" x 38 ring gauge / approx. $7

A Lancero that is also a Perfecto/Double Torpedo? Interesting idea. So thank you to Frank Herrera of La Caridad del Cobre for coming up with it. Since I am not a walking encyclopedia of cigar arcana, I cannot say for sure that this has not been done before, but I will say that this is the first time I have seen it. From what I can gather from thecigarfeed.com and thesmokingstogie.com, this cigar was a tribute to Frank's father who was a javelin thrower on the Cuban National team. This is a free-rolled cigar, meaning to molds were not used in its making. (Note: after starting this review I was contacted by Frank who tells me that this was a pre-production sample and that the actual production run will use molds.) From the LCDC website, we learn that this has Dominican and Nicaraguan filler, a Criollo 98 binder and is available in either Pennsylvania Broadleaf or Ecuadorian Natural wrappers. Frank sent along several of the PA Broadleaf Maduros to the Tweetup last month and that is where this came from. I did smoke one prior to this review cigar.

So, how does a free-rolled cigar look? Imperfect is the best description, but the question is whether points get deducted for such an issue? I have to learn toward the "no" answer simply because imperfections are part of the charm with a cigar like this. While I would expect nothing short of immaculate for a $15 Davidoff, you have to realize that "immaculate" is their goal, too. When the goal is to showcase the cigar's handmade status, you have to judge based on that criteria. Lumpy spots in several places do put an exclamation point on the matter of "handmade" very nicely, but without giving the impression that it was shoddily made, and that is an important distinction. The broadleaf wrapper is a dark medium-brown in color, with plenty of darker mottling and nothing more than medium-sized veins. Holding the Javelin to my nose, I got earthy notes of manure as well as a sweeter chocolate aroma. With the pointed foot, there was no different aroma there. I cut both end...because there is no Prelight draw at all unless you do...and got a flavor that was not unlike chocolate chocolate chip cookies...yes, that might sound silly, but I swear that's the first thing that popped into my mind with the notes of bread, sweet chocolate, and bitter cocoa powder.

Once lit, the Javelin did not have quite the same flavor profile, but that does not mean it was bad by any means. Initial puffs brought out flavors of coffee, cocoa powder and earth, while there was still a sweet breadiness underneath. I got more bread and some pepper spice on the retrohale. Before the first third was through, earthier notes were taking the lead, with underlying sweetness and spiciness. I was warned by Frank that some of these pre-release models could have draw issues, but so far it had not been a problem for me--I had a very good draw with a perfectly straight burn line and ash that held on for an inch or more, which is longer than many lanceros can accomplish.

The Javelin proved to be a slow-burning Lancero, perfect for when you have a long time to hang out somewhere, as I did on my front porch this Saturday early afternoon. I have to admit that sometimes the draw was not perfect, but it seemed to be more of a function of which side was "up" when I drew on it, and that goes along with the warning I  received about how the handmade sticks might have some issues. Find the right angle, though, and there was no problem. Flavors in the second third were mostly a continuation of what I found in the late first third: earth with underlying spice and sweetness. There were some subtle coffee and cola notes from time to time, too, though, making for an interesting mix.

The last third had more coffee flavor coming as the other notes faded just a bit. I also detected some sweet dried fruit flavor at times, perhaps raisin is the best way to describe it. I got to find out inadvertently that the Javelin relights just fine if you allow it to go out...not something I normally try to test, but good to know. Construction was excellent as the end neared...the burn line was practically razor straight and the draw was better than ever before. I liked this cigar...a lot! This blend was medium to full in body with a slight nicotine hit as I got near the end, making it inadvisable to brand new smokers, but a good choice for pretty much anyone else. My final assessment is that Frank Herrera definitely has a winner in the Javelin and I look forward to getting my hands on actual production cigars sometime in the near future.

Body: 7/10
Strength: 7/10
Complexity: 7/10

AFP Scale
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4.5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9.5/10

Cigar Extra: Hammer & Sickle Moscow City

Toro, 6" x 54 ring gauge / approx. $10
I have no idea what Hammer & Sickle Vodka is like...a great vodka is colorless, odorless, and flavorless...so I just don't see much point unless you're only trying to get drunk. I'll stick with whiskey in all its varieties...Scotch, bourbon, Tennessee whiskey, rye...it actually is supposed to have flavor without needing to be a mixer. The company that makes the vodka has cigars, too, though...and I never turn down the chance to try something new. This Moscow City has Dominican filler and binder with a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper and apparently only 1,000 boxes were made. This sample was sent to me by Jeff Mouttet of Riverside Cigars (@jcigarmouttet and @riversidecigars on Twitter).

The stick had a rustic appearance with fairly sizable veins and a very dark color. The leaf was oily and rich looking land the band was cool, too...if you like celebrations of the Soviet Union...which I don't...but I'll leave politics out of this. The aroma from the wrapper was leathery and the foot had a more vegetal tobacco smell. The cold draw was easy and tasted like chocolate and natural tobacco. To counteract any lingering Communist influence, I paired the cigar with some Collier & McKeel Tennessee Whiskey...made in the good ol' US of A (Nashville, to be precise).

Near the beginning, the Moscow City had vegetal and grassy flavors on the palate with cocoa on the finish; the retrohale was spicy. So far it seemed to be a straight ahead medium bodied smoke and the grainy whiskey went well with it. Before long the flavored settled down to that of a fairly typical Maduro, with chocolate leading the way, coffee coming up not far behind, and an earthy base. The big difference here was the level of spice which didn't die off quickly at all and I found it to be a rather nice touch.

All pinko, leftist, commie comments aside, I found the Moscow City to be a very nice way to pass the evening. It featured the best in what you look for in a Maduro with a nice pepper spice that didn't stop all the way to the end and it went very well with my decidedly American whiskey.

Stogie 411 Interview

I'm gotten somewhat accustomed to asking the questions over the past year or so since I did my first "real" interview on the Tiki Bar, but last week, I had the tables turned on me as other folks asked me the questions.

Thank you very much to Mike and Matt for hosting the Stogie 411 show last week and for asking me to be their guest. There were a couple questions that I had longer, more involved answers to (yeah, I know...you're thinking "Longer than the answers he already gave?") so there may be some follow-up in the weeks and months to come here on the blog in the form of opinion pieces.

Make sure you tune back in to Stogie 411...you can find them at www.stogie411.com.

Cigar Preview: a couple new things from Gurkha

For this installment of IPCPR cigar sample previews, I turn my attention to a couple new sticks from Gurkha... (again, thank you to Matt from Burns Tobacconist for providing these samples)

SEDUCTION
I just read on The Cigar Feed that he was told this cigar was released last year, but it was more or less featured at the show booth this year. I can't say whether or not that is true, but I will leave it at this: I had not heard of it until this year's show coverage, had never seen it advertised in a catalog (seemingly the most prevalent way Gurkha products are distributed), and there is no reference to it on the company website. It does have the typical Gurkha over-the-top band, unlike the Viper and Ninja that were, in fact, released in 2010. I could not find any reliable information on blend or price, so...all I can do it smoke it and tell you what I think.

The Prelight draw was easy, but nearly flavorless...there was maybe a hint of sweet, natural tobacco, but nothing else. After lighting, I got notes of graham cracker and natural tobacco, with a retrohale that was smooth and nutty. After so many spicy powerhouse cigars lately, this was quite a departure: smooth and refined, very easy to smoke. In just a few puffs I felt I could sum it up...nothing bad to put you off, nothing great to make you want to return frequently, an easy cigar for a beginning to pick up and never worry about being overwhelmed in any way. Would this hold true for all of the 6.5 inches or so of the stick? Hey, I don't rate based on just the first inch!

But at halfway through I was pretty well ready to call it...the Seduction is a mild to medium bodied cigar with uncommonly smooth smoking characteristics, but little in the way of flavor that would interest hard-core cigar enthusiasts. If it turns out to be a reasonably priced cigar it would be good for beginners, though, as there is little if anything there to offend.

CELLAR RESERVE
Here we have another slice of inscrutability from the folks at Gurkha. The band states that this is a "Nicaraguan Puro" and the last I heard that should mean all the tobacco comes from Nicaragua...except that two other blogs are reporting that it has a Dominican Olor binder, which would seem to negate the Puro status. There is no mention of this cigar on Gurkha's own website, which really is not a big surprise. It is purported to be made with tobaccos aged 15 years and is being sold in boxes that are supposed to invoke wine bottles in crates.

The sample I got is a mild Salomon that is almost identical in every way to the Tatuaje Anarchy. They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but I'm more used to seeing Viaje aping Tatuaje sticks, so this is a little disturbing...for Pete's sake (yes, I do mean Pete Johnson), this even has the same Cinnabon pigtail on the cap. With that said, it is a great looking, very oily cigar. As with the Tat Anarchy, I used my Xikar Xi to lop off the cinnamon roll, and as with the Tat Anarchy (and most Salamones to be honest) I got a lousy prelight draw. The flavors were good, though--a mix of leather, earth and natural tobacco.

The Cellar Reserve lit easily, but had a seriously bad draw at first. I got little flavor, but what I got was not good...pungent earthiness mostly. That passed pretty quickly, though, as the earthiness became more pleasant and was joined by notes of wood and leather with a spicy retrohale. So far, this was far better than I had expected.

Through the first third the Cellar Reserve continued to surprise by serving up a nice blend of earth, chocolate and spice flavors, but the construction was not as good as I would hope...the ash was flaky and made a bit of a mess and I had to work hard to try to keep a fairly consistent burn line as it kept wanting to canoe on me.

As I took off the band, I read the type more clearly, and realized that misuse of the word Puro was just the start. From the wording at the bottom of the band, it appears this was not written by native English speakers: "Truly balanced to please the aficionado who is searching for a draw of perfection, aged oak aroma will sooth the environment and gain praise. Fifteen years of aged tobacco and dedication, has given us another masterpiece. To which only the Elite Blend Masters of K. Hansotia & Co. can create." Great use of the engrish.com website, folks!

The flavor stayed consistent and good through the rest of the cigar, but the fact that it was consistent points out its biggest flawless: lack of complexity. While it was good, it was never great, and lack of flavor change up led to some boredom with the cigar. In the final analysis...better than expected, but not as good as it could be.

This Week's Winner....

After a week of entries, we have our first winner for our September Contest and it is...

Paul, also known as @auximage on Twitter

Get me your addy and I'll get 5-Pack #1 out to you early next week. 5-Pack #1 consists of a Cohiba Puro Dominicano, CAO Sopranos Edition, Berger & Argenti Entubar, Graycliff 1666, and Punch Upper Cut.

For those that did not win...keep trying...we have 3 more 5-packs to give away! And the game starts...Now!

Note...if you are just now hearing about this contest, check out THIS PAGE for details on how to enter.

Cigar Review: Partagas Cifuentes Noviembre

Lonsdale, 6.5" x 45 ring gauge / $7.35, Burns
I found this potential gem hiding in the Burns humidor a few weeks ago...thanks to @CraZcane for pointing them out to me. I couldn't find any super-reliable information about these cigars online, mostly because they are pretty old, but they are at least five and a half years old as the earliest mention I could find for them was December 2005, but no matter what, this is evidence that the "seasonal blend" did not start with Rocky Patel or Viaje. This Partagas Cifuentes Noviembre perhaps slipped under the radar...although maybe a lot of people knew about it when it actually came out. I have to admit to not being nearly the cigar fiend at the end of 2005 that I am today. From what I can tell, the filler and binder of this cigar are Nicaraguan, while the wrapper is a Honduran Medio Tiempo.

This was not the most attractive cigar in the world. The yellowed cellophane hid a gnarly, dark mottled wrapper leaf that was nonetheless oily with a nice leathery aroma. The cigar was neatly box pressed with softly rounded corners and no noticeable soft or hard spots in evidence, although several patches were visible on close inspection. On the foot, I got an aroma of old humidor...cedar and tobacco mixed in with some cocoa powder and leather. I have been known to give General Cigar grief, but this cigar really just looks and smells what a cigar should look and smell like. The cold draw was easy and tasted like mild natural tobacco with just a bit of earth and spice.


Light up went pretty easily...single flame torch on a breezy day, but still lit evenly. Initial flavors were tea and leather...which is odd because it was just today that I read another blogger complaining about some bloggers going on about notes of tea and leather...but seriously, that is what I got from this, especially the tea. The retrohale also had a strong tea note, with just a little pepper spice at the end. That same basic flavor continued through the first third without much change.

More earthiness came through on the palate during the second third, but tea was still very strong. The spice from earlier was all but absent, but the cigar continued to be a very nice medium bodied smoke. The construction proved very good with an easy draw so far and a burn line that needed only very minor touch ups.

As the final third started, I got more spice again...more of a chili pepper quality to it this time, though. The overall flavor continued to drift toward earthiness as well, with the tea notes taking a more supporting role. In the end, this was quite a good cigar, but it never ventured into "great" territory, making me wonder if the best days of this blend have disappeared with too much aging. It is the truth that some smokes get better with age, but some do not, and all will eventually hit a peak and start to slide downhill. If you can find these, I would call them a great summer afternoon smoke and one that would pair especially well with some iced tea...sweet or unsweetened, take your pick. It did not have enough body or strength to overwhelm even newer smokers.

Body: 5/10
Strength: 4/10
Complexity: 6/10

AFP Scale
Prelight: 1.5/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 3.5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 8/10

Cigar Review: Hammer & Sickle Berlin Wall

Robusto, 5" x 50 ring gauge / $7.99, Maxamar's

Today I'll be reviewing the latest release from Hammer and Sickle, the Berlin Wall. First off if you've never seen the packaging from them it is probably more ornate than the stuff coming out of Gurkha. This cigar comes packed in a white marble box and the band is supposedly actually made from copper. The cigar is made in Honduras from Honduran, Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers, a Honduran binder, and a Honduran Criollo wrapper. If comes in three sizes, a 7"x52 Churchill, a 6"x50 toro and the subject of this review a 5"x50 robusto. This was the first one I smoked.

The first thing that that you notice about this cigar is the band. The copper really stands out. Although from far away it is difficult to read since the words "Hammer + Sickle Berliner Mauer 1961-1989" are pressed into the surface. The wrapper is a rusty brown in color and has a slight lumpiness to it. There are some veins but very little oil to it. Giving the cigar a squeeze I got a slight amount of give and one soft spot below the band. The wrapper of the cigar gave off the faint aroma of barnyard, while from the foot I was able to detect the aroma of leather. After clipping it with my MTX and taking a cold draw on it I tasted cocoa powder with a good draw.

Lighting up the cigar brought about the flavors of chocolate and leather with a some spice on the retrohale and tongue. The draw was good and I got a good amount of smoke out of the cigar. A little bit into the cigar I started tasting earth and wood as well with a slight sweetness on the finish. The burn was slightly off and needed a little correction, but that could have been due to my bad light. The whiteish ash held on for about three quarters of an inch before needing to be tapped off. It would classify this cigar in the medium body and strength range.

As I moved into the second third the flavors changed slightly into leather, earth, wood, and cinnamon with the sweetness on the finish still there. The draw continued to be good although the burn did need one more touch up.

Moving into the final third of the cigar the spice starting building to a point where it was stronger than the first third. The flavors settled into leather and wood. By this point the burn had straightened itself out as well. The metal band required some care in removing because it needed to be bent off without tearing the wrapper. Towards the end of the cigar the chocolate flavor started to come back with a slight note of butter cream frosting.

Overall this was a very enjoyable cigar. I think it would go great with a cup of coffee in the morning and would like to give that a try some time. I think that most smokers could enjoy it because it probably isn't too strong for the mild smokers, and is interesting enough for the strong smokers. The reasonable price helps out as well.

Body: 7/10
Strength: 7/10
Complexity: 7/10

AFP Scale
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 1.5/2
Flavor: 4/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 8.5/10

Cigar Review: Toraño Loyal

Robusto, 5" x 56 ring gauge / approx. $5
Starting in 2010, Toraño has worked to revamp and renew their cigar line, the latest example of which is the Loyal, another value-priced cigar that is said to promise full flavor for the discriminating cigar enthusiast. It features Nicaraguan and Dominican filler, a Nicaraguan binder, and an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper. Toraño was very generous in their support of the 2011 Chattanooga Tweet Up and I was able to get a couple cigars from what they sent. I smoked one during the Tweet Up and saved one until afterward when I could smoke it on a clean palate.

The initial appearance stands out more from the crowd than last year's Master and Single Region band designs, which were extreme exercises in minimalism. The Loyal's silver, black and burgundy is classy with retro-looking type-styles. The wrapper leaf was a light to medium brown with mostly light and some medium veins, a little bit of tooth, and a mild box press. I got notes of leather and freshly spread manure on the wrapper, more earth with hints of chocolate on the foot. I used my go-to Xikar Xi cutter to out a clean, even cut on the head and got a nice open draw that had a light flavor of earth and leather. I must note that I did not see this referred to as a box press anywhere else, so the mildly boxy shape on mine may have been a result of handling either before or after I got it and not the normal state you will find them in.

On lighting, I got graham cracker and a little earthiness on the palate, along with a good punch of wasabi spiciness on the retrohale. After a few minutes went by the earthiness became more prevalent on the palate and I started getting notes of rich, sweet tobacco as well. The spice on the nasal passages died down a bit, allowing a roasted nuttiness to come through.

Construction was proving to be fantastic so far...through almost a full half of the cigar I had not ashed and it seemed to be holding on strong. The burn line was straight enough to not worry about as well. In the second third the earthier flavors continued to take the lead role with a nice sweetness backing them up. I got notes of black coffee and a bit of baker's cocoa and a continued nuttiness on the nose.

The last third had more graham cracker notes on the palate with an increase in spice on both the tongue and the nasal passages. In the end, I really enjoyed the Loyal; in fact, it is probably my favorite Toraño cigar since the Exodus 1959, surpassing last year's Single Region Jalapa in that regard. It combines a medium body with very good flavor and a price tag that is very accessible, making it an easy recommendation for new or experienced smokers.

Body: 6/10
Strength: 5/10
Complexity: 6/10

AFP Scale
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9/10