A Rodrigo Lancero, a Leccia Luchador and a Surrogates Skull Breaker

Lots going on this week, between weather and migraines, I’ve been a bit off my game.  I still managed to smoke some great cigars though. It wasn’t easy, but it has to be done!  Before I get into the cigars, I’d like to point you to another great article regarding FDA regulation, and implore you to make your feelings known on the Regulations.gov page so we can save our hobby, our passion from being disrupted unnecessarily. Patrick Semmens wrote an excellent article last week:   Commentary: Why the FDA’s $10 Exemption Proposal is More Dangerous than You Realize. Great stuff!

Thursday evening I selected a Rodrigo Habano Classico Lancero for my evening smoke. I didn’t get to take my walk as I had to sit in on a conference call, but the cigar was stellar. Rodrigo comes from a Pittsburgh guy, George Rodriguez, and is distributed by The House of Emilio.  This is a 7″ x 38 lancero with a  Ecuadorian Habano/Sumatra Hybrid wrapper and Dominican fillers and binder, made in the Dominican Republic. It’s a very nice medium bodied cigar with good balance. It’s got a sweet, nutty flavor and is good to the last puff.  I probably ave had these in the humidor for a couple years, I think George sent these to me before he was involved with House of Emilio, so these had some time to settle.  I have enjoyed what I’ve smoked from Rodrigo, great boutique cigars. Score: 98

Friday.  It’s the end of the week, it’s time to celebrate.  I was the fortunate recipient of a package from Jack Toraño this week, included within were a couple of Sam Leccia‘s new Luchador cigar, due for release tomorrow, May 5th, or Cinco de Mayo.  Sam has put together a 5 country blend with Honduras and Pennsylvania Ligero and Nicaraguan Ometepe in the filler, Ecuador Habano Binder and my favorite Mexican San Andrés wrapper. Of course, my expectations were high for several reasons. First, obviously the wrapper is my favorite, and second, it’s Sam Leccia, and he has the Midas touch when it comes to cigars. The cigar I smoked was the El Hombre, a 5″ x 54 Robusto with a pointed cap.  I carefully snipped this off with the Xikar scissors, and lit it up.  Love affair right off the bat. Great strong espresso flavors, almost Cuban coffee with the sweetness.  It was desert like, with some spice to go along with it, really tasty. My biggest complaint was that it was too short! I really wanted it to last another half hour. I don’t know how this is going to age, I suspect it will do OK, but it’s ready to go now. Great balance, great burn and draw. A top notch smoke that’s right the heck up my alley.   Thanks to Sam and Jack for letting me smoke this before it hits the streets.  Great, another cigar I’ll have to keep on hand. Score: 99

Saturday my wife and I stopped in to Cigar Mojo on our way home from our granddaughter’s third birthday party to check out their Kentucky Derby party. They had a pretty good crowd, and were having some raffles and contests. I picked up a few cigars, including the Surrogates Skull Breaker, a line I haven’t sampled before.  This cigar had it’s origin at New Havana Cigars as a partnership between owner Dan Welsh and Pete Johnson and they are now under the L’Atelier Imports portfolio.  I picked up this dark belicoso, I think it was priced around $7.50. A few years ago I wouldn’t have bought a cigar that expensive, but since visiting cigar country a few times, I have a much better appreciation for the value of a cigar, it’s a miracle they can be produced so reasonably. I still have trouble with the $10+ price point, but I will loosen the purse stings (figuratively) now and then and pick one up.  I digress. I had a migraine coming on, so I figured a cigar called “Skull Breaker” couldn’t hurt anything.  It’s a strong cigar, have no doubt. It’s got great flavor from the Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro wrappper and Nicaraguan fillers and binder.  I loved dark chocolate and pepper this cigar had, and it was another cigar that burned perfectly, straight from the retail humidor.  When you have a cigar lounge, it’s pretty important for the cigars you sell to be ready to smoke, and the guys at Cigar Mojo have that covered.  If you find yourself in King of Prussia, PA (or the Philly area), stop in and ask them where the heck my CigarCraig.com magnet went??? Good race, good smoke, couldn’t wait to get home and take a pill for the headache and sleep it off. Score: 98

That’s it for today. I have a bunch of new cigars to smoke over the coming weeks, so stay tuned.  Until the next time,

CigarCraig