Author Archives: Craig Vanderslice

by Craig Vanderslice | July 14, 2024 · 9:21 am

La Aurora 115th and 120th Anniversary and Black Label Orthodox Cigars

Last week I mentioned stopping at New Tobacco Village in Whitehall, PA and picking up some cigars. I took a chance on two of the cigars, the La Aurora 115th and 120th Anniversary cigars. Naturally, I started with the La Aurora 115th Anniversary , a 6″ x 58 Gran Toro. This cigar has an Ecuador Sumatra wrapper, Brazilian binder and fillers from Dominican Republic, Nicaragua and Brazil. This one doesn’t come in a cedar sleeve, like the 120th, but had a real woody profile to me. I was dissatisfied with the smoke output on this cigar, and what smoke I got was thin in body. So considering I didn’t care for the flavors I was able to get, and the lack of substantial smoke, this probably isn’t a cigar I’m going to re-try. I’m really hit or miss with La Aurora cigars, there’s some I really like, and I hold on to the brand for sentimental reasons, hence my opening remark about taking a chance.

Being somewhat of a cigar optimist, I lit up the La Aurora 120th Anniversary, also in the 6″ x 58 Gran Toro. This one is a Dominican Puro, with a Dominican Habano 92 wrapper, Dominican binder and filler from the Cibao Valley in the D.R.. Based on the blend, I should have liked this cigar less than the 115th, lets just say I found it different. The draw and smoke output were much better, and allow me to clarify something, the 115th had what seemed to be a fine draw, it was just stingy with the smoke. This one had much better body to the smoke, but I still got the woody flavors, which isn’t my preference. I contemplated having something that I really like after smoking this, but my palate was fatigued by the time I was done with it and I figured what’s the point? I’m not one to put a cigar down if I don’t like it when it’s the first time I’ve smoked it, like I said, cigar optimist. I’ll stick with the La Aurora Time Capsule and Preferidos blends (I may still have a Bristol Especiale from the first box of cigars I bought 28 years ago!).

After two misses, I hoped the next cigar would be a sure thing. One f my favorite activities in the summer months is sitting on the porch (enclosed), with a cigar and watching a movie. The temperature hardly matters, it was toasty yesterday, I just find it relaxing after finishing chores. There’s always the chance that a neighbor will do something silly like mow their lawn, but I rigged headphones to the TV just in case (it’s an old TV, no bluetooth). So I put a movie on and lit up the Black Label Trading Co. Orthodox. I like most of the BLTC/BWS cigars, the fact that they say this is getting back to their roots sounds good to me. I had gotten the 5¾” x 50 toro which has a bit of a pigtail cap. The cigar has a dark San Andrés wrapper, Ecuador Habano binder and Nicaraguan fillers. Sounds like a winner for me so far. This was offered to retailers who attended the last PCA show in March, so it’s pretty new. I loved it. It was heavy on the dark dried fruit notes, with some earth and spice. My biggest complaint was that it didn’t last through the movie, but that’s OK, I stopped the movie, took a nap, and resumed it after dinner. (side note, just saw the judge lop the end off a cigar with a miniature guillotine in Sammy Hagar’s I can’t Drive 55 video…I didn’t remember that! I have 80’s videos playing while I type). The Orthodox was rich and satisfying, it definitely made up for two days of disappointment.

Bob the Cigar Guy was kind enough to mention me in one of his recent reviews (https://youtu.be/WCZNh1A4-yE?si=c0UoH3vSo2V_u02n), and I appreciate his effusive, yet certainly unnecessary, praise. Bob’s a good dude, check out his stuff if you get a chance. That’s all for today, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as 115th, 120th, Black Label Trading Company, cigar, cigars, La Aurora, Orthodox

by Craig Vanderslice | July 7, 2024 · 9:03 am

Brick House, La Galera and Te Amo Cigars

I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable Independence Day! I celebrated by smoking a couple anniversary themed cigars, and going out to dinner with my wife and granddaughters. We celebrated our 37th wedding anniversary, I know, Independence Day, we had our reasons! After work Friday, even with the Thursday off it had been a busy week, I decided to unwind with an old favorite, the Brick House Mighty Mighty Maduro from J.C. Newman. I’m sure this cigar has been mentioned before once or twice in this site, but I had some thoughts while smoking it. This is a 6¼” x 60 cigar with a Brazilian Arapiraca wrapper over Nicaraguan fillers and binder. I thought to myself while smoking this that when there comes a time when I ‘ve smoked through my collection of singles, and at a place where I’m smoking a rotation of cigars, this would be a great cigar to include in that rotation. It’s a really good cigar which fits my flavor preference and it’s not hard on the wallet. I might opt for the toro, but even in this size it makes me happy. It’s certainly a cigar I can smoke often. I’m a fan of the line.

Yesterday I found myself driving through Whitehall, PA and stopped in New Tobacco Village and had a smoke with Lina and John. I bought a bunch of “new to me” cigars and sat down and smoked a La Galera Anemoi Notus, the 5″ x 56 Robusto Gordo in the line. I didn’t include a link to their site because it seems like it’s compromised somehow, I got information from CigarCountry.com, which, if memory serves, has some association with Jochy Blanco, who makes the cigars. I could be wrong. The info was credible, so I’m going with it.The Anemoi has a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper, Dominican Jacagua Corojo binder and Criollo 98 and Piloto Cubano fillers. For a Broadleaf wrapped cigar, it smoked more like a Habano, with a citrus tang to start. It never really developed the sweetness I expect from Broadleaf. It was a good smoke, made better by the company. New Tobacco Village is a really nice little shop with a very broad selection. They have a new exclusive, the Devil in Disguise, which I wrote about a couple weeks ago.

I picked up a new Te Amo in the Magnum (6″ x 60) size, which I’ve been itching to try. When I started smoking cigars back in the mid-90s, Te Amo was one of the first brands I enjoyed. It was partly because my father-in-law recommended the brand to me, and I would occasionally have cigars with him, that I got into the brand. I think it was one of my first few box purchases. I even smoked the Te Amo Segundos, which were even more inexpensive. Naturally, I gravitated to the maduro toros, and I think Te Amo was responsible for the 6″ x 50 size being called a toro. So I was anxious to try this new expression of the Te Amo, the original San Andrés Valley cigar. It’s made by the Turrent family, who is responsible for most, if not all, of the San Andrés tobacco. This line features San Andrés Habano wrapper and fillers, with a San Andrés Negro binder. I thoroughly enjoyed the cigar, although it only slightly reminded me of the Te Amos of old. It has some rich soil notes with some spice and coffee with cream. I’ll be very interested in sampling a maduro when and if it comes out. This line had such a bad reputation amongst aficionados, it will be interesting to see if it’s revival has legs, and it will be equally interesting to see if it’s accepted by the old Te Amo smokers. Of course, it costs about four times what they cost in the 90’s!

That’s all for today, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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by Craig Vanderslice | July 5, 2024 · 6:00 am

Mil Dias Box Pressed Robusto JR Cigars Exclusive

Once again I bring you a cigar that’s exclusive to JR Cigars (and cigars.com). Last month they sent me the Crowned Heads Mil Dias Box Pressed Robusto 5″ x 55. I’ve never been high on Crowned Heads, there have only been a few cigars that I’ve enjoyed, they have been few and far between. I do like Miguel Schoedel, the national sales manager, so I try to keep an open mind. I’ve been smoking a bunch of this Mil Dias Box Press lately and I have really enjoyed them. This has an Ecuador Habano wrapper, Nicaraguan binder and fillers from Nicaragua, Peru and Costa Rica. As the name of the cigar suggests, it’s a 5″ x 55 box pressed robusto. I’ve smoked these in the morning, afternoon and evening and found that they fit well any time. While it’s listed as medium to full, I put it squarely in the medium category. It has some bready notes, with some light wood and sweetness. This is a very good cigar and I find myself wanting to smoke more, which really doesn’t happen to me often. I would never have thought I’d be so enamoured with a cigar from this company. It seems that they came out with a Mil Dias Broadleaf this year, I’ll have to give that a try!

Links in this post are affiliate links, so if you shop at JR Cigars, feel free to use these links, it doesn’t cost you a dime and might put a couple dollars toward my continuing to do this! There are some links on the left side of my page. Thank you to JR Cigars for their support! Until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as cigar, cigars, CIgars.com, Crowned Heads, JR Cigars, Mil Dias

by Craig Vanderslice | June 30, 2024 · 10:31 am

E.P. Carrillo Sumatra, Dias de Gloria Brazil and Reinado Capablanca Cigars

It’s the end of June already, we’ve reached the halfway point of 2024! One of my favorite things about summer is that I can write my Sunday blog post on the porch with a cigar. This morning it’s a Macanudo Gold Label 2023, which is a 4½” x 60. I think my friends at Best Cigar Prices would call this a Robolo, they used to have a whole series of them! Anyway, that’s not what I was planning to talk about today! Last week I smoked the new E.P. Carrillo Maduro from their new Essence Series, This week I smoked the Sumatra. Lately I’ve been surprised at how many times the Maduro has come in second to another wrapper when I’ve sampled cigars in the same line with different wrappers, so I was half expecting this to happen again. The Sumatra I smoked is the Toro, a 6″ x 52 with an Ecuador Sumatra wrapper, binders from Nicaragua and Honduras, and fillers from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. This was a really interesting cigar! It had a heavy, almost cloying, flavors of dark dried fruit, to me. It was mouth coating, like black licorice can be, with a pretty long finish. Where the Maduro brought back memories of the old La Gloria Cubana maduros, this was something new and different. I enjoyed it, although not as much as the Maduro, and look forward to seeing what other wrapper combinations they come out with in the future. This line is priced in the $10 range, so it should be a hit!

I stopped by a local shop on the way home Friday and grabbed a couple of the new A.J. Fernandez Dias de Gloria Brazil in a corona size. They call it a corona, it’s 6½” x 44, more of a lonsdale, really, which is why I picked a couple up. I’m not overly fond of smaller cigars. This has a Brazilian Mata Fina wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and fillers. It’s a nice, dark cigar, which started off with a bit if tanginess. It progressed to a savoriness with some sweet notes. I liked it very much. The price tag made me recall a few years back when they released the Ramon Allones at around $14 and we all thought that was a pricey A.J. Fernandez cigar. This Corona was $14. How times have quickly changed. Geat smoke though! Worth the price.

I go back about nearly a dozen years with Antonio Lam of Reinado Cigars. I think we first met at Cigar Emporium in Lyndhurst, NJ back in April of 2013. He sent me his newest project, the Capablanca. This cigar, like the rest of his recent work, is a tribute to his father. My first thought, looking at the name as a non-spanish speaker, I was expecting a shade wrapped cigar. It’s not, it has a Cameroon wrapper, over undisclosed filler and binder, and it’s made at an also undisclosed factory in the Dominican Republic. Capablanca refers to the Cuban chess master José Raúl Capablanca, who was the world chess champion in the 1920s. Antonio’s father would replay Capablanca’s chess games with his brother, and taught Antonio to play chess, often replaying the Capablanca games. Because of Antonio’s father suffering from dementia, a portion of all sales of Reinado cigars goes to the Dementia Society of America. The cigar is listed at 5½” x 54, but if felt more like 6″, but that might have been the inch of wrapper hangin over the foot. It also had a pigtail cap. I’ll admit that. I pulled a bit of the loose wrapper off pre-light because I’ve burned to many shirts, pants, rugs with flying burning debris! This is a really nice smoke. It has some nuttiness along with a pit of creaminess. It was medium bodied and burned well. It wasn’t overwhelmingly Cameroony, but that flavor was still there. I smoked it to a small nub while enjoying a movie on the porch with me family. I highly recommend anything from Reinado, this included.

I heard someone talking about what cut they prefer, and it got me thinking that I really don’t have a preference. I have three cutters sitting next to me, a Colibri V cutter, a CigarMedics Baller, and my Screwpop MagPulse straight cutter and I use them all depending on my whim. I have an Adorini Double Cigar Punch that I use (mostly the large end) when I absolutely need a Punch (flat capped cigars). I really am not that picky about what I use, as long as the cigar draws and doesn’t come apart. I have a variety of straight cutters which work fine, if I’m out and about it’s usually with a Xikar, due to the pocketability. Whatever works. Anyway, that’s all for today, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as A.J. Fernandez, Brazil, Capablanca, cigar, cigars, Dias de Gloria, E.P. Carrillo, Essence, Reinado, Sumatra

by Craig Vanderslice | June 23, 2024 · 9:47 am

La Union, Cro Magnon, EP Carrillo and JFR Lunatic Cigars

My week started with a really nice Father’s Day with all my kids and grandkids visiting. My youngest stopped at CigarMojo and asked for a recommendation, and, once again, they sold him a very expensive cigar. I’m never super happy about him spending his hard earned cash, and part of me feels like the guys at the shop take advantage, but he does make a good point: it’s not something I would buy for myself. He picked up the new(ish) My Father La Union Black para Tatuaje .This is certainly a cigar that piqued my interest, but there was never any way I was shelling out for it. I’m a cheap bastard, my sphincter tightens when I look at a cigar over $15. This is a 100% improvement over 12 or so years ago. So, it being Father’s Day, and having this wonderful gift, I had to smoke it. The cigar is 7¼” x 50 with a 109 head, the head is slightly tapered and rounded. It has an Ecuador Habano wrapper and Nicaraguan fillers, including Pelo de Oro. I’ve walked through the Pelo de Oro fields, although it’s been 13 years, so probably not the same stuff. This was blended by the Garcias for Pete Johnson’s palate, I almost expected it to be heavier. It wasn’t. It had a very delicate, nuanced flavor, started with an interesting mintiness, some woodyness and some spice. It almost reminded me of a Havana, but loads better. This was a brilliant cigar, I greatly appreciate the opportunity to try it. Later I smoked the now 25 year old Esperanza para los Niños, which has held up well!

I’d been itching to try the new Pennsylvania Broadleaf wrapped variant of the RoMaCraft CroMagnon which came out recently, so I had added a couple of the 4½ x 60 Mandibles on to a recent order. I haven’t seen these locally, although I haven’t been out shopping much lately. This version uses a Pennsylvania broadleaf wrapper, Sumatra hybrid binder and fillers from the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua. The original CroMagnon didn’t have any Dominican leaf in the blend. I was hoping to try the Cranium (toro) size, but this was what was available. I thought this was spicier than the original, and it wasn’t for the faint of heart. I thought I got some grilled steak, but that might have been a neighbor cooking. I’ll be on the look out for other sizes, but this one hit the spot, although I’ll always have a soft spot for the original.

E.P. Carrillo is launching a line called the Essence series, the Sumatra and Maduro should be on shelves, with more wrapper variations on the horizon. I smoked the Maduro Friday evening on a drive north. My wife offered to drive the first leg so I could enjoy my cigar. I actually don’t like to smoke while driving my car because it’s a manual and it just isn’t relaxing. Fortunately, we were in her car. Ain’t she the greatest? The E.P. Carirllo Maduro has a San Andrés wrapper, Honduran binder and Nicaraguan fillers. While it’s made in the D.R., note that there is no Dominican leaf. I couldn’t help but remember my first La Gloria Cubana Maduro back in the ’90s. This cigar had some spice with espresso and cocoa, it was right up my alley. Burn and draw were perfect (which is nice in the car) and it smoked for about an hour and a half. I’m excited to try the Sumatra, and add some more of the Maduro to my humidor.

Finally, when we got home last night fairly late, I sat down with the newest Firecracker offering from United Cigars. This year it is the JFR Lunatic Firecracker, Made by Aganorsa Leaf. I’m hit of miss on the Aganorsa cigars, but the JFR Lunatic is a good one, although I haven’t smoked any of the obscenely large sizes (there’s only a few 60 ring and under). This has what they are calling a shade grown Corojo maduro wrapper, and I assume Aganorsa Nicaraguan fillers and binder. It’s 3½” x 50 with the signature “fuse”, which I get rid of right away. Smoking time was the better part of an hour, which is good for a little guy. It had that cane sugar sweetness that I like, and was quite tasty, one of the better Firecracker treatments in my mind. Not that any are bad, this one distinguished itself. Super-tasty and it looks like it might still be available. Grab some to try if you see them!