Category Archives: IPCPR

by CigarCraig | October 10, 2012 · 10:46 pm

Seafood and Columbus Day – A Merlion, a Trinidad and a Añoranza

Sunday evening my wife cooked an enormous piece of salmon and it was delicious. I wanted a cigar to follow the fish, and I couldn’t think of anything better than the new Merlion from La Sirena and Miami Cigar and Company. I’ve mentioned this cigar before (here) and it’s a solid cigar, made by La Aurora and featuring a Corojo wrapper around a three country blend. I may have enjoyed this one more than the first, it was perfect after the meal and really hit the spot. It’s a very tasty stick, well balanced and smooth. Another winner from Arielle.

Monday was Columbus Day, the day set aside to celebrate Columbus’ discovery of cigars! So I was digging around looking for a San Cristobal (de la Habana or otherwise) and came across a really old Trinidad corona. Someone correct me if my memory is off here, but back in the late ’90s, the Trinidad brand was released in the US, and it was made by Fuente. At some point the brand and production changed to being under the Altadis group of brands. This corona was from the original release, with really yellow cello. I had to cut the cello off, it was so brittle and sticky and beautiful. This actually took me back many years, it still had loads of flavor, but not a lot of nicotine. It was a really sweet, satisfying smoke which burned perfectly. This was the epitome of a well aged cigar. I think there’s one more floating around the humidor, I wonder what another few years of age will do to it?

On Tuesday I was rummaging around for something to smoke and the Añoranza Robusto lept out at me and demanded to be smoked. This dark beauty from Miami Cigar and Company was a sample from the IPCPR show, and I had been looking forward to smoking it. I will have to get my hands on some more, as it was really right up my alley. It was loaded with deep, rich cocoa and coffee flavors that I really enjoy. The wrapper is listed as Habana Oscuro, and while it didn’t look as dark as many oscuro wrappers, it tasted it, if that makes sense. I savored this cigar to a finger burning nub. Here is a quick video from the IPCPR show with Jason Wood, or Miami Cigar and Co., talking about the new La Aurora Cien Años Maduro, which I don’t think I got a sample of, but I will track one down to smoke because it looked really tasty!

There you go, two really nice smokes from the folks at Miami Cigar and Company, and a well aged cigar that you’ll probably never see again! Sorry about the later, but hunt down the Merlion and Añoranza and give them a try (as well as the new La Aurora offering!). Now…I need to see what kind of trouble I can get into for Sunday’s installment!

Until the next time,

CigarCraig

3 Comments

Filed under IPCPR, Review, Video

Tagged as Añoranza, cigar, cigars, IPCPR, La Aurora, La Sirena, Merlion, Miami Cigar and Co, trinidad

by CigarCraig | October 7, 2012 · 11:29 am

Some New Cigar Offerings From General Cigar Co. – Foundry, Macanudo and CAO

For the end of the week I decided to base my cigar selections on a theme, and I had some lovely samples from General Cigar Company that have been taunting me from the humidors. I started off on Thursday evening with the new brand that debuted at the IPCPR show, the Foundry. The example I smoked was the 5″x60 Talbot. This is the brainchild of Michael Giannini, the Marketing Director/New Product Developer/Evil Genius at General Cigar. I’m not entirely sure what his current job title is, but he’s a heck of a guy with a brilliant imagination. His fascination with the “Steampunk” art movement inspired him to create this cigar which doesn’t use any tobacco from the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua or Honduras. The cigar was an amazing smoke for me. It was mild, but loaded with interesting flavors that captured my attention for the entire length of the smoke. I realized that 60 ring gauge cigars hardly phase me anymore, which is odd from someone who would sooner pick up a 42 ring cigar (or a lancero). I’ve enjoyed quite a few cigars with a 60 ring gauge lately, and I think I liked this particular blend better in the larger format than the 6½x54 Lovelace that I had smoked before. There were so many unique and interesting flavors, and I’m not one for nuance, that I found it to be a refreshing change, very clean and bright. This is a winner in my book!

Friday evening I went with the New Macanudo Vintage 2006. This cigar has a flawless Connecticut shade wrapper from the 2006 crop, which was reported to be grown under ideal conditions. I really loved the Vintage 1997, which had a delicious maduro wrapper and was quite fairly priced at around $7 a stick all things considered. The 2007 is completely different, of course. The boxes and the shiny metal bands are similar, but the cigar is lighter, with the bit of grassiness you’d expect from the Connecticut wrapper. This cigar brought back memories of some Macanudo panatela seconds I had bought back in the ’90s, maybe it was the firm draw, or feeling the need to draw harder to get a satisfying mouthful of smoke, I don’t know, by that’s just what went through my head. I enjoyed the cigar, it was certainly well made and pleasant enough, but my palate enjoys the maduro in this blend the most. I love the Vintage ’97, and really enjoy the regular old Macanudo Maduro line quite a bit. This Vintage 2006 will likely be a terrific smoke after year or two in the humidor.

Saturday I decided to finish the Trifecta with a CAO Concert Roadie. This is the latest release in the CAO line, following up the OSA Sol from last year. Where the OSA Sol was bright, the Concert is a little heavier in body. The Habano Rosado wrapper is rich and beautiful, and the band is guitar pick shaped, flanked by guitars with the necks wrapping around the cigar. The boxes are in the style of a Marshall amp, and they even have humidors in the same style, only with working speakers and a jack for an MP3 player (and a volume knob that goes to 11). The line is a tribute to Nashville, where the CAO brand was headquartered originally. The cigar was extremely well made, surviving an unfortunate fumble by me resulting in a 3 foot drop to the pavement. The cigar suffered no ill effects, save for a wrapper split which never really caused a problem. I think the broadleaf binder added that little something special to the smoke. It was a wonderful way to spend an afternoon. Rick Rodriguez will be going “on tour” to promote this new release, so check out the schedule and try to get to an event. Rick is a cool guy, definitely fun to hang out with. I hope to catch up with him when he visits here in November.

Editorial

Yesterday (Saturday 10/6/2012) I made an appearance on Kiss My Ash Radio, Abe from Smoke Inn in Florida’s weekly radio show. It was my second appearance on the show, and I was honored to be asked back. The “Bloggers Corner” segment features a cigar review by the featured blogger. Regular readers will understand that this isn’t exactly in my wheelhouse, I’m not one to write flowery, loon-winded third-by-third cigar reviews. Yesterday I actually had prepared a better review, actually it was included in last Wednesday’s post. Unfortunately, I started to go on a tangent about how appearance is important to me when I’m smoking , but it kind of got derailed and really sounded like I just took a complete left turn. The point I was trying to make (doing a play on words on the “blind review” phrase) was that I like to look at a cigar while I’m smoking it, and smoking in the dark, as I’ve found myself doing lately, takes away from the experience. I just wanted to get that off my chest for anyone that may have heard it and thought I was a yammering idiot.

That’s it for today, I still have a couple of the new La Gloria Cubana Trunk Show samples to smoke, but they are pretty big cigar and I have to find the right time to devote to them. I also need to figure out which ones are which, since they didn’t have samples with the unique tobacco paper bands on them. So, until the next time,

CigarCraig

4 Comments

Filed under Editorial, IPCPR, Review

Tagged as CAO, cigar, cigars, Foundry, general cigars, macanudo

by CigarCraig | October 3, 2012 · 6:41 pm

Maduro Cigar Week! A La Hermandad, a Recluse and a Chateau Real Maduro

After enjoying the heck out of the Brazilian Arapiraca wrapped J.C.Newman Brickhouse, I decided to continue the Arapiraca theme with a La Hermandad Robusto from Sean Williams of El Primer Mundo. These are made by Abe Flores of PDR Cigars at his factory in the Dominican Republic. This was a nice, dark 5” x 50 cigar with a pre-production band that Sean gave me at the trade show. The cigar burned perfectly (a trend I’m happy to report I’ve noticed lately, cigars burning well. Nothing is more annoying than a cigar that burns poorly). and drew well, and was a powerhouse of strong, dark flavors. Sean Williams is a very cool guy and I had a chance to catch up with him at the trade show, here is a short video from his booth.

http://youtu.be/QxLHu_2nw0Q

Monday evening I continued the Arapiraca trend with a Recluse corona from Iconic Leaf Cigar Company. I’ve see a couple reviews of the Toro recently, and I also received samples this week, but they are going to rest for a while. I spoke to them at the show (see my post with video here) and had some pre-release samples in addition to the samples they gave me at the show, so I opted to smoke the corona. I also have a double corona, but it was just too large for the time I had allotted for my evening smoke, and the Kanu #1 is almost too pretty and interesting to smoke! This is another perfectly constructed cigar, a lovely box press that had a rich and dark wrapper. The flavor was equally dark and rich. I enjoyed this cigar to a finger burning nub. The mystery behind these cigars continues, their website states “Iconic Leaf Cigar was founded by two very well known and well respected legends in the cigar industry. They have chosen to keep their identities private in a pursuit to make the very best premium boutique cigars that can be found anywhere in the world without the influence of their names.” I’ll be very interested to find out who these legends are, and J.R. Dominguez certainly wasn’t spilling anything when I talked to him at the show! It’s a terrific cigar, give it a try if you can.

Tuesday evening I switched it up and went with a San Andreas Maduro wrapper. I selected a favorite from my dwindling supply, a Drew Estate Chateau Real Gran Cru Perfecto in Maduro. Sadly, these are discontinued, but there are still some around here and there. I bought this box about two years ago and they just keep getting better. These are a really smooth and delicious Maduro with coffee and cocoa flavors that are good to the last drop. I liked these so much that I had them in mind when I created my own blend at Cigar Safari a year and a half ago. My blend turned out to be just what I wanted, loads of smooth and chocolaty flavor without a lot of power. The Chateau Real Maduro is refined and classy and I wish it hadn’t been discontinued, although I probably couldn’t have gotten such great deals on the boxes I bought if they hadn’t been I suppose. This is a perfect cigar for my tastes and I’ll miss them dearly when they are gone, there’s nothing I don’t love about this cigar.

For some reason Autumn makes me lean toward the Maduros, always been that way. I have to go see what else I can scrounge up to keep the trend going. Maybe I’ll find a nice Broadleaf or another San Andreas wrapped cigar to smoke tonight.

That’s it for this installment. Until the next time,

CigarCraig

3 Comments

Filed under IPCPR, Review, Video

Tagged as Arapiraca, chateau real, cigar, cigars, El Primer Mundo, Iconic Leaf, La Hermandad, maduro, Recluse, San Andreas

by CigarCraig | September 30, 2012 · 12:38 pm

IPCPR 2012 – Brickhouse Maduro and J.C. Newman Booth Tour

After another busy Saturday doing things like covering the pool, moving furniture and chasing the dog all over creation, I decided to finish the day with the Brick House Mighty Mighty Maduro from the IPCPR trade show. I had managed to get an appointment with Shanda Lee, J.C. Newman‘s Vice President of Marketing, and she gave me the tour of their booth. She didn’t really want to be on video, so I shot the products she was talking about. They have some beautiful humidors and accessories that are featured in the first part of the video, and some tasty smokes in the second half. It’s a little longer than I generally like, but Shanda was very thorough and generous with her time and information. I appreciate the fact that she took the time to talk to me.

http://youtu.be/tmlB-qjDpZE

The Brickhouse Mighty Mighty Maduro is a solid cigar, loaded with all of the richness and chocolaty-coffee goodness that you’d expect. It has a dark Brazilian wrapper that is slightly mottled, but quite nice. It is a formidable sized cigar and probably took me more than 2 hours to smoke at a leisurely pace. I smokes the original Brickhouse a few weeks ago in the “Teaser” size, and If I could get a box of the Maduro in that size I would in a heartbeat. The Teaser is a 3 ½” x 56 short smoke that was quite nice in the natural wrapper, and I can only assume it would be excellent in the maduro, and a more convenient size for me than the 6¼” x 60 Mighty Mighty. Unfortunately, it seems that the “Teaser” size is only available at events, which is a shame because, like I said, I’d probably buy a box. Still the Brickhouse line is a solid Nicaraguan cigar, and the maduro is an excellent addition. Needless to say, the construction is top notch, which is indicated by the name of the brand. It was a really relaxing and enjoyable smoke.

That’s it for today, no harsh criticism of my fellow bloggers and podcasters or any other cynical, sarcastic comments. Sorry about that! Thanks to Tim at StogieGeeks.com for letting me get away with poking fun at him in the comments of Wednesday’s post, and for leaving the comment in the first place. I appreciate everyone’s comments!

Until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Filed under IPCPR, Review, Video

Tagged as accessories, Brickhouse, cigar, CigarFamily, cigars, Diamond Crown, Humidors, J.C.Newman

by CigarCraig | September 28, 2012 · 6:18 pm

IPCPR 2012 – Headley Grange Estupendo by Crowned Heads

The Headley Grange Estupendo was the cigar that Jon Huber wanted to make that tasted like the first few seconds of Led Zeppelin’s “When The Levee Breaks”, which was recorded at the former poorhouse in Headley, UK called Headley Grange. On my way out of the IPCPR show on my second and last day, I stopped by to say hello to Jon Huber of Crowned Heads and he laid a couple of Headley Grange samples on me. I decided to smoke one Thursday night to see how it was. In the interest of full disclosure, I have yet to try the Crowned Heads initial release, Four Kicks, but after sampling the Headley Grange, I may have to. The 5½ x 52 size of this cigar is just about perfect for me. It’s a little longer than the robusto that can be a little too short when one is really enjoying a great cigar. Obviously the quality is outstanding given that it’s made by Ernesto Carillo in his factory in the Dominican Republic. The cigar lit and burned very nicely, and smoked for around 1½ hours. I find that I’m smoking slower in the past couple years, which I view as a good thing. The cigar was loaded with deep, rich flavor, which makes me understand the comparison to the drums at the beginning of “When the Levee Breaks”, but I found myself thinking it tasted more like “Hot Dog” from the “In Through the Out Door” album, it made my taste buds dance a little! This was a really good smoke, which wasn’t awfully surprising. I should have added a Four Kicks to my purchase last week at Total Tobacco but I didn’t. I guess I’ll have to go back! Bottom line: delicious cigar, a must try.

Here’s a quick interview with Jon Huber at the IPCPR show, I appreciate him hanging around a bit after the show closed to record my last video of the event.