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Iceland Wrap-up and a La Sirena LT

While we never did see the Aurora Borealis in Iceland, we still got to see some cool stuff and had a good time. I made it back to Björk Tobacco shop and picked up a couple Macanudo Inspirados in a short torpedo size, their best selling cigar. They were reasonably priced at 9000 Icelandic Krona, or a bit over $8.00. I couldn’t bring myself to spend $50 or so on three pack of Romeo y Julieta petite coronas in tubes. As most things in Reykjavik, Cuban cigars were very expensive. I spoke again with Thulin, the owner of Björk. He shared with me a bit of the Icelandic humor behind the sign on the shop, which says “caution tobacco” as a sarcastic kind of warning. I’m told that the Icelandic people use sarcasm quite a bit, but it doesn’t really translate in English. So I figure eventually I’ll see if there’s any difference between the  Macanudo Inspirado from Iceland and the US release. The Inspirado has been popular in Europe for a while.

 
On the way out of Iceland we paid another visit to the airport duty free and perused the cigar selection again. This one had larger humidors but a similar selection. I found a fiver of Guantanamera Cristals for under $20 so I figured what the hell. 

I thought the Star Trek inspired automatic doors on the tobacco section was a nice touch, we wouldn’t want people seeing tobacco products and getting addicted. Anyway, upon entry back into the US I declared that I purchased twelve cigars and there was no inquiry about the country of origin at all. I haven’t actually ever smoked either the Jose L Piedra or Guantanamera, so after they’ve rested a bit from their travels I’ll see how they are. The later were in the Duty Free outside of the humidors, with the dry cured cigars, which I thought was a poor merchandising decision.

 
I smoked only one cigar in Iceland, appropriately a Freyja Corona Grande, while walking back from a misssed ferry ride. It was good, and I think I tasted hints of the salty licorice the Nordic people like so much. Obviously, Freyja is a goddess in Norse mythology and comes up frequently in Iceland. As a matter of fact our plane was named Freyja It wasn’t the greatest environment to enjoy a cigar, it was windy and rainy and I only had matches which made lighting a challenge. It was the only cigar I smoked on the trip, so it was certainly memorable.

 

Tonight I thoroughly enjoyed a new offering  from La Sirena, their Connecticut wrapped LT. This was released at the IPCPR show along with the Merlion Maduro. This cigar was a 5 1/2″ x 50, which is interesting because the information I found listed a Robusto and a Toro, neither being 5 1/2″. I really like the size and this was a terrific cigar. I enjoyed the bright flavor of the Connecticut wrapper and it certainly was full of flavor. These are made at the Placencia factory in Nicaragua and was perfectly constructed although the draw was a bit open, and it burned a bit faster than I would have liked. This is a cigar I’d be thrilled to have a box of in my humidor.

 

I was lazy tonight and wrote this again on my phone instead of dragging the laptop out. Hopefully the readability isn’t terrible. Until the next time,
CigarCraig

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Cigars in Reykjavik Iceland

My wife and I are in the middle of a couple days getaway to Reykjavik, Iceland, someplace we’ve never been to and decided now was as good a time as any to scratch it off the bucket list. As far as cigars go, I actually haven’t smoked one here yet. I did buy a five pack of Cuban Jose L. Piedra Cazadores for around $18 US at the airport duty free, which had a modest selection of Havanas, Davidoff and Balmoral cigars. The more popular brands and sizes carried a high price tag, and I didn’t really want any enough to spend too much, hence the modest purchase just

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to be able to say I did. 
There is one tobacconist in Reykjavik, Bjor

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k Tobacco Store, located in the shopping district in the downtown area. I stopped in and spoke with Thulin, the owner who told the story of how the prior owner successfully fought to have the cigars, tobacco and cigarettes openly displayed in the store as opposed to keeping them hidden. I  need to visit again and talk to Thulin some more and peruse his small selection of premium cigars. His stock was stored in three tower humidors that bore the Habanos branding. He mentioned that the Macanudo Inspirado (which was released in the US this year, but has been out in Europe for a few years) has been one of his best sellers. Like I said, I will visit again before we leave. 

If this post looks different it’s because I’m writing it using the iPhone WordPress app. If it’s too terrible I’ll fix it when I get home! So far we haven’t seen the Aurora Borealis, but Reykjavik seems like a nice enough town, although I think I’ve heard as many American accents as I hear at home! 

Until the next time, 

CigarCraig 

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A Kuuts Roadking and a Humidor for the Man Who Has Everything

Kuuts_Roadking_RobustoTonight I took my evening walk with a Kuuts Roadking robusto from the  IPCPR show. I spent quite a lot of time talking to Steve Ysidron, the new president of Kuuts, and I can’t talk about a lot of what we discussed. Steve owned the Epicurean brand, and has rolled his Gonzo Santeria and Carnavale brands into

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the Kuuts portfolio, both of which are excellent cigars. There’s no blend information on the Roadking, but it’s got a great flavor, a lot of sweet tobacco flavor, it’s listed as strong on the website, but I found t to be nicely medium in  strength, very comfortable to smoke, and quite pleasing. Everything I read about this cigar from the trade show indicates some question as to whether this will make it to market. I hope it does, because it’s a very good cigar.

 

Doettling_tabletop humidor_IFor the man who has everything, and needs a fifty count humidor made by a nearly one hundred year old German luxury safe manufacturer. I received this information from Döttling‘s press office:

 

 

The retail price for the humidor in this configuration is 12.000 EUR net.
It is capable of storing up to 50 cigars in 4 completely removable trays made of Spanish cedar.
Besides this the customer can give us his requested dimensions and we built the humidor accordingly.
Prices for larger versions are on request.
Customers can choose from a larger variety of calf leather colours and can determine the stitching colour as well.
For personalisation we

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offer the stitching of initials or family coat of arms.

 

Doettling_tabletop humidor_III

Obviously, the price point isn’t for everyone, but if you have an extra $13k lying around, this might be a humidor for you. This is the tabletop version of the humidor that’s included in the company’s Fortress, which has the humidor, precision watch storage that winds the watches, and a safe for your valuables. These are definitely the pinnacle of cigar protection.

 

That’s all for today, the next post will be Sunday’s post by way of Reykjavik, Iceland. I’ll probably pre-write something and schedule it to post in the event that I am unable to post something directly from there. Until the next time,

 

CigarCraig

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Davidoff, Tatuaje, and Surrogates Cigars and an Event

Davidoff_NicaraguaBox Pressed_robustoTo start of today I have to rewind to last Sunday, when I wrapped up a nice day in the city with a Davidoff Nicaragua Box Pressed Robusto, one of the new cigars in the line this year. If I was impressed with the toro, I was really impressed with the robusto! This one measures 5″ x 48, which feels even smaller with the box press. It features tobaccos from four growing regions in Nicaragua: Condega, Jalapa, Ometepe and Esteli, with the ligero coming from Esteli. As with the Toro, it burned perfectly as one would expect (or, dare I say, demand!), with a great draw, tons of rich, tasty smoke and a firm ash.  This is a special cigar, right up my alley in terms of flavor and strength, but  priced outside my personal comfort range, but for special cigars, my price threshold has been expanding recently. I would certainty recommend this cigar as a special occasion smoke. As I said of the toro, it’s yu

mmy.

 

Tatuaje K222Fast forward to Saturday, when I went back to one of my favorite shops, the Wooden Indian, where they were having a Halloween party of sorts, along with a combined My Father, Tatuaje, L’Atellier, Surogates event with KC Johnson on hand. I introduced myself to KC, apologizing for not having met him before, I saw him at the IPCPR show and I suppose he was with someone at the time or something, I just felt weird for not having met him before. He’s a super nice guy, friendly and knowledgeable and a good fit for the cigar business. While I was there I smoked the Tatuaje Reserva Miami K222, new this year, and an homage to Pete Johnson’s dog Kona, who lost his battle with cancer last year after losing a leg to the disease. I have a soft spot in my heart for three-legged dogs, and offered words of encouragement to Pete when Kona was losing his leg. In our dog’s case, when lost her leg to a bad break, not cancer, but it’s amazing how animals adapt, within days they are getting around fine. Anyway, I felt compelled to smoke the K222, and it’s a fantastic smoke. Take the afore-mentioned Davidoff, kick the strength up a notch, and the sophistication and subtlety down a notch, and you have the Tatuaje. If that sounds like a dig, it’s not, it a different experience but no less satisfying. The K222 is 5 7/8″ x 52 with an Ecuador Habano wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and fillers and is made in the El Rey de los Habanos factory in Doral, Florida. Obviously the “K” stands for Kona, Pete’s Rottweiler, who passed away at 2:22 on April 22, hence the 222 in the name. It’s yet another great cigar from the Tatuaje line.

 

Surrogates_Animal Cracker_AC550While I was at the Wooden Indian, I kind gave Dave, the owner, a little grief about the inappropriateness of his Native American costume, with cultural appropriation being currently out of fashion. PC BS, nobody was insulted back in my childhood when we dressed as hobos, old ladies or banditos, I was even a mafioso once Halloween with a toy machine gun, offensive on several levels in today’s world. I guess if Dave had been standing outside his store with a bundle of cigars in his hand I would have gotten it, but I was slow on the uptake and only “got it” this morning. Anyway, I bought a Tatuaje Monster Series The Krueger, and I’m wondering if I should smoke it tomorrow evening, Halloween, or put it away for a while?  What do you all think?  I also picked up a couple of the Surrogates Animal Cracker AC550, as I’ve enjoyed several cigars in that line and hadn’t tried this one yet. I set one on fire last night and it’s a powerful, full flavored cigar. I loved the closed foot, it feels like it’s plugged on the Cold Draw (one of my favorite podcasts currently, BTW, an unsolicited plug), but upon setting fire to the foot it opens up and is perfect. This one has an Ecuador Habano Oscuro wrapper, burns well, produces lots of smoke and is a great cigar if one likes strong cigars (or needs a little help and doesn’t like taking laxatives, TMI?).  So far I’ve tried and liked the Broadleaf wrapped Skull Breaker and Bone Crusher, so I guess the Tramp Stamp and Crystal Baller are next on my to try list. These are made at the My Father factory in Esteli, and blended by Pete Johnson and the L’Atelier team. These aren’t subtle, the are aggressive, as the names might suggest, but are worth trying f you have a strong constitution!

 

That’s enough for now, I have a busy week, I’ve got a Prime Living Article deadline coming up, a weekend getaway that I need to write and schedule a post for, and various other preparations to make. since I was lazy last week and put off my usual Wednesday post for

Friday, I’m going to make every effort to get back on track this week and not be a slug. So, until the next time,

 

CigarCraig

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Island Lifestyle Aged Reserve Cigars and Tommy Bahama Accessories

Last summer I wandered into a Tommy Bahama store in a local mall because they had a sale, and I was looking for a very specific shirt, which they ended up finding for me and I shelled out what to me is quite a decent sum of money for clothing, something I generally don’t do. I was impressed with the service, the follow up e-mail from the store manager the next day, and especially, the fact that a Island Lifestylemainstream store had a nice selection of cigar accessories prominently displayed. I was excited when I received an e-mail from Ryan Frailing,  the Vice President of Island Lifestyle Importers, the exclusive designer and manufacturers of Tommy Bahama cigar accessories, asking if I would like to try out some of the cigars that they were making, along with their accessories. They are going to be distributing the Tommy Bahama line of accessories to traditional tobacconists as well as the Tommy Bahama stores, and created the Island Lifestyle Aged Reserve cigars to go along with them. The accessories were a large, durable ashtray with chrome, movable rests. The ashtray looks like a fine ceramic, but is actually a melamine so if you drop in on your porch it won’t break. It’s emblazoned with the Tommy Bahama logo and is a very nice piece. The other item was a rugged travel humidor, which will hold five 60 ring cigars, or 10 robustos, so it’s a little wider than a traditional Otterbox type case. The fit and finish are very nice, and it comes with a small bead-based humidifying element. It also has the Tommy Bahama logo on the top. They have a nice selection of cases, humidors, lighters and ashtrays.

 

Island Lifestyle Aged Reserve Maduro ToroThe cigars in the Island Lifestyle Aged Reserve range are Nicaraguan, and while I wasn’t able to find out where they are made, the ones I smoked were nicely constructed, and of the highest quality. They come in three wrappers, a Connecticut, Sun Grown, and Maduro, and in six sizes, Robusto, Corona Grande, Toro, Churchill, Torpedo and Gordo. I had the pleasure of smoking all three wrapper types in the Toro size, which is a 6″ x 54.  Obviously, I started with the Maduro, which was nicely IslandLifestyle_Sungrown_Torobalanced with a touch of the sweetness along with a little coffee bitterness one would expect. I enjoyed it greatly. The next night I went with the Sungrown, which was similar with more earthiness  than the maduro, but still a nice, well balanced smoke. I finished up the trio the next night with the Connecticut (pictured above), which, oddly enough, was my favorite of the bunch. It had a pleasant grassiness typical of that wrapper, and, much like the other two, was a solid medium bodied cigar. There was a little bit of dryness to them, which led me to mistakenly think there was some Dominican in the blend, but the information I got with the cigars says “aged tobaccos from Nicaragua and Connecticut”, so who am I to argue?  I’d smoke these again without hesitation, and, more importantly I think, wouldn’t think twice about sharing these with others. I’m very interested in finding out where these are produced. Thank you to Ryan for allowing me the opportunity to sample your products.

 

I was going to post this on Wednesday as I usually do, but I got lazy, so here is a rare Friday post.  I hope this doesn’t cause anyone any undue stress!  Until the next time,

 

CigarCraig

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