Category Archives: Review

by | September 17, 2023 · 10:22 am

More Big Sky Cigars, a Cuesta Rey and an Artista

I’ve been working my way through the Big Sky portfolio, this week I sampled the Madison and Bitterroot in the river series. The four cigars in this series, which include the Blackfoot and Bighorn that I discussed last week, are homages to to brandowners love of fishing those Montana rivers. I don’t fish, if I did I’d be happy just sitting, smoking a cigar and holding a pole, no need to be inconvenienced by actually catching anything. Seems like that would interrupt a good time! I was in a Habano mood Friday, so I lit up the Habano wrapped Madison.  Big Sky doesn’t waste time on multiple vitolas, this one is a 6¼” x 52 toro, I like that for the most part, mostly because most of them are toros and I like toros. I don’t have to wonder how another size might be different or if I might like it better, that’s already

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been worked out for me, it is what it is. In the case of the Madison, it has a Habano wrapper, San Andrés binder and Nicaraguan fillers (Ometepe, Japlapa, Esteli and Condega, did they miss any?), made in the TACASA factory I’m guessing.  I was pleasantly surprised by the flavor of this cigar. It was heavy on the cane sugar sweetness that I enjoy from time to time, and it mellowed, but never went away, as some subtle spice snuck in near the end.  I thoroughly enjoyed this cigar.  For a guy who prefers heavy cocoa maduros, this was a really nice change and I could see keeping these around.

 

I had a couple Cuesta Rey Centenario No. 60 Toros this week, a few weeks late as this would have been an appropriate cigar to smoke during my birthday week.  Perhaps that’s why the folks at J.C. Newman sent them out!  The Centenario blend is one that is nostalgic to me.  Many years ago, late 90s, maybe 2000, I was at a big cigar crawl in North Carolina, and a friend who’s since departed won a box of the Pyramid No. 9 and gave them to me. It was a very special gift at the time, and became more cherished after his untimely passing.  This is a Fuente made cigar, a darker Connecticut shade wrapper, with Dominican binder and fillers.  Funny enough, it doesn’t have the classic shade wrapper flavor that one would expect, it’s more earthy and leathery.  I actually don’t think I’ve ever had the Broadleaf version of this, and I want to try it.  I enjoy the Centenario, it brings back a lot of memories.

 

I stopped in to a local CigarCigars shop yesterday to make a small Cigars for Warriors donation, and picked up a few new-to-me cigars, one of which was an Artista Midnight.  I haven’t had anything from Artista since they rebranded from El Artista. I’m a fan of the Buffalo TEN series, but I never really loved the Exactus or Puros Ambar lines they made.  The Artista branding looked sharp, and I figured the Midnight was worth a shot, I like those guys and have had a good rapport with them in the past. Heck, if it wasn’t for El Artista, I wouldn’t know Jonas at Blackbird and enjoy his cigars. I picked up the Midnight in the Box Pressed Toro, of course, 6″ x 50, which has a Dark Ecuador Habano wrapper, Ecuador Connecticut shade binder and Nicaraguan, Dominican, and USA filler tobaccos. The wrapper had a mottled appearance, and expressed some nice oils as is heated up. It was a tasty smoke, dark and rich, with a unique and interesting spice, most likely that USA tobacco, tasted like some PA seedleaf to me.  I liked this one, it’s a winner, and I’m going to have to pick. up the Sumatra wrapped Harvest the next time. 

 

Finally, as I’m typing this morning, I’m smoking the Big Sky Bitterroot, named for another river in Montana. This is a 6″ x 54 toro, with a Habano wrapper, San Andrés binder and Nicaraguan fillers.  On paper, it looks like the same blend as the Madison, but it sure is a different cigar!  The Madison had just the green Big Sky band, where this Bitterroot has a cream colored band with a secondary band with the cigar’s name.  Maybe this was the first one in the line and they decided it wasn’t cost effective to continue with secondary bands?  Different colored bands is a fine alte

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rnative. Of course, having the secondary band helps differentiate the cigars one they are out of the box. The Bitterroot is on the woody/nutty end of the spectrum, with a hint of sweetness. It’s medium bodied, has been a fine morning cigar for me, with a perfect burn and draw, like all of the samples I’ve enjoyed from this company.  Stay tuned for a few more in next week’s edition. I’ve been impressed with the line.

 

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

 

CigarCraig 

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by | September 10, 2023 · 11:07 am

Meeting George Hamilton, a New Travel Humidor and Some Big Sky Cigars

Yesterday we took a ride south to Maryland and went to the Mid-Atlantic Nostalgia Convention pretty much with one goal. George Hamilton was there signing autographs. Since he has a bit of history in the cigar world, and on CigarCraig.com, I wanted to finally meet him.

I had visited his cigar bar, Hamilton’s, in the New York, New York Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, and smoked his H.Upmann cigars in 1998, long before I had the opportunity to interview him (September of 2010, with the audio released in podcast form in May of 2018),  He’s a longtime cigar smoker. When I talked to him in 2010 I realized how much he actually knew about cigars.

I made up a pack of some of my favorite cigars, a Fuente Don Carlos No. 2, a Diamond Crown Maximus, a Cohiba Red Dot and a Sobremesa Short Churchill (largely due to an anecdote Steve Saka recently shared about George asking him his thoughts on his cigar at an RTDA show in the ’90s). George was very excited by the gift, and said he was going to share them with his son who was in the Peace Corps. Also, we had a copy of his book, “Don’t Mind if I Do” which we had him sign while we were there. All in all, it was a very nice interaction, although he didn’t remember our conversation we had, not that I expected him to, heck, it was 13 years ago, and he’s a big movie star! I’d have fallen over if he had remembered. I would have loved to have been able to sit down and have a cigar with him. I imagine he’d have some great stories from his long Hollywood career! 

 

While we were wandering through to Nostalgia Convention marketplace, and I was commenting on just how much ridiculous “stuff” there was, I saw an item that looked like it could be useful in our world, and bought it for $20.  Some of you might say, Craig, you idiot, that’s a watch case, and I’d say, sheesh, who needs a military grade, crush proof, waterproof box for a couple watches?  Hey, I have watches, I have a nice Seiko (an anniversary gift from an old job), and a few Timexes, all with dead batteries (except the Timex I got for my 15th birthday that works perfectly if I wind it up, they really do take a licking!), and I guess if you spend thousands on a watch you want to protect your investment.  On the other hand, some might make the same statement about needing a case like this for cigars, and I have a half a dozen or so travel humidors of various sizes.  I digress, this caught my eye because of the geek factor, it was white with a Captain America shield on it! It’s branded to go with Invicta’s line of Marvel watches, which, if I were wearing something other than a very expensive Fitbit that I get calls and texts on and provides me with various biometric feedback, which my 45 year old Timex does not, I might be into.  I ordered some acoustic foam panels to cut to fit, but in the interim, the trays from my 20 year old Pelican travel humidor fit nicely.  This thing will hold a crapload of cigars, easily 30, and, I’ll probably set it up as an overflow desktop humidor, because it looks frickin cool!  Sure, you can go to Harbor Freight and get a nice case cheap, but it won’t look this good at the next herf, where you’ll either be revered or ridiculed. You can find them on Ebay!

 

I smoked some cigars this week from Big Sky Cigar Co., they generously sent me a bunch, thanks to their west coast regional, Kap, for the referral!  More to come, but I got to two of them this week that I wanted to talk about.  I started with the Big Sky Blackfoot. This is a 6″ x 54 toro with a San Andrés wrapper and Dominican binder and fillers. Big Sky works with Chico Rivas in the DR, a name I’ve been hearing a lot lately. This cigar didn’t taste at all like I expected it would, it had more of that dark fruit sort of taste, less of the coffee and earth I would have thought.  This is a the fourth and last in the series of cigars based on rivers in Montana, and was just released at the PCA show in July. It was a neat cigar, certainly something different.  Thumbs up.

 

Next I smoked the Bighorn 2.0, another San Andrés wrapped cigar, this time over Nicaraguan binder and filler.  This one seems to be made in Esteli, at the TACASA factory, which, if memory serves, is the factory that makes, or made, Ortega cigars most recently.  This cigar was much more along the line of what I expect from a San Andrés wrapped cigar. Loads of dark roast coffee and rich soil.  It had a nice construction and was thoroughly enjoyable.  I have several more cigars in the Big Sky line to sample, and am looking forward to them. This is a small brand that seems to have some legs. 

 

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

 

CigarCraig

 

 

 

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by | September 5, 2023 · 8:30 pm

Havoc by A.J. Fernandez Toro Cigars

This is another Cigars.com/JR Cigars exclusive, Havoc, made by A.J. Fernandez. This is a Nicaraguan Puro, made in four sizes, a Robusto, Toro, Belicoso and Gordo sold in boxes of eleven at a very reasonable price. The imagery is of gladiators, which ties into the eleven cigars, as it was said that if a gladiator won eleven times he’d gain his freedom.  The toro can be had for under $7 a cigar when bought by the box (even cheaper if you use CCRAIG10 on Cigars.com!).  If you are a fan of A.J. Fernandez cigars, and like strong cigars, this might be a great cigar for you!  This cigar starts out with a spicy punch.  It’s realy well made with a perfect draw and burn.  I really have been enjoying these, I especially like the 6½” x 52 format, it’s a half inch better than a classic 6″ toro.  After the initial punch, it settles into to a sweet, yet still fairly heavy coffee flavor, with some cocoa.  While the large band is a little much, it comes off without issue, and the colors and design are visually appealing.  I find myself enjoying the heck out of this cigar, if you enjoy a lot of the same cigars I do, this is a great option.  

 

As with previous Cigars.com/JR Cigars exclusives featured here, the cigars were supplied by the vendor, and the links are affiliate links, so purchase made through them, or the links in the left sidebar, potentially help me out a little financially. Thank you. That’s all for today, until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

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by | September 3, 2023 · 10:51 am

Rocky Patel Sixty, La Gloria Cubana Serie S, Wooden Indian’s Pig Roast and Crux Cigars

It was a busy week, I celebrated a birthday and my daughter took us all out to a Brazilian Steakhouse for dinner. That was a lot of fun, it was a tremendous parade of meat, and I dined on plenty of steer and swine.  I think Evan Darnell of Red Meat Lover’s Club would have been proud.  I had a lot of great cigar choices available to celebrate, but my son got me a couple of Rocky Patel Sixty Toros, which was an absolutely appropriate choice to celebrate this particular birthday.  This cigar came out two years ago to celebrate Rocky’s 60th, it has a San Andrés wrapper and Nicaraguan binder and fillers, and is made in Rocky’s Nicaraguan factory. I’m fortunate that Rocky made a cigar for his birthday that exactly aligns with my palate, where a lot of Rocky Patel cigars really don’t. This is a luscious, dark, rich, cigar with heavy espresso and earthiness in the second half.  This was a great gift, my son has been to Nicaragua and an IPCPR show with me, so he’s no stranger to the leaf, he did well, although this one was a no-brainer.  Recommended regardless of your age (within reason, you know what I mean!).

 

I smoked a few of the new  Maduro cigars over the last couple of weeks, with some trepidation.  I was so tremendously underwhelmed with the “natural” version of the Serie S, it just made me wonder how it actually got past the decision makers, I’ll give it another try in the future, maybe it needs age, but I remain dubious.  Regular readers will know I’m a big La Gloria fan, it hurts my heart when I don’t like a release.  I was hoping the Maduro version would offer some redemption. This was the Robusto Gordo size, 5½” x 56, which is a perfectly acceptable size.  It has a San Andrés Maduro wrapper, Nicaraguan binder and Nicaraguan and Dominican fillers, made in the El Credito sub-factory within STG’s Santiago factory. This reminds me a little of the Serie N in strength and earthiness. It’s better than it’s natural counterpart, however I don’t know that, for me, it competes favorably with the like of the Serie R Esteli Maduro. Additional samples will be put to rest for later evaluation in the LGC humidor. 

 

Yesterday I stopped by the Wooden Indian Tobacconist in Havertown, PA where they were having their annual Drew Estate Charity Pig Roast. I may have missed dropping by one or two of these over the last decade or so, but I try to stop in, it’s always an amazing event.  Dave Mayer and his staff put on a great spread, Pedro Gomez has replaced Marvin Samel as the face of Drew Estate, Matty Rock, and of course several levels of sales staff were on hand.  I don’t remember it being on Labor Day weekend in the past, but I could be wrong, but the usual gang of DE loyal weren’t there, although some people came from Maryland and New York to attend. There was a good crowd for the few hours I was there (long enough to enjoy a Blackened M81 Toro, about 2 hours or so), and I enjoyed fellowship with some old and new friends. I assume a significant sum was raised for Operation: Cigars for Warriors.  Wooden Indian is amongst the best shops around and they are one of two Liga Privada lounges, and, therefore, one of the only stores that has an exclusive Laga Privada, the Pancetta.  

 

I happened to come by some Crux Epicure Habano cigars this week, in Toro and Robusto, and couldn’t wait to light one up.  It’s been years since I had Crux cigar, maybe the only ones I’ve smoked are the Ninfamaniacs going back maybe a decade. They just don’t seem to be present on the shelves around here, or I don’t notice them. The line has somehow avoided my notice one way or the other.  This one has a Nicaraguan Habano seco wrapper, over Nicaraguan binder and fillers made at the Plasencia factory in Nicaragua.  This is a really nice, well balanced smoke, there’s a sweet spice that makes it a little brighter than the darker cigars I like, making it a pleasant change of pace.  I’m actually smoking the Robusto as I type and it’s very nice with coffee, and my wife just set a plate of home fries in front of me…be right back…shit, they are hot, I’ll get back to them.  Now I have a problem, because I want to try the Maduro in this blend, going to have to hunt around.  

 

Enjoy the long weekend, if you are so lucky to have one. Until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

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by | August 27, 2023 · 9:51 am

New El Rey Del Mundo and Diesel Cigars and a DBL Cigars Event

Thursday evening I went to the new Cigar Mojo location in Malvern, PA. which is about a mile closer to my house than the next nearest cigar store, which is two miles away.  Yes, I could walk there if I so chose. Wade and Trae have built a really nice shop and lounge in a small center with restaurants,  an Ax throwing venue, several other businesses, located adjacent to a huge corporate park in suburban Philly.  The humidor is massive, and will soon be impressively stocked, and the lounge is well appointed and comfort

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able.  I’ve been told that they are currently fully staffed ;-).  Anyway, they had an inaugural event there with Francisco Almonte of DBL Cigars and I couldn’t manage to find an excuse not to make the one mile trek over there.  Francisco has a background with the Fuente and LFD factories, and went out on his own probably ten years ago or more.  I think it’s been at least that long since I first met him.  Super-nice dude, and very talented cigar roller. I smoked the DBL Extra Viejo Maduro while there.  It was pretty good, some coffee and espresso notes that I like, there’s something in DBL cigars across the board that I don’

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t get.  Friday evening I smoked the DBL Nicaraguan, which was initially called the La Union, but the Garcia’s had that trademark tied up with their upcoming anniversary project with Pete Johnson and asked for the name to be changed. I hoped that the Nicaraguan expression would suit my palate better, alas, it still had something that didn’t jive with me. I’ve said this before, as recently as a few weeks ago with Aganorsa, there are some lines that just don’t hit the palate, and that’s why there are so many different cigars. DBL makes good, quality cigars, and if you like a lot of different cigars than I tent to like, you’ll probably enjoy them!  They are very well priced, and certainly deserve a try, and if you find yourself at Cigar Mojo at The Grove, give me a holler, if I’m free, I’m like three minutes away. 

 

I’ve been fortunate to have come into a batch of new cigar samples, so I’ve been trying out some of the new releases lately.  One I smoked this week was the El Rey del Mundo Shade Grown.  El Rey del Mundo is a brand that’s been in my humidor on and off in some way for over the last 25 years, I can remember smoking many Rectangulares, Flor de Llanezas, and Robusto Largas over the years, and it was always a delicious, satisfying cigar.  In this case, they’ve put a Honduran grown Connecticut shade wrapper on it, over a Honduran Jamastran binder, with Copan and Jamastran fillers, making a Honduran puro.  If every line has to have a shade cigar (does it?), this cigar isn’t a bad fit with the brand.  It’s got the creaminess, and is on the milder end of medium, but still has plenty of flavor.  I rather enjoyed it, as I’ve been enjoying shade cigars lately, as long as they aren’t too mild and flavorless!  Not too bad! 

 

Last night after a heavy Italian meal out with friends, we retired to the sala fumatori at la mia casa for a digestif.  Earlier in the day I had finished watching “James May: Our Man in Italy” on Amazon Prime so I was all Italianed up.  I suppose a Toscano would have been more appropriate, but I had been eying up the new Diesel Vintage, and wanted to talk about it in today’s post. I’m also smoking one as I type this morning, on a fresh palate, because smoking one with company and conversation and alone without distraction can be two different experiences.  Turns out they were pretty close.  This is a cigar that is to my liking.  It has a San Andrés Negro Madoro wrapper, Esteli binder, and Jalapa fillers ranging from five to eight years old.  Like all Diesel cigars, it’s made by A.J. Fernandez for Forged Cigar Co. I’m smoking the 5″ x 56 Robusto Gordo, and it’s available in 4 other sizes, which I will eventually sample as I find them in the wild.  I can personally attest that this cigar is as good after a heavy meal as it is with a morning cup of coffee, although I did end up smoking too late and slept like crap last night…a function of my advancing years, I’m afraid, I’m in the final days of my 50’s.  I see an afternoon nap, and I’m talking right after noon…anyway, I really like this Diesel Vintage. It’s got a load of sweet spice, earth, coffee, cocoa, all the flavors I really like.  I want to smoke the Toro, it could become a go-to.  Great smoke.  

 

That’s all for today. I celebrate a couple milestones this week, one being the 14th anniversary of CigarCraig.com, the other being the 10th anniversary of my 50th birthday, so I’ll be smoking some special cigars here and there to mark the occasions.   Until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

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