CigarCraig's Blog

by Craig Vanderslice | September 22, 2022 · 7:46 pm

News: La Gloria Cubana Releasing Eighth Street

We all know I’ve been a long time fan of La Gloria Cubana, the first ones I smoked were made at the El Credito factory on Calle Ocho in the ’90s. This is an exciting release, as far as I’m concerned. Couple this with the fact that I really enjoy a lot of cigars from El Titan de Bronze. I like the size too! Read on:

La Gloria Cubana is set to release a cigar developed in collaboration with the family-owned El Titán de Bronze Cigar Factory.

Created to honor La Gloria’s roots in Miami’s Little Havana district, the limited-edition release called “Eighth Street” was developed in collaboration with Justin Andrews and blended by the team at El Titán de Bronze.

Justin Andrews said, “La Gloria Cubana Eighth Street is proudly made in the USA and honors the roots of this legendary brand. For this special project, we blended to a classic La Gloria profile which means the cigar has a lot of personality, is well-balanced through its many transitions and delivers a rich, long finish. This is an elegant and complex cigar that every fan of La Gloria Cubana will want to experience.”

Sandy Cobas, owner of El Titán de Bronze said, “La Gloria Cubana is one of Calle Ocho’s biggest success stories and it’s a brand my team and I have long admired. When we were approached about collaborating on this special project, we jumped at the chance. ‘Eighth Street’ is our way of paying tribute not only to La Gloria Cubana, but also to the Cuban expatriate cigar rollers who continue to practice their craft in Miami, keeping the traditions of their homeland alive.”

The full-bodied smoke is made with a blend of Dominican and Nicaraguan tobaccos and a Nicaraguan binder that are enrobed in a rich, Ecuadorian Habano Oscuro wrapper. The cigar delivers a robust smoking experience, with notes of espresso, leather and spice.

La Gloria Cubana Eighth Street is crafted at the El Titan de Bronze factory on Calle Ocho (Eighth Street) in Miami’s Little Havana district. The cigars are presented in 10-count, wooden boxes and only 5,000 boxes have been made. This special release will ship to retailers on October 3 rd and will be distributed by Forged Cigar Company.

La Gloria Cubana Eighth Street Toro (6” x 50); SRP per cigar $21.99

About The Forged Cigar Company

Developed to deepen support for the brick and mortar channel, The Forged Cigar Company launched in 2021 as an independent national cigar distribution network. Bolstered by independent marketing and customized programming, The Forged Cigar Company’s portfolio includes a curated mix of established and cult brands such as Partagas, La Gloria Cubana, Bolivar Cofradia, Diesel and Chillin’ Moose. The Forged Cigar Company’s mission includes leveraging relationships with its proprietary network of cigar factories to deliver product innovations uniquely timed to meet retailer and consumer needs.

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Tagged as Calle Ocho, cigar, cigars, el titan de bronze, La Gloria Cubana

by Craig Vanderslice | September 18, 2022 · 9:56 am

El Baton Cigars and a Macanudo Inspirado Jamao

I’m, once again, writing from the back porch while I enjoy a new Macanudo cigar. I’m desperately hanging on to summer! It’s technically the last weekend of summer, cigars are one of the coping mechanisms I have to avoid slipping into depression. I’ll stop whining about this eventually! I had a few cigars this week, one that I planned to feature today, but burned so badly it was a pain in the ass and I decided to see if I can get another to try. It’s a shame too, because I really was looking forward to the cigar. I did smoke two cigars last night that I wanted to talk about. J.C. Newman Cigars was kind enough to share a couple of the new El Baton Belicosos with me. This is a cigar that’s been around for a while, so I dug out one of the old ones and smoked both to compare. The Belicoso is 5″ x 56, with an Ecuador “Havana” wrapper, and Nicaraguan binder and fillers. These are supposed to retail in the $8-9 range, I want to say that they were more of a budget brand in previous iterations, but maybe this is the new budget range? I won’t begrudge them the price, as this new offering is really quite good. It has a pleasing flavor, not too mild, nor too strong, with some nice sweet wood and spice. I followed it with an older robusto. I can’t recall how long I’ve had this cigar, but it has to be close to 7 or 8 years. The old version was nowhere near as refined as the new. There were similarities, but, even after years in the humidor, there were rough edges. I might even say there were some “off” flavors, but it’s so hard to really judge a cigar when it’s the second cigar of the evening. It seems to me that the new version is far superior, and well worth the money.

I’m smoking the Macadudo Inspirado Jamao as I type. Clearly I’m not writing with the cigar, as another writer pointed out on my Instagram post. It was semantics, and I’m anti-semantic. This is something like the sixth cigar in the Inspirado line. I really like the White, Black, and Red, with the Green being pretty good and I never took a shine to the Orange. There’s another Connecticut in the lineup too, the Brazilian Shade, with was pretty good. This Jamao is pretty good, especially first thing in the morning. The wrapper is the interesting part, being a hybrid of Handuran (Jamatran) and Dominican (Mao) tobacco, a Habano varietal. It’s very good, but to my very basic palate, isn’t every distinctive. It’s a good tasting cigar, on my ranking of Inspirados it’s right above the Orange. I feel like the should have put “Jamao” on the band somewhere. Good smoke, don’t avoid trying it! Inspirados are generally reasonably priced. As I sit here smoking it, it’s definitely good way to start a Sunday.

That’s all for today, I hope we have a few more nice Sunday mornings before I have to get the heater out and close in the porch. Until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as cigar, cigars, EL Baton, Inspirado, J.C.Newman, Jamao, macanudo

by Craig Vanderslice | September 14, 2022 · 7:00 am

News: General Cigar and Espinosa Cigars Release Final Warzone Expression

Here’s some news from General Cigars. I think I have one of the original Warzone cigars around someplace, but this Rabito size is very interesting. It’s a little bigger than a lonsdale or Corona Gorda, actually, it’s about the best of both vitolas! Sounds like

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another good one!

General Cigar and Espinosa Cigars will release the third and final expression of the critically-acclaimed Warzone trilogy with “Warzone Rabito.”

Fusing the respective styles of General Cigar and Espinosa Cigars, Warzone Rabito uses wrapper tobacco from General Cigar, along with binder and filler tobacco from Espinosa.

Erik Espinosa said, “Warzone has been a very successful collaboration, so it should come as no surprise that Justin Andrews and I wanted to end the trilogy on a high note, so to speak. And since Team Espinosa blended our first Cameroon-wrapped cigars with Justin under Warzone, we agreed that we would take Cameroon to another level with our final release. There was no

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question when we had the blend that embodied our vision…it was like the lights turned on for all of us…we instinctively knew it was right.”

The four-country blend calls upon a rich, five-year-aged Cameroon wrapper, a Honduran binder and filler tobaccos from Nicaragua and Columbia to deliver a savory cigar that balances creaminess and spiciness and produces an enticing aroma.

As with previous Warzone releases, the cigars are “soft box pressed,” calling upon an old-world Cuban method in which freshly-rolled cigars are placed inside the box to form their shape.

Warzone Rabito (6” x 46) is now available in all channels and is being sold for a suggested retail price of $9.19 per cigar. Only 1,500 boxes have been made, and each contain 20 cigars.

Warzone is handcrafted at Espinosa Cigar’s La Zona Factory in Esteli, Nicaragua. The line launched in November 2019 with a Robusto and Toro and was followed up by a Churchill released in 2020. The co

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llection has received multiple 90+ ratings and numerous accolades to date.

ABOUT GENERAL CIGAR COMPANY

General Cigar Co. is a leading manufacturer and marketer of handcrafted cigars for the premium market in the US. The company is owned by Scandinavian Tobacco Group.

Committed to delivering cigars of the finest quality, General Cigar’s skilled artisans produce Macanudo®, Cohiba®, La Gloria Cubana®, Partagas®, CAO®, Punch®, Hoyo de Monterrey®, Excalibur® and several other leading premium brands in the company’s Dominican, Honduran and Nicaraguan factories.

In addition, the company cultivates proprietary tobacco which is used exclusively in its blends and has a dedicated R&D practice that develops new varieties of tobacco and revitalizes vintage seeds.

Based in Richmond, VA, General Cigar sells through wholesalers and retailers in the US. General Cigar als

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o operates Club Macanudo®, a cigar bar in New York City.

News: Casa Cuevas Announces Shipping of Sangre Nueva

Clearly the folks at Cuevas were waiting for my last post extolling the virtues of the Sangre Nueva so they could start getting these gems to market. I can’t wait to get some more, this was an outstanding cigar. I don’t usually post “now shipping” news, but this was timely, since I just posted about it a couple days ago. Read on:

NOW SHIPPING: “SANGRE NUEVA” BY CASA CUEVAS CIGARS

Sangre Nueva or “New Blood” is the first blend created solely by Alec Cuevas

Casa Cuevas Cigars announces that the “Sangre Nueva” cigar brand is on the way to retailers. This is the first Casa Cuevas brand solely blended by Alec Cuevas who was recently promoted to Director of Brand Development. Master Blender Luis Cuevas Sr.felt it was time that his grandson Alec Cuevas take the lead on new brands and the aptly named Sangre Nueva (translates to New Blood from Spanish) is his first creation. Alec Cuevas, the 5th generation of the Cuevas tobacco family looked to create a blend that represents “old Traditions, new Generation”.

Alec describes the Sangre Nueva as a Medium plus strength cigar that elegantly boasts rich, savory chocolate notes along with hints of pepper, earthy tones, and a tad bit of spice. The cigars feature an Ecuadorian Cameroon wrapper, and Honduran Corojo binder, and Dominican, Nicaraguan and Pennsylvania broadleaf filler. Alec estimated that he needed include a high percentage of Pennsylvania broadleaf in the filler. This gave the cigar extra strength while balancing out the cigar’s flavors.

Alec Cuevas stated: “The slogan “old traditions, new generation” signifies so much more to me than a passing of the family torch. It represents all the experiences I’ve ever been through in this industry, from working behind the counter selling my fellow manufacturer’s products, to spending my summers learning all there is to know about our factory from a very young age. Sangre Nueva is a personal love letter to my family, who placed their faith in me to create something from scratch given my knowledge of tobacco. It is also the culmination of patrons and distributors alike that took time out of their day to educate me and better help me define my palate throughout all these years. It’s been a blast creating such a savory blend, and I think it’s a perfect representation of the gratitude I have for this one-of-a-kind industry.”

The Sangre Nueva blend is available in 10 count boxes and expressed in three vitolas.

4.75″X 54 Robusto MSRP: $13.00

6″X50 Toro MSRP: $13.50

6″X58 Double Perfecto MSRP: $14.75

About Casa Cuevas Cigars

Casa Cuevas Cigars was established in 2016 but has decades old history behind it. Cuban born Master Blender Luis Cuevas Sr. has been blending cigars from his factory in the Dominican Republic for many popular cigar brands. Now, together with son Luis Cuevas Jr., the Casa Cuevas Cigar brands were created to honor their four-generation cigar heritage. Currently the Casa Cuevas Cigars line of brands include the Casa Cuevas core line, the Casa Cuevas Limited Edition Flaco, the Cuevas Reserva Natural (91 rated by Cigar Aficionado), Cuevas Reserva Maduro, La Mandarria (ranked no. 16 boutique cigar of 2020 by Cigar & Spirits Magazine), and the Patrimonio (No.1 cigar of 2021 by Stogie Press)

For more information please visit: www.casacuevascigars.com

Follow Casa Cuevas Cigars on social @CasaCuevasCigars

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Tagged as Casa Cuevas, cigar, cigars, Sangre Nueva

by Craig Vanderslice | September 11, 2022 · 9:59 am

Nat Cicco Aniversario, Particulares and Casa Cuevas Cigars

I’m taking advantage of every Sunday that it’s warm enough to enjoy a cigar as I write my Sunday post. Soon enough it will be too chilly. So I lit up something special from the PCA show, the new Sangre Nueva from Casa Cuevas, but more on that later. So far it’s amazing. Friday evening I was in the mood for a larger cigar, so I grabbed the Nat Cicco Aniversario 1965 Liga No. 4 Churchill. This is a square pressed, 7″ x 54 cigar with a pigtail cap. I picked up a few of these last month when I met up with Dean Parsons at Cigar Mojo. I like this blend, which has a dark Ecuador wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and fillers. I hadn’t ever smoked any Nat Cicco cigars until Dean sold his company, Epic Cigars, to them and joined their team. This cigar performed well and was delicious, with some earthy, sweet flavors. I think

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I prefer the smaller sizes though, they seem to have more pronounced flavors.

Last night I smoked a Particulares Deliciosos, from Sindicato, distributed by Gurkha. Sindicato and Gurkha share CEOs in Jim Colucci, who had retired from Altadis several years ago. I only include that factoid in case anyone wondered how Sindicato came to be distributed by Gurkha. Particulares is a really old brand name, going back to the late 1800s, and the branding reflects that heritage. The cigar is a Nicaraguan puro, and is 6″ x 52 and is made at TABSA, the Aganorsa Leaf factory. For me, the cigar started off unnecessarily strong, it was really spicy and peppery. I regretted selecting it, to be honest, but I figured it would settle down, and it did, a little. It remained a powerhouse, spicy cigar throughout. It was pretty good, despite the rough start. I might try it again, but it’s not going to be a priority.

Now, the Casa Cuevas Sangre Nueva. I’ve said before what genuinely nice people the Cuevas folks are. Luis, and his son, Alex are instant friends, one feels like one has known them forever. This cigar was blended by Alex, who is 24, I think. I have shoes older than him, heck, all of my children are older than him! I regret not taking time to interview him at the show, but the two days I was there they were pretty busy. This cigar

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has a Cameroon-seed wrapper grown in Ecuador, a Honduran Corojo binder and Dominican Republic, Nicaragua and Pennsylvania fillers. I don’t want to start anything, but I was under the impression that African Cameroon tobacco is a Sumatra seed, but I suppose if they got the seeds from the African Cameroon plants it could be called Cameroon seed. They weren’t handing out samples of this at the show, but I have connections! This is a SPECTACULAR cigar! I want more. I’m smoking this early in the morning (for me), with coffee, and it has been distracting me from writing the whole time. It’s on the fuller side of medium, with some of the nutty Cameroon flavors, and earthy cocoa. Alex, his father and grandfather can be very proud of this cigar, the new blood is on the right track! I have to get my hands on more.

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

CigarCraig