When I got back from Las Vegas I had a package waiting for me from Sindicato Cigars, the company made up of a group of retailers and headed by Jim Colucci, formerly of Altadis. Of the three cigars debuting at the show, I have to say that the Hex intrigued me, so I had to light one of those up first. Vitola-wise it looked just like the Smoke Inn Micro-blend Tatuaje Anarchy Apocalypse, a 5¼” x 52 perfecto with a curly pigtail cap. It very much looked like a cigar I’d love, and I wasn’t wrong. This cigar burned perfectly and was delicious! It was dark and loaded with all the flavors I like, the espresso/cocoa/dark dried fruit types of flavors. It will be hard not to smoke the other sample and dig through the trade show samples in search of more. Seek out the Hex and give it a try.
Next up was the Affinity. This is a Ecuador Connecticut wrapped cigar that I believe Abe described as a Connecticut Shade with some strength to it. Now, I try not to be cynical (I don’t try too hard…) but this has been the theme for the last couple years, the Connecticut shade wrapped cigar that’s not the typical mild shade wrapped cigar. Nish Patel’s Zen, E.P.Carrillo’s New Wave Connecticut, everyone seems to have the Connecticut Shade wrapped cigar that is not your typical mild cigar. Anyway, the Affinity is a really nice cigar, nothing really surprising, but an enjoyable smoke that was quite satisfying and the biggest problem I had with it was the Robusto size was too short! This may not be too different from other cigars out there, but it’s very good. Well made and tasty.
Last night I tried the economy offering, the. Casa Bella. This was a corona sized cigar, which fit well into my schedule. This is a bundle cigar, hand made in the Dominican Republic, with an Ecuador Connecticut wrapper. This has a really low price point, I think Abe says the 6″x60 is under $3.00! It’s mixed filler, but it was a tasty smoke, although I had a little problem keeping it burning in the middle of the cigar. Maybe it was a construction issue, but more likely it was my impatience in lighting it up a couple short weeks off the truck. For a two dollarish cigar it was pretty darned tasty.
It seems like the group of retailers known as Sindicato know what they are doing and have produced three nice lines. The Hex blew me away, and I enjoyed both the premium and budget Ecuador Connecticut offerings. If you see them in your local shop give them a shot. I don’t recall, but I don’t think these will be available on line at all, just in brick and mortar tobacconists. Here’s the video of Abe Dababneh telling us about the company and the three lines:
That’s all I have for now, until the next time,
CigarCraig
