Tag Archives: aj fernandez

by CigarCraig | February 26, 2017 · 10:02 am

An Enclave and Cigars on a Friend’s Deck in February: Kristoff and La Flor Dominicana

The weather has been unseasonably warm here in SE PA, 70s in February? I love not having to bundle up for my evening walks, or thaw my fingers with the propane heaters when I get home. I can’t help to think we are going to pay for what has been a mild winter with little snow in March, but I’ve enjoyed this great weather! Any way you look at it, Spring is on its way, and that’s a great thing. So Friday evening’s cigar was an AJ Fernandez Enclave Toro, a 6″ x 52 covered foot beauty (the covered foot was this weeks trend as it turns out). I’ve been abusing myself lately, last week I tripped and fell, and Friday I burned the crap out of my mouth biting into a pizza roll. Pizza Rolls, when microwaved according to the directions, attains internal temperatures approaching that of the sun. Not exactly a high-brow menu choice, granted, but a guilty pleasure that just needs to be handled a little more carefully. So, I didn’t want to smoke something unfamiliar and miss something with a compromised palate ( not that my palate is anything to write home about). The Enclave is a familiar cigar, known to have excellent flavor, burn and be strong enough to taste, but not so strong as to do further damage. Did I know this came in a broadleaf wrapper too? One more cigar for my shopping list, I suppose, because the Habano wrapped version is a great smoke, an easy choice for a “go-to” list.

Saturday I decided I wanted to get out for a smoke, so I dropped my amigo Mike a note and he invited me over to have cigars on his deck. He told me the cigars would be on him, which is weird for me because I’m accustomed to being the one to provide the smokes. Mike only lives a few miles away, and we met when he won one of the presents in a 12 Days of Spectacular Giveaways a couple of years ago and got together at a local shop. We’ve become good friends since. So I selected a cigar from Mike that I hadn’t had before, a Kristoff Connecticut Robusto. Kristoff is a brand that I hear about all the time, but I haven’t smoked a great many of their offerings. I don’t know why that is really, they look great, I love the Epic line of cigars that is made in the same factory as the Kristoff, and they have a huge portfolio of cigars with yummy sounding names, like San Andrés and Cameroon and Habano. Also, a lot of them have a pigtail cap and a closed foot, both features I like. It doesn’t get much better than sitting outside on an unexpectedly warm, sunny day enjoying a great cigar with a friend. This Connecticut was a medium bodied smoke with nice flavors, not really heavy on the typical grassy Connecticut shade flavor, but a nice, mellow smoke. As the wind kicked up a bit with a front coming in, the burn stayed even and this was a very satisfying cigar.

Mike generously offered me a La Flor Dominicana Double Ligero Firecracker, from 2 Guy’s Smoke Shop‘s Firecracker series. Last fall I had the opportunity to smoke the Cro-Magnon version in this series, with was quite awesome (read about it here, ironically, I also featured the Cigar Prop in the same post, and look forward to hearing Kevin talk about that on Kiss My Ash Radio that aired yesterday). The Firecracker is a 3¼” x 50 with a long tail that makes it resemble an M80 firecracker, and the blends are generally on the stronger side to go along with the theme. 2 Guy’s usually has these in time for the 4th Of July, and this year’s iteration is made by Fratello Cigars. I think Mike was willing to part with this cigar because he was a little intimidated by it, having heard that it was unbearably strong. This one also had a covered foot, making it the third cigar in a row for me with that particular feature. The cigar started off with a burst of strength, and some extra flavor from the wrapper. I kinda feel bad for smoking this cigar, because while it was strong, I don’t think it was too strong that Mike wouldn’t have enjoyed it. I do greatly appreciate the chance to smoke this great little cigar, which timed out perfectly as a front rolled in dropping the temperatures and bring a thunderstorm. Again, thanks to Mike for his generosity and hospitality (don’t forget to check out Mike and his daughter’s site, WineadorArt.com, to customize the glass on your humidor, cabinet or wineador. I’m thinking of commissioning a piece for my cabinet…).

I guess I’m going to have to reach out to John Budka, the winner of last week’s contest, as I haven’t heard from him yet and want to get the goodies mailed out. That’s all for today, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as 2 Guys, aj fernandez, cigar, CigarProp, cigars, Enclave, Firecracker, Kristoff, La Flor Dominicana, WineadorArt

by CigarCraig | January 18, 2017 · 8:08 am

La Gran Llave, Gurkha and Tatuaje, and a Stage V Clinger Contest!

I’m getting ready to go away for a few days, so this will be early and brief! I just want to touch on a few cigars I smoked this week so far, and have another little contest! More on the trip when I get back. Since it was in the cigar news last week that AJ Fernandez had acquired the La Gran Llave brand that they had been making for Michael Argenti I thought I’d revisit one of the box pressed torpedos that Michael had sent me last year when he launched the brand. There is no change in factory as the cigars were made by AJ Fernandez anyway, it seems that the company has been going crazy acquiring brands, also recently buying the Sosa brand, which had been made by Fuente for as long as I can remember. I really like the La Gran Llave Reserve, it’s a nice, sweet cigar with a beautiful San Andrés wrapper. The burn and draw were perfect and it was a satisfying smoke. I have a sampler with the other sizes that I will get to eventually, but this 6½ x 56 box pressed torpedo sets the bar pretty high. Jeff at my local JM Cigars recommended it to me to when I was there a couple of weeks ago and I passed as I had some in the humidor already. I failed to take note of the price, but I think the line ranges from $6-$9ish.

Monday I tried the Gurkha Cask Blend in the 6″ x 58 perfecto size, which came from the IPCPR show and has been resting in the humidor since July. This was a perfectly fine cigar, normal cigar taste that was neither offensive, nor exceptional. It seemed to have a Nomex wrapper, you know, that stuff they wrap wires in so they don’t catch fire? I had to refill the Tommy Bahama pocket lighter after I was done smoking it, because the darned thing wouldn’t stay lit! I mentioned the storage before so you don’t think it was my fault, as I smoke from the same humidor all the time with no issues. Might have been a better cigar if it had burned right, but that part of the experience detracted from the overall enjoyment. Since its “wrapper, binder and filler are highly guarded proprietary secrets” I can only tell you it was made in the DR. If there was some booze component to it I have no frame of reference any more. When it burned, it wasn’t a bad cigar. I know many will say it was a Gurkha, what did I expect, but there are several cigars in the Gurkha portfolio that I think are quite good. It occurs to me that I smoked one of these in 2015 and didn’t seem to have the burn problems.

Tonight, since I’m on vacation for the rest of the week, I treated myself to a Tatuaje Black Label Petit Lancero, which I think was a gift from my amigo Goose at Goose’s Cigars in Limerick, PA. This is a 6″ x 38 cigar that was sans cello, and I’m weird, I like the protection of the cello in the humidor, I noticed this one had a chip in the wrapper at the foot, so it had to go! What a delightful cigar, thick, right smoke with sweet, earthy flavor that was terrifically satisfying for a rainy night while I was comfy in my enclosed porch. I used an 9.5mm punch (with is the approximate inside diameter of the ScrewPop punch, by the way) which is my go-to for a lancero. it was a completely yummy way to end the day and start the vacation. I also celebrated receiving my kid’s Christmas present to me today, an awesome pair of custom, one of a kind Vans!

Contest!

Cigar not included. Actual color and branding may vary.

I slacked off on this one over the holidays, it was there for me to give away, and I failed. So you have a chance to win a Stage V Clinger cigar holder. I use one of these from time to time and find it to be a gentle way to hold a cigar on those occasions where a proper rest or ashtray isn’t available. This is designed for the golfer, but has many other applications. It has a strong pair of magnets, a hook and loop strap in case there’s no metal to “cling” to, and the jaws are gentle enough to not squish or damage the cigar. Leave a comment to enter, and I’ll announce a winner on Sunday. Thanks to Marissa at Stage V for offering this cool item.

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

CigarCraig

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Tagged as aj fernandez, cigar, cigars, Contest, Gurkha, La Gran Llave, Stage V Clinger, tatuaje

by CigarCraig | January 8, 2017 · 10:51 am

Padilla, San Lotano and Nestor Miranda Cigars

Winter has set in here in Pennsylvania, with the first snows over the last couple days, thankfully only an inch or two each time. I’m good with basically sweeping the snow off the driveway as opposed to the two foot heavy wet snows we get now and then. Anyway, I smoked a few good cigars over the past couple days, although not all new to the market. I broke open a pack of Padilla Reservas that Ernesto Padilla gave me at the IPCPR show, which was the same pack he gave me at the previous year’s show, I think. I selected the San Andrès of course, there was also a Corojo, Criollo and Connecticut to choose from. This is a 5″ x 54 robusto made at the Raices Cubanas factory in Honduras, with the San Andrès wrapper, with Nicaraguan binder and filler. I mentioned this cigar in a post last November, but I feel like this cigar was “dirtier” than the one I smoked before, or else I just didn’t mention that last year. It was like an espresso, strong, with some bitterness that was really enjoyable especially in the cold winter air. Loads of flavor for sure, and I liked it a lot. As I said last time, this is a cigar that’s priced right and well worth picking up if you like that in your face, down and dirty kind of cigar now and then.

Last week I was in a local shop and picked up a few cigars that I hadn’t tried yet, but have been around a while. The AJ Fernandez San Lotano Bull caught my eye as such a cigar. I love the San Lotano line, and am a little mystified that I hadn’t tried the Bull yet. So I picked up a couple and took one as my Friday smoke. This was the 6″ x 54 toro size, and the binder and filler are “AJF Select” Nicaraguan with an Ecuador Sumatra wrapper. As you can see in the picture, the cigar comes with a cedar sleeve with a bull on it, this must be removed prior to lighting (hard to believe, but I’ve seen it done!). This was another fairly strong cigar, lots of nice, sweet, creamy coffee and cedar flavors. Why, oh, why did I take so long to try this cigar? I’m glad I bought more than one. Again, nothing new here, I think AJ Fernandez released this in 2013.

This cigar is new this year! I have enjoyed all of the Nestor Miranda Collection Robustos I’ve smoked, and I really should try other sizes, but the Coffee Break 4½” x 50 size is really appealing to me. It’s perfect for those nights when it’s too cold for a walk, but an hour on the porch with the propane heater is pretty comfortable. Such was the case last night. This line has previously been offered in Connecticut, Maduro and Habano, all excellent, and all made in Don Pepin Garcia’s My Father factory in Esteli. This year they released the Corojo, which might just be the best in the line to my palate. This little cigar has a lot going on, a little sweet, a little coffee and a little nuttiness, in a perfect burning package. I smoked one a couple of weeks ago and was interrupted by something and had to put it down and it made me sad. This one was enjoyed until fingers started burning, so good. I’ve acquired some new tools from the Tommy Bahama line that I’ve been playing with, and so far I’m happy with the cutter and lighters. I used the table lighter to light this and holding the lighter about eight inches from the foot of the cigar made the foot look like an Apollo space capsule on re-entry. lots of horsepower in a large, quad-jet lighter. More on those tools later, but I’ve become a fan of the Tommy Bahama cigar accouterments from Island Lifestyle Importers. I just wish I were sitting on a beach lighting my cigars…

That’s it for now. Keep an eye on the CigarCraig.com Facebook page for the next contest, I’m going to try something a little different to mix things up. Until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as aj fernandez, cigar, cigars, Nestor Miranda, Padilla, san lotano, Tommy Bahama

by CigarCraig | September 18, 2016 · 11:21 am

A Bobalu Oscuro, a New Nestor Miranda Cigar and an Oliveros All Stars

After the crazy first half of the week, I settled down a bit. I actually took Thursday off as we went up to Bethlehem PA to see the new movie “Eight Days A Week”. It was a very good documentary about The Beatles touring years, you can read my wife’s review on her blog Beatles-Freak’s Reviews . Friday evening’s cigar was another cigar from the selection I picked up from Bobalu Cigars. This cigar was from the Oscuro line which features a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper, Nicaraguan Ligero, Honduran Criollo 98 and Dominican Piloto and Olor. You can imagine what my expectations were for this one. This is a good example of how expectations can lead to disappointment. I got these in the Gordo size, because they only come in robusto and Gordo and I have too damn many robustos in my humidors. The cigar was well made, but instead of the heavy, coffee/cocoa flavor I expected, I got more of a medium sour flavor. It was a good cigar, I smoked it for a good two hours, but the sour flavor isn’t one I particularly enjoy. There were plenty of good points, and certainly there are people who appreciate the flavors in that cigar more than I do. I remain amazed that a factory in Austin, Texas is cranking out handmade cigars of excellent quality for a reasonable price. It’s a place I must visit one day when I finally make that Texas visit I need to make. Bobalu is still offering a special deal for my readers, click here to check that out.

Yesterday was a three cigar day. I started off in the afternoon, after getting some things done around the house and yard, with a new line extension to the Nestor Miranda Collection, the Corojo in the 4½ x 50 robusto size. In the past I’ve really enjoyed the Nestor Miranda Collection in this size, the Connecticut, Maduro and Habano are all exceptional, and this Corojo is a great addition to the portfolio. I was blown away by the abundance of a cinnamon spice quality throughout the cigar, it was quite delicious. I think the most memorable cigars I’ve smoked from the trade show for me this year have been cigars with unique flavors that I don’t often get in a cigar, which is what makes them memorable. There was another one, but I can’t remember it :-). I highly recommend trying the Nestor Miranda Collection, and especially this new Corojo. One minor complaint: Miami Cigar and Co. desperately needs to update their website!

I moved on to another trade show sample, the Oliveros Allstars Small Batch No. 5 Basso. Thankfully, Aging Room Cigar’s website IS up to date, as I had forgotten the story behind this cigar from the show, there was a lot of information given at once and the info on this one slipped through the ever-widening cracks. Oliveros All Stars is a collaboration between Rafael Nodal and Ernesto P. Carillo, it’s got a dark US grown broadleaf wrapper and Dominican fillers. The Basso is a 6″ x 54 toro (remember when Toros were 6″ x 50?) and they also have the Aria at 4½ x 48, the Fugue at 5½ x 52 and the Chord at 6½ x 52 Torpedo. The naming conventions are consistent with Rafael’s Music background. This is the sort of flavors I look for in a broadleaf cigar! It was dark and lush with the heavy espresso flavors I like, with some cocoa sweetness. It was a wonderful smoke. Collaborations are a funny thing in the cigar world, some say that the rarely work, I’ve had pretty good luck smoking collaborative efforts, but I think this one was a “win”. As an old friend came over for a while, I finished off the evening with a Last Call from AJ Fernandez, which seemed appropriate as it was getting late and was the last cigar of the day. Having just finished a fairly powerful cigar, I had low hopes for this cigar, it had some foot damage and looked bad in the humidor, so this was a perfect occasion to get rid of it in a humane way. About a quarter of the way in I couple really taste the wonderful flavors that this little cigar offers, and I was sad when it became too short to smoke any longer. I can’ wait to try the maduro version, although the Habano is fantastic.

Just Bitching…

Here’s a couple quick gripes about things I hear on podcasts that annoy me, stupid things, but things, and I’m naming names! On the Kiss My Ash podcast, they have a couple of commercials that bug me. First is a Joya de Nicaragua commercial that claims that the Quatro Cinco Reserva has tobacco from the Jalapeño valley, and I don’t know of a Jalapeño Valley in Nicaragua. Another is an ad that mentions what sounds to me like they are saying “Cigar Aprecianado” instead of Aficionado. may that one’s just me, my hearing isn’t great. I still love the KMA folks, it’s one of the podcasts I look forward to all week. The last one for today is from CigarDave‘s show last Saturday, where, in an attempt to be patriotic, he played one of the worst renditions of our nations national anthem I’ve ever heard. Admittedly, I’m a purist when it comes to the National Anthem, I don’t believe it should be embellished or artistically interpreted at all, just performed straight, as written. Nothing annoys me more than a performer adding his or her own spin to our nations anthem. That’s my opinion, I cringe when I hear poorly performed anthems, and that’s just the way it is. I was also in the car driving when I listened to CigarDave, and I didn’t feel like I need to stand, as what I was listening to was barely the piece of music that represents our nation. CigarDave, I’m deeply disappointed in that selection. Again, my opinion, I’m open to any criticism.

That’s about all I have for today, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as Aging Room, aj fernandez, Bobalu, cigar, cigars, EP Carillo, Nestor Miranda, Oliveros

by CigarCraig | August 30, 2015 · 6:58 am

Ora Vivo, La Aurora, Atabey, AJ Fernandez Enclave and New World Cigars

It’s been such a busy week, ran the 5K without dying, tried to cut off my thumb, colonoscopy, and a birthday, along with having our bathroom renovated and working on remodeling thee downstairs powder room. If only I didn’t have a 9-5 job taking up valuable time during the day! (I’m looking for a new job,mine’s going away in a few months, so careful what I wish for, right?). Anyway, I still managed to get some great cigars in starting with a Nica Rustica Belly after the 5K. I bought a bundle at the release party in Kentucky last month and the extra few weeks in the humidor has done well for them. I though maybe it was a bit wet in July, although it may have just been the cigars that handed out at the event. They seem to be ready now and was a great two-hour warm down after the run. Sunday afternoon I started the powder room project, and after getting some stuff done I took a walk with an Ora Vivo Armand Assante European edition, a generous gift from Kruk in New Hampshire. Kruk is probably a bigger fan of Victor Vitale‘s work than I am, and apparently bought many boxes of the European Edition when they became available. He very generously sent me a couple, and I did my best to compensate him with a few cigars. Anyway, the European edition comes in a Coronaish size, 5 ½” x 46ish, not too far off the 5½” x 48 Cedro No.5 size I like a lot. This cigar burned perfectly, it had a smooth, refined Nicaraguan flavor and was very elegant. This is a great cigar for any time of the day, but I can easily see sparking one up with a morning cuppa joe. I don’t have many negatives to say about this line in general, but this corona may be the best of the bunch.

Monday’s evening walk was accompanied by a new offering from La Aurora, a line extension to their Untamed line, the Extreme in a robusto. I really likes the Untamed, it was bold, had some strength, and was very satisfying. This Extreme takes it up a notch, with some more of the heavy, espresso and cocoa flavors and a kick. I would venture to guess that this also has a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper, with was beautifully dark and oily. It’s a powerhouse, and I can’t find a lot of info on it at this writing. I loved it, and I really liked the regular Untamed line as well. These may be my favorites in the La Aurora line (although the Preferidos are pretty good too…and the Puro Vintage…and the Corojo…).

I celebrated a successful colonoscopy with a special cigar, the Atabey Ritos, the newest size in the line, a 6 1/8″ x 55 cigar that has what appears to be a beautiful Connecticut shade wrapper. These are made in Costa Rica under the careful supervision of Nelson Alphonso, the man responsible for the Cuban Cohiba Behike packaging as well as the designer of the Padrón 50th anniversary humidor. This was a trade show sample from David Garofalo, who distributes the brand. It’s not a cheap date, MSRP is around $33, but it IS a spectacularly good smoke. It simply could not have burned better, the burn was straight with a flat ember and perfect draw. It had sweet woody, earthy notes and was quite the elegant cigar. Often times high-end cigars are lost on me, I really don’t have a sophisticated palate, but this was a great smoke.

I followed that up on Thursday with a new cigar from AJ Fernandez, the Enclave in a 5″ x 52 robusto size. This cigar has a Habano Rosado wrapper, Binder from Cameroon and fillers that are described as AJF Piloto Cubano and AJF Select Nicaraguan, which leads me to believe they were grown on the company’s own farms and are top-secret varieties. Is the Piloto Cubano Dominican? Don’t know, bit what I do know is that this was a stout, powerful cigar with great flavor. It was spicy and woody, and I really liked it. I think this is a winner, and AJ Fernandez has his share of winners in my book. I will certainly sample other sizes in this line, there is a Figurado that looks really cool.

Without even thinking on Friday I grabbed a New World by AJ Fernandez for my evening walk. This one was in the 5½” x 55 Navigante size. While this isn’t a new cigar, it’s a good one, maybe not quite as powerful as the Enclave, but a super tasty blend of tobaccos from Esteli, Condega, Jalapa and Ometepe in Nicaragua. this one had the coffee/chocolate flavors I really like in a cigar. I want to say I remember this, as well as the Enclave, being a collaboration between Abdel and his father Ismael, and there are certain similarities, chief being I really like both of them! The New World Connecticut is a winner in my book too, but that really doesn’t mean a lot considering I really enjoy most cigars from this factory. Abdel is a tobacco genius and is only in his thirties.

Saturday was my birthday (thanks in advance for any well wishes) and after a nice afternoon with my granddaughters and family, I picked one of my last three cigars I blended on my 2013 Cigar Safari trip. These had a San Andres wrapper, Cameroon binder, and fillers from Brazil and Esteli if I remember correctly. I thought it from the beginning, and it remains true, but there are just too many flavors going on in the blend, it’s very busy. That’s not to say I don’t like it a lot, and it always brings back memories of a great trip, as well as providing a relaxing celebratory smoke. I’m going away for a few days and packed some favorites to relax with, it will be nice getting away with no events or other things to do, it’s been a long time since we just went somewhere to be human beings instead of human doings.