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Asylum 13 Medulla Oblongata at the Humidour on the Hill

Yesterday I found myself in Cockeysville, Maryland so I stopped in the Humidour Cigar Shoppe on the Hill for a cigar or two. This is not my first visit, I was there six years ago and spent an afternoon there. As a matter of fact, last night when I got home, I smoked a Zorba corona that I had gotten there six years ago. They have three exclusive cigars that are made by Rocky Patel, the Zorba, the Zeus and the Bella Carmella. The Zorba was a nice smoke that kicked in nicely in the second half. Speaking of Zorba, the store recently rebranded their members lounge to the Zorba Lounge. I’m to deduce that “Zorba” is the nickname of the owner, Finnie Helmuth’s father, who apparently founded the shop. I managed a tour of the members lounge, which is very nice. First you need to know that the store is a large house, so the Zorba lounge is what might have been  the parlor or living room and dining room of the house, with the foyer leading upstairs to  a large room with the lockers and a wet bar area. Memberships include discounts and almost half the annual fee back in the form of a giftcard to the store as well as exclusive events. Like the public lounge, it’s very warm and inviting, like sitting in your living room, and some of us deny ourselves that luxury. I had hopes of smoking the Zeus I picked up while I wrote this over coffee this morning, but, alas, a weather induced migraine put the kibosh on that. I wondered about the Zeus, because SMōKE Manyunk had a Zeus cigar. It turns out that Chris Helmuth, one of the owners,  and Kosta (who owns SMōKE) are buddies and conspired together in some way to bring this to the Humidour. It looks good, which is why I bought it. I passed on the Bella Carmella because it’s a Connecticut Shade and I have plenty of those in the humidor that I never get around to smoking. So, if you happen to be in the Cockeysville, MD area, stop in Humidour Cigar Shoppe on the Hill, buy some cigars and hang out for a bit. If your local to the area, check out the members lounge! 

 

Before I move on to the cigars, the folks at The Humidour are involved with the Premium Cigar Retailers Association of Maryland, who fight against tax laws and whatever other ridiculous restrictions their governments try to throw at them to put them out of business. They are having an auction ending September 19 with bidding opening August 30th. It looks like they will have a lot of good stuff, so if you enjoy the excitement of auctions, and you like helping out good organizations, give this a look. Information can be found here.  

 

I was looking through the Humidour’s humidor, which is large and well stocked, and decided on the Asylum 13 Medulla and Oblongata Maduro in the 6″ x 60, as I hadn’t smoked any of those to date. I actually would have gotten the toro size, but they were out of one or the other of them, I think the Medulla. After smoking both, this makes perfect sense to me. Because of my borderline CDO (which welve established over and over is OCD in alphabetical order as is proper), I was compelled to smoke the Medulla first, because it’s Medulla Oblongata, not the other way around, right? The Medulla is round and the Oblongata is box pressed, both have the same blend, I believe they have a San Andrés wrapper around authentic Corojo fillers made in Honduras. I smoked them one after the other, and was a little surprised that the Medulla was much richer in flavor than the Oblongata. First, the flavor was unique, there was a flavor that reminded me of Australian licorice. This is deeper and richer than say, Twizzlers (mass market licorice). It was very different from other maduros I have smoked. I’ll definitely get some more of these. The box press seemed to lack the richness and density of smoke, perhaps whatever leaf the removed from the blend to press it was the key. I would have smoked the box press first based on preference, and if they were named opposite, I certainly would have. I wonder how I would have perceived the difference. I wonder if my palate was fatigued. Now I need to get more and smoke them separately. More experimentation is needed. I love cigar research! 

 

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

 

CigarCraig

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American Legion Cigar by Blanco, a Joya Red and an Asylum 13 Ogre or Two

Following the holiday weekend we’ve been busy around Casa CigarCraig.  I’ve still managed to smoke some great cigars along the way.  I picked out some reasonably new cigars to smoke and have enjoyed them.  Also, I received a copy of Prime Living magazine today from Houston which has, I’m proud to say, my first published cigar piece. You can see the digital version at Prime-Living.com, my article is on page 55 (which is page 57 in the digital version). I wanted to write an introduction to the world of premium cigars, I hope I was able to present a small part of what goes into making a cigar in laymen’s terms, in a way that non-cigar geeks can appreciate the wonders of the premium cigar.  I hope it goes over well!

 

American Legion_ToroSunday afternoon I picked out a cigar that David Blanco gave me at the Cigarnival last week, the American Legion toro.  Blanco Cigars makes this cigars, and the proceeds go to the American Legion, which both David Blanco and his father are members.  The American Legion is the nation’s largest wartime veterans service organization and focusses on service to veterans, service members and communities. A Habano Rosado Nicaraguan wrapper is very attractive, and the filler is a blend of Nicaraguan and Honduran tobacco. The cigar was very good, it had a nice, medium bodied sweet flavor which should have a broad appeal.  This was a great cigar to wrap up the Independence Day weekend!

 

Joya_Red_ToroTuesday evening I selected the new cigar from Joya de Nicaragua, the Joya Red.  Dr. Alejandro Martinez Cuenca, the owner of Joya de Nicaragua, handed me this cigar at Cigarnival, I believe they are due to be released at the upcoming IPCPR show in a couple weeks. The folks at Joya blended this Nicaraguan Puro to be a milder alternative to the more powerful Joya de Nicaragua blends, although I find that their Cabinetta, a personal favorite of mine, to be quite mild. The Red hasa a Nicaraguan Habano wrapper, and binder and fillers from Esteli, Condega and Jalapa. The cigar burned perfectly, and was another nice, sweet medium bodied smoke. This seems less refined than the milder Cabinetta, but it was well balanced and delicious. It has the terrific flavor of the Antaño lines, with a fraction of the strength. This is a great smoke for any time of day.

 

Asylum13_Ogre_5x50Monday evening (and there’s a reason I’m going out of order), my wife and I drove an hour and a half south to Bel Air, Maryland to meet our friends Jude and Rande for dinner.  They were visiting family in the Washington, DC area and this was mid way between us. We went to a nice place called Loonies Pub, which was a sports bar which had some great food. The crab nachos were really good, and I had an excellent fish and chips, a personal weakness. Of course it was a no smoking establishment, so I had a cigar on the drive home.  I smoked the same cigar again tonight, which brings the chronological order back where it should be!  I smoked the Asylum 13 Ogre in the new robusto size. I spoke with Tom Lazuka of Asylum Cigars at Cigarnival, and thanked him for making the Ogre in reasonable sizes, as I enjoyed the flavor of the original, but the 7″ x 70 size was not particularly comfortable for me to smoke.  The Ogre is a barber pole style cigar with a Habano wrapper over a candela wrapped cigar. I like the color combination of the green and brown, and the result is a smooth smoking cigar with the richness of the Habano juxtaposed with the refreshing flavor of the candela. While the example I smoked in the car seemed a little wet from being in the car in a leather case on a pretty humid day, it was still pretty tasty, although it turned a little funky in the last third. The one I smoked tonight was pretty spectacular. It burned perfectly and is a cigar I can see reaching for frequently. I want to pick some of these up in the 6″ x 60 size too, but this 5″ x 50 robusto is really a winner in my book, and no doubt my favorite cigar from Fabricas Unidas.

 

Even though I’m not going to the trade show this year, I have a good supply of new and interesting cigars to choose from over the next few weeks.  That’s it for now, until the next time,

 

CigarCraig

 

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Arandoza, Rosalones, Nica Puro and an Asylum 13 Ogre Cigar

Arandoza_Blue_RobustoI started out the second half of the week revisiting the Arandoza Blue Label Robusto from Arandoza Cigars.  This brand is made at Erik Espinoza’s La Zona factory in Esteli, it’s a Nicaraguan puro with a Nicaraguan Habano wrapper and Nicaraguan binder and fillers. I smoked some of these last year and enjoyed them quite a bit, as I enjoyed this one again. They’ve fancied up the bands on these, making them harder to get a good picture, but the cigar is a really nice, well balanced smoke, with a little sweetness.  Now that I’ve smoked a few cigars from La Zona, I’m quite confident that I’ll enjoy just about anything made there.  The Arandoza is a little known gem.

 

JdN_Rosalones_448Friday evening I got off to a late start, so I went for something on the smaller site for my evening walk.  The Rosalones from Joya de Nicaragua was a surprise find last year at Cigar Safari. None of the assembled bloggers I was with had heard of this, and we were told it was for the European market.  Not too long after that these showed up at Cigars International, which is where I picked up a few of these well priced, really tasty little cigars. The 448 is 4¾” x 48 and it’s another Nicaraguan puro. The wrapper is a Nicaraguan Habano Criollo and it’s a medium bodied little flavor bomb. Of course, as just about everything from JdN, it’s perfectly constructed. For a couple bucks a piece, these are really quite excellent cigars, and if you look back at some of my blogger brethren’s trip reports from last May, you’ll see that these were the talk of the trip. These are a bargain, and I’m not sure, but they may be a CI exclusive.

 

AlecBradley_Nica Puro_ToroSaturday was a pretty nice, spring day, although a bit breezy.  After getting some much needed  yard work done (it’s never really done, but I was done!), I picked out an Alec Bradley Nica Puro for my afternoon walk.  I’ve exclusively smoked the robustos in this line up until now, and it’s one of those cigars that I can grab and enjoy the heck out of on those occasions where I need a solid, no-nonsense cigar that I can just love and not have to think about much. A few weeks ago at the Filthy Hooligan event at Cigar Mojo I picked up some toros just to change it up a little.  Lucky for me, it’s the same great tasting smoke in a longer format.  Unfortunately for me, it was a bear to keep lit, for some reason. I’ve had this happen in the past when I’ve picked out the cigar about an hour prior to smoking, took my pictures (because I’m nutty that way) and put it in an aluminum tube for a little later. Ironically, I’ve also had burn problems when I’ve taken a slightly different route than I normally take. It’s hard for me to believe that the route has any effect, but I’ll abandon the tube for the Black Delrin Transporter Tube  in the future (check out the Indiegogo campaign and get behind this guy, these are really nice tubes! Time is running out.). I remain a fan of the Nica Puro. It gives me a satisfying smoking experience the majority of the time, and the flavor is yummy.

 

Asylum13_Ogre_7x70Today I decided to pull out all the stops. Last June, on the occasion of our second granddaughter’s birth, we happened upon Black Cat Cigar‘s shop on our way home from the hospital. I picked up the Asylum 13 Ogre there, it was fairly new on the market, and I figured I should smoke it some day anyway. It’s an absurdly large cigar, 7″x70, and is a barber pole wrap of Habano maduro and Candela. I really like the green and brown appearance of this, but it’s size kept it buried in the humidor until such a time as I could devote a few hours to it’s smoking. For those who don’t know, this is made at Fabricas Unidas, which is Christian Eiroa’s factory in Honduras.  I’m thankful that these are being released in more manageable 6″ x 60 and 5″ x 50 sizes, because I really enjoyed the flavors in this cigar. The Candela gives it a little bit of that refreshing flavor, and the maduro (the best I can tell, the candela is an over wrap on top of a completed maduro cigar) gives it the coffee/cocoa flavor I like. The draw was very free, and it actuallly burned a bit quicker than I anticipated.  Apart from a little bit of flaking of the delicate candela leaf, the burn was pretty even. I used my Xikar MTX scissors on this, because I don’t think any of my cutters would accommodate the ridiculous girth of this cigar. As I said, I’ll be on the look out for the robusto size in this line.  I really got a lot more flavor than I thought and it certainly isn’t a novelty cigar. (note: The websites for Asylum Cigars, Fabricas Unidas and CLE Cigars all return a message stating that they “encountered a fatal error” at the time of publication, perhaps Christian forgot to pay the bill? 🙂 )

 

I’d also like to take this opportunity to welcome Black Cat Cigars to the CigarCraig family of supporters. Click the link on the right sidebar and check out their Mayhem Deals. The first time I came across Black Cat was an evening long ago when we met a friend in Philly for dinner.  We stopped in the little shop on Sansom Street on our way to the Sam Adams Brew pub, where we ended up running into another couple friends and smoking cigars with them all night. Their new shop in East Norriton, PA is pretty nice, stop in if you find yourself in that area.

 

That’s it for today, back to enjoying a relaxing Spring Sunday. Until the next time,

 

CigarCraig

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My Father’s Day Esperanza para los Niños, a Trilogy of Cigar Stores and Some News!

esperanza_churchillWhen we left off I was enjoying Father’s Day with my kids and granddaughter.  After they went home I lit up the Esperanza para los Niños Churchill. This was my last Churchill, from a handful generously gifted to me by a friend who won a box in the mid ‘00s. A few of these examples had an odd burn problem around the three quarter mark, and a hint of ammonia, which was odd for a 10 (at the time) year old cigar. This one was perhaps the best example I’ve smoked in a long time.  It was rich and delicious and satisfying. This cigar was made Christian Eiroa at Rancho Jamastran in Honduras in 1999 to benefit the children that were orphaned by hurricane Mitch in 1998.  Do you know that he had trouble giving the proceeds of the sales to orphanages because the money came from tobacco?  Unbelievable. Anyway, he finally was able to put the funds to good use and get it through peoples heads that the kids needed food and clothes, not some moral judgements. Anyway, the good news is that where I thought I was left with two Esperanzas after this one, I actually have three!  There was another torpedo in the humidor that I didn’t know about! So for the next two Father’s Days I’ll smoke torpedos, then in 2016 I’ll smoke the toro from the box I purchased in 2000.

 

Monday rolled around and my daughter gave birth to our second granddaughter, another beautiful little girl who they named Calla Violet.  My wife and I kept our two year old granddaughter, Willow, overnight and know why we finished having kids when we were thirty!  I’m only speaking for myself, but I’m now too old to keep up with a two year old for very long!  Pop’s celebratory cigar would have to wait. Tuesday after visiting mom and baby in the afternoon, I managed to light up a Drew Estate Liga Privada Dirty Rat from 2009, before they released them commercially, which was dynamite.  Age may not really improve this cigar, but it didn’t hurt it too much, it was a tasty smoke.

Shops

While we were coming home from the hospital we noticed an odd shop in one of the strip malls along Germantown Pike in East Norriton, PA.  Then we passed the Black Cat Cigar Shop, then we saw SmoKings, all within about a one mile stretch.  Tuesday, after visiting momma and baby and surrendering granddaughter no.1 to her daddy, we stopped at these three shops.  The first was called Hillcrest Tobacco and Dollar Store, an unlikely combination!  Of course, we had to visit. This store was kind of a mess.  The majority of the store was typical Dollar Store junk, with various cabinet humidors lining one wall.  Saying that the stock could have been merchandised better is understating, but they did have a fairly large selection that was well priced and in good shape. This would be a fine place to grab a few sticks.  I picked up a pair of the new H. BlackCatUpmann Legacy robustos for $4.99.  Next we stopped at Black Cat, which is a very nice place. I last visited this store when it was in Philadelphia on Sansom Street in a little place that was packed solid with cigars and stuff.  This stand-alone store had a very nice lounge area and a large walk-in humidor. The selection was very good with a generous selection of boutiques.  I hate to admit it, but I walked out of there with an Asylum 13 Ogre, just because I figured I had to smoke one eventually and I couldn’t make myself purchase the 6 x 80 (even though it was cheaper!).  This is a nice place to stop in, buy some cigars and sit and enjoy one or two. Note: H. Upmann Legacy Robustos – $6.60. The last place we happened to notice right after Black Cat was SmoKingsSmoKings, located within 25 feet of a Starbucks, oddly enough! This is another little smokeshop with cabinets down one wall, reasonably neatly merchandised, although my CDO (that’s OCD in alphabetical order as it should be) would have me either alphabetize it or group it by manufacturer or something that made sense.  I did find some Cain F tubed lanceros for $6 and change that are awesome and scarce.  The young man at the counter was enthusiastic and beginning to sample cigars.  I cautioned him on the Cain F. Another nice place to stop to pick some sticks up. They actually had a SmoKings branded cigar that looked like it was either wrapped in a leaf instead of cello, or had the world’s ugliest wrapper. It was priced at $7.99 and the clerk didn’t know anything about it, so I passed. My wallet has moths flying out of it by this third stop on the Germantown Pike impromptu cigar crawl. H.Upmann Legacy Robusto – $5.75.  It was my first real foray up that particular road in Montgomery County, PA and I was surprised to find three shops with properly kept cigars in a one mile stretch, and of course I had to stop at them all and buy cigars, as if I needed more…

 

As you can tell, it’s been an exciting week!  I’ll leave you with this press release about the upcoming Cigarnival Event hosted by Famous Smoke Shop up the road from me in Easton, PA.

 

Famous Smoke Shop Hosts Cigarnival 2013 – The Nation’s Premier Cigar Event

Famous Smoke Shop is hosting their annual cigar festival, featuring leader cigar makers meeting with guests and distributing a wide variety of their premium cigars. Attendees will also enjoy gourmet food, live music, craft beer, wine, spirits, raffles, and a casino with prizes sponsored by Drew Estate.

 

Easton, pa – June 19, 2013 – Smoking premium cigars has become more popular than ever. It’s also one of ways men (and women) of all stripes can bond and share their affinity for, as cigar smokers call it, “the leaf.” For this reason alone, the Cigar Expo “Cigarnival,” held annually at Leaf Cigar Bar & Restaurant on the premises of Famous Smoke Shop in Easton, PA, is one of the most highly-anticipated cigar smoking events of the year for cigar smokers near and far. This year’s event will begin Friday, June 28th at 12:00 PM with a pre-vent party sponsored by Gurkha Cigars, and continue through Saturday, June 29th.

 

Most of the biggest names in the cigar industry will be represented including Alec Bradley, Altadis U.S.A., Arturo Fuente, Davidoff, Drew Estate, General Cigar, Oliva, Perdomo, Rocky Patel, Tatuaje, Carlos Toraño, Xikar, and over 25 more vendors. Cigarnival guests will get to meet their makers up-close and personal while rubbing elbows with 400 other cigar enthusiasts. Shuttle service will also be provided to take guests to and from their hotels to the event.

 

“This year’s theme is music,” said Leaf COO, Jeff Brown. “Performances by a variety of bands will run continuously throughout the day and night. Plus, our award-winning restaurant staff will be preparing gourmet dinners for each night, including a grandiose lunch buffet for Saturday afternoon. People can see the entire menu on the Cigarnival website.”

 

Guests will also have a wide choice of libations which include a number of craft brews from Founders, Troegs, Goose-Island, Yuengling, and others, as well as plenty of water and soft drinks. Additionally, Miami Cigar & Co. will be sponsoring the “Hooch Hut” where guests can sample a special selection of wines, spirits, and more.

 

Friday morning, registered guests will play in the 6th Annual Camacho Golf Outing at Whitetail Golf Club in Bath, PA. Golf carts, drinks, a buffet, and Camacho cigars are all included. Prizes for closest to the pin and the longest drive will be awarded, and anyone scoring a hole-in-one will win a trip for two to Camp Camacho in Honduras.

 

Friday night, Alec Bradley Cigars will host the after party, while Saturday night Perdomo Cigars will close the show with a 20th Anniversary party. Also returning to the main event will be The Drew Estate Casino. Depending on the number of chips they’ve accumulated, players can claim any number of prizes from Drew Estate swag to cigars, including a year’s worth of cigars, or Drew Estate’s Cigar Safari in Nicaragua. Thousands of dollars in raffle prizes will be also given away, plus deals on just about every brand in The Humidor at Leaf Retail Store, and much, much more. For a complete listing of event festivities, visit http://www.cigarnival.com/festivities.cfm.

 

“We’ve been putting on this event for a while now, and I always look forward to the thank you emails we get every year from so many of our attendees,” said Brown. “For some reason, I have a good feeling that this year my inbox is going to be overflowing.”

 

For more information call 610-559-8800 or visit www.cigarnival.com

 

CIGARNIVAL 2013

Friday, June 28 & Saturday June 29, 2013

Leaf Cigar Bar & Restaurant at Famous Smoke Shop

90 Mort Drive, Easton, PA 18040

Information: 610-559-8800

www.cigarnival.com

 

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

 

CigarCraig (or “Pop” in some circles!)

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An Asylum, a Gurkha, a LegendArio and Some News

We’ve had some unseasonable weather, so I figured I could sneak some larger vitolas in this week.  It’s funny how we adapt to the weather.  Not long ago when the temps were in the 30s I’d be bundled up and freezing.  After a few weeks of really cold weather, a Sunday in the high 30s found me without my gloves, enjoying a 6×60 while walking the dog.  It’s in the 50s today, although it’s raining.

 

Sunday afternoon I grabbed an Asylum 13 Sixty, which is a 6″x 60 cigar made by Christian Eiroa in the Nicaragua American Cigars, S.A. (NACSA) factory. I picked this up the last time I visited Light’n Up Premier Smoke Shop a few Sundays ago, I think it was in the $6 range.  This was a well made cigar of medium strength with a good draw and pleasant flavor.  It really didn’t stand out, but there certainly wasn’t anything negative I can say about it.  It was a nice day and a pleasing smoke while the dog and I walked around the neighborhood.  I ended up nubbing it and wasn’t dissapointed. Worth trying, I think.

 

Monday evening was getting a little warmer so I pulled a Gurkha Royal Challenge out of the samples I got at the IPCPR show. This is a nice looking Connecticut shade wrapped cigar, but as I started taking bands off of it, some of the very thin, fragile wrapper was stuck to the bands and tore a little. Obviously, this did not bode well.  I figure the binder should carry most of the structural burden on a cigar, so it should be smokable with a bit of the wrapper missing.  Of course, I struggled with the burn on this cigar, as well as a large stem running nearly the length of the cigar.  While I really enjoyed the mild and mellow flavors of this cigar, it truly was a Royal Challenge to smoke.  Chalk it up to one bad experience, it happens.  It’s a cigar I’d smoke again because it was a very flavorful Connecticut wrapped cigar that had a lot going for it flavor-wise and I can’t imagine the construction problem I had was the norm.

 

Tuesday I grabbed another large cigar, a LegendArio Bertha from Camacho.  this line has been out for quite a while and this is the first time I’ve smoked one.  I purchased a couple at a Camacho event at International Tobacco in the King of Prussia Mall a while ago and decided it was time.  With a Mexican maduro wrapper I figured it couldn’t go wrong.  I was right, and it was a very nice smoke.  I liked it.  I’d like it better in a robusto, maybe.  Perhaps the burn wasn’t as straight as it could have been, but it didn’t give me too much trouble and I smoked it until it was time for the Flyers game (which didn’t end as well as the cigar did!).  This is a cigar that I wouldn’t mind having more of, and at around $5 for this cigar, it’s a winner.  You know I’m a sucker for the Mexican maduro wrapper.

 

News

For those of you who like to win free cigars, check out the Super Bowl Squares game going on at StogieBoys.com.  There are a few squares left so get on over and sign up.

Also, the same folks at StogieBoys.com have some other news related to this weekend’s big game:

StogieBoys.com, the nation’s fastest growing online retailer, along with Thurman Thomas Cigars, announced this week its sponsorship of the 4th annual Jaws’ Cigar Party at Vieux Bourbon in New Orleans. The party is to be hosted by Ron Jaworski, ESPN NFL analyst.

StogieBoys.com will be the exclusive cigar retailer sponsor at Jaws’ cigar party and will feature NFL Hall of Fame Running Back Thurman Thomas brand cigars. Mr. Thomas entered into a recent relationship with StogieBoys.com to create and distribute his own premium cigar brand.

The Press release is here.

In other news, Albany, NY’s PipesandCigars.com had some folks visit the Davidoff factory in the Dominican Republic recently.  The press release can be found here.  It sounds like they had a very educational trip!

As I’m sure you have read elsewhere, the gigantic Cigar that Grand Habano displayed in their booth at the New Orleans IPCPR show a few years ago sold recently for $185,000, marked down from $200,000.  They claimed it was smokable, and had a contraption with a mess of hoses to affix to the head of the cigar so a whole mess of people could smoke it.  The story is here.

Lastly, CigarFest Tickets go on sale Saturday for approximately 5 minutes if you pre-registered and are quick on the draw or camp out at one of their stores overnight!

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

 

CigarCraig

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