Tag Archives: Berger & Argenti

by | March 21, 2012 · 8:59 pm

A Tortuga, a Berger and Argenti, a Little Rant and a Macanudo

Sunday afternoon I grabbed a Tortuga 1948 Connecticut Torpedo that Victor Vitale had sent me a couple months ago.  This is a 6½ x 52 torpedo with a flawless Connecticut shade wrapper rolled in the Dominican Republic.  This might have been one of the best shade wrapped cigars I’ve smoked.  There’s a trend toward stronger blends with an Ecuador wrapper, and it’s becoming a little cliche, in my opinion,  that everyone states that theirs is not like the rest of the mild Connecticut cigars out there.  Anyway, I don’t have anything against the cigars, I always enjoyed the flavor of a nice Connecticut wrapper, USA, Ecuador or whatever.  The Tortuga is an extremely smooth and flavorful cigar.  I had trouble putting it down and smoked it to about a half an inch nub, burned my fingers, it was that good. After smoking the 1950 Maduro, and this 1948 Connecticut, I can’t wait to smoke the  Edicion Limitada.

 

Monday night I lit up a Berger and Argenti Entubar v32 Rogue Rothschild.  I’ve enjoyed many of the cigars in the Berger and Argenti line, so I had an expectation that I’d like this one too.  I was expecting a super strong cigar, but this one wasn’t, it was very much a medium bodies cigar with a great flavor.  This 5 5/8″ x 54 cigar has the same little tube of ligero protruding from the foot that the regular Entubar line has, and the same warning band cautioning you to toast the entire foot, not just the ligero part.  It’s also a good idea to remove that band before lighting, which I almost forgot to do.  It’s a fun cigar to smoke, and tasty and well behaved.  I have a couple of the Khilla Korona size that Al Argenti sent me to try to, I’m sure they will be just as good.

 

The Rant

I had to take a little detour on the way home from work tonight and it took me past a cigar shop that I don’t get to very often. My wife had instructed me not to stop in but I defied her instructions and stopped in to see if they had the new Ortega line. This shop is a “premier” smoke shop, and is supposed to be the flagship store of the five store chain. I asked the young guy if they had the new Ortega line and he said “oh yeah, the Omar Ortega is over here” and I said ” no, that’s Omar Ortez. I’m looking for Ortega, you know, Eddie Ortega? 601? Murcielago?”.  Blank stare.  I say “they are distributed by Rocky Patel”. He says “the only Rocky Patel we have is the Edge, right here”. I thanked him and left. OK, I know I’m a cigar geek, and probably know more than the average person about cigars, but don’t you think if you worked in a cigar shop you’d keep up on what’s going on in the industry? It’s just hard for me to wrap my head around! I guess the owner doesn’t really worry about the new stuff and this is one of the reasons I don’t go to this shop too often. The moral of the story is that I should have listened to my wife!

 

Tonight I smoked the new 6″ x 60 size of the regular Macanudo Cafe line.  I was pretty impressed with the flavor of this classic Connecticut cigar.  I’ve smoked dozens of this cigar in various sizes and I forgot that they aren’t necessarily the bland, tasteless cigar everyone thinks they are.  Smooth and flavorful, if you like that sort of thing, I guess!  The first premium cigar I ever smoked was a Macanudo and I was underwhelmed, but I’ve come to appreciate the flavors of a really broad range of cigars.

 

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

CigarCraig

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by | January 1, 2012 · 10:02 am

Happy New Cigar Year! A Macanudo, an Emilio and a Gurkha

Welcome to 2012 on CigarCraig.com!  I can’t imagine that this year can be better than last year for me cigar-wise, but I’ll do my best to at least come close.  2011 saw trips to Nicaragua and The Dominican Republic, as well as a trip to the IPCPR show in Las Vegas.  I made a lot of new friends in the industry, including a bunch of fellow blogger types.  We culminated the year with a huge series of contests that broke all kinds of records here.  Thank you all for a great 2011!  Looking forward to seeing what the new year brings.

 

While I’ve had the week off this past week I’ve had a few occasions for a cigar, but I’ll just mention the notable ones.  Most of them were good, most of them I’d smoked before and don’t want to be repetitive.  I kinda wanted to take the week off from what passes as reviews around here after the rigors of posting 14 days in a row! Here’s a couple cigars that were notable, at least to me.  First I had a Macanudo 1968 Robusto on Christmas Day, with my brother-in-law, who is finding that he enjoys good cigars.  I set him up with a little travel humidor for Christmas and he seems to be getting a lot of use out of it.  The 1968 was from a box that I brought back form my General Cigar visit. I’ve smoked a bunch of these over the past few years and I’m still surprised by how strong they are.  The Macanudo name on the band always fools me.  It was a notable cigar as much for the company and occasion as anything else, but I do enjoy the 1968 line quite a bit.

 

Friday I paid a visit to my local shop, JM Cigars in Exton.  I met an old friend, Bruce, there for a smoke and to catch up. I had hope a few more friends would stop by, but was more than happy to while away the afternoon with Bruce and a Emilio AF2 BMF.  I picked up a couple of these 6″ x 58 monsters because I hadn’t had the AF2 in this size, and I really liked the AF1 in the same vitola. These were very reasonably priced and I thoroughly enjoyed this cigar for 1½ to almost 2 hours. Loads of flavor and well made.  I was really glad to see these in JM’s and wouldn’t have even thought to look if my wife hadn’t spied an empty box by the door on our last visit.

 

Saturday I took an uncustomary early walk so I selected a Gurkha Cellar Reserve Churchill, which came last month in a truly unexpected package from the manufacturer.  This cigar boasts 15 year aged tobaccos and is a stunning cigar.  I wonder why a 7″ x 54 feels so much more massive than a 6″ x 58 or 60? Does length play that much of a roll in our perception? Maybe….anyway, this was a nice enough cigar for a pre-lunch smoke, looking forward to seeing how some humidor time treats these, even though they have 15 years age on some of the leaf. I’m also not a huge Criollo wrapper fan, but this one was pretty good..  Not overpowering, enough flavor to maintain interest, and a perfect burn.  Many thanks to Oliver at Beach CIgar Group for thinking of me.

 

I had another Berger and Argenti Mooch Loll Maduro this week which was really tasty too!  I love this line.   Also, Santa brought me a new video camera and an IPod Touch which have already been used for some of the pictures on this page, and will simplify things for me here and there.

 

That about wraps it up for today. Enjoy the holiday, watch the Winter Classic tomorrow and I hope 2012 can be even better thank 2011 was!

 

CigarCraig

 

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by | October 2, 2011 · 5:18 pm

October Is Here: Berger & Argenti, Chateau Real and Macanudo Contest Winners!

It’s autumn here in south-east PA, and the evenings are getting shorter.  This time of year I tend to gravitate toward maduro cigars more, not sure why that is, I just do.  I have my winter stock of smaller, maduro cigars in half of a box of Chateau Real Small Clubs and three quarters of a box of Hoyo de Monterrey Sabrosos all ready for the cold winter walks.  I have a severe dislike for fall and winter, so next spring can’t come soon enough.

 

Earlier this week I had a yen for a Berger & Argenti cigar, so I grabbed a Classico Belicoso that I received at the IPCPR show.  This one wasn’t quite as tasty as the Mooch Schnorr, but it was still very nice, and for some reason the 5¾” x 50 belicoso shape felt very elegant in the hand.  I know, that sounds a little un-manly, but it’s seemed like it would feel just right while wearing a tuxedo, and what’s more man;y than a tux.  I don’t know where that while line of thought came from, but it did, and there it is.  As I said, this was a very tasty smoke and burned nicely.  I have enjoyed the heck out of the recent samplings from Berger & Argenti.  I’ve still got some Mooch maduros and Entubar Quad Maduros to look forward to.  The Entubar is a very good candidate for my annual Halloween cigar.

 

Friday evening I just wanted something good and familiar, that I wouldn’t have to think about much, so I grabbed a Chateau Real Maduro Gran Cru Perfecto from my dwindling supply.  I love the Mexican maduro wrapper on this cigar. I don’t think they are making the Chateau Real in maduro any more which is a shame, I guess I didn’t buy enough of them to keep them in production.  It’s a nice, medium cigar that always hits me right, always draws well and burns straight, and I will be sad when these are gone!  Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love the Claro version of this cigar, but it’s quite a bit different with the maduro wrapper.   Thinking about it makes me want another!  Will power….

 

I need to select a pair of winners.  The Macanudo Millionaire contest closed last week, so I hope everyone got their entries in.  These Macanudo four packs are quite unique in that the cigars are all 6 x 60 versions of  the regular line, the maduro, the 1968 and the Crü Royale.  So, the winners, as selected at random using the random number generator at Random.org.  The numbers generated were 1 and 6, which correspond to kekoa kai and Kyle!  Congrats gentlemen!  Make sure you get in touch with me with your contact info so I can send out your prize!

 

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

CigarCraig

 

 

 

 

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by | September 21, 2011 · 8:38 pm

Cigars So Far: Kristoff and CAO, A Schnorr, and Some 7-20-4s

I forgot to make mention of the cigars I smoked at the Delaware Cigar Festival. As I said, the format was that cigars were for sale at the vendors tables. $3.00 per cigar, with 100% of the proceeds going to charity, which was the family of a local police officer recently killed in the line of duty. I purchased a handful of cigars, some I wanted to try and some favorites I don’t see very often. Obviously, in most cases $3.00 each is an excellent deal for a lot of the cigars that were offered. I started with a Kristoff Corojo and I regret not getting a second one of these. Very nice cigar and a nice way to start the day. I also smoked a CAO OSA Sol Lot 50 that, while not as good as the first one I smoked, was very nice. Buy the time I picked up the OSA it had been out on a table most of the afternoon, not right out of a humidor. No worries as I did get another one of these. When I buy singles I like to buy in pairs for some reason. I also picked up some Murcielagos from Eddie Ortega as well as a bunch of other assorted goodies.

 

Sunday I closed out the weekend with a Berger & Argenti Mooch Schnorr which was a sample from the IPCPR show. I love the name of this, even though it’s a little redundant. For those who don’t know “Schnorr” is a Yiddish term for a mooch. I know this because I have a good friend who refers to another friend as such, and it cracks me up. So while I was at the show in July, having a Cuban coffee with Kiki Berger in his booth, he made sure I had some samples. In my limited experience at the IPCPR shows, Cuban Crafters has always been very generous with samples, however, a great many over the years have not been to my liking. This led me to avoid Cuban Crafters over the years, and it wasn’t until spending an excellent evening in Esteli with Mr. Berger that I re-thought that position. I’ve since enjoyed several other cigars that carry the Berger name. The Mooch Schnorr was really a very tasty cigar, I enjoyed it quite a bit. I would even go so far as to say it was the best cigar all week. It was smooth and flavorful and perfectly built. The sample I grabbed did have a small crack just below the cap line which gave me a few problems initially, until I patched it with part of the cap, which solved the problem completely. I smoked this down to a finger burning nub, and was sorry to see it end. The Schnorr is a nice size (robusto) and a tasty, well balanced blend. I can’t wait to dig into the rest of the samples from the show. I have some maduros and some more of the Entubar line to try.

 

By the time I was ready to sit down and enjoy a cigar on Monday it was getting fairly late. I was rooting through the humidor looking for something small and settled on the 7-20-4 Dogwalker that Kurt Kendal gave me when I met him at the 2010 IPCPR show. Don’t know why it took so long to get around to this one, it jsut did, what can I say.  The Dog Walker is a handsome little cigar, 4¼” x 40, with the same straight “pigtail” as the rest of the line.  It was definitely full flavored and may have been on the verge of being strong,  I enjoyed it quite a bit and it lasted close to 45 minutes before I put it down to go in for the night.  I don’t have a dog to walk, but my cat, Frank, hung out with my on the porch while I smoked it.  Nice little cigar and Kurt is a nice guy.

 

I visited Kurt at this years show and he gave me his 7-20-4 1874  blend to try.   While the regular line is made in Honduras, the 1874 is made in Nicaragua, with a lovely Nicaraguan wrapper.  This one had a very open draw, so I smoked it slowly.  It was a really nice smoke, I think it was a little bit milder than the Dog Walker, but had a more balanced flavor.  There was a taste in there that I really liked, can’t place it, but it was good. The sample I smoked was a robusto and I would happily smoke it again.  Nice job on this line extension.

 

As long as I’m ending on a 7-20-4 thing, here’s a little video Kurt took with me at the show.  Standard disclaimer applies: Don’t forget to turn down your PC speakers after watching so you don’t blow your speakers on the next Windows Error chime (or whatever weird sounds Macs make)!

 

 

That’s it for now, don’t forget to go to my previous post and enter the current contest!  Until the next time,

CigarCraig

 

 

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by | August 14, 2011 · 8:47 am

Sunday Cigar Recap: Joya de Nicaragua, Brick House, Berger & Argenti, Broadway and a Contest Winner!

Here’s a few cigars I smoked this week:

Joya de Nicaragua Cabinetta Robusto – I just love these cigars.  I loved them before I watched them being rolled in the factory, and I love them more every time I smoke one.  Such a good cigar.  Well balanced, great tasting and beautifully constructed.  To me they are special because I watched them rolled in Nicaragua, and they are reasonably priced (which is astounding considering the extra steps taken in the rolling process), and suite my taste buds.  If you haven’t tried these, you should.  I will purchase a box of the lanceros at some point, it’s just a matter of time…

 

Brick House Mighty Mighty 6¼” x 60   – For some reason I’ve been in the mood for large cigars, and this was a big one. This line has been around a while and received glowing reviews and is another reasonably priced cigar.  I picked this one up on my Father’s Day cigar run.  Very nicely made with rich flavors.  A most enjoyable 90 minute vacation in a cigar.  This line received an award from Cigar Journal magazine for the best value Nicaraguan cigar last month at the IPCPR show, an event which I was fortunate enough to attend.  This is made by the folks at J.C.Newman in Nicaragua based on one of the company’s first brands in the US. Again, a very nice cigar for a fair price.

 

Berger and Argenti Entubar Double Corona (7 5/8” x 54)  – Another large cigar, this one carrying a warning band at the foot advising to toast the entire foot, not just the protuberance of ligero, under penalty of death.  I was tempted to ignore this sage advise, but having spoken to both Kiki Berger (who gave me this sample) and Al Argenti at the show, I decided not to risk it and did as instructed.  There is something to be said for the entubado method of construction as the burn and draw were spectacular on this cigar.  It tasted good too, the Ecuadorian ‘Desflorado’ Connecticut wrapper, which seems to be all the rage these days, was very nice (I believe “Desflorado” means “deflowered”, and I was under the impression that all of the tobacco plants except for the absolute healthiest and strongest specimens have the flowers removed, so I’m not sure what this means in the description, but it is a cool sounding word!).

 

Broadway by La Aurora – I picked this up last March on a family trip to NYC at De La Concha. This is a cigar that La Aurora made specifically to help New York tobacconists survive after the 75% Tax on cigars was put into place. I picked up similar themed cigars from Alec Bradley and Gurkha while I was there. This is a nice cigar that starts out with a little kick. It’s a 5¾ x 54 with a unique double wrapper of Ecuador Sumatra and Nicaraguan, with Dominican Corojo binder and Dominican, Nicaraguan and Peruvian fillers. Mine burned fairly well, although my son, who smoked one with me, had some trouble with the burn on his. We may need to check his humidor, I can imagine with a double wrapper, the right humidity is going to be the key to a good burn with this. I’m trying to figure out how they manage to reduce the manufacturing cost of this cigar for sale in New York, but use two wrappers. It seems counter-intuitive, but I suppose it works, because the cigar is pretty tasty.

 

Here is a quick video of Kiki Berger from Cuban Crafters at last month’s IPCPR show. I’ll take this opportunity to thank Don Kiki again for taking the time to talk to me, hooking me up with a Cuban coffee and some samples, and giving me this spiffy new Perfect Cut cutter. I’ve been using this a lot in the last few weeks and I like it a lot. Unlike similar cutters that I like a lot, this one has a resin (plastic) body that is very light in the pocket. My other favorite cutter is all stainless steel and quite heavy. This one does a great job, has a cool hole in the back so you can cut a torpedo and doesn’t drag your trousers to the ground!

 

In the News

Here are a few interesting links I came across this week, the first is about an old brand that was made up the road from me in Reading, PA. The second one isn’t really cigar related, but is a cool article about a Beatles themed bar in Havana.

http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=325430#.TkPxXgeipfs.email

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/08/world/americas/08havana.html?_r=3

 

Also, many thanks to our local newspaper, the Daily Local News for including this site on their Blogtown page and featuring it on the front page of their site yesterday!

 

Contest!

I need to select a winner of my General Cigars prize pack.  As you can see, the prize pack has doubled since I announced it a week ago, thanks to Victoria at General Cigars for sending along some more goodies.  Be sure to get on over to http://www.macanudomillionaire.com and enter to win a trip to Vegas and a chance to win a million bucks.  We had 17 entries, with one being disqualified since he won in the last 6 months.  So I entered  16 into the random number generator and it spit out the number 11 which corresponds to Paul.  Please drop me an e-mail with your address so I can get this out to you!  I hate to have to work too hard to give stuff away, so get your contact info to me with me having to chase you down! 🙂

 

That’s all I have for now, and I think we can all agree that it was enough…so until the next time,

CigarCraig

 

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