Tag Archives: Espinosa

by Craig Vanderslice | October 13, 2024 · 10:01 am

Sweet Jane, Murcielago and Alec Bradley Filthy Ghooligan Cigars

As October moves along, we get closer to Halloween (and eventually winter, ugh), so I figured I’d string together a few cigars following that theme. I’m omitting the obvious, mostly because I haven’t gotten out and found any yet, but there are other options. It brings up the question: do we really need holiday themed cigars? No, of course not, but it gives the marketing guys something to do. Drew Estate recently added the Sweet Jane Dia de los Muerto cigar to the very popular Deadwood line. It’s a 6″ x 50 box-pressed toro, with a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper with binder and fillers from Nicaragua (although some sources say “undisclosed”, we are pretty sure there’s some tobaccos more usually associated with pipe tobacco). This has a sweet cap, and is aromatic. There are some baking spices, some cocoa, and it’s a nice change of pace. The sample I picked up locally, and at $12 I only grabbed one to try, ended up with a tunnel about half way in, but it eventually worked itself out. This is frustrating with any cigar, but more so as the price goes up. A $12 cigar should always burn right. I do enjoy the Deadwood line once in a while, and I see the appeal to the occasional smoker.

My local TAA shop had the Espinosa Murcielago de Oro TAA 2023 in stock, so I grabbed one of those on my last visit. I’ve been a fan of the Murcielago line going back to 2011 or so, when it was still Espinosa and Ortega (EO Brands). I miss Eddie Ortega, I need to see what he’s up to. It’s not meant to be Halloween themed, but I figured the bat thing would fit in here. The original has a San Andrés wrapper, This one, and the name gives it away a little, has a shade wrapper. I thought it seemed darker than usual, but that’s OK. It’s presented in a 6″ x 54 oval-pressed toro format, made at A.J. Fernandez’ San Lotano factory. This was a bold cigar, not as mild as one might think. I liked it, but it sorta seemed like a strong cigar with a shade wrapper, maybe some Cafe con Leche flavors? Nice cigar, probably another cigar that’s near $12, I think I’ll stick with the maduro version. I’ll have to stop back in and see what other TAA cigars they have that I haven’t tried.

Finally, Alec Bradley has added a cigar to their holiday offerings. They have had success with the Filthy Hooligan, which started out in 2012 as a Candela cigar (I still have one someplace), and morphed into a Candela/Jalapa barber pole with Honduran and Panamanian fillers, a Sumatra binder. Then they added the Shamrock, with Honduran Candela, Habano and Habano Maduro triple wrap. This year they decided to jump on the Halloween bandwagon with the Filthy Ghooligan. These are all in the Alec Bradley Black Market family and are limited releases. First, I think it’s silly. I get the play on words, but Ghoul is spelled with a U, and while the band is cute, it pushes “Marketing to children” to the line a bit. I know this isn’t the case, but I’m more of a traditionalist. That being said, I don’t mind a Barber Pole style cigar. This one has Ecuadorian Habano and US Broadleaf wrappers, making a nice light vs. dark brown spiral. It has Indonesian Besuki binder and Nicaraguan Jalapa,Estelí, and Condega fillers alongside Dominican Piloto. It smoked well, has a decent flavor, some leather and dark chocolate with some spice. I did smoke a Shamrock later in the day and I can see the family resemblance. The Candela makes the shamrock a little brighter in flavor. I do. find myself wanting to smoke more maduros in the fall, so I suppose this is a good choice. Overall, not a bad smoke

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

CigarCraig

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Tagged as Alec Bradley, Black Market, cigar, cigars, De Oro, Deadwood, Dia de los Muertos, Espinosa, Filthy Ghooligan, Murcielago, Sweet Jane, TAA

by Craig Vanderslice | March 17, 2024 · 10:33 am

Knuckle Sandwich, Julius Caeser, Postanie and Aganorsa Cigars

I smoked a good variety of cigars this week, the next couple weeks will probably be featuring some retailer exclusive cigars, so I figured I’d mix it up. I had picked up the Knuckle Sandwich 56 Maduro on a recent visit to the Wooden Indian, it was on the high side of what I like to spend, but I wanted to try it. This cigar is made by Espinosa, at the A.J.Fernandez’ San Lotano factory, for Guy Fieri’s 56th birthday. Obviously, it has a 56 ring gauge, and looks to be made using the San Lotano Oval molds. I like a 6″ x 56, and I liked the Oval shape. It has a San Andrés wrapper and Nicaraguan binder and fillers. Can anyone tell me why the word “Sandwich” sounds like “Sangwich” when persons of Cuban descent say it? I went through a phase of smoking cigars with the ring gauge of my age for a while, now that I’m 60 I’m over that. I loved this cigar, which is a shame because it’s limited and expensive. It started with a nice spice over cocoa, and mellowed into a chocolaty treat, with a hint of the spice. I dug it, even though when I met Guy at the PCA show a few years ago he really could have cared less and my request for Erik Espinosa to get in the picture with us was ignored. I don’t get starstruck and fawn over celebs, some of them don’t like that. Anyway, I don’t regret the purchase at all, it wa sa really good smoke, probably the best I had all week. It was my Pi Day treat.

We are in the midst of a string of March holidays, so on Friday I was compelled to smoke a Diamond Crown Julius Caeser Toro. We all know that March 15 marks the day that Julius Caesar was assassinated in 44 BC. We know the exact date because he invented the calendar we use. He instituted that just a year before his death. Anyway, he was a heck of an Emperor, but I guess his friends thought he was a dick, so they stabbed him. I may be oversimplifying things a little. A few millennia later some Hungarian folks named their son after him, and US immigration screwed up the spelling on his paperwork and Julius Caeser Newman started a cigar company that makes some great cigars. The Diamond Crown Julius Caeser is made at Tabacalera A. Fuente, has an Ecuador Havana wrapper, Dominican binder and Caribbean and Central American fillers. They could just say Dominican, Nicaraguan and/or Honduran fillers, but they can be vague if they want. I enjoy Diamond Crown cigars, from the mild Diamond Crown, to the bolder Maximus and Black Diamond, and this falls in between. I find the flavor to be largely sweet wood, which is a nice change of pace for me. I like this cigar a lot, I remember smoking one of these a long time ago with a shop owner who has since passed, before a big celebrity cigar launch dinner. It didn’t give me any stabbing back pain either.

Saturday ended up being a Connecticut Shade day, which isn’t normal for me, but I had a couple shade cigars I hadn’t smoked yet, so I figured I’d give them a go. The first one I have smoked, but there’s a new size launching at the PCA show that I had a chance to smoke. It was the Powstanie Connecticut Justice, a 5½ x 46 Corona Gorda which Mike Szczepankiewicz blended nine years ago for the birth of his son. This is made at the Nica Sueño factory like the rest of the Powstanie cigars. I really like the Robusto that Mitch shared with me late last year. This shape seemed different, it didn’t have the character that the larger ring had, although I still found it to be exceptional. This was a really good shade cigar with some body, which I think must come from the PA Broadleaf binder in large part. For someone who doesn’t gravitate to shade wrapped cigars, this is a really good one, and worth a shot, but I don’t even think it’s due to be released until next month, some additional age won’t hurt this one. If you come across any Postanie cigars, try them, they are all really quite good.

Finally, I smoked an Aganorsa La Validacion Connecticut Robusto that I got at the Wooden Indian a few weeks ago when Fabien and Mike King were there doing an event. Aganorsa is a brand I struggle to find a favorite in. There’s a few I like, and some I don’t, and I can’t seem to remember which is what. So I buy them and smoke them and enjoy them or not and start the cycle over again. I don’t care for Criollo ’99 too much, so that probably has something to do with it. I think this series is one I like, and I definitely liked this Connecticut. It was medium bodied, nutty with some wood and spice and really a nice cigar. I’m going to remember that I really like the La Validacion line (I just went back and checked and I did like the Maduro and Corojo!).

Today is Green Cigar Day, or as some call it, St. Patrick’s Day, so pick out a nice Candela and drive the snakes out of your country! Why have none of these companies made a Candela Culebra in honor of St. Patrick driving the snakes from Ireland? Because it would suck and it wouldn’t sell, that’s why. I’ll suggest it to Saka. I mentioned him making a Candela Lancero on my last Podcast episode with him and he poopoo’d it, now he’s making a lancero box featuring the candela. I’d write more today but I used a lot of letters on Mike Szczepankiewicz name. Anyway, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as 56, Aganorsa, Aganorsa Leaf, cigar, cigars, Diamond Crown, Espinosa, Guy Fieri, Julius Caeser, Justice, Knuckle Sandwich, La Validacion, La Zona, Powstanie

by Craig Vanderslice | June 25, 2023 · 9:18 am

Smoking Through The Twisted Tasting Kit From Fox Cigars

Yes, Fox Cigar advertises on this site, but I purchased the Twisted Tasting Kit from them unsolicited, kinda for five reasons. I really like the Araposa Negra, and never mind having one more in the humidor (I’m smoking one now as I type! It’s absolutely delicious!), and I was quite curious to try the other four cigars. I started with the Araposa Blanca, a Fox exclusive made by Black Label Trading Co.. This is the Ecuador Connecticut answer to the Negra, and one thing BLTC does exceptionally well is make aesthetically appealing barber pole cigars. Another thing they do exceptionally well is make great tasting cigars, and this is a great tasting cigar. We know that shade cigars are low on my preference list, but this one was really, really good. It had a wonderful roundness to the flavor, if that makes any sense, it was full flavored without being overpowering, delicious without too much spice, it was very good. I may need to put more of these in the humidor, and I might need to sample Black Label’s other shade offerings.

In addition to the two Fox BLTC exclusives in the Twisted sampler, the other three were new cigars in the Altadis USA line up presented in a barber pole format. Historically I have not gravitated toward a lot of the Altadis cigar that are not made by A.J. Fernandez. I have a relatively open mind, although I’ll admit there are some cigars I have no interest in even sampling. Legacy brands such as the H.Upmann and Romeo y Julieta don’t fall into that category, I’ll give them a shot, even though I have pretty poor track record when it comes to liking cigars from the Tabacalera de Garcia factory in the DR. I gave the H. Upmann Barbier a shot first. This was a Toro, 6″ x 54, has Ecuador shade and Ecuador Sumatra wrappers, Indonesian Java binder with Nicaraguan, Dominican and Pennsylvania Broadleaf fillers. This was a very enjoyable cigar. It was smooth, rich, and had plenty of flavor. There was some sweet, bready flavors, and maybe the PA Broadleaf gave it a little oomph. I finally found a Dominican Upmann I like. Very nice.

I took a short break from this series to visit the Wooden Indian yesterday where they were hosting Erik Espinosa for the afternoon. I smoked, and very much enjoyed, a 601 La Bomba Warhead VII. I should buy more of these as I really enjoy the flavor. As always, the Wooden Indian staff was great, it was great seeing Erik, Mark, Jose, Bobby, and everyone else. I went home and took a nap.

After dinner I lit up the Romeo y Julieta Reserva Real Twisted Toro. The Twisted Tasting Kit included both the Toro and the Twisted Love Story, which is the 4¼” x 46 perfecto version. I’m shocked that they were able to get away with using the name “story” with this shape cigar, although it would come down to who has the bigger lawyers, I guess. Still seems weird to me. I’ll get to the little guy when I need a small cigar, but the 6″ x 54 Toro works better for me. Regarding all of these dos capas, or barber pole style cigars, all four have burned perfectly, and often the dual wrappers can cause a meandering burn line, not the case. They all burned perfectly. The Romeo y Julieta Reserva Real Twisted Toro has Ecuadorian Habano and Ecuadorian Connecticut wrappers, Nicaraguan binder and Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers, with the Ecuadorian Habano wrapper seeming to be the only change from the Reserva Real blend. I haven’t had a Reserva Real in forever, like I said, it’s not something I reach for (it kinda has two strikes against it for me, it’s DR Altadis, and it’s a shade wrapper). All that being typed, it was an enjoyable smoke, with the Habano knocking the grassi/nuttiness off of the shade a touch. It was good. For my palate, the Black Label offerings in this sampler were better, but I like a nice “theme” week now and then, and this was a good one. It was a good deal too, I was happy with the purchase.

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

CigarCraig

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Tagged as Araposa, Araposa Blanca, Araposa Negra, Barbier, cigar, cigars, Espinosa, Fox Cigars, H.Upmann, Reserva Real, romeo y julieta, Twisted, wooden indian

by Craig Vanderslice | May 14, 2023 · 9:39 am

An Olmec Claro, a 601 La Bomba Warhead and a Video

Last December I picked up the Foundation Cigar Co. Olmec in Madur and Claro. I had smoked the Maduro, and gifted he Claro. I happened to be shopping at The Wooden Indian a few weeks back and picked up another Claro, because I wanted to smoke it! I really enjoyed the Maduro, and I’ve enjoyed so many cigars made by Nick Melillo over the years. Of course, this is a cigar that is an homage to the original cigar smokers, the Olmec, and has a San Andres Claro wrapper, a double binder of Nicaraguan Esteli and Jalapa, and undisclosed fillers. Odd the undisclosed part, must be something interesting in there, although, upon reading the website description, there seems to be some some confusion, the filler may be Esteli and Jalapa, it says two different things! Anyway, this was a really good smoking cigar. I liked the Maduro more, but that’s not unusual for me, but this had some nice creamy coffee flavor and was very rich in flavor. I may not drop $15 on these regularly, but it’s a nice treat.

On the same trip to the Wooden Indian I picked up an Espinosa 601 La Bomba Warhead VII, just because it looked so tasty. The La Bomba line has been a favorite since the EO Brands days, when it was made at the My Father factory. This one is made at AJ Fernandez’ San Lotano factory in Nicaragua, has a Nicaraguan Broadleaf wrapper, and Nicaraguan binder and fillers. It’s a 7″ x 50 Churchill, and it lacks the La Bomba “fuse” cap treatment. I actually haven’t smoked enough of the Warhead series to know if that’s a thing or not. I really liked this cigar. The box press makes it feel like a smaller ring than it is, and it’s really reasonably priced at around $10. It was loaded with dark coffee/espresso flavors. This was a really good smoke, burn and draw were perfect. I’m a fan.

Yesterday we attended the AC Cigar Social in Atlantic City, and I did a quick video interview with Jon Henderson (I had Jon Anderson on the brain for some reason…). I’ll write a more indepth post this week about the event, but in the meantime, here is the video:

It was a really nice event, hopefully it’s one that can continue!

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

CigarCraig

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Tagged as 601, 601 La Bomba, AC Cigar Social, Atlantic City, cigar, cigars, Espinosa, Foundation, Olmec, Warhead

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