Tag Archives: Finch

by Craig Vanderslice | July 16, 2023 · 10:14 am

Some Blackbird Cigars and Some Villiger Cigars

I had a different idea of what today’s post was going to be, but that plan changed at the last minute. To be honest, the plan was tentative, at best. I’ve got some new and not so new cigars to talk about this week, lets start with the not so new, but great cigars. When I went to the TPE show in 2020, right before the world shut down, I met Jonas Santana and his crew from Blackbird Cigars. Jonas flattered me by knowing who I was, after 4 years of doing this it still takes me aback. Jonas had worked for Artista (then El Artista) who I had been working with, so he was familiar with my work. I’ve kept up with Jonas over the years and while this old white dude may not be able to keep up with a young, hip-hop cat, we connect on the cigar level, I dig his smokes. The Crow is my main jam, but this week I decided to take a wander through the range again as it’s been too long. What prompted this was one of my wife’s cigar band furniture projects, which required a bunch more Blackbird bands! So I had to by more cigars. I picked up some Toro singles locally, and bought a Robusto sampler from my friends at Trash Panda Cigars. Let’s talk about the Cuco first. This is probably the last cigar I’d go to because it has Criollo on the band and that tobacco usually doesn’t work for me. This is listed as a Brazilian wrapper, Indonesian binder and Dominican fillers, so I imagine it’s a Brazilian Criollo wrapper, perhaps that makes the difference for me, because I quite enjoyed this cigar in both Robusto and Gran Toro vitolas. It’s medium bodied with some cocoa and a hint of spice. very nice cigars.

The Finch from Blackbird is one of two Sumatra wrapped cigars in the portfolio, the other being the Rook. The Finch is only available in the Robusto size, has an Indonesian binder and US and Dominican fillers. It’s just me, but I think if I were going to have one cigar in my lineup that was just a robusto, I might call it the Rook, thinking like the chess piece, but I suppose finches are small birds so I get it. It’s a bird themed line, not a chess themed line, what am I thinking? I guess what I’m thinking is that while I really enjoyed the Finch I forgot to take any notes, so I don’t really have anything to say about it except that I found it quite enjoyable and it makes me want to pick up a few more. I do recall a bit of the sugar cane I get from Sumatra sometimes, along with a sweet spice, perhaps from whatever US tobacco (PA maybe?). Good smoke. As I type, I’m smoking the Unkind in Robusto, which has a dark Cubra (Brazil) wrapper and works exceptionally well with my black coffee. Even the shade Jackdaw has some pop to it and is quite tasty. It’s hard to go wrong with the Blackbird line, Jonas is doing some great things at his factory in the DR.

A few weeks ago I received a few new cigars from the folks at Villiger Cigars. I’ve had a very long history with Villiger. If you dig through my site (or YouTube channel), you’ll find interviews going back to 2012 I think. They have gone through some transitions, probably made some mis-steps, but they’ve always made good cigars. A few years ago they brought on René Casteñeda to head North American sales. René was previously with Miami Cigar and Co. and La Aurora, and is a super-nice guy. The Villiger Miami started out as a cigar for him to have to share with his friends and visitors to his office. It’s made in their ABAM factory in the DR, where they make Flor de Ynclan and a ton of cigar for the European market. Last year they put this out in a Lancero, this year it was released in a toro format. It has an Ecuador Habano wrapper, undisclosed binder and fillers, except that they say there is some Peruvian leaf in the filler blend. This is a really nice, complex blend, with some delicate flavors. It’s one of those cigars that you want to think about while you smoke it. I got a little citrus tang, with some nuts, light coffee, and a hint of cocoa.

Finally, I smoked the Villiger 1888 Nicaragua in both the Toro and Robusto. The 1888 was the first premium cigar that Villiger made back in 2009, and it was reissued around 2017 with updated blend and branding, made in the Dominican Republic. The 1888 Nicaraguan is made in the Villiger de Nicaragua factory, which in my imagination is somehow a part of the Joya de Nicaragua factory. I could ask around and verify this I suppose, but that seems like work. The cigar has an Ecuador Sumatra wrapper, Nicaraguan binder and Nicaraguan and Pennsylvanian fillers. I’m generally partial to cigars with PA tobacco, considering it’s grown within an hour from my home, and I tend to like Sumatra. This was a Medium bodied cigar in both vitolas, and had some sweet coffee/cocoa flavors. I don’t recall favoring one size over the other, but almost always like a toro over a robusto. I have a corona yet to try, but I expect that to have slightly sharper flavors.

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

CigarCraig

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Tagged as 1888, Blackbird, Blackbird Cigar Co., cigar, cigars, Crow, Cuco, Finch, Jackdaw, miami, Unkind, Villiger

by Craig Vanderslice | February 21, 2021 · 10:47 am

The Humidity Cigars Subscription Pack

I’ve been seeing a lot of talk about monthly subscription services, and they seem like a great idea for the right consumer. Heck, they might even be good for someone like me who gets preconceived notions about what I might like or not like based on the blend, appearance, or even the bands or packaging. I know, it’s wrong, but it’s a reality isn’t it? You do smoke with your eyes first, after all, it’s part of the overall experience. That being said, I’ve never committed to a monthly subscription service, I know there are good ones out there, but I’ve always had a large enough stockpile of cigars here in the past and always seemed to have a steady flow of new cigars to try. That is until recently. I don’t know that I want to commit monthly, but I don’t mind putting up a given dollar amount now and then and having someone send me some cigars of their choosing, this model would appealed to me. Anyway, the folks at Humidity Cigars contacted me and sent me one of their monthly kits, and I’ve subsequently placed an order for another one. The one they sent included the Finch and Jackdaw Robustos from Blackbird Cigars, a Medrano Toro Maduro and an Arturo Fuente Chateau Fuente King B. It was a year ago this week that I posted about the Blackbird Cigars along with a video, which apparently you now have to go to YouTube to watch because YouTube won’t allow me to embed videos here anymore due to age restrictions. Nice. They also included one of their can cozies and masks, along with a nice pocket tasting notebook from tastejournal.co.uk. Now, I can’t guarantee that every months subscription comes with all the goodies, but the presentation was very nice. The cigars came in a sealed bag with Humi-smart packs in it and were in good condition as checked with my Humidimeter.

Of course, I smoked the Finch first, I’ve smoked this one before and enjoyed it, I like Sumatra a lot and this didn’t disappoint. It’s nice and sweet like I expect. Oddly, the Jackdaw Connecticut is one I hadn’t smoked, and still have one from the TPE show last year! This is a case like I mentioned above, Connecticuts are low on my “try” list. I like them enough, there’s just a select few I really like, and it’s not a genre that I get stoked about sampling. This one, however, it a very nice representation of the genre. It’s a flavorful Ecuador shade wrapped cigar. As with all of the Blackbird Cigars I’ve smoked, the construction is very good. In my area, this line is being distributed by Mark Weissenberger (formerly of Rocky Patel), who is also handling Danli Honduras Tobacco, who makes my favorites, the Don Juan Calaveras, Marchettis, and Clowns. I should be able to find them in my local shops.

I hadn’t heard of the Medrano cigar in the pack before. This was a dark Maduro with a foot band that had Five-Four on it. The website for the company gives little info apart from that it has a San Andrés wrapper, Honduran binder and Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers. It was a 6” x 54 (maybe that’s what the Five-Four means?) toro and was well made. It smoked well, had a nice flavor, very much what I expected a San Andrés wrapped cigar should taste like, and gave me a good smoking experience. Looking at the website, I’m not sure if they are a cigar company or an apparel company, as they have more clothes than cigars for sale, but perhaps they are just getting started. They need some background info about themselves on the site! Best of luck to them, they seem to be headed in the right direction.

The ringer in this pack was the Chateau Fuente King B. I don’t know if it’s my age, or the time I got started smoking cigars, or what, but for me, a Fuente with a Black or White band is always a special thing. When I want to smoke a great cigar, I reach for a Hemingway, Don Carlos, or Añejo, and I’m never disappointed. This King B seems to fit into that family somehow. It’s still in the Gran Reserva line, but has the black band. It’s a 6” x 55 Belicoso with a cedar sleeve, and has a Sungrown Ecuador wrapper. While this isn’t quite on the level of the aforementioned three cigars, it‘ s still quite a good cigar, and while I haven’t smoke a green banded Fuente in a while, my recollection is that it appeals to me more than most of those. It was a nice, coffee and woody flavored cigar. It’s one I wouldn’t mind having in my humidor.

Humidity Cigars seems to have a good model, two cigars for $20, four for $35, and they are in PA, not far from me, which is good for a small percentage of my readers :-). I appreciate their consideration, and I’ll let you know how the subsequent order ends up (I should have used and assumed name and address…but I’m not that sneaky…). Maybe I’ll get to Camphill one of these days and meet up with the owners (I have lots of maybes in a post-pandemic future).

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

CigarCraig

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Tagged as Blackbird Cigar Co., cigar, cigars, Finch, fuente, Humidity Cigars, Jackdaw, King B, Medrano, Subscription

by Craig Vanderslice | February 16, 2020 · 10:18 am

A Visit to Best Cigar Pub, Blackbird Cigar Co. Cigars and Video and Contest Winner

Yesterday I found myself wandering much further north in PA than I usually find myself. There was a seminar on Bees and Chickens that my wife and I attended, and I snuck off during the second half to do some of my own research. Twenty minutes away from the venue where the seminar was held happened to be the brand new Best Cigar Pub, and Best Cigar Prices headquarters. I figured this would be a good place to visit. Fortunately, the purchasing manager, Chris O’Neill, managed to arrange a tour for me. Katie (Katy? I forgot to clarify), the Finance/HR director, gave me a tour of the entire facility. Why do small companies always saddle the Finance director with HR responsibilities? Like they don’t have enough to worry about? I digress. I had already given myself a tour of the retail humidor, which has a very nice selection and courteous service. Katie showed me the bar, pointed out many of the little things like custom tables with actual tobacco leaves under acrylic, art on the wall done by a local artist, all of the ashtrays made by a local craftsman. She pointed out the excellent menu as well. She then waled me through the Best Cigar Prices operations, all of the offices, warehouse, shipping and all of the stuff I enjoy seeing as a guy who’s spent his professional career in operations. They run a very clean and efficient pick, pack, and ship operation from what I can see. All of the marketing, customer service, web design is all done there in Pennsylvania. I was quite impressed with the operation. I’ll get back to the Pub, which was even more impressive. Upstairs is a lounge with TVs and comfy chairs, wait-staff is attentive and the air handlers replace all the air in the place every three minutes, so it’s not smokey at all. They even have a coat closet in the entry that has an ozone generator so that your coat doesn’t smell smokey. They’ve really thought of everything to make this not just a place to come have a cigar, but a place that smokers and non-smokers alike can enjoy a meal or a beverage together. I enjoyed a 601 Pennsylvania Edition, which is an Espinosa exclusive for BCP. Chris happened to join me and interrupted me while I was taking in the museum portion of the upstairs lounge, which is an educational feature they’ve added. It has the origin story of cigars with a timeline and facts about cigars, infographics about the tobacco plant, how cigars are made, every conceivable detail. Chris tells me they plan to have monitors with video loops of various processes playing included in the wall as well. Best Cigar Pub is a beautiful place, it’s easy enough to find, although not exactly in the middle of anything. I can see it being amazing in the summer with the outdoor patios and putting green and nobody around to really complain! Certainly worth a visit if you are anywhere near north-east PA.

I had heard of Blackbird Cigar Company, but hadn’t seen the cigars any where. When I walked past the booth and they weren’t busy, it seemed like a great time to stop in and see what it they were all about. Imagine my surprise when the owner and founder of the company, Jonas Santana, looked at me and said “I know who you are”. It seems he used to work for another company, and struck out on his own to start Blackbird. I think it was on CigarProp’s youtube channel that I remember hearing about the brand. Anyway, I asked Jonas to share the story of the brand with me on camera. have a look:

Over the course of the past several days I smoked a few of the Blackbird cigars offerings. I would have lined to have smoked them all, but I just couldn’t get to them. They have six cigars in the portfolio, and I can’t run down my smoking experience for six cigars in one post. They very cleverly make the bands on the cigars easy to remove, which is good because they are large bands and doo need to be removed to fully enjoy the cigar! They have two Sumatra wrapped offerings, and, as I’ve been on a Sumatra kick lately, and I smoked the Sumatra Rook with them at the TPE and really enjoyed it, I smoked the Finch this week. This was another excellent Sumatra wrapped cigar. It had the nice, sweet Sumatra wrapper flavor and a well-balanced core of tobacco goodness withinThis has an Indonesian binder, and Dominican and USA fillers. It was solidly medium bodied and a very nice cigar. Next I went with what you’d expect from me, the San Andrés wrapped Crow. It was Valentines Day, and I figured the red band would be appropriate. This cigar had a closed foot, and a dark, oily wrapper. The flavors were earthy and bakers chocolate, perhaps espresso, without sweetness. The internals on this one include a Habano binder and Nicaraguan, Pennsylvanian, and Corojo and Criollo 98 fillers. Very enjoyable. Finally, last night after a long day trip, I unwound with the Unkind, a Brazilian Cubra wrapped cigar. This was also a maduro cigar, and, like the rest, a 5″ x 50 robusto. The binder on this one is from the DR, with Criollo 09, HBA (not sure what this means), Corojo and Pennsylvania. One thing I can say about all of the Blackbird cigars I smoked was that that all were well made and burned right, an important consideration. It’s possible that the PA tobacco was a common flavor component that I picked up though the few cigar I smoked this week. You’ll see if you watch the video that some thought went into the brand, and the same attention went into the quality of materials and manufacture as well. The Unkind had a unique flavor, also an earthy maduro, not really sweet. It was very good though, I enjoyed it completely. I still have the Connecticut Jackdaw and Criollo Cuco yet to smoke, I kind of like those two wrapper varieties more in warmer weather for some reason. I’ll get to them and let you know.

Contest!

OK, so after a lot of money and aggravation, my site is clean. It’s time to pick a winner of the sampler of some of my favorite cigars, Don Juan Calavera, Flor Maya and Marchetti cigars from Danli Hondura Tabaco, and I had to collect entries from two different places. After collecting all of the names, and putting them into a bowl (OK, I put them into a spreadsheet and randomized the list to mix them up and assign them numbers), the random number generator picked Anthony C as the winner. Please email me your coordinates and proof that you are 21 or older so I can get these goodies to you. I have a KMA Talk Radio hat and shirt and a Stage V Clinger cigar holder to add as well (it’s a big shirt, do with it what you will, I take no responsibility. If it fits, great!).