Tag Archives: general cigars

by | March 13, 2016 · 10:28 am

Smoking Alec Bradley, CAO, Macanudo and My Father Cigars

AlecBradley_Post Embargo_ToroFinally it’s here, the day we’e all been waiting for (me at least), it’s Daylight Savings Time! I don’t even really mind losing the hour, it’s a good trade-off for the extra evening daylight hours. It also means spring is coming, which means summer’s coming, which I like.  I’ll try to find a good cigar to smoke to celebrate today, but for now, I have a few cigars I smoked this week to discuss. I found myself a bit torn between smoking something “new to me” and smoking an old familiar friend, so I did both. Balance is the key to life.  Thursday I lit up an Alec Bradley Post Embargo in the 6½” x 54 Toro size. This one falls into the “new to me” category as I have only smoked one before back in November of last year around the time they were released. I stand by my original thoughts that the wrapper isn’t the most flavorful, but it was a very nice, medium bodied smoke, with some leather and earth, no real sweetness to my palate.  I don’t know that 5 months in the humidor did anything to this cigar one way or the other, but I think it’s another solid Alec Bradley cigar, of which they have many. Their Nica Puro still remains my favorite in the brand.

 

CAO_Flathead_CamshaftThis week was a beautiful week, weather wise, which made for a long week in the office, stuck behind a desk while it was sunny and in the 70s outside. As I mentioned in my last post, I was able to take two wheels to work this week, which makes the commute a little more bearable, but by the time 4:30 hit on Friday I was ready for a sure thing to wrap the week.  After a delicious diner featuring corned beef, I grabbed my final CAO Flathead 554, which was probably a leftover from samples I received when they were first released. I punched this with my ScrewPop 2.0 punch (the website lists a 3.0 now, I’ll have to find out how they improved this already fine tool) and lit it up. This must have had one vein in a leaf near the foot with a lot of oils left in it, because I got a runner that got nearly an inch ahead of the rest of the burn. This didn’t have any effect on the flavors of dark, black coffee and cocoa, which I love in this Broadleaf wrapped beauty. At some point in the future there’s going to be a box of Flatheads in my humidor, I’m just now sure which one.  CAO has just announced the release of two smaller sizes in the Connecticut Habana wrapped Steel Horse line, the Handbrake (4.5” x 50 – SRP per cigar is $6.99) and the Roadkill (5.5 x 54 – SRP per cigar is $7.00) which I’ll need to try before making a decision. I might just have to load up on singles of all the sizes just to have variety.

 

macanudovintage1997Saturday afternoon I took a walk with a Macanudo Maduro Vintage 1997.  I bought a handful of these a few years back at my local shop, they were reasonably priced, and there were only a few left in the box, which I wanted as I had seen them making these boxes in the factory when I was there in 2011. That box sits on my desk holding things like cords and flash drives and is  a pleasant reminder of that trip. I’ve had this cigar floating around the humidor for about four years now, and with the big metal band it has, it’s always been a bit awkward. I worried about it damaging other cigars, or having the 1997 Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper damaged by something else since it’s uncello’d. So I smoked it, and it was good. This has a Honduran binder and fillers from Nicaragua, Brazil and the DR, and is a really nice maduro cigar. Macanudo’s are often dismissed as mild and flavorless, I’ve not found that to be the case with the maduros. This was a refined blend with some sweet and spicy notes, quite entertaining. I think these are still around and worth trying if you like a good maduro. One thing that was very surprising on that trip back in 2011, by the last day my palate was pretty fried after smoking cigars nonstop for several days, so I grabbed a regular old Macanudo Maduro and I  could taste it!  Now, I just need to figure out what to do with the metal band (and where I stashed my other ones…), it reminds me of my old Boy Scout neckerchief slides, although I hardly think that would be tolerated in this day and age.

 

MyFather_NicaraguadeOro_RobustoLast night I was in an exploratory mood, so I selected a cigar from CDMCigars.com‘s exclusive collection, the My Father Oro de NicaraguaRobusto. Holy crap was this a great cigar! There’s not a lot of information about the blend on the website, as I’ve complained about before, so I can’t tell you what differentiates this from the regular My Father line, but I can tell you it’s very good. It’s smooth, rich,  loaded with a bunch of flavors and is interesting right down to the nub.  If I’m not craving a sweet, mocha maduro, this is exactly what I want a cigar to be.  It wouldn’t be a My Father cigar without a little spice right at the start, and this one had it, although it was far more subtle.  I’m going to have to pick up some of the regular My Father line , or rummage through the humidors to see if I have one, which happens more than I’d like to admit…Thanks to Craig at CDMCigars.com for sharing this great smoke. I imagine they have these in the Casa de Monteristo store in Chicago?  These also come in a bunch of cool sizes.

 

That’s it for now, I have somethings that need doing today that I’m going to try to get out of the way early, then find something good to smoke this afternoon, and maybe something this evening to celebrate the extended daylight!  Until the next time,

 

CigarCraig

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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by | August 16, 2015 · 8:54 am

Marrero Cigars, Flor de Gonzalez, Macanudo Estate Reserve and Cigars with Friends

Marrero TicoI’ve been working through some more new cigars from the IPCPR show, and I ran across some Marrero cigars that it took me a moment to remember. We ran across the booth late on the last day we were there and got to talking to Joel Vazquez Marrero about his cigars. My memory is hazy on this, but I think these are rolled at the same factory as Vegas de Santiago, MBombay and Atabey, Byron and Bandolero. If this is the case it’s one more bit of proof that this particular factory is producing some excellent cigars. The Marrero Tico Pigtail is 6½ x 56, has an Ecuador Habano wrapper, Indonesian binder and what they call Costa Rican/Proprietary Blend as the filler, as well as a long pigtail, as the name would imply. The cigar was solid, firmly packed with a similarly firm draw, although it wasn’t annoyingly so.  I found it to be on the milder side of medium, with a nice flavor and burn.  It was a nice cigar for my evening walk. I look forward to trying the Tesoro Mio blend in the near future.

 

Flor de Gonzalez_20th MaduroOn Thursday I had a brief moment of wishful thinking that it was Friday, but reality soon slapped me in the face.  So Friday deserved what I hoped would be a special smoke.  Another booth we stopped at late in the show was Flor de Gonzalez.  We had a brief visit with Yadi, and she shared their 20th Anniversario cigars, which come in either a Ecuador Connecticut or a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper. My natural inclination is to go with the Broadleaf, which I did and was very pleased. This was a rich, chocolaty smoke with a great burn and draw.  It’s a rubusto, but is 5½” x 50, a little more of a good thing than your traditional 5″ robusto.  I can’t wait to try the other one. I’ve always enjoyed the Flor de Gonzalez line, it seems to fly under the radar in a lot of places, at least around here.

 

We had some friends over last night, so we spent the better part of the day getting ready, and in the hour or so before people arrived, I sat down with a Macanudo Estate Reserve Jamaica 2015.  This is a very special Macanudo, here is what the folks at General Cigar have to say about it:

To experience Macanudo Estate Reserve is to savor a tradition that spans nearly half a century, for this exceptional cigar hearkens back to the very roots of the brand.
MacanudoEstReserve_closed_LRFor the 2015 release of Macanudo Estate Reserve, the artisans of Macanudo blended a 10 year old Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper from the sun-drenched, highest priming, with proprietary Jamaican tobacco cultivated on small, independent farms and aged exclusively for this year’s small batch offering. The dark, well-oiled wrapper adds a new dimension of complexity to the flavor that ignited the passion for one of the world’s most beloved cigars.
Jhonys Diaz, master blender and vice president of operations said, “We selected a broadleaf wrapper for this year’s release to deepen the flavor profile of the cigar. The wrapper delivers bold notes of leather and earth, while complementing the unique attributes of the Jamaican filler. This is a rich and complex smoke, one that will appeal to the true cigar lover.”
MacanudoEstReserve_open_LRThe Jamaican tobacco tells a story all its own. The varietal used in Macanudo Estate Reserve is called Silver Tongue, a native seed favored by locals. It is an extremely low-yield tobacco and is the most expensive long-filler leaf in the world.
Due to the scarcity of Silver Tongue, this exquisite cigar will only be available until the limited release of 1,800 boxes per size is depleted.
Macanudo Estate Reserve 2015 will be available in three frontmarks, each protected in 10-count boxes and shipping in October. They are:

No. 7 — 7 x 50; SRP per cigar is $17.00

No. 8 — 6 x 57; SRP per cigar is $18.00

No. 9 — 5 x 50; SRP per cigar is $16.00

 

Macanudo Estate Reserve 2015The presentation is beautiful and goes back to the Jamaican roots of the brand, which at one time was made in Jamaica. I remember having a box of Macanudo Prince Philip back in the 90s that was still made in Jamaica (won it on the CigarWorld.com website somehow, and that was a very long time ago when there weren’t a lot of cigar websites). Anyway, this Estate Reserve was really very tasty and had about the most perfect construction imaginable. The cigar was perfect in every way, and had a nice flavor of espresso and cocoa. I found it to be medium bodied, and I smoked to a very tiny nub.  It’s not a cheap date, but it is one of the most flavorful Macanudos out there.

 

MillenneumOne of our guests, my old friend Bruce, presented me with a very rare cigar, a Padron Millennium, claiming that he came across the humidor (these came out in 2000 in a humidor of 100, of which there were only 1000 made) in his basement. I believe he gifted me one of these nearly 15 years ago, but I smoked it long before I started documenting my daily smokes so religiously. This was a special blend of the 1964 series and had five year old tobacco at the time they were rolled in 1999. He was concerned that they had been neglected, but upon smoking the cigar all was well. If it was blended to be bolder than the 1964 series, the last 15 years might have tempered the original intent, but it was still a spectacular cigar that had a perfect burn, draw and the chocolate bar creamy sweetness that one would expect.  Quite a treat, and I can’t thank Bruce enough for sharing that special cigar.

 

TortugaOne of our other guests, Victor, brought some Tortuga Cigars, so I smoked one of my favorites from the line, the Cedro No. 5 as my last cigar of the night.  Talk about a trifecta of exceptional cigars to go along with a night of great friends, food and stories. It’s a treat when you can get three couples together, many of whom haven’t met, and go late into the evening talking about a myriad of topics. Anyway, the Tortuga line is obviously high on my list, and the No. 5, at 5½” x 48, is just about the perfect size and is a great representation of the blend.  After the pair of chocolaty maduros,  this spicy Nicaraguan puro it the spot, and never fails to satisfy. We don’t entertain much, but with our big screened in porch it is something we need to do more.  Thanks again to Victor and Rebecca and Bruce and Shirley for spending the evening with us.

 

That’s it for now, lots of food to eat from last night yet, some errands to run and some cigars to smoke.  Until the next time,

 

CigarCraig

 

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by | August 12, 2015 · 4:50 pm

Winner of the General Cigar New Releases Contest and the 2015 IPCPR Secret Question

What an excellent turnout we had for this contest. Who can blame the 97 people who entered though, it’s a pretty darned nice bunch of cigars! I almost had second thoughts about including some of them, but cigars are about sharing, and it’s as much fun to give than receive. Before I announce the winner (or to make you go to the trouble of scrolling down to see who won), A couple of years ago I put together a montage video from the IPCPR show, and I decided to do the same thing this time around, with a new and interesting question. The whole point is to keep things light and not to end up with the same interview videos that everyone else does. As always, I strive to be different. Credit goes to my wife, Jennifer, for the idea, and thanks to the thirty-something manufacturers for going along with it! So if you have twelve minutes or so, give this a watch, maybe have a laugh.

 

Contest

ContestOK, so I consulted the random number generator at Random.org and it spit out the number 43. I counted the entries and determined that Matt Wells is the winner! Please send your address so I can ship this load of cigars out to you. Thanks to everyone for entering, I think I’ll have contests on the first Wednesdays of the next couple months, so keep an eye open. If you’re on Twitter, follow @CigarContests for the heads up on my contests, as well as other contests going on. Whoever is running this is doing a nice job of curating cigar giveaways. Thanks again to the folks at General Cigar Co.!

 

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

 

CigarCraig

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by | August 5, 2015 · 9:38 pm

What’s New at General Cigars and a Contest!

PilonThis week I’ve been smoking some of the samples from the General Cigar Co. booth from the IPCPR show, and I found myself with an abundance of samples that I want to share with one of my readers.  One of several new offerings from CAO is the Pilon, which I smoked this week in the robusto size. In the Pilon line they are fermenting the tobacco in small, round pilons, as opposed to large rectangular versions that most cigar tobacco is fermented in. They are using a Cuban seed Ecuador wrapper and fillers from Esteli and Ometepe.  The cigar smoked well and was woody with some spice and sweetness. I thought it was a very nice smoke and enjoyed it on a beautiful Sunday Afternoon.

 

ElGringoAfter dinner I revisited the new Leccia Luchador El Gringo Frog Splash. I smoked one at the show on the first day and I’m a big fan of the Luchador line, and enjoyed this fat little cigar quite a bit. You may think a 4½” x 70 would be unwieldy, but the box press makes if feel quite a bit smaller than the 70 ring gauge in the round. It’s still got a little bit of a wavy burn, but it’s a flavorful and spicy smoke. It’s got a dark and oily Nicaraguan Oscuro wrapper, Nicaraguan Habano binder and blend of three ligeros from Esteli, Jalapa and Pennsylvania. It’s a funny shape, but a really good smoke that I’m having trouble leaving alone.

 

DunhillMonday evening I wanted something a little more refined, so I selected the new Dunhill Signed Range Selección Suprema, released in just one size, a 6×50 Toro. I wanted something a little larger than a robusto too.  This is a smooth smoke, and very delicate and subtle.  It’s made with a Nicaraguan Jalapa shade wrapper with three exceptional fillers: full-bodied Nicaraguan Esteli and Jalapa, and rare Brazilian Matafina, and a hearty Connecticut Broadleaf binder. There’s a lot of sweet flavors and it burned exceptionally well. This would be a great early cigar.  Dunhill is not c cigar I generally reach for, but this was a pleasant diversion, for sure.

 

CAO Margaritaville HavanaDaydreaminLast night I smoked one of the new CAO Margaritaville cigars. These are licensed under the Jimmy Buffett Margaritaville brand, and  are available in two versions, a Piña Colada flavored cigar available in a corona and petit corona with a Cameroon wrapper and a blend of Dominican tobacco, which will fall under the Flavors line, and the one I smoked, the Havana Daydreamin’ line, which is a blend of Nicaraguan tobaccos wrapped with an  Ecuadoran Connecticut wrapper. As I smoked this I couldn’t help but think that it’s targeting the occasional smoker, someone who picks up a cigar once in a while on vacation, at a bar or concert, as it was a nice enough cigar, but fairly middle of the road as far as the flavor goes.  It burned quickly, but evenly, and left me a bit underwhelmed.  Certainly it’s mild enough to smoke several in a row on the beach.  I’ll give the flavored version a try one of these days.

 

flatheadTonight I went with a personal favorite lately, the CAO Flathead in the new Steel Horse size.  This was the “Apehanger” size, a 5½” x 58 cigar in a round format. I’ve mentioned this in a recent post, so I won’t spend too much time on the specifics, but it’s a lovely cigar. It’s got a Connecticut Habano wrapper that is dark and oily, with the signature flat head that just about demands a punch cut, which works well (I recommend a larger bore punch if at all possible, the ScrewPop 2.0 worked well).  The fillers are Honduran, Nicaraguan and Dominican and the binder is a Brazilian Arapiraca, making it a five country blend.  I’m a fan of the whole line, and this shape is a great addition.  Very rich and satisfying with lush flavors of espresso and dark cocoa. As I said, I’m a big fan of he Flathead line in all sizes, and this is a very nice addition.

 

Contest

 

contestHere’s your chance to win some of the cigars mentioned above.  There are five packs of both the CAO Magaritaville cigars, as well as the CAO Pilon and Flathead Steel Horse, the Dunhill Signed Range Selección Suprema, the new Macanudo Estate Reserve Jamaica, which I haven’t gotten around to smoking yet, but the last Estate Reserve was really good, so I have confidence in this one, and a couple of the Leccia Luchador El Gringo Frog Splash (and a Luchador El Hombre for good measure). It’s hard to say what else might fall into the box while I’m packing it up, it’s happened. 33 cigars in all, not a bad little prize pack! Many thanks to my friends at General Cigar Co. for their generosity this year. Same rules as always, leave a comment on this post to enter, and I’ll select a winner next Wednesday, August 12, 2015. It’s been a while since I had a contest, so everyone is eligible, must be 18 to enter, one entry per person please.

 

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

 

CigarCraig

 

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by | July 23, 2015 · 10:35 pm

IPCPR Thoughts and Highlights – Part One

We got back from the IPCPR show yesterday, and it was a whirlwind 3 days at the show. I didn’t do the video interviews like I’ve done in the past, I figure other people are doing them and I don’t do what everyone else does. The only one I did I posted Sunday, and I’ll try to fix the audio when I get a chance. I will have a video montage of the “secret question” which I did for fun. Two years ago I put together the montage (here), and when I get the video put together I’ll post it. It’s a bit of fun and something different. I encourage you to visit my colleagues sites who did run around interviewing everyone, I just didn’t have it in me this time around. Obviously when I got Dunbarton Tobacco and Trust‘s Steve Saka alone at the end of the first day, and was the first blogger type to have talked to him, I had to scoop the competition. I’m not proud of my competitiveness in that regard, but I am proud to have gotten the first interview with Steve out. I asked some questions I’m sure nobody else did.  I’ve known Steve for nearly 20 years, which might have given me a little advantage. I’ve gt samples, and you’ll hear more about them as I smoke them. They are taking a rest in the humidor, and I even shipped a box back that’s due tomorrow.  Anyway, here’s the quick day by day recap.

 

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Friday we drove two hours to Newark, NJ for a 5am flight which took us through Chicago then finally to New Orleans.  Once checked into our hotel, the Hilton Riverside, which is next to the convention center, more or less, we walked to get our badges. This convention center had to have been nearly a mile long, it’s one enormous building, and the IPCPR was on the far end. We went to our hotel and took about a three-hour nap before heading back to the convention center for the gala grand opening reception, which followed the Government Affairs Briefing. This has been poorly attended in the past, and it was quite important to those who make a living in the cigar industry, so it was a stroke of genius offering cocktails to the attendees. The gala offered food and a cash bar, which was exorbitantly expensive. We caught up with quite a few old friends here, spending some time with the Two Guys Smoke Shop crew, as well as many others.  I had run into Scott Weeks of Recluse Cigars, who handed me a Recluse Amadeus in Connecticut and the new Habano, and I smoked the Connecticut at the event, which is a great Connecticut shade cigar, lots of flavor. I can’t wait to try the Habano version, as I’ve been a Recluse fan since their release.  I also smoked something else, but I can’t recall what it was. The evening was sponsored by Fratello Cigars. It was a fun evening, but even after the nap we were running at a sleep deficit, and wanted to be awake for the opening of the show.

 

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Saturday morning we arose refreshed and went to the opening breakfast at the convention center. Smoking is allowed at the breakfast, but I was holding off until we got to the show. There is a business meeting that takes place, with recognition of the outgoing and incoming presidents and the introduction of the new IPCPR IMG_1761CEO, as well as some industry awards. All quite uninteresting to the consumer, but the officers and board of directors do this in their spare time on a volunteer basis, so there behind the scenes work deserves recognition. They always have a keynote speaker, and this year it was Larry Winget, a motivational speaker who was quite insightful and entertaining. I bought his book. He and I have a similar sense of humor, and many of his observations were quite funny. Breakfast was good, the coffee was great and it was a nice way to spend the morning. The show floor opened to the masses at 10:30 and we ran into quite a few old friends on what seemed like a half mile walk to the entrance of the show.  Upon entering, IMG_1780Drew Estate‘s elaborate and expansive booth is straight ahead, so it was mobbed. We had a couple of appointments in the afternoon, so we went to the far end of the show floor and wandered, saying hello to friends, meeting up with fellow bloggers and media types, and getting the lay of the land ( taking note of where the food court was, bathrooms, etc. The first appointment was with Victor Vitale of Tortuga and Legacy brands, where I was reintroduced to IMG_1779the new Tortuga Connecticut, which was my first cigar of the show.  This is a very smooth, creamy cigar with great flavor. I have smoked it before, and it’s a very enjoyable Connecticut, not to be missed. You may begin to notice a trend, I do’t smoke a great many milder cigars, but I’ve been to enough events and trade shows that I know how much it can suck if you blow out your palate early with strong cigars. I typically don’t go through a ton of cigars on the show floor as it’s awkward talking to one manufacturer about his cigar with another manufacturers cigar in your mouth (in the interview with Steve Saka I was smoking the new Leccia Luchadore, more on that later, but I couldn’t put it down and Steve didn’t have any samples of the Sobremesa). Victor was struggling with having his display cases broken and not having the right furniture, so it was a rough show for him, but he kept a smile on his face. This is another trend we saw: broken displays and what appeared to be poor service by whoever was in charge of moving things around with at least one booth never receiving a couch or chairs.  I attended a media briefing at Rafael Nodal’s Boutique Blends/Aging Room booth with was informative, with Rafael telling us about his current selections.  This factory continues to put out some great cigars, I just enjoyed the joint venture between Rafael and Altadis, the Romeo by Romeo y Julieta Aging Room Small Batch F25 in the Cantoar belicoso size and it was very nice. Not a show sample, by the way.  After visiting with Rafael and his boys we went to the General Cigar booth for our traditional 3:00 on the first day of the show tour.  General always rolls out the red carpet for us, and we saw some great looking new products including new branding on the Macanudo line, a Partagas Aniversario which looks really tasty, Bolivar and Ramon Allones reboots from the Foundry division as well as the Leccia Luchador El Gringo line extension (I mentioned before that I smoked it and really liked it, despite the example I smoked being a 70 ring). CAO has the Pilon, Margaritaville and added a round cigar to their Flathead line, the Steel Horse, paying homage to the motorcycles as opposed to the automobile reference in the previous five sizes. More about all of these as I smoke them after the samples have a chance to rest. Cohiba has a new very expensive Luxury Selection No. 2, which is beautiful, and Dunhill has the Heritage and Seleccion Suprema. Finishing off the tour was the Toraño line with the repackaged Brick bundle brand. I like a lot of cigars in the General Cigar portfolio, so I am looking forward to trying a bunch of the new cigars. Stay tuned for a giveaway here in the near future so you too can try some!

 

We free-ranged around the show floor some more until getting to sit down with Steve Saka after the show closed. I had to get the video interview out, which meant napping in between video processing, editing, and uploading over hotel WiFi so I could publish it for you first thing Sunday morning.  Needless to say, the first day was fun, exciting and tiring, and I’m going to Post about days three and four on Sunday.  Lots of great cigars and great people.

 

Until the next time,

CigarCraig`

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