Tag Archives: joya de nicaragua

by Craig Vanderslice | May 30, 2019 · 9:32 pm

News: Joya de Nicaragua Cuatro Cinco Belicoso DDRP Exclusive Released

Here’s some Friday news from the folks at Joya de Nicaragua and Drew Estate. The Cuatro Cinco is one of my favorite cigars in the Joya line, to me its like a much more refined version of the Antaño Dark Corojo, which I also love dearly.

A unique Joya de Nicaragua masterpiece available only at DDRP events in the USA: The ultra-limited Cuatro Cinco Belicoso – Exclusive for DDRP

When Cuatro Cinco was originally released in 2013, it immediately became a favorite amongst smokers around the world and it was dubbed one of JDN’s true “Obras Maestras”. This summer, Joya de Nicaragua and Drew Estate are making an exclusive and limited beautiful smoke for cigar lovers across America: Cuatro Cinco Belicoso Exclusivo Eventos DDRP. This rare release of Cuatro Cinco, will be ultra-limited to two boxes available for sale at Drew Diplomat Events (DDRP) from June until the end of 2019.

Cuatro Cinco is an extraordinary achievement by Fábrica Joya de Nicaragua. Originally released as Edición Limitada, it commemorated 45 years of cigar manufacturing. Cuatro Cinco Belicoso Exclusivo is a carefully refined recipe featuring select Grade A fillers, aged within vintage white oak barrels. This super-premium blend delivers subtle, but extraordinarily enchanting woody notes, complex flavors and a velvety finish, due to the combination of Nicaraguan wrapper, Dominican binder, and Nicaraguan fillers.

“As a unique symbol of appreciation to the Joya de Nicaragua and Drew Estate fans that come over to our events, we are delighted to share one of our factory’s greatest blends. If the Limited Edition Cuatro Cinco was a collector’s item, we can say that the Belicoso surpasses its uniqueness, and the only moment when it will be found in stores will be during our events at DDRP accounts, only 1,000 boxes available nationwide” stated Juan Ignacio Martínez, Executive President of Joya de Nicaragua.

The Cuatro Cinco Belicoso Exclusivo Eventos DDRP is a 6 x 54 Box Pressed cigar that will be available as of June for DDRP Events with a limited offer of only 2 boxes per event at an MSRP $140 with all sales based on availability, so first-come, first-served.

Fans of Joya de Nicaragua are encouraged to download Drew Diplomat the official mobile application of Drew Estate – The Rebirth of Cigars which is available in the App Store for iPhone®, and on Google Play™ for Android™. For more information head to http://drewdiplomat.com. For a complete list of DDRP events please visit the Drew Diplomat App.

About Joya de Nicaragua

Established in 1968, Joya de Nicaragua is Nicaragua’s first and oldest cigar factory in operation. JDN’s commitment to quality along with their skillful and resilient people have brought their handmade cigars to over 50 countries around the world, making it Nicaragua’s most international brand.

Obras Maestras is Joya de Nicaragua’s designation for its ultra-premium family of cigars. It features commemorative master blends handcrafted by our most outstanding artisans. Its brands include Cinco Décadas and Cuatro Cinco (Viña Carmen’s 2016 Cigar of the Year).

ABOUT DREW ESTATE

Founded in New York City in 1996, Drew Estate has become one of the fastest growing tobacco companies in the world. Under their mantra “The Rebirth of Cigars”, Drew Estate has led the “Boutique Cigar” movement by innovating new elements to the tobacco industry with their unique tobaccos and blending styles that attracting new and traditional cigar enthusiasts. In their Gran Fabrica Drew Estate, the Nicaraguan headquarters, Drew Estate produces a variety of brands such as ACID, Herrera Estelí, Herrera Estelí Norteño, Isla del Sol, Kentucky Fired Cured, Liga Privada, MUWAT, Larutan by Drew Estate, Nica Rustica, Pappy Van Winkle Barrel Fermented Cigars, Tabak Especial, Undercrown, Florida Sun Grown, and Java by Drew Estate.

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Tagged as cigar, cigars, Cuatro Cinco, drew estate, joya de nicaragua

by CigarCraig | October 21, 2018 · 10:32 am

A Bunch of Cigars, Another La Flor Dominicana Event, and a Joya Contest Extension

I’ve been a slug this week. I literally had to look at Instagram to recall what cigars I smoked. One reason is because I still have a little bit of a cold, so I’m hesitant to smoke anything new or noteworthy, and another is my preoccupation with my search for a day job. The latter seems to have taken a positive turn just in the nick of time, and I hope to be smoking something special in celebration in the near future, once this annoying sinus funk releases its grasp on me. So looking back through my IG feed, I did rather enjoy a Hoyo La Amistad Gold Robusto, which is 5″ x 54. This was one of the first big brand AJ Fernandez colabs, and continues to be a fantastic smoke. Of the three in the series, Gold, Silver and Black, oddly I think it’s my favorite (you’d expect the Black to be, and I love the Black, I find it very close to the Punch Diablo though, with the main difference being the binder – Broadleaf on the Diablo and San Andrés on the Black). Even with palate impairment, the rich, sweet flavors are quite enjoyable, a main reason I reached for this cigar.

In an effort to further promote the Joya contest that’s currently in progress, which I’m going to extend , by the way, I smoked a Joya Silver Toro again. I am going to give it another week because I want to get some more entries, and more exposure for Joya de Nicaragua and the Wooden Indian, especially their new online store! I even posted on a Facebook group which always brags about their 30,000 members, and I got 3 entries (thanks!, I do appreciate them!). 10% would have been overwhelming, right?, but 3? Anyway, the Joya Silver Toro happened to be right on top of the humidor too, so it was a lazy selection, and I really love that cigar. I can the Cinco Decadas El General being on deck as one of the afore-mentioned celebration cigars coming up, and it shares some traits with the Silver. The Silver is a great medium bodied smoke with a great price.

An old friend stopped by this week and I shared a favorite cigar with him, Cornelius and Anthony Señor Esugars. Due to time constraints, and my inventory limitations, he had the robusto and I gad the Corona Gorda. This is a friend I’ve known since early in High School, we played drums together in band, and, to my delight, he loves cigars. I’ve observed the cigars he tends to likes and decided that the Señor Esugars would be a good fit for him, and I wanted to smoke one anyway, so it was a win-win. In the C&A line, I always seem to gravitate to the Toro, but I can’t complain about any vitola in this particular marque. As always, the San Andrés wrapper has that sweet, rich, earthy flavor I love. It’s great catching up with an old friend over a great cigar.

Finally, I happened to catch wind of a Flor Dominicana event at Old Havana Cigars on Friday evening, and, figuring I’d soon be having limits on my available free time again, why not go down and see Kyle and the folks down there and have a cigar. I had a La Flor Dominicana Colorado Oscuro No. 5, the 5¾” x 60 Gordo. In an unusual move, I only bought the one to smoke, although I wish I had at least gotten another one or two to smoke when I had a better palate. I’ll go back for more later. It was a good smoke, although I had to relight a few times, maybe because I was chatting with friends (you’ll remember Nik from Episode 7 of the CigarCraig Podcast…) and other distractions. I have a hard time remembering a La Flor Dominicana cigar that I didn’t like, maybe I’ll grab a Chisel of some sort out of the humidor today!

That about does it for today. To recap, The contest for the Joya de Nicaragua goodies, travel humidor (filled!), hat and cutter, will be extended until mid-week, probably Wednesday, so go back to last Sunday’s post and enter if you haven’t already! I’ll continue spamming….er….spreading the word , feel free to share it as well, at the risk of reducing your own odds of winning! Until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as cigar, cigars, Cornelius and Anthony, Hoya de Monterrey, Hoyo La Amistad, joya de nicaragua, Joya Silver, La Flor Dominicana, wooden indian

by CigarCraig | October 14, 2018 · 12:27 pm

A Joya de Nicaragua Event at the Wooden Indian and Another Contest!

OK, full disclosure, the seasons changed overnight, it went from temps in the 80s and shorts and t-shirts to fall with sweatshirts all at once, and my immune system hasn’t handled it well, so I’ve had a bit of a cold this week. On the plus side, I had three promising job interviews this week, at least 2 of which I hope produce second interviews and possible offers real soon. Sadly, neither are in the cigar industry, although I would certainly entertain offers in that area! Interested parties should not waste any more time! Anyway, when I get a cold, I tend to smoke cigars I know pretty well, and steer clear of cigars I want to pay a lot of attention to, and if things get really bad I avoid them altogether. I had a Macanudo Red Robusto, an Epic Maduro Robusto, a CAO Flathead 660 and a Camacho Criollo Churchill. All are cigars I really like, I have a bunch of on hand, and are readily available anyway. Funny story about the Camacho (maybe not funny “ha ha” funny…), I posted that I remember in the old days of Camacho when this cigar was called the Camacho Havana. Kevin of Cigar Prop (Thanks again for the Lighter Bleed Tool for last week’s giveaway, it’s on it’s way to the winner!), says he smoked a ton of the Criollo, but never knew it had a predecessor. I told him I might have an old band around, and he seemed interested in seeing it. I have a 26″ tall vase I throw my bands in, but that fills up, so sometimes I stuff (and I do mean stuff) the overflow in gallon bags. I pulled a gallon bag out of storage, dumped it on the floor after looking it over, and, in Rainman fashion, immediately found two old Camacho Havana bands. I guess I’m a cigar band savant.

Friday evening, after a day of interviewing, I went down to the Wooden Indian (check out their new online store!) for their Joya de Nicaragua event. Of course, I’m a huge Joya fan, it’s the first cigar factory I ever visited, my appreciation for their cigars goes back many many years. They are one of the rare companies that doesn’t make a cigar I wouldn’t smoke. Sure, there are some that I like more than others, but not a one I dislike. Juan Martinez, the president of the company was there, and I always enjoy my time speaking with him, and this was probably the first time I was really able to hang out with him where it wasn’t at the factory, or the trade show or industry event. I smoked a Joya Silver Toro, which I enjoy a lot, and talked to Juan about the Cinco Decadas, and how it does share some tobaccos with the Silver, confirming my suspicion. I also was able to see the “Joya de Nicaragua “Cinco Décadas: The Rise of the Nicaraguan Cigar”” Book, which is absolutely beautiful, I can’t wait to read it. It was printed in Peru and the graphics and quality are absolutely stunning. As always, Dave, Dan and their staff, as well as Alex, our local Drew Estate Rep, hosted a great event.

Contest

Here’s what happens when I don’t smoke a lot of new cigars during the week. Even though I JUST had a contest, Dan at the Wooden Indian hooked me up with a nifty Joya de Nicaragua Travel Humidor, so courtesy of Joya de Nicaragua, Drew Estate and the Wooden Indian, let’s have another CigarCraig.com giveaway celebrating 50 years of Joya de Nicaragua and the launch of Wooden Indian’s Online store! In addition to the JdN 5 count travel humidor, there’s a JdN hat and a JdN cutter, and I picked up 5 Joya Cigars at the event to fill the humidor! There’s a Joya Silver Robusto, a Joya BlackToro, a Cabinetta Toro, an Antaño 1970 Gran Consul and a very special event only Joya De Nicaragua Clasico (actually, you could probably get this if you were a diplomat, as this is the cigar that’s in embassies around the world for dignitaries to enjoy). I know, it’s crazy having another contest so soon, my apologies! I hope you can forgive me!

Same rules as always, leave a comment on this post to enter, the only other rule is that the last winner isn’t eligible, give someone else a chance! One entry per person, and I’ll select a winner next Sunday, 10/21/2018. Let’s see a bunch of entries, this is some great stuff!

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

CigarCraig

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Tagged as cigar, cigars, Cinco Decadas, Contest, drew estate, Joya, joya de nicaragua, Silver, wooden indian

by CigarCraig | September 26, 2018 · 10:35 am

Joya de Nicaragua “Cinco Décadas: The Rise of the Nicaraguan Cigar” and the Cinco Décadas Diadama

I have a strong affinity for the Joya de Nicaragua factory and their cigars. It was the first factory in Nicaragua I ever toured, and I’ve loved their cigars going back before I ever dreamed I’d have the opportunity to visit the factory, let alone the country where they were made. I’ve had the great fortune of having visited twice, and the remodeling they did in the two year span between visits was remarkable (my own photos below). I really look forward to reading this book, although I’ve been really bad about reading books lately. The history of this factory is amazing, the brand has been through a lot, and the cigars coming from there are among my favorites. I decided to smoke the Cinco Décadas Diadama last night, which Joya de Nicaragua very kindly sent to me in a beautiful presentation consisting of one each of the Diadama and El General (Churchill) sizes along with two of the Quatro Cinco from five years ago. I went with the Diadama, a beautiful 6″ x 54 perfecto, with undisclosed wrapper, binder and fillers. The Cinco Décadas are only available in the two sizes and are priced around $20 in states like mine that don’t have a cigar tax, so expect sticker shock. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that a large portion of the “undisclosed” part of the blend is Nicaraguan, I mean, why wouldn’t it be on a cigar that’s commemorating the first cigar company in Nicaragua’s Golden Anniversary? Ironically, I liken the flavors in this cigar quite a bit to those found in the Joya Silver, more so than any of the heavier blends like the Antaño or the Quatro Cinco. The Cinco Década has a sweet, oatmeal-raisin kind of flavor going on, I kind of like it, as I liked it in the Silver (specifically the Toro). It’s very different from what I expected and am used to, making me want to go back into the JdN Classics and refresh my memory. As one would expect, the burn and draw were exceptional, once the proper aperture was cut on the head, too small restricted the draw too much I found. I stuck with a straight cut on this specifically so I could make such adjustments if needed. I ended up enjoying this cigar to a ¾” nub, and the flavors only intensified as it funneled into the smaller ring gauge, I didn’t allow it to over heat. This is a cigar that’s worthy of celebrating Joya de Nicaragua’s storied history, it’s refined, it’s classy, and it might set a standard for what’s to come in the future.

Joya de Nicaragua Publishes “Cinco Décadas: The Rise of the Nicaraguan Cigar”

How Nicaraguan cigars came to be, and how they have conquered the world, are stories full of hope, love, family, friendship, resilience, and redemption. “Cinco Decadas: The Rise of the Nicaraguan Cigar” is a new book by Joya de Nicaragua that captures this journey, from the very early days of the leaf, until today. It is a celebration to being first, to five decades of success, crisis and resilience, uncovered from sources and facts never seen before and from testimonies of those who lived through it all.

Cinco Décadas, published by Nicaragua’s first Premium Cigar Maker, is intended to shed light on the collective evolution of the Nicaraguan people, of the country, and the company through the lens of one singular product: the most Nicaraguan cigar, a product that has become a means to share that evolution with the world and has transformed the lives of thousands of Nicaraguans and millions of cigar lovers around the world. You will hear from the people of Joya de Nicaragua in their own words, how they headed of the country’s first premium cigar manufacturer; came to work for it; fight for it; love it. The pages of Cinco Décadas are a testament to those people that, filled with courage and hope, helped build this unparalleled institution.

A Multi-Talented Effort

It took Joya de Nicaragua more than two years of research to be able to tell the story of the Rise of the Nicaraguan Cigar; a story that was majestically captured by the renowned British journalist Nick Hammond, and complemented by the country’s and region’s top talent in creativity, editorial, photography and design. “Being asked to write the story of Joya de Nicaragua was something of a dream come true. Finally, the chance to really get my teeth into some cigar research. To write of a cigar firm which has defied the odds to survive and thrive today. To write of a country which ceaselessly fights for a better life. And to write of the company owners – the Martinez family – whom I hold in the very highest regard. I’m very proud to have been involved in this remarkable project”, says Nick Hammond, writer.

“For many people, Nicaragua is a newcomer to the cigar world; but at Joya de Nicaragua we’ve always known how deep and rooted tobacco culture has been in our history and in our identity. We wanted to demonstrate this to the world, but we wanted to do it in a remarkable way, one unlike any other cigar book out there. With Cinco Décadas our goal was to showcase the profound impact that tobacco and cigars have had in our country, in our people, our culture and in our future. It’s not a book about a person, or a family, or the process of making cigars. It’s book about all of those things. This book allows us to appreciate cigars in a more meaningful and complete way.” – Juan Ignacio Martínez, Executive President of JdN

A Poetic Visual Journey

Illustrated with beautiful images throughout 204 pages and eleven chapters, the book takes us through a journey of Nicaragua, the city of Estelí, then through the post-colonial era, followed by the social struggles of the 1900’s until the evolution of the Joya brand today. It also touches on the exceptional aspects of the cigar making process and the social impact of the industry. It closes with a depiction of how Joya de Nicaragua has evolved to become one of the world’s most renowned premium cigar brands.

“As we close the chapter of our first 50 years, we begin to write the story of the next five decades hand in hand with the story of our whole nation”, concludes Juan. The first edition of “Cinco Décadas: The Rise of the Nicaraguan Cigar” is in English and it will later translated to Spanish and other languages. It will be available in special Joya de Nicaragua events starting in October and in certain specialty shops around the world. Towards the end of the year, it will be available online.

About Joya de Nicaragua

Established in 1968, Joya de Nicaragua is Nicaragua’s first and oldest cigar factory in operation. This year we celebrate our biggest milestone yet, our 50th anniversary. JdN’s commitment to quality along with their skillful and resilient people have brought their handmade cigars to over 50 countries around the world, making it Nicaragua’s most international brand. This year, JDN pays tribute to the birth of the Nicaraguan cigar industry and celebrates five decades of being the most Nicaraguan cigar. For more information, please visit www.joyacigars.com

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

CigarCraig

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by CigarCraig | September 9, 2018 · 11:15 am

Quesada Oktoberfest, Fratello and Joya Silver Cigars

Earlier in the week I was going through one of the desktop humidors refreshing my memory on what was in there, and I came across a cigar that I remember buying a couple of at a local shop on closeout. I distinctly remember the occasion, it was a bitter cold January evening the first winter we had moved to our current house, making it the winter of 2015. After dinner I ran up to the local shop with my tablet to write a blog post and smoke a cigar in the warmth of the shop, and got there around 6, not realizing they closed at 7. They had these 2011 Quesada Oktoberfest Über, a monolithic 6″ x 65 cigar, in the discount area priced at $5, and, not being able to resist a bargain, I grabbed a handful. Of course, I didn’t get too far into the behemoth before having to head home to finish the cigar bundled up on the cigar porch. I came across the last of the few I bought that night in the bottom corner of this humidor sitting there un-cello’d, and lonely, and I hate to see a cigar sitting there like that, all vulnerable and whatnot, so I decided to take it for one last walk. It’s kind of amazing how much room that one cigar freed up on the humidor, but I wish I had more! After three and a half years in my humidor, and much longer than that since being rolled, this cigar developed into the most floral flavored cigar I’ve smoked in a very long time. I’m not normally into that, but this was enjoyable for being outside of the norm. Every puff of the nearly three-hour smoke was delightfully refreshing, and I don’t recall the ones I smoked previously smoking that way. I think I still have a 2016 Oktoberfest around, should I smoking now, or wait until 2023?

I finally got around to smoking the Fratello Navetta this week, and I smoked both the Endeavor, the 6 ¼” x 54 Toro and the Atlantis Boxer 6 ¼” x 52 Box Pressed Torpedo. Obviously both are similar in size, but they smoked differently. The blend is an Ecuadorian Oscuro Wrapper, Dominican Binder and Nicaragua Filler, with one of the components having a good amount of age, and I can’t remember which, I should have made note of that, it’s an important detail that doesn’t seem to be noted anywhere. This line was released in 2017 and commemorates the NASA Space Shuttle program, Omar was a part of 21 shuttle missions with NASA. In line with the Italian name of his brand, Navatta is Italian for Shuttle. Why did it take me so long to sample the Navetta when I’ve been such a fan of the Fratello brand since it’s beginnings in 2012? I guess I just haven’t seen them on shelves and haven’t gone nuts hunting them down. This week I happened to be in two shops that had them, and received the Endeavor as a generous gift, and bought the Atlantis at a Fratello event. This cigar is medium bodied and what I call sophisticated, with a nice subtle spice and some light espresso. The box pressed torpedo had a more open draw, so it expressed those flavors a little more than that toro, which was less generous with the smoke output. I really enjoy the “Boxer” vitola in all of Omar’s Fratello lines, and I really dug the Atlantis in the Navetta as well. there’s something about the box pressed torpedo that works for me. These are pricey, but really exceptional smokes, and I’m anxious to try the Navetta Inverso when it hits retailers in the coming months. Stay tuned for the upcoming CigarCraig’s Podcast where I talk with Omar de Frias. I also smoked a Fratello Bianco IV, the 6 ½ x 54 in the line at the event at Old Havana Cigar Co. in West Chester, PA Friday and loved it.

Since the Fratello Bianco and Navetta (and Classico, everything but the Oro line) is made at the Joya de Nicaragua factory, and I get on streaks, I figured I’d smoke the Joya Silver Ultra, which is the Corona Extra in the line. I really liked the Toro I smoked, and I don’t think I mentioned it in a blog post, I think I was waiting to smoke some of the other sizes first, and I still want to get my hands on some more of the Toros, we all know I like Toros. I have a Robusto and Corona left to sample, and so far the Corona Extra was really good, but not as good as the Toro. I think additional heat from the smaller ring gauge reduced the sweetness a bit to me. The blend is an Ecuador Habano wrapper with a San Andrès binder and Nicaraguan fillers, but I found the flavor to be very unique and appealing to me, with the smaller ring gauge having a predictable sharper sensation. I’ll be interested to see how the corona and robusto compare. So far, in Joya’s “New Age” line, this is my favorite, the Red is OK, and I never really was able to get a handle on the Black, which perplexed me, I should have been all over that line, but it hasn’t grabbed me, perhaps I’ll give it another go. They include the Cabinetta in the Joya series, which I love. I can always rely on an Antaño 1970 or Dark Corojo, or any of the related special cigars in the Joya de Nicaragua stable, it remains a favorite factory of mine.