Tag Archives: maduro

by | April 1, 2011 · 6:27 pm

Take a Cigar For a Walk – Catching Up…

I’ve been busy reporting on my trip, then the La Gloria Cubana festivities, but I’ve been taking cigars for walks all along. I’ve been hoping to hear from Tommy but he hasn’t responded to my e-mails lately. I can only assume he’s busy with work and family, but I hope everything’s OK with him. I also am waiting for another guest “Take A Cigar For A Walk” report that I will post when I receive it.  I don’t have exact dates for the cigars that follow, I could look them up but I’m too lazy and I figure it really doesn’t matter to my readers much anyway!

Back on St. Patrick’s day I took a Camacho Corojo Monarca Candela for a walk. I enjoy the occasional green cigar, and this is a powerhouse. I’m coming to the end of a box of these that I bought 2 years ago or so. The cigars from this box all have had a very loose draw, and I’ve come to the conclusion that the punch is the way to go with these. Great burn, that almost refreshing grassy organic flavor from the candela wrapper. Nice cigar.

My next TACFAW cigar was a 777 Maduro Corona. I picked up a few of these at my local shop around Christmas and really enjoy them. Well made, nice dark maduro flavors. I should try the 777 Corojo next time as I’ve heard good things about them.  I can’t find a website for Jesus Fuego, can anyone point me to it?

 

After that I grabbed the last of the CAO Italia robustos I had. I want to like these. The examples I had didn’t burn worth a damn, they all ran up one side, burned unevenly, needed constant attention. I enjoy the flavor, the bit of Italian leaf gives them a little bit of a unique flavor, but the burn problems detract from the experience for me.

 

I was in a lancero mood one night and grabbed a Rocky Patel Olde World Reserve Maduro Lancero. I had picked this up last summer on a visit to a shop about an hour away. I took the scooter for a spin and met up with Walt White of StogieReview and Dave Wagner of Oliva at Sire Stogies in Gilbertsville, PA. This one behaved much better that the one I smoked in the shop. Burned great and had a nice flavor. Good for 2 laps around the neighborhood (about 1.6 miles) and a cool down.

Sunday’s walk cigar was a La Gloria Cubana Serie N JSB. I enjoyed the one I smoked during Friday nights webcast so much I had to spark up another one. Don’t worry, I’m not dipping into the contest prize stash, but I will need to show some restraint! I did a little shopping around and found that several of the larger internet retailers are selling the Serie N for very good prices. One could get a box of 24 for under $90 delivered, which is not a bad price for these cigars.

Last night I dug out a Don Tomas Classico Corona Grande for my walk. I only have a couple of these left from a box I got a few years ago. I have enjoyed them quote a bit and the fact that they are tubed makes them a nice cigar to grab and throw in you r pocket. I gave this a punch since it’s a 44 ring and I’ve been playing with the punch lately for smaller ring cigars. I enjoyed this cigar while I took a nice long walk, but when I got home I noticed that I had some brown stains on my fingers. It seems there was some brown goo coming from the punch, which I clipped off as soon as I noticed. I didn’t taste anything, and I’ve had this happen in the past but haven’t experienced it in many years. I noticed afterward that my fingers smelled like I had been sifting through some Marlboro smoker’s ashtray, it was terrible! I had to use a scrub brush on my hands to get the smell off. I love the cigars, but I don’t want to have that happen again!

 

March was a record month as far as visitors to CigarCraig.com by more the triple!  I’d like to thank everyone for visiting and following along.

Until the next time,

CigarCraig

 

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by | January 3, 2011 · 11:09 pm

Cigar Recap: Fuente, 777, Chateau Real – Monday January 3, 2011

First post of 2011!  I hope everyone had a safe and festive holiday and that 2011 is better than 2010.  Last year was a great year for CigarCraig.com and the coming year should be even better.  While I’m thinking about it, if you’re looking for a top ten list or a “best of” you can forget about it!  What I think about any of the new cigars this year is of little consequence to anyone, there were very few “new” cigars that I sampled and the few that I did I wasn’t really “wow’d” by.  I will say that the Liga Privada Dirty Rat is my favorite new cigar, but I received my first sample of that cigar in 2009, so it hardly counts!

Anyway, last week we had some fairly unseasonably temperate weather, so I grabbed an Arturo Fuente Double Chateau that was a gift from a friend.  It’s been years since I smoked one of these, and I was in the mood for a milder cigar for an afternoon walk.  Certainly a perfectly constructed and well balanced cigar, I honestly don’t know why I don’t grab Fuente products more often.  I have a handful of what I consider “special” Fuentes, various smaller Hemingways, Opus X, the odd Don Carlos, but I save them for some reason…probably because I figure I’ll never have them again if I smoke them!  Ridiculous, I know.  I promise to smoke some of these when the weather gets warmer or I have an good inside opportunity.

Next up was a re-visit of a cigar I smoked and liked a few months back, the J. Fuego 777 maduro corona.  I enjoyed this cigar again, but it didn’t hit me the same as the first one.  I blame the colder weather, I seem to prefer stronger flavored cigars in the winter, and I think this fits that, but obviously my palate misses some of the complexities when the mercury drops.  The size of this cigar is just about perfect for me at 5½” x 46 and the burn and draw were perfect.  I picked up a few more of these last week and I think they are a fairly good cigar for $4.50 each. I look forward to smoking more of these.

Tonight I got lazy, and, considering that the weather has taken a colder turn, I went with a familiar friend, the Chateau Real Small Club Corona Maduro.  There’s a couple things I really like about these cigars.  The size, 4″ x 44,  is great for my walk to the local convenience store and the strength of flavor is perfect for the colder weather.  These are wrapped with a dark Mexican leaf that gives the cigar a rich and earthy taste. I think this box purchase was my best of the year at right around $50 for a box of 32.

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

CigarCraig

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by | March 21, 2010 · 12:57 pm

Sancho Panza, Chateau Reals and Minor League Hockey – Sunday March 21, 2010

It’s finally spring in SE Pennsylvania, so that means CigarCraig gets a wicked head cold.  I’ve been trying to keep it at bay, at least by trying to limit my cigar intake.  I did feel obligated Friday night after hearing about the passing of Frank Llaneza, who probably can take some of the credit for the post-embargo, non-cuban cigars that we enjoy today. When you smoke a Hoyo de Monterrey, Punch, El Rey del Mundo, or more recent releases such as the Siglo or Frank Llaneza 1961, you have this gentleman to thank for it.   I was surprised to find that the only cigar I could find in my humidor who’s pedigree could be traced to Mr. Llaneza was a lone Sancho Panza Extra Fuerte Cordoba.  I’ve really enjoyed the full body and flavor of these since buying a box several years ago,  a delicious cigar that will be missed in my humidor, much like Frank Llanaza will be missed in the cigar industry.

Here’s a write up in Cigar Aficionado about Mr. Llaneza’s passing <click here>.  Also , JR Cigars latest catalog includes a nice biography of him <click here>.

Saturday night I had the opportunity to attend a Reading Royals hockey game at the Sovereign Center in Reading PA. Minor league hockey is always a lot of fun to watch.  The stars didn’t line up for me to get the cigar store visit in that I had wanted to.  However, my old friend Jeff and I enjoyed some Chateau Real Magnum 46 Claros pre-game and some Chateau Real Gran Cru Perfecto Maduros post game.  Both cigars fall on the milder side of medium to me, with the claro having that nuttiness usually associated with the Connecticut shade wrapper, and the maduro with the cocoa notes that go along with the beautiful, dark Mexican wrapper.  The hockey game ended with a 4-0 win for the home team.  After a feisty first period, I thought that the animosity between the teams would build and there would be some exciting altercations, but after the Royals built the 4-0 lead it seemed like the opposing team, the Johnstown Chiefs, kind of lost their fire.  It was still an entertaining game, and we enjoyed some wonderful cigars.

After a few days of abusing myself (staying up late, smoking cigars when I really shouldn’t be, you know…) it’s time to focus on getting rid of this darned cold so I can fully enjoy cigars again (and sleep without coughing and getting up to blow my nose more importantly).  Lots of water and sun today, but I’m going to abstain from cigars until the funk in my sinuses subsides.  Cigars and sinus infections don’t go well together.

Next Saturday, March 27, I am going to make a pilgrimage to JR Cigars in Whippany, NJ to hang out for the afternoon and smoke a few cigars.  If anyone is in the area please stop by and introduce yourself!  I’ll be the guy smoking a cigar 🙂

Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter (@cigarcraig).  I have it set to automatically tweet when I update the page.  I’m  working on e-mail subscriptions for those who like that ( I do, so I figure there may be others too).  Any suggestions would be appreciated!

Until the next cigar,

CigarCraig

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by | March 10, 2010 · 10:10 pm

Random Cigar Musings – Wednesday March 10, 2010

I’ve been on a maduro torpedo kick this week.  After Saturday’s Diesel Unholy Cocktail, I followed it up on Sunday with a very nice CAO Brazilia Samba.  The Samba is a 6¼ x 54 torpedo with a Brazilian wrapper and Nicaraguan binder and filler. I enjoyed this cigar quite a bit.  It burned very evenly and was on the stronger side of medium bodied. Cocoa, coffee and some spiceyness were the dominant flavors, ones that I expect and enjoy in this line.  I am pretty sure I got this one at the CAO party at the Palms in Las Vegas at the 2008 IPCPR show.  They handed out a handful of CAO, Toraño, and Henri Wintermans cigars at the door and Lynyrd Skynyrd provided the entertainment.  Quite a cool evening.

Last night I picked out a Toraño Exodus 1959 – 50 Years Torpedo.  Slightly shorter than the Samba at 5½ x 52, it also sports a Brazilian wrapper and Nicaraguan filler, but with a Honduran binder.  Similar in flavor to the CAO, but I found it milder.  I was a little disappointed by this one, I expected stronger flavors.  The construction was top notch of course.  I’ve had good experiences with this line, too bad this one didn’t live up to my expectations.  I picked this one up at Cigars International last fall when they had a Toraño event at the Superstore in Bethlehem.  I have a couple  Casa Toraño Maduro Lanceros for which I have high hopes.

After all the dark wrapped torps this week I decided I needed to change it up a little tonight and grabbed a Camacho Corojo Candela Monarca.  I know, I should have saved this for March 17th, it being the appropriate emerald green for St. Patrick’s Day. The cigars from this box have all been rather loosely rolled, giving them a very free draw.  I found out some time ago that if I pierce the cap with a Cigar Spike, it makes for a perfect draw. These are a strong cigar, although the candela wrapper tempers the power that the Corojo line is famous for a little.  These can still overwhelm if one isn’t careful. I find them a nice change of pace.  I still have several from a box I purchased a few years ago from Rock’s Smoke Shop in East Stroudsburg, PA. so smoking one next week isn’t out of the question.

Don’t forget, only a couple day left to get your entries in for this month’s contest.  Click here and leave a comment with your guess!  Thanks once again to the fine folks at Drew Estate for providing outstanding prizes!

Until the next cigar,

CigarCraig

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