I’m still working my way through the Rebellion line, but I figured I’d better smoke a couple cigars that I got at the Battleship Beef event that are going to be featured (along with a bunch of other stuff) at the Dunbarton Tobacco and Trust booth at the PCA show this coming week.  If I waited another week others would have had a chance to smoke them and I wouldn’t be special any more, would I? :-). Yesterday afternoon, between chores, errands and a nap, I smoked the Mi Querida Black “PapaSaka”.  This is a Corona Gorda shape in the Black line, which had previously only been available in the SakaKahn size, which was 7¼” x 54. It’s not a coincidence that this is the same size as the Hoyo de Monterrey Excalibur No. 1, as the SakaKahn started life as one of the JR anniversary cigars, and that cigar has a history there. The Black has a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper, San Andrés negro binder, and fillers from the Dominican Republic, Honduras and Nicaragua. The 5 5/8 x 48 (2 rings larger than a corona gorda, I mis-stated earlier), seems quite a bit stronger to me, as I suspect it should.  I smoked a few of the SakaKahns and while they were very good, I felt like they weren’t as focused in flavor as even the Blue band Mi Querida (admittedly my favorite, Ancho Larga especially). The PapaSaka has the espresso, spiciness that one would expect, with a bunch of strength. I definitely needed a nap after this cigar!  Two thumbs up, look forward to getting my hands on more!  

After dinner I had a Ribeye, a Red Meat Lovers Club Ribeye, that is.  If I’m not mistaken, this cigar started life as the Meat Box, a Smoke Inn Micro Blend.  This cigar is a 6″ x 52 Box Press with a pigtail cap.  It has a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper and a San Andrés negro binder, like the Mi Querida Black, with fillers from Nicaragua and Pennsylvania.  Oddly enough, this is the first Red Meat Lovers Club Cigar I’ve had.  You’d think having known Saka for as long as I have, I’d have smoked all of his stuff, but I don’t go chasing his limited stuff down, actually most of the store exclusives he’s made have not made it my way.  My general frugality may play into this as well.  Clearly this shares DNA with the Mi Querida line, but there’s a, dare I say, meatiness, to it.  Must be the Pennsylvania fillers that give it a hearty, savory flavor that offsets, and compliments the sweetness of the wrapper/binder combo.  This was a really delicious cigar and I’ll be very interested to see how this does as a national release.  I know Evan Darnel, who owns the Red Meat Lover’s Club brand, is beyond excited to have this cigar, as well has his brand, widely distributed.  

Back to the Rebellion Cigars.  Wednesday I posted my interview with Shaun Wilkinson, who owns the brand. I thought it was a good interview, and, since I’m not going to the PCA show, I figured I’d try to get a few remote interviews in where I can.  I’ll include it again at the bottom of this post.  I’ve been working my way through the selection of cigars Shaun sent, and smoked the 5 O’Clock Somewhere Toro from the Country Range.  This 6″ x 50 toro has a Habano wrapper, Connecticut binder and fillers from Trojes and Copan in Honduras and Esteli in Nicaragua.  Like the rest of the range, it’s made in a small factory in Honduras. Amongst all the samples I’ve smoked so far, the construction has been excellent, the 5 O’Clock Somewhere (named for an Alan Jackson song) was no different.  It had a nice sugar cane sweetness, which I like, and a subtle spice.  it was a very nice cigar.  Funny enough, I’m not a country music fan at all, however, I found all three of the cigars in Rebellion’s Country Range to be really good.  

As I’ve been typing this, I’ve been smoking the Rebellion Paradise City Robusto (5″ x 52) with my morning coffee.  Obviously, Shaun is a Guns and Roses fan, he also has a limited edition cigar called the Sweet Child O’ Mine in the collection.  I gave Shaun a bit of trademark advice in the video, now that I think of it, Mr. Brownstone is off the table for him (Esteban Carreras has it tied up).  This Paradise City is the Connecticut Shade wrapped cigar in the Rockstar Range, with an Indonesian binder and fillers from Condega and Jalapa in Nicaraguan and Jamastran in Honduras. Most of my favorite shade wrapped cigars are Honduran in origin, and this one is very enjoyable. It’s got a lot of flavor, kind of a milk chocolate with some spice.  It’s certainly not just a morning cigar, it could be enjoyed any time of the day.  I’ve been quite pleasantly surprised with the Rebellion Cigars, still to come are the Ace of Spades and You Shook Me All Night Long, which I have sampled in the Gordo, but want to give the Toros a shot before presenting them here.  

That’s all for today.  Tuesday is the 4th of July.  I have a few good cigars lined up to celebrate my wedding anniversary (36) and Independence Day.  Try not to blow your fingers off with fireworks. Until the next time, 

CigarCraig