Tag Archives: Mooch

by CigarCraig | January 1, 2012 · 10:02 am

Happy New Cigar Year! A Macanudo, an Emilio and a Gurkha

Welcome to 2012 on CigarCraig.com! I can’t imagine that this year can be better than last year for me cigar-wise, but I’ll do my best to at least come close. 2011 saw trips to Nicaragua and The Dominican Republic, as well as a trip to the IPCPR show in Las Vegas. I made a lot of new friends in the industry, including a bunch of fellow blogger types. We culminated the year with a huge series of contests that broke all kinds of records here. Thank you all for a great 2011! Looking forward to seeing what the new year brings.

While I’ve had the week off this past week I’ve had a few occasions for a cigar, but I’ll just mention the notable ones. Most of them were good, most of them I’d smoked before and don’t want to be repetitive. I kinda wanted to take the week off from what passes as reviews around here after the rigors of posting 14 days in a row! Here’s a couple cigars that were notable, at least to me. First I had a Macanudo 1968 Robusto on Christmas Day, with my brother-in-law, who is finding that he enjoys good cigars. I set him up with a little travel humidor for Christmas and he seems to be getting a lot of use out of it. The 1968 was from a box that I brought back form my General Cigar visit. I’ve smoked a bunch of these over the past few years and I’m still surprised by how strong they are. The Macanudo name on the band always fools me. It was a notable cigar as much for the company and occasion as anything else, but I do enjoy the 1968 line quite a bit.

Friday I paid a visit to my local shop, JM Cigars in Exton. I met an old friend, Bruce, there for a smoke and to catch up. I had hope a few more friends would stop by, but was more than happy to while away the afternoon with Bruce and a Emilio AF2 BMF. I picked up a couple of these 6″ x 58 monsters because I hadn’t had the AF2 in this size, and I really liked the AF1 in the same vitola. These were very reasonably priced and I thoroughly enjoyed this cigar for 1½ to almost 2 hours. Loads of flavor and well made. I was really glad to see these in JM’s and wouldn’t have even thought to look if my wife hadn’t spied an empty box by the door on our last visit.

Saturday I took an uncustomary early walk so I selected a Gurkha Cellar Reserve Churchill, which came last month in a truly unexpected package from the manufacturer. This cigar boasts 15 year aged tobaccos and is a stunning cigar. I wonder why a 7″ x 54 feels so much more massive than a 6″ x 58 or 60? Does length play that much of a roll in our perception? Maybe….anyway, this was a nice enough cigar for a pre-lunch smoke, looking forward to seeing how some humidor time treats these, even though they have 15 years age on some of the leaf. I’m also not a huge Criollo wrapper fan, but this one was pretty good.. Not overpowering, enough flavor to maintain interest, and a perfect burn. Many thanks to Oliver at Beach CIgar Group for thinking of me.

I had another Berger and Argenti Mooch Loll Maduro this week which was really tasty too! I love this line. Also, Santa brought me a new video camera and an IPod Touch which have already been used for some of the pictures on this page, and will simplify things for me here and there.

That about wraps it up for today. Enjoy the holiday, watch the Winter Classic tomorrow and I hope 2012 can be even better thank 2011 was!

CigarCraig

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Filed under Review, Stores

Tagged as af2, Berger & Argenti, cigar, cigars, Emilio, general cigars, Gurkha, IPCPR, JM Cigars, macanudo, Mooch, Take A Cigar For A Walk

by CigarCraig | October 5, 2011 · 6:43 pm

Berger & Argenti and Toraño Single Region

Sunday evening, after a very busy weekend, I had a hankering for a Berger & Argenti Mooch Loll maduro. This was a really nice looking 6″ x 52 torpedo, perfectly proportioned with a beautiful dark wrapper. I have to say that in this case, I really enjoyed the natural wrapper more. Still, it was a delicious cigar that performed admirably. I had spent the afternoon at a street festival in my town, I had hoped to smoke a cigar or two while there, but it rained and was cold. My youngest son was playing in one of his bands at the festival, they played at one of the locations, but their set at the main location was cancelled due to the weather. I had planned on smoking one of the camouflage wrapped American Eagles cigars, so if someone complained, I could act like I didn’t know what they were complaining about! This joke probably goes over better in my head, just like when I run into the rack of camo clothes in the sporting goods store and saying I didn’t see it. Anyway, I still like the Berger & Argenti Mooch line quite a bit, the name may be a little odd, but the cigars are good. This one was a sample from the IPCPR show.

Tuesday I selected a Toraño Family Cigars Single Region Serie Jalapa, which I bought at G & G Cigars on a recent visit. This one was the 6″ x 54 Toro Grande. I;m not usually a fan of Criollo wrapped cigars, but this one, with it’s entirely Jalapa grown tobaccos, was sweet and rich, and I really enjoyed it. It didn’t burn arrow straight, but I still was a very relaxing and enjoyable cigar. My son, Corey, joined me on the front porch with a Cain F Nub and it didn’t kill him. The Single Region Serie Jalapa is made completely from tobaccos grown on the El Estero Farm in Jalapa, Nicaragua. A unique cigar, very nice.

Here is a little video I took with Charlie Toraño a the IPCPR show last July. As with all my videos, don’t forget to turn your computer speakers down after watching!

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

CigarCraig

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Filed under IPCPR, Review, Video

Tagged as cain, cigar, cigars, criollo, IPCPR, Jalapa, Mooch, nub, oliva, Toraño

by CigarCraig | October 2, 2011 · 5:18 pm

October Is Here: Berger & Argenti, Chateau Real and Macanudo Contest Winners!

It’s autumn here in south-east PA, and the evenings are getting shorter. This time of year I tend to gravitate toward maduro cigars more, not sure why that is, I just do. I have my winter stock of smaller, maduro cigars in half of a box of Chateau Real Small Clubs and three quarters of a box of Hoyo de Monterrey Sabrosos all ready for the cold winter walks. I have a severe dislike for fall and winter, so next spring can’t come soon enough.

Earlier this week I had a yen for a Berger & Argenti cigar, so I grabbed a Classico Belicoso that I received at the IPCPR show. This one wasn’t quite as tasty as the Mooch Schnorr, but it was still very nice, and for some reason the 5¾” x 50 belicoso shape felt very elegant in the hand. I know, that sounds a little un-manly, but it’s seemed like it would feel just right while wearing a tuxedo, and what’s more man;y than a tux. I don’t know where that while line of thought came from, but it did, and there it is. As I said, this was a very tasty smoke and burned nicely. I have enjoyed the heck out of the recent samplings from Berger & Argenti. I’ve still got some Mooch maduros and Entubar Quad Maduros to look forward to. The Entubar is a very good candidate for my annual Halloween cigar.

Friday evening I just wanted something good and familiar, that I wouldn’t have to think about much, so I grabbed a Chateau Real Maduro Gran Cru Perfecto from my dwindling supply. I love the Mexican maduro wrapper on this cigar. I don’t think they are making the Chateau Real in maduro any more which is a shame, I guess I didn’t buy enough of them to keep them in production. It’s a nice, medium cigar that always hits me right, always draws well and burns straight, and I will be sad when these are gone! Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love the Claro version of this cigar, but it’s quite a bit different with the maduro wrapper. Thinking about it makes me want another! Will power….

I need to select a pair of winners. The Macanudo Millionaire contest closed last week, so I hope everyone got their entries in. These Macanudo four packs are quite unique in that the cigars are all 6 x 60 versions of the regular line, the maduro, the 1968 and the Crü Royale. So, the winners, as selected at random using the random number generator at Random.org. The numbers generated were 1 and 6, which correspond to kekoa kai and Kyle! Congrats gentlemen! Make sure you get in touch with me with your contact info so I can send out your prize!

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

CigarCraig

Comments Off on October Is Here: Berger & Argenti, Chateau Real and Macanudo Contest Winners!

Filed under Contest, Review

Tagged as Argenti, Berger & Argenti, cigar, cigars, Classico, Contest, drew estate, Entubar, general, general cigars, IPCPR, Kiki Berger, macanudo, Macanudo Millionaire, Millionaire, Mooch

by CigarCraig | September 21, 2011 · 8:38 pm

Cigars So Far: Kristoff and CAO, A Schnorr, and Some 7-20-4s

I forgot to make mention of the cigars I smoked at the Delaware Cigar Festival. As I said, the format was that cigars were for sale at the vendors tables. $3.00 per cigar, with 100% of the proceeds going to charity, which was the family of a local police officer recently killed in the line of duty. I purchased a handful of cigars, some I wanted to try and some favorites I don’t see very often. Obviously, in most cases $3.00 each is an excellent deal for a lot of the cigars that were offered. I started with a Kristoff Corojo and I regret not getting a second one of these. Very nice cigar and a nice way to start the day. I also smoked a CAO OSA Sol Lot 50 that, while not as good as the first one I smoked, was very nice. Buy the time I picked up the OSA it had been out on a table most of the afternoon, not right out of a humidor. No worries as I did get another one of these. When I buy singles I like to buy in pairs for some reason. I also picked up some Murcielagos from Eddie Ortega as well as a bunch of other assorted goodies.

Sunday I closed out the weekend with a Berger & Argenti Mooch Schnorr which was a sample from the IPCPR show. I love the name of this, even though it’s a little redundant. For those who don’t know “Schnorr” is a Yiddish term for a mooch. I know this because I have a good friend who refers to another friend as such, and it cracks me up. So while I was at the show in July, having a Cuban coffee with Kiki Berger in his booth, he made sure I had some samples. In my limited experience at the IPCPR shows, Cuban Crafters has always been very generous with samples, however, a great many over the years have not been to my liking. This led me to avoid Cuban Crafters over the years, and it wasn’t until spending an excellent evening in Esteli with Mr. Berger that I re-thought that position. I’ve since enjoyed several other cigars that carry the Berger name. The Mooch Schnorr was really a very tasty cigar, I enjoyed it quite a bit. I would even go so far as to say it was the best cigar all week. It was smooth and flavorful and perfectly built. The sample I grabbed did have a small crack just below the cap line which gave me a few problems initially, until I patched it with part of the cap, which solved the problem completely. I smoked this down to a finger burning nub, and was sorry to see it end. The Schnorr is a nice size (robusto) and a tasty, well balanced blend. I can’t wait to dig into the rest of the samples from the show. I have some maduros and some more of the Entubar line to try.

By the time I was ready to sit down and enjoy a cigar on Monday it was getting fairly late. I was rooting through the humidor looking for something small and settled on the 7-20-4 Dogwalker that Kurt Kendal gave me when I met him at the 2010 IPCPR show. Don’t know why it took so long to get around to this one, it jsut did, what can I say. The Dog Walker is a handsome little cigar, 4¼” x 40, with the same straight “pigtail” as the rest of the line. It was definitely full flavored and may have been on the verge of being strong, I enjoyed it quite a bit and it lasted close to 45 minutes before I put it down to go in for the night. I don’t have a dog to walk, but my cat, Frank, hung out with my on the porch while I smoked it. Nice little cigar and Kurt is a nice guy.

I visited Kurt at this years show and he gave me his 7-20-4 1874 blend to try. While the regular line is made in Honduras, the 1874 is made in Nicaragua, with a lovely Nicaraguan wrapper. This one had a very open draw, so I smoked it slowly. It was a really nice smoke, I think it was a little bit milder than the Dog Walker, but had a more balanced flavor. There was a taste in there that I really liked, can’t place it, but it was good. The sample I smoked was a robusto and I would happily smoke it again. Nice job on this line extension.

As long as I’m ending on a 7-20-4 thing, here’s a little video Kurt took with me at the show. Standard disclaimer applies: Don’t forget to turn down your PC speakers after watching so you don’t blow your speakers on the next Windows Error chime (or whatever weird sounds Macs make)!