Tag Archives: New World

by | October 4, 2020 · 10:52 am

A Few A.J. Fernandez Cigars, a Pancetta and STFU!!! Thoughts

I smoked a few more of the A.J. Fernandez cigars that I had picked up last week at CigarCigars in Downingtown. I’ve managed to smoke a great many more cigars that are made by AJF for other people than under his own name, but I imagine that’s just a function of scale. The San Lotano was a cigar that I really enjoyed several years ago. The first one was the New World Puro Especiale Robusto. This is a 5½ x 52 “robusto”, not a bad size, right in between a robusto and a toro really. I thought it was a pretty decent cigar, on the leathery side, which generally doesn’t excite me a whole lot. It has Nicaraguan Habano wrapper and binder, with Nicaraguan fillers. One wonders if they go to the trouble of identifying the wrapper and binder varietals, why skimp on naming the fillers? Anyway, it was a very good cigar if that’s your flavor preference, mine tends toward something sweeter.

 

Next up was the Enclave Broadleaf, a cigar that I had been hoping to pick up, but was disappointed that they didn’t have for sale. How is it that I came to acquire this cigar, you ask? Well. Tom, the new manager at CigarCigars in Downingtown, PA, happened to mention that he was smoking one that the rep, John, had given him to try, and he was going to recommend bringing them in, which I replied that I had hoped to find them there. He then gifted me one, which was mighty nice of him, I think he’s going to do alright there! 😀 Like I said, I had been looking forward to trying this cigar, so I lit up the 5” x 52 Robusto and took a walk. This is a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapped cigar with Nicaraguan binder and fillers, and it’s on the strong side. I actually found it to have a biting sensation, to the flavor. It had the bitter espresso thing going on to a pretty high level, in my opinion. There was nothing subtle or smooth about this cigar. When I come across these in the shop I’ll pick a few up and leave them rest for a while (six months to a year) and see if the rough edges smooth out. For me, this is a cigar to follow a heavy meal, it’s a full frontal assault on the palate.

 

I posted the news release last week about Drew Estate’s re-release of the Liga Privada Lounge exclusive Liga Privada Serie Unico Pancetta. This is a shop exclusive that is exclusive to only two shops, the Wooden Indian, which is near me, and one of my favorites, and Barristers In New Jersey. Last year Dave, the proprietor of the Wooden Indian, gave me one out of his private stock, long after I had missed out on getting one. Now that they are available again, or maybe they sold out of the latest batch, I’m not sure, I figured I’d smoke it. It’s a smaller cigar, at least for my tastes, a 4 ¾” x 50 belicoso. I got a late start last night, and the size worked well for me.  This cigar has the T52 wrapper, around a variation on the Feral Flying Pig blend. The combination resulted in an excellent cigar, although I was hard pressed to make any connection to either the T52 or the FFP. To be fair, the last FFP seemed different from the previous FFP I smoked, so who knows, right? Anyway, it was an outstanding cigar that I savored until I couldn’t savor any more, it certainly is a cigar that Dave at the WI is proud to have representing his wonderful lounge, which I look forward to visiting once it reopens! I’ve actually only been there once since the remodeled, and it was at Christmas. Between lack of employment and pandemic, I haven’t had a chance to get there. Call them and see if they still have some available!

 

Saka had his big reveal show for his STFU!!! Brûlée Sampler, hosted by Kevin at CigarProp and the I’d Tap That Cigar show. I don’t normally watch live streams, but this one was a must see. Kevin did a great job moderating this one with Steve and Dave Lafferty, although someone should tell Steve that his signature black shirt against the dark background made him look like a disembodied head on my screen, which was a little disturbing. I lit up a Mi Querida Firecracker because it was supposed to be an hour,  I should have gone with a Sobremesa Short Churchill, because it went an hour and  20 minutes. It’s Saka, I should know better. Anyway, The announcement was that the S and !!! were regular Brûlée, T was double sweet and F and U were sweetened. My assessment was close, although I struggled with F and U, missing U altogether I think. The way Steve explained the sweetening process, they make all the cigars the same, then wipe the sugar solution on after the fact, and the sugar solution is concentrated differently to achieve the sweetness level. The F and U samples I received must have had the cloth with the sweetener on it waved over them, because they either were ever so slightly sweetened, or I don’t taste sweet very well. I have quite. A sweet tooth, so I don’t think that’s the case. Anyway, I rather enjoyed the T actually, it was an interesting change of pace, and I do enjoy a sweetened cigar once in a while, although the saccharine is a little much, but Steve explained why that is used instead of sugar in a lot of cases to. Go to the CigarProp YouTube channelCigarProp YouTube channel if you missed the show, there’s a lot of good information there.

 

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

 

CigarCraig

 

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by | September 16, 2015 · 8:23 pm

The Cigar & Spirits Magazine’s Tasting Club Selections From July

CigarandSpiritsClubThe Cigar & Spirits Magazine offers a tasting membership, and my wife ordered their five pack of 90+ rated cigars a couple of months back.  I’m not certain if this is a recurring program or not, the magazine is bi-monthly (six issues a year), and I haven’t gotten another shipment (or charge) since the initial shipment. I guess we’ll see what happens!  The package I did receive last July, came in a humidor bag with a Boveda pack and a little vial of polymer beads, and seemed to be in good shape.  I placed the bag, opened, in the drawer of the NewAir CC-100 humidor and got sidetracked with IPCPR samples and other things. This week I decided to smoke them up and include them in a mid-week post. Please note that this was purchased with no promotional consideration by the magazine whatsoever.

 

Falto_SeleccionEspecialThe club selections included three cigars I hadn’t smoked before: A Swag S Ego Grande 6½” x 60, a Falto Seleccion Especial Corona Gorda 5¾” x 48 and a Southern Draw Firethorn 6″ x 52.  There was also an AJ Fernandez New World Navegante 5½ x 55 and an East India Trading Co. Red Witch Robusto 5″ x 52.  I thought it was a very nice selection for $35, although I didn’t go to the trouble of looking up the values, although I know the New World and Red Witch are closer to the $5 price point. That’s not to say that they aren’t great cigars, just that they are reasonably priced. I chose the Falto first as it was the least familiar to me. Apparently this cigar is Falto owner Luis Juan Falto’s preferred cigar, and it was a very nice smoke.  It has a Dominican wrapper, Sumatra binder and fillers from Brazin and the D.R.  It’s funny how years ago an Indonesian wrapper (or binder) seemed to be the mark of an inexpensive cigar (and one I never cared for AJF NewWorld_Navegantepersonally) and not calling it Sumatra makes it OK, much like Mexican used to be reviled, and now San Andrés is primo. I digress. The Falto Seleccion Especial was a great size, had a nice, clean and sweet flavor that was a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon.  OK, I can see that it would be rated in the 90s.  I followed that up on Sunday evening with the New World, which is a great cigar at a great price.  Abdel and his dad, Ismael Fernandez, did a great job on this medium to full bodied  cigar that is perfectly constructed. definite 90s material.

 

Swag SMonday I came home to a little package from Boutique Blends which contained a cool Xikar Xi1 cutter decorated with the  Aging Room and Boutique Blends logos. This cutter has been all the rage fr how many years? 15? I’ve never owned one. I have a Xikar lighter, the XV V-cutter and the MTX scissors, which I love, but never got around to getting one of the nor iconic teardrop cutters. So, I figured I’d try it out on the Swag S Ego Grande. This cigar confuses me a little because I can’t find it listed on the companies website, and a search returns a bunch of references to the Swag S Maduro, which this did not seem to be at all.  It looked like a Habano wrapper, milk chocolate in color, and really didn’t strike me as a maduro at all. Any help from the folks at Cigar and Spirits or my friends at Boutique Blends would be appreciated (in the comments of this post would be great!).  I liked the cigar, it was really large, and took the better part of two hours to smoke, and the Xikar is sharp and gave a nice, clean cut as expected. It had a nice burn and draw, was pleasantly sweet and on the milder end of medium. I don’t know if this would be in the 90s for me personally, but that’s largely why I don’t do ratings as taste is subjective. Many thanks to the folks at Aging Room/Boutique Blends for the awesome cutter, it will get a lot of use!

 

SouthernDraw_FirethornLast night I selected the Southern Draw Firethorn Toro from the sampler, this is a brand I’ve heard about, but never seen in the wild.  I’ll be honest, in the Southern Draw portfolio, this would probably have been my third choice after the Pennsylvania Broadleaf wrapped Quickdraw and the Habano Oscuro Kudzu, but this Firethorn looked good. It’s got a ruddy Habano Rosado wrapper and binder and fillers from Mexico and Nicaragua. I would have done myself a disservice by passing this cigar up, had I had the choice. It smoked sweet and smooth and was quite satisfying.  Great construction as one would expect from a cigar coming out of Tabacalera Fernandez.  Oddly, the Texas based company’s founder, Robert Holt, has a connection to the area in PA where I live.  I look forward to sampling more from Southern Draw as I manage to find some. If I were rating this it would be in the 90s for sure.

 

EastIndia_RedWitch_RobustoOne cigar in the sampler left, and that’s the Red Witch from East India Trading Co. EITC is the budget branch of Gurkha, which I  suppose if you go by  the Gurkha cigars in the big catalogs, doesn’t make much sense. If you look at it from a brick and mortar side, with cigars like Gurkha Ghost, Cellar Reserve and whatnot selling in the 7-10 range, cigars like the Red Witch, Classic Cigar Havana blend and Rogue occupy the $4-7 price point, it makes more sense. This example smoked perfectly, as a matter of fact, I wish it had been longer.  It has a nice leathery, woody flavor, and is a perfectly nice cigar, I can’t find fault.  I would smoke these on a regular basis.

 

 

Overall, I think the Cigar & Spirits Magazine cigar club is a good value, and I’ll be interested to see if another installment shows up automatically, or if it’s a buy as you go sort of arrangement. My wife handled the whole transaction, so I really don’t know what to expect. I think it would be a neat idea for them to charge $40 bi-monthly and include the current issue of the magazine with the sampler, assuming the cigars in the club are rated in the issue.  Given that the subscription rate is $19.99 for 6 issues/year, this would pay off for them. Just a thought. I liked that there were cigars that I haven’t smoked that I don’t see in my area, and the ones I was familiar with I liked.  I wouldn’t be as pleased if I got five cigars I had smoked before, but I’m not the typical consumer.  I have to admit that I’m only interested in half the content of the magazine, being a non-drinker. As always, your mileage may vary.

 

I’m off to the Baltimore area for a few days, I plan to pay a visit to The Humidour in Cockeysville on Friday, and Davidus in Ellicott City on Saturday. If you are in the area, look me up or drop me a note, I’ll be the guy smoking a cigar.

 

Until the next time,

 

CigarCraig

 

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by | August 30, 2015 · 6:58 am

Ora Vivo, La Aurora, Atabey, AJ Fernandez Enclave and New World Cigars

It’s been such a busy week, ran the 5K without dying, tried to cut off my thumb, colonoscopy,  and a birthday, along with having our bathroom renovated and working on remodeling thee downstairs powder room.  If only I didn’t have a 9-5 job taking up valuable time during the day! (I’m looking for a new job,mine’s going away in a few months, so careful what I wish for, right?). Anyway, I still managed to get some great cigars in starting with  a Nica Rustica Belly after the 5K. I bought a bundle at the release party in Kentucky last month and the extra few weeks in the humidor has done well for them. I though maybe it was a bit wet in July, although it OraVivoEurope_CoronaGordamay have just been the cigars that handed out at the event.  They seem to be ready now and was a great two-hour warm down after the run.  Sunday afternoon I started the powder room project, and after getting some stuff done I took a walk with an Ora Vivo Armand Assante European edition, a generous gift from Kruk in New Hampshire. Kruk is probably a bigger fan of Victor Vitale‘s work than I am, and apparently  bought many boxes of the European Edition when they became available. He very generously sent me a couple, and I did my best to compensate him with a few cigars.  Anyway, the European edition comes in a Coronaish size, 5 ½” x 46ish, not too far off the 5½” x 48 Cedro No.5 size I like a lot.  This cigar burned perfectly, it had a smooth, refined Nicaraguan flavor and was very elegant. This is a great cigar for any time of the day, but I can easily see sparking one up with a morning cuppa joe.  I don’t have many negatives to say about this line in general, but this corona may be the best of the bunch.

 

LaAuroraUntamed_Extreme_RobustoMonday’s evening walk was accompanied by a new offering from La Aurora, a line extension to their Untamed line, the Extreme in a robusto.  I  really likes the Untamed, it was bold, had some strength, and was very satisfying. This Extreme takes it up a notch, with some more of the heavy, espresso and cocoa flavors and a kick. I would venture to guess that this also has a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper, with was beautifully dark and oily. It’s a powerhouse, and I can’t find a lot of info on it at this writing.  I loved it, and I really liked the regular Untamed line as well. These may be my favorites in the La Aurora line (although the Preferidos are pretty good too…and the Puro Vintage…and the Corojo…).

 

Atabey_RitosI celebrated  a successful colonoscopy with a special cigar, the Atabey Ritos, the newest size in the line, a 6 1/8″ x 55 cigar that has what appears to be a beautiful Connecticut shade wrapper. These are made in Costa Rica under the careful supervision of Nelson Alphonso, the man responsible for the Cuban Cohiba Behike packaging as well as the designer of the Padrón 50th anniversary humidor. This was a trade show sample from David Garofalo, who distributes the brand. It’s not a cheap date, MSRP is around $33,  but it IS a spectacularly good smoke. It simply could not have burned better, the burn was straight with a flat ember and perfect draw. It had sweet woody, earthy notes and was quite the elegant cigar.  Often times high-end cigars are lost on me, I really don’t have a sophisticated palate, but this was a great smoke.

 

AJF_Enclave_RobustoI  followed that up on Thursday with a new cigar from AJ Fernandez, the  Enclave in a 5″ x 52 robusto size. This cigar has a Habano Rosado wrapper, Binder from Cameroon and fillers that are described as AJF Piloto Cubano and AJF Select Nicaraguan, which leads me to believe they were grown on the company’s own farms and are top-secret varieties. Is the Piloto Cubano Dominican?  Don’t know, bit what I do know is that this was a stout, powerful cigar with great flavor.  It was spicy and woody, and I really liked it. I think this is a winner, and AJ Fernandez has his share of winners in my book.  I will certainly sample other sizes in this line, there is a Figurado that looks really cool.

 

AJF NewWorld_NaveganteWithout even thinking on Friday I grabbed a New World by AJ Fernandez for my evening walk.  This one was in the 5½” x 55 Navigante size. While this isn’t a new cigar, it’s a good one, maybe not quite as powerful as the Enclave, but a super tasty blend of tobaccos from Esteli, Condega, Jalapa and Ometepe in Nicaragua.  this one had the coffee/chocolate flavors I really like in a cigar.  I want to say I remember this, as well as the Enclave, being a collaboration between Abdel and his father Ismael, and there are certain similarities, chief being I really like both of them!  The New World Connecticut is a winner in my book too, but that really doesn’t mean a lot considering I really enjoy most cigars from this factory. Abdel is a tobacco genius and is only in his thirties.

 
DECSCCBlend2013Saturday was my birthday (thanks in advance for any well wishes) and after a nice afternoon with my granddaughters and family, I picked one of my last three cigars I blended on my 2013 Cigar Safari trip.  These had a San Andres wrapper, Cameroon binder, and fillers from Brazil and Esteli if I remember correctly.  I thought it from the beginning, and it remains true, but there are just too many flavors going on in the blend, it’s very busy. That’s not to say I don’t like it a lot, and it always brings back memories of a great trip, as well as providing a relaxing celebratory smoke. I’m going away for a few days and packed some favorites to relax with, it will be nice getting away with no events or other things to do, it’s been a long time since we just went somewhere to be human beings instead of human doings.

 

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

 

CigarCraig

 

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by | May 17, 2015 · 12:12 pm

La Aurora Preferido and Puro Vintage and an A.J. Fernandez New World

imageOf course, I smoked a bunch of great cigars this week. One that was interesting was an old production La Sirena Trident that I smoked in response to Lonnie, who won the last La Sirena contest I held.  He got a sourdough bread note and wanted to know if I got anything like that. It turns out he was right, there is a pleasant sour flavor that I couldn’t put a name too that I really enjoyed. It’s always interesting when someone names a flavor and you taste it too. Whether it’s the power of suggestion or simply putting a name to a flavor, I thought it was pretty cool. I still need to sit down and compare the new Trident to the old, but when do I have time to smoke two Churchill size cigars back to back (or at the same time!).  I also smoked the Rocky Patel Prohibition Mexican again this week and enjoyed the flavor, although there was a bit of a void in the filler that made it burn a little funky.  I will have to get a few more and try to settle my internal debate on which version I like better, the Mexican or the Broadleaf.  Maybe I don’t need to decide…

 

AJFernandez_NewWorld_BruteA.J. Fernandez came out with the New World last year and it has been very well received. It’s priced well and it’s a great tasting cigar, so there’s really no surprise. Apparently Abdel and his father, Ismael Fernandez collaborated on this blend, which is a Nicaraguan puro, with tobacco from Jalapa, Condega, Esteli and Ometepe.  The New World Brute is a store exclusive for Serious Cigars in Houston, Texas, and is a 6″ x 66, which sounds pretty bug, but the box press makes it feel smaller ( more like a 60, still pretty big). Everything”s bigger in Texas, right? This cigar was only about a week in the humidor, but I had been eyeing an Almirante for a few weeks so I felt compelled to smoke this, and I’ve seen a couple other sites featuring this cigar in the last week or so, so I figured I’d jump on the bandwagon.  First off, it’s every bit as tasty as it’s smaller siblings. I got a hint of some ammonia near the end, which I’m sure some more humidor time will fix. It’s a great cigar with rich coffee and chocolate flavors that I really enjoy, with a hint of a peppery spice.  I’d definitely keep these in my humidor, but they take up so much darned space!

 

LaAurora_PreferidoNo2_CorojoA few weeks ago at another vendor’s event at my local Cigar Cigars store, I noticed a basket on the counter as I was checking out that had La Aurora Corojos in the Preferido No.2 size for $5. I grabbed two, and am a little disappointed that I didn’t empty the basket. First off, it’s a fun size to smoke. Its a classic perfecto shape, tapered on both ends and fat in the middle. These are stated as 5″ x 54, have a barrel aged Dominican Corojo wrapper. Remember when you couldn’t grow wrapper in the DR?  Anyway, this cigar burned perfectly, and had whatever that flavor that is classic La Aurora that I can’t put a name to, isn’t really my favorite, but I know and appreciate it when I smoke a cigar from this great factory.  Like I said, I’m kicking myself for not picking up more when I had the chance, because this was a terrific $5 cigar, and probably pretty darned great at $9 or $10 too. Being the cheap bastid that I am, I have picked up some great cigars on Cigar Cigars’s closeout area over the last year or two, always pays to check that section out in your local shop if they have one.

 

LaAurora_PuroVintage_2006Yesterday I smoked a new cigar in La Aurora‘s Puro Vintage series, the 111th anniversary Puro Vintage 2006.   My only experience with the Puro Vintage line is the 2003, which is the cigar I smoke on the occasion of the birth of my granddaughters. I have two left in the humidor, but I don’t anticipate any more granddaughters in the foreseeable future.  This tradition started when my first granddaughter was born, and La Aurora president Guillermo Leon happened to be visiting the Wooden Indian in the same town my daughter lives. Chris Lenzo, our local Miami Cigar and Co. rep generously gifted me a 2003 to mark the occasion.I since picked up a few more and smoked one when granddaughter two was born.  Important to note that my daughter is named Aurora, which is one of the reasons the brand has a special place in my heart. The 2006 is a Salamone shape, tapered at each end, and is limited to 1500 boxes of 18 cigars.  The wrapper is Ecuador HVA (Habano Vuelta Ariba), Brazilian binder and fillers from Dominican Republic, Brazil and Nicaragua. I smoked the first half of this example walking with my wife and dog on a nearby trail the the rest while relaxing on my back porch.  When ever I think of the Puro Vintage line, I think of Barry Stein saying he tastes sunflower seeds (the 2003, in specific), and I understand the sensation, and I get that with this 2006. It’s a very flavorful and exceptional cigar, definitely good for  two or more great hours of enjoyment. It’s got a hint of sweetness and had nice, bright flavors that are enjoyable and intriguing. This is a great special occasion cigar, and yesterday’s special occasion was that I got to smoke this cigar!  Thanks to Jason Wood and Gabriel Piñeres for allowing me the pleasure.

 

That’s about it for today.  Not sure what the next couple weeks will bring as I have root canals scheduled for the next two Wednesdays. I can’t imagine that will bring too many restrictions, but I might not be in top form.  I’ve never had a root canal, so I have no idea what to expect. I’ll do my best to continue doing whatever it is I do here!

 

That’s it for now! Until the next time,

 

CigarCraig

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