Tag Archives: Perdomo

by | March 3, 2024 · 9:55 am

My Father, Metapa, and Perdomo 30th Anniversary Cigars

This week I smoked some cigars I bought on recent forays into some of my local cigar spots.  All were new to me, although not necessarily new to the market. This happens, I don’t always jump right on the new stuff, and sometimes I miss out!  Thursday evening I met up with my fellow Craig, and recent contest winner, at Cigar Mojo – The Grove, to  hand deliver his prize.  Shipping is always less expensive than visiting a cigar shop!  I picked up a few cigars, and lit up a My Father The Judge in the 656 Toro size.  This has been around for a while, I just never got around to it. Since Mojo carries a lot of My Father cigars I see myself catching up on them.  I’ll grab something I haven’t tried whenever I stop in.  This is a 6″ x 56 cigar, oddly they call their 6″ x 52 a Toro Fino, which seems like a toro to me. Maybe the 6″ x 56 should be a Toro Gordo and the 52 should just be the Toro?  Not my circus…anyway, this has an Ecuador Sumatra wrapper, and Nicaraguan binder and fillers, with a nice box press. This got off to a slow start, good, although fairly mediocre.  It built up some sweetness, which I like, of course, and worked out to be a very enjoyable cigar, one I’ll smoke again.  Naturally, the company was exceptional, I always enjoy time with my fellow Craig. We’ll definitely have another Craig cigar summit soon.

 

Friday evening had us attending a middle school theatrical production that one of the granddaughters was in, so I got a late start. I was going to skip a cigar altogether, but I had picked up a Foundation Metapa Corona Gorda at Mojo and it wasn’t that big, so I figured I’d light it up.  Sometimes having a cigar too late gives me sleep issues, not the case this time, although I did get to bed a lot later than usual!  I wanted to smoke a Metapa because these are being rebranded to Aksum, I guess to keep in line with the Tabernacle/Menelik/Ark of the Covenant theme. I’ve heard mixed reviews on this cigar, and maybe it’s the Maduro vs. Claro?  I only had the maduro to chose rom, so that’s what I got, as if anyone would be surprised at that. This is a nice 5½” x 48 with a coil pigtail cap (I know there’s a name for it, just can’t remember it!).  This was the best cigar I had all week.  It started a bit heavy, cloying like licorice, which worried me.  It settled in to a really nice, dense dark chocolate, not much sweetness, the kind with a high cacao percentage. I found this to be quite enjoyable, whatever the name, and I might have to see if I can find the claro version (although I still need to try the Olmec Claro!).  It’s hard for me not to like Foundation Cigars, there seems to be something for everyone.

 

Last week I stopped in The Wooden Indian looking for some new cigars, and picked up some Perdomo 30th Anniversary Epicures in Sungrown and Maduro.  These come with a lot of hype, and my expectations were high.  I’m a big fan of the 20th Anniversary Maduro, probably my favorite Perdomo.  I thought the 10th Anniversary Sungrown was my favorite of that line, which, oddly, only really came out a couple years ago.  The 30th aren’t priced bad, I could see companies asking a higher price for  their anniversary cigars, but Perdomo does things right in this respect.  I admire them for keeping their cigars pried within reason.  I decided that yesterday was going to be Perdomo day, so I started with the Sungrown.  I chose the 6″ x 54 Epicure size because, well, that’s the size I like.  This has a 15-year-old bourbon barrel-aged Cuban-seed Nicaraguan Sun Grown wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and fillers, and has a nice box press.  I think this one had a patch near the cap on the underside of the cigar, which I find to be unacceptable on a cigar like this, regardless of price.  This, of course, came off and I had to do some wrapper surgery because I don’t care for the mouth feel of a flappy wrapper.  Other than that, the burn and draw were very good, and the cigar had a sweet spice that was nice.  Not blown away, I’ll stick with the 10th Sungrown.

 

I had high hopes for the Perdomo 30th Anniversary Epicure Maduro.  This has the same 15-year-old bourbon barrel-aged Cuban-seed Nicaraguan wrapper processed to a maduro, not overly dark, but dark enough, with a nice oil.  This is a nice looking cigar, again, lods of hype, best Perdomo cigar ever, yada yada…It was a good cigar. It had rich dark roast coffee and cocoa and was very nice.  For me, I find that the 20th Maduro to have more that I enjoy, to be honest. I suppose I was expecting a more refined experience, and maybe my palate just isn’t acute enough to appreciate the subtleties of these cigars. I’m told that the 30th Connecticut is something special.  Given I was never a fan of the Champagne, I actually disliked it ( a rarity), I always pass on the Perdomo Connecticuts. Perhaps I’ll give this one a try, for science.  

 

The folks at Best Cigar Prices posted a  bunch of pictures of the cigarlebrities that will be at their Smoke-onos event in May, but they didn’t ask for my picture.  If you’re there, hunt me down!  Also, keep an eye out for upcoming details about a multi-vendor event at Goose’s Montecristo Lounge in Limerick, PA which will be in the beginning of May.  That’s more than enough for today, until the next time.  

 

CigarCraig

 

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by | August 9, 2020 · 10:23 am

Archetype Sacred Scales, New Onyx Bold and Perdomo Reserve Cigars

I’m still coming across a cigar here and there from last January’s TPE show, this time it was an Archetype Sacred Scales robusto that Ventura Cigar‘s Michael Giannini handed me on one of our visits at the Phillips and King booth. The P&K booth was one of the largest and busiest at the show, not a big surprise since their parent company owns the show. Oddly, they seemed to feature more of other companies cigar brands than their own, at least more prominently. The Sacred Scales is a San Andrés wrapped cigar made by Ernesto Carrillo, who Michael worked with for quite a while with La Gloria Cubana. It has an Ecuador binder and fillers from Nicaragua. I absolutely loved this cigar. It checked all the boxes for me, dark earth, sweetness and spice. This is a cigar I’ll be looking to smoke again, a definite winner. The Archetype line bounces around from factory to factory, one is made at Drew Estate, one by EPC, and others by Davidoff, etc. It’s a little confusing, but when you find one you like, run with it!

 

I was out running some errands and stopped in a shop on the way and picked up a few new cigars I wanted to try. The first one was the new Onyx Bold Nicaragua. I believe that the CigarCigars chain may have had the exclusive initial release on these, which is where I got this cigar. I can’t say I’ve actually smoked an Onyx cigar before, not sure why, but it’s my understanding that this iteration really wouldn’t compare to the Dominican version anyway. The Onyx Bold Nicaraguan has a San Andrés wrapper Nicaraguan binder and fillers and is made by A.J. Fernandez. I, of course, got the toro size, which is 6” x 54. This cigar smoked really well, burn and draw were perfect, it was a real pleasure to smoke. While it didn’t have the pungency of the Sacred Scales, it still had the dark earth, spice and sweetness I like, although it was smoother and more refined in this cigar. I thought it was quite a nice smoke! Like I said, I have no idea how it compared to other Onyx cigars, I always considered them to be very mild, which is why I passed them over.

 

The other two cigars I picked up were the new Perdomo Reserve 10 Year Anniversary in Sungrown and Maduro. I picked these up in the Epicure size, which is the 6” x 54 Toro. I’ve been oddly intrigued by this release. I really like the 20th Anniversary line, I like some of the other line OK, and tolerate others. I actually dislike the Champagne, which is in the line these cigars are now under, and there are few cigars I actively dislike. The Maduro, I believe, directly replaces the Champagne Noir, whether it’s the same blend, I couldn’t say. I do know that the Noir fell in to the “like” category. I started with the Sungrown, with the anticipation that the Maduro would give the 20th Maduro a run for it’s money. I took a walk before settling in to watch the Flyers game on the big screen on the porch. This 10th Anniversary Sungrown was a delicious cigar. The Nicaraguan Wrapper is Bourbon barrel aged, and I think most of Perdomo’s wrappers are at this point, with Nicaraguan binder and fillers. I thought it was a great, medium-bodied cigar, with rich, smooth flavors. It had sweetness, some nuttiness and some wordiness. It was very good. It got me well into the first period of the hockey game. After a palate cleansing bowl of mint chocolate chip ice cream, I lit up the Maduro for the second and third periods. I suppose my expectations were a little high, or the ice cream didn’t cleanse my palate enough, but the Maduro didn’t delight me as much as I had hoped. It was a decent smoke, make no mistake, and it made it through two solid periods of outstanding hockey, where the Flyers clinched the number one seed in the eastern conference! In a normal year that would result in a trophy, I think! It means nothing if they don’t continue on the the Stanley Cup Finals, for which I have some special cigars set aside. Anyway, the Maduro had some of the maduroey flavors one expects, cocoa, coffee, etc., although they seemed to be muted to me. Perhaps it was the hour, or the fact that it was the third cigar of the day. I’ll try another on a clean palate, however, it seemed consistent with my feelings on the Champagne Noir. It was a good smoke, it just wasn’t the the 20th Anniversary, and the fault lies with me for setting unrealistic goals expectations. Once again, I’ll smoke it again, but as of this sitting, I preferred the Sungrown over the Maduro. It happens!

 

Well, that’s all for today. Until the next time,

 

CigarCraig

 

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by | July 19, 2020 · 9:08 am

Avo Classic, Regius Orchant Seleccion and Perdomo Habano Barrel Aged Cigars

Another week has passed with some progress made around the house, some applications submitted, and several cigars smoked. I came across a couple Avo Classics while scavenging around the humidors, and it occurred to me that I had never actually smoked and Avo Classic. Sure, I’ve smoked the newer Avos, the Ritmo, Syncro, the odd XO here and there, but never smoked the Classic. Well, it was about time I remedied this situation, I suppose, and I had two Classic No. 2s sitting right here, and the’ve been here for quite a few years! I’m not even sure where they came from! This is a 6″ x 50 toro with a sun-grown Ecuador Connecticut wrapper and DOminican binder and fillers. I’m not sure what I was expecting, perhaps I was expecting a mild, Connecticut shade style cigar, but I was surprised to find that it was a very rich tasting, sweet tobacco flavorful cigar. Naturally, the construction was perfect, it’s a Davidoff product, after all, and solidly medium bodied. This was a great cigar that I regret missing out on all these years. It was loaded with sweet, creamy flavor and quite enjoyable!

 

Regius Cigars is a brand that’s been around for a decade, but doesn’t have a huge footprint in the US. They are carried by a lot of the bigger retailers, and they are made by Placencia, so they aren’t small potatoes by any stretch. I was introduced to Akhil Kapacee. the principle of the company, several years ago at the IPCPR show by Mitchell Orchant, who, as I’ve mentioned before, I’ve known for over 20 years. Mitchell owns C.Gars Ltd in the UK, one of the more prominent retailers of Havana cigars on the planet. Last January at the TPE show I ran into my old friend Ann, who is with Sutliff Distribution Group (who was with Villiger for a long time), who, in addition to distributing Platinum Nova Cigars and introducing me to them, mentioned that they were also distributing Regius. So I went to their booth to say hello to Akhil, and he gave me a Regius Orchant Seleccion robusto, since Mitchell never gave me one ;-).  (Note: There’s a Drew Estate Seleccion Orchant that I’d love to sample, wink, wink, nudge, nudge, say no more).  Regius cigars I’ve sampled in the past have been exceptional, and this one was no different. I found it to be extremely smooth, with a very clean finish, I’d almost say refreshing. It had a nice sweetness, that is a quality I like, and burned perfectly. As a company with UK roots, and a cigar that made for a UK retailer, I can see how this would appeal to a palate that’s used to Havana cigars, although I think it has more complexity, at least to my palate that’s used to a more diverse flavor wheel. It was very good, highly recommended.

 

Finally, as I’m typing this, I’m having a cup of black coffee and enjoying a Perdomo Habano Bourbon Barrel-Aged Connecticut Robusto. It’s infrequent that I light up a cigar at 7:30, however for some reason I was up super early and couldn’t get back to sleep, so I got an early start and decided to sit on the porch and write. As long as I’m on the porch, I might as well have a cigar. The selection process for me wasn’t easy. Sometimes I choose a coffee infused cigar, last week it was a Macanudo M. I had a Tabac Especialle in my hand, then I figured I’d look for a milder Connecticut robusto just to thin the herd of cigars that seem to get passed over more often. I might have had other cigars that would be milder, but this Perdomo stood out to me. You have to admit the bands on these are pretty eye-catching. The wrapper is a 6 year old Bourbon Barrel-Aged Ecuador Connecticut and the Binder and fillers are Nicaraguan. I’m three for three here on good smokes, although I generally don’t write about the sub-par cigars I smoke, and I try not to smoke that many sub-par smokes to begin with! To be honest, some of my choices that I  decided against were the Don Juan Calavera Connecticut and the La Sirena LT, both Honduran, both excellent Connecticut cigars that I love, but I passed on them because I only have them in Toro sizes and I wanted a robusto. Considering this Robusto is 5″ x 54, it might have been a wash, but I always consider length to be more of a determining factor when it comes to time than girth anyway. This cigar is not without body, it’s no mild cigar. It has plenty of flavor, rich, creamy, nutty flavors with a little bit of spice. Nice smoke. I still favor the maduros in the Perdomo line, but this is probably my favorite Connecticut in their range. Not bad at all.

 

For my local golfing friends, come out to Goose’s Golf Even for a great day of eating, smoking, golfing and all that goes with it. I’ve been to many of Goose’s events and they are always top notch. You can’t beat the food, cigars and golf offered with this deal! You can download the registration form here. I plan to be there to offer encouragement and smoke along with the golfers!

 

 

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

 

CigarCraig

 

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by | June 28, 2020 · 10:30 am

Perdomo Firecracker, La Palina and JSK Nuggs Cigars

Last Saturday, 2 Guys Smoke Shop had their annual Firecracker release, and this year it was the Perdomo Firecracker. I typically pick up a couple to sample, and this year was no different. I was on the site at 10am with my order, and it seems like that was a god plan, because by early afternoon they had just about sold through the 1000 boxes that they had allotted.  That’s a pretty big sales day! I also picked up a couple of the original Firecrackers, because I never tried one. I’ve just about got a complete set, I’m missing an LFD, and one from Tatuaje, I guess. One day I’ll sit down and smoke them all. My most memorable was still the Fratello Firecracker on the Spanish Steps in Rome. A cigar with an Italian name, made by a Spanish speaking guy, in a Spanish speaking country, sold by an Italian American, smoked in Italy on the Spanish Steps. Just too much irony for me to pass up.  So I sat on the porch Friday evening with this wee  Perdomo cigar for nearly an hour, pretty amazing for a 3½” x 50 cigar. This is based off the 20th Anniversary Sungrown blend, which I tolerate pretty well, although my favorite Perdomo cigar, hands down, is the  20th Anniversary Maduro. There is some spice and strength to this smoke, befitting the Firecracker line, although maybe not the boldest one of the bunch. Clearly Perdomo added a bit of ligero to the blend to punch it up, as he should have. It’s a tasty little smoke, I dig it!

 

As I’ve been doing lately, I dug out an older cigar from the humidor and revisited a La Palina LP 01 yesterday. When the LP 01 and 02 came out a few years ago the design was such a diversion from the norm for the company that I think many found it off putting. The cigars were good, however, I really enjoyed the LP 01. It was the Robusto, 5″ x 50, and has an Ecuador Sumatra wrapper, Costa Rican binder and Nicaraguan and Honduran fillers. If I remember correctly, these are made in Honduras ar Raices Cubanas. After two years in the humidor, the cigar smokes very well, with a good draw and even burn all he was through. It had a nice sweetness from the Sumatra wrapper, and I’m partial to Sumatra wrappers lately. I typically enjoy the Maduro LP 02 more, but this one was very, very good. It’s still listed on the La Palina webpage, so I ASSume it’s still in their portfolio. 

 

I’ve had a rough several days as far as migraines go, something in the atmosphere, I guess. I’ve been popping Imetrex like TicTacs, and the whole process wears on me. I figured this might be as good a time as any to try out the JSK Nuggs Natural cigar that Riste Riatevski gave me when I met him at the TPE show. Why do I see Riste’s last name spelt two different ways? I went with his Facebook profile, but some sources spell it Ristevski. I’m confused and will ask him when I see him again unless he chimes in here. Anyway, I would like to try this in the maduro, and will pick up some more when I get the chance. I’m not sure I felt any effects of the 20mg of CBD oil infused in this cigar. to be honest, I’m not entirely sure what I’m supposed to feel, but I did awake with another migraine today (day 4, very upsetting to have a streak like that!), so that isn’t the answer to that issue! The cigar has a Habano wrapper, Indonesian binder, and Nicaraguan fillers and is infused, like I said, with 20mg of CBD oil. There is also a 100mg version available with something like a $25 price tag. The cigar had decent enough flavor, although there was something a little different, was it the CBD? If it was, then I’d be worried about the flavor of the 100mg version personally. Perhaps someone who has smoked it can chime in? It was smooth and nutty, woody and earthy with that odd flavor I mentioned. I supposed I hoped for a more noticeable”feeling”, but I didn’t quite know what to look for, I suppose. Worth trying, for sure, and something I’ll look to try again.

 

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

 

CigarCraig

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by | July 24, 2019 · 9:18 am

Contest: Welcome Fox Cigars Episode One!

We’re getting back to the old days for a while, the good old days of CigarCraig giveaways! For those of you who may not recall, search back through the archives at the months of December from about 2011 through 2015 and you’ll see where I used to do ridiculous giveaways for 12, 13 sometimes 14 days straight! It was a hoot! It got difficult for several reasons, some personal and some logistical, so I scaled it back. It’s time to relive some of the glory days! We have something to celebrate, and that is welcoming a new member to the CigarCraig family, Fox Cigars. I’ve been following these guys for a while, I’ve seen friends talk about their events in Arizona, and followed them on social media. I don’t put links on my site that I don’t believe in and patronize, and I never solicit at all, so an ad or link you can trust, and these guys are top notch. So let’s extend a laurel, and hearty handshake, to Fox Cigars!

 

Here’s the contest part! Fox Cigars has provided some goodies for giveaways! First up is some great stuff from Perdomo! There’s a Lot 23 cap, a really nice quad jet Vertigo lighter, and a Connecticut four-pack,  which  includes  a 20th  Anniversary,  a Habano  Connecticut  a Champagne,  and  a Lot  23 (which I didn’t realize was Connecticut, I learned something today!). I just smoked the 20th Anniversary Connecticut a few weeks ago and loved it, and that lighter is super cool. 

So, leave a comment to enter! I’m going to post this on Instagram, and I’m going to include comments on that post as well, just to make my life more difficult, so you can get two chances. I slipped an obscure movie reference in above, so amuse me by pointing that out for extra credit.  As usual, you must be of legal smoking age in your jurisdiction to win (and even that’s getting to be a PITA these days!), one entry per person  (per site). I’ll select a winner next Wednesday, July 31, 2019. Thanks to Rob at Fox Cigars! 

 

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

 

CigarCraig

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