Tag Archives: trinidad

by | January 14, 2024 · 9:41 am

Belvedere Cigar Lounge Some Epic Cigars, and a Trinidad Espiritu No. 3

Thursday evening my wife had a thing she wanted to go to in New Jersey, and she found a cigar lounge three miles away I could visit! It turned out that Belvedere Cigar Lounge in Lawnside, New Jersey, was hosting Irving Rodriguez of Epic Cigars doing a cut and light event.  I know Irv, and I love Epic Cigars, so it was a no brainer. Honestly, it wouldn’t have mattered, the lounge is really nice.  It’s 1300 square feet, has seating for a little over 40, and has some massive TVs and a sound system. It has 24 hour member access, with a BYO bar. I would have been happy to buy a couple cigars from their modest, but well curated, retail selection and enjoyed one there.  As is was, I spent the better part of an hour enjoying a delicious Epic Habano and talking with Irv.  I’ve known about Epic cigars for the better part of ten years, and been a fan of them. They are made in the same factory that Kristoff cigars are made in, are really tasty, and always well made.  Dean, who sold the brand to Nat Cicco Cigars a few years back, is a cool dude who I like to call a friend.  The Habano should be first on your list of Epic cigars to try, it’s got a nice sweetness I like. It has an Ecuador Habano wrapper, a Cameroon binder (this might be the seced sauce!), and Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers. I had the 5½ x 52 Robusto. I love maduro cigars, but the Habano might be my favorite in the line.  

 

Of course, I bought a handful of cigars while I was there, why wouldn’t I? I was rather hoping they would have the tenth anniversary, but that wasn’t available, so I bought some Habanos and Corojos.  Friday I smoked an Epic Corojo in the toro size. The Corojo has an Ecuador Corojo wrapper, Dominican binder and Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers. They call the 6″ x 54 toro a Double Corona for some reason.  Great cigar, although on the leathery side of the spectrum to my palate. It was much more savory than the Habano, it really lacked any sweetness at all. I enjoyed it before heading in to watch a Flyers game.  on a side note, last week’s weather took out our power for 14 hours overnight, and in the process somehow damaged our Verizon set top box. After the customer experience I’ve had trying to get the situation resolved, I think this might be the impetus to “cut the cable” finally, and ditch the TV service.  I’ve been hanging on mostly for access to the Flyers games, but I  think there’s enough alternatives available now that we can ditch the $100 a month.  That’s today’s project.

 

Yesterday I picked up a couple cigars that I hadn’t smoked before, one of which was the Trinidad Espiritu No. 3. I was really looking forward to trying this one, I loved the No. 2, and the No. 1 was pretty good too.  The No. 3 is a tribute to Mexico, with a San Andrés wrapper, Nicaraguan binder and fillers, made by AJ Fernandez in Nicaragua.  This was very different from the No.2, now that I’m thinking of it, I’d have swapped the two based on flavor. I thought the 2 tasted more typical of a San Andrés than the 3. There’s an interesting exotic spice flavor present, with an overall savory base flavor.  I thought it was really interesting, far more interesting than the La Gloria Cubana TAA 2023 cigar I bought and was severely disappointed by. I love La Glorias, but this one had nothing going for it. It didn’t draw well, it didn’t have much flavor, and just wasn’t good. I thought TAA cigars should be a good representation of a brand?  The LGC is a pass for me, but the Trinidad Espiritu line is a winner, and there are not a lot of Altadis cigars that I can say that about (ironically, almost all the Altadis cigars I like are made in one factory). 

 

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

 

CigarCraig

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by | March 24, 2021 · 9:25 pm

Trinidad Espiritu No.2 Toro Cigar

I was out over the weekend looking for some specific cigars and couldn’t find them, so, being me and all, I couldn’t walk out of a cigar shop empty handed, so one of the cigars I picked up that was new to me was the Trinidad Espiritu No.2 in the Toro size. They had the Magnum and Robusto as well, but I like Toros, so that’s what I got! I’ll admit, there aren’t a great many cigars in the Altadis portfolio that I get excited about, but I’ve found in the last few years, the cigars that have been made in collaboration with A.J. Fernandez have been to my liking. This is such a cigar. 

 

The Trinidad Espiritu No.2 has a Brazilian Arapiraca wrapper, Nicaraguan binder and Nicaraguan and Brazilian fillers, and is a collaboration with Rafael Nodal and AJ Fernandez and, one assumes, made at A.J. Fernandez’ factory in Esteli. It’s beautiful dark, oily wrapper, very rustic looking, and appealing to my personal aesthetic. I certainly didn’t mind shelling out over $10 each for a couple of these. I remember smoking a Trinidad Fundadores one New Years Eve about 20 years ago and it was spectacular, but absolutely nothing like this Trinidad. This was a heavy, lush cigar. It was my kind of cigar, loaded with dark chocolate and espresso flavors, with some spiciness. This flew to the top of the list of my favorite Altadis cigars. This cigar was exploding with flavor and I loved it.

 

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

 

CigarCraig

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by | May 10, 2019 · 11:16 am

News: Altadis Releasing Trinidad Espiritu Prior to IPCPR

Here’s some news from Altadis, a few days late as I just found it buried, thanks Gmail! Trinidad is a brand that Altadis has tried and tried to get off the ground over the years, but hasn’t had a lot of luck getting any real traction. I’m not sure why, exactly, they haven’t been bad cigars, and I don’t think anyone but hard-core cigar geeks knows the Trinidad backstory really whether that has any effect one way or the other anyway.  It’ll be interesting to see if this spin on the brand takes off for them.  

 

Bringing Back a Taste of Vintage Caribbean Culture With Every Puff

TRINIDAD ESPIRITU TO BE RELEASED PRE-IPCPR

 

Altadis U.S.A., maker of world-renowned premium cigars is introducing Trinidad Espiritu – a collaborative effort with tobacco prodigy A.J. Fernandez – to deliver adult cigar connoisseurs the spirit of vintage Latin Caribbean culture through a series of special events nationwide.

 

“The original Trinidad cigar brand was used exclusively for dignitaries and diplomats as gifts,” explains Brad Winstead, Altadis’ head of consumer marketing. “Fifty years later, we’re celebrating the venerable brand’s half century anniversary by taking adult smokers back to the late 60s-early 70s era — which many consider the “Golden Years” of cigars.”

 

This medium to full-bodied Nicaraguan puro was created by none other than A.J. Fernandez. He was the perfect choice to recreate and memorialize history, as Fernandez’s tobacco fermentation methods and cigar making have stayed consistent with the methods his grandfather and father used.

 

“The Trinidad Espiritu,” said Eddy Guerra, brand manager, “is an amazingly complex, yet balanced cigar that embodies vintage Caribbean culture. This release will be an experience, as we will hold a nationwide tour of events, featuring vintage Latin Caribbean music, classic cocktails, domino tournaments and much more. This will be an allencompassing experience that will go hand in hand with a cigar we are so very proud of. Our kick-off event will be in Miami in June. Details of this and other upcoming events will be out soon.”

 

The nationwide series of events will center around a complete conversion of each venue to the Latin Caribbean of yesteryear through décor, music, vintage uniformed bartenders, cocktails and more. A special edition Trinidad “Fundador” lancero 40 X 7 1/2 will also be available as an event exclusive. The vintage Latin Caribbean music play list that will be used for the events is now available on Spotify at www.TrinidadEspirituMusic.com.

 

Summing it all Up

 

“It has been an honor pay tribute to our Latin Caribbean heritage and to work closely with Master Blender A.J. Fernandez on this project,” said Rafael Nodal, head of product capability for Tabacalera USA. “The Trinidad Espiritu is a cigar to please the palate and speak to your soul. This is a celebration of tobacco, music and all things Latin Caribbean.”

 

The Trinidad Espiritu will be available in five vitolas in mid to late June:

Robusto 52 X 5

Toro 52 X 6 Belicoso 52 X 6 1/8

Magnum 60 X 6

Fundador 40 X 7 1/2 (Only available at official Trinidad Espiritu events.)

 

About Altadis U.S.A. Altadis U.S.A. has been crafting fine premium cigars since 1918 and is responsible for many of the world’s most renowned brands, including Henry Clay, Montecristo, Romeo y Julieta, H. Upmann and Trinidad. If you have ever enjoyed a premium cigar, there’s a good chance you’ve enjoyed a cigar crafted by Altadis U.S.A. Visitwww.altadisusa.com for more information.  

 

 

 

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by | October 10, 2012 · 10:46 pm

Seafood and Columbus Day – A Merlion, a Trinidad and a Añoranza

Sunday evening my wife cooked an enormous piece of salmon and it was delicious.  I wanted a cigar to follow the fish, and I couldn’t think of anything better than the new Merlion from La Sirena and Miami Cigar and Company.  I’ve mentioned this cigar before (here) and it’s a solid cigar, made by La Aurora and featuring a Corojo wrapper around a three country blend.  I may have enjoyed this one more than the first, it was perfect after the meal and really hit the spot.  It’s a very tasty stick, well balanced and smooth.  Another winner from Arielle.

 

Monday was Columbus Day, the day set aside to celebrate Columbus’ discovery of cigars!  So I was digging around looking for a San Cristobal (de la Habana or otherwise) and came across a really old Trinidad corona.  Someone correct me if my memory is off here, but back in the late ’90s, the Trinidad brand was released in the US, and it was made by Fuente.  At some point the brand and production changed to being under the Altadis group of brands.  This corona was from the original release, with really yellow cello.  I had to cut the cello off, it was so brittle and sticky and beautiful.  This actually took me back many years, it still had loads of flavor, but not a lot of nicotine.  It was a really sweet, satisfying smoke which burned perfectly. This was the epitome of a well aged cigar.  I think there’s one more floating around the humidor, I wonder what another few years of age will do to it?

 

On Tuesday I was rummaging around for something to smoke and the Añoranza Robusto lept out at me and demanded to be smoked.  This dark beauty from Miami Cigar and Company was a sample from the IPCPR show, and I had been looking forward to smoking it.  I will have to get my hands on some more, as it was really right up my alley.  It was loaded with deep, rich cocoa and coffee flavors that I really enjoy.  The wrapper is listed as Habana Oscuro, and while it didn’t look as dark as many oscuro wrappers, it tasted it, if that makes sense.  I savored this cigar to a finger burning nub.  Here is a quick video from the IPCPR show with Jason Wood, or Miami Cigar and Co., talking about the new La Aurora Cien Años Maduro, which I don’t think I got a sample of, but I will track one down to smoke because it looked really tasty!

 

 

There you go, two really nice smokes from the folks at Miami Cigar and Company, and a well aged cigar that you’ll probably never see again!  Sorry about the later, but hunt down the Merlion and Añoranza and give them a try (as well as the new La Aurora offering!).  Now…I need to see what kind of trouble I can get into for Sunday’s installment!

 

Until the next time,

 

CigarCraig

 

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by | July 14, 2011 · 8:46 pm

Oja Cigar Contest Winner Announcement, and a Casa Fernandez Comparison

First, I’d like to thank Luis Garcia, owner of Oja Cigars, for generously providing this box of his Oja Mestizo Artefacto cigars for this contest.  I’d also like to thank everyone who voted for helping me select a winner.  There’s no way I could have decided on my own.  The poll says it all, winning with 42% of the vote is Lloyd Ladrillono!  Congrats Lloyd!  I know you will enjoy these cigars and thanks for being a loyal reader!

 

Earlier this week I decided to try a little experiment.  The Casa Fernandez Aganorsa Leaf Toro called to me, it just looked so good in the humidor that I had to smoke it.  I had picked this cigar up on my Father’s Day cigar ride, and I usual don’t smoke a cigar so soon after purchase, but, as I said, it looked too good.  It WAS good!  It was a little looser than I prefer and burned faster than I would have liked, but it was definitely a cigar I would smoke again in a heartbeat. It was rich and satisfying with a pleasing flavor.

 

The following evening I grabbed the Casa Fernandez CRA edition which had come with my membership renewal.  The cigar looked just like the Aganorsa Leaf, same size, same shade, the only difference being the secondary band.  I was hopeful that I’d have the same, if not better, experience as the previous cigar.  Sadly, that was not the case.  I wrestled with lighting this cigar, had to make frequent corrections to the burn, and the draw was not as free as it’s sibling.  It took a little more effort to get it to give up the smoke.  I didn’t find the flavor to be as rich as the other cigar either.  It’s very strange  to me that these should be SO different, but such is the way of cigars, I suppose.

 

I’m quite sad to announce the passing of one of my family’s cherished pets, our eldest cat Molson. He had served on the contest judging committee, starring in a selection video featuring balloons. He had severe diabetes and kidney problems.  We gave him 14 years worth of love, and he returned it and will be missed, by us, as well as by our other feline family members. He was as loyal as a cat is likely to be.  I reached for one of the best cigars in my humidor last night, a 7 year old Trinidad Reyes, to smoke in his memory.

 

That’s about it for now.  My next post should be from the IPCPR show in Las Vegas.  Stay tuned for updates from the show here and via twitter (@cigarcraig).

Until the next time,

CigarCraig

 

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