Tag Archives: Villiger

by | September 15, 2024 · 9:44 am

Brick House TAA, Tatuaje PCA and Villiger TAA Cigars

I stopped by my local Tobacconist Association of America retailer recent;y and picked up a few cigars I hadn’t tried yet. I got a couple TAA Exclusives and a PCA (Premium Cigar Association) exclusive. These are cigars that are only available to members of the respective associations, in the case of the TAA, the members have an annual meeting (usually at a tropical resort ironically outside of the US (technically they are still in “the Americas”).  Selected manufacturers make exclusive cigars, some good, some not so much.  I think I selected a couple of the better ones.  I started with the Brick House Ciento por Ciento, which translates to 100 percent, and I’m not sure what the significance of this name is without doing more research than I feel like doing.  I grabbed this one for three reasons: I typically like Brick House cigars, I hadn’t smoked this one, and it’s almost Bricktoberfest (starts tomorrow, my daughter’s birthday!).  I don’t know how long these had been on the retailers shelf, but when I removed the band it had tan lines!  The front face of the cigar wrapper leaf was faded, which is odd because the humidor at this shop has no sun exposure.  Perhaps they moved them from another store, I don’ t know. It was only one side, kinda like my tan. Anyway, this didn’t seem to have any effect.  This is a 6¼” x 54 Toro made in J.C. Newman’s PENSA factory in Esteli, and is a Nicaraguan Puro. The wrapper is from Jalapa and seems a bit lighter than the standard Brickhouse.  It has a overall woody profile with a hint of citrus here and there.  Good cigar and well priced, as a Brick House should be. 

 

Next up was the Tatuaje PCA 2023, which came out in early 2024, of course.  Tatuaje has probably been the best at making TAA Exclusives, and is a very big supporter of the PCA, which is a much larger organization.  The point of offering this Exclusive is to get  member retailers, and any retailer who isn’t a member is a fool, in my opinion, to physically come to the annual trade show to buy. This PCA exclusive is a  6 3/8″ x 54 Toro, made at the My Father factory in Esteli, and has an Ecuador Sumatra wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and fillers.  This was a delicious cigar with. sweet exotic spices throughout. I thoroughly enjoyed smoking this, which isn’t unusual considering I enjoy most Tatuaje cigars I smoke.  I may swing back and grab a couple more, although they are on the top end of what I consider well priced, around $15 I think.  Great tasting cigar!

 

I’ve smoked a couple of the Villiger TAA Exclusives, however this one has eluded my notice.  Villiger, like they do with a lot of their brands, uses a variety of factories.  This was their second year making a TAA Exclusive, and they used the Tabacalera Palma factory in the DR.  Their Trill brand was made there, which I don’t think is in their portfolio any longer.  Like the Brick House, this cigar also had tan lines.  I guess they are the opposite of tan lines really, there was some fading on the top face of the wrapper.  This was a 6″ x 54 toro with an Ecuador Habano wrapper and Dominican binder and fillers.  I’m generally a fan of Villiger cigars, there’s some I like better than others, but they make good cigars.  This had a sweet wood profile, not my favorite, but pleasant enough.  The cigar burned well and I think it was unter $10, not too bad.  As I think about it (read: looked back on my own site), I have smoked the 2020 (E.P. Carrillo) and the 2022 (Espinosa), and I think the 2022 was my favorite. I guess I need to see if I can find the ’23 and ’24 versions if they exist!.

 

As I write this, I’m enjoying a cigar on my porch. I hate that it will be too chilly soon to do this.  I found a Leccia Desnudo in the humidor and, while it isn’t my usual choice for a morning cigar, it’s got a few year age and is a nice, mellow maduro cigar, great with coffee. When these came out back in 2016 we hosted a Desnudo Sunday and did a video, which is here.  Everyone remained clothed.  That’s all for today, until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

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by | June 2, 2024 · 9:52 am

Crook of the Crown, Romeo y Julieta, Villiger Limited Release and Silencio Cigars

I had last weeks cold kicked by Monday, but it seems to have come back a bit.  I haven’t had a cold this bad since I quit smoking cigarettes (and had sinus surgery) back in 2007. Anyway, I didn’t have any trouble tasting this week, not that I have the greatest palate anyway, but I know what I like.  I think Lee Marsh of Stolen Throne Cigars is still mad at me because I didn’t really like the Yorktown Fleet (although I admit it’s growing on me, I’m due to pick up another one and try it), but I hope I redeem myself a little here. I picked up a few of the new Stolen Throne Crook of the Crown 5th Anniversary cigars this week, and had to smoke one right away.  I’ve been a fan of the Crook since the first one I tried, so I was excited to try it in what they are calling a Corona, but I’m not sure on what planet a 6″ x 46 is a corona.  Gran Corona, perhaps, but a corona is 5½” x 42.  It’s too long to be a Corona Gorda.  Whatever it is, I like it.  It has a Pigtail cap, a partially closed foot, with a San Andrés wrapper, Indonesian binder, and Nicaraguan fillers, made at the Rojas factory.  This one has the same Cocoa and spice as its namesake, with a little more focus given the smaller ring.  Burn and draw were perfect, this was an amazingly good smoke.  

 

Thursday I lit up the Romeo y Julieta Reserva Real Nicaragua Midnight Twist Toro that was handed to me at the Smokeonos event by Charlie Watson of Altadis USA. I don’t have a great track record with Altadis Cigars, many of them just don’t appeal to me.  The exception is those that are made by AJ Fernandez, almost universally.  The Reserva Real Nicaragua line is made by AJ Fernandez, and I like it. I quite enjoyed the regular Reserva Real Nicaragua and really liked this one.  It’s a 6″ x 54 (also comes in the “Love Story” 4½” x 46 perfecto size), with a barber pole wrapper consisting of Nicaraguan Habano & Maduro leaf.  It has the same binder and filler as the Reserva Real Nicaragua, which, you guessed, is Nicaraguan.  I almost liked this more than the Crook of the Crown…almost.  This is a rich and decadent cigar, I got some creamy cocoa and spice.  It was really good and I want more.  To be fair, if it just had a maduro wrapper, and wasn’t presented as a barber pole, I’d probably like it, but obviously they can’t call it Midnight Twist if it doesn’t have the contrasting wrappers.  I believe I enjoyed the Twisted Love Story too.

 

Also at the Smokeonos I spoke with René Castańeda of Villiger Cigars, who handed me this Villiger Limited Release No. 39 Torpedo.  I can’t find any information about this cigar, and my message to René went unanswered.  I will update this post when I get a reply.  My assumption is that it’s made at the Villiger de Nicaragua factory, which I also assume is a subfactory within the Joya de Nicaragua factory.  I also assume that this is a Nicaraguan puro.  I can only find info about a No. 29, and a No 41, no No. 39.  I was really hoping to hear back from René.  One thing I’m not going to assume is that I really liked this cigar, and the fact that I may never find another one is disheartening. I took limited notes as I was enjoying the cigar too much (OK, I always take limited notes).  I liked the Chocolate and spice I got, it was really nice.  The torpedo shape was well made and it had a good burn and draw.  I was quite happy with this cigar, it was a nice way to wrap up the work week.

 

One of my favorite Saturday afternoon activities is sitting in my screen porch and watching TV with a cigar, after all the chores are done.  Yesterday it was “Clarkson’s Farm” season 3, the first three episodes. Jeremy Clarkson is a hoot.  Anyway, I chose one more cigar that I was handed at the Smokeonos, a Silencio toro.  This is a cigar that Sean Williams, Cohiba brand ambassador, uses as his calling card.  Silencio is also the name General Cigars/STG uses on the Cohiba line in Europe, as they can’t use Cohiba there.  The cigar has a Nicaraguan wrapper, a Cameroon binder, and filler tobaccos from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic.  I found the smoke to be rather drying, which is odd for me.  It seemed leathery with some interesting spices. I felt like this would sit well with a European palate for some reason.  I always like seeing Sean Williams, he’s just about the nicest guy you’ll want to meet, and he’s cooler than the other side of the pillow.  If you see him at an event, maybe he’ll give you one of these.  I enjoyed it, but I like the Cohiba Riviera more!

 

That’s all for now.  Please take notice to the Daily Deal graphic on the left sidebar courtesy of Panacea Cigars.  It changes daily, and there’s always something good offered.  They are great cigars, I might have one today!  Until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

 

 

 

 

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by | May 26, 2024 · 8:39 am

Villiger 1888, Diesel Whiskey Row and Jaime Garcia Cigars

I’m going to preface this post with the following disclaimer:  ignore any tasting notes I might write this week.  I had probably the worst cold I’ve had in years this week, so I took a few days off smoking (not in a row!).  I did a fair amount of nose spray (I have a very low tolerance for not being able to breath through my nose), some cough drops, and some Nyquil to get through it.  I’m feeling much better, thanks.  Since I quit smoking cigarettes and had sinus surgery in 2007 I haven’t had nearly the severe colds that I used to get, and I haven’t had bronchitis since, which is a very good thing.  This cold was way worse than when I had Covid two years ago. When I finally had a cigar Friday, it tasted interesting. I started back with a Villiger 1888 Nicaragua in Churchill size. I wrote about this line almost a year ago (here), Ecuador Sumatra wrapper, Nicaraguan binder and Nicaraguan and Pennsylvanian fillers, made at the Villiger de Nicaragua (Joya de Nicaragua) factory.  I forgot to ask René about the factory situation when I saw him last week. This is a proper Churchill at 7″ x 47, which I love. Anyway, the flavor was popping with a rich, mouth-coating cocoa with a hint of licorice.  I loved the flavor, although I didn’t remember this cigar having those qualities.  I loved it.

 

Saturday I had accomplished a lot by about 2:30, so I figured it was time for a cigar.  I had gone to home depot, picked up a bundle of oak hardwood flooring, started installing the hardwood (we had about a 50 square foot section that we tore up because it was badly stained), and mowed the backyard. I picked a Diesel Whisky Row Founders Collection Mizanura that was gifted to me by a dude I see at cigar events all over.  I even ran into Steve when I was in Tampa a year or so ago.  From the Diesel website: “This full-bodied blend boasts a dark Brazilian Mata Fina wrapper and spicy filler tobacco from Nicaragua, but the real star lies at its core. We aged the Connecticut Broadleaf binder in Rabbit Hole’s rare Japanese Mizunara oak barrels—the same ones used to age their Founder’s Collection Bourbon. The result? A smooth, robust cigar with great complexity.” Tis is presented in a 6″ x 52 Toro. I’m a big fan of the Sherry Cask version of the Whiskey Row, not so much the original blend. This was another cigar that had very pronounced flavor, however, it was very much like the last.  This is a cigar I’m going to have to find another and try again when I’m back to full health. Now, the flavor I’m getting from these cigars is really great, it’s a flavor I enjoy, but if all cigars taste the same that’s no fun, is it?  I really enjoyed this cigar, thanks Steve!

 

Finally, I had picked up a Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Toro locally, and, again, I’ll grab another one one of these days to see what it really tastes like!  I hope it tastes as good as this one.  I usually think that having a cold adversely affects taste, this time it really seemed to enhance it. This was a delicious cigar.  It has a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper, an Ecuador binder and fillers from the Garcia farms in Nicaragua.  This toro is 6″ x 54.  Like I said, this was a great smoke, hard to believe I haven’t smoked this before. I can’t help but compare the flavors to the previous two, although there’s little reason the three should taste similar, except that my taste buds are compromised.  I’m going to smoke a Connecticut shade cigar today and see what happens. If it tastes the same I’m going to smoke some cigars that I don’t usually care for! Usually cigars don’t taste this good on the downside of a cold!  Whatever the cause, I’m not mad about it, the cigars tasted great.  Weird stuff.  While I can’t say that you’ll taste what I tasted in these three cigars, I thought they were all excellent, so don’t be afraid to try them if you haven’t already!  

 

Many thanks to our fallen soldiers and their families as we celebrate Memorial Day in our own ways.  I’m hoping to finish up this floor over the next two days, and get the front lawn cut.  I’ll smoke  a few cigars too. Until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

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by | July 16, 2023 · 10:14 am

Some Blackbird Cigars and Some Villiger Cigars

I had a different idea of what today’s post was going to be, but that plan changed at the last minute. To be honest, the plan was tentative, at best. I’ve got some new and not so new cigars to talk about this week, lets start with the not so new, but great cigars.  When I went to the TPE show in 2020, right before the world shut down, I met Jonas Santana and his crew from Blackbird Cigars.  Jonas flattered me by knowing who I was, after 4 years of doing this it still takes me aback. Jonas had worked for Artista (then El Artista) who I had been working with, so he was familiar with my work.  I’ve kept up with Jonas over the years and while this old white dude may not be able to keep up with a young, hip-hop cat, we connect on the cigar level, I dig his smokes.  The Crow is my main jam, but this week I decided to take a wander through the range again as it’s been too long.  What prompted this was one of my wife’s cigar band furniture projects, which required a bunch more Blackbird bands!  So I had to by more cigars. I picked up some Toro singles locally, and bought a Robusto sampler from my friends at Trash Panda Cigars.  Let’s talk about the Cuco first. This is probably the last cigar I’d go to because it has Criollo on the band and that tobacco usually doesn’t work for me. This is listed as a Brazilian wrapper, Indonesian binder and Dominican fillers, so I imagine it’s a Brazilian Criollo wrapper, perhaps that makes the difference for me, because I quite enjoyed this cigar in both Robusto and Gran Toro vitolas. It’s medium bodied with some cocoa and a hint of spice. very nice cigars. 

 

The Finch from Blackbird is one of two Sumatra wrapped cigars in the portfolio, the other being the Rook.  The Finch is only available in the Robusto size, has an Indonesian binder and US and Dominican fillers. It’s just me, but I think if I were going to have one cigar in my lineup that was just a robusto, I might call it the Rook, thinking like the chess piece, but I suppose finches are small birds so I get it. It’s a bird themed line, not a chess themed line, what am I thinking?  I guess what I’m thinking is that while I really enjoyed the Finch I forgot to take any notes, so I don’t really have anything to say about it except that I found it quite enjoyable and it makes me want to pick up a few more.  I do recall a bit of the sugar cane I get from Sumatra sometimes, along with a sweet spice, perhaps from whatever US tobacco (PA maybe?).  Good smoke.  As I type, I’m smoking the Unkind in Robusto, which has a dark Cubra (Brazil) wrapper and works exceptionally well with my black coffee. Even the shade Jackdaw has some pop to it and is quite tasty. It’s hard to go wrong with the Blackbird line, Jonas is doing some great things at his factory in the DR. 

 

A few weeks ago I received a few new cigars from the folks at Villiger Cigars.  I’ve had a very long history with Villiger. If you dig through my site (or YouTube channel), you’ll find interviews going back to 2012 I think.  They have gone through some transitions, probably made some mis-steps, but they’ve always made good cigars.  A few years ago they brought on René Casteñeda to head North American sales.  René was previously with Miami Cigar and Co. and La Aurora, and is a super-nice guy.  The Villiger Miami started out as a cigar for him to have to share with his friends and visitors to his office.  It’s made in their ABAM factory in the DR, where they make Flor de Ynclan and a ton of cigar for the European market. Last year they put this out in a Lancero, this year it was released in a toro format. It has an Ecuador Habano wrapper, undisclosed binder and fillers, except that they say there is some Peruvian leaf in the filler blend.  This is a really nice, complex blend, with some delicate flavors.  It’s one of those cigars that you want to think about while you smoke it. I got a little citrus tang, with some nuts, light coffee, and a hint of cocoa. 

 

Finally, I smoked the Villiger 1888 Nicaragua in both the Toro and Robusto.  The 1888 was the first premium cigar that Villiger made back in 2009, and it was reissued around 2017 with updated blend and branding, made in the Dominican Republic.  The 1888 Nicaraguan is made in the Villiger de Nicaragua factory, which in my imagination is somehow a part of the Joya de Nicaragua factory. I could ask around and verify this I suppose, but that seems like work.  The cigar has an Ecuador Sumatra wrapper, Nicaraguan binder and Nicaraguan and Pennsylvanian fillers. I’m generally partial to cigars with PA tobacco, considering it’s grown within an hour from my home, and I tend to like Sumatra.  This was a Medium bodied cigar in both vitolas, and had some sweet coffee/cocoa flavors.  I don’t recall favoring one size over the other, but almost always like a toro over a robusto.  I have a corona yet to try, but I expect that to have slightly sharper flavors.

 

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

 

CigarCraig

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by | February 12, 2023 · 10:57 am

Villiger de Nicaragua, Alec Bradley Fine and Rare and Bocock Brothers Cigars

I’ve been getting into a pattern of smoking what I want to smoke in the beginning of the week, then smoking new cigars for here at the end.  So Thursday I smoked a Villiger de Nicaragua torpedo which I had received in a package from Villiger  a week or so ago. This is a $15 limited edition ciga made in Villiger’s factory in Esteli, Nicaragua.  It’s a pointy 6″ x 52 box pressed torpedo, with an Ecuador Sumatra wrapper, San Andrés binder and Nicaraguan and Pennsylvanian filles. This cigar has nice, dark, rich flavors.  It’s. got some spice with dark chocolate, very nice smoke.  It burned without incident, it was among the best cigars I had all week.  Very nice. VIlliger opened their factory in Esteli in September of 2021, they are also making La Meridiana, San’Dorp, La Vencedora, La Libertad, Casa De Nicaragua, and Corrida in that factory now. 

 

I had a trying Friday, so I went to the special humidor where I keep the Secret Santa cigars I received this year.  I chose the next Alec Bradley Fine and Rare in the series I received, the 2018 Second Edition.  This is the JRS10=(86) blend, all of the Fine and Rares are a blend of ten tobaccos, and they keep those tobaccos to themselves.  This one was a 6½” x 56 Gran Toro.  I needed a great smoke and I got just that. This is outside of my normal comfort zone, it’s bright, floral, slightly fruity, but it sure tasted good.  Perfect construction was a big factor in my enjoyment, if I had encountered one of those cigars that produced loads of smoke when blown through, but you don’t get any when you draw, I would have been homicidal.  Why does that happen, by the way, it really pisses me off, I had it happen yesterday.  Anyway, the Fine and Rare was just that, thanks again to Mitch for sharing with me, very generous.

 

Finally, I went into some cigars that I got at last year’s TPE show.  I thought about going this year, but I have some scheduling conflicts which made it impossible.  I did a video with Bryant Bocock then, and have smoked a few of their Bocock Brothers cigars, but came across this 5″ x 50 World Traveller, which I initially thought was Habano, but now that I think back it might have been the Maduro.  I like the rooster on the band, I suppose “cock” in the Bocock name is the reason they use that imagery. I like chickens, we have a few.  This was an interesting cigar, it had a nice, meaty flavor.  Very dense, rich smoke.  I know it was 5″ x 50, but it somehow seemed thinner to me, which was OK, it was the right size cigar for the time available.  I know they were doing some cigars with AJ Fernandez, although this wasn’t one of them. It was different from your standard maduro, I enjoyed it quite a bit, I need to see if I have some more floating around. 

 

That’s all for now.  I know I’m from the Philly area and should be losing my mind over the Super Bowl, but I honestly don’t give a rats ass about football. Good for them if they win, I hope the city survives the carnage whichever way it turns out.  Thanks to all this Philadelphia has become known for having the grease all the light and traffic signal poles so fools won;t climb them, when there are so many other great things about the city to focus on.  Whatever, I guess it’s good for business. Until he next time, 

 

CigarCraig

 

 

 

 

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