Monthly Archives: January 2013

by CigarCraig | January 30, 2013 · 7:47 pm

An Asylum, a Gurkha, a LegendArio and Some News

We’ve had some unseasonable weather, so I figured I could sneak some larger vitolas in this week. It’s funny how we adapt to the weather. Not long ago when the temps were in the 30s I’d be bundled up and freezing. After a few weeks of really cold weather, a Sunday in the high 30s found me without my gloves, enjoying a 6×60 while walking the dog. It’s in the 50s today, although it’s raining.

Sunday afternoon I grabbed an Asylum 13 Sixty, which is a 6″x 60 cigar made by Christian Eiroa in the Nicaragua American Cigars, S.A. (NACSA) factory. I picked this up the last time I visited Light’n Up Premier Smoke Shop a few Sundays ago, I think it was in the $6 range. This was a well made cigar of medium strength with a good draw and pleasant flavor. It really didn’t stand out, but there certainly wasn’t anything negative I can say about it. It was a nice day and a pleasing smoke while the dog and I walked around the neighborhood. I ended up nubbing it and wasn’t dissapointed. Worth trying, I think.

Monday evening was getting a little warmer so I pulled a Gurkha Royal Challenge out of the samples I got at the IPCPR show. This is a nice looking Connecticut shade wrapped cigar, but as I started taking bands off of it, some of the very thin, fragile wrapper was stuck to the bands and tore a little. Obviously, this did not bode well. I figure the binder should carry most of the structural burden on a cigar, so it should be smokable with a bit of the wrapper missing. Of course, I struggled with the burn on this cigar, as well as a large stem running nearly the length of the cigar. While I really enjoyed the mild and mellow flavors of this cigar, it truly was a Royal Challenge to smoke. Chalk it up to one bad experience, it happens. It’s a cigar I’d smoke again because it was a very flavorful Connecticut wrapped cigar that had a lot going for it flavor-wise and I can’t imagine the construction problem I had was the norm.

Tuesday I grabbed another large cigar, a LegendArio Bertha from Camacho. this line has been out for quite a while and this is the first time I’ve smoked one. I purchased a couple at a Camacho event at International Tobacco in the King of Prussia Mall a while ago and decided it was time. With a Mexican maduro wrapper I figured it couldn’t go wrong. I was right, and it was a very nice smoke. I liked it. I’d like it better in a robusto, maybe. Perhaps the burn wasn’t as straight as it could have been, but it didn’t give me too much trouble and I smoked it until it was time for the Flyers game (which didn’t end as well as the cigar did!). This is a cigar that I wouldn’t mind having more of, and at around $5 for this cigar, it’s a winner. You know I’m a sucker for the Mexican maduro wrapper.

News

For those of you who like to win free cigars, check out the Super Bowl Squares game going on at StogieBoys.com. There are a few squares left so get on over and sign up.

Also, the same folks at StogieBoys.com have some other news related to this weekend’s big game:

StogieBoys.com, the nation’s fastest growing online retailer, along with Thurman Thomas Cigars, announced this week its sponsorship of the 4th annual Jaws’ Cigar Party at Vieux Bourbon in New Orleans. The party is to be hosted by Ron Jaworski, ESPN NFL analyst.

StogieBoys.com will be the exclusive cigar retailer sponsor at Jaws’ cigar party and will feature NFL Hall of Fame Running Back Thurman Thomas brand cigars. Mr. Thomas entered into a recent relationship with StogieBoys.com to create and distribute his own premium cigar brand.

The Press release is here.

In other news, Albany, NY’s PipesandCigars.com had some folks visit the Davidoff factory in the Dominican Republic recently. The press release can be found here. It sounds like they had a very educational trip!

As I’m sure you have read elsewhere, the gigantic Cigar that Grand Habano displayed in their booth at the New Orleans IPCPR show a few years ago sold recently for $185,000, marked down from $200,000. They claimed it was smokable, and had a contraption with a mess of hoses to affix to the head of the cigar so a whole mess of people could smoke it. The story is here.

Lastly, CigarFest Tickets go on sale Saturday for approximately 5 minutes if you pre-registered and are quick on the draw or camp out at one of their stores overnight!

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

CigarCraig

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Filed under News, Review

Tagged as Asylum 13, Camacho, cigar, cigar store, CigarFest, cigars, Gurkha, LegendArio, pipesandcigars.com, Royal Challenge, Stogie Boys

by CigarCraig | January 26, 2013 · 9:24 pm

A Room 101, a Cuenca 5 Anniversary and Some News

I’ve been taking a little break from cigars since it’s been so bitterly cold out and I haven’t felt like freezing my tuckus off. Friday I finally said enough is enough and grabbed a cigar to take for a walk in the snow with the dog. One good thing about snow when the temps have been so low is that it tends to be very powdery and doesn’t require a lot of effort to shovel. It didn’t hurt that we only got about an inch. This was my kind of snow storm!

So, after last weeks discussion about gloves and cigar sizes, I figured I’d try a corona. I figured it had sufficient length to handle with gloves, yet is small enough that it wouldn’t take two hours to smoke. A few weeks ago I bought a couple of Room 101 San Andreas 213, which is a 5.5 x 44 corona. I really like this size, and when it’s cold and I haven’t had a cigar in a few days I typically reach for a San Andreas wrapper. Out of all the Room 101 lines, this one is, by far, my favorite. It’s rich and flavorful and perfectly constructed. I had just received a Screwpop Cigar Punch which i used with excellent results. The punch is a little larger than the one I’ve had, which was the perfect size for the corona. I also successfully opened a bottle of ginger brew with it! Anyway, I love this line of cigars, I know I’m in for a treat when I light one up. They are pretty fairly priced at around $5.50 which appeals to my inner cheap bastard.

Saturday was a pretty nice day with temps climbing into the 20s so I decided to go large. Cuenca Cigars in Hollywood, Florida is celebrating their 5 year anniversary and are marking that milestone with a cigar made for them by AJ Fernandez, the Cuenca 5 Anniversary. This is a huge 7″x 54 box pressed torpedo that’s got a beautiful dark wrapper. This is normally far too large a cigar for outdoor winter smoking, but it’s funny how balmy the 20s feels after several days in the teens! This was a very enjoyable smoke, I smoked it to a finger burning/freezing nub. Well balanced, nice little spice in the flavor and perfectly built. This is a nice cigar, and I really look forward to smoking another one when it’s warmer and I can really relax and enjoy it. Check out the press release for Cuenca Cigars Anniversary celebration here, and more information about the Cuenca 5 Anniversary cigar here.

News

I receive press releases all the time and some of my peers do a great job of posting them on their sites almost immediately. I think that’s great, and I appreciate it. Personally, I don’t have the ability to react that quickly and generally choose not to post them as opposed to repeating what others have done already. We all have our little niches that make us different from one another. That being said, once in a while I come across something interesting that I haven’t seen elsewhere.

I received a request from a gentleman named Hugo Melo, the president of Hispaniola Cigars, asking me to post his press release. The press release can be found here, as well as other news outlets. According to the press release: “The Taino aborigines of the Dominican Republic attributed spiritual qualities to smoking tobacco during their ancient rituals. It was believed that smoking the tobacco leaf would elevate them to “Turei,” translated literally as “Heaven.” Hispaniola Cigars is proud to announce that in January 2013, the spiritual experience of the Tainos will be resurrected by Turei Cigars.” I haven’t heard of Hispaniola Cigars myself, and they seem to be based nearby in North Joisey. I’ll keep an eye out for them.

In other news, I’d like to welcome StogieBoys.com to the CigarCraig.com family of supporters. They are offering a deal if you sign up for their mailing list. They will send you three cigars and a V-cutter if you sign up to get e-mails ($4.99 to cover shipping, so really you are getting the 3 cigars for $5, quite a fair deal!). I’ve been working with these folks for quite a while and have been a customer as well and they are a class act. You may recall that they started out the 12 Spectacular Days of Cigar Giveaways strong with a nice prize pack, and we’re already working on an upcoming giveaway.

That’s about all I have for today. It looks like temps will be climbing into the 30s today, so I may have to find something interesting to smoke before the 6:00 Flyers/Tampa Bay game! Hopefully the Flyers didn’t use up all their goals last night.

Until the next time,

CigarCraig

5 Comments

Filed under Accessories, News, Review, Stores

Tagged as cigar, cigar store, cigars, Cuenca, Hispaniola, Room 101, ScrewPop, StogieBoys, Turei

by CigarCraig | January 23, 2013 · 8:04 pm

A Casa Magna, a Partagas 1845 and a Villiger – Now it’s Too Darned Cold for Cigars!

Over the last two days the temperatures have dropped significantly here, into the teens and single digits. This, of course, means it’s time for smaller cigars, or worse, no cigars at all! Now here’s the dilemma: the smaller the cigar, the harder it is to hold while wearing gloves! So I got to thinking, maybe I’m going at this wrong. Maybe I should smoke some larger cigars that are easier to manage with gloves? Well, that sounds good on paper, but then you get into a great cigar and you don’t want to put it down! Then you have to be outside longer and freeze more (or burn through more bottled LP gas in a barely adequate heater). So I’m torn between the small cigar I can’t smoke all of because my fingers will freeze, or potentially wasting a larger cigar and/or freezing my ass off in addition to my fingers! Then there are some smaller cigars that I don’t want to waste in the cold! Cigars that I know will have some complexity that’s lost in the cold air. You’d think a Nub would be a good choice, but they too can be unwieldy with gloves on. And what if you like mittens? You’re screwed trying to smoke a cigar wearing mittens. Seriously, I can handle about 30 degrees without any wind or precipitation pretty comfortably, but once the mercury drops lower than that, or it’s windy, it’s too damned cold and I really can’t enjoy the experience as much. That’s my rant to today, now on to some tasty smokes!!

Previous paragraph aside, Sunday was a almost balmy January day with temps near 50. After the Flyers lost once again, I took Puccio (that’s the dog, we call her Pooch) for a nice walk with a cigar that the fine folks at StogieBoys.com sent me to smoke, a Casa Magna Domus Magnus Primus. This cigar is a beauty. It’s 6½” x 55 with a nice box press. The cap is finished with a neat little pigtail which is a nice presentation that I, for some reason, always like, but you have to cut the thing off to smoke the cigar so it doesn’t add too much to the smoking experience. Beautiful cigar with a lovely sun grown wrapper adorned with a very classy band as well as a foot band. So we’ve established that it’s a good looking stick, and I’m happy to say that it’s a great tasting stick as well. It burned perfectly to a tiny nub and had a very rich and meaty flavor that was mouth coating and quite satisfying. I quickly forgot how upset I was with the Flyers and got lost in the cigar, it’s that kind of smoke. It was like a great steak, it was that satisfying. I’ve only smoked a couple of the Casa Magnas and this, by far, is the best one I’ve had, and is a cigar I can’t wait to smoke again! Thanks to Sheryl and the folks at StogieBoys.com!

Twenty-four hours later and it’s gone from pretty comfortable for January to pretty darned cold!! I decided it was the perfect time to smoke a nice, little Partagas 1845 Corona Extra. This is a great size regardless of the weather. It’s 4½ x 46, which is a good inch shorter than what I think of when I think Corona Extra, but I like the size anyway. I received a four cigar sampler quite a while ago from General Cigar Co. and really enjoyed the middle two sizes, saving the smallest and largest cigars for the right time (the largest is a 7¼” x 54 Double Corona that just seems enormous). While the draw was a little snug on this little cigar, it had a very enjoyable flavor like it’s larger siblings and burned well. I smoked it to a finger freezing nub (see above), it was good. This is another cigar that has that dense, meaty delicious smoke that hits the spot for me. Very nice, I am surprised this one didn’t have more of a push at the IPCPR show, I can’t actually remember it being prominently featured in their booth (I’ll go back through the pictures, I’m probably wrong…).

Last night was the coldest yet, and the dog was pestering me for a walk, so I grabbed a Villiger Export Maduro for a short walk. This is a machine made “dry cured” little square pressed cigar that has long been a favorite. I guess it gets cold in Switzerland, so it makes sense to smoke one of these in the cold! Another advantage is that these don’t need to be kept in a humidor, so they don’t fall victim to some of the nastiness that can occur when moisture meets cold air! These are like little chocolate bars, it’s hard not to just eat them when you peel off the paper wrapping, but don’t, these taste better when smoked. I actually hadn’t had the maduro before now, the natural has been an old standby for years. I liked the maduro just fine, and will smoke them interchangeably with the naturals because I don’t get a whole lot of difference. Nice smoke, didn’t last the ¾ mile walk, which is good because I couldn’t wait to get inside to watch the Flyers lose once again. These are great little quick smokes you can leave in your glovebox or desk drawer. Highly recommended.

So that’s what I have for now. I hope the darned weather warms up a little before long! I know, I shouldn’t complain, there’s a lot of places colder, wetter, snowier, rainier than it is here, but I complain, what can I say.

Until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Filed under Editorial, Review

Tagged as Casa Magna, cigar, cigars, Domus Primus, general cigars, IPCPR, Partagas, Take A Cigar For A Walk, Villiger

by CigarCraig | January 20, 2013 · 10:10 am

Cigars and Hockey – Alec Bradley Connecticut and Tempus and a Merlion

The last time I mentioned the cool match holder/striker that was brought to my attention, so this time take a look at this new cigar punch from ScrewPop, who makes a variety of tools that have integrated clips that double as a bottle opener. This is an aluminum body with a stainless steel punch blade and the cover screws on with an o-ring to keep out the crud. Next time I stop by Cigars International I may pick one of these up to see how it works! ScrewPop also has clip-able screwdrivers, knives, flashlights and mini-Bic lighter holders. Pretty nifty stuff. Please note that this is not a paid endorsement, just something that came to my attention that looked pretty cool.

Thursday evening I finally decided to smoke the Alec Bradley Connecticut that Jon Lipson gave me at an event a while back. This is another cigar that bucks the trend of mild Connecticut cigars. While not a particularly powerful smoke, it had loads of flavor and was solidly medium bodied. It had the signature Ecuador Connecticut wrapper flavor, with some real depth and body. I liked this smoke, it was different enough from the similarly wrapped American Classic Blend (which I really like). I almost thought it was kind-of like a Tempus with a shade wrapper, not that that’s a bad thing. Very nice smoke.

Friday evening I went out to dinner with my wife and her father and had a delicious flounder stuffed with crab. I probably would have made another cigar choice afterward if I had chosen steak, but I naturally gravitated to a Merlion Robusto for some reason (aside: did anyone pick up my series of puns in my last post?). I don’t know what I’d have selected if I had eaten duck. Anyway, the Merlion is the sequel to the La Sirena, which is a cigar I really like, but haven’t really smoked enough of. The Merlion is made by La Aurora in the Dominican Republic and is a bit milder than it predecessor with an Ecuador Corojo wrapper and a generous smattering of tobacco from Brazil. I enjoyed this on a post dinner walk and it was a nice cigar to follow an excellent meal. I can’t remember if this is one I bought at the Delaware Cigar Festival or was an IPCPR show sample, but it was missing one of the ornate bands, not a big deal to me as it’s one fewer band to remove, but the double banded presentation is quite nice, much like the impressive bands on the La Sirena line. Another nice job by the folks at Miami Cigar and Co.

I’m a big Philadelphia Flyers fan, and the last several months has been frustrating without hockey to watch. Hockey is really the only sport I like, to be honest. I had the good fortune to attend the opening game of the season yesterday. Unfortunately they didn’t really start playing until the end of the first period and couldn’t manage a comeback over a pretty defensively solid Penguins team. I really don’t like the Penguins much, and I kinda wish the fans would chant “Penguins Suck” instead of “Crosby Sucks”, because Crosby is a skilled player, he’s just a whiny little bi…..sorry, I’m straying from my point. When I got home I decided I’d smoke an Alec Bradley Tempus to see how far off I was on my thoughts about the Connecticut. I can’t really make a judgement on the similarities between the two except that they are both very nice cigars. The Tempus is a bit fuller bodied and was a very nice smoke. I don’t know if there are any cigars in the Alec Bradley line that I really don’t enjoy. There seems to be something for everyone in their portfolio. Even though the Flyers didn’t win, this Tempus was a winner. The Wells Fargo Center, where the Flyers play, does have a Cigar Bar, and I’m trying to get a tour to feature in a future post. Holt’s used to have the cigar concession in both the private club area and adjacent to one of the bar areas. I have been to a couple games many years ago where we could enjoy cigars before going to our seats. Sadly, the indoor smoking regulations put an end to that.

I’m afraid that’s all I have today. The TV will be on at 12:30 to see if the Flyers look better against the Sabres today, and I’ll find something to smoke afterward no doubt. Until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Filed under Accessories, Editorial, Review

Tagged as Alec Bradley, cigar, cigars, connecticut, Flyers, La Sirena, Merlion, Miami Cigar and Co, Tempus

by CigarCraig | January 16, 2013 · 6:27 pm

A Cigar Shop Visit, a Cain, a Perla del Mar, a Rodrigo and a La Gloria Cubana

Sunday I decided to go hang out at one of my locals shops that I’ve been to a few times and had mixed feelings about, Light’n Up Premier Smokeshop in Ludwigs Corner, PA. This shop is about 5 miles from home and I pass it on my commute every day. In the past I’ve had less than competent service, and limited selection. This visit, along with my last, was better and I want to give another chance. I spent a few minutes browsing the humidor and found the selection to be adequate although sparse. There were numerous empty boxes on the shelves which I suppose is excusable in the off season, but not something I like seeing, especially when it’s something that interests me. I would have picked up a couple more of the Padilla Reserva Maduros if they had them, but they did not. I ended up picking up a Cain Daytona torpedo and smoking it in the shop while talking with Rudy, the gentleman working in the shop, and several of the patrons who came in for a smoke. I think there was a football game on the TV too. I also picked up a couple other cigars I wanted to try as well. The Cain Daytona Torpedo was an excellent smoke, I like all of the Cain cigars, but I think the smoothness of the Daytonas makes it my favorite. It doesn’t pack quite the punch that the rest of the line does. I spent about 2 hours at the shop and the worst thing I can say about this visit is that they close at 4 pm on Sundays, not that I would have hung out longer on this particular occasion, but it would be nice if they were open a little later.

After dinner I took the dog for a walk with one of the other cigars I picked up at the shop, a Perla del Mar 3¾x56 stubby, fat little robusto. I have a sample from the trade show floating around someplace in the depths of the humidor, but I was too lazy to fish it out and figured the shorter size would be better for a damp and dreary evening. By the way, don’t visit the website with a full bladder, just a bit of friendly advice. This cigar is from J.C. Newman and is made in the same factory as the Brickhouse and El Baton in Nicaragua. It’s a Nicaraguan blend with an Ecuador Connecticut wrapper. I found it to be a pleasant smoke, medium bodied and flavorful and well behaved. It’s a good, well priced cigar. Personally, I’d love to see a Brickhouse maduro in the same size.

Monday’s evening smoke was a Rodrigo Forteleza Absoluto, a sample I received from Gary at Emilio Cigars, the distributor for Rodrigo Cigars. George Rodriguez had sent me samples of his original line a while back and I really dug the lancero over the larger ring gauges, so, I was looking forward to smoking this pretty little pigtail capped corona (5 ⅛” x 43). It started out pretty bold, and continued to be a full bodied, full flavored smoke. This is a very nice cigar! I can understand why this had such critical acclaim. I found it to be quite a satisfying smoke. I’ll try this in a larger ring gauge one of these days when I run across them in a shop someplace.

Tuesday I was having a little trouble deciding what to smoke, so I went with an old friend, the La Gloria Cubana Retro Especiale Club. This is a cigar that I’ve smoked quite a few of, and 5¾“ x 47 is a really nice size for me. It’s a different cigar than what I generally gravitate toward, it’s bright and mellow as opposed to dark and spicy, but it provides me with a nice change and the cigar is interesting enough to keep my attention, but not particularly challenging to smoke. Once in awhile I just want to smoke a cigar without thinking about it too much and the Retro Especiale is one like that. This isn’t a knock on the cigar, quite the opposite. I’ve always enjoyed the La Gloria Cubana line and have some of the new Trunk Show samples to smoke, but they are just enormous! Too large for winter smoking. I also continue to beat myself up for not picking up the Rabito de Cochino 3 pack when I saw it at Cigars International on my last visit. That’s a cigar I’ve wanted to try and I can’t believe I didn’t grab one. I will, no doubt, smoke more Retros this summer.

I received an email today about a new product and I’d be curious to know what you think of it? I’m far too impatient to use matches to light my cigars, but this is a pretty slick match case/striker combo that could be a great gift item for the cigar smoke who has everything, and I’m told the target MSRP will be around $8, so it’s priced right. Check it out at http://www.quirky.com/products/215-Strike-new-match.