A La Barba, an 1881 Perique Bold, a Room 101 and a Chogui Dos77 Cigar

Hmmm….I just realized all four cigars I’ve smoked so far this week have had a number theme, starting with the La Barba One & Only, a generous gift from my not so secret Santa, George,  this past Christmas. This cigar was a toro sized cigar with an Ecuador Habano wrapper and undisclosed binder and filler made at the William Ventura factory in the Dominican Republic. This is a limited edition cigar in the La Barba line, which is the creation of Tony Bellatto. This was a really well-balanced and sweet smoke on the milder side of medium to my palate. It was perfectly constructed and worked exactly like a great cigar should. This was one of several great cigars George sent, and I thank him very much for sending me some great cigars I wouldn’t normally have a chance to sample.

I’ve been really enjoying the 1881 Perique line from Tabacalera Incorporada in the Philippines. This was a surprise since I had a bad experience with Philippine cigars in the 90s and swore off them. Of course, in the latter 90s there were a LOT of crappy cigars coming from everywhere, and I especially disliked Filipino and Indonesian brands. So I was skeptical, but have really enjoyed the cigars from Tabacalera Incorporada, especially the 1881 Perique, which use Perique tobacco from Louisiana in the blend. This time around I smoked the 1881 Perique Bold toro, with a natural wrapper. The Perique gives a unique spice to the full-bodied blend, which also features aged Philippine and Brazilian tobacco. These are definitely interesting cigars.

Yesterday I  lit up a Room 101 Uncle Lee that I picked up a few months ago when Matt Booth was at the Bethlehem, PA downtown Cigars International store. I recently bought a box (of 10) of these at Holt’s very inexpensively, around $40 for the box with shipping. I really liked this cigar when I smoked it a while ago and figured having a box in the humidor wouldn’t be a bad thing. The Uncle Lee is a 6½” x 50 in the Ranfla shape that is in several of the other Room 101 lines, including the Room 101 Johnny Tobacconaut where it’s called the Ranflactic. Uncle Lee was Matt Booth’s uncle who introduced him to the enjoyment of cigars. I find the Uncle Lee to be an excellent cigar with a bright, refreshing flavor. It’s smooth, it tastes great, and I like this as a change of pace.  Like the rest of the Room 101 line, I’m afraid when they are gone, they are gone. We’ll miss you Matt!

Tonight I grabbed a Chogui Dos77 Rogusto that I picked up a few months ago at B and B Cigars in Chestnut Hill, PA when I went down to hang out with Vince, the manager of the shop, and Steve Saka. I had heard a lot of great things about this line, so I figured I’d try it out. This is a  cigar that until recently was only available in the Dominican Republic, where the cigar is made. For some reason, as stated on the inside of the band, were supposed to “Fear the F*cking Bird”, with a bird where the “*” is.  I’m not sure what that’s all about, but I wasn’t real fond of the flavor of this cigar. I know some people who might be a fan, I think this is a cigar that to folks who like the sour flavors might appreciate, but it’s not for me. The plus side was the construction was exceptional, it was firm, burned straight as an arrow with a nice, flat ember telling me how much care is taken in the blending and leaf placement. I wanted to like this cigar, it wasn’t inexpensive, and I’ve heard raves about it. There are a lot of cigars that I don’t “get” that people love, so don’t go by me! Happily, of the vast variety of cigar I smoke, it’s rare that I get one that I don’t take some enjoyment from, and the smoking of this cigar was certainly not unpleasant, the flavor just wasn’t for me.

That’s plenty from me for tonight, it ended up being a longer post than I wanted to write, but that’s the way it goes!  Until the next time,

CigarCraig