After enjoying the heck out of a Cain Daytona No. 4 the other night I figured it was about time to dig into some IPCPR show samples and see what the deal was with the new Oliva Serie V Melanio Torpedo. I smoked this cigar during my Thursday evening walk. Since we moved from a house “in town”, where I could walk to the local convenience store, or around the neighborhood, or a bunch of places, I now live in a more rural area where my walking options are more limited. As usual, it’s never about the destination, but the journey, so I just walk down the street for a while then turn around and come home to finish my cigar on the deck or back porch. I’ve been taking my son’s dog along and she loves all the new smells and sights, such as deer and the occasional fox. Back to the Melanio. What a beautiful cigar, just about perfect in appearance, 6½” x 52 and nicely box pressed. The Nicaraguan tobaccos in the blend are largely from Jalapa, which accounts for the bit of sweetness in this very powerful blend. It’s a pretty great cigar. I’ve enjoyed the few Serie V’s I’ve smoked and this one is a really nice addition to the line.
Friday evening I selected a Cain F Maduro that was in the same batch of samples from the trade show. My usual experience with Cain cigars tells me to leave these rest for a year or so to mellow out a little, but in the interest of providing timely information and experiences, I had to smoke this gorgeous robusto. The cigar was about 5 x 50 with an oily, dark Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper. While this was certainly a powerhouse, it was loaded with deep, dark flavor. I love the Cain line in general, especially with a little age, and the Daytona is a wonderfully well balanced smoke on the high end of medium, but I sure hope I come across this maduro again. What a fantastic smoke.
While at the trade show I had the opportunity to sit down with Bryan Scholle, the face of Studio Tabac, and talk about what’s new. Here’s a little video we took at the show, many thanks to Bryan for taking a few minutes to talk to me. It was the first time we’d met, and it was like we’d know one another for years. Bryan is a very cool guy, if you have a chance to catch him on the Studio Tabac tour, do it.
In Other News
Yesterday I stopped in to the new Total Tobacco shop in Newtown Square, PA, not far from home. This shop is a part of the Delaware Cigars empire, so Gary Griffith was on hand for the grand opening. They are still waiting for some displays and fixtures, but the large walk-in humidor is very well stocked with many fine cigars. I could have gone nuts, but I showed some restraint and only picked up a couple cigars I’ve wanted to try, but haven’t seen locally, notably, a Room 101 OSOK as well as a Cro Magnon EMH. I’d be shocked if there’s another retailer in the area that has the RoMaCraft Tabac line, but there were all of the CroMagnon sizes as well as Aquataine in Connecticut shade and maduro. They have a great selection and the prices are in line with the pricing we enjoy in Pennsylvania. I’ll make a point to stop in from time to time to see how the shop progresses. One downside is that there’s no smoking in the store, but the selection makes up for that and they have chairs on the sidewalk outside to enjoy a smoke on a nice day. It’s always nice to see my friend Gary and I wish them the best of luck with this new location.
I’ve gone one quite long enough, that’s all I have for now. Until the next time,
CigarCraig
Thanks for the kind words Craig. It’s always a pleasure to see great friends
man i would love to get my paws on those new serie v melanio, being that the serie v is one of my faves!!
It’s been a while, but I still read your ”stuff”’ all the time, just wanted to say hello, always enjoy reading your stuff!
hey Craig its been a couple weeks since I have gotten the chance to check in. Looks like you are right on track and things are still pooring in from IPCPR. I have been to a couple of Gary’s stores and each time I walk in I’m blown away.