Tag Archives: Alec Bradley

by | December 29, 2021 · 5:47 pm

A Trilogy of Alec Bradley Trilogies

Back around 2004 I was at a cigar event in Las Vegas and these weird, triangle pressed cigars from a fairly new cigar company were passed around. They were called Trilogy by Alec Bradley and they were really good. I smoked a bunch of them, bought boxes and passed them around, then they vanished. In 2008 I found myself at the IPCPR show and met George Sosa, then VP of sales at Alec Bradley and asked about them, no go. I got to know Jonathan Lipson, who moved from sales to marketing, and asked him from time to time about them, nothing. Finally, now that Alan Rubin’s sons, Alec and Bradley, are involved in the company, the Trilogy are back, I came across a box of each at Son’s and grabbed some for a stroll down memory lane, hopefully.  Having Monday off, I spent the afternoon with the Native Cameroon. These were initially offered in a robusto, torpedo and toro if I remember correctly, now they are just available in a 6″ x 52 Toro. They might be available in robusto, I’m really not clear, they definitely didn’t bring back the torpedo. The Authentic Cameroon has an African Cameroon wrapper, Honduran binder and Honduran and Nicaraguan fillers. It’s a delicious cigar, quite tasty, with the nice nuttiness one gets from that wrapper. 

 

I followed the Native Cameroon with the Authentic Corojo. This had the lightest wrapper of the three, a Honduran Corojo, with a Honduran grown Connecticut seed binder,  and Honduran and Nicaraguan fillers. This was a medium bodied cigar that was pleasing enough, with some spice and sweet earthy flavors.  I would have liked it if this example had been a little freer with the draw, as the other two were, but it was still OK. It was still close to what I remember of the original, I think I smoked more of these long ago than the others, just because of availability at the time. Oddly, it was my least favorite of the three. 

 

Finally, I smoked the Exotic Maduro, the cigar that I would have usually smoked first, I think we all know that. The reason I smoked in the order I did was because I smoked the Cameroon in the afternoon, and I wanted to save the Maduro for an evening cigar. I also had a recollection that I liked the Exotic Maduro the best of three, and I wanted to save the best for last. OK, I’m weird. The Exotic Maduro has a Nicaraguan Jalapa grown Maduro wrapper, fairly exotic, I guess, the Honduran Connecticut binder and Honduran and Nicaraguan fillers.  This was a wonderful tasting cigar. It had an interesting spice throughout that I suppose warrants the “exotic” moniker, over some dark chocolate and espresso. This ended up being my favorite of the three, with the Native Cameroon coming in a close second. We should probably not be surprised that these are more than double the price that they used to be, all cigars are really, aren’t they?  I am happy to finally smoke these again after all these years, it was a fun walk down memory lane.

 

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

 

CigarCraig

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by | November 26, 2021 · 9:12 pm

News: Alec Bradley Announces Limited Edition Collector’s Series Trilogy Cigars

I’ve actually been hoping Alec Bradley would bring these back for about 15 years! I remember smoking and enjoying a bunch of these back around 2004, buying a box of them from Atlantic Cigars when they were in New York when I couldn’t find them locally. I really liked them and was disappointed when they went away. I’m pretty sure it was my introduction to Alec Bradley Cigars, as it was most peoples. I’m quite sure they were well under $100 for a box of 20 though!  The triangle press torpedo was pretty cool. 

 

Alec Bradley Cigar Co. Shipping Limited Edition Trilogy Collector’s Series Next Week

2000 Ten-Count Keepsake Boxes of Each Toro Sized Authentic Corojo, Exotic Maduro and Native Cameroon to Hit Tobacconists’ Shelves for Holiday Season.

 

Alec Bradley Cigar Co. today announced that the Limited Edition, Collector’s Series, Trilogy keepsake boxes will begin shipping to tobacconists next week. Trilogy Authentic Corojo, Exotic Maduro and Native Cameroon are being released in their own unique “cigar-press” shaped boxes, paying homage to the triangular mold created by Alec Bradley brand owner, Alan Rubin in the early 2000s. Only two thousand collectable 10-count boxes of each of the tree cigar blends are being presented in the triangle pressed, 6″ x 52 ring gauge Toro format.

“Trilogy has been a passion project for me since I started with Alec Bradley in 2017,” said second generation cigar maker, Bradley Rubin. “I’m honored that my dad, Alan, finally allowed me to move forward with the project; and now we have the opportunity to share a part of Alec Bradley’s history with our brand advocates, old and new.”

 

Introduced in 2002, Alec Bradley Trilogy was the first triangular shaped cigar to hit the premium cigar market. A testament to Alec Bradley’s creativity and innovation, Trilogy set the stage for other unique brands and blends, including one of the earliest “large ring gauge” cigar lines, MAXX and Cigar Aficionado’s “96-Rated, Number 1 Cigar of the Year,” Prensado Churchill.

 

 

Although Alec Bradley Trilogy may still be found on some tobacconists’ shelves, sales for the line took a decade’s long hiatus. In August of this year, the company collaborated with a Florida tobacconists to resurrect the line in a sampler featuring 6 Robusto shaped cigars of each blend.

 

All three Trilogy cigars – Authentic Corojo, Exotic Maduro and Native Cameroon- have been blended to mirror their original flavor profiles. The iterations share the same Honduran Connecticut seed binder and fillers from Nicaragua and Honduras. Exotic Maduro features a Maduro wrapper from Jalapa, Nicaragua; Authentic Corojo features a Corojo wrapper from Jamastran, Honduras; and Native Cameroon features a true Cameroon wrapper from the central African nation of the same name. MSRP has been set to $15.00 per cigar/ $150.00 per box, before any applicable taxes. Trilogy will begin shipping next week to appointed tobacconists. Alec Bradley Trilogy cigars are being produced at Tobacos De Oriente, Danli, Honduras.

 

 

“The Trilogy packaging is just as unique as the cigars inside,” Bradley Rubin continued. “Just in time for the holiday season, any cigar enthusiast would truly be grateful to receive one, two or all three of the keepsake boxes of the historical Trilogy cigars!”

 

About Alec Bradley Cigars

Founded by Alan Rubin in 1996, Alec Bradley has been acknowledged as one of the world’s leading producers of fine, handmade premium cigars. Alec Bradley has received the cigar industry’s highest critical acclaim for its Prensado, Tempus, MAXX and Black Market premium cigars, to name a few. Their commitment to satisfying cigar enthusiasts worldwide is demonstrated by their passion for excellence, creativity and the highest quality standards.

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by | November 21, 2021 · 11:07 am

Alec and Bradley Blind Faith, Perla Del Mar Corojo Toro and Platinum Nova Corona Cigars

While we were driving home from South Carolina a few weeks back we took a rest stop at the JRs in Selma, NC. It’s been a few years since we were there, it’s downsized a bit. We were expecting to shop for some bed linens, alas that part of the business is gone, and it’s just a tobacco store. Right inside the door of the cigar department was a large area of stuff marked down 50% off. I immediately rescued a partial box of Sobremesa, and a box of RomaCraft Intemperance. I was told that it was stock from another store that had closed. Upon catching wind of my purchase, Saka (who, by the way, for some reason hasn’t bothered to share any of my Stillwell Star posts, while sharing other content creators work, I thought we were friends…I’m not mad, just disappointed) put his people on JRs about this. My assumption is that he has an agreement with his accounts that he’d rather buy back inventory than have it discounted. I just wanted to spare him the indignity of having it on the discount rack (and get a killer deal on some Short Churchills!). This is all a lot of words leading into talking about the Alec and Bradley Blind Faith. My wife was actually suggesting I buy a box of these, and I didn’t want to without having smoked a few. I know it’s a ridiculous problem to have, and sounds like bragging, but I’m pretty strapped for storage space. I had to shoehorn the little box of Intemperance in, no way I’d fit a box of A&B. Anyway, I bought a couple singles, and I smoked one this week. It’s weird, you know, I went into it hoping I didn’t love the cigar and kick myself for not listening to my wife! When your wife tells you to buy a box of cigars you should do it, right? Anyway, this has a Honduran wrapper, Honduran/Nicaraguan double binder and NIcaraguan fillers, made at Raices Cubanas in Honduras. I would have tolerated having a box in the humidor, but I’m not kicking myself for walking away, let’s put it that way. It’s a good smoke, tasty. Nothing wrong with the burn and draw, nice presentation, and it’s a shame that these were on the discount rack. Honestly, there was a LOT of stuff that was in that area that shouldn’t have been. I could have gone broke, but I’d have had to go back to using coolers for storage. 

 

Last year J.C.Newman re-packaged the Perla Del Mar line, and introduced the Corojo to the mix. Late this year they added the Toro to the Corojo family. I’ve long been a fan of the Maduro, but the Corojo might be my new favorite.  This line is another great example of how the wrapper changes the flavor of the cigar. They use the same blend across all three lines, with only the wrapper changing, so smoke all three to get an idea of what the wrapper adds. In the case of the Corojo, which covers Nicaraguan binder and filler, by the way, it adds an almost candy sweetness, as opposed to a dark chocolate sweetness in the case of the maduro. It’s a terrific cigar, well made, nicely box pressed, I just wish they had been a little more creative with the band, the old one was prettier, the new one makes me think of another cigar company. It’s a great cigar and well priced, so screw the band, I’m a fan.

 

Last night my wife and I went to the movies, probably the first time in nearly two years. The dine-in feature was sub-par, had to order at the bar and food was served in takeout containers, whether that’s life in the pandemic world or life in the short-staffed world, I’m not sure. Call me old fashioned, but if I’m asked to put a gratuity on my check up front without knowing what kind of service I’m going to get, I’m going to tip conservatively. Maybe that works against me? I have no way of knowing. The food was pretty good though, and the movie was entertaining (discount tickets). We got home and I hung out on the porch to watch the last period of the Flyers game with a Platinum Nova Corona from the 2020 TPE. I’ve been passing by these because they are fairly small for me, but it was late, and I didn’t want to be up all night. This is a (ridiculously) expensive cigar, at $23, it’s a pigtail capped 5″ x 43 Ecuador H2000 wrapped cigar with Dominican Piloto Cubano binder and Dominican fillers. The cigar ended up being good for nearly an hour and a half, but I had to relight it a few time. It had a definite floral flavor, nearly perfumy. I rarely get this flavor, it’s not one I’m particularly fond of. I smoked an Undercrown 10 earlier in the day that was more to my liking, much less flowery. It’s not that I didn’t like it, it’s just that it’s not one I’d gravitate to on a regular basis. not offensive, not bad, just not me. 

 

That’s more than enough from me today. What do you all think about doing a CigarCraig.com Secret Santa again?  Weigh in in the comments. If we get more than one person I’ll make it happen! Until the next time,

 

CigarCraig 

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by | February 4, 2021 · 9:42 pm

Alec Bradley Project 40 Maduro Toro Cigar

I’ve been scrounging around for new cigars again, and I had bought some of the Alec Badley Project 40 Maduro Toros from Scotty’s Cigars a few weeks ago and figured I’d smoke a few ad see what they were all about. To digress a little, I had mentioned that I was having some dental discomfort recently, and visited the dentist this afternoon and he referred me to the endodontist who will probably do a root canal or two. This is better than having to have it pulled, and one of the teeth causing the problem already has a porcelain crown from a previous chain dental practice I visited during a period where my usual dentist wasn’t in my dental plan. LEsson LEarned there. At least the crown is good. A tooth extraction would negatively impact my ability to enjoy a cigar for an extended period of time, and we can’t have that! Enough about my problems. The downside was, I missed out on joining in on the Kaplowitz Radio Round Panel, of which I’ve been taking part recently. This is a Podcast which is part of the Kaplowitz Media family of podcasts which I find entertaining. How much I personally contribute remains to be seen. I’ll try again next week. This is also why today’s post is a day late. Back to the Project 40. I haven’t tried the “Natural” wrapper version yet, but I will hunt some down. 

 

The Project 40 Maduro has a San Andrés wrapper, a Brazilian Habano binder and Nicaraguan fillers. The Toro is 6″ x 52. I’ll preface this by saying that I generally keep my humidors on the dryer side, but the humidor these cigars were in is sitting around 67%, and something I really hate is when cigars smoke on the over humidified side. This is one reason I tend to check cigars with the Humidimeter, and this cigar measured 65% at the foot, and I think 63% is ideal. Heavier tobaccos hold more humidity than thinner tobaccos, so two cigars in the same humidor can smoke differently, and a little too much moisture can cause a “steamy” quality to the smoke. Like I said, I hate that. Despite the cigar smoking a little on the wet side, which I’ll take responsibility for, this was a nice tasting cigar. The interplay of the Mexican and Brazilian components gives it a nice, meaty spice, with some heavy espresso. I have one more that I’m going to put in a much dryer humidor and get to it in a few months, I’m sure it will be really nice. The price point is really attractive too, at under $7.  

 

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

 

CigarCraig

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by | January 17, 2021 · 11:40 am

New Govee Sensors, a Few Cigars and a Contest Winner

Image from Amazon

I’ve been using the Govee WiFi and Bluetooth humidity and temperature sensors in my humidors for a while now, and recently got some of their new ones to try out. I got three of them (actually four, one comes in a handy two pack). The first one is the WiFi Smart Thermo Hygrometer, Model H5179. The batteries were included in the device, it just had a strip of plastic that needed to be removed for the batteries to make contact. The Bluetooth pairing and WiFi connection were very simple through the app (which I already had from having multiple other devices). There’s no display on this device, so everything is monitored through the app, Temperature, humidity, along with historical data for something like a year. You can also set alerts for highs and lows so if there are spikes in your humidor you can address them before any long term damage is done. This also had a mounting bracket and a lanyard (the later of which serves no purpose in my application). I will probably mount this in my primary cabinet humidor.

 

Image from Amazon

The second one is the Bluetooth Smart Thermometer, Model 5174, which is very much the same as the above, in a smaller form factor, without WiFi, and without the mounting bracket. Once again, the batteries are included so it’s ready to go. The instruction booklet is clear and concise, and most of the setup is done through the app anyway. Like the H5179, it has a blue light that blinks every 30 seconds when it takes a reading, which will turn red when the batteries get to 15%, so if you aren’t paying attention to the app you can remember to change them. I’m not sure which humidor I’m going to put this in, probably my large desktop humidor where I put the cigars that I plan to feature, and new arrivals. The older Govee Mini Smart Hygrometer I had in there seems to have drifted to the high side on the humidity reading and I don’t think there’s a way to fix that. I’m going to try resetting it by removing the battery and putting it back in and see what happens, but it might just be replaced. (As of this writing, this unit appears to be unavailable. Not sure why or when it will be available again, no worries, there are options!)

 

Image from Amazon

these are my images!

Finally the third item is the Smart Thermo-Hygrometer, Model H5101, which has a nice, large 1.8” digital display. I got the two-pack, which is around $20, quite a deal. These have a little tab in the back to make a stand for on a shelf or table, otherwise I suspect some velcro or magnets could be used. I had an older, similar model that didn’t impress me too much, the humidity readings were low compared with other gauges, so I use that in the living room. These seem to be spot on. I conducted a test over the last six weeks or thereabouts, where I placed all four units in a tray with a known good hygrometer and just left them there to do their thing. As you can see in the screen shots from the app, they all are, more or less, right on. Considering the spec is +/- 3% for humidity and +/- .54°f for temp, they are fine. I like that I can see the humidity levels in all of my humidors from one app, when one has six or seven humidors, that’s an issue. I know that there are retailers that have deployed these in their club lockers so they can keep track of them. Even if they aren’t dead on accurate, which they seem to be pretty close,

my screen shot
my screen shot

you can track trends, and sometimes that’s more important to cigars than the actual numbers. Anyway, I’m a fan of these devices, I bought one of their wireless doorbells for my house too. They work well, they look nice, and don’t break the bank. Full disclosure, the Amazon links included here are affiliate links tied to my account, so any sales will drop a couple cents my way. I’ve never gotten paid by Amazon yet, so it’s purely optimistic on my part.

 

Cigar Aficionado’s list came out last week, of course there was much controversy. People need to realize the target audience of that list is not the same cigar geek crowd that reads cigar blogs and is into boutique cigars. Personally, I think the EPC Pledge is an amazing cigar, and I’m going to try to get my hands on a few more. I smoked the EPC Encore this week, which was number one a few years ago, and people couldn’t figure out why that made number one. It clearly was number one because the tasting panel loved it, as it’s a really good tasting cigar and suited that panels palate! The one I had I had purchased the day after the results came out, so it had rested what, three years? It was delicious, I think the Nicaraguan wrapper must be a Sumatra seed varietal, because it had that flavor, and I know Ernesto is a fan of the Sumatra. I also smoked the Alec and Bradley Gatekeeper, which was also made by Ernesto. This was pretty high on the list, and is a good cigar. I can’t say that I would put it high on my list, it was a good cigar, but not particularly memorable or a stand out to me. But that’s me, and I don’t do a list, and if I did, nobody would be taking a copy of it in to shops asking for cigars that are on it! I guarantee every shop in the country has had customers coming in asking for cigars on CAs list this week. It drives sales.

 

I need to pick a winner of the Groovy Guy Gifts Good To Go Cigar Case today. I also will need to throw some more cigars in, three, you see, just isn’t enough. That will be a surprise for the lucky winner! As you know, I have a thorough process of double random selection, just to keep things fair. There was a very small pool of long-time readers who entered. Tim McCabe is the winner this time! Please send me your address and proof that you’re old and I’ll get this shipped out to you! Thanks to Groovy Guy Gifts for this cool item! Check them out!

 

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

 

CigarCraig

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