Category Archives: Events

October 3, 2021 · 10:41 am

Visits to Son’s Cigars and Famous Smoke Shop

Busy week this week!  First, some housekeeping. If you’ve been a subscriber to my email notifications, and have noticed the lack of emails over the last several months, hopefully that is at an end. Since I “upgraded” the site to SSL, to provide a secure browsing experience for everyone, Something had been broken that made the whole e-mail thing work, and I think it’s finally been fixed. Cross your fingers. I also notice there are about 78 people who initially signed up to received e-mails, but never responded to the confirmation e-mail, so they are not receiving the e-mails, and they probably think ill of me. When you sign up you get an e-mail  from

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Feedburner which you need to respond to to be subscribed, it’s to prevent people from signing you up without your consent, nothing nefarious! There are people who have been subscribed for over ten years, and I appreciate that! I hope it’s not filtered into their spam folder

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s! 

 

Wednesday evening I went over to Son’s Cigar Lounge in Exton, PA and met up with Barry Stein from The Cigar Authority and 2 Guys Cigars, who was passing through. He had his wife, Heidi, along with him, I suppose to prove her existence (I kid, I’ve known Barry over a decade, he’s a good dude, and Heidi is obviously a saint). We were joined over the course of the evening by cigar company rep, an independent broker, and a major cigar company owner. There were a couple customers there too! I bought some cigars I haven’t had yet, as I do when I’m there, and their selection is growing by leaps and bounds. They have a rather large range of house blends made by Noel Rojas, and Brian, the manager there, recommended the Sumatra, which I bought and smoked immediately, being a fan of the wrapper. it was not at all disappointing, as a matter of fact, I liked it much more than the Street Tacos Barbacaoa I smoked after it. I’ll pick up more the next time I’m there, if there are any left! I also snatched up a couple of the Bangarangs, which are made

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by Espinosa at the AJ Fernandez San Lotano Factory for the folks at Powstanie Cigars (Pospiech Cigars). This is another cigar I should go back and buy more of. I’m to understand that they sold all of these and didn’t even keep enough to have in their own store, Cigar Hustler, in Florida. This is a very strong cigar, lots of pepper spice and nicotine. I enjoyed it, in the way one enjoys hot wings that make you sweat while your eating them. It’s 6″ x48 format, which is probably just about right, as any more would be too much of a good thing. This is a short paragraph, and I have several pictures I want to put in, so I should think of more words to say, but I have none! Oh! I know, Barry was kind enough to gift me an Aladino Box Pressed Toro, which had a United Cigars secondary band on it, so I gather that it’s exclusive. Aladinos always remind me of the old Camacho Corojos, this is no different, and the box press is nice. It was smooth, rich and full of flavor. I like these. 

 

Yesterday I took a drive up to Famous Smoke Shop as they were having an event releasing the latest Dunbarton Famous 80th Anniversary in a Robusto size. I think it’s Famous’ 82nd anniversary by now, but who’s counting. Dave Lafferty was there, and I guess that Saka guy showed up eventually. Of course, Saka was there, I’ve known him so long that I’m a little over-familial with him and people maybe mistake it for something it isn’t. So I did get to talk to Steve, mostly he asked how my family was doing and stuff friends who haven’t seen one another in a while do. I keep wanting to ask him why the hell he didn’t put the Dunbarton D on the back of the Stillwell Star bands like the Sin Compromiso and Sobremesa, so he could avoid them being put on the cigars upside-down, but I forgot again. There were other personalities there, and I met a fellow Craig who is a reader and social media acquaintance who lives a few miles away from me there. I will have to smoke the toro and robust

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o side by side, but I believe the robusto to be stronger. I bought a bunch, and still have several of the original toros, so I’m in good shape. I doubt they sold out, so Famous should have them available soon on their website. If I may vent, the Leaf, which is the bar portion of the Famous shop in Easton, is no longer a restaurant. They have converted the dining area to a lounge, which is OK, they didn’t really have enough lounge space before, in my opinion. My beef was that they had live entertainment yesterday (a solo guitarist/singer). It alwa

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ys befuddles me why places that are based around a product that is about sitting, relaxing and having conversation, and the seating area is actually designed for this, they have loud music that makes it difficult to have conversation! WHY? It’s neither fair to the patrons nor the performer, really. I don’t get it.

 

Well, that’s all for today, until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

 

 

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August 15, 2021 · 10:33 am

A Padron Damaso at Diner en Blanc and a Couple of New All Saints Cigars

Thursday evening my wife and I attended the Philadelphia Diner En Blanc, which is a large, organized pop-up picnic of sorts. This is something that happens in cities all over the world where everyone has to wear white, bring their own tables and chairs and a picnic dinner, and meet at pre-arranged spots in the city where they guide the groups to a “secret” location. It’s usually a historic landmark, in years passed it was Philadelphia’s Boathouse Row, City Hall, and the Art Museum steps (think “Rocky”). We’ve been doing it for the last several years and it’s a hoot, and, of course, I work cigars into it and I try to make appropriate choices. This year I packed my travel humidor with the Macanudo Inspirado White Robustos that I had gotten for the event two years ago (of course, last years was canceled), and left said travel humidor at home. What a dunce. Of course, I didn’t realize this problem until we had finished eating. Fortunately, the secret location was Rittenhouse Square in Center City Philadelphia, and I realized in time to walk 2 blocks to Holts. Of course, the only cigar they had with “white” in the name of the cigar was the Montecristo White, which is one of the few cigars I actually dislike, and just about every cigar with a white band is a Connecticut shade. So I went with some Padrón Dámaso No. 8s since I had not smoked the Dámaso yet amazingly enough. There have been venues in the past where smoking was a problem and this one was not one of those venues, and the folks around us were very cool, so I was able to enjoy t

hat Dámaso comfortably seated at our table. It was quite warm, high eighties at night, so we weren’t wandering in the crowd (3000 people, limited by the pandemic, it’s been upward of 6000 in the past), or dancing or anything, and I really enjoyed the cigar. It was very rich in flavor, the cocoa one expects from a Padrón, with the creamy, nuttiness of the shade wrapper. It was perfect for the occasion! I’ve actually grown quite apathetic where Holts retail store is concerned, but them being the

re saved the day for me! 

 

I received a message a few days ago from Mickey Pegg of All Saints Cigars that he left a couple cigars for me at the new Son’s Cigar Lounge in Exton, which is up the road from me. Funny thing is, Mickey would have pretty much driven past my house going home from Son’s, but he doesn’t know that, and I appreciate it because it gave me an excuse to stop in to see Vince and Brian now that the place is actually open. They still need to stock the front with accessories, and the humidor is maybe 15% filled, but they still have a great selection as it is. Mickey left me his newest cigars, which I promptly smoked. Actually, the Saint Francis looked so good I bought a few assuming I’d dig it, more on that later. I ran home and fired up the newest size of the All Saints Dedicación, the Mitre. This is a 5″ x 54 torpedo in the round, which I note because I believe the rest of the vitolas are box pressed. It has a San Andrés wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and fillers and is made at TAVICUSA. I cut this to leave about a 13mm opening, which worked well. 13mm is a guess, I didn’t measure.  This is a nice smoke, medium bodied, with a little more punch than the other sizes, save maybe the Berkey. More earthy than sweet, I enjoyed it. I like the fact that it’s named after the Pope’s hat. 

 

The other cigar Mickey left for me was the newest line in the All Saints portfolio, the Saint Francis. This is the one I picked up a few in the Toro size on speculation, Mickey left me a Churchill which I eagerly smoked last night. This has dark, oily Ecuador oscuro wrapper around Nicaraguan binder and fillers, it’s a beauty. The Churchill is 7″ x 48 and box pressed, making it feel closer to a traditional 47 ring Churchill. This is the best cigar I’ve smoked all week. My instinct was correct in buying some of these, it remains to be seen if I should have gotten Churchills, but I know where I can get them! This cigar had the quintessential flavors I love: the dark, rich coffee, cocoa, dark fruit flavors. Construction was perfect, it was, overall, an ideal smoking experience. This is my new favorite All Saints cigar, and it’s a sure thing one of those Toros will go up in smoke later today. This is on the CigarCraig recommended list, smoke with confidence. I liked it. 

 

Contest

Last week I had a contest for the Wooden Indian Exclusive Cafe Cubano LCA cigar and Coffee. I’ve consulted the random number generator and paul1954 is the winner! Please send your address! I’ll get your package out and see what else might fall in the box out of my humidor while I’m packing it up! That’s all for today, until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

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July 4, 2021 · 10:07 am

A Plasencia Cigars Sampler and the LouLiga Lounge Grand Opening

At the end of last year when everyone was posting their top ten cigars of the year, I, being the rebel, posted my top cigars I hadn’t smoked yet. A little bit of me did it to test Halfwheel’s Consensus process, to see how closely they paid attention, and it appears they either do, or I’m just that far under the radar any more, I have made appearances on the consensus in the past though when I’ve done a list. Anyway, I had said that I hadn’t smoked any of the Plasencia Alma series last year, so I ordered a nice sampler from my friends at Fox Cigars, and smoked them this passed week. I had smoked the AlmaFuerte Sixto II not long ago and was thrilled to get my hands on another one. Somehow getting one as a part of a sampler felt better than buying one at

the store for $22, and I don’t see the sampler listed anymore, and I forget what I paid for it. It was five cigars, the Alma Fuerte in Robustus I and Sixto II, Alma Del Fuego in Concepciòn Toro and Candente Robusto, and an Alma Del Campo Tribu Robusto.  I always joke that these are named after my grandmother, Alma Vanderslice, but I’m sure that’s not the case. I quite enjoyed the flavors in all of these, although I thought the Alma Fuego was just too darned strong for me, that is to say I became tired of it being so strong

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by the end. The Del Campo seemed to be to more medium bodied to me, and all three were excellent examples of Nicaraguan cigars.  They all had rich dark tobacco flavors, with the Fuerte especially having a slight sweetness on the lips pre-light. The weird thing was that, and it might have been the weather or something unrelated, but I got migraines each night after I smoked one of these. Probably a coincidence, as I’ve smoked plenty of Nicaraguan puros before without issue, and gotten plenty of migraines before without having smoked Plasencia cigars! Anyway, Thumbs up on both Plasencia cigars and Fox Cigars for exceptional customer service! 

 

Yesterday I took a drive into the Fishtown section of Philadelphia to visit the grand opening of the LouLiga Cigar Lounge. If you follow cigars on social media, I’m not sure how you could avoid having heard about this place, or at least it’s owner, Luis Rodriguez. Luis has been a long time cigar ambassador, and had realized his dream with this new lounge in a very cool area in the city. It’s in the same block of buildings as The Fillmore, which is a music venue, The Punch Line comedy club, and Philadelphia Distilling, with the Rivers Casino and Convention Center more or less across the street. When I arrived, the place was packed. To be honest, if I hadn’t seen my old friend Antonio Lam (Reinado Cigars, watch for his new cigar, the Grand Apex), I probably would have bought a handful of cigars, snapped some pics and gone home. However, I lit up a Stolen Throne Crook of the Crown Toro and hung out with Antonio and his fiancé for a few hours.

The Lounge is nice. The air handlers work well, it has an industrial feel which is consistent with the building. The furniture is comfortable, there’s plenty of TVs and the humidor is huge. While the humidor shelves were fairly sparsely stocked, what was there was very high quality and fairly pried for a city location. Luis knows his stuff and is very in tune with the bo

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utique brands. I’m not sure how this will relate to the casual, fresh out of the concert, distillery, comedy club, etc, patron who is stopping in for a cigar and know Montecristo, Romeo y Julieta and Cohiba and that’s about it, but it’s going to be a great place for cigar geeks. Luis was an excellent host, greeting everyone who came in warmly. When I got home I tried one of Luis’ own cigars, from an undisclosed, yet prominent, factory. It was quite good, a robusto with some spice in the beginning, and some floral near the end. It’s certainly a place to visit if you find yourself in Philadelphia. 

 

That’s all for today. It’s the Fourth of July, so, as with every year, it’s also my wedding anniversary (34), so I’ll be finding something good to smoke. Be careful out there!  Until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

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May 26, 2021 · 9:05 pm

A Night Under The Stars with La Flor Dominicana Cigars and Tobacco Plaza

Last night we went up to Roslyn, NY on Long Island to the Swan Club for a cigar dinner put on by Tobacco Plaza in Great Neck.  The evening featured a meal cooked by Jonathan Carney, VP of sales of La Flor Dominicana, and one of the guys behind the Hacking Gourmet Series, who sponsored the event.  I suppose it’s valid to question how someone from Southeast PA ends up at a cigar dinner in Long Island. Well, of course, I’ve known Jon Carney for a long time, and he was kind enough to invite us when I was on the Smokin’ Tabacco show a few months ago. I also know Danny Ditknowitch, co-owner of Tobacco Plaza, as he is also a partner in the La Sirena brand, which has been a great supporter over the last several years, and remains one of my favorite brands. Another reason my wife and I went was that in person cigar events have been few and far between, and it was nice to get out, so it was worth the 3+ hour drive with the rush hour traffic around New Your City (unfortunate planning on my part). This was a very cool event, combining Mr. Carney’s Gourmet Smoke Sessions events with a cigar dinner. The event site, the Swan Club, was a beautiful spot, located on a harbor off of Hampstead Bay. There were 100 or so people there, I didn’t count, but Danny said that they were all custom

ers of Tobacco Plaza. Everyone received La Flor Dominicana cigars and a lighter, and one of the cigars was an event only cigar called the Long Island Iced Tea, which had an iced tea glass in tobacco leaf applied to it. It’s hard to photograph, due to the curve of the cigar. I smoked one, and I found it to be very

mild, perhaps I was expecting something different. It seemed to have more flavor on the retrohale. Perhaps I’ll let a second one rest a while and try again.

 

The food was amazing. I appreciated the fact that the menu was fairly simple as I’m not an adventurous eater (that’s a euphemism, I’m a picky eater). There were two Penne pastas, I had the one with the scallops, it was good, and the shrimp were also good. I skipped the chicken, although my wife enjoyed hers, and we both agreed that the filet mignon was amazing. There was also an open bar, which matters not to those of us who don’t drink. The coffee was good though, and I needed some of that for the ride home! I finished the night with a tasty LFD Double Ligero No 600. This cigar got me to the highway, but there’s challenges to driving a manual car in the dark, while trying to navigate unfamiliar roads and merge New York City traffic.  It ends up being more trouble than it’s worth. Fortunately it was about finished when I dropped it in the mobile Stinky ashcan. It was a good night, we met some nice folks, smoked some good cigars and had some great food. It was nice catching up with Jon and Danny too. I didn’t even miss wearing a mask, and I’ve been to events where the staff wore masks over the last 20-some years, so that didn’t phase me! Many thanks to Jon for the invite.

 

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

 

CigarCraig

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April 11, 2021 · 10:49 am

Baracoa Cigars The Voyage Release Event at Son’s Cigars & Lounge

I’m fortunate that Son’s Cigars & Lounge is opening just a few miles away from me in Exton, PA, and was the location of the launch of Baracoa Cigar Company‘s re-release of The Voyage. This is my backyard, I’ve lived in this area my whole life, so I’m happy to have this lounge coming to the area. It’s not open yet, the buildout isn’t even complete, but they held the event there anyway and 30 or so people were there. A few words about the lounge, it’s going to be awesome. The humidor is going to be huge, with 2000 facings, many of which will be boutiques. The lounge will be equally impressive. I’m told it will be modelled after it’s parent, literally, Mom’s in Scarsdale, NY, as Mitul Shah is a co-owner. The store is conveniently located smack dab between two cigar stores when have been in the area for many years (I state with my tongue firmly planted in my cheek). It’ll be a destination. They are hoping for a May opening, and are shooting for two events a month, the former seems optimistic looking at the skeleton of metal studs, but things can progress quickly I suppose. I look forward to covering the opening. On a side note, two of the longest running cigar blogs in the industry were represented there, as Walt White of Stogie Review made an appearance (yours truly was the other 😁  ). 

 

I had not had the pleasure of meeting Danny Vasquez prior to yesterday’s event. He launched Baracoa Cigars and The Voyage a few years back, having the cigars made at La Aurora ( and I think he’ll agree with the way I worded that), and kind of shut it down when the FDA deeming regs came down. He took a job with RoMaCraft for a few years and then decided to relaunch his brand, taking a more hands on approach with the blending with Henderson Ventura in the DR. I picked up a sampler of the cigars, three sizes, a corona, Robusto and Toro, I assume the three sizes available, although I was negligent in verifying the details. While I was there, I smoked the Corona, 5″ x 46, and Robusto Extra, 5¼” x 52, (the Toro was really tempting!, maybe today) and found them to be outstanding. There was a cleanness to the smoke, with a bit of a citric tang, more in the Corona than the Robusto, I thought. I thought they were really very good cigars, not at all heavy on the palate, but bright, if that makes sense. I’m excited to try the Toro. I’m pleased to have met Danny finally, having heard him on var

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ious podcasts and such. He did a n

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ice job with this cigar. 

 

Many thanks to Mitul, Vince and Brian for the hospitality. It was nice to see some old friends again, and meet some new ones. In person events have become so few and far between, I think this has been the third, maybe fourth, one I’ve been to in a year. I do recommend trying The Voyage if you can get your hands on it, great cigars!

 

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

 

CigarCraig

 

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