Category Archives: Review

October 24, 2021 · 11:12 am

A Visit To Best Cigar Pub with The Cigar Hacks and Diesel Sunday Gravy News

Nearly Four years ago when I went to New Hampshire for the Cigar Authority’s 400th show I met Dave, who was launching a new podcast called The Cigar Hacks. They do a panel style podcast, (often large) with a cast of characters which has morphed over time. They concentrate on promoting events and shops local to them in the New Hampshire and Massachusetts areas, along with events at other places they have visited in their travels. They also do a blind review of a cigar just about every week. I find them entertaining, as long as they don’t get too politica

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l. Dave has also managed to get his hands on a stretch limo, which they call the Oscuro III, as there have been others before this one, which the load up into to visit the various shops and lounges in their area. Like Pennsylvania, New Hampshire is loaded with cigar shops, because there’s no cigar tax. This is one of the reasons that the Hacks made a trip to the northern part of my state of PA to visit a few stores. There are also a few friends of the show, and fellow Hacks, I guess, in PA who hosted the New Englanders.  These guys like to party too. I decided to drive up to Best Cigar Pub in Drums, PA to surprise them. I beat them there by about twenty minutes,  which allowed me time to hit the humidor where I picked up some of the new CAO 60 Torque for some reason. What compelled me to get, and light up, an 8″ x 60 cigar, I can’t tell you, I suppose I wanted something that was going to fill the right amount of time for me, nd it was new and I really couldn’t find anything else I wanted to smoke in the humidor at the time. I really wasn’t paying too much attention to it, but it wasn’t bad, I smoked the second half on the ride home and it was actually quite tasty. More on that cigar another time, but it’s easily a three hour cigar. I ended up being a guest on the podcast episode that they recorded there, which should be released tomorrow, so if Podcasts are your thing, check out The Cigar Hacks where ever fine podcasts are sold. If you’re in the northeastern part of PA, you need to visit Best Cigar Pub. It’s quite the place. They have a full bar and restaurant, along with a well appointed humidor and an outstanding staff. I’d stop in more often if it weren’t an hour and forty minute drive! It was great to finally meet the Hacks from NH/Mass, Joe and his family, and Alex from PA. 

There have been some news items that have come across my desk over the last week that I have passed on posting because they were shop exclusives or “just shipped” or stuff like that. I figure others are passing that info along, my readers don’t need to see it here. However, one I didn’t get a chance to pass along, and it was sent kind of late, as the cigar had already started to show up in stores I’m led to believe, is this one: 

DIESEL LAUNCHES SECOND “SUNDAY GRAVY” EXPRESSION

Diesel is rolling out the first follow-up to Sunday Gravy with “Pecor

ino,” a three-country blend that’s just begun shipping to retailers nationwide. Pecorino takes its name from a deliciously rich and flavorful Italian cheese often substituted for a more expensive variety. Here again, the culinary world and the cigar category collide, as Sunday Gravy Pecorino offers a satisfying smoking experience at a surprisingly affordable price.

Blended by AJ Fernandez and Justin Andrews and handcrafted at Tabacalera AJ Fernandez in Esteli, Nicaragua,  Diesel Sunday Gravy Pecorino features a Mexican San Andres wrapper over a Cameroon binder and bold Nicaraguan Esteli Habano filler. This is a medium-plus smoke brimming with character. The Mexican wrapper delivers a peppery note and when combined with the subtle sweetness from the Cameroon binder and the boldness of the filler, the experience is unique and dimensional. 

Justin Andrews said, “AJ and I had a lot of fun blending Diesel Sunday Gravy Pecorino. And as often happens over  Sunday sauce, we brought our opinions to the table. ‘Pecorino’ represents what he and I both believe is the best of our palates: AJ’s nod to a bold smoke is there on the Nicaraguan ligero filler and my style is represented through the complexity and balance of the Mexican San Andres wrapper. This is the perfect cigar to enjoy, share or gift this holiday season and the size makes Pecorino the perfect smoke for any occasion. ”

Pecorino is being released in a robusto gordo size only, which both AJ and Justin agree is the best expression of the blend.

Pecorino (5” x 56); SRP per cigar $4.99

Diesel Sunday Gravy Pecorino will be available nationally from October-December 2021, or until the cigars are sold out. The next Sunday Gravy blend will be released in January, 2022.

Diesel cigars are produced by Scandinavian Tobacco Group and distributed by Forged Cigar Company.

About Diesel Sunday Gravy

Diesel Sunday Gravy launched in August 2021 as a full-time line of seasonally-released, Nicaraguan-forward smokes, blended and handcrafted through Diesel’s winning partnership of AJ Fernandez and Justin Andrews. Blends will be released quarterly, sold until their limited supply is deleted and offered at an unbelievable SRP of less than $5.00 per cigar.

About Diesel

Handcrafted by artisans in Esteli, Nicaragua, Diesel cigars are “bold by design.” The brand challenges the current conventions of the handmade cigar category through the bold, unapologetic style of its Cigar Master, AJ Fernandez. Diesel cigars are unified by their deeply complex flavor which is achieved through AJ’s steadfast adherence to time honored cigar making techniques and his insistence on using the highest quality tobacco. The Diesel portfolio includes Hair of the Dog which was released in 2019; Whiskey Row which launched two expressions, one in 2019 and one in 2018, and Diesel Grind which debuted in 2017. For more information, visit www.dieselcigars.com.

I’m starting to see a p

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attern, are they naming these after tomatoes? I don’t like tomatoes, but I don’t mind a good sauce (my wife’s Italian, I only hear her refer to gravy when turkey is involved). I’m picky, I don’t like chunks or skin in the sauce. I did smoke a couple of the San Marzanos, and they were pretty good cigars. The wrapper is Ecuadoran Habano, the binder is Nicaraguan Esteli and the filler is Nicaraguan Jalapa. These

are inexpensive cigars by today’s standards and are definitely on the high side of quality when it comes to cigars in that price range. The flavor is fairly linear, not an overly complex cigar, but the flavor is good, thankfully no tomato flavors (which reminds me, I grew some Habano 2000 in the greenhouse this summer and a tomato plant was in there too, think they cross pollinated? Wasn’t that a Simpson’s episode?). If you are looking for a good, inexpensive smoke, pick some of these up. I’ll be looking forward to trying the subsequent releases, which are actually limited, when they are sold out that’s it.

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

CigarCraig 

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October 17, 2021 · 11:11 am

Punch Aniversario, La Gloria Criollo de Oro and Reinado Grand Apex Cigars

It’s been an odd week, another reason I don’t like this time of year. It was clo

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udy most of the week, but the temps were fairly warm. Then yesterday it was sunny most of the day and nearly 80 degrees and then it stormed and dropped 20 degrees. Of course, this is the perfect set up for a migraine. Anyway, once I got the grass cut (hopefully for the last time), I saw able to smoke a cigar. But let’s back up a bit. I had a choice on Friday evening to either watch the Drew Estate Freestyle Live event, or the Flyers season opener, of course I chose the Flyers. Freestyle Live I can watch the replay, the Flyers not so much. It turns out that I missed our friend CigarProp/TrashPanda Kevin winning the Harley, which was exciting, but I did catch it the next day. I’m happy to have hockey back and have sports to watch again! I lit up a Punch Aniversario, whic

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h commemorates the 180th anniversary of the brand. I published the press release back in July, and I take issue with them saying this was an hourlong smoke. It’s a 7¼”x 54 corona doble (same size as a Horo Excalibur No. 1, by the way), certainly a two hour smoke. For a cigar that has a Broadleaf wrapper and binder, I didn’t find that is tasted heavily like a broadleaf cigar! I thought it was fairly medium bodied and not real bold in the flavor department. It certainly was a decent companion while I watched my first real hockey game of the season! The couple more I have will rest for a while and I’ll revisit them later.

 

Yesterday after finishing chores I sat down with the new La Gloria Cubana Criollo de Oro toro. As with the Punch, this was a sample provided by General/Forged/STG. I’ve had a long association with them and they’ve always been great about providing samples. As I think about it, it’s coming up on the ten year anniversary of the blogger trip to the factory. It’s about time for a  reunion, isn’t it? 😉  Full disclosure,I’m traditionally not a fan of Criollo

tobacco, so I’m not sure how I’m going to take to this Criollo/Pelo de Oro hybrid. Criollo is one of the few tobaccos I actually kind of find off putting. I’ll avoid it if I can help it. Of course, there are exceptions I suppose, but generally I find this to be the case. On the other hand, I generally like La Gloria Cubanas, but one can’t like every cigar in a given brand, right? This was the first one I tried, and they just came in last week, so I’ll be giving them more of a chance, but the initial thoughts weren’t off-putting but weren’t mindblowing either. There are several of their more recent releases that I like a lot more, but, as I said, this is an initial impression. It certainly worked well. I can’t believe it’s been a decade since I toured the factory! 

 

Last night I smoked a Reinado Grand Apex. I had previously smoked a sample that Antonio had given me, this one was a banded version that I purchased (along with a T-shirt that I happened to have been wearing). I need to buy some more. The Grand Apex is made at Aganorsa, and has a Mexican San Andrés wrapper and Nicaraguan binder and fillers. This is a bold cigar with bold flavors. It’s heavy on the espresso and earth, with significant spice. If I had a cigar of the week feature, this one would be it. Maybe I should do that, but it seems like a lot of work. Maybe I’ll just bring it up when a worthy candidate presents itself, much like this one. Reinado Grand Apex: CigarCraig.com’s Cigar of the week for October 17, 2021! Maybe that will make the Reinado webpage. Should I make up a badge? I kid, I never troll for recognition, it’s a great cigar, and I might need to talk to some of my local PA (ahem, Son’s) retailers to carry it! 

 

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

 

CigarCraig 

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October 10, 2021 · 10:39 am

Some ATL Cigars and a BLTC Event at Son’s Cigars

The title is out of order chronologically, but I felt compelled to put it in alphabetical order, regular readers will understand! Wednesday evening I went to Son’s Cigars to their Black Label Trading Company event where they were hosting James Brown, the owner of the company. You’ll notice that I’ve been frequenting Son’s as of late, it’s 8 miles from home, and while note the closest shop, certainly the nicest and has a great selection of cigars that I want to smoke. I’ve known Vince and Brian for a long time too, so I’m very comfortable there. I was surprised to find the lounge crowded, relatively. Considering it’s still only about 50% c

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ompleted, there were about 25 or 30 people there, and several I talked to from out of town. I bought a few of the new Viaticum, and smoked the box pressed Lancero,  an absolutely delicious cigar with a high priming Ecuador Habano maduro wrapper. Burn and draw were exceptional and it was just perfect. I also bought the Toro and look forward to enjoying that as well. It’s bold and spicy and really quite a nice smoke. Last night I had a Royalty Robusto, one of their core line cigar that I had never had before. This has a Corojo wrapper that was very dark and oily. I smoked it late, after watching a movie, Papa Hemingway in Cuba, which I enjoyed. The cigar was bold, but not overly so. I was concerned that too strong a cigar late would cause me problems sleeping, but the cigar wasn’t an issue. It had rich flavors of dark fruits and cocoa. Delicious. Certainly a BLTC cigar I will revisit. I really haven’t come across an Oveja Negra cigar that I haven’t enjoyed, and the only reason I haven’t smoked a bunch of them has been a lack of steady supply, which has now changed. I’ll definitely be working my way through the portfolio. 

 

I recently received some cigars from the folks at ATL Cigars. While  doing some research on the brand, I come to find that ATL has something to do with Atlanta (and you really have to dig deep into Google to find anything ATL that doesn’t!), and the company is, indeed Atlanta based. I had a fortunate shortcut in my research in that the three owners of the brand were just on Cigar-Coop’s Primetime show, so I listened in my sleep and absorbed all the information through osmosis. I’m kidding, I didn’t do that. I’m only going to talk about the Libertad and Magic here, because I want to give the Good Trouble more attention.  The Libertad is made by Aganorsa, which, ironically, I had just smoked a couple of the Lunatics last week and enjoyed them. I was going to write an article about them, but I want to pick up a few more to enjoy first, because, as can happen, I got distracted while smoking the ones I had and didn’t take notes. I smoked this 5″ x 50 robusto before lunch yesterday. It has a Corojo wrapper and has a nice, woody, nutty flavor with a hint of sweetness. It’s a nice smoke and didn’t bother me early in the day. Strange things fascinate me. The menu line on their website, for instance. They have the cigars on the far right, instead of the left, as if they aren’t first thing that you’d b

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e looking for on their site. I guess I’m weird, but when I’m parsing a site for info, I look left to right across the screen. Like I said, I’m weird and a bit of a nitpicker. Great cigar.

 

Speaking of a great cigar, the ATL Magic, is…Magical. First it’s a 6″ x 54 toro, we know this is the perfect size, right? It’s made at Tabacalera Pichardo and blended by Luciano Merielles. I have not had the pleasure of meeting Luciano yet, and I’ve only smoked a couple of his cigars, but by all accounts he’s a very nice man, and seems to be doing OK in the cigar blending department. If he doesn’t know what he’s doing, he know the right people who do. The cigar has a San Andrés wrapper, Pueblo Nuevo binder and Pueblo Nuevo, Esteli and Jalapa fillers. This Pueblo Nuevo tobacco must be the secret sauce, because there’s a distinctive and unusual flavor in this cigar, a totally yummy flavor, to use technical terms, that sets this cigar apart from any other cigar. There’s the rich, earthy cocoa from the Mexican wrapper, and the Jalapa sweetness, but then there’s a unique, exotic spice that’s super interesting and really excites the palate. Once in a while a cigar comes along like this, I remember another one but I can’t remember what it was! This is a great smoke. These guys are doing a great job for a small cigar company.

 

There was something else I was thinking of, but I can’t remember what it was. I suppose I can edit this post, or write another post if and when I remember it!  Until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

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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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September 26, 2021 · 10:26 am

J.C. Newman’s Yagua and Oscar Valladares 2012 Maduro Cigars

My least favorite time of the year arrived this week, Autumn.  Summer flew by, I feel like I didn’t get to do many of the things I would have like to have done, for one reason or another, and now it’s another long, cold winter ahead to look forward too. One can only hope that these months pass as quickly as the summer did. Here I am, wishing my life away! Time really needs to slow the heck down. On the one hand, I have a humidor full of cigars and not enough time to smoke them, on the other hand, I have a humidor full of cigars! On another subject, does anyone know how many consecutive Sundays I’ve managed to publish a blog post?  It’s gotta be some kind of record.  Anyway, I smoked a bunch of cigars this week, a couple were new. The Yagua, while not necessarily new, is the 2021 version. J.C. Newman makes this at the PENSA factory in Nicaragua, using what they call and under fermented US Broadleaf wrapper. I suppose the idea is for it to finish fermenting while aging in the bundles wrapped in the royal palm leaves. The one I smoked came from the center of the bundle so it had a hexagonal shape, these definitely are reminiscent of the Henry Clay cigars of the 90s in shape, and they had Broadleaf wrappers as well. They too were bundled wet and you never knew what shape you were going to get. I really enjoyed the flavor of this cigar, it’s got something a little different than other broadleaf cigars. Maybe there’s a meatier flavor, it’s not as much the expresso or cocoa that I usually get. It’s very different than, say, a Triqui Traca, which Saka confused this for on a Facebook group (I admonished him to wear his glasses!). I think there’s a lot of reasons to try this cigar, I might try another one today! 

 

Yesterday afternoon I was looking for a shorter cigar and remembered I had an Oscar Valladares 2012 Maduro Short Robusto which I had picked up a few months ago as I was walking out of the humidor at the Wooden Indian. I certainly had enough cigars in my hands already, but these caught my eye, and I hadn’t yet sampled anything from this line. This is a 4″ x 50 box press cigar, good for and hour or so. It has a San Andrés wrapper, Honduran binder and nicaraguan fillers. These looked really good when I walked by them, like little chocolate bars, which is what made me pick them up. Smaller cigars tend to age in my humidors as I tend toward toro and larger cigars. I need to make a concerted effort to smoke the robustos on the weekends when I smoke more than one cigar, I guess. If I smoke a larger cigar I don’t have time for a nap! This was a delicious cigar, it was heavy on the black licorice, which I don’t taste much in a cigar. I found it intriguing. I guess it’s time to check out some more of the Oscar Valladares line. I think I know the broker in my area. 

 

Please join me in extending Happy Birthday wishes to my friend, and long time reader and friend of CigarCraig.com: Kevin Shahan!  You might know Kevin better as Mr. CigarProp, from his cigar accessories, and wildly popular YouTube and other social media properties.  I’m not sure how Jessica puts up with him, but he’s all right in my book!  Happy Birthday Buddy!  (pictured here with myself and Sandy Cobas at El Titan de Bronze a couple years ago in a photo taken by Jessica).

 

Until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

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