Category Archives: Review

October 17, 2019 · 10:38 am

Vicarias Cigars: White, Red, Black and Blue

When I was in Miami last month I had the pleasure of meeting a gentleman named René Cardona, who happens to rep Tre J Cigars. His position within the cigar industry had nothing to do with my meeting with him, he is part of a group

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of folks I’m acquainted with through a Facebook group which is made of some folks I know personally, some long time readers as well as friends I haven’t met yet.  I was honored to meet René while I was there, and he ended up sending me a sampler of the Tre J range, which I smoked  through the Vicarias line this week. I still have to get to the Invictus, I just ran out of time. I’ll get to it in the next couple days.

 

I started out with the Vicarias White Connecticut Double Churchill. I know, I usually am compelled to start with the maduro, but it was early on a Monday that I had off, and we took a walk to the store and back so I had plenty of time to enjoy a cigar, so I grabbed the largest one of the bunch and it happened to be the Connecticut. Not a mistake at all, as this Conny had loads of flavor. It was sweet and creamy, and had a beautiful burn. We walked a mile or so to the local Target, Macha and I sat outside while my wife shopped, and then we walked home and it was a treat the whole time. I did allow it to go out about a half a mile from home (at about the two inch mark) so I could sit and finish it on the porch, as I’m fond of doing, and it continued to smoke well beyond the band without turning bitter. The size was 7″ x 52, and the blend was Ecuador Connecticut wrapper with Dominican binder and fillers. I found this to be quite a tasty cigar!

 

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Of course, I couldn’t stay away form the maduro for long, so next up was the Black Label Maduro. This is called a Robusto, and is 5½”x 50 with a Brazilian Arapiraca wrapper, Dominican Olor wrapper and Dominican and Honduran fillers. This cigar had a unique flavor that I really liked, and I’ve tasted before, but couldn’t quite place. It skirts the borders of sweet and savory, this flavor reminds me of a hard candy, the kind you ‘d find in grandma’s candy dish, but I don’t quite know what it is. It’s delicious though,  and smokes like a dream. I dig it big time. I can’t wait to try the even darker Red Label.

 

Tuesday I smoked the Red Label Cubra. This comes in one size, the 6″ x 54 Toro, and had a Brazilian Cubra wrapper, which is fermented to a very dark and oily maduro. The binder is a Nicaraguan Jalapa and the fillers are Dominican Piloto Cubano, Pennsylvanian Broadleaf and Ligero from Jalapa. Under normal circumstances I would have picked this up first, no doubt, but I showed some restraint, and selected cigars according to the time I had available.  This cigar was totally different from the Black Label, yet so loaded with dark, rich flavors of espresso and cocoa. It, along with the others, had perfect construction, and smoked very well and provided two hours of satisfaction. So far the Vicarias line is three for three.

 

Last up was the Vicarias Blue Label Corojo. This was also a Toro, listed at 6″ x 54, although it felt smaller than the Red Label for some reason. I didn’t measure it, as I lit it up fairly late, but I would have thought it was closer to 50 ring gauge. This one had an Ecuador Corojo wrapper, Dominican Olor binder and fillers from the DR, Honduras and Columbia. There’s a reason cigar makers make a range of cigars in their lines, not everyone is going to like every type of wrapper, every size, shape, or blend. I have a fairly broad spectrum of likes (or low standards, however you want to spin it), but the Blue Label Corojo was my least favorite in the bunch. There wasn’t a darned thing wrong with the cigar, it started a bit harsh (the foot measured a little dry with the Cigarmedics Humidimeter, more on that in another post, which might have contributed to that), and the flavors just weren’t what I prefer. Perhaps the Columbian tobacco doesn’t do it for me, not sure. That’s not to say it isn’t a great cigar fr someone else, just that out of the four, I’m preferring the other three over this one. As always, your mileage may vary.  

 

That’s all for today, I need to get ready for a challenging couple of days of work. Thanks so much to René for sharing these great cigars with me, I need to put some of the Black Labels in my humidor, the unique flavor of those is intriguing! Until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

 

 

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October 10, 2019 · 10:52 am

Black Works NBK Tasting at CigarCigars in Downingtown, PA

Last night I had the pleasure of being among the fifteen lucky attendees of a guided tasting of the Black Works Studio NBK, hosted by Mick Grant, the Northeast territory rep for Oveja Negra Brands. The venue was the CigarCigars Shop in Downingtown, PA. managed by my friend Kevin Sirman. This was a bit of a different experience, as it involved three puritos of the components of the blend of the NBK. The NBK is a box pressed Gran Corona, measuring 6″ x 46 with an Ecu

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ador Habano Oscuro wrapper and Nicaraguan Binder and filler. Mick had us light the NBK first, in my experience an unusual first step. He then passed o

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ut the first purito, the viso in the filler blend, which is from Jalapa. I admit, when I lit the cigar I had a thought that there was Jalapa tobacco in the blend. There’s a sweetness to the Jalapa tobacco that is distinctive, and smoking it separately makes it quite noticeable. Now we find the brilliance in smoking the finished cigar side by side with the individual leaf.  The second puro was the seco, which is from Ometepe.  I rather expected a bland, papery taste, but this Ometepe seco was very flavorful! There was a citrus or almost floral flavor. I found it drying, which Mick validated when he likened it to black tea, with the tannins being  drying on the palate. Finally, the last tobacco in the blend was the Esteli ligero. Of course, this tobacco was rich, dense, and full of flavor. I found that after smoking the ligero Purito for a bit, going back to the NBK took a little adjustment, as it seemed much lighter in comparison. Throughout the tasting, Mick answered questions about the cigar making and tobacco growing process, he was extremely knowledgeable and did a great job of leading this very educational experience. 

 

I’ve done a lot of these kind of events, and I always learn something from them and enjoy them a lot, and I thank Kevin, the manager at CigarCigars in Downingtown for giving me the heads up on this!  One of my favorite things to do though, is to bring a friend who may not have experienced this kind of thing before. My friend Greg, who I’ve known for 40+ years, loves cigars, and is a regular shopper at CigarCigars in Downingtown, but hadn’t had a chance to go into the lounge a

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nd have a smoke, let alone attend an event like this. Since we rarely get together, I invited him to this and enjoyed seeing how breaking down how a cigar is made, and what makes them taste the way they taste made sense to him. He seemed to get a lot out of the experience and I think it will enhance his appreciation of cigars. I encourage everyone to go to an event like this! Not everyone can go to a factory, this gets you a little closer to all the steps that goes into making a cigar. Finally, Thanks to Mick Grant for the great presentation. Mick just announced that he will be leaving Oveja Negra to move and pursue some personal family goals, and I wish him and his wife (who was also there last night) all the best and he will be missed! I’ve known Mick for a few years, with a couple of brands, and he’s the best.  

 

On a side note, I wandered into Nat Sherman‘s Townhouse on 42nd Street in Manhattan on Tuesday and had their Panamericana in the 4″ x 54 Robustico size. I wasn’t sure how much time I was going to have, and it worked out that that was exactly the right size for the time I had. It was a really great tasting cigar, and I had gone to the city without the expectation of having a cigar, so this visit was a bonus. It was also a $14 cigar, but it’s NYC, where you can walk down the street smoking a joint and it’s OK, but you’ll get

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all kinds of crap if you smoke a cigar. what a world…that’s all for today! Until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig

 

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October 6, 2019 · 8:24 am

A Local Cigar Lounge Visit, a Brick House and a Diamond Crown

Wednesday I took a ride to a newer shop and lounge in nearby Upper Chichester, PA, The Hideout.  This aptly named shop is nestled in a carwash building and wasn’t easy to find. I actually drove past it twice looking for it. Strike that, three times. When I finally found it, I was greeted by John, the shop manager. The store is small with a reasonable selection a Pennsylvania pricing. They are fairly new, so they don’t have a lot of direct accounts, but they had plenty of good cigars to choose from. I picked up some Aganorsa Leaf Habanos and Connecticuts that were on special. The shop and lounge aren’t connected, the lounge is accessed through a door next to the store and is upstairs, and is beautifully appointed. It’s a members lounge, with a $20 purchase giving one a daily pass. There’s a kitchenette, several TVs and a bunch of comfortable leather chairs. There’s also a covered patio in the back. Considering the appearance from the outside, one would never know such an oasis existed behind that plain door. I spent an hour or so enjoying a cigar in the lounge (a Lunatic Maduro perfecto gifted by John, with was quite delicious), as Jack, one of the owners stopped to visit, and John came up to tell me about the YouTube Vodcast he does from the lounge, The Cigar O’Clock Show.  If you can find the Hideout, it’s a nice place to hangout and have a cigar.

 

Friday I smoked a Brick House Maduro Robusto, the 5″ x 54 Brazilian Arapiraca wrapped cigar made in J.C.Newman’s PENSA factory in Esteli.  It’s been a long time since I smoked one of this, and I forgot how much I like this cigar. It might me four years since I had a Brick House Maduro, and then it was the Mighty Mighty, and I liked it. This could actually climb onto my list of those cigars could have in a rotation and smoke regularly. It’s a really delicious maduro cigar with a nice sweetness like rich cocoa.  The construction was excellent with the burn and draw being perfect.  I will definitely stock my humidor with more of these, it will be one of those go-to cigars for sure. I dig it.

 

The Diamond Crown is another cigar I love but I don’t smoke often. I remember smoking the No.2 at a weekend cigar party in Las Vegas in 1998, back when they were only available on the west coast. This is another J.C. Newman cigar, but this one is made by Fuente in the Dominican Republic. When these came out, they were 54 ring gauge, which was huge.  This cigar has a Connecticut wrapper that is fermented twice, and the cigars are aged for five years. Whatever they do to these, they are really tasty, mild cigars. they are smooth, creamy with some sweetness, no real grassy flavor like one often gets with Connecticut Shade cigars. This is another one of those classic cigars that stands the test of time, and seems to taste the same as it did 20 years ago.  I have several cigars I keep on hand that are kind of sentimental, seems like most of them are from the Fuentes for some reason. Interesting!

 

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

 

CigarCraig

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October 2, 2019 · 11:28 am

Providencia Bloodshot, Infringement, and Killshot Cigars

On Saturday a New Jersey based Facebook Group held a herf  at Mane Street Cigars in Woodbridge to celebrate a year of existence. I would have gone, but I had to work, and I had that other thing to go to in NJ that day. Ray Zinar, one of the principals of Providencia Cigars was in attendance, and they featured several of the Providencia cigars at the herf.  Ray had sent me a few of their new offerings a few weeks ago, so I figured it was a good time to try some of them out.  I noticed a bit of a violent theme to some of the names, I started with the Providencia Bloodshot. There’s usually a story behind Providencia’s cigar names, but I didn’t get any with these.  This Bloodshot is a limited edition 6″ x 52 Toro with a San Andrés wrapper, Indonesian binder and Ometepe Nicaraguan and Honduran fillers. Of course I’m going to select the dark toro first, right? This was a nice cigar with the beautiful dark and dirty flavors from the Mexican wrapper and that special spice from the Ometepe. While the draw was a tad resistant, it was super tasty, and burned very well. I’ve found myself enjoying more cigars from Honduras lately. 

 

Next up was the Providencia Infringement. This is a 7½” x 38 Lancero, with a Habano wrapper, Indonesian binder and Honduran and Nicaraguan fillers. I’m going to make a guess here. This is purely speculation on my part, but I think this is a the same as the La Misión that was released about one year ago. The wrapper is much prettier on the Infringement, the name of which might hold a clue as maybe there was a trademark dispute with the name or something.  Did I hear that? I don’t remember honestly, but the blend seems the same, the size is the same, and I enjoyed this one as much as I enjoyed the previous one last year. For Lancero fans, this was a treat to smoke. The burn and draw were perfect, requiring gentle draws to keep from over-heating it, of course. I’ll say it again, the small ring cigars taste different because they burn hotter, so smoking them slowly and not letting them overheat is the key to proper enjoyment in my opinion. Leather, coffee and cocoa, a very good cigar with a nice, long burn time. I still have a La Misión  and the fun thing to have done would have been to have smoked them back to back to compare.  I didn’t do that, maybe I’ll smoke it tonight, or not, we’ll see.

 

Finally, last night I did smoke the KillShot Limited Edition. We get back to the violent named cigars, which seems inconsistent with the first couple cigars they produced, the El Padre and El Santo, which seemed very serene and pious. These last few have taken a more sinister turn. Perhaps Ray can weigh in in the comments section with some context. The Killshot is a 6½” x 42 Corona Larga with a Sumatra Colorado wrapper, Indonesian binder and Nicaraguan Ligero/Honduran fillers.  Like all Providencia cigars, it’s made Honduras. The company website

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as Medium, I don’t agree. I found this to be, by far, the strongest of the three outlined here today. It had loads of spice right from the start, which carried through the cigar. I don’t mind the size at all, the long corona was a nice presentation, and, kind of like the lancero, the smaller ring requires a slower approach. Still, it was stronger and I liked it. Sumatra has a different vibe than most other tobaccos and the spice complimented the homemade sausage, egg, cheddar and feta pizza my wife had made for dinner. 

 

I’m still trying to get a face to face meeting with Ray. Our schedules never seem to line up. Seems he’s a south Jersey guy who lives in Texas, so he gets to my general area now and then.  Saturday just didn’t work out, as much as I would have enjoyed attending the Jersey Cigar Club’s anniversary herf.  I met Angelo, the founder, at the PA Barnsmoker and look forward to hanging with him again, and I’ve known Alex, who manages Mane Street Cigars for several years. Sometimes it’s hard to get to do everything you want to do!  Anyway, that’s all fo now. I think I’ll motor off and visit a new lounge in the area.  Until the next time, 

 

CigarCraig 

 

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September 25, 2019 · 5:52 pm

Vegas Del Purial and Micallef Herencia Cigars

First off, for some reason the e-mails that usually go out when I put a new post up are not going out due to some issue Google Feedburner is having with my RSS feed. Please bear with me while I sort that all out. It’s a bit of a mystery. Second, we had a nice time at the wedding we attended over the weekend. I shared some cigars with the groom and his brother that we had smoked together twenty years ago when we met. It was probably more sentimental for me than for them, but oh well! It was an atypical wedding and reception, but it was fun and an interesting weekend! Third, You might remember that I’ve reviewed some items from Groovy Groomsmen Gifts and Groovy Guy Gifts, well the same folks have launched www.memorableretirementgifts.com. They are offering a selection of cigar accessories too, similar to the other sites. I’ve found them to be great to deal with, and they source their items from a reputable company. I haven’t even replied to the email yet about trying out any of their items, I don’t need to know more than I already do to recommend them.

 

When I was in Florida I met up with PJ and René and Juan Nuñez for a smoke, and Juan just stopped in as I was getting ready to leave. I’d been wanting to meed him, as he had sent me one of his Coyaba cigars a few weeks prior, and Kevin, who manages one of my local Cigar Cigars shops, speaks very highly of him.  Juan handed me a Vegas Del Purial Gran Reserva Super Toro from El Galan Cigars. This is a Nicaraguan cigar with an Ecuador Sunatra wrapper and was really very well made.  Of course, I love a toro, so a Super Toro must be that much better, right?  This is a 6 ¾” x 54 cigar, so yeah, it’s a super sized toro, I’m OK with it. Flavor-wise, I found it to be on the leathery side, without a hint of sweetness. While this isn’t typically my go-to flavor profile, it was a tasty cigar, it was obviously made with well aged tobaccos, as it was smooth and there were no harsh or off-putting flavors. I’d certainly smoke this again, it just isn’t my normal preference. A+ for burn and draw though, and it was a satisfying cigar!  Many thanks to Juan for sharing this with me and I hope the next time we meet we have time to sit and share a smoke!

 

Today I had the day off, and I’ve managed to get a few things accomplished. My wife and I took a morning walk to the store, while there I got a hair cut, I came home and got some yard work done, then I donated a pint of blood.  After all that I fired up a Micallef Herencia box pressed torpedo that I had bought several months back at a Micallef event.  This 5½” x 52 cigar boasts 4 year aged tobaccos, Nicaraguan Habano filler, Ecuadorian Sumatra binder and Nicaraguan and Honduran fillers. The website says that the “Pleasure Period” is 50 minutes. I have to disagree with this, as I am 50 minutes into the cigar as I’m typing this, and haven’t hit the half way point yet, and haven’t had an unpleasureable moment yet. I love a cigar that has a flat ember, all the tobaccos are burning at the same rate. It isn’t a sweet cigar, it’s on the savory side, but it does have hints of sweetness and is really quite delicious.  There’s a bit of spice too which is nice. I don’t usually smoke while I write, so this is getting a little more detail, but it is getting more spice near the end and I have about 2″ to go and it’s still smoking well. I’ll be putting it down soon and getting dinner, then I’ll find something to smoke for an evening walk. Maybe it’ll be another Don Juan Calavera, I’ve been really enjoying them a lot, or perhaps it will be something special from the cigars PJ gave me in Florida “for my birthday”. It’ll have to be something pretty good after this one.

 

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

 

CigarCraig

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