Another year is in the books! It’s the last day of 2023, and we are participating in our annual tradition of trying to talk ourselves into going to Red Lion, PA for the New Years Raising of the Cigar. Red Lion used to have dozens of cigar factories, I think the last one closed a few years ago. I remember buying very inexpensive bags of cigars at a local farmers market that were made there, Van Slyke & Horton, which closed around 2011. The cigars weren’t premium cigars, they might not have even been natural wrapped cigars, they were something like $5 for a bag of 20, whattaya want? Granted, it’s been 25 years since I bought these, the farmers market is now a Home Depot. Anyway, let’s see if we make it tonight! 2023 was a quiet year here, not a lot of travel, not a lot of excitement. I only smoked maybe 150 new to me cigars or so, which seems like a pretty big number, but it’s down considerably from years past. If I had to pick a standout cigar this year it would be either the Muestra de Saka Krakatoa, or the Red Meat Lovers Club Ribeye, both Dunbarton Tobacco and Trust products. 2024 should have some more activity, I hope to travel some more. Anyway, Happy New Year, be careful, and enjoy some fine cigars!
Gurkha Cigars sent a nice holiday care package this year, consisting of a little humidor with five of their cigars within. It may or may not have been packed in loose tobacco that made what can be best described as a tobacco glitter bomb (hat tip: Kap), I’m not looking any horse in the mouth, let alone a gift one. It’s appreciated, and the little humidor makes a nice “on deck” humidor. It’s not Gurkha over the top like they’ve done in the past, very classy. I selected one of the cigars that I hadn’t smoked before, a Gurkha Grand Age II in the Toro size. I hadn’t heard of this one, but I didn’t get to the TPE show where this was presented. Apparently its a budget cigar, in the $7 range, this was the Habano, it comes in Maduro and Connecticut also, made in Nicaragua. This one had a very floral taste, and I got a hint of a mintiness, much like I got from the East India Classic Havana Blend, which makes sense now. This is probably not a cigar I’d smoke again, although I’d give the Maduro a shot. It performed well, the burn and draw were perfect, and it just wasn’t a flavor profile that I gravitate towards. There are some other cigars that came in that package that I’m looking forward to trying. Thank you to Gurkha for thinking of me.
I had correspondence a while ago with a gentleman from Adrian Magnus Cigars. I hadn’t heard of this brand, do I did some poking around, didn’t find much more info, and kinda tried to talk him out of sending samples. New cigar brands with high price tags aren’t really my thing. I wasn’t successful, and a package from Hungary showed 
of a week or so ago. I’m working up my courage to try the Cognac infused cigars, as a non-drinker, I have no frame of reference for spirits flavors, but the other two looked good. Adrian Magnus started in 2020 and is based in Spain. The cigars are made in the Dominican Republic, they aren’t forthcoming with too much blend information. The cigars arrived sealed with Boveda packs (60 gram packs for 3 cigars!) and were in good condition. After a few days rest I decided to sample the Imperials in the 5″ x 50 Robusto size (they list the length on the website as 152, which, it that’s millimeters, it’s closer to six inches, and this is definitely 5″). Like I said, $17 cigars aren’t in my wheelhouse, so I have to really think about what makes a cigar that price. Shipping has to figure in, small batches, aged leaf. This has an age statement on the band of 10 years, not sure if that refers to the wrapper or one of the component tobaccos. The cigars (I smoked two yesterday), smoked well, although one has some wrapper damage where I tried to remove the band. I want to say these are blended for the European palate. There’s a (again) floral, fruity component, with a sweetness that starts vert subtle, but builds. If I weren’t such a cynic, I might not be surprised to find out there was Cuban tobacco in this cigar. Of course, export of Cuban tobacco to the DR seems unlikely, and it would be illegal to sell cigars containing it in the US. Anyway, I quite enjoyed this cigar as an afternoon change of pace and look forward to trying the Supremos and XO next. Thanks to Vadim for sending these!
That’s all for now, today, this week, this month, this year! A big thank you to all of you for your support over the last year! Until the next time,
CigarCraig
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I didn’t know that the European palate was set for floral, fruity and sweet. Is this a topic you could expand upon? Just having a BLACK STAR LINE WAR WITCH while waiting for kickoff, I am in the Ship for the UG FFL and feeling somewhat nervous.
Happy New Years Craig and all
I guess I get the sense that current Havana cigars have that flavor profile, and the Europeans have been smoking those type of cigars for years.