You know how sometimes I smoke with a theme in mind, and sometimes it just works out that way? This time it was cigars with numbers in the name I guess. Totally unintentional. I’m starting out with a cigar from the New 
England Cigar Militia, which is a facebook group founded by Kevin Parow. This cigars is the New England Cigar Militia 250 Years of Independence. There isn’t a lot of information about this cigar out there, and I was rather hoping to have more info before I wrote this. I suppose I’ll be updating a few things later. This is a perfecto, or salomon cigar, it’s 6″ x 54 by my measuring and, best I can tell, it’s made at American Caribbean Cigars S.A. in Esteli. This is the factory that makes Rock-A-Feller Cigars. I really should have smoked one of these last weekend, given the overall theme of the cigar. I think it’s probably good all year, right? Even with the nipple at the foot, it had a great draw. I got some sweet, nuttiness over the course of the smoke. The wrapper wasn’t the prettiest, and I suspect it was a Habano of some sort. I probably am safe saying this is a limited edition cigar, and, once again pending an update, I don’t know where one would purchase these cigars. This part of the article is pending updates.
Next up was the Villiger 1888 San Andrés toro. People seem to dump on Villiger as a brand, and I’ve never been able to figure out why. A lot of cigars aren’t widely available, and a lot of brands are on the market for years and don’t get a lot of traction. In the probably 15 years I’ve been smoking Villiger cigars, and I mean the premium ones, I haven’t had a bad one, and there’s quite a few I’ve really enjoyed a lot. Sure, they screwed up many years ago when they eliminated their sales staff, really screwed up (leaving people stranded away from home isn’t right). Since then Renè Castañeda has been leading the brand in the U.S. and making some excellent cigars. This 1888 San Andrés is one of the better ones. I smoked the 6″ x 50 toro, which is box pressed. I see they make a Churchill, I really want to get my hands on some of those! I like a traditional Churchill, even though this one is 7″ x 50, I’m willing to give it a shot. Anyway, this has a San Andrés wrapper, Ecuador Habano binder and Nicaraguan fillers, and it’s made at Villiger de Nicaragua, which is a factory within the Joya de Nicaragua factory. The wrapper is beautiful, dark with some oils showing. I get some dark chocolate and espresso, without the earthiness that one sometimes get with Mexican tobacco. I’ve been a fan of the Mexican leaf since I started smoking Te-Amos back in the 90s, and this one is far more refined.
I came across a Room 101 Doomsayer toro in the humidor and realized I’d never smoked one, so I lit one up last night. This line has been around for a few years, if comes in two styles, the Passive and the Aggressive. I smoked the Passive, which has a Ecuador Habano wrapper, Indonesian binder and fillers from Honduras, Nicaragua and Pennsylvania. It’s a 6″ x 55 toro. This line came out before Scandinavian Tobacco Group acquired Room 101. It’s made in the Dominican Republic at Tabacalera William Ventura. I think these came in a box of 55 for some reason, and they appear to be still available here and there. This cigar smoked very well for me, burn and draw were perfect. There was a nice spiced bread sort of flavor that was intriguing. the number 55 must have some significance, the ring gauge and box count both being 55, but I sure don’t get it! It was a good cigar, seems to be a value price, and I would recommend it.
Tonight we are attending a Diner en Blob, which is based on the Diner en Blanc, which is a pop-up white party we have attended in years past. This is in conjunction with Blobfest, which is held every year in nearby Phoenixville, PA. The 1958 classic “The Blob” was filmed at locations around our area. This dinner is being held at a secret location, we dress in red, bring our own food, and we’ll see how it goes. I have a selection of Red cigars picked out for the evening, if the opportunity present itself to smoke. Bariay 1492 Red, West Tampa Red, Macanudo Inspirado Red, Red Meat Lovers and Hoyo de Monterrey Rojo cigars will be in my pocket. We anticipate a good time. That’s all for today, until the next time,
CigarCraig
