Tag Archives: cigar

April 19, 2026 · 10:17 am

SP1014 Black, Box Pressed Rebellion and American Bully Cigars

You know how you have some friends that don’t listen? A few weeks back I send a few cigars to my friend Phil who publishes the very creative ComedyCigarsMusic.com. I wanted to get some of the Bariay 1492 cigars into some reviewer’s hands, and Phil came to mind. He posted a review of the Red here. I’ve been really impressed with these cigars and want to get the word out. Anyway, the package I sent came with the instruction that no reciprocity was required, or desired! I’m blessed with an abundance. Phil didn’t listen and sent me some cigars, three of which I’ll discuss today. First up is the SP1014 Black from Sanj Patel. Sanj has a cigar shop in New Jersey, which I need to get around to visiting. Quick warning, links to the cigars posted here may be going to e-commerce sites, which just means that’s where I found the information, shilling is unintended. The SP1014 Black toro is 6″ x 54, blended by Eladio Diaz in the DR. It has a Dominican wrapper, Mexican barrel aged binder, and a “5 blend Dominican” filler, whatever that means. I assume it has tobacco from 5 areas in the DR? Anyway, Eladio Diaz’ blending isn’t always my bag, so I went into this wondering how I’d feel about it. I thought back to last week when I had that feeling about the Davidoff, which proved me wrong. This one started out with a sour umami flavor, and the damp earth sort of continued. It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t up my alley either. Burn and draw were perfect and it was and interesting smoke.

The next cigar up was another 6″ x 54 toro which, Phil is undoubtedly aware, is my size of choice. This one was from American Viking Cigars, which is owned by Tim Swanson of Cigars Daily. Like the SP1014, this is another brand owned by a cigars store owner. The Box Pressed Rebellion has Nicaraguan Habano Maduro wrapper, Nicaraguan binder and filler and where it’s made I couldn’t tell you. I would tell you if I knew, but that info wasn’t readily available and I lacked the ambition to research further. As the name would imply, it’s box pressed. It’s got sharp corners, not a soft press. This is a savory cigar again, plenty of leather with some nuts and wood. Once again, the burn and draw were excellent. Nice cigar.

Finally, there was a cigar with a dog on it, which I immediately find appealing. I hadn’t heard of the American Bully cigar before, so I did the bear minimum of research and it appears to be made by A.J. Fernandez for Privada/LCA. This explains why I hadn’t heard of it because I kind of block out Privada stuff. Apparently this is also available at Cigars Daily, I don’t know if other LCA shops cary this, I have to ask my friends at The Wooden Indian if they have it. Of course, I love the big headed dog breeds, and miss my Macha every day. This band has a Handsome American Bully head on it, it’s quite amazing how different an American Bulldog is from and English Bulldog. This cigar is also 6″ x 54, with a Mexican San Andres Maduro wrapper with binder and filler tobaccos from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. It’s made at AJ’s Tabacalera Annex Factory in Esteli, Nicaragua, an area set aside for limited runs. Like the American Bulldog, this is a big, bold cigar. This cigar has some dark molasses, earth and a hint of sweetness. It had a great burn and draw and was pleasurable enough that I might pick a couple up if I saw them locally. I’m still not a big fan of the Privada organization, but this was a really good cigar.

Thanks again to Phil at ComedyCigarsMusic.com for the goodies, totally unnecessary but much appreciated. It’s always fun trying new cigars! In other news, I’m trying to get back into my Instagram account, which came under attack last weekend. I still can’t access my original IG account, it’s been 5 years, and this is proving to be a different challenge. There may be a @CigarCraig2 on IG in the near future. That’s all for today, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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CigarCraig Flashback: IPCPR Show Videos

Since the PCA (nee IPCPR) show is this weekend, I thought I’d share some of the videos I did at past shows. My wife, Jennifer deserves credit for ideas for the questions and camera work in ’13 and ’14, and my son Corey in ’16. I won’t be attending again this year for several reasons, but I hope to get back next year. We’ll have to think up a new question and do another one of these. These are a blast from the past in a lot of cases!

A midweek post is another blast from the past, don’t get use to it! CigarCraig Flashback will be a continuing feature on Wednesdays (sometimes). That’s all for today, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Davidoff Puro Dominicano, Avo Syncro and Camacho Ecuador Cigars

I was sorry to read about the passing of Gary Korb, who fairly recently retired from Famous Smoke Shop where he was the main guy behind their Cigar Advisor magazine site. I first had contact with Gary in 2004, he tried to weasel his way into a ticketed event I hosted as media. He was an inspiration, for sure! I had a pretty good rapport with him, last time I saw him he actually told me that he had mentioned my name in their search to replace him. I felt honored. My condolences to his family. He probably would have loved the cigars I’m about to talk about.

I’ll be honest, I probably wouldn’t smoke Davidoffs if they didn’t send me some to try. I consider myself fortunate to have done whatever I have done to warrant this consideration. I recently received some of the new Davidoff Puro Dominicano in their Black Band line. These come in three sizes, a Short Robusto (4½” x 52), a Corona Larga (5 7/8″ x 44), and a Perfecto (5½” x 50), which is the only figurado of this size in the Davidoff portfolio, which is what they sent. They used tobaccos from six regions in the DR, Yamasá for the wrapper, Martin Garcia for the binder, and Villa González, Mao, Piloto, Navarette and Yamasá in the filler. I went into this cigar wondering if it would be a good fit for me, many times I don’t appreciate the flavors found in Dominican puros, though a lot of folks do. This cigar was a delight. I was surprised by the prelight draw, which was very free. Odd for a perfecto. I’d say that it started off earthy, maybe loam or mushroomy, not usually my jam. The burn was perfect with a flat ember, no cone, no tunnel, just perfect. I sipped it, like I would a lancero, because the draw was so free I didn’t want it to heat up too much. I really enjoyed this cigar much more than I thought I would. I wanted to smoke another one this week, but I felt like that would be pretentious. $25 is a lot for a cigar, but they could probably have gotten away with asking more, this is a really nice smoke.

Somewhere along the way I came into possession of an Avo Syncro Nicaragua in a square tube. I can’t remember where or when, but it has to have been in my humidor for seven or eight years. I decided to smoke this one finally after hearing some discussion on KMA Radio about the square tubes, which Avo apparently released in 2015. This one was a bugger to get out of the tube. The cigar is a 6″ x 54 box press, which is probably obvious since it’s in a square tube. Who would put a round cigar in a square tube? By the way, Abe and Coop, CAO Anniversary had a square tube going back to 2003 or so, so Padron and Avo weren’t the pioneers in this area! ( while I’m at it, Coop: ” The Spanish phrase el reloj (the clock/watch) is phonetically pronounced el rreh-LOH or el rreh-LOHKH. The stress is on the second syllable of “reloj” (loh), with a rolled “rr” at the beginning and a soft “h” or slight “kh” sound at the end”. It’s my mission in life to correct Coop on this). I was surprised that this started with some harshness, but the dark fruit took over and it was really a nice cigar, very tasty. Kudos for not putting a cedar sleeve in the tube, I can’t seem to learn to take cigars out of tubes for long term storage because they always seem to just taste like cedar after a while. This one was good, I wonder if they are still available?

I had picked up a five pack of Camacho Ecuador Toros a few weeks back, and thought I remembered liking this blend. The toro is 6″ x 50, which feel like a corona in this day and age. It has an Ecuador wrapper of some sort, Brazilian binder and Dominican and Honduran fillers. These came out in May of 2014, so they’ve been around for a while. I realize that this is probably my least favorite Camacho. I’m starting to question my palate lately, but it’s always been questionable. This started out with some sourness, which I’ve gotten a lot lately for some reason. It didn’t get better, and while I powered through it, I really wanted to put it down and get something else. Perhaps I’ll stay away from this one for a while, maybe some age will help, maybe I’ll give the rest away, I don’t know. Two out of three ain’t bad, I guess. I smoke more delicious cigars than not, so I have that going for me. Side note, I kinda wish Davidoff would have an informational site about their cigars and not a direct to consumer sales site. If I’m looking at the wrong one, someone please correct me! I feel like more of a shill than I already am linking to a sales site!

I’ve been plagued over the last few days with attempts to take over my social media accounts and I’m sick of it. I’m not really that interesting. It’s not like there’s money to be made, it’s just a huge nuisance. It’s absurd how many hoops one has to jump through to change passwords. I’m too old for this shit, please leave me alone! That’s all for today, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Filed under Review

Tagged as Avo, Camacho, cigar, cigars, davidoff, Davidoff of Geneva, Ecuador, Perfecto, Puro Dominicano, Syncro, toro, Tubo

April 5, 2026 · 11:12 am

La Flor Dominicana, Montecristo and ChiMolly Cigars from Fox Cigars Mitchell’s 2026 Birthday Kit

Happy Easter and Passover to those who celebrate. I watched The Ten Commandments last night to celebrate. Not all of it, but this time I managed to watch the second half; I usually tap out around the Exodus. Anyway, it’s my policy not to discuss religion or politics, so let’s get on to some cigars. Obviously, Fox Cigars advertises on CigarCraig.com, so there is some inherent bias on my part. I do like to promote companies I enjoy, and this is one of them, so let’s go with that. It feels better than thinking of this as a blatant shill post. I noticed that Mitchell Fox had a big birthday recently, and they offered a five-cigar sampler for $50 delivered, so I purchased one, unprompted, with my own money. I have fond memories of my 50th birthday celebration, although it was a long time ago! The sampler consisted of the following: the Montecristo 1935 Anniversary Nicaragua No. 2, the Romeo y Julieta Vintage Corona Glass Tube, the La Flor Dominicana Maduro Cabinet No. 6, the Casa Carrillo Pledge Prequel, and the Fox y ChìMolly Robusto E. I’ve had the EPC Pledge and the Romeo before, so I concentrated on the LFD, Montecristo, and ChiMolly this week.

I started with the La Flor Dominicana Maduro Cabinet No. 6. This cigar is unbanded, so I wanted to get it out of the way before I forgot what it was. The Cabinet No. 6 is a 5 ¾” x 54 torpedo with a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper over what I’ve seen described as “estate-grown” Dominican fillers and binders. I’m not sure what “estate-grown” means, but it sounds cool. I can’t believe it’s taken me so long to get around to this delightful cigar. The wrapper has an oily sheen—it’s a beauty, for sure. It was loaded with lush, dark fruit and espresso flavors; very much my kind of cigar. I always wonder why companies choose to put unbanded cigars on the market. It seems like it could be a problem. I guess if one is buying the whole box it’s fine, but with singles, there are issues beyond the end-user forgetting what it is. You’d think companies would want the advertising.

Second up was the Montecristo 1935 Anniversary Nicaragua No. 2. This is another torpedo, 6 ⅛” x 52, but the box press makes it seem a lot thinner. It’s well-documented that when it comes to Altadis USA, the majority of the cigars I like are made in partnership with A.J. Fernandez. I’ve smoked tons of them, and that’s just the way it is. Upmanns, Trinidads, Romeos, Montes—all the A.J. Fernandez-made lines appeal to me; the rest, not so much. This Montecristo was no exception. My only problem was the secondary band featuring the Cigar Aficionado rating; that seems cheesy. Put a sticker on the box or a shelf talker in the store, but the band is a little much and takes away from an otherwise classy presentation. Still, this is another cigar right up my alley. It’s a Nicaraguan puro made with tobacco from A.J. Fernandez’s farms, featuring nice espresso and chocolate flavors. I’m pretty sure these first two cigars alone retail for over $30, so this sampler is a good buy so far.

I’ve heard of ChiMolly cigars, but never really looked into them, cigars but never really looked into them; I assumed it was a house brand for someone, somewhere. Doing some quick research, it seems a couple of young men with Chinese roots are behind the brand. The characters on the band, 青墨琼琳, translate to “Azure Ink and Jade Gems,” apparently a reference to the cigar accessories business that preceded their cigar venture. They make some beautiful ashtrays. The cigars are produced in Nicaragua and, despite my experience with this Fox y ChiMolly collaboration, I’m interested in sampling more of their offerings. The Fox y ChiMolly Robusto E is a 6″ x 52 toro with an Ecuadorian Habano 99 wrapper, Nicaraguan binder, and Nicaraguan/Dominican fillers. It burned well. Long-time readers will know that when the first thing I mention is the burn, I’m generally not a fan of the cigar. I had expectations that weren’t quite met. This is a woody, leathery cigar that wasn’t bad-tasting, it just isn’t a good fit for my palate. For people who like, for instance, ADVentura cigars, it may be a great fit. I smoke everything, but I can’t possibly like everything.

I really need to get to Arizona one of these days and check out one of Fox’s retail locations. That’s all for today, until the next time, when I may shill for someone else,

CigarCraig

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Ortega Esteli, Zino Nicaragua and OM Essential Blend Reserved Cigars

Another month down, the last three months have flown by, it’s getting to be the time of year that things can just slow down a little! I could stand for the summer months to not pass by so quickly! My friends at Best Cigar Prices recently advertised some ridiculous deals on some five packs, and I was surprised to see some Ortega Cubao Esteli cigars listed. I have a soft spot for Ortega cigars, going back to the early days of CigarCraig.com. I haven’t talked to Eddie in a long time, but he seems to have a retail site that’s still out there, which, ironically, does not have any Ortega cigars listed. I’ll have to drop him a note and see what’s up. Anyway, the Cubao Esteli has a. Ecuador Habano wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and fillers. I sampled the 6″ x 60 Gordo size, and I think this is a really good $5 cigar! It burned properly, had nice nutty, clean flavors and was really enjoyable. I really need to reach out to Eddie and see what’s up with these, and see if the Serie D is still around anywhere.

Here’s an interview with Eddie from the 2013 IPCPR show:

I picked up a Zino Nicaragua locally recently, and gave it a try this week. This has been around a while, I even saw the Zino trailer at the Smoke-onos event last year, but this is the first I’ve smoked. It was a little startling a few years ago when this high-class brand was released as almost a budget brand, with a bright yellow band. People have raved about this so I figured I’d better give it a shot. It’s got an Ecuador Connecticut wrapper, Nicaraguan binder, and a filler blend from Dominican Republic, Honduras, and Nicaragua. I smoked the Toro, which is 6″ x 50. This isn’t a super mild cigar, it has some nutty flavors with some cream. It didn’t have any spice, but it had some body, not strong, but you knew you were smoking something. Overall, it was enjoyable, and a good sub-$10 cigar these days is a good find.

Last year when I ran into Osvaldo Morales at the The Cigar & Lifestyle Fest at the Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, PA. he gave me a cigar with the condition that I review it on his site. I’ll paste an edited version of this after I finish this post. I hardly consider myself a reviewer, I just write stuff about cigars, but I paid a little extra attention to this one, and put it off for a while because of the pressure. This cigar is the OM Cigars Essential Blend Reserved and the cellophane was a deep amber. Did the cello start out clear or was it yellowed with age? I don’t know. I believe this to have been a product of the Artista factory, as I believe many of his various Essential Blends are. I also believe he told me this was in the neighborhood. of 20 years old. I’ve smoke my share of 20+ year old cigars, and this had an impressive amount of flavor. It started out bitter, with an almost cloying oily meatiness. You know when you get a glob of tar from a cigar and it gets on you lips? Not nearly that bad, but is wasn’t what I’d call pleasant. I soldiered on. It continued with the umami taste as the bitterness tempered. I rather expect some refinement from a cigar of this alleged age, this one was wild. I’ve only been smoking cigars for 30 years, and I don’t think I’ve ever had a cigar that tasted like this one. Not my cup of tea but obviously someone thinks this is exceptional. I have never tried any of his other Essential Blends, maybe if I run across some I’ll give them a shot, but I’m not going out of my way.