Tag Archives: Freestyle LIve

by Craig Vanderslice | September 4, 2022 · 9:39 am

A Cabaiguan, a Mystery Cigar and a Sancho Panza The Original

Once again I’m having a cigar while I write. I don’t usually smoke in the mornings, but I’ve been enjoying it the last few Sundays, because I know that very soon it won’t be a comfortable thing to do. To be honest, I really don’t like this time of year. When my end of August birthday comes around, I get depressed, because it signals the end of summer. I love summer, Fall is a major bummer for me. I know many disagree, like cigars, everyone has their preferences, I prefer to be warm over cold. So I’m enjoying every last drop of summer I can. More on the cigar later, I just lit it up, and it’s pretty good! But I smoked a few other cigar in the last half of the week, starting with a big Tatuaje Cabaiguan. This is a new shape for this year, the Cabaiguan No.752, which is 7″ x 52 (good name, that worked out well!). I thought maybe this was in the Guapos series because of the pigtail cap, but I believe I’m wrong. This has an Ecuador Connecticut wrapper and Nicaraguan fillers and binder. It was a very nice cigar, toasty with a hint of sweetness. I definitely lean more toward the maduro in this line, but this was a really nice shade cigar.

Near the end of this month, September 28th, Drew Estate is having another Freestyle Live events to reveal a new brand. They put together packs with three sizes of the new cigar, as well as a cutter, case and flask set. It amuses me that people are trying to guess what this cigar is, as if it were a line extension. I smoked the toro size yesterday and was really happy with the cigar. I want to smoke the robusto and Churchill too, but I want to save one for the event! I am actually toying with the idea of buying another pack, but I don’t need more goodies, although I have a feeling I could probably find a good home for them 😉! The case and cutter are really nice, I have no need for a flask! Anyway, this cigar had a very unique flavor, a sweet spice I can’t identify. It was, in my opinion, better than any Liga Privada. I was enamoured with it. I’m going to go out on a limb, for the sake of documentation, and say that I think it has a Nicaraguan Broadleaf wrapper. It’s something very different, whatever it is, and Willy Herrera outdid himself on this one. I hope it’s not outrageously priced. I love the Undercrown 10, and this was better. I can’t wait to see what this is!

Sometimes you smoke a cigar on a Saturday evening hoping to write about it on Sunday, and the cigar doesn’t perform the way you’d like. Perhaps it’s super tight until around the band, and then it’s falling apart from playing with it to loosen it up. The flavor is good, but it doesn’t end up being a good experience. This is why I’m smoking a new Sancho Panza The Original robusto as I write this. So far, this sup-$7 cigar is outperforming one that was several time the price. Sancho Panza has been around a long time, I remember buying a box of Extra Fuertes nearly 20 years ago for about $35. They recently worked with the new General Cigars Employee, Matt Booth, on the rebrand. The new look is growing on me and I’ve been looking forward to trying them. This cigar has a Honduran Connecticut Shade wrapper, Mexican San Andrés binder and fillers from the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and Brazil. I’m really enjoying this cigar with my morning coffee, it’s silky smooth and rich, not a mild, papery shade cigar. I look forward to getting into the Super Fuerte and Double Maduro! These are super budget friendly and this one was really quite good.

That’s all for today. It’s a holiday weekend, I guess, I don’t celebrate it as the end of summer, but having Monday off is a reward for my labors through the year, I suppose. Soon I’ll have to put the shorts away and get the hoodies out, something I dread. Anyway, until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as Cabaiquan, cigar, cigars, drew estate, Freestyle LIve, Sancho Panza, tatuaje

by Craig Vanderslice | August 18, 2022 · 5:38 pm

News: Drew Estate Previews All-New Brand in Latest Freestyle Live Event Packs

Fresh on the heels of the Connecticut Barnsmoker, here’s some news from Drew Estate. An “entirely new brand”! Interesting! I admit that the last new brand they launched with a freestyle event didn’t interest me. The Nica Rustica Adobe was a good one, but not an entirely new brand.

During its Sept. 28 “Freestyle Live: Special Edition” broadcast, Drew Estate will unveil an entirely new premium cigar brand … and the company is giving consumers the ability to experience it prior to its formal launch in the upcoming Freestyle Live Event Pack. The packs will be available at participating retailers nationwide beginning on Aug 18.

Drew Estate has prepared a total of 10,000 Freestyle Live Event Packs, which will have an MSRP of $39.99. Every Freestyle Live Event Pack will include three of the new premium cigars without any brand identification on them, a Freestyle Live 3-cigar case, a Freestyle Live cutter with cigar rest and a Freestyle Live flask. Additionally, each Freestyle Live Event Pack will include a Freestyle Live badge with a QR code, which purchasers may use to enter a sweepstakes for a chance to win incredible prizes! The grand prize is a 2022 black Dodge Charger, valued at $32,000. Second prize is a Gibson Les Paul Dark Limited guitar, valued at $1,600. A total of 25 sweepstakes entrants will win the third-place prize of a pewter ashtray designed by Subculture Studios, valued at $100 each.*

Freestyle Live Event Pack participating retailers can win a prize too!!! All retailers who sell Freestyle Live Event Packs are automatically entered for a chance to win one of three prizes. The grand prize consists of $5,000 in Drew Estate credit and a Drew Estate Barrel Bar; the second-place prize for retailers is $2,500 in Drew Estate credit and a Drew Estate Mega Standing Ashtray; and the third-place prize is $1,000 in Drew Estate credit.**

“Dodge Chargers, Gibson Les Pauls, Barrel Bars … oh my” exclaims Jonathan Drew, company Founder and President with a big smile from his Sag Harbor, NY, home. “While all the prizes are definitely dope, the big news is in the new brand release. It’s just a different level of mega-excitement when we drop a completely new brand on the Freestyle. It’s not a new line extension or something that already exists in the DE brand portfolio, my dudes and dudettes … it’s something meatier. This brand is going to change the world. Mark my words.”

Learn the mystery cigars’ identity and experience all the other surprises Drew Estate will debut by tuning in on Sept. 28 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. for the next “Freestyle Live: Special Edition” broadcast, which will be aired only on Drew Estate’s Freestyle Live YouTube channel (youtube.com/drewestatecigar) and Drew Estate’s Facebook Live page (facebook.com/drewestatecigar). Until then, be sure to stop over at drewestate.com/freestylelive2022 beginning on Aug. 18 to find the complete list of participating premium cigar retailers where you can snag your own Freestyle Live Event Pack.

*NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. Open to legal residents of the 50 U.S./D.C. (excluding MA, MI, & VA), age 21+. Void where prohibited. Starts 08/15/22; ends 09/21/22. Purchase Entries must be submitted by 11:59:59 PM ET on 09/21/22. To enter without purchase, send a postcard with your first name, last name, complete mailing address, email address and date of birth (postmarked by 09/21/22; received by 09/27/22) to: Drew Estate: Attn Freestyle Live Sweepstakes,12415 SW 136th Ave Suite 7, Miami, FL 33186. Total ARV of all prizes: $36,599. Odds of winning will depend on the number of eligible entries received. For full Official Rules, visit https://drewestate.com/freestyleliveeventpack/. Sponsor: SWI-DE, LLC, 12415 SW 136th Ave, Suite 7, Miami, FL 33186.

**NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Legal residents of the 50 United States (incl. D.C.; excl. MA, MI and VA), 21 years or older who are retail trade partners of Sponsor. Enter Sweepstakes by: 9/15/22. To enter and for Official Rules, including prize descriptions, visit https://drewestate.com/freestylelive_tradepromotion/. Odds depend on number of eligible entries received. Void where prohibited. Sponsor: SWI-DE, LLC, 12415 SW 136th Avenue, Suite 7, Miami, FL 33186.

About Drew Estate

Founded in New York City in 1996, Drew Estate has become one of the fastest growing tobacco companies in the world. Under their mantra “The Rebirth of Cigars”, Drew Estate has led the “Boutique Cigar” movement by innovating new elements to the tobacco industry with their unique tobaccos and blending styles that attract new and traditional cigar enthusiasts. In their Gran Fabrica Drew Estate, the Nicaraguan headquarters, Drew Estate produces a variety of brands such as ACID, Herrera Estelí, Herrera Estelí Norteño, Isla del Sol, Kentucky Fired Cured, Liga Privada, MUWAT, Larutan by Drew Estate, Nica Rustica, Pappy Van Winkle Barrel Fermented Cigars, Tabak Especial, Undercrown, Florida Sun Grown, and Java by Drew Estate.

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by Craig Vanderslice | May 1, 2022 · 9:46 am

A Selection of Cigars: Hits and Misses

This is going to be a bit of a weird post. I, of course, smokes a bunch of cigars this week, and had some mixed results. I probably should follow the rule of not saying anything at all if you don’t have anything nice to say, but it’s not all negative. SOme of it is personal preference, some of it is something else. There are also some standout cigars that I’ve probably mentioned here before but merit repeating. Let’s start with the CAO Arcana Firewalker. This cigar is a nice, big 6½” x 56 cigar, with a massive band. It employs a strange method of fermentation for one of the Nicaraguan filler leaves where they bury the pilon in volcanic soil for two months. Sounds like a fun story, and I don’t doubt it, but this wasn’t where I had a problem. The cigar tasted fine, I rather enjoyed the flavors. It was kind of bready, with a little cocoa and some spice, very nice. When I received these samples they were bone dry, as measured with my Humidimeter. Bone. Dry. The first one I smoked just kind of flaked apart. I let them rest in the humidor for a couple months, I guess, to get some moisture into them. When one had achieved what I felt was an acceptable level of internal moisture content, I gave it another go. For whatever reason, the Ecuador Habano Rosado wrapper on this one just wouldn’t burn. It was like the original H2000 wrappers 20 years ago. I would feel safe making childrens pajamas out of this wrapper, it was so flame retardant. I gave up on it with about 2 inches to go, after just about emptying my lighter relighting it. I guess I’ll leave the remaining samples in the humidor, and if I see some in a shop maybe I’ll try one to see if my batch was an anomaly. I hope it was because it was a good tasting smoke and I like the first Arcana a lot. If you’re keeping score at home, this is a miss.

One cigar I had which isn’t new, but one I really enjoy and bears repeating is the Crow Corona from Blackbird Cigars. I’m generally a toro guy, but I think I like this in the 6″ x 44 corona the best. The narrow ring adds a little more of an edge to the San Andrés wrapper that I like. I always like a good Mexican maduro, and this one really made me happy. I’m to understand that Blackbird has opened a new, larger factory in ght Dominican Republic. I’ve been a fan of their cigars, I can’t recall having a bad one, with the Crow being my favorite. They do a really nice job with Sumatra wrappers too. I will be putting some more Crow Coronas in my humidor, for sure. In case you were wondering, this is a hit!

Another repeat is the Yagua. I smoked one from a 2021 box this week that was amazing. J.C. Newman just announced that they are shipping the 2022 release, with a second wave due in November. These have aged well, the one I smoked was practically round, which was strange. They say that this is wrapped in an “underfermented” Broadleaf wrapper. whatever that means, I ‘d say it works. I had some distinct sensations of black licorice several times while smoking this cigar, and I really liked that. I enjoyed it so much I was tempted to smoke one the following day, alas, I should have followed my instincts! Again, a hit.

The Drew Estate Freestyle Live event is coming up on Thursday, May 12, and receiving a lot of buzz, so I figured I’d give the Mystery Cigar in the pack a try and see what the deal was. I tried the 6″ x 60 gordo first. This digital event is happening on the eve of the Florida Barn Smoker, and the cigars in the pack happen to be the same sizes that the 20 Acre Farm Mystery cigars were presented, leading some to believe there may be a connection. It’s possible, although many cigars are offered in robusto, toro and gordo, so that’s a bit of a stretch. I personally didn’t really like the cigar I smoked, it was heavily woody to me, and that’s not my preference. I don’t like FSG tobacco, so there could be something there, and I’m also not a big fan of the original Herrera Esteli, so it could be a variation on that. I don’t think it’s a riff on the MUWAT, as I grabbed a fiver of Baitfish yesterday and forgot how good those little guys are! I’ll suffer through the rubusto I guess and see what I think of that size, maybe it’s different. I’ll be very disappointed if those guessing it’s in the Nica Rustica line are right. Big miss.

Let’s finish strong. OK, I lied. I picked up an Aganorsa Leaf Rare Leaf Toro yesterday because I’ve been wanting to try it. It’ a 6″ x 54 with a “Nicaraguan Café” wrapper, and Aganorsa Leaf binder and fillers. I’ve been having trouble finding cigars in the Aganorsa range that suit my palate, quite honestly. Sadly, this was another one that did not. I’m sure it’s a great cigar, it certainly performed well, but the flavor left me wanting. This was another that I’ll call wood heavy in the flavor department. I also found it slightly drying. It was a bit sneaky strong. Everyone has different tastes, that’s what makes cigars so much fun, this one wasn’t for me. I’ll keep working thought the range, and I know there are a lot of cigars made by Aganorsa that I like! Unfortunately a miss.

That’s it for today, I’ll be smoking a few favorites today! My part-time retail experiment has come to an end. ore on that, maybe, another time, but it was fun while it lasted. My Friday evenings are now free, who wants to herf? Until the next time,

CigarCraig

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Tagged as Aganorsa Leaf, Arcana, Blackbird, CAO, cigar, cigars, Crow, drew estate, Firewalker, Freestyle LIve, J.C.Newman, Rare Leaf, Yagua

by Craig Vanderslice | April 12, 2022 · 5:53 pm

News: Drew Estate Previews New Premium Cigar Brand In All-New Freestyle Live Event Packs

Drew Estate has another one of their Freestyle Live events coming up! I usually tune into these as they are fun and informative. I wonder what the new cigar brand will be this time?

During its May 12 “Freestyle Live: Special Edition” broadcast, Drew Estate will introduce its newest premium cigar, and the company is giving consumers a chance to preview the brand before its global unveiling with the release of an all-new Freestyle Live Event Pack. Packs will be available at participating retailers nationwide beginning on April 11.

Additionally, each Freestyle Live Event Pack will include a Freestyle Live badge with a QR code, which purchasers may use to enter a sweepstakes for a chance to win amazing prizes! The grand prize is a 2022 Jeep Wrangler Sport, valued at $33,000. The second-place prize is a Drew Estate Barrel Bar, valued at $2,000. Or sweepstakes entrants may win one of 25 third-place prizes, a travel humidor adorned with custom artwork by Subculture Studios, valued at $100 each.*

Retailers who sell Freestyle Live Event Packs are automatically entered for a chance to win prizes too! The grand prize consists of $7,500 in Drew Estate credit and two Dreamseat recliners; the second-place prize is $2,500 in Drew Estate credit and a Drew Estate Barrel Bar; and the third-place
prize is $1,000 in Drew Estate credit and one Mega standing ashtray.**

“This Freestyle Live Event Pack is gonna set off a chain reaction for the follow up Freestyle Live: Special Edition on May 12 due to the increase in packs we puttin’ on the street,” says Jonathan Drew, President and Founder of Drew Estate. “Trust me, gonna be a posse tuning in to try and guess what that new cigar could be.”

To learn the mystery cigars’ identity and experience other surprises Drew Estate is set to debut, be sure to tune in and join the fun on May 12 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. for the next “Freestyle Live:
Special Edition” broadcast, which is available only through Drew Estate’s Freestyle Live YouTube
channel (youtube.com/drewestatecigar) and Drew Estate’s Facebook Live page
(facebook.com/drewestatecigar). Participating retailers where Freestyle Live Event Packs will be available can be found at drewestate.com/freestylelive2022 beginning on April 15.

NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. Open to legal residents of the 50 U.S./D.C. (excluding MA, MI, & VA), age 21+. Void where prohibited. Starts 04/11/22; ends 05/03/22. To enter without purchase, send a postcard with your first name, last name, complete mailing address, email address and date of birth (postmarked by 05/03/22; received by 05/10/22) to: Drew Estate: Attn Freestyle Live Sweepstakes,12415 SW 136th Ave Suite 7, Miami, FL 33186. Total ARV of all prizes: $37,095. Odds of winning will depend on the number of eligible entries received. For full Official Rules, visit https://drewestate.com/freestyleliveeventpack/. Sponsor: SWI-DE, LLC, 12415 SW 136th Ave, Suite 7, Miami, FL 33186.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Legal residents of the 50 United States (incl. D.C.; excl. MA, MI and VA), 21 years or older. Enter Sweepstakes by: 5/4/22. To enter and for Official Rules, including prize descriptions, visit https://drewestate.com/freestylelive_tradepromotion/. Odds depend on number of eligible entries received. Void where prohibited. Sponsor: SWI-DE, LLC, 12415 SW 136th Avenue, Suite 7, Miami, FL 33186.

About Drew Estate

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by Craig Vanderslice | December 16, 2021 · 6:41 pm

Contest! CigarCraig’s Holiday Giveaway

It’s time for a Holiday Giveaway! I know it’s nothing like the twelve and more days of giveaways we used to do, but it is what it is! Times change and we roll with it. So here’s this week’s giveaway! Last month Drew Estate announced the 20 Acre Farm on the Freestyle Live show, and they led with a cool kit that had three mystery cigars that turned out to be these cigars. They have recently started showing up in stores. Here’s your chance to get a couple without shelling out for them!

The giveaway is for the Freestyle Live kit, less one cigar, the Gordito (6″ x 60) which I smoked. They are tasty cigars. I’m also throwing in two Drew Estate FSG Toros and a couple Undercrown 10 toros. As usual, I may find some other cigars tho toss in. The kit includes a cool 30 oz. RTIC tumbler, a three finger leather case, a dual jet lighter and a cutter.

As usual, leave a comment here to enter, one entry per person. Comments on this blog post only will count, no comments on Facebook posts or any other forums will count. Of course, you must be of legal smoking age in your jurisdiction to win. Thanks to the folks at Drew Estate for providing these goodies! I’ll select a winner next Thursday, December 23, 2021. I might even include a list of my favorite cigars of 2021! That’s all for today, until the next time,

CigarCraig