Quesada’s Jalapa is the follow-up release to their incredibly successful Seleccion Espana line. The Seleccion Espana was a blend released in Europe which catered to their more common, Cubanesque flavor profiles. Well, some of these cigars managed to find their way into the hands of people here in the states and the buzz about this blend blew up. I personally smoked my fair share of them. Quesada had to react. Since the Espana was a European release  Quesada then took the blend, and basically took the blend and swapped the wrapper, and then released it into the US. The Espana carries a very rare, very pricey Ecuadorian Arapiraca wrapper making the price of the stick much higher. This is fine in the Cuban-filled European markets, but the US needed something that would drop the price down while maintaining or enhancing the cigar’s flavor. What they came up with was a Nicaraguan Jalapa wrapper which the US is much more familiar with.

This limited edition cigar comes in 3 sizes: Robusto (4 7/8 x 50), Belicoso (6 1/8 x 52) and Prominente (7 5/8 x 49). They are packaged in boxes of 10 and limited to only 1,000 boxes of each format. Although this cigar was released last year in August they can still be easily found on a lot of shelves across the states for between $8 – $9.50. The blend starts out with a Nicaraguan Jalapa wrapper, Dominican Binder, and Nicaraguan and Dominican Fillers.

Considering that we are dealing with Quesada and the MATASA factory, it goes without saying that this cigar carries top notch construction. The wrapper starts out with perfectly consistent, with a honey-brown color that really showcases all the oils the Jalapa carries. The slender body is polished of with a beautiful, round triple cap. Seriously, you can rub the oils from this cigar off on your finger tips.  Although the wrapper feels a bit fragile the cigar didn’t give much as I squeezed it between my fingers. Right off the bat I am greeted with lots of sweetness and some strong black pepper. The pepper faded right away and then left me with a very smooth, very creamy cedar, sweet, earthy tobacco flavor. One thing I enjoyed about the Espana was how remarkably smooth the experience was and the Jalapa mimics that experience every step of the way. As the cigar progressed notes of cashew and even some really soft mint came and went while the finish was just as smooth and creamy as the start. I never had any issues with the burn on any of the Jalapas I have smoked. In fact, the ash and burnline have been some of the best I have seen in recent cigars. It took me a little over an hour each time to take down the Robusto format and about an hour and half on the Belicoso. Needless to say I enjoyed every minute of it. The Jalapa left me with no nicotine kick or harshness. I have smoked about 10 of the Robusto and a handful of the Belicoso. Although I have never smoked the Prominente, I would have to say the Belicoso was my favorite from the two I had smoked. It produced a smoother experience with, what I felt was more cedar character.

So is the Jalapa a good replacement for the Espana? In a value and market sense, totally. Is it better than the Espana? In my opinion it is not. I absolutely LOVE the Espana, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a good cigar. In fact, It’s a GREAT cigar. And for the price point I think that this stick, despite it’s availability should find it’s way in anyone’s humidor. It’s light, balanced, and smooth while it carries a lot of bold flavor that will appease any palate.

The post Quick Draw Episode 13 – Quesada Jalapa appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Prelight: Cigar #8 is a nice, heavy, corona sized stick. And when I say heavy, I mean this cigar has so much tobacco that it feels like it has been loaded with lead. Cigar #8’s wrapper is a really nice medium brown, with darker brown and orange spots. It almost looks calico in some light. The wrapper only has one really large vein running the entire length of the cigar heading all the way up to the massive triple wrapped round cap. The cigar is all sorts of firm. I can’t find any soft spots, but the hardness of the cigar kinda worries me. We’ll have to see if it creates any problems.

The wrapper doesn’t give off a lot of aroma at all. The only thing I could pick up was some slight tobacco. The foot however, is a different story. I am picking up some really neat floral and citrus aromas with some nice woodsy smells. The cap was cake to cut using my double bladed Palio cutter. The cold draw showed some unexpected signs of pepper and spice in this cigar, along with the floral and tobacco tastes I picked up. I wasn’t expecting to taste any pepper, but we’ll see if it actually carries into the smoking experience.

First Smoke: The cigar really fought my triple flame torch when I was trying to light it, but eventually it was off and running. I really didn’t pick up any of the pepper I did in the cold draw, but the spice was there for sure. Almost as a cover up for the pepper, the spice started out strong but then faded into some nice cedar tones with just a hint of citrus. There is also that saltiness that I tend to pick up from the wrapper of certain cigars, but it is was too early to call this one. The draw, despite being so packed was flowing smoothly kicking out nice, thick, smoke with every puff. The ash is just beautiful, leaving behind a perfectly compacted, zebra striped, with and light grey ash from it’s flawless burnline. The ash held on a good inch before falling into my ashtray.

Halfway There: It’s early, I know, but wow. This is a VERY good cigar. The flavors have remained very similar, with the cedary flavors in the forefront, backed by the floral, spice, and now some really neat coffee and cashew flavors. The retrohale is badass too priming with this deep cedar and a bit of the spice. I am not feeling any nicotine at all form this cigar, and for what it’s worth, this cigar is burning incredibly slow. Probably due to all the damn tobacco packed in this sucker.

Finish: I said it, and I will say it again. This is just an awesome cigar. The spice is still holding its own, although it’s just a tease at times it seems to really chime in at just the right moments. Outside of that the cigar has remained completely smooth the entire experience finishing with strong cedar and cashew flavors. By now the floral has completely removed itself form the equation. I smoked this cigar down to the nub, my fingers were burning, with absolutely no signs of harshness, just pure awesomeness. This better not be some crappy RP or I’ll eat my ashtray.

Overview: What can I say? I loved this cigar. From the size, to the amazing ash and burn,  down to the perfect flavors. This is a solid cigar and I’d love to have more in my humidor. I have a good feeling about this one, but then again, I am known to be way off.

I though it was Cuban, then I decided it wasn’t. Then I decided again it was, then decided it wasn’t. It was like that almost the entire time. It had the visual and for the most part flavor characteristics of a Cuban, but the ash, burn, and spice aren’t something I usually find in my Cuban cigars. But then again, this is Brooks we are talking about and chances are this isn’t even a cigar I have ever had. So what did I think it was? I think this is either a Partagas, or Montecristo Cuban. I’m pretty sure it’s a Cuban but if you visit one of the blind reviews from the last set you gave me, you’ll see Tatuaje threw in a curve ball as I claimed that was a Cuban cigar as well.

And the reveal?! You guessed it! I was dead wrong… This cigar was a tricky one, it turned out to be Quesada’s Seleccion Espana Corona. Brooks went on to explain that this cigar was actually made for the Spanish market, which is why it bared such great resemblance to a Cuban cigar. This cigar was released at ProCigar Festival in Dominican Republic and went on sale in Spain in February. Afterwards, a few lucky people in the US actually convinced Quesada to ship a few boxes of these to the US (about 15 boxes of each vitola in total). So you may have an extremely hard time finding these. Sad too, at the estimated price point of around $7-$9 this cigar would have been a steal. The wrapper is composed of a Ecuadroian Arapiraca, with a Dominican Binder, and Nicaraguan and Dominican fillers. Anyhow, for my own credibility I’d like to quote Brooks here:

“When I was given prerelease samples of this smoke (by 3 different BOTL), I was told each time some variation of “This cigar kicks Ass!” I am happy to report that is definitely the case, and more…This is easily one of the best new cigars of the (admittedly short) year, and it is also one of the most “Cubanesque” blends I have tasted (in a non Cuban cigar) in quite a while (I would say it is closest to a Bolivar if I had to choose)…”

He too could have possibly been fooled by this cigar. To view his entire review of the blend (pettit robusto vitola) visit this page.

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The name of this cigar also held sort of a special meaning at this time. The name “The Mogul” seemed to fit perfectly with a recent promotion I was lucky enough to receive at work. So what better cigar to celebrate that accomplishment then with this one. Along with the interesting name, the cigar also has a very intriguing and creative slogan:

“The World’s in Your Hand”

Not only does the cigar have in interesting slogan, the Maldonado Dynasty also portrays it’s own slogan of:

“Always Demand the Finest”

The press release of “The Mogul” sums up this cigar wonderfully so give it a read here:

From the very start, Arapiraca was the choice of Wrapper we had in mind. Never wanting to settle, we stayed true to the rich, strong, slightly sweet leaf. The perfect blend of aged, sun-grown Maduro sweetness, with the boldness of Dominican Binder and leaf, all blended to perfection with Peruvian leaf. The Mogul is the perfect medium-full body premium cigar that will become parallel with the best of the best. Strong and luxurious. After all, we here at The Maldonado Dynasty have a saying: “Always demand the finest.”

We invite you to pick a box up and experience this handcrafted premium cigar for yourself. Also wanting you to to be comfortable in reaching out to us and sharing your comments and questions. After all, we work diligently to make our premium cigars for you, to bring you only the finest. We like to think we create extraordinary moments in time, moments you share with the special people in your life, worthy of The Maldonado Dynasty.
“The Mogul,” is slated for release in late 2010.

Paul Maldonado
President/C.E.O.
www.MaldonadoDynasty.com

Paul and his team have also been busy launching various “Black and White Jazz Affair” events across the country and they plan to continue that in the new year. Double check their website for dates near you! If the pictures and stories I’ve heard are any indication it has been a great success and lots of fun for everyone. As the press release states, the cigars should be hitting stores near you very soon so keep your eyes peeled. Now I have to admit that I had high expectations for this cigar, please take a read through the review and let’s see if it lives up to name, slogan and expectations!

Cigar: Maldonado Dynasty “The Mogul”
Drink: Islay Mist 8yr Blended Scotch
Vitola: Toro (6 x 50)
Wrapper: Arapiraca Maduro
Binder: Dominican Republic
Filler: Dominican Republic
Price:
Burn Time: 1.5 hours

Construction:
• A beautiful dark shiny wrapper surrounds this very evenly constructed cigar
• The oily wrapper also has a fair bit of toothiness to it, very appealing to the eye
• There are a few minor veins but none that pose a threat to the burn of this cigar
• The top of the cigar is cleanly finished with a triple cap that seamlessly blends into the cigar
• The foot appears well packed
• There is a slight soft spring throughout the cigar that is even and consistent throughout
• The band has an interesting coat of arms style and a great attention to detail
• The cut was very clean and easy

Burn:
• Toasting was amazingly even, leaving a nice orange glow on the whole foot
• Considering all the smoke this is producing it seems to be burning surprisingly slow
• The first couple inches so far are razor sharp, no wavering at all
• A few minor burn imperfections happened here and there but they were always quickly corrected without my help
• Considering the freshness of this cigar and the cold temperatures here the burn was absolutely perfect!

Smoke & Ash:
• Lots of smoke right from the first draw
• Tons of resting smoke as well making for some interesting designs in the air
• The smoke off this cigar is just incredible, an absolute smoke machine!
• The ash here is a work of ark, almost a solid white with some minor darker accents and so tightly wound, not even moving
• Ash held on for about 1.5 inches before gently dropping off into the ashtray in one clean and neat piece
• The next couple of ashes weren’t as long but still nice and clean and they always fell off in the ashtray
• The amazing amount of smoke on this cigar actually made taking pictures difficult, but the designs it made were interesting enough just to watch

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper has a nice cedar aroma with hints of sweet tobacco
• The foot has more cedar aroma complimented by a sweet cocoa and a touch of spice
• Pre-light was mostly cedar and spice, the spice left my lips and tongue tingling just a bit
• Initial draws are packed with a tasty cedar flavor and subtle hints of spice
• Retro-hale here is mostly cedar with no bite and a smooth finish, overall body is fairly mild so far
• As the cedar slowly started to back off a nice balance came into play with some nutmeg spice and a slight dried fruit flavor

• The dried fruit flavors, sorta like a sweet raisin, are developing very nicely with the nutmeg spice
• The cedar tapered off in the first third but as I approach the halfway mark it is making a comeback with a bit more spice as well
• The flavors here continue to develop with some nice coffee notes as the cedar and dried fruit go back and forth as the prominent notes
• Retrohale has also been passing between cedar and dried fruit, still smooth and no bite.
• Body is making a slow and steady progression approaching a smooth medium at the halfway mark
• The coffee has developed nicely into a sweet espresso flavor and is taking charge of the flavors, really enjoying all these subtle changes
• The cigar finished in the full range with a nice balance of espresso and cedar with no harshness at all

Final Thoughts:
There’s nothing negative that I can say about this cigar, this is what every experience should be like when you sit down with a cigar. It had lots of flavors and dimensions keeping it interesting the whole way through. The burn line was razor sharp right off the bat and never needed a correction or re-light even on this very cold day. Paul had warned me that there might have been burn issues since they were so fresh from the factory but I didn’t experience any at all. The smoke was astonishing and the ash was just perfect. A great experience all around and a definite must-try cigar with unique flavors and superb construction. The slogan for this brand is to “Always Demand the Finest” and rest assured, they live up to that!

Pairings:
At the recommendation of Paul Maldonado I paired this cigar with a Cognac. My choice of cognac today was the Remy Martin XO Special. I’m not a big cognac drinker but I do enjoy a glass occasionally and often with a cigar. Just as Paul had suggested, this made for an excellent pairing. The cognac itself was smooth and balanced and offered delicate floral notes and some raw cinnamon sweetness with a delicious finish. The floral notes seemed to go perfectly with the dried fruit flavors of the cigar. The subtle cinnamon sweetness was a perfect compliment to the cocoa and coffee notes. With both the cigar and pairing offering a fantastic finish this was an excellent match.
I believe this cigar would also pair excellently with a finely aged scotch or some aged Port, both of which are favorites of mine. As for non-alcoholic choices, I’d stick with a smooth and bold coffee. Water could even be a good choice to allow you to fully enjoy the flavors of the cigar.

The post The Maldonado Dynasty – The Mogul (Pre-Release) appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.