The Good Stuff: The Gigantes features a blend very similar to the Rothchildes starting with a Mexican San Andreas Wrapper, Criollo 98 and Corojo 99 Binders, and an all Nicaraguan filler using Aganorsa leaf. While the blend profile remains the same, Dion Giolito who owns Illusione, aimed to bring a much richer and fuller experience with the Gigantes. The cigars are made at TABSA in Esteli which is the same factory where the Rothchildes are manufactured. The Gigantes will only come in one size a 6.5 x 56 which comes packaged in cabinets of 50 and will run you $7.99 a stick. I bought a whole mess of these from Smoke Inn. Last time I checked they still had a few in stock. You may want to hurry, first run of these cigars are very limited but Dion plans the Gigantes to be a regular production line. (Thanks to Halfwheel.com for breaking the news on the release and providing the specifics on this cigar)

Size: 6.5 x 56
Wrapper: Mexican San Andreas
Binder: Criollo 98 (Esteli), Corojo 99 (Jalapa)
Filler: Nicaraguan Aganorsa
Body: Medium/Full
Strength: Medium/Full
Price: $7.99
Pairing: Kasteel Cuvee Du Chateau (11% Belgian Quad)

Prelight: Much like the Rothchildes, Illusione’s Gigantes carries a very deep, dark brown wrapper with bits of medium brown and spots of a darker brown around the veins and webbing in the tobacco leaf. The wrapper is incredibly tooth and feels almost like sandpaper with a good amount of oils. The wrapper is solid, thick, and very hard. It feel like I could probably sound down my next woodworking project with this cigar. The wrapper actually has a very rustic, crude look to it as it showcases the natural characteristics of the tobacco leaf. Considering how much Illusione I smoke, holding one with a ring gauge as large as this is a bit of a departure from what I am used to. The cigar is heavy and dense as the body leads up to a perfectly round triple cap. The Gigantes is polished off with a band identical to what we found on the Rothchildes. The only differences being the word “Gigantes” and of course the purple color instead of the red. I absolutely love these bands. The remind me of an older era. Think Henry Clay.

The wrapper on the cigar gives off a sweet aroma of chocolate and tobacco while the foot of the cigar is much more natural leading with lots of earthiness, and spice over natural tobacco aromas. The cap cut clean, but took a bit of extra pressure from my double bladed Palio cutter. The cold draw produces are really nice spice over some pepper, espresso, and natural tobacco.

First Smoke: Illusione’s Gigantes starts out really bold with some strong cashew and raisin over some spice, natural tobacco, and cocoa with a nice tart twang on the aftertaste. I was expecting much more pepper but was pleasantly surprised with the sheer amount of flavor the Gigantes kicked out right off the bat. The draw is remarkable as it takes almost no effort to get a mouthful of very thick, white smoke. The burnline is a bit wavy, but razor sharp leaving behind a trail of very compacted white ash which held on for an inch and a half before giving way.

Halfway There: One of the more interesting characteristics of the Illusione Gigantes is the aftertaste. There is a very bold woodsy, cedary, fruit, tart flavor that’s left behind for minutes after each puff. It’s incredibly enjoyable and only enhances the already potent flavor profile which is now running with tons of cocoa and spice over fruit and cedar with hints of espresso. The burnline is still a bit wavy but I have yet to have to reach for my lighter so no complaining there. The retrohale is ridiculous coating my nasal passage with so much cedar and spice. While the body of the cigar is just piling up, the strength of the cigar is remaining rather tame as I close out the second third with no nicotine kick at all. Gotta love when cigars do this.

Finish: The final third of this Illusione Gigantes is where the deeper, richer experience really comes into play. That crazy aftertaste I spoke off is now dominating the smoke leading off with really heavy smoked woodsy flavors with strong spice backing it along with some great fruit, cocoa, and tobacco. This is where the cigar really separates itself from the Rothchildes. Along with the ramp up in flavor the strength has began to ramp up as well. It’s not too strong, but I definitely feel the difference. Over the course of the 2 hours it took to take the Gigantes down I never once had to touch up or relight the beast, I experience absolutely no harshness, and only a small about of extended heat into the final inch or so.

Overview: Dion does it again. I can’t say much more about the Gigantes other than how much I thoroughly enjoyed it. The bold and complex flavors are right up my alley and I love that he produced them without having to create a cigar that was all about the strength. I think that far too often cigar manufactures think that you can’t have a bold cigar without having all the strength, and Illusione proves that to be wrong with almost every blend they create. Although the cigar has a rustic look, the burn performance was close to flawless. The price point is absolutely spot on, and actually probably a lot lower than I’d be willing to pay for the Gigantes. I am so glad that I opted to purchase half a cabinet of these and even then I worry that might not be enough. For the price, this is a cabinet purchase for sure and I fear that I may even want to have more than that on hand is this cigar is incredible and is going to make for another strong contender in our top 10 cigars of the year. And to think, we are only half way through.

Pairing: Kasteel’s Cuvee du Chateau is an 11% Belgian Quad brewed at the Brouwerij Van Honsebrouck N.V. in Belgium. This is one of my go to Belgians as it fits all the main categories I look for in a good beer, at a reasonable cost. Cuvee du Chateau runs about $5 a bottle and carries a big, boozy body loaded with strong fruits (fig, apple, pear) flavors over some sweetness and spice finishing with a bit of malt and cinnamon. The fruit and spice is what had drawn me to pair this bad boy with the Gigantes as they married up perfectly. The woodsy flavors form the Gigantes actually added a bit of a smoke profile to the beer resulting is one badass pairing.

The post Illusione *G* Gigantes Cigar Review appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff: If you haven’t been living under a rock for the past two years then you should be quite familiar with Antonio Lam and Reinado cigars. We’ve reviewed his Grand Empire Reserve line (you can check that out here) a while back and I have said on many occasions it was a stand-out cigar that struck my by surprise, and I know I’m not the only one. Well this year Reinado is releasing a tweaked version of that blend which will feature an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper laid over the same blend as the Grand Empire Reserve. Everything you need to know is contained in this press release:

Oradell, NJ, June 04, 2014 –(PR.com)– REINADO® Cigars eagerly announces the upcoming availability of its latest cigar in the Grand Empire Reserve line, a Petit Lancero. Like all Grand Empire Reserves, the new Petit Lancero (6X38) possesses Nicaraguan binder and filler that have been uniquely blended and fermented using REINADO’s signature process. However, it also incorporates an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper that has been finely aged 3 years as well as an ornate pigtail head.

“With the explosive consumption of our exceptionally rated Grand Empire Reserve line, we sought to introduce a complementary profile that delivers a rich, toasty, and distinctive flavor for smokers seeking a medium strength experience,” said Antonio Lam, owner of REINADO Cigars. “After nearly a year in development, we believe this aged Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper combined with the Grand Empire Reserve blend offers a perfect balance for sophisticated palates.”

“We are excited to carry REINADO’s new Petit Lancero and are confident this premium cigar will be highly appreciated by a wide range of discerning smokers,” said Tom Sullivan, Founder of Alliance Cigar.

The new Petit Lancero will be released on July 20, 2014 at the 82nd Annual IPCPR Convention & International Trade Show in Las Vegas. REINADO will be in Booth #2014.

Packaged in boxes of 10, the Petit Lancero will retail for $8.99 each from Alliance Cigar, REINADO, and fine tobacconists in the United States. Additional sizes beyond the 6X38 will be released at a later date.

One thing I have always loved about Antonio and Reinado is that you can order directly from them. If you are looking for these once they or released or any other Reinado cigar hit them up directly here. Thanks goes out to Antonio for hooking me up with samples to bring this review to you.

Size: 6 x 38
Wrapper: Aged Ecuadorian Connecticut
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Body: Medium/Full
Strength: Medium
Price: $8.99
Pairing: Sierra Nevada Ovila Abbey Saison (7.5% Saison/Farmhouse Ale)

Prelight: Reinado’s Grand Empire Reserve Ecuador Edition starts off with the obvious, the very thin, light Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper. The wrapper is very smooth and fragile and this sporting a light brown/orangish color with a few dark grey markings here and there. The wrapper leaf is seamless, carrying only a few small veins as you head up the thin, slender body to an amazing little coiled pigtail style cap. I love that accent. The Grand Empire Reserve Ecuador Edition feels very light-weight in the hand. While the binder and filler tobaccos feel dense and hard, I didn’t put too much pressure on the cigar for fear of breaking the wrapper. Ecuadorian Connecticut is always extremely delicate. The Ecuador Edition is polished off with the signature maroon, white, and gold Reinado crest as well as a secondary “Grand Empire Reserve” gold band which you can find on the other blends in the GER portfolio.

The wrapper of the Ecuador Edition gives off some light cedar aroma while the foot of the cigar carries nothing more than some strong, natural tobacco aromas. The cap cut like butter using my Palio double bladed cutter. The cold draw produced some strong honey and citrus notes along with a ton of cedar and natural tobacco.

First Smoke: Lighting up Reinado’s Grand Empire Reserve Ecuador Edition I was greeted with some very soft black pepper, soft spice, a ton of citrus and honey over cedar and natural earthy/tobacco/oat flavors. The draw on this cigar is incredible. Each, tiny, little puff kicks out huge clouds of thick white smoke. I’m glad too as often I tend to smoke too quickly on Lancero format cigars and end up charring the experience all to hell. The burnline is crazy wild as huge waves form all over the place. I didn’t whip out my lighter quite yet so we will see how the burn fares into the second third. The ash left behind is a dark gray and decently compacted only holding on a little over half an inch before falling off.

Halfway There: My stubbornness paid off as into the second third of the Reinado Grand Empire Reserve Ecuador Edition the burnline has completely corrected itself and is now burning razor thin, and dead even. The flavors began to ramp up a bit and a really strong nutmeg has taken over with some soft spice, cedar, honey, citrus and earthiness underneath. The beer I paired this cigar with is really bringing out the citrus and spice elements of the experience. The retrohale is brilliant, coating my nasal passage with a very strong spice and some nice cedar. The draw is still perfect and I am feeling nothing at all in terms of nicotine.

Finish: The Grand Empire Reserve Ecuador Edition really starts to shine in the final third. The spice has really ramped up and brought the cedar and citrus along with it. Some more pepper has crept back into the mix as it hangs out with the natural earthiness and honey. There is also some interesting leather in the aftertaste that I didn’t start to pick up until the last inch and a half. The Ecuador Edition took me a little over an hour to take back and it outside the first inch it burned flawlessly. I never once had to reach for my lighter. The finish was very smooth and very creamy and resembled the body at the start of the cigar with no harshness at all and absolutely no signs of a nicotine kick.

Overview: I don’t often grab Connecticut shade cigars from my humidor. And when I do, there are only a few that really do it for me. One of those, has to be the greatest Connecticut shade cigar I ever had, E.P. Carrillo’s New Wave Connecticut. Reason being is it delivered greatly in the flavor category, the category in which I feel most Connecticut cigars fail in. How did Reinado’s Grand Empire Reserve Ecuador Edition do? Let’s just say I can’t decide which one I like better. Yes, its THAT good. The Ecuador Edition leads off with some creamy, complex flavors which continue to dance with each other for a majority of the experience making sure that I am always entertained. Then, a little more than halfway in the Ecuador Edition opens up and showcases it’s potential by intensifying it’s flavor and ramping up in body before finishing just as smooth as it started. I know some of you may want to know how it measures up to the standard Grand Empire Reserve and quite frankly, you just can’t compare the two. Let’s just say if it was 10am and I was headed out back to enjoy coffee and a smoke, the Grand Empire Reserve Ecuador Edition and E.P. Carrillo’s New Wave Connecticut would have to fight to their death. Winner get’s smoked.

Pairing: I decided to pair the Grand Empire Reserve Ecuador Edition with a bottle of Sierra Nevada’s Ovila Abbey Saison which is brewed with Mandarin oranges and peppercorns. Brewed in California this farmhouse ale comes in at 7.5% ABV and delivers a very bold, citrus and fruit experience. The peppercorns add a really subtle spice that you only really pick up on this finish as they blend in with the citrus and sweetness. As I stated before the spice and citrus really helped pair up and bring out the flavors in the Ecuador Edition while adding a bit of sweetness which resulted in a flawless pairing.

The post Reinado Grand Empire Reserve Ecuador Edition Petit Lancero appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.