The Good Stuff: La Casita Criolla or “The Creole Cottage” is the first, or one of the very few cigars that are actually constructed from 100% Connecticut Broadleaf. Pete Johnson goes into a bit more detail on the tobacco used for this cigar:

“Okay guys. To clear this up. Not all broadleaf is dark. The wrapper will be but the binders and fillers are made up of broadleaf tobacco also. When Jaime (Garcia) buys broadleaf, he buys in hopes to get good dark juicy wrapper, some medium color wrapper like La Riqueza and good binder but the other leaf that doesn’t make those grades is sorted by size and texture for filler. Again not every leaf will look like the wrapper. It’s all 100% USA Conn. Broadleaf. Jaime also buys all primings of broadleaf. Seco, Viso and Ligero. This is also how we are able to sort the filler to do the blend on the cigar.”

So yes, that’s right. 100% Broadleaf. I know that Broadleaf is expensive, and isn’t the easiest to come by so if anyone was able to create a cigar comprised of nothing but this leaf, it had to come from the My Father factory. The Garcias use more broadleaf than any other cigar manufacturer. And anyone that reads this blog knows that I am sucker for Broadleaf. Let’s hope this cigar doesn’t disappoint. The La Casita Criolla line will come in three different sizes, HCB – 5 1/8 x 42, HCBC – 5 5/8 x 46, and the HCBF – 6 1/2 x 48 and will be sold in the $7 range. That’s right, I was expecting a much higher price tag.

Size: HCBC 5 5/8” x 46  –  Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf  –  Binder/Filler: Broadleaf  –  Body: Medium

Prelight: What a vintage looking cigar, from the band down to the wrapper’s appearance. Although quite consistent in color the Casita Criolla sports a very rustic, almost beaten looking appearance. The construction is spot-on and the wrapper is a nice dark brown with lots of smaller darker spots around the ripples in the leaf. There are lots of very small veins throughout the slender body leading up to a nice round triple cap. The cigar is actually very first and puts up a ton of resistance when compressed with no soft spots at all.  The band is interesting and a departure form what we normally expect Pete to come up with. It’s very vintage looking with an almost old days, sewn on looking placement of the “La Casita Criolla” logo. As you rotate the cigar around you can see Pete’s embroidered logo as well as “Tatuaje Cigars Estelí” just before coming to a small sketch of a nice little cottage. Right away I get this crazy pungent smell from the Broadleaf wrapper.  It’s very barnyardesque with some nice chocolate and spice notes. The foot is almost just as stinky as the wrapper of the cigar bearing almost identical aromas.  The cap was easily clipped using my double bladed Palio cutter. The cold draw was a lot smoother than I had originally expected pumping out some inviting spice and coffee notes with just a hint of pepper.

First Smoke: Wow, the Tatuaje La Casita Criolla starts off as what I would call the epitome of smooth. Right away I am greeting with some very nice woodsy, cocoa, espresso notes that tend to transition into a bit of spice after a while. No pepper at all, but a whole ton of sweetness. The draw on this Casita Criolla is super effortless pumping out huge clouds of thick smoke with every little draw. The cigar doesn’t give off much stationary smoke, but the smell is pungent! Be prepared, this probably isn’t something you’d want to smoke around people who aren’t really into cigar smoke (or could work in your favor by keeping them away). The burnline is pretty thick but produces a very nicely compacted, light grey ash. The ash held on for about an inch before giving way.

Halfway There: The dark chocolate and sharp espresso flavors are really taking over this cigar, along with a nice creamy fruit hint here and there mixed in with some subtle spice. The Casita Criolla started out really smooth and has managed to become even more-so into the second third. Even the retrohale on this cigar is creamy and smooth coating with a nice creamed coffee style flavor. I’m really not feeling any nicotine, but this cigar is burning a little quicker than I expected. The burnline is still dead even.

Finish: Into the final third of the Casita Criolla and the spice that has been nothing but an aftertaste has really start to shine through. The cocoa and espresso are still the there in force, with a more creamier, milky flavor starting to creep in with still a dash of sweetness. This cigar took only a little over an hour to finish, requiring no touch-ups or relights. I started to feel a little nicotine at the tail end of the experience, but not really enough to call this cigar anything stronger than medium.

Overview: It may be a little early to call it, but I think Tatuaje’s La Casita Criolla has a VERY good chance in making it’s way towards the top of our “Top 10 Cigars of 2011” list. The flavors are smooth and powerful with only slight changeups where needed to keep me on my toes, the construction on these cigars are perfect, and the price point is actually cheaper then I expected knowing that these are composed 100% of Connecticut Broadleaf.

Pairing: Despite what most people think, Fat Tire was actually New Belgium’s second beer. The first being their award winning Abbey. Since then New Belgium has actually created a stronger, more premium Abbey with limited releases through their “Lips of Faith” collection. They call this their “Grand Cru Abbey Ale” and it’s exactly what I decided to pair this Tatuaje La Casita Criolla with. Abbey is a traditional strong, dark ale perfected by Belgium Trappist Monks, and in my opinion, one of the best brew styles available. With a malty flavor with nice Banana, Caramel, and Lemon hints its hard to believe that he beer boasts a 9.5% ABV. The sweet, creamy style of the beer blended perfectly with the smoothness of this cigar. It really made for a perfect pairing, even if it does leave you a bit loopy afterwards. I think this cigar would go well with any stout, porter, or brown ale as well as Dr. Pepper or sweet tea.

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These were sent to us courtesy of our Friends over at Gran Habano. Kicking off as one of this year’s first new releases, Gran Habano is leading the way with one interesting looking, elegant stick. The following is the press release which pretty much sums up the cigar.

Miami, Fl., October 18, 2010 – Time has finally come for the limited production Gran Reserva #3 cigar by Gran Habano to be released into the public. Medium to full bodied in strength the Gran Reserva #3 was blended by George A. Rico using aged Nicaraguan and Columbian tobaccos from the Gran Habano farms.

Composition of the Gran Reserva #3 consists of an 8 year old wrapper and a 7 year old binder from our Nicaraguan farm “La Santa Cruz”. The filler is a mixture of 7 year old Nicaraguan from “La Santa Cruz” and 8 year old Columbian from our “La Joya del Valle” farm. The cigars were rolled in early 2008 and have been aging for the previous two years making the overall components about a decade old.

George A. Rico explains that “Being able to age the leaf and rolled cigars for such a long period of time has created a very rich, smooth, yet complex smoke.”

Gran Habano will release the new Gran Reserva #3 with a Churchill(7×50), Pyramid (6 1/8×52) and a Gran Robusto (6×54). Due to the long aging process and special tobaccos used only 1,200 boxes of each size will be released across the country. New packaging will also accompany the Gran Reserva #3 to help distinguish it from our original #3 release.

Pricing will remain affordable at $6.80 (Churchill), $6.90 (Gran Robusto), and $7.10 (Pyramid) – not including local taxes. Shipments are scheduled to reach retailers during the first week in November.

It’s been a while since I reviewed a “Pyramid” or belicoso stick, so that’s the size I chose for this one.

Prelight: Gran  Habano did an excellent job making this cigar look extremely elegant without being too over-the-top. The band is an off yellow with a nice diamond texture accompanied by gold and brass metallic accents and the Title “Gran Reserva #3 – Gran Habano – 2008” on the front as well as a much smaller stamp “by George A. Rico” on the back. The band leads into a full body cedar encasing with the black “Gran Reserva” print on it, polished off with a very small gold fabric foot band. After you take the cedar off the cigar you are presented with a very beautiful looking, oily as hell wrapper. The wrapper is absolutely gorgeous. It’s a very milky, lighter brown with a few darker spots closer to the foot. This is one oily cigar. The oils actually come off on the tips of your fingers as you handle the cigar. The cigar is very well constructed and consistant leading up to the tapered belicoso style cap. There are only very few, almost flat veins throughout the body of the cigar. The cigar is a bit soft to the touch, but carries no flaws or soft spots that I could find.

The wrapper lets loose a very potent cedar aroma with a natural tobacco scent barely shining through. The foot gives off much less cedar but more of a pungent tobacco and leather aroma. The Gran Reserva #3 clipped clean using my double bladed Palio cutter. The cold draw puts out this massively musky/fruity taste with bits of pepper on the aftertaste. Tons of flavor that one can only hope will transpire into the actual experience.

First Smoke: The first few puffs give way to just a crazy amount of earthy flavors. The backing flavors are that of fruit, like a plum or something, and a dash of cedar with a very slight pepper on the after taste. The draw is easy, plentiful, and kicks out a ton of thick smoke. The stationary smoke is pretty much non-existant which surprises me as usually the more oils the cigar has the more stationary smoke I get. Not true in the case of the Gran Reserva #3. The burnline is solid, and dead even leaving behind a near perfect, light grey, thick and well compacted ash. The ash held tight for almost 2 inches before falling.

Halfway There: The retrohale on the Reserva #3 is ridiculous. I don’t find myself retrohaling a cigar very often, but the fruity cedar that coats my nasal passage on the retrohale keeps me doing it over and over. The second third introduced me to just a plethora of flavors. Everything from a very strong and smooth cedar, light cocoa, leather, earth tones, fruit, and even a bit of clove and ginger. I know, that may be really reaching, but there are a ton of flavors in this stick that really keeps the smoker on their toes. I’m not feeling any nicotine at all at this point. So far this has been reather smooth and enjoyable experience all the way around.

Finish: After a flavor bomb of a second third, the final third gave way to a much milder, smoother experience. The main flavor is now just tons, and tons of sweet cedar backed by hints of fruit, and hints of clove. Very smooth, with no harshness built up at all. I smoked this guy all the way down to the nub without feeling even the slightest bit of nicotine. Surprising for a cigar of it’s size. The cigar burned rather slow, coming in at about an hour and fourty five minutes smoke time.  No touch-ups, no relight. The burnline and ash were perfect all the way through.

Overview: The first time I smoked this cigar I remember being disimpressed by the first half, then totally wowed by the third. This time, I see the first part of the experience as more of a smooth introduction to the powerful, and complex flavors of the second half before finishing off crisp and smooth. Robert from Gran Habano was in town not too long ago and I had a chance to enjoy a cigar with him. We didn’t talk shop a whole lot, but one thing he did mention was that this year the Ricos would by pushing out new, more daring, unsafe blends. Sometimes it takes risks to earn rewards and if the Gran Reserva #3 has anything to say about this next year and the new Gran Habano, they are in for great year. This is definitely a luxury cigar at less than a luxury price, and I can totally see this being in my regular rotation. Very box worthy and something you should give a go if you find them sitting on shelves.

Pairing: I paired this Gran Reserva #3 with a long time favorite, Pawvel Kwak. Kwak is a 8.10% Belgium beer brewed at the Brouwerij Bosteels brewery. Kwak is a very spicy, zesty, fruity amber colored beer. The upbeat flavors made a wonderful pairing and even helped pull some of the more complex flavors out of this cigar. This beer isn’t too easy to find, but if you see it be sure to do yourself the favor of picking it up. It pairs perfect with just about any cigar or meal. The cigar would also go great with tea, or sweet apple juice. Something sweet with just a bit of natural fruit.

So now the question is. How many of you readers would actually hunt for a cigar like this? I know Gran Habano isn’t like some other manufacturers that kick out limited releases left and right. Given a stable past, and the recent push to release more risky cigars, would Gran Habano be a manufacturer that you’d keep your eyes on this year?

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The Good Stuff: The Singulare Phantom is the first Limited Edition run that Illusione have kicked out since they have been creating cigars. The Phantom is an all Nicaraguan blend, 6×50 that comes in boxes of 15 running about $180 a box.. There are only going to be a total of 1,000 boxes released. The Singulare series will be a limited run, ran once a year and will feature a different blend and size every year.

Size: 6 x 50  –  Wrapper: Nicaraguan  –  Binder/Filler: Nicaraguan  –  Body: Med/Full

Prelight: Illusione’s Singulare Phantom is an almost-toro sized cigar. The wrapper is a milky-brownish-orange with a whole ton of oil. I can actually feel some of the oil from the wrapper come off on my fingertips as I am handling this cigar. The construction is near flawless despite a few larger veins running the entire length of the body. I have noticed that a lot of Dion’s cigars sport more veins than you would expect, but they never really cause any problems. Needless to say, I’m not worried about this one either. The lengthy body is polished off with a seamless, round, triple cap. The Phantom is relatively firm, with no soft spots at all. The band is very similar to all the other bands that Illusione kicks out, only with 2 main exceptions. The first is, this is the first of the bunch with silver metallic embossed ink instead of the black and gold we are all used to. The second is two, very small, black, old English styled letters on the back of the band “E” and “L”. I am assuming this stands for “Edicion Limitada”.

The wrapper of the Singulare Phantom gives off a sweet, earthy aroma with the foot of the cigar kicking out a much more pungent, tobacco smell.  The Phantom cut very clean and easily with my double bladed cutter.  The cold draw gave off a very grassy, earthy flavor with just a slight sweet, spice aftertaste.

First Smoke: The Phantom lit up with extreme ease under my triple flame butane torch. Instantly I am greeted with a very subtle, and light pepper taste. The pepper soon fades into a creamy earthy, grassy flavor with hints of honey and spice. You can tell almost instantly that Dion was behind this stick, even if you had no idea what it was. The draw is incredible. Effortless, and thick as hell throwing out a massive, thick cloud of wood scented smoke. The Phantom gives of little to no stationary smoke. As in with almost all Illusione’s the burnline is thick and clean, leaving behind a nice trail of compact, darker grey ash which held on for almost 2 inches before giving way.

Halfway There: The pepper seems to be coming and going, but into the second third it’s completely apparent and almost in your face. Outside of the pepper (which again, faded completely after a while) the back-end flavors had a change up as well. The dominant flavor is now a really rich cedar, with the honey and spice still shining through. The retrohale is amazing, priming my nasal package with a deep cedar flavor. There really isn’t much nicotine coming through on this cigar yet. The burnline has become slightly wavy but it quickly corrects itself. I have a feeling the breeze has something to do with that.

Finish: The Singular Phantom burned slower than most Illusione that I am used to. All in all it took almost 2 hours to smoke this guy down to the nub. The band, and of the many reasons I love illusione, slid off with ease. The burnline was almost perfect, and cleared itself up anytime it wasn’t, with no touch-up or relights. The final flavors were perfect for the finish of this cigar. Tons of cedar/wood notes, a very slight return of the pepper, sweet honey, and spice. The Phantom finished VERY smooth and creamy. I was able to hit the crap out of this cigar without any complications or harshness even into the final inch. No nicotine kick. This is a perfect cigar no matter what time of day.

Overview: Dion is on fire. Just about anything that this guy has created have been right up my alley. Recently, I had a chance to sit down, enjoy a cigar, and talk shop with Robert at Gran Habano cigars and Dion’s name came up. We spoke about how he is so damn meticulous and it shows. His blends are pretty much produced with his taste in mind, and he knows exactly what he wants out of his cigars. Meaning, if you are a fan of a few of his sticks there is a good chance you’ll love them all.  The Singulare is a very smooth, medium, creamy cigar with a ton of flavor change-ups. At about $15 a stick this is a great cigar, but not something I’d smoke every day. Needless to say though, it’s worth the coin (especially if you buy enough to share with me). Box worthy by far.

Pairing: Winter to me, is the beer season. With all the warm porters and stronger stout seasonal’s the winter has to be my favorite time of the year, at least as far as beer goes. Because of the creamy, lighter bodied blend of this Singulare, I decided to pair it with a long-time seasonal favorite of mine, Brouwerij Huyghe’s Delirium Noel. Delirium Noel is the winter seasonal selection from the “Delirium” series which feature the wonderful “Delirium Tremens”, and the not so wonderful “Delirium Nocturne”. Delirium Noel comes in at 10% ABV and is packaged in a very festive white, painted bottle with red foil, and a metallic coated label the cute, iconic Delirium Pink Elephants ice skating in the snow, and carrying Santa clause who is dumping a ton of delirium bottles on a snowman (random, I know).  The reason I mention this is due to the “friendly” packaging this brew has actually been banned in Texas, as well as a ton of other states. It’s a pain in the ass to find, but a real treat when you do. The Belgium Strong Ale is a beautiful amber color. The ale produces a malty, spicy, mixture with a ton of fruit. It’s almost as if someone threw some apple cider in this ale. The  beer paired ridiculously well with the honey, creamy composure of the Singulare, not to mention due to the small lunch I had it buzzed the crap out of me. The Singulare would also do well with some sweet tea, a heavy Pilsner, and even an IPA.

Stay tuned this week. On Friday I will be posting a contest for a rare, and very nice accessory furnished to us by the wonderful people at Bonita Smoke shop! Next week we will also be posting our “Top ten cigars of 2010”. With all the new cigars that hit the scene this year this was a tedious task! Next month I will also pair a cigar review with a beer that I have been brewing myself over the past few weeks. Can anyone say chocolate/cinnamon stout? MmmmHmmmm!

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This Ashton ESG was sent over to us by our friends at Cigarsdirect.com. You can find the full listing of their ESG series here, the 22 Year Salute here, and the 20 Year Salute here. Cigars Direct was nice enough to send over both the 22 Year and the 20 Year for review. I smoked through both of them and did the write up on the 22 Year. The main difference between the two is the size. The 22 Year is a box-pressed Torpedo while the 20 Year is a a churchill. Both cigars retails on their site for about $33 -$34 ea. a single.

The Good Stuff: This is taken directly from Ashton’s website (www.ashtoncigar.com):

For twenty years, Ashton has worked tirelessly to produce one of the highest quality, most consistent cigars that are sold anywhere. To celebrate twenty consecutive years of increased sales and overall growth, Robert Levin and Carlos Fuente Jr. have teamed up to create the Ashton Estate Sun Grown, or ESG for short. Such a special occasion called for a very special cigar. The ESG uses a unique Dominican wrapper grown on the Chateau de la Fuente farm in the Dominican Republic. This wrapper has never been used on any other cigar. The blend is the creation of Carlos Fuente Jr. who is a master blender and has created the most sought after cigars in the world. With ESG the bar has been raised once again. 
 
Every year, Ashton will introduce one size of Ashton ESG for the next five years. In its debut year, a 6.75 x 49 size was introduced.  In the second year a 5.25 x 52 has been added along with the continued limited production of the first year. And so it will continue for three more years until 2010. From then on, all five sizes will be produced annually and made available to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Ashton. The rare tobaccos used in this spectacular cigar dictate that only extremely limited quantities can be produced.

Size: 6 x 52  –  Wrapper: Dominican Republic  –  Binder/Filler: Dominican Republic  –  Body: Medium/Full 
 

Prelight: The Ashton ESG 22 year Salute is a beautifully constructed box-press cigar leading up and tapering off into a perfectly rounded, sharp torpedo head. Much like A. Fuente’s Anejo Shark. The wrapper on the ESG is much lighter than the wrapper used on the Ashton VSG. It is a soft, consistent light brown with only a few darker spots around the foot. The ESG is very tightly packed and barely even gives when compressed between my fingers. I am hoping this doesn’t hinder the draw. There are absolutely no soft spots and only a few smaller veins running the length of the body. The band on the Ashton ESG has to be one of the most intricate, and beautifully designed bands I have ever seen. The front holds a dark blue sphere that is partially covered in cold embossed in by Ashton’s crest along with the “ESG” logo. Surrounded the sphere are pink roses and the words “ESG Estate Sun Grown”. The rest of the band is designed to represent a portrait of the farmland and of the Estate itself. The wrapper gives off a very sharp spice scent accompanied by sweet tobacco. The foot gives off a similar scent except the spice takes a backburner to the strong tobacco notes. The Ashton ESG cut with extreme ease using my Cuban Crafters double bladed cutter. The cold draw was a bit unexpected and produced almost nothing but an extremely earthy, almost bready type flavor.

First Smoke: I was pleasantly surprised with the ESG as I was expecting a very tight, semi-plugged draw but was introduced to the cigar with a massive, effortless draw. The first flavors were very spicy, earthy tobacco with a touch of almond. I know this is stretching it but this cigar tastes a lot like marzipan. The ESG only gives off a slight amount of heavily cedar-scented stationary smoke.The burnline is even for the most part with a few larger waves here and there. Not anything I’m too worried about. The burnline however was very clean leaving behind a very tightly compacted light grey ash. The ash looked extremely heavy and I anticipated it falling off very early into the smoke. So needles to say the Ashton ESG surprised me once again when the ash held steady for about an inch and a half before giving way. The ash that fell was like a log, producing a little “thunk” when hitting the ashtray.

Halfway There: There is no more of the pepper flavors into the second third of the Ashton VSG. The experience now consisted of a much more woodsy dominant flavor backed by a citrus, sweetness, and still a bit of nut. The retrohale is interesting too. It seem retrohaling is the only time I can still pick up the pepper, outside of that the retrohale coats with a very spicy, wood prime. The burnline is still very clean with only one major wave which is just running on its own, not really causing any problems. I can’t feel much nicotine yet, but the beer I paired this cigar with (read the “Pairing” section below) and the fact that I hadn’t eaten lunch is really starting to hit me.

Finish: Very surprisingly the gigantic band on this ESG slid right off. That wasn’t the case on the Churchill I smoked. The churchill’s band took a good chunk of the wrapper along with it, but maybe due to the tapered head the band on this guy slid right off. This cigar finished off relatively smooth with only a bit of harshness into the one inch mark. The profile of the final third was actually quite a bit bland. It felt almost as if the ESG hit you with the good stuff early, then just couldn’t keep up. It finished with nothing more than just a creamy tobacco flavor. Nothing really distinct outside of that. On a plus side, the waves corrected themselves into the final third and there was no need to ever touch up or relight this cigar. Not to mention no real heat was felt off the head off this cigar even into the nub. Also, still no nic-kick.

Overview: The Ashton ESG was a heck of a cigar. Outside of the disappointing marks into the final third this cigar kept my attention and even threw a few surprises my way. The complexity is there, and quality is there, but what about the value? That seems to be the only thing this cigar is really lacking. It’s a pricey stick, and probably a bit far out of my budget to be in my everyday rotation. I’d much rather keep the ESG’s little sister the Ashton VSG, which usually retails about about $10 a stick. The flavor profiles are different, but they are similar enough to be a good substitution.

Pairing: This Ashton ESG 22 Year salute was paired with some of Bosteels Family Brewers Pauwel Kwak and I can honestly say I couldn’t think of a better beer pairing for this cigar. Pawel Kwak is a full bodied Belgium Specialty Ale. Amber in color with a slightly sweet, malt character. I’m not sure what a “specialty” ale is but this resembles a Saison of Farmhouse ale with the spice and sweetness. Paweul Kwak boasts an 8.4% ABV and the citrus spice that transitions into a creamy sweetness paired perfect with the almost identical flavor character in the Ashton ESG.

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