Today’s review comes courtesy of Lou B. who you can find in the comments section every now and then. I met Lou at a herf a little while back and he’s been holding some awesome Cigar-B-Cue’s where we eat, smoke, drink and talk. At the last little gathering, Lou handed me a Rocky Patel Vintage 1990 and said that I had to try it and squeeze in a review if possible. We chatted a little about how my history with most Rocky Patel sticks is a little shaky but I would give it a shot.

So here I am today about to light up this cigar. I have had a few Vintage 1990’s a while ago but it’s been a rather long time so other than a few notes I made for myself I don’t have much to go on. I actually decided to ignore my old notes and go at this one blindly!

The Rocky Patel Vintage 1990 is the oldest cigar in his vintage line. This particular blend is made with Maduro Broadleaf wrapper dating back to 1990. So the wrapper on these cigars is near 12 Years old and apparently the filler is at least 5 years old before being rolled. That makes for a very well aged cigar right out of the box so let’s hope it has the smoothness you would expect on such a well aged smoke.

It seems that the Vintage 1990 line is also available in a wide variety of vitolas that come boxed in quantities of 20. I even stumbled upon some being sold as bundles so you can save a few dollars there too. The vitola Lou gifted me with happens to be their Churchill which also has a box-pressed look to it. The cigar also seems a lot smaller than the claimed 48 ring gauge, possibly due to the pressing. I’d say this cigar is almost around 42 or 44 ring gauge from a quick glance.

Now this cigar also has quite the reputation which can sometimes hinder a cigar. It’s been given a 92 rating by Cigar Aficionado and even been named to the Top 25 Cigars of the year twice. So this sets the bar fairly high when you read something like that before lighting up. But regardless of that, I’m going into this review with a clear mind and hoping for a good smoke. This one’s for you Lou!

Cigar: Rocky Patel Vintage 1990
Drink: Innis & Gunn Winter Beer 2011
Vitola: Churchill (7 x 48)
Wrapper: Honduran Maduro Broadleaf
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Dominican/Nicaraguan
Price: About $8.00
Burn Time: Just short of 2 hours

Construction:
• The wrapper on this cigar is velvety smooth and has the color of milk chocolate bar, it’s actually quite appealing to look at
• There are some veins and seams running along it’s length but none of them look large enough to pose any problems
• The vitola on this cigar is pretty interesting, but despite that the single cap looks to be expertly applied and clean
• The foot follows in the same ‘footsteps’ (cheesy pun, I know…lol) and is very well packed
• That also links into the fairly firm feel of the whole cigar, there is a tiny give when squeezed but not much, I think I’ll blame that on the box pressing process
• The cap clipped off nice and easy but left me with a bit of a tight draw, hoping that doesn’t continue and it opens up soon
• Glad to report that the draw opened up nicely within the first inch

Burn:
• The toasting was easy and fairly even, getting me off to a good start easily
• I usually get some funky burn lines on box pressed cigars but through the first couple inches this one is flawless
• Not much to report here, as I get to the halfway mark I’m still moving along flawlessly
• Still more nothing to report, lol. No wavy lines, no canoes, no tunnels, just the way I like it!

Smoke & Ash:
• There is a ton of resting smoke coming off this cigar, could be a little too much if I were in an enclosed room
• Even with a tight draw, I’m still picking up a fairly good amount of smoke from each puff
• The ash on this cigar is a nice even tone of light gray and is keeping itself fairly clean and tight
• Got to just about an inch before the ash fell off
• Next ash got to about an inch again before I tapped it off cause it was looking ready to fall
• Seemed to get a pretty consistent 1 inch ash on these that stayed clean

Tasting Notes:
• Running the cigar under my nose gives an easily noticeable aroma of coffee, but mostly of cedar. It’s light and pleasant, not overpowering
• The foot does away with the coffee but does carry the aroma of cedar and maybe a little bit of greenery
• I get the same greenery and cedar flavor as I take a pre-light draw after clipping the cap. Also an odd liquor type of flavor, almost like infused but you can tell it isn’t, interesting to see if that will carry into the smoking experience
• Initial flavors are mostly woodsy and earthy notes, maybe with a hint of coffee in there
• The coffee flavors are developing a bit as the cigar burns, still very mellow but they are there, maybe with a bit of cocoa too
• The start of this cigar as been fairly mild for the most part, maybe just approaching medium and the retrohale has almost no bite but gives a smooth cedar and coffee finish
• The liquor flavor I was getting is making slight appearances here and there, I can’t quite put my finger on what it is but it’s keeping the experience interesting. It’s sort of sweet and mixed with the coffee flavors I guess my closest comparison would be Kahlua or something similar
• The whole cigar seems to be quite well balanced to me, I’m getting a good variety of flavors that keep changing up on me and keeping me interested, none of them are overpowering the others
• The array of flavors has stayed the same through to the last third but the fact that they keep taking turns being the dominant one has kept me interested and enjoying the whole cigar so far
• Flavors got a little more intense near the nub, but no harshness or bitterness so I got to enjoy it to the very end

Final Thoughts:
So I have to admit I came into this cigar with some hesitation due to my past experiences with Rocky Patel sticks. I’ve had a few good ones, but most were not in my flavor profile. Even with Lou’s claims of how much he enjoyed this I was a little worried. I’m happy to report that I enjoyed this cigar! I wouldn’t put it into my top 10 but I would keep it on regular rotation as a reliable mild/medium bodied stick if I can find it on sale or maybe in the bundles. It had an interesting set of flavors that were very well balanced and it burned superbly. I don’t really have anything negative to say. If there was one critique I could make it’s that the flavors were not very pronounced. They were there, but you really had to sit and concentrate to pick up on them. Maybe this is due to their extended aging? I’m not too sure… You could easily enjoy it’s smoothness without paying attention, but if the flavor were a little more intense, this might have been a top 10 contender for me.

Pairings:
It’s no secret that I’m a HUGE fan of the Innis & Gunn Brewery and everything I’ve tried from them to date. Their Oak Aged Beers are simply the best I’ve been able to find so far with a sweet caramely smoothness. Every year they also come out with a Winter Seasonal, and as I mentioned in my last review, I’m a bit of a sucker for Winter Seasonals. So I had to get this, their Winter Beer 2011! The crappy part is that it’s only available in a Sampler pack here. Although I really enjoy their other beers in the sampler, it comes with a glass. I think I’m up to 5 or 6 Innis & Gunn glasses now because I keep buying the sampler packs they have for their seasonal beers… lol. But enough about my ranting, this beer keeps to my expectations for this brewery and brings a TON of flavor to the table. Along with the classic Oaky notes, you can pick up some citrus, vanilla, toffee and the signature caramel smoothness. All of their beers seem to pair best with a good mild or medium bodied cigar, so it fit very well in with the Rocky Patel Vintage 1990. Other good pairing would be a similar beer like a blonde or amber, and possibly a nice cup of coffee.

The post Rocky Patel Vintage 1990 appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Again, I am using a 1 day old camera, and I have no idea how to use this thing properly yet, so you will have to excuse the crappy pictures. This is a cigar that I have smoked the crap out of in the last few years, yet I never got around to reviewing it. In fact, one of our very own readers Jeff even sent me one cause he “noticed we didn’t have a review up”. Point taken sir, and here is your review.

The Good Stuff: Oliva’s Master Blend Series is the third installment in the Liga Maestra or “Master Blend” Limited Edition Series. I smoked the 2^nd cigar in the series, but wasn’t lucky enough to get my hands on the Master Blends 1, which I hear is an absolutely amazing stick. There isn’t a whole lot out there as to why this cigar was created, other than it was specifically blended to deliver the richest characteristics of Nicaraguan ligero fillers and broadleaf sun-grown wrappers. Clear and simply put, a showcase of what Oliva can do. These run about $9.50 a stick.

Size: 5 x50  –  Wrapper: Connecticut Sun Grown Broadleaf  –  Binder: Nicaraguan Habano  –  Filler: Nicaraguan Ligero

Prelight: Oliva has always carried with it a great value, without skimping out on quality and construction. The Master blends series is a perfect example of the paramount quality we have a grown to expect from the factory. Starting with the semi-box pressed, almost oval, wide body leading up through the dark chocolate, darker spotted body, up to the round, seamless double cap you can see exactly what I mean by the flawless construction. Ian Hummel from Regional Sales Manager for Oliva (@OlivaIan) actually noted “the “almost box press or oval” shape you are referring to on the MB3 is what we call “flat press” in the factory.” Flat press eh? I REALLY wish more lines carried this format. It has to be one of my favorite shapes of all time.  The wrapper is real tough and toothy giving off a hell of a lot of shine from the oils.  The composure of the cigar is really hard and barely has any give when I squeeze it. There are almost no visible veins throughout the entire body of the cigar. The band on the Master Bends series is remarkable in design. Tobacco Fields, golden “3” crest, “Oliva Family MB” logo, Portraits, more crests, and even a nice gold embossed back band, this cigar band has it all. The wrapper on the Oliva Master Blends 3 gives of a really sweet, strong cedar and nutmeg smell. You don’t even have to hold the cigar too close to your nose to pick it up. The foot has much of the same cedar and nutmeg along with a really strong spice that actually tingled my nose a bit as a took a big whiff.

Oliva’s Master Blends 3 cut clean and easy as hell using my double bladed Palio cutter. The cold draw produces this absolutely awesome sugar cookie, cedar, spice mashup. If this is any tell as to the flavor of the cigar then I am in for a real treat.

First Smoke: I really love the format of this cigar. It feels so confortable in hand. The Master Blends 3 starts out with just a tiny, little pepper kick before fading right away and leaving behind a very powerful cedar, sweet tobacco, cinnamon, and even some of the sugar cookie I picked up in the cold draw. The draw on this Master Blends is right where I would want it to be. It takes a few puffs and then my mouth is full of this super thick, lingering smoke. The burnline on this cigar is razor sharp with some very small waves, leaving behind this awesome looking, tight, white and light grey zebra-striped ash. I was about to take a picture of just how awesome the first inch of ash looked when I realized that the flash on my new camera likes to pop open whenever it feels like, shooting the ash into my face. Alas, you guys will have to deal with whatever I give you. Sorry!

Halfway There: Ahh, that wasn’t too bad I hope. I am still playing around with this thing and trying to develop a new scheme for my photos. The ashtray pics just don’t do the cigar justice anymore. Anyways. We are now in the second third of this Oliva Master Blends 3 and what an nice experience this has turned out to be. The flavors are still this dominant cedar, sugar cookie with some nice cinnamon and even some creamed coffee coming in now complimenting the nutmeg. Maybe it’s the cigar, maybe it’s the change of weather, but this cigar is something that would go great with some nice pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks. The retrohale is really smooth coating with a very strong cedar flavor. I am feeling very little nicotine from this cigar at this point, if any at all. The burnline is still solid, and so is the ash, which says a lot considering just how windy it is outside right now.

Finish: I don’t know what kind of magic Oliva used on these bands but that huge thing slide right off without a hitch! Now rounding the corner on the final third of this Master Blends 3 and the flavors have, for the most part remained the same. The cedar is still the main storyteller and has actually became much sharper as the coffee and nutmeg have completely faded away leaving behind some subtle sugar cookie and cinnamon. The cigar is the epitome of winter in my house while my wife is baking. I am still only feeling very little nicotine, but there was absolutely no harshness even into the final inch of this cigar. It did start to burn a little hot into the nub, but a lot of that weighs heavily on the fact that I could not put this cigar down.

Overview: It’s obvious that I liked this cigar. I have always liked Oliva, and even more so considering the value of each of their lines. Producing high quality cigars and very low prices. The Master Blend series is their run at showing just how premium they can be. Although it’s one of their more expensive cigars, the Master Blend series is comfortably priced at a standard in which many other cigar manufacture’s base lines are priced at today. Well worth it. The great and complex flavors were a treat from the very beginning and continued to tell the Master Blend’s story through the very end. There wasn’t a lot of change-ups, but considering the flavors in the mix, I wouldn’t have had it any other way. This is a perfect cigar for any novice trying to break though to the high-range area, or even the most seasoned cigar smoker looking for an all around solid stick. Every humidor should have a few of these cigars in it.

Pairing: Another Belgian beer Tony? Yes! And if I had my choice I would paid ALL MY CIGARS with Belgian beer. Hell, I’d pair everything I ever smoked, ate, or even drank with Belgian beer. Belgian beer paired with MORE Belgian beer? Now we’re talking! Although that’s far from true, Belgians have, and will always be my beer of choice. This week’s pairing is Van Steenberge’s Gulden Draak. I’ll go out on a limb and say that means “Golden Dragon” which is strange, given that the beer is actually an amber brown. Even more strange is the fact that this is classified as a Triple, yet the only resemblance to a triple is the 10.5% ABV. This beer is a very sweet, very smooth strong ale. It boasts creamy flavors such as orange, hops, caramel, cherry, and clove as it transcends into one of the smoothest stronger beers I have ever had. Needless to say, this was a perfect choice as it really accompanied the Oliva Master Blends 3’s sweetness, and nutmeg/cinnamon medley. This cigar would go PERFECT with some sort of sweet latte, and even a Bruin or strong brown ale.

The post Oliva Master Blends 3 Robusto appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Prelight: Woah, now this is a dark cigar. In the picture above  it’s even hard to make out where the cigar ends and my black dining room table begins. The wrapper of this cigar is one of the darkest I have ever seen, black and a very dark brown with an almost perfectly consistent color minus the extra darkness around the foot. The wrapper is very old and rustic looking, tooth, and full of thick veins. Hopefully they won’t be any burden as I smoke through this cigar. The wrapper shines like duct tape, reflecting tons of sunlight off the beaten body before leading up do the seamless round double cap. I may be wrong but this cigar really looks like it has had some better days. Well aged maybe? At this point only Brooks knows.

Outside of the cigars visual characteristics Cigar #7’s wrapper pumps out a very rich cedar and an almost sandalwood type aroma. It smells a lot like incense. The foot of the cigar only gives off a very slight leather and muddy type smell. The cigar cut easy and clean using my double bladed Palio cutter, although the wrapper seemed really thick. The cold draw on this cigar is rather interesting. It tastes much like I am eating a gingerbread cookie. Sweet sugar, cinnamon, and a bit of coffee. The draw is a bit tight though but hopefully that opens up as I smoke the cigar.

First Smoke: This cigar was crazy easy to light using only my single flame butane torch. The first surprise was the pepper. I really didn’t pull any signs of pepper form the scent of the cigar, nor from the cold draw, but this cigar threw out a little fit of pepper shortly after lighting up. After the pepper, the cigar gets rolling with nice cedar and strong espresso flavors. There is a bit of that brown sugar I mentioned in there but at this point the strong coffee flavors are dominating the experience. The draw is a little tight, but a whole lot easier than I was expecting. It only takes a view puffs to get a good thick draw from this cigar. The stationary smoke is crazy, giving off massive trails of smoke the entire time this cigar sits in my ashtray.  The burnline on this cigar is crazy and really has a mind of its own burning way deep on one side of the cigar while the other side struggles to keep up.  The ash is interesting too. It starts off very dark grey but then turns into this flaky mess of white and light grey ash with dark spots around the edges. The ash held on for about an inch before giving way.

Halfway There: I don’t know how it did it, but this cigar has almost completely self-corrected the train-wreck of a burnline into the second third. The main flavor is still the bold espresso, now with a ton of dark chocolate, and only a slight bit of cedar mixed in. The retrohale on this cigar quickly reveals there is still a ton of pepper and spice waiting to take part in this cigar’s experience. Outside of that, the more I smoke this cigar, the more the body builds. Another side note is this is a very dry cigar. What I mean by that is no matter how much water I drink I am still left with this sore dryness left in the back of my throat. Maybe it’s just the dry desert heat, or maybe it is in fact the cigar. Whatever the case may be I felt it was worth mentioning.

Finish: As quickly as the chocolate came, it faded. I am not left with a rich espresso flavor with the cedar, spice, and even the pepper creeping back into the picture. This cigar does have it’s share of change-ups. Maybe it’s just me, but the body of this cigar is ridiculous. It just keeps building and building in attempt to completely blow me off my feet by the end of the cigar. It really packs a punch. Sadly, with only an inch remaining in this cigar some blatant harshness began to find it’s way into the experience. All in all, this cigar took a little over an hour to take down.

Overview: Although this being a very interesting experience, cigar #7 didn’t go without flaw. The harshness, burn, flaky ash, and flavors didn’t wow me as much as I wish they would. My main complaint about the flavors were the pepper and espresso really dampened the nice cedar flavor that was dying to show through. I think if the cedar had more room to grow it would have resulted in a much more tasty, and smoother smoke. I did like the cigar’s ability to rapidly change up, and the full body that just continued to build and build. This isn’t a cigar I would go chasing after, but I wouldn’t mind having a few lying around for those days that I want to reach for something stronger.

So what did I think it was? I’d really have to coin this cigar as a La Flor Dominicana. The flavors matched, as well as the pepper, spice and body. But I am not completely sold on this being a Nicaraguan Puro cigar. The wrapper kicked out tons of flavors but the backing flavors weren’t as bold and straight forward as I come to expect from Nicaraguan tobacco. My second guess would have to be a CAO Maduro. I have had a few very well aged CAO Maduro’s lately, and despite them normally being flat experiences, age does them very well.

And the reveal! This cigar was a Padilla La Terraza Maduro! Yeah I wasn’t expecting that.

Padilla’s La Terraza line is the newest value line released earlier this year. The cigar is a Nicaraguan puro and each of these cigars run about $4.50 for a single, or roughly $80 for a box of twenty. With that in mind, does it change my thoughts on the cigar any? Not entirely. But what it does do is it take this cigar into a totally different spectrum. I was honestly expecting at least an $8 stick. That alone tells you that this is a hell of a cigar for the money! Now that I know the price I really do think this is a cigar I’d like to keep around. It’s the perfect “high volume” everyday cigar. It fits right up there with CAO Traviata, or even the Henry Clay that Brooks threw my way during our last set of blind reviews. Boxworthy? Totally.

The post Blind Review #7 from Smoking Stogie appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Smoke Inn has been on a roll getting some of the most exclusive, and top notch cigar manufacturers to create exclusive Microblends for them. First it was the Tatuaje Anarchy, followed by the Padron 1964 SI-15, and now Don Pepin Garcia and family teamed up with Smoke Inn to bring you the My Father El Hijo.

The El Hijo, or Son, will be released in only one size. A Box-Pressed 5.5 x 52 with an unfinished foot. The cigar is composed of an all Nicaraguan binder and filler wrapped with a very rare limited edition harvest of 2009 Ecuadorian Habana leaf. The El Hijo will come in boxes of 15 and average about $9.75 a stick. This falls in line with other cigars in the My Father series. Again, these cigars will only be available from Smoke Inn and will go fast. They are due out at the end of August.

Size: 5.5 x 52  –  Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano  –  Binder/Filler: Nicaraguan  –  Body: Full

Prelight: Seeing a My Father cigar in box-press form is definitely a surprise from me. The El Hijo is a venture from the standard My Father lines in more way then one. The obvious box-press shape combined with the unfinished foot really make for some interesting appeal. Outside of those characteristics the El Hijo still carried the standard superb construction we all come to expect from the My Father factory. The consistent, medium brown wrapper contains almost no veins and is blends flawlessly into the round triple cap. I almost can’t make out where the body stops and the cap begins. This My Father, like many others carries a double band. The first one is the traditional, amazingly designed “My Father” band with green, red, pink and orange ink mixed in with a ton of gold embossing. The secondary band is very different. It still carries the standard My Father branding but it’s painted this strange, dried mustard color with the words “El Hijo” laid in prominent black ink. The cigar is solid all the way through. No soft spots, and only very little give when I compress it between my fingers.

The El Hijo’s wrapper gives off this crazy pungent barnyard scent while the foot has a much more spicy/peppery  composition. The cigar cut very easy, and clean using my double bladed Palio cigar cutter. I am really only pulling this very natural taste from the cold draw. There is a bit of spice in there but mostly it’s a grassy/earthy flavor and not much else.

First Smoke: Lighting the El Hijo was a cinch with the unfinished foot. But I am always a bit weary about how the burnline will fare once it gets to the wrapper. Luckily for me, this cigar did well with keeping a modest burnline even into the wrapper. The first initial flavor was a nice burst of pepper. Not anything in your face, but just enough to let you know it was there. Quickly the pepper faded and I was left with a very spicy, woodsy, leather, and a creamy coffee. This cigar doesn’t start off with as much bite as I was expecting. A lot smoother. The draw from this El Hijo was just awesome. It took very little effort to get a mouthful or thick, heavy smoke. The burnline continued well for the most part, only producing very slight waves from it’s razor sharp line. The ash left behind was a bit flaky, and very light grey. It only held on for about an inch before giving way.

Halfway There: Into the second third of this My Father El Hijo and the story is much the same. Very smooth, with nice flavors, but I can already start to feel a bit of nicotine catching up to me. The My Fathers are like that, sneaky SOBs. The main flavors are still this nice grassy, woodsy taste with some soft coffee and a really interesting caramel. That’s right. This cigar tastes like a grassy Caramel Macchiato. The retrohale on this El Hijo is a lot smoother than I thought it was going to be coating my nasal passage with a nice, creamy wood flavor. The burnline on this cigar is right on the money.

Finish: And here comes that standard Pepin/My Father bite that I am used to. Although the main flavors still remain overall grassy and earthy, the coffee flavor has really taken off as well as a reappearance from the pepper. Overall this cigar took about an hour and a half to take down, and remained extremely smooth the entire time. I took this cigar down as far as my fingers would let me and I experienced no harshness what so ever. Tons of nicotine though, this is a bold cigar with a ton of body.

Overview: The El Hijo is a damn good cigar. I really enjoyed it. The cigar carries all the same characteristics that the My Father, and My Father Le Bijou, but at the same time stands out by itself. A great micro batch cigar. In comparison to the My Father and the Le Bijou, the El Hijo seemed a lot creamier and an overall smoother experience. I personally liked the Le Bijou the best, backed by the El Hijo, and then the My Father. And the price seems to fit my opinion just right. Grab these while you can, the El Hijo is a perfect cigar for anyone who likes Pepin’s cigars or enjoys the My Father Line.

Pairing: I decided to pair this cigar with a nice bottle of Weihenstephaner’s Vitus Wiezenbock. Vitus, is a light, wheat style beer brewed at the Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan brewery in Germany. With an ABV of 7.70% Vitus is a perfect summer beer. Light in color but rich in banana, wheat, malt, and clove favors Vitus pairs perfectly with a sunny day, and almost any cigar.

The post My Father Cigars – El Hijo appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Let’s clear something up first.  Everyone seems to have their own name for this cigar.  Its equivalent to the music industries “Self-Titled” albums.  Remember back when Metallica released their self titled album?  Everyone had a name for it and it eventually became known as “The Black Album”. (Random example I know, but work with me here!)  I seem to see a similar occurrence with this line. The two most common names seem to the “The Padron Classic Line” or “The Padron Thousand Series” (obviously coming from the fact that most of their vitolas are numbers in the thousands). The actual name for this line is simply the “Padron Series”.

Padron is well known for their two more popular lines, the “1926 Serie” and the “1964 Anniversary Series”.  You can also check out my review of the 1926 40 Years or the 1926 No. 35 and the 1964 Anniversay Series Principe.  Those two popular lines often carry a fair hefty price tag whereas this line can be had at very valuable pricing.  It’s a diverse line coming in 15 different sizes and offered in both Maduro and Natural.  One thing to note is that the two different wrappers are usually very hard to tell apart.  The Natural wrappers tend to have a very dark color to them in my experience.

Although this is a much less expensive line, the cigars are still all hand rolled and are made using quality tobacco.  All of the tobacco included in the Padron Series is Sun Grown Nicaraguan and they are aged a minimum of 1.5 years.  The cigar I’m smoking today has also been in my humidor for close to 2 years.  So let’s see how Padron’s more budget friendly line stands up:

Cigar: Padron Series 2000 Natural
Drink: Innis & Gunn Oak Aged Beer
Vitola: Robusto (5 x 50)
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Price: About $4
Burn Time: A little under 1.5 hours

Construction:
• The wrapper is rough and has quite a few veins along with a dark cinnamon brown color
• The top is finished with a single cap, not terribly applied but a little messy
• The cigar has some slight give when squeezed but it’s mostly firm throughout
• Foot appears moderately packed, a bit of a gap in the middle which I’m hoping doesn’t cause a tunnel
• The band is fairly minimal and simple, comparably almost to some Cuban Montecristo bands
• The cut was nice and easy, leaving a clean end
• I made sure not to cut too much off the cap since experience tells me these can have open draw.  If you take care to make a shallow cut you’re greeted with a perfect draw

Burn:
• Toasting was nice and easy, the whole foot glowed evenly with minimal effort
• The burn is amazingly razor sharp through the first inch, almost no wave at all
• This Padron 2000 is staying lit easily without the need for me to keep drawing on it
• Through to the halfway point I’ve had absolutely no problems with the burn, razor sharp the whole way
• No burn issues right down to the nub, I never had to take my lighter out after the initial light. That’s the way I like it!

Smoke & Ash:
• Right from the first draw I’m getting a ton of smoke from this cigar with very little effort
• The resting smoke is also fairly prominent and gives off a nice cedar aroma
• The ash here is very good, has some very bright white spots accented with some darker grey areas
• Ash appears tight and neat but also seems a bit weak
• After a little more than an inch, I tapped the ash off into my ashtray
• The second ash fell off on it’s own into the ashtray after about an inch

Tasting Notes:
• Wrapper aroma is a mixture of hay and some coffee beans
• Pre-light draw brings more hay and a ton of earthiness, almost felt like I had dirt in my mouth for a second
• Initial draws have a very strong appearance of delicious coffee and some cedar notes
• The cigar starts off fairly mild and the retrohale has a nice light bite and a very smooth coffee finish
• As we get through the first third, I’m also picking up some mild cocoa notes here and there
• The finish on this cigar is very smooth and the whole profile is well balanced
• The coffee flavors are developing very well as I smoke this Padron 2000
• The cocoa notes are making a strong appearance near the last third and I’m also getting a nice nuttiness
• The body hasn’t changed much at this point, just a slight increase
• Retrohale has stayed nice and consistent with a tiny bite and smooth coffee finish
• The coffee flavors continue to get more intense, now more comparable to a stronger espresso
• The more intense coffee flavors along with woodsy, cocoa and nutty continued to the nub with very little bitterness, allowing you to enjoy it until your fingers burn

Final Thoughts:
Well I think the fact that I’ve ordered a few boxes of the Padron Series cigars may have already given up the fact that I really enjoy them, and this Padron Series 2000 Natural is no exception.  I think that’s easy to see from my notes above. I’ve always been met with great burn and flavors in all of the vitolas I’ve had from the Padron Series. They are also more on the mild side which make a great first cigar at a herf or an early day cigar. It’s also something you can pass out to new cigar smokers without hurting the wallet and you can be sure they will enjoy it. If you haven’t had the chance to smoke one of these or you are part of the group who thinks all Padrons are expensive, then you definitely need to track some of these down and give them a try. Considering the cost of these, especially if you find them on sale, you can’t go wrong.

Pairings:
For the pairing today we have one of my favorite summery blonde brews from one of my favorite breweries. It is the Innis & Gunn Oak Aged Beer. It’s a wonderful Scottish brew which is aged in Oak casks for a minimum of 77 days. I also paired this brew with Man O’ War Virtue a while back. Don’t let the lighter color of this beer fool you, it is full of flavor and surprising more bold than you would expect. You get the obvious oak flavors in every sip which make a wonderful layer on this brew. Along with that, you get some smooth caramel and slight malty flavor with a fresh and crisp finish. The pairing with the Padron Series 2000 was a pretty good one. The oak flavors in the beer accented the woodsy flavors in the cigar although I think the brew would pair better with a Connecticut. Coffee seems to be my favorite pairing with any of the Padron Series or a coffee flavored porter/stout.

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The Good Stuff: I really couldn’t find much information at all concerning this cigar. Basically, Viaje’s founder, Andre Farkas, is known for creating very small-batch, hard to find cigars. Even the more mass-produced lines such as the Platino are hard as hell to get a hold of. This is a Nicaraguan Puro that I have been DYING to get my hands on. Let’s see if the hype is worth it.

Size: 7.5 x 38  –  Wrapper: Nicaraguan Corojo ’99  –  Binder/Filler: Nicaraguan  –  Body: Full

Prelight: Viaje’s Platino Lancero starts off with a very uniform, dark chocolate, rustic looking brown wrapper. The long body carries quite a few larger veins that I hope won’t cause any burn issues as I smoke the cigar. The slender body leads up to a nice, round, triple pig tail cap. The smoker is greeted with a small silver ribbon on the foot, and the classic almost mystic looking Viaje logo embossed in green and silver on a very light yellow band. I REALLY like Viaje’s logo. It’s very different, and stands apart. For the most part the Platino Lancero is very firm, with only one soft, concerning spot about a inch big, and inch into the cigar. I don’t think this will cause any issues outside of maybe some flaky ash. Lanceros always seem prone to soft spots in my opinion, and as long they don’t really mess up the experience, I could really care less. A touch up, or relight isn’t going to really change my view of this cigar, but multiple relights really get on my nerves.

Anyhow, the body of the cigar gives off a very slight tobacco, woodsy, and chocolate aroma. Where all I could get of the foot was a very oaty aroma with a ton of spice and pepper. The Platino cut clean using my Palio double bladed cutter. The cold draw gives out this really unique, oats and grain taste with tobacco and cinnamon. It almost tastes like some sort of cereal.

First Smoke: Right out of the gate this platino is a smoke bomb. The draw is just way easy (in a good way) producing tons upon tons of thick smoke. Usually I will hit a cigar two to three times for each draw but there is no need to do it more than once in this case. And the stationary smoke is just nuts. Almost to the point where it’s annoying… Almost. The flavors are very smooth starting out with just a really nice tobacco taste, with a bit of honey, coffee cedar, and spice. This cigar starts off very full, but well balanced. The burnline on this Platino Lancero is thick, but dead even. The ash is slightly flaky, and a medium grey with darker spots. It only held on for about ¾ of an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Halfway There: The flavors began to smooth out even more into the second third of this Viaje Platino Lancero. The dominant flavor is this just smooth coffee backed by hints of honey and cinnamon. It’s strange, and welcoming that a cigar this full in body has such a smooth flavor profile and overall experience. The retrohale is pretty robust, coating my nasal passage with a very bitter chocolate and cedar. I am already getting a slight nicotine kick off this Lancero and I am barely halfway though it. I’m sure the beer I am pairing it with is a contributing factor to this as well. Burnline has been dead even the entire time and hasn’t required any touch ups at all.

Finish: Just as I was boasting about the burn not needing any attention, the cigar completely went out. Such as life. After a quick relight we were back in business. The final end finished off just as smooth, and just as strong as the first and second. That says a lot for this cigar. Tons of strength and tons of flavor with no harshness at all. It did however leave me with a nice little nicotine buzz. The Final flavors finished off with a light coffee, TONS of oats and grains, tobacco, and cedar with just a dash of sweetness. All in all this cigar took me a little over an hour to take down and smoked pretty fast for a lancero.

Overview: I actually sent a DM to Ben over at Nice Tight Ash (he actually threw this in a cigar pass we did for me) about how much I absolutely enjoyed this cigar. I haven’t had a cigar for a while where I walked away with such a feel-good feeling. The Platino Lancero really knocked it out of the park for me. Full body, smooth experience, tons of smooth flavors? What more can your ask for? Easier access to these cigar I guess as I CANNOT, for the life of me, EVER get them locally. If anyone has a few Viaje’s they don’t mind parting with, let me know and we will set up a trade! Anyways, this is all that I could ask for in a cigar. I should be tearing through a few more Viaje’s in the VERY near future (Thanks again Big Ben!) and just about everyone I had (minus the skull and bones #2 which I review here) have been dynamite. I would buy these again, by the box for sure. I wouldn’t really recommend these for the novice smoker strictly cause of the body, but I think any seasoned smoker will really appreciate all the Viaje has to offer with the Platino line.

Pairing: This Viaje Platino Lancero was paired with a bottle of Sierra Nevada Voilà. Ovila is a 7.5% ABV dubbel, Trappist monk style ale. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of these beers will go toward the restoration of the historic Ovila chapter house building on the grounds of the Abbey of New Clairvaux in Vina, California, just a few miles north of Sierra Nevada’s home in Chico. This beer had been on my radar since our good friend Bryan from 13th Floor cigars boasted about it over twitter to me a while back. All in all the match was dead on. The fruity, smooth, caramel flavors mashed perfectly with what the cigar had to offer. My only hesitation with picking up another one of these beers is for the same price you can go straight with a Chimay, Orval, or Westmorel.

Also, if you haven’t already entered our contest to win one of 10 2packs we are giving away of La Aurora’s new Para Japon cigar, head over to this post and do so. The contest ends tomorrow!!

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The Good Stuff: That Carrillo gang really wanted to stretch Connecticut blended cigars to a new level when the started formulating the New Wave Connecticut blend, hence the “New Wave” in the name. Will such a bold statement stand the test? I have never been much of a Connecticut cigar smoker, but everything put into this blend makes me thing that it just may have what it takes to get my attention. These sticks were sent to me directly from Ernesto, and will soon be released in four different sizes: The Stellas (5 1/8 x 42), the Brialliantes (5 x 50), the Divinos (6 x 52), and the Gran Via (7 x 49), and will range from $4.50 to $7.00 a stick. Unlike a lot of other EP Carrillo blends, this will be a full addition to their portfolio and will be available year round.

Size: 5×50  –  Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut  –  Binder: Nicaraguan  –  Filler: Nicaraguan/Dominican

Prelight: First of all, I love what E.P. Carrillo is doing with these bands. Very presentable, elegant, and classy. Matching with the lighter wrapper color the band on the New Wave Connecticut, the band switches up a bit with a red and gold embossed crest on a white and light yellow band with goldish brown accents. The wrapper on the New Wave Connecticut is a absolutely consistent, light brown. The wrapper gives off a nice little sheen from it’s silky texture. There are a few larger veins running the body of the cigar leading up to a beautiful Cuban-style triple cap. The cigar is extremely firm to the touch with no noticeable soft spots. The Construction on this cigar isn’t anything less than stellar. Perfectly manufactured cigars seem to be the trend coming from every that Ernesto has put his name on since leaving La Gloria Cubana.

The Wrapper gives off ta very strong barnyard odor. Sweet and stinky with a more pronounced barnyard and earth toned foot.  EP Carrillo’s New Wave Connecticut cut perfectly clean and easy using my handy dual bladed cigar cutter. The cold draw is incredibly smooth, hitting me with a neat little milky, caramel flavor with some hints of tobacco mixed in.

First Smoke: The EP Carrillo New Wave Connecticut lit up with extreme ease under my triple flame butane torch. Right off the bat you can tell that this experience wont be that of you average Connecticut cigar. The experience starts off very smooth with a nice sweet, tobacco with some caramel, a dash of coffee and a dash of cedar. Not really the softer flavor profile I have grown to expect from Connecticut wrapped cigars. The New wave Connecticut boasts of almost cubanesque flavors, and a  lot of them. The draw is thick, and plentiful while showing just a little resistance. With the Cuban-like flavors comes the matching burnline. The burnline is a bit crazy with a large canoe that started out early into the smoke. The ash that the New Wave Connecticut leaves behind is very flaky, and spotty with a few lighter greys mixed in with a ton of darker ones. The ash held on for about an inch before giving way.

Halfway There: That crazy canoe has actually disappeared. Surprisingly the burn caught up to it and the cigar is now burning dead even. The flavors haven’t changed up too much. There was a very slight spice that came and went. Outside of that the flavors are still a very smooth, milky, sweet tobacco and caramel, with a little bit of toffee sneaking in. There was a little bit of wrapper cracking in both samples I smoked, but nothing that caused any problems during the experience. It’s just something that I have grown to expect from Ecuadorian tobacco. I didn’t expect to really feel any nicotine from this cigar, and my instincts, so far, have been correct. It’s been just completely smooth up to this point, with a very refreshing retrohale that coats the nasal passage with a very creamy cedar prime.

Finish: Just as I was hoping for, the last third of the New Wave Connecticut really ramped up in the flavor department once I got to the final third. I’m not saying there was a bunch of different flavors, the flavors just became more pronounced and a bit more stout. The dominant flavor was a really milky cedar, with the sweet candy-like backing flavors, and even some mixed in almond. I still haven’t feel a lick of nicotine from this cigar. All I can say is expect a very nice, smooth, and mild experience from start to finish with no harshness at all even into the final inch. In total, it took me about an hour and a half to tear through this New Wave Connecticut Robusto.

Overview: Although EP Carrillo’s New Wave Connecticut hasn’t hit the market yet, I can already predict it being a huge hit. Not just because everything he has made to date is golden, but because this cigar really takes Connecticut to a new level without losing it’s roots. The flavorful, Cuban type flavors combined with the smoothness of this cigar will reach a huge range of cigar smokers, and a just over $5 a pop who isn’t going to love these cigars?

Pairing: I took a huge risk with this pairing. Cherry Wheat Samuel Adams? That’s right. The beer boasts very strong cherry and fruit flavors. Enough to overpower almost any cigar. Why did I choose it? Cause it’s Connecticut. I find that most Connecticut cigars are a bit lacking in the flavor department so I figure I could pair it with this beer to bring out the sweetness in the tobacco and hopefully not overpower the cigar. Did it work? Hell yeah it did! This pairing was REMARKABLE.  In fact, the New Wave Connecticut even added to the taste of the beer! This beer is pretty easy to find (in the states) and I would STRONGLY recommend you guys to try this pairing out once you can get your hands on this cigar. Outside of the cherry wheat, this cigar would pair perfectly with your morning coffee or tea. Even a nice glass of apple juice.

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The actual company producing the Dona Flor cigars is Menendez Amerino which has been in business since 1978. The blend for the Dona Flor was created by Felix Menendez and offers a wide range of sizes from cigarillos up to up Double Coronas. They also have a few special blends in the line which were developed with the help of Arthuro Torano. I actually reviewed one of the special blends, called the Dona Flor Selecao, not long ago.

Today’s review is of the Double Corona with the Mata Fina wrapper. Some of the line is also available in Connecticut or Mata Norte wrappers. This will be my first review in temperatures that are NOT below freezing (Yeay Me!). It’s actually exactly 32F tonight as I light this up. So let’s dive into the review on this Dona Flor and see how it stacks up.

Cigar: Dona Flor
Drink: Innis & Gunn Oak Aged Winter Beer
Vitola: Double Corona (7.5 x 50)
Wrapper: Brazilian Mata Fina
Binder: Brazilian
Filler: Brazilian
Price: Around $5
Burn Time:

2 Hours

Construction:
• A long and slender shaped cigar with an appealing dark chocolate brown wrapper
• The wrapper displays some oiliness and roughness with a few larger veins, one in particular looks like it could cause some burn issues
• The cigar felt a little lumpy in areas but mostly gave a nice soft spring
• Although they say this is a 50 ring gauge cigar it seems a little smaller then that to me and it’s not box-pressed
• The overall construction reminds me of some old or mid-range handmade Cubans with it’s rough appearance
• The head is finished with a rough triple cap and the foot appears to be quite well packed
• The cigar cut Easily under my Colibri double bladed Guillotine cutter
• Initial draw seems to be a bit open but not too open that it ruins the experience
• Cut was nice and easy with only a slight mess
• Just past the halfway mark the draw tightened up a bit

Burn:
• Toasting was even and easy, any dark spots were easily cleared with a light exhale on the foot
• Despite the rough appearance the burn is going very sharp so far
• There’s no need for extra draws here, the Dona Flor is staying lit easily without extra attention
• No problems at all through the length of the cigar, my only complaint here is that it burned a little fast and got a bit hot near the end

Smoke & Ash:
• Ash is coming along even and tightly wound
• First ash held on about an inch before gently falling into the ashtray
• The smoke here isn’t overpowering, I’d say a little shy of what I’d like
• The second ash held nice and strong until tapping it off at almost 2 inches
• As the draw tightened up the smoke from each draw become a comfortable mouthful

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper aroma is mostly cedar with some mild tobacco
• The foot offers similar aromas plus a slight cocoa sweetness
• Pre-light draws have more cedar but along with it came a bit of a tart sweetness and some raw cinnamon
• My first impressions in the flavor department bring me a bit more tart sweetness and cinnamon along with the same cedar that been around
• Body is starting off in the mild range
• As the cigar progresses, cedar becomes the main flavor with the raw cinnamon sticking around. That tartness is coming and going
• At the end of the first third I’m starting to pick up hints of the cocoa I initially got on the wrapper
• So far the retrohale has been fairly straightforward, very mild with no bite and just a slight cedar finish
• As I approach half-way the flavors are balancing out a bit more and the cocoa is being matched with a nice coffee flavor I was expecting from this Brazilian wrapper
• The body increase a bit in the final stretch but nothing overwhelming, just holding steady in the medium range
• No bitterness on the finish and the flavors stayed consistent and balanced from the half way mark other then the coffee notes developing nicely to the end

Final Thoughts:
This was a perfect cigar to kick back and relax with. It’s nothing earth shattering or revolutionary but it hits a perfect balance of interesting and mild flavors that can be enjoyed any time of day. The milder body makes it a great alternative to Connecticut wrapper cigars in the early day with a coffee or any other time. It also burned exceptionally well making it an easy cigar to enjoy without requiring much attention. you won’t find a powerhouse or a pepper bomb here but you will find an enjoyable cigar at a fair price that can be included in your daily rotation easily. After some research I did notice they were slightly difficult to find online but not impossible. You can also ask your local B&M to sign up to be a wholesaler on their website to try and get the cigars in.

Pairings:
I can’t get enough of the beers that this brewery produces. I’ve been hooked on their Original and now the Scottish brewery of Innis & Gunn has hit another homerun with their Winter Beer. I’ve enjoyed the Original brew in my brevious reviews of the Camacho Liberty 2009 and the Man O’ War Virtue. You can see from those reviews how much I enjoyed that brew. Now the Winter Beer picks up where the original leaves off and brings a fuller and richer beer that has a warming effect for the winter season. The brew itself is aged in Oak barrels slightly longer then the original and produces a warm sweetness with some added vanilla and caramel notes on top of a delicious malty flavor. This brew paired fairly well with this cigar although I think it would have gone better with a Connecticut wrapped cigar. A better choice with the Dona Flor would have been a dark stout or porter, coffee or a dark cola.

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