The Good Stuff:

Let me start off by reminding you readers that we always take a non-biased approach to our cigar reviews. Bonita Smoke Shop has always been a big sponsor and supporter of our site, but that doesn’t mean we will give them any extra wiggle room while review their blends. That being said, let’s get to this.

Bonita Smoke Shop is a cigar shop located in Bonita Springs, Florida ran by Jackie and her great team. Bonita Smoke Shop is not only one of the larger shops in the area, but she also does tons of mail-orders around the U.S. so it’s not surprising to see that they offer a few house blends of their own. The first blend was the 18th anniversary which I won’t get into but you can read a full review here. The second is the Time Warp which one of our Guest Reviewers Jeff took on the “Big Ben” format and that review can be found here. Today, I’ll be looking at the newly released size of the Time Warp, the Corona. The Time warp was meticulously created by the joint effort of both Jackie and Willy Herrera at the El Titan de Bronze factory in Miami. That name should ring a bell as I am all about El Titan de Bronze and their incredible blends. The Time Warp is one of the blends that El Titan de Bronze utilizes an “Entubado” method of construction on. This method is usually preformed by women with incredible finger dexterity as they roll each individual filler leaf into tubes before before bunching which results in an effortless draw with a much lower chance of issues. While the exact tobaccos used in the Time Warp are kept a close secret, Jackie has released some information regarding the blend.

Bonita Smoke Shop’s site sates:

“Enjoy your own very special moment of time and pleasure with our newest cigar blend we developed with Willy Herrera of the famed El Titan de Bronze boutique cigar factory on Calle Ocho, Little Havana, Miami. In blending we chose a rare certified vintage natural maduro for the wrapper which lends a medium/to full medium rich flavor. Next is a well aged flavorful Nicaraguan binder. Under that is a superb three leaf entubado style construction of the best tobaccos the world has to offer.”

Jackie goes on to say:

“There is a moment in time for me, when I first light up a cigar, that is almost like entering a different time zone. A place where the cares of the day can evaporate like the smoke from the cigar and I find myself in my own island of time.”

The time warp is available in 3 sizes, the original Toro (6 x 50), the Big Ben (6 x 60), and the all new corona size called “The Time Zone” (6 x 47). All blends are available in 5 packs, bundles of 20, and the toro is available in a wheel of 50 all ranging between $6.49 to $7.95 a stick. It’s worth mentioning that this is probably one of the more affordable blends I’ve personally have seen coming out of El Titan de Bronze. While I’ve smoked my way through tons of all 3 sizes, this particular batch was sent to me by Jackie herself. You can purchase the Time Warp directly from Bonita Smoke Shop’s website, or contact Jackie on twitter for more information.

Size: 6 x 47
Wrapper: Vintage Natural Maduro
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan/Dominican
Body: Medium/Full
Strength: Medium
Price: $6.49
Pairing: Dogfish Head Red & White (Wine Infused Witbier 10% ABV)

Prelight:

Bonita Smoke Shop’s Time Warp starts out with a very beautiful, shiny, oily wrapper. The wrapper is silky smooth and a medium/dark brown in color. The color is consistent for the most part with some webbing and dark browns around the smaller veins that run through the cigar’s skinny body. It’s incredible the amount of light that reflects off the oils that cover this cigar. The Time warp is polished off with a round triple cap and no band showcasing the natural characteristics of the cigar and the tobacco used to roll it. The Time Warp is a bit spongy which is expected due to the entubado rolling method as it remains consistent throughout the length of the cigar. The wrapper on the Time warp is pretty modest with only soft natural tobacco aromas being released while the foot of the cigar carries a bit of spice and oak along with the natural tobacco scents. The cap cut very clean and like butter using my double bladed Palio cutter.

First Third:

Bonita Smoke Shop’s time warp starts off very tart with some bitterness on the lips before transitioning into some strong citrus, cedar, and lots of spice over some deep tobacco flavors. This cigar starts out as bold as they get but then quickly balances out after the first few draws. The draw, as expected with the entubado method is incredibly easy, pumping out huge clouds of thick, white smoke with every puff. The burn line is razor thin and dead solid leaving behind a trail of medium to dark great compacted ash which held on for about an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Second Third:

Into the second third of the Bonita Smoke Shop Time Warp and there has been this brilliant mixture of floral flavors and musk that have developed on the aftertaste of each puff. I love it, and it really helps add to the dimension of the Time Warp. The rest of the flavors remain the same with lots of citrus, spice, and oak. The retrohale is way sharper than I expected leading with spice and pepper. The burn line has remained consistent and thin leading into the final stages of the second third. I am also feeling almost nothing in the nicotine department.

Finish:

The more I smoke this thing, the more the floral and musk comes out. I love that, and while I did pick up hints of it in the other Time Warp formats, none were as dominant as they are in the Time Zone, so it may be coming from the wrapper. Again, the Time Warp Time Zone stays consistent in the backing flavors of spice, oak, and citrus with a bit of coffee starting the be mixed in. The flavor profile in this cigar is fantastic while the smoking experience has lived up as well with a clean burn then entire time with no extra attention from my lighter needed. It took me about an hour and half to take The Zone down and I experience absolutely no harshness or heat, nor did it leave me with much of a nicotine kick.

Overview:

The Time Zone is a wonderful extension to Bonita Smoke Shop’s Time Warp line. I enjoyed the toro very much, thought the Big Ben was good although it’s not my size preference, but the Time Zone is in a league of it’s own. The smaller ring gauge really lets the flavors from the wrapper shine through creating a much fuller experience. The flavors are balanced, creamy, and enjoyable especially the floral and musk flavors I picked up through the second half of the experience, flavors that were much more pronounced in the Time Zone than the other two formats. The construction, as expected coming out of El Titan de Bronze was spot-on and the price is incredible. You get a lot of cigar for such little coin. This is easily a bundle purchase and I am glad to have them on hand and in my regular rotation.

Pairing:

Dogfish Head is known for some very experimental brews, the Red & White is a Belgian Style Witbier brewed with coriander and orange peel and fermented with pinot noir juice. After fermentation a fraction of the batch is aged in oak tanks before being reintroduced to the beer. Coming in at 10% ABV this beer starts off very boozy with some sharp citrus and wheat with a heavy mouthfeel before finishing with lots of booze and caramel on the finish with some nice spice aftertastes. The reason I decided to pair this with the Time Warp was evident as the citrus and spice married up incredibly well with the flavors in the cigar. I’d also recommend pairing the Time Warp with some light wine, creamed coffee, or a smooth marzen.

The post Bonita Smoke Shop – Time Warp – The Time Zone appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff: By now, we should all be familiar with Paul and his Maldonado Dynasty. Not only does he make a great cigar, but Paul is an amazing individual who has supported us every step of the way. When he announced that he was joining forces with the boys over at La Aurora we couldn’t have been more pleased. Both are known for their vision, quality, and attention to detail. You can read more about the collaborative effort here.

Paul is pretty tight-lipped when it comes to any specifics on the Mogul’s blend. I really don’t know any of the specifics at all, but I do know the previous blend was composed of a Brazilian Ariparaca Maduro wrapper with Dominican Binder and Fillers so I can only imagine that those may remain the same. Paul eluded to an additional tobacco added to the new blend to finish of the blend and raise the strength. Regardless, it’s how the cigar preforms that matters and not what’s in it. The new Mogul comes packaged in boxes of 20 and will run $220 a box or $11 a stick.

Size: 4.75 x 54
Wrapper: unknown (Brazilian Ariparaca Maduro?)
Binder: unknown (Dominican?)
Filler: unknown (Dominican?)
Strength: Medium/Full
Body: Medium/Full
Price: $11
Pairing: Dogfish Head Palo Santo Marron (Imperial Brown Ale 12% ABV)

Prelight: The Mogul carries a ridiculously beautiful wrapper. The wrapper leaf is very dark brown with lots of darker brown webbing, a few larger veins, and a few orangish patches. I love when you can really see the natural characteristics of the leaf. The wrapper’s texture carries some slight tooth, and lots of oils. It feels pretty dense too as it leads up to the round, double cap. The Mogul is then polished off with the exact same yellow/beige band with the Maldonado Dynasty crest as presented on the first rendition of the cigar. In comparison to the old blend, the only real difference in appearance is the wrapper seems to be a bit darker in color. That doesn’t mean much though as similar wrapper leaf will almost always differ in darkness. The band looks as though it may be a different shade in printing, but I think a lot of that has to do with the amount of oils the old blend has soaked up. You can see the comparison above. The new blend is on the left, older blend on the right.

The Wrapper on the Mogul gives off a whole ton of cedar and tobacco aroma while the foot of the cigar carries some pepper, spice, and more strong tobacco aromas. The cap took a bit of work to cut due to the density of the wrapper leaf, but it was nice and clean once it sliced through. The cold draw revealed some strong pepper, natural tobacco, and spice flavors.

First Smoke: Maldonado Dynasty’s Mogul started out with a nice pepper greeting. Once that began to fade back the cigar revealed a very bold dark chocolate with notes of cedar, spice, and coffee. The draw is spot on kicking out tons of thick, white smoke. I was impressed with the just how thick the smoke was. It would just sit in from of my face as a huge cloud before slowly dissipating. The burnline is a bit wavy, but nothing too concerning leaving behind a very dark grey, flaky ash which held on for about an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Halfway There: As I jump into the second third of the Maldonado Dynasty’s Mogul, a really interesting tartness has begun to show it’s face in the flavor profile. As the tartness increases the cedar and spice mellow out leaving the dark chocolate and espresso running the show. The retrohale was way more stout than I was expecting coating my nasal passage with a very strong pepper and cedar. The burnline is still slightly wavy, but I haven’t had to pull my torch out yet while I am actually feeling a little bit of nicotine as I close out the second third.

Finish: Into the final third of Maldonado Dynasty’s Mogul and the flavors haven’t really switched up. The cigar is still very heavy on the dark chocolate and espresso with cedar, and spice notes. The black pepper did show back up a bit in the final third, but it remained on the mild side. It took me about an hour and fifteen minutes to take this cigar down to the nub. I experience no real heat issues or harshness as I closed it out. I also never had to pull my torch out of my pocket despite the early on waves. The Mogul left me with a little nicotine kick, but nothing too bad.

Overview: Paul mentioned that the new blend is just slightly tweaked adding more strength and a more refined edge to the Mogul blend, and that pretty much sums it up perfectly. While I enjoyed the first version of the Mogul, it seemed to be lacking just a certain something that the new blend really polished off. The Mogul isn’t overly complex, but it did manage to keep my attention all the way through. The construction was flawless, and the flavor profile was solid. I would have liked to see a bit more complexity in there, but that’s just my pain in the ass opinion. The other thing is the price. $11 is really pushing it for a Robusto, but this is what you need to expect from more boutique blends. It’s become the norm and quite honestly the price tag fits right in which what I would expect this cigar to cost. This is a solid cigar that I’d keep a few around of, but I won’t be doing mass box purchases of.

Pairing: Holy Pairing Batman! This is the perfect example on how the perfect pairing can add so much to the experience. Dogfish Head’s Palo Santo Marron is the epitome of a perfect brown ale. Coming in at a massive 12% abv this beer isn’t for the faint of heart. The Palo Santo Marron leads in with some really strong berry, malt, and chocolate while finishing very sweet with some nice oaky notes, spice and a slight tartness. See where I am going with this? The Chocolate, malt, and spice paired brilliantly with the Mogul while the berry and sweetness added a whole new layer of greatness to the experience. I know that Palo Santo Marron is one of my go to beer pairings as it goes well with almost any stronger/bolder cigar but this pairing in particular knocked it out of the park.

The post The Maldonado Dynasty Mogul (New Blend) appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff: Rocky Patel’s burn was originally only available if you visited Rocky’s own cigar lounge in Naples, Florida. This blend has since, been released into the wild for everyone to enjoy. There is a catch though. The original Burn carried a dark Sumatran wrapper which has since been swapped out for a Honduran leaf resulting and in Honduran – Puro cigar. Burn – Naples comes in 3 sizes: Robusto (5 x 50), Toro (6 x 52), and Torpedo (6.5 x 52). They are packaged in 20 count boxes and will run between $7.75 and $8.60 a stick. These samples were sent to me by our friends over at Rocky Patel.

Size: 5 x 50
Wrapper: Honduran
Binder: Honduran
Filler: Secret, and Scarce blend of Honduran tobacco
Strength: Medium
Body: Medium/Full
Price: $7.75
Pairing: Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA (American IPA 6% ABV)

Prelight: The wrapper on the Burn is a beautiful one, sporting an extremely consistent, milky brown character. The wrapper is slightly toothy with a trace amount of oil and only a few larger veins running the length of the body. The Burn is then finished off with a perfect, round, triple cap. The cigar is polished off with a orange, white, and gold band that simple says “BURN” on the front and carries a small Rocky Patel crest in the back. On the foot of the cigar there is a similar band stating the word “NAPLES, FL”. The cigar is very, very firm to the touch. It’s so firm that I actually fear the cigar may be jam packed and too tight to draw from.

The wrapper on Rocky Patel’s Burn smells like straight up cedar while the foot of the cigar gives off a very oaty, grainy aroma. The cap cut like butter using my double bladed Palio cutter. (Terrible rhyme). The cold draw produced a slightly sweet, cedar filled flavor profile.

First Smoke: The Burn starts off with a nice splash of black pepper which quickly faded into a very, very sweet tobacco and cedar profile with some vanilla and musk underneath. The draw is slightly tight, but not even close to bothersome. After a puff or two I can get the desired amount of smoke in my mouth. The smoke seems very thin, and dissipates very quickly. There isn’t even much stationary smoke coming from the cigar as it sits in my ashtray. The burnline is a bit wavy leaving behind a very flaky, bright white ash. The ash held on for a little under an inch before giving way.

Halfway There: The pepper is completely gone as I reach the second third of Rocky Patel’s Burn. The sweetness in this cigar is pretty intense, and not something Rocky has been known for. Boy do I wish I he was cause it really ads another layer to the blend. The cedar is still there, just not as strong while the vanilla and musk remain in the profile. The draw is still a bit tight, but nothing too bad, while the burnline has completely corrected itself and is now burning razor sharp and dead even. The retrohale is really smooth, as it coats my nasal passage with some really strong cedar and sweetness. I am feeling no nicotine at all at this point.

Finish: Rocky Patel’s Burn finished exactly as the first, and the second third. Sweet, sweet tobacco, cedar, vanilla, and musk. This is a great mixup, but I really with that it would have had a bit more dimension and changed up a bit more than it did. I am happy to report there was no real harshness until the final inch. Outside of that, the cigar finished nice and smooth with no nicotine kick, no touch-ups, and no relights.

Overview: This was one of the better blends I have had from Rocky Patel. The Burn carries some great flavors with an overall enjoyable sweet experience. My main gripes had to be the lack of change ups, and the tight draw. It was manageable, but on both samples I received I had to give a few extra puffs to really get it going. Would I buy it again? More than likely. Would I buy a box? This wasn’t really my cup of tea so I’d have to decline on that one. I do, however, think this is a perfect cigar for those of you who really like to kick back, and enjoy some great, consistent flavors in your smoke. The Burn really showcases how balanced an experience can be.

Pairing: With summer just around the corner, expect a lot more IPA’s sneaking their way into our reviews. I have never been one for IPA’s but I have discovered over the last year that it’s only the really piney, young tasting ones that get me. Ever since I discovered Imperial and Double IPA’s which tend to lack these flavors I have been addicted to them. One of the breweries that is known for its IPAs is Dogfish Head and their 60 Minute IPA can be found in just about any grocery, convenience, or beer store here in El Paso, Texas. The 60 Minute IPA is an American style IPA coming in at a modest 6% ABV which is brewed at the infamous Dogfish Head brewery in Delaware. This beer starts off very, very crisp with some great citrus and finishing with just a light pine and bitterness to it. One note is that the 60 minute IPA is named after the brewing process in which the brew is soft-boiled for 60 minutes as 60 hop additions incur. IPA’s are really tough to find the right pairing for as they tend to overpower your everyday cigar. I have noticed that the sweet, milder cigars really make for a great pairing with the bitterness and citrus from the beer. The Burn is a perfect example of that as the extra vanilla flavor from the cigar mixed with the hoppiness from the beer really clashed to create a nice, floral experience.

The post Rocky Patel – Burn Naples Cigar Review appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

I know, I know, the site was down earlier this morning and I am sorry. I set the domain to auto-renew on a closed account. I’m an idiot. But hopefully today’s review of Camacho’s Room 101 Namakubi Roxxo makes up for it!

The Good Stuff: The Namakubi was released at this year’s IPCPR show in Las Vegas, and the be honest, it was one of, if not the most talked about blend from the show. This limited edition release will only be available for a short amount of time. There is only going to be 100,000 cigars released. This may seem like a high number, but it’s considerably low once you factor in the volume Camacho sells at. The cigar will be available in six different sizes and will rand between $6 to $10. The names are just as interesting as Matt Booth himself. I know there was some sort of connection with the names and maybe a hip hop artist or something of the like, I just never fully made the connect. Maybe someone “in-the-know” can fill me in. The sizes are: “Papi Chullo” – 42 x 4, “Roxxo” – 48 x 4, “Tiburon” – 44 x 6, “Sucio” – 48 x 7, and the “Monstro” – 60 x 5. You can pick these up now at Bonita Smoke Shop before they are sold out!

In Room 101’s press release they define “Namakubi”:

Although in many ways long gone, Samurai culture is believed to live on in spirit within certain groups. In ancient times when two Samurai clans would gather for competition there was a great deal at stake. Normally, the losing party would die as a result of wounds sustained in battle or be executed upon defeat. The Namakubi, or freshly severed head of the losing party would be prepared on a wooden tray then tagged in a regimented manner and presented to the leader of the winning clan as a gift.

Size: “Roxxo” 48 x 4  –  Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano  –  Binder: Propietary “Generoso” Honduran Seed  –  Filler: Dominican/Honduran

Prelight: The Room 101 Namakubi Roxxo is a stout little cigar. The size is just awesome and I hope it turns out great. With winter quickly approaching Daniel and I (more so Daniel due to the great white north) are always looking for great, short smokes. The wrapper on the Namakubi is a nice medium brown which starts off much light, but then gradually gets darker as you approach the foot of the cigar. The construction is great and there are only on larger vein towards the top of the cigar leading up to the seamless triple wrapped cap. Outside of a little excess glue on the wrapper, this cigar looks great. The Namakubi is really first to the touch giving very little when compressed. The foot of the cigar is a bit mushy though, but nothing really concerning. The band on these are classic Matt Booth sorting a great Asian/Modern typeface with some nice flourishes containing the “Namakubi” logo as well as a smaller “Room 101 LTD” title underneath. The black and red bad also has a really small scripted “LTD” in the back of the band as well.

The wrapper gives off really, no scent at all. I was surprised to find the powerful cedar and spice aroma that actually burned my nose a bit as I took a huge whiff off of the foot of the cigar. The cold draw compliments the aroma by pumping out a nice sweet spice and cedar mix. The cap clipped really clean as easy using my double bladed cutter.

First Smoke: Be careful lighting up this cigar. Because of the small stature my dumb ass burned the hell out of my finger using my single flame butane touch. The first few draws of this Namakubi surprised me. I was expecting really smooth, sweet greeting, but was met with a much more bold experience. The strong tobacco flavor and pepper only lasted a few puffs in before leading to the sweet spice and cedar I was expecting. Outside of the cedar and spice there is this interesting flavor in there that I am having a hard time trying to explain, but the closest thing I can think of is black licorice. A stretch, I know, but there is something in there. The Namakubi gives off a nice amount of stationary smoke but wow does it smell good. It’s like burning bits of cedar in a fireplace. They need to make manly scented candles with this aroma. The draw on this cigar is remarkable kicking out a massive cloud of extremely thick smoke with each little puff I take. The burnline is dead even producing a nice zebra striped black and light grey, tightly compacted ash which held on for about an inch before giving way.

Halfway There: Holy crap the retrohale on this cigar is amazing! I can’t stop doing it. The Namakubi coats my nasal passage with this crazy cedar/gingerbread prime. I love it. This little cigar is turning into a flavor bomb. The tobacco, cedar, and spice is still there but the cigar now introduced this gingerbread and pine medley. I know this is stretching it again but this cigar creates some awesome flavors that you normally can’t find in cigars. The burnline is still dead even on this cigar and I am not feeling any nicotine despite the fuller-body of the Namakubi.

Finish: Another shocked was the amount of pepper that reappeared during the final third of this little cigar. The flavors switched up a bit and now the experience is overall very smooth with some nice cedar, and sweet spices with a ton of pepper. This cigar really keeps you on your toes. I actually felt a little nicotine kick from this tiny little Room 101 Namakubi, but don’t let the size fool you. All in all it took almost an hour to smoke the entire stick with no harshness whatsoever all the way down to the nub.

Overview: Cigar manufacturers have constantly raised the bar, pushing the limits of blends, and Camacho did just that when they created the Room 101 Namakubi. It’s a hell of a cigar. One big characteristic was the flavor as it produced an experience unlike any cigars on the market today. Each year cigars like this one raise our expectations. This full bodied flavor bomb is sure to satisfy the most experience cigar smoker as well as introduce any novice to a world of great cigars. I would by again  and it’s box worthy for sure.

Pairing: As strange as this beer is, I couldn’t have picked a better pairing. Dogfish Head’s Midas touch isn’t for the faint of heart. This “beer”, and I use the term “beer” loosely, is more of a crazy halfbreed beer/mead wine. This 9.0% beast of a brew is actually made from ingredients found 2,700 year old drinking vessels from the tomb of King Midas. This “beer” taste’s nothing like a beer with sweet notes of jasmine, saffron, honey, and an overall floral experience. This beer is EXTREMELY hard to find, and pretty pricey when you do ($5 – $8 a bottle), but it’s well worth it. Even if you hate it, it’s worth trying once. The floral flavors paired wonderfully with the flavor bomb of a cigar the Namakubi was. You really need something to balance out the cigar or the cigar would overpower just about anything you are drinking. This cigar would go great with some really hoppy IPA or even a nice bitter beer.

The post Camacho – Room 101 Namakubi Roxxo appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Montecristo No. 2

Montecristo makes a wide variety of different cigars in a wide range of sizes from the tiny Joyita to the massive “A”. The Montecristo No. 2 is one of the original sizes which were limited to No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, No. 4 and No. 5. Next to the No. 4, the Montecristo No. 2 is one of the top sellers and a very recognizable vitola.

The date on the box for these cigars is March 2008, so at the time of smoking they had just passed their two year anniversary. I found age to make a big difference on these as the younger ones I’ve tried tended to have a bit of harshness to them. The extra age definitely added an element of smoothness to the profile and also allowed some of the other flavors I hadn’t detected in the younger cigar to shine through in the aged one. I am fully planning to keep a few of them aging in my humidor for a few more years.

One other thing to note about this particular vitola is that all the sticks I’ve seen are not the best looking when it comes to the wrapper and perfect cylindrical shape with the tapered head. A lot of them seem to have water spots, veins, crookedness, etc… But I have to say, aside from the odd draw problem (common for many Cubans), the cigars have all been exceptional and well worth trying.

(Tony) Daniel pretty much summed it up. This is a stick was actually sent to me by Daniel awhile back and he has been badgering me to add my portion of this joint review on for week, heck maybe even months (sorry Daniel) . I haven’t fallen in love with many of the cubans that I have had the luxury of smoking, and I really hope this one throws a few surprises my way. For something rated so highly amongst the Cigar Community, I am anxiously hoping this one does it for me. Since Daniel was kind enough to stick to my review format in the joint review we teamed up to bring you of Illusione’s ~88~ , I will return the favor and conform to his review style.

Cigar:Montecristo No. 2
Drink (Daniel): Grahams Late Bottled Vintage Tawny Port (2003 Bottle Year)
Drink (Tony):Dogfish Head Raison D’Etre
Vitola:Torpedo/Piramide (6.125 x 52)
Wrapper: Cuban
Binder: Cuban
Filler: Cuban
Price: $30.00 in Canada, about $10 in Cuba
Burn Time: 1.5 hours

Construction (Daniel):
• A few bumps along the wrapper but no major veins
• Cleanly applied cap
• Light brown colored wrapper
• Tightly packed foot
• Evenly packed along the body with a perfect spring to it, some of them had small soft spots
• Nice oily wrapper with a tiny bit of bloom in some areas
• Slightly tight draw, I could cut more but it will likely open up later
• Draw opened up as predicted at the halfway point

Montecristo No. 2

Construction (Tony):
• Almost box pressed body and foot
• Nice almost sticky triple cap
• The Wrapper is Slightly oily with a nice soft gleam
• Very tightly packed foot and body
• One large vein running 2/3 of the way through the body
• Very firm to the touch
• No softspots at all
• Color is a consistently milky brown
• A bit of cracking towards the end of the final third, probably due to my over humidification

Burn (Daniel):
• Toasting was nice and even with no dark spots
• A little wavy burn at the start, is slowly correcting itself
• Needing some extra attention to stay lit
• The wave stayed to the halfway mark but isn’t getting any worse
• After the ash fell at halfway the burn realigned and is razor sharp now
• Was burning fast for the first half, now it’s nice and slow with no extra attention needed
• Allowing me to slow down the draws and enjoy it a little more
• The quick burn at the start made this a shorter smoke than expected, definitely wish it would have lasted longer

Montecristo No. 2

Burn (Tony):
• Lit up very easily with my triple flame torch
• Burn line went all sorts of crazy during the first third but evened out
• Very thin, sharp burn line
• It did tend to go off in its own little tangents here and there but always quickly corrected itself
• I was very surprised on just how extremely fast this cigar burned, not only in the first half but all the way through
• No need for touch-ups or relighting.

Smoke & Ash (Daniel):
• A little less smoke that I’d like at the start
• Resting smoke is quite abundant and smells great, toasted cedar and earthy tones
• Ash is a very light grey
• Ash is holding strong with no flakes or crookedness
• Ash held on for close to 2 inches
• No wind outside and the smoke is dancing in front of me, giving a nice aroma
• Amount of smoke was very full after the halfway point

Montecristo No. 2

Smoke and Ash (Tony):
• Decently big Draw, nothing to write home about, but nothing too tight
• Lots of cedar smelling stationary smoke with hints of spice
• Ash is light grey mixed with dark, almost black spots
• Ash is a bit flaky, but holds firm
• Very dry smoke, leaving my throat and mouth very dry. I may need a few drinks to finish this cigar up
• Ash held on for almost 2 inches before falling off.

Tasting Notes (Daniel):
• A light cedar and earthy aroma on the wrapper
• Stronger cedar aroma on the foot along with a light sweet spice, close to cinnamon-sugar
• Pre-light draw definitely has the cedar and the spice, but the sweetness isn’t there
• Initial draws were of smoky burning wood, more of that spice, along with some leather and earthy notes
• Retrohale is very mild with a smooth cedar finish
• Slight dryness on the back of the throat, Port is taking care of it!
• At the halfway mark, the leather has disappeared and is replaced with a black licorice flavor, smoky cedar and spice are still there
• Throughout the first half, the cigar was fairly mild and had a smooth creamy finish to it
• After the ash fell off near the halfway mark the licorice flavor really came out
• Still can’t quite pinpoint the exact spice but this cigar definitely has some complex flavors that I’m enjoying!
• Body started quickly ramping up to medium-full past the halfway mark
• Flavors are bursting out of this cigar now, super cedar, spice, earthiness, licorice and a great creamy finish
• Got some espresso notes making their way in during the last 1.5 inches or so

Montecristo No. 2

Tasting Notes (Tony):
• Very cedary aroma from wrapper
• Light cedary and more earthy aroma from the foot. Very Dirt and Grass smelling
• Very salty start from the wrapper
• Great cedar Aftertaste
• Very Earthy, with notes of hay and grass
• Spicy notes at the beginning with hints of Cinnamon that mellowed out very quickly
• Retrohale is very smooth and contains lots of cedar with a bit of fruit and earth tones
• Earth and hay flavors ramp up big time in the second half.
• The saltyness on the wrapper is now becoming sweet, making for an interesting changeup.
• Now the creamy, almost milked coffee flavors are coming into play during the last third
• Not a lot of body in this cigar. I did find a slight spike close to the end of the second third, but nothing stronger than medium.
• The final third did end up with quite a few unexpected flavors. Although finishing off a bit harsh there was a ton of cedar, spice, earth, cinnamon, coffee, fruit, and even an uproar of the saltyness that I encountered at the start of the smoke

Final Thoughts (Daniel):
I love this cigars attitude. It was all kind and friendly/mild at the start and then BANG! Flavor + body came out of nowhere and made this smoke even more amazing. The creaminess and espresso flavors at the end were almost like a heartfelt farewell. I did not want this cigar to end! Simple as that. If you have a chance to get some of these, they are definitely a must try. As with most Cubans, be prepared for some bad construction or draw on some of them. If you are buying singles, try to pick ones with no soft spots and a clean wrapper. The well balanced flavors and multiple dimensions while still staying true to typical Cuban cigars flavor were exceptional. I enjoyed every draw from this cigar and will definitely be seeking out more.

Montecristo No. 2

Final Thoughts (Tony):
This was classic cuban through and through. Mild body, with a ton of earthy flavors, and a crappy burn. If you are fond of earthy cigars, or cubans this is a great stick. Don’t let the burn mislead you. Almost every Cuban I have had to date carries similar characteristics in construction and burn. Its like a trade mark for them. This was a good stick, but it left me craving more. More body, and a longer burn. All together it only took me about an hour to tear through this one. One thing to keep in mind is I have not yet read Daniel’s review on this stick. Again, he’s been pestering me for weeks, if not months (Sorry again man) now to add my piece to this review and I really wanted to go in here with a completely biased approach. Hopefully our findings matchup.

Pairings (Daniel):
For me, this Tawny port was an absolute perfect pairing. It would also go amazing well with a nice glass of wine or a smooth scotch/cognac. For non-alcoholic, I think a strong coffee such as a Cuban or Americano would go very well and match better than sweet tea or soda. This cigar definitely deserves a good pairing that allows the flavors from the cigar to really shine. Try not to overpower with something very strong or palate altering to truly enjoy this.

Pairing (Tony):
The Dogfish Head Raison D’Etre proved to be a charming mix and actually helped me battle my way through the random notes I picked up in this cigar. Raison D’Etreis a deep, mahogany Belgian-style brown ale brewed with beet sugar, raisins, and Belgian-style yeast. Not to mention it carries with it a nice 8.0% ABV tag. The sweetness gave a lucrative balance to the saltyness I picked up on an off from the Montecristo while the boldness and strength made up for the mild body of the cigar. I honestly think something even sweeter, such as cola, or sweet tea would be a perfect match.

On a side note (Tony): After adding my portion to this review I found it extremely interesting how different Daniel’s and my experience was. Although many aspects were similar, the flavors seemed to be on different spectrums. Maybe it was the saltyness that I kept picking up in this cigar that gave me a different perception of the cigar, or maybe Daniel purposely stored my cigar with his condements before sending. Whatever it was I love the fact that we had totally different experiences. It goes to show just how different my taste’s and his really are.

Daniel’s Side Note: After weeks of waiting I never thought we’d get this posted due to Tony the slacker! hehe. I did store this cigar with onions and sea salt, attempting my own infused cigar (just joking!) I think the pairings affect flavors as well but even considering that it seems we were fairly close on most things. What does everyone else think about the comparisons between the two?

The post Montecristo No. 2 – Cuban (Joint Review) appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

I recently got a nice little package from our good friends over at www.toastedfoot.com. If you are unfamiliar with these boys I would strongly urge you to pay them a visit. Great people, with amazing reviews. I actually had the pleasure of doing a review swap with them a few weeks ago. In case you missed it you can find Toasted Foots guest review on Casas Fumando of Ashton’s San Cristobal here, and our reivew on Toasted foot of Drew Estate’s Liga Privada Flying Pig here. Anywho, in that package, amongst tons of other goodies I found a La Aurora Serie Aniversario 107. I have been dying to get my hands on this cigar. Needless to say, I wasted no time firing this one up. Keep in mind I only had one of these sticks and this review will be based solely on this one cigar.

I started to look for some information on this stick and quickly found multiple postings of this press release. I really don’t think I could go more into detail, so I am just going to stick the release in here and get on with it!

The Good Stuff:

MIAMI FL — Miami Cigar & Company, the exclusive distributor for La Aurora brands in the United States, announces the release of the La Aurora Serie 107 Anniversario to mark the company’s 107th year of operation in the Dominican Republic. As part of a year-long campaign to Rediscover La Aurora, 107 retailers across the U-S will be giving away 107 robustos on April 30th. The list of participating retailers can be found at http://rediscoverlaaurora.com.

Miami Cigar president Nestor Miranda says, “We have represented La Aurora for over 20 years and feel this is one of the best cigars they have made so far. We believe so much in the 107 that we are giving cigar smokers the chance to try it for free. All anyone has to do is buy a cigar, any cigar, at one of the participating retailers on April 30 and we’ll give you a free 107.” La Aurora vice president Guillermo Léon adds, “We realize that while our family has been making fine handcrafted cigars for more than a century, some cigar smokers still have not tried our products and others remember when we only made cigars in the mild range. La Aurora has been developing medium to full bodied cigars with full flavor and we want to let people know how we have changed. The Rediscover La Aurora is part of our outreach to those smokers.”

The 107, which uses a Sun Grown Ecuador wrapper over 6 year old fillers and binder from Dominican Republic and Nicaragua, will come in boxes of 21 with a suggested retail price between $6 to $8, plus any local taxes. There will be 3 sizes: Robusto (4.5×50); Toro (5.5×54); and a Belicoso (6.25 x 52). The 107 will only be available at brick and mortar tobacconists.

Prelight: The La Aurora Serie Aniversario 107 is a short, nubby little stick, topped off with a rounded little cap. The wrapper is medium to light brown with little spots and speckles of a darker brown leading up to a darker shade towards the head of the cigar. There are quite a few larger veins running through this 107 that I hope don’t interfere with my burn. As I said, I only have one stick so there won’t be any benefit of a doubt points handed out on this one. The cigar itself is really firm and the wrapper feels very fragile as most Ecuadorian wrappers in my experiences do. The construction is near perfect minus the fact that the cap could have used a bit more attention. It seems as though it was carelessly placed on the head of the cigar and not really nurtured the way it should have been. There are quite a few uneven points, and bumps pushing through the head. The band resembles a similar color palette and design from other La Aurora cigars. It’s even sporting the lions head we have seen pop-up as of late, and a gold ring running the length of the band that carries the words “Serie 107 Aniversario”.  The wrapper smells very sweet with hints of honey, graham cracker, and tobacco while the foot of the cigar gives off more of a oat type smell with a dash of spice. The cap cut off very clean and easily with my Palio double bladed cutter. The cold draw flavors produced from the La Aurora 107 carry more of an oat and grain character with again, just a hint of spice thrown in the mix.

First Smoke: The La Aurora Serie Aniversario 107 lit up with extreme ease under my triple flame butane torch. The first flavors I was able to pick up was just a little bit of up from pepper followed by grain, tobacco, nutmeg, pine, and hay. There was also this awkward bitter taste that only lasted through the first few draws and then diminished. The draw produced by the La Aurora 107 was spot on. The draw was very large, effortless, and produced a mass amount of really thick grey smoke. There isn’t a whole lot of stationary smoke coming off this cigar, but what is produced smells of wood, and straight tobacco. Probably not the most public-friendly smelling cigar. The retro hale is very smooth, and helped me pick up a bit more of the pine and woodsy notes. The burn line is a lot thicker than I expected, but it is burning relatively even leaving behind a dark grey, semi flaky ash. The ash was a bit loose and surprisingly only held on for just short of an inch before giving way.

Halfway There: Now the La Aurora Serie Aniversario 107 is really starting to shine. I was fearful that the oat and grain would be the bland, prominent flavors produced by this stick. Instead, into the second third the woodsy, cedar, honey, sweet tobacco flavors just take off. I’m not sure if it was the apricot infused India Pale Ale beer I paired this cigar with or not, but I am getting a slight hint of lime off the aftertaste. The retro hale is extremely enjoyable at this point. Outside of the great flavor profile, the 107 did however start to see some burn issues. One portion of the cigar, about 1/3 of the ring was left trailing way behind the rest of the burn line. I touched it up shortly after the first ash fell and it has been rocking solid ever since. The burnline is still pretty wide, and I don’t expect that to really thin out much through the rest of the experience. At this time I feel absolutely no nicotine from this cigar.

Finish: I was scared that I was smoking this cigar too fast and that I would build up quite a harsh end to such a smooth cigar, however that was not the case at all. The final third of the La Aurora Serie Aniversario 107 finished incredibly smooth, and flavorful. This cigar did smoke pretty fast, about an hour total even after I slowed down halfway through. The cedar/woodsy flavor was still in the driver seat, backed by the sweet tobacco and honey notes I grew to love. The burnline was still pretty wide with the occasional wave, but it didn’t require any further touch ups what so ever. There were no signs at all of nicotine from this stick. Very mild, very smooth, and very enjoyable.

Overview:  The La Aurora 107 is a cigar best taken slow. Kick back, take your time, and enjoy this stick. If you speed through it with excitement you are bound to miss out on a great, complex flavor mash-up. The 107 for me, was mild/medium from start to finish. Although the very last of the final third ramped up slightly, I don’t think the body of this cigar ever went above medium. For the relatively low price of this stick I would honestly recommend anyone who catches them in store to pick a few up, heck even a box will do. The all around smoothness of this cigar is great for a breakfast or lunch break, and appeals to not only the novice cigar smoker, but complex flavors will keep even the greatest aficionado entertained.

Pairing: I decided to pair my La Aurora 107 with some of Dogfish Head’s Aprihop Apricot infused India Pale Ale. It was surprisingly a great pairing as the sweet fruit, and bitter, hoppy beer helped me pick up even some of the deepest flavor notes within the cigar. I would recommend pairing this cigar with a light ale, an IPA, a red ale, water, or tea. Anything too dark may actually overpower the smoothness of the 107.

On a side note: If you haven’t yet, don’t forget to check out the contest Casas Fumando’s Daniel is putting on. He has some GREAT smokes up for grabs. Trust me, you won’t be dissapointed.

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