The Good Stuff:

The 10th anniversary cigar was released by Tatuaje in 2013 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the company. Fast forward 10 years later and Pete Johnson, founder of Tatuaje, released the Tatuaje 10th Anniversary Tuxtla which featured the same blend with a wrapper change. This year, The company released the 10th Anniversary Capa Especial with the same idea. The blend remains the same however the new release features Tatuaje’s famous Ecuadorian Sumatran wrapper. Produced at the My Father Cigars factory in Nicaragua, the blend features the Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and fillers. The cigar is released in only two sizes: Belle Encre (5 3/4 x 48) and the Bon Chasseur (5 3/8 x 52). Each size comes boxed in packages of 20 running $12 per cigar. I purchased mine over from our good friends at Cuenca Cigars.

• Size: 5 3/4 x 48
• Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• Body: Medium/Full
• Strength: Medium/Full
• Price: $12
• Pairing: The Bruery Adios Matres (Imperial Stout 17.1% ABV)

Prelight:

The Tatuaje 10th Anniversary Capa Especial starts out with a rustic looking medium brown wrapper with splotches of darker brown and rich reddish hues scattered throughout. The wrapper’s texture is semi-toothy with a whole mess of oils coating it. The wrapper feels decently dense and the cigar is firm to a touch everywhere except the very tip of the foot. There are a few smaller veins running through the cigar’s body as the cigar’s tapered foot runs up through its slowly tapered cap. The cigar is finished off with a rounded, double-wrapped cap. The cigar includes the standard brown/gold tautly anniversary band as well as the added white and gold “Capa Especial” band that Pete has been including on his blends.

The wrapper on the Tatuaje 10th Annivarsary gives off bold plum and earthy aromas while the foot of the cigar carries a bit more spice over natural tobacco scents. The cap cut clean and easily using my Xikar XO double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces notes of pecan and raisin over mostly natural tobacco flavors.

First Third:

The Tatuaje 10th Anniversary Capa Especial starts out with a tiny black pepper punch which immediately fades after the first few draws allowing the cigar to release bold notes of dark chocolate, musk, and pecan over lighter notes of raisin, oak, and a nice grainy/earthiness. The draw is extremely tight. This happens often with perfecto formats and I hope it just opens up as the cigar burns along. I’ll be keeping my eye on it. The burn line is slightly wavy which is also expected, but razor thin leaving behind a trail of very compacted white gray ash which held on for an inch before giving way.

Second Third:

Into the second third of the Tatuaje 10th Anniversary Capa Especial and I am happy to report that the draw is finally beginning to open up a bit allowing more flavor to flow through the cigar with each puff. The chocolate and pecan still lead the charge backed by musk and oak with lighter notes of raisin and earthiness. While the flavor profile remains mostly the same, there is this amazing spice that started to creep in and add that extra “umpth” to the profile. The retrohale really brings the spice out so I find myself doing it often. I close out the second third with only a light bit of nicotine.

Finish:

Again, not a big flavor change here in the final third of the Tatuaje 10th Anniversary Capa Especial, and I am happy for that. While the flavor profile has remained mostly the same from start to finish, it’s a very enjoyable profile and I don’t mind the consistency one bit. The cigar is still leading with dark chocolate and pecan over oak and musk with lighter notes of earthiness and spice. It took me an hour and a half to smoke this cigar down to the nub. Even though I did have to put extra effort into the draw at the start, I never experienced any harshness, sap, or extended heat along the way. I close out the cigar with only a minor nicotine kick.

Overview:

I really enjoyed the flavor profile in the Tatuaje 10th Anniversary Capa Especial. There is just something… well.. special about that Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper Pete uses. The flavors were not only enjoyable, but complex without being overpowering. After the draw opened up the cigar really started to shine. I smoked 3 total and all three were tight at the start so it’s by design and almost expected with perfecto formats. While these are very limited I do plan to keep a couple on hand for the times I am craving a cigar with an excellent flavor profile and delicate complexity.

Pairing:

Adios Martes is a 17.1% Imperial stout aged in Sherry casks for over 3 years. The sherry profile is very evident as the beer leads with loads of plum, cherry, sweet grape, and cocoa over a very stick and sweet mouthfeel before finishing with more fruit, cocoa and a dash of oak and malt. This is an incredible beer and really rides the line between a stout and a wine very nicely. The pairing with the Tatuaje 10th Anniversary Capa Especial was divine. The beer added extra complexity to the cigar experience with loads of sweet fruit flavors while the cigar added a great muskyness to the beer.

The post Tatuaje 10th Anniversary Capa Especial Belle Encre appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff:

The RoMa Craft Tobac Quinquagenario was created to celebrate the birthday of my boy and RoMa Craft Tobac fonder, Skip Martin. While the name may seem a bit wild to those who aren’t too fluent, it roughly translates to someone who is in their 50’s which is very fitting. Another special addition to the celebratory blend is the fact that Skip collaborated with the famous blender E.P. Carrillo to create the blend. Skip made multiple trips to the Dominican Republic to work with E.P. Carrillo which Skip credits to allowing him to learn more about Sumtran-see wrappers from Ecuador. This ultimately helped him create one of RoMa Craft’s new releases the Intemperance Volstead VO 1920 which we also reviewed recently. the Quinquagenario features an Ecuadorian Sumatran wrapper over a Dominican binder and filler tobaccos from the Dominican Republic. The cigar is offered in a single 5 x 50 format which comes packaged in boxes of 24 with only 2,000 boxes being released, running $15 per stick. I purchased a handful of these over from Mardo Cigars.

• Size: 5 x 50
• Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra
• Binder: Dominican Republic
• Filler: Dominican Republic
• Body: Medium
• Strength: Medium
• Price: $15

Prelight:

The RoMa Craft Tobac Quinquagenario starts out with a very consistent, milk-chocolate brown wrapper. There really aren’t any color variations found throughout the wrapper. Speaking of the wrapper, its texture is mostly smooth with some very light grit and only a light layer of oil. The wrapper feels a bit thin and brittle so I don’t handle it too harshly as I find no softspots or trouble areas. The wrapper Carris some lighter veins as it’s laid perfectly over itself leading up to the cigar’s round, triple-wrapped cap. Like all RoMa Craft cigars, it’s evident that a lot of care went into developing the beautiful, and elegant navy blue (Skip was in the Navy right?) and white band with the Quinquaguagenario script embossed in silver across the front. Gotta love the paper stock he uses on all his releases.

The wrapper on the RoMa Craft Tobac Quinquagenario gives off some light honey and molasses aromas while the foot of the cigar is very earthy with some great brown sugar notes over natural tobacco. The cap cut like button under my Xikar XO double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces notes of honey, orange citrus, and loads of natural tobacco.

First Third:

The RoMa Craft Tobac Quinquagenario leads with honey, cashew, and a great musk over lighter notes of citrus, vanilla, and light coffee. There is a tiny bit of pepper that just teases my lips a bit. The draw is stupendous. Maybe I have had bad luck lately, or maybe this thing is just rolled perfectly but the smallest of puffs kicks out the perfect amount of very thick, very dense smoke which sticks around for a pretty long time before dissipating while the cigar releases a ton of stationary smoke while it rests in my ashtray. The burnline is very even and very thin leaving behind a very tightly compacted trail of white and light gray ash which held on for about 3/4 of an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Second Third:

Into the second third of the RoMa Craft Tobac Quinquagenario and an awesome sweetness as really made it’s way to the forefront of the cigar creating a wonderful graham-cracker flavor that is leading the way back by the honey, cashew, and musk with backing notes of vanilla and creamed coffee. The retrohale brings the citrus back out along with a great little spice that pairs really well with the graham cracker. The cigar is still burning like a champ as I close out the second third with absolutely no signs of nicotine.

Finish:

The final third of the RoMa Craft Tobac Quinquagenario showcases an awesome dark chocolate flavor that I didn’t really pick up until now. The Dark chocolate has taken center stage at this point backed by graham cracker, cashew and musk making a very enjoyable, yet smooth flavor profile. I took me an hour and twenty minutes to take this down to the nub and I didn’t want it to end. I experienced no harshness, nor extended heat. The cigar actually left me with zero nicotine kick as well which isn’t something I find in most RoMa Craft blends.

Overview:

A big part of a collaborative effort is to make sure each contributor leaves behind their personal mark and that’s exactly the case in the Quinquagenario. While I am used to the deep, rich and bold flavors skip bakes into each one how blends, this cigar has a bit of a finer touch to it which is likely attributed to E.P. Carrilo’s touch. It’s different for sure, but incredibly enjoyable. The flavor profile is refined, yet complex despite being creamy if that makes any sense. It’s a cigar you don’t have to thing about. It’s just good as a great cigar should be. I only have one more of these left, and plan on picking up a few more to keep around as I really enjoyed it and want to make sure they aren’t sold out before I have a chance to get my hands on more.

The post RoMa Craft Tobac Quinquagenario appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff:

Skip Martin, founder of RoMa Craft Tobacco unveiled the newest addition to the Intemperance, the Volstead VO 1920 at this year’s PCA show in Las Vegas. Produced at the Fábrica de Tabacos Nica Sueño S.A. in Nicaragua, the blend features an Ecuadorian Sumatra Hybrid wrapper over a Mexican San Andres binder and filler tobaccos from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. The Intemperance Volstead VO 1920 is offered in the following regular production formats: Izzy Einstein (4 x 46), Belle Linvingstone (4 1/2 x 52), Bill McCoy (5 x 50), George Remus (5 x 56), and the Roy Olmstead (5 1/2 x 54 Belicoso). Each comes packaged in boxes of 24 with the exception of the Izzy which comes packaged in boxes of 30. The regular production lines range between $6.75 and $9.25 per stick. In addition to the regular production lines the company is also releasing six different limited-production formats: Blind Pig (8.25), Senator Volstead (5 x 50), Noble Experiment (5 x 56), Revenuer (5 3/4 x 46), Gran Perfecto (5 5/8 x 60), and the Judas Hole (6 1/2 x 44). Each limited production format comes packaged in boxes of 12 except the Bling Pig and Revenuer which comes in boxes of 24. The limited production releases range between $8.25 and $13 per stick. I purchased mine from our friends over at Neptune Cigars.

• Size: 5 x 56
• Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra Hybrid
• Binder: Mexican San Andres
• Filler: Nicaraguan & Dominican Corojo
• Body: Full
• Strength: Medium
• Price: $9.50

Prelight:

The RoMa Craft Tobac Intemperance Volstead VO 1920 starts out with a beautiful, milk-chocolate brown wrapper that’s very consistent in color except for a few darker areas around the cap of the cigar. The wrapper’s texture is slightly toothy and slightly oily. There are some smaller veins running through the cigar’s body. The wrapper itself feels a bit thin and delicate while the cigar is packed tightly and has a great weight to it. There are no soft spots to be found throughout the cigar. There is a very small, unfinished foot area that exposes some of the cigar’s binder/filler. The wrapper is laid seamlessly over cigar’s soft box-pressed body leading up to its round, double-wrapped cap. The cigar is then polished off with the standard, elegant white and brown Intemperance band along with an additional, reversed color band featuring the Volstead 1920 logo embossed across the front. One note I need to make is the quality of paper stock used on all RoMa Craft’s cigars. It’s exceptional.

The wrapper on the RoMa Craft Tobac Intemperance Volstead VO 1920 gives off a sweet mixture of tobacco and honey aromas while the foot of the cigar is much more musky with notes of natural tobacco over soft spice and a bit of sweetness. The cap cut clean and easily using my Xikar XO double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces notes of honey and cinnamon over loads of musky tobacco.

First Third:

The RoMa Craft Tobac Intemperance Volstead VO 1920 starts off with a soft blast of black pepper which fades almost instantly allowing the cigar to release bold notes of cedar musk and honey over lighter notes of pecan, cinnamon, espresso and vanilla, with a great little nutmeg aftertaste. It kind of reminds me of a lightly Christmas-flavored coffee drink and I totally dig it. The draw is absolutely perfect as each little puff kicks out huge clouds of thick, white smoke which take a white to dissipate while the cigar releases a good amount of stationary smoke while it rests in my ashtray. As a quick side note that I know my readers have heard my play on repeat since the beginning of time: I absolutely love how comfortable soft box-pressed cigars are in both my hand and my mouth. I with we’d see them a lot more often. The burn line is razor thin and dead even leaving behind a trail of tightly compacted medium gray ash which held on for about 3/4 of an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Second Third:

Into the second third of the RoMa Craft Tobac Intemperance Volstead VO 1920 the flavor profile is dominated by musk and honey with bold notes of espresso and cinnamon and light notes of pecan, raisin, and vanilla. There is also this really crazy spearmint flavor that sneaks into the aftertaste every once in a while. I don’t pick I up often at all. The retorhale brings out more spice and a little bit of black pepper. Considering how much I enjoy the flavor profile of this cigar as it sits, I don’t find myself doing it too often. The cigar is still burning like a champ and I close out the second third with nothing in terms of a nicotine kick.

Finish:

The body of the RoMa Craft Tobac Intemperance Volstead VO 1920 has really ramped up now as it sits well in the full-bodied arena. The musk and honey still lead the charge with a more balanced mixtures of vanilla, cinnamon and raisin at this point. The cigar burned much slower than I anticipated which I am happy about as it took me almost 2 hours to take it down to the nub. I experienced no harshness nor any extended heat. I never once had to reach for my torch to touch-up or relight my cigar as it burned flawless from start to finish. I close out with only a very minor nicotine hit.

Overview:

There aren’t too many brands out there currently that kick out stellar releases one after another like RoMa Craft. I honestly don’t think I have ever come across a RoMa Craft I didn’t just enjoy, but thoroughly enjoy and the Volstead VO 1920 is no exception. The flavor profile is balanced, yet complex enough to keep me entertained. The profile itself marries up really well with my subjective palate as I really enjoyed the flavors. The construction was top-notch and the price is very affordable and the full-production releases will always be easily available. This makes this a perfect, box-worthy cigar that will find its way into my everyday rotation.

The post RoMa Craft Tobac Intemperance Volstead VO 1920 Noble Experiment appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff:

Scandinavian Tobacco Group has teamed up with Sazerac Co. to bring forth yet another cigar that features tobacco aged in bourbon barrels. The Cigars International exclusive “Buffalo Trace Special F” is composed of fillers from the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua under a Brazilian Arapiraca binder that has spent 6 months in Buffalo Trace bourbon barrels and then finished with an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper. The cigar is offered in a single 6 x 60 torpedo format and runs $11 per cigar. You can order yours directly from Cigars International.

• Size: 6 x 60
• Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra
• Binder: Brazilian Arapiraca
• Filler: Dominican and Nicaraguan
• Body: Medium/Full
• Strength: Medium
• Price: $11
• Pairing: Buffalo Trace Bourbon (Spec’s Single Barrel Pick)

Prelight:

The Buffalo Trace Special F starts out with a very messy, rustic looking wrapper. That’s not a bad thing, the Ecuadorian Sumatra just does a great job showing off all the characteristics in its tobacco leaf. It’s very dark brown with loads of lighter and darker areas scattered throughout the cigar. On top of that there is a ton of natural webbing and light veins running through the leaf. The wrapper’s texture is very oily and very toothy while the cigar feels a bit spongy to the touch. The torpedo shape on this cigar is quite long as the cigar starts to taper shortly after the foot leading to the sharp cap. The cigar carries matching branding to the Buffalo Trace bottle with a band that features the buffalo image and a secondary band with the Buffalo Trace logo which is laid over a very elegant green ribbon for an awesome added touch.

The wrapper on the Buffalo Trace Special F gives off notes of black cherry and musk while the foot of the cigar is much more spicy with loads of earthy aromas. The cap cut clean and easily using my Xikar XO double bladed cutter. The cold draw is straight up chocolate with earthy undertones.

First Third:

The Buffalo Trace Special F leads with loads of chocolate, spice, and cardamom over lighter notes of leather, floral, and a nice woodsy mixture. It wasn’t until I was a few draws in that a great cayenne pepper entered the mix only powerful enough to tingle my lips. The draw is phenomenal as each puff kicks out huge clouds of thick gray smoke while the cigar releases a great amount of stationary smoke while it rests in my ashtray. The burn line is mostly even and very thin leaving behind a trail of tightly compacted white and lighter gray ash which held on for about an inch before giving way.

Second Third:

Into the second third of the Buffalo Trace Special F and the spice and woodsy flavors have really picked up along with a blast of floral hints. This makes for an amazing pairing with the leading flavors in the Buffalo Trace bourbon I paired it with. The chocolate, spice, and leather are all still factored into the profile, however they have taken a back seat at this point. The retrohale really brings out the spice in this cigar. I close out the second third with no type of nicotine hit.

Finish:

As I get into the final third of the Buffalo Trace Special F I am impressed with just how much spice is still in the flavor profile. I think it’s important to note for two reasons: 1) The spice matches up identically to the spice in the paired Buffalo Trace bourbon and 2) in my cigar experiences that spice has long been gone by the time you get to the final third. The backing flavors are still very woodsy with lighter notes of chocolate and leather with hints of floral. It took me almost two hours to smoke this cigar down to the nub. I experienced no harshness nor extended heat although the final third did leave me with a slight nicotine kick.

Overview:

I was a bit pessimistic about another bourbon-themed cigar, but I am happy to report that I truly enjoyed the Buffalo Trace Special F. I am a fan of Buffalo Trace bourbon, especially since it is very easy to obtain at MSRP in these parts. While I am unsure how much of an impacted the barrel-aged tobacco had, the blend itself made for a perfect pairing with the bourbon. I even think that if I smoked this cigar without the bourbon, and instead paired it with water that I would still be able to pick up the complimenting notes in the cigar. The pricing is also very reasonable for the cigar especially given its burn time. I was surprised, and I would definitely find myself going back to this one.

Pairing:

Naturally I decided to pair the Buffalo Trace Special F with a bottle of Buffalo Trace Spec’s Single Barrel pick bourbon. The bourbon leads with tons of spice, wood mixture, and floral flavors over lighter notes of orange, caramel, vanilla, and sweetness. It’s easy to see why the pairing makes so much sense as the flavors found in the bourbon not only marry up with the Buffalo Trace Special F, but compliment the cigar without overpowering it.

The post Buffalo Trace Special F appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff:

Originally released in 2006 as a shop exclusive for Tower Cigars, the Cohete is a stubby little 4 x 50 similar to the same format as the T110, but utilizes the Seleccion de Cazador as it’s base. Also similar the last year’s T110 release the 2022 Cohete line features 3 different wrappers: The standard Ecuadorian Habano, the newly added Ecuadorian Sumatran, and the newly added Connecticut Broadleaf. Rolled at the My Father factory in Nicaragua, each line comes packaged in boxes of 25 running $9 per cigar. I picked mine up from our good friends at Fox Cigar.

• Size: 4 x 50
• Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatran
• Binder: Nicaraguan
• Filler: Nicaraguan
• Price: $9
• Body: Full
• Strength: Medium/Full
• Pairing: Martin House Acheron (Imperial Stout 12%)

Prelight:

The Tatuaje Cohete Capa Especial starts off with a gorgeous, consistently dark brown wrapper. The wrapper’s texture is both extremely toothy/grainy and very oily. The cigar as a whole feels very well packed and really heavy with no soft spots at all. Rather, the cigar is quite hard. The wrapper is laid so seamlessly over itself I can’t even tell where it beings and where it ends. There are a few very minor veins running throughout the cigar’s stubby body leading up to it’s round, double-wrapped cap. The cigar is then polished off with the standard brown Seleccion de Cazador band we all immediately recognize as well as an additional white and gold band stating that this blend is wrapped in the “Capa Especial” Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper.

The Tatuaje Cohete Capa Especial gives off some soft raisin and cedar scents from the wrapper while the foot of the cigar carries some brown sugar and cinnamon over natural tobacco aromas. the cap cut clean and easily using my Xikar XO double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces raisin and honey over loads of natural, musky flavors.

First Half:

Note: Due the small stature of the Cohete, I will be reviewing this cigar in halves vs. thirds. The Tatuaje Cohete Capa Especial starts out with a very soft black pepper punch that only lasted through the first few puffs allowing the cigar to release bold raisin and dark chocolate flavors over sweet brown sugar, vanilla, honey, musk, and a grainy/dirt/earthy mixture of flavors. The draw is absolutely perfect. I don’t know what it is about these little stubby cigars but the draw always feels great as each little puff kicks out a whole mess of thick, white smoke which really spends some time hanging out with you before dissipating while the cigar releases only a small amount of stationary smoke while it rests in my ashtray. The burn line is razor thin and dead even leaving behind a trail of tightly compacted white ash which held on for a little over a half an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Second Half:

Into the second half of the Tatuaje Cohete Capa Especial and the flavors began to balance out a bit more. One thing about the Seleccion de Cazador line is it’s very well balanced as the profile leads with cedar and dark chocolate over raisin, vanilla, brown sugar, musk, honey, and a great floral black tea that I am really enjoying. Every once in a while I get a flavor pop in that I can only describe as root beer. I am sure there is a better description of the flavor, but root beer is what comes to my mind as a relatable memory. The retrohale brings out quite a bit of spice and some softer black pepper. The cigar actually burned quite slow offering a little over an hour worth of experience. I experienced no harshness nor extended heat and closed out the cigar with no nicotine kick at all.

Overview:

I have always been a pretty big fan of Tatuaje’s Seleccion de Cazador line so I jumped right on these especially after how great the T110’s were and I am glad I did. Whatever Pete Johnson’s Ecuadorian Sumatra lands on, I’ll smoke. It’s not a wrapper I granite to normally but it just suits many of the Tatuaje blends so well, and always have. I’m glad we’re seeing it more often. The Cohete Capa Especial starts off with a quick trip down memory lane which quickly transitions to “man, this blend was made for this wrapper”. The flavors are decently complex and extremely enjoyable while the cigar burned flawlessly form start to finish. The price is slightly on the high side for the size of the cigar but you do get quite a longer experience than I expected so it’s worth it. I definitely want to make sure I stock up on more of these to keep in my daily rotation.

Pairing:

Acheron is probably my favorite beer Martin House has made. This whiskey barrel aged imperial stout comes in at 12% Abv and leads with notes of vanilla, brown sugar, milk chocolate, malt, and just a splash of whiskey with a decently heavy mouthfeel before finishing with more milk chocolate, brown sugar, and vanilla with a slight whiskey aftertaste. This alcohol is so well hidden in this beer that it could be dangerous. Matching up with the Tatuaje Cohete Capa Especial is easy for the Acheron as the vanilla, chocolate, and brown sugar marry up perfectly with the flavors found in the cigar and the cigar itself added a great level of complexity to the beer by adding spice and woodsy flavors.

The post Tatuaje Cohete Capa Especial appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff:

Each and every year since 2014 The Crowned Heads have released the “Las Calaveras” which is a cigar created to pay tribute to those who are close to us which we have lost and each year has been special to me as I lost so many great people in my life over the past few years. If you want to catch up, you can reach each of my reviews on each different release below:

• Las Calaveras 2014
• Las Calaveras 2015
• Las Calaveras 2016
• Las Calaveras 2017
• Las Calaveras 2018
• Las Calaveras 2019
• Las Calaveras 2020

Created at the My Father Cigars S.A factory in Nicaragua, this year’s version utilizes an Ecuadorian Sumatran Oscar wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and fillers. The cigar is offered in 4 sizes: the LC48 (6 x 48), the LC 50 (5 x 50), the LC54 (5 3/4 x 54) and the Petit Lancero (6 1/2 x 40). All of which are offered in boxes of 24 with the exception of the Petit Lancero which is only available in a 4pk sampler which includes one of each format. The Las Calaveras 2021 runs between $10.95 and $12.95 a stick. I purchased mine over from our friends at Cigars International.

• Size: 6 x 48
• Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatran Oscuro
• Binder: Nicaraguan
• Filler: Nicaraguan
• Body: Medium
• Strength: Medium
• Price: $10.95

Prelight:

The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras 2021 starts out with an extremely consistent, milk chocolate brown wrapper. The wrapper itself feels decently thick, dense and hard while the cigar as a whole is a little on the softer side. The wrapper carries some slight tooth and a good amount of oils coat the body. There are some very mild veins and nice tobacco webbing covering the cigar’s long, slender body leading up to it’s round, double-wrapped cap. The cigar is then polished off with the standard band we have come to expect from this release, only this time in yellow containing the year: “EL 2021”, the “Las Calaveras” crest, and “Esteli, Nicaragua” on the front. There is also a gold and black foot band that carries the Crowned Heads logo embossed across the front.

The wrapper on the Crowned Heads Las Calaveras gives off only some slight cocoa and sweet herbal scents while the foot of the cigar is much more earthy with lots of musk, dirt, spice and moss aromas. the cap cut clean and easily using my Xikar XO double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces some great black cherry, cocoa, nutmeg, and musk flavors. Note: There will be no pairing on this review as well. I am on antibiotics and don’t want to mix the two.

First Third:

The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras 2021 starts off with a very subtle cayenne pepper punch which is only really noticeable on my lips, while the rest of the cigar showcases some great cedar, dark chocolate, black cherry, light coffee and vanilla notes. The draw is great as each puff releases a decent amount of thick, gray smoke which dissipates very quickly while the cigar itself releases almost no stationary smoke while it rests in my ashtray. The burnline is a little wavy, but not concerning at all and very thin leaving behind a trail of tightly compacted dark gray ash which held on for almost an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Second Third:

Into the second third of The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras 2021 and the flavors have balanced out a bit with dark chocolate and cedar at the forefront backed by vanilla, black cherry, cashew, and light coffee. The retrohale is great and brings out an awesome spice and citrus zest that I don’t really pick up during the standard smoking experience. The burnline is now dead even and I close out the second third with nothing in terms of nicotine.

Finish:

Into the final third of the Crowned Heads Las Calaveras 2021 and the only real change up is the black cherry has turned into this nice tart woodiness. Outside of that the dark chocolate and cedar still lead the charge backed by cashew and light coffee over a ton of musk. It took me an hour and a half fo some this cigar down to the nub and I experienced no harshness, nor any extended heat. I never once had to break out my torch to touchup or relight the cigar and I experienced only a minor bit of nicotine.

Overview:

Not a year passes that I don’t look forward to the release of the Las Calaveras. Not only do I love the blends, but also the meaning behind it as I have lost so many loved ones over the past few years. This year I felt the blend took a little different approach by creating a lighter body experience, yet still delivering some great, complex flavors. While it wasn’t my favorite Las Calaveras blend due mostly to the subjective flavors (I normally gravitate to something a bit more full-body), the cigar still delivered and provided an excellent experience.

The post The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras 2021 appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff:

Tatuaje has been on a rolling lately bringing back rare, and highly coveted blends back from the dead. This particular spring on a re-release is the LLE Capa Especial which is based on the NHC Selección Limitada Capa Especial which was originally released in 2011. LLE stands for “Limited Lonsdale Extra” which is 6 3/4 x 42 soft-box-pressed Lonsdale. While the name is slightly different, and the cigar is no longer a store exclusive to New Havana Cigars, the blend remains the exact same. The LLE Capa Especial starts out with an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and fillers. The cigar is only offered in the single 6 3/4 x 42 format which comes packaged in boxes of 20 running $11 per stick, with only 1,000 boxes produced. This cigar was extremely difficult to track down but I was able to score a few from my good buddy Jason. Thanks a ton man!

• Size: 6 3/4 x 42
• Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra
• Binder: Nicaraguan
• Filler: Nicaraguan
• Body: Full
• Strength: Medium/Full
• Price: $11
• Pairing: Bottle Logic / Mikkeller Beer Geek Observation (Imperial Stout 13% ABV)

Prelight:

The Tatuaje LLE Capa Especial starts out with a very rustic, spotty, gorgeous wrapper that showcases scattered ares of reddish brown and dark brown spots. The wrapper’s texture is extremely toothy and gritty with a ton of thick oils coating it. The wrapper is laid over itself seamlessly while the cigar presents lots of medium sized veins and webbing in the tobacco leaf leading up to the the cigar’s double wrapped cap. I absolutely love the soft-boxpress on this cigar. The cigar is then polished off with a blue, green, red and white band which showcases Pete Johnson’s Tatuaje crest on the front in black ink. There is also an added secondary gold and white band with the words “Capa Especial” embossed on the front.

The wrapper on the Tatuaje LLE Capa Especial gives off tons of rich, oaky aromas while the foot of the cigar is much more musky and earthy. The cap cut like butter using my Xikar XO double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces lots of cherry, musk, and oak.

First Third:

The Tatuaje LLE Capa Especial starts off with a very sharp, very quick blast of cayenne pepper which only lasted the first draw or two allowing the cigar to release a massive amount of black cherry, oak, dark chocolate, musk, vanilla and light leather. The draw was phenomenal as each tiny puff kicks out a massive cloud of thick, white smoke which really sticks around. The cigar itself releases only a light amount of stationary smoke as it rests in my ashtray. The burnline is very thin with only one larger wave forming on the underside of the cigar. The ash left behind was medium gray and very tightly compacted as it held on for 3/4 of a inch before giving way.

Second Third:

The vanilla and chocolate really took over in the second third of the Tatuaje LLE Capa Especial flanked by black cherry, musk and oak over a light floral, almost cologne flavor that keeps popping in and out. The retrohale brings out some of the spice that I don’t get during the normal experience. The cigar is still burning just slightly wavy and I close out the second third with only a minor nicotine kick.

Finish:

Into the final third of the Tatuaje LLE Capa Especial and the cherry has replaced the vanilla to lead the charge alongside it’s friend dark chocolate. Backing them up is a ton of oak and musk, light vanilla, and a great little nutmeg flavor that I only picked up in the end of the cigar. It took me an hour and a half to take this cigar down to the nub. I experienced no harshness, nor extended heat. I closed out the cigar with a decent little nicotine kick that I wasn’t expecting.

Overview:

The Tatuaje LLE Capa Especial sold out extremely fast, for good reason. The cigar delivers in every aspect, especially in terms of flavor profile, not to mention I love the size and the soft box press. At a price of $11 per cigar it’s easy to see why these didn’t last very long, which is honestly my only complain. I really wish these were easier to find, and something that I would have been able to stock up on. Thanks again Jason!

Pairing:

Beer Geek Observation is created in collaboration with Bottle Logic and Mikkeller and is essentially a mixture of their Beers Geek Breakfast and Fundamental Observation. The grain bills of these two legendary beers were blended, brewed, barrelled for an average of 18 months, and steeped on Madagascar vanilla beans before being finished with Coldbot Coffee’s Panama Geisha beans. The result is an excellent 13% ABV imperial stout. The beer leads with loads of vanilla, sweet brown sugar, creamed coffee, dark chocolate, light malt and a bit of pecan with an extremely heavy mouthfeel before finishing with even more vanilla, dark chocolate, and light coffee along with a rich, oaky barrel on the aftertaste. Each of these flavors screen Tatuaje LLE Capa Especial and the pairing they created together was absolutely phenomenal.

The post Tatuaje LLE Capa Especial appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff:

If every there was a year to make a cigar branded “Vision”, 2020 is the year to do it. While this isn’t the first time we have seen the CAO vision, this is the first time in a very long time this has hit shelves. Last seen in 2013 before General Cigar Company took over the blend, Vision was a highly sought after cigar. With updated branding and a heck of a packaging concept, the cigar also changes things up with a whole new blend featuring a Cameroon wrapper over an Ecuadorian Sumatran Binder and Nicaraguan fillers from the Jalapa and Esteli regions of the county. The CAO vision comes in a single 7 x 50 Churchill format packaged in LED lit boxes of 20 running $18.99 with only 4,500 boxes being released.

• Size: 7 x 50
• Wrapper: Cameroon
• Binder: Ecuadorian Sumatra
• Filler: Nicaragua
• Body: Medium
• Strength: Medium
• Price: $18.99
• Pairing: Bottle Logic Distant Messenger (Imperial Golden Stout 13.04% ABV)

Prelight:

The CAO vision sports a very lovely, consistently milky brown wrapper that shines a bit green in the sunlight. The wrapper’s texture is very toothy with a ton of oils coating it while it showcases a decent amount of veins and natural webbing in the leaf. The wrapper is laid seamlessly over itself lead up the cigar’s long body to its round, double-wrapper cap. The cigar is then polished off with a hologram infused white band with the words “Vision” on the front as well as a small secondary foot band sporting the brand’s “CAO” logo. The cigar as a whole is very heavy, and very tightly packed as there is absolutely no give as I squeeze it between my fingers.

The wrapper on the CA Vision give off very little aroma outside of some faint natural tobacco scents while the foot of the cigar releases a good amount of sweet spice, earthiness and toffee. The cap on the CAO vision cut like butter using my Xikar XO double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces a great deal of apple, toffee, and natural tobacco flavors.

First Third:

The CAO Vision starts with a quick blast of cayenne pepper which only left my tongue and lips tingling for a minute before quickly dissipating allowing the cigar to release great notes of nutmeg, toffee, musk, and earthiness with some very light citrus and sweetness. The draw on the CAO vision is fantastic as every little puff I take kicks out a huge cloud of very thick, white smoke which sticks around for quite some time while the cigar releases almost no stationary smoke while it rests in my ashtray. The burnline is dead even and very sharp as it creates a trail of tightly compacted, medium gray ash which held on for almost an inch before giving way.

Second Third:

Into the second third of the CAO Vision and the flavors have creamed out a bit. The cigar still leads with musk, nutmeg and vanilla while the earthiness, citrus, and toffee have began to fade a bit. The retrohale brings out a lot of the musk and earthiness, and while I enjoy that it tens to overpower some of the other flavors in the mixture so I refrain from retrohaling too often. The cigar is still burning perfectly and I close out the second this with nothing really in terms of a nicotine kick.

Finish:

Into the final third of the CAO Vision and much is the same. Musk, vanilla and nutmeg lead the charge every creamy toffee, earthiness and now a nice floral flavor. The profile is great, I just wish it had a bit more body to it. It took me 2 hours to smoke the Vision down to the nub. I experienced no sap, no harshness, nor any extended heat while the cigar itself left me with only a very slight nicotine kick.

Overview:

The CAO Vision has always been a special cigar, and the 2020 version is no exception. From the branding to the packaging to the tobaccos used, this cigar screams luxury. The experience as a whole is super. That being said I do have two things to note. First, the price point. This is quite pricey for this cigar as you are now pushing in the the higher end Fuente and Padron category. While that’s ok, and the company knows it, I just wish the cigar delivered a bit more in the flavor department. While the flavors are good and enjoyable, at times I felt they were too mild and really toned down the experience. That being said, this is something I’d definitely smoke again, but not something I personally would keep on deck in my everyday rotation. I think people who love milder ultra-premium cigars are going to LOVE this one.

Pairing:

Inspired by Hawaiian coffee cake Bottle Logic’s Distant Messenger is a 13.04% Imperial Golden Stout brewed with lactose then aged in bourbon barrels before finishing on gobs of marshmallow, coconut, pineapple and Salvador Angel Mountain coffee beans. The beer leads with a sticky, brown sugar sweetness with bold notes of coconut and vanilla over lighter notes of malt, caramel, and pineapple with a very heavy, sticky mouthfeel before finishing with a ton more brown sugar and coconut, pineapple, and just a dash of coffee. The pineapple really started to come out as the beer warms. The vanilla, pineapple and coffee all mashed up very well with the existing flavors in the CAO vision while the beer as a whole really helped push the dryness out of the cigar.

The post CAO Vision 2020 appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff:

El Galan Vegas Del Purial is the newest offering to make it’s way onto shelved from El Galan. The cigar is named to honor Felix A. Mesa’s family legacy as well as the name of the farm in Cuba where his grandparents grew tobacco. The El Galan Vegas Del Purial is composed of Nicaraguan filler, and Nicaraguan binder called FFMC96, warped in an Ecuadorian Sumatran wrapper. The cigars are produced at the El Galan Cigars S.A. factory in Esteli Nicaragua and come in four sizes: Robusto (5 x 50), Belicoso (5 1/2 x 52), Lancero (7 x 38), and Super Toro (6 3/4 x 52). All come packaged in 20 count boxes ranging between $8.90 and $10 a stick. Our great friends over at Cuenca Cigars sent a few of these our way to review and you can order them directly from the site here.

Size: 5 1/2 x 52
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra
Binder: Nicaraguan FFMC96
Filler: Nicaraguan
Body: Medium/Full
Strength: Medium
Price: $9.40
Pairing: Bruery Coconut Macadoom (Imperial Stout 19.3% ABV)

Prelight:

The wrapper on the El Galan Vegas Del Purial Gran Reserva is a beautifully consistent, milky brown with only some darker, more orangish areas around the cap. The wrapper is seamlessly laid over itself while it sports some minor tooth, a good amount of oil, very minor veining, and some natural leaf webbing. The cigar is packed generously as the cigar feels very thick and tough with no soft spots. The wrapper however feels very thin and delicate so I didn’t want to handle the cigar too much prior to smoking it. The cigar is polished off with a tapered, belicoso style cap, and an manilla band carrying the colorful Vegas del Purial crest along with a secondary maroon band with the words “Gran Reserva” spelled out across the front.

The wrapper on the Vegas Del Purial Gran Reserva gives off very sweet honey, oat, and cashew aromas while the foot of the cigar carries more earthiness, spice, and natural tobacco scents. The Cold draw produces some great honey, cashew, coffee, and natural tobacco flavors with just a hint of pepper. 

First Third:

The Vegas Del Purial Gran Reserva starts off with some very minor black pepper which faded pretty much completely after the first few puffs leaving behind some soft spice and vanilla with a good amount of creamed coffee, cashew, honey, and really nice natural tobacco flavors. As I smoke on a bit there is some interesting pine notes that pop in and out. The draw is slightly tight but opens up the more that I smoke the cigar. The burn line is razor thin and even for the most part leaving behind a trail of semi-compacted medium gray ash which held one or about an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Second Third:

Into the second third of the El Galan Vegas Del Purial Gran Reserva and the flavors have really balanced out. The cashew, honey, and earthiness lead the charge backed by spice, cedar, and some soft cinnamon. The retrohale really bings out the spice and cedar and I find myself retrohaling this bad boy quite often. The burn line is still slightly wavy but haven’t had to reach for my torch, the draw has completely opened up and have been smoking like a dream. I close out the second third with nothing in terms of a nicotine.

Finish:

Into the final half of the El Galan Vegas Del Purial Gran Reserva and this is where I believe the cigar really begins to shine. The body has ramped up to the medium/full arena while it lets loose a ton of cedar, honey, and earthiness backed by vanilla, spice, pine, and cinnamon. The flavor profile is really enjoyable and extremely well balanced. I feel only the slightest nicotine kick as it took me an hour and a half to smoke this cigar down to the nub. I experienced no harshness, nor extended heat. 

Overview:

The El Galan Vegas Del Purial Gran Reserva is a solid cigar. It offers a great profile, which isn’t the most complex but is perfectly balanced creating a fantastic experience. The burn was slightly wavy but I never once had to reach for my torch to touch up or relight the cigar. The price is spot-on for a cigar that preforms this way and the overall construction of the cigar was flawless. This is, and will be a solid addition to my everyday rotation.

Pairing:

Coconut Macadoom is a 19.3% Imperial Stout Aged in bourbon barrels with lactose, vanilla, and coconut. This is a Bruery Hoarders Society exclusive beer with only a couple hundred bottles ever produced. The beer leads with a ton of sweet vanilla, bold coconut, tangy cherry, caramel, roasted malt, and dark, rich chocolate and a very heavy mouthfeel before finishing even sweeter with a ton more vanilla and coconut, dark chocolate, boozy bourbon, oak, and coffee. What a flavor bomb. In most cases this beer could easily overpower a cigar but the El Galan Vegas Del Purial Gran Reserva held it’s own and the flavors really complimented each other.

The post El Galan Vegas Del Purial Gran Reserva Belicoso appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Launched at the 2014 IPCPR Trade Show, La Historia features a Mexican San Andres wrapper, Ecuadorian Sumatran binder, and Nicaraguan filler tobacco. The cigars are made in the Dominican Republic at Ernesto Perez-Carrillo’s Tabacalera de Alianza S.A. factory. Each frontmark pays tribute to a member of Ernesto’s family. Available vitolas include El Senador (5 3/8 by 52), Regalias d’Celia (5 7/8 by 58), Dona Elena (6 1/8 by 50), and E-III (6 7/8 by 54).

You can purchase the E.P. Carrillo La Historia from our good friends at Famous Smoke Shop HERE.

THE FACTS

Price: $10.75
Vitola: Dona Elena
Size: Box-Pressed 6 1/8 by 50
Wrapper: Mexican San Andres
Binder: Ecuadorian Sumatra
Filler: Nicaraguan
Smoke Time: 1 Hour and 20 Minutes

PRE-LIGHT

The E.P. Carrillo La Historia Dona Elena is draped in a very dark wrapper that is heavily coated with oils. There are some medium sized veins on the leaf and scattered bumps. The cigar is firm through and through.

A vinegar aroma comes across as I bring the wrapper to my nose. The foot of the cigar is much more pleasant with graham cracker and chocolate. Upon cutting the triple cap, I find a stiff draw with some cinnamon, graham cracker, rich cedar. The cinnamon spice warms my palate and lips.

FIRST THIRD

The snug foot band frayed the Mexican San Andres wrapper during removal. The damage is minor and I do not foresee it impacting the cigar. The introductory flavors are rather tame on the La Historia. There is charred wood, black tea, a faint honey sweetness, and pepper. There is also a lemon zest. The cigar is burning well as a salt and pepper ash holds to an inch.   

MIDDLE THIRD

The lemon zest has evolved into a floral quality as I move into the second third of the La Historia. The charred wood and black tea remain, and the sweetness is only appearing every so often. The burn remains excellent. A heavy black coffee flavor lingers on the finish that is somewhat bitter.

FINAL THIRD

The final third shows another dimension of the La Historia. The charred wood and tea have backed off and a bread-like flavor has joined in. The sweetness is more constant than earlier and rounding out the profile.

WRAP-UP

The La Historia Dona Elena by E.P. Carrillo was a constantly evolving cigar that began in the mild to medium range and steadily picked up through each third. The light flavors in the first third were somewhat disappointing, but, as I burned my way through it and the flavors increased, my enjoyment of the cigar increased too.  It was really the final third of the cigar that won me over with the bigger flavors and the sweetness that balanced everything out. The La Historia is an excellent performing cigar with its even burn and well-holding ash. For a cigar right under $11, it is not something I will be smoking everyday, but a cigar I wouldn’t mind grabbing a couple more of next time I stumble across it.

The post E.P. Carrillo – La Historia Dona Elena appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff:

The My Father The Judge has been one of the most highly touted releases as of late. While it was initially released in 2016 the cigar really didn’t find it’s way into the public hands until last year. The Judge is an extension of the popular My Father line created by Don Pepin Garcia and his son Jaime Garcia. The Judge is advertised as a more full-bodied version of the blend mostly due to the Ecuadorian Sumatra seed wrapper over a Nicaraguan criollo/corojo dual binder and Nicaraguan fillers from 3 different My Father-owned farms. The Judge come in three different box-pressed sizes: Toro Fino: 6 x 52, Grand Robusto: 5 x 60, and Toro: 6 x 56. Each format comes packaged in boxes of 23 running between $11.70 and $12.40 a stick. I got mine over from our good friends at Cuenca Cigars who is having an awesome sampler sale including 10 of Cigar Aficionado’s top cigars of 2017.

Size: 5 x 60
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra
Binder: Nicaraguan Criollo/Corojo
Filler: Nicaraguan
Body: Full
Strength: Full
Pairing: Mikkeller Beer Geek Breakfast (Oatment Stout 7.5% ABV)
Price: $12.40

Prelight:

The My Father The Judge starts out with a very consistent, very dark brown wrapper. The wrapper only showcases a few darker areas located around the natural webbing of the tobacco leaf. The texture on the cigar is very firm, and very toothy with a small amount of oils coating the wrapper. The cigar as a whole feels pretty firm, with no soft spots while the wrapper is very thick and dense as it leads up to the cigar’s round, double wrapped cap. The cigar is polished off by the beautiful intricate My Father band we all know, and the addition of a secondary brown band with “The Judge” embossed in gold on the front.

The wrapper on the judge releases some great cedar, leather, and spice aromas while the foot of the cigar is much more natural with an overall dirt aroma. The cap cut like butter using my Xikar XO double bladed cutter.  The cold draw produces a ton of bold spice, deep cedar, and natural tobacco flavors.

First Third:

The My Father The Judge starts out with a hell of a cayenne pepper blast which left my lips and tongue tingling for quite some time. Once the pepper fades out the cigar hits you with bold, deep cedar, plum, black coffee, spice, a bit of tartness, and some bittersweet chocolate. It’s an interesting flavor profile and it’s pretty bold so it’s a bit difficult to pick apart. No complaints there. The draw is incredible. Each little puff kicks out so much thick, white smoke. The box-pressed format makes both the mouth and handfeel extremely comfortable. The burnline is pretty even leaving behind a trail of tightly compacted black and dark gray ash which held on for almost an inch before giving way.

Second Third:

Into the second third of the My Father The Judge the flavor profile becomes much more focused on the chocolate notes. With chocolate leading the charge the flavors are backed by bold cedar, plum and spice with great notes of honey, natural tobacco, and even some slight notes of orange peel here and there. The retrohale brings all the pepper back to the front of the taste so I don’t find myself doing it too often. The burnline is still pretty solid and I close out the second third with a decent little nicotine kick.

Finish:

Into the final third of the My Father The Judge and the cigar is still pumping out the flavors. The chocolate is still front and center backed by bold spice and cedar along with some light coffee and vanilla. I love the flavor profile in this little beast. It took me an hour and a half to smoke it down to the nub and I experienced no harshness nor extended heat. The burnline was flawless and I never once had to reach for my light to touch up or relight the cigar. The cigar also left me with a memorable little nicotine kick.

Overview:

It’s easy to see the the My Father The Judge received so many accolades this past year. This is an exceptional cigar. I am a huge fan of the My Father line so anything less than exceptional would have pissed me off. Seriously though, it’s bold, its flavorful, it’s strong, it burns like a dream, and the flavors are incredible. My only gripe is it’s a bit pricey, but it’s a price I wouldn’t mind paying when I am craving a next level cigar experience.

Pairing:

Mikkeller’s Beer Geek breakfast is a simple Coffee Infused Oatmeal stout. Coming in at a modest 7.5% ABV the beer leads with some rich dark chocolate, milk, oat, roasted malt, and vanilla with a light mouthfeel before finishing with even more milk chocolate, oat, and a ton of sweetness with a bold vanilla aftertaste. This beer is so smooth and lacks the acidity that I normally expect when it comes to coffee stouts. The flavors mashed seamlessly with the coffee, cocoa, and oat resident in the My Father the Judge. I would also pair this cigar with just about any stout or double bock.

The post My Father The Judge appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Make sure to check out Tony’s Top 10 Cigars of 2017 if you haven’t done so already. There are some excellent smokes on the list. Before I get around to my top cigars of the year, I figured I would squeeze in another review and close out the year with another AJ Fernandez made cigar. This time with the H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez.

Altadis USA partnered up with AJ Fernandez earlier this year to create the new H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez. The cigar features an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper over Nicaraguan and Dominican internals. Manufactured in Nicaragua, the cigars are available in three vitolas: Robutso (5 by 52), Toro (6 by 54), and Churchill (7 by 54). The per stick price runs between $7.25 and $7.75.

You can purchase the H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez from our good friends over at Famous Smoke Shop.

THE FACTS

Price: $7.25
Vitola: Toro
Size: 6 by 54
Wrapper:Ecuadorian Sumatra
Binder: Nicaraguan Corojo ‘99
Filler: Nicaraguan Criollo ‘98 and Dominican Piloto Cubano
Smoke Time: 1 Hour and 20 Minutes

PRE-LIGHT

H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez wears a walnut brown wrapper that goes well with the color choice on the band. Two medium sized veins that are lighter in appearance run the length of the cigar, but, other than that, the veins are small. Scattered bumps and light oils are seen on the pleasant looking wrapper.  The cigar is rolled evenly and firmly. 

There is generic wood aroma, along with faint barnyard on the wrapper. Wood, coffee grounds, and black pepper are noted on the foot. An easy draw shows big cold draw flavors of cinnamon and cedar.

FIRST THIRD

Without delay, this Nicaraguan made H. Upmann pumps out full flavored, thick smoke. Not only are flavors full, there is a lot of depth to the smoke including flavors of  wood, sour apple, coffee, and pepper. The darker flavors of coffee and pepper stick around on the finish. As I retrohale the smoke, the pepper is bright and there is a BBQ smokiness. Two touch-ups are required before I can exit the first part of the smoke. 

MIDDLE THIRD

Pulling into the second third of the H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez, the wood and sour apple continue along as a sweet bread joins into the profile. The pepper flavor and spice has settled in both the mouth and on the retrohale. The BBQ smokiness that first appeared on the retrohale is pushing its way into the profile. The burn is now behaving for the most part as the ash is holds well past an inch.  

FINAL THIRD

This Nicaraguan made H. Upmann has lost some of its oomph. While the intensity of the flavors has dropped, the flavors remain balanced. The BBQ smokiness is now the dominant flavor with a sweetness tied to it followed by a bit of charred wood. The strength that started off in the medium range has held its ground throughout.

WRAP-UP

If you caught last week’s review, you know I walked away from the Monte by Montecristo AJ Fernandez somewhat disappointed. That was certainly not the case with the new H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez. The cigar delivered some full and complex flavors accompanied by a medium strength. The flavor evolution in each third held my interest and the BBQ smokiness I picked up on was captivating. For $7.25, I can highly recommend the H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez.

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You can purchase the Shadow King from our site sponsor Famous Smoke Shop. Make sure to use coupon code “CASASAVINGS” for $15 off orders over $100.

THE FACTS

Price: $6.50
Vitola: Churchill
Size: 7 by 50
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra Oscuro
Binder: Mexican
Filler: Dominican, Nicaraguan, and Honduran
Smoke Time: 1 Hour and 50 Minutes

PRE-LIGHT

Shadow King by AJ Fernandez wears a beautiful, oily medium brown Ecuadorian Sumatra Oscuro wrapper that has some marbleization, mostly small veins, and a very fine tooth. The cigar is smooth to the touch and evenly filled from head to foot. 

An aroma of chicken coop, earth and vinegar come across as I bring the wrapper to my nose and the same pungent aroma is found on the foot, accompanied by some cedar and black pepper. The lines on the double cap are straight and, upon cutting the cap, a beautiful draw opens up with a sweet berry flavor, rich cedar, and some cinnamon.

FIRST THIRD

Shadow King Churchill opens up with a mixture of sour wood and pencil shavings, along with some leather and black pepper spice. The medium spice is hitting the back of my throat resulting in a minor itch. The carbon line is thin as the cigar burns evenly and an earth flavor lingers on the finish of the smoke.

MIDDLE THIRD

As I make my way into the second third of this 7 by 50 cigar, the flavors remain similar with the prior third. The flavors are medium in strength and the smoke is smooth in the mouth. As I pass the smoke through my nose, the spice is sharp, but just short of overwhelming. The carbon line has thickened, but the Shadow King continues to burn nice and even. Its at the halfway point that the body and flavors step up a notch.

FINAL THIRD

The sour wood has become the dominant flavor in the Shadow King with the last third underway. The sour wood is followed by a combo of leather and spice. As I near the last few inches, the smoke is now creamy in the mouth and a cocoa sweetness has joined the profile. With the sweetness moving in, the sourness is being pushed to the side and the flavors are balanced. 

WRAP-UP

Shadow King showed a linear profile with not much evolution until I reached the last few inches of the cigar. A consistent profile is not necessarily a bad thing, but, in a Churchill size, it left me wanting for. I really appreciated the cocoa and sweetness in the last couple inches and it was a great end to the cigar and it makes me think that a smaller vitola, like a robusto, may show more complexity. But with that said, the Shadow King Churchill burned effortlessly with a dead even burn and solid ash. AJ Fernandez certainly knows how to make a solid performing cigar. For the price, give it a shot. The next time I do, I will be smoking the robusto.

The post AJ Fernandez – Shadow King, a Famous Smoke Shop Exclusive appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

-Tony

By now, most cigars smokers are probably familiar with the Leaf by Oscar story.  A collaboration between ‘Island Jim’ Robinson, owner of Pittsburgh based retailer Leaf and Bean, and cigar maker Oscar Valladares, this cigar comes wrapped in an outer leaf of tobacco in lieu of the usual cellophane.  Leaf by Oscar comes in four wrapper options:  Connecticut, Corojo, Maduro, and Sumatra.  Each of the different wrapper lines come in four sizes:  Toro 6 x 50, Double Toro 6 x 60, Robusto 5 x 50, and Lancero 7 x 38, although my understanding is that the latter two are less widely distributed.  The exact MSRPs are a little difficult to track down, but seem to run between $8.50 – $10.50.  The Leaf by Oscar is produced at Oscar Valladares Tobacco & Co. in Danli, Honduras.

Being long intrigued by this cigar, I decided to pick up a couple of the Sumatra Toros from the good folks at Cuenca Cigars.

The Basics:

Wrapper:  Ecuadorian Sumatra
Binder:  Honduras
Filler:  Honduras
Size:  Toro 6 x 50
Price:  $9
Smoking time:  One hour, thirty-five minutes
Pairing:  Melvin 2X4 DIPA (ABV 9.9%)

Pre-light:

It’s hard to imagine a more rustic presentation than what the Leaf by Oscar offers.  The protective leaf wrap is rough and ragged, and if there were no band on it to differentiate between blends, one might be tempted to chuck into the trash and that would be a huge mistake.  Speaking of the outer band, it is printed on handmade agave paper from a small shop in Danli and matches the rustic look very well.

Unwrapping the cigar tamale reveals a very thin and fragile yellowish tan wrapper, shiny with oils and with minimal veining and a firm pack.  There is little in the way of a distinct aroma off the wrapper other than a very light barnyard/hay, while the foot shows a slight grassy tobacco with a bit of spice.  After an easy clip of the cap, the cold draw shows surprisingly little flavor, just an extremely faint echoing of the foot aroma.

First third:

The Leaf by Oscar Sumatra has gotten off to a mild start, focusing on cedary tobacco with light earthiness.  Those flavors are reflected in the retrohale, which also shows some grain and a bit of pepper.  An inch in, the cedar has gained some sweetness, and my palate is hit by little bits of salt here and there.  The burn had started out very even, and is now off just a bit, but not in any way posing a problem.  The ash held on for just over an inch.  Nearing the end of the first third, the Leaf Sumatra has dropped most of the pepper and turned smoother and almost creamy, with a sweet talc note at the end of the retrohale, finishing mild with no nicotine strength.

Middle third:

The start of the middle section of the Leaf by Oscar Sumatra sees the flavors taking themselves a notch up in intensity while maintaining the smooth feel.  The pepper has made a comeback, not to a great degree, but enough to let you know it’s still there.  The sweetness is also more noticeable, as the wood is now more of an oak than cedar.  I should mention that the salt that I picked up in the first third has not been present since the latter part of that third.  The Leaf Sumatra ends the second third at a low-medium body with still no trace of nicotine.

Final third:

The final portion of the Leaf by Oscar Sumatra introduces a citrusy sweetness and a light char in back of the lightly oaky tobacco.  The char quickly fades leaving a sweeter feel, and the pepper has all but exited the palate, but remains on the retrohale.  Near the end, the sweetness dials back and the pepper once again shows on the palate.  The Leaf Sumatra has smoked absolutely cool all the way down to the nub, showing just a little softness, finishing at medium body and mild strength.

Overall:

The Leaf by Oscar Sumatra proved to be an enjoyable mild to medium cigar with great construction and smoking properties, and a moderate amount of complexity.  It’s a cigar that I would prefer to smoke in the morning, or at least earlier in the day, and one that can be enjoyed by both novice and experienced smokers, although those who lean toward stronger smokes might find it a bit light for their tastes.  I love the presentation of having the cigar wrapped in the outer leaf of tobacco, with the only drawback being that it will take up more space in one’s humidor.  Does that outer leaf make a difference?  Who knows?  I can only say that I enjoyed the smoke, and that’s really all that matters.  I look forward to trying the other blends in the Leaf by Oscar portfolio.

Pairing:

Although I keep saying that I find matching IPAs with cigars a big challenge, the 2X4 DIPA from Wyoming’s Melvin Brewing is one that I feel can pair up well with a large number of sticks.  The large amount of maltiness and deep and sticky mouthfeel offsets the big hop presence well enough to go very well with medium-bodied cigars. It is really a big favorite of mine, so matching it with this cigar was a no-brainer for me.  The Leaf by Oscar Sumatra is a cigar that will also pair nicely with a number of other styles of beers, such as a Belgian Tripel or Belgian-style IPA, German Weissbier, or good English ale.  A lightly sweetened coffee would also be ideal.

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Hoyo was inspired by Hoyo Edición de Cumpleaños 150, a successful, limited edition cigar released last year.  Hoyo 150th anniversary took the first step toward breaking the conventions of the brand by featuring a new variety of Nicaraguan tobacco, a shade-grown wrapper never used before in any other cigar. With sleek new packaging and a contemporary logo, Hoyo Edición de Cumpleaños 150 represented a new wave of the brand.

Continuing along the path carved by Edición de Cumpleaños 150, Hoyo is an artisanal line featuring special tobaccos, proprietary aging techniques and old world craftsmanship. Hoyo takes the same Esteli-grown Habano shade wrapper used in “150” and adds extended fermentation to deepen the flavor. The blend was also updated to complement the wrapper and features longer aging on the filler and binder to deliver a deep, rich smoking experience.

Hoyo begins with a proprietary wrapper called Esteli Habano Shade. Cultivated by the Plasencia Group exclusively for Hoyo, it is the first Cuban-seed, shade-grown wrapper, and is also one of the heaviest wrappers used in premium cigars. The Plasencias use special cultural practices to deliver a thick, pliable leaf with bold, peppery flavor. Given the power of the leaf, the Hoyo blending team chose to apply increased fermentation, taking place over two years, to bring deeper dimension to its taste.

Produced in Honduras at STG Danli, Hoyo is available in four vitolas: Rothschild (4 ½ by 50), Robusto (5 by 54), Toro (6 by 50), and Gigante (6 by 60). Packaged in boxes of 20, single cigars range from $5.49 for the Rothschild to $6.99 for the Gigante. 

The Facts

Samples Provided by General Cigar Co.
Price: $6.59
Vitola: Robusto
Size: 5 by 54
Wrapper: Esteli Habano Shade-Grown
Binder: Ecuadorian Sumatra
Filler: Pennsylvanian, Nicaraguan (Esteli & Ometepe)
Smoke Time: 1 Hour and 40 Minutes

Pre-light

Hoyo by General Cigar Co. wears an extremely dark brown shade grown Habano wrapper grown in Esteli, Nicaragua. Even with its dark color, tons of veins and dark color markings can be seen down the cigar. The wrapper has a nice oily shine and a few sugar-like crystals. The cigar is packed solid with no soft spots to be found.

Bringing the Hoyo to my nose, the aroma is pungent with a sharp vinegar, wet earth, and a faint woodsy smell. A much more pleasant aroma is found on the foot of the cigar as I am greeted with a cherry and chocolate combination. A section of the already ugly double cap is pulled away from the wrapper. Upon clipping the cigar, the entire cap fell off. Hopefully, the cigar won’t unravel on me! The draw is right on showing off a medium-rich profile with graham cracker, cedar, and potpourri-like spices.

First Third

As the cigar opens, dark, heavy flavors begin pouring out of the Hoyo. The profile is a mix of dirt/diesel, oak, dark red fruit, and pencil shavings. A medium/full spice lingers in the mouth and is causing a minor itch in the throat. The finish is of a bubble-gum that has lost all of its sweetness. About twenty minutes into the smoke, the flavors tapered off and smoke production died out. In that time, only a quarter inch of the wrapper burned down, but I could easily tell the internal tobaccos had burned significantly farther. After putting a flame to the wrapper to catch it up to the rest of the cigar, the flavors are back in full along with the smoke production.

Middle Third

As I enter the second third, the texture of the smoke is now thick in the mouth. The oak and dark fruit flavors are front and center, while the diesel has moved to the background but continues to sit on the finish of the smoke. The profile begins to jump back and forth from the oak and fruit to more diesel centered and a new chocolate joins in. At the halfway point, I am already feeling a nicotine kick in my gut. The spice heat has considerably calmed since the prior third but the pepper flavor has shifted up a couple of knots, and I am no longer feeling the spice itch in the throat.

Final Third

The most drastic transition took place as I made my way to the final few inches of the Hoyo. A richness has crept in showing sweet breadsy notes, chocolate, a floral quality and pepper. The newly arrived flavors are pushing back the more earthy qualities of the cigar that are becoming somewhat bitter at this point. The wrapper once again struggles to keep up requiring an additional touch-up to give me a few more minutes with this Hoyo. 

I may or may not have forgotten to take a picture in the final third…

Wrap-up

It has been years since I have smoked a Hoyo de Monterrey cigar. I remember being handed one years back as I was beginning to smoke more full-bodied smokes. I wonder if I would still characterize that Hoyo de Monterrey as a full-bodied smoke today… Well, if I was handed the new Hoyo, it would most definitely be considered a full cigar by most standards. Full in flavors and medium/full in strength but not overpowering. The dark flavors worked well in the profile from the start and by the time my palate was getting a bit fatigued, the cigar evolved to a more rich, easier on the palate profile that concluded the cigar. The smoke production was excellent as long as the wrapper continued to burn in-line with the cigar. I am going to blame the touch-ups on the high humidity going on in the U.P. and won’t dock any point from my non-existent point system. With all that said, I actually found the Hoyo to my liking and a cigar I will be grabbing again as I see it around.

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