The Good Stuff:

The EP Carrillo Dusk was named #18 cigar of the year by Cigar Aficionado. The Dusk is one of the newer additions to Ernesto Perez-Carrillo’s portfolio making it’s debut in 2016 at the IPCPR show in Las Vegas. The Dusk is part of the Classics series and is a full-production cigar. The EP Carrillo Dusk carries an undisclosed Maduro wrapper form the United States, Ecuadorian binder, and Nicaraguan fillers. The cigars are being manufactured at the Tabacalera La Alianza factory in Dominican Republic and come in four sizes: Robusto (5 x 50), Stout Toro (6 x 52), Obscure (7 x 54), and the Solidos (6 x 60). All formats are packaged in boxes of 20 and run between $7.15 and $9.55 a stick.  A big thanks goes out to Cuenca Cigar for sending these our way. You can purchase these directly from Cuenca, or as part of their Cigar Aficionado Top 25 Cigars of 2017 sampler pack.

Size: 6 x 60
Wrapper: Undisclosed United States
Binder: Ecuadorian
Filler: Nicaraguan
Body: Medium
Strength: Medium
Price: $9.55
Pairing: Founders 2018 Kentucky Breakfast Stout (KBS) (12.3% Imperial Stout)

Prelight:

The EP Carrillo Dusk is wrapper in an extremely dark brown, “Dusk themed” wrapper which is consistent in color minus the darker natural webbing scattered throughout the wrapper’s leaf. The texture on the wrapper is pretty coarse and toothy with a very large amount of oils coating the wrapper. The wrapper feels very thick, dense, and firm while the filler is packed extremely tight resulting in a cigar that feels like a dry erase marker. The cigar is then polished off with a round, double wrapped cap and a beautiful navy blue and gold band sporting the EP Carrillo crest and the Dusk logo embosses in the front.

The wrapper on the EP Carrillo gives off great cocoa and spice aromas while the foot of the cigar carries much more pepper, spice, and natural tobacco scents. The cap cut clean and easily using my Xikar XO double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces great chocolate, spice, pepper, and dirt flavors.

First Third:

The EP Carrillo Dusk starts out with a blast of black pepper which quickly faded after the first few puffs to reveal a soft palate of dark chocolate, coffee, slight sweetness, brown sugar, and cedar. The draw is great. There is something about larger ring gauge cigars that causes the cigar to release a great amount of smoke with little effort. At first, I was scared the cigar would be packed too tightly, but it’s smoking like a dream. The burn line is slightly wavy, but razor sharp. The Ash is decently compacted and medium gray which held on for about an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Second Third:

Into the second third of the EP Carrillo Dusk the cedar has really taken the prominent role in the flavor palate backed by dark chocolate, soft coffee and a bit of musk. The sweetness has almost completely faded out. The retrohale is nice and smooth coating my nasal passage with coffee, cocoa, and soft spice which isn’t too prominent in the standard experience. The burnline is still slightly wavy but holding strong as I close out the second third with nothing in terms of nicotine kick.

Finish:

The cedar has really started to overpower all the other flavors in the final third of the EP Carrillo Dusk. While the cocoa, musk, and coffee still remain they really just kind of pop in and out at this point as they battle through the overwhelming cedar flavor. While I do enjoy it, I wish the cigar ended just a bit more balanced. The burn line was a bit wacky throughout but I never once had to touchup or relight the cigar so no marks taken there. I never once experience any harshness nor extended heat in the 2 hours it took to take this cigar down to the nub. I close out with no signs of nicotine at all.

Overview:

I am a big fan of EP Carrillo cigars, but this one just didn’t do it for me. The flavors seemed a bit muted from the beginning and as I hoped they’d ramp up as the cigar progressed, they actually dampened. I smoked three of these cigars and two of the three (not this particular one which came from a different box than the previous two) had a strange metallic flavor throughout the experience. Since it didn’t happen on all of them I didn’t feel right mentioning it in the review, nor dock the cigar marks for that. The burn and construction were great though as the cigar performed flawlessly. So if the above flavor profile matches something you think you’d like then by all means pick it up, and let me know what you think about it. I’d love to hear it.

Pairing:

Let’s face it, we all know and love Founder’s KBS. Each year this is one of the most sought after beer releases. Brewed at the Founder’s Brewery in Michigan this Imperial stout with Coffee and Chocolate added is aged is Oak Bourbon Barrels before getting bottled and poured with a 12.3% ABV. KBS starts out with a great amount of sweet chocolate, mild coffee, bourbon bite, vanilla, and malt with a heavy mouthfeel before finishing sweet with more chocolate, coffee, vanilla, toffee, and a slight bourbon bite. The alcohol is very well hidden in this dangerously drinkable stout. I paired it with the Dusk hoping that the complimentary flavors would help pull some more body out of the cigar, which it did, but still not enough to get my attention.

The post E.P. Carrillo Dusk Solidos appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff:

The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras line has easily become one of each year’s most anticipated releases. Starting in 2014 the Crowned Heads launched the Las Calaveras line to celebrate those who we have all lost throughout the year a backstory in which I personally love. You can read out review of the 2014 here, 2015 here, and 2016 here.

The Las Calaveras 2017 blend consists of an Ecuadorian Habano Maduro wrapper, Nicaraguan binder, and Nicaraguan fillers which is produced at the My Father factory in Nicaragua. This year the Las Calaveras is offered in four sizes: The standard size (5 1/2 x 54), LC46 (5 5/8 x 46), LC50 (5 x 50), and the LC52 (6 x 52) which will run you between $9.70 and $11.75 a stick. Each size comes packaged in 24 count boxes with a sampler of one of each size being released as well.  There is 1,700 boxes of each size released with the exception of the standard size which will see a release of 3,000 boxes. I purchased mine over from Atlantic Cigar.

Size: 5 x 50
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano Maduro
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Body: Full
Strength: Medium/Full
Price: $9.70
Pairing: Founder Kentucky Breakfast Stout 2017 (Imperial Stout 11.9% ABV)

Prelight:

The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras 2017 starts with a gorgeous medium/dark brown wrapper which isn’t too consistent in color as there are several darker brown areas as well as some lighter almost orange splotches scattered throughout the cigar. The texture of the cigar is extremely toothy and gritty with a good amount of oil while the wrapper itself feels very dense and hard. In fact, the cigar as a whole feels very solid, heavy, and well packed. There are some very minor veins and lots of natural webbing located in the body of the cigar leading up to it’s round, triple-wrapped cap. Unlike the previous Las Calaveras blend this year carries a black base instead of white, with the similar red, gold, and white embossing as the previous releases.

The wrapper gives off some slight spice, and musk aromas while the foot of the cigar kicks out a ton of pepper, spice, grain and natural tobacco scents. The cold draw its massive throwing out a ton of pepper, spice, musk, leather, and tobacco flavors with some slight tartness left on my lips.

First Third:

he Crowned Heads Las Calaveras 2017 starts out with a ton of black pepper that left my tongue and lips tingling for a bit. After the pepper fades I am greeted with some really bold spice, brown sugar, musk, raisin, vanilla and oak. It’s a bold and complex profile right off the bat. The draw is absolutely perfect despite being packed so tightly. Each little pull forces a huge cloud of thick white smoke into my mouth which hangs out for quite a while before dissipating  as The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras 2017 pours out stationary smoke as it rests in my ashtray. The burn line is razor thin and dead even. The ash left behind is slightly compacted, semi-flaky and a bright white and medium gray in color which held on for an inch before giving way.

Second Third:

I’m into the second third of this Crowned Heads Las Calaveras 2017 and I’m having a real hard time putting it down. The flavor profile still leads with spice, vanilla, brown sugar and musk with a great cocoa addition now and some backing oak and pecan. It’s well into the full-bodied arena already but I haven’t felt much in terms of nicotine yet. The retrohale reminds me how much residual pepper is still in the mix and I don’t find myself doing it too often. The cigar is still burning flawlessly.

Finish:

The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras 2017 has not stopped pouring on the love since I first lit it up. Now into the final third the flavor profile has been taken over by the musk and cocoa while the vanilla, spice, oak, and brown sugar have taken a step back and a real nice smokey flavor has crept in as well as a resurgence of the pepper. It took me two hours to take this little cigar down to the nub. It could have easily been much quicker but I really had to keep reminding myself to pace it. I experienced no harshness, nor extended heat even into the final half inch where I broke out my Redeemer to nub until there was almost no cigar left to smoke.

Overview:

I am a huge fan of the Las Calaveras line, and a bigger fan of the Crowned Heads. How did The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras 2017 compare? It may be a bit early to say it as I only smoked through a handful, but this may be my favorite Calaveras release yet. It’s bold, flavorful, complex, well balanced and won’t kick your ass. That’s exactly what I personally look for in a cigar. The flavor profile was stellar and the price point is exactly where it should be. With a large release these won’t be too hard to find either which is a great thing cause it looks like I will be picking up quite a few more.

Pairing:

Why not pair one of the year’s most sought after cigars with one of the most sought after beers. Unless you’ve been living under a rock then you’re familiar with Founder’s Kentucky Breakfast Stout, or KBS. Coming in at a rockin’ 11.9% This imperial stout is brewed with coffee and chocolate before being cave-aged in oak bourbon barrels for a year. The result is fantastic. The beer leads with vanilla, cocoa, booze, malt, and cream with a very heavy mouthfeel before finishing with even more cocoa, caramel, malt, bourbon, oak, and vanilla. The bourbon really starts to come out of this beer as it warms. I can do this pairing all day! The sweet vanilla, cocoa, and malt really paired well with the cocoa, vanilla, and spice in The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras 2017. If I had to pair this cigar with another beer I’d go for a spicy Belgian Dubbel, a spiced Imperial Mexican Chocolate Stout, or a solid Tawny Port.

The post The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras 2017 appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff:

The Espinosa Alibi is the first of a new series called “The Backroom Series” which shipped to 3 lucky Espinosa retailers who feature Espinosa Lounges in December. The Alibi is a 6 x 48 cigar which features a Ecuadorian Habano Oscuro wrapper along with some undisclosed binder and fillers produced at the La Zona factory in Nicaragua. The Alibi comes in a single size, packed in boxes of 10 running $90 a box with only 200 boxes produced. The 3 retailers who carry the Alibi are Casa Belicoso in Walnut Creek California, Cordova Cigars in Pensacola Florida, and Smoke Inn VI in Margate Florida with more to be expected as Espinosa Lounges are established across the country. (Thanks to Halfwheel for the info) Samples were sent to us from our friends at Espinosa for review.

Size: 6 x 48
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano Oscuro
Binder: Undisclosed
Filler: Undisclosed
Body: Full
Strength: Medium/Full
Price: $9
Pairing: Founders Backwoods Bastard (Bourbon Barrel Aged Scotch Ale 10.2% ABV)

Prelight:

The Espinosa Alibi starts out with a very dark, very beautiful toothy, veiny, web wrapper. Seriously this thing feels like it’s wrapper in sandpaper. The wrapper is very a very dark, very consistent brown and feels very dense with little give as I squeeze it between my fingers. the long body leads up so a shallow, round, double cap. The Alibi is polished off with a simple, elegant beige band with the word “Alibi” on the front, “Backroom Series” on one side, and “Espinosa Lounge Exclusive” on the other while the foot sports a simple black band that blends in with the darkness of the wrapper.

The wrapper on the Alibi gives off tons of pepper, spice, and raisin while the foot of the cigar lets looks a generous blend of spice and tobacco. The cap cut clean and easy using my Palio double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces some really bold raisin, spice, sweetness and a whole mess of pepper left my lips tingling.

First Third:

As I expected the Espinosa Alibi starts off with a strong black pepper boom which leaves both my tongue and lips with a tingling sensation. The pepper began to simmer down a bit after about a half inch in and the Alibi’s flavors began to take shape with a really strong raisin leading the pack backed by some dark cheery, leather, spice, and sweetness on the finish. The draw is a bit loose but I can dig it as each little puff produces a ton of thick smoke. The burn line has a few slight waves, but nothing too serious as it leaves behind a trail of medium gray, compacted ash which held on for a bit over an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Second Third:

The black pepper is still quite resident into the second third of the Espinosa Alibi. The raisin is still rocking solid with the cherry and sweetness backing while the spice has ramped up quite a bit. The Alibi started in the medium category but is now venturing into the full-bodied zone. The retrohale is very sharp and much to spicy/peppery for my liking. The burn is still slightly wavy but hasn’t needed any extra attention from my lighter while I am feeling a slight bit of nicotine while closing out the second third.

Finish:

The pepper has finally cleared way for the other flavors in the final third of the Espinosa Alibi. The flavors are pretty consistent leading with the raisin and cherry backed by sweetness and spice with a ramp up in leather and oak. The draw is been a bit wavy the entire time but I never once had to touch up or relight the cigar so I’m not complaining. It took me about an hour and forty five minutes to smoke the Alibi down to the nub and while the strength really stepped it’s game up towards the end, there was no harshness or heat finishing very bold and proper with a beautiful little nicotine kick.

Overview:

The Espinosa Alibi is a solid cigar in every category. I usually gravitate towards full-bodied cigars and this is the perfect example on full-bodied done right. The flavors are bold, yet balanced while I wasn’t overpowered by the higher strength this cigar yields. The size chosen is incredible as I usually go for smaller ring gauges as I feel the wrapper, in most cases, delivers more of the flavors I look for. This probably isn’t going to be something that novice cigar smokers are going to be chasing down but I think it’s perfect for the seasoned smoker looking for a great full bodied experience. My only gripe is the availability but that was the whole idea behind this series.

Pairing:

Yeah, this pairing rocked. Simple as that. The first time I smoked the Alibi I knew that I would be choosing Founders Backwoods Bastard as it’s partner. The Backwoods Bastard is a 10.2% ABV Bourbon Barrel Aged Scotch Ale and one of my favorites in the Founders portfolio. This particular bottle was from a 2013 haul I brought in. The beer leads with some strong Bourbon and caramel with a very heavy and thick mouthfeel finishing strong with lots of sweetness, malt, and cajeta with a good amount of booze. This cigar would pair perfectly with any wee heavy, spiced rum, our tawny port.

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