The Good Stuff: Smoke Inn has teamed up with some of the biggest names in the cigar industry to bring you their exclusive Microblend Series. This time, they paired up with Quesada to bring you the Oktoberfest Dunkel. The other blends in the Microblend include: Tatuaje’s Anarchy, Padron’s Anniversary 1964 SI-15, My Father Cigars’ El Hijo, A. Fuente’s Solaris, Tatuaje’s Apocalypse, and Room 101’s Big Delicious. The Oktoberfest Dunkel is the same basic Dominican binder and Dominican Cuban Seed Criollo, Olor Viso, Ligero fillers from the standard Oktoberfest (you can read my review of that cigar here) with a swap on the wrapper leaf. The Dunkel carries a Broadleaf  Maduro instead of the  Dominican Cibao Valley. As an added bonus the Dunkel has a very small portion of Ecuadorian Connecticut at the foot of the cigar to resemble the head on a freshly poured beer.

Here is the information provided in their press release:

In the spirit of Oktoberfest, the Dunkel uses the same binders and fillers of the regular Oktoberfest release, with the exception of the wrapper. A very select broadleaf maduro wrapper envelops this rich cigar with a slight underlying Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper at the foot, thus giving the appearance of a dark rich Dunkel beer with a savory foamy head.

The unique experience of smoking one wrapper, then 2 wrappers, and then one wrapper again give this Oktoberfest a unique complex flavor while maintaining that core flavor of Oktoberfest that fans across the world have grown to love.

There will only be 750 15-Count boxes released in a single 6×54 format running $8.95 a stick.

Size: 6 x 54
Wrapper: Broadleaf Maduro – Ecuadorian Connecticut
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Dominican Cuban Seed Criollo, Olor Viso, Ligero
Strength: Medium
Body: Medium/Full
Price: $8.95
Pairing: Paulaner Oktoberfest (German Marzen 5.8% ABV)

Prelight: Like the original Oktoberfest the Dunkel carries a very dark, very consistent  brown wrapper. While the Dunkel’s wrapper lead is very dark brown, I find that some of the original blends that I have actually carry a darker wrapper. The Dunkel’s wrapper is silky smooth with only a few smaller veins. It carries some nice tooth and a bit of oil and I am surprised with how seamless the construction is. The wrapper is capped off with a big, round, triple cap while the foot of the cigar has about a centimeter of a lighter shade wrapper leaf. This is supposed to represent the head of a beer that is created as you pour it into a glass. I love the little added touch. The cigar is very heavy, firm, and bulky while the wrapper leaf feels very tough and solid. There are absolutely no soft spots throughout the entire cigar. The Oktoberfest Dunkel is polished off with the traditional Quesada crest and a German Flag stretching the length of the band behind it, just like the traditional Oktoberfest.

The Oktoberfest Dunkel’s wrapper gives of a slightly sweet aroma covered in a ton of black pepper while the foot of the cigar boats of strong natural tobacco and earthiness. The Dunkel cut clean and easy using my double bladed Palio cutter. The cold draw kicks out a whole ton of sweet spice over some more natural flavors.

First Smoke: I had a conversation with Jeremy last night about the tiny little wrapper addition to the foot of the cigar. We were debating whether or not it would produce any type of difference in the experience or if it was there basically for aesthetics. Honestly,  I feel there actually was a difference, even though my  first hypothesis was that there would not be. When I first lit up the cigar it started out very creamy and smooth with what I would call some muted flavors. I’ve smoked my share of Oktoberfests so I know what to expect with these cigars and the first couple of puffs didn’t add up to what I was expecting. It wasn’t until I hit the darker shade of wrapper leaf that the experience began to take off.  The Dunkel went from creamy to full force kicking out some awesome sweetness, natural tobacco, cinnamon and spice, as well as some nice musky flavors with hints of black pepper. While it lead off with lots of different flavors they were well balanced and really didn’t overpower me. The draw on the cigar is slightly tight but nothing that I see bothering the experience down the road. The burnline is slightly wavy, and pretty wide leaving behind a beautiful, solid, white ash that held on for about an inch and a half before giving way.

Halfway There: The flavors in the Oktoberfest Dunkel in the second third are very similar to the flavors in the first third. Lots of sweetness, lots of musk and spice, natural tobacco, earthiness and a really nice cedar has finally began creeping its way into the profile. You can smell the cedar on the stationary smoke, and the retrohale is straight up sweet cedar, but it isn’t quite as powerful in the actual draw.  The burnline is now burning dead even and a lot sharper as I am feeling absolutely no nicotine kick at this time.

Finish: As I enter the final third of the Oktoberfest Dunkel a really nice gingerbread type flavor began to creep in. Maybe I am imagining it, but I swear I am picking it up. Along with the gingerbread the musky flavor has ramped up while the sweetness, cedar, and spice have began to drop back. The body of the cigar has jumped up considerably as well. This cigar burns extremely slow. It took  me a little over two hours to smoke it down to the numb in which I have encountered absolutely no harshness at all and felt nothing more than a slight nicotine kick.

Overview: You can’t just throw Connecticut Broadleaf on any cigar and expect results like this. I remembered smoking my first few Oktoberfests thinking “Man, this cigar would rock with broadleaf”. Smoke Inn and Quesada made my dream come true with the Dunkel. The flavors are similar to the original Oktoberfest. Lots of spice and earthy flavors with a bit of the cedar but everything seemed more creamy in the Dunkel with a hell of a lot more sweetness. I love the sweetness in cigar so naturally I find myself liking the Dunkel just a tad more than the original and that says a lot considering I’ve smoked through literally a few boxes of the original Oktoberfest. They say these blends were made specially to pair with beer but in my opinion, I feel any cigar can pair well with beer if paired properly. This cigar is semi-complex with a ton of great, bold flavors and it kept me entertained all the way though. I think it’s a great cigar for any type of smoker.

To Sum it Up: It’s a great cigar. It’s not too strong and carries lots of flavor so it’s perfect for the seasoned smoker and the novice as it won’t leave you on your ass. The price point is spot on, and the Dunkel is more than box worthy. It’s limited so make sure you head over to Smoke Inn and order yours before they are gone.

Pairing: It’s not Oktoberfest without some Paulaner Oktoberfest. This is a staple in any beer drinkers Marzen arsenal. Brewed at the Paulaner Braueri in Germany this 5.8% Marzen is by far one of the easiest to drink, smoothest session beers on the market. After all, isn’t that was Oktoberfest is all about? This beer leads off with a ton of malt and caramel finishing off with a hint of sweetness and prune. It makes for an excellent pairing beer as the flavors are so consistent and smooth they seldom overpower any smoke while the sweetness and caramel pair in perfectly. This beer is a great transitional beer from the hoppy, dry summer beers to the full-bodied, heavy, stout beers of the Winter.

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The Good Stuff: The Montecristo Epic is labeled as the boldest Montecristo blend in the Altidas U.S.A. portfolio. The main story in the Epic is the inclusion of Dominican tobaccos that date back as far as 2007.  Along with the Dominican filler the Epic also includes Nicaraguan fillers, Nicaraguan Binder, and a Ecuadorian Habano wrapper.

The Epic is available in  3 different sizes (Toro, Robusto, and Chruchill) with a limited edition No. 2 format available later this year. I’m not sure how much the limited edition vitola will run for, but the standard Epic sizes range from $12 to $14 a stick and will come in boxes of 10. These samples were sent to me by Altidas U.S.A.

Size: 6 x 52
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Dominican (some aged since 2007)/Nicaraguan
Body: Full
Strength: Medium/Full
Price: ~$13
Pairing: Weihenstaphaner Hefeweissbier Dunkel (5.3% ABV)

Prelight: Lately I have had the pleasure of smoking some remarkably well constructed cigars, and Montecristo’s Epic, falls right in line. This cigar is a beauty. Starting with its crazy thick, oily, toothy, consistently medium brown wrapper with some slight, webby shades of dark brown. There is a lot of smaller, webby veins, but not really any larger ones that might mess with the burn during the experience. The large, beefy body leads up to a beautiful, round double cap. The Epic is finished off with your standard, brown and gold, Montecritso band and the addition of a secondary gold, yellow, and brown label carry the words “EPIC” and “Premium Selection ‘07” printed on it. This cigar is incredibly firm, it’s almost rock hard. There isn’t a single dense, or soft spot throughout the body of the cigar. I just hope it isn’t too tight when it comes down to smoking it.

The wrapper on the Montecristo Epic gives off a very tart, citrusy cedar aroma while the foot of the cigar pumps out a very creamy, spicy, cedar and coffee aroma. The cap on the Epic took a little extra attention to clip using my Palio double bladed cutter, but I was left with a very nice, clean cut when it finally when through. The cold draw produces some really sharp, tart cedar with some coffee and natural tobacco flavors.

First Smoke: Surprisingly, I was greeting with quite a bit of black pepper on the first couple of draw of the Montecristo Epic.  Once the pepper began to fade away this crazy tart, and I mean TART flavor took over. It reminded me a lot of orange peel only with more tart, less sweetness. Underneath the tart flavor is a nice, bold coffee, natural tobacco, cedar, and nutty profile. Despite my earlier reservations, the draw on the Epic was magnificent. Every little puff kicked out a ton of thick smoke. The burnline was razor sharp with only some slight waves leaving behind a flaky medium and dark grey ash. The ash only held on for about a third of an inch before giving way.

Halfway There: The tartness started to let off a bit in the second third of this Montecristo Epic. As the tartness faded the cigar became much more creamy with some sharp cedar notes laid over lots of coffee, chocolate, and nutty flavors. The retrohale is way too sharp and tart for me, so I only did it once or twice before calling it quits. The burnline is now burning dead even and still razor sharp and I am feeling no nicotine at all at this point.

Finish: I was really hoping that by the final third of the Montecristo Epic the tart flavor would have fizzled out. No luck. In fact, along with all the other flavors, it’s actually beginning to ramp up. Other than the tartness there is still some very sharp cedar, very bold coffee, and creamy tobacco with hints of spice. The Epic didn’t require a single touch-up or relight as it took me almost 2 hours to take this cigar down. I felt a slight nicotine kick after finishing the cigar, but nothing too powerful.

Overview: While the Montecristo Epic is one of the better Non-cuban Montecristos blend I have had, it just didn’t do it for me. That tartness was a bit too overpowering, had it not been there, or even a bit milder then I think I would have really enjoyed this cigar. When you factor in a $13 price point, I just don’t see myself pulling the trigger on these. Check them out for yourself, let me know what you think. I know that there are far more reviewers out there that really enjoyed this cigar then there are who didn’t.

Pairing: Ahh yes, another wonderful German beer. Weihenstephan is labeled as the oldest brewery in the world. It takes some great beer to be around for that long and this brewery can do no wrong. Today’s selection is one from their very few darker offerings. The Hefeweissbier Dunkel, or Dunkelweizen is one of my favorite brews they make. Brewed at the legendary Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan in Germany, this modest 5.3% ABV is packed with flavor. The dark ale starts out with a bitter wheat followed by orange, coriander, cinnamon, and prune flavors. This is a great after dinner summer beer. It’s heavy, sweet, and paired quite nicely with the tart/sweet flavors in the Montecristo Epic.

The post Montecristo EPIC Cigar Review appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff: Debuting at this year’s IPCPR show just a few days back, Oliva showcased it’s newest addition to their already vast portfolio. The Serie V Melanio. The Melanio was created to pay tribute to Melanio Oliva, who has been growing tobacco for Oliva since 1886. Here is a bit of background on Melanio taken from the Oliva site:

Melanio Oliva first grew tobacco in Pinar Del Rio, Cuba in 1886. His growing operations were suspended while he fought in Cuba’s War of Independence. After returning from war Melanio resumed his operations. In the early 1920’s Melanio’s son Hipolito Oliva took over the growing operations. Hipolito cultivated the Oliva family fields for several decades. As Cuba became over-run by communist the tobacco landscape changed. Hipolito’s son Gilberto Oliva shifted from growing to brokering tobacco. In the early 60’s the pressure became too great and Gilberto traveled from country to country in search of the distinct Cuban taste. His travels took him to Honduras, Panama, Mexico and even the Philippines. Gilberto finally found fertile ground in Nicaragua. Today Gilberto along with his family are Nicaragua’s second largest grower of Cuban-seed tobacco.

The Melanio is composed of all Nicaraguan fillers and binder. Like all of the cigars in the Serie V, the cigar contains some of the most aged tobaccos. Along with the aged tobaccos Oliva concentrated on tobacco grown in the Jalapa region of Nicaragua. The Melanio actually uses more Jalapa tobacco which adds much more flavor, but less strength. The cigar is then wrapped with Sumatra seed wrapper grown in Ecuador by Oliva. This is the first cigar made using this wrapper and the first Ecuadorian Sumatran wrapper on any cigar since the Master Blends 2. The Melanio will come in 5 sizes, all box-pressed: Robusto (5 x 52), Torpedo (6.5 x 52), Churchill (7 x 50), Pettit Corona (4.5 x 56), and a crazy figurado (6 x 52). All will come in boxes of ten and will range between $8 and $14 a stick.

Size: 5 x 52  Box Pressed
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Body: Full
Strength: Medium/Full
Price: $9.50
Pairing: Schneider & Sohn Aventinus Dopplebock

The Oliva Serie V Melanio reminds me of the Master Blends so much as far as shape, and appearance are concerned. The cigar starts off with a nice, rounded box-pressed format. I’ve said it too many times to count, but this elongated box-press has to be my favorite format. It fits perfectly in your hand, perfectly in your mouth, and always pumps out a perfect draw. The wrapper is a very dark brown with lots of medium brown, light brown, and orange inconsistencies. Again, I love when a cigar’s wrapper looks as natural as this. I’m not one for dye. The wrapper is very hard and very thick and displays only one, tiny vein all the way up to the stubby round double cap. There Melanio feels tough, and very well packed with no soft-spots. The Melanio sports the exact same brown, gold, and red “Oliva Serie V” band as the rest of the Serie V cigars only with two exceptions. The words “Gran Reserva Limitada” written around the large band, and the addition of a smaller secondary band with the words “Melanio – Gran Reserva Limitada” embossed on it.

The wrapper smells of very sweet tobacco, deep spice, and cedar while the foot gives off a very powerful, pungent tobacco and sharp pepper. The cap cut clean from the Melanio and the cold draw produces a lot of the same flavors I would expect from the Master blends. Lots of sweet tobacco and a ton of cedar. The main difference is with the sweetness I also got a whole ton of spice and black pepper. Needless to say this is going to be an interesting experience.

First Smoke: The first couple of draws on this Oliva Serie V Melanio shaped up exactly how I was expecting. The cigar opened up with lots of sharp, back pepper, strong tobacco, coffee, and chocolate flavors back by lots of sweet cedar and spice. What I wasn’t expecting is for the pepper to fade so quickly and all the remaining flavors to blend in so perfectly. Seriously, this is starting out as one seriously creamy, balanced, flavorful cigar. The draw on the Melanio is just perfect. Every little puff kicks out a massive amount of thick, white smoke. The cigar doesn’t give off much more than a tiny amount of tobacco scented stationary smoke. The burnline has only a few small waves as it exposes the cigar’s tightly compacted, white and light grey ash. The ash held on well over an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Halfway There: The Oliva Serie V Melanio continues to be this creamy flavor bomb. The sharp spice from the aged tobacco has really started to take the forefront into the second third. Backing the spice is some soft cedar, a bit of a grape flavor, coffee, bitter chocolate, and sweet tobacco with just an undertone of leather. The amount of flavor in this cigar are ridiculous. The retrohale was not even close to as sharp as peppery as I thought it was going to be coating my nasal passage with a soft cedar and spice. I am feeling some slight nicotine from the Melanio already, but nothing close to the standard Serie V.

Finish: I am happy to report that both the secondary and the large band came off with ease. I really hate when bands are glued to the wrapper of the cigar, but I have never had a problem with Oliva. The strength of the Melanio really ramped up into the final third of this cigar. Along with the strength so did the body. The main flavors are now a strong coffee and tobacco with lots of cedar, sweetness, chocolate and fruit undertones. I’m really impressed with all the flavors in this cigar while the experience has stayed overall smooth and creamy. I didn’t experience and harshness at all into the final inch. All in all it took me and hour and a half to smoke this cigar and I enjoyed every minute of it.

Overview: Needless to say, this was one hell of a cigar. The Master Blends series have always been my favorite Oliva blends, and some of my favorite cigars of all time followed by the Serie V and Serie V Maduro series. You can guess how excited I was when I heard about the Melanio. I had hoped that it would be a Serie V/Master Blends love child, and that’s exactly what it was. The Melanio brings the Serie V to a whole new level with it’s full bodied, flavorful, aged tobacco wrapped up in a sweet, cedar package. This is by far one of the best cigars to come out of the Oliva factory. The blend and format are perfect, not to mention the appeal this cigar will have to cigar enthusiast based on it’s complexity and balanced flavor while it comforts the novice smoker with a full-bodied, but not too strong experience for those who want to venture into the premium market. This is box worthy for sure, and I urge any of you to pick up quite a few once they start landing in your local shops. Really, I know the price tag may be high for the normally value-priced Oliva, but it’s well worth it.

Pairing: Want to see a perfect pairing? Look no further than the Oliva V Melanio and Schneider & Sohn Aventinus. This German Wheat-based Dopplebock is produced at the Weisses Bräuhaus G. Schneider & Sohn and rings in at a whopping 8.2% ABV. As soon as I decided that this week’s review was going to be the Melanio, the only beer that I could think of for pairing was Aventinus. This isn’t your normal Dopple. Aventinus is a dark, wheat based dopple with more character than most. Instead of the thick, malty build up most dopples produce, Aventinus lets looks a ton of natural flavors such as clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cherry all wrapped around in chocolate malt and barely. Mouth watering yet? It should be. This is by far the best pairing that I have had lately.

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Prelight: The Diesel Unlimited is the follow up release to master-blender A.J. Fernandez’s Diesel unholy cocktail and Diesel shorty. Both of those cigars were great sticks that were well received amongst the cigar community but A.J. decided to step it up a notch stuffing the Unlimited with San Andreas, Condega, and Esteli long fillers and wrapping it off with a Honduran Ligero Wrapper resulting a bold, strong experience.  These cigars were sent to us by out friends at Stogieboys.com, check them out for some great cigar deals. The cigar comes in 4 sizes, the D.5 (5.5″ x 54), the D.6 (6” x 60), the D.7 (7” x 58), and the D.X (5.7″ x 56) which I am reviewing today. They come in boxes of 20 and range at stogieboys.com from $3.65 to $4.50 a cigar.

Size: 5.7” x 56  – Wrapper: Honduran Ligero  –  Filler: San Andreas/Nicaraguan  –  Body: Full  –  Strength: Full

The wrapper on this Diesel Unlimited is a beauty. The leaf is a dark, toffee brown that just screams of oil. Seriously, my fingers are getting greasy just holding this cigar. While the construction is spot on, there is one huge, huge, huge vein running the entire length of the body of the cigar all the way up to its pointy belicoso style cap.  I really hope it doesn’t toy around with the cigar experience. The Diesel is a very thick, heavy, stout cigar. The wrapper feels extremely tough and durable. The Diesel unlimited carries a foot band with the exact same design as the unholy cocktail, only red in color.

The wrapper emits massive amounts of sweet cedar, chocolate, and a strange buttery aroma while the foot pumps out enough peppery tobacco that it burned my nose a bit as I went in to take a big whiff. The cap on the Diesel Unlimited cut off very clean and easy. I sometimes have a hard time with belicoso cigars that have a stronger wrapper, but this one didn’t put up much of a fight. The cold draw is nice and easy and I am greeted with a ton of spicy, peppery, chocolate tobacco right away.

First Smoke: Just as I expected I am greeted with a ton of black pepper right off the bat. After a few puffs the pepper begins to fade and I am left with this very sweet, dark chocolate, tobacco, very spicy flavor with yes, that butter that I picked up during the prelight. It’s strange. It almost tastes like some sort of baked good. Whatever, I’m stretching it. The draw on this Diesel Unlimited is badass. It takes only one little puff to get a mouth fool of thick, tasty, goodness. The burnline is razor sharp and dead even right from the start. The ash is a thick, tightly compacted, light and dark grey which held on just over an inch before giving way.

Halfway There: I’m well into the second third of this Diesel Unlimited and I have to say, so far it has literally been a carbon copy of the first. I am still getting a ton of black pepper and spice along with the sweet chocolate and tobacco. The only difference is the ramp up of cedar and an increase in strength. I’m not feeling wobbly yet or anything, but I can really tell this cigar has a punch to it. The retrohale is very sharp coating my nasal passage with strong cedar and lots of spice. It’s a tad too sharp for me and I don’t find myself doing it too often. The burnline is still dead even.

Finish: I’m not into the final third of this Diesel Unlimited and I have to say, I’m disappointed in the fact that this cigar still hasn’t changed up much, if at all. I know there are a lot of cigar smokers our there that love the balanced, no surprise smokes like this. But they just don’t do much for me. The final third is almost identical to the second third the only difference is the pepper has started to really fade off and the strength ramped up even more. This cigar won’t knock you on your ass, but it will get close to it. Even though it’s a stronger cigar it wasn’t annoyingly strong. I just hate those all strength no flavor cigars, luckily this Diesel Unlimited wasn’t one of them. This cigar smoked SLOW it took me just about two hours to take this whole thing down.

Overview: The Diesel Unlimited is a great, solid cigar. It’s got some great flavors overlaying a heck of a punch. The cigar just didn’t do it for me. I guess it was the lack of changeups. The flavors were great, but the first third was almost identical to the final third and I found myself getting bored with the cigar. In comparison to the other diesel blends I would have to say, I’d still reach for the Unholy Cocktail first, Unlimited second, and the Shorty third. You can still get these cigars for great prices and when you compare the value, you get a hell of a lot of cigar without breaking the bank. On a side note: please forgive some of the photos in the review. I decided I would try to do a review as the sun was setting. Bad idea. I’ll stick to either sunny or dark, no in between.

Pairing: From Belgium to Germany, Ayinger will always hold a special place in my heard. Just about everything this brewery kicks out is stellar, the weizenbock wheat bock ale I paired this Diesel Unlimited with is no exception. It’s basically a heffewiezen with a bolder, more balanced flavor. There isn’t as much heavy wheat and fruity flavors. It’s more caramel, malty, and smooth. This 7.1% ABV brew is yet another perfect example of Germany’s talent when it comes to following the purity law. This beer is perfect for the hot, dry summer weather as it paired perfectly with the day, and the cigar. The strength and bold flavors of the cigar would also pair well with a nice bitter, IPA, or even a simple pilsner.

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The Good Stuff: As cigar prices continue to skyrocket, there are a few cigar companies out there doing what they can to reduce the dent made on cigar smoker’s wallets. Kristoff is amongst those companies as they created the Kristania with value in mind. The Kristania originally debuted at the IPCPR trade show in Las Vegas in 2011 and has been rolling out to retailers ever since. The Kristania starts off with a Nicaraguan Criollo wrapper poured over a Dominican Habano binder and filler. The Kristania comes in 3 sizes, the Robusto (5×50),  the Toro (6×52), and an unnamed size (5.5×60) and come in at a very modest price, ranging from $5 – $6.50.

Size: 5×50  –  Wrapper: Nicaraguan Criollo  –  Binder/Filler: Dominican Habano  –  Body: Medium

Prelight: This Kristoff Kristania is the epitome of a rustic looking cigar. Seriously, this cigar looks like it has had much better days. But there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, and in my opinion, this is a beautiful looking cigar. The medium brown wrapper has lots of bumpy, webby, darker shade veins throughout the entire body of the cigar up to the round, Cuban style triple cap. Although the wrapper may look a bit troubled, It’s actually very thick and tough, giving off a beautiful shine as lights reflects off all the crazy oils that coat this cigar. The band has some neat, rustic design to go along with the appearance of this cigar. The band is a neat, brownish purple with “Kristoff” printed in white, “Kristania” printed in black with some interesting design, and “Elite Cuban Taste” along with “Dominican Republic” and “Hand Made” in gold. The cigar itself is really firm, and give lots of pushback as I try to compress it.

The wrapper on the Kristania gives off a whole ton of mossy, muddy, earth aromas while the foot has some fun cinnamon, and spice. The Kristoff Kristania clipped like butter against my Palio double bladed cutter. The cold draw is really deep, and meaty, letting lose a very deep woodsy, earthy, spicy flavor.

First Smoke: Kristoff’s Kristania lets loose a massive, MASSIVE cloud of insanely thick, white smoke right off the bat. The draw on this cigar is remarkable. As stated on the band, the cigar actually has some very Cubanesque flavors, starting out with some subtle cedar, lots of earth tones, saltiness, honey, all wrapped in an overall mild approach. The Kristoff Kristania only lets loose a subtle amount of smoke as it sits in my ashtray, which really resembles the overall mossy, earthy flavors with a matching aroma. The cigar could be burning a bit cleaner as waves continuously form in the first third, but I haven’t had to touch it up yet. The ash is a very bright, and medium grey which is very tightly compacted holding tight for a little under an inch before giving way.

Halfway There: I am glad to say that the burn line on this Kristoff Kristania has cleaned up tremendously by itself. It’s now burning razor sharp with only a few slight waves. The flavors are much the same as they were in the first half only with a slight ramp-up in cedar, and a large ramp-up in that mossy-earthy flavor. The only bad thing is the flavors are so mild they are borderline cardboard. I really hope that they changeup into the final third or this cigar may just dud out.  The retrohale on this cigar is really nice, and really smooth, faintly coating with a lot of earth and cedar while I feel absolutely no nicotine at all.

Finish: Deep into the final third of this Kristoff Kristania and the flavors have still yet to change up. The only added feature to the cedar, mossy-earth tones, and slight cinnamon is the dryness I am getting in my mouth while I smoke it. This is very common and I know that there are certain tobaccos that are actually added to blends to promote the formation of saliva in your mouth. Obviously Kristoff forgot to take that in consideration when blending this cigar. I am still not getting any nicotine at all, nor did I experience any built up harshness all the way down to the nub. The cigar did begin to burn a little hot around the one inch mark though.

Overview: I think it’s pretty obvious that I was going to conclude this review on a disappointing note. To me, Kristoff cigars have always been hit or miss. Needless to say this one gets filed in the miss section. The cigar has good intentions of resembling Cuban cigars, but falls completely flat in the taste category by doing so. Honestly, this cigar bored me from the start, and continued to do so the more I smoked it. There is a glimmer of hope out there though. This cigar reminded me a lot of some of the standard, popular Davidoff blends out there. If you are a fan of those, like I know so many are, than this cigar is definitely something you will want to look into, especially at the price point. But if you are looking for a cigar with some interesting, or bolder flavors, or a cigar that resembles a Cuban, then I would take a pass on this one.

Pairing: Uerige’s Doppelsticke isn’t a stranger to this blog either. This is a hard to find brew, but when I do find it, I buy it in bulk. Doppelsticke is a 8.5% powerhouse brewed at the Uerige Obergärige Hausbrauerei GmbH / Zum Uerige in Germany. This Altbier, and most, if not all other traditional Alts are brewed in Düsseldorf. Old, loosely translates to “Old” describing the longer brewing processes used to create said beer. The strong brown ale boasts of strong, dark malts, caramel, honey, orange, apple, and orange. This is a very flavorful, yet smooth beer that pairs perfectly with just about any cigar, and meaty, hearty meal. The glass I decided to drink this out of is actually an “Altbier” style glass from the Gaffel house in Düsseldorf. My intern at the time visited Cologne and took the glass from the brew house for me. An interesting note on the glass is that at the brew house customers drink from the exact glass minus the gold trim. VIP members are awarded the gold trimmed glass to distinguish their excellence, among with other perks.

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The Good Stuff: In some articles I’ve read they call this the NWC Short Run 2012, in others simple the Short Run 2012, either way you look at it, it’s the same cigar, with the same basic name. The name “Short Run” obviously implies that this cigar will only be available as a limited release. EP Carrillo has released a “Short Run” cigar each year since his separation from La Gloria Cubana, despite theory going around that there would not be one released this year. The Short Run 2012 is actually a Frankenstein blend composed of characteristics of two other EP Carrillo blends. The Short Run 2012 starts out with the same, Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade wrapper that he used in the New Wave Connecticut while the Connecticut Broadleaf binder and Nicaraguan/Dominican fillers are the same ones that he used in the Core Line Maduro. The Short Run 2012 will come in 3 different sizes: Exquisitos (4 7/8 x 50,) Invictos (5 7/8 x 52), and the Reinados (6 1/4 x 60). The cigars will ranger from $6.30 – $8.60 and there will only be 1000 boxes of 24 of each vitola released later on this month. These samples were graciously sent over to us by the EPC team.

Size:  4 7/8 x 50  –  Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut  –  Binder: Connecticut Broadleaf  –  Filler: Nicaraguan/Dominican

Prelight: Where to start with this EP Carrillo NWC Short Run 2012. The Wrapper, as is the standard New Wave Connecticut, is a very rustic, mean looking Connecticut. Instead of the standard smooth, and consistent light brown, the Short Run carries a very inconsistent, spotty, medium brown with lighter spots. The wrapper is very smooth and oily, sporting only a single, smaller vein towards the cigar’s round, triple cap. The Short Run in general is very soft and a bit spongy around the foot. The Short Run 2012 also carries the same white, yellow, red and gold band as the New Wave Connecticut only with the addition of a slim secondary white and gold band with the words “Short Run” and “2012” embossed on it. I have to say, I absolutely love EP Carrillo’s bands. They are smooth, simple, and elegant.

Moving on to the Aroma the wrapper of the Short Run is very timid, only showing my a very light tobacco and cedar aroma while the foot of the cigar boasts of strong spice, and lots of earthy tones. The cap cut easy, and not so clean using my double bladed Palio cutter. I think I just missed the filler mark, or my cutter is getting dull cause there was all sorts of mess under that cap. Either way, more than likely my fault and not anything that will hinder the experience at all. The cold draw lets loose this crazy deep, woodsy, sweetness. Something I wasn’t expecting from a Connecticut wrapped cigar.

First Smoke: The EP Carrillo Short Run 2012 started out with just a dash of pepper which faded after the first few puffs while the smoked transcended into a much sweeter, chocolate-filled malt, cedar, and nutmeg. It’s a very interesting mash-up of flavor. The draw is spot on, pumping out huge, HUGE clouds of thick white smoke with every puff. The Short Run 2012 gives off a whole ton of thick, cedar scented stationary smoke as well. It’s seriously just fountaining off smoke as it sits in my ashtray. The burnline started out a bit crazy, but started to correct itself leaving behind only a few larger waves, and a flaky white and dark grey ash. The ash held on for an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Halfway There: Early into this second third of this EP Carrillo Short Run 2012 the flavors really started to blend together and smooth out. I didn’t think that the Broadleaf binder and filler would marry up as well as it did to the Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper, but that just proves that I know nothing about tobacco. I am still getting the great sweetness, chocolate, nutmeg, and even some cashew from the inner tobacco while the wrapper is laying a nice subtle cedar and honey over the filler flavors. The retrohale is really smooth coating only with a nice, smooth cedar and spice. The burnline has since corrected itself 100% and I am feeling absolutely no nicotine from this smoke.

Finish: If I had to list a complaint about this cigar, there would be one. And it’s just my pet peeve. There was way too much glue on the bands. Sometimes this doesn’t matter, but in the case of the delicate wrapper on the Short Run 2012 the glue actually tore the hell out of the wrapper when I tried to take the band off of the cigar. Not only did the main band do it, but the small secondary band as well. This happened on two of the three samples I had. Anyways. It didn’t really hinder the experience though. Since it was merely the wrapper, the binder stayed in tact letting the smoke flow smoothly through the cigar. The flavors stayed much the same as the second third, chocolate, nut, honey, cedar, and spice. The main changeup was just how incredibly smooth this cigar finished. I was able to take this cigar down to the nub with no harshness before I even realized just how fast I was smoking it. It took me a little over an hour to take this robusto down, and I felt absolutely no nicotine at all. If anything, I had a little buzz from the beer I decided to pair it with.

Overview: Obviously, EP Carrillo produced yet another notch in his already filled book of winning. The Short Run 2012 is a great experience, and even a nice departure from the standard New Wave Connecticut producing a smoother, more full cigar. Does it lapse the New Wave Connecticut? Not in my book. I hold that cigar pretty high, and although it’s a totally different cigar, I couldn’t help but compare the two. The Short Run is sweeter, and has more body, but those are two characteristics I don’t look for in a Connecticut. This is an amazing cigar, but I truly think I liked the New Wave Connecticut a lot more. Now in comparison to other Connecticut wrapped cigars, the Short Run 2012 blows the doors off of 90% of them. If you are a Connecticut fan, you will fall in love with this cigar. Get them while you can.

Pairing: I’ve been holding onto this beer for a few months, waiting for the perfect cigar to pair it with. Luckily I found it. Pairing with EP Carrillo’s Short Run 2012 I reached deep into my beer stash and grabbed my last bottle of Samuel Adams Infinium 2011. This beer was created as an interesting experiment alongside one of my favorite German breweries, Weihenstephan, the oldest Brewery in the world. Brewed under the “Reinheitsgebot” or “German Purity Law” of 1516, Infinium is a Champagne style ale brewed using only the following ingredients: Water, Barely, Yeast and Hops. Although this law is no longer in effect, many, if not most of the German Breweries still abide by it, brining their brews to a whole new level. Infinium is a 10.3% powerhouse, that tastes nothing like it has that much alcohol. In fact, the beer is very sweet, fruity, and smooth carrying some awesome notes of orange, lemon, cinnamon, and berry. Again, any smooth or sweet beer pairs perfectly with the New Wave Connecticut blends.

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Now let’s make sure we don’t confuse this with the new release of Maduro cigars that Illusione has put out recently. The new ones are easily noticable by their red and gold band, which signifies the maduro line. A couple years ago in 2010, Dion Giolito, the mastermind behind Illusione cigars, released a limited run of the ~hl~ lancero cigar in a maduro wrapper. There had the same band as normal, but with the obvious difference of the maduro leaf.

You may have also stumbled upon a limited release of the ~hl~ in a Candela wrapper at the time as well. I wasn’t able to get my hands on any of those, but the maduro version caught my attention a lot more anyway. From what I understand, the filler and binder remain the same in this limited release which includes some Corojo ‘99 and Criollo ‘98 lead. Only the wrapper was swapped for a San Andreas maduro leaf from Mexico.

If you’ve checked out some of other Illusoine cigar reviews, such as the ‘888’, Singulaire, ~mk~, ~88~, or the Epernay, you will know that each cryptic name has a special meaning behind it. I won’t reinvent the wheel here, this is Dion’s explanation of the ~hl~ name directly from the Illusione Cigars.com website:
My Lancero , the lance. Get it? Constantine was the first Christian Emperor to lead Rome. It was fabled that he had possession of the very spear that punctured the side of Jesus while on the cross. He was said to carry this relic into battle and, it was said that it helped him win his many battles. It is an artisan blend and, the mildest of all my cigars.

Cigar: Illusione ~hl~ Maduro
Drink: Ayinger Celebrator
Vitola: Lancero (7.5 x 40)
Wrapper: San Andreas Maduro
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: $9.75
Burn Time: About 1 hour

Construction:
• The Illusione ~hl~ Maduro is wrapped up by a very tasty look dark chocolate leaf that is extremely toothy
• The texture of the wrapper is like sandpaper and it’s a bit bumpy in some areas but the veins few and the ones you can see are all fairly small
• The entire cigar has some firmness to it when squeezed, it has almost no give from end to end
• The cap is finished off with a sort of pigtail, I’m not sure if all mine were damaged but it seemed like a bit of the pigtail is always broken off
• It’s easy to see that the foot is very well packed and neatly finished
• Even though it seemed a little tight on the pre-light, the draw is actually very good

Burn:
• The toasting was fairly quick and easy given that the ring gauge is pretty small on this cigar
• Burn has been spot on through the first couple of inches, no complaints to be had here so far
• I’m very happy with the burn on this cigar for the most part, I tend to have bad luck with lanceros
• I did need to make one correction just past the half way mark as the cigar started burning unevenly
• I needed a couple more small corrections as the cigar continued, I think the cold is factor here today too, hovering at 34F right now…

Smoke & Ash:
• I’m having no problems getting a big mouthful of smoke from each draw, it’s not too thick though
• The ash is quite nice for this lancero vitola, staying clean and strong and holding out for just over half an inch
• The color on the ash is interesting as well with some white and nearly black zebra striping happening
• The resting smoke is moderate and fairly consistent, it pushes out a nice line of slightly sweet smelling smoke
• Subsequent ashes held on to about a half inch each time and stayed clean without any flaking

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper on this cigar has a nice sweet chocolaty aroma to it
• The foot has an even more interesting aroma, more sweet chocolate with an addition of cinnamon and nutmeg
• The pre-light draw on this Illusione ~hl~ Maduro brings more of the sweet chocolate but this time with a more peppery spice instead of the lighter cinnamon and nutmeg I got on the foot aroma
• The initial draws brought out a strong coffee flavor to mix with the stronger spices, definitely a burst of flavor at the start here but it might be a little bit charred
• After only half an inch, the flavors seemed to balance out a bit more and the charred flavor disappeared. I’m left with a smooth cocoa and coffee profile with hints of spice peeking in here and there
• The coffee flavors definitely seem ot be developing nicely as the spice slowly drops off
• The retrohale at this point still has a bit of bite to it but the finish is smooth and sweet, very tasty and mostly in the mild-medium range
• The nutmeg and cinnamon flavors started making a comeback in the middle of the cigar, adding another nice dimension to the experience
• All of the flavors continue to be awesomely balanced and taking turns being the prominent ones, there’s also some woodsiness in there too now
• The creamy finish really is the icing on the cake here, makes each draw very enjoyable
• In the last third of the Illusione ~hl~ Maduro the body started picking up into the higher medium range and all the favors started getting more intense
• The intense sweet coffee, cocoa and spices are really making for an enjoyable last third here, they balance together so nicely

Final Thoughts:
Well it’s no surprise to me here but this is another rock solid stick from Dion Giolito of Illusione cigars. It’s no secret that Tony and I are fans of his cigars and from my experience with the ones I’ve smoked he has an excellently high ratio of great sticks. The Illusione ~hl~ Maduro lives up to my past experiences and offered me an interesting and multi-dimensional flavor profile that I think could be enjoyed by a very wide range of cigar smokers. It feels like one of those sticks you could hand to a new smoker or an experienced smoker and get a positive experience either way. Remember that this one has been aging for nearly 2 years so if you tried it earlier I’ve heard they used to pack a bigger punch. The price I paid for mine seems to be around the average price and this is one of those times when I can say the nearly $10 price tag is almost worth it. If i did have one complaint it would be that the cigar didn’t last long enough, I wanted it to keep going, lol!

Pairings:
Tony pointed me in the direction of this brew awhile back. At that time I was only able to track it down while I was vacationing in Florida. But recently I stumbled across it at my local store and immediately stock up on a few of their 4-packs. The maker is the very popular German brwery called Ayinger and today’s offering is the Celebrator. It’s a very interesting dark ale that comes pretty close to almost being a stout. It’s official style is called a “Doppelbock”. Basically, a Doppelbock is a stronger, maltier and comewhat creamier version of Germany’s traditional strong ale, the “Bock”. The flavors in this bottle are overflowing! there’s definitely a ton of maltiness which I really enjoy, theres a helping hand of coffee, some dark chocolate sweetness and a very smooth creamy finish. What a great brew! Did it go well with the Illusione ~hl~ Maduro? Of course it did, and it would go well with a huge variety of other cigars as well. they complimented each other very well with similar flavors. A nice cup of coffee or a stout would have also made a great pairing here today.

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The idea here is just to give a couple short paragraphs on a cigar we recently had the chance to enjoy. They could be something we reviewed a long time ago and have some new (or the same) opinions on or perhaps something new that surprised us but we didn’t review. We’d also love to hear everyones thoughts on some of these cigars or perhaps one that you’d like to hear an updated opinion on?

Let us know if you like this idea and if we should continue with it, if the feedback is good, we’ll keep it going!

Gran Habano Connecticut #1 Rothschild – Daniel

Not too long ago Tony picked out a Gran Habano cigar to review, namely the G.A.R. Opium S.T.K. That review sparked a little discussion between Tony and myself and even came up in the comments from some of our trusted readers. It seems that both Tony and I usually enjoy the Gran Habano cigars that we smoke but for some reason we never really seem to buy them or smoke them more often.

Well, after that discussion I came across a box of the Gran Habano Connecticut #1 cigars and decided to splurge on them! I actually also tried these before on one of Blind Reviews and really enjoyed them, but for some reason I never bought any of them afterwards. So I picked up the Rothschild vitola(4.5 x 50) as a good size to enjoy while taking the dogs for a walk or even as a good driving cigar. They also offer a Lunchbreak vitola(4.5 x 40) which would also be a good choice for a short smoke, especially in these darn cold Canadian winters!

So what can you expect? At a price of of around $3 – $4 a stick, these are a very good Connecticut cigar to choose in a market with lots of Connecticut competition. Smooth creamy flavors and lots of cedar dominate this cigar that offers a mild and balanced experience. There’s no harshness near the nub and I find the wrappers to be a little more resilient than a lot of other Connecticut’s I’ve enjoyed. I’m glad I sprung for this box and would definitely buy more to keep on hand as a trusty and fairly priced Connecticut cigar.

Cohiba Siglo VI – Tony

So it’s been a while since I have done a Cuban cigar review. It’s not that I haven’t been smoking them, in fact, shortly after New Years I found just enough spare time to sit back and enjoy this heck of a pairing. Cohiba’s Siglo VI with some Samuel Adams/Weihenstephaner Infinium 2011.

This Siglo VI actually originated from the same 2006 dated box as the review that I did last year (you can see this review here for comparison). I actually have a few of these left so I have been trying to ration them, and only smoke them when I have the time, and I am in the right frame of mind. I am one who believes that you should smoke a cigar when you crave it and not save that “special” stick for that “special” day cause quite frankly, that day may never come. Anyways, back to the information. The Cohiba Siglo VI is a Cuban puro, blah blah blah, 6×52 blah blah blah, and it runs anywhere between $20 and $50 a stick, depending where you are able to get them of course.

The Siglo VI is the epitome of a great Cuban cigar through and through. The cigar boasts of salty, cedar flavors mixed with some smooth and sweet tobacco and honey flavors, and just a few added citrus notes to make things interesting. The burn, like most Cuban cigars is ugly, but manageable, but I didn’t have to touch up or relight. I’m not one that really ages my cigars. I smoke them as often as I can, but this Cohiba, while already well-aged, added another notch in its belt over the course of the last year since I did the review. I stated that early on I began getting some strong pepper flavors on my tongue and lips. Not in this last Siglo VI, in fact the cigar in general really smoothed out making each of the flavor change-ups really blend together. I really wonder what a fresher box of these would taste like. Have any of you tried this cigar? How was the age on it in comparison to your thoughts?

As for the beer, I won’t go too far into it since I will be pairing it with a full review soon. But if you can find it, DO IT! High alcohol, custom “champagne ale” style beer brewed by Sam Adams which was in cahoots with the oldest brewery in the world and one of my favorites, Weihenstephaner. This beer was actually brewed under the German purity law and was straight up, one of the best cigar/beer pairings that I have EVER HAD!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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