I have to admit I’m a bit of a newbie when it comes to the Zino Platinum cigars, the Z Class is the only cigar in their line-up that I’ve had. Now I have had myself a few Davidoff cigars and they are the creators of the Zino Platinum lineup. Davidoff is well known for producing high quality cigars so does the Zino Platinum Z Class live up to that name?

The Z Class is one of the newer lines in the Zino Platinum inventory and are claimed to be a smooth and spicy medium-full bodied cigar. One thing about the Z Class I really love is their packaging. The box is actually a sleek Gun Metal colored tin packed with 20 cigars each. It also rounds out the line-up with the fuller bodied profile and comes in 4 standard sizes, Toro, Robusto, Pyramide and Corona.

The name and the sleek box remind me of a Mercedes-esque imagery for this line-up of cigars. The whole package is fairly attractive and now it’s time to see if it lives up to the reputation of it’s parent company and the look and feel of the brand as a whole.

Cigar: Zino Platinum Z Class 643C
Drink: Southern Tier Brewing Company Imperial Choklat Stout
Vitola: Corona 643C (6 x 43)
Wrapper: Dominican
Binder: Peruvian Pelo de Oro
Filler: Nicaraguan and Honduran Ligeros
Price: MSRP $8.00
Burn Time: 1.5 hours

Construction:
• The Z Class presents with a dark cinnamon brown wrapper that is rugged and rough
• There are a fair bit of visible veins but none seem to be too large or concerning
• The weight of this cigar is fairly heavy compared to others in the same vitola
• The top of this cigar is finished with a clean double cap while the foot looks to be moderately packed, there are a couple of small visible caps
• From cap to foot, the whole cigar is fairly firm when squeezed
• The cap was very tough and took quite a bit of effort to clip off with my double bladed guillotine cutter
• Initial draw seems pretty tight as well, lets hope that opens up

Burn:
• Toasting took a good amount of time and left me with a fairly evenly glowing foot, just a couple dark spots that refused to catch until my first draw
• We’re off to a bit of a wavy start here, hope that doesn’t keep up for too long…
• The slight wave at the start never did correct itself so I needed to give it a small little touch up around the 1/3rd mark
• After that touch-up the Z Class is smoking much better with a fairly clean burn, there is a slight wave but nothing out of control as I pass the half-way point
• I also have to note that this cigar is burning very slowly, definitely giving you time to enjoy without having to draw too often

Smoke & Ash:
• Despite a pretty tight draw, I’m still getting a ton of smoke from this cigar
• Even while resting, the Z Class is pumping out a fair bit of smoke and giving off a burnt wood type of aroma
• The ash comes off with a nice light grey tone but it is flaking quite a bit
• Due to it’s visible weakness, I’m ashing this cigar at about a half-inch right now
• Ash seems to get pretty weak consistently around the half inch mark, so I’ve been ashing it to avoid any disasters

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper on the Zino Platinum Z Class is fairly woodsy and musty, a pretty bold aroma
• The foot adds more of the mustiness and with that comes a touch of spice and sweetness
• First thing I noticed on the pre-light draw was a spicy tingle on my lips and tongue, beyond that I was met with a very pleasant sweet cedar flavor
• Initial draws are filled with the musty woodsiness I was picking up on the aroma, so far the spice and sweet cedar are no where to be found
• Within a few draws, the mustiness seems to have disappeared and I’m left with the woodsy flavors and a variety of spices, mostly like a mild or white pepper
• The spice has started to settle down as I reach the end of the first third, now I’m balancing out nicely with some woodsy and earthy flavors
• So far the body has been in the low end of medium and the small bite on the retrohale is combined with a somewhat dry spice finish
• The sweet cedar seems to be trying to make an appearance but the earthy and woodsy flavors are drowning it out, hopefully they will balance out a bit more although I am enjoying it as is so far
• The sweet cedar is putting up a good fight and starting to be more dominant, I’m really enjoying the balance here now
• The bite on the retrohale remains fairly tame but the dry finish has changed to a more smooth creamy finish, adding the the enjoyment factor on this cigar
• The last third is turning out to be a creamy and enjoyable finish, the balance is just right with the cedar, sweetness, earthy and spicy flavors
• The nub of the cigar was easy smoking with lots of flavor and no harshness, a good finish to a tasty cigar

Final Thoughts:
This was my first venture into Zino Platinum territory so I went in with an open mind and no biases for or against the brand. I didn’t really know much about the brand at all before I did research for this review. Turns out that the Z Class is a pretty tasty cigar. It had an interesting flavor profile and burned fairly well. There was nothing that really stood out too much but the whole experience was enjoyable and I don’t really have any complaints. The price was a tad bit higher than I would have liked for a corona sized cigar but the flavors were very enjoyable so I’m a bit torn here. Drop these to $6 for the corona and I’d be more interested. But having said that, if I saw them at a B&M I’d be curious to try some of the larger vitolas as there definitely is some potential here, I may enjoy those a lot more. I think some people would really enjoy these so I’d have to suggest giving a 5-pack a try, there is definitely a market for this profile. I think this cigar has definitely sparked in interest in trying more Zinos, they are very tough to find for me but maybe my next trip south or the border, these will be on my radar.

Pairings:
I believe this is the final brew I have remaining from the haul I brought back from Florida earlier in the summer. It is the Imperial Choklat Stout from Southern Tier Brewing Company. This brew pours super black but with surprisingly little foam in the glass. The flavors are pretty unique here and I wouldn’t compare this to a typical stout. It’s definitely got a lot of hoppy bitterness but it doesn’t have much of the creaminess I tend to find in a lot of stouts. It’s almost closer to a porter in my humble opinion, but I am no beer guru. But despite that, the beer has some very good flavors going on here. There is a ton of dark chocolate flavors in this brew and they pair amazingly well with the hoppy bitterness I mentioned. There’s also a hefty serving of malt making this taste almost like a non-creamy alcoholic milkshake? lol. I’m surprised to see it also clocks in at 11% Alc./vol., I can’t even tell it’s that strong since it’s so smooth. So did it pair well with the cigar? Indeed it did! The smooth and bold flavors on the Choklat Stout mixed nicely with the flavors of the Zino Platinum. Similar stouts and porters would do well here, and of course a nice Port would have been even better! haha

The post Zino Platinum Z Class appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Not long ago I reviewed the My Father Cedros Deluxe Eminentes and before that was the My Father Le Bijou 1922. Looking over those two reviews, it’s easy to see they were both tasty cigars so the My Father factory must be doing something right. One other thing that stands out to my about all the My Father cigars is their presentation. They really know how to make a cigar, from the beautiful wrappers to their crisp and well designed bands. Read up on one of the two previous reviews to get more information on the My Father company.

The My Father Limited Edition 2010 is a very special cigar. What makes this cigar special is the person who rolled it, Jose Pepin himself! With the help of his son, Jamie Garcia who did all the bunching. This is truly a collaboration between two great people in the cigar world and a testament to the families dedication to what they do.

The information regarding the tobacco used in this cigar seems to be a tightly held secret and very little is known other than rumours. One thing that does seem to be known is that the wrapper used is the same as the one you can find on the Le Bijou 1922. The Pelo de Oro wrapper is very rare and banned from growing in some regions due to it’s cost and sensitivity, among other factors. I really enjoyed the Le Bijou 1922 and I’m excited to see how this cigar turns out.

Cigar: My Father Limited Edition 2010
Drink: Hockley Valley Brewing Co. Traditional Irish Stout
Vitola: Toro (6.5 x 52)
Wrapper: Pelo de Oro
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: $20
Burn Time: 2 hours

Construction:
• Talk about a gorgeous looking cigar, this thing has everything going for it.
• The wrapper is velvety smooth and presents with a warm milk chocolate type of color.
• The wrapper shows signs of only minor veins and the top is finished with an amazingly clean triple cap.
• I did notice a decent sized green spot on the wrapper
• The length of the cigar has a fair bit of firmness but still has a nice springiness to it.
• The foot looks to be fairly well packed but still has 2 smaller holes in it.
• The cap cut nice and easy but exploded into a small mess in the ashtray
• The initial draw seems a bit open
• As I peeled off the lower band, there’s some writing where the glue was that said “One out of 24000 made”

Burn:
• Toasting was easy and even, the open parts of the filler near the foot didn’t cause any problems
• Through the first few inches this cigar is burning razor sharp with no problems at all
• About 2 inches in the cigar is going a little wavy, it may correct itself so I’ll see how it goes…
• Looks like the wavy burn was caused by a vein under the wrapper
• The burn isn’t getting uncontrollable, staying with a slight wave as it burns through what seems to be a pretty long vein
• After the ash fell I decided to give it a quick touch up so the next section starts off nicely
• I gave it another quick touch up after the second ashing as it seems this subterranean vein will not go away!

Smoke & Ash:
• Right off the first draw it’s easy to tell that this cigar is going to be a smoke machine, it fills your mouth completely with very little effort on each draw
• The ash on this cigar is a beautiful thing, very tight and neat with an almost white color and some smaller accents of light grey
• There is a bit of resting smoke slowly coming out of the cigar, it leaves a nice sweet roasted cedar aroma in the air
• The ash continues to impress, staying nice and clean and easily hitting the 2 inch mark before falling into the ashtray

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper on this cigar gives off a wonderful cedar aroma with a touch sweet cocoa
• The foot of the cigar has aromas of wood and hefty helping of spice, mostly pepper and raw nutmeg
• Pre-light draw brings an interesting mixture of cedar, nuts and some coffee all held together by a prominent pepper spice. There’s also earthy notes in there
• The first few draws bring a blast of pepper and cedar, with some of the nutmeg tossed in there
• Within the first inch, the “in-your-face” peppery punch tapered off, I’m left with a nice bittersweet coffee and cocoa flavor with some hints of nuts
• The retrohale has a small bite, just enough to keep it interesting and a super smooth cedary finish
• The balance at this point is stellar, all the flavors are playing an equal role and the finish is amazingly smooth
• The coffee flavors are slowly developing as I progress and the body has stayed in the medium range from the start
• I’m not sure if it’s just the pairing or a combination of the two, but this cigar has some awesome coffee notes, maybe even a nice espresso flavor
• I’m surprised that as I get near the halfway mark the pepper and nutmeg spices are nowhere to be seen after that initial burst
• I want to re-iterate how smooth this cigar is smoking, very balanced, creamy and smooth!
• Approaching the last third, I can sense the body building here, the flavors are also getting more intense
• I think the initial spice is starting to make a re-appearance near the end, I was hoping for this!
• The spice definitely came back with a vengence, lots of pepper, raw nutmeg, and maybe a bit of paprika all mixed in with the cedar, coffee and creaminess
• The last bit of this cigar is an absolute flavor bomb and a bit of hefty body, but it’s still balanced very well

Final Thoughts:
If you didn’t figure it out from my notes above, I loved this cigar! The coffee notes in this thing were over the top and they stayed well balanced and smooth with everything else. The burn had a bit of trouble due to a vein but nothing that got me annoyed or relighting multiple times. The ash was also spectacular as was the whole visual presentation of the cigar. I went into this cigar expecting a lot of spice but it never really overpowered the cigar other than a little burst at the start. Now this is obviously a limited edition cigar and along with that title comes a limited edition price. The My Father Limited Edition 2010 carried a retail price of about $20 so it’s not something I can justify having too often but it’s definitely worth splurging and enjoying on special occasions. The cigar doesn’t seem to need aging but I think it would taste even better after a little time in the humidor.

Pairings:
Today’s pairing is from a local brewery about 45min North from where I live. It’s a nice little town with a small ski hill for the winter and a beautiful lodge. Their brews are fairly small batch and I tend to have a hard time finding them but so far I’ve enjoyed each one that I’ve had. I thought I had done a review with their Dark Ale but after a quick search I can’t seem to find it… but back on topic! This brew is a Traditional Irish Stout from Hockley Valley Brewing Co. It has a neat little catchphrase on the can as well: “Pours like liquid midnight”. And indeed that phrase holds true. The Hockley Stout is a thick and dark brew and pours with a full head of foam. It has some wonderful coffee notes and a sight hoppy bitterness, all held together with a smooth creaminess. I have to say I think this was an awesome pairing for this cigar. The thick brew stood up to the bold flavors of the My Father LE 2010 and was flavorful enough to add to the whole experience. I would highly recommend a good stout with this cigar. As always, I think Port would go well here! Also, you can try a nice scotch or a strong coffee.

The post My Father Limited Edition 2010 appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.