The Le Hoyo part of this cigars name is actually a series created by Hoyo de Monterray which also includes the Le Hoyo Du Roi, Du Depute, Du Gourmet, Du Maire and Du Prince. Each name also represents a slightly different vitola but something unique to this series is that no cigar is larger than a 42 ring gauge which is fairly odd to see in todays cigar world where everyone seems to be making a 6×60 or something similar. In fact, the whole Hoyo de Monterray line up does not even pass the 50 ring gauge mark.

The Le Hoyo des Dieux is actually one of the larger vitolas measuing 5.5 inches and a 42 ring gauge. Only the Du Gourmet is comparable at 6.8×33. I picked this box as my purchase for 2 reasons. Firstly, it came with great recomendations from a few BOTL’s and my secondly, my research showed it was claimed as the best option from the Le Hoyo series.

I won’t get into too many details of the brand history but it is an interesting read, as is most Cuban brands. Basically, a Spanish immigrant to Cuba started his career working the fields and eventually began his own cigar line which gained a loyal following. We’ve also touched upon a few other Hoyo De Monterray reviews including the Regalos Edicion Limitada 2007 and the Epicure Especial. Be sure to check out those 2 reviews for more info on the brand.

We’ve had some pretty crazy weather up here, going from somewhat warm to incredibly cold. In fact, we already hit -13F just this week… that was a bitterly cold day! But between the bad days there’s been some good smoking days I’ve been taking advantage of. So let’s see how the Hoyo de Monterray Le Hoyo des Dieux stands up in todays review!

Cigar: Hoyo de Monterray Le Hoyo des Dieux
Drink: Quinta Da Romaneira 2004 Unfiltered Late Bottled Vintage Port
Vitola: Grand Corona (5.5 x 42)
Wrapper: Cuban
Binder: Cuban
Filler: Cuban
Price: About $7.00
Burn Time: Just over an hour

Construction:
• The Hoyo de Monterray is a surprisingly consistent looking cigar, all the sticks in the box I purchased were remarkably similar. I point this out because I find some Cuban cigar boxes to have a wide variety of oddly constructed cigars sometimes
• The wrapper on this cigar screams cedar just by looking at it, it has a light brown almost woodsy looking appearance to it
• The are some medium sized veins here and there but for the most part these cigars are smooth and well constructed
• Each cigar had a nice firmness to them with just a little bit of give when squeezed
• The triple cap atop each of the Le Hoyo des Dieux is finished cleanly and appears very well applied
• Filler in the foot looks very bountiful as well, cleanly cut and evenly colored
• The draw on the Des Dieux is just about perfect, getting a nice stream of smoke from it with little effort

Burn:
• Toasting was very even and easy, the whole foot was glowing with very little effort
• The draw is going nice and sharp with only a slight wave to it
• Some times it seems as though the cigar has gone out but two quick draws seems to bring it back to life easily
• The wave got a little out of control and needed a small correction, after ashing it looks like the cause was a small hole in the filler. Not a big tunnel or anything but a big of a gap between the leaves
• The next ash revealed another small hole that was affecting the burn, this one looks more like a tunnel so I’m hoping it doesn’t extend too far…

Smoke & Ash:
• Each draw is bring a perfect mouthful of smoke with very little effort
• The resting smoke it fairly heavy right after a draw but quickly dies down to a very light line of smoke that gives off a sweet cedar aroma
• The ash is starting off with a nice light grey color to it and is looking clean and strong
• I was surprised to see the ash on this thinner cigar easily pass 1 inch and made it to about 1.5 inches before I tapped it off, very clean, strong and even
• I find myself taking a few extra draws as I get to the halfway mark to get more smoke and the resting smoke has died down too

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper on the Hoyo de Monterray Le Hoyo des Dieux gives off a nice cedar aroma with a small spice kick
• The foot also gives off a nice sweet cedary spice aroma with a sort of creamy touch
• Pre-light draw brings lots of cedary and woodsy goodness with a light spice undertone to it
• Initial few draws bring more of that cedary smoothness and an undertone of light gingerbread spices, very nice start
• The body right from the start is undeniably mild but very flavorful
• The retrohale on the other hand has no bite and only a faint cedar finish, but at least it’s smooth
• There is quite a bit of earthiness sneaking into the flavor profile within the first inch or so
• The body of the cigar seems to have picked up somewhat at only 2 inches, it easily jumped into a more medium range and the flavors are a lot more intense and enjoyable
• The gingerbread-type of spices are creating a neat little kick on the retrohale and the creamy cedar finish has stepped up a notch too, very nice
• Cedar, spice and earthiness still dominate the flavor profile but it’s picked up a bit in intensity
• I’m also picking up a slightly bready type of flavor which is going very nicely with the spices
• The cigar continued on with the flavors balancing nicely and taking turns being the prominent one
• There was almost no strength or harsh buildup to the end, it stayed a smooth and flavorful medium right to the nub

Final Thoughts:
Despite a couple draw and burn issues, I actually enjoyed this cigar quite a bit. The flavors were spot-on and not diverse, they kept my interest the whole way through. I think the vitola was a perfect fit since I may have gotten a bit bored if this were a larger torpedo or churchill. At a price that isn’t too scary these are also fairly high on the cost-to-flavor ratio. The finish on this cigar was also very flavorful and it burned right to the end with no negative side effects at all. I’m curious to see what some aging will do to this cigar but they are already very tasty as is. I will definitely be looking to keep some of these in my humidor. Not only were they tasty but I actually liked this vitola a lot too!

Pairings:
Today’s Port pairing comes from a random grab at the local store. I’ve never really seen this bottle before and I like to try new ones so I grabbed it. The winery is called Quinta da Romaneira and this is their 2004 Unfilitered Late Bottle Vintage Porto. Now I should note that I’m not exactly sure where the “unfiltered” part comes in here, the Port is surprisingly clear and clean with almost no sediment from the glasses I’ve had so far. This particular port fell short of my expectations, it almost tasted watered down. Closer to a glass of light red wine than a finely fermented port, and especially not one worthy of a 7-year aged sticker on the bottle. There are some nice light fruity notes and a decent merlot after-taste but it’s not my type of port. If you’re just venturing into port I’d say it’s a good starter bottle as it might bridge the gap between a light wine and a strong port. It’s not all bad though because it actually paired well with the flavors of the Le Hoyo des Dieux since they weren’t overpowering or super spicy. They both complimented each other quite well. I think this Hoyo De Monterray cigar would pair very nicely with a hot cup of coffee or possibly an oak aged beer to pair with the cedar flavors.

The post Hoyo de Monterray Le Hoyo des Dieux (Cuban) appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Now back to the cigar. The Casa Fernandez Aganorsa Leaf a Nicaraguan Puro cigar. It’s leafs are grown in a few different valleys or Nicaragua which as Esteli, Jalapa and Condega. The are box pressed and packed in boxes of 15. They are currently offered in 3 vitolas which are Robusto, Toro and Torpedo. The band on the cigar is the same as their normal line but the Aganorsa Leaf has an additional band with it’s name on it just below.

The Aganorsa has received a lot of positive press in the cigar blogging community, Cigar Aficionado Magazine listed the original Casa Fernandez as one of the top 25 cigars of 2009. The original Casa Fernandez line was met with a lot of positive press so they had a lot to live up to. I’m lighting this cigar up on a sunny but cold afternoon and hoping to have a nice enjoyable and relaxing experience. Let see how it fares.

Cigar: Casa Fernandez Aganorsa Leaf
Drink: Graham’s Late Bottled Vintage Tawny Port (2005)
Vitola: Robusto (5 x 52)
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Aganorsa
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: $8.00
Burn Time: 1.5 hours

Construction:
• This cigar has a slightly box pressed look to it
• The wrapper is a medium dark, almost chocolate brown tone with some spots being lighter than others
• There are quite a few visible veins but they are all small and will not affect the burn
• Fairly clean triple cap
• The foot appears to be well packed and clean
• Cut was even and clean although it required a little more effort than usual
• The draw was just about perfect from start to finish

Burn:
• Toasting was fairly quick and even, very little effort to even out the toast
• The burn started going wavy soon after lighting leaving a small peninsula, gonna leave it alone for a bit and see if it corrects itself
• The crooked burn fixed itself fairly quickly and now we’re burning nice and even
• As the cigar progressed there were a few minor corrections I had to make but nothing major
• The cigar also stayed lit easily without much attention needed from me

Smoke & Ash:
• The smoke produced a strong aroma of burning wood, almost like a bonfire
• Comfortable amount of smoke from each draw
• Lots of resting smoke that is consistently pouring out
• Ash is fairly strong with no flaking and wrapped tightly
• The color of the ash varies from a light brownish near the foot and getting progressively whiter
• Ash held on for about an inch before tumbling into the ashtray

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper aroma is mostly just tobacco with a slight barnyard type scent
• The foot still has some barnyard aroma but mixes in some cedar and spice
• The pre-light draw brings more spice and some cedar
• Initial draws are full of pepper and some cedar, a little dry on the finish
• I usually don’t enjoy peppery starts but this one is very smooth and mixing well with the cedar
• The retrohale has a nice little bite to it with a smooth cedar finish, the body has started in a mild-medium range
• Just a short ways in the peppery notes have tapered off a bit with the cedar taking control, picking up earthy and nutty notes now
• Some light coffee notes are popping up now and again but not consistent
• I’m approaching the half-way mark and I’m already noticing the body of the cigar building up
• At the half-way point now and the cigar has turned mostly a mild peppery spice and leather
• The bite on the retrohale has dialed down now and the finish is leathery but the body is holding on the stronger side of medium
• Coming up on the last third, the peppery notes are starting to gain traction again, this time mixing with the leather, the cedar has mostly disappeared for now
• The body lingered at full as I approached the nub with the flavors staying consistent to the end
• Didn’t get much harshness or bitterness and was able to smoke this happily until my fingers burned

Final Thoughts:
The was an interesting cigar that had a fair bit of complexity to it and some dimension on the flavors. The start was very in-your-face but smooth and balanced at the same time. The flavors mellowed out a bit as the cigar progressed but the body kept building at a slow and steady pace. The burn was fairly good with only a couple minor corrections and the draw was always good. The price on this cigar is a tad high but nothing crazy and still within reach to be included in a normal rotation. These are definitely worth giving a try even if you aren’t normally a fan of peppery/spicy cigars. On the other hand, if you are a fan of peppery and spicy notes I think you will really enjoy this cigar. The body is a fairly full but not a knock you on your ass type of full. I’ll be looking to pick up a few more of these to keep on hand as they were definitely enjoyable.

Pairings:
In my eyes, Tawny Port and cedar/spicy cigars go hand in hand! I did a bit of research before lighting this up to find out the prominent notes and I knew Port was going to be my match here. I decided on a Graham’s Late Bottled Vintage Tawny Port which was bottled in 2005. This is a fairly inexpensive bottle that boasts a lot of flavors. You’ll find oak, blackberries, cherries and a tarty sweetness that mixes perfectly with this type of cigar. Other good pairings would include scotch, dark soda, a full Porter or Stout, or a full bodied red wine. A nice cup of strong coffee would also be a good match here.

The post Casa Fernandez Aganorsa Leaf appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.