As for me, life has been pretty busy and it will surely continue to be that way until the big wedding day coming up in September. I did manage to sneak away last week and put together a review of the Viaje Oro Edicion Limitada Perfecto Squared. Try saying that 10 times fast! haha.

Now Viaje is a brand I don’t really get to see a lot of North of the border in Canada. Due to their mostly limited production they also have a fairly limited distribution and they also seem to be well sought after, making them even harder to come by. The few I have gotten come from trades or bombs, just like this one did. Today’s Viaje is part of their Oro line up and is the limited edition version, so it’s even more limited production so I’m happy to have a chance to review this one for everybody.

There isn’t a ton of info on the Viaje brand or this particular cigar but I’ll do my best to give a little bit of background. The brand owner is Andre Farkas and he naturally portrays the brand as a boutique cigar company which specializes in small batch cigars. The actual name Viaje is a Spanish word that translates to ‘Journey’ and Andre currently has 7 lines under the Viaje flag. The Oro lines is produced at the Raices Cubanas factory and comes wrapped with a Corojo99 leaf and a double binder.

Now if you can get your hands on a few of these, they’ve all been pretty darn tasty from the small samplings I’ve had so far. They are all Nicaraguan puros, so if you are a Nicaraguan fan, you will be at home here. So let’s jump on in and see if the Viaje Oro Edicion Limitada Perfecto Squared lives up to the reputation that I’ve come to expect from the brand so far.

Cigar: Viaje Oro Edicion Limitada Perfecto Squared
Drink: Unibroue Raftman
Vitola: Double Torpedo (5.25 x 52)
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Corojo 99
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: About $9
Burn Time: A little over an hour

Construction:
• The Viaje Oro Edicion Limitada is an interesting looking figurado shaped cigar with a very dark brown wrapper that has a few golden highlights
• The wrapper definitely has some toothiness to it and isn’t afraid to show off a little bit of oilyness
• The cap of the cigar is finished cleanly with a single leaf that blends away into the wrapper
• There is definitely a soft springiness to this cigar, more so near the foot, I’m hoping it doesn’t translate into an open draw
• The foot itself is almost closed, with maybe just a quarter inch visible so I can’t really tell if it’s well packed or not
• A couple medium sized veins show through on the wrapper but they are fairly short and don’t look like they will be a problem
• The stick I have has a small crack in the wrapper near the band, probably from shipment, hopefully it doesn’t cause any problems

Burn:
• The foot is so small on this cigar so toasting was obviously super easy, now let’s see if it works out to be a nice burn too
• I always tend to have a lot of burn issues at the start of tapered cigars like this but this one seems to be starting off pretty well
• Through the first inch the burn is a bit wavy but it seems to be staying within a decent range and not requiring touchups
• The waves got the better of the burn and I needed to give it a quick touch up near the halfway mark

Smoke & Ash:
• Even from the tiny tapered foot at the start this cigar started producing massive amounts of smoke from each and every draw
• The resting smoke was consistent but not overpowering, just a nice light line steadily emerging from the foot
• The initial ash is nothing pretty, it seems pretty uneven and dark grey or black in most spots
• I tapped it off after about an inch since it looked like it was gonna fall anyway
• The ash also has no smooth burn lines to it, weird to see that it’s all just chunks here and there
• The next ash lasted a bit longer than an inch but it was still fairly weak and pretty much exploded when hitting the ashtray

Tasting Notes:
• The aroma on the wrapper is fairly light with only a little bit of woodsy aromas shining through
• The foot is very small so the aromas were pretty much the same as the wrapper here
• The pre-light draw carries more of the woodiness through but this time it’s much more noticeable and comes with a bit of clove and fresh vegetal notes as well
• The initial flavors are very similar to the pre-light with a lot of woodiness and vegetal flavors, plus a bit more of the clove spices
• The spices started to pick up as I head past the 1 inch mark, lots of interesting peppers, nutmeg and a bit of saltiness I usually only find in cubans
• As with a lot of sharply tapered cigars, I tend to get a bit of the oils coming out of the cap that make it a little bitter. Cutting it a bit more usually resolves this problem
• I’m getting a bit of leather in the mix now and the wood flavors have become more toasted now
• For the most part, the whole cigar has been in the medium bodied range and it’s had a nice bite on the retrohale with a smooth woodsy and clove finish
• Just past the half-way mark I’m getting a nice espresso flavor mixing in with the spices and woodsiness, this is getting better and better!
• All the flavors really started to gain some intensity near the end and balance out amazingly
• A nice tasty and flavorful finish without any harshness to worry about, bravo!

Final Thoughts:
I haven’t had too many Viaje’s in my days, mostly because they don’t reach Canada in distribution and of course they are fairly limited. But all-in-all I quite enjoyed this one! The ash may not have been pretty but we’re not here for good looks, we’re here for flavors and the Viaje Oro Edicion Limitada Perfecto Squared did not miss the mark there at all. Tons of interesting flavors that kept changing made me wonder what the next draw was going to bring me, I love having that in any cigar. There were a couple issues on the burn but nothing major that I would knock this cigar for. The price is a bit up there at the $9 mark but even at that price I’d say it’s worth trying a few of these. That is, if you can find them cause they are pretty much all gone from what I can tell.

Pairings:
I’m not gonna re-invent the wheel here, I already did a good write up on the Unibroue Raftman when I paired it with the La Reloba Seleccion Sumatra. Here’s the rundown from my last post:

Next to the Scottish brewery of Innis & Gunn that I paired last week, another of my favorite breweries is none other than Canada’s own Unibroue. This place is based out of Quebec and has a HUGE inventory of brews with a ton of different and unique beers that are a rare find. Today’s brew is called Raftman and I only found a case of these while actually in Quebec, I’ve never seen it in any other stores so far. Now this brew was very interesting as the label says it is brewed with Whisky Malts so I just had to pick it up and give it a try. Well I’m glad I did cause this is one tasty brew and yet again another winner from Unibroue. It’s a fairly light amber beer but it packs in a ton of flavor. The whisky malts are very obvious as they give a classic touch of whisky, as if you just put a little whisky inside a good beer. Along with that it also has a delicious malty finish and some notes of sweetness as well.

As for the pairing, I found it made an awesome compliment for the Viaje Oro Edicion Limitada Perfecto Squared. The unique and interesting flavors on the cigar made for an awesome experience to go with the beer. Other good selections could have been a nice Porto, or a flavored coffee seems like an interesting idea here.

The post Viaje Oro Edicion Limitada Perfecto Squared appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Andre Farkas is the brand owner of Viaje and has been leading the brand into a successful time with a pretty large following. For the most part the Viaje lines are fairly limited so this results in a split opinion between a lot of people. Some cigar smokers are not fans of seeking out rare or limited cigars while other love the thrill of the hunt! Tony also reviewed a couple other Viaje’s recently including the Platino Lancero and the Oro Reserva #5.

One of the lines that Andre and Viaje have been releasing is called the “Skull And Bones”. We are into the 3rd iteration of the brand and each year the band and blend is changed. Tony reviewed last years release which was simply called the “Skull and Bones #2” and had a White on Black band with the “Jolly Roger” logo on it. In case you didn’t know, the “Jolly Roger” is the skull and cross bones symbol that was commonly flown by pirates. There are other variations of the “Jolly Roger” but this is the most common. Below this band you will find a thinner White on Black band that just says “Skull and Bones”. Oddly enough, there is no mention of Viaje on the cigars.

Now this years “Skull and Bones” carries essentially the same two bands with the exception that the White parts of the band are now Red. The look of the cigars is pretty interesting and I like the way the band looks. Another difference I noticed is that the foot of this cigar is clean cut while in Tony’s review of the #2, there is a closed foot. This release of the Skull and Bones series came out in March of 2011. As mentioned, this is the follow up to the previous “#2” and the first released “Daisy Cutter” and apparently this years blend should pack a heftier punch, I guess I’ll find out soon!

The names of the vitolas may seem odd to some people but there is a method to the madness. The original Skull and bones release was called the “Daisy Cutter”. A quick search shows that a “Daisy Cutter” is a bomb used to flatten forests into a nice helicopter sized landing zone. There are also 2 vitolas released for this years blend, the WMD (Short Robusto) and the MOAB (Short Torpedo). WMD stands for “Weapon of Mass Destruction” and MOAB is “Massive Ordinance Air Blast”, both of which keep the trend of bomb related names. So let’s see how explosive this cigar is and dive right into this review!

Cigar: Viaje Skull And Bones WMD
Drink: Creemore Springs urBock Dark Beer
Vitola: Short Robusto (3.75 x 54)
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Sun-Grown Criollo
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: $9.00-$10.00
Burn Time: almost 1.5 hours

Construction:
• The Skull and Bones WMD has an awesome dark chocolate wrapper that is super toothy with a touch of oil
• There are some minor veins here and there that are visible but none seem large enough to pose and problems
• The entire length of the cigar has a nice give to it when squeezed, never too firm
• The foot looked to be very well packed and I’m not sure if the picture will get this but you can pick out two very distinct colors of filler leaves
• The cap is finished in a very clean triple cap and looks well composed
• Draw is a tad tight but nothing that will bother me through the cigar experience

Burn:
• Toasting was even and slow, leaving me with a nice glowing foot
• The start of the burn is going a little wavy, I’m hoping it kicks itself back into line without a touchup
• Luckily, the burn did correct itself and although we’re still going a little wavy it’ more in control now
• I had a couple small touchups needed here and there but none were too major, it burned quite well for the most part
• A quick note, I think burn is EXTREMELY important on short vitolas like this so a poor burn would cost a lot of points so I’m glad it burned nicely for the most part
• The whole cigar burned surprisingly slow, good value for the dollar

Smoke & Ash:
• Each draw is giving me a very full mouth of smoke that is thick and billowy
• The ash has a bit of a medium grey tone to it and is showing signs of some flakiness early on
• The ash fell apart before even hitting a half inch
• The flaky ash continues but this time we got closer to an inch before falling off
• The ash continued to be flaky and a bit messy, falling off before reaching one inch each time

Tasting Notes:
• Wrapper aroma is fairly light with just a hint of woodsiness
• The foot has a similar woodsiness with a hint of peppery spice that tickles your nose
• Pre-light draw is dominated by a nice light cedar
• Initial draws are very interesting, I’m getting a burning wood flavor that reminds me of a fresh campfire. I LOVE the smell of a campfire so I’m loving this start. (Note: I’ve never tasted a “Campfire” but if it were possible it would taste like this, lol)
• Aside from the campfire flavor, I’m getting some peppery spice and a bit of leather
• The retrohale has a nice medium bite to it but a bit of a rough woodsy finish
• So far through the first inch I’m getting a comfortable medium bodied smoke
• The woodsiness continues to be the most dominant flavor with some other spices sneaking in now, more like a strong nutmeg or close and a bit of earthiness
• Not too much change-up as I head into the last third, the whole cigar has been nicely balanced and smooth
• As I get to the nub there is a definite build-up in body to the full range but it’s not getting harsh, i like that
• Near the end, the main flavor was still cedar but I started getting some nice coffee and nutty notes
• Brought out the toothpick near the end to get that last bit of enjoyable cigar burned down without burning my fingers

Final Thoughts:
I really enjoyed this cigar, especially for it’s size. I’ve been leaning towards larger vitolas lately but had a short timeframe this afternoon and went for a shorter cigar. There were enough favors to keep me interested and on my toes the whole time and it burned very well for the most part. I was a little worried about the cigar being strong after reading some reviews but it wasn’t as ass kicking as I was expecting. It is full but it didn’t give me a hard nicotine kick. the price for a cigar this size is also a bit high although it is actually cheaper than previous years releases. Luckily it burned a lot longer than I expected so I felt I got my money’s worth on it. The limited nature of these cigars (and most Viaje’s) make them harder to find but if experience is any indicator, most of Andre Farkas’ work is worth tracking down.

Pairings:
Creemore is actually a little town not too far from where I live. They pride themselves in making their brews with all natural spring water direct from their local spring. The Creemore Springs brewery mainly focuses on their Lager but they also brew a lot of other varities in smaller batches. The beer chosen today is a Dark Ale called an urBock. Bock beers began in Munich and can be traced as far back as 1612. It is actually a Ruby beer and not the darker chocolate color of some other Dark Ales. It’s also surprisingly fuller and thicker than the average Dark Ale with a smooth roasted malty flavor. It paired very well with the Vieje Skull and Bones WMD and is an excellent brew to pair with almost and strength of cigar. Other good pairings for this cigar would be coffee, a dark cola, or some Porto of course! lol (Are you tired of hearing that yet??)

The post Viaje Skull And Bones WMD appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

For those of you who didn’t know, this past weekend was our Thanksgiving up here in the Great White North and the weather was downright awesome! We had gorgeous clear skies and temperatures above 75F all weekend. This was a big change because just a week before that we were hovering in the mid 30’s and ready to busty out the parkas and the igloo building equipment! So I picked out a nice summery brew and a lighter cigar to enjoy the weather before it disappeared

The cigar I settled with was the Angelenos Toro from 2009. Now the Angelenos is an interesting prospect. It’s not really the company name, and it’s not really cigar line name, but it’s sort of a mixture of both. The founder of Angelenos is Keith K. Park whose name you might recognize from Prometheus as well as a couple other brands such as God of Fire and Sencillo. If you visit the Angelenos website, Keith K. Park has a nice letter detailing the “why” of Angelenos and about what the name means. As a quick summary, the Angelenos cigar was created to honor Los Angeles (a.k.a the “City of Angels”). He feels the Los Angeles is home to a great number of passionate cigar lovers and wanted to create something for all of them.

The Angelenos cigars are wrapped in an Ecuadorian leaf and rounded out with Dominican binders and fillers. The cigar itself is rolled in the Tabaccalera A. Fuente y Cia factory which is located in the Dominican Republic. you may recognize the Fuente name in that factory, and it is indeed the factory where Arturo Fuente cigars are produced. One neat thing to note about these cigars is that the band has a year inscribed on them in red. This particular Angelenos has “2009” on it. Would be great to see more manufacturers adopt this style!

In a lot of my cigars I’ve come to associate the Ecuadorian wrappers as something that packs a punch. This is most likely just by chance and the choice of cigars that I’ve smoked, but that’s just what pops into my head when I think Ecuadorian wrapper. Now from some basic reading I know this is not the case with the Angelenos and the website promises me a smooth and relaxing cigar. A quick note that this cigar was sent to us from our good friends over at Smoke Inn. Check their site when you have a moment, they have a great selection of cigars! So, Will the Angelenos live up to this claim? Time to read on and find out!

Cigar: Angelenos 2009
Drink: Bell’s Oberon Ale
Vitola: Toro (6 x 50)
Wrapper: Ecuadorian
Binder: Dominican Republic
Filler: Dominican Republic
Price: $9.95 MSRP @ Smoke Inn
Burn Time: 1.5 Hours

Construction:
• The Angelenos has a nice light brown wrapper surrounding it with some smaller visible veins
• I noticed that the wrapper itself is fairly fragile and even found a few green spots on some of the samples
• The entire cigar is surprisingly firm from head to foot, offering almost no spring at all
• In line with the firm feel, the foot of the cigar appears to be very well packed
• The cigar clipped easily leaving a cleanly cut cap
• At first it seemed the draw was a bit tight but it’s actually doing very well

Burn:
• The toasting went very nicely, took a little bit of time and ended up with an evenly glowing foot
• The burn has been razor sharp through the first inch or so, let’s hope it stays that way
• As I get to the halfway point I’m happy to report we’re still moving along with a razor sharp burn and I have no problems letting it sit to enjoy it slowly
• Loving the burn on this cigar, still nearly perfect as I head into the last third
• Not having much to say is a good thing here, not problems to report!

Smoke & Ash:
• The initial draws are giving a nice comfortable amount of smoke that quickly fills your mouth
• The resting smoke on this cigar is constant and pretty thick too, gives off a campfire type of aroma as well
• The ash is looking very clean and tight and is holding on past 1 inch so far
• The color is also quite nice, showing off a light grey tone with the occasional black line
• The ash fell jsut short of two inches before falling off gently into the ashtray
• The next ash help on beautifully past the 2 inch mark with very little effort!

Tasting Notes:
• The aroma off this wrapper is mostly woodsy with a bit of barnyard
• The foot has a much more interesting aroma though, I pick up a touch of floral, more woodsy and a slight hint of spice, maybe like a paprika
• The pre-light draw brings more woodsiness again, along with it I’m getting the paprika and maybe a touch of sweetness
• The initial draws bring out a lot of woodsy flavors, mostly cedar but I’m even picking up a touch of pine. Along with the woodsy notes there is a slight touch of coffee and the paprika is hiding in there as well, a good start
• The start of this cigar has been a nice mild body with a small bite on the retrohale and a smooth cedar finish
• As I progress, the coffee flavors are making more of an appearance and the woodsy notes are still the primary
• The spice has mostly disappeared and I’m enjoying the woodsy and coffee flavors here
• I’m also getting some nutty flavors here and there, perhaps it’s almond like, very nice
• The flavors are intensifying a bit as I go into the last third, it’s still mostly woodsy and coffee but I’m also getting light hints of leather and the almond is around too
• The flavors finished strong but the body didn’t really pass medium, a good smoke right to the nub with no bitterness to worry about

Final Thoughts:
The Angelenos makes for a very nice smoke and can be enjoyed pretty much anytime of the day. If you like to enjoy an early day or morning cigar, this would go well with a cup of coffee or it can hold it’s own in the evening as well. The flavors were not multi-dimensional but they were enjoyable and I didn’t really get bored of them. Maybe a longer vitola might lose it’s appeal but in a Toro size or similar it’s a good smoke. The burn was also top-notch with no issues from start to finish, that always earns extra points in my book. I like to work, read or watch a movie while I enjoy my cigar and if I’m fighting to keep it lit or touch it up, it ruins the experience for me. The classic flavors of cedar and coffee are also very easy to enjoy and pick up on for any level of smoker to enjoy. My main gripe here is probably the price, it seems a little high for this type of cigar with a straightforward profile. With that said, the price isn’t out of this world and still accessible. They are worth buying at least a 5-pack to have around when you need a nice relaxing smoke.

Pairings:
Today’s brew is another one of my imports from my trip to Florida. It from Bell’s Brewery Inc. located in Missouri and it’s called Oberon Ale. The Oberon Ale is actually a summer seasonal and I probably should have drank it earlier but this weekend turned out to have some awesome summer-like weather so I popped it open. The beer has nice light color to it and is obviously not filtered since it is cloudy and has some particles floating around in it. I also found it to be a little more carbonated than normal although that didn’t really bother me. The flavor is very bright as soon as it hits your tongue, definitely a lot of fruity notes but they aren’t overpoweringly sweet. The beer still has a nice medium body to it and a tasty malty finish. This makes for an excellent summer beer that isn’t all clear and watery like some other summer beers are. I definitely enjoyed it and will look for more next time I head south. As for a pairing, I found it made a good partner with the Angelenos. Although you have to be selective with this brew, a nice connecticut or mild maduro would go well. If the cigar is too far into the medium or full range the beer probably won’t stack up as well. As for the Angelenos, this is a good option along with a smooth dark ale or possibly a nice coffee as a morning smoke.

The post Angelenos Toro appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Again, I am using a 1 day old camera, and I have no idea how to use this thing properly yet, so you will have to excuse the crappy pictures. This is a cigar that I have smoked the crap out of in the last few years, yet I never got around to reviewing it. In fact, one of our very own readers Jeff even sent me one cause he “noticed we didn’t have a review up”. Point taken sir, and here is your review.

The Good Stuff: Oliva’s Master Blend Series is the third installment in the Liga Maestra or “Master Blend” Limited Edition Series. I smoked the 2^nd cigar in the series, but wasn’t lucky enough to get my hands on the Master Blends 1, which I hear is an absolutely amazing stick. There isn’t a whole lot out there as to why this cigar was created, other than it was specifically blended to deliver the richest characteristics of Nicaraguan ligero fillers and broadleaf sun-grown wrappers. Clear and simply put, a showcase of what Oliva can do. These run about $9.50 a stick.

Size: 5 x50  –  Wrapper: Connecticut Sun Grown Broadleaf  –  Binder: Nicaraguan Habano  –  Filler: Nicaraguan Ligero

Prelight: Oliva has always carried with it a great value, without skimping out on quality and construction. The Master blends series is a perfect example of the paramount quality we have a grown to expect from the factory. Starting with the semi-box pressed, almost oval, wide body leading up through the dark chocolate, darker spotted body, up to the round, seamless double cap you can see exactly what I mean by the flawless construction. Ian Hummel from Regional Sales Manager for Oliva (@OlivaIan) actually noted “the “almost box press or oval” shape you are referring to on the MB3 is what we call “flat press” in the factory.” Flat press eh? I REALLY wish more lines carried this format. It has to be one of my favorite shapes of all time.  The wrapper is real tough and toothy giving off a hell of a lot of shine from the oils.  The composure of the cigar is really hard and barely has any give when I squeeze it. There are almost no visible veins throughout the entire body of the cigar. The band on the Master Bends series is remarkable in design. Tobacco Fields, golden “3” crest, “Oliva Family MB” logo, Portraits, more crests, and even a nice gold embossed back band, this cigar band has it all. The wrapper on the Oliva Master Blends 3 gives of a really sweet, strong cedar and nutmeg smell. You don’t even have to hold the cigar too close to your nose to pick it up. The foot has much of the same cedar and nutmeg along with a really strong spice that actually tingled my nose a bit as a took a big whiff.

Oliva’s Master Blends 3 cut clean and easy as hell using my double bladed Palio cutter. The cold draw produces this absolutely awesome sugar cookie, cedar, spice mashup. If this is any tell as to the flavor of the cigar then I am in for a real treat.

First Smoke: I really love the format of this cigar. It feels so confortable in hand. The Master Blends 3 starts out with just a tiny, little pepper kick before fading right away and leaving behind a very powerful cedar, sweet tobacco, cinnamon, and even some of the sugar cookie I picked up in the cold draw. The draw on this Master Blends is right where I would want it to be. It takes a few puffs and then my mouth is full of this super thick, lingering smoke. The burnline on this cigar is razor sharp with some very small waves, leaving behind this awesome looking, tight, white and light grey zebra-striped ash. I was about to take a picture of just how awesome the first inch of ash looked when I realized that the flash on my new camera likes to pop open whenever it feels like, shooting the ash into my face. Alas, you guys will have to deal with whatever I give you. Sorry!

Halfway There: Ahh, that wasn’t too bad I hope. I am still playing around with this thing and trying to develop a new scheme for my photos. The ashtray pics just don’t do the cigar justice anymore. Anyways. We are now in the second third of this Oliva Master Blends 3 and what an nice experience this has turned out to be. The flavors are still this dominant cedar, sugar cookie with some nice cinnamon and even some creamed coffee coming in now complimenting the nutmeg. Maybe it’s the cigar, maybe it’s the change of weather, but this cigar is something that would go great with some nice pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks. The retrohale is really smooth coating with a very strong cedar flavor. I am feeling very little nicotine from this cigar at this point, if any at all. The burnline is still solid, and so is the ash, which says a lot considering just how windy it is outside right now.

Finish: I don’t know what kind of magic Oliva used on these bands but that huge thing slide right off without a hitch! Now rounding the corner on the final third of this Master Blends 3 and the flavors have, for the most part remained the same. The cedar is still the main storyteller and has actually became much sharper as the coffee and nutmeg have completely faded away leaving behind some subtle sugar cookie and cinnamon. The cigar is the epitome of winter in my house while my wife is baking. I am still only feeling very little nicotine, but there was absolutely no harshness even into the final inch of this cigar. It did start to burn a little hot into the nub, but a lot of that weighs heavily on the fact that I could not put this cigar down.

Overview: It’s obvious that I liked this cigar. I have always liked Oliva, and even more so considering the value of each of their lines. Producing high quality cigars and very low prices. The Master Blend series is their run at showing just how premium they can be. Although it’s one of their more expensive cigars, the Master Blend series is comfortably priced at a standard in which many other cigar manufacture’s base lines are priced at today. Well worth it. The great and complex flavors were a treat from the very beginning and continued to tell the Master Blend’s story through the very end. There wasn’t a lot of change-ups, but considering the flavors in the mix, I wouldn’t have had it any other way. This is a perfect cigar for any novice trying to break though to the high-range area, or even the most seasoned cigar smoker looking for an all around solid stick. Every humidor should have a few of these cigars in it.

Pairing: Another Belgian beer Tony? Yes! And if I had my choice I would paid ALL MY CIGARS with Belgian beer. Hell, I’d pair everything I ever smoked, ate, or even drank with Belgian beer. Belgian beer paired with MORE Belgian beer? Now we’re talking! Although that’s far from true, Belgians have, and will always be my beer of choice. This week’s pairing is Van Steenberge’s Gulden Draak. I’ll go out on a limb and say that means “Golden Dragon” which is strange, given that the beer is actually an amber brown. Even more strange is the fact that this is classified as a Triple, yet the only resemblance to a triple is the 10.5% ABV. This beer is a very sweet, very smooth strong ale. It boasts creamy flavors such as orange, hops, caramel, cherry, and clove as it transcends into one of the smoothest stronger beers I have ever had. Needless to say, this was a perfect choice as it really accompanied the Oliva Master Blends 3’s sweetness, and nutmeg/cinnamon medley. This cigar would go PERFECT with some sort of sweet latte, and even a Bruin or strong brown ale.

The post Oliva Master Blends 3 Robusto appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Smoke Inn’s Microblend Series is aimed at reproducing the effects that Microbreweries have had in the beer industry. As many of you know, microbreweries have made a big impact in their industry and really opened up the market to new types of beers that a lot of larger breweries don’t seem to try. Stepping out of the comfort zone as some would say. Smoke Inn has done the same thing and is making use of smaller yield tobaccos to produce new blends that would previously not have been created. They have also utilized a variety of different manufacturers to achieve very different flavor profiles.

I’m not gonna lie here, Padron is a brand that I typically enjoy everything that they do. They clearly have a name in the industry that speaks to their high quality and excellent blending. Their 1964 Anniversary Series is part of their more premium line of cigars and with that they always carry a larger price tag. In my experience, the higher price tags on this line are usually justified by smooth, tasty cigars and perfectly burning tobacco leaves.

Converse to what you might expect from Padron, the SI-15 blend made form Smoke Inn is a huge vitola (6 x 60 to be exact). The Padron lines are usually available in a variety of smaller vitolas with the occasional larger ones and I found it odd to see a single blend made only in this larger vitola. I should make note that I’m not a huge fan of these large ring gauge cigars. It seems that I always run into burn issues, or draw issues or just a plain bland profile from too much filler. From what I could gather, the blend doesn’t really differ from other vitolas in the 1964 line but since there is so much more filler, the cigar has it’s own unique profile. Let see if that holds true and read on through my review! (Cheesy, I know… lol)

Cigar: Padron 1964 Anniversary Series SI-15 Natural – Smoke Inn Exclusive
Drink: Sierra Nevada Stout
Vitola: SI-15 (6 x 60)
Wrapper: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: Gifted by Smoke Inn ($18.50 MSRP)
Burn Time: About 2 hours

Construction:
• This is a hefty looking cigar with a significant ring gauge and a slightly box pressed look
• There are quite a few visible veins along the length of the wrapper but none seem to e large enough to cause any burn issues
• The color of the wrapper is a very soft medium brown and gives off a slight shimmer in the light, showing some of it’s nice oily qualities
• Surprisingly, the top of this massive cigar is covered by only a single cap, and it does a good clean job of it too!
• The whole cigar is consistently firm when squeezed with very little give
• From the foot, you can see some gaps in the filler, hopefully this won’t lead to any tunnel issues which I seem to run into often with larger ring gauge cigars
• My double bladed guillotine cutter was barely able to fit on this huge ring gauge, but it managed to get a nice clean cut
• The draw is very open even with my small cut

Burn:
• Toasting was a bit uneven as can be expected with larger ring gauge cigars
• Burn is going very well through the first inch, it was a messy start but I’m happy to see a good auto-correction!
• The cigar is also allowing me to smoke it slowly without any problems or worries about it going out
• Through to the half way marked I’m impressed by a razor sharp burn
• I started to get some wavy burn in the last couple of inches which needed a couple small corrections

Smoke & Ash:
• I’m getting surprisingly less smoke than I was expecting, perhaps a downside of the very open draw
• In hindsight, I think I should have gone with a V-Cut or Punch with this cigar
• The resting smoke on this Smoke Inn Padron 1964 SI-15 is fairly minimal and gives off a pleasant woodsy aroma
• The ash has a very nice white color to it with only a few spots of black here and there
• It’s also holding on strongly with no flaking or curving
• First ash lasted nearly two inches before gently being tapped off into the ashtray
• The smoke picked up thickness around the halfway mark and now I’m getting a big mouthful from each draw
• Second ash also held nice and clean for nearly two inches, great construction as I would expect from Padron

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper on this cigar has a typical Padron aroma, giving off slight hints of coffee and some tobacco sweetness
• The foot seems to tell a bit of a different story, it had a lot more sweetness to it, mixed with some cocoa and a touch of spice
• The pre-light draw tastes mostly of tobacco and a bit of earthy notes, nothing exciting about this part of the cigar
• Right off the initial draw I get a very interesting baked bread type of flavor
• I have to note that this cigar is extremely awkward for me to hold and smoke, it’s just too large of a ring gauge than what I’m used to
• Along with the baked bread flavors, the Smoke Inn Exclusive Padron 1964 SI-15 has some mildly bitter coffee flavors and slight hint of sweetness once in a while
• The body of this cigar is starting off in the higher end of mild, it’s not quite medium. From the retrohale I get a small bite a smooth cedar finish
• The bitter coffee flavors continue to develop nicely and I’m really enjoying them. There is also some cedar and spice sneaking in as the sweetness disappears
• The body is slowly creeping into the medium category as the coffee flavors turn into the wonderful bittersweet espresso flavors I’ve come to love from most Padrons
• The bitter espresso notes have really taken control with about 2 inches left to go
• I’m also getting hints of a strong bitter chocolate here and there along with some cedar, a very tasty profile I must say!
• The bitterness turned a tad harsh in the last inch, but nothing terrible

Final Thoughts:
I’m pleasantly surprised to say I really enjoyed this cigar. I came into this with some serious skepticism about the vitola as my experiences with 6 x 60’s has been fairly poor. This cigar did not suffer from those same problems! The flavors were not muted by all the filler and the burn was spot-on even after a poor toasting (for the most part). Despite the larger ring gauge, the Padron 1964 Anniversary Series SI-15 kept the signature flavors I’ve come to enjoy in all the Padrons I’ve smoked. I think Smoke Inn has a definite winner of an exclusive on their hands here. Be sure to check out their website and order some to try if you can. They are a bit on the high scale in terms of pricing but if you compare to other Padron 1964’s it’s on par, and so is the flavor! If you are a fan of 6×60’s this is definitely something to add to your wishlist! You can buy there here from the Smoke Inn eShop.

Pairings:
Sierra Nevada is a brand that I can’t get locally, it seems they have absolutely no distribution in Ontario that I know of. So I picked this up along with the rest of my beer haul from Florida. I’m a big fan of stouts and porters and in general, they are hard for me to find locally. As you might guess from it’s name, the Sierra Nevada brewery is located in California and today Im enjoying their Stout with my Smoke Inn Exclusive Padron 1964 SI-15. The Sierra Nevada Stout is surprisingly smooth with a slightly bitter and full flavored maltiness. I was actually expecting this brew to be a bit thicker but it’s not as thick as other stouts while still maintaining a nice full flavor. It has a very long finish on the palate and leaves some bitter chocolate and coffee notes. This was an excellent pairing for the Padron 1964 SI-15 and complimented the flavors so well since they actually had similar flavor profiles. I would also recommend a strong coffee or port with this cigar, I think both would match nicely!

The post Padron 1964 Anniversary Series SI-15 Natural (Smoke Inn Exclusive) appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

I’m pretty sure everyone has heard us and other blogs jabber on about La Aurora. They’ve been turning out some fantastic cigars as of late so I can’t really blame all the great press they’ve been getting. Also worth mentioning, Guillermo Leon recently bought out La Aurora and is now running the successful ship! He’s not shy to turning out quality smokes as you can see in our review of the fairly new Guillermo Leon Signature Cigar. I decided to pick up a La Aurora cigar but instead of one of their fancy new blends, I went with one of their blends that’s been a staple on their profile for awhile now. That cigar is simply called “La Aurora” but a lot of people seem to call it the La Aurora Cameroon so it’s easier to differentiate.

The Cameroon addition to the common name comes from the wrapper used to hold this cigar together. The majority of the leaf used in this cigar is harvested from the El Cibao Valley in Dominican Republic, the hometown country of the La Aurora factory. The La Aurora Cameroon is available in a variety of boxes not typically seen in other blends. You can actually pick these up in full presentation boxes of 5, 10, 20 and 25 cigars. As you can see from the pictures, I managed to get myself a 5 pack box of the Doble Coronas.

Let me note that this cigar is huge! It’s much bigger than what I normally smoke as my max comfort range is usually in the Toro/Torpedo range. But at the price they are I couldn’t resist. Be sure to check out some of our previous La Aurora reviews as well, such as the 107, 100 Anos, Broadway Series, or the 1495 Connecticut. The weather here in Toronto is wacky as usual. It’s gone super hot and dry back down to very cold and damp all within a couple days. At least it was some nice cigar smoking weather while it lasted so I sat down with this cigar and prepared for a long review session. Let’s see how it went…

Cigar: La Aurora Cameroon
Drink: Waterloo Brewery Dark Ale
Vitola: Doble Corona (7.5 x 50)
Wrapper: Cameroon
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Dominican Piloto Cubano and Nicaraguan Olor
Price: $3.50
Burn Time: 2 hours

Construction:
• This cigars wrapper has an interesting dark cinnamon color with specks of a darker brown here and there
• It has a velvety touch to it and a bit of toothiness
• There are some major veins running down the side of the cigar but I’m hoping they don’t cause any major issues
• The foot of this cigar was well packed, and given it’s size that kind of worried me that it would be a tight draw
• Given the length of this cigar, I’m amazed at how even the diameter is from start to finish, very well made
• The head of the cigar is finished with a slightly messy double cap, a few folds can easily be seen
• For the most part, the length of the cigar has a soft spring to it, but I did notice one very firm part about an inch above the foot
• The cap clipped off easily and made a slight mess in the ashtray
• Draw is perfect! I’m amazed because I usually have bad luck with large vitolas

Burn:
• Toasting took a bit longer than usual and even after 30 seconds with my large culinary torch I couldn’t get it glowing properly but I started smoking it anyway
• As expected, my poor toasting led me to require a retouch within the first inch
• After that first touch up, the burn was been excellent up to the halfway mark here
• As I make my way into the last third, still no burn issues and continuing along fairly razor sharp

Smoke & Ash:
• This thing is producing a ton of smoke, each draw fills my mouth completely and with ease
• The resting smoke is still fairly full and gives off a nice sweet woodsy aroma
• The ash on the La Aurora is nothing pretty, it has some light and dark grey tones and is fairly flaky through the first inch
• The ash lasted just over an inch before I tapped it off because it was flaking and looked like it was snowing every time I moved the cigar
• The second ash was a little less flaky and held on for nearly two inches, this was also the part of the cigar that was a little firmer and could explain the difference

Tasting Notes:
• Wrapper aroma gives off a light sweetness and earthy aroma
• The pre-light draw is woodsy and earthy with a touch of spice on the lips
• Initial draws bring earthy and woodsy flavors mixed with a bit of coffee, a nice start
• As the cigar progresses, I’m picking up some sweetness here and there, almost like some sugar was added to the coffee flavor
• Cigar has been mostly mild through the first bit
• Approaching the halfway mark, the sweet coffee notes are becoming more prominent and I’m getting some raw cinnamon notes in there too, the earthy and woodsy flavors are still there but are more in the backseat now.
• The retrohale is very smooth with a small bit and a roasted coffee finish
• As I get into the last third stretch, the coffee has developed very nicely into a roasted coffee flavor, the sweetness and raw cinnamon still remains
• The finish at this point has turned super creamy as well, a very tasty touch!
• The intense sweet coffee and cinnamon flavors continued to the end, with some added roasted cedar. Although the last half didn’t change much it was still very enjoyable
• The retrohale developed a stronger kick to the end, still tasty and not overpowering
• The body also developed towards the end of the cigar, coming in at a comfortable medium

Final Thoughts:
Let me start by saying I was very impressed by the overall construction of this cigar. I always tend to have burn or draw issues when it comes to very large vitolas, especially ones that are well priced. This cigar hit those marks with flying colors offering a perfect draw and great burn. The flavors were also extremely enjoyable and offered a bit of dimensionality to keep it interesting. This cigar is still larger than what I would normally smoke and I think it would be even better in a smaller vitola. I also found through some searching that these are commonly offered as “Factory Seconds” at some retailers with this huge vitola selling for under $2! That’s just crazy good! Even the normal retail of this massive vitola is under $4, that’s a hard price to ignore for such a good cigar. These will definitely be part of my regular rotation at this price and I would highly recommend you seek them out.

Pairings:
For today’s I went with a trusty brew that I always have on hand. It’s from Waterloo Breweries located only about an hour from my house and it’s their Dark Ale offering. Their Dark Ale is surprisingly light and refreshing but offers the great notes of roasted hops and a slight bitterness mixed with a mild fruity and malty flavor. The La Aurora Cameroon is a fairly mild stick so this brew fit it well with it’s crispness. The bitterness and mild fruits paired excellently and accented to roasted and sweet notes of the cigar. I think an IPA or Amber lager would also pair well here. The flavors of the cigar could also compliment a nice coffee.

The post La Aurora Cameroon appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.