The Good Stuff:

Back in 2012 the household cigar named Romeo y Julietta took. Bit of a departure from the norm when they released a line extension simply called “Romeo”. Romeo was created with a different flavor profile in mind. Something a bit bolder, more full-bodied. Fast forward to the present and we are greeted with a further extension of the Romeo brand with the new Romeo San Andreas. Rolled at the Tabacalera AJ Fernandez factory in Nicaragua the Romeo San Andres is blended using a Mexican San Andres wrapper, Nicaraguan binder and fillers from Dominican Republic and Nicaragua. The cigar is offered in four sizes: Robusto (5 x 50), Short Magnum (5 1/2 x 60), Toro (6 x 54), and the Piramides (6 1/8 x 52). Each format comes packaged in boxes of 20 running between $9.35 and $9.85 a stick. Big shoutout goes out to Cuenca Cigars for sending a few of these our way for review. You can pick these up directly from Cuenca here.

Size: 5 x 50
Wrapper: Mexican San Andreas
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Dominican Republic / Nicaraguan
Body: Medium/Full
Strength: Medium/Full
Price: $9.35
Pairing: Avery The Beast (Grand Cru 17.2% ABV)

Prelight

The Romeo San Andres by Romeo y Julietta starts out with a gorgeous, consistent, deep, dark brown wrapper. The wrapper showcases a few smaller veins as its laid seamlessly over itself. The texture on the wrapper struts some soft tooth with a whole mess of oils. The wrapper feels very dense and very hard as the cigar itself is extremely heavy and jam-packed with tobacco leading up to the cigar’s round, double-wrapped cap. The cigar is then polished off with the same style band as the original Romeo only in black instead of red with the words “San Andres” embossed across the front. 

The wrapper on the Romeo San Andres by Romeo y Julietta  gives off lots of sweet raisin, spice, and oak aromas while the food of the cigar showcases more pepper and natural tobacco. The cap cut clean and easily using my Xikar XO double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces lots of sweet tobacco, grain, cocoa, and natural tobacco flavors. 

First Third:

The Romeo San Andres by Romeo y Julietta starts off with a massive cayenne pepper bomb which left my tongue and lips tingling for a considerable amount of time. Once the pepper began to fade I am greeted with the great tartness I have come to expect from Mexican San Andres-wrapped cigars along with bold raisin, spice and oak backed by a bit of chalkiness and natural tobacco. The draw is great despite the cigar being so tightly packed. Each puff releases a considerable amount of thick, gray smoke while the cigar releases a standard amount of stationary smoke as it rests in my ashtray. The burn line is sharp, but a bit wavy leaving behind a trail of medium to dark gray ash which held on for an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Second Third:

Not the second third of The Romeo San Andres by Romeo y Julietta and a rich, dark chocolate has really started to take charge of the flavor profile backed by raisin and oak with light notes of tartness and spice. I am happy to report that the chalkiness has now faded. The retrohale really brings the pepper and spice forward so I don’t find myself doing it too often on this particular cigar. I close out the second third with no nicotine kick while the cigar is still burning with some slight waves. 

Finish:

The Romeo San Andres by Romeo y Julietta is still showcases the dark chocolate-forward profile along with the raisin, spice, and tartness. Pretty much anything else has been washed out of the experience. It took me an hour and fifteen minutes to smoke The Romeo San Andres by Romeo y Julietta down to the nub and I experienced absolutely no harshness nor extended heat. Despite burning a bit wavy I never once had to reach for my torch to relight or touchup the burn. I close out feeling very little in the nicotine department.

Overview:

The Romeo San Andres by Romeo y Julietta is a solid cigar. While it wasn’t anything to write home about, I felt that cigar offered a great experience for someone who is used to smoking Romeo y Julietta cigars and is craving a unique experience. The cigar preformed flawlessly and the price point is spot-on. I only wish the cigar had a bit more dimension to it, but that’s strictly from a personal preference stand point. This is something I would smoke again, but I don’t see myself running out and looking for more anytime soon.

Pairing:

As soon as I lit up my first The Romeo San Andres by Romeo y Julietta I was dead-set on having a raisin-forward beer to pair it with once I was ready to review it. That particular choice came down to a 2015 version of Avery’s defunct The Beast Grand Cru. Coming in at a whopping 17.2% ABV the Beast leads with heavy molasses, raisin, date, caramel, apple, booze, and just a dash of spice and bitterness with a decently heavy mouthfeel before finishing with more booze, lots more spice, a good amount of raisin, vanilla, apple, and caramel. The raisin and booze really stick with you for some time in the aftertaste. The flavors in the beer made for a phenomenal pairing with The Romeo San Andres by Romeo y Julietta as many of them married up well while the others helped lift the cigar into a more full-bodied category. 

The post Romeo San Andres by Romeo y Julietta appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff:

To say that Davidoff has really stepped their game up the last few years is an understatement. They have been kicking out fantastic new cigars left and right with little signs of slowing down. An extension to the AVO Syncro series called the AVO Syncro South America Ritmo is one of the newest offerings the brand has shipped to retailers. The goal of the Ritmo was to utilize tobacco from seven different countries to reach the highest, most intense flavor offered within the AVO portfolio. The cigar features an Ecuadorian wrapper, Mexican Binder and fillers from Brazil, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Peru, and Nicaragua. The cigar is offered in four size: Robusto (5 x 50), Toro (6 x 54), Special Toro (6 x 60), and the Torpedo Largo (7 x 54). Each size comes packaged in boxes of 20 and runs between $10.90 to $13.90 a stick. I purchased mine over from our friends at Ford on Fifth.

Size: 5 x 54
Wrapper: Ecuadorian
Binder: Mexican
Filler: Brazilian / Dominican / Honduran / Peruvian / Nicaraguan
Body: Full
Strength: Medium/Full
Price: $10.90
Pairing: Alesmith Grand Cru (Belgian Strong Dark Ale 10% ABV)

Prelight:

The AVO Syncro South America Ritmo starts out with a gorgeous, dark brow and orangish brown wrapper. The cigar is covered in rustic looking inconsistencies in color along with some areas of very dark brown splotches scattered through the wrapper leaf. You can see some nice dark natural webbing in the leaf as well as a few mild veins running through the course of the cigar’s body. The wrapper feels very thin a brittle but carries an incredible amount of both grainy tooth and oils. The cigar features a soft-box press format with a nice round double cap. The cigar is polished off with a gorgeous teal, orange, white and black wrapper that carries the standard AVO crest as well as the words “South America” on it. There is also a secondary team band that simply states “RITMO” across the front. The cigar feels very heavy and extremely tightly packed which I hope doesn’t result in any plugging.

The wrapper on The AVO Syncro South America Ritmo gives off a lot of earthy, mossy, natural tobacco aromas while the foot of the cigar carries a bit more spice and oak over mostly the same earthy, natural tobacco aromas. The cap cut clean and like butter using my Palio XO double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces a ton of sweet spice, honey, earthiness and a great mixture of naked woods.

First Third:

The AVO Syncro South America Ritmo starts out with vanilla, oak, honey, sweet spice, a bit of tartness of my lips and tongue as well as a little bit of black licorice. While I was expecting the draw to be tight, it was as fluid as it could get. Each tiny puff kicked out massive clouds of thick, white smoke which quickly dissipated as it reached my ceiling fan while the cigar itself released a standard amount of stationary smoke as it rests in my ashtray. The burn line is pretty even, and razor sharp leaving behind a tightly compacted trail of light and medium gray ash which held on for an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Second Third:

Into the second third of The AVO Syncro South America Ritmo and the tartness has started to overtake the cigar, but not in a good way. I just hope it doesn’t last too long as I really enjoyed the flavors that developed early on. Underneath the tartness is still some oak, vanilla, and spice, but anything else is pretty much lost at this point. I really hope that the flavors can come back in this thing cause I was really digging how this cigar started. The retrohale helps though as it coats my nasal passage with the sweetness and spice I picked up early on. The cigar is still burning beautifully as I close out the second third with a tiny little nicotine kick.

Finish:

As I wished for the tartness to fade out in The AVO Syncro South America Ritmo it just kept pouring it on and it has now completely took over the experience. I still get a bit of vanilla and a bit of oak, but that’s just about it. It took me an hour and a half to smoke this cigar down to the nub and quite frankly I thought about putting it down about 20 minutes ago. I just wanted to hold out just to make sure I wasn’t missing something.

Overview:

I really wanted to like The AVO Syncro South America Ritmo. I have been on a huge AVO kick lately but this one just didn’t perform on par with some of the previous Syncro releases. The flavors started out incredible, but quickly took a turn for the worse when the overwhelming tartness took over the flavor profile. It almost seems like the tartness was the outcome of faulty blending but I smoked 3 of these cigars, all of which ended up the same. I can’t say I’d really recommend these cigars, but what I will do is stash a few away and see if aging them a bit helps the tartness fade out.

Pairing:

I decided to pair The AVO Syncro South America Ritmo with a beer that is heavy on the sweetness and very bold body in an attempt to help the cigar out. Alesmith’s Grand Cru is an 10% ABV Belgian style strong dark ale brewed at the Alesmith brewery in San Diego, California. The beer leads with a ton of sweetness, cajeta, caramel, malt, a bit of hop, slight bitterness, and some rich apple flavors with a very light mouthfeel before finishing crisp with more apple and sweetness, spice, and malt. This is such a good beer and it did in fact help lend a hand to the The AVO Syncro South America Ritmo experience but in the end it just wasn’t enough.

The post AVO Syncro South America Ritmo appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff: In case you have been living under a rock the Rothchildes are the latest release to come from the hands of Dion Giolito over at Illusione Cigars. The Rothchildes release is the first value cigar to come from Illusione in some time. That is, if you consider the Chuchillos Cubanas a value cigar. Either way, it’s a welcome release. The Rothchildes, unlike some of Dion’s releases are being made at the Tabacos Valle de Jalapa S.A. in Esteli. This factory is ran by Eduardo Fernandez, the man behind Casa Fernandez. I read recently that Dion was considering shifting operations to another factory so this must be it.

The Rothchildes release will only be offered in one Robusto style size (4.5 x 50) and will run $3.99 a cigar or $199.50 per cabinet of 50. Very easy on your wallet. The Blend starts out with a Mexican San Andreas wrapper (which have been popping up more and more as of late, and is a GREAT leaf when blended correctly), with a Nicaraguan Binder and Filler.

Size: 4.5 x 50
Wrapper: Mexican San Andreas
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Strength: Medium
Body: Medium/Full
Price: $3.99
Pairing: Magic Hat #9 (American Pale Ale 5.1% ABV)

Prelight: Illusione’s Rothchildes isn’t much to look at, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a beautiful cigar. The wrapper is a natural, dark and medium brown color with lots of spots of black and orange. I love the rugged look and again, I am extremely fond of anything that showcases the natural characteristics of the leaf. The wrapper is very firm and thick with some decent tooth and lots of oil. There are a few smaller veins running throughout the body up to the round triple cap. The Rothchildes is polished off with a beautiful gold, red, and white retro-style Cuban band that simple states “Illusione”, “Rothchildes”, and “Nicaragua” in the back. I love the design on these bands. The cigar is very heavy for the size and is rather firm with the exception of the softness around the foot area.

Where this cigar lacks in looks is makes up in aroma as the wrapper of the Rothchildes boasts tons of sweet tobacco and spice with the foot carries some pepper and sweetness. The cap cut clean and easy using my Palio double bladed cutter. I really wish that more companies would utilize the triple cap technique. Adding that extra layer really increases the changes of a clean cut. Anywho, the cold draw is much like the prelight aroma boasting a ton of sweetness, tobacco, and spice.

First Smoke: Illusione’s Rothchildes starts out with a nice black pepper blast which quickly fades away leaving behind a whole ton of sweet, sweet tobacco with some nice cinnamon and spice along with some black cherry and chocolate. There is a whole ton of flavor from this cigar right off the bat. The draw on this beefy little cigar is stellar. Seriously, it takes only a minor puff to get a mouthful of thick, white smoke. The burnline is a bit messy, but nothing that needed any attention from my lighter at this point. The ash left behind is a light and dark grey, but very flaky. It only held on for about ¾ of an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Halfway There: The pepper has now completely faded from the Illusione Rothchildes experience. The sweetness is still rocking the flavor profile alone with some cedar, a ton of spice, and the black cherry laid over natural tobacco. I really enjoy the flavors in this stick. It’s worth mentioning that the cigar does produce a bit of a chalky after taste which is quickly taken care of with a swig of my beer or another puff from the cigar. The retrohale really showcases the sweetness and the cherry that I mention in the experience and I find myself retrohaling this cigar a bit more than normal due to the pleasurable flavors. The burnline is burning thick, but completely solid at this point as I am feeling absolutely nothing in the nicotine department.

Finish: While the Cherry and a bit of the sweetness has started to fade from the experience the cedar and natural tobacco have really ramped up in the final third of Illusione’s Rothchildes. I’m really impressed with how slow this cigar burned as it took me almost an hour and a half to take down the little guy. I am also impressed at the fact that even in the final inch there wasn’t a single sign of harshness at all. The cigar finished off smooth, and only a bit warm on my fingertips while requiring absolutely no extra attention from my torch. I left the experience feeling absolutely no nicotine whatsoever.

Overview: This is a great stick. I am a HUGE fan of most anything that Dion has produced and I think that the Rothchildes fills a huge gap in the Illusione portfolio by offering a great experience at a value price. I had to admit, I was a bit apprehensive at first due to my love for his other blends such as the ~88~ and Epernay. He is a stickler for quality and flavor so the thought of him releasing a value cigar made me a bit uneasy as I thought it would be something unlike his other blends made solely for people wanting to smoke his cigars but not pay the price. But I am happy to report that this cigar doesn’t taste any “less expensive”, nor does it wonder too far from the work he’s been doing on his other blends. It’s pretty complex for what it is and offers up a ton of rich, bold flavors while carrying great construction, and burn. This is a damn good cigar at a price that just cannot be beat. It’s not wonder why retailers are having such a hard time keeping these cigars on their shelves. Personally, I don’t think this cigar as a “value” stick in terms of flavor and experience. It’s probably way up there with the likes if the ~88~ in my opinion. The price just adds to how phenomenal this cigar is.

To Sum it Up: The Rothchildes come boxed in cabinets of 50 and I urge just about anyone to pick up a whole cabinet, you won’t regret it. The huge flavor profile an complexity is perfect for seasoned cigar smokers, especially those already fond of Dion’s work, while the excellent price tag and mildish strength will really entice novice cigar smokers to pick them up as a introduction to the world of a higher-premium cigar.

Pairing: I decided to pair this with a bottle of Magic Hat’s infamous #9. This “Not Quite Pale Ale” is brewed at the Magic Hat brewery in Vermont and clocks in at 5.10% ABV. This is a wonderful summertime session beer as it’s one of the smoothest beers I have ever had. It’s so easy to find yourself knocking a few of these back in quick succession. What I like about the beer is while it’s smooth, it offers a neat mix of citrus and malt flavors with just a touch of pine. While a bolder beer would have matched up well with the Rothchildes I decided to toss this one in since I knew that the pine and citrus would marry up wonderfully with the spice, sweetness, and cherry that the cigar had to offer. Not to mention it’s hot and humid as hell outside right now and drinking a heavier beer just didn’t match up with the weather. I could easily see myself pairing this cigar up with some bold Dopplebocks, or Brunes during the wintertime.

The post Illusione *r* Rothchildes – Cigar Review appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

I did review the original line Illusione ~888~ Slam and had nothing but praises to sing for it, and so began my hunt for the Maduro version! It’s pretty challenging to get these up to Canada since so few retailers are willing to ship them but I did manage to land myself a few of the ~888~ Maduro (Churchill size) just before the wedding. With all the craziness that happened around that time I never got a chance to sit down and enjoy it fully for a review so I’m finally getting to it now after smoking through a few of the ones I purchased.

The story behind the name of the ~888~ Maduro is the same as the original label so I encourage you to check out my review of the original line ~888~ Slam to learn about what the numbers mean. I love how Dion has incorporated meaning into each blend and tweaked all the blends individually to suit the vitolas.

As I sit down for tonights review, it’s pretty darn evident that fall is here and winter is not far away. We’ve had a week full of rain and another week of rain ahead of us. The nights have been dropping to 50F and my new residence is not very well equipped for winter smoking, so I’m starting to worry where I’m going ot get to enjoy my cigars soon. I’m sure I’ll figure something out but if anyone has a nice heated space that they’d like to share, please let me know! lol

And with that last bit of whining, lets just jump right on into the review and see how the Illusione ~888~ Maduro measured up!

Cigar: Illusione ~888~ Maduro
Drink: Fullers 2011 Vintage Ale
Vitola: Churchill (7.5 x 48)
Wrapper: Mexican San Andreas
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: About $9
Burn Time: Just short of 2 hours

Construction:
• The wrapper on this Illusione ~888~ Maduro is a thing of beauty, it’s dark, oily and super toothy!
• The cigar itself is pretty firm from end to end, not much give when squeezed here
• From the foot, this cigar looks to be very well packed, and that backs up the reason for firm feel throughout
• The triple ca is expertly applied, very clean and blends in perfectly
• The simple no non-sense bands on all the Illusione cigars give them a clean sort of elegance that I always admired
• The draw on this cigar is a little tighter than I would have liked, it’s taking a couple extra efforts to get a decent smoke volume
• A little past the halfway mark, the draw opened up perfectly. Too bad it didn’t start out this way

Burn:
• Toasting was easy and even and didn’t take very long to get the foot glowing nicely
• Through the first bit, the cigar is burning at a nice pace and despite a bit of a wobble it’s keeping somewhat even
• The burn line managed to even itself out just after the first inch and is now burning razor sharp!
• As I burn past the halfway mark, I’m getting nothing but razor sharp awesomeness here it’s burning at a good pace for me to kick back and enjoy every bit of it
• Right around the spot where the draw opened up, the burn when very lopsided and needed a couple of corrections to get it back in line

Smoke & Ash:
• Due to the tighter draw, I’m not getting a ton of smoke here
• The resting smoke is fairly light, just a thin steady line that’s giving off a nice burnt wood aroma
• The ash is starting off a bit flaky so I’m hoping it cleans itself up a bit as it burns further down
• The color of the ash is very light grey with some zebra striping happening, looking fairly strong as well other than the bit of flaking
• The flaking stopped after burning through the first bit, probably just some damage to the foot that caused it
• First ash managed to last about an inch before I tapped it off. Probably could have gone longer but it’s a bit windy out here tonight

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper aroma is very light, maybe just a touch of sweet tobacco here
• The foot is a totally different story, I’m getting lots of bitter cocoa and peppery spice aromas here
• The cold draw brings a very tasty sweet cedar and cocoa flavor to the party
• The first few initial draws are pretty bland so far, just a touch of pepper and a bit of a charred type of flavor, really hoping this turns around quickly
• The charred flavor slowly disappeared and the cocoa notes I picked up earlier are starting to come around, really glad to see the this!
• The body started off right in the medium category so I’m anticipating a full bodied smoke by the end here
• The retro-hale has a nice cocoa spice to it, maybe some nutmeg or cloves mixed in there, and a smooth cedar and cocoa finish
• Coffee flavors are also starting to creep in and making for an excellent and well balanced profile now
• A bit of the pepper, nutmeg and clove flavors are sneaking back into the mix
• I really have to applaud how nicely balanced this cigar is, there are a nice array of flavor all around and they are mixing very well together
• As I get into the last third, the flavors and body are really starting to pick up
• The coffee and spices are taking the front seat right now, really increasing in intensity
• Despite the definite ramp up in flavor intensity, the cigar did not get bitter or harsh right to the end

Final Thoughts:
It’s no surprise that I’m a big fan of *most* of the Illusione line up. I’ve only really had 1 that I didn’t enjoy (read my experience with the ~mj12~ here ) so I had some high expectations going into this review. The rocky start had me pretty scared but the Illusione ~888~ Maduro managed to pull itself out of the hole and finish strong with some excellent flavors and a great burn. I’m not sure I would pick this up over the original blend but it is nice to see some variety in the Illusione line-up and it’s definitely worth a try if you are a fan of the original line.

Pairings:
So I found this brew hidden in the back of my fridge this weekend and decided to dig it out. It’s been there for over a year but this is a special Limited Edition Vintage Ale from Fullers and it comes ready to be aged! The bottle date is sometime in 2011 but it’s suggested to be aged as far as 2014. It weighs in at 8.5% which is why it can age so well. I must say that time spent aging has been good to this brew! It’s like a deep, dark and rich flavor bomb in your mouth. It has a sort of stout type of thickness to it but mixes in flavors such as blackberry, vanilla, toffee and a bit of a caramel note. Very good stuff, too bad I can’t find it anymore. It’s made for an excellent compliment to the lllusione ~888~ Maduro. Other suggested pairings here would be a hefty stout or a nice bottle of port.

The post Illusione ~888~ Maduro appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Now I’m sure a lot of you are familiar with the My Father Cigars brand, they are synonymous with awesome cigars. Jaime Garcia decided a long while ago to create a more wallet friendly line to add to the My Father Cigars inventory, and this is how the La Reloba line was born.

Just like most brands from the My Father lines, the La Reloba is a Nicaraguan puro made with high quality and aged tobacco leafs from their various farms. There are 3 wrappers offered in the La Reloba line which are Seleccion Sumatra, Seleccion Habano and Seleccion Mexico(Maduro). I also found some inklings online about a limited release Seleccion Oscura although I only can find them at one online source and they aren’t listed on the My Father Cigars website.

In the line of La Reloba we have 4 sizes which include the Corona, Robusto, Toro and Torpedo. Today’s cigar up for review is the Corona vitola which I’ve had the chance to smoke a few of. I had the Habano on hand but I haven’t had as many of them plus I decided to settle on a slightly milder blend since I was lighting this up just after lunch time.

Cigar: La Reloba Seleccion Sumatra by My Father Cigars
Drink: Unibroue Raftman
Vitola: Corona (5.625 x 46)
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Sumatra
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: Around $4
Burn Time: 1.5 hours

Construction:
• The La Reloba Seleccion Sumatra is wrapped with a fairly smooth leaf to the touch but the cigar itself is rather bumpy
• There are quite a few visible veins on the wrapper but none of them are very large, medium sized at most, and don’t look like they will cause any burn issues
• The orangey-chocolate colored wrapper has a nice oily sheen to it and the triple cap is finished with a couple loose edges
• From a little squeezing it’s easy to tell this is a very firm cigar and I hope that doesn’t cause any issues
• The foot looks extremely well packed, tons of leaf in there
• Cutting this cigar with my double bladed guillotine cutter was fairly easy but it caused a huge explosion of little pieces of tobacco

Burn:
• The toasting was very nice, even on this windy day it glowed evenly without much effort
• The initial burn looks promising and is keeping a razor sharp and even line
• The razor sharp burn continues through the first half, no touch ups needed at all and it’s letting me enjoy it nice and slow
• Great burn continued right to the end, nothing much else to report here!

Smoke & Ash:
• For a fairly small cigar this La Reloba Seleccion Sumatra is pumping out a ton of smoke from every draw
• Surprisingly though, the resting smoke is almost non-existent, as if it’s saving it all for me! lol
• The ash has a wonderful light grey, almost white color to it and is very smooth
• Despite being a smaller ring gauge cigar, the ash here is very strong and clean and held on over an inch before I tapped it off
• The crazy winds knocked off my next ash just short of an inch, missed a picture opportunity too
• Also realized the wind blew most of the ash right out of the ashtray!

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper is giving off a barnyard and cedar aroma
• The foot brings a ton more barnyard aroma with almost no cedar, maybe just a touch of spice in there too
• The pre-light draw brings more of the barnyard and woodsy aromas, and maybe a touch of earth now too
• The initial flavors coming from this cigar are all about the woodsiness and spices, I’m getting an interesting punch of cloves along with a mild paprika maybe
• The spice died down a bit and I’m left with a bit of a leathery flavor to go with the cedar notes
• At nearly the halfway mark I’m starting to get some of the baking spice flavors that I find in almost every Sumatra wrapped cigar I have, sort of like some molasses and cinnamon
• The body on this cigar has been mostly in the low medium range and the retro hale has been giving a tiny bite with a smooth cedar finish
• The cedar and baking spices stuck through to the end and made for a nice enjoyable experience right to the nub
• No harshness or bitter buildup right to the finish

Final Thoughts:
This isn’t my first foray into the La Reloba series and it definitely won’t be my last. The La Reloba Seleccion Sumatra was a tasty treat that had a nice array of flavors to keep me interested the whole way through. It wasn’t as complex or dimensional as some of the other My Father Cigars but it was definitely enjoyable and fits nicely into their inventory. The burn was also spot on the whole way through which is always a big plus for me. The price is also very attractive for a quality cigar from the My Father Factory. I also have to admit I was surprised to see such a great burn and draw from this cigar when my initial inspection led to some concerns. Can’t complain at all about this cigar and I definitely will be picking up more in the future!

Pairings:
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. I found that it paired very well with the La Reloba Seleccion Sumatra as it added some flavors to the whole experience without either the cigar or the beer being overbearing on each other. Any medium bodied brew would go well here such as an Amber lager or even a dark ale, a nice coffee would definitely pair nicely here too.

The post La Reloba Seleccion Sumatra appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Ideology was intended to diversify the line of 262 Cigars by bringing a smooth, mile and creamy profile.  The cigar is wrapped with a Rosado leaf which I find to be a great alternative to the Connecticut when seeking a mild cigar for anytime of the day.  As I mentioned in my last review, the 262 Cigar company is made up of a small group of passionate cigar smokers who have embraced the online and B&M cigar communities to promote their product.  By leveraging these communities they’ve been able to establish themselves as a good name in the cigar world.

The blend of leaves in this tobacco all come from some of my favorite tobacco leave regions including Nicaragua, Mexico and Dominican Republic.  Each of these leaves offers a unique and tasty profile and I’m excited to see how they blend together.  It’s nice to see a cigar aimed at the mild market when it seems a lot of new cigars are being aimed at strong, full bodied smokers.

Cigar: 262 Cigars Ideology
Drink: Erdinger Weissber Dunkel
Vitola: Box-Pressed Toro (6 x 54)
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Habano Rosado
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan, Mexican, Dominican
Price: $8.75 from 262 Cigars Website (www.smoketherevolution.com)
Burn Time: 1.5 hours

Construction:
• A very clean and even square pressed toro cigar
• The wrapper is a nice matte chocolate brown color with almost no visible veins
• The head is finish with a clean triple cap and seems to have a little more shine then the rest of the cigar
• The foot is very well packed and the cigar is fairly firm to the touch with whole way through
• The cut was nice and clean, falling off in a neat bunch into the ashtray
• Draw is just right, not too much effort and not too airy

Burn:
• Toasting took a little while to get even but eventually glowed nicely
• Burn started off a bit wavy but quickly corrected itself and is burning razor sharp now
• Still no problems on the burn as I pass the halfway mark, this is a great sign since I usually have problems with box-pressed cigars, but not this one

Smoke & Ash:
• Getting a nice mouthful of smoke from each draw
• Resting smoke is fairly minimal
• The ash is producing a nice white color to it and looks tightly wound
• Despite it looking nice and strong, the ash fell into the ashtray after about an inch
• The one inch mark seems to be the sweet spot for this ash, but it cleanly falls into the ashtray without me having to worry about it at all

Tasting Notes:
• The aroma on the wrapper is very light but I get some hints of coffee and hay
• The foot gives off a bit more hay on the aroma and some hints of coffee and cocoa, maybe even a small touch of spice
• Pre-light draw brings mostly hay and a sweet tobacco type flavor
• Initial draws have a nice cedar flavor and some hints of coffee, starting off nice and mild
• Retrohale is very mild with no bite and at this early point is not giving any distinct flavors
• The coffee flavors have developed a bit more on the finish and also on the retrohale, cigar is still fairly mild
• Getting a bit of creaminess on the finish, a nice touch
• The creaminess has also translated to the retrohale and it also developed a tiny little bite
• The body started to pick up a bit near the end, it’s just teetering on the edge of medium right now
• The cedar/woodsiness made a more prominent appearance in the last third
• The mild smoothness of this cigar is very enjoyable and relaxing, not too in your face
• Some bitterness started to develop in the last inch or so of the cigar, but it wasn’t terribly off-putting
• Smooth cedar flavors lasted to the end

Final Thoughts:
This was a nice mild and enjoyable smoking experience.  The flavors were never overpowering and it smoked smooth and easy the whole way through.  It also had a great burn and nice amount of smoke from start to finish.  This cigar would be a good addition to a selection of early day smokes or when you just want something smooth and mild to relax with. It’s nothing overly complex but still a relaxing and enjoyable cigar.  It would also make a great option for beginner cigar enthusiasts looking for something that won’t knock their socks off.  It also sets itself apart from a lot of other mild cigars which tend to be Connecticut wrappers.  The Rosado wrapper gives it a different flavor while still keeping it creamy and mild.  Anyone looking for a change in their early morning smoke should give these a try.  Their price comes in a bit high to be an easy every-day smoke but still fair enough to be part of a weekly rotation.

Pairings:
After getting the initial notes of coffee and cocoa on the wrapper I decided to pair this cigar with a nice dark beer.  My choice was Erdinger’s Dunkel, a dark wheat beer that goes through a strict fermentation process.  It has distinct notes of coffee and dark malts and goes down smooth with minimal hoppiness or bitterness.  This ended up being a very nice pairing for this cigar with the flavors from each complimenting each other.  Similarly smooth and flavorful dark beers would also pair well here.  A nice cup of coffee or dark soda would also make an excellent pairing.

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This was a cigar that I have had quite a while ago and had high hopes of kicking out a review. Sadly, this cigar wasn’t easy to come by at the time. Only a select few shops through the US had them in stock and I had no idea which ones did. Luckily for me, my local shop Tobacco Rd. (where I happen to be doing this review from today) made the trip to IPCPR this year and was able to try this cigar out for themselves. It takes a lot for a retailer to bring in a completely new cigar manufacturer due to the uncertainty of how that shops feelings will adapt to the new cigar. Kurt Kendall must have made an impact on them as the shop’s owner wasted no time placing an order. Knowing my excitement concerning this blend Tobacco Rd. kindly gifted me a few of these so that I could finally complete this review.

The Good Stuff: K. A. Kendall is the creation of Kurt Kendall and the 7-20-4 is loosely based off of a cigar manufactured In New Hampshire in 1910 called the R.G. Sullivan.

The name 7-20-4 derives from the R. G. Sullivan’s 7 story factory which was located on 724 Elm St. in Manchester, New Hampshire. The R.G. Sullivan factory was America’s largest manufacturer of 10cent cigars. Time’s have obviously changed since then. Sadly, the cigar factory (which produced close to 54 million cigars a year) closed back in 1963.

Size: “7-20-4”: 5 5/8 x 46  –  Wrapper: Brazillian Mata Fina  –  Binder/Filler: Nicaragua, Honduras, Mexico, Columbia  –  Body: Med/Full

Prelight: K.A. Kendall’s 7-20-4 is a beautifully solid, milk chocolate brown wrapped cigar.  The wrapper is a toothy, oily, consistently colored, thick wrap that showed only very few small veins. The cigar is very tightly packed, giving a ton of resistance when compressed.  Topping off the 7-20-4 is a seamless double cap leading up to a stubby little pig tail. The band on the cigar displays a much older, contemporary style of artwork than is present in most cigar marketing. It’s almost circus style, I love it. The band is covered with a red ink, embroidered with a gold metallic with holds the white on black “K.A.Kendall’s 7-20-4” logo.  The wrapper doesn’t give off much more than a soft tobacco and cedar scent while the foot of the cigar produces a slightly more pronounced tobacco scent with a bit of spice in the background. The pig-tailed cap of the 7-20-4 clipped clean (does anyone actually bite these off? Do they work?) using my double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces a very grassy, earthy flavor with just a hint of pepper.

First Smoke: The 7-20-4 took a bit of extra work to get going using my single flame butane torch, but when it finally got lit it was unstoppable. The cigar produces a massive, thick cloud of smoke with every effortless puff. The 7-20-4 started out with just a little jab of pepper before transitioning to a pleasant cedar with a soft spice and hints of some sort of sweet flavor.. maybe raisin. The burnline is dead even, razor sharp, and leaves behind a nice trail of medium to light grey ash. The 7-20-4 doesn’t produce much stationary smoke at all, but what little came off the cigar was heavily cedar and tobacco scented. The ash held tight on this guy until about an inch and a half.

Halfway There: Into the second third of this 7-20-4 the flavors change up just slightly. First of all, the pepper is back, but it is very subtle, only present enough to tease my lips and the back of my throat. The cedar flavor has become much more pronounced and is now dominating my palette only to be backed up by slight chocolate flavors with a hint of spice. The cigar is very smooth and I am able to smoke it a bit quicker than normal. The retrohale is pure heaven and gives off a wonderful full-cedar prime. I am not really feeling any type of nic-kick at this point. The burnline is still perfect.

Finish: As if the 7-20-4 didn’t already hit all the marks the cigar really started to dominate into the last third. The flavor and the body really started to ramp up. The nicotine was just enough to make it noticeable without giving any real kick. The flavor finished off a very smooth and creamy cedar with a bit of spice, pepper, and earthy tones. I smoked this cigar faster than I normally do (I was excited to see the on my local shops finally) and yet, there was absolutely no harshness what  so ever. Nor did the cigar get even remotely hot towards the end. The burnline was perfect the entire length of the cigar with no touch ups or relights. The 7-20-4 burned at a perfect pace taking a little over an hour to take down.

Overview: K.A. Kendall’s 7-20-4 is a huge winner in my book. I was pretty sad after I tried my first one only to find how limited these are. I am really glad that shops like Tobacco road are starting to come around and see the value in this cigar. At about $6 – $7 this cigar will be a great addition to my regular rotation for a long time. Perfectly balanced, enough to even satisfy the most picky cigar smoker, and smooth enough to be enjoyable by the novice.

Pairing: This 7-20-4 was paired with a nice little bottle of Maredsous Tripel.  Maredsous is brewed at the Brouwerij Duvel Moortgat in Belgium. Much like Chimay, this beer is brewed by Trappist Monks and a large portion of the proceeds are donated to several charities. The Tripel is a very strong  (10%), fruity, tart beer. This may not have been such a great pairing. Ideally I think this cigar would pair much better with a stout or porter, or even a tawny port.  The zest and bitterness was just a bit too over powering and I found myself putting the beer to the side early into the smoke.

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These sample sticks were sent to me courtesy of Gran Habano a week or so prior to IPCPR. Many of you may know there were a few things going on that really set me back on my review line up, but alas I am back on track and finally getting around to reviewing this cigar.

The Good Stuff: The Azteca sits in its own little corner as the newest, and most different cigar of Gran Habano’s line. The Azteca is a double maduro composed of a Mexico Maduro wrapper and binder grown in San Andreas encasing filler tobacco grown in Nicaragua and Panama. According to our friend Barry over at acigarsmoker.com (Check him out if you haven’t hear of him, great guy), “the first release of the Azteca has been aging since August, 2009”. This is a full body cigar and what seems to be a possible turning point for Gran Habano’s current portfolio. If I’m not mistaken, recently Gran Habano actually announced that they were going to be haulting the production of two of thier lines, the 3 SLS and the Cabinet Selection in order to put more attention to the Azteca Line.

Size: Puma 6 x 60  –  Wrapper/Binder: San Andreas, Mexico Maduro  –   Filler: Panama/Nicaragua  –  Body: Full

Prelight: The Gran Habano Azteca Puma is a very thick and heavy cigar. I could probably knock someone out with this thing. It’s very firm to the touch and incredibly hard. The wrapper is very silky, and tough with very large veins running the entire length of the cigar. The wrapper itself is a deep, dark chocolately brown leading up to a seamlessly round cap. The band makes a huge statement sporting a large, brown Aztec calendar surrounded by orange and gold inlayed titling of the brand “Gran Habano” as well as the bold cigar name “Azteca”.  The back of the band has a small light brown and teal crest and the Brand Owner’s names “George and Guillermo Rico”. The band that surrounds the foot is a simple dark brown band with gold and teal bands as well as a gold and orange inlayed name of the vitola, in this case the “Puma”. These are incredibly detailed and beautiful bands. The wrapper of the Gran Habano Azteca doesn’t give off much more than a faint tobacco smell, where as the foot boasts of tobacco, cocoa, and earthy aromas.  The Azteca cut very clean using my double bladed Palio cutter. The cold draw is VERY interesting. The first puff exclaims of a rich, more natural tobacco flavor teased with a very spicy, and earthy undertone with just a dash of cocoa.

First Smoke: The Gran Habano Azteca is a very differently tasting cigar. At least, in comparison to what I am used to. The initial flavors are jam packed with a very sweet, light, natural tobacco taste backed by soft spice, and bittersweet chocolate. The draw is remarkable. Each small puff produces a massive amount of thick, grey smoke. The Azteca give off quite a bit of earthy and enticing wood scented stationary smoke. The burn line started off slightly wavy, but corrected itself about a half inch into the cigar. I blame my single flame lighting technique on this larger ring gauged cigar. The ash left behind is a compacted, darker grey with black spots and just a few flakes here and there, mostly towards the foot of the cigar. As I got about an inch into the cigar the ash on the foot flowered and actually “bloomed” open.

This is common and didn’t hinder the experience in anyway, it’s just always interesting when you run into it. As a side note, this only happend to this sample, not the previous one I smoked. After the main “pedal” fell form the ash, The ash carried on and still held on for almost two inches before giving way.

Halfway There: Two thirds into this Gran Habano Azteca, I started to get a really, deep, and pleasant spiced woodsy flavor. This was followed up by the creamy cocoa, and sweet natural tobacco flavors. At this point this cigar has been smooth all the way though with no signs of nicotine. The retrohale is a bit spicy (not peppery) but gives your nasal passage a great little woodsy priming. The burnline tends to do its own thing every now and then, but always seems to correct itself before my lighter intervenes. I have yet to really feel any nictotine from this cigar.

Finish:  To my surprise the massive band on this Gran Habano Azteca slid off with extreme ease. Up until the final third  I haven’t felt much, if any nicotine buzz from this cigar but that has change up a bit. The body has definitely ramped up a bit. I’m not feeling a whole lot, but it’s there for sure. The cigar has remained incredibly smooth all the way though. There was no harshness built up towards the end and the final flavors were that of cocoa, wood, and again, that sweet spice. The flavors didn’t change up too much, the but the complexity and deepness were very satisfying and enjoyable. The burnline gave me no problems in the final stretch. All in all it took me about 1.75 hours to take down the Gran Habano Azteca Puma, and I enjoyed every minute of it.

Oerview: Gran Habano is in the process of actually haulting manufacturing of a few of their lines in order to pay more attention to the Azteca. That being said, a lot of work has, and is currently being put into this blend and it shows. The Azteca is more an old school maduro producing great cocoa, woodsy, and earthy flavors with a smooth and balanced body. The 60 ring gauge was a bit large and uncomfortable to me (usually I enjoy larger vitolas but over the past few months I’ve been drawn to coronas). I really think the double maduro wrapper and binder would shine through with even more flavor on the smaller sizes of the Azteca. All in all I think the complexity makes for an excellent cigar not only for long time cigar smokers, but the flavors paired with the smoothness will satisfy beginners as well. At a price point of around $6 – $8 I think the Gran Habano Aztec will be finding it’s way into my regular rotation very soon.

Pairing: Having the Azteca before, and being quite aware of its smooth, creamy, chocolate upbringing I decided to pair it with another one of my favorite beers. St. Peter’s Cream Stout. St. Peter’s Cream Stout is a 6.5%, sweet, milk stout brewed a the St. Peter’s Brewery in Suffolk U.K. This cigar is a great pairing with most sweet tobacco, or maduro cigars. The creamyness helps smooth out the experience while the sweet chocolate undertones only enhance a cigar’s flavor. Black coffee, Brown Soda, Water,  or a rich Port would pair perfectly with this cigar.

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