Following the success of the 2013 release of the Psyko Seven, a maduro version was launched by Ventura Cigar Co. at the 2014 IPCPR Trade Show. Unlike the Dominican Hybrid wrapper utilized on the original release, the maduro features a Mexican San Andres wrapper.  Psyko Seven is manufactured in the Dominican Republica by the famed Henke Kelner, the master blender of Davidoff cigars, at the Tabadom factory.

The Psyko Seven derives its name from the seven tobaccos utilizes in the blend originating from six different countries.  Three vitolas in the Maduro version are currently available to include: Robusto (5 1/2 by 50), Toro (6 by 52), and Gordo (6 by 60).

The Facts

Samples Provided by Ventura Cigar Co.
Price: Unknown
Vitola: Robusto
Size: 5 1/2 by 50
Wrapper: Mexican San Andres Maduro
Binder: Mexican Sumatra Hybrid 151
Filler: Nicaraguan Ligero, Peruvian Pelo de Oro Viso, Honduran Holancha Seco, Dominican Hybrid, and Pennsylvania Ligero
Smoke Time: 1 Hour and 30 Minutes
Drink: Water

Pre-light

A large band designed as a medical prescription form details the vitola, size, and specific tobaccos utilized in the Psyko Seven Maduro. It also conceals the majority of the Mexican San Andres wrapper that is dark brown in color with couple of light colored veins and lacks any visible oils. Upon removing the primary band, a smaller, simpler, secondary band is found underneath where a typical cigar band would be placed.

While the oils are hard to see, a fair amount of oil and a fine tooth are felt under my fingertips as I examine the Psyko Seven for soft spots. No soft spots are found, only a handful of veins are noticeable, but stretch marks are all over this Mexican leaf.

A sweet chocolate aroma is found on the wrapper of the cigar, along with some rich clove notes. The same chocolate is found on the foot accompanied by some graham cracker, cinnamon, cherry, and rich cedar. The double cap is hard to spot as it has been applied cleanly. The shoulder has a sharp angle resulting in a flat head of the cigar, which I believe to be a result of the packaging. Upon clipping the cap, a decent cold draw with just a hair more resistance than preferred presents milder than expected flavors of clove, cedar, and chocolate notes that are drying out my mouth.

First Third

Taking my time lighting the foot of the cigar evenly with my Zippo Z-Plus! butane lighter, the Psyko Seven Maduro is underway. Medium flavors of pencil-shavings, leather, and pepper are first to arrive on my palate, while a pepper spice warms the back of my throat and entire mouth. There is just enough maduro sweetness to round-out the profile and an intriguing Cubanesque saltiness has grabbed my attention. A thin, eyeliner burn is evenly forming a gray layer ash that is holding past an inch.

Middle Third

Moving into the second third of the Psyko Seven Maduro, the flavor remain, for the most part, consistent with the previous third. A few minor variations include the leather and sweetness gaining more ground in the profile, the pencil-shavings and pepper taking a step back, while the saltiness holds strong. The finish is of earth and chocolate, while the retrohale brings forth a medium red pepper spice. Other than the ash becoming more flaky, the Psyko Seven Maduro continues to perform exceptionally.

Final Third

Toasted notes push back the maduro sweetness as the leather and saltiness continue along. The flavors have crept up from medium to medium/full and the strength is now in the medium arena. The burn is beginning to waver, but, with so little left of the cigar, I do not foresee any touch-up required.

Wrap-Up

My expectation of the Psyko Seven Maduro was rather low when I first received the samples. Not because I read anything bad about it, but because I knew nothing about it. As I began my preliminary research, my expectations began to gradually increase as I learned that it utilized a Mexican San Andres wrapper and is produced under the watchful eyes of Henke Kelner. To say the least, the Psyko Seven Maduro far exceeded my expectations in both flavors and performance. From the core flavors of leather, pencil-shavings, and spice to the more unique saltiness, balanced out by the maduro sweetness, the Psyko Seven Maduro delivered an intriguing, but not overly complex, profile that never lost my interest. The cigar burned evenly, the ash held firm, and a mouth-full of smoke was produced with each draw. While I do not know the exact price of the Psyko Seven Maduro, searching online retailers, you can easily find this stick for under $7.00. One heck of a deal for a great cigar!

Giveaway!

Our good friends at Ventura Cigar Co. sent over a few extra PsyKo Seven Maduros, a Ventura torch lighter, and a double guillotine PsyKo Seven cigar cutter that we are giving away to one of our faithful readers! I may throw in a few extra cigars as well, but they will be a surprise.

The rules are simple. Just enter using the Rafflecopter widget below and one winner will be chosen at random and announced next Friday. You must live in the USA or Canada, and must be 18 years or older to enter. The contest will run from today until Thursday, 6/25/2015, at 11:59 PM.

That’s it! Now get to it.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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The Good Stuff:

The Quesada Reserva Privada was unveiled at this 2015 ProCigar festival in the Dominican Republic. The Reserva Privada is among one of the first cigars introduced by the Quesada family as an higher level premium cigar. Along with that, the Quesadas used a vintage tobacco farmed in 1997 which adds a special “something-something” to this blend. That’s right, in 1997 Manuel Quesada (who owns Quesada Cigars) convinced his father Manuel Sr. and broth Alvaro to gather an exceptional crop of San Vincente tobacco and set it aside to be used for a special project down the line. Cigar Coop had some good insight as to what made this crop so special:

The crop was described as “Cosheca Pareja” meaning that the plants were all uniform in height. The middle of the plants were also the same size indicating the nutrients had spread evenly in the plant. The tobaccos were harvested and stored in bales made from palm tree bark wrapped in palm leaves. The bark protected the tobaccos from outside conditions and allowed for a natural fermentation as they aged. A few years ago, Manuel’ offered the tobacco to his daughters Patricia and Raquela for a special project – and then the wheels were put in motion.

And that is how the Quesada Reserva Privada came to be. It’s worth noting that the cigars have also been aging for a year since the cigars were rolled.

The Quesada Reserva Privada is offered in three sizes: Robusto (4 3/4 x 52), Toro (5 5/8 x 54), and the Toro (6 1/2 x 56). The cigars will come in boxes of 10 running between $12.95 and $14.95 a stick. Since the tobacco is obviously no longer in existence this will be a very limited run. Some of these cigars have started to creep into a few select shops across the US with more on the way. I purchased mine over from the great guys at Serious Cigars in Houston (who at the time of this post still have some in stock).

Size: 4 3/4 x 52
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut
Binder: Dominican San Vincente (from a 1997 crop)
Filler: Dominican San Vincente from the 1997 Vintage selected from the Cosecha Pareja crops and Pennsylvania Ligero
Body: Medium/Full
Strength: Medium
Price: $12.95
Pairing: Brouwerij Verhaeghe Duchesse De Bourgogne (Flanders Red Ale 6% ABV)

Prelight:

The Quesada Reserva Privada starts out with a silk smooth, light brown wrapper. The color is so incredibly consistent on this bad boy that the smaller veins which run the length of the cigar’s body are almost hidden. The wrapper’s texture is very smooth with some slight tooth, and light oils throughout the cigar with the exception of the cap area which showcases a much more oily composition than the rest of the cigar. The Quesada Reserva Privada feels very tightly packed and absolutely solid while the wrapper of the cigar feels very thin and delicate. The seamless leaf leads through to bulky body of the cigar up to a beautiful, round, triple cap. The Quesada Reserva Privada is polished off with a black, metallic silver and metallic gold band which features the standard Quesada crest on the front, “Reserva Privada” along the sides, and “Licey Rep. Dom.” and “Hecho by Mano” on the back in small print.

The wrapper on the Quesada Reserva Privada gives off a whole lot more aroma than I expected leading with some strong, sweet honey, natural tobacco and some slight spice while the foot of the cigar is much more natural with a very spicy/peppery front to it. The cap cut like butter on my Palio double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces some strong honey notes, slight spice, cedar, and natural tobacco flavors.

First Third:

The Quesada Reserva Privada starts out with some slight black pepper which quickly fades as the cigar begins to showcase some strong cedar, honey, grain, natural tobacco and grassiness with just a little bit of spice on the finish. The draw on this cigar is incredible despite my fear of being too tightly packed. Each tiny little puff kicked out massive clouds of thick white smoke while the Quesada Reserva Privada released almost no stationary smoke as it sat in my ashtray. The burn line was a bit wavy, but started to correct itself halfway through the first third. The ash left behind was a tightly compacted white and light gray which held on for about an inch before falling into my lap explaining why my next picture isn’t as beautiful as it usually is.

Second Third:

It’s crazy just how much flavor this Quesada Reserva Privada is kicking out. The cedar has really taken over the second third with lots of sweet honey, natural tobacco, grassiness, and a great floral flavor that has emerged. This cigar is so incredibly smooth and is easy on my nasal passages as well coating them with a really sweet cedar as I retrohale. The burn line has been perfect since about the middle of the first third and I am feeling absolutely nada in the nicotine department.

Final Third:

The flavors have remained bold, yet really smooth as I venture into the final third of the Quesada Reserva Privada. Still lots of cedar and sweet honey, floral notes, grassiness and grain as well as the introduction of a nice, soft musky flavor. It took me a little over an hour to smoke this cigar down until I could no longer hold it in my chubby little fingers without burning them. Along the way I experience absolutely no harshness, no overheating, and no nicotine kick whatsoever.

Overview:

No doubt about it the Quesada Reserva Privada rocked. Lately, in my opinion, Quesada has been hitting home runs ever time it steps up to the plate but the Reserva Privada is on a whole new level. I am not big on Connecticut shade cigars as I’ve stated numerous times in the past but this cigar is in a league of it’s own and easily the best Connecticut wrapped cigar I have ever had the pleasure of smoking. The flavors are bold and complex yet incredibly smooth and creamy. This price point is way up there, I know, but with a 1997 vintage and such a great experience I’d gladly pay it time and time again. This is a box-worthy cigar for sure, and I am sure I am going to get my hands on as many as I can carry.

Pairing:

Such an exceptional cigar required an equally exceptional beer pairing. I can’t even count how many times someone has asked me “What is your all-time favorite beer?”. While that’s a very difficult question to answer, more time than not my answer is the Duchesse De Bourgogne. Brewed at the Brouwerij Verhaeghe in Belgium this Flanders Red Ale comes in at a modest 6% ABV. While this is a “Sour Ale” it differs quite a bit from others as it’s so incredibly sweet. The beer starts out with a splash of sweetness, apple, and berry with a very light mouthfeel before finishing crisp with a bit of brown sugar, sour grape, and a mess of sweet apple. Yeah, there is some sourness in there but its overshadowed by the sweetness. The sweetness and fruit is what drew me to this pairing as it complimented the honey, sweetness, and floral flavors from the Quesada Reserva Privada completely. I think the real story here is that the Connecticut wrapped Reserva Privada stood it’s ground and wasn’t overpowered whatsoever by such a potent flavor profile found in the Duchesse.

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The Good Stuff: As most of you know, Sam Leccia has been rolling since his re-introduction into the cigar business last year. Both of his debut launches, the Leccia Black, and the Leccia White made appearances in both mine, and Jeremy’s top 10 list last year. This year, Same is at it again releasing the “Luchador”. A Luchador is a Mexican wrestler. We see a lot of them in my parts. There are actually weekend events that happen here in El Paso with Luchador wrestling and the sport has always been a big part of Mexican culture. Here is what the Leccia Tobacco’s website says about the new blend:

The Luchador is an exotic 5 country cigar blend handcrafted in Nicaragua consisting of very unique tobaccos. A San Andres Wrapper leaf surrounds the Habano binder leaf grown in Ecuador. The filler uses Viso from Esteli, Nicaragua with ligero From Pennsylvania-USA and Jamastran, Honduras. Centering the blend is a distinctive tobacco from Ometepe, Nicaragua.

Ometepe is an island formed by two volcanoes rising from Lake Nicaragua in the Republic of Nicaragua. Its name derives from the Nahuatl words ome (two) and tepetl (mountain), meaning two mountains. It is the largest volcanic island inside a fresh water lake in the world.

The Luchador blend uses 3 tobaccos grown in Volcanic soil: the Ometepe, Habano and San Andres. The soil in these regions is so rich that little to no fertilization is necessary.

The blend is medium to full, providing a complex array of flavors from sweet to spicy with the strength building throughout the smoking experience.

The Luchador is offered in 4 sizes: El Hombre (5×54), El Castigo (6×60), El Guapo (6×50) and Loco Perfecto (6×58). They are packaged in boxes of 21 ranging from $8.10 to $8.60 a stick. I ordered these over at cigar.com and they have been available at retailers across the United States for a while now. For more information you can follow Sam Leccia on Twitter and Facebook.

Size: 5 x 54
Wrapper: Mexican San Andreas
Binder: Ecuadorian Habano
Filler: Honduran Ligero, Pennsylvania Ligero, Nicaraguan
Body: Full
Strength: Medium/Full
Price: $8.10
Pairing: Dogfish Head’s 75 Minute IPA (American IPA w/ Maple Syrup 7.5% ABV)

Prelight: Leccia’s Luchador is a pretty little thing. It starts out with an absolutely beautiful dark brown wrapper. The wrapper color is very consistent with only a few darker areas around the foot and the cap of the cigar. The wrapper carries a very toothy texture with one or two larger veins running throughout the body. The wrapper leaf is very thick, and laid seamlessly as it leads up to a round, double cap. The construction on this bad boy is top notch. The Luchador is finished off with a very fitting Luchador style mask for a band sporting the Mexican flag colors Red, White, and Green with some black and gold detailing. Being so close to Mexico Luchador wrestling is something that we see on a weekly basis here. The Wrestlers are celebrated, and are just as big of celebrities as their American counter parts. This cigar fits right at home here in El Paso.

The wrapper of the Luchador gives off a very strong, pungent tart and cedar aroma while the foot of the cigar is a bit on the mild side only releasing some mild grassy, mossy aromas. The cap very clean, and very easily using my double bladed Palio cutter. The cold draw started out with some strong spice backed by a really doughy profile with a bit of tobacco mixed in there.

First Smoke: Wow. The Leccia Luchador starts out with a huge black/cayenne pepper greeting. It was strong enough to bite the tip of my tongue and the back of my throat a bit. The pepper began to subdue a bit and some strong cedar, spice, syrup, tobacco, and tartness started to seep through. The draw on the Luchador is spot on. Each little puff kicks out a massive cloud of thick, white smoke. Surprisingly, there isn’t a lot of stationary smoke coming off this cigar as it sits in my ashtray. The burnline has a few waves which is normally expected when you have a cigar packed with crazy burning ligero leaves, but it’s nothing too crazy. The ash left behind is a light gray, and very tightly compacted. It held on for well over an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Halfway There: One characteristic that Ligero always leaves me with is a bit of a charred, smoked meat flavor and I am picking up a ton of it into the second third of the Leccia Luchador. Along with the charred/meat flavors I am picking up more of the tartness from the San Andreas while the pepper is finally started to fizzle out. There is still a lot of small spice notes, and a ton of cedar. The retrohale is way sharp and much too peppery for my liking. I’ll stick to the old fashioned way of smoking. The burnline is still a bit wavy and I had to correct a real large wave, but it wasn’t anything too crazy. Again, you gotta expect that when you are smoking a cigar packed with Ligero. The strength of this cigar is already showcasing just how strong this cigar is leaving me with a nice little nicotine kick as I close out the second third.

Finish: I had to really pace myself with the Luchador. Maybe it was me, my mood, my food consumption, or maybe the cigar itself, but the Luchador has delivered in the boldest way possible in terms of strength, and I have been loving every minute of it. The charred flavor began to repress as the ligero flavors became much more of strong tobacco. The backing flavors were syrup, tartness, and lots of spice with a bit of espresso mixed in into the final third. There is no doubt that this is a full-strength, full bodied experience but I never once felt that one was overpowering the other. Even into the final inch the Luchador was well balanced and just overall complex and bold. After that touchup in the second third the burnline finished clean with some slight waves, but didn’t require any further torch attention. It took me about an hour and a half to take the Luchador down while it left me with a pretty high nicotine kick.

Overview: It’s been some time since I’ve had a cigar that has both been incredibly strong, and incredibly balanced like the Luchador. Lots of flavor, lots of strength, and lots of love. The cigar leads off with strong pepper, spice, and tart while it finishes with some bits of espresso, syrup, and cedar. It’s not really a novices cigar as it may be a bit too strong, but I think this cigar is perfect for someone like me, a seasoned cigar smoker who loves stronger, complex experiences. The price point is right where it should be and I even got these on a crazy sale averaging a little of $4 a stick. Box worthy for sure, and a perfect after dinner/late evening cigar. I wouldn’t recommend smoking one on an empty stomach or first thing in the morning.

Pairing: Dogfish Head’s 75 minute IPA is an IPA brewed with maple syrup and continuously hopped for 75 minutes. Coming it at 7.5% ABV this beer resembles a perfect hybrid of a sweet IPA, and a sour. The balance is incredible as the beer leads off with some strong sweetness, syrup, and hoppy citrus finishing with a nice sour bite. The syrup is what sold me on this pairing and I had no idea the sourness would meld with the charred and tart flavors from the Luchador as well as it did.

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The Good Stuff: Emilio Cigars is the brain child of Gary Griffith who is a certified Retail Tobacconist that oversees the operations at Delaware cigar.  Gary teamed up with master blender AJ Fernandez to bring you both the AF1, and today’s AF2 cigars. The AF2 is actually the third cigar in Emilio’s portfolio. The AF1 was the first blend, shortly followed by the Grimalkin which was not blended by AJ, and now the new AF2. The AF2 is composted of  Nicaraguan and Pennsylvania Ligero wrapped in a Ecuadorian Habano Oscuro wrapper. The AF2 will be available in 4 sizes, the Robusto (5×50), the Toro (6×50), the Torpedo (6.5×52), and the BMF (6×58) and will run between $7 and $8 a stick.

Size: 6×50  –  Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano Oscuro  –  Binder/Filler: Nicaraguan/Pennsylvania Ligero  –  Body: Medium/Full

Prelight: Along with the AF1, Emilio’s AF2 sports flawless construction. The cigar starts out with this beautiful oily and toothy wrapper. The wrapper is a nice dark brown, with lighter spots and even some orange coloration here and there. There are a only one or two large veins running half the length of the body of this cigar. The AF2 is then capped off with a traditional round double cap. The cigar is firm for the most part with only one softer spot near the simple black and copper band. But nothing that I’m too concerned with. The wrapper feels really tough and durable.

The wrapper of the AF2 gives off a very nice oaky, and musky aroma while the foot bears a more traditional tobacco and grassy aroma. The wrapper gave a slight bit of push back, but then clipped clean using my Palio double bladed cutter. The cold draw on this AF2 is dominated by a spicy ligero flavor backed by some slight wood and earthy flavors.

First Smoke: The AF2 leads in with an extreme amount of pepper. The pepper quickly fades and I am left with the really sweet tobacco, oak, cinnamon, spice, and honey mixture. It’s a far cry from the dominant ligero based flavor I picked up in the cold draw. And that’s a good thing. Too much ligero in my opinion, can quickly ruin a cigar (Both burn and flavor wise).  The draw on this cigar is effortless pumping out thick, heavy smoke with even the smallest draws. The AF2 doesn’t give off a lot of stationary smoke, however I found it interesting that the smoke it did give off was so pleasant scented. Much like wood burning in a fireplace. The AF2’s burnline is razor sharp and dead even leaving behind a very nice trail of light grey, tight, compacted ash.

Halfway There: Into the second third of Emilio’s AF2 the pepper has completely removed itself from the flavor profile. What I was left with is again, lots of sweet tobacco, oak, honey, and some nice graham cracker type flavors. You can taste the ligero in this cigar but only slightly, leaving it very balanced. The way it should be. Despite having a ligero based blend the cigar really isn’t giving out a ton of nicotine, if any at all at this point. Surprisingly too, the retrohale on this cigar is really smooth coating my nasal passage with a nice woodsy and spice profile. The burnline is still super sharp, and dead even.

Finish: This AF2 is finishing so smooth! I really wasn’t expecting that. Still, only a very slight amount of nicotine. I love when blends can really balance themselves out and have so much potential to be powerhouse smokes, but end up medium/full with an overall smooth complex. The AF2 falls right into that category. The pepper made a slight reappearance into the finally third, but that oaky flavor I mentioned has really taken control. The sweetness is still there slightly, with a bit of the honey, but now the experience is so much creamier. Might I say milky? Either way, this is exactly how I wish every cigar would end.  This cigar took about and hour and a half total to smoke down.

Overview: AJ Fernandez and Emilio Cigars have produced yet another winner. This blend compliments the AF1 very well, but is different enough not to be compared with the blend. The cigar has plenty of body to satisfy full body smokers, but is smooth enough all the way to the finish for the masses. The flavors are complex enough, and extremely pleasant and well balanced. The construction was spot on, and the price is right where I would expect it to be. I can’t really say anything else. Buy them. By the box. You won’t regret it.

Pairing: I paired this Emilio Cigar’s AF2 with a long time favorite, and one of the best summer brews around. Omega’s Hennepin Saison. Hennepin is a very tart, citrus infused farmhouse ale. Pale in color, carrying a 7.7% ABV it makes for a perfect afternoon refreshment. The wonderful wood and cinnamon flavors from the AF2 matched perfectly with the sharp citrus Hennepin kicked out. This cigar would go perfect with any light ale, an IPA or some ice tea.

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