So today’s is review is brought to us by Komodata, one of our many awesome readers, who was kind enough to send me a 2008 Oliva Serie V Maduro Especial. Thanks so much Komodata! Really appreciate the chance to get to enjoy a nice cigar like this.

So this blend was launched by Oliva on October 15, 2008 to follow up on the success of their 2007 limited edition release. There were a couple differences in the release though. Firstly, the name was slightly changed from the original “Oliva Serie V Liga Especial” and the ring gauge was knocked down a bit to 54 but the length was extended to 6.5.

Now the original plan on this 2008 Oliva Serie V Maduro Especial was actually to make it to make it a 54 ring gauge. As the story goes, this vitola it was too strong and overpowering so they actually took out some filler and ligero to make it a 52 ring gauge. All-in-all, 50,000 sticks were made and distributed to approximately 250 retailers, most of those were US but some were sent across the ocean to a few select European retailers. They are pretty hard to come by now a days but there are still a few aging in some lucky people’s humidors. So without further adieu, let’s see how this cigar stacks up!

Cigar: 2008 Oliva Serie V Maduro Especial
Drink: Mill Street Brewery 2011 Barley Wine
Vitola: Torpedo (6.5 x 52)
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Connecticut Broadleaf
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan Jalapa Valley Ligero and long filler
Price: Original MSRP $6.75 (Gifted by Komodata)
Burn Time: 2 hours

Construction:
• This is a tough looking cigar with a deep dark chocolate brown wrapper, with just some subtle hints of gold here and there
• The is finished nicely with just a few visible lines and the foot looks to be very tightly packed, tons of leaves inside this stick
• Despite looking to be over packed, the cigar has a nice spring when squeezed and is consistent from cap to foot
• The smooth and toothy wrapper has almost no visible veins, very nice looking leaf
• The cut was strong and tough to cut but it came off cleanly with my double bladed guillotine cutter
• I kept the cut short for now and the draw seems to be a bit tight, if it stays that way I may need to clip off a bit more
• I decided to clip off a bit more after the draw didn’t improve through the first third

Burn:
• The toasting on this cigar was super easy, it lit up evenly with very little effort
• The burn has started out nice and sharp and is moving very slowly, let’s hope it stays this way
• Burn continues to be razor sharp and even through the first third
• The burn has been awesome all the way through to the last third now, not even a tiny touch up required here at all
• It’s also burning nice and slow and is giving me time to enjoy it slowly
• The last 3rd of this cigar seemed to slow down on the burn even most, staying completely even but allowing me to prolong the smoking experience
• There was one small touch up required near the very end, most people might have put the cigar down at that point but I wanted to keep going! haha

Smoke & Ash:
• As I mentioned before, the draw is a bit tight right now so there isn’t a ton of smoke but there is still a fair amount to not warrant chopping off more leaf for the moment
• Resting smoke is practically non-existent, just a little bit right after I take a draw then it’s like it practically turns off
• The ash has a ton of striping and is alternating colors between light and dark grey
• So far, the ash is holding strong past an inch and it has no flaking or signs of weakness
• I had to tap the ash off shortly passed the inch mark since it’s pretty windy and it was gonna end up in my lap soon… lol
• After the little bit of extra clipping the smoke volume increased a tad, but not much
• Ash continued to be strong, even and clean throughout the whole experience
• Smoke volume increased a bit more at the halfway mark, making for a nice full billow from each draw

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper of the Oliva V Maduro 2008 has mostly an aroma of barnyard scents and a bit of earthiness
• The foot carries the same aroma but tosses in a fresh cedar and grassiness to the mix
• The pre-light draw brings in more of that cedar flavor and maybe just a touch of sweetness
• Initial flavors are interesting, very deep and dark roasted wood and espresso with some hints of clove or nutmeg
• The espresso/coffee flavor is developing nicely already in this first third, very tasty
• Body so far is in the medium range and the retrohale has no bite, but it does have a smooth coffee finish that is darn tasty
• I am getting a bit of dryness on the back of my throat but the creamy finish seems to be balancing that out
• All the flavors are playing nicely together so far with the roasted coffee and cedar notes being the most dominant
• There’s also an interesting aftertaste that I can only describe as something like fresh cut hay (Not to say I eat hay, but it tastes like what fresh cut hay smells like, lol)
• There is some interesting complexity to this cigar if you sit and pay attention to the flavors, some subtle notes I’m picking up in the background include a bit of meaty flavors, a bit of vegetal notes, and even some roasted nuts of some kind.
• The roasted nut flavor is really starting to shine through as I get into the last third and all the flavors are intensifying nicely, also picking up a bit of licorice flavors here and there
• The body continues to stay in the medium range and the huge burst of flavors from each draw is just delicious
• The body did pick up a bit in the last third, maybe to the low end of full, but not overpowering
• The flavors continued to intensify and surprise me to the very end with hardly any bitterness at all, I enjoyed this cigar down to the very nub and even busted out the toothpick to get maximum enjoyment!

Final Thoughts:
I think the sheer number of flavors I mentioned in my tasting notes is a good indication of how complex and enjoyable this 2008 Oliva V Maduro cigar was. It kept me on my toes the whole way through and teased me to pay extra attention so all the subtle notes as well as the ones that were obvious and super tasty. Everything kept in great balance and the smooth creamy finish was a perfect touch to end each draw. Some people had warned me this would be a full bodied smoke but I think it stayed in the medium range for the most part and I didn’t even have a big dinner before smoking this. The age of this particular stick may have contributed to a little loss in body but the flavors were still in full swing. These are obviously super rare to come by these days but if you manage to track one down I’d highly suggest fighting to give it a try, it’s a great experience to add to your cigar journal.

Pairings:
So this was one of my first forays into Barley Wine and I decided to chose a local brewery, Mill Street, based out of Toronto. This happens to be from their 2011 batch. It comes in an awesome bottle which I think is some kind of ceramic or something, along with a nice swing top cap. I wasn’t really sure what to expect but I knew it had some high alcohol content(11.5%) so I saved it for a time when I could enjoy it at night. Well to my surprise I was met with what I can best describe as a stout on steroids! It’s so thick and creamy with dark notes of roasted malts and roasted coffee. The creamy finish really sells this brew and I enjoyed the heck out of it(as Tony would say )! I can definitely say it was an awesome pairing to go with the Oliva V Maduro, the roasted coffee and malt notes matched with the cigar perfectly. Other great pairings would include a stout, port, scotch or a strong coffee.

The post 2008 Oliva Serve V Maduro Especial appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Now there isn’t a whole lot of info out there about the ELO #3 so I’ll do my best here. If anyone has any more accurate or additional info, feel free to add it in the comments and I’ll be glad to append it to the review! From what I found while researching, this cigar comes exclusively from New Havana Cigars and is an “encore” release of a popular cigar they had previously sold in 2008.

It seems the cigars were sold at record speeds as do many of the limited releases from Tatuaje and especially from New Havana Cigars. As with many cigars from Pete Johnson of Tatuaje, this is a Nicaraguan puro and is rolled at the My Father Cigars factory in Esteli, Nicaragua. At the moment only New Havana Cigars is selling the ELO series from what I understand but it is possible that the retailers could expand, depending on demand and supply of course.

Now this next part is pure speculation but there may be some truth here. Apparently, the ELO series, which runs with numbers 1 thru 5, are overruns of some other popular Tatuaje cigars. And just to clarify, an overrun is not a 2nd, it’s basically just extra stock without any imperfections. From some reading, it seems this ELO #3 is the counterpart to the Tatuaje Verocu #2. Reading that and looking at some pictures of the Verocu 2 seems to be pretty accurate, but who knows.

So remember, a lot of this info is just stuff I found randomly and not from any official sources, so I’m not sure how accurate it is. Feel free to share any more info on his cigar if you have it, I’d love to learn more about it! Now I won’t do any more speculation or yapping, let’s just get straight to the review!

Cigar: Tatuaje ELO #3 2011
Drink: Muskoka Brewery Winter Beard Double Chocolate Cranberry Stout
Vitola: Robusto (5.5 x 54)
Wrapper: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: $6.50
Burn Time: 1.5 hours

Construction:
• The Tatuaje ELO #3 2011 has a pretty rough and beefy wrapper on it
• Despite having quite a few decent sized veins the oily sheen of this cigar definitely makes it attractive to look at
• The triple cap topping off this cigar is very smooth and well applied, so I can’t complain there
• Now the foot of the cigar looks like it has it’s fair share of filler leaves in there, very packed
• Surprisingly though, there is a nice give and spring to this cigar when squeezed
• The more I look at these veins the more they worry me, I’m hoping they don’t cause any burn issues here…
• The cut with my double bladed guillotine cutter made a huge mess and little pieces of tobacco leaves went everywhere
• The pre-light draw seems a bit tight but we’ll see how it goes
• The draw actually turned out to be ok, it is a bit tight but it’s not affecting the experience so far

Burn:
• The toasting was slow and steady and although there were some problematic spots it all lit up fairly evenly in the end
• The burn through the first inch of so has been razor sharp and super slow, so far so good!
• The burn continues to be stellar and slow through the whole first half, I’m actually very surprised because I saw a few good sized veins
• I had one little peninsula form in the last third of the cigar but it actually corrected itself, all in all this was a superbly burning cigar!

Smoke & Ash:
• The smoke coming from this cigar is plentiful but it seems a little thin, not a bad thing just something to note
• The resting smoke is fairly minimal but it does give off a nice woodsy aroma
• The ash on this ELO #3 2011 is a very nice whitish color with accents of black striping here and there
• The ash lasted easily past an inch with a strong and clean looking structure before I tapped it off into the ashtray
• Loving the strong and clean ash on this cigar, another easy passing of the 1 inch mark on the second ash

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper of this cigar has surprisingly little aroma, maybe just a touch of woodsiness to it
• The foot is similarly lacking in aroma but I did detect a touch of floral notes in there, kind of surprised cause I’m used to getting a lot of spice from Tatuaje cigars
• The woodsy and floral flavors are still there on the pre-light draw but now I’m definitely picking up the trademark Tatuaje peppery spice that I’m used to, tingling my lips and tongue
• The first few draws had a very charred taste, might have been due to the extended toasting but I’m glad they went away fairly quickly
• The next array of flavors seems to be a musty woodsy type of flavor with a side order of mild spices and just a dash of leather
• The retrohale on the Tatuaje ELO #3 2011 has just a small bite and a smooth creamy cedar finish
• The body is resting at a comfortable mild-medium right now
• Now I’m not sure if it’s partly the beer here but I’m getting a nice thick rich flavor on this cigar, like a dark chocolate or roasted espresso, really enjoying it
• The flavors continue to get richer as the cigar burns, the spice has mostly disappeared and I’m left with a nice woodsiness backed by those delicious espresso and dark chocolate
• The body started to kick up into the full category in the last third but it still maintained a smooth creamy finish and lots of rich flavors
• The strength of this cigar seemed to sneak up a bit on me at the end, I got a little bit of a nicotine kick but not much. Might be due to smoking this earlier in the day and having only a small lunch
• The flavors diminished a bit as I hit the nub but they didn’t get harsh, just sort of washed out, still enjoyed it up until my fingers were burning

Final Thoughts:
Now this was a darn tasty smoke. I’ve had a bit of an up and down experience with Tatuaje lately but I always come back because when Pete Johnson does it right, he does it really right! The perfect burn, the awesome ash and the great array of rich flavors made for a superb smoking experience. The slow burn also gave me plenty of time to enjoy the cigar without the need to babysit it. I have to say that this blend definitely carried some similarities to the Verocu line, especially the Verocu Tubo since I smoked it not too long ago. So maybe there is some truth to that info… If you can track down a few of these I would definitely recommend you give them a try.

Pairings:
Today’s pairing is definitely an interesting one. It comes from a brewery about an hour North of me in what we call “Cottage Country”. It’s from Muskoka brewery and it is called their Winter Beard which is a Double Chocolate Cranberry Stout. Now I took a bit of a risk here since I actually haven’t even tried this brew before today and I’m glad to say it worked out rather well. I was a bit scared that the cranberry flavor would be overpowering but it’s actually barely discernible at all. You can get a touch of sweetness but it’s not a super fruity flavor at all. Even the double chocolate is fairly balanced. Once thing to note is that this is probably one of the thickest beers I’ve ever drank. It poured out like well aged port but it surprisingly had very little head (foam) to it. I found the richness of the beer to be a perfect match for the richness of the cigar, they both played to each others strengths and made for a great overall experience.

The post Tatuaje ELO #3 2011 appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

So the pairing I decided on today to celebrate Halloween is the Grimalkin by Emilio Cigars. If you’ve been following our reviews over the last couple months you would have seen Tony post up two reviews from Emilio, the AF1 BMF and the AF2 Toro. If you take a glance through Tony’s reviews you’ll see that he enjoyed both of them quite a bit. I also had the chance to smoke them and thought they were both quite enjoyable. So does the Grimalkin continue that trend?

If you haven’t heard of Emilio Cigars don’t be surprised. They’ve been making a larger splash in the market recently but up until a few months ago I hadn’t really heard of them either. They are slowly expanding distribution and getting a name out for themselves. You can check the Emilio Cigars website for information on retailers near you that carry their products. Emilio Cigars is owned by Gary Griffiths and there isn’t too much info available on this cigar.

From what I can find, the Grimalkin is made in Esteli, Nicaragua from selected and limited tobaccos. The yield of this cigar is limited based on the harvest amounts of the various tobaccos. So what this basically means is that each year will have a different production amount based on the amount of required tobaccos they manage to harvest. I like this approach, it’s fairly practicle and it’s not limiting production to a set amount of boxes every year. A quick google search shows them available in a few shops so that’s a good sign as well.

Now I found the band here to be kind of interesting… The name “Grimalkin” seems sort of like some creepy monster, maybe like a more evil Gremlin, and it goes nicely with the ominous yellow cat-like eyes on the wrapper. What seems odd to me is that the text is printed in curved pattern which makes it look sort of like the cat is smiling at me? Am I crazy? It’s not really an evil smile either, it looks happy to me! Seemed to take away from the spooky aspect since it made me laugh, lol. But maybe it’s just me? I’ll stop talking now… let’s get to the review!

Cigar: Emilio Cigars Grimalkin
Drink: Huyghe Brewery Delirium Nocturnum
Vitola: Robusto (5 x 52)
Wrapper: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: about $7.00
Burn Time: 1.5 Hours

Construction:
• The is a very nicely constructed cigar that is evenly round and has almost no veins on it at all
• The wrapper is smooth and oily which compliments its dark cinnamon brown color
• The Grimalkin actually feels a tad firm along it’s whole length, I’m hoping that doesn’t mean a tight draw
• The head of the cigar is finished with a triple cap, it’s not overly neat but not messy either
• Not the foot looks to be as tightly packed as could be possible, there are almost no gaps here at all
• The cut was pretty easy considering the firmness of the cigar but the draw was definitely suffering at the start
• Within an inch the draw definitely opened up which I wasn’t expecting but is a pleasant surprise

Burn:
• Toasting took a bit longer than I expected for this vitola and got a little messy as the wrapper edges started to burn a bit
• Got started off to wavy burn and it’s continued that way through the first inch or so, hasn’t gottne worse and seems to be nice and sharp
• Burn seems to be improving slowly, staying sharp and getting straighter
• It’s actually burning very slowly and easily too, no need to constant draws to keep it lit
• The burn did round out and burned razor sharp through to the end

Smoke & Ash:
• Despite a fairly tight draw I am getting a ton of smoke each time, really fills your mouth
• The resting smoke seems non-stop but at least it’s somewhat moderate, gives off a nice aroma too
• The ash is coming along nice and clean, looks to be strong but we’ll see how long it lasts
• White is the dominant color of the ash with some light grey tones, very nice
• I knocked the first ash off at just about an inch as I could see a crack forming along it but it stayed clean and strong
• The thick billowy smoke continued to the end and so did the nice looking ash

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper aroma has an interesting cedar and grassy touch to it, I usually don’t get much grassy aromas on the wrapper
• The foot offers more woodsiness, but this time it’s just a generic chopped wood type of aroma, not really cedar. Along with that I’m getting some dirt-like earthiness and a bit of the grass aromas again
• The pre-light draw brought lots more interesting cedar and a bit of earthiness
• The initial few draws are very tasty, filled with a smooth cedar, some earthiness and a bit of a cinnamon/nutmeg/clove mixture
• The body seems to be in the low medium range at the start and comes with a small bit on the retrohale and a cedar finish
• The mixture of spices is really picking up in flavor intensity as I get near the halfway mark, I’m also picking up some coffee notes which are accenting very well
• Not sure if it was intentional at all but the mixture of flavors in this cigar seems to pair perfectly with this time of year
• As I continue, I got some toasted almond type of flavors mixing in, this keeps getting better
• The woodsiness made a big comeback in the last half, at times it seemed a little overpowering “roasted”. Not quite burnt though
• The spices, coffee and almonds are still around but with less intensity now
• The retrohale has pretty much remained the same and the body is gaining a bit of ground and more in the high range of medium now
• The general flavor profile didn’t change much in the last third and the flavors each took turns being the prominent flavor
• I was able to smoke the cigar down to my burning with almost no harshness at all, a nice finish

Final Thoughts:
I enjoyed this cigar quite a bit, not sure I would call it a top 10 or anything but it made for a good relaxing afternoon. It had a variety of flavors, burned well and kept me interested the whole time. I think the balance was a lot better in the first half but it wasn’t bad at all in the second half, just had a little more of the woodsiness versus the other flavors. The band still makes me laugh a little but oh well, lol. The flavors seemed to be perfect for fall for some reason, they reminded me of what you would find in pumpkin pie or something. I think I would definitely pick up a few more of these to keep in the humidor. The price is just a touch higher than I would want for this flavor profile, but considering it is a limited release it’s not over the top either.

Pairings:
This pairing was actually a recommendation I got from our resident Belgium beer connoisseur, Tony. I happened to find it down in Florida a couple months ago and finally decided to crack it open today. I thought the weird label fit well into the “silly spookiness” of the Grimalkin. There’s not much I can say about this label other than it looks like someone was high on something when they came up with the idea of a pink elephant dancing in a blue and yellow vortex type of thing… It is made in Belgium by the Huyghe Brewery and clocks in at a nice 8.5% alc./vol. The name itself is called the Delirium Nocturnum and claims itself to be simply a Belgian Ale. Now aside from the crazy label and interesting stone textured bottle, the brew is actually very good. It’s got a nice amount of hoppy bitterness on the finish and when it first hit’s your mouth you get a wake up call to your senses. There’s all kinds of flavors going on including a burst of fruitiness, a nice helping of malt and there’s even some roasted flavors in there. All in all, it’s a great brew and definitely worth trying if you can find it. I know they don’t sell it here in Ontario which is disappointing
Now did it pair well? Hell yes it did. Tony is lucky this time! lol. The fruit, malt and bitterness made an excellent pairing to the coffee and spices of the Grimalkin and I think it would pair excellently with a ton of different cigars and various strengths.

The post Emilio Cigars Grimalkin 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.

“Carlito’s Way”

A nice looking lancero with a Cubanesque construction. There’s are plenty of bumps and veins along the length of this cigar and it’s quite soft when squeezed. The wrapper gave off a nice aroma of cedar and the foot added a bit of fruity tartness to the mix. The cap clipped off cleanly with my double bladed guillotine cutter and a small single flame torch gave me a nice even toasting.
The initial draws brought with it a good helping of cedar with a nice side-note of spice. Perhaps a raw nutmeg? The tartness is still around but it comes and goes between draws. The smoke is nice and full and so far the cigar is burning at a comfortably slow pace. The body starts off in the low medium range and the retrohale has a light spice bite with a cedar finish.
As I smoke this I just read a previous blind review of the 107 lancero I sent someone and I can’t help but think this tastes very similar. I should know since I’ve smoked so many 107’s but I feel this has something different in the mix. Or maybe I’m just psyching myself out?
The spice and cedar seem to be the primary flavors here going into the halfway point, they are balanced well and have a smooth finish. Pretty sure this is not a 107 anymore since I’m not getting any more of the tartness I’m used to from them. Perhaps a DPG Lancero? We’ll see if the spice kicks up a notch in the last half. Ash in moving along nicely, staying tight and clean before being tapped off into the ashtray after an inch or so.
Heading into the last third the body has built up a bit and the spice is developing as well as some nice roasted coffee and nutty flavors. Heading for a nice finish with no burn problems at all. Bite on the retrohale picked up a bit too!
Spice and body definitely ramped up in the last 1.5 inches making me think even more that this could be a DPG stick. No harshness and still a nice balanced smoke. This is definitely not Cuban with this intense spice, or at least not one I’ve ever had. Perhaps maybe even an Arturo Fuente? Let’s crack this envelope open and see…

Reveal: La Aurora 100 Anos Lancero

Post-Reveal Notes: Totally confused me yet again! I’ve only had a couple 100 Anos and I forgot they had a nice spicy kick to them. I guess I was on the right lines with the La Aurora brand and I threw that idea to the gutter too early! lol Yet another reason why I continue to enjoy La Aurora’s, even blind their sticks continue to impress me! This vitola was on my shopping list for sometime in the future and I’m glad I got to try it!

“The Untouchables”

A nice dark wrapper surrounds this lancero vitola cigar with quite a few bumps and veins. It’s got a very soft feeling near the foot but gets a little more firm at the halfway mark. The cap clips cleanly off and the pre-light draw brings with it lots of cedar and a good helping of peppery spice.
Initial draws bring more cedar but less pepper than the pre-light. At this point I have no clue what I’m smoking…
The cigar is starting off on the high side of mild bodied and burning even and slow. Just the way I like it! I started to get a bit of coffee flavors after about an inch which balanced out the profile even more and made it very tasty. A little bit of leather also mixing in with the existing flavors and so far very enjoyable through the first half. Ash is lasting about and inch and falling off into the ashtray by itself. The retrohale has a nice little bite and a smooth cedar finish.
I’m getting a bit of a funky burn a little past the halfway mark that was quickly fixed with a touch up from my lighter. The flavors are starting to intensify into the last third, more roasted coffee and cedar with a little more spice into the mix, almost a spicy paprika type here. The flavors are definitely keeping me interested and on my toes.
Body built up a bit more as well as a bit more spice and coffee into the nub. A tiny bit of harshness but not off-putting. It did get really soft and hot near the nub but all in all, a good finish. Still no clue what this is…

Reveal: Don Lino Africa

Post-Reveal Notes: This was a very interesting cigar and one that has actually never been on my radar. I’ve seen people post about it on various social media sites or blogs, but I never read much into it. This is the beauty of these blind reviews, they really open your eyes to brands you may have never even considered.

Just to wrap up these reviews, it was yet another successful and fun blind tasting for me and I’m very glad I participated. I hope you enjoyed reading these and seems we get a lot of good feedback from these types of reviews so be assured you will see more in the future!

The post Mobster Movie Themed Mystery Cigar Roundup – Part 2 appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Now let me tell you why I’m doing this. My reasons are two fold… The first is completely Tony’s fault. Big surprise right? lol. He’s bragged about this cigar a few times and how much he enjoys it. A few days ago we started chatting about how I’ve never really been impressed by an Alec Bradley cigar, so he tightened the chains on my desk and told me I had to review it, or else! Ok, not really, but he did ask me to give it a chance. Secondly, I was at a little BBQ herf (Hosted by a good BOTL, Lou at Rumours Furniture) today and had another discussion on Alec Bradley. This time it was with one of Lou’s friends named Jarvis. A really nice guy who also started bragging about Alec Bradley…

So, I basically caved in and decided to give this cigar a try. I had a few Prensado cigars but only in this vitola so that’s why I’m reviewing it instead of a new vitola. I won’t go through and re-write all the good stuff about Alec Bradley or the store of this blend. Check out Tony’s review of the Prensado or you can also get more info from my review of the Family Blend and the Vice Press. So without further adieu, I sit here in my backyard on a warm and damp evening while I prepare to clip the cap of this cigar and see where my Alec Bradley bias takes me…

Cigar: Alec Bradley Prensado
Drink: Six Grapes Reserve Tawny Porto
Vitola: Box-Pressed Robusto (5 x 50)
Wrapper: Honduran Corojo
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan/Honduran
Price: $9
Burn Time: A little over 1 hour

Construction:
• Very smooth box pressed appearance with a darker milk chocolatey colored wrapper
• There are almost no veins and the ones that are visible are very thin
• The top of the cigar is finished with a smooth triple cap that blends in very well
• The foot of the cigar is very well packed as is the rest of the cigar which is very firm to the touch
• Cutting was firm but clean
• Draw is just about perfect despite the firm feel of the cigar, no problems in this department
• The band was perfectly applied, it didn’t just fall off but still slid off easily

Burn:
• Toasting was easy and lit up fairly quickly to a nice even glow
• A slight touchup was needed at the start but other then that it is burning very well
• As I hit the halfway point, I’m happy to see no burn issues and it’s coming along razor sharp
• A slight burn issue near the last third, but it corrected itself without my intervention
• Cigar burned a bit hot in the last inch but I kept smoking it anyway

Smoke & Ash:
• I was met with lots of smoke right off the bat here, fills your mouth nicely
• The ash first appears to be nice and strong, well constructed and definitely pressed
• The color on the ash is a little dark, venturing from a medium grey to an almost black
• Ash continued nice and strong until about the 1 inch mark when it fell off into the ashtray, I thought it would last longer since it looked so well packed
• All other ashes were about the same 1 inch and kept the clean and strong look to them

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper gives off an interesting sweet aroma, mixing some nice cocoa and coffee notes
• The foot offers more sweet coffee notes and a bit of mild tobacco, as well as a mild spice
• The pre-light draw seems to have lost the sweetness and is replaced mostly by a tobacco flavor, some woodsiness and a bit of peppery spice on my lips
• Initial flavors really pop on this cigar but are not overpowering, I was met with a good helping of leather and cedar alongside a touch of coffee and nutmeg-like spices
• The retrohale on this cigar is giving a nice light bite with a smooth woodsy finish
• This cigar is very well balanced, I’m figuring it’s in the medium to full range but it’s so smooth that it doesn’t feel that way
• As I reach the halfway mark, the spice is picking up a bit with a little more pepper and raw nutmeg
• The coffee and leather notes are also developing nicely and adding some roasted flavor to it
• Getting into the last third, the coffee flavors have sort of tapered off but the woodsy and cedar notes are making a nice appearance
• There’s been a nice creaminess from the start that has persisted and is just getting better as he cigar progresses
• The smoothness continued right to the nub with a great balance the whole way through

Final Thoughts:
Ok, I gotta honestly say that I enjoyed this cigar. I went in with some bias as you can tell from my intro but it seems that once again you can’t judge a book by it’s cover (or it’s brand). It started off with a nice burst of flavor and burned well through most of the cigar. The box-pressed shape was also very comfortable and a perfect size to smoke. The body was into the fuller range but the smoothness and balance made it blend in so nicely. So I must avow that I found an Alec Bradley cigar I enjoyed from start to finish. Now the biggest downside to this cigar was the price. I didn’t look up the price until after I smoked it and I was a little shocked, especially since it’s one of the smaller vitolas in the line. This did not taste like a $9 cigar to me and that disappointed me because it was pretty good on all other accounts… I wouldn’t say this cigar makes me an Alec Bradley convert but it will open my eyes to at least try a few more blends from this brand.

Pairings:
Today we have another new port that I stumbled across at the liquor store recently. It’s called Six Grapes and is considered to be a Reserve Tawny Port which was bottled in 2004. I was pleasantly met with a great mixture of in-you-face fruit mostly dominated by a strong blackberry tartness. The port also had a nice full bodied feel to it and coated the palate very smoothly leaving a nice sweetness on the tongue. The coating of your palate is one of my favorite aspects of pairing port and cigars because it’s like a fresh cleanse after each sip. It paired excellently with the woodsy and spicy notes of the cigar. I would definitely recommend trying it out. This cigar could also pair well with a nice strong coffee, scotch or maybe a dark soda.

The post Alec Bradley Prensado Robusto 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.

The Oliva family story is not that dissimilar from a lot of the family run non-Cuban cigar producers. Originally, they were tobacco farmers in Pinar Del Rio Cuba and were eventually forced to flee due to communism. After testing the soils of various countries, the Oliva family settles in Nicaragua and began producing top quality tobacco again.

The Oliva Cigar Family doesn’t seem to venture too far from what works but what they do produce is extremely consistent, tasty and usually well priced. Their lines offer a variety of flavors and strengths ranging from a full bodied Serie V down to the mild Connecticut Reserve and even a specialty line called the Master Blends. Today’s review is focusing on the milder range of their lines, the Connecticut Reserve in the Robusto vitola. This line is also offered in a few other traditional sizes such as Churchill, Toro, Torpedo and Lonsdale. This is probably a cigar that a lot of people have already tried since it’s been around for a long time and seems to be a staple in most people’s humidor. Let’s see if we can find out why in today’s review.

Cigar: Oliva Connecticut Reserve
Drink: RocketFuelCoffee.com Panama Carmen Estate
Vitola: Robusto (5 x 50)
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: $4.50 – $5.50
Burn Time:

Construction:
• A velvety smooth and honey brown colored wrapper surrounds this cigar
• There are some visible veins on the cigar but they are all small and thin
• The cigar is finished with a clean double cap
• The foot appears well packed and cleanly cut
• The length of the cigar is fairly firm but has a slight spring to in, very consistent throughout
• Draw is a little tighter than I would have liked but it’s not terrible, I won’t re-cut or use a toothpick in case it opens up later
• The draw opened up a bit as the cigar progressed but it seemed to be smoking well so I never bothered to try fixing it

Burn:
• Toasting was very fast and surprisingly even
• Burn line has been fairly straight through the first inch
• As I get past the first third the burn is starting to go really one-sided, I may need ot correct it if it doesn’t catch on soon
• The burn line never completely corrected itself but it did not get worse so it’s still burning without any touchups at the half-way mark
• As I get into the last third, the burn line is just about straight now.
• Cigar started burning a little hot near the nub

Smoke & Ash:
• There’s not much smoke coming through on the draw and it appears fairly thin, not the thick cloud you would usually get on most other cigars
• The resting smoke is fairly consistent but not too thick or overpowering
• The ash appears clean and tight with a light grey tone to it
• The ash just doesn’t want to fall off, sign of great construction here
• Ash finally fell off just past two inches

Tasting Notes:
• The aroma on the wrapper is mostly of hay and some earthy notes
• Pre-light draw brought a lot of earthy notes and some woodsy hints
• Initial draws kept the earthy and woodsy flavors and added to that a slight tartness
• The Oliva Connecticut is starting off fairly mild and has a smooth creamy finish on each draw
• As I get past the first third I’m starting to pick up a toasted bready kind of flavor
• The retrohale on this cigar has no bite to it but finishes off with a smooth and creamy woodsiness
• As I pass the halfway mark I’m getting some nice roasted coffee flavors that are mixing well with the cedar and earthy smoothness
• The body picks up a bit in the last third, maybe just touching into the medium range
• Very minor bitterness near the end allowing me to nub the cigar until my fingers were burning

Final Thoughts:
The Oliva Connecticut Reseve made for a perfect morning smoke today and every time I have it. It has a smooth and creamy mild profile that is enjoyable for pretty much every level of smoker from novice to experienced. The burn and ash was also fantastic making the whole experience enjoyable from start to finish. The price on these is also very accessible. Although the MSRP is around the $5 mark you can usually find these on special for a much better value. This is a classic Connecticut that tastes exactly like you would want it to and remains enjoyable every time. If you haven’t tried one yet, keep your eyes open for some and give them a try!

Pairings:
Today’s pairing was a freshly brewed pot of Panama Carmen Estate Coffee which I received as a gift from Lisa over at RocketFuelCoffee.com. You can also track her down via twitter on @rcketfuelcoffee or @hisandherf. The location this gourmet coffee bean is grown is fairly interesting, it is shade grown at an altitude of 5,600ft. Give the full description a read over here. The coffee initially poured a bit light and I was a bit worried I had gotten the measurements or coarseness of the grind wrong. After taking a quick sip I knew it was just right. The flavor of this coffee fills your mouth quickly and offers up a unique morning cup. Rather than a strong bitterness I was met with a flavorful, yet light, mix of bright and roasted flavors. There is a natural sweetness to this coffee that could almost be characterized as fruity but with a smooth and deep finish. Made for a perfect morning pairing with this cigar! Other suggested pairings with this cigar would need to remain light, such as water or soda, maybe a light beer. But I think coffee makes the perfect match here.

The post Oliva Connecticut Reserve appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

It seems that Perdomo is a name that many cigars smokers know about and often enjoy yet it’s also I brand that seems to do minimal advertising. I don’t seem to see them launch large campaigns or expensive sponsorship but rather it seems word of mouth and consistent quality help spread their name. I’ve also had the chance to review the Perdomo Reserve 10th Anniversary Maduro and Perdomo Patriarch Maduro in the past. Today we are going to take a look at the Perdomo Grand Cru Maduro.

The Perdomo Grand Cru is a cigar grown and rolled with the intention of giving a Cuban-like flavor in each blend. All of the seeds used to grow the Tobacco in Nicaragua are from Cuba. The tobacco itself has also been well aged before being rolled into the cigars. Each box and cigar is clearly marked with a “Crop of 2004” label. I really like this idea and it lets you know just how old the tobacco is. If they decide to keep the same blend moving forward but change crops, I’m curious to see if they will just change the year or change the name. From what I can tell, all the cigars and boxes still say 2004. The website also says this blend is made from that crop as well so it may not change at all.

I would actually love to see that type of labelling adopted by more companies. I think it’s an excellent idea. There are other cigars that do this currently, such as the Tatuaje L’Esperit de Verite that Tony reviewed or the Camacho Liberty series (we’ve reviewed the 2009 and 2010) but those are more limited editions. Having this label on regular production cigars would be and interesting piece of information. The above linked reviews already show how much a blend can change from year-to-year. But enough about me complaining, without further adieu let’s jump into the review of the Perdomo Grand Cru Maduro.

Cigar: Perdomo Grand Cru Maduro
Drink: Delaforce 2005 Late Bottled Vintage Porto
Vitola: Toro (6 x 50)
Wrapper: Cuban-seed Nicaraguan Maduro
Binder: Cuban-seed Nicaraguan
Filler: Cuban-seed Nicaraguan
Price: $4.50 – $5.50
Burn Time: 1.5 hours

Construction:
• A rough and bumpy wrapper with a few medium sized veins, but nothing concerning
• The wrapper has a sand-paper like texture and is a consistent medium chocolate brown color
• The cap is cleanly applied with a double-cap design, almost impossible to see the second piece of tobacco
• The foot appears well packed and the length of the cigar is pretty firm with very little spring to it
• The cut was very easy and quite clean, falling in a neat little package into the ashtray
• Draw is a little tighter then I’d like

Burn:
• The burn line is not neat and pretty on this cigar but it’s not out of control either
• Felt like the cigar was starting to go out after only an inch and started needing a few more draws
• The funny burn finally hit a rut and needed a small touch up just past the half-way mark
• For the most part, the cigar burned without much effort or extra draws

Smoke & Ash:
• Despite the tightness I’m still getting a giant mouthful of smoke from every draw
• There is a small bit of resting smoke visible while the cigar sits in the ashtray, it gives off a mostly woodsy aroma
• The ash is a little flaky on this cigar but not too weak
• A very nice white color to the ash as it burns
• Each ash tumbled into the ashtray shortly after an inch

Tasting Notes:
• The wrapper gives off a strong hay and barnyard aroma
• The foot stays consistent with the barnyard aroma and mixes a touch of spice into the nose
• The pre-light draw brings an interesting bakers chocolate flavor mixed with some woodsy notes
• The initial draws give off a strong woodsy flavor with some hints of coffee here and there
• As the cigar progresses I’m picking up a lot of roasted notes, a mix of roasted almonds and roasted coffee beans, very nice
• I noticed a bit extra dryness on my throat with this cigar
• As I approach the halfway mark, the body has been mild-medium and retrohale has no bite with a woodsy finish
• The flavors still seem to hover around with roasted coffee, woodsy and roasted almonds all taking a turn
• In the last third the flavors got much more intense and I started picking up some more bakers chocolate type of flavors
• The body picked up only slightly near the end, making it a comfortable medium

Final Thoughts:
The Grand Cru Maduro from Tabacalera Perdomo proved to be a nice smooth cigar that can easily be enjoyed by many experienced or new smokers. It offers a nice variety of flavors that are neither too complex or too boring making for a perfect cigar to relax with. It’s something you can pick up and smoke without paying too much attention to and still enjoy and easily pick up on the various flavors. The price is also very attractive, make sure to search around a bit as my research showed a HUGE variance in pricing on these. I’d definitely suggest picking up a few of these to try out, especially at the good prices you can find them for.

Pairings:
Yes I’m still riding the Port train and today I bring something new. This bottle is something I haven’t seen around before so I grabbed it to try something new. Damn am I ever happy I did. The Delaforce 2005 Late Bottled Vintage offers some excellent flavors backed by a robust and bold red wine flavor. A lot of Ports overdo the fruity notes but this one seems nicely balanced between a full bodied red wine and a flavorful fruity port. It paired well with this cigar but was maybe not the perfect pairing. I think this cigar was made for coffee, the roasted coffee and almond notes would have made a great compliment. You could also enjoy this with a nice dark porter with some coffee flavors.

The post Perdomo Grand Cru Maduro appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Cohiba Maduro 5 line is the only line that proclaims itself as a maduro wrapped cigar.  Not only is it a maduro leaf but it’s also aged for a full five years before being used.  The Maduro 5 line is currently offered in 3 vitolas, the Genios (Robusto), Magicos (Short Robusto) and the Secretos (Petite Corona).  Today the review will focus on the middle of the three vitolas, the Magicos (Short Robusto).

The particular cigar I will be reviewing today comes from a box that as dated in June of 2008.  That makes this about 2.5 years old.  As with many Cubans, they always seem to benefit with a bit of age as the flavors start to balance out more and the body smoothens out.  I’m bringing this cigar outside on a cold Canadian night where the temperature is hovering around freezing.  The burn of many cigars are adversely affected by the cold so take this into account as you read on.

Cigar: Cohiba Maduro 5 Magicos
Drink: Abbaye de Maredsous Brune
Vitola: Magicos – Short Robusto (4.5 x 52)
Wrapper: 5 Year Aged Cuban Maduro
Binder: Cuban
Filler: Cuban
Price: About $12 in Cuba
Burn Time:

Construction:
• On visual inspection, this cigar screams classic cuban, it’s wrapper is bumpy and uneven with some discolorations
• The wrapper has a soft brownish tone with some darker brown highlights
• The cigar is surprisingly soft from band to foot and quite firm near the head
• The triple cap is extremely clean and blends well into the wrapper
• The foot appears very well packed with no open holes to be seen
• There are some medium sized veins that concern me, we’ll have to see how they play out in the burn
• Cut was firm but very clean
• Draw is just a little more open then I’d like not still not too airy
• Within 10 draws it seems the cigar adjusted itself and now the draw is perfect

Burn:
• Toasting was very slow but produced a perfectly lit foot
• Had a tiny wave when it first started burning but is razor sharp going into the first inch
• Had one minor correction that I had to make, was creating a peninsula just past the halfway point
• A couple more minor corrections as I go along, the cold is likely affecting this as it’s just about freezing out here right now.  They also would likely fix themselves but I wanted to keep it nice and even
• It is burning nice and slowly without ever going out
• The cigar did not even get warm as I burned into the last half-inch

Smoke & Ash:
• A good mouthful of smoke from each draw, nothing overpowering, just about right
• The resting smoke is very minimal and what little aroma it does give off is mostly like cedar and espresso making it very pleasant in company
• The ash so far is looking spectacular, it’s got some nice ridges and appears wound tightly
• The color of the ash varies between an almost white color to a darker grey in the middle of the ridges
• The ash lasted almost two inches before gently falling off in the ashtray, this is what every cigar should do!
• The last ash actually fell off in my lap which was disappointing but I was trying to keep it on to the very end.  This was my fault and should not affect your opinion of the construction quality

Tasting Notes:
• Even without placing the cigar near my nose I can smell the sweetness this wrapper is giving off
• On closer inspection, the wrapper aroma is of sweet cocoa
• The sweet cocoa on the foot is even more apparent but it comes with a nice hint of cinnamon spice
• Pre-light draw is very interesting, it’s like pure sweet cinnamon on a cedar and graham cracker base
• Initial draws have a nice cedar undertone with some of the cocoa as the main flavors, it’s not sweet now though, more like a natural cocoa
• The finish on this cigar has started off very smooth and creamy, typically that creaminess takes time to build but it was there almost instantly
• The cigar started out in the mild-medium category and is smoking fantastic so far
• Retrohale has a small bite and a soft cedar finish
• Within a few draws I’m starting to pick up a very delicious espresso flavor, blending in perfectly
• As I keep burning away, the cocoa has faded a bit towards the halfway point and the cedar and espresso are making for a well balanced and enjoyable treat
• The smooth creamy finish is still apparent, it’s also not been dry at all on my palate
• The espresso is bursting out now past the halfway point, giving cigar that nice bitter flavor you get from an unsweetened espresso.  Don’t confuse this with the bitter build up on other cigars, this is a delicious bitterness
• I’m also picking up a great roasted almond flavor in the mix now, very nice touch
• the body has been fairly consistent up to now but as I burn into my last third I can sense it ramping up a bit
• The bite on the retrohale is a little more noticeable now but nothing off-putting
• As I approach the final stretch I’m getting a nice dark chocolate flavor, almost like bakers chocolate that is adding a nice layer to the already well balanced profile
• I used a toothpick to get down to the very last bit that I could since I was enjoying it all the way through

Final Thoughts:
I had heard and read many people saying they enjoyed this and figured it was going to be good, but usually when something gets hyped up this much I tend to get disappointed because I was expecting more.  That was definitely not the case here, this was one incredibly tasty cigar!  
Straight from the initial draws I was met with a nice mix of flavors that balanced very well together and through the cigar I was greeted by more.  The burn was spot on and the ash was always beautiful.  There is no doubt that I will be seeking more of these out soon.  If there were any downsides to this cigar I can only think of one.  That one is obviously the price (in Canada at least), which is a combination of the Cohiba name and the crazy taxes. In Cuba, their retail price is fairly competitive and well worth it. Were those prices available to me here I would probably have a steady supply of these in the humi for regular smoking.  If you have a chance to get your hands on some of these I would recommend it highly. They are worth having on hand for special occasions or when you want to sit down with a really good cigar and just enjoy the experience.

Pairings:
If you look through past reviews on the site you can see that Tony is obviously the Belgian Beer expert here.  This is not because I don’t like them but because they are so hard to find where I live.  With the holidays around the corner it seems a lot more different beers have become available and I’m going to take full advantage of that!
The first one I cracked open is from “Abbaye de Maredsous” and it is their Brune offering.  As with a lot of Belgian beers, this one is brewed under the supervision on the Monastic monks.  It is a highly fermented brew that clocks in at 8% alc./vol.  The beer itself pours out with a dark opaque brown color and froths up a nice foam on the surface. It is a very tasty brew to say the least.  I get lots of hoppy maltiness with a slight bitter finish.  There are some tarty notes on the tongue that really add the flavor from each sip.  This brew paired perfectly with the Cohiba Maduro 5 Magicos and I would definitely pair it this way again.  Another good pairing that stands out here would be some Tawny Port (Big surprise there right? lol).  Other great pairings would include a nice strong coffee, dark soda or stout.

The post Cohiba Maduro 5 Magicos appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Padron 1926 Serie No. 35

Padrón Cigars offers 3 consistent lines along with a select few special releases. The particular cigar I reviewed was from the “1926 Serie” and is called the “No. 35” measuring in at 4inches with a 48 ring gauge. All vitolas in the series are available in both Maduro and Sun-Grown Natural wrappers. The other sizes available in this line are: No. 6 (4.75 x 50), No. 2 (5.5 x 52), No. 9 (5.25 x 56) and two specialty vitolas, ‘40th Anniversary’ (6.5 x 54) and ‘80 Years’ (6.75 x 54). The prices of these cigars tend to be fairly high but they are intended to be a premium line and more than live up to their selling price. The 1926 Serie was first released in 2002 and is a commemoration of Jose O. Padrón’s 75th birthday. The minimum age for all tobacco in this line is 5 years, so rest assured you are getting a wonderfully aged product right out of the box, no need to let them rest. Light up and enjoy!

Padron 1926 Serie No. 35

I also wanted to note that each Padrón 1926 Serie cigar comes with a second band under the logo band that is individually numbered after undergoing their strict quality controls. The annual production of this cigar will be limited to only 100,000 each year. When I picked up this cigar on a trip down in Florida I was hesitant whether it would live up to the name given the small vitola. Take a few minutes to read my notes on the cigar and you’ll see that it was worth every penny.

Padron 1926 Serie No. 35

Cigar: Padrón 1926 Serie Maduro
Drink: Niagara Region Merlot from Peninsula Ridge
Vitola: No. 35 (48×4)
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Maduro
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: $13.00
Burn Time: 1 Hour

Construction:
• Box pressed shape
• Slightly bumpy wrapper with no major veins
• A deep brown color with a nice oily sheen
• Very firm throughout with very minor spring to it
• Very neat single cap
• The band was just perfectly loose so I know there are no glue or wrapper issues underneath
• Individually numbered second band below the logo band
• Cut was effortless and even
• Draw is dead-on perfect which is surprising considering the firm feel, stayed perfect throughout the cigar

Padron 1926 Serie No. 35

Burn:
• Toasting was quick and even, no awkward or dark spots
• Burn was razor sharp straight from the toasting
• Not much else to say here, it was perfect, no wavy burn, no touch ups, burned without me needing to babysit. Every cigar should be like this

Padron 1926 Serie No. 35

Smoke & Ash:
• Good mouthful of smoke
• Not overbearing and not wishing for more, just right
• Resting smoke is just right and giving off a perfect “cigar smell”, not sure how else to describe it… just sweet and savory
• Light gray ash with some black highlights
• Ash is very tight and strong with no flaking
• Held on past 1 inch, surprising considering the smaller size and ring gauge
• It’s almost like a piece of art, looks too perfect

Padron 1926 Serie No. 35

Tasting Notes:
• Wrapper aroma is light and just smells of tobacco
• Foot has a nice tobacco aroma with a bit of a barnyard scent
• Pre-light draw has a mild spice to it and some pepper on the lips
• Initial draws have a great sweet tobacco flavor and some earthy tones
• Medium bodied and well balanced
• About half an inch in, starting to detect some coffee/espresso notes
• Retrohale has a small bite to it and a great finish of sweet tobacco and coffee
• Approaching the halfway point, starting to pick up some woodsy notes
• The balance of spice on the retrohale and flavors in the draw are near perfect, couldn’t ask for anything else
• Past the half-way point, the bitter coffee flavor (think espresso) has changed to a roasted coffee flavor, very nice
• Great cedar flavors as I approach the end
• Some pepper and spice came in near the end and body ramped up to a medium-full
• Very minor bitterness at the end, more like a coffee bitter instead of the usual harsh bitter on the nub of other cigars

Padron 1926 Serie No. 35

Final Thoughts:
This is a wonderful cigar experience and would definitely recommend this to anyone that asks. The flavors throughout the cigar were pronounced yet balanced and enjoyable. There was not a single spot in the cigar that I wasn’t enjoying myself, it was great from the first draw to the last. Although in the higher price range, this is definitely a box-worthy cigar to be smoked on any occasion, whether a special day or just relaxing on a sunny afternoon.

Padron 1926 Serie No. 35

Pairings:
A cigar like this requires a good pairing or you could throw off the delicate balance of flavors that make this a great cigar. My pairing with a medium bodied, semi-dry wine worked perfectly. I can also see this working well with a fine scotch or cognac. Don’t opt for the inexpensive stuff here, it will take away from the experience. I also wouldn’t go with port or soda on this cigar as the high sugar content could also lessen the experience. For a non-alcoholic pairing, I’d probably go with water or coffee to make this cigar really shine.

Padron 1926 Serie No. 35

The post Padrón 1926 Serie No. 35 Maduro appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

Drew Estate ACID Atom Maduro

Following the Cold Infusion Tea and the Earthiness The Atom Maduro is the third installment (outside of the Krush tins) to the ACID gold line.

The Good Stuff: The Earhiness is a VERY dark maduro wrapped infused cigar. Drew Estate is good at keeping the oils, herbs, and botanicals they use on their infused blends so its no surprise the the Atom Maduro has none listed whatsoever although, they’ve been said to contain high fruit flavors as well as Floral.

Size: 5×50  –  Wrapper: Maduro  –  Flavor: Full  –  Origin: Esteli, Nicaragua

Prelight: This was actually the first time I have had this cigar, I have tried the Cold Infusion Tea (you can check that review out here) many times and just love the cigar, but I had yet to get my hands on the Atom. The first noticeable characteristic is the extremely dark, oil wrapper. This guy should produce some sweetness. Upon unwrapping I had to say, this was the best smelling ACID cigar I had smelt yet. It took me quite a while to start nailing some of the scents but the ATOM Maduro sports a very, almost perfume line scent with notes of Flowers, Tea, Roasted Cashew, Coffee hints of brown sugar and even Mint. Imagine all that mixed together in a very light infused cigar. Needless to say I was anxious to get going on this guy. The cigar was perfectly constructed with no soft spots. The Atom Maduro carries a nice rounded cap, big thick shape, and a very distinct foot where the wrapper is carefully folded over the filler as you can see here:

Drew Estate ACID Atom Maduro

First Smoke: What a remarkable cigar. Hands down this shot itself up to one of my all-time favorite aromatic cigars just off the first smoke. The cigar is very strong and all the flavors are just hinted on the palette as to not overpower the smoker with the infusion flavor. The draw was just right, not to tight, not too loose and it carried with it REALLY thick smoke, much like the 1400cc. The more I burned the more the flavors combined. The burn itself was very consistent. The smoke smelled very similar to a ladies perfume, but not strong. Don’t let that shy you away, just be aware that it may bother other people around you. The Atom let a little over an inch of ash collect before letting go.

Drew Estate ACID Atom Maduro

Halfway There: At this time I am still sifting through some of the flavors. This is such a great tasting cigar, the strong Nicaraguan tobacco carries itself really well. The flavor hasn’t increased nor decreased but it has morphed a bit. I lost the coffee flavor instead it is now replaced with a minty Cinnamon arrangement. This is a VERY sweet cigar. The burn is still very consistent and I have yet to have to relight, or touch it up. The strength of the cigar seems to be increasing a bit, which is totally fine by me. One note, the cigar had so much oil you could actually see it burning off producing its own smoke. You can see this in the picture above. This isn’t a bad thing, I just found it quite interesting.

Finish: The Atom Maduro finished very strong. The infused flavors lasted all the way through the smoke, as well as the strength of the cigar. The strength actually increased quite a bit towards the end. I felt a bit light headed after the cigar’s finish. I didn’t have to relight the cigar, but I did touch it up one or two times towards the end. No signs at all of any mis-construction or unwrapping. The Atom finished off just as sweet as it started with, I’m quite surprised that with a cigar as strong as this, the infused flavors lasted the length of the cigar. It did leave a big aftertaste, it wasn’t a bad one but it lasted a while.

Drew Estate ACID Atom Maduro

Overview: I feel dumb for waiting so long to try this cigar, as it was right up my alley for what I look for. The taste was intense and very pleasing. While the strength was strong and held its own again the infused flavors of the Atom Maduro. I’d recommend this cigar to an aromatic smoker but not one who doesn’t like infused cigars. Its flavor would be a bit too much for them.

The post ACID – Atom Maduro by Drew Estate – Cigar Review appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.