The Ashton Members Lounge is done up top-notch with leather chairs, ten flat panel TVs, private cigar lockers, and much, much more. According to Cliff Coen, owner of Fox Cigar Bar, the lounge is still a work in progress. The place already looks fantastic and I can’t wait to return to Fox Cigar Bar to see the final product.

Smoking our way into early Saturday morning with Wes Thornton of Crowned heads and Cliff, we headed back to the hotel to finally get some rest for the Saturday festivities. After a couple hours of rest, the wives were up ready to begin their shopping adventures and Tony and I were excited to get down to Fox Cigar Bar and enjoy what the day had offer.

Saturday was  turning out to be a beautiful day with the sun shining and the high being in the low 80’s.  At 1:00 manufacturers began to arrive and Fox Cigar Bar staff put up the final touches before the gates opened at 2:00 for Foxtoberfest 2013.

There was an unbelievable turnout at this year’s event. Those in attendance included Eddie Ortega from Ortega Cigar Company, Jose Ortega from My Father, Jesus Fuego from J. Fuego Cigars, Matt Booth from Room 101, Nish Patel from Rocky Patel, Fabian Ziegler from Drew Estate, Tony Gomez and Anthony Cantelmo from La Flor Dominicana, Rafael Alejandro from Boutique Blends, Wes Thornton from the Crowned Heads, Clint Aaron from 262 Cigars, David Fraser from Xikar, Meera Levin from Ashton, Terence Reilly from SAG Imports, Jeff Nolen from Oliva Cigars, and Glynn Loope from CRA.

Tony and I had an opportunity touch base with several manufacturers throughout the day.  Below, you will find highlights of the events but in no way does this encompass all of the day’s shenanigans.

Crowned Heads

Wes Thornton of Crowned Heads happened to be in the best shape when we arrived at Fox Cigar Bar Friday evening. While I am not sure of Wes’ official title, a blog post at crownedheads.com refers to his position as an ambassador of Crowned Heads who acts as a liaison between the company and their retail partners. Making our way to some open leather chairs, we sat down with Wes to shoot the bull and see what was in the works at Crowned Heads. One topic of discussion was the 2013 limited edition Headley Grange Drumstick. In Wes’ opinion, the Headley Grande Drumstick is the best cigar to come out of Crowned Heads to-date. The first shipment went out the previous Tuesday but had yet to arrive at Fox Cigar Bar the day of the festival.

The Crowned Heads booth showcased all three of their regular production brands: Four Kicks, Headley Grange, and J.D. Howard Reserve. A sampler made up of two cigars from each line above, named the 6 Shooter, was available for under $50.

Ortega Cigar Company

Making his second appearance at Foxtoberfest, Eddie Ortega, owner of Ortega Cigar Company, made quite the arrival with his Foxtoberfest exclusive cigar, appropriately named “The Fox”. Check out Tony’s review here. While The Fox was the talk of the event, the Ortega Serie “D” and Ortega Minis were also out on display. The Ortega Serie “D” has been a staple in my humidor since its release and I do not see that changing anytime soon considering the flavors and excellent price. And if you are looking for a great commuter cigar, I highly recommend trying out the Minis.

Tony and I were able to spend a good amount of time with the lady-killer throughout the day. While most conversation did not involve cigars, I did ask what his favorite cigar was in the Wild Bunch series. According to Eddie, Dandy McCoy (see Tony’s review here) ranks high up there. He even hinted of a possible continuation of the cigar after the completion of the Wild Bunch.

Cliff puts on a great yearly event and I’m very glad to be part of the manufacturers he invites. It was great event again this year, I think it just keeps growing and getting better every year. – Eddie Ortega

La Flor Dominicana

Tony Gomez and Anthony Cantelmo manned the LFD booth. For those unaware, Tony Gomez is Litto Gomez’s son. Also, you may be familiar with Anthony Cantelmo’s work at cigarbrief.com . Anthony was present at Foxtoberfest in 2012 but in a much different role, as an employee of Fox Cigar Bar. In Early 2013, he moved from Arizona to east Texas to start a new job with La Flor Dominicana as the Southwest Area Manager. Anthony must be a good salesman because he was able to get Tony Gomez to attend this year’s event. LFD has grabbed my attention this past year and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to grab the La Flor Dominicana Foxtoberfest exclusive cigar. The cigar sports a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper, Cameroon binder, and Dominican and Nicaraguan filler. Keep your eyes out for a review of this special cigar in the near future.

My impression was that it went really well and that the Folks at Fox are doing a fantastic job at creating a wonderful destination spot for cigar lovers in the Valley of the Sun. Our sales this year were great and we had a fantastic time making a special cigar to commemorate the festival. – Anthony  Cantelmo

I thought the event was just awesome. Mitch, Rob, Cliff, and the crew over there are top notch. You couldn’t ask for a better venue to enjoy a smoke & a cocktail with good company. It’s definitely an event worth going to. – Antonio Gomez

SAG Imports

Tony found his soul mate during the event, Mr. Terence Reilly of SAG imports.  Not only is Terence a cigar guys, but he is also a huge beer guy. As I smoked away, Tony and Terence lost themselves in conversation over beer. But for real, Terence is one of the most friendly, down to earth guys in the industry.

The SAG Imports table showcased the seasonally released Quesada Oktoberfest that first appeared in 2011. The cigar is blended to be paired with Marzen style beers that are enjoyed during fall season. Tony reviewed the 2011 release here and absolutely loved it. In conversation with Terence, he mentioned that while the 2011 and 2012 releases had very similar flavor profiles, he does note some profile difference in the 2013 release.

Foxtoberfest is an incredible event because it captures everything people enjoy about cigars. The store is incredible to begin with and has an amazing bar selection, and when you combine that with food music anda bunch of cigar lovers it creates an amazing atmosphere. – Terence Reilly

Room 101 Cigars

Just a few days before Foxtoberfest, Matt Booth of Room 101 was in our neck of the woods for an event at a local shop. It is extremely rare for El Paso to see individuals of his caliber from the cigar industry. Our busy schedules kept us from hanging out with Matt during his stay, but a couple of our smoking buddies stopped by. Chatting with Matt on Saturday, he mentioned that he really enjoyed El Paso. Hopefully, this is a first of many things to come for the cigar community in El Paso.

If you have ever met Matt you know he is quite the character with a quick wit. It was a good thing Tony had a few drinks in him because he was able to dish it back out. I on the other hand had to go hide in a corner.  For a $100, attendees could pick up a 10 pack of Room 101 cigars and an awesome ashtray. I don’t know what I was thinking, but I didn’t jump on the deal. I am kicking myself for that.

The cattle are dying, the answer is Room 101. – Matt Booth

Cigar Rights of America

Last year, Patrick Carr, Field Manager, managed the CRA booth single-handily. Whether it was from the great membership turnout the previous year or just not wanting to miss an awesome cigar and beer festival, Glynn Loope, Executive Director, made his way to Gilbert, AZ to enjoy the festivities, as well as represent an organization that is fighting for our rights to enjoy fine cigars.

If you are unaware, “Cigar Rights of America (CRA) is a national advocacy organization dedicated to protecting the rights of the Consumer, Retail Tobacconist, Supply Chain and Manufacturers of premium cigars. In an effort to combat the threats of enjoying, selling, and producing premium cigars, Cigar Rights of America serves as a voice at each level of government and with the public at-large on issues of significance to the industry as a whole, and the cigar consumers of America, specifically.”

I took the time to renew my membership at the event which only took a couple of minutes. The guys over at CRA were kind enough to throw in a travel humidor with the renewal. If you are not a member, I encourage you to sign up here.

CRA was well represented at this year’s Foxtoberfest, during the event we signed up over 75 new members and proceeds from the golf tournament also went to fight the battle to protect our rights to enjoy premium tobacco products. We would like to thank Fox Cigar Bar and its staff for allowing us to be part of this year’s event, Fox is a model B&M shop supporting CRA and our efforts to help protect our rights to enjoy premium cigars and keep our passion alive! – Patrick Carr, Field Manager

Below is a gallery containing all photos we took at the event. I know it may be a bit of a cumbersome gallery so if you’d like to view them on Facebook instead (no account required) click here.

[nggallery id=4]

The post Foxtoberfest 2013 – Event Coverage (Post 1 of 2) appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff: The name “Heisenberg” is based off a scientific theory that basically proves the limit of precision. To sum it up, it means that no matter what we know about anything we will never fully know everything. The more we focus on one aspect, the less we know about another. Basically, Quesada wanted to create a cigar that you could just sit back, and enjoy instead of taking apart bit by bit, examining, and trying to figure out what makes the cigar so good which is something us bloggers are known for. Instead, they ask us to “Embrace Uncertainty”.

As an added note, the “Heisenberg” formula has recently became (more) famous as it was introduced in the show Breaking Bad as the main character Walt White’s pen-name. I know for a fact that Terence Reilly is a huge fan of this show, and I can honestly say that I’m addicted to it. I personally think it’s one of the best series to ever hit television and urge anyone to watch it. I promise you will get just as addicted as I am.

Sizes included in the blend will be a Petit (4 ¾ x 40), Corona (4 x 43) a Robusto (5 x 48) and the Coronet Cuadrada (5 ¼ x 44/48/55). I believe these should be hitting shops any day now. I also think (but not certain) they will come packaged in boxes of 10 and will run between $4.50 and $6.95 a stick.

Size: 5 ¾ x 44/48/55
Wrapper: unknown
Binder: unknown
Filler: unknown
Strength: Medium
Body: Medium/Full
Price: $6.95
Pairing: Deschutes Black Butte Porter (American Porter 5.2% ABV)

Prelight: Despite Quesada’s Heisenberg coming in multiple formats, the Corneta has been the only size I have seen in the pre-release market. The obvious stand-out characteristic is the size. The cigar starts off with a beautiful elongated box-press foot which immediately starts to taper down until it meets is very thin, round, triple cap. The wrapper is a beauty. It sports an incredibly consistent medium brown wrapper that carried lots of very small, seamless, webby veins which tend to be a shade darker than the rest of the wrapper. The construction is beautiful and seamless. The Heisenberg is really squishy and soft to the touch throughout the entire body of the cigar.

The wrapper gives off so much cedar and strong natural tobacco aroma while the foot gives off a very strong pepper and sweet tobacco scent. The second you open the box of these cigars you can smell the pungent aroma throughout the room. The cap clipped like butter using my double bladed Palio cutter. Right off the bat the Heisenberg greeted me with lots of black pepper and spice with some mixed in natural tobacco on the cold draw.

First Smoke: Just like the cold draw, Quesada’s Heisenberg started with lots of black pepper, spice, sweet tobacco, and a chalky cedar flavor. As I smoked through the first couple of draws the chalkiness began to drop off leaving the cedar more defined. The draw on this cigar is amazing. It seems a bit loose at first, but then only one small puff fills your mouth with tons of thick smoke. The burnline on this cigar is crazy sharp with only a few subtle waves leaving behind a compact, medium grey, zebra-patterned ash. The ash held on for an inch before giving way.

Halfway There: There was this really deep, really potent plum flavor that began to sneak it’s way into the mix during the second third of this Quesada Heisenberg. The pepper and a lot of spice has dropped off as well as the stronger cedar and the addition of a grassy flavor as well. The retrohale on this cigar was so much sharper than I thought it was going to be. It coated my nasal passage with a very strong pepper and spice. I don’t find myself retrohaling this cigar too often. The burnline is still a bit wavy, but I have yet to pull out my lighter while I am feeling nothing in the nicotine department.

Finish: The pepper has made it’s triumphant return into the final third of this Quesada Heisenberg. It’s just enough to tickle my lips and tongue while the cedar and plum mellow out the pepper for a smooth experience. That grassy flavor is still there as well adding a bit more dimension to the experience as well as a pretty strong pine flavor. It took me about an hour and a half to take this little cigar down. There was a bit of harshness at the very, very end, but nothing really concerning. The cigar did not require any touch ups or relights the entire experience and didn’t leave me with any nicotine kick at all.

Overview: This is another great cigar from the team over at Quesada. They have been a company who have really re-invented themselves over the course of the last few years and I can honestly say that I love the direction they are headed in. The Seleccion Espana, Jalapa and of course the Oktoberfest have been in my regular rotation for a while now and I am sure there is room for the Heisenberg as well. I didn’t quite enjoy it as much as the three blends I just mentioned, but it’s a seriously great cigar for the coin. Seriously, the price is real low on these making a box purchase highly recommended. The mystery of the blend may be an attraction to some, but I think I can speak for a majority of cigar smokers in saying that the experience will dictate repeat purchases and the Heisenberg does not disappoint.  I think the price and the Quesada name is enough to get customer’s attention while the solid experience will do the rest.

Pairing: American Porter eh? What’s the difference? Basically, there are a lot of added hops to bring new light to the porter experience in the excellent pairing of Deschutes Black Butte Porter and the Quesada Heisenberg. Black Butte is brewed at the Deschutes Brewery in Oregon. It’s basically a smooth, mild porter with lots of added hops resulting in a really citrus start with a chocolaty finish. It’s an interesting beer that’s for sure and it paired wonderfully with the grassy, cedar notes in the Heisenberg and really took off when the cigar hit the final third and more of the pepper and the pine flavor moved in.

The post Quesada – Heisenberg Coronet Cuadrada appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.

The Good Stuff: The Casa Magna line is the product of two major hitters in the cigar industry putting their heads together to produce a quality line of value priced cigars. Back in 2008, Nestor Plascencia and Manuel Quesada teamed up and produced the shocking sleeper “Casa Magna Colorado” cigar that took top honors as Cigar Aficionado’s cigar of the year. The Colorado version was a Nicaraguan Puro, where as the Oscuro is all Nicaraguan minus the wrapper which is grown in Honduras. Distributed by SAG imports, the robusto I am smoking retails between $5.75 and $7 a stick.

Size: 5 x 52 – Wrapper: Honduran Oscuro – Binder/Filler: Nicaraguan – Body: full

Prelight: The Casa Magna Oscuro is a tremendously dark wrapped robusto sized cigar. The wrapper is very dark, and consistent dark chocolate brown topped off with a rounded double cap. The construction is immaculate. I really had to strain to find the very small veins hidden, and embedded in the body of the cigar. There is only one soft spot located in the dead center of the cigar’s body. The band on the Casa Magna Oscuro is identical to the Casa Magna Colorado with the only differences being the silver color vs. gold, and the word “Oscuro” inlayed on a red ribbon across the bottom. The wrapper of this Casa Magna Oscuro gives off a very strong, and pungent tobacco aroma with an almost floral finish. The foot of the cigar gives off very sweet tobacco notes with earthy hints and spice. The cigar cut off very easily and clean using my Cuban Crafters double bladed perfecto cutter. The cold draw produced some unexpected sweet organic tobacco flavors along with grass and grain.

First Smoke: The Casa Magna Oscuro didn’t start off with the initial burst of pepper I figured it would. Instead it lead me in with a very light and smooth organic tobacco and chocolate flavor backed by a nutty taste mixed with spice and just a splash of pepper on the finish. The draw is slightly tight, but still manageable producing a very nice, thick cloud of brown woodsy smelling smoke. The burnline is sharp as hell and very even with only very subtle waves. The Casa Magna Oscuro does leave behind a nice, hefty trail of spicy tobacco smelling stationary smoke so it may not be the best cigar to fire up around anyone who dislikes smoke. One note is the wrapper is starting to give off a very bitter taste on my lips. I really hope this fizzles out cause its pretty bad. The cigar is burned extremely slow, producing a nice looking medium grey ash with a few slight flakes which held on for about an inch and a half before giving way.

Halfway There: As I had hoped the bitter taste only lasted a few draws and then crawled back into it’s dark little hole where I hope it stays for the remainder of the experience. The second third of this Casa Magna Oscuro had quite a few interesting change ups in it’s flavor profile. The chocolate and cocoa flavors are now the big contenders backed by nut, spice, and a very woodsy taste. The retrohale is very smooth producing a nice woodsy prime. I am not feeling much of a nicotine kick, if any from this cigar so far, smooth all the way. The burnline is still dead even and extremely thin, my only worry now is the harsh build up that may effect the last third of this cigar. I am having slight trouble keeping this cigar going so I am taking hits more often than usual. Hopefully this won’t complicate things further down the road.

Finish: The Casa Magna Oscuro is really starting to ramp up in body now. I am definitely feeling the nicotine at this point. The flavors seem to have outgrown the cigar at this point and have become a bit dull and bready. You can still taste the wood and the chocolate but that’s about it. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing as it lead to a much smoother finish than I had expected with very little harshness into the final inch. The burnline stayed sharp and even the entire smoke, and the only real annoyance was the cigar’s tendency to want to go out on me. It never fully did, but there was a few close calls. All in all it took about 1.75 hours to take down the slow burning little robusto.

Overview: This is a great balanced cigar and an excellent catch at it’s low price. This is no beginner’s cigar. The last third really proved to be a powerhouse that I think would stretch the limitations of the novice cigar smoker. This is one of those everyday rotation cigars you have mixed in when you want that extra stout/full bodied smoke. I would recommend it in singles and for the fair price, even a box pickup.

Pairing: I paired this Casa Magna Oscuro with another favorite of mine, Chimay’s Tripel or White Label. This is a hefty little triple weighing in at 8% alcohol and a whole lot of goodness. This light profile beer contains a perfect mixture of both fruity sweetness and zest making for a great balanced beer. In retrospect, this probably wasn’t the best pairing for this cigar as the abundant chocolate and stout profile wasn’t an even mashup for the beer. This beer would pair much kinder with a light Connecticut or even Cameroon wrapped mild cigar. The Casa Magna Oscuro would be perfect with some Dr. Pepper, iced tea, or coffee.

The post Casa Magna Oscuro appeared first on Cigar Reviews | Beer Pairings | Casas Fumando.