March 20, 2012 | By Dan Reeve
We
have been having spring-like weather here in Columbus, which has been
great. The other day was beautiful, so out to the back deck I went to
smoke a cigar for review. I really hope winter has come to an end
because an after dinner smoke on the deck is really something I enjoy.
For review, I pulled out another stick that I picked up on my recent
trip to the ProCigar festival. The General Cigars Special Blend #7 was
given at the annual "white party" dinner on the second night in
Santiago. The dinner parties are where all the manufacturers pass out
the latest releases or special blends made just for the festival. I
emailed Victoria McKee (Public Relations for General Cigar) to get some
more info on this stick, but it seems they are currently being very
tight-lipped on this one.
A quote from Victoria McKee on the Special Blend #7 The cigar
we gave out at the white party was actually a new blend that has never
been released. We are not going to provide details because it's quite
possible that we will release this blend in the near future.
That's all the information I have on this cigar, so I'm moving on to the review.
Vitola: Toro
Length: 6
Ring Gauge: 50ish
Wrapper: proprietary
Binder: proprietary
Filler: proprietary
Price: $?
Smoking Location: my back deck
Beverage: water
February 16, 2012 | By Dan Reeve
Today's
review is on the first release from Eddie Ortega's new company, Ortega
Cigars. At the end of January, Eddie publicly announced that he was
leaving his partnership and previously successful company EO Brands to
venture out on his own.
A quote from the official press release: “I’ve wanted to do this for
quite some time and now is the right time,” said Eddie, who also said
“Ortega will focus on developing long lasting brands at affordable
prices. I have no interest in the so called limited release market,
plenty of those are around. I’d much rather build solid brands that
consumers enjoy and will be around for years to come,”
I am very happy for Eddie as a businessman and as a friend, and I can't
wait to see what he comes up with in his new venture. I'm also very
happy to hear that he will continue to work with the My Father factory
to have his cigars made. It's kind of sad to see that the O of EO
brands will no longer be promoting the 601 line (a cigar I've smoked a
ton of throughout the years), but I am sure they will continue on to
make great cigars, also.
(Due to the size of this cigar, this review is only in two parts instead of the traditional thirds.)
Vitola: Corona-ish
Length: 4.5
Ring Gauge: 48
Wrapper: Mexican San Andreas Maduro
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: $5.99
Smoking Location: New Havana Cigars
Beverage: Water
February 10, 2012 | By Dan Reeve
Tonight's
review is a cigar that traveled a long distance to get to me. The J.
Fuego 777 Corojo “Paka” is a special size of the 777 blend produced
specifically for Tamura's Fine Wine and Liquors B&M in Hawaii.
A quote from Tamura's Fine Wine and Liquors website: At our last
smoker event with Jesus Fuego back in April, Jesus decided to create an
"Exclusive" smoke for us at Tamura's. The "Paka" is based off the 777
Corojo blend, but was kicked up a little to add some more spice. It has
a pig tail cap and a "closed" foot. The purpose of the closed foot is
so the smoker can get a little more taste from the wrapper leaf when
they first light the cigar. A limited batch was made to test it out, so
if you're curious, get your stick today!
A regular patron of Tamura's confirmed that there were only 200 boxes of these made. My friend Jon (Fia
on the BOLT message board) sent me this stick and I want to give him a
very grateful thanks because I don't think I would have managed to get
my hands on one any other way. On to the review.
Vitola: Robusto
Length: 4.5
Ring Gauge: 52
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Corojo
Binder: Nicaraguan Corojo
Filler: Nicaraguan Corojo
Price: $5.99
Smoking Location: New Havana Cigars
Beverage: Water
February 1, 2012 | By Dan Reeve
Last Friday, Governors Smoke Shop (@GovernorsSmokes on twitter), a relatively new shop in the Columbus area, hosted a large Drew Estate event. Our local sales rep Sam Smerkol was there holding down the fort, as well as special guest David Lafferty
Video - Event: Drew Estate Mega Event - Governor Smoke Shop, Westerville Ohio - Cigar Explorer from Cigar Explorer on Vimeo.
Corona ¡Viva! - 5 5/8 x 46 - slightly tweaked blend to increase the octane just a wee bit... did this figuring the guys most likely to desire this format are those with more experience and would desire a slightly stronger cigar (ME... lol) Keep in mind though the tweak keeps the UC blend intact, we didn't want to overshadow the natural sweetness or the creaminess of the core UC, so this is minor adjustment that I suspect many may not even notice. We probably won't even tell people... at least formally. (Source BOTL Website)
Vitola: Corona ¡Viva!
Length: 5 5/8
Ring Gauge: 46
Wrapper: Mexican San Andrés Negro
Binder: Connecticut Habano
Filler: Nicaraguan & Brazilian
Price: $?
Smoking Location: New Havana Cigars
Beverage: Water
January 29, 2012 | By Dan Reeve
Tonight's
cigar is a release to celebrate the 18th Anniversary of business for
Bonita Smoke Shop in Bonita Springs, Florida. If you are not familiar
with Bonita Smoke Shop, (website: http://www.bonitasmokeshop.com
) they are one of the finest online retailers and when it comes to
social media and customer service, they might be at the very top for
involvement. Jackie (@Bonitasmokeshop
on twitter) has always been lightning fast to answer questions with me
and I can't recommend them high enough. With that said, let's find out
what this cigar is all about...
Quote and video from the Bonita Smoke shop webpage: Bonita's
18th Anniversary cigars epitomizes all that is desired in a high
quality premium hand rolled cigar. Custom blended of the finest tobacco
and made expressly for Bonita Smoke Shop. Available in Limited Short
Runs at our store and online. Enjoy one soon! Our sincere gratitude to
Willie Herrera of ETB Cigars for helping us create a cigar that we are
honored to put our name on. Bonita's 18th Anniversary cigar is an
extremely well balanced cigar, with a delicious crescendo of flavor, in
the medium flavor profile range.
They aren't many names as popular right now as Willie Herrera, so I can't wait to try another one of his custom blends.
Vitola: Robusto
Length: 6
Ring Gauge: 50
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan & Dominican
Price: $6.95
Smoking Location: New Havana Cigars
Beverage: Water
January 23, 2012 | By Dan Reeve
Up
for review today was the newest offering from Kristoff Cigars the
Corojo Limitada. I keep a nice supply of Kristoff products in my humidor
because I have found that, when I have friends over, it's a brand that
normally goes over well from the most experienced smokers to the new
guys/gals.
From what I can find online, and from what Glen Case (owner of Kristoff
cigars and all around one of the nicest guys you will meet in the cigar
industry), told me the Corojo Limitada is the fullest in strength cigar
they have in production at this time.
A quote from the Kristoff Cigars Official webpage "The
new Corojo Limitada is for the fan of Nicaraguan tobacco. Nearly a
puros Nicaraguan blend, this medium-full bodied cigar is loaded with
spice, nutmeg, toasted nut and a sweet-spicy finish. Made with 100%
Habano seed tobacco that is double and triple fermented, the Corojo
Limitada maintains the Kristoff tradition of flavor and smoothness. The
signature of Kristoff Cigars."
I tend to lean more towards Nicaraguan cigars in my personal taste, so the quote above sounded good. On to the review...
Vitola: Robusto
Length: 5.5
Ring Gauge: 54
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Corojo
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan & Dominican
Price: $8
Smoking Location: New Havana Cigars
Beverage: Water
January 16, 2012 | By Dan Reeve
Today's cigar for review is the next installment from Drew Estate in the Flying Pig line. The Feral Flying Pig is a departure in size from the previous two pig releases (the Flying Pig #9 and the Flying Pig T52) and is quite a bit bigger. As well as the size being different, Jonathan Drew has posted online that it is a completely different blend than the other releases and that it is significantly stronger. Steve Saka (President of Of Drew Estate) has also been quoted saying this is the best Flying Pig release yet.
In this video that we did back in June of 2011 Jonathan speaks briefly about the stick (at the 6:58 mark)
Video - Interview: Jonathan Drew, My Uzi Weighs A Ton - Burning Leaf, Chicago Illinois - Cigar Explorer from Cigar Explorer on Vimeo.
I'd heard a lot of hype for this stick for the last few months, so I was excited to finally get my hands on some because, currently, they don't seem to easy to come by. Now, on to the review...
Vitola: Big flying pig :)
Length: 5.375
Ring Gauge: 60 (at it's fattest point)
Wrapper: Connecticut broadleaf
Binder: Brazilian Mata Fina
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: $17 and some change in Columbus
Smoking Location: New Havana Cigars
Beverage: Water
January 7, 2012 | By Dan Reeve
Today's
review comes from a brand that I don't smoke all that often, but one of
which I have had my fair share. Although I am a fan of a few of the La
Flor Dominicana blends (more specifically the Limitado IV), I had
never had one of their cigars blow me away.
The LFD Factory Press IV was released in Novemeber of 2011. The Factory
Press line has been a pretty big hit for La Flor Dominicana and I wasn't
surprised that a new version of this stick had hit the shelves.
A quote from Litto Gomez of La Flor Dominicana. (Taken from their Facebook page) "For
years I have been fascinated with our cigar box-pressing system. Many
times I have thought how great it would be to share the process with
our fans. That is why I'm offering a very special cigar shipped in the
actual factory press. Because the concept is so special we needed to
blend a cigar that will be totally unique to La Flor Dominicana"
Like I said above, for me, La Flor Dominicana has had some winners and
some losers. I was eager to find out how this particular stick fares.
Vitola: Box pressed Double Toro
Length: 6.5
Ring Gauge: 60
Wrapper: Mexican
Binder: Ecuadorian
Filler: Dominican
Price: $15 and up
Smoking Location: Governor's Smoke Shop
Beverage: Water
December 28, 2011 | By Dan Reeve
Happy
Holidays everyone! For this special time of year, I thought I'd try
something new for my site. Last year, and again this year, my friend
from Japan Kenji Fukui (@madoqa on twitter and his blog http://shortash.blogspot.com/)
sent me a nice little Christmas present consisting of some Cuban
cigars. The difference between last year and this year is, after I sent
him a thank you note, he responded with a "review them" request. SO
Kenji, here is your review, and consequently my first Cuban cigar review
posted on this site. I hope you enjoy it.
A brief history on Trinidad Cigars (From Wiki):
According to Adriano Martínez, a former executive of Habanos SA, in Min Ron Nee's Illustrated
Encyclopedia of Post-Revolution Havana Cigars, the Trinidad brand was
first produced in 1969 at the El Laguito factory in Havana. In the early 90's, the cigar received much attention in Cigar Aficionado after an interview with Avelino Lara (formerly the manager of El Laguito, and a producer of cigars for the Graycliff Hotel in Nassau, Bahamas until his death on October 27, 2009). In the 1992 interview, Lara claimed that Trinidad was an ultra-exclusive brand that only Fidel Castro was authorized to hand out as diplomatic gifts. Lara also claimed Trinidads were of a higher quality than the much-lauded Cohibas that had formerly been diplomatic exclusives before their mass-market release in 1982.
The cigar for today is the 2010 Limited Edition release from Trinidad
and happens to be in one of my favorite sizes. (Due to the size of this
cigar, this review is only in two parts instead of the traditional
thirds.)
Specifics
Vitola: Short Robusto
Length: 4
Ring Gauge: 50
Wrapper: Cuba
Binder: Cuba
Filler: Cuba
Price: $15 and up
Smoking Location: New Havana Cigars
Beverage: Water
December 23, 2011 | By Dan Reeve
Today's
cigar review is on a stick I have had sitting in my humidor for awhile
now. A few months back, I was sent a very generous package from Miami
Cigars which , amongst some prototypes and some other new releases,
included a pair of Casa Miranda robustos. I have no excuse as to why it
took me so long to smoke this, other than there are so many new cigars
coming out each week and once a stick goes into my humidor, it might not
see the light of day again for weeks or months.
The official Press release from Miami Cigars about Casa Miranda: Rolled
exclusively by level 9 rollers from world re-nown factories in Cuba.
The cigar is being manufactured in historic Calle Ocho by Titan de
Bronze blended by master blender Willy Herrera.
This was a good
looking cigar that I really didn't know a lot about. I do know that they
were on display at the 2011 IPCPR, but these are the first two that
I've had the opportunity to smoke.
Specifics
Vitola: Robusto
Length: 5
Ring Gauge: 50
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: $10
Smoking Location: New Havana Cigars
Beverage: Water
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