The Stogie Guys

Each Saturday and Sunday we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief take on a single cigar.

Between giving it a great review and naming it my 2007 Thanksgiving cigar of choice, I’ve made no secret of my affinity for the Brown Label Toro. The four and ½ inch by 54 ring gauge Figurado, not surprisingly, is another winner. The sun-grown Cuban-seed criollo wrapper and corojo binder provide the same tastes of licorice, spice, earth, toasted nuts, and cocoa in a much shorter format – all for under $1.50 per stick when bought by the box.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

In our ongoing effort to make StogieGuys.com as entertaining and reader-friendly as possible, each Friday we’ll post a selection of quick cigar news and stogie-related snippets. We call ‘em Friday Samplers. Enjoy.

1) Lawmakers in Lansing are close to an invasive smoking ban for one of America’s most oppressed states: Michigan. With a 56-46 vote this week, the House bypassed many members’ calls for bar and restaurant exemptions. A tougher fight, however, is expected in the Republican-controlled Senate.

2) Have an old cigar box collecting dust in your closet? In desperate need of a makeshift violin? Bring $25 and the box to Frye Guitars in Chicago tomorrow and you’ll be in business. After all, who wouldn’t want one of these under their tree?

3) Around the Blogs: Cigar Jack smokes a Oliva Serie V. Velvet Cigar puffs a Primos Toro. Cigar Beat tries the Rocky Patel Edge Maduro. Cigar Command smokes the Fuente Work of Art Maduro. The Stogie Review reviews the CAO Italia.

4) Deal of the Week: Here’s a deal that’s easy on the wallet: $25 for ten cigars, including sticks from Macanudo, Rocky Patel, Fuente, Onyx, H. Upmann, Oliva, Perdomo, and 601 by Pepin Garcia . Grab yours here.

–The Stogie Guys

photo credit: Flickr

As the year comes to close, people invariably look back. For cigar smokers, that usually means lists of the best new releases, top sticks of the year, and so forth. Well, I had an experience the other night that gave me a new perspective on how ephemeral that “best” designation can be.

My wife and I were meeting some friends for dinner at a genial bar/restaurant we’d chosen primarily for its large outdoor seating area. The night was typical for Florida in the fall, so just before we left I decided to grab a cigar. I picked up an H. Upmann, primarily because it was the first one I spotted that looked to be about five inches long, a length that seemed reasonable.

At first, things didn’t start well. I discovered the punch I’d recently put on my key ring had lost its metal cutting circle. As I prepared to bite the end off the cigar, a gentleman at the next table caught my eye and offered me the use of his guillotine. Then I recognized my second mistake: bringing only one cigar. I knew none of our companions smoke, so I didn’t even think about bringing another stick. As I thanked him for the loan of his cutter I could only apologize for not having another cigar, an apology he graciously waved off.

When I finally got down to smoking, though, it was great. I can’t recall enjoying one more. I’m sure the company, the weather, the friendly neighbor, and the food and drink all had a lot to do with it. Normally, I like most of the H. Upmann line OK, but I would never put them on my list of favorites. But in that setting that cigar was nothing short of terrific. It certainly made my top ten for the year.

–George E

photo credit: Altadis USA

Once again StogieGuys.com is using football as an excuse to give our readers an opportunity to win some great cigars. This time, one lucky reader will receive three fine sticks: a Graycliff Grand Cru, a La Aroma de Cuba, and a Bahia Gold – all courtesy of CigarsDirect.com.

The Bahia and the Aroma de Cuba will be the subject of upcoming reviews, while the Graycliff recently received an impressive rating of four out of five stogies.

To win, you need to do the best job picking the following Bowl Championship Series Games:

National Championship: Ohio State vs. LSU

Orange Bowl: Kansas vs. Virginia Tech

Fiesta Bowl: Oklahoma vs. West Virginia

Sugar Bowl: Hawaii vs. Georgia

Rose Bowl: USC vs. Illinois

To enter, leave a comment on this article that includes your picks for all five games and a prediction for the margin of victory and total points scored for the Championship Game.

The margin of victory, followed by total points, will be used as a tiebreakers if multiple entries correctly predict the same number of games including the National Championship. In the event of matching winning guesses, the first to respond is the winner.

Eligibility: Only one entry per person. Participants must be 21 (verification may be required) and must live in the continental US. You must enter a valid email so we can contact you for a mailing address.

All entries must be received before 2008. Good Luck!

–The Stogie Guys

photo credit: Stogie Guys

“Professional smokers only. Smoke while sitting down.” That’s the somewhat laughable caution adorning Rocky Patel’s Edge line. But after recently smoking about five EO 601 Serie “Green” cigars, I can’t help but think how these Nicaraguan puros are infinitely more deserving of the warning.

Introduced at this year’s RTDA trade show, the Green Label is the youngest, strongest brother in the 601 family. The series – which also includes the habano maduro Blue, Ecuador Connecticut Black, and habano natural Red – is made exclusively for United Tobacco by stogie legend Don “Pepin” Garcia.

The company is headed by Erik Espinoza and Eddie Ortega (thus the “EO” brand name). Keepers of the Flame was nice enough to point out in April that the line name signifies “the date that Eddie and Erik first went to visit Pepin’s factory in Nicaragua.”

Handmade in Estelí, the La Fuerza (loosely translated as “the force”) is five and ½ inches with a ring gauge of 54. This is one fantastic-looking stick. The habano oscuro wrapper is dark and oily with few large veins. For some reason I find the highly detailed green and gold band to be mesmerizing.

A heavy black pepper spice dominates the outset of this smoke with accompanying notes of coffee and roasted nuts – very full and balanced on the palate. That strong flavor settles down after an inch or so into tastes reminiscent of leather, clove, and cocoa bean.

Down the stretch the taste turns slightly bitter. Surprisingly, though, the cigar does not fall into the trap that befalls so many full-bodied sticks by becoming harsh or overpowering at the nub.

The physical properties are exactly what you’d expect from a Pepin-blended stogie: outstanding. The burn is good, the ash holds firm, and the draw is smooth and clear.

When it’s all said and done, this is one of the most full-bodied smokes I’ve ever had the pleasure to enjoy. For about $7 you get 80 minutes of hearty, complex flavors that pair well with anything from black coffee to dark rum.

Not an everyday smoke, but clearly a real treat for special occasions, the EO 601 Serie “Green” La Fuerza is worthy of four and ½ out of five stogies.

[To read more StogieGuys.com cigar reviews, please click here.]

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Back in June, Nat Sherman Cigars closed the doors of its midtown store on 5th Avenue and 42nd Street, in the heart of New York City. It was moving to its new store only a hundred or so feet away on 42nd Street between 5th Avenue and Madison, but that’s easier said than done.

Nat Sherman’s stock of 800,000 cigars moved to storage in North Carolina, where they waited for the new store to open. Eventually, on October 8, Joel Sherman cut the ribbon opening the new three-story space.

Over the Thanksgiving holiday I was able to visit the new space myself and sample some of the company’s famous cigars. Upon entering the store – which still has construction scaffolding covering Nat Sherman’s iconic clock – one notices the spacious 30 foot ceilings rimmed by a balcony and surrounded by decorative doors (below). Upstairs is Joel Sherman’s personal office and a conference room.

The main room features four areas of approximately equal size for pipe tobacco, premium cigarettes, smoking accessories and, of course, cigars. Above the main cash register is the same neon cigar sign (right) that was in the old Nat Sherman store on 5th Avenue.

In the back of the store, next to cigar orders from John Wayne, Frank Sinatra, and other world-famous stogie smokers, is a large walk-in humidor (pictured below), complete with personal lockers and an off-limits area in the back for the most expensive sticks.

Downstairs is the future home of the the new Nat Sherman cigar lounge. The manager tells me they hope it will be open by mid-December, and that Joel Sherman will make certain that it will be a fantastic space. As is increasingly the norm, the lounge will be members only, with a limited number dues-paying spots available.

Overall, it is a small oasis for cigar smokers in a city that is increasingly unfriendly to cigars. When the cigar lounge opens and the remaining construction is complete, Nat Sherman Cigars will once again be a must see for cigar smokers visiting the Big Apple.

–Patrick S

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Each Saturday and Sunday we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief take on a single cigar. The following is a Guest Quick Smoke, submitted by a StogieGuys.com reader. If you’d like to submit your own for publication, please contact us.

Produced in-house at Island Smoke Shop in Key Largo, Flordia, Santiago Cabana is the lesser-known sister brand of the full-bodied cult favorite, El Original. This five inch by 50 ring gauge robusto sports an evenly hued Ecuadoran wrapper with thin veins. Opens with a blast of red spice, then settles to a medium body with a distinctly meaty characteristic. Pepper returns with hints of cocoa on the close. A complex four-nation blend, excellent construction, and a $3.95 price tag make the U.S.-manufactured Santiago Cabana a keeper.

Verdict = Buy.

–Submitted by Kevin K from Land O Lakes, FL

photo credit: Kevin Kolber