The Stogie Guys

April may seem far too late to be publishing a 2010 wish list. But I tend to think of the industry on a fiscal year, each one beginning with that summer’s International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association (IPCPR) Trade Show. It’s a convenient approach because that annual event is where most new cigars debut.

Whether you consider this article four months early or four months late isn’t all that important. What is important is that I have five cigar-related wishes for 2010—and I want to share them with you. From the highly improbable to the entirely possible, here they are in no particular order:

1. Less is More

With a few rare exceptions, each year every cigar manufacturer feels compelled to come out something new. It has become nearly impossible to keep up with all the new offerings. This can lead to over-extension, inconsistency, consumer confusion, and, as my colleague writes, “lots of just plain duds.” I’d respect any company that shows up to this summer’s IPCPR Trade Show saying, “We don’t have anything new, we’re just focusing on our comparative advantage and maintaining the highest quality control.” That would be nice.

2. Join CRA

Restrictive smoking bans and outrageous tobacco taxes are out of control. With Cigar Rights of America (CRA), everyday stogie enthusiasts finally have a voice. But that voice will only grow in effectiveness and influence if more brothers of the leaf join up. I hope 2010 brings CRA great recruiting success, bolstered by the nonprofit’s discount program and members-only samplers.

3. Quality Over Quantity or Strength

The growing trend towards large cigars and full-bodied powerhouses is somewhat frustrating. Sure, I’ll enjoy a 60 ring gauge cigar or a ligero-filled pepper bomb every once in awhile, but I’m starting to fear the rise of a “bigger and bolder equals better” mindset and how that might impact the market. This year, let’s not forget how fantastic a truly magnificent mild cigar can be.

4. More Attention for Boutiques

Small-batch cigar makers are not to be ignored, especially since many are turning out some of today’s best blends. Regular StogieGuys.com readers will be familiar with the likes of Tesa, Cuban Crafters, Bucanero, and others. There are countless more just waiting to be discovered. So, in 2010, make a commitment to step outside your name-brand comfort zone and uncover a hidden gem.

5. End the Cuban Embargo

When JFK signed the embargo in 1962 (immediately after hypocritically securing himself a stash of soon-to-be criminalized sticks), it was thought that such restrictions would cripple Castro’s regime. That obviously didn’t work. Since then, the U.S. has continued to trade with other communist countries like China and Vietnam, only to see them take marginal steps towards freer enterprise. So it’s time to finally repeal this obsolete law, liberalize trade and travel with Cuba, ease the suffering of the Cuban people who have endured so much under Castro’s tyranny, and make Cuban cigars legal in the U.S.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Flickr

Here are a yet more random thoughts about cigars and the cigar industry:

Are Two Wrappers Better Than One?

Once a gimmick, now it seems to be the next frontier of cigar blending. More and more we’re seeing cigars with multiple wrappers, and not of the barber-pole type. Recently, Joya de Nicaragua and La Gloria Cubana both introduced cigars with two wrappers—one for for the beginning of the smoke, one for the end. The concept makes a lot of sense in a way. Just as dinner usually comprises of an appetizer before the main dish, these new cigars offer a progression of two distinct flavors in one cigar.

Cigars Heating Up

We’re getting to the time of year when temperatures are heating up. That’s a good thing if the cold was keeping you from enjoying a cigar in the great outdoors, but it also creates a challenge when it comes to maintaining proper humidity in your humidor. If you’re unsure about the readings you’re getting use this technique to calibrate your hygrometer.

Mexican Tobacco Surging

When Eddie Ortega told me he had never seen Don Pepin Garcia more excited than when discussing the Mexican tobacco used in the new Murcielago, I knew something was afoot. A recent article in Smoke Magazine about the resurgence of Mexican tobacco confirmed the trend. Until the mid-90s Mexican trade policy made it too costly to import tobacco, resulting in only the production of Mexican puros. Fortunately, the Mexican government is finally eliminating some of the red tape and making Mexican tobacco a viable source for multi-country blends.

No Place Like Home

We’ve said it so many times before but, especially in these challenging economic times, I’ll say it again: It’s important to support your local brick and mortar cigar shop. Sure, sometimes you get a better deal online, but there’s no substitute for a helpful tobacconist. If you don’t support your local shop, the next time you drive by it may be for a going-out-of-business sale.

–Patrick S

photo credit: LGC & JdN

Bigger and bolder equals better. That seems to be the mantra of the industry these days, evidenced by the prevalence of 60 ring gauge cigars and the growing infatuation with Nicaraguan tobacco.

It likewise stands to reason that ligero tobacco is in demand like never before. Ligero is the most full-flavored of tobacco leaves due to its concentration of nutrients and direct exposure to sunlight at the top of the plant. Aiming to pack a bigger punch, some cigar makers are cramming more ligero into their blends than was once thought acceptable. Take Sam Leccia, for example, who introduced a “straight ligero” blend last summer.

A year before Cain, CAO released a ligero-laden blend at the IPCPR Trade Show in Las Vegas. Called Lx2 (“ligero times two”), it features a hearty helping of spicy ligero leaves surrounded by a Honduran binder and a sungrown Nicaraguan wrapper. It is the third installment of the Nashville-based company’s “x2 trilogy” that also includes Mx2 (Maduro) and Cx2 (Cameroon).

The Lx2 Lancero is a dark, slender smoke measuring seven and a half inches with a 38 ring gauge. Its oily, somewhat lumpy wrapper and pigtail cap make a striking first impression, as do its bold pre-light notes of espresso.

Once lit, a sharp peppery taste takes center stage with background flavors of dry wood and bitter coffee. Powerful with a bready texture. Any wishes for a more subdued profile go unheeded until the midway point where a bit of smoothness kicks in.

With no signs of creaminess or sweetness, smoking slowly is absolutely essential to prevent the Lx2 from growing too meaty. The perfect pace can be hard to achieve, though, given the Lancero’s stiff draw. The white ash and the burn line are perfect.

These physical properties were consistent across all ten Lanceros I smoked for this review. What was inconsistent, however, was the intensity of the cigar’s aftertaste. The first few, smoked over six months ago, had a heavy coarseness that rendered them too overbearing. My most recent samples had a more balanced finish.

I’m hoping this stogie ultimately confirms the hypothesis that full-bodied cigars tone down with age. If so, my Lanceros need a bit more maturity before they reach their full potential. Despite that potential, though, I’m judging my experience with the Lx2 Lancero in the here and now. And right now this cigar is lacking in balance. So while those who crave ligero’s unbridled punch are likely to rate this CAO more favorably, I’m giving it three stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Each Saturday and Sunday we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”

This nine inch, 50 ring gauge behemoth starts out with a burst of pepper before settling into a savory, well-balanced smoke. Dressed in a Colorado brown five-year-old Nicaraguan wrapper, the cigar is a bit bumpy near the foot, but otherwise flawlessly constructed with excellent combustion characteristics. Despite it’s large size, only one match was needed to keep the Celebration lit. As it progresses, subtle cedar flavors create a medium- to full-bodied smoke with notes of cocoa and black pepper. This isn’t an everyday cigar (at around $20 it wasn’t designed to be). But if you’re looking for a special cigar to enjoy for over two full hours, it’s an excellent choice.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Each Saturday and Sunday we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”

The newest addition to the Trinidad lineup boasts unlit notes of cocoa, a textured Ecuadorian Cubano wrapper, and a binder/filler combination from Honduras and Nicaragua. Its construction, as with most Altadis smokes, is pretty darn good. But the flavor leaves something to be desired. Starting coarse and peppery and developing into coffee and leather, this Habana Reserve (5 x 44) has a chalky, mouth-coating aftertaste. I won’t soon be reaching for another No. 4, even with its wallet-friendly MSRP of $5.25.

Verdict = Sell.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

As we have since July 2006, each Friday we’ll post a mixed bag of quick cigar news and other items of interest. We call ‘em Friday Samplers. Enjoy.

1) Cigar Rights of America, a consumer public advocacy group that works to protect the freedoms of cigar enthusiasts, has launched a new discount program. Now members can get discounts at participating hotels, car rental services, theme parks, and cigar shops. These benefits come in addition to members-only cigar samplers and the satisfaction of joining the fight against harmful tobacco taxes and smoking bans. Click here to join CRA and exercise your rights.

2) The fate of a New Hampshire cigar tasting event lies in the hands of local politicians. For the past three years, CC&H Framing and Cigars has held an outdoor gathering in Keene. But some, including Councilor Philip M. Jones, want to outlaw the 2010 event, currently slated for August. “I just think it sends a bad message,” Jones told the Keene Sentinel. The City Council has the final say next Thursday.

3) Inside the Industry: Perdomo is lowering some of its blend’s prices, including the Lot 23 and Grand Cru. The new San Cristobal Papagayo XXL (5.75 x 60)—the largest of the line—is now available. Camacho Cigars is introducing its new Legendario Connecticut. CigarAuctioneer.com is auctioning off special signed boxes of Nicaraguan smokes (including the Padrón Family Reserve, Liga Privada No.9 Flying Pig, My Father No.3, and Oliva Serie V Torpedo) with the proceeds going to the Santa Lucia Home for The Elderly in Nicaragua.

4) Around the Blogs: The Tiki Bar lights up a Davidoff Maduro C. Stogie Review reviews a Viaje Reserva Platino. Keepers of the Flame takes a deeper look at cigar chemistry. Nice Tight Ash checks out the Punch Rare Corojo. A Cigar Smoker smokes the Illusione 88. Cigar Inspector inspects a Por Larrañaga Belicoso Extra RE Asia Pacific.

5) Deal of the Week: This Don Pepin Elite Selection sampler features some of the legendary cigar maker’s finest smokes. Included are two each of the Tatuaje Havana, 5 Vegas Miami, Cuban Classic, and San Cristobal—all for the reasonable price of just $45. Grab yours here.

–The Stogie Guys

photo credit: CRA

These days there are no shortages of cigar reviews online. Seems everyone has an opinion and wants to share.

That’s not necessarily a bad thing. But before you read every cigar review out there and take each as gospel, let’s keep in mind what a review is…and, just as importantly, let’s keep in mind what a review isn’t.

First off, a review can only be as good as the limited inputs that created it. That means whatever review you’re reading is first and foremost limited by two important factors: the reviewer, and the cigars sampled.

Be weary of reviews of based on just one cigar. Cigars are, by nature, a finicky product. What harvest was used? What year was the cigar produced? How long were the cigars aged after they were produced? Under what conditions were the cigars kept? These are just some of the factors that determine how a cigar smokes.

That’s why the first thing I look for in a cigar review is how many smokes were sampled. It’s also why I regularly smoke three or more cigars before writing a full review. (Our Quick Smokes, on the other hand, are upfront about the fact that they are based on just one smoke.) Particularly when it comes to construction, and also when it comes to flavor, a cigar can vary  greatly from stick to stick.

My standard operating procedure is to smoke three cigars of the same blend and size. If all three reveal similar characteristics I go ahead and write my review. If significant variation is detected, on the other hand, I try and smoke at least two more cigars before giving my take. And in the rare circumstance that fewer than three samples make up a review (cigars that are hard to procure, for example) I always explicitly state that in written review.

While the number of samples is an important factor in how much weight to place in a specific review, perhaps the largest and most under appreciated factor is the limitation of just who is doing the tasting. Smokers have a wide variety of palates and preferences, and failing to account for such preferences makes most cigar reviews useless.

Here at StogieGuys.com, we deal with this by assigning a name to each review. Our hope is  that, over time ,you can appreciate the subtleties of the palate of each reviewer since every time you read a review you learn a little more about that person’s preferences and biases.

And speaking of biases, don’t think that just because a “panel” has reviewed a cigar that such biases are eliminated. Cigar Aficionado‘s reviewers are a very small subset of cigar smokers, and they represent just as particular of a viewpoint as any particular reviewer here on StogieGuys.com or on any other site. I’m reminded of one prominent cigar veteran who told me he thinks that some cigar makers specifically blend their cigars to the tastes of CA‘s reviewers.

This brings me to to perhaps the most controversial aspect of cigar reviews: ratings. A rating of 95 in CA can be a goldmine for the company that makes that cigar. But I’m still not clear about what the difference is between 95 and 92 or, for that matter, 90 and 88. (Not to mention the fact that of the thousands of cigars reviewed by Cigar Aficionado in nearly two decades, only two have have been rated lower than “average to good commercial quality.”)

That’s why we employ a rating system that doesn’t pretend to know a 2-point difference out of a scale of 100. And why we place more emphasis on what is said within the review as opposed to the final score.

The lesson is that any cigar review can only be the result of a limited set of experiences by one or a few reviewers. Treating a review as anything more than a limited set of opinions misses the point. Reviews are guideposts, not gospel.

While experienced palates will have common experiences, they will always be limited in their usefulness. Ultimately, the only palate that matters is the one smoking the cigar, and the “best” cigar is the one you like the best. Nothing more, nothing less.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Flickr