The Stogie Guys

Here at StogieGuys.com we’re staunch supporters of local cigar shops. It’s through local tobacconists that most cigar smokers take the first step into the “Brotherhood of the Leaf.” Brick and mortar cigar shops (B&Ms) are the lifeblood of the cigar industry.

The good ones have their own personalities and a wonderful group of friendly regulars. But not every shop is great, and most have room to improve.

I’ve walked into enough cigar shops over the years to know that certain things frustrate me enough that they make me want to take my business elsewhere, sometimes never to return. If you’re lucky, here are five things you’ll never experience at your local shop (and if these sound far too familiar to you, it may be time to find a new place to buy your cigars):

Up Sell, Up Sell, Up Sell. I realize tobacconists exist to make money, but automatically steering every customer who comes off the street towards that $18 Davidoff or $30 Opus X isn’t just obnoxious, it’s short-sited. Occasionally, people really are looking for that once-in-a-decade, money-is-no-object smoke, but more likely they already have a price in mind, so why not just them what they want to spend and then start from there? If I say I’m looking to spend $5 and you give me a few suggestions including one that costs $7, that’s fine, understandable, and probably even helpful. But if you’re pushing $15-20 smokes and I feel embarrassed for only wanting to spend $3-4 on a cigar, then I won’t be back.

Stop BS’ing Me. Following cigars as closely as I do, I’ve developed a keen ear for cigar BS. Despite what you tell me, that house blend cigar you’re hawking certainly doesn’t taste just like a Cuban Cohiba, and just because it’s box-pressed and maduro doesn’t make it a dead-ringer for a Padrón Family Reserve 45. Further, just because you don’t carry a certain cigar doesn’t mean it isn’t made or has been discontinued. Maybe most people don’t catch on immediately to the fact that you’re full of it, but later on in the day when they google that cigar you told them isn’t made, they’ll realize you were fibbing just to make a sale. So here’s a simple rule: Know what you know, and admit if you’re not certain about something. Ultimately, that’s far better than a customer finding out later that he has been lied into spending his hard-earned dollars.

Keep it Clean. Dirty hygrometers, lots of cracked wrappers in the humidor, full ashtrays, overflowing garbage cans, and dusty cigar boxes are far too common in some shops. A messy B&M makes me think the employees don’t care about their shop or their product, which makes me wonder if I should either. As a cigar consumer, I’m investing, in part, in the fact that you’ve cared properly for the cigars I’m buying, so make sure it’s clear you value your merchandise. And while you’re sprucing up the place, is it too much to ask for wooden matches (as opposed to paper ones doused in lighter fluid) when I just dropped a 20-spot on three cigars?

Lazy or Hostile Service. While regular visitors to a cigar shop almost always get a warm welcome and full service, a better test of a good cigar shop is how its employees treat the new customer who walks in for the first time. Are strangers welcomed and offered assistance, or do they just get a quick “hey” before being ignored so the shop employee can go back to talking with the regulars? On the other side of the coin, there’s nothing worse than overbearing shop workers who treat you like a criminal. (I realize theft is a concern in many shops, but there are ways to deal with this that don’t involve shadowing a customer’s every move after they’ve just told you they’re just browsing.) You never know who might be your next regular customer, so treat every customer like they’re likely to return a few times every week.

Badmouthing Cigars. People have strong feelings about cigars. Despite this, why do some cigar shopkeepers feel the need to badmouth products they don’t carry? I don’t need you to tell me that “brand A” is overrated or “brand B” is overpriced. If I asked about a cigar it’s probably because I like it or heard good things. Bluntly telling me I’m wrong is insulting. Suggestions for alternatives are welcome, but talking down a cigar you don’t carry is unnecessary and rude.

While supporting good local cigar shops, particularly those who support our rights as cigar smokers, is the duty of cigar enthusiasts, we have no obligation to support shops with poor service. Not coincidentally, the shops that are most active fighting for cigar rights are rarely offenders when it comes to the above list.

Local cigar shops have plenty of competition from internet and mail-order shops. Still, I’m convinced that, even with lower volume and higher taxes, they can compete and even thrive when they focus on taking care of every customer and avoiding the pitfalls listed above.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Flickr

Viaje is a brand I’ve never fully gotten acquainted with. Maybe that’s because none of my regular shops seem to carry it, or because buying this brand is a significant investment (especially by the box), or because with, so many limited releases, it’s difficult enough to keep track of Viahe, let alone track it down.

Still, there’s a lot going for Viaje, not the least of which is a small but growing group of loyal fans. Further, Viaje is made by the same people behind Casa Fernandez, who, addition to their own cigars, make such highly regarded smokes as Illusione, Padilla (1932 & Miami), and Alec Bradley (Tempus and Prensado) at their Raices Cubana factory. Fernandez is also the original partner of Don Pepin Garcia with whom he co-owns the El Rey de Los Habanos factory in Miami (though that is the subject of a current legal dispute).

The Fifty-Fifty concept is a unique idea, with the premise being that one cigar contains two distinct blends, which transitions from one to the other at the halfway mark. According to Viaje creator Andre Farkas, “Each cigar is carefully crafted taking triple the amount of time a normal cigar takes to roll. The cigar comes wrapped in a dark, oily Nicaraguan cover leaf with two binders holding the filler in place.”

The Black Label aims to transition from full to fuller, while the Red Label aims to be a more balanced transition from medium to full body. Like the Red Label, the Black comes in three sizes selling for around $9-10 per cigar and upwards of $200 for a box of 25. For this review I smoked several No. 1s (5.6 x 46). The Nicaraguan puro features a oily wrapper with a small pigtail cap. It has a slight give when you give it a squeeze, but no exterior indication that inside there is a change in blend.

When I finally lit this corona extra I found a medium- to full-bodied blend (though I can certainly see how some would consider it full-bodied). I was struck by the sweetness that this cigar displayed in the first half. Cafe au lait, semi-sweet chocolate, vanilla bean, and subtle leather notes were all apparent. However, when I got to the second half (and presumably second blend), that sweetness disappeared entirely. Here the cigar is a truly full-bodied smoke. It’s leathery, earthy, and heavy with significant “mouth feel.” In addition, there’s some charred notes and a subtle peppery spice on the retro-hale.

One of the four samples I smoked required a few touch-ups to counteract an uneven burn, but the construction was mostly maintenance-free. That’s impressive given the two separate blends. And while some have criticized the transition from the first blend to the second as too abrupt, I didn’t find that to be the case. I may have liked the profile of the first half better than the second, but the transition was smooth enough to make it a largely seamless and enjoyable smoke. That, combined with good construction and the successful execution of a unique concept, earns the Viaje Fifty Fifty Black Label No. 1 a rating of four and a half stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

If you look online, you’ll find virtually zero information about Mataza, a new line from the Alec Bradley Cigar Company, maker of such cigars as Maxx, Prensado, and Tempus.

I say “virtually” because, for now, there’s only one website that talks about Mataza. It belongs to Hiland’s Cigars, a tobacconist in Scottsdale, Arizona, that carries a nice selection of smokes and takes orders over the web and phone. Scott Hiland tells me that Mataza was sent to his store first. The line is expected to soon become more widely available.

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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 “Just For Retailers” cigar was created by the same people behind Casa Frenandez, who also produce (on contract for others) such lines as Illusione, Viaje, and Alec Bradley Tempus in their Honduran Raices Cubana factory. The Titan (6 x 60, $8) features a Connecticut wrapper around what we can only assume is Aganorsa Nicaraguan tobacco. The profile is of cream, cedar, and sweet graham notes, but hardly any spice. Not a bad smoke, but the JFR Connecticut isn’t as good as the other JFR blends (Corojo and Maduro).

Verdict = Hold.

–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.”

I recall this line as one of the leaders in full strength cigars when it came out in 2003. The complex blend, with its smoothness, pepper, and pop, simply blew me away. It was my favorite smoke for quite awhile, even as it changed a bit through the years. Somehow, though, I got away from it and hadn’t had one in a long, long time until recently. All I could do was wonder why I waited. I smoked several sizes, and enjoyed the robusto-sized Duma most. This Miami Cigar & Co. stick gets little notice and isn’t always easy to find. Whether, like me, you haven’t had one lately, or have never tried one, I urge you to light it up.

Verdict = Buy.

–George E

As we have since July 2006, each Friday we’ll post a mixed bag of quick cigar news and other items of interest. Below is our latest Friday Sampler.

1) The generosity of the cigar community knows no bounds, and that charitable spirit is in fine display in the wake of the deadliest tornado season in 50 years. The Montecristo Relief Organization, established in 1999 by Altadis after devastating hurricanes swept through the Caribbean, is donating $25,000 in vital aid to the victims of last month’s tornado in Joplin, Missouri. It is also matching the first $75,000 donated by Altadis employees, vendors, and customers. If you’d like to contribute, you can send a check to: Montecristo Relief Organization, Joplin Tornado Relief, c/o Altadis U.S.A., PO Box 407179, Ft. Lauderdale, FL, 33340.

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This started out to be about a cigar, but, like so many things involving the Internet, it evolved into something else altogether. What began as a simple search to get information on a cigar given to me about which I knew nothing led, instead, to a site I can only describe as a masterwork of cigar scholarship.

The website is called Zen & the Art of the Cigar. I had read reviews there numerous times, but failed to really explore the site. It was only after the incredible information that turned up as I was searching for the Gurkha European Selection Habano 2000 that I began to grasp what was there.

Interestingly, it has something in common with a Zen koan because, while I can describe it simply, that would utterly belie its complexity. What am I talking about? Well, you could say it‘s a list of all the Gurkha cigars, comprising, as I write this, 93 blends. But in reality there’s so much in addition to the basics. You’ll learn about wrappers, strength, vitolas and what’s an Internet exclusive. And more. Jamie Sprenkel is the man behind the site and the list, as well as others he has compiled and made available under the Manufacturer Spotlight link at the top of his site.

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